MY BEST MATE, THE DOCTOR
Chapter Eighteen "So…why are we doing this?" Rory said to the Doctor and he and his wife followed them through the forest. "We are visiting a very special person today…well, two very special people but there is one in particular that I want you to meet," the Doctor said over his shoulder while they walked. "And that special person is…" Amy said. "Snuffy." Amy and Rory glanced at each other. "Snuffy?" Amy said. "My little Snuffy Lumpkins, I miss her," the Doctor said wistfully. "And is Snuffy a boy or a girl?" Rory asked. "Snuffy is a girl. But…she is a teeny weeny elephant that I won from a Weetabix promotion." Amy and Rory gave him odd looks. The Doctor looked over his shoulder, saw their consternation and chuckled. "This way, mother and father in law," he said, beckoning them to follow him. XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO The Doctor and Rose ate their meal and chatted with their new friends. Belzac was feeding Snuffy raisins, cooing and giggling at the elephant while she took each individual sultana with her trunk and put them in her mouth. "She is an amazing creature," Shyla said to the Doctor. "That she is," the Doctor said, rubbing Snuffy's back. "and she's a good little girl. And she loves her treats," he added while Belzac fed her another raisin. Suddenly Terzor stood up. "Something is coming," he said, pointing to the forest. Everyone except Belzac turned their attention to the forest. A moment later, a man emerged from it followed by another man and woman. "Good morning," Eleven said lightly to everyone. "My friends and I are having a stroll. I see you're having a picnic." "Yes," Ten said, standing up. "Won't you join us?" Eleven shielded his mind from his younger self so he wouldn't realize his true identity. Eleven shook his head. "No, that's alright. We're not hungry," he said to him. "We would like to stop for a moment and chat though." While Ten made introductions, Amy nudged Rory and pointed to Snuffy. They did a double take and glanced at each other. Rose noticed their reactions. "Yeah, it's not a normal sized elephant," she said to them. "But she's better than any dog. This is Snuffy." "Wow," Amy said in wonder as she knelt down beside Rose. Rose took a few of the raisins from the box and gave them to Amy. She coaxed Snuffy over and Amy held out a raisin. She grinned when Snuffy took it and ate it. "Rory, try this," Amy said as her husband knelt down beside her. Rory took a raisin from her and fed Snuffy. Snuffy ate it and Rory grinned when she searched his empty palm with her trunk, looking for more. Amy held out another raisin and Snuffy took it from her and ate it. Amy glanced at Eleven when he knelt down behind Snuffy. She noticed his eyes were slightly misty while he stroked the elephant's back and she wondered what happened to Snuffy. She'd never seen any sign of her in the TARDIS and she could tell from the Doctor's reaction that it'd been a long time since he'd seen his pet. Amy smiled when Belzac toddled over to her and she and the toddler fed the remaining raisins to Snuffy while everyone else watched. "She's an extraordinary animal," Eleven said to Ten. "Yes, she is. She's more than a pet, she's family to me and Rose," Ten said proudly. Eleven looked at Rose. Rose returned the gaze and was stunned when she saw a loving look on his face. It puzzled her. She didn't know this man but he was giving her the same look that her Doctor often gave her. But before she could say anything, Eleven looked away and turned his attention back to Snuffy. "What'd you say your name was again?" Rose asked Eleven. "I'm John Simons," he said, glancing at her again. Rose nodded but she couldn't shake the feeling that "John Simons" seemed familiar to her. But her attention was turned to Snuffy when Snuffy let out her little meee and everyone laughed at it. Ten grinned, took a raisin from the box and coaxed Snuffy into standing up on her back legs while everyone watched. "Wow, she's amazing," Amy said while Ten fed Snuffy the raisin and patted her back. "Yup, she's our little darling," Ten said fondly while Snuffy ate the raisin. "Well, I think it's time to move on," Eleven said, standing up. "Sure? You're welcome to eat with us," Ten said. Eleven shook his head and Amy and Rory stood up. "Nah, we want to continue our hike while daylight is burning," he said to them. "But you enjoy your meal and it was nice to meet all of you." Amy and Rory echoed the sentiment and both of them bent over and pet Snuffy's back. Eleven did the same and Amy noticed the same struggle not to cry that she'd seen earlier. Eleven held out his index finger and smiled when Snuffy curled her trunk around it. Snuffy held her trunk there for a moment while Eleven gazed at her lovingly. Then Snuffy let go and meed at her. Eleven swallowed a lump and patted her head before standing up. He, Amy and Rory bid goodbye to everyone and they went back the way they came. "Doctor," Amy said when they were out of earshot, "what happened to Snuffy?" "She died a few years ago," the Doctor said wistfully. "I thought elephants lived a long time," Rory said. "They do. But we never knew how old Snuffy was when we got her. For all we know she was in her final years and I'm sure the miniaturization process mucked with her lifespan. But she died peacefully, she wasn't obliterated by a Dalek or anything like that." "But you miss her," Amy said. "I always miss my Snuffy Lumpkins, every single day," the Doctor said. "She was a good little daughter." Amy glanced at her husband. She tugged on the Doctor's jacket and when he stopped, she embraced him. "Risking your husband's wrath?" the Doctor teased as he hugged her back. "Just giving you a hug in Snuffy's honor," Amy said. The Doctor beamed at that and hugged her tightly before letting go. "Well, now that I've introduced you to my daughter, let's go find something to do," he said to Amy and Rory. "Come along, Ponds! Adventure calls!"
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