Sunday, 5 May 2019

Fans Fiction The Haunting of Clementine Bradden by Jennifer-Anne Hunter



The TARDIS landed in a territory that had become familiar to it in recent days; the bedroom of Clementine Bradden, with its bare yellow walls; a blank canvas for a creative mind.  They provided an artificial light into Clementine’s life, which had become bleaker as the years passed by and the light had faded.  She was in need of a Doctor, but not the one with degrees and letters after his/her name but, the one with the blue police box.  Her life had spiralled since she was very young and now in her late twenties, a night for her was filled up with recurrent nightmares of a man in her bedroom, and not a cup of tea and a jelly baby, or a cocktail with friends.  All she did was work, eat and sleep, with no enjoyment in any of them. They were just needed to function. A means to an end. 
   Even when she bought her first designer handbag, she felt nothing.  Her life had become numb, like she was just existing, but for no reason that stood out.  She had tried counselling over the years, which helped in a way by giving her an outlet, but the nightmares had started recently when she saw a strange man in her room.
   The Doctor landed the blue box without its usual noise when he forgot to put on the brake, but with silence as one did not want to cause alacrity like the first time he had landed in her room.  In other words, she screamed.  Like usual his co-ordinates were all out of sync and the timing was off, so he peeped out of the door saying ‘oops sorry’ with a little smile, but he was drawn in by her. There was something about her that made him continue popping in and out of her life at various stages.
   This time instead of her screaming at it like she did before, she just looked and stared at him as he made his reappearance.  Maybe she was drawn in too, by his big kind eyes and woolly scarf.  It was as if she wasn’t surprised by the blue police box and the man that came with it in her room; maybe she was expecting them.  The Doctor from viewing her from afar, had discovered time held no future for her: she just had a past.  He was intrigued.  She wasn’t beautiful by any means, yes, he had travelled with some beauties as a rogue Timelord, but she just radiated sadness and a longing.  He didn’t know the reasons or how this happened, but he wanted to know more. 
   He visited her at school. She thought he was the caretaker.  She wasn’t popular and by no means Einstein, but she didn’t fare too badly. He saw her move out of her parents’ house to go to university and there was nothing but love in their eyes.  He saw her get her first flat, he hid behind the bush and he directed her to her first job interview.  She didn’t really look at him, or see the box he just appeared out of.  It was as if she was just there in life, not participating fully and was just wading through it to get to the end.  Like the one time he tried to read James Joyce’s Ulysses, he ended up going back in time to tell him to write a shorter much more concise to the point version.  Which of course he didn’t, which is why many students struggle to read it to this day.

Then he saw the night it all changed. He wasn’t the only man in her childhood bedroom.  Governed by the Guardians of Time he couldn’t stop it, he was just a holographic projection. 

   One man broke three hearts that night.

   He saw the nightmares, looking down at her as she tossed and turned in her half sleep and seemingly lost the fight with her duvet.  It was almost as if her body was remembering that night, as she calmed and awoke.  He left her with a glass of water from the fountain in the TARDIS. It was one of these new fittings he barely used, but one does need water in order to make a cup of tea. 
   And now he spoke to her: ‘Hello’, as he didn’t know what else to say, mostly his other companions had interjected themselves into his life, but now it was the other way around.  Again, she just glared at him, she wasn’t surprised to see him, it was if she knew he meant to be there. 
   ‘Here, have this,’ handing her another glass of water, ‘this might make you feel better’.
   ‘It’s not poisoned, is it?’ she asked.
   ‘No, my dear’ he replied softly.  He was struck by her composure.  She took a sip and then sipped some more.  He just smiled gently at her so she knew he was no threat to her.
   ‘What are you doing here and how did you get in?’.  He realised that he was talking to a younger version of Clementine embodied into the adult, it was like she was an inquisitive 8-year-old who still believed in Santa.  Her mind hadn’t developed past that night.   She was living the adult life, with a mind stuck deep in the past.
   ‘Well I am what you might call the Doctor’
   ‘But I didn’t call for a doctor!’ she exclaimed and stared beadily at him.
   ‘I am a special type of Doctor, and I could see you were having trouble sleeping and I came to help.’
   ‘Oh, so a sort of sleep therapist.’
   ‘You could say that.’
   ‘Cup of tea, Doctor? It always helps me to sleep.’
   ‘I thought you’d never ask’.  She got of her bed in her Minnie Mouse pyjamas and wrapped herself up in a blanket and led the way into the kitchen. It was a room in a shared house she lived in and she knew no-one else would be up.   She made two cups of tea and they sat at the table. 
   ‘Now Clementine, tell me what happens in your nightmares.’ and he gently touched her hand offering comfort, so she could tell her tale.
   ‘You see Doctor I see this man; I don’t see his face.  It’s like his face has been wiped from my memory.  He’s in my room, but it’s not this room.  Its … its…’
   ‘Go on’ the Doctor’s hand clutching hers, gave her the courage to carry on.
   ‘It’s my old bedroom from my parents’ house.  I know he’s there but it’s like I feel what happened, but I don’t remember.  I don’t know what is happening to me Doctor, please can you help?’  He looked at her, the tears hiding behind his eyes.  He knew but couldn’t tell her. 
   ‘I will see what I can do for you.  I will come back again and see you tomorrow night.  Now get some sleep.’ he said, as he walked her back into her bedroom.  He opened the door of the TARDIS and Clementine just stared at it with her eyes wide.
   ‘You’re not a normal doctor, are you?’
   ‘No dear I am not, cheerio Clementine Bradden.’
   ‘Goodbye Doctor, excuse me?  How do you know my name?’, she asked as the TARDIS doors closed behind him and the Doctor knew he must consult with somebody higher and more knowledgeable than himself. He was perplexed by her comfort in seeing him in her room, given what had happened to her as a child.  He was a stranger to her, but he had been there without her knowledge at various times in her life.  Her eyes pleaded with him to help her.  She was trusting a stranger, but she couldn’t trust herself and what her body and her memory was trying to tell her.  She was simply unable to fathom out what happened to her that had stilted her life.
   He landed the TARDIS in a place he only visited on occasion, in other words when he was summoned or needed help.  The white benches, the scenic view, the serene environment.  He sat down, adjusted his jacket and waited.  He looked at the trees, still blossomed even though that earthly season had well passed.  No time passes, as time itself is guarded there.
   At last his companion arrived, well appeared on the bench opposite.  His cane was just used for decoration, his beard white, the rest of his attire a mix of creams and whites.  His unmistakable panama hat and the red rose in his lapel were his staple.  Time had not changed either men, but both had and succeeded in changing it. 
   ‘Doctor, this is a surprise.’
   ‘It is you, isn’t it?’
   ‘Yes, it is, my counterpart has been banished from these here parts.’
   ‘White Guardian, so pleased to see you!’
   ‘Doctor, your visits are very rare, given our friendship and the assistance we have given each over the years’.
   ‘Well I am very sorry, I have been sort of doing a bit of freelance work you see, all in your good name of course.  I do restore order and do my bit.’
   ‘You sometimes make a mess of it too’, the Doctor winced as he knew fair well, he made mistakes too, just like his human companions.
   ‘I do ask a small favour of you though.’ the Doctor pleaded.
   ‘Go on’ he replied begrudgingly.
   ‘It’s this girl… see… well she’s now a woman.’
   ‘I am well, aware girls grow into women, Doctor, get to the point’ said the White Guardian in a very ironically impatient way, given that time does really change in his homestead.  Maybe the Doctor had just caught him on a bad day, or maybe the Doctor realised he should make more of an effort.
   ‘She is stilted, Guardian, there’s no future mapped out for her.  She is stuck in the past.  Something happened and she can’t get passed it, she kind of doesn’t remember and I think she needs to face it.’
   ‘What do you mean Doctor?’ asked the Guardian, getting slightly more irritated by the Doctor’s presence. 
   ‘I want to show her,’ the Guardian’s eyes became wider as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. ‘I want to take her back to that night and show her what happened to her, then maybe she could move on from it.’
   ‘You know the rules Doctor; a human is not allowed to travel down their own timeline.  Stopping the event itself or meddling in it can influence time itself with devastating consequences.’
   ‘Yes, but I want to show her, I don’t want to stop it’
   ‘You know her past self, can’t see her present self, don’t you?’
   ‘Yes, I plan to park the TARDIS out of lateral time.  She will be able to see herself and what happened, but she will be invisible to the events themselves.’
   ‘That is one way to do it I suppose, but you do realise, if you let her see what happened it may damage her further.’
   ‘It won’t, Guardian, I have observed the people she has around her, they will support her.’
   ‘You know what happens now is your responsibility. I can’t assist you in anyway. I cannot and will not stop and erase or edit history for you or any Timelord.  And I do not support or condone this behaviour.’
   ‘I know, I merely sought out your advice, your knowledge is way above mine and your status is far more superior. I thank you, your Guardianship.’
   ‘Less of that’, he grimaced sarcastically, ‘I will ask you one question Doctor, why this human?’  The question stunned the Doctor like a baby when it hears itself sneeze for the first time.  He was caught off-guard.  He had no prepared answer.
   ‘I do not know, maybe she reminds me of somebody.  I…I guess… I g-g-guess … I do not know’, the Doctor stuttered and stammered.
   ‘Very well Doctor’ and with that the Doctor found himself alone looking at the empty bench before him.

Clementine slept through her alarm, which concerned her as she was usually so punctual and efficient in her work.  Like with her nightmares, she didn’t know who to turn to or tell about the man in her room.  Who would believe her? Her mother was too dismissive, when she had tried to ask about it and had avoided her and her nonsense as she put it. Clementine busied herself, and then rushed home, to await her next appointment with the strange but likeable Doctor.
   She sat on the bed and waited for the Doctor, slightly nerved at the thought of seeing him again.  He knew things about her that she hadn’t told anyone.  Everything now was becoming blurred in her mind, like she had been given a new pair of prescription glasses and her eyes were adjusting.  She was now questioning her life, her existence.  What had the man in the blue box done, what was he about to do?
   The nightmares had started when one of the other tenants had accidentally stumbled into her room drunk.  He apologised straightaway and the day after she received a box of chocolates and a card re-iterating his apology.  They were left outside her door, as he didn’t want to intrude once more or even worse startle her again.  Her immature mind did not question how the Doctor came to be in her room not once but twice and now, he was about to arrive for a third time.  She had assured herself she must have been dreaming, just like she had been told she must have dreamt about the first man in her room. 
   The police box appeared before her, and the now familiar face peeped out.  She wasn’t scared by his presence, but she was afraid of the unknown.
   ‘Hello again?’ he beckoned her over, ‘would you like to come in for a spot of tea?’  She wrapped her arms around herself and walked slowly and in an almost hypnotic way to the TARDIS.  The fear of the unknown silenced her.  ‘Don’t be scared, I am not going to hurt you in any way and you can leave at any time; just mind the step.’ 
   ‘For some reason I know that Doctor, I don’t know what is going to happen, b-b-but …I-I-I know….’ She was silenced by the interior of the TARDIS as she stepped inside.  ‘It’s … it’s…’
   ‘I know’ the Doctor interrupted with a little smile.  He was used to giving his little spiel to anybody lucky enough to be able to step inside and see the wonders of time and space.
   ‘A very interesting office, Doctor.’ She exclaimed and the Doctor chortled.
   ‘Well I have never heard it called that before. Cup of tea?’
   ‘Yes please, I think I better had.’  The Doctor led her to what he called the lounging area of the TARDIS, just off from where the main control panel was.  There were two Bradden sofas and a glass coffee table with a tea tray on it.  Beside one of the very ugly, yet comfortable couches was a tower of books.  Books by Tolstoy, Charlotte Bronte, Charles Dickens and JK Rowling.  The classics as the Doctor called them.  The Doctor signalled for Clementine to sit and help herself to refreshment.
   ‘You may wonder what this is all about,’ the Doctor began, ‘you see this office as you call it, is a sort of spaceship.’  Her eyes widened and she struggled to swallow her gulp of tea. ‘It can travel through space’ he paused, ‘and time.’   Clementine set down her cup, as she acknowledged what the Doctor was getting at.
   ‘You mean, you could?’ she was sitting forward not taking her eyes off the strange man in the long scarf sat opposite him.
   ‘The man in your childhood bedroom? Yes’, answering his own question, he nodded. ‘Do you trust me?’
   ‘Strangely I do Doctor. Don’t ask me why, but it’s like you have always been part of my life.’  The Doctor looked on her with concern and slight worry.
   ‘I can take you back, but we wouldn’t be there there.  I couldn’t allow you to risk your past self to see you as it can have severe consequences.  And we cannot stop or change any of the events that are about to occur.  We must remain inside the TARDIS and be as quiet as possible.  Do you understand?’  He was gentle but stern as he asked the question. Clementine drew into herself again, and in her childlike tone replied.
   ‘Yes.’ It was if she knew she had to do this, she had to face the man from her nightmares, it frightened her tremendously. The Doctor led her to the window, which he activated with a simple push of a button.  He placed his hand on her back as a comfort.
   ‘This is where we can see, now are you sure?’ Now, they were looking at her bedroom from the shared house, the yellow walls. She nodded and he pressed another button and with noises, no human could describe, the view silently changed as her old bedroom slowly came into focus.  The faded wallpaper of zoo animals that badly needed replacing, the off-white knobbly ceiling that people thought was fashionable and there was the eight-year-old Clementine lying in bed with one of her dollies.  The door opened and both Clementine’s gasped in unison.  A shadow formed in the doorway illuminated by the landing light, he appeared. The Doctor’s hand was once again offering comfort to Clementine.  The face was recognised.
   ‘What are you doing here?’ Young Clementine asked, innocently.
   ‘I was feeling lonely and I came in for a special cuddle.’ 
The Doctor was now stood behind Clementine as she placed her hand on the pane.  His arms were gently placed on her shoulders.  He saw a tear form on her face as the events enfolded.
   The figure stood in the moonlight, as he shut the bedroom door behind him.  He walked over to her bed.
   ‘You don’t want me to feel lonely, do you?’
Clementine’s leg began to shake in a way to release the tension that was inflating her body.
   They embraced and for a while little Clementine seemed content in giving her Uncle Bobby a cuddle. Then the atmosphere changed, innocence was scarred and a child was silenced.
   ‘Enough is enough.’ and with that the Doctor left Clementine’s side and noisily dis-apparated. Clementine’s bedroom door re-opened, because the noise had alerted someone else in the house.
   The Doctor needed Clementine to have closure, both the past and the present Clementine needed their suffering to end.  She was curled up on the TARDIS floor, weeping softly like a child.  He knelt down beside her, and wiped her face with his long scarf. 
   ‘It’s over, it’s over, he can’t harm you anymore.’ he said gently to her, ‘I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry.’ He kept repeating over and over, not knowing what to say or do next. 
   He took her back home, to where he had first stumbled across her.  He opened the door so she could see he had brought her to the safety of the present. She glanced up at the familiarity of her room, stood up without a word and ran out to the comfort of her bed.  He followed and went to sit down beside her.
   ‘No you don’t get to do this,’ she said sternly through her tears, ‘Y-y-y-you have shown me my nightmares, you made me live them, you don’t get to fix me Doctor after you have destroyed me.’ She was shocked by the strength in her voice, hoping her emotions would follow suit.
   ‘I-I-I o-o-only tried to help you.’ he was flummoxed by her response to him.
   ‘I don’t need your type of medicine Doctor, I need to be me, now get out!’ Beaten, he did what she had asked.  Once in the TARDIS, whilst leaving, he looked through the window, as if he could see her.
   ‘I’m so sorry, please forgive me. Oh Clementine, what have I done?’ he was clearly mourning his fixation.
   ‘What have you done, Doctor?’ The White Guardian appeared on the couch behind him.
   ‘I-I-I only tried to help.’ His past confidence had been struck; he had clearly done wrong.
   ‘I did try to warn you, Doctor’ and with a click of his fingers, they were back on the bench, where they previously had their conversation.  The Doctor alarmed at the abrupt change of scene, still stood as if he was in charge of the situation.
   ‘But… my TARDIS?’
   ‘A mere case of spatial dimension, I can’t think clearly in there, it’s far too claustrophobic for me, I like the air.’
   ‘B-b-b…’
   ‘Hush Doctor, you meddled.’
   ‘I most certainly did not!’ The White Guardian merely coughed knowingly. ‘Oh, the whole brakes on, thing, just a habit, you see.’  This response was met with a sarcastic tilt of the head and motioned for the Doctor to sit beside him.  ‘You still have much to learn Doctor.’     The Doctor could nothing but stay silent in agreement, as he was about to be taught a lesson.
    ‘You wanted to heal Clementine Bradden by getting her to face the past, but it wasn’t your place to do so.  She wasn’t ready. You alerted her father to his brother’s defiance much sooner.  And justice was done in that respect.  But you in turn broke a family.’  Realisation slowly made its way onto the Doctor’s face and he now held his head in shame.
   ‘Can’t we just wipe away the memory?’ he asked like he too was a child, asking his Dad for a puppy. 
   ‘If only it were that simple. You see Doctor, you seem to believe that humans can just get over things, and that time heals. You don’t let yourself get involved with these companions of yours.  Your own granddaughter broke your heart, because you thought you were doing the right thing.  You too need to heal. Clementine will heal, she has already shown you that, but she wasn’t ready to face her past as abruptly as you did, but believe it or not she was going to.  Slowly and gradually she would have started asking questions and the truth would be revealed.  Her mum wouldn’t have lied to her to protect her. Yes, time can be a great healer, but it also can be a barrier to truth.  Bit by bit that barrier was breaking down.’
   ‘But Clementine?’ the Doctor pleaded.
   ‘You have been erased and are forbidden in going back into her timestream.  She remembers her past now, but what she always had was her strength and bravery.  So, if you are asking if she has a future? Yes, she does.’
   ‘Oh, thank you, oh thank you. I…‘
   And with another click, the Doctor stood facing a photograph of Susan and began to cry.  

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