Night One
Clara couldn't help herself. She'd only gone to nip to the bathroom, but yet again she found herself at her bedroom door, hallway light off, dipping her head in to look at the woman curled up underneath her covers. It was obvious that she was still asleep, but she still let out the quietest of little whimpers, rolling away from the open door and into the pillow. She just wished she could do something, but all Clara had to offer the Time Lord was her bed, so that's what Clara gave her. Along with the promise that she didn't ever have to leave unless she wanted to, it was the best comfort Clara could offer.
"You know; I really am starting to get suspicious." A voice stated lowly and Clara turned to see her boyfriend, the Danny with a 'y' in her life. She shot him a look, pushing her up off the doorframe where she had been leaning, letting the door softly close and leaving Danni alone once again.
"I'm worried," she replied, walking with him to the living room, "I'm allowed to be, this is huge."
"She's really left him, then?" Danny asked as they sat back on her sofa once again, watching reruns that neither of them really were paying attention to, "People say strong things when they've been in fights. Maybe this is just the six hundred year equivalent of sleeping on the sofa."
"No, I've been through that," Clara told him, "he found out who her parents were and kept it from her. She lived with me for a week then."
Danny frowned, "Why would he do that?"
"Because her mum is a psychopath brainwashed to kill the Doctor and her dad is an immortal man who fights aliens for a living." Clara explained, and Danny nodded slowly.
"Sounds… sounds like a dangerous gene pool to be splashing in." He commented but Clara ignored him.
"This is different, though." She insisted, "She was angry at him then. She's not now, she's just so sad."
Clara curled up against his side, laying her head on his chest as he wrapped an arm around her. He wished he knew more about the situation other than Clara's side, so that he could actually find some way of helping. He definitely wasn't fond of the Doctor, there was no love lost between the pair, but Danni had seemed nice. And Clara really liked her, so there had to be something there. But all he had was second, sometimes even third, hand information and while their last trip was as horrid as he could think of, it felt like this was a lot more than that. Like this trip to the moon was the straw that broke the camel's back.
"Well," Danny drawled, not bringing up the fact that he didn't blame Danni one bit for leaving a man he personally couldn't stand, "it's a good thing she's got such a fantastic friend to help her back on her feet." Clara smiled slightly, "Who also has a fantastic boyfriend who is covering most of her classes for the rest of the week."
"Yes, yes, you're fantastic." Clara teased before reaching up to place a kiss on his cheek, "Thank you for being fantastic."
"Yeah, well, you make it very easy," he replied, dipping his head down and soon they were snogging like a couple of teenagers on Clara's sofa.
Danni peaked around the corner, seeing the couple in the soft dimmed lights of the living room, and dipped out again. Her hearts ached, a sob suppressed in her throat as she turned and headed back into Clara's room. She'd woken up when the door to Clara's bedroom had closed, and the wave of pain and despair had immediately followed. She'd tried to ignore it, rolling over until the tears had stung her eyes and she needed to not be on her own. She still thought her decision was the best one, but every part of her wanted to call up her hus- her ex-husband and beg for him to take her back. That she was sorry, that she didn't mean it, but she had. She had meant her words, he had made her feel tiny and unloved and she didn't deserve it.
She was crying again as she re-entered the bedroom, climbing under the covers and wrapping herself up into a ball. She truly felt like her whole life had fallen apart. She had never had to exist outside of their duo. The Doctor and Danni, in the TARDIS, until the end of time. And that now had suddenly gone. What else did she have to fall back on? What else did she have that she wanted to fall back on? All she ever had wanted was him, to experience life and the universe with the Doctor by her side. Her Theta, gone forever.
~0~0~0~
Day one
Danni had stayed over at Clara's many times. Sometimes she was on the couch, sometimes Clara was. Sometimes they shared the bed, sometimes neither of them used it. Clara had always understood Danni's need to have some boring ordinary time with her friends, so staying up late and watching trash TV had almost become the norm for them.
For a while, Danni had been able to pretend that she was just at a sleepover. She'd woken up alone, in a pair of pyjamas that she always left there so she didn't have to constantly remember to bring any. She headed out into the living room where Clara was having her necessary cup of coffee in the morning. The brunette got up silently at the sight of the blonde, heading into the kitchen to fetch her a cup of tea, like she always did.
Danni sat down on the sofa in front of the morning news, like she always did. Neither of them spoke as they spent the time waking up, staring mindlessly at the talking box.
It wasn't until Danni's hand instinctively went looking for her phone that she realised it wasn't there. She would always ring the Doctor at this point to come pick her up, but her phone wasn't anywhere close at all. It was on the TARDIS, where all her stuff was. Her clothes and her books and her… well, her absolutely everything. She'd not just turned her back on Theta when she walked out, she'd left everything behind. Not a bag, not even a change of clothes. She literally only had one outfit and a pair of pyjamas.
Clara could sense the shift in her before she turned to her friend. Where she had been staring lazily at the television moments ago, she now had wide shining eyes. Her hand was reaching for something, and it took a moment for Clara to realise what it was. Danni's immediate instinct would have been to contact her husband, and now she couldn't.
"Do you want me to call Jack?" She asked the blonde softly, but all she got was a shake of a head in response, "What about…" she caught herself, about to ask if she wanted River, "anyone else?" She settled on instead.
Again, Danni just shook her head, "Do you want the Doctor?" Clara tried, getting a third shake of her head. But then, meekly and barely a movement at all, Danni nodded, "But you don't want me to call him?" Again, a silent head movement telling Clara that Danni was sticking to her decision.
It was just so sad, because she could see how lost Danni was without the Doctor. Jack and River and others had always said how dependant Danni was on the other Time Lord, and Clara had seen for herself how the Doctor had rarely let her do anything on her own. But it was so painfully clear at that moment that Danni really had no idea what to do without him, and Clara decided there and then that she was going to help Danni find her feet and help her find a life of her own, without the Time Lord.
But not right now. Right now Danni needed comfort, and she needed to grieve and that was why Clara had taken the rest of the week off, "Do you want me to run you a bath?" She asked, "I'll even throw you in a bath bomb if you're lucky."
Danni nodded and Clara stood up off the sofa, making sure to place the remote within reach so Danni could change the channel if she wanted. She made her way around the back of the sofa, stopping when Danni reached out and stopped her in her tracks. She looked up with tear-filled eyes, but a smile did grace her lips, "Thank you." She whispered, unable to really tell her how grateful she was for Clara. How she knew that without her best friend, she wouldn't even know where to begin.
Clara just placed a hand over hers, giving it a quick squeeze before walking out, "You're not having one of my Christmas ones, though. They're my favourite." She called over her shoulder. She would have expected a laugh, or a complaint, normally but this time she was met with silence that reflected the situation perfectly.
~0~0~0~
Day Three
Clara was very surprised to wake up and find Danni not in her bed. She hadn't expected that until, at least, the next week. But there she was in the kitchen, making the coffee and tea as Clara entered, bleary eyed and rather baffled.
"You're up early." She commented, holding her hand out for her mug. Danni placed it in her grasp as the toaster popped up and she swiftly made her way over to it.
"Well, it's the weekend, isn't it?" Danni commented, like it explained everything, "It's a good time for a new start, isn't it?"
"It is." Clara agreed, sorta. Didn't people tend to do 'new starts' on Mondays? Although, that was just like Danni. Her sense of time might not have been fantastic, but the thought was there, "Got a plan, then?"
Danni nodded as she buttered the toast, "Totally. I'm going to get a job." Clara's eyebrows rose as she leant against the kitchen counter.
"A job?"
"Yeah. I mean, we can't keep sharing a bed forever," she reasoned, picking up her toast, "so I need a job to pay for one in your spare room, or for us to get a flat together with two bedrooms if you're up for it, or for me to get a place of my own. Something better than me hampering your lovelife."
"You're not." Clara was quick to ensure, "But a new bed might be the way to go. What are you thinking?"
"Well, and only if it's okay with you," Danni was hastened to add, "I'm going to go see Ian and get my dinner lady job back."
"Why wouldn't I be fine with that?" Clara asked and Danni shrugged.
"I just don't want to stand on your toes, sweetie." She explained, "I mean, it's your place of work, it's one thing to temporary be undercover there, it's quite another to be there permanently."
Clara shrugged, "If that's what you want to do, I'm not going to stop you," she replied, "don't you want something a bit more…" she wasn't sure what 'more' she was thinking of. More 'alien', most likely, "why not call Jack? I'm sure he can get you a job if you asked."
"I can't call Jack yet," Danni said after she finished a munch of her toast, "if he finds out I've left the Doctor, he'll be straight here and he'll take me away. I love Jack, but I want to stay and I don't think I can say no to him if he tries."
"Ah, and with a job you think you'll have a better chance of convincing him to let you stay." Clara summerised.
"Exactly. I," Danni paused for a moment, "I want to be here. Who better than to help me and give me a kick up the arse when I need it than my best friend?"
"I am the boss," Clara agreed, "but don't you think you should give it a few more days? I mean, what he did was unacceptable, and horrid, and…" She paused for a moment, "well, it doesn't look good. But since when did you give up so easily?"
"I didn't," Danni replied, "I fought so hard, Clara. I let Eleven go, I tried not to let his little snide comments get to me. I accepted that he didn't want to hold my hand, or that he didn't want to look at me when we were having sex," Clara's eyebrows shot up; she didn't need to know that, "because I knew he didn't mean it as a stab at me, that's just who he is now, I can adapt. He just can't help it, but he didn't mean to be horrid to me. But that... that thing on the Moon was. He was cruel on purpose, because he sees me as less."
Clara couldn't help but frown. She had seen into the Doctor's mind, into his past. Okay, it may have not been Twelve, but she could still feel him from time to time, and part of her could instinctively know how he would react even if, when asked, Clara couldn't tell them a thing, "He's never thought of you as less," she promised, "I think he's just forgotten how to show you that."
"I think he just doesn't care anymore," Danni corrected, "it's been three days, Clara. He can't call me, but he can call you. He hasn't stopped by; he hasn't tried to bring my stuff back." She motioned to the doorway, "Last time I stayed with you we couldn't get him off your front lawn. Now it's like he's disappeared. He didn't even chase me out of the TARDIS, he just flew away."
Clara wasn't too sure why she wanted to defend him so badly. It must have been something to do with the Doctor inside of her, screaming and fuming at the action of his new self. Or the way seeing Danni sad always broke her heart a little, but maybe if she could fix it, then she wouldn't be sad anymore, "Maybe he's just giving you space?"
"Or maybe he's just not coming back." Danni countered.
"You said that when he lost his memory," Clara reminded her, "and when he didn't tell you about Jack and River."
"I know," Danni snapped, frustrated and upset and Clara suddenly felt rather bad about prodding at it. Then Danni sighed, deflating slightly, "This is different, though." She whispered and Clara nodded, reaching over and pulling her into a hug, making sure that she kept her coffee away from her.
"I know, sweetie," she replied softly, "but you'll be okay."
~0~0~0~
Day Seven
"How's the job hunting going?" Danny asked, both attempting to talk about something that wasn't school related and also find out about the woman that was still currently sharing a bed with his girlfriend.
"Not great," Clara admitted, "she's not wrong; she has no experience, or references. The school she went to doesn't even exist here, so she can't even give her qualifications just in case they follow up and find out that Danni Fielding never actually existed here. Her CV basically does just say 'Danielle Fielding: Time Traveller.'" Clara didn't seem to have any issue saying that out loud in the middle of a crowded London street, but Danny's eyes suddenly darted around to see if anyone had heard her. Luckily no one seemed to have noticed, but when he turned back to Clara she was looking up at him with an amused look on her face.
"What?" He asked.
"You," she replied, "still thinking people are going to find out that I've been into space." He shushed her and she giggled, "Don't worry, people really don't pay much attention. I've spoken about it loads, people are too busy with their own lives to care about anyone else's."
"You don't know that," Danny pointed out, "there could be people in the shadows, watching and waiting for you to say something and then bam; government study." Clara shot him another look before they both started laughing. She took a step closer, almost like they were holding hands. And they would have been too, if it wasn't for the fact that their students might spot them. The joys of being a teacher.
"So, Mr Chesterton really couldn't give Danni her job back?" He asked and Clara shook her head.
"She came back singing his praises, saying he was really apologetic and offered to call her if anything came up. Thing is, she and the Doctor were working for free, and apparently there's just no money for another member of staff." Clara sighed, remembering Danni coming back from her meeting with Ian. She'd borrowed some of Clara's nicer clothes, heading off like she was going for a proper interview rather than asking for a favour. She'd still had the bounce in her step when she'd come back, and Clara had for a moment thought she'd managed to get the job back.
"She tried to act like it didn't bother her, but I know it does." She finished.
Danny reached over, giving his girlfriend a quick squeeze around the shoulders, an act she leant into for the brief moment they allowed themselves the public display of affection, "And she still won't contact her dad? You said he would be able to help her out."
Clara shook her head, slipping back out of his grasp, "No, she still convinced he'll just take her away and she wants to stay," she shrugged, "I think that she's trying to prove she can do it on her own. She can be as stubborn as the Doctor on occasion."
"Or you," he retorted and she nudged him for his cheek.
"I'm not stubborn," she protested stubbornly.
"Oh, you so are," he exclaimed, "remember when you made us sit through that god awful Jennifer Aniston movie just because…"
"Those tickets were over £20!" She exclaimed, "It was a rip off."
"It was an awful movie." He reminded her, "or when you insisted that you'd ordered fish and chips when everyone heard you say that you wanted sausage and chips?"
She crossed her arms over her chest, "I wanted fish," she grumbled before suddenly stopping in her step, "oh, I forgot the milk!"
Danny frowned, wondering where that train of thought had come from, "Milk?"
"Yeah, I told Danni I'd grab some for her on the way back. Something about her wanting to make pancakes," she reached up, placing a kiss on his cheek, "you head home, I won't be a moment."
He couldn't help but smirk at the idea of being able to use the key to her flat for the first time. They'd exchanged keys only a week or so ago, just before Danni had moved into Clara's flat, and the novelty was definitely still there, "Just let myself in?" He asked and she rolled her eyes in amusement.
"Yes, yes, you have my key." She replied, "Go on, I'll be five minutes." He watched her walk off before pulling his keys out of his pocket. He didn't begrudge Danni finding comfort with Clara, they were close and he respected that. But he couldn't wait for Clara to have her bed back again.
~0~0~0~
Danny couldn't see any sign of the other Danni as he let himself in, closing the door quietly behind him. No shoes or coat were in sight, and the lights were all off. Perhaps she had gone out, but part of him wondered if he should drop Clara a message to let her know. The first thing she'd ask when she got back was asking where Danni was, perhaps he should give her a heads up.
He chucked his jacket over the back of the armchair that had always been, well since he first started coming over anyway, the place where all coats ended up. Even Clara's on occasion, and she actually had a place to hang up all of her jackets. He headed over to the lamp, switching it on even though it was daylight outside as his thoughts turned to the evening ahead. Maybe Clara already knew Danni was going to be out, so maybe they had enough time to watch a movie, have a little snog, maybe move to the bedroom…
He paused with his hand on the lamp switch, his ears detecting a noise within the flat that he knew shouldn't have been there. Immediately his mind went to threat, and then his mind went to Clara, who could walk in on the threat at any moment. He needed to neutralise it before she arrived. Then they could call the police, or just shake their fists at it out the window like some old cartoon. Maybe he'd been hearing things, but it wouldn't harm anyone to check.
He walked through the hallway towards where the noise was coming from, quickly discerning that it was coming from Clara's study. The study that had her laptop and extra monitor, another television and probably another few gadgets he couldn't think of off the top of his head. All things that could be nicked and sold on with very little ease. Clara didn't exactly live in a rough neighbour but that didn't mean that people weren't going to attack her flat.
He glanced into the open door, ready to call whoever it was out when he froze on the spot. Sitting at the desk, sobbing quietly to herself, was the woman he had been adamant had gone out. Danni was sat in a pair of pyjamas, her arms resting on the desk and her head buried in her arms. She'd obviously not even noticed that he'd come into the flat. Either that or she just hadn't cared.
He didn't know what to do! He was no good at this sort of social situation. Was he supposed to comfort her? How could he comfort her? He'd never been through a marriage for centuries only to walk away when he really didn't want to. Even if he did know, he couldn't comfort anyone! He was terrible at it. He was the person that children ran away from when they fell over because he would just make it worse, as he had proven many times at gatherings with his foster family.
But he couldn't just leave her to cry, could he? That seemed cruel, no matter how badly he might handle it. He glanced behind him at the door, desperately wishing that Clara would walk through it, but he knew that she always going to be longer than the five minutes that she said she would be. Milk would turn into milk, and bread, and some biscuits and other things that she'd remember the flat needed.
A moment passed, and Clara didn't appear and he knew it meant he had to do something. But what? Did he just cough, or ask if she was alright? Would she realise that he'd been stood there for what was turning into too long for him to not say anything.
Then she looked up and they locked eyes. Hers were bright red, along with her face, whereas he had to have looked like a deer in headlights. She would know he was staring, wouldn't she? Would she be embarrassed? He certainly was, but he didn't want her to be embarrassed, she had enough going on as it was and…
Danni wiped her eyes, "I'm sorry, I- Did you want to use the computer?" She asked in a slightly hoarse voice and he just stared back in confusion. The computer? Oh! She was… she was sat at the computer.
"Um, no," he motioned to out into the hallway, "Clara's just getting milk." He explained pointlessly and, to her credit, Danni didn't shoot him a completely bewildered look, but she also didn't really seem to know what to say to that. He didn't blame her, what could she say?
"I heard you, from the other room," he continued, "are-are you okay?"
She glanced back at the computer and he could see the fact that she was tearing up again, "I was trying to find a job," she whimpered, "but they all want experience, or… or qualifications and I don't have anything to offer. Without the Doctor, I barely exist!" And with that the sobs started again and he was left standing in the doorway like an idiot.
He hadn't expected her to actually tell him that she wasn't okay. He took a step into the room, "That's-That's not true," he told her, trying to sound sympathetic, "Clara's told me about all the stuff you've done."
She shook her head, "Everything I've done has been with the Doctor," she explained, "I can't do it on my own. I'm too pathetic, no one is ever going to hire me!" She fell back against the chair, "I was never strong enough to do this without him." She whispered.
Danny stared at her for just a moment, and suddenly he wasn't seeing a six-hundred-year-old alien, she was just like one of his students. Feeling small, and stupid, and acting out because of it. Unlike with his actual students, though, he couldn't just show her the answer to a maths problem and show her she could do it.
But this revelation gave him something to work with. It gave him an angle, and it was in teacher-mode that he had most of his confidence, "Now, I do know that is not true," he told her firmly, but kindly and she looked at him with a furrow brow, "I know from experience that you are more than strong enough to tackle anything on your own, and twice as smart."
"What do you mean?" She asked him, "You've not known me for long, and you've never been travelling with us."
"No, but I did have you put me into a half-nelson and march me out of your home," he reminded her and she flushed, embarrassed, "with good reason, as well. I insulted your husband, in your home, and I was completely out of line." She smiled softly, sadly and he realised that bringing up the Doctor probably wasn't helping, "Alright, it's not the best example. But what if I had been talking about Clara that way?"
"I'd rip you a new one." Danni replied in a matter of fact tone.
"Exactly," he replied, "and I heard you talking to Clara about that… that backpack thing, you knew what it was supposed to do as well."
"Only cause the Doctor had told me," she pointed out.
"We all have to learn it from somewhere," he stated, "and…" he paused for a moment, going over the stories that Clara had told him, "what about at that bank? Clara told me they thought you were dead, but you made your way back to them using the thing that had killed you."
"I had the TARDIS…" Danni began to protest.
"But who worked out what to do?" He counted, "Who planned it out and made it back to her friends using only the tools she had?"
She didn't know how to reply to that, because she still honestly was incredibly proud of herself for working out how to reverse the transporters back at the Bank of Karabraxos, but she also didn't want him to have a point against her, "Fine, you can have that one," she grumbled stubbornly.
"You fought in a war for five hundred years," he continued, "and you say that you had the Doctor's help. But he came out of it old and cruel, and yet all I ever hear is how kind you are. I bet you saw a lot of people die, didn't you?"
Danni nodded, her mind going over all the babies she'd watched grow and have babies of their own. She thought of her very first friend on the planet, Haley, who had furnished their house just because she'd found out they didn't have a bed. All those people she'd had to bury, she still felt that Haley's was the hardest death she'd had to endure.
Mr Pink watched his pseudo-student's gaze turn sad, her whole body seemingly aging with the memories, "Yeah, a few," she whispered.
"And yet you came out the other side still wanting to help people," he replied, "your… the Doctor didn't. He left you behind on the Moon to make a terrible decision, but you didn't shy away from it. A lot of people wouldn't want to help after all you went through, but you did. Even after what he did, you still just wanted to help."
She shrugged, "I was just doing what I thought I should."
"Sometimes we feel scared when we're alone," he replied, "but no one is ever really on their own. They have a little army fighting for them. Family and friends who make them brave, even if they don't know it." Danni smiled, because she recognised those words, just in a different order. It looks like little Rupert did remember their visit in some form after all, "And by the sounds of it, you have a rather large army behind you."
Danni smiled slightly, "I guess I do," she replied, thinking about all of her friends scattered across the universe. They all gave her strength, like she found strength in Clara. She might not have many saleable skills, but she wasn't on her own in this. She might be still at the point where she didn't want to ask for help, maybe because she was stubborn or maybe because she still hoped her Theta might turn up and try to save their marriage, but that didn't mean she didn't have anyone to ask when she needed it.
"You're rather clever, aren't you Mr Pink?" She teased lightly and he nodded.
"Not bad for a PE teacher, eh?" He retorted and she giggled, feeling a little bit better because of him.
"I'll put in a good word for you," she promised, "and perhaps suggest a night at your place, away from the grieving ex-wife."
His eyes widened, almost mortified at the suggestion because it meant that she knew about… about that side of his and Clara's relationship and Danni burst out laughing.
~0~0~0~
Day Eleven
Clara loved half days. If she was only in work in the morning, it meant that she got the whole afternoon to herself, to do whatever she wanted. Sometimes she used the time to catch up on her marking and planning, sometimes she used it to just laze around and do absolutely bugger all.
Sometimes she only worked in the afternoons. These days meant that she got to sleep in – although, due to her body clock it was only usually to about 8:30 – and she could hang around in her dressing gown until midday, when she'd rush to get dress and get to work in time for her first lesson. If she planned it better, she wouldn't have to rush, but who wanted to get out of their pyjamas before they had to?
Not Danni, at any rate. It was just about to turn 9am when the other woman came out of her bedroom, hair somehow not quite stuck up as comically as Clara thought it would have been, "Shouldn't you be at work?" She asked, a yawn interrupting her half way through.
"Half day," Clara offered in reply, pausing in her path to the sofa to watch the BBC morning news, "I didn't think you'd be up yet."
"Bad dream," Danni replied without telling her about the details of the blonde man who had haunted her dreams that night. Clara still didn't know anything about the Master or the Valiant and Danni hoped to keep it that way, "how did you manage to wrangle only afternoon classes?"
"I have no idea, but if I ever figure it out I want to try it again," Clara replied, "Do you want a cuppa?" Danni nodded and the pair headed back into the room, "Job hunting again today?" Clara asked.
"Probably," Danni replied, "I'm giving it three more days then I'm going to call Jack."
Clara looked over her shoulder as she poured the water into the mug she'd chosen for Danni, "Wait, when did you decide that?" She asked, "I've been telling you to call Jack for days!"
"Yeah, well, I'm slow but I get there," Danni commented, "I didn't think it would be this hard to find a job I could even apply for, let alone get. Sometimes you've just got to ask for help from the people who offer it."
Clara smirked, handing her over the cup of tea before the pair headed out into the hallway once again, "And this has nothing to do with a certain maths teacher I have been told calmed you do when you were upset?" She teased.
"Of course it does," Danni replied, "did you really think I could make decisions on my own?"
"Nope, that's what I'm for." Clara teased back.
They both jumped as the front door was thrown open, standing stunned as the flat was suddenly full of armed soldiers, all in SWAT gear, surrounding the pair. There were orders being shouted and Clara dropped her own coffee in surprise, but they actually seemed to be ignoring the two women as they secured a parameter around them, enclosing them in a circle.
"What the hell is going on?!" Clara shouted, taking a step towards Danni, who seemed a lot less perturbed than she was.
"This has happened before," Danni commented thoughtfully, "I think we're being paid a visit."
"A visit?!" Clara snapped, as the people in question entered the flat behind the officers, "What kind of visit requires SWAT officers in my apartment?"
"The visit of someone incredibly important," Danni replied, "Am I right?"
"You most certainly are, Mrs Fielding," Clara turned from Danni to see Kate and the two Osgoods stepping into the circle that had been made around them. Clara just stared, eyes wide in disbelief as Danni rolled hers.
"Was this really necessary?" She asked the UNIT officer, "This isn't even my flat. You could get her in trouble."
"It's all just precaution, we have already sorted it out with her landlord," Kate replied simply and Clara took a step forward.
"Hang on, you've been talking to my landlord?" She asked, "Why-Why would you do that?"
"You've been here for eleven days now, Danielle," Kate stated, ignoring Clara's quiet outrage, "ten days is considered a national risk, we have to follow these things up."
"I'm a national risk?" Danni asked, although the surprise that should have been in her tone was strangely absent, something Clara had noticed, "I didn't know I was so special."
"As a Time Lord you are considered a national risk," one Osgood declared, the one dressed in a sweater vest and corduroy that was obviously reminiscent of the Doctor.
"And as Jack Harkness's daughter, you are also a person of note," the other Osgood added, this one dressed in black trousers and a white blouse.
"Well, I don't have a TARDIS," Danni replied, "nor do I have a husband anymore, so I don't think I'm really worth gathering an army for, Kate."
"Wait, the Doctor's dead?" The Doctor-Osgood exclaimed, absolutely horrified. Danni seemed to falter, staring with unblinking eyes for a moment. Clara was about to step in for her, but then she seemed to decide that she wanted to tell them because she started breathing once again.
"No, I left him," Danni replied softly, "it happens, people break up. But I haven't seen him since, and I'm not seeing him anytime soon. I truly am more human than Time Lord now, so I am not a threat."
There was a tense silence between the group of women for what felt like an extended moment, "And this was eleven days ago?" Kate asked and Danni rolled her eyes.
"Yes, it was," she snapped, "and I would love to dish all of the gossip on my failed marriage with you, Kate, but right now I'm too pissed off at you barging into my friend's flat to give you anything. Get out."
"But, you love him so much," the Danni-Osgood declared softly and Danni nodded.
"I do," she agreed, but offered nothing more.
"And he loves you," the Doctor-Osgood added and Danni shook her head.
"No," was her simple correction and both Osgoods looked shocked at her soft answer. Clara couldn't blame them, especially since she wasn't sure that it was true despite his actions.
"We weren't sure that the sightings of you were actually you," Kate explained, her voice lacking the indifference it tended to hold, "we didn't think you'd stay on Earth for so long on your own."
"Yeah, well, I am," Danni retorted, "You could have just called, Kate. Or come on your own to check first. This was unnecessary."
She nodded, "Probably, but unfortunately we have to go with procedure. If there was someone impersonating a Time Lord, we have to be prepared."
"Well, I trust you believe that I'm me now?" She asked and Kate nodded, "Then you can leave."
"Danielle..." the officer started.
"No, you can leave." Danni snapped, "I am not a danger, I am a mess! I've only been out a handful of times on very unsuccessful job hunts. I spend most of my time crying, ask Clara," she motioned to the brunette, who quickly nodded in agreement.
"A complete mess," she agreed before realising she probably shouldn't have sounded so happy about it.
"My marriage is dead, I've lost the man I love, please leave me alone." She begged and after another long moment, Kate nodded.
"Everyone out, there's no threat," she called and the armed soldiers all started filtering out, "You know where to find us, Danielle."
Danni shot her a weak smile, recognising the words as help when she needed it, "Thanks, Kate," she replied sincerely before turning to the Osgood, "You two still the same person?" She asked and they both nodded.
"Both still Osgood." The Danni-Osgood replied and Danni grinned a proper smile.
"That's still awesome," she told them both, "you have to tell me how that works one day. Come for lunch or something."
Danni-Osgood's mouth actually dropped open while the Doctor-Osgood beamed in excitement, "Do you mean it?" She asked eagerly and Danni nodded.
"Wouldn't offer if I didn't, sweetie," she replied, "although, if I don't have a job, it might be just sandwiches here."
"That's fine!" The Doctor-Osgood insisted as her sister nodded.
"Completely fine, we'd love to!" Danni-Osgood added as Kate rolled her eyes at the pair.
"Oh, they're going to excited all the way home," she commented, turning and walking out, "come on you two."
"Bye, Danni!" Doctor-Osgood exclaimed whilst Danni-Osgood was barely able to offer a wave before they followed their superior out, shutting the front door behind them.
"What, so they break into my house and I don't even get a goodbye?" Clara ranted, "They better not have gotten me kicked out."
Danni shook her head, "They won't have, don't worry." She promised, "I'll get you another coffee."
Clara followed her into the kitchen, "You would say that, they're your fangirls."
"No they're not." Danni insisted firmly, "Stop it, or I'll put sugar in your coffee and make you drink it."
"You wouldn't dare," Clara challenged.
~0~0~0~
Night Thirteen
Clara yawned as she turned off the television, deciding that it really was time to call it a night. Her bed had been softly calling to her for about half an hour now, and she finally decided to listen to it and get some sleep.
She brushed her teeth for two minutes – or roughly that, because toothpaste actually tasted disgusting but she persevered for the longest she possibly could – then turned all the lights off before heading into her bedroom as to not disturb the over occupant.
Although, it would seem, that she wouldn't have woken up at all. She'd not heard a noise from the room for the entire time Danni had been in bed, but it seems it was because she was trying her hardest not to be heard. But when she stepped into the room the sounds of her broken-hearted sobs were audible from where she was stood and Clara's heart ached for her.
She walked over, sitting down on the edge of the bed, next to where Danni was curled up underneath the covers. She could feel her shaking, hear the tiny whimpers she let out into the pillow, which she didn't even have to feel to know would be soaked.
"Shh…" She whispered softly, reaching out to stroke Danni's hair, letting the blonde locks fall through her fingers in her attempt to comfort her, "You're okay, you'll be okay."