SPACEMAN AND THE MOON ― doctor who

four ; the girl in the fireplace part one

"Dear me, had some cowboys in here. Got a ton of repair work going on. Now that's odd," he turned to the monitor that appeared to be scanning. "Look at that. All the warp engines are going. Full capacity. There's enough power running through this ship to punch a hole in the universe, but we're not moving. So where's all that power going?"

"Where'd all the crew go?" Rose asked.

Luna nodded. "Yeah, shouldn't we be talking to someone? I mean, I don't know a lot about spaceships but I'd imagine that they'd need someone to help steer them."

"No life readings on board," the Doctor flicked some switches.

"Well, we're in deep space," Rose said. "They didn't just nip out for a quick fag."

The Doctor shook his head. "Nope. Checked all the smoking pods. Can you smell that?"

Luna nodded. "Yeah, smells like pot roast."

"Sunday roast, definitely," Mickey agreed.

"But who's cooking?" Luna asked quietly as the Doctor flipped a switch to open the doors behind them.

Inside the room sat a large fireplace, which didn't seem to go along with the rest of the design at all. Almost victorian, elegant and wood, it stood out against the harsh metals of the ship.

"Well, there's something you don't see in your average spaceship," The Doctor commented, slipping his hand into Luna's as he tugged her along towards the fireplace. "Eighteenth century. French. Nice mantle," he scanned it with his sonic. "Not a hologram. It's not even a reproduction. This actually is an eighteenth century French fireplace. Double sided. There's another room through there."

"There can't be," Rose disagreed. "That's the outer hull of the ship. Look."

Luna bent down with the Doctor, eyes widening when she spotted a young girl on the other side.

"Hello," The Doctor greeted.

"Hello."

"What's your name?" He asked her.

"Reinette."

Luna's eyes widened as she put pieces together -- but it seemed too far fetched.

"Reinette, that's a lovely name. Can you tell me where you are at the moment, Reinette?"

"In my bedroom," Reinette answered carefully.

"And where's your bedroom? Where do you live, Reinette?"

"France," Luna whispered just as Reinette answered the same thing.

"Paris, of course!"

The Doctor glanced at Luna, eyebrows furrowed, before turning back to Reinette. "Paris, right!"

"Monsieur, what are you doing in my fireplace?"

"Oh, it's just a routine fire check. Can you tell me what year it is?"

Luna snorted softly. Routine fire check. Oh, this man.

"Of course I can. Seventeen hundred and twenty seven."

Luna fell back in surprise, taking Rose's hand to stand up. Seventeen hundred and twenty-seven. That meant...Madame de Pompadour, sometimes known as Reinette, was sitting in the fireplace in front of her. One of the people she idolized most as a child sit curiously on the other side of the spaceship.

"This is so weird," Luna commented quietly.

"Right, lovely. One of my favourites. August is rubbish though. Stay indoors. Okay, that's all for now. Thanks for your help. Hope you enjoy the rest of the fire. Night, night," The Doctor finished, standing up.