Oswalds and Roses | A Doctor Who Fanfic

►Chapter 2 - Testament of the Travelers◄

Clara stares at the lady on the ground, her eyes are stuck on her face. She hardly registers it when the Doctor approaches her. The Doctor is quick to place his hands on Clara's shoulders and turn her away from the lady. His eyes scan over her for a second before resting on her face. "Clara, Clara, Clara are you alright?"

"No, I most certainly am not!" Clara exclaims. Only now she has started to process what has just happened. "How does she look like me? How is that possible? She couldn't. . . be me, can she?"

The Doctor looks unsure of himself. His mouth is open but no words are coming out. His eyes travel to look at the girl but quickly snap back to Clara. He is just stuck staring at her face and Clara can see in his eyes that he is thinking very deeply about something. Something gives her the feeling though that it is not about the lady who had just fainted. "I don't know Clara."

"Doctor." The blond lady approaches, now holding the baby in her arms. Clara looks at the lady quickly, she could have sworn that she had seen her somewhere. Her greeny brown eyes were certainly familiar, no one could forget eyes like those. Those eyes turned on her now. "Who is this?"

"Rose meet Clara, Clara meet Rose." The Doctor quickly made the introductions, then, feeling a little uncomfortable, went to assist Jack. Although Jack didn't really need any help supporting her head.

"How do you know the Doctor?" Clara asked Rose. Her hands were trembling by her side.

"I'm his. . . well, his previous regeneration's. . ." Rose took a breath, she seemed unsure how to put their relationship into words Clara would understand. "I'm married to his past self's human clone? Does that make any sense at all?"

It took a good while for Clara to get what she was saying. Clara had been told about the Doctor's regeneration before so at least that part made sense. Then she just had to puzzle through the rest of it. After she had her eyes were drawn to the baby in Rose's arms. She guessed the baby must have been Rose's with the way she was holding it, which means that the baby was also. . . in a way, the Doctor's? It was all rather complicated to think about. Never had she imagined the Doctor with a wife much less a kid. But were they really his wife and kid? Her head was spinning thinking about it all. At least it was taking her mind off of the Lady with her face for a moment.

"Sure, ya, that makes sense," Clara responds to Rose's question, not quite sure if her answer is the complete truth.

"How do you know the Doctor?" Rose then asks curiously leaving Clara like a deer stuck in headlights.

How would she describe her relationship with the Doctor? Were they friends? Certainly. Were they only friends? Clara could not answer that so confidently, because she didn't really know. They had shared looks and lingering hugs. They'd shared intense moments of eye contact and kisses placed on cheeks. Clara's face turned towards the Doctor and she looked at him. His eyes met hers momentarily and there was a slight smile on his lips and a look in his eye she could never quite place for she had never seen it on another person before. No, Clara could not say that they were merely friends, whatever they had went beyond that. It would certainly be uncomfortable to admit this to Rose, who in a way she guessed was involved with the Doctor, but she did not want to lie. So she used the most accurate word she could use to describe their relationship.

"Companions, we're companions," Clara said, a slight smile on her face when she turned back to look at Rose.

Rose had a confused smile on her face at first, then she looked to the Doctor, then back at Clara. And suddenly there was understanding on her face and a different type of smile. Staring into Clara's eyes Rose told her firmly. "It's a surprisingly accurate description."