Dancing Across Time (Book Two of The Bad Wolf Chronicles)

Prologue

"Six pm . . . eighteen hundred if you'd rather . . . Tuesday . . . "

Jessie Nightshade looked at the new Doctor in shock as he worked at the console. She bit her lip as she watched him, a little concerned. Yeah, he'd mentioned the whole regeneration thing. Hell, she'd seen his last few bodies. But actually seeing it happen right in front of her was another thing entirely.

"October 5006 . . . on the way to Barcelona!" He straightened up, smiling with a look on his face that said he was pleased. He promptly turned and grinned wider at Jessie. "Now then. What do I look like?"

Jessie gaped at him. She opened her mouth to retort about looking in a mirror when he held up a hand to stop her. "No, no no, no no no no no no no." She raised an eyebrow. "No. Don't tell me." She watched, amused, as he began checking himself over. "Let's see . . . two legs, two arms, two hands . . . "

She tuned out a little bit as she rubbed her head, still aching a little bit from whatever. She snapped back when he stood up straight, turning to face her. "What do you think?" he asked.

"Well," she began slowly. "I think you're nuts, for one. That's different. That's among the most you've said at one time."

He tilted his head thoughtfully. "So this one's got a gob. That's new."

"But . . . you're still the Doctor?"

He smiled at her. "Hello."

She exhaled in relief and slumped against one of the coral structures as he took her response as encouragement. "Oh, I was worried I was going to have to convince you with 'run!' We never stopped, did we? All across the universe. Running, running, running!" She laughed as he began flicking switches on the console. He grinned back at her. "One time we had to hop. Do you remember? Hopping for our lives!" She shook her head, grinning wildly as he began doing just that. "Yeah? All that hopping? Remember hopping for your life? Yeah? Hop? With the - "

She cut him off, putting a hand over his mouth. He looked at her in surprise as she raised an eyebrow at him. "Easy there, cowboy. That's enough for right now."

"You," he said slowly, "are taking this very well."

"You told me ahead of time what could happen," she reminded him. "And now I know what it'll be like again." She grinned. "Number ten, right?"

"That'll be me!" he confirmed, grinning and bouncing back around the console. "You know what? Cancel Barcelona."

"What?" she asked, surprised.

"Changing to London, close to the flats your friends own . . . ah, we'll say the 24th of December." He smiled at her. "Consider it a Christmas present."

Jessie looked at him blankly as the TARDIS switched courses. "Wait a minute . . . I'm going home?"

"Up to you," he replied, folding his arms. "Back to the team. It's all waiting! Fish and chips, sausage and mash, beans on toast . . . no, Christmas! Turkey!" He put on a thoughtful face. "Although . . . having met Skye . . . nut loaf would be more appropriate." Jessie snorted loudly, and he grinned at her. "Now that was definitely you."

"What, you think I'm going to change, too?" she asked.

"No, actually, I didn't - " His face twisted, and he gagged, the TARDIS shuddering.

Jessie looked at him questioningly. "What?"

"I said I didn't - " She jumped backwards when the Doctor made retching noises, gagging more and more as the TARDIS continued to shudder around them. "Uh oh."

"What's wrong?" Jessie asked, walking forward. As the Doctor coughed, Jessie stopped, seeing a golden mist-like thing escape from his mouth, spinning towards the floor. "What's that?"

"Oh . . . the change is going a bit wrong and all."

Jessie's eyes widened as he collapsed onto his knees, face twisted more in pain. "Look, let's just go back and find Jack," she suggested. "He'd know what to do."

The Doctor shook his head in reply. "Gah. He's busy! He's got plenty to do rebuilding the Earth!"

Jessie blinked. "What did you just say?"

He eyed something on the console, and he smiled a little. "I haven't used this one in years!"

He threw it, and Jessie nearly fell over when the TARDIS shuddered even more. "What the hell are you doing?" Jessie shouted at him.

The Doctor grinned at her, a crazed look in his eyes. "Putting on a bit of speed! That's it!" Jessie fell onto the console, and quickly adjusted her grip to hold on as he continued doing stuff at a crazed speed, looking and sounding like a maniac. "My beautiful ship! Come on, faster! That's a girl. Faster!" He grinned. "Wanna break the time limit?"

"Stop it!" she screamed at him.

"Ah, don't be so dull!" he retorted. "Let's have a bit of fun! Let's rip through that vortex!"

"Doctor!"

He caught her eye, and he seemed to calm down for a second. "The regeneration's gone wrong," he warned her. "I can't stop myself - " He cut off with a grimace. "Ah, my head . . . " She yelped when he began going back to working on the console. "Faster! Let's open those engines!"

Jessie jumped as a bell rang overhead. "What's that?"

He poked his head up, and he grinned, seeming delighted. "We're going to crash land!"

Jessie stared at him in shock as he laughed maniacally. "Well, do something!"

"Too late! Out of control!" Her jaw dropped as he giggled just as crazily, running around the console. "Oh, I love it! Hot dog!"

"You're gonna kill me, and then you, again!" she shouted at him.

"Hold on tight! Here we go!" Jessie held onto the console tightly and met his eyes, him seeming much more enthusiastic about crashing than she did. "Christmas Eve!"

***

Ladies and gentlemen, here we go!