Clara wasn't sure what to do. She watched the TARDIS disappear with her heart hammering painfully in her chest. She'd never, not for one moment, thought that she would have driven Danni away like she seemed to have. She hadn't even been trying. All she had wanted to do was be the best Doctor she could be.
First, she felt absolutely panic at the idea that, even though Danni had only said a few weeks, that they'd never come back and she'd not be able to see either of them again. She wanted to shout after the fading box, demanding they come back, to allow her to explain but her words stuck in her throat.
Next, her hands balled up into fists. How dare Danni talk to her like that?! The Doctor may not have been her husband, but he was bloody well her friend and she knew him better than most people in the universe. She had been in his timeline, she had seen in his head. After all the fighting she had done to help them get back together, this was how she was repaid?
Of course, what if she had gotten it wrong? She hadn't meant anything by her words, but did the Doctor feel like she had slighted him as well? She hoped not. She had tried to emulate his strengths to make sure that they all had survived, not just Danni. Although, in the back of her mind she knew that Danni had been more important that the rest of them to her. She just wanted to save her best friend.
By the time she'd made the small walk through the park to the bench where Danny Pink was waiting for her, she'd come to the firm resolve that she would need to work this out later. His smile immediately reassured her and he beckoned her over with his phone still in hand. She sat down next to him.
"Meeting overrun?" he asked and she nodded.
"So much so I forgot my lunch," she replied. "Fancy splitting?"
He shot her an outraged look. "I'm sorry? Are you actually expecting me to share my delicious, home made, cheese savoury sandwich?"
"You mean the one in the Greggs packaging?" she countered, motioning to the open bag that was on his other side. She had to give him credit; for a moment he really did look like he was going to argue that the sandwich was actually made by him, but instead he sighed and handed her the package.
"Thank you," she replied happily, taking one before giving him the other.
They sat in together, munching his food, sometimes commenting on the people walking past but mainly just enjoying each others company. It was so nice to not have to worry about anything. With Danny all she had to do was exist, to just live her day to day life with him. She enjoyed herself just as much with him doing ordinary things as she enjoyed running around with Danni and the Doctor seeing new and exciting worlds.
She leant to her side, nudging him with her shoulder. "Love you," she told him.
Danny grinned happily. "Well, I love you too," he replied. "Where did that come from?"
She shrugged. "I just wanted to tell you. I feel like we don't say it enough."
He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer. "Well, we'll just have to say it more often."
It was there and then she decided that maybe a couple week break was what they all needed. She really wanted to spend some quality time with Danny Pink. But, she also knew she had to do what she'd told Danni she was going to do.
"I wasn't in a meeting," she said apologetically. "I was with Danni and the Doctor."
Danny tensed slightly against her. "Okay..." he started slowly. "I thought you weren't seeing them anymore."
"I wasn't," she quickly replied. "I mean, that was the plan anyway. But I don't think I can just give them up. I don't want to give them up. They're my friends and I have a good time with them."
"When did you decide this?" he asked.
"Last week. I just wanted to find the right time to tell you, but that never comes and I realised that there isn't a good time. I'm not ashamed of travelling with them but I'm worried that I'm going to upset you, and so I keep putting it off."
"I'd be more upset if you kept it from me," he told her. "All I've wanted was the truth, Clara, no matter what it was."
"I know, I know," she said. "And I am trying. It's just… It's hard when I know you don't want me there. Sometimes it's hard to admit..."
"It's hard to admit that you want something beyond your relationships," he finished for her and her gaze fell away. He didn't know how heavy that thought settled in her brain. "I understand, I do. And I don't want to be the only thing in your life. It doesn't work for anyone, you've seen what it did to Danni."
"You've always said..."
"I've always said I don't like the way you change around them," he pointed out. "And I still don't. The way it seems to make you think you have to hide parts of yourself worries me, but I'd never stop you being friends with them."
He didn't need to, did he? Danni had done that by leaving her behind. How was it that Danny Pink was so much more understanding than both Time Lords?
"I'm not seeing them for a few weeks," she stated. "They're going on holiday, or sommat, and I think it might be good to have a break."
"That's good," he agreed. "Because I do have a bit of news."
She tilted her head up. "Oh?"
"Yeah. We're going on a trip."
Her eyes lit up. "What? Really?"
He nodded. "Yeah. I've been given the task of taking the Year 8 Gifted and Talented on an overnight field trip in a couple of week and I volunteered you to help chaperone."
She groaned. "Danny!" she exclaimed. "Why would you do that? A whole night?"
"Oh, it'll be a laugh," he retorted. "You know you want to."
She didn't want to, and no matter how much he loved teaching she knew Danny wouldn't want to either. However, he'd throw himself head first into it and she could either drag her heels or join him. He really did care about the future of the kids. "Fine," she grumbled. And it was fine, really.
Of course, that all changed when the trees appeared.
~0~0~0~
Knock, knock, knock, knock.
Danni looked up from her book, staring down at the TARDIS's front door in confusion. The only people who ever knocked on the front door were people who knew that they were there, and no one did.
The Doctor was somewhere in the TARDIS trying to work out why the console said they were in London but outside was definitely not London. Danni had wanted to explore the forest they had landed in but the Doctor had said that fixing the TARDIS was more important. He had a theory that it was down to when the dimensions had been zapped away. He said that she had been flying slightly to the left ever since.
River had snorted and told him that was just his flying. There had been an argument and River had gone to cool down by having a shower. The Doctor had taken it for a victory. Danni had taken it as the nuisance it was.
They'd both been trying not to be horrid to each other ever since they'd picked up River a few weeks ago and Danni couldn't fault their efforts. However, they were still arguing and she really didn't want to have to keep separating them.
She placed the book down and headed to the door. Maybe her attempts at getting a peaceful family life weren't destined to be successful. But, she'd still keep trying.
She opened the door and blinked in surprise at the young girl stood on the other side. She was human, with a bow in her hair and a long red coat over her school uniform. She was the cutest little thing, and Danni felt herself warming to her just at the sight of her.
"I'm lost. Please, can you help me?" she asked and Danni nodded quickly.
"Of course we can, sweetie," she replied as she stepped out into the forest. "What's your name?"
"Maebh," she said. "Are you Danni? I need Danni."
Danni frowned, suddenly a little bit more suspicious of the little girl in front of her. The multitude of horror movies where the little creepy girl could scare the living daylights out of her came to mind.
"I might be," she offered. "Why?"
She glanced behind her then looked at Danni pleadingly. "Please," she begged. "Something's chasing me."
Danni also looked out into the forest, trying to spot it. She couldn't see anything, but she could hear rustling and decided that she shouldn't take any chances. If she was a normal, little lost girl then she'd never forgive herself. "Alright," she said. "Come in. You'll be safe in here."
When Maebh had stepped in Danni quickly shut the door. She smiled warmly at the little girl's look of wonder as she looked around the TARDIS for the first time. For some reason it always seemed more fulfilling to see that look on a child's face than an adults.
"Her name is the TARDIS. She's supposed to be this big," she reassured her as they both headed into the centre. "She's amazing, isn't she?"
"She is, Miss," Maebh replied. Again, children always seemed to instantly accept that the TARDIS was alive. She was so cute, her head tipped back as she looked all around.
Danni squashed down that tightness of loss that appeared in her chest and gently encouraged Maebh to sit down on one of the sets of stairs. "I need you to tell me how you know my name," she commanded as gently as she could.
"I thought Miss Oswald to me to find you," Maebh explained. "But it wasn't her. It was just in my head. And then I got lost."
"Miss Oswald?" Danni repeated, feeling slightly better and almost a little nervous. "Teacher? My height? Surprising round face?"
Maebh nodded. "Everyone says she's in love with Mister Pink."
Danni couldn't help but smile at that. "That's because she is," she retorted. "And he's in love with her. It's quite adorable, actually."
"Do you know them, then, Miss?" Maebh asked and Danni nodded.
"I do. Clara- I mean Miss Oswald is my best friend," she explained. "I'll have to find her and work out what's going on. But, first, we really should get you back to someone who's probably looking for you right now."
"That would be Miss Oswald, Miss."
"Alright," Danni said with a nod, standing up. "I'll give her a ring."
~0~0~0~
River felt better after having a shower. She always did, even in prison. It felt like everything that was annoying her was washed straight down the drain. In this case, it had taken a lot to wash the annoyance that the Doctor was being away but she had actually managed it.
Honestly, what did her daughter see in him? If he wasn't being a gigantic child who had no regard for the people around him, he was being a gigantic grumpy old git who pretty much acted the same way. All she had done was try and fly the TARDIS properly. Honestly, he was so possessive.
She stepped into the console room looking for Danni to suggest that, maybe, they should leave the Doctor alone to sulk in the TARDIS and they could go have an adventure on their own. She tolerated the Time Lord trying to steal all of her daughter's time, but it didn't mean she'd stop trying to get some of her own.
She paused, though, as the sight that greeted her was a small child sat on the stairs, looking at her with a curious look on her face.
"What's that?"
Danni, who was by the console, shot her a warning look in return. "She is called Maebh, and she's lost. She's one of Clara's students."
"Oh," River replied, heading over to her daughter and ignoring the little girl completely. "Your companions really do leave random stuff here, don't they?"
"Oh ha ha," Danni replied as she held the phone up to her ear. "I'm hoping that she's close, otherwise..."
"Danni!" Clara answered the phone, sounding excited. "I was just about to ring you! I'm so sorry, I know that you're angry at me but if you just let me explain..."
"Yeah, we can do that later," Danni drawled out because she really didn't want to have that conversation right now. "I have one of your kids."
There was a pause. "Wait, what?"
"A girl turned up outside the TARDIS called Maebh. She got lost in the forest."
"Maebh? Maebh Arden?"
Danni repeated the name to the girl, who nodded her confirmation. "Yeah, that's her. Honestly, Clara, you should be more careful with your students."
"Wait, you're in the forest?" she asked, sounding a little put out.
"Was that why you going to ring me? For help?" Danni asked her.
"Yes! I mean, the forest was why but I wasn't going to ask for help. I thought you would like to see it. The Doctor always likes to see new things with you, I thought it would…" She trailed off, seemingly realising that she was rambling. "Where are you?"
"Um," Danni turned to Maebh. "Where are we?"
"Trafalgar Square," the girl replied factually and both Danni and River shared a look. The last time they had looked, London wasn't a forest in Clara's time. Maybe the Doctor's driving wasn't as bad as River had first thought.
"No, we're not," Danni replied and Maebh nodded, standing up.
"Come have a look."
She headed for the door and Danni raised the phone again. "Clara, I'm going to have to call you back."
"No, wait..."
Danni hung up and both women followed the little girl out into the forest outside. She immediately turned to the right and both Danni and River paused in their steps when they saw the giant, metal lion poking out of the trees.
"Nelson's column," Maebh stated happily. "Do you like it?"
Danni's eyes travelled up the giant column that stood above them, now decorated with vines that climbed up. "Well, that's just not right," she commented. River was already scanning the trees around them, slowly turning in a circle.
"No, it is," she stated. "This is Earth, and that," she scanned the column, "is Nelson's column. The time zone is correct as well. We're in present day London. Well, Clara's present day anyway."
"What are you doing out here?"
The Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS and stormed over to his wife's side. "I told you to stay inside while I fixed the TARDIS," he scolded. "That's her bad influence, that is."
"Bite me," River said back offhandedly.
"No," Danni warned them. "I don't want you fighting in front of me. And I absolutely forbid you to fight in front of children."
"Children?" the Doctor repeated before looking down and spotting Maebh between the two women. "What is that?"
Danni nudged him as she walked past to lead Maebh back into the TARDIS. "She's one of Clara's students," she explained. "And I'm putting anyone who refers to her as a 'that' again into time out."
"Danni, you can't just keep doing that," River groaned as she followed her.
"You're only saying that because you've been in it longer," the Doctor taunted.
"Doctor," Danni said in warning. He held his hands up. "Call Clara back and tell her to come here."
He wanted to point out that she wasn't his mother, but he had learnt from experience that wasn't a good avenue to go down. Instead he picked up the phone and dialled their friend.
"So is she going to come pick up the child?" River asked.
Danni nudged Maebh back over to the stairs. "Just stay there, sweetie," she encouraged gently. "Do you want a drink?"
"Yes please, Miss," she replied. "I've not had anything to eat all day. I just knew I had to find you."
Danni smiled. "And you did." She grabbed hold of River's arm. "Come with me."
She almost dragged River out of the hallway. "What did I do now?" the other woman asked.
"You can't be mean to children," Danni snapped. "It's what panto villains do. You're not Cruella de Vil."
"I just don't get along with children," River replied with a shrug. "I don't get them. They're always so small, and they don't know anything. And they're always so," she pulled a face, "sticky."
"You were a child once, you know?" Danni reminded as they stepped into the kitchen.
"And then I grew out of it," River retorted. "You don't get that maternal instinct from me, you know? It's from your grandparents."
"Yeah, I'm starting to get that," Danni murmured to herself. She opened the cupboard and pulled out a glass. "Get me the orange juice, would you?"
River opened the fridge and grabbed the carton. "They are just the same. Always making sure that people are watered and fed, or warm enough, or feeling safe."
Danni pointed the carton at her. "You don't get to pull the family card again today," she said firmly. She quickly poured the drink and gave the carton back, practically shoving it into River's hands. "Put that back."
"You didn't miss out on much by not being raised by me, you know?" River pointed out and Danni shook her head, gesturing with the glass.
"You could have tried," Danni retorted. "You could have given it a shot. You got one, so why couldn't I?"
"I wasn't raised by parents," River said.
"Yes, you were," Danni snapped back. "They may have been teenagers, but you got Amy and Rory, people who love you, who remember you. People you can go see whenever you like! I can't remember." She paused, catching herself. Now was not the time for an argument. "I can't remember my parents," she said, softer. "I won't have you making any child feel like they shouldn't be here, understand? You will not make anyone else feel like that around me."
She turned and walked out, leaving River stood there, blind sided. "Danni," she called after her. "Danni, wait!"
Danni didn't wait, but she could hear River following her. She wasn't sure where that had come from, having thought that she had gotten over everything a long time ago. She guessed it was more to do with the elephant that always sat in every room when they came into contact with a child.
"Here you go, sweetie," she said kindly, handing Maebh the drink with a smile. "I hope you like orange juice."
"I do. Thank you, Miss," she replied, taking the drink and immediately taking a sip. Danni left her to her drink, turning to the Doctor.
"So," she started, leaning against the console next to him. "Why are we in London and yet in a forest?"
"That is the question, isn't it?" he replied. "We're going to have to go out and have a look."
"Alright," Danni agreed with a nod as River appeared. "Come on, Maebh."
She held her hand out to the little girl, who placed her half empty glass down and ran over to her side. She took her hand and immediately Danni felt better. That trust from a child couldn't be beat.
"Oh no, she can't come with us," the Doctor told his wife. "We're Time Lords, not babysitters."
"She's coming," Danni replied firmly. "She found us despite being lost."
A look at River to have her back him up told him he was never going to win the argument. "Fine," he relented. "But you're keeping an eye on her."
"Of course I am," Danni said. "You're going to be too busy being all clever, aren't you?"
She watched his disagreeable mood disappear at the compliment and they shared a smile before heading out back to Nelson's column. The Doctor immediately jumped up onto the platform the giant lion was on.
"I don't know what you're expecting to find," River called up to him. "I already scanned. There's nothing of use!"
"With your little toy device, you mean?" he shot back. "The sonic is much more sophisticated than anything that thing can do."
Maebh turned to Danni. "Are they your mum and dad?" she asked.
Danni shook her head. "No; mum and husband," she corrected gently. "They're always arguing. It's kind of their thing."
Maebh took that very well. In fact, she was taking everything in her stride. Children always seemed very adaptable. Adults would, and probably were, either panicking or trying to fix what they deemed to be the problem.
"Do you like the trees?"
Danni looked down at her, her brows furrowing together. She sounded worried, concerned even and Danni couldn't quite work out why. She'd been lost and found them in the middle of London, even though she'd only heard the voice in her head telling her to. She shouldn't like the forest, but she seemed worried that Danni wouldn't like it either.
She tilted her head up, looking at the trees that stretched outwards and upwards, hiding all the building around them. "Yeah, I kinda do," she admitted. "It's definitely different, isn't it?"
"Why would there be no reading?" the Doctor exclaimed suddenly, pulling Danni's attention off the trees. "Because they are actually made of wood. No circuits. No mechanism. Wood."
"Like I said they were," River pointed out smugly as he jumped back down onto the ground. "This is a waste of time." She held up her device, showing him the screen. "They're going to burn down the trees. It won't be an issue for long."
"But we don't know why they're here!" the Doctor protested. "Humans! Don't understand something, so they have to destroy it." He smacked his sonic screwdriver against his palm once before remembering that it actually was working fine, it was the world around them that wasn't.
"What's this for?" Maebh asked curiously.
The Doctor looked down at his hand. "This is a sonic screwdriver. It interacts with any form of communication you care to mention," he explained. "Sadly, trees have no moving parts and don't communicate."
"They communicate a bit, though," the girl reasoned in reply.
"What?"
"Otherwise they wouldn't all grow at the same time, would they?"
She said it like it was just a fact. She even looked around, up at the trees, as if she didn't expect him to reply. "So, what, do you think that's how spring begins?" he countered. "With a group message on Tree Facebook? Do you think they send texts to each other?" He really needed to find out what Clara and that little school were teaching the children, because apparently it was nonsense.
"You don't need a phone to communicate, do you?" she pointed out. "I haven't phoned home, and I know my mum is worried about me."
The Doctor tried to find a retort to that, a reason why they might know someone is worried about them involved a phone, but the little girl was right. He knew when Danielle was worried about him, because she went quiet and a little clingy. In return, she knew when he was worried because his caution went into the wind.
Danni smiled, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder and squeezed it gently. "That's really clever," she praised. "How old are you, Maebh?"
"Twelve, Miss."
"With a head like that, you'll be passing your exams in no time," Danni continued. "Come on, there's nothing else we can find out here. Let's go into the TARDIS and wait for Miss Oswald to come pick you up. We can try ringing your mum, if you like?"
Maebh shook her head as she let Danni lead her away. "She thinks I'm still on the school trip. It'll just worry her more if I tell her I'm not."
Danni always felt a twang of heartache whenever she spent close time with children. The idea of what they wanted but could never have hurt her every time. The Doctor, on the other hand, had spent so long thinking he would never have a family again, that he could see a child and not be immediately drawn into that pain. But even he couldn't help but watch her walk away and wonder just how fantastic it would have been had the little girl been their own. Their little Elizabeth.
River sighed heavily at the pair before following her daughter in. "Are you coming?" she called over her shoulder. "Or are you just going to stand there staring all day?"
If he had been a little bit more childish, the Doctor would have made some sort of rude gesture behind her back. Instead, he just pull his tongue out and followed them inside.
~0~0~0~
The trip to the TARDIS had been… well, it had been enlightening. Clara still wasn't sure why she had agreed to go with Danny on the trip, but she was rather glad she had. Not only was she seen the growth from her students, who seemed to be working together even though they were known for their issues in and out of class, but she'd seen Danny Pink handling them very well.
It was very attractive, to say the very least. Maybe they were due a weekend away on their own.
That was a thought for another time, though. The TARDIS was just ahead of them and she was getting that butterfly feeling in her stomach at the thought of seeing Danni again after their brief time apart. She hoped that she'd be able to prove that she didn't just see the Doctor as someone who would get the job done whatever the cost. She would make amends, because she'd missed them both more than she'd be willing to admit to either of them. She never wanted to see that look of disappointment on Danni's face aimed at her again.
"Trafalgar Square!" Danny crowed triumphantly as the giant lion at the bottom of Nelson's Column appeared. "Well done, Bradley. Excellent navigation skills."
The children all teased him for the praise, but Clara knew a proud little smile when she saw one, and Bradley was one proud twelve year old.
Clara pointed to the blue, unassuming box. "Ah ha! There it is. All sorted now. Come on."
She started striding forward, leading the group, but didn't notice that everyone else had stopped until she heard Bradley's voice.
"Can we take a picture with the lion, sir?" he asked the other teacher. "Please?"
Clara was stunned and she turned around to see if she'd actually heard right. Even Danny looked a little bewildered. "Er, stay together, but okay."
The children all gathered together, posing for the ten or fifteen mobile phones that all made an appearance. Danny walked over to Clara, watching them all rather fondly. They were a handful, but he did love teaching.
"I cannot believe Bradley just said please," Clara told him, her voice low so the students couldn't hear her.
Danny looked down, surprised. "Really?"
She nodded, crossing her arms. "Yeah. He usually prefers other means of persuasion," she explained before giving him a brief account of how Bradley had joined their little group of misfit students.
"And Ruby," she continued. "Well, she actually learnt something about trees today and remembered it."
"No kidding," Danny replied. "Do you think it will transfer over to maths?"
Clara chuckled with him before nudging her boyfriend. "You bring out the best in them."
It was the best part of teaching. The hours, the homework, the planning… Well, she could have done without most of that. The holidays were good, but she never seemed to have long enough away. However, seeing the children actually grow as people was something rather special. She'd never forget the first time when Bradley actually said please.
The children all let out a scream, jumping back from the lion as Nelson's column swayed above their heads. A deep rumbling echoed through the new forest but everything fell still a moment later and it became they were safe.
Ruby rushed over, a small but thick branch in hand. "Look, sir," she said to Danny, holding it out. She'd been pointing things out the entire walk and both of them tried not to seem disinterested. "No rings. Trees usually have rings to tell you how old they are. This one's got no rings. Why's that then, sir?"
"The rings mark the years of growth."
Ruby turned, surprised by the new, deep, Scottish voice but Clara felt herself relax in relief. The Doctor was, rather creepily she had to admit, leaning around the tree closest to the platform that the lion was on. They finally had help, and luckily that meant that Maebh was also safe. And that Danni was sure to be nearby. She didn't notice how she straightened her clothes, but she did notice the errant thought that she hoped she didn't have anything on her face.
"One ring for each year." He came out from behind the tree, pointing at it just in case they had missed it. "This grew up overnight. That whole tree is the result of just one night's growth, and they're still growing."
"Everyone, this is the Doctor," Clara said loudly, in her teacher voice that caught everyone's attention. "And he's going to sort everything out. Isn't that right, Doctor?" She nodded before he could answer. "It's what he does."
"Well, having looked at things, I think, probably, the answer to that is no," he replied simply. She didn't take her eyes off the children because if she looked at him she would just end up shouting. He was undermining her authority. The children had to believe they were okay. Didn't he used to be better than this?
He never gives me false hope.
That's what Danni had said before she'd left Clara in the park. He wasn't saying that he could stop it because he genuinely didn't have a way to do so. But, if the Doctor couldn't help, who could?
"Doctor?"
Clara wasn't fond of the way her heart skipped in her chest, but she turned and saw Danni stepping out of the TARDIS, Maebh in front of her. "You could have told me you were coming outside," she admonished lightly.
"Danni!" she called over happily before frowning at the third person who stepped out of the TARDIS. "And River?"
The archaeologist gave her a half-arsed wave as Danni looked up at her mother, vaguely surprised she'd been brought up at all. "Oh, yeah, she's been travelling with us for a few weeks," she offered and Clara felt a twang of pain at the idea she had been so easily replaced. "What are you doing out here?"
It took Clara a moment to realise that she was talking to the Doctor and not her her. Still, she had to keep her authority, and to do that it meant the Doctor had to bloody well pull through. "The Doctor was about to tell us his plan," she explained with conviction so her students would believe her. "He's really clever."
"Oh, yes, I am. Very clever," the Doctor replied as Danni nudged Maebh gently towards her classmates. "But what use is clever against trees? They don't listen to reason. You can't plead with them. You can't lie to them. They have no moving parts, no circuits." He looked up at the marvel that was baffling him as much as everyone else. He liked to show off but not knowing what the hell was going on made it difficult. Not impossible, but difficult. "This is a natural event."
Danny Pink just sent him that disbelieving look that he assumed was constantly on the PE teacher's face. "How can it be natural for a tree to grow in one night?"
"Exactly what they said about the Ice Age," he countered. "How can whole glaciers just pop up out of nowhere? Well, they just did. That's how this planet grows; a series of catastrophes. Farewell to the Ice Age. Welcome to the Tree Age. Possibly. When the Ice Age was here, you lot managed to cook mammoth. Now there's a forest, you'll just have to eat nuts." He turned, heading back towards the TARDIS. "Danielle, time to go."
River just smirked slightly. "The Tree Age?" she repeated. "Honestly, the crap that goes through your head."
"Don't swear," he warned. "There's children present."
River shrugged. "Not my children," she offered. "You just think they popped up overnight, then? Just happened to get together and decide that now was the time to take over the planet?"
"Why? What do you think?" he challenged back. "The dirt is your area of expertise, after all."
Danny looked down at Clara, who was watching them with a frown that said she was one step away from separating the pair. "Are they always like this?" he asked quietly.
"I don't know," Clara admitted. "Danni doesn't normally like spending time with her mother. I don't think they actually see each other for this long normally."
"Her mother?" he replied, surprised. "She's an alien as well?"
"Part alien, part not," Clara said like it was totally normal. "I can see why they don't get together often, though, if they're like this."
"Oh, and what is your expertise, exactly?" River shot back.
"Time," he snapped. "I don't know if you've noticed, but I am a..." He trailed off, an idea smacking him almost directly in the face. Why hadn't he thought of it before. "Time," he breathed. "Interesting."
Clara looked up at her boyfriend. "See? Clever kicking in," she said smugly. See? She knew that the Doctor was a good man. She knew his good qualities just fine.
"A tree is a time machine."
"Excuse me?" River asked incredulously.
He ignored her. It was easier. "You plant a little acorn in 1795, and in the year 2016, there's an oak tree, there, in the same spot, with a tiny little bit of 1795 still alive inside of it. You can't create an overnight forest with extra special fertiliser. You have to mess with the fabric of time. And communicate with trees..."
He turned and dashed into the TARDIS without a second glance behind him. Clara was quick to follow, and as such the rest of the group followed them inside.
"So you're saying it's an act of aggression?" Clara asked him, dropping her bag onto the floor. The marking she had brought to do while the children slept tumbled out, but she left it where it fell, much to his annoyance.
He shot her a look as he opened the communication channels yet again, hoping for something different. "By trees?"
"Er, trees clean the air," Ruby said like anyone who didn't know that was an idiot. Clara didn't appreciate the tone, nor did she see the Doctor's look of bewilderment at the presence of the small child, but she also knew that Ruby retaining any information was a cause for celebration.
"Exactly. Well done, Ruby," she praised as her own brain started working. "Someone or something who's trying to scrub the atmosphere before colonising or invading..."
The Doctor was looking at the group with a look that was between absolute bewilderment and fury. She realised that she hadn't quite asked his or Danni's permission to let them into the TARDIS, and they had already started spreading.
"Ah, yes, Doctor," she started, walking around into his eyeline to become to buffer between whatever tirade he may go on and the children. "Ahem. This is Coal Hill Year Eight Gifted and Talented Group."
River snorted as she made her way up to the balcony around the console room, sitting down in a chair and picking up the book Danni had presumably been reading when the first child had turned up. She had been in trouble enough times, and had enough teachers trying to 'help' her when she was in school with her mother and father to know that anything with a name to instill confidence in children mean that it was absolute bollocks. And, as she was happy to note, the children proved her right by running around and prodding everything they could see.
They never did as they were told. Another reason she didn't particularly want to be around anyone under the age of 16.
The Doctor really was trying his hardest to get them to listen, as well. It was cute, and pointless, and River liked to see him fail at something as easy as getting a bunch of brats to listen to him. And this was the man that Danni wanted a family with.
"You're not going to win any brownie points being mean to children!" she called down to him, her words sounding like she was trying to help him but her tone suggesting she was actually just taunting him.
Again, he considered just dragging her out of the TARDIS, but that wouldn't win him any brownie points either.
"These trees all appeared at once. That wasn't a coincidence. There's no such thing as an arboreal coincidence," he told Clara, taking a quick glance at Mr Pink to make sure that he wasn't too near his wife. He still didn't like how upset he made her. Instead, he saw that he was picking up Clara's bag off the floor, scooping up the contents. At least he was tidy.
He slowly walked around the console, his mind still working its magic. Danielle always liked this part. Maybe he should find himself some 'I'm clever' glasses. "Something, someone has coordinated this. To coordinate, you need to communicate. Every communication channel on the TARDIS is open, and nothing." He trailed off as he found himself behind Mr Pink, looking at the homework he was casually flicking through. On the piece of paper was a drawing of an angry sun, shooting beams towards some trees.
"Except..." he said slowly, reaching out for the book. "Let me see that." Mr Pink handed it to him and he flipped through a couple of pages. Each had the same, angry sun on it and he closed to find out who had drawn them. He did have his suspicions, and they were proven correct by the neat little scrawl.
He looked up at Mr Pink. "Maebh Arden," he breathed. "Maebh Arden. Which one is Maebh Arden?"
He rushed over to the group of children, trying to find the young girl but it became very noticeable that she was no longer with them. He stood up straight, eyes wide with panic. The girl was the key to everything, and she was gone!
"She's wherever Danni is," River called over, flicking through the pages on her tablet like she was reading a magazine. Both Clara and the Doctor looked at her simultaneously and she rolled her eyes. "Nice to know you're both paying attention."
"With Danni?" Clara asked before she smacked the Doctor on his arm. "She's not here either!"
"Yes, I gathered that," he grumbled. He straightened, running up the stairs. "She never just wanders off like that. What was she thinking?"
"How did you not notice?" River asked. "Honestly, it's a good thing you're not a father if you can't even keep track of your own wife."
The Doctor turned, his nostrils actually flaring at how angry she was making him. Clara knew that they really had no time to keep arguing. "Doctor?"
"We've got to find her," he told her, although she wasn't sure if he was talking about Maebh or Danni. She wasn't sure she wanted him to be talking about just one of them either.
How had neither of them noticed that Danni wasn't there? Clara had just assumed that she was following the Doctor and she had been too busy looking after the children and trying to work out the situation. The Doctor had been much the same, even if she had seen him showing off to her as if she was there.
"Doctor, listen to me," she said firmly. "Her sister went missing last year. She's on medication. The child is barely functioning. She hears voices. She's very vulnerable."
The Doctor, who had been rummaging his pockets for the mobile phone he couldn't find so he could call his wife, paused. "What do the voices say?"
"I don't know. She takes tablets and they stop," she replied, wondering why they were important. Evidently they were, because he let out the sigh he did when everyone was annoying him.
"You people. You never learn. If a child is speaking, listen to it."
He used his sonic screwdriver, instead, to locate Danni and Maebh. Clara clapped her hands together. "Alright, me, Doctor and Danny..."
"No," the Doctor snapped, surprising her. He pointed at the PE teacher. "He's not coming. He upsets her. I won't have him upsetting my wife again."
Danny frowned. "I've upset Danni?" he asked, because he was sure he hadn't upset anyone.
"Yes, and you're not coming," the Doctor retorted.
Clara sighed in frustration. "Fine, he stays. You, me and River..."
"I'm not going anywhere," River replied confidently. "You can go on your little adventure on your own."
"We need all the help we can get if we're going to find them quickly," Clara pointed out through gritted teeth.
"Well, then, you better get moving," River taunted in reply. Clara really felt like hitting something.
"Fine," she snapped again. "Come on, Doctor."
She stormed to the door and he followed, turning once to point at the group. "Don't touch anything," he warned with his scariest voice before following her out.
The children all waited just long enough to make sure he wasn't coming back, then started darting around, looking at everything.
"You heard him, don't touch anything," Danny warned them and, to his delight, they did all start to slowly back away from what he assumed were the main controls. Once he'd seen he could trust them for a few minutes, he headed up the stairs to River.
"Clara told me you liked to spend time with Danni," he said to her. "Why didn't you go with her?"
River didn't look up from her tablet, but she did hold it slightly closer so he couldn't see the screen. She'd taken pictures of some of the pages in her TARDIS diary so she didn't have to carry it everywhere, and she was enjoying going over some of their past adventures together. He was not invited to join in.
She did contemplate not answering him, but he wasn't exactly going anywhere either. She sighed. "Because she's six hundred years old, not a child. She can look after herself," she reasoned. "And, while you may be happy taking orders from your girlfriend, I am not. She may think she's the boss of everyone but she's not the boss of me."
"I don't take orders from her," he replied with a laugh in his voice that said he very much did. She could see this turning into a conversation. She needed to stop it before he tried to become friends with her.
"Personally, I wouldn't be worried about what I may or may not be doing, and more concerned with the fact your girlfriend is running through the forest to find the woman she's actually in love with."
Danny narrowed his eyes slightly. "She's not," he started but realised he was being a bit too loud and that the children might hear. They really were trying to keep their relationship from the students because gossip would fly around the school in an instant. "She's not in love with Danni," he said lowly. "She's in love with me."
He really didn't appreciate River's snort. "You keep thinking that," River said. "I wonder who'll she'll choose, though, if she had to."
Danny opened his mouth a couple of times, trying to form his argument back. Instead, though, he realised that everyone had these concerns, not just himself, and that wasn't something he had time to deal with while in charge of the safety of a bunch of children. "She's not in love with Danni," he repeated.
River didn't reply, now done with the conversation as she'd gotten her wish. She'd gotten into his head and now he'd leave her alone. He turned and walked away and she smirked to herself. Honestly, they always felt themselves so important.
~0~0~0~
I hope you all like the chapter! I don't really have anything to add about it, to be honest. The Saturday just gone was the Time Child's fourth anniversary, and I put up part one of two drabbles in the Outtakes story, so go check that out :)
Reviews!
Louise - Well, I can't tell you how flattered I am that you chose me to review. Thank you so much, I'm glad you like the story. I'd give Twelve another chance if you fancy it. I did prefer Season 9, to be honest, but Season 10 is turning out to be brilliant as well. But thank you very much!
serenitysaiyan - Yeah, she doesn't always remember it, but she'll use it when she does! Hehe I'm glad you picked up on the manipulator, but I shall say no more about it :P
whitedwarf - Thanks! I hope you liked the River/Danny Pink so far :P
LilactheDryad - Thanks! Hope you liked this chapter :)
bored411 - Thanks sweetie, I do! I think I just spend too long staring at a screen. Maybe not 100% made up, but Danni can't stay angry forever.
Authora97 - Thanks sweetie! I do :)