**I'll be focusing on this story for now, so I can finish it before August 23rd and Season 8.**
If you would like to experience this chapter fully, then please take a moment before you read to open a new tab and go to YouTube. Search for the video called "Doctor Who Soundtrack – This is Gallifrey: Our Childhood, Our Home". It's your decision to listen to the entire song now, or wait until I tell you to. I don't own the song in any way, but it's beautiful and was the inspiration for this story.
Clara's first reaction was disappointment, as she stepped out of the TARDIS and saw no enormous city towering above them.
Then she looked down, and her second reaction was one of awe.
They had landed on the edge of a large cliff that overlooked a paradise. Vast mountain ranges ringed a bowl-shaped valley that was coated in a thick blanket of trees. Waterfalls sparkled on the distant cliffs, and the bold green color of the foliage gave the impression of a tropical rainforest. And in the distance, a small sun was touching the horizon, tinging the green sky with an orange glow. Though the passing wind was the only noise, Clara bet that there were probably hundreds of new species hidden below the leaves.
Or above, she mused, glancing upwards. A group of blue birds were dancing among flat, golden clouds, without a reason or care in the world. But what caught Clara's eye was the horizon, where brief flashes of movement briefly interrupted the sun's light. Was something out there? Whatever it was, it must be rather large.
Whether or not this was Gallifrey, the planet's view was one of the most beautiful sights Clara had ever seen. Everything was new and exciting, from the effortless tranquility to the faint smell of citrus in the breeze.
She turned to ask the Doctor if this was indeed Gallifrey, but his expression halted her in her tracks. He, too, was staring at the stunning vista, but his body looked so deflated, his eyes so void of hope…Clara wasn't sure what she should do. If she tried to touch him, take his hand, anything, would the Time Lord shatter like glass?
Clara was vaguely aware that the flashes of movement in front of the setting sun had stopped, but they seemed small compared to the man beside her. "Doctor?" She ventured, taking a step towards him. The Doctor took a deep breath, as if to calm himself, but that only increased Clara's worry for him. What had he said, about finding Gallifrey being his final destiny? Clara's knees shook as she imagined the possibility that the Doctor might throw himself off the cliff.
But then the griffin was there, trotting past the Time Lord with a happy twitch of its tail. It took a look at its surroundings, and then glanced back at the Doctor. The man didn't acknowledge the creature, but that only made the griffin more determined. It hopped onto a rock that hung over the cliff.
Then the griffin sat on its haunches, opened its beak, and began to sing.
Now, I invite you to go back to the video you opened earlier and listen to the griffin's song. If you just want to listen to what I imagine the griffin to be singing, start at 0:58 (there's a mini-intro to overlap with the end of the scene you just read – the real singing begins at 1:15) and ends around 1:40. I hope you will continue listening to this gorgeous composition, though, because the rest of the song overlays with everything you're about to read.
There were no words, or even any recognizable notes. But the song struck Clara in every fiber of her body. The beautiful and yet haunting melody made the entire experience surreal, and strangely calming. Each tone floated through Clara's mind, or maybe that was the TARDIS, who was singing a telepathic harmony to the audible melody.
What song was this? Clara wanted to ask, but the Doctor didn't seem to be in a state to answer. Tears were streaming down his face, briefly pooling in his deep-set wrinkles before dropping onto his velvet coat. And yet the griffin continued to sing, unaware of the effect its song had on the last of the Time Lords. Clara couldn't ignore the song's power, either. Soon her own eyes burned as she recalled her mother, her father, her gran, and everyone on Earth that she had inadvertently left behind. She'd always assumed that she would see them again. The TARDIS was a time machine, after all. But what if something happened, and her friends and family had no way of knowing that she'd never be coming back?
And what if she did survive? In theory, Clara could be home in time for tea, and no one would know she'd been gone. She could travel for years and years…and she would return home, with nothing changed. Except her, of course. Something told her that no excuse would explain to Artie and Angie why she had suddenly aged dramatically.
"Clara."
The Doctor's low voice startled her. She turned to him hesitantly as he said, "This was the song they sang."
"Who sang it?"
"The Gallifreyen gryphes de stellis. As the sun set, the star griffins would take to the skies and sing this song. An emissary from another planet heard it and jokingly called it the 'Song of Gallifrey'. The name stuck in the end." He was staring at the singing creature with wonder in his eyes. "Some claimed that the one good thing the griffins gave Gallifrey was the planet's song. I suppose they were right."
As the griffin's melody reached a crescendo, Clara became aware of the sound of wing beats behind her. She turned, and suddenly her vision was filled with gold. Hundreds of griffins were flying above their heads, their wings and claws outshining the sun. They dove over the cliff, screeching on the way down, and then leveled out to glide above the valley floor. She watched them head for the small group of blue birds, which had barely enough time to scatter before the griffin hoard careened through them.
The griffin in front of the Doctor and Clara called out to the flock, but only a handful replied. On the next pass over their heads, two large griffins flew down to meet with the trio, while the rest of the creatures seemed to spit and hiss derisively.
So the flock considered the griffin beside them to be an outcast. Clara glanced at their guide to see if it had been offended, but it was focused intently on the two griffins approaching them.
And rightly so. These griffins were more than twice as big as the Doctor and Clara's little guide, perhaps a full two heads taller than the Doctor. They carried themselves with the authority of leaders, but they seemed to share that power equally between them.
"The dual leaders of this flock," the Doctor whispered to her. "Be respectful and keep your head down until you are instructed to do otherwise. The gryphes de stellis are perhaps the proudest race in the universe."
Clara nodded and bowed her head low, mirroring the Doctor's hunched position. It took all of her self-control to keep still when the griffins' talons appeared in her limited field of vision.
Their smaller griffin approached the leaders in a submissive position, and remained that way until the griffins began to speak. If such a sound could be considered speaking, that is. They sounded like they were screeching at each other like parrots, with less volume and "words" that were similar to the lyrics of a song. Clara stared resolutely at her boots, refusing to flinch even when one of the griffins flapped its wings and sent a gust of wind her way.
Finally, when the "argument" seemed to reach a conclusion, Clara felt something soft rest against the top of her head. Were those feathers tickling her temple? The force on top of her hair must be the griffin's head.
Welcome, human, a male voice said into her mind. This time Clara did flinch. The Doctor hadn't told her griffins were able to talk with their mind! Why hadn't the griffin who had hijacked them done the same? What do they call you?
She didn't know much about telepathy, so Clara settled for the speech she knew best. "Clara, sir," she said out loud, "Clara Oswald."
A pause, and the griffin leader's head lifted, to be replaced by another. These feathers were much softer, and their weight much lighter.
Welcome, Clara, to New Gallifrey, a different voice stated, this one female. A male and a female, Clara mused. Were they a mated pair?
Next to her, the Doctor practically growled, "There is no such thing as 'New Gallifrey'." Clara couldn't see his face, but she guessed that the Time Lord was giving the griffins his best glower.
There is now, the female voice replied. There was a brief pause, and then the weight was lifted from Clara's head. Ever so slightly, she looked up, to see that the two griffins were standing directly in front of them. The male was in front of the Doctor, and was covered in golden feathers on his front half, and fur of the same color on his rear end. It was like looking at their runt of a griffin in high definition. The tail was more proud and lion-like, the wings, that much more massive and awe-inspiring. His two front claws looked bigger than Clara's own head, and the muscles on his hind legs, so much like the legs of the lions of Earth, made her tremble in fear. This creature was more than capable of killing her, and his sharp, eagle eyes never let her forget it.
The female griffin that stood in front of Clara was only a touch smaller, but no less imposing. Differences between the two genders were few, but noticeable. Like how her ears curled up like spikes, instead of lying flat like her mate's. Or how her eyes made Clara feel comforted and protected, instead of threatened. Clara wondered if every mother in the universe was capable of giving off that feeling.
Then male griffin spoke, out loud and in halted English, "Would you—like—to see?"
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