The Mirror Cracks (A Doctor Who Fan Fiction)

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The manual reset brought the two travellers back to the TARDIS before they had encountered the Rani.

The Doctor and Clara were at the control panel, stabilising the TARDIS as it travelled.

“Hold that lever down, Clara!”

Clara pulled the lever on her own panel down and the TARDIS shuttered as it finally smoothed out, leaving the two travellers to hold on before finally standing up straight. Clara fixed her hair back and brushed down her dress before smiling at the Doctor.

“I think you’ll make a decent TARDIS pilot out of me yet.”

The Doctor smiled back, adding, “I think I already have. Practice makes perfect though and soon I’ll be able to sit back and watch you take this little beauty out for a spin.”

Clara blushed slightly as the Doctor came towards her. He looked down at her, smiling before putting his hand on her arm. Although he knew she would not recall what had happened before with the Rani, nearly losing her had hurt the Doctor and he could not bear losing her in such dramatic circumstances again, not without showing he cared about her.  She looked at where his hand was before looking up at him to meet his gaze. She too smiled at him before blushing again. She knew he would notice this time and moved away. The Doctor looked on in disappointment to see her move away from him. He turned back to the control panel and began working at the TARDIS again.  

Clara began rubbing her arm. She looked nervous from behind. She kept looking round to see if the Doctor noticed her but he had begun to work at the TARDIS again. She realised she looked silly and turned round, taking a big breath of air. She skipped over to the Doctor and leant against the control panel to look directly at him.

“Would you like some tea?”

The Doctor looked at her and smiled.

“I would love some. Milk and ten sugars please.”

“Always the oddest request for tea I probably will ever receive but coming right up!”

Clara smiled back and skipped down to the lower levels to get some. The Doctor watched her go down before looking back at a screen on his panel. On it read the following:

She likes you. Treat her well.

The Doctor looked confused at what he saw and rubbed his eyes before looking again. The text had disappeared. The Doctor looked back to where Clara had went before looking at the time rotor, smiling at the blue glow which radiated from it.

“I think you’re setting me up.”

“Who’s setting who up?”

Clara returned with a tray with two cups of tea. The Doctor turned round to see her, looking surprised before smiling at her sudden return.

“There’s a mirror cracked down there. You might want to replace it,” Clara said as she walked over to the console. She took both cups and handed one to the Doctor. He smiled in acknowledgement and both began drinking their tea. The Doctor looked at the time rotor one more time before finally turning to Clara, asking,

“Right, soufflé girl, where to next?”

The two travellers smiled at one another, their journey about to start afresh. But in the Doctor’s head, the wild cackling of a familiar female voice threatened to disturb the moment he was having. No matter what the TARDIS could do, to leave the soul of the Time Lady in the midst of deep space or in the far reaches of a far-flung planet, the Rani might still return to exact her revenge…