The Hybrid - Doctor Who Fanfiction

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An incomprehensible ball of emotions ranging from the anxiety of wanting to know if the Time Lord was alright, to the debilitating frustration of him speaking for her yet again like she was child, to the endless regret she felt at having abandoned him to suffer alone in that house-- all of it landed in the back of Clara's throat, threatening to choke her.

"Do you, now?" She called across the room as she crossed her arms, the physical distance between them an obvious and rather cheesy metaphor of their current emotional distance from the other. "I don't recall asking you to 'handle' any of this."

The Doctor winced at his choice of words, and had the grace to look chagrined at how patronizing realized they sounded.

"Okay, right. So maybe not 'handled', that's-that's not what I meant. 'Covered' is more along the lines of, eh, what I meant to say."

Distracted and a little more than annoyed, Clara turned to the bewildered Sontaran who was still awaiting orders as the couple bickered. "It's alright, Strax, you're free to go. I'll be perfectly fine here alone. You don't need to bother Jenny."

"Please, don't bother Jenny," the Doctor agreed with a worn look. He couldn't bear the possibility of being interrupted by another one of the Paternoster Gang; not now. "We can take it from here."

"You," Clara emphasized with a sharp look towards the gray-haired fool, "can also leave. Same instructions apply to you."

The Doctor stood perfectly still, however, ignoring the way Clara was staring holes into his face as Strax eagerly bumbled past him towards the doors.

"Thank you, Strax," he whispered sincerely as the small warrior reached the door handle. "For looking after her."

Strax's surprised reaction at the Time Lord's un-Scottish sincerity only lasted a moment before his usually stern countenance returned.

"You're very welcome, sir," he nodded once before opening the door and leaving the two of them alone.

"Right, okay, look--" The Doctor started with fidgeting hands, but Clara beat him to it.

"Didn't you hear me?" Clara's posture straightened though she looked positively drained. "I don't need you to look after me."

"What, you don't think I know that?" The Doctor's gentle albeit slightly miffed tone came as his eyes softened. "You are perfectly capable of looking after yourself, and I know you don't need me."

"Do you?" She said doubtfully with a quirked brow. "This isn't you trying to be the hero? Trying to rescue another damsel from her-her chest cold?"

"You're not a damsel, Clara," the Doctor almost rolled his eyes. Not at her, but at the description she'd used for herself--she knew better than that.

"In fact, you're probably the furthest thing from Rapunzel in a tower. And, no, this time I'm not here to rescue you."

Clara caught the dejection riddled in his words, but pushed down the urge to comfort him, her own remorse overpowering the sentiment. "Then why are you here?"

"Because I want to rescue me!" He shouted passionately before he could calm himself down. "I know you can fend for yourself, Clara; that's never been the question. But, I want to save my own life this time--I'm here because however angry or disappointed are with me at this moment, however insistent you are that I leave and never come back, the simple fact is my hearts will never beat for another living soul the way they do for you!"