Title: Six Years Too Late
Author: erinm_4600
Character/Pairing: Ten, Rose and a few random OCs
Rating: G
Summary: A bumpy ride in the TARDIS gives the Doctor an idea.
Disclaimer: Doctor Who is not mine. If it was, I'd be able to watch everything before Nine and understand HALF of what you guys are talking about a quarter of the time! Also the locale isn't mine either. I just work there.
Author's Notes: My first Doctor Who fic. Inspired by #24 in irishlullaby's December prompt list. Takes place between Fear Her and Army of Ghosts
Originally posted: Dec 6, 2007

The Doctor pressed a button on the console and looked at the screen from over the top of his glasses. A moment later, the whole ship lurched. His brow furrowed and he checked about seven different systems with one glance, not sure where the problem was coming from.

"Oy!" Rose called from the doorway. She made it to the safety railing before the TARDIS rocked again, more violently than before. As the shimmy subsided, Rose dared to move the rest of the way to the Doctor's side. He knew she was coming and already had leaned her way, stretching out his arm and wiggling his fingers.

"What's with Mister Toad's Wild Ride?" Rose asked as she grasped his hand. The ship rocked again, sending her into a collision with the Doctor. His arm was now wrapped firmly around her waist, The Doctor silently thanked his ship for having this fit, simply because it put them in this position. The ship calmed and the sounds of the TARDIS returned to normal.

Rose looked around the ship, but didn't dare let go of the Doctor. He, however, loosened his grip and took a step back. Glancing at the readings for a moment, the Doctor simply responded, "Huh."

"What's happened?" Rose asked, moving to look at the screen as well. The Doctor straightened and crossed his arms.

"No idea. It's like something cut us off in traffic."

"In space?" Rose asked, raising an eyebrow in his direction. The Doctor looked at her for a moment and frowned.

"And you call me Mister Spock?" Shaking his head, he immediately continued his previous train of thought. "According to this, something just popped out of space, dashed in front of the TARDIS and popped back out."

"What? Like an animal runnin' 'cross the road?" The Doctor nodded, then shrugged. He sighed heavily and reached for the handbrake. Facing Rose, a wide grin spread across his face.

"I have an idea!" With that, he pulled down on the lever. A moment later, the TARDIS shuddered as she landed. Rose gave him a mischievous grin and the Doctor responded with his own. Grabbing her hand, the Doctor dragged her to the door.

Both of them flinched at the sunlight greeting them. The TARDIS had landed just behind a large barn-like building. Maybe a garage. Looking around, Rose could hear a train in the distance, as well as what sounded like a group of lawnmowers.

"Where are we, Doctor?" The Doctor looked to his right, then left, trying to get his bearings. Finding her hand, the Doctor squeezed and pulled her along. They moved around the building, stopping for a moment to slip out unnoticed, then joined the crowd.

Rose was looking in every direction, trying to take it all in. She'd seen large groups of people before, but this crowd was ridiculous. The Doctor led her through the maze of adults, children and strollers – bobbing and weaving, ducking and side-stepping. He stopped short and Rose bumped against him. He nodded to the man who had just taken a photo of his children, then continued moving to the right.

Rose noticed a pavilion surrounded by strollers and what looked like giant teacups. Before she could get a good look, however, the Doctor weaved again, almost pulling her arm from its socket.

"Oy!" she called to him. He stopped at a stand and rocked back and forth, waiting for the woman in front of him to move. Rose caught sight of a collection of metal hanging on the side of the cart and stepped closer. She reached for one of the small plastic tags and realized they were lapel pins. Hundreds of lapel pins. Half of them, she couldn't place. But she recognized a few: Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Tinkerbell.

"'Ello," she heard the Doctor say to the girl on the other side of the desk. Rose noticed her nametag, as well as a red slip of ribbon attached to it that said 'Earning my Ears.' "Can you direct me to Mister Toad's Wild Ride?" Rose could see the girl was terribly flustered. She shook her head and looked around for a moment before raising a finger. The Doctor simply smiled, then looked to Rose, and back to the girl. He pulled a pamphlet from the nearby holder and flipped it over.

"Can I help you, sir?" asked another man from behind the counter. He nodded to Rose and looked back to the Doctor.

"Yes, my good man. We are in search of Mister Toad and his infamous Wild Ride." The man gave the Doctor an apologetic smile.

"I'm afraid you're about six years too late." He pointed straight ahead - with two fingers, Rose noted – the Doctor turning the upper half of his body to follow the direction. Just across the expanse of pavement, he and Rose saw a building that was painted in various shades of primary colors, with flowers and insects in various spots. Above the entryway, a sign announced 'The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh'

The doctor turned back to the man and frowned. The man – 'Keith,' according to his nametag – smiled and added, "Mister Toad is still riding wild over at Disneyland." The Doctor smiled brightly and turned to Rose.

"Fancy a visit to the Hundred Acre Wood?" Rose simply nodded. The Doctor turned back to Keith and nodded, then held up his free hand. "Do you have an Alonzo?" Keith raised an eyebrow.

"Well, with fifty-five thousand Cast Members, I'm sure there's at least one Alonzo. None here, I'm afraid." The Doctor nodded again and turned back to Rose. He raised his eyebrows and pulled her through the crowd of strollers and people.

As they approached the entrance, the Doctor stopped in front of the attendant. "Two, please." The young man motioned to the door and nodded as the Doctor pulled Rose through the opening. She gave him a quick wave as she passed. Just inside the doorway, the Doctor let go of Rose's hand and began weaving through the queue. Rose stopped at the first turn, next to the water fountain, and watched him move back and forth. Crossing her arms, she laughed. As the queue returned to the water fountains, the Doctor frowned, realizing that Rose was still standing there.

"You do realize that there's no one in the line?" She asked, motioning to the empty room. His shoulders slumped as the Doctor leaned on the railing.

"Dear, Rose. What is the point of having a queue line like this," he motioned to the maze of railings and ropes, "if you aren't going to use it?" Rose raised an eyebrow again, which prompted the Doctor to put on a full pout. Rose held her own for almost ten seconds before sighing, smiling and taking off down the designated walkway.

She bounded around each corner, much as he had done. He was, again, rocking back and forth, with the occasional jump, as she cleared the last corner and rejoined him. He held out his hand, which she took with both hands and pulled him the rest of the way for the queue. They stepped up to the turnstile, which Rose noted was without the actual turnstile, and were directed to a medium-sized vehicle, shaped like something between a picnic basket and a beehive.

"Front or back?" the Doctor asked Rose, nodding to the front of the car, not-so-subtly. Rose could see this, but acted like she was considering the choice. With a big grin, she called out,

"Front!" The Doctor smiled and she climbed into the front seat. He followed, entering the back row and sighed as he sat.

"Bet you didn't realize I was implanting your choice, subconsciously." Rose rolled her eyes before turning around to face him. Suddenly, the car began to move, making Rose turn back. She waved to the girl sitting at the control stand to their left. The girl waved back and the car turned the corner.

Two minutes later, the car pulled to a stop. Rose could see the landing they boarded from just ahead. The Doctor jumped out of the car as soon as the safety bar raised and held out a hand to help Rose up.

"Thank you, sir," she said as the car pulled away. Another vehicle pulled up and Rose pushed the Doctor off the platform. They followed the short hallway into a small shop. Everything in said shop was themed to Winnie the Pooh – stuffed animals, t-shirts and various toys and knick-knacks. Rose stepped past the shelf of stuffed animals and picked up one, judging the softness of the small Eeyore, then the larger Pooh, who was wearing a nightcap.

"Ah!" she heard the Doctor exclaim. Looking up, she saw him about ten feet away, holding up an oversized t-shirt with a picture of a rather worn-looking Eeyore and the words 'I don't do mornings.' "Well, if this wasn't made for Jackie Tyler..." he said, smirking. Rose reared back.

"You're considerin' gifts for my mum? World must be comin' to an end," she said with a chuckle. The Doctor's face fell and he returned the shirt to the rack it had come from and put his hands in his pockets. He had told Rose, mere hours before, that there was a storm coming. And, with the odd behavior from the TARDIS, it seemed to be coming even faster than he'd like.

For now, he wanted to enjoy a few more hours of having Rose Tyler, all to himself.

"Rose Tyler," he said with a smile. She turned to him, holding a stuffed Tigger. She pointed to him, then to the toy, and nodded. He made a face and stepped toward her. Taking a hand out of his pocket, the Doctor took the Tigger from her, smiled, and returned it to the pile. Next, he placed the same hand on Rose's shoulder and, in as serious a tone as he could muster, asked,

"Has anyone ever told you that it is, in fact, a small world after all?" He gave her a hundred-watt grin, slipped his arm around hers and led her out of the shop.