Doctor Who_ Winner Takes All - Jacqueline Rayner [2]
She hesitated for a moment on the walkway outside the front door, key in her hand. Then she knocked on the door.
After a moment it opened on the chain, which Rose thought a bit odd, but forgot it almost at once when she saw her mum, petite and blonde just like Rose herself, peering through the gap. The chain came off immediately, and the door had barely swung open when Jackie had her arms round Rose. ‘You’re here! You’re here!’
Rose grinned as she hugged her mum back. ‘Yeah, looks like it.’
Jackie looked at her accusingly as she carne out of the embrace. ‘But don’t tell me, you’re not stopping.’
‘Oh, we’ll hang around for the party,’ Rose said.
‘The party? I’m expected to throw a party every time you turn up on the doorstep?’
‘No, Mum,’ said Rose, following her into the flat, ‘the party cos you’ve won the lottery.’
Jackie gave a snort of laughter, turning to look back at the doorway. ‘That? I just won some games thing. You know, on the scratchcards. Gave it to Mickey.’ She peered over Rose’s shoulder. ‘Come on, where’s his nibs then? Doesn’t he want a cup of tea?’
The Doctor appeared in the doorway, grinning. ‘Just waiting to be asked in.’
‘He needs to be asked in,’ Rose said to her mum. ‘Like a vampire does.’
Jackie looked as if she believed it, as if she thought the Doctor might turn into a bat any minute.
‘Not really,’ Rose added. ‘Shall we have that cup of tea, then?’
* * *
‘So, what’s this scratchcard thing?’ Rose asked after a bit, when they were settled comfortably on the white leather chairs in the lounge, and on to their second cup each.
Jackie leaned over to grab hold of her bag. She put in a hand and pulled out a sheaf of bits of orange cardboard. Rose took a couple. They all had a picture of a cartoon animal on them, with a giant speech bubble coming out of its mouth. The speech bubble had bits of silvery stuff on it, with ‘Sorry, you’ve not won this time! Please try again!’ showing through on the card underneath, where the silver had been scratched off.
‘What’s that, a hedgehog?’ said Rose, indicating the cartoon animal.
‘Percy the Porcupine,’ said Jackie. ‘It’s this character they’re using. Test promotion in this area. Every time you buy something down the town, you get one of these cards. Then you go to a little booth where there’s some poor out‐of‐work student dressed as a porcupine, and they give you your prize. Daft thing is, they didn’t even think to limit the number of cards you can get! If you get all your shopping a bit at a time, you can get dozens of the things. I got eight by breaking up a bag of carrots the other day.’
‘Oh, Mum!’ said Rose, part embarrassed, part reluctantly proud.
Jackie sniffed. ‘Don’t you “oh, Mum” me. It’s not like I’ve got a lot to look forward to, my only daughter off gallivanting round the galaxy and me all alone here. Big prize is a holiday, and I couldn’t half do with that. Sun, sand, men in little shorts…’
‘Talking mice?’ Rose muttered under her breath. But Jackie wasn’t listening.
‘Mrs Hall down the road won one, it’s wasted on someone like that, you know what she’s like, probably won’t take her hat and coat off even if it’s eighty degrees, and there’s me with a bikini still with its label on stuck in the drawer that I’ve never had a chance to wear…’
‘Oh, Mum!’ said Rose again.
‘Nothing like getting something for nothing, is there?’ put in the Doctor.
‘And what’s wrong with that, I’d like to know,’ said Jackie, bristling.
‘Nothing. That’s what I said.’ The Doctor took the cards from Rose and examined them. ‘Just odd, don’t you think, they don’t seem to be promoting anything in particular. Beware porcupines bearing gifts, an’ all that.’
Rose took back the cards and handed them to her mum. ‘It’s a test thing, ain’t it? They’ll do the proper promoting when it’s all over the country or whatever. Or maybe they just want people to spend more money at the shops. What, d’you think it’s