kitchen_maid | Royal Gardens, Palace at Amber, Late September

The mums never hurt anyone, as far as Logan knows, so it's probably fine that she keeps eating them. Besides, there are enough that no one will notice the bitten ones.

"'Lo, royal ladies," he says, giving the two a brief bow. It's not half bad. He might be getting lessons from someone. "I was hoping I'd find you here, after I noticed Miss Susan had escaped from the nursery."

The bow gets a smile from Amy. Not bad at all.

"Hello, Logan. We're taking a few hours off. Care to join us?"

Susan waves one small hand cheerfully, and goes back to reaching for the mums.

"I'd love to," he says. "Are there snacks other than mums, though? Because as tasty as they look, I think I'm past the stage where such things could nourish me."

"Tea, scones, and apples," says Amy, and then looks over at Susan and sighs.

"Darling, don't let's eat those," she says, moving Susan away from the mums slightly and resettling her on the blanket.

"Logan helps himself to an apple and chomps heartily. "So how's life in the palace? I've been here forever and I've still hardly seen you. Busy?"

"Life in the palace is life in the palace," says Amy. "Frightfully busy, and with a great deal of nonsense. But all very important nonsense. And we really haven't gotten much time to chat, have we?

"I do hope you're enjoying your visit, though."

"No, but I've had a great time anyway," he says. "The weather's perfect this time of year, and I've spent a lot of time wandering around the gardens and the forest. It's nice to just be by myself, you know? And not be like, avoiding people or anything."

By "people" he probably means Veronica. "Not that I'm completely anti-social. The people in the castle have been really friendly and nice."

"Sometimes you need to be by yourself," says Amy.

Considering she's a very social person, Amy happily spent a lot of time on her own, growing up. Though it does occasionally lead to the acquisition of odd pets.

"I'm glad to hear people are being friendly." Amy would have Words with people, otherwise.

"And I think Susan is enjoying having you here, too."

Susan babbles cheerfully.

"About that..." Logan says slowly, looking very hard at Susan. "I'm kind of annoyed at you. I don't think I had enough warning about how highly lovable Miss Susan is. I should've known, I guess, but if someone is going to steal my heart away and not give it back, there should be some sort of public service announcement first."

He reaches out a hand for Susan to grab hold of, which she does cheerfully.

Amy laughs, and then smiles. "She is remarkably lovable, isn't she? I think Perry and I are going to be in a great deal of trouble when she's a little older."

Susan burbles something at Logan. It is probably a request for help getting back to the interesting yellow flowers.

"No flowers for you," he says. "Your nursemaids have quite enough to do without you getting sick on them. I know, they like to tell me all about it. Between you and me, though, I really think they're exaggerating. I just can't see you crying for nearly as long as Mathilda says you do."

Mathilda has a rather wild imagination, and enjoys making her life seem harder than it is. It gets a great deal of attention from people other than Logan. In the nursery, Logan only has eyes for Susan.

"Of course she doesn't," says Amy, firmly.

And Susan really is a remarkably well behaved baby. Crying for long periods of time is something Ordinary babies do, not baby princesses.

Ask Nurse Marta.

"Mathilda rather enjoys creating crises where they do not exist."

Amy's tone implies that while Mathilda might enjoy the attention she gets from the other nursery maids for this reason, she might not enjoy the attention it could get her from the Queen.

Susan looks at Logan with Very Big Eyes. He can reach the yellow flowers.

"That she does," Logan agrees. "For instance, cats in trees. Normally, not crises, and yet somehow, Mathilda decides the cat might die if I don't climb up to grab it."

Now there is an instance of Logan enjoying the attention of the nursery maids. Sure, the cat was probably just fine, but he got to play a bit of a hero for the youngest of them, who owned the cat, and that's always a nice thing. Especially when you're normally not so much the hero.

Logan would get her yellow flowers, if he knew what the Very Big Eyes meant. Unfortunately, he is not a mind reader.

"Yes," says Amy, with a little laugh. "I've heard all about your daring battle to rescue the calico from the evil oak. I think the court minstrel is considering writing a ballad about it."

Logan really has created quite a stir among the nursery maids.

Susan is not concerned about cats. Susan is concerned with yellow flowers. She scrunches her face up in concentration, somehow mananges to open her Very Big Eyes even more, and points. "'ogan," she says, firmly.

Amy stops laughing and stares.

Logan laughs gleefully, and scoops up Susan from her blanket. He proceeds to dance about the garden with her held up in front of him.

"Was that an attempt at my name? Because it's pretty great attempt, kiddo, and I'm impressed."

The dancing continues for sometime.

Amy watches Susan's godfather dance her around the garden, amused.

Susan, on the other hand, is a little confused. This is very exciting and all, but it doesn't have anything at all to do with the yellow flowers. Really, what is wrong with all these tall people?

After a few moments, the dancing becomes kind of old, and also, dizzying, so Logan stops, still murmuring nonsense to Susan as he puts her down on the blanket again. "Sorry. But that was pretty cool."

"Yes," says Amy. "Rather.

"Although I have to confess to being slightly concerned," she continues, still very amused, "that she's not yet seven-months old and she has already identified you as a good partner in crime."

Logan tries to look chagrined, but fails pretty much completely. Glee, after all, is hard to cover up.

"What can I say? I have a way with the ladies. Even when they're miniature ladies."

"So I see," says Amy.

"'ogan," Susan repeats, reaching towards the yellow flowers.

"Oh, you might as well," says Amy.

Logan offers her a flower, which is clearly the best tactic for securing the affections of a lady.

He's still gleeful, and that probably isn't going to stop any time soon.

"Susan's the best kid in the multiverse. You're awfully lucky, Amy."

And Susan is pretty lucky, too, although Logan thinks that probably goes without saying.

Susan takes the flower happily, and then cheerfully precedes to pull it apart into other, smaller flowers.

"She really is, isn't she?" says Amy. "I'm very lucky."

She resettles Susan, flowers pieces and all, in her lap.

"Very," Logan agrees, and then states the obvious. After all, being reminded of how you're lucky isn't a bad thing. Even if the only way he's ever really been lucky was being born rich. "And so's she, you know. She's got you and Perry and oodles of godparents who adore her."

There are other ways he's been lucky. He just has to learn to see them.

At least, that's what Amy would say.

"Yes. She's very dear, and rather impossible not to adore, isn't she?"

Susan rather solemnly gives her mama a piece of a yellow flower.

"Thank you."

Logan would probably reply that she's right, more or less, and that at some point, people have to make their own luck. He's just not sure how to do that, or maybe even what it fundamentally means.

"Absolutely impossible," Logan agrees. "I'll admit I'm not much for babies, usually -" which is quite the understatement. Logan's had as much experience as he has with aliens - at least, as much experience as he had with aliens before Milliways. "- but Susan's a special case of awesome."

Amy laughs. "I think we should consider putting that on her crest. I wonder how you say 'a special case of awesome' in Latin."

It's also a lot of fun to imagine the reaction of the court herald if she asked.

Logan has to laugh at that. "I'd totally want it on my crest, if I had one. I think I'd also want something about surfing, but that might be even harder to get into Latin. And also not applicable to the princess here."

"A little too far from the ocean," says Amy. "From what I remember of seeing it, it would be very hard to pull off on the palace fish pond."

Susan babbles a reply of nonsense, cheerfully.

"Possibly not invented yet here, either," Logan says. "And that could be problematic."

He sighs happily, and reclines on the grass. "It really has been a great vacation. I haven't had one so nice in years. Or possibly ever."

"I'm glad," she says. "And you know you're always welcome, as often as you'd like. I don't think Her Highness would have it any other way."

Susan offers Logan several torm flower petals.

"Thanks," he says. "I'll probably take you up on it. Especially around exam time."

Logan accepts the petals gravely. "Thank you. They're pretty. But not as pretty as you."

Amy's eyebrows raise in amusement. "And will you be looking for extra time to study, or attempting to avoid the issue all together?"

She used to live with Anne Shirley, you know. She's heard a lot about exams. She kind of expects Logan will have a different approach to them. (Not that she can really say anything; her approach to her lessons was to run away from them as often as possible.)

Susan, in response, gives him a very big smile and offers him half a leaf.

"Both," he says promptly. "Both are very important study tools, which I use as much as possible."

"I should not be encouraging this, should I?" she says, to no one in particular.

Susan favors Logan with a smile. "'ogan."

Someone has a new favorite word.

"Probably not, but you know I'm irresistible," he says, grinning at her.

When Susan speaks, Logan resists dancing around the garden with her more, but just beams instead. "Susan understands."

"Far more than perhaps I would like her to," says Amy, but it's all amusement.

"'ogan."

"I can't help it if you've got an unusually gifted daughter," Logan says loftily.

He scrunches up his face at the baby. "Susan."

Susan laughs.

So does Amy.

"No, that is one thing I do not think you can legitimately take credit for, Logan."

"Indeed," Logan says, and he's quite dignified-sounding for someone who is making faces at a very small princess. "Nor would I want to, thank you. I'm quite happy to leave that credit with those who deserve it."

"ogan!" says the very small princess happily.

"I'll tell Perry you said so."

"I'm sure he'll take the compliment in the spirit it was meant," Logan says, laughing. "Which is...you guys did good."

"Thank you, Logan," says Amy. "I certainly could not be prouder or more pleased.

"Even though I thought we had a few more years before visitors starting falling for her."

"No, she's too lovable," Logan says. "It is impossible not to fall head over heels the instant you meet her. It'll probably be a few years before you have to start worrying about that kind of thing, though."

Royal Gardens, Palace at Amber, Late September

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