Oh, I instantly regret agreeing to this, I mentally complained as I opened up a bulkhead leading to where Skaldak was undoubtedly waiting. Big, stupid me trying to be brave. Not even that, I just wasn't thinking. I winced as my head throbbed, still dealing with that headache from getting knocked about, and put on the headset as I cautiously eyed the suit of armor chained to the submarine. Knowing he's not in there isn't helping calm my nerves either. I swallowed thickly as I grabbed the light nearby, feeling the familiar racing of my heart that made my hands quiver. Only difference was, this wasn't me stepping up to deal with a shouting father or an inconsiderate grandparent back home. This was me facing an alien that could kill me without a second thought if I screwed things up.

"Ready, Asher?" The Doctor's voice chimed in over the headset, allowing my body to take the shuddering breath that it had been holding.

"Y-You want an honest answer?" I joked uneasily as I approached the armor and my eyes skimmed the shadows above.

"You can do this, Ash. I know you can," he reassured and I nodded, taking another steadying breath. "Do the salute."

"Right. Right, have to be respectful," I murmured, switching the light to my other hand and pressing a fist to my chest, rattling off what the Doctor had told me earlier. "Grand Marshal Skaldak, Sovereign of the Tharsisian caste; by the moons, I honor thee."

"Good. It's okay, Ash. I trust that you can do this."

I nodded, glancing back at where the camera was so he could see me as I lowered the headset off my ears. It was a risk to deviate from what happened in the episode but I'd told the Doctor as much. Skaldak would feel disrespected by talking through me. This way, I could show I meant what I said and the Doctor could still listen in and watch. I told him no one was supposed to get hurt here. Not in this moment. It was all I could do to reassure him I'd be okay… reassure myself that I'd be okay.

"Grand Marshal," I spoke up, somehow keeping my voice steady even though I was internally quaking like a leaf. "We're sorry about this… I am. I understand that this is all just… just a shit show—" I winced, hearing the Doctor chiding me even without the headset on. "Sorry. I just mean that… everyone's scared. What happened to you wasn't right but these people… they don't know anything about alien lifeforms like you. They misunderstood and saw a possible threat, just like you did. It was a mistake a-and I can't speak for everyone but, I am sorry that you're like this. T-That you're chained up here, lost, having missed five thousand years and waiting to hear back from your people whose fate is unknown to you."

The light I was holding went out as did the power in the section I was in, and I took a steadying breath, knowing that I was still safe. Sort of. He's here watching me but so is the Doctor. I'm okay. I-I'm alright.

"W-We want to help. The Doctor and I. Clara and the Captain too. These soldiers just want to go home, just like you. Safe, alive, go home to see their family. I don't want to see you become our enemy or them become yours."

"And yet, I am in chains," his hissing, raspy voice echoed in the room as I nodded, hesitantly.

"They're scared a-and you would do the same, wouldn't you? If someone just showed up in your ship and was a potential threat. I-I, um…" I shifted uneasily on my feet. "I-I would like to think you would, anyway."

"I was Fleet Commander of the Nix Tharsis. My daughter stood by me. It was her first taste of action. We sang the songs of the Old Times. The Songs of the Red Snow. Five thousand years. Now my daughter will be dust. Only dust."

"But there's still Martians out there. Ice Warriors and your daughter's daughters. If… If we knew about you, then your legend lives on, doesn't it? Your people will know you and will take you in with open arms. Y-Your daughter may be gone and I'm sorry about that but your people are still out there," I urged him to understand, trailing my flashlight over the empty suit of armor in front of me. "We just want to help get you home and keep these people and your people safe."

"I require no help. There will be no help."

"There will be," I pressed. "Your people will come. They're on their way, Skaldak. It just takes time. Please. I… I don't want people to get hurt here. You or anyone."

There was a low, rumbling hiss from somewhere above me as I nervously shifted back toward the bulkhead out.

"God, I wish people could just get on without trying to kill each other when they're scared. What happened to talking things out? The only problematic one is that idiot Stepashin. No one else really wants to hurt you or anyone, Skaldak but if you go rushing out to attack them, they will. J-Just like you would if people came at you."

"Harm one of us and you harm us all," he snarled.

"I-I know. I know and I'm sorry that one person was stupid and attacked you but y-you can't think poorly of us all because of the acts of one idiot."

I could hear the Doctor questioning me through the headset frantically and I eyed the dark uneasily. As I backed up to the bulkhead and attempted to get it open behind my back.

"I-I should probably mention, Doctor, Skaldak has sort of, um… l-left his armor. W-Would have mentioned it earlier but I… I did w-want to try talking things out first."

The frantic questioning on the headset grew worse before going quiet and I finally felt the bulkhead shift behind me.

"I-I really am sorry," I murmured to Skaldak, eyes searching for any sign of movement. "We're all scared, j-just like you."

"I'm not scared," he hissed before I saw a flash of green in the dark with shimmering red eyes and I dropped to the ground as he rushed past me out the bulkhead.

I stared ahead of me, just trying to breathe for a minute as I heard the Doctor and Clara's worried voices come up behind me. I stiffened when the Doctor grabbed me under the arms, hauling me through the bulkhead and holding me to his chest as I tried to get my mouth working again.

"I-I'm okay. P-Probably," I muttered as he turned me around and grabbed at my arms, checking me over before pulling me up against his chest.

"Good. Good. Thank goodness," he murmured, pressing a kiss to the top of my head and holding me tight.

I gripped the back of his shirt in return, taking a shuddering breath until we pulled apart slightly.

"What happened?" He asked, glancing up the hall. "You said he was out of his suit."

I nodded. "Y-Yeah. He is. I don't… I-I don't know if I changed anything."

"That's okay," he said quietly, brushing back the hair sticking to my damp forehead. "That's alright, Ash. As long as you're safe."

I wanted to argue that my safety wasn't what worried me but couldn't. I was scared of dying just like anyone else and as much as I would like to prioritize my safety when it came to what I knew, I also wanted to help keep others safe too. He seemed to know that though, cracking a smile and brushing a kiss over my forehead as well.

"You did an excellent job, Ash."

"There's… There's a problem though," I spoke up, drawing his attention. "If this goes like it should… Skaldak is going to lose hope. It takes time for his rescue to show up. People are going to get hurt. People will…"

His gaze softened and he nodded. "Yes. Yes, they probably will. There's not much we can do about it, Asher, and they certainly wouldn't be your fault."

I nodded, begrudgingly accepting that fact as I wasn't sure if I could do anything to help the soldiers anyway. Skaldak thinks we're enemies. I doubt anything I said will change his mind of that. He's going to kill Sepashin first because he attacked him. Given how he was talking before I don't think saving him would be a good idea. I grimaced at the thought, hating how it made me sound. It wasn't my job to judge people as good or bad, whether they should live or die because of their actions but… but isn't that what I'm doing? What kind of person does that make me?

"Are you okay?"

I looked over at Clara who'd come up beside me, lightly grabbing my elbow as the Doctor stepped over to where Grisenko and the Captain were. "Y-Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay."

She eyed me though, gaze flicking over at the Doctor for a moment before turning back to me. "Yeah, somehow I doubt that. You think too much. Doctor told me that. Says he can't always keep an eye on you when things get messy but that you sometimes get caught up in your head. You looked like that now. Like something's wrong."

Great. Even his companions can figure me out. I shifted a little. "I just… I wonder if I'm a bad person sometimes."

"What?"

I winced, not exactly thrilled that I was telling her this but feeling the need to say something about it. "Just… I know things a-and I have to decide whether saying things will be worth changing the future. Feels like I'm… playing God, is all. People will die and I'm sitting here wondering if they deserve to be saved or not based on one small portion of their life."

"I don't envy you, I'll give you that," she said bluntly but hooked her arm in mine. "But you want to know what I think? I think you try your best to save everyone you can, even if they don't deserve it. Even if you can't save them, you still think about it, yeah? Even thinking about saving someone terrible makes you a good person to me."

I cracked a small smile, though it fell quickly. There was one person I never wanted to save back home; someone I had wished for years would die and be removed from my life. Would Clara think the same if I told her that? If I told her about—

"Skaldak got no answer from his Martian brothers. Now he's given up hope," the Doctor said then, stepping past Clara and me and drawing my thoughts away from that as the Captain questioned him.

"Hope of what?"

"Being rescued. He thinks he's been abandoned. He's got nothing left to lose."

We started down the corridor as the Captain continued to question the Doctor.

"But what can he do, stuck down here like the rest of us? How bad can it be?"

The Doctor turned around to face him, frustrated with the man's ignorance. "This sub's stuffed with nuclear missiles, Zhukov. It's fat with them. What do you think Skaldak's going to do when he finds that out? How bad can it be? How bad can it be?"

I reached out automatically, grabbing his arm and drawing his gaze toward me as I hesitantly released him. I didn't like confrontation. I usually wanted to be anywhere but where it was happening and would avoid it if I could, not get in the middle of it. But he needs someone… His gaze softened and he closed his eyes, taking a steadying breath and running a hand through his hair.

"Right. Sorry. It's just… Well, this couldn't get any worse."

And like he summoned it, the whole submarine shifted.

The Doctor grabbed Asher, covering her and bracing them both as the submarine jolted and a hatch dumped more water into the corridor. It only lasted a moment, thankfully, but it still put a damper on his mood.

"Okay. Spoke too soon," he grumbled, glancing down at Asher and checking her over. "You alright?"

She bobbed her head, muttering a quiet "I'm okay," that he nodded to before the Captain spoke up.

"If the threat of this creature is as big as you say, I need to speak to my men. They need to know what is going on."

The Doctor agreed and let the Captain lead the way back to the control room where he gathered up his men to explain their poor situation. A weight settled against his side and he glanced at Asher as she rubbed at her eyes but leaned against him and let him snake an arm around her waist. He pressed a kiss to her temple, getting a light glare in return that made him smile. Younger Asher or not, he always enjoyed her reactions to his affection, though he knew he couldn't push things too much with her younger self. She's getting there though. Not pulling away as much and she's starting to seek out comfort. Slowly but surely. They moved over to settle in front of the controls once the crew stepped out and he lightly prodded Asher when she'd started to nod off. She frowned with a grumble but got up out of the seat and did a small pace around the room to help stay awake as he went back to work and Clara spoke up, eyeing Asher as she wandered.

"Even if a missile did get launched, that wouldn't be… it, would it?"

"It?" The Doctor questioned.

"End of the world. Game over. I mean, what if they fired one by accident? What would happen then?"

"I told you, Clara. Earth is like a storm waiting to break, right now. Both sides baring their teeth, talking up war. It would only take one tiny spark."

"Yeah, but the world didn't end in 1983, did it, or I wouldn't be here."

"New. History's in flux. It can be changed. Re-written."

Asher had wandered back over and nodded. "Back to the Future. Something happens now, the future changes based on what happened."

The crew returned to the control room with guns now and the Doctor got up, squeezing Asher's hand when he caught her uneasy gaze wandering over the weapons. He stepped over with her to the Captain, eyeing the men himself.

"How many of us are left?"

"Thirteen and we can't find Stepashin."

"He's dead," Asher said quietly, wincing when she caught the Captain's gaze. "Probably. He was the first to attack Skaldak. He would've been the first he went after."

It was an excuse to cover up what she'd given away but she'd always been quick on her feet. It was why she didn't have a name out there for her like the Doctor did. She knew how to play it safe and lie without drawing attention to what she knew. The Doctor just helped with that.

"We split up and comb this sub. One team stays here to guard the bridge."

"That's it? That's the plan?" The Captain complained.

"Well, it's either that or we stay here and wait for him to kill us."

"Could we?" Asher suddenly asked, surprising them both. "Not… Not the kill us part but sticking together."

Usually, the Doctor would argue. He never liked the idea of being a sitting duck but this was Asher questioning them. This was a hint.

"What would waiting here do?" The Captain asked suspiciously, not one to let women take charge but knowing that he was out of his depth here with this… Martian onboard. "We'd be sitting ducks."

"I'd rather be in a group of men than spread our forces out thin when none of you have any idea of what kind of threat we're dealing with," Asher said with a hint of bite, not appreciating the confrontation and the Doctor was quick to step in before they could argue about this further.

"Perhaps she's right. If Skaldak is on the hunt, even outside of his armor, he's a force to be reckoned with. Spreading out would make things easier for him to pick us off. If we hold ground here, there's far more of a chance that we keep the missiles protected from him and fewer casualties. Our only concern then would be not hitting each other should he show up."

"And what then?" The Captain challenged, uncertain of any plan right now but not really having much to offer himself. "When he does show up, what will we do?"

"Talk?" Asher offered, earning a dubious look from him. "I-I was fine before, speaking with him. The only issue was that we attacked him first. He got rid of Stepashin probably and as sorry as I am for you losing a man like that, with him… gone, Skaldak has no one else to pick a fight with unless we attack him again."

"You think he will just walk in here to talk?" The Captain scoffed.

"I would rather try talking than start shooting and find out just how poorly matched we are," she argued, glancing briefly at the Doctor who was hesitant himself. "I just… I want to try first."

The Doctor sighed heavily, not liking this plan and being more than uneasy about Asher wanting to talk to the Ice Warrior again. Because that's what she was saying right now. She wanted to step forward and speak to him with a dozen weapons at her back should something go wrong. Anything could go wrong too. A soldier could get trigger-happy, Skaldak could instantly kill her without remorse, negotiations could break down and he would be too far away to get her to safety before everything went to Hell. It was a huge risk. It was dangerous. But she wouldn't offer unless she was sure there was a chance to convince him.

"You're certain?" He questioned, grasping her arms and squeezing them, not wanting to do this but knowing she would be stubborn about it if he refused.

"He's a soldier but… he's a father too," she muttered, cracking a small, wobbly smile. "A proper one, at that. I-I'd like to think he'd be better than mine."

The Doctor's eyes softened, knowing the type of person her father was and pulling her to him in a tight hug; feeling her lightly reach around and return it. "Okay… Okay, I trust you. I may not like it but we'll go with your plan."

He released her and glanced at the Captain who eyed them silently. The plan was haphazard at best but the amount of trust the Doctor had for Asher was undeniable. The Doctor wasn't someone who would let anyone push him around if he felt things were going poorly—his shouting at the Captain and being stubborn about how things went proved that well enough. Yet, this woman who was hardly someone who came off as brave or confident had easily convinced him of her plan. There was something more going on between them, obviously, but this didn't seem like the Doctor being a pushover because of his feelings for her. No, it was very much apparent how much the Doctor wanted to keep her safe and this plan was the opposite of that. Him accepting the plan despite that risk meant there was something to it. There was a chance.

"Very well," the Captain gave in, stepping away to get his men lined up in the room so that if a shootout did occur, no one would be firing into the back of anyone else.

Submarines were not meant for firing bullets in, after all.

The Doctor was glad there would be no more bickering about plans and led Asher back over to where Clara was, glancing down at her as she pulled his coat tighter around her shoulders in unease. Much like the first time she offered to speak with Skaldak, she wasn't exactly eager to go running headfirst into trouble. There's always a reason.

"So," he asked, drawing her gaze up to him as he picked up his sonic off the ground and tucked it away. "What have you changed this time?"

She hesitated, glancing off to the side. "Not… much, I don't think."

"She's changed something?" Clara questioned, curious about things given it was rare Asher actually adjusted something big knowingly.

"Well, she already spoke with Skaldak once. Covering for you, I take it," the Doctor said, having known that if Asher hadn't gone, the only other non-soldier would have been next on the list.

"Seriously? I was supposed to go in and talk to him?"

"W-With the Doctor telling you what to do in the headset," Asher muttered. "It didn't change anything."

"Other than you offering a slight bit more respect than if I'd been speaking through Clara," the Doctor pointed out. "As you said, he wouldn't want to speak to her given I was the one who knew the most about him. Very subtle though still dangerous."

"Clara wouldn't have been hurt or anything," Asher argued lightly.

"But Clara isn't you and even taking someone's place can alter events," the Doctor warned lightly, resisting the urge to expand on that with instances that he's seen happen already. "It's still a risk."

Asher looked away sheepishly before he gave her a light mental nudge when their hands brushed up against one another. It may have been a bit too early for her to hold any mental capabilities yet but given how he drew her attention back rather quickly, he knew she would be getting them soon. Whether she realized what I did just now or not.

"What else?" He pressed, nodding toward the soldiers and the Captain. "You were adamant we stay here together."

"...Two soldiers would've been killed," she muttered, wincing. "Not in a… in a kind way. I mean, not that he was cruel just… mechanical?"

"Learning our strengths and weaknesses," the Doctor said in understanding.

"And… I think someone would've been grabbed by him. I don't remember who," she admitted, something he knew bothered her—when she couldn't remember something important. "But they would be fine. He… He does listen. He just… He doesn't like soldiers."

The Doctor frowned lightly, not offended by what she said but trying to work out what she was trying to tell him. She was holding back because things were still in motion here but the Doctor knew her well enough to know that she would always hint at things if she could; even if she didn't mean to. A low rumble echoed through the submarine then, silencing the room as uneasy glances were exchanged.

"What was that?" Clara asked quietly as the Doctor eyed the doorway uneasily.

"Pressure. Just pressure. We're seven hundred meters down, remember?"

"You're terrible at lying," Asher muttered "We all know he's coming. What's the point in lying about it?"

"Some people would rather a lie than the truth," the Doctor offered, knowing it wasn't exactly true for her.

"That's stupid. Knowing what's coming is better than dying without a clue," she said bluntly, though her eyes flickered around the entrance to the room uneasily.

"I did say 'some people,' Ash," the Doctor said quietly, taking her hand and giving it a squeeze. "You're sure about this?"

"No," she whispered, being brutally honest. "But I have a chance, more than anyone here I have the chance to do something."

The Doctor's hearts clenched as he remembered something; something important about Asher. She was still so new to things and he had a hard time remembering that. She had a lot of things she didn't like to talk about when she was younger and this was one of them. She always claimed to be a busybody but when it came to him and their adventures, she felt useless. Until she got the hang of things, until she stopped questioning every little move and relaxed, she did everything in her power to not be seen as useless by him and by others. More so right now. If she's just come from my regeneration then…

"Ash," he breathed, reaching around her and pulling her to his chest as he spoke softly from behind her; an arm around her shoulders and his head resting against her temple. "You don't need to prove yourself to anyone."

She stiffened in his hold, telling him he'd hit the mark.

"I know you are always doing your best to help even when you're scared. It's always okay to say when you can't do something or don't want to do it. It's okay to back out. No one is pressuring you or expecting you to do anything on your own anymore. I would never do that to you and I don't want you to feel like you have to prove yourself to me or anyone else. You're not useless. You're brilliant and smart, a bit of a mother hen but how could you not be?" He offered with a small smile, loosening his grip so she could look back at him, eyeing him hesitantly. "I trust you more than anyone in the whole universe but I also know that sometimes you need someone to remind you that sitting back and doing nothing is okay too."

It was a tough pill to swallow. All her life she'd been taking care of someone. The oldest child of several, the hard worker, the mature one, the knowledgable one. She'd cared for her siblings, multiple animals, her grandparents and parents even. Rarely by choice and often only because of some misguided and not understood sense of obligation. Sometimes it was just to be kind. With the animals, it was because she truly did care but this meant that being here—all those things now gone—meant that she was fumbling with what her purpose in life was. She felt obligated to help, to be kind, to care but wasn't sure how to go about doing it other than trying her very best to keep things right.

It was too much for one person. Even before, back in her own life, she was only holding on by a thread. Now, here she was trying to help again except this was a very different situation. This was life or death; of her, of others. It was danger she never experienced before but… she wanted to help. She wanted to be brave and prove herself. It was commendable. All of it was. The Doctor often wished he'd been in her old world to tell her as much but here and now, in this world, it was dangerous. Most of all, it was… sad. She didn't have to prove herself to anyone but she wanted to. At the very least, she wanted to prove to herself that she could do it; that she could be someone worthy of traveling with the Doctor even when it was terrifying.

"I want to," she muttered to him and he nodded, pressing a kiss to her temple along with an encouraging mental nudge as he reluctantly let her hand go and let her step forward to confront Skaldak.

I didn't like standing here; guns at my back and a rather dangerous Ice Warrior somewhere ahead of me. Even if they had been ordered not to fire until told, I knew how fear could startle someone into firing too soon, and having all those weapons behind my back made me more nervous than the creature I was about to face. Or so I'd like to think. I don't even know what Skaldak is capable of. Not really. Those two soldiers weren't killed so I didn't have to see the aftermath of that… though it doesn't change the fact that he's perfectly capable of such a thing. I swallowed past the growing lump in my throat, knowing I was just getting myself worked up. Already I could feel my heart pounding and the way that every noise suddenly seemed far too loud in my ears. Then, movement.

My shoulders stiffened at the brief glimpse of something green rushing through the bulkhead at the other end of the corridor I was facing. The lights flickered and died in there and my breath hitched when I caught the barest flicker of something pass through the bulkhead in front of me. He's in the room now. There was a small clattering of the soldiers behind me tightening and adjusting their grips on their rifles as the Captain spoke quietly.

"Steady," he warned them, reminding them of their orders to hold fire.

Suddenly, something cold was gripping my head and a chill ran up my back as I clenched my eyes shut and called out to the men behind me.

"Don't shoot!"

They had all shifted their weapons upward but none fired as Clara shouted at Skaldak as he held my head; a threat of death.

"Please don't hurt her! Please!"

"Skaldak, let her go!" The Doctor also ordered; a tinge of worry in his voice. "There is no need for this. Please."

"You attacked me," Skaldak reminded the people in the room. "Martian law decrees that the people of this planet are forfeit. I now have all the information I require. It will take only one missile to begin the process. To end this Cold War."

"I-It was one man," I spoke up, lightly arguing as I tried to take a steadying breath and not focus on how easy it would be for him to snap my neck. "O-One man going against orders attacked you a-and you got your revenge. You don't need to hurt anyone else. No one even knew the Martian law here but the Doctor and I. You can't blame them for one man's mistake made out of fear."

"My distress call has not been answered. It will never be answered. My people are dead. They are dust. There is nothing left for me," he said with a rumbling hiss.

"S-So they're a bit late. They're still there though. T-The Doctor said so a-and I know they are too. We can take you to them."

"Why should I trust you?" He snarled. "You are one of many. Many who are armed a more than willing to fire."

"We'll negotiate but from a position of strength," the Captain declared making me resist a groan as Skaldak hummed.

"Excellent tactical thinking. My congratulations, Captain."

"Thank you," the Captain replied.

"Unfortunately, your position is not, perhaps, as strong as you might hope."

"What do you mean?" The Doctor questioned, stepping a bit closer cautiously before the heavy footfalls of his armor approached. "He summoned the armor."

"How did it do that?" Clara asked as I released the breath I'd been holding when Skaldak let me go and rushed through the bulkhead to climb back into it.

"Sonic tech, Clara. The song of the Ice Warrior."

The armor stepped through the bulkhead and I took a step back but threw out an arm.

"Don't shoot," I said, glancing over my shoulder slightly at the uneasy soldiers and the Captain as he frowned.

"I will do whatever it takes to defend my world," he said sharply.

"Then, wait until it needs defending before getting you and every man on here killed," I snapped. "Everyone here has something they want to go back home to. Don't risk that because you can't be bothered to wait a few more minutes."

Skaldak growled deeply, making me wince and draw my gaze back to him, looking up at the green suit of armor well within reach. T-That's good, right? He could have killed me but hasn't. He's had plenty of opportunity but he's waiting, he's listening. I have to keep talking. I need to buy time for his people to show up.

"G-Grand Marshal?" I spoke up, hating the slight stutter in my voice but the steady trickle of fear rolling through me was starting to show as I twisted my quivering hands. "I… I don't know a lot about Mars, about your people, o-or what you've been through. Hell, I-I don't even know a lot about war. I know that people die and it's sad for both sides, no matter who was in the wrong or if there even was a wrong. Everyone loses in war. Families lose sons, wives, husbands, and daughters. Lives are destroyed but the people who lose the most are the soldiers involved, right? A-And I know you're angry and upset about what happened, about not hearing from your people but you know what war does. T-That's why you sang in that last battle, isn't it? With your daughter. You sang—"

"The Songs of the Red Snows," Skaldak replied, voice softer than before.

"T-The people who want peace the most are the soldiers," I muttered as he eyed me. "It's why they sing."

The submarine jolted then, sending me stumbling into the suit of armor until a heavy hand settled on my shoulder to steady me. I stared up at Skaldak but his head was tipped back to look up.

"My people live. They have come for me," he announced as the Captain looked at one of the control displays.

"We're rising. We're rising!"

"Six hundred meters. Five fifty," Grisenko breathed, surprised himself until the submarine finally settled.

"We've surfaced. Your people have saved us," the Doctor muttered as Skaldak grumbled, lowering his gaze to me as he lifted his hand off my shoulder.

"You would do well to learn your enemy before approaching them so recklessly," he scolded, surprising me before he vanished.

There was a collective sigh of relief before the Doctor hurried over and grabbed my arms, checking me over and searching for anything wrong as I tried to wrap my head around what just happened.

"D-Did I just get scolded by a Martian?" I asked, earning a small quirk of his lips.

"I do believe you did."

"I got scolded by a Martian."

"Yup."

"Jesus," I murmured as he lightly led me to a chair and sat me down; cupping my hands in his as they quivered. "Never again. I keep telling myself never again and then I go volunteering to do it again. The Daleks, a Martian—No one even gets hurt. No one was supposed to get hurt a-and I just keep on jumping in. Am I really that stupid?"

"Absolutely not," he hummed, smiling away. "I think it means you're kind."

I shot him a dubious look. "Yeah, well, tell me to stop next time I volunteer to do something kind."

"Never," he chuckled, wrapping his arms around me and laughing as he spun me in a circle and even I couldn't help but laugh with him.

He put me down then, hands on my cheeks before suddenly pressing his lips to mine and I froze before he pulled away, still grinning until he realized what he'd done. His eyes went wide and he pulled his hands away, fumbling for words and waving them about.

"O-Oh, no. I didn't mean to—No, I did but… Oh, it's too early. I am so sorry. So, so sorry. I just—I only meant to—"

His eyes ran over the ship before spotting the Captain stepping up a ladder and abruptly pointing to him.

"R-Right! I best take a look. See where we're at a-and, um… yes! Off I go."

The Doctor took off up the ladder and Clara started to follow until she spotted me; still standing where he'd left me as I slowly brought a hand up to my mouth in shock.

"You okay?" She asked, glancing at the ladder and heading over toward me instead. "I mean, usually you two are joined at the hip and everything. I know you're not super into being public with your relationship but—"

"W-We're not—" I choked off my words with a wince, clasping my hand around my mouth for a moment and silently hoping my face wasn't as red as it felt. "I-I'm early. V-Very, very early," I tried to explain as my mind still spun after what just happened.

Clara's brows furrowed in thought, opening her mouth herself before closing it briefly and then her eyes went wide in understanding. "Oh. Oh, you mean… the two of you aren't… Oh my God, was that your first kiss?"

"S-Shut up," I breathed, dropping my face in my hands and feeling the heat travel up to my ears.

"Seriously though? I mean, I know you said before you're not big on the whole relationship thing but nothing? Not a-a fling or crush or anything?" She asked as she sat beside me when I sank into a chair with a groan of complaint at her questions. "Is it the same with him then? The Doctor? Have you two never…"

"W-We're not even together," I whined, finally lowering my hands to toss one toward the ladder. "H-He's admitted it to me too early so I know we're supposed to be at some point but I—I-I don't know what I'm doing! I don't even know if I like him like that and I've kind of just accepted the fact that he's all, all touchy-feely, especially in this body but he's never—I've never—H-How am I supposed to take that?" I questioned, turning to her in confusion. "Do you know how weird shit's going to be now? Every time I look at him now it'll just be me remembering that a-and he apologized like it was a mistake when I know it wasn't but at the same time it was and I-I feel kind of bad about it. But then I'm over here freaking out about the fact that he just kissed me and I-I don't know what to do or say or—"

"Yeah. Yeah, okay, Ash. Just calm down for one second," she said, grabbing my floundering hands to stop my waving them about and putting them in my lap as she gave me a small amused smile. "You're overthinking it. He kissed you. So what? He was happy you're safe, relieved we're all safe, and probably a bit impressed by how you handled everything, to be honest. So, he got a little carried away and forgot that you two hadn't worked things out. That's it. If you're not comfortable with it, then you're welcome to tell him, though I'm sure he already knows. He gave you space for that reason. He didn't want to overwhelm you by staying here and making you somehow respond to what happened. Now, I'll bet he'll pop right back down and pretend nothing ever happened, yeah? Don't worry about it. Don't think about what he'll say or do or think and just focus on yourself." She nudged me a bit with that cheeky smile. "Who knows? Maybe once you think about it, you'll realize it wasn't half bad."

I groaned again, dropping my face back into my hands as she chuckled; patting me on the back before getting up to climb the ladder after the Doctor. But what am I supposed to do then?