Of All the Stars

The Unquiet Dead

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THE CONSOLE ROOM WAS SHAKING.
Actually the whole ship was shaking. After the Doctor and Cecilia made it back through the maze of hallways back to Rose the Doctor began running around the console.

He was pressing buttons and pulling levers. Directing the girls to help him pilot the TARDIS.

Obviously it hadn't been going very well. Everything was in mayhem. Alarms blaring and mechanical humming.

The Doctor frantically pointed at a button Rose was already holding down. "Hold that one down!"

Cecilia would have laghed if she wasn't clinging to a lever for dear life. Rose shot the man a look. "I'm HOLDING this one down!" She stressed.

The Doctor pointed at another one beside it dramatically. "Well, hold them both down!"

Cecilia groaned as the ship jerked to the left. "Do you know what you're doing? Because it doesn't look like it!"

The Doctor turned on her. He pulled another lever down and then up again. "Oi! I promised you two a time machine and that's what you're getting. Now I've taken you to the future, time for the past. Back to 1860!"

Rose stumbled, her hips banging into the console painfully. "What happened in 1860?"

The man only shrugged, a grinned adorning his face. "I don't know, let's find out!" He spun a spiny thing. "Hold on, here we go!"

The TARDIS landed roughly. All three of them ended on the floor. Cecilia stared up at the ceiling. There were circular markings that she didn't recognize, nor had she ever noticed them.

Beside her Rose was giggling. "Blimey!"

The other two joined in. The Doctor lifted his head up to check them over. "You're telling me! You two all right?"

Cecilia wiggled her toes. "Yep all right! Nothing broken." She turned her head to the side. "Rose?"

She got up from the floor and helped Cecilia up. "I'm all right." Her gaze turned to the Doctor. "Did we make it? Where are we?"

The man in question was studying the screen on the console. "I did it! Give the man a medal. Earth, Naples, December 24th, 1860!"

Cecilia patted him on the back. "Congratulations! This must be a big achievement for you!" Her words were laced in sarcasm. The Doctor swatted at her.

Rose ignored the two and tilted her head. "Thats so weird... it's Christmas."

The Doctor gestured towards the door. "All yours."

Cecilia fixed her hair, parting down the center again. Rose paused in front of the door. She turned back to the Doctor. "But it's like.. think about it though.  Christmas. 1860. Happens once, just once and it's gone."

Her eyes darted between the door and the Doctor. "It's finished. It'll never happen again. Except for you."

She studies the man for a moment. "You can go back and see days that are dead and gone a hundred thousand sunsets ago... no wonder you never stay still."

"It must be amazing"

The Doctor grinned at Cecilia's words. "Not a bad life."

Rose smirked. "Better with three!"