Doctor Who_ Wooden Heart - Martin Day [27]
Suddenly he started scrabbling around on the stony foreshore. Jude chose that moment to step out from her hiding place. ‘Is everything all right?’ she asked.
‘Hello!’ said the Doctor brightly, still scrabbling through the rocks. He made no attempt to ask Jude her name, or to question what she was doing there, or to tell her to go away. Jude liked the man already.
‘What are you doing?’ she continued.
‘Ducks and Drakes!’ said the Doctor, getting to his feet to show Jude the contents of his outstretched hands. ‘You need a nice, flattish stone, a still expanse of water… It helps me to think.’
He paused, tongue locked between his teeth in concentration, then bent down, hurling the stone edgeways through the air and in the direction of the shrouded island. The stone skipped and bounced and arced across the water before eventually disappearing into the depths of the lake.
‘Six jumps,’ the Doctor breathed, counting the ripples. ‘Not bad!’
‘Oh, we call that Skipping Circles,’ said Jude dismissively. ‘A child’s game. I’ve never seen the point in it.’
‘Oh,’ said the Doctor, crestfallen. ‘Used to think it was wonderful when I was a kid…’
‘Then, forgive me,’ said Jude, ‘but you must have been a bit, well, dense.’
The Doctor simply grinned. ‘Oh yeah! Thicky thicky thick pants, that was me…’
‘I’m not sure I believe you,’ said Jude, with a disarming smile. ‘You must be very wise, to have travelled so far.’
‘Aw, thanks,’ said the Doctor modestly. ‘I matured quite late, you see,’ he elaborated with an expansive hand gesture. ‘Like a fine wine…’
‘Or a smelly cheese,’ suggested Jude, laughing.
‘Gorgonzola!’ exclaimed the Doctor, wrapping his lips around every syllable. ‘I love a bit of Gorgonzola. Camembert, too. Do you know, I once bought some Brie from a village in Normandy and left it in a cupboard in the TARDIS… It was months and months before I found it again. You wouldn’t believe the pong!’
‘You’re funny,’ said Jude. ‘Are you some sort of jester, a trickster from a foreign court? I’ve read about them in one of my books.’
‘History?’ queried the Doctor, sending another flat stone skipping over the water.
‘Fiction,’ said Jude. ‘My father says there are only so many books full of long words you should read before you’re twenty. I like to relax from time to time. Something… What’s the word? Something flippant.’
‘I like to relax by throwing stones,’ said the Doctor firmly. ‘Can’t beat it. Who is your father…?’
‘Saul,’ said Jude.
‘Ah,’ said the Doctor. ‘Why am I not surprised to hear that? While your dad tries to push back the barriers by exploring, you’re trying to do the same – by reading loads of books!’
‘Your friend went off with him to explore,’ said Jude. ‘I know he wanted to check his traps, but… That’s sometimes code for “I fancy a bit of exploring today – don’t tell anyone.” He needs his peace and quiet, you see.’
‘Martha went with him?’ asked the Doctor, suddenly concerned.
‘Oh, don’t worry, she’ll be quite safe.’ Jude pointed to a pathway that wound towards the side of the village furthest from the forest. It was just starting to get dark now and the two figures were illuminated by a single guttering torch. ‘Look, there they are!’
Jude waved at the taller of the two figures, then waited patiently alongside the Doctor. The silence as the evening darkened still further was interrupted as he threw another stone over the water.
It was impossible to count the number of skips now. The lake had become a mirror of the star-filled heavens, the stone seeming to fracture the night sky before sinking down into nothingness.
Martha came over to the Doctor in a rush, clearly out of breath and covered in scratches. ‘Doctor,’ she said