A.N: Hey to all, I've pretty much re-wrote the entire second half of this chapter, and I now present it to you for your assessment and reading pleasure. Thanks must go to: Joshwales, occultmagic, freak and proud (I cried through the last one fifty!), EbonyBeach, The Angel of Hope, VampireHelsing, and AN. Your reviews were WONDERFUL!
Owing to the second attempt on London, I once again dedicate this to the people who are out there believing in peace, freedom and justice.
Now, tis time to PARTY!
The Greatest Summer of all time, Chapter 3.
There's something about turning Eleven…
By Starlite1
Josie couldn't suppress the unbelievable happiness that she felt. So far the party had gone flawlessly, and everything was perfect. The last remnants of the food sat on the long table, which had groaned underneath the weight less than an hour ago. Now gossip was flying across the tables faster than the volleys of the Wimbledon Finals.
With a grin, she reached across to grab another delicacy, and bit down into one of the profiteroles her brother had made especially. The chocolate custard exploded in her mouth, sweet and wonderful. Looking at her brother who was chatting to his goofy friends, she gave him an air hug. As though he'd sensed it, he paused, giving her a thumbs up before going back to an intriguing discussion on the recently revived Poke'mon series.
"You know, I think we went all right!" Anita commented cheerfully from next to her.
Josie couldn't help but snort at that. Regardless of what her father said, she still knew this was the best party imaginable. "I'll agree with you there, kiddo!" she laughed.
"I think it's time for presents!" her mother proclaimed from the other end of the table. All at once there was a stampede of pre-teens heading through the concertina doors towards the lounge room. Jack, coming from the other direction nearly found himself toppled to the ground.
IOIOIOI
Sitting on the Persian-ish rug, the group crowded around the twins, desperate to see what treasures lay within the two gaping stacks of presents in the centre of the circle. As the eldest, Adrian opened the first present.
Paper ripped, and with a grin, he said, "Thanks Tim!" As he held up a limited edition Mk VIII Digigotchi.
Considering carefully, Josie picked out a flat teal package from the base of her pile. Carefully picking at the Sellotape, she pulled out a lavishly illustrated book full of sketches on the Ancient Ming Dynasty. Thanking Carrie, she turned back to the pile. From here on, it was a free for all.
Less than twenty minutes later, their respective piles had dwindled down to the last, most important presents. Taking a deep breath, Josie gently picked up Anita's present. As the wrapping fell away, it revealed two things: A delicate little swallow perched upon the branches of an oak tree, each feather pulsing with life, and a pair of anklets.
In a rush, Anita tried to explain, "I made them myself, and I thought you'd like one, and then one for me, and-"
"Anita!" Josie interrupted, "They're the best. But I think this one belongs to you though." She added, passing the one with more blue to her.
She grinned.
Picking up Uncle Jack's, tearing at the paper as was customary with his presents. Within she found a small box. Opening the lid, she found a delicate necklace with a single emerald in the centre. Beneath it lay a note that simply said: This once belonged to a Queen, seemed fitting that it should go to a princess, Love Uncle Jack.
"Thanks, Uncle Jack!" She told him, fastening it at the nape of her neck. Looking over to her brother, she was just in time to see the dagger that fell out of the wrapping. The look on her father's expression was priceless, and clearly said to Jack we'll talk about this later…
Finally, there was a small box and an envelope- Mum and Dad's. Opting for the box first, she pulled away the voluptuous ribbons (her mother's trademark wrapping) and lifted the lid to reveal…
"A Mobile phone!" She said with a grin. Looked top line too.
"We guessed you'd need it." Her mother told her from the couch.
"Thanks, ma." She said, before turning her attention to the final object. There was something about the envelope, an aura of power and potential that echoed into the air around it. Breaking the wax seal, she pulled out a card with a picture that looked rather like the place from her dream. Opening it, all that fell out was a golden key. In her father's strange and elegant hand were the words: Happy Birthday, I will explain later, Love Dad.
Looking over to her brother, she saw the same look of bafflement on his face as she knew was on her own.
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As soon as the last of the guests had left, both twins sought out their parents.
"Hey grandma, have you seen mum and dad?" Adrian asked, as they came into the kitchen where their grandmother was stacking the dishwasher.
Jackie sighed, "He's waiting for you downstairs. I guess you'd best get down there."
Instinctively, both ran over and hugged her fiercely, "Thanks, gran." Josie said.
Together they walked out into the hall, and Josie couldn't suppress the wave of apprehension that passed over her as she reached out for the door handle. The hinges creaked as the door swung open, a pale blue light flowing outward, shimmering and dancing. Taking a deep breath, Josie slowly descended down the creaky basement stairs.
There her father stood, tall figure silhouetted in the light emanating from the old Police Box. Tentatively they stepped forward, one on either side.
Silence encompassed the room for what seemed like an eternity, until he finally shattered it.
"The last of her kind, she is…" He whispered.
Adrian looked at him in surprise; "I've seen ones just like it in the city."
He looked down at his son, "Not like her you haven't."
"How is it different from any other ordinary Police Box?" she queried.
"She," He emphasised, "is the only thing I have left of my home." He paused, trying to collect the torrent of thought, "There was a great war-The Final Time War- that killed billions. Whole civilisations were wiped out of existence. There was one last battle, where one man made a choice: To destroy the enemy in one final blow. Only thing was that to ensure that they never killed anyone ever again, he had to destroy his home as well. He knew that to let them escape would lead to the universe being ripped apart. So he chose. And with that, he lost everything.
"After a while, he went off, and tried to continue to do what he'd done before. And he succeeded to an extent. Then one day, he met a girl who reminded him how wonderful the universe could be. As usually happens, they fell in love, got married and had children."
"And the moral of the story?" Adrian asked.
"Do you both have the keys?" He retaliated.
Mutely they nodded.
"Then why not use them?" he questioned, indicating the door.
Josie raised an eyebrow, "First an utterly confusing story, and now you're telling us that our birthday present is in an old police box?"
"Yep."
Deciding to take the bait, she stepped forward. Fishing her key from the pocket of her jeans, she shoved it into the lock. It turned surprisingly easily, a click resounding within the object, seeming to resonate within a space far larger than should be possible.
Using the key as leverage, she pulled the door open, the fact it was rather heavier than a mere wooden door should be escaping her notice, paling in comparison to what lay before her. Her legs felt like jelly as she stepped inside. Not trusting her eyes, she took one, two, three steps forward, hoping that her vision would be proved wrong and she would feel the reassuring pain of her toe colliding with the back wooden panel.
No such luck. The jelly that had replaced her legs was slowly liquefying. Her eyes roamed over the huge space, tracing the outline of the huge coral-like support struts soaring towards the ceiling. In the centre of the room, a huge column reared upwards, pulsing with life and… something greater.
There were huge wads of cabling flowing outwards, meshing like a bridge between the industrial and organic.
"Holy Cow!" Adrian exclaimed from behind her.
"Welcome to the TARDIS." Their father said, pride ringing in his voice, "Can go anywhere, any time. That is providing she's in a good mood."
Grasping onto the railing behind her, she choked out, "It's bigger on the inside…"
He rolled his eyes, "What is it with humans and that one particular point? Everybody has to comment on the dimensions. I would love it if someone for once simply commented on how nice the architecture is! Is that really too much to ask?"
"Yeah…" Josie said blithely, drawn towards the central console.
"Looks like the TARDIS wants to say hello." He told her, arms folding unconsciously over his battered leather jacket.
"She's alive?" Adrian asked.
"In her own way."
But Josie wasn't paying attention to them. Gently laying her hand against the one of the panels, she felt something stirring in her head, existing unlike anything else could. It tickled at her mind, scampering around like a puppy, eagerly sniffing, learning her mental smell, eager to do something rather than merely sit in a basement. She found her hands tugged towards something that looked remarkably like an old bicycle wheel. Reaching out to spin it forward, she felt another presence entering her mind: Not Yet, Josie it told her firmly. Regretfully she pulled away, to find her father's hand resting on her shoulder.
"Wha-? Was that you?" she demanded.
He nodded, "The Tardis obviously wants to get going. I haven't seen her react so strongly to someone before."
"I felt her-before you came in…" she explained, confusion flashing across her features.
He smiled, "The Tardis has the habit of getting inside your head. She knows you're my daughter, and Rose's for that matter, so I suppose she feels she has a greater claim on the pair of you."
He nodded over to Adrian, who was standing with his eyes closed, hands splayed against the panel, "See? She's doing the same thing she did to you. Likes to know who she's dealing with."
Suddenly, Adrian's eyes shot open, "Totally cool!" he exclaimed, a wolfish grin spread wide over his features.
"Shall we have a look around the rest of the ship?" their father asked, a mischievous gleam in his eyes.
Josie raised an eyebrow, "There's more? How are you doing it?"
"It's called a Trans-dimensional field."
"And that is…" Adrian prompted.
He held his hand flat out, "Think of reality as being like this… and a trans-dimensional field takes it and-" he titled it ninety degrees, "tilts it like this. Can take up as much space as needed, with only a tiny foothold in a little blue box to tie it to what humanity calls reality. Now, anyone for Ice-skating?
IOIOIOI
A.N: Ok, please re-review, I'm hoping this will work better than before (I think it does!) As usual, constructive criticism is welcome, and flames are used for Bomb Alaska (One of my Favourite desserts-You get to set it on fire!)