The Space Between Us

"The theory the Pharaohs used zero-point energy to construct the Pyramids is nothing new," Flynn said, straightening his tie as he strode through the stacks, becoming distracted by the sway of Clara's hips just up ahead.

"Of course," Clara drawled.

"Is that sarcasm?" Flynn said, grabbing her arm, forcing her to face him.

"No it's not," Clara snapped, tearing her arm out of his grip. In public, they were as ever, Flynn fond, Clara coquette, barring the rest of the world out, but behind the bookshelves, it was a different story, giving the cracks permission to show their presence. Venice had been the only time where things had been as they used to be between them, the memory stabbing Clara through the heart.

"I know I've not been around as much," Flynn said quietly, stooping down so he was eye-level with her, "but that's because I've been chasing down the Library. This is the closest I've ever been, Clara" -

- "This isn't about the Library," Clara hissed, "this is about us."

Flynn half turned away from her, closing his eyes, not wanting to have this discussion. After the debacle of her day off, everything had changed between them, and Flynn couldn't change it back. Morgan Le Fay had set something in motion, and all Flynn could do was watch his world fall apart, powerless to stop it. He'd heard everything, the Clara who wasn't Clara not realising the call had connected, Flynn listening as she and Jenkins circled each other, before Jenkins had crushed her out of existence, resurrecting the real Clara from the chaos.

"Is it about Stone?" he said, making Clara take a step back, his words hitting a raw nerve.

"Don't drag Jake into this," she said, her voice cracking.

"I know how he feels about you," Flynn said, advancing on her, "but I don't know how you feel about him."

"I care about him," Clara said, meeting Flynn's gaze head-on. "But that's all, there's never been anything else between us. The most I've ever done is hold his hand" -

- "You kissed him" -

- "That was not me," Clara spat, hands shaking. "So don't even fling that at my head."

"He's here when I'm not," Flynn said as if she hadn't spoken.

"I - I don't love him," Clara said, the words being wrenched from her lips.

"Then who do you love?" Flynn said cryptically, before turning and leaving, Clara watching him go, his words a riddle she didn't want to unravel.

You know you went off like a devil
In a church in the middle of a crowded room
All we can do, my love
Is hope we don't take this ship down...

~*~

"Ah, here we go," Flynn said, picking up a heavy tome from his desk, "just what I was looking for."

"Passageways To The Underlife?" Cassandra read aloud, her brow furrowing.

"Metaphorical and otherwise," Flynn said, striding over to the sarcophagus, careful to keep away from Jenkins who was studying its symbols. For all the notes he and Jenkins had exchanged by carrier pigeon, swapping theories about the Pyramid and Ptolemy and everything inbetween, Jenkins winning every debate with his genius, their relationship had still remained peculiarly cold.

"Are you thinking there's an actual doorway to the heavens in the Pyramids?" Eve said, folding her arms across her chest.

"Not a literal door," Jenkins explained, careful not to look at Flynn. "More like an interdimensional doorway."

"Well that makes sense because the Pyramids were designed along precise mathematical lines," Cassandra said in one breath, nearly going cross-eyed with the effort.

"And breathe," Ezekiel said, patting her shoulder.

"If the stones are resonant to certain energy wavelengths along the magical spectrum they act as lenses, focuses, foci, along the three dimensions, infinity, infinite" -

- "For chrissake Cassandra, stop!" Jacob exclaimed, catching her before she fell.

"I saw it all," she gasped, clinging to his arm, "I saw it all the way down - I can't do this math," she said, clutching her head between her hands, "it's too much, too more, too many" -

- "Cassie!" Clara cried, appearing from between the bookshelves, before running over to her, barging Flynn aside.

"I'm okay, I'm okay" -

- "Just sit down," Clara said gently, steering her over to Flynn's armchair. As Cassandra sat down, Clara hastily pulled out an elaborately befrilled hanky, seeing Cassandra's nose was bleeding again. "Here," she said, pressing it into Cassandra's hand, "use this."

"Cass, what did you see?" Flynn pressed, ignoring the others' angry glances.

"What the hell are you doing to her!?" Clara spat, rounding on Flynn, startling everyone.

"I'm not doing anything," Flynn hissed, "but we need to know what these symbols mean" -

- "The series of co-ordinates lead to the Void," Jenkins breathed, finally understanding, "the space between dimensions."

~*~

"The Library is floating in the Void, cut off from the real world," Flynn said, rumpling up his hair, "if we can open that door, I can find the Library - I can anchor it to this dimension, linking it back to the Annex."

"But you lack the power generated by millions of tonnes of finely balanced magical stones placed directly under the dissecting ley-lines," Jenkins pointed out, still careful not to look at Flynn, not wanting to see what he'd lost.

"Well, we'll just go back to Egypt," Flynn flared up, "I mean, in the end, it all comes back down to the Pyramids, doesn't it?"

"The process cannot work unless there is a Pyramid to power it," Jenkins reiterated tersely.

"Unless we use some reality altering guide linked to a dimensional shifting device along with software that interfaces with magic and once upon a time that sort of speech would have had you ripping my cravat off," Flynn reeled off, turning to Clara, who just greeted his remark with stony-faced silence.

"Talkin' of once upon a time," Jacob said uneasily, stepping forwards, "we have a reality alterin' storybook in our possession."

"Plus the relevant software courtesy of Morgan Le Fay," Cassandra said, making Jenkins wince.

"Really?" Flynn said, doing a double-take.

"Yeah, really," Jacob said, looking slightly insulted.

"Does Clara not keep you up to date with our heroic deeds and doings?" Ezekiel asked, leaning against Flynn's desk, ignoring its outraged outburst.

"Yes, but no," Flynn said evasively. "But never mind that, lead the way to marzipan madness!" Within the space of half an hour, which was slow by Flynn's standards, he had assembled the device of his dreams, Flynn capering like a kipper around his creation. "The dimensional stabilizer from Nikola Tesla," he trilled, twirling, Jacob flinching, "the ball of thread from the Labyrinth - the clippings book sent you to get all these things," he said suddenly, swirling to a stop, "almost like it was... fate."

"I think it's a little more complicated than that," Eve said, rolling her eyes.

"And I don't think we'll need the ball of thread either," Cassandra piped up, "it should work exactly as it is, the power, focus, effect" -

- "Hartley, you're zonin' out again," Jacob said, snapping his fingers in front of Clara's blank face, startling her.

"I'm listening," she snapped back, flapping his hand away, "there's a difference."

"Which depends on what you're listening to," Flynn said cryptically, straightening his cravat.