"So what are they?" the Doctor asked excitedly, "Did you see them yet?" His eyes shone like a child's in a sweet shop. River stared at him a moment, he made her temper sky rocket,
"Why. Was. He. Put. Next. To. Me?" she yelled fighting furiously against the restraints. The Doctor rolled his eyes as she struggled.
"That isn't going to help," he sighed. Footsteps made the pair pause. The sound of a door opening and closing made their hearts race. The Doctor moved his head casually to try and catch a glimpse of whatever had entered the room. The face came out of nowhere. Hallow eyes, ceramic mask, face paint, big red nose and wickedly purple hair.
"C... C... Cl...," the Doctor stammered, "Clown! Arrr!" His hearts shot into overdrive. He struggled and fought in an attempt to escape, "Arrr... not a clown!... not a clown!" Sweat poured from him, his breathing was suddenly very rapid and shallow. The face tilted to one side menacingly, "Aaaahhh! Riverrr!... River make it go away! ... Make it go away! ... I... Hate... Clowns!" He clenched his eyes shut tightly realising there was no way out. He felt a small thud on his chest; he dared to open one eye. The ceramic mask had fallen onto him; the Doctor looked up in confusion. Its face was completely rounded and smooth, behind the clear, protective glass casing were intricate clockwork mechanisms. The Doctor's brow furrowed slightly as he caught his breath, "Oh," he breathed, "Hello again..."
"What is it?" River asked.
"It's a repair droid... they repair... well... anything. I met some once... they'll repair with anything they find... and i mean anything... human parts or mechanical parts... But something is wrong with this one... there's something missing... something... wrong" The Doctor frowned scanning the rotating clockwork mechanisms inside the droid, "What's wrong with you?" he asked curiously. With sharp jerky movements the droid backed away. In its hand the Doctor spied a shiny object. Straining his neck to get a better look the sight made the colour drain from his face, "You can't use that. It's not yours, it's not compatible" The droid raised the object up into view and began to move the other robotic arm up, "Don't open that!"
"Doctor...?" River asked sharply.
"My watch... It will change my biological structure into that of a human... a chameleon arc... all Time Lord Traits and memories will be gone... the watch will trigger its perception filter meaning I'll never 'see' it for what it is... I'll never open it" His voice became more and more rushed as panic set in, he tried once more to struggle against the restraints.
"Why do they want your watch?" The Doctor paused for a moment; his eyes darted from side to side as his mind was kick started into action.
"What's the connection...," he murmured. There was a very long pause, and the longest silence, "... Do you hear that...?" River turned her head to face him.
"Hear what?"
"Exactly," he breathed, "Not a tick... a Clockwork man who doesn't... tick"
"But your watch doesn't work," River whispered, "... and what about the missing people...?"
"Dead... all of them... dissected most likely. Who knows what makes people tick River? No one knows... I certainly don't know... so how would they know which part to use? ... And as for my watch... that watch is me... of course it doesn't tick... it makes me tick" The droid seemed to examine the watch carefully as the Doctor spoke, "So," he added brightly turning to face her, "Just in case you die and I'm turned into a human... there's something... you should know..." River frowned at him suspiciously.
"Go on..."
"I did take the pages out of your diary..."
"What!"
"... but it was an accident..."
"You read my diary?"
"... they just fell out..."
"But the rules!"
"... and I couldn't put them back because I'd have to read it to find out the order..."
"Doctor!"
"Yes... alright... I read it... a little... I skim read... I hardly even glanced really... but they did fall out by themselves"
"... Doctor..." she interrupted dangerously.
"Alright, alright I took them out... but they were graphic! ... And very... naughty... I had to! I mean come on, you're human... I'm a Time Lord... Think of the children!"
The droid had left by the time River had gotten the whole story out of the Doctor. He shook his head in despair and let it fall back against the table he was bound to. He stared blankly up at the ceiling, slightly annoyed that the information had been pried so easily from him.