"Clara!"
Clara frowned. "Yes, Danni?" she called through, not looking up from the text book she was currently looking through. She'd set a bunch of questions for her Year 11's from one of the chapters and she wanted to make sure she had the right answers for herself before she tackled theirs. There was a teacher's book that went with it that gave the answers, but she had found too many inaccuracies in it to want to follow it again.
"I can't get the door!"
She rolled her eyes before standing up from the sofa, pen still in hand. "Why didn't you open the door before picking it up?" she asked as she walked over, pushing the door inwards. Danni smiled gratefully at her, one hand precariously carrying a gingerbread house, and the other holding one of the roof panels.
"Because I was annoyed," she retorted. "Help me with this. The roof won't stay on and I really don't want to use superglue." Danni headed over to the coffee table, nudging some of Clara's papers out of the way so she could place it down. "I didn't want to poison anyone with it, after all."
"No, I can see that," Clara replied, a little amused by her behaviour. Danni sat on the floor next to it, carefully placing the roof panels together.
"You see, when I press them together with the icing," she started, letting them go. Immediately the panels fell onto the table and she growled in frustration. "That's happened like five times now."
"Here, let me try," Clara told her, nudging her over so she could sit down. "Do you have any more icing?"
Danni nodded, heading back into the kitchen. "I don't even want it to be perfect," she told her friend as she disappeared and quickly reappeared with the tube of white icing. "At this point I just want it to stay on. You're supposed to decorate it with M&Ms, but that can go screw itself."
Clara laughed slightly. It was always a little funny to hear Danni say something even remotely swearword-like. For some reason it seemed even stranger than hearing her say actual swear words. She held her hand out for the tube, and started applying more onto the edges. "That seems a bit overkill, anyway," she replied. "Whoever heard of a house with multi-coloured roof tiles?"
"That's my thoughts exactly," Danni agreed. "I thought it would look good in the middle of the coffee table."
Clara just made a non-committal noise. Her house was slowly turning into a grotto, with lights and trees and other little ornaments. To be fair on Danni, though, she had expected it to be a lot more tacky and garish. Danni had chosen silver and blue as a colour scheme, and it was actually very pretty. It was a lot more decoration than Clara would have put up, and hers wouldn't have been in TARDIS colours, but she knew it made Danni happy so she didn't complain too much.
"You can keep it as well," she continued. "The Doctor doesn't really like gingerbread this time around. I thought you and Danny could nibble on it when you saw him again."
Clara nodded again, slowly moving her hands back from the roof. It was staying put, and Danni was absolutely astounded. "What did you do?!"
"I just added more," Clara replied. "Don't touch it. Hopefully it'll stick when it dries."
Danni grinned. "You're fantastic, Clara Oswald!"
"I am, aren't I?"
Danni watched Clara settle back into her seat, her brows furrowed slightly. Clara had, once again, dodged a mention of Danny Pink. Since her and the Doctor's holiday away she hadn't seen the other teacher at all, and Clara barely mentioned him. She still went out on a Thursday, but she never mentioned where and was always back before Danni went to bed.
"What is it?" Clara asked. "I know it's not the homework, because even when you set it you know it's rather dull."
Danni quickly averted her gaze, looking down at her hands. She hadn't stood up from the floor, either, and she found herself not wanting to. "Did I do something?"
Clara frowned, looking up at her friend. She looked so sad, and immediately Clara felt her heart clench in concern. "No," she replied quickly. "Why would you think that?"
Danni shrugged but didn't look up. "Danny hasn't been coming around," she commented. "I thought- I dunno, I thought I might have made him angry. Is it because I'm still living here?"
Clara had really hoped that Danni hadn't noticed it, but evidently she had. Ever since she'd chucked Danny out of the flat during what should have been their weekend together, their relationship hadn't been the best. There had been a few arguments, a few pointed ignored in the halls at school. He wasn't happy with her and she couldn't blame him. She'd treated him appallingly and without reason to. Maybe he did have a point. She really wasn't looking forward to Danni moving out, she'd really enjoyed having her in the guest bedroom. But he also didn't have to keep implying that she fancied her. Everyone always did, but she'd not expected it so much from her own boyfriend.
When she'd finally gotten him to talk to her, he'd been apologetic as well. But he'd refused point blank to go around to the flat. He said he didn't want to see his girlfriend pine over her roommate even if she couldn't see it herself. He still believed the Doctor and Danni were bad for her. So, until she could show him otherwise, she'd agreed to spend time with him at his place.
"It's not you," Clara reassured her. "It's me. I told him to stop coming around." Danni looked up, confused. "When you walked out on us when we were going to watch Terminator, I realised it wasn't fair to keep you trapped in your room all night when he had an apartment to himself. So we decided to just go there instead."
"Clara," Danni started, feeling guiltier by the moment. "You really didn't need to do that. I don't mind, you know I don't…"
"But I do," Clara interrupted. "I don't want my best friend trapped in her bedroom. Plus, you know," she smirked. "Empty apartments work better on date nights."
Danni couldn't help but giggle, and Clara watched her shoulders relax, guilt rising from them. "Oh, if that's the reason, that's okay then. Sorry I've been such a cramp on your love life."
She was only teasing but Clara shrugged. "That's alright," she replied just as cheekily. "Sorry the flat is out of bounds on Christmas. You don't want to be here when we are."
Danni pulled a face, standing up. "Don't," she warned. "Or I'll tell you about me and the Doctor and I'm sure you don't want to hear about…"
"No, I don't," Clara exclaimed. "Go make your cookies before I demolish your gingerbread house."
"You wouldn't dare," Danni gasped.
Clara raised an eyebrow and reached over, her hand hovering above the house. Danni quickly rushed to the kitchen. "I'm going, I'm going!" she cried. "And you and Danny will be alone again, I promise!"
Clara laughed and settled back into the sofa. She really was going to miss Danni when she was gone. It felt like she was losing a part of herself, and as much as she tried to focus on the work in front of her, she just couldn't. Instead she just stared at it, brows furrowed, as she wondered why Danni Fielding leaving her felt worse than Danny Pink never coming back.
~0~0~0~
The frost fair was so much bigger than Danni was expecting. It wasn't the first time she'd heard of one, or in fact the first time she'd seen one, but it was the first Victorian one they'd been to and it was lovely.
And crowded. She knew the Doctor wasn't particularly happy about it being so crowded, but Danni really enjoyed it. Atmosphere was half of the draw to festivals and fairs like this. She enjoyed seeing people having a good time, especially on such an unusual location.
"Do you think I can have a go on the merry-go-round later?" she asked the Doctor, who held her hand in his. They were both wearing gloves, Danni's fluffy but his almost velvet in texture and thickness, but the gesture was lovely. Everything felt better when they were holding hands.
"If you want to," he replied. "I'm not sure if going around and round in a circle is much fun, though."
"Oh, you know it's more than that," she said. "You don't have to come on with me. You can just sit back and watch." She smiled up at him. He looked so nice in his outfit. It didn't look too different from his normal suit. It was still a deep navy with red lining. The jacket was longer, though, with coat tails and his trousers a little more of a tighter fit. He really was making an effort when he didn't have to.
Part of her thought that he was just using her as an excuse to wear a fancier outfit, but she was happy to be the excuse if it made him more comfortable. "You really know the best places to come for Christmas," she said. "This looks just like a Christmas card. You know I'm a sucker for a good theme."
"That I do," he agreed as his eyes darted around while she couldn't see.
Unfortunately this particular trip wasn't quite as innocent as she believed. He had already been planning to take her to the Frost Fairs, but not for a while. He'd been investigating the best time to take her when he'd seen a power spike. Someone was using something nuclear powered in the 1890s and he knew it wasn't anything good. He just wanted to investigate and make sure it was something their detective friends could handle. Then he'd pass it off to them and they could continue their Christmas.
There was an array of different stalls. He offered to buy her a trinket or two, but there wasn't anything he deemed nice enough for her to own. Eventually they settled for having a couple of baked potatoes as they walked leisurely through the crowd.
"Maybe we should go see Vastra," Danni suggested after she finished a bite of the buttery treat. "I haven't seen them since you regenerated, it might be a good idea to get them up to speed."
"I'm sure we will stop by before the end of our trip," he offered, knowing that they definitely would. "For now, though, why don't you choose what you want to do next, my Pet?"
Danni frowned, pulling them both to a stop. She pushed onto her tip toes, looking over the heads of the people to decide which way to go. A lot of them seemed to be funnelling into a small roped off area so she nodded in that direction. "What about over there?" she asked. "Something seems to be happening."
He agreed, so they walked over and joined the back of the crowd. The two people manning the entrance were very efficient, though, and soon enough they were at the front of the queue. The lad held his hand out with the expression on his face of a person who'd already becoming tired of their job. "Two pennies," he told them. The Doctor fished into his pocket and pulled out two exceptionally shiny coins and handed them over in return for two cardboard tickets. "Just show this if you want to come back later, squire," he said. "Only valid for today though, mind. Tickets'll be a different colour tomorrow."
Danni smiled. "Thank you," she replied gratefully. "Can you tell us what we'd come back to see, should we want to?"
He shot them both a confused look. "It's the Carnival of Curiosities, ain't it?" he replied slowly. "It's the main attraction. There's been posters up about it for weeks."
"Oh, of course," Danni replied. "How silly of me. Come along, dear."
She pulled the Doctor along. "Curiosities, eh?" she stated. "This isn't one of those places where they abuse people, is it? You know, like in the Phantom of the Opera? Because I don't think I'll be happy that we gave them money."
"I doubt it," the Doctor replied. "I think this probably no more than a travelling circus. All fake fortune tellers and bearded ladies that are actually bears."
"That's okay then," she replied, still frowning. "I guess. What should we go look at first?"
They had a little wander around. There was a fortune teller, just like the Doctor had said, but Danni made sure they stayed far away from that tent. She'd had enough of knowing the future for all of her remaining lives. There was an exhibition of 'Never-creatures', but all of them were incredibly fake and very disappointing at that. Danni really did expect more of a fake mermaid.
She did enjoy the strongman, though, until the Doctor sighed like he had somewhere better to be. Danni shot him a look, willing him to be quiet and less disinterested, but the man had already noticed.
"You got a problem, mister?" he demanded as he held a metal pole with two baskets of rocks attached to each end against his chest.
"Me?" the Doctor asked like he was surprised to be picked on.
"That's right – you."
"Sorry," the Doctor replied, walking over to the man. Danni dipped her head, her cheeks turning red. Oh, why was he doing this?
"I just wasn't that impressed, I'm afraid."
"Really?" the strong man challenged.
"Theta, please," Danni called back over but neither the Doctor nor the crowd were budging.
"I can soon teach you to be impressed."
"You think so?" the Doctor replied. He glanced back at his wife, who looked decidedly uncomfortable instead of impressed. He knew he shouldn't have taken that to heart so much, but it had really bothered him and so he was going to put a stop to it. He looked back up at the strong man. "Let me hold that for you while you try."
He reached out and the crowd, the strong man, and Danni could only watch in astonishment as he held the pole in one steady hand, like it was light as a feather. "What's your name?"
"Michael," the strong man replied, his voice no longer full of the irritation the Doctor had initially brought on him.
"Michael what?"
"Michael, sir."
The Doctor shook his head immediately, placing the pole down. They never seemed to know, but he would always hate being called 'sir'. "What's your surname?" he corrected. "Michael what?"
"Oh," Michael replied. "Michael Smith."
The Doctor's face lit up, a smile spreading on it that once again surprised the strong man. "Oh, we're Smiths too!" he cried. "Me and my wife. Well, sort of. Doctor John Smith and Danielle Smith."
"Danielle Fielding, dear!" Danni called over. "Maybe leave the man alone, okay?"
He nodded again, patting Michael on the arm. "Us Smiths have to stick together," he continued. "Good act, by the way. Maybe work on your presentation a bit. Develop some patter to keep the people interested."
"John," Danni once again called over, this time through gritted teeth. He seemed to recognise that she was less than pleased with him. "Leave him alone. Now."
"Right, yes," he quickly replied. "Coming, my Pet."
He quickly pushed through the crowd, leaving Michael to his work. He took her hand and she held onto his a little too tightly. "You can't just do things like that," she told him in a hiss. "Give him pointers, but not in front of everyone. You've shown up his act and that's his livelihood."
The Doctor took a look back at Michael and saw the crowd slowly dispersing. "Do you think I embarrassed him?"
"You were just trying to show him up because I was impressed," Danni replied. "I'd be angry if it wasn't such a lovely thought. Don't do it again."
He glanced down at her and saw her smiling again even as she tried to not look up at him. She was still happy. That was very good. "I won't," he promised. "What else tickles your fancy?"
"You on a good day," she retorted cheekily. "But what about that over there?" she motioned ahead of them. "There seems to be a show starting, perhaps we can still get in and see."
~0~0~0~
The show was pretty packed even as they were all ushered inside, so Danni and the Doctor took a couple of seats at the back. He let her sit on the outside chair just in case she felt like leaving, and to stop himself leaving in case he felt like it too. The lights were only on as long as it took for the last person to sit down, then it was dark apart from a single light shining onto a white screen on the front.
"Oh, it's shadow puppets," Danni whispered to her husband. "This should be good."
The Doctor didn't reply, nor did he agree. The tent had been signposted as 'The Most Magickal Shadowplay', and if bad spelling said anything it told him that it was going to be terrible.
But how wrong he was. He was included in the gasps and the awe of the crowd as puppets were paraded between the light and the screen. Little figures and animals danced enchantingly across the white fabric, with no purpose other than to be mesmerising. He watched the limbs and the movements without being able to tear his attention away from it to check to see if Danielle was also enjoying the lifelike act. Although, if he had to guess, he'd probably be right in assuming she was as pulled into the scene as he was.
As two figures danced across the screen as if they were the shadows of actual living people, the Doctor dipped his head down to his wife. "It's good, isn't it?" he whispered. "Is it just me, or is it actually impossible?"
Danni nodded. This really was one of the most magical things she'd seen for quite a while. If she didn't know any better, and unfortunately she did, she would have thought it was actual magic that was causing the beautiful imagery and not someone's amazing skills. "It does seem a bit impossible," she agreed quietly. "But it's so beautiful."
"But they're puppets," the Doctor protested and she nodded as a butterfly fluttered delicately through the air, chased by a child with a net, and even though her eyes saw the solid black, her mind added a dimension to the scene that the puppets never could.
"I know," she replied. "It's wrong, isn't it? Beautiful, but wrong."
He had expected more of a protest from her and turned his head to check she was alright. She seemed fine, but she was watching the scene with the air of someone who had seen too much to believe something like this was normal. She was still smiling as she enjoyed the show, but her brows were furrowed and her eyes were looking just past the puppets as she looked for what was wrong.
"Where are the strings, or the rods?" the Doctor murmured, confirming what she was thinking. "If they're puppets – what keeps them up and makes them move?"
"Alien, then?" Danni asked and he shrugged.
"Perhaps," he replied and neither of them said anymore about it, but watched with a new sense of diligence until the end of the show, where the audience exploded into a loud applause. The screen rose to reveal and young woman wearing a red cloak with the hood down. She took a bow, taking the accolade with a quite reservation.
She stood there until the tent emptied, leaving just the Doctor and Danni at the back. When there was room they walked side by side down to the woman, who smiled at them both.
"That was wonderful," Danni told her honestly. "You're very talented."
"Thank you," the woman replied gratefully. "I'm glad my show entertained you."
"It did," the Doctor agreed. "How do you do it?"
Usually Danni would have scolded him for his abrupt rudeness, but she just tilted her head like she was interested in the answer as well. There was two ways this could go if the woman really was an alien. One, she could just be looking for a way to make her way in the world, which was fine. Or, two, there was something underhand going on and they'd need to stop her. Danni truly hoped it was the first.
"I have always had a talent for shadow puppetry," the woman said. "For bringing shadows and shapes to light. You'll forgive me if I don't share all my secrets with you. My skill is all that I have."
"I'm sure that's not true," the Doctor said, with a bit of a purr that suggested that he didn't quite believe her at all. "But, like my wife said, very wonderful. Thank you."
They both turned to leave, but Danni turned back to look at her. "Oh, I forgot to ask your name," she said. "That's very rude, I do apologise."
The woman pulled the hood of her cloak up over her head, so that her face fell into shadow. It changed her from the meek but talented woman who had stepped out from behind the screen into a shadow to rival her puppets. "I am Silhouette."
~0~0~0~
"Something about her is sketchy, isn't it?" Danni asked as they made their way back through the fair. "I mean, it's nothing really obvious, but it's beyond the mystical nature of a travelling carnival, isn't it?"
He nodded in agreement. "It shouldn't be possible," he replied. "But I don't know what it could be. I hate not knowing."
"Welcome to my world," she retorted. "Half my time is spent not knowing what is going on and waiting for you to explain it to me. I suspect that this will be no different."
"Oh?" he replied. "And what about when you've been running off working for UNIT? You don't get my help there, do you?"
"No," she replied slowly, like she didn't want to admit it. "I should, though. Even when I get it right I really could use your input. You're much better than me at this sort of thing."
"It's all about experience," he said modestly. "You've got plenty under your belt. I just happen to have more. That's what you get for marrying an old man."
She nodded. "I guess so," she replied cheekily. "You are very old."
She giggled at the look he shot her before pausing to watch a man doing card tricks for a small crowd. He wasn't very good, nowhere near in the same league as Silhouette, although she did get a giggle at the Doctor pulling a fast one on him during the 'Pick a card' trick. Placing it in the man's trouser pocket had been a wonderful show of magic, and unfortunately not one that the crowd would get from the magician.
"There seems to be quite a difference in skill level here, doesn't there?" she commented. "You've got Silhouette on one end who can do things that shouldn't be possible for a human, and then you've got a man doing bad card tricks and a strong man who isn't that strong. It's like, whatever it is, it isn't to do with the carnival."
He frowned. "What makes you say that?"
Danni shrugged. "It just doesn't seem carnival-wide to me," she reasoned. "I don't know. What's the plan, Spaceman?"
"Jenny," the Doctor told her. Danni followed his gaze, wondering why she expected his daughter rather than the Victorian maid who lived there. However, she did, and she tried not to be too disappointed because she had actually wanted to go see their friends at some point this visit. "Coincidence, do you think?"
"I guess I was wrong," she admitted. "Come on, let's go find out what's happening."
They made their way through the dwindling crowd – most people were heading out now that Silhouette wasn't performing – and over to the maid. Neither of them were surprised to see her talking to Michael the Strong Man. It was obvious she wasn't there for leisure. "Elderly gent, with white hair and mutton-chop whiskers," she described.
Michael shook his head. "Sorry. Don't remember him. But we get so many people though here in a day. He could have been here, couldn't say for sure. I doubt if I remember even half of them." He glanced over at the couple who was joining them. "I remember Doctor Smith and Mrs Fielding here, though."
Jenny turned, surprised to see the two people who had appeared at her side. "Doctor Smith?" she asked. "Oh yeah, everyone knows Doctor Smith and his missus."
"Be nice, Jenny," Danni teased lightly as Michael excused himself from the meeting. "Fancy seeing you here."
"I didn't know you were 'ere," she replied. "Drawn in by the curiosities too?"
"Couldn't keep away," Danni said. "Come for a little Christmas jaunt and end up in the middle of an investigation, it would seem."
Jenny nodded, leaning a little closer. "Between you and me it ain't that curious. I've seen better. You looked at the mermaid they've got?" she shook her head. "Hopeless."
"You're not wrong there," Danni agreed. "Mermaids are a much nicer colour than that. And bigger. And did you see the fin? None of it was right."
"What about the wolf boy? You seen him? He just needs a good bath, he does. I asked him if he was alright, when the woman what's in charge wasn't looking, and he asked me if I could get him a meat pie. Polite as you like. Even said please. Wolf boy, my elbow."
"So what are you doing here?" the Doctor asked before she and his wife could get too chatty. He had hoped to keep this social interaction to when they went around to their grand townhouse, but no such look. "Apart from being singularly unimpressed with just about everything."
"I'm going to guess that you're investigating a man with mutton-chops," Danni said. "Has he done something?"
Jenny shook her head. "Marlowe Hapworth is his name. And he'd not done anything. Won't do anything ever again."
Danni's eyebrows shot up. "He was murdered?" she asked, sounding much too delighted that was decent when talking about someone's untimely demise. However, a murder meant that Madame Vastra was investigating it and she was always up for watching her work. She reminded Danni of the Doctor and she enjoyed it immensely. "Are you looking for who did it? Is this his last known whereabouts?"
"Who did it isn't the strange part," Jenny replied. "It's 'ow he died that makes no sense. Found a ticket to this Carnival on Hapworth's desk. From the colour, it was yesterday's. That's when he died. His manservant says he came home in a fluster, locked himself in his study, and a few minutes later he'd dead. Stabbed with a letter-opener."
"And I'm guessing that suicide is out of the question, otherwise you wouldn't be investigating," Danni surmised. She looked up at her husband. "Isn't there a Sherlock Holmes book about something similar? It's a lock-room thing, isn't it?"
The Doctor nodded. "The Valley of Fear," he recalled. "Although, if memory serves me correctly, the body didn't belong to the man they thought was murdered." He looked back at Jenny. "Are you sure it's Hapworth?"
"Of course we are," Jenny replied. "He 'ad the letter-opener shoved between his shoulder blades. We could see his face."
"So the police called Madame Vastra?" Danni asked.
"No, the dead man did," Jenny replied.
Danni frowned. "What? He knew he was going to die?"
"No, he was writing a letter to her when he was killed," Jenny clarified. "Carlisle, that's his butler, says he came back from a walk all anxious like and worried and said he had to tell Madame Vastra something important. Got as far as writing her name on the paper, and then someone put his lights out. For good."
The Doctor nodded. "Alright, we'll take it," he declared. He had hoped to keep Danielle away from anything that wasn't nice and Christmassy, but he wasn't going to be able to pull her attention away from it now. Plus, he was rather intrigued himself. A locked-room case would be rather interesting to solve, or disprove. It's not like they'd be able to do it without him.
Jenny frowned. "Take what?"
"The case, of course," the Doctor replied.
Danni grinned, taking his declaration as permission to start asking questions. "I'm guessing that the Frost Fair was part of his walk?" she asked Jenny as they left the Carnival of Curiosities behind and re-entered the more festive part of the fair. "What about the rest of his walk."
"I've been retracing his route, best I can," Jenny explained. "But I ain't found nothing yet. This place is the most likely for something weird going on, though." She eyed them both. "And talking of 'weird', you ain't told me why you're here yet."
"Oh, it's Christmas," Danni replied as the Doctor led the way to a large tent where tea and cakes were being served. There was a nice secluded table in the corner, perfect for discussing murder and Danni nodded in its direction. After all, atmosphere added to any situation. "The Doctor picked it because he knows I'm a sucker for this sort of thing. He's been a sweetheart."
The Doctor smirked as he sat next to her, motioning over a server. "Well, there are some benefits to pandering to you, my Pet," he replied and she leant up, placing a kiss on his cheek. Jenny couldn't help but be a little stunned at their behaviour. The last time she'd seen the pair, with this Doctor at any rate, had been when he'd just regenerated. He hadn't wanted anything to do with his wife, and Danni had been heartbroken. Now they were sitting side by side, as close as they could on separate chairs. Even though the Doctor was trying to maintain a stoic stance it was obvious that they were in a much better place than normal.
Ma'am would be pleased. And perhaps a little annoyed that Danni's attention was back on her husband again. Jenny couldn't have been happier though.
"It's strange how we ended up here when you were, though," Danni pointed out after a bite of cake. "Maybe the TARDIS thought you needed us, which would imply something more is going on."
"Ma'am will be glad of the help, though," Jenny admitted. "I think this case has her a little stumped, and perhaps a little worried. If he was writing to 'er when he snuffed it then maybe the murderer knows about her too."
"That is a possibility," the Doctor agreed, draining the last of his tea. "You two carry on here," he decided. "See if you can piece together the unfortunate Hapworth's final hours."
"Why?" Danni asked. "Where are you going?"
"I'll go and talk to Vastra. See what she'd discovered. Is she still at Hapworth's?" he asked Jenny as he stood up.
Jenny opened her mouth to reply, but Danni's moan of disappointment interrupted her. "But I want to go see Vastra too!" she protested. "Why do you get to go and I don't?"
"Because you're the friendly one," he replied. "You can get people to answer questions better than I can."
"But I wanna go!" she moaned and Jenny chuckled at her childish behaviour, made all the funnier by the fact the maid knew she was hundreds of years old.
"Fine," the Doctor conceded and Danni grinned, jumping out of her chair. "Jenny, you piece together what's left to find out," he ordered and Jenny nodded in agreement. She was always glad to work with Danni, but the blonde could be rather chatty and she wanted to get back as quickly as possible. "Is Vastra still at the house?"
"She is," Jenny confirmed. "Isn't there something else you need to ask me?"
"I don't think so," he replied. "I find it best to keep an open mind, unclouded by the opinions of others. We shall inspect the scene of the crime and formulate our own opinions based on our observations."
"Right you are." Jenny sipped her tea. "Sure you don't have just one question?"
"Quite sure. We'll see you later, either back here or at Hapworth's house, or failing that back at Paternoster Row." He looked to his wife. "Danielle, let's go."
He didn't wait for her, setting off between the tables towards the exit. Danni and Jenny shared a knowing look.
"He'll get it in a moment," Danni reassured her. "He's so used to just jumping into the TARDIS and flying away, I think he forgets what directions are sometimes. What's the address?"
The Doctor was quick to be back at their side. "Alright," he said. "One more question. What's Hapworth's address?"
~0~0~0~
Hapworth's house was as grand as his name suggested. The dark wooden hallway let a variety of places, all lined with fine art works and statues. Danni couldn't help but try and appreciate each one as they were led to the dead man's study. The police officer at the door tipped his hat when the Doctor flashed him his psychic paper and let them in.
They caught the sight of Madame Vastra lowering her veil as she obviously expected a member of the constabulary rather than the two Time Lords who stepped in, closing the door behind them. When she saw she was in friendly company she raised it again and nodded in greeting at the pair.
"Scene of the crime?" the Doctor asked.
Vastra indicated to Hapworth's desk. "He was found slumped forward, the letter-opener in his back."
Danni frowned as they walked over to the desk, checking it over. There was blood splattered around, with a deep dark stain in the middle where the man had slumped over. There was even blood on the ornate chair where he was obviously sat.
"The police removed the body, and they still have the letter-opener," Vastra continued to bring them up to speed. "There are, as seems to be the natural state of the police, baffled."
"That's why they brought you in, though, isn't it?" Danni replied as she circled around to the lizard woman's side. "The best and the brightest in London?"
"Danielle, you do flatter me," Vastra purred, picking up her hand to place a kiss on the back. "I do so enjoy having you around."
Danni nodded her head. "Whatever I can do to be of service," she replied just as teasingly.
"We were speaking to Hapworth's man, Carlisle. He says the door was locked at there's no other way in or out. Is that right?" the Doctor asked, keen to move the conversation along and Danielle's attention back onto himself.
"Unless Carlisle is lying about the door," Vastra confirmed. "But he seems truthful enough, and not a little upset."
"The poor man obviously cared for Hapworth," Danielle agreed. "He didn't want to be fussed about, but I wish I could have helped more. He blames himself, you can tell."
The Doctor and Vastra went back and forth, ruling out any other method of entry and all possible options of the man accidently killing himself. Danni just continued to look around, listening in to their conversation rather than joining in herself. She found her skills more useful when she was pointing out stuff they may have missed rather than chiming in with something they'd worked out and dismissed.
"What about the floor?" she asked. "There's no secret entrances, but what about a trap door?"
The Doctor nudged the only rug out of the way with his foot but it revealed nothing. "A good idea, my Pet, but no," he replied and she shrugged. There were a few large paintings on the walls so she started moving them, looking for secret exits there as well, before fixing them back into place once more.
She moved over to the desk to see if anything stood out on there. No magic button to open anything hidden, but there was a bloodstained piece of paper that had only the words 'Madame Vastra' written on it. She caught the Doctor's eye and he joined them at the desk.
"He was writing to me," the detective explained when she saw what Danni was looking at. "In a state of agitation, according to Carlisle. I did know Hapworth, though more in the nature of an acquaintance than as a friend. He was a man of learning, and his knowledge has proved useful in the past."
Next to the letter was the cardboard ticket that Jenny had mentioned. Danni picked up with a frown. "I thought this had been found on him, not next to him," she commented. "I guess that proves that whatever agitated him was at the Carnival."
"It could have been anywhere on his walk," Vastra commented, although she knew the look on Danni's face well. She'd seen a similar one on her own wife. It said that she'd worked something out, something that perhaps she had missed. "What makes you say that it was at the Carnival?"
"Because it's not in his pocket," she reasoned. Both of them looked a little baffled by her declaration and suddenly she felt rather self-conscious. "Maybe not. I- I'm probably wrong," she replied, but she didn't put the cardboard down.
"Tell us," the Doctor encouraged. "I'm sure there is something to your thoughts."
She caught his gaze, seeing that he genuinely wanted her to continue. She smiled at him because his encouragement felt rather nice, and quite empowering as well. There had been a time she'd have been worried that he'd call her stupid and tell her that she could do better. She didn't worry about that anymore, and the realisation surprised her enough to remove some of her nervousness.
"Well, there's a bit of a walk between here and the fair," she reasoned. "And there was quite a bit to do there. You put our tickets in your pocket because you only need them if you're going back in, right?" The Doctor nodded, reaching into his pocket to take out their own tickets. "So, he either kept hold of it all the way home."
"Clutching at a ticket would make it rather valuable," Vastra agreed. "He didn't want to lose it, or it was a reminder of whatever had happened to him that spooked him so much."
Danni nodded. "Or he took the time to take it out of his pocket once he'd gotten into the room. Whichever it was makes the ticket rather important. So, I think that it's the Carnival." She shrugged. "Which, I admit was not what I was expecting."
The Doctor stared at her for a moment and her cheeks warmed up. She averted her eyes as she placed the ticket back down by the letter. "He- He wasn't discarding it, either, because there's a bin by the desk and he had it by the letter. Maybe he was planning on going back?"
The Doctor reached out, grabbing her hand as she lifted it off the table. She started slightly in surprise and turned to look at him. He continued to look at her for a moment like he was trying to work her out, then a smile broke out on his face.
"You are so beautiful when you're being clever," he told her much to her and Vastra's surprise. She had seen the change in their relationship when he had regenerated. He had seemed to be pushing her away. She was glad to see that wasn't the case anymore. She'd heard the issues that could arise from regeneration and she was finally able to put their troubled down to that. "Is this how you see me when I'm being clever too?"
Danni beamed at him, shaking her head. "No, you're much more impressive," she promised.
"You impress me," he pointed out. "Does that make you even more impressive?" She giggled and the nervousness at her own thought process seemed to disappear. He needed to get her working that wonderfully clever brain of hers more often.
He turned to Vastra. "So, he was definitely at the Carnival," he started. "Was the ticket the only clue you have found that might explain what had upset him?"
"That and three small birds," Vastra replied.
The Doctor frowned, his eyebrows knitting together. "Birds? What birds?"
"Oh, not real birds," Vastra corrected. "There are made from paper, folded into the shape of a bird. Three of them. Rather stylised, quite clever."
"You mean like Origami?" Danni asked. She glanced up at the Doctor. "You were going to teach me that."
"I'll get around to it," he dismissed, although it had been a good few hundred years since she'd asked him if he'd known any. "And not yet. I don't think the word will be used here for another sixty years yet." He turned his attention to Vastra. "It's Japanese for 'folded paper'," he explained. "Where are they."
Vastra frowned herself as she looked over the desk with them. "That's strange," she commented. "They were just there, beside the carnival ticket. I wonder where they went."
"Maybe the police took them?" Danni suggested. "Cleaned them up when they moved the body?"
"Seems a bit careless," the lizard woman replied. "So most likely, knowing the police."
The Doctor shrugged. "Probably not important," he reasoned before taking Danni's hand again. She smiled up at him, and he smiled back.
"We should get back to Jenny," she declared before turning to Vastra. "I'm sure we'll meet you back at your house."
~0~0~0~
When they returned to the tea-and-cake tent there was no sign of Jenny. The fair was still incredibly busy though, so there was a multitude of places she could be and even more people she could be talking to, so neither were particularly worried about her whereabouts. Instead the Doctor offered Danni some more refreshments and she was hungry enough to be happy to take the offer.
She took a seat on one of the only empty tables left, which had more seats than they required but she didn't really think about it too much. Instead the death of Hapworth still sat on her mind. What could he have possibly seen that had worried him so much? Whatever it was, Danni was almost certain it had something to do with Silhouette and the beautifully magical show she had put on for them all. Whether she was running, or the bad guy, or just someone alien on this planet was anyone's guess, but it had to do with the woman in the tent at the back of the Carnival.
"Excuse me?"
She blinked herself out of her thoughts and looked up at the young man who had appeared on the other end of their table. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," he continued. "My boss and I have been trying to find a table for quite some time now, and I couldn't help but notice that you are only sharing with your friend. Would you mind awfully if we took up the other half of this table?"
She looked up over for a moment. He was dressed in a suit and jacket appropriate for the time of year, although his combed back brown hair was dusted in a slight covering of snow and indicated that he probably should have worn a hat. He seemed harmless and friendly enough, in fact his hair and his slightly turned up nose reminded her of Clara and Danni found herself quite happy to offer him a seat. Plus it wasn't quite fair that they were taking a full six seater table for just the two of them.
"Of course not," she replied. "Help yourself."
He shot her a friendly smile before looking up, catching the eye of someone – probably his boss – then sat down on the opposite end of the table to her. "Thank you very much," he said and she shrugged.
"It seems like they didn't quite anticipate the rush of people," she replied. "Maybe next year they will provide more chairs."
"If only," he replied. "If they have too many empty chairs it will put people off."
"You make a good point," she agreed. "I'm Danni, by the way."
He smiled. "How do you do, Miss Danni."
She shook her head. "No, it's Mrs…" she started before changing her mind. "It's Danni, just Danni."
"How informal," he replied, obviously quite amused. "Then please, I am Oswald."
Danni's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Well, that's quite a coincidence," she replied and he frowned.
"Is it?" he asked. "Do you know many Oswalds?"
"No," she giggled slightly. "Sorry. I was just thinking to myself how you reminded me of my friend Clara. Her last name is Oswald."
"Ah, I see," he replied, relaxing slightly. "Is she joining you? It would be quite amusing to meet the woman I remind you off."
Danni shook her head. "I'm afraid not," she said. "Clara's quite a long way away. It's just me and my husband."
"Your husband?" Oswald seemed quite surprised, as people all too often were, to learn that the Doctor and she were married. It always made her feel a little defensive and she felt herself bristle slightly.
"Yes, my husband," Danni replied.
"I thought as much," Oswald replied, though. "I didn't want to presume, though." Danni smiled happily at him. "I am sure I'll learn all about him when he comes back over with your refreshments. For now, though, tell me more about this mystical woman whom I remind you so much about."
Danni did love to talk about Clara. She was her best friend, especially since they'd been living together, and so the praise just came rushing out. "She's a te… a tutor," Danni told him. "A very good one at that. She loves to travel, and she doesn't have time for nonsense but she's a good laugh when she wants to be. She does have this tendency to think I can't tell when she's lying to me, though. I think it's because she's normally so good at tricking everyone else when she's not okay that she thinks I can't see it."
He frowned, acting concerned for the woman he'd never met. "Is she unwell?" he asked.
"No," Danni corrected. "She's in a relationship with an ex-solider, and he doesn't like me too much. But, because I live with her, I think I'm getting in the way of their relationship even though she keeps telling me it's okay. I'm worried she'll resent me for it." She frowned to herself, looking at the man suspiciously. "And why am I telling you that?"
He shrugged. "Perhaps it's because I remind you so much of your friend?" he suggested and Danni nodded slowly. She'd not even told the Doctor that, and suddenly she felt like maybe inviting him to sit down wasn't the best idea.
Oswald smiled at her, obviously trying to sooth her worries. "I'm a tutor as well," he continued. "It's quite a co-incidence, really."
"Really?" a voice purred darkly and she glanced behind her to see the Doctor stood there, looking at the other man distantly. He quickly sat in the chair next to his wife rather than across from her as if he was creating a barrier between the pair. "And why is that?"
"Your wife was just telling me about your friend, Clara," he told the Doctor. "We share quite a lot of similarities."
Danni smiled at the Doctor, reaching out to take his hand underneath the table. She felt a lot better with him by her side, but her slight distrust of Oswald didn't fade. "Doctor, this is Oswald. Oswald, my husband, the Doctor, who doesn't seem to have brought us any cake."
"How do you do," the Doctor greeted offhandedly before turning to Danni. "I believe it's time to went looking for Jenny, my Pet."
"Really?" Danni asked with a frown. "I thought we were waiting for her here?"
Oswald looked concerned. "I do hope I haven't driven you away from your table."
"Oh no, definitely not," the Doctor replied. "But we really should be going."
As he was talking another gentleman joined them, looking over the little group with an air of interest. He was older than Oswald, with a short beard and a silver-topped cane that made him look both posher and like a supervillain at the same time.
Oswald immediately stood for the man. "Ah, Mr Milton, I'm glad you could join us," he greeted jovially. "Let me introduce Danni and the Doctor, who have kindly lent us part of their table. This is Orestes Milton, my employer."
Milton shot them both a tight smile, one that spoke of being introduced to many people over his life. "Then I must thank you graciously, but unfortunately we cannot stay for as long as I'd hoped. I hope you're not leaving on our account."
He waved at Oswald and the pair sat down together. Danni felt the Doctor squeeze her hand tightly for just a moment, and the look on his face said that he was curious about the new man. She smiled at him just as kindly as she had Oswald. "Mr Milton," she started. "Oswald tells us he works for you. Are you a headmaster?"
"I'm afraid not," he replied with a little chuckle. "I feel it may be a nicer vocation. He teaches the children of the poor and attends the local workhouse. I just pay for his services."
"That's awfully kind of you," Danni replied. "Not many people would think of the unfortunate like that."
"I have been very fortunate in my life," Milton told her. "I believe that one should give back to the community what one can."
"I entirely agree," Danni replied. "Oh, but listen to me, keeping you from your business. I can't half chatter on when the mood takes me."
"What sort of business is that, may I ask?" the Doctor added on the end, following her lead and being as polite as she had ever heard him be to someone he was suspicious of.
"I am an industrialist, I suppose for want of a better word," Milton explained. "We are pioneering a new process at one of my factories and I need to debrief the shift manager."
Another squeeze of her hand said that the Doctor wasn't too pleased with that answer. "Very wise," the Doctor said. "It's good to pay attention to the details of things, I find."
"Indeed," Milton agreed. "As a medical man, I see that you appreciate the importance of detail and accuracy."
"Oh, I'm not that sort of doctor."
"Oh? A doctor of divinity, perhaps?" Milton's lips twitched as he said it, suggesting he was being less than serious.
"He's a doctor of many things," Danni replied for her husband. "Sometimes science, sometimes mythical. At the moment, though, he's a doctor of the morbid."
"Morbid?" Milton asked with a frown. "A mortician?"
"An investigator," the Doctor corrected and Milton looked positively fascinated.
"Really? How intriguing. Investigating what, may I ask?"
"Murder," the Doctor replied bluntly. "Intrigue. And missing origami birds."
"Origami?" Oswald asked, having kept quite in the presence of his employer until that point. "Is that a breed?"
Milton spared him but a glance. "Origami is the ancient Japanese art of paper-folding," he explained and Oswald nodded.
Danni, on the other hand, frowned. The Doctor had said that the word wasn't used around here yet, hadn't he? "Oh, you speak Japanese as well," Danni said happily. "I find it so hard to find someone to converse with."
"Alas, not a word," Milton replied.
"That's a pity," Danni replied, genuinely meaning it. If he had been able to speak the language, then maybe he was just in the wrong place and the wrong time and was perfectly innocent. Unfortunately, the fact he knew the word when he shouldn't meant that he was probably embroiled in whatever was happening at the Carnival.
"Much the pity," the Doctor agreed, standing up. "Come along, Danielle. We really must find Jenny."
Danni was happy to agree, and with a quite farewell, the couple were out of the tent like a shot. The Doctor quickly pulled her to the side, hiding beside one of many stalls.
"So is he a time traveller too?" Danni whispered just loud enough to be heard over the background noise of the fair. "Or maybe he just knows one?"
"He may just have an over sophisticated translation morpher," the Doctor replied as they watched the entrance to the tent. "He used the word 'debrief', meaning to get a report after the event. That particular Americanism won't be coined until towards the end of the Second World War."
"Which is a good fifty years in the future," Danni finished. "If he was from here then neither of the words should be in his vocabulary." The Doctor nodded. "So why are we waiting for him?"
"I have a hunch," he told her as a few people walked out of the tent. Milton and Oswald were at the back, and paused just outside. A couple of words were exchanged and Oswald went one way and Milton the other, into the Carnival. "There he goes now." He grabbed her hand. "Come on."
The Doctor pulled out their tickets from his pocket, showing them at the gate and they hurried inside to the Carnival. Already there was no sign of the man they were following. "He must have gone further in," the Doctor decided. "Walking quickly, so a man with a purpose and precise destination."
"You think he's going to see Silhouette, don't you?" she realised as he began to pull her through the crowd. As he suspected they caught the very back of Milton disappearing behind the Shadowplay tent and the Doctor moved them over to the side, away from view but where they could still watch him. "Do you think she told him about our questions?"
"Perhaps," he admitted.
"But surely she gets asked about what she does all the time?" Danni reasoned.
"You saw the crowd quickly file out after the show," he pointed out. "For an industrious period in history, a lot of things seem to go over people's heads. Or maybe she just tells him about everyone who asks questions. Maybe the reason they chose our table was to see if we were a threat to them."
"Question is; what are they doing?"
The Doctor nodded but said no more. This was becoming more involved than he had hoped, and he still hadn't told her about the power spike. He was almost certain now that it had something to do with the philanthropist.
Milton was out before he could tell her, though, and they both fell silent as they watched him walk just far enough not to spot them while they could still keep an eye on him. Silhouette nipped out of her tent to let people know the next show would be in an hour, then disappeared again. "Maybe it's break time?" Danni reasoned as they followed Milton, but it was obvious she didn't believe her own words.
"Or she's going to meet him somewhere less crowded," the Doctor replied. "Looks like he's leaving."
They followed him out of the Carnival, out of the Frost Fair and out into the London streets. He only walked for a little while before darting down a side street. Then another. It was a dark street, with obviously empty terrace houses with their windows boarded up and moss growing on the bricks. Some even were slowly caving in with piles of rubble slowly growing on the neglected pavements.
I always think it's a shame that buildings are left like this.
The Doctor started, eyes wide and hearts thumping. His wife's voice echoed in his mind for the first time since she left, and he'd not even noticed her reach out. She didn't seem to either. He looked down at the top of her head, but she was still watching Milton intently from the shadows they'd hidden in. She'd reached out to him because she'd wanted to. She wanted to be joined with him, and he forgot for a moment why they were in the streets.
Maybe, just maybe, she was ready to come home. Maybe she was finally his again. His own mind was singing from not being alone anymore, but he was still too stunned to reply.
Milton paused at one of the houses, checking both ways before entering through the front door. Danni frowned. "Why's he going in there?" she asked. "Surely for a man who can afford to pay for someone else's tutor, he should have a nicer home."
The Doctor continued to look down at her, trying for a moment to focus on her question, but found himself unable to. "You spoke to me."
"Yes," she replied slowly, confused. "That's how conversations tend to go."
He shook his head. "No, no, I mean…" he stuttered. "You spoke to me."
She stared at him, not quite sure why he was becoming so worked up over her speaking. He hadn't done that in a while, and usually it was because she had said something wrong, not just because she'd spoken at all. "I'm not too sure what's going on here," she told him bluntly. "But we really should get inside after him, shouldn't we?"
He nodded, although he still seemed a little off as they headed over to the house themselves. She tried to think back over what she'd said, but all she'd done was ask why he was going into the building when it was obviously not a house suited to him, and that she didn't like buildings being left to ruin.
Her face blanched slightly as he opened the door with a quick buzz of the screwdriver. She'd said it in her head. She'd projected into his mind without checking that he was okay with it. No wonder he was all flustered, that was an awful thing to do, wasn't it? She needed to apologise, but he was already walking into the building and she quickly followed.
The inside of the house was in the state of disrepair that the outside suggested. The plaster was falling off the walls, the floors were bare and stained. It was quite a large house, though, and in a better state would have been great for a family to live in. They slowly made their way around it, checking both reception rooms and all of the bedrooms upstairs for Milton but he seemed to have vanished completely.
"I don't understand," Danni whispered. "We would have noticed him going out the back."
"I don't know," he replied. "But there's obviously no need to whisper."
Danni nodded as he opened the back door to look into the small yard, but there was no sign of him nor any sign he'd been out there at all. Nothing suggested anyone had entered at all before them, or for a while judging by the dust on what remained of the furniture.
The Doctor paused in of the living rooms, head straight and alert. "What was that?"
Danni frowned, hearing the faint tapping noise that had caught his attention. "I dunno," she admitted. "Machinery, maybe?"
"It's coming from the next room," he told her but as they crossed the threshold the noise disappeared.
He darted over to the window to look outside. Danni joined him as he looked through one of the broken panes. "Doctor, look."
He looked down to where she was staring and saw the small paper bird that sat on the windowsill. "Ah. Interesting."
"So, what, he's just going around leaving paper birds everywhere?" Danni replied, utterly confused. "Is it like a calling card or something."
"Or something," he replied, picking it up to examine it. The dust and grime that infected the house was nowhere to be seen on the white paper. "Hasn't been here long, it's not dusty enough." He dropped it back onto the windowsill. "But I can't believe our Mr Milton came here just to leave a paper bird behind."
"He must be up to something, though," Danni said. "No one comes to a dilapidated house and disappears without some ill intent. Hapworth died, it can't be a coincidence."
"Or to work out the ill intent," he said pointedly. "Wherever he went must have taken some power, but not enough to generate the power spike. Must be alien, though, because he's definitely not a man of the time."
Danni frowned. "What power spike?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at him as he suddenly couldn't look at her. "Doctor, did you bring me here to investigate something?"
"No, definitely not," he quickly retorted. "I brought you here so I could investigate something and give it to Vastra to deal with while you had a good Christmas. We just have managed to get caught up in it in the way I'd hoped we'd be able to avoid."
She stared at him for a moment and he expected her to be angry at him lying to her about his true intentions. Instead, she whacked him on the arm and he yelped in surprise. "You should have told me," she scolded. "You know the things that interest you tend to interest me as well."
"I thought you liked trips out that didn't involve running for your life?" he said and she nodded.
"I do," she agreed. "But if there's something to look into don't leave me out of it! We can help each other, you silly old man." She shook her head. "Honestly, sometimes I wonder if you know me at all. Come on. Let's take the bird and go find Jenny. We can take it back to Vastra and work out what the hell is going on here."
The Doctor studied her for a moment. "You absolutely baffle me," he told her bluntly and she smirked, tongue behind her teeth.
"Wouldn't be any fun if I didn't, would it?" she retorted before turning back to the windowsill. She frowned. "It's gone."
The Doctor held his hand up in front of the missing pane of glass. "There's a breeze. It might have blown away."
Danni stuck her head outside. "I can't see it," she said. "It's only small though. If it's gone down the street we'll never find it."
The Doctor shrugged, although his expression said he was still rather puzzled. "It can't be important," he dismissed. "Not in itself. Someone left it here. The same someone who left the three at Hapworth's. The question is, who? And why?" He gave the room another look over. "Questions we're not going to answer here. We should go find young Jenny and see if she has any more information for us."
~0~0~0~
They found Jenny leaving the Frost Fair and they all agreed that heading back to Paternoster Row was definitely the way to go, especially with the rapidly dropping temperatures. Strax made them all supper, a lovely warm stew that Danni was very grateful for.
From there they moved into the drawing room, enjoying tea and wine while catching each other up on the events since they'd last seen each other. Vastra and Jenny had been investigating a multitude of wild and fanciful cases, most of which were solved or pure nonsense. The only one that was still ongoing involved a woman with an umbrella and a Scottish accent, sometimes but not always accompanied by a brown-haired woman. Vastra had determined it to be a fanciful ghost story and nothing more, but she promised to keep Danni updated should anything new arise.
Inevitably, though, their discussions turned to the matter at hand; Marlow Hapworth and the day's investigation.
"He was definitely at the Carnival," Jenny said. "I found several people who swore they'd seen him. And he was especially interested, according to one geezer I spoke to, in the shadow puppet show. Went back afterwards to find the people who run it."
"Silhouette," the Doctor said. "We spoke to her too. It was an impressive show."
"Magical, even," Danni added. "I'm not surprised it caught his attention."
"You think Hapworth might have seen something he shouldn't?" Vastra asked.
"I wonder if it was even that," Danni replied. "All we asked was how she did it, and quite frankly we got cornered by two men. They seemed harmless enough, but I'm sure they were checking up who we are, so we checked up on them."
The Doctor nodded in agreement. "It might not have necessarily been the Shadowplay," he reasoned. "Maybe he went back into the tent and found someone else there, or heard someone talking through the tent wall."
"It could have been anything," Danni finished as he trailed off, staring into the fire. He was lost in his thoughts, those gears turning in his big old Time Lord brain at fully speed. It made him look incredibly clever, and incredibly sexy. She loved to watch him work.
"Did you find out anything else at Hapworth's?" she asked Vastra, who shook her head.
"Alas, no," Vastra admitted. "A dead body in a locked room. Simple, and quite impossible."
"Definitely impossible," she agreed. "When we followed Milton to the dilapidated house, there was a little paper bird there as well. One that also disappeared before we could do anything about it. I'm sure that means something."
The reminder of their tracking of Milton reminded the Doctor of the beautiful voice echoing in his head. The way she'd done it without even thinking, how natural it was for her. As a psychic race, he'd been so lonely without anyone there on the outskirts of his mind. He may have not noticed them connecting once again, but now she was there again he wasn't letting her go.
"It just seems like a connection," Danni continued. "Either Milton left them all, or he was meeting someone who…"
The Doctor shot up out of his chair. "Talking about this isn't going to help," he declared. "A good night's sleep is what we all need. Same room as last time, Vastra?"
The lizard woman nodded. "I take it you remember your way?" she asked, making sure because he had not been quite himself the last time they were in the house.
"I do," he replied. "Danielle, to bed."
He strode out without waiting for her, or to see if she wanted to go to bed at all. She turned to look at Vastra, who looked rather amused. "I see your relationship has improved since he regenerated," she stated and Danni nodded, a grin on her face.
"He actually wants me in the room," she gushed. "He holds my hand and he tells me he loves me, not that I'm the one he doesn't like."
She jumped up off her chair, hands clasped in front of her. "He's my best friend again," she said happily, like she didn't quite believe it. "Everything is falling back together again. Goodnight."
She dashed out, skipping up the stairs before realising she couldn't quite remember the room he had been in. She'd left last time so upset that she'd been in autopilot when she'd headed down the stairs and away from him.
She checked the first couple of doors, calling his name each time to no answer. The third room had a bed in it, which was a good sign and looked vaguely familiar. "Theta?"
The door quickly shut and two arms wrapped around her. One around her waist and one around her chest. Her hearts raced in surprise at the attack as he nuzzled against the side of her face, tilted her head to the side.
"You took entirely too long," he purred as she squirmed slightly in his arms.
"I was talking," she replied as he pressed small kisses on her neck.
"Do you have any idea what you did?" he asked in reply. "Speaking in my mind like that? Somewhere I couldn't do anything about it?"
Her eyes fluttered shut. She wasn't sure if he was telling her off or not, but she gasped slightly as she tried to apologise. "I- I'm sorry…"
She yelped as he spun her out of his grasp, towards the bed where she stumbled on the spot facing towards him. Her eyes widened slightly at the look on his face. "You know what it does to me," he continued like she hadn't spoken. "You know I can't resist you talking to me like that."
She smirked slightly, a spike of confidence running through her. The whole situation was such a stark contrast to his behaviour the last time they were in Paternoster Row.
Last time we were here you sent me out of the room, she told him just to watch his eyes darken. You didn't want me touching you. Maybe I should leave you to it, Theta.
She squealed in delighted surprise as he dove at her, grabbing her wrists and pinning her underneath him on the bed.