Ending of the Hours (Book Four of the Bad Wolf Chronicles)

The Fires of Pompeii

"Ancient Rome!" the Doctor announced as he pulled aside the curtain for Jessie and Donna to step out. "Well, not for them, obviously. To all intents and purposes, right now, this is brand new Rome."

Jessie grinned as she looked around. "Welcome to the past, Donna."

"Oh, my God!" Donna gasped as she looked around as well. "It's . . . it's so Roman! This is fantastic!"

"Ha ha!" the Doctor laughed.

"I'm here, in Rome," Donna continued. "Donna Noble, in Rome. This is just weird! I mean, everyone here's dead!"

"Well, don't tell them that," Jessie advised with a grin.

"Hold on a minute." Donna folded her arms. "That sign over there's in English." Jessie checked the sign. "Are you two having me on? Are we in Epcot?"

"No, no, no, no," the Doctor replied. "That's the TARDIS translation circuits, just makes it look like English. Speech as well. You're talking in Latin right now."

Donna's eyes widened. "Seriously?"

"Mmm," Jessie agreed.

"I just said 'seriously' in Latin?"

"Yes, you did."

"What if I said something in actual Latin, like veni vidi vici?" Donna asked. "My dad said that when he came back from football. If I said veni vidi vici to that lot, what would it sound like?"

"I'm not sure," the Doctor admitted. "You have to think of difficult questions, don't you?"

"I'm going to try it," Donna decided, going up to a vender.

"I bet it sounds Welsh," Jessie snickered.

"Celtic? Really?"

"Ten bucks."

"Done."

"Afternoon, sweetheart," the vender greeted Donna. "What can I get you, my love?"

"Er . . . veni vidi vici," Donna told him.

Jessie giggled at the Doctor's face as he looked at her. "Cheater," he muttered.

"Huh?" the vender asked. "Sorry? Me no speak Celtic," he told Donna slowly. "No can do, missy."

"Yeah," Donna drawled out before rejoining them. "How's he mean, Celtic?"

"Welsh," Jessie replied with a smile. "You sound Welsh. There we are! Learn something everyday."

"Don't our clothes look a bit odd?" Donna asked as they continued walking.

"Nah," the Doctor replied, shaking his head. "Ancient Rome. Anything goes. It's like Soho, but bigger."

"You've been here before, then?"

"Mmm, ages ago. Before you ask, that fire had nothing to do with me." Jessie grinned. "Well, a little bit," he conceded. "But I haven't got the chance to look around properly. Colosseum, Pantheon, Circus Maximus. You'd expect them to be looming by now. Where is everything?" He pointed. "Try this way."

"Not an expert, but there are seven hills of Rome, aren't there?" Donna asked when they ran down a street into a plaza area. "How come they'e only got one?"

Jessie stared up at the one lonely mountain, and her eyes widened as she looked around in horror. "Oh, no," she whispered, just before the ground began to rumble.

"Here we go again!" one man shouted as venders began to try and catch their pottery.

"Wait a minute!" Donna gasped. "One mountain with smoke. Which makes this - "