A CHRISTMAS CLARA I FLYNN CARSEN

Thinking Out Loud

Thinking Out Loud

The sound of an old sixties track drifted up from below, making Jenkins long for the time he'd been a hippy, dying being a simple step on the ladder of life, not the hoo-ha it was now. Eve's surprise birthday party was in full swing, but Clara was conspicuously absent, slipping away at the first chance she got, her thoughts with Flynn, making her heart twist in her chest.

"So you met Dulaque then," Jenkins said to Clara, who was sitting on the edge of Flynn's desk, swinging her legs to and fro.

"Yes," she said quietly, imagining Dulaque walking the corridors of her childhood, retracing the path of her past.

"And he's living in your old house," Jenkins said, brow furrowing, not realising he was reading her mind. "How singularly strange."

"I know," Clara snapped. "I hate him, and I hate the idea of him living there. It's - it's wrong!"

Jenkins studied her, repressing his pleasure at her almost immature vehemence. Whatever it was that disturbed her so about Dulaque, her hatred would protect her from him. Jenkins had come to accept that Clara was Clara, and not Guinevere, even if didn't lessen his dislike of Clara any. But he hated Dulaque, and so did she, and it would prove a common ground for them to meet upon, perhaps even fight from when the time came, a time which Jenkins was sure would come.

"I think Dulaque was behind the debacle of the Labyrinth," Jenkins suggested hesitantly, "although of course there's no proof" –

- "It's not like we need any," Clara said, bowing her head, effectively cutting that conversation off.

"Santa is recovering," Jenkins then said, making Clara glance up at him. "Gretchen's feeding him up like a pig being raised to slaughter."

"Thank you for that mental image," Clara said, trying to shake off the idea of Santa serving as the centrepiece of a banquet, an apple shoved into his mouth, Henry VIII roistering somewhere in the background.

"Well, he's on the road to recovery, with no small thanks to Eve," Jenkins said irritably, straightening his bow-tie.

"Eve was amazing," Clara said quietly.

Jenkins just cleared his throat, not wanting to compliment the Colonel.

"I saw Flynn," Clara then said, raising her head.

"Yeah, he called," Jenkins said, folding his arms across his chest. "Said he had a hit and run with Santa's sleigh. Made him crash into Harry Potter or something. But he's alive - Flynn, I mean, not Harry Potter."

"I have a boyfriend who rides flying broomsticks," Clara said, sounding slightly dazed.

"And I have an aunt who owns a pair of talking knitting needles," Jenkins said dourly. "Deal with it."

Clara just looked at him, eyes narrowing.

"Why aren't you celebrating the day of Colonel Baird's birth?" Jenkins said, narrowing his eyes back at her.

"I baked the cake," Clara said, dropping her gaze to the ground. "I've done my part."

"Well, you should be there," Jenkins snapped.

"I don't want to be," Clara said, "I don't do surprise birthday parties."

"The others would want you there" -

- "You know what, I'm going home," Clara said, standing up. "Christmas or not, I'm calling it a night."

Jenkins watched her leave, before shaking his head and retreating to the upper storey, seeking the company of some red wine and sonnets. Outside, Clara stood on the top of the Annex steps, the moon high above her, the snow falling thick and fast now. Everything was strangely still and quiet, as though the world was holding its breath. The moment felt almost sacred, making Clara seek shelter in the shadows, not wanting to desecrate it with her presence. Then somebody took her hand, making her whirl around, only to see Flynn, slightly windblown, but Flynn all the same.

"Oh, it's you," Clara said, winding her arms around his neck.

"It's me alright," Flynn grinned, his lips finding hers, the snow falling around them.

Take me into your loving arms
Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars
Place your head on my beating heart
I'm thinking out loud
Maybe we found love right where we are...

The End

~*~

Author's Note: The sequel, Sure As Sin, can be found under the 'My Stories' section of my profile.