The Doctor woke with a start. He'd just had the strangest dream. He was at the North Pole, complete with Santa and his two annoying elves, but there was someone else there too, someone important…

'Clara?'

He sat up and rubbed his fingers down his face. The dream was slipping away but he couldn't shake the feeling that he needed to hold onto it.

'Who's Clara?' asked a voice from across the room, causing the Doctor to freeze. 'And should I be worried?'

The Doctor slowly turned his head to face the speaker. Rose Tyler stood at the doorway smirking at him.

For a moment, he couldn't believe his eyes. How was she here? This shouldn't be possible… He shook his head, pushing the thought away. Of course Rose was here. Why wouldn't she be?

'Rose Tyler,' he said, getting up from the bed and walking towards her. 'You definitely have nothing to worry about.'

'Good,' she said smiling up at him, 'because I do believe someone promised to take me somewhere special for Christmas.'

The Doctor groaned. 'We're in a time machine. How could you possibly know when it's Christmas?'

'I just have a sixth sense about these things,' said Rose. 'And the TARDIS may have redecorated a bit.'

The Doctor frowned and stepped past her to look out into the hallway. Sure enough, it was elegantly decorated with tinsel, holly, and a few other decorations associated with the Earth holiday.

'You two have being conspiring against me again, haven't you?' he said turning back around to face Rose. 'These decorations really have to g-'

He stopped suddenly when he realised that she was closer than expected. She was smiling at him and he was once again struck by the sensation that something was off.

The confusion must have shown on his face because she looked pointedly towards the ceiling. He followed her gaze and smiled when he noticed what she was indicating. Mistletoe.

'Well, this decoration can stay,' he said, all doubts forgotten.

'Any excuse for a kiss?' asked Rose, giving him that tongue-touched smile he adored so much.

'Who said I needed an excuse?'

He let her laughter wash over him for a moment before placing a hand on her cheek and lowering his lips to hers.

Rose reached up to run her hands through his hair and the kiss suddenly went from something sweet and loving to something more desperate. Like each of them was worried it would be their last.

When the need for air finally kicked in, the Doctor reluctantly pulled away, resting his forehead against Rose's.

'Merry Christmas, Rose,' he whispered.

'Merry Christmas, my Doctor,' she replied.

That annoying feeling tugged at his mind again. The one that insisted that this couldn't possibly be real. He banished the thought by giving Rose another quick kiss before grabbing her hand and pulling her out of the room.

'Come on,' he said. 'I know the perfect place to take you.'

oOoOo

Once in the control room, the Doctor let go of Rose's hand and rushed to the console.

'So where is this so-called perfect place?' asked Rose.

'Just at the edge of the Andromeda galaxy,' replied the Doctor, setting the coordinates. 'The whole planet is covered in snow but blizzards are rare. It's actually more of a ski resort rather than a Christmas holiday spot but it has these creatures, they're like horses but ten times as strong and they can pull along on the sleighs quite easily.'

'Sleighs?'

'Didn't I mention that they could fly?'

Rose just shook her head, laughing. 'Sounds beautiful!'

'Oh, it is,' said the Doctor before pulling down the leaver that would send them on their journey.

With a great wheezing noise, the TARDIS landed and the Doctor offered Rose his arm.

'Shall we?'

She smiled and took his arm. The Doctor opened the doors to lead them outside but stopped suddenly and dropped Rose's arm. He stepped outside and took in his surroundings. This wasn't the Andromeda galaxy. The snow was right but there were definitely no flying horses in the sky. Instead, the Doctor watched as a very Earth-looking plane flew over a very Earth-looking house.

'This isn't where I want to be,' he said.

'But it's where you need to be,' said Rose, stepping out of the TARDIS. Her adventurous smile was gone, replaced by an expression the Doctor couldn't quite place.

'I don't understand,' he said.

Rose reached up and placed her hand on the side of his head. The Doctor instinctively closed his eyes and leaned towards her touch.

'How's your right temple?' she asked.

The nagging feeling that had been annoying him since he woke up returned and this time brought a sharp pain with it. The more he focussed on the pain, the more the feeling tugged at his mind. Something wasn't right.

'Clara needs you,' said Rose and the Doctor's eyes snapped open. Suddenly it all made sense.

'I'm dreaming,' he said and Rose nodded.

'And now you have to wake up,' she said. 'Clara, too. She needs your help and so do those people on that base.'

'What about me?' asked the Doctor. 'What about what I need?'

'What do you need, Doctor?'

'You.'

Rose smiled sadly. 'No you don't,' she said softly, lowering her hand. 'Not anymore.'

The Doctor grabbed her hand before it fell all the way to her side. 'Rose Tyler, I will always need you.'

Another unreadable emotion passed over Rose's face. 'I'm just a dream. I'm not real. But Clara and those people stuck at the North Pole are. Save them. Save you.'

The Doctor looked at the house uncertainly. He knew that Rose was right, Clara needed him, but it didn't make it any easier. How many times did he have to say goodbye?

He looked back at Rose. She looked just as she had done on that beach all those years ago. Well, if this was his dream then he was going to make the most of it. He leant down and kissed her soundly.

'Go,' whispered Rose once he had pulled away.

'Goodbye, Rose,' said the Doctor before turning and walking up to the front door of Clara's dream house.

He knocked on the door and turned to take one last look at Rose but the front yard was empty. A creaking sound signalled that Clara was opening the door and he turned back to face her.

'It's not real, Clara. You know it's not real. It's a dream and it's killing you.'

oOoOo

Rose watched the Doctor follow the brunette into the house.

'Why didn't you tell him?' asked a voice from beside her.

Rose turned to face the man in the famous red suit.

'It's too late for me,' she said, rubbing her right temple. 'He can't save me and you know how guilty he gets. It would only distract him. Now he can save himself and the others. It's better this way.'

'You could always wake up,'

'I can't. I tried.'

'Did you?' Rose gave Santa a stern look which he returned before sighing. 'Fine, have it your way then. But if you change your mind, you know where to find me. It's never too late, Rose.'

Rose watched Santa walk away out of the corner of her eye before returning her gaze to the house in front of her. No doubt the Doctor was doing his best to convince his friend that they were dreaming. And then they would go back to the North Pole and figure out that that is a dream too. And then they would wake up. Then they would be safe.

'It's better this way,' she whispered to herself.