Doctor Who One Shots

A Light in the Darkness

[Sort of deleted scene in The Rings of Akhaten. The (11th) Doctor is chasing Clara and just saw her at her mother's funeral. This takes place a few weeks ago.]

The doctor just landed in a park in London ; it was late already and he couldn't hear a sound. Just the wind blowing in the branches of trees. The leaves seemed to whisper in the dark some words no one could hear.
The doctor didn't know where and when he was exactly but he didn't need to. He was chasing Clara through her timeline and if the Tardis has brought him here, there was certainly a reason.

He started walking down the alley, looking at the stars brightening in the deep dark blue of the sky. He was just wondering how humans on earth could bear staring at these shining things and just stand there watching them without going closer, when he heard a noise. Like someone sniffing.
He turned is head and saw a young girl sitting on a bench. Her arms surrounded her legs, which she'd folded against her chest, and he couldn't see her head as it was hidden in her arms.

"Hello?" he said. The girl raised her head hesitantly and looked at this funny man standing in front of her. It looked like they were the only people awake at that precise moment.
The doctor noticed that she should've been crying because even with the low light of the street lamps, he could see her irritated eyes and wet cheeks.

"Are you alright?" he asked.
"Yeah..." she answered.
Of course the doctor had recognized Clara. He wasn't supposed to talk to her. She could remember, at some point, their meeting, in the future. But it was too late now...

"You don't seem to be."
"I've just been crying a bit. That's all."
"Why?"
"Who are you? I shouldn't be talking to you. I shouldn't talk to strangers."
"Who told you that?"
"My...my mum." Clara answered.
"Why are you talking to me right now then ?" said the doctor.
"What sort of man are you?" she sounded cross. But the doctor couldn't see anger in her eyes. He could see fear. And a lot of sadness.
"Well, I think, you're talking to me because you need it."
"Why would I need anyone ?"
"Because we all need someone."

She didn't say anything. The doctor sat next to her on the bench and without looking at her, he asked :
"How old are you?"
Clara didn't want to answer him and she regretted her words the minute they came out of her mouth :
"19."
"19. That's a brilliant age 19. The best time of all! A 19 years old girl like you shouldn't be crying alone in the dark at 10pm."
"My mum passed away. 1 months ago."
She couldn't control what she was saying anymore. She ignored why, but she felt like she could trust this man. She has been so lonely since her mum died and she worked hard at University and didn't have time to hang out with friends she actually didn't have. She was devastated. And she needed to say it to somebody. Anybody.

"I see." The doctor said quietly. He looked at her and she was about to cry so he took her hand and said :
"Hey...hey it's alright. Everything is gonna be alright. I promise."
"How can you know?"
The doctor didn't answer. Clara didn't move because even if he was a stranger, anyone had never been kind to her since days, and it felt good and reassuring.
"Look" the doctor says pointing at the sky with his finger "what can you see?"
"S..stars?"
"Exactly. That's how I know. I know everything will be alright, Clara Oswald, because you can see lights in the darkness, and you always will. That's what makes you strong."

She admired the sky for a moment and suddenly realized he said her name while he wasn't supposed to know it. She turned her head and said : "I'm sorry, how do you..." but he was gone.
She immediately thought this was her imagination and her tired mind playing some tricks. And thinking that the funny man didn't exist make her sad again.
Then she heard a sound. A sound she'd never heard before. Clara stood up quickly, looked around her in the park, searching for the noise's source. It sounded like when you press a shampoo bottle and you know it's empty, but you want shampoo anyway. This thought made her laugh.
Suddenly, for one second she thought she had seen a blue light between the trees in the dark. She blinked. The light had disappeared.

She smiled and looked at the sky one last time before going back home.
This was probably her imagination. She made up a mad man wearing a bowtie, out of nowhere, coming to comfort her. And it kinda worked because she was feeling better.
This was nonsense, she definitely needed to get some sleep...!