The Ninth Doctor

"Fantastic!" he beamed, as the impossible spectacle presented itself in front of them.

"Is it?" Rose said uncertainly.

"Yeah, Doctor..." Jack interjected. "Surely this ain't too good a thing? Are we safe?"

"Probably not, mate." the Doctor replied happily, pointing his screwdriver at the sea, which had just that moment frozen solid in the single blink of an eye. The waves were thick blocks of ice, rising from a bed of the same, stretching all the way out to the horizon, where stormy grey sky met sparkling white ice, winking at them from afar.

"But what happened?" Rose insisted, staring dumbly at the ice, zipping her jacket up against the sharp cold which had fallen over the normally tepid planet. It had gotten dark.

"It's the sun." the Doctor said thoughtfully, hopping from one foot to the other, trying to bully some warmth into his extremities. "And ya know what, Jack?"

"Uh?"

"Your right, it's not safe." he broke into a nervous laugh, his breath billowing out as steam. "We should get outta here now. Before we freeze."

They clambered back down the hill, the blades of grass turning frosty, crunching beneath their feet. Their canoe was moored at the beach, but there was no question of them sailing back to the Tardis, which was located on another small island, just a half mile away. Instead, the Doctor and Jack carried it back, whilst Rose took the paddles. The Doctor happily watched her awestruck smile as they walked across the sea, beneath enormous high waves which cast midnight shadows over the three of them. He was ever the optimist, the Ninth Doctor, and prayed that the weather wouldn't turn warm again suddenly, and melt the ice as quickly as it'd formed.

A rare thing it was, but his luck actually held out on this occasion. It was minus fifteen Celsius by the time they staggered back into the Tardis, teeth chattering and skin sore. The Doctor could tell the temperature with a simple flick of his tongue.

"Right." he said, suddenly businesslike, "gimme a minute." he shook some ice from the leather of his jacket, and powered up the scanner with numb fingers. "Come on!" he insisted, thumping it lightly to coax some power into the lifeless monitor. It flickered into life, and revealed a dire warning. The Doctor bit his nail.

"Problem?" Jack loomed over his shoulder.

"Could say that." the Doctor straightened up. "It's winter!"

"One heck of a winter." Jack drawled.

"Ain't it just," the Doctor agreed, "and actually a normal phenomenon in this part o' the galaxy. This planet's sun fluctuates wildly in temperature, unlike that of Earth. Seasons come and go randomly, and immediately too. Just moments ago, the sun's heat dimmed right down, and so winter begins. It might not end for a thousand years."

"A thousand year winter?" Rose exclaimed. "Will anything survive?"

"The cockroaches will." the Doctor said darkly. "Horrible little gits can survive 'most anything. But everything else? Nah. Not likely."

"Shouldn't we do something about it?" she pressed.

The Doctor shook his head. "Not a chance. It's the natural way of things here. It ain't pleasant, but it is what it is. It isn't our duty, nor anyone's, to interfere with the natural course o' things. Remember that. Now, to be frank, I'm all for hoofing it before the weather turns any colder."

"Sure." Jack said through chattering teeth. "I need a good coffee, warm myself up. Youse?"

"Thanks." Rose said, "I'll h-help you make it."

"Cheers guys. Just milk." the Doctor said brightly, switching off the scanner and releasing the handbrake.

And they were all thrown off their feet, as the Tardis lurched into action with greater speed and ferocity than it could ever muster on a normal day.

"What's happening?" Rose shrieked, clutching the legs of the console room seats as the whole place shook violently.

"Flamin' eck!" the Doctor barked, clinging onto the console for dear life and turning the scanner back on. "We've been harpooned!"

"Harpooned?"

"Yeah! Look at the readings! Summink's got us, guys! Takin' us right off course, so it is!"

"Taking us...where?" Jack screamed, as the motion smashed him up and down on the harsh metal grille floor of the console room.

"Uhm..." the Doctor looked at the readings, but didn't believe. "Well that's flamin' impossible, to start with."

"What? What?"

"The flamin' 1500's! Someone in the year 1500 'as got technology capable of drawing my Tardis off course! That ain't right."

"I'll say." Rose managed a grin, despite the harsh motion of the Tardis. "Trouble, then?"

The Doctor met her gaze, and smiled. "Yeah."

They laughed. "Fantastic!" they said together.