Receiving Another Chance (Book Ten of The Bad Wolf Chronicles)

How Much Do You Wish?

Personal opinion on this episode: I thought this would have been a wonderful way for Clara to go, but I was so happy Jenna Coleman stuck around for another season. I loved Series 9, and I loved the final episodes of the series. I'm pretty certain I cheered when I finished this episode the first time and realized Clara was staying.

Anyway, one last interlude before the end! The Time Lords and the Maximoffs find Clara and Rose, but are they in time?

***

The Doctor and Jessie were the first through the doors to Rose's house, Pietro and Wanda scrambling after them. The Doctor stopped in the doorway of the living room, seeing Rose leaning back in an armchair, Clara on the couch, all the lights off. "Oh, Clara," the Doctor clicked his tongue, moving to help the brunette as Jessie hurried to the blonde. "I might have known you would be the one to sleep in."

"Let's see," Jessie checked her sonic. "Psychic signal tracked, and . . . aha!" She zapped two places on the crab. "Neural centers zapped, and . . . . "

"There we go," the Doctor pulled the crab he zapped off of Clara. "The Dream Crabs must have got to us first, then found you in our memories. The others were collateral damage. Well, good to see you both properly at last."

Jessie, however, swallowed as she watched Rose reach for her head, Clara going for the lamp on the couch-side table. "Doctor," she whispered.

The Doctor just needed to hear her voice to realize something was wrong. "How long has it been?" he asked worriedly, hearing Pietro's breath hitch.

"Oh, you know," Clara turned the light on, revealing her skin wrinkled and hair grey. "About sixty-two years."

"What?" Wanda's voice cracked.

"That long?" Jessie mouthed.

"That long," Rose confirmed, her long grey hair in a tight braid over her shoulder. "And we have missed you very much."

Pietro came forward slowly, and Clara's smile was bright yet sad as she looked at him. "Hello, Pietro."

"Clara," he whispered, hugging her tightly.

"I missed you," Clara squeezed just as tight.

The Doctor swallowed hard. "We've missed you, too."

***

"These are Christmas hats," the Doctor waved them in the air as he re-entered the living room. "I've seen people use them. You put them on and absolutely anything seems funny."

"So they won't work on you?" Rose asked from where she and Jessie were sitting, still side by side.

"Probably not," the Doctor shook his head. "Either of you want to try?"

Clara declined, smiling at Pietro. "I'm good right here."

"Go on, then," Rose invited.

The Doctor obliged, placing a yellow paper crown on the woman. When he backed away, Rose tilted her head. "How do I look?"

The Doctor sighed; it was so easy to imagine those brown eyes full of life and much younger, her grey hair back to golden blonde. "Rose Tyler, I find it very hard to look at you any different than you used to be."

"Thank you, Doctor," Rose beamed.

"So," Wanda fidgeted, looking uncomfortable with the idea that their two friends were much older than they were. "How was it?"

"How was what?" Clara blinked.

Wanda ducked her head. "The sixty-two years that we missed."

"Oh, how were our lives," Clara realized. "Well, we stuck together, as you can see." She smirked at Pietro. "Never found anyone who matched up to you."