Title: A Day and Life on the TARDIS
Author: Flydye8/Heintz571
Pairings: Clara/12th Doctor
Rating: T
Summary: This is a collection of stories about the times in-between Clara's and the Doctor's adventures. The ones we never see; because we all know once you starting living with someone, life always gets more interesting. The stories are primarily fluffiness, domestication, family life, romance and a loving friendship taking place after "Last Christmas".
Author's note: As always I must thank my beta reader Marie Anna Louise, YOU ARE WONDERFUL!
The Doctor and Clara sat at the cast iron table enjoying their tea, dressed in warm soft robes that they found under the sink in the bathroom. Both comforted by the sound of the rain falling around them.
The Doctor placed his cup down and grabbed her left hand and fiddled with the ring he had just given her, causing Clara to smile.
"When would you like to have the ceremony?" he asked quietly
"Well I don't know. Why do you ask?" she responded.
"I was thinking, well maybe.." he started then stopped.
"Out with it Doctor."
"I'm not sure how to ask without you getting upset," he said as he ran his hands through his hair before continuing, "I would like to get married as soon as possible so everyone knows how much I love you. But I also know that sometimes people make judgements on a woman if she gets married while pregnant, and I really don't want you to be the recipient of such prejudices. So if you want to wait till after our children are born that is okay."
Clara laughed which caused the Doctor to raise a confused eyebrow at her, and seeing his reaction made her to laugh even harder. Doing her best to catch her breath she stood and sat across his lap, weaving her fingers through his hair she kissed him, "Oh how I Iove you, my wonderful idiot. I'm not concerned about what people think and I won't be on Earth long enough to be the recipient of such negativities. The TARDIS is my home and once we are married, and the children are born, I expect you to whisk your whole family away and show us the stars."
He ran his fingers through her hair and smiled, "Oh I promise I'll do that. But I brought it up because the person I was thinking of was your step-mother. That dragon woman will probably cause difficulties at our wedding."
Clara giggled, "You got that from my grandmother didn't you?"
"Yes, I did and it is a fitting description of her."
"Well we won't let her ruin our special day. I won't let her, you won't let her and I'm sure our friends won't let her, especially Susan because she is a force to be reckoned with."
"You are absolutely right, as always my Clara," he said as he brought her lips to his for a stimulating kiss.
Clara moaned loudly against his lips feeling her increased arousal come to the surface. The Doctor took a deep breath, his body immediately reacting to the hormones being released from her body.
Growling with lust he lifted her off his lap and grabbed her hand leading her inside, "But first I think another ravishment is necessary."
When they arrived in their bedroom their lust was raging. They landed on the bed and soon moans and gasps harmonized with the sounds of the storm outside.
Susan diligently worked on the inhibitors and when she was finished she sat back in her chair and smiled.
"All done?" Jack's voice startled her.
Turning around to look at the Captain she answered, "Yes, I believe I got the configurations correct. Has there been any movements from the Cybermen?"
"No, it seems our little ruse has fooled them, which is surprising because I thought they were smarter than that."
"It does seem odd," Susan stated as she rose from her seat and handed him one of the bracelets, "It's a bit feminine but they will do the trick."
He placed on his wrist and smiled, "Well, you will find I have quite a feminine side."
Shaking her head, she replied as she placed her own inhibitor on her wrist, "Somehow that doesn't surprise me. Shall we go Captain? I really don't want to be here longer than necessary."
"Lead the way my lady," he replied with a smug smile.
"Activate the inhibitors before leaving the TARDIS just in case there is any rogue Cybermen around," Susan instructed as she pushed the activation switch on her bracelet. Jack followed suit and did the same.
Very carefully they opened the TARDIS doors and exited only to find they were unable to move beyond two feet of the time machine.
"What the hell?" Jack exclaimed as a lone Cyberman came into view.
"You are not the Doctor," the metallic voice stated.
Motioning for Susan to be quiet Jack switched off his inhibitor and answered, "No I'm not."
"Where is the Doctor? I need the Doctor," the voice said with emotion causing Jack to take note.
"You are not fully assimilated are you?" he stated.
"I'm am assimilated but I need the Doctor to help me."
Intrigued Susan turned off her own inhibitor and asked, "Why do you need help?"
The Cyberman stepped forward and with pain in its voice answered, "It is too late for me but not for my children."
Surprised Jack repeated, "Your children."
"My children, I need to save my children. Before they find out," the voice stated and with a dark tear running down its metallic face as it continued, "Please help my children."
With understanding Susan spoke, "Your children are not assimilated and you need us to help rescue them."
"Affirmative," the Cyberman stated.
Glancing over at Jack, Susan raised her eyebrows questioning what they should do, to which Jack just shrugged his shoulders. Evaluating everything she knew and read about the Cybermen the story was quite possibly true and since there wasn't hordes of Cybermen raining down on them she made her choice.
"Drop down the force field and we will help you save your children," she instructed.
With a nod the Cyberman walked over to a control panel and pressed a few buttons. Turning back, it stated, "We don't have much time before they know you are here."
"I understand. Jack can you turn off the shield on your own?"
"You just watch me. I will meet you back here in let's say thirty minutes."
"Okay, thirty minutes," Susan responded as she watched him rush off then said loudly, "Be careful Jack."
He stopped briefly and winked, "It's me," he simply stated as he continued on his way.
She watched him disappear around the corner before turning to the metal figure in front of her, "Okay show me where your children are."
Jack moved through the corridors of the ship hastily but stealthy only stopping for brief moments to make sure he was going in the right direction or when some Cybermen crossed his path. As he approached his destination he leaned over and peeked into the room which housed the control panel from which the shield holding the TARDIS was activated.
Inside the room were two Cybermen on duty. Pulling his body back from the opening he tried to think of a distraction to have them leave the room. Looking around his eyes fell upon a panel which controlled the emergency systems locating the holding cells where he assumed the children were being held. He scanned the screen to look for an area far from his location and the holding cells. Estimating that it will take him about five minutes to turn off the shield and another five to return to the TARDIS if he ran, he programmed the system to mimic an emergency in five minutes. After programming the panel, he moved back to the door opening and waited.
Susan followed the single Cyberman with her inhibitor active, after about five minutes they arrived at their destination.
The metal figure pressed a few buttons on the wall which caused the door to open, "We have to hurry because the control room will be alerted."
Entering the cell, Susan saw two children huddling together in a frightened embrace. Approaching them slowly she bent down to their level and smiled, "Hi, I'm here to help you."
The boy who was older, about eight years of age, pushed his sister who was probably about five years of age, behind him and bravely demanded, "Where is my mum?" then stepped back as the Cyberman entered the room, its metallic voice answered softly, "I am right here."
The boy stared in horror, "No you're not! My mum is not metal," with a bravery beyond his years he demanded, "Bring me to my mum now!"
The Cyberman knelt down to his level, "Please Anthony, believe me I am here."
The boy's eyes widened, "No one calls me that except my mum."
"I know," the metallic voice responded.
Susan watched as the boy moved closer to the metal shell that housed his mother, he lifted his hand and traced the angles of the face in front of him. With tears in his eyes he asked quietly, "How?"
"My love for you and Allison can never be eradicated by any machine."
Just at that moment alarms went off, turning toward Susan the Cyberman stated, "An emergency has been initiated. We must hurry."
Susan turned off her inhibitor and took the boy's hand as she lifted up his little sister onto her hip, "We need to move. I bet that's Jack's doing."
"I will go first," the metal voice stated.
Following closely behind the mother Cyberman they moved swiftly down the corridors back to the TARDIS only for their movements to be blocked by two other Cybermen.
"The children are not ready to be assimilated," one of the metal men stated the other followed up by saying, "This is not protocol."
The mother Cybermen raised her arm and fired killing them on contact, "Affirmative."
Jack hurried into the control room as soon as the Cybermen exited to investigate the emergency alarm. He reached the control panel and pushed a few buttons which brought down the shield around the TARDIS. Then reaching for his pistol, he pulled it out and fired a few shots effectively destroying the panel. He turned and hurried out of the room and back to the TARDIS dodging different Cybermen as he moved.
He reached the docking bay at the same time Susan did, but unfortunately four other Cybermen arrived at the same time. The mother Cyberman ordered as she fired off a few more shots bringing down two of the other Cybermen, "Hurry I will protect you."
The boy pulled away from Susan and grabbed the metal figure that was his mum, "I won't leave you!" he said with tears cascading down his cheeks. The metal face tilted to the side and looked down at the boy as she ran her metal hand through his hair, "Take care of your sister and know I will always love you. Now go!"
Jack rushed forward and extracted the boy from his mother's waist, "Come on it is time to go."
He, Susan and the two children entered the TARDIS as laser fire echoed through the docking bay. Susan handed Jack the little girl and rushed to the console. She quickly put in the coordinates, and pulling the activation lever she brought the TARDIS into the vortex.
Inside the docking bay the Cybermother continued to fire as she moved toward the closest control panel. When the TARDIS completely dematerialized she typed in the numbers for the self-destruct sequence then lowered her weapon as multiple laser shots hit their mark bringing her down. Before her internal systems blacked out she heard a female voice say, "One, self-destruct."
After bringing the TARDIS into the vortex, Susan turned and looked at the two children who were now in her care. She moved and kneeled in front of them not sure what to say when suddenly Anthony spoke, "Is my mum gone now?"
Susan nodded her head yes, "She is gone but she did something amazing."
"What?" Anthony asked as he pulled his sister close to him because she had started to cry.
"She loved you so much she gave you life twice, once when you were born and again when she saved you on that ship, and to me that makes her the most amazing mum in the universe."
"I will miss her," Anthony said sadly.
"Me too," Allison said as well, speaking for the first time since the rescue.
"I know," Susan stated before rising from the floor. Holding out her hands she continued, "I bet you both are hungry."
"Yes," the two children replied in unison.
"Then come on let's go and get something to eat," turning toward Jack she smiled at him, "Would you like to join us as well?"
"It would be my pleasure," he said returning her smile.
The Doctor stared at the ceiling as Clara slept at his side; he connected with his children growing inside of her, beseeching them to rest so their mother could do the same. His connection with them was growing stronger every day and he couldn't wait to welcome them into his loving arms. His mind continued to drift and soon he touched Clara's mind and smiled as he saw her dreams.
She was dreaming of the different things she wanted to do with their children, in flashes of images; them sitting on a beach of blue sand, showing them the stars from the door of the TARDIS, the children sitting at a table as she taught them school lessons.
Her dreams caused his hearts to constrict. How can he give her the family life she dreamed of when he had enemies constantly searching for him? How can he be the father his family needs when he is always looking over his shoulder in fear that something could happen to his love ones? One thought kept coming to the surface of his mind: a solution he really didn't want to do, but it might be the only solution they had.
Pushing all his negative thoughts down he pulled Clara closer to his body and he felt his hearts burst with love while at the same time aching with pain. He silently promised to himself that he would do whatever was necessary to keep his family safe, even if it meant he had to leave them.
A tear slipped down his cheek as he slowly removed himself from Clara's embrace causing her to moan slightly before turning over and falling back asleep. He put on his robe and went to the window to see the setting sun beneath the storm clouds bath the cottage with a golden light. He wiped his cheeks dry and left to room to make dinner for his wife and children.
Clara woke up to an empty bed. She sat up to look around the room for her husband, when the ring on her finger caught the evening light causing her to smile. She was going to be married to the Doctor and at this moment she couldn't be happier. Feeling her children kick inside her tummy she caressed the stretched skin and cooed, "Yeah I know your hungry, so let's find your Da and get something to eat."
She stood and put on her robe. As she got to the bottom of the stairs, she looked into the living room to find the area rug surrounded by pillows, and in the center of the rug was a plate of fruit. She heard the Doctor humming in the kitchen and she smiled as she walked into the living room. Sitting on one of the pillows she grabbed a grape and waited.
The Doctor carefully carried two bowls of a hearty beef stew into the living area. When he saw Clara he spoke, "It seems sleeping beauty has awakened."
"Yeah and she is very hungry."
"Good, I have made us some dinner," he responded as he handed her one of the bowls and then sat next to her before continuing, "Now dig in, I think you will like it."
Clara brought a spoonful of the stew up to her lips, after blowing softly she enjoyed the savory treat, "Oh my stars this is delicious," she said as she quickly brought another spoonful to her mouth.
He handed her a small loaf of bread, before enjoying his own meal. Clara dipped the bread into the gravy and took a big bite. With her mouth full she spoke, "You've been holding back. You are a great cook. Maybe you should take over the meals when we return to our house and the TARDIS." After swallowing her bite, she continued, "What would your enemies think if they knew you did domestication."
Upon her mentioning his enemies, the Doctor's fears came to the forefront of his mind. He placed his bowl down and cleared his throat, "About that."
Sensing that an important conversation was about to take place Clara placed her own food down and waited for him to continue.
"I'm worried that once word gets out that you are my wife and that we are expecting children, I will not be able to keep you safe."
"Doctor," Clara began as she grabbed his hand, "I understand your worry but I also know that when it comes to me and our children you will do everything in your power to keep us safe."
He tilted his head down and stared at their clasped hands. "We will constantly be on the run. Always looking over our shoulders for our enemies. What kind of family life is that?" he questioned then continued, "You know just as well as I that danger follows us wherever we go. The universe needs the Doctor and I cannot stop no matter how much I want to."
Her eyes widened as dread filled her heart as she asked hesitantly, "So what are you suggesting we do?"
His eyes filled with tears as he prepared to answer her question, "Once the children are born, I want to leave you and our children here on Earth."
Clara stood up quickly, knocking over the bowl of stew and hissed angrily her eyes glistening with unshed tears, "You want to go off in your TARDIS and leave us behind."
"It is the only way I can think of to keep my family safe," he pleaded raising his hands to her.
"NO! I won't let you run away from us Doctor!" Clara screamed.
"Clara, I will come back to you and our children from time to time. Please listen to me," he pleaded.
"NO! I won't!" she yelled again before continuing, "You said you love me and promised that we would, as a family, see the stars. You asked me to be your wife for a second time and now you want to leave us behind. Does our love mean so little to you that you are willing to throw it away by using our safety as a justification? Has everything been a lie?"
Feeling his own anger rise up because of her accusations he stood and yelled back, "Why must you think everything I say is a lie?"
"Because of rule number one of traveling with you, the Doctor lies," she stated flatly as tears continued to stream down her cheeks.
Turning she rushed out of the room and out the front doors of the cottage, so emotional was she that she didn't hear the Doctor's response, "My love for you is not a lie, it never was."
Author's note: What did you think read and review, it will be greatly appreciated