Open post/meme overflow 💫

[makemeasong]

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[twelfthsong]

That was the worst bottle of wine I had ever tasted but thank god you did. [He draws lazy circles in the dip of her hip and waist.] I wouldn't have had the liquid courage to kiss you back.

[makemeasong]

It was awful wine. [ She agrees with another laugh and buries one hair in his hair. ]

But you did kiss me. And then you never stopped kissing me. You say you aren't romantic, but I have my memories back now. You can't fool me anymore sir.

[twelfthsong]

[He snorts rolling his eyes bringing her hand to his lips again.] I'm not. As I said, I was seduced by your bewitching ways and it seems like I'm still under that spell.

[makemeasong]

Four and a half billion years is pretty romantic.

[ Her lips press to his chest and she closes her eyes to feel one of his hearts beat. ]

[twelfthsong]

[He grumbles something unintelligible but lets his eyes flutter close, a content smile on his lips as he holds her close.

He ends up dozing off at some point. When he does wake up bleary eyed, he glances down to see if she's still there before checking for the time out the window.]

We should get dressed and get going soon if we want to locate some of that herb.

[makemeasong]

[ Clara hasn't slept, she's been too busy tracing the lines of his face with the faintest of touches, wanting to soak up all the time with him she can, just in case.

When he wakes and says they should go, she presses a hard kiss to his lips first, cupping his face in her hands. ]

Let's go get my heartbeat back.

[ It doesn't take long to find the herb, more beautiful in real life than in the book. When they take it back to the cabin and he begins preparing, she paces a little and realizes if she doesn't talk about this now they may not at all. ]

Do you remember the night we decided to have our son?

[ Her question comes out quieter than she intended, and she isn't even sure he heard her. ]

[twelfthsong]

[Finding the herb is easier than he would have thought considering how difficult the description made it seem. But, he reasons, the difficulty isn't so much in the finding as it is the preparation. He's so concentrated on the preparation of the herb but completely stills when she asks him that question mid-chop.

He lets the question hang in the air a beat longer before continuing on with his steady motions and bringing it over to the stove to boil. Something tugs at his hearts. Tonight seemed like a night for reminiscing it seemed.]

Course I do. We thought we were ready despite your parents nagging us. [He casts a quick glance to her.] Did you just remember?

[makemeasong]

No. No, I just wanted to remember with you.

[ She doesn't say the thought aloud, but he'll hear it just the same. In case she dies for good, in case she doesn't wake up, she wants to remember their children with him. ]

[twelfthsong]

[His brow furrows as he quietly watches the water come to a boil. Out of old habits, his mouth worries his thumb.]

I haven't thought about them in a long time.

[It's said quietly, almost regretfully.] It was too closely tied to you. I couldn't stomach the thought.

[makemeasong]

[ Stepping behind him, Clara loops her arms lightly against his waist and presses her cheek to his back. ]

The night he was born, you were more nervous than I was. [ She smiles softly and squeezes him but not enough to interfere with what he's doing. ] Honestly, I thought you might wear yourself out before I ever did.

[twelfthsong]

[Feeling her arms around him ground him to the moment and he smiles slightly although she can't see it.]

I could have regenerated right then and there. It felt like I might at least.

But you [He reaches to give her hand a squeeze.], you were as brave as always.

[makemeasong]

Do you know the secret to all that strength?

[ Her lips press firmly to his back, as high as she can reach. ] In case you hadn't guessed already, it's you. I can be brave because of you.

[twelfthsong]

Then it looks like it goes both ways.

[The actuality of it all is that he doesn't really think he's that brave at least not on his own. He wants to say more about their son but the water comes to a boil and he drops the herbs into it and the moment he feels like has passed.]

You wanted this with tea, yes? From the notes it sounds like it's pretty bitter. Tea will at least cut the taste and further dilute it.

[He pauses.] We used to make tea for them when they had an upset stomach. Do you remember?

[makemeasong]

[ Clara moves so that she can stand beside him and looks up at his face. ]

I think that's the best way. With honey, please.

[ She's getting nervous, her stomach twisting a little, but she smiles at the memory. ]

Mint. And you used to blow on it for them until the mug was cool enough for them to wrap their little hands around. [ She swallows, feeling the prick of tears. ]

We had exactly the life we wanted.

[twelfthsong]

[He nods, reaching for a mug in the cupboard - her mug, he remembers now - before looking down at her with a soft sad smile.]

We did. And we'll have more time to make another one.

[His fingers brush against her cheeks before going to cup them.]

Mint? I'll have some with you.

[makemeasong]

Just don't accidentally dose yourself.

[ She's trying to joke and gives him a lopsided smile before turning to kiss his palm. Clara assumes this regeneration will be the same as any other: painful, disorienting and exhausting. ]

I think I'm gonna change into something comfortable. Bed might be the best place for this. I'll be back there.

[ She kisses him again, then turns her head to kiss his palm before disappearing into their room. Going through a closet, she finds one of his old hoodies and pulls off the hanger and over her head. It still smells like him, and it's huge on her, looking more like a dress that's too big for her.

Sitting on the edge of the bed she closes her eyes and tries to focus on their plan working, listening to the Doctor putter around in the kitchen. ]

[twelfthsong]

I'm not a pudding-brained idiot.

[He quips back, smiling as she kisses his palm watching her until she leaves the kitchen to head back upstairs. When he's left with his own thoughts again the smile fades and the frown reappears as he stews over the boiling herbs.

When it's finally done he makes his way back up to the bedroom holding the cups on a tray - one for her and one for him. His gentle smile returns seeing her there in his sweatshirt. He's got a slight frame, but the height difference still means it looks large on her.]

I was wondering where that one had gone to. Thought I just left it in one of the hundreds of rooms in the TARDIS.

[makemeasong]

[ Clara smiles at him, though it's a nervous one before looking down at the sweatshirt. ]

This was my favorite one to wear when I was pregnant.

[ Swinging her legs around on the bed, Clara tucks them underneath her body. ]

How long do you think it'll take before I start to regenerate?

[twelfthsong]

I remember. I had to bribe you with another one so I could wash it at one point.

[He sits down on the bed beside her carefully so as not to jostle the mugs, giving her the briefest kiss on the head.]

Hard to say. Depends on how stubborn your body is. [He had held off his own regeneration on more than one occasion after all.] Do you feel ready?

[makemeasong]

I don't think there's a way to be any more ready than I already am.

[ She holds out her hand for the bug and when she takes it, she wraps her hands around it and then takes the first sip, wrinkling her nose. ] Still potent.

[ Taking another sip, she leans against his shoulder. ]

I love you, you know. [ Her vision is already starting to get blurry and she forces herself to take another sip. ] I'd run away with you again. Always, forever.

[twelfthsong]

[He takes his own mug but doesn't necessarily drink any of it, keeping his gaze steadily on her as she sips from hers. He's always been the type to jump feet first into situations regardless of their risks. But this comes with more risk than he's perhaps used to. There's more on the line now.]

Always, forever.

[He's there to help lie her down onto the bed and to take the mug from her when he sees her starting to lose consciousness. And when her eyes finally flutter close and her chest stills he sits there devoutly, clutching onto her hand willing this to work.]

[makemeasong]

[ At first, nothing happens. She's still and lifeless - as dead as she's supposed to be. Her skin even cools as she transitions from human to Time Lord. It takes a long twenty minutes for her chest to rise as she gasps loudly and regeneration energy escapes her lips in a whisp of golden air.

Then it bursts out of her almost violently, bright in the room, fading slowly.

She has stubbornly kept her face, but the rest goes as normal and she wakes up with a start. Her body is on defense because regeneration is only triggered by death, and she flails, eyes wide. ]

[twelfthsong]

[Twenty minutes feels so much longer to him as he sits and waits there and a part of him wonders when he should get worried. But then it begins.

The regeneration process has never been a pleasant one to watch or experience, but he can't deny it's fascinating. It's the equivalent of a star dying and being reborn in and of itself. It's magic.

Even as the golden energy shoots from her body, he refuses to let go, gripping firmly onto her hand even as he squints his eyes shut in response to the flare of light. When it's done, he feels his two hearts beating rapidly in his chest.]

Clara, it's okay. I'm right here. I'm here. You're here.

[makemeasong]

[ She makes a startled noise in the back of her throat until her eyes finally focus on him and she slowly relaxes back onto the pillow. ]

I'm alive?

[ Her voice is hoarse and she's speaking in Gallifryen, but she's very much alive with 2 heartbeats and all. ]

[twelfthsong]

[He immediately encircles her to bring her close to him. The sound of not one, but two heartbeats falling in time with her own can't help but bring tears to his eyes.]

You're alive. It worked.