They arrive at tea time, without and warning at all. Jackie hears their arrival and slowly sets down the cup in her hands. They would come at tea, she thinks reproachfully, when she would have to change her plans for the evening on short notice. With a resigned sigh, she fills two more cups and sets all the tea on a tray. After a moment's thought, she puts some of the store-bought biscuits on the tray as well, and walks into the sitting room.
The doors open as she comes in, and they stumble out. Rose is leaning heavily on his shoulder, and they're both laughing hard.
"Merry Christmas," Jackie mutters as Rose looks up for a second, waves, then dissolves into laughter again.
"Is...is it...Christmas?" the Doctor manages.
"Oh, because you didn't plan it that way. Christmas Eve!"
"If he...if he planned...to come...come on Chr...Christmas, we'd have...gotten here...in April," Rose gasps. "Can't...fly his...own ship...to save...save our...lives..."
"Oi!" he says, still grinning. Jackie shakes her head in bemusement as he leads Rose to the couch and she collapses onto the cushions. "Though, it's probably true," he adds. "
After tea, Jackie asks, "I suppose you'll be staying for supper?"
"Yes," Rose says brightly, finally over her laugh attack.
"Then I'll have to go to the market," Jackie says, miffed. "Unless the two of you would like to go?"
"I will," Rose says cheerily.
"Not me," the Doctor says.
"Mum, try not to kill him," Rose says. "I rather like this regeneration." She pulled on her jacket.
Jackie doesn't think it's possible for a human to move as quickly as the Doctor does to go after Rose.
Mickey's with them when they get back from the market. He's laden down with shopping.
"We got some presents, too," Rose explains. Jackie already has presents from Rose. She's had them for weeks, "just in case," as Rose said, "we're not here to give them to you later." She's about to say so, and then she sees the look in Rose's eyes, and understands.
She and Mickey drag out the plastic Christmas tree while Rose and the Doctor unload the groceries. By the time it's all set up, there are already presents under it. All four of them help decorate, and the broken baubles are hastily repaired by the Doctor's sonic screwdriver. A sonic screwdriver—honestly. It takes a while—long enough for the frozen goose to have thawed—but they get it decorated, and it doesn't look bad at all.
Rose runs into her room and shuts the door, taking all the presents with her. Twenty minutes later, she comes back out, all of them neatly wrapped and stacked in her arms. She puts them under the tree, grinning while she does so. Then, she comes into the kitchen to help get supper ready.
"Stay," she asks Mickey when he stars to pull his jacket on.
"I can't," he says reluctantly.
"Please? Just for dinner?"
He hesitates, then gives in. "Just for dinner," he agrees.
The Doctor thinks no one notices as he slips over to the tree and pulls some boxes out of his pockets. Jackie doesn't need to wonder how he managed that, not after having seen his ship, that TARDIS. He puts them under the tree, and glances up to make sure no one's watching. He meets Jackie's gaze, and she sees the silent plea in his eyes. She nods.
For an alien, he's very human. But maybe that's just because of Rose.
After dinner, Mickey's left, and Rose decides they should make what she calls "real" biscuits. She cajoles the Doctor into helping her, and Jackie watches as they bring their whirlwind of life and happiness into the kitchen. By the time they've stopped, seven kinds of biscuits are on various trays, ingredients are spilled all over the counter, and the whole kitchen is covered in flour. Both of them are covered from head to toe with white powder. Rose has a spoon as a weapon, guarding the unbaked dough from the Doctor's sneaky hands.
"I'd just let him have some and get salmonella," Jackie says.
"I don't think he'd get salmonella," Rose replies. "I'm a lot more worried about the future biscuits than about him." She turns and realized he's vanished. "Where's he got to now?"
"Rose," his voice calls. "Hey, Rose!" She turns. "EXTERMINATE!" he shouts, and runs into the kitchen with a whisk and, of all things, a plunger in his hands, wearing a metal colander on his head. Rose screams with laughter and sprints away. He chases her round the flat, shouting nonsense in a robot voice. Rose doesn't even realize until they've both calmed down that he's stolen some of the uncooked biscuits.
Jackie can only shake her head. Mad, both of them. Absolutely mad.
It's the Doctor who notices first. "Rose! Rose, c'mere! Look!"
She runs to his side and looks out the window. Jackie sees her beaming face reflected in the dark glass. "It's snowing!" Rose shrieks, delighted. "It's actually snowing!"
She pulls on her coat and sprints down the stairs into the street, followed by the Doctor. Jackie goes after them.
Rose stares up at the sky, the snow falling, the stars and moon visible between the thin, dark blue clouds. She raises her hands, watching the snowflakes light on her gloved fingers. Laughter shines in her face as she twirls, dancing in the snow. The Doctor stands there, grinning up at the hand grabs his and she pulls him forwards. He twirls her around, and she laughs. She's so happy.
Jackie won't deny that sometimes she hates him, and not entirely without cause. He's dangerous, and the places he takes Rose, the things they do, are dangerous. She's been hurt. Sometimes, she comes home, and even when she hides it, Jackie can see in her eyes how much it's upset her, whatever she's been through.
Still, Jackie decides that maybe she hasn't been entirely fair. And there are times she hates him, but this isn't one of them.
Christmas dawns, dark and cold, and Jackie looks at her daughter, leaning against the Doctor's side. He's awake, looking out the window, absently twirling a strand of Rose's hair around his fingers. He looks so tired, and the things he's seen show on his face. He can't always save everything. He's known a lot of sorrow, a lot of pain.
Rose stirs slightly, moving closer to him. She smiles in her sleep. He turns his head to look at her, and a quiet sort of happiness touches his face.
Jackie watches the two of them for a moment, then turns away and begins, as quietly as she can, to make tea. "We've got cinnamon pastries, if you'd like," she calls, looking back in.
"Mm," says Rose sleepily, and stretches. "Sounds lovely."
Jackie brings out the tea. "Here you are."
"Ta," Rose said, and sips it gratefully. She shivers in the morning chill, and the Doctor takes his coat from the back of the couch and drapes it over her shoulders.
Mickey knocks on the door, and Rose, still wearing the coat like a cape, opens it. He's gotten presents now, and he tosses them under the tree. "Merry Christmas."
"Same," she says, and returns to her place by the Doctor's side.
The sticky cinnamon pastries are done a minute later. Jackie takes them out on plates, not a tray, and hands one to everyone. There are peppermint sticks on the tree that she didn't put there. She knows who did. Rose is delighted, and puts one in her tea. The Doctor does the same, and when Jackie catches his eye, her face says thank you.
There are presents for everyone. The Doctor rips the wrapping off his like a little boy, and the look on his face when he finds a satsuma at the bottom of the stack is priceless. There's a flash, and Jackie turns just in time to see Rose put away her phone.
It feels like the kind of Christmas Jackie hasn't had in a very long time, before Rose started traveling. Back then, Mickey would come over Christmas morning, and they would all open each other's presents under the tree and watch the sun rise over London. Now Mickey and Rose are back, and the Doctor's enthusiasm doesn't take anything away.
They do watch the sun rise, with peppermint-touched tea and sticky cinnamon pastries in their hands. Rose is leaning her head on the Doctor's shoulder, his hand in hers, as the golden glow spreads over the skyline. Jackie is looking at the picturesque view out the window, complete with real snow for the first time she can remember, but her thoughts are on her daughter.
"Ever seen anything more beautiful than that on your travels?" she wonders aloud.
To herself, she's wondering exactly how and when her little girl fell in love.