The Christmas That Never Happened
Daibhid Ceanaideach
It was Christmas Day. Martha realised this as she slogged through the
forests of Russia towards a rumoured resistence cell. She'd been doing
this for over six months now, and could only hope it was making a
difference.
In front of her she could see a settlement. She approached the it, her
arms held up to show she wasn't armed, and was greeted by a man in a
tattered looking military uniform.
"Ah, you must be the famous Martha Jones. Welcome to our camp. And Merry
Christmas. In the Orthodox calender it's not until January 5th, of
course."
"Right. Merry Christmas to you when it happens, then."
"Come in. We do not have turkey with the trimmings, or even the makings
of a Holy Supper, but we can find something for you."
Martha smiled. "Thank you. And then I have some stories I need to tell."
"About the Doctor, yes?" The man pointed at an illegible shoulder flash
on his uniform. "Grigoriy Bugayev, formerly of UNIT. Perhaps I know a few
you haven't heard."
Martha's smile broadened. She hadn't expected to have anything to
celebrate this Christmas, but in a situation like this, more storytellers
and a meal was reason enough to celebrate.
*
It was Christmas Day. Jack had completely lost track of time, but when he
heard "Merry Xmas Everybody" come over the Valiant's PA system, he
realised it must be. He remembered last Christmas. Him and Ianto and Owen
and Tosh having a makeshift Christmas dinner in the Hub. He'd practically
forced Gwen to take the day off. She ought to spend the holidays with her
family and ... Rhodri, wasn't it? One of those names, anyway. He
wondered where any of them were now.
Several decks above him, the Master was dancing along the bridge. "'Does
he ride a red-nosed reindeer?'" he hummed. "And what do we have in your
stocking, Doctor? Oh dear, a lump of coal! Still, that's fairly generous,
since you're not in a position to buy me anything in return."
"You know what my present is," the Doctor replied, painfully. "Three
words..."
The Master glared at him and stormed out.
*
It was Christmas Day. Mr Copper reflected that, given the savagery this
time of year heralded on the planet Earth, being under alien control
couldn't be that bad. It was a shame the planet was under quarantine,
though. He'd been looking forward to putting his Earth history, such as
it was, into practice. He'd certainly been looking forward to leaving
Sto.
A shift in the newsfeeds made him start. Apparently, the recently renamed
"Aggedor's Quest" had crashed. Mr Copper forgot all about Christmas as
the news from Peladon continued. They were saying this was the end of the
Capricorn Group, that all the passengers and crew were dead, as were half
the native Peladonians, that no-one could reach Max Capricorn for a
comment.
Mr Copper couldn't avoid the guilty thought that it was just as well he
hadn't been on board, after all.
*
It was Christmas Day. A whole year since Donna had thought her life had
changed completely. It had changed even more since, though. She'd gone
to Egypt for two weeks to prove a point, and been trapped there when the
Toclafane attacked.
There was an ironic similarity between their current situation and the
Egyptian history she'd been looking at. But at least then the slaves had
known what a pyramid *was*. Neither she nor any of the other workers had
the slightest idea what the Master had them building.
The other workers gathered round her. She'd heard there was some sort of
plan, and it required people to spread stories about the Doctor. Not a
problem.
"Last Christmas," she began, "I learnt my fiance was actually more
interested in a giant spider. And there was this man..."
*
It was Christmas Day. A Christmas that never happened.
All Doctor Who characters property of the BBC
Colonel Grigoriy Bugayev from "Emotional Chemistry" by Simon A. Forward
--
Dave
"All those with psychokinesis, raise my hand."
The Room With No Doors, Kate Orman
Allyn Gibson
<daibhidc...@aol.com> wrote:
>The Christmas That Never Happened.
Nice. The bit with Mr. Copper threw me for a moment. I liked the bit
with Donna. What makes it sad is that in that world, that no longer
exists, she gets to remember the Doctor and the Christmas, while in
the "normal" world she doesn't.
Allyn
Defeating alien menaces is what Tiggers do best.
-- Peter David, The TARDIS at Pooh Corner
vj
Very good! Especially the Master, because Christmas Day Torture to a
festive soundtrack would be right up his street.