The wizard's revenge 6/11

Jennifer Jane didn’t need to be told twice. She ran down to the quayside and away from the ships as quickly as she could. She had to walk for some distance, before she saw what she was looking for. She tiptoed up behind a man selling newspapers and sneaked a quick glance at the date. That solved one problem. It was only one day later than when she’d been kidnapped.

Two more problems entered her thoughts. She had to find somewhere to sleep and arising from that, a means of earning money to pay for her keep. She did a quick twiddle to check if magic was usable in this world. She was rewarded with a chocolate swiss roll, so that was a relief. Now if the rolls were saleable she could earn some money and plan what to do next.

There didn’t seem to be any possibility of rescue by the witches. Even if they found her necklace they’d be unable to trace her beyond that point. She just had to make the best of her situation and see if she could think of a way home by herself.

She headed away from the docks, trying to find a house with a bed and breakfast card in the window. At last she was lucky and walking up three steps, she knocked on the door.

“Yus?”

“Excuse me, I wonder if you could tell me how much you charge for a room?”

“Ho, ‘oitty toity ain’t we. Free guineas for the week my lad, same as everyone else. Got the sovs ‘ave we?”

Jennifer Jane was a little bit taken aback. She assumed that the woman thought she was a boy because she was wearing her boiler suit. In any case she didn’t have the ‘free guineas’. But now at least she had some idea of the prices charged in this world.
“No money, no bed,” said the woman rudely and slammed the door in her face.

She continued on her way, this time looking for a café or restaurant that might buy her swiss rolls. The area was slowly becoming cleaner and a bit more respectable as she moved further away from the docks. She’d passed a pawnshop or two already and their frequency gave her an idea. She remembered a lesson at school. The teacher had told the class about the old days, when poor people would only have one good suit and redeem it for special occasions, like weddings and funerals. She went inside the next on she saw.

“How much would you give me for this watch please?” she asked the man behind the counter.

“How does a kid like you get a miniature masterpiece like this?” asked the man suspiciously, studying her wrist watch through a magnifying glass.

“My father bought it for me on my last birthday but I need the money rather urgently.”

“Fifteen quid,” said the man,” although how I’m supposed to make a profit giving you a price like that I’ll never know.”

“Make it twenty,” said Jennifer Jane boldly.

“Done,” came the reply, with no hesitation at all.

She felt she could probably have got more if she’d tried but she had sufficient for her immediate plans and with a bit of luck would be able to redeem it in a day or two. The pawnbroker opened his till and counted out twenty tiny coins. Jennifer Jane looked at them in amazement.

“Nothing wrong is there?2 he asked.

“They’re gold!” she whispered.

“Of course they are, you don’t expect me to give you twenty quid in silver do you?”

Still shaking her head in wonderment, she carefully put the money in her pocket and looked round the shop where the unredeemed articles were displayed for sale. The pawnbroker watched her curiously.

“Are you looking for anything in particular son?” he asked.

“I’d like a cap and a small suitcase, if you have them please.”

A flat cap and a cardboard suitcase were duly produced and exchanged for ‘five bob’.

Jennifer Jane tucked her pigtails inside her cap and strode out into the streets of a parallel London. Plans were turning over in her mind and so far everything seemed to be going quite well. She went down the first deserted street she saw and filled her case with chocolate swiss rolls. If they were as unusual in this world as they seemed to be in the other places she’d visited, then she would soon be able to put her plans into operation.