'Paddle!' yelled the Doctor. And they crouched down and frantically flapped their hands in the freezing water.
The raft of ice began to move - and their desperate efforts, coupled with the sluggish current of the Thames, slowly dragged them closer to the TARDIS.
'After three we jump,' ordered the Doctor.
They both braced themselves and took deep breaths.
'One...' he counted, 'two... three!'
And they leapt across the water and skidded to a stop in a soggy heap beside the Doctor's ship.
'You all right?' asked the Doctor.
'Wet, cold, but alive,' replied Mai, smiling.
They dragged themselves inside the TARDIS and slammed the doors tight.
'Look!' Mai pointed at the Hyban.
Masoon was beside the console, his arms raised as if in exaltation, sucking in heat from the TARDIS.
'My gas energy bill will be through the roof,' muttered the Doctor, and he approached the alien.
'Get away from it, Doctor!' yelled Mai.
'Don't worry - he won't touch me. He's got all the energy he needs now.'
'But he could've killed you out there. He's evil.'
'Evil?' The Doctor laughed. 'He's only doing what anyone would do - trying to stay alive. I mean, look at Humans. You lot are just as reckless with your natural resources.'
'You don't have to tell me that, Doctor. We know. And we're now paying the price. But people like me are trying to put things right on Earth.'
'And you will, Mai, I can assure you.' The Doctor's expression was unreadable. 'You're going to be very important one day.'
'You've seen my future?'
'I don't need to see your future to know that.'
Mai looked intently at the Doctor. He was quite unlike anyone she'd ever met before.
'I've got an idea,' he said, after a pause, and he moved over to the controls, set the coordinates, and glanced up as the TARDIS's time rotor ground into life.
'Where are we going now?' asked Mai.
'You'll see,' replied the Doctor.
***
'What did I tell you? It's working already.'
The Doctor and Mai were sat together in the endless rows of spectator seats surrounding the enormous Winter Wonderland ice rink. It was so big, they couldn't see the other side. Snow fell all around them.
'Masoon is absorbing just enough energy from this sun to hold the planet at the right temperature,' he told Mai.
'But what happens when it moves too close to the sun for even him to control?'
'They'll have to find someplace else. Shouldn't be a problem though - the Hyban make great portable air conditioners.'
Mai laughed. 'I can't believe I've just travelled through time and space with you. And never mind that - I can't believe I've been ice-skating. Wish I had something to prove it though. No one will believe me.'
'Aah...' said the Doctor, looking very pleased with himself. 'Then it's lucky I got you this.'
He held out the souvenir thimble from the Frost Fair.
Mai's face lit up. 'There's nothing as nice as something totally useless,' she murmured to herself, recalling the Doctor's words, and finally understanding what he meant.
'You're catching on fast, Mai Kondo,' smiled the Doctor. 'So, will you be okay here? Or do you want a lift back to Earth?
'I'm fine,' replied Mai. 'I have lots of writing still to do on my thesis, and where better to do it than surrounded by all this wonderful snow?'
'That's good,' smiled the Doctor. 'And, you know, I might stick around for a while myself. After all, we still have our skates. Fancy joining me on the ice for one last spin?'
'I thought you'd never ask,' replied Mai.
THE END
Written by RUPERT LAIGHT
Illustrations by MARTIN GERAGHTY
Special thanks to Russell T Davies and Gary Russell
Doctor Who - The Frozen Page 2