Doctor Who-Short Trips "Miracle Enough"

Ice Cream Part 1

The laughter was still ringing in her ears, it felt like a sharp slap across her cheek as Emma Meakin ran barefoot across the village park. It wasn't the first time her classmates had laughed at her, she was used to it and it was better than being shoved roughly or having mean things said to her but it still hurt. For such a tiny, scrap of a child, Emma could really shift across the scorched grass, she remembered what her Mum always told her whenever the other kids picked on her- "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me." Well as far as Emma was concerned that simply wasn't true and today she'd had enough, something had snapped inside her. Emma ran on, with no thought in her head except to get away, still clutching an empty ice cream cone and her black cat Ivy running alongside her like a faithful dog. Home and the sanctuary of her Mum's arms was just across the road and around the corner...Except the tall blue box standing outside the park gates beneath the shady horse chestnut trees had stopped Emma in her tracks, "Funny." She thought "That wasn't there before..."

"Hello."

The tall stranger stepped from around the other side of the blue box, there were two striking things which Emma noticed about him. First there was his dazzling smile which despite her latest recent humiliation made Emma feel better and then there was the stripy multi-coloured scarf which was ridiculously long as it cascaded to the ground, a silly garment to be wearing on such a warm June day.

"Hello." Emma, a little breathless did a shy half wave, her cat cautiously poking her head from in-between Emma's skinny legs meowed their version of a greeting.

"I'm the Doctor."

"My Mum says I shouldn't talk to strangers..."

"Ah...Well your Mum is quite right young lady but I felt compelled to talk to you as I saw you running across the park, very fast indeed and you looked troubled and I was just about to stop you as I couldn't stand by..." The Doctor suddenly broke off, his piercing eyes glanced across the busy road, momentarily haunted as he watched a scene unfold, one which only he could see. Then he returned his full attention to the girl. "But you'd already stopped running because you'd seen my blue box, my TARDIS and not many people notice it in passing...I didn't catch your name?" The Doctor prompted.

"Emma Meakin...But you're still a stranger."

Now she had stopped running Emma's thoughts began to catch up with her, a shiver swept through her body when she realised how close she'd been to the road and wondered whether she'd have stopped running if she hadn't seen this TARDIS box. But no sooner had this thought entered her head, then it was gone. Emma who was a bright and thoughtful girl for her eight years frowned, intrigued as she stared up at this strange man and his box which had magically appeared from nowhere.

"The Doctor? That's a title, not a real name."

"As I say Emma Meakin not many people notice my TARDIS, they're usually very special..." The Doctor pushed back the mass of curls on top of his head, his voice gentle and mellifluous. "Of course, it's none of my business and you can tell me to shove off but why are you barefoot and carrying an empty ice cream cone hmm?"

Emma looked at the ground, she could feel her face burning, as she relived the embarrassment, tears pricking at the back of her eyes as she told the Doctor everything and unwittingly the story of her young life as she took a deep breath and blurted it all out.

"Oh...Well... I tripped, landed flat on my face...my ice cream must have fallen out the cone. I don't care! Then the others started laughing, I wouldn't have fallen if it hadn't been for my cousin Tracey's trainers, they're two sizes too big but my Mum can't afford new ones at the moment so I have to wear my cousin's hand me downs...Tracey was supposed to be keeping an eye on me but she went off somewhere with her boyfriend. Anyway I guess my feet must have come right out of those trainers, I didn't really notice...I just started running and I didn't want to stop...."

"Ah I know that feeling...Do a lot of running myself."

"What in that scarf?" Emma sniffed and rubbed the back of her hand over her eyes. She had really been looking forward to that ice cream.

"Oh yes of course." The Doctor grinned, handing Emma a tartan patterned hanky. "Running in my scarf is the best bit."

Emma laughed, the tears had stopped and suddenly she felt better, the hanky was too nice to use, she went to return it to the Doctor but he wouldn't let her, so she put it in her pocket.

"No, never stop running Emma Meakin, away from the bad times and towards the good ones. It's all out there waiting for you. Only you must promise never to run out into the road without looking even if you're being chased by a 10ft part cyborg elephant headed psychotic traffic warden...." The Doctor looked around and lowered his voice to a whisper. "There aren't any traffic wardens around here?" The only reply he received was a meow, the Doctor glanced down. "Hello little one."

Ivy's curiosity had got the better of her as she wandered over to the Doctor who bent down to stroke the black cat with the bright yellow, saucer eyes. One moment the purring cat was on the ground, then in one swift manoeuvre she had sprung towards the Doctor, climbing up his scarf and ended up perched on his shoulder. The Doctor stood up, beaming with delight, he'd always wondered why he'd never got around to having a cat, the TARDIS could do with a ship's cat. But then the Doctor thought out loud as he was very often prone to do.

"You know it really would be terribly unfair on the mice."

"She's called Ivy." Emma smiled proudly, other than her Mum and occasionally her cousin, her cat was her best friend in the whole world. "Ivy's got a bit of Devon Rex in her, she's different like me, my other Auntie, the rich one, breeds cats and she said I could choose one, and well Ivy chose me."

"Ah I know what that feels like!" The Doctor smiled sadly to himself, gazing off into the distance, remembering all the companions he had acquired over the years and how many he had lost or left behind. It didn't get any easier. The Doctor never forgot his friends. There were also the companions he had yet to meet. And who knows? Possible future ones such as the girl standing before him.

"Who's your new friend?"

The Doctor swung around and there was his present companions Sarah Jane and Harry, clutching three dripping ice creams between them.