kitchen_maid | Tea with Caspian

Tea with Caspian

The day has passed in a steady stream of meetings and appointments and "just a minute of your time, please, Your Majesty." (It's never just "a minute." And if someone asks for "a few minutes," it's going to be at least half an hour.)

But when you move the whole Royal Family, with bag and baggage and a dozen guests, into a palace they've not visited formally in years, there are a lot of people who are going to want to meet with the Queen about things. Even if it's just to hear that, yes, Her Majesty is very pleased with the way things have been done or maintained or improved since last she saw them.

Sir Gareth, the Master of the Household of Silverhall Palace, takes up most of the afternoon. Amy likes him, he's a kind and genial but remarkably orderly and efficient man, but he does like to talk, and he is exceedingly fond of detail.

Amy sinks back in her chair with a bit of a sigh when he finally leaves. That's done, then. It should all be done.

There's a knock at the door. Amy automatically straightens back up in her chair before she announces, "Enter."

"Your Majesty." Her secretary, Duncan, appears in the doorway. "Your next appointment is here."

"I thought Gareth was the last, Duncan."

"No, Your Majesty."

Amy looks at the clock on the far side of the parlor. It's half four. She probably shan't get any time at all to herself today.

"Very well," Amy says, with a bit of a sigh that draws no reaction from Duncan (who is, after all, quite accustomed to working with Her Majesty. "Show him in."

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"Very good, your Majesty," says Gareth, and opens the door, stands aside to allow the next appointment and his burden into the room, which is rather nice of him, as Caspian can't get the door himself, his hands being somewhat full of the tea tray he's carrying.

"Thank you, Gareth," he says, cheerfully. "I think that's all."

Gareth nods, bows to Amy, and very politely closes the door behind him as he leaves and as Caspian sets the tea tray down on a nearby table.

(They really did think of everything here, didn't they?)

"Come on," he says, pouring first one cup, then a second. "I thought you could use a moment's break."

Amy gives him an amused (and very Little Sister) look from across the table she's been using as a desk all day.

"You made an appointment with my secretary?"

Edited 2012-05-04 14:40 (UTC)

"How else was I going to be able to get you alone long enough for some tea?"

He hands her her cup, pulls up a chair for himself, stirring cream into his own.

"Your schedule is frightfully busy."

"Well, yes, but anything we put on my schedule is something we don't have to put on Perry's."

If Amy's schedule is frightfully busy, her husband's his horrifyingly so.

"But tea does sound just about perfect right about now, I must say."

"I thought it might."

It so often does, particularly after a long, stressful day full of pleasantries and without much time to oneself.

"How would you say your visit is going, so far?"

"So far, perfectly acceptably.

"Ask me again once we've managed to get the ship christened without anyone's falling into the sea.

"How would you say your visit is going so far?"

"Fortunately it's fairly easy to rescue someone falling off a dock," he points out. "Or a ship at anchor."

It's when they're moving that there's really some trouble.

"Fine, fine. I think my morning swims have rather surprised a number of the maidservants, but they'll get used to my odd ways soon enough. And it's been lovely to have a bit of a break from the Bar, as much as I love the place. Besides, Marian's thrilled to be by the sea."

"Yes, but the Admiral's a bit superstitious. I'm not sure how he'd take it, during the grand debut of the new flagship.

"As for the other . . . well, I don't think the servants here are quite so used to their strange Queen and her mad friends as they are at home. They've so much less exposure to me, after all.

"But I'm very glad to hear you and Marian are enjoying yourselves."

"Very much," he promises, "though I wish you and Perry had a bit more time."

It's sympathetic, but not hopeful: Caspian remembers very similar visits, himself, from his days as King.

"And it's been wonderful to see so much of the children."

Caspian is utterly smitten with his niece and nephews, as anyone who sees him with them might attest.

"I just keep telling myself that if I had more time, I'd be doing my job wrong.

"But I'm glad you're getting to see the children. Especially since they do have time.

"And I think it's good for them to be around people who aren't at least a bit in awe of the whole royalty thing."

Amy has no interest in raising either typical princes and princesses or spoiled brats.

"Yes," he says, dry. "I rather remember that feeling."

He doesn't miss it one bit.

"I love being able to see them," he admits. "I have all kinds of missed birthdays and Christmases to make up, you know, and it's hard to do that when I'm at the bar and they're in Ambergeldar. Besides, we're getting to know each other much better."

"Well, you're always welcome. Birthdays, Christmas, any days you like."

Amy studies him for a moment.

"I am starting to suspect you're in danger of winding up every bit as wrapped around Susan's little finger as Perry is."

"I'm sure I don't know what you mean," Caspian says, staunchly.

He chooses to ignore the large pile of presents brought for the children from the Bar, naturally.

"I can certainly handle myself around children, Amy. Even if they do happen to be nieces and nephews."

He can't.

But that's hardly something either of them needs to say.

"Well, far be it from me to disagree with you, Caspian," Amy says, amused.

She sips her tea.

"I'm so glad you're here. And not just because you brought tea.

"Though I am deeply grateful for the tea.

"Supper's a way off yet."

"Thank you for the invitation, truly," he tells her, sipping at his own cup. "I know a lot of this is a dreadful bore for you and Perry, but it's been wonderful to be someplace other than the woods and meadows around Milliways, for a while. Not that I don't love those, but they do get somewhat...small, after a while."

It's not like living in a real world. Milliways is bits and pieces of worlds, stitched together, and it's dear, but not large.

He chuckles.

"Even if I do have to schedule an appointment just to spend some time with my sister."

"Well, you know. I am rather important here, my lord brother," Amy says, with a horribly straight face that almost lasts until she finished the sentence.

But she sobers, a bit, before she continues.

"I remember, from when I was stuck there all those years ago. It's this amazing, wonderful place, full of so many things you never could have thought of at home, people from places you can't begin to imagine.

"And you reach the point where you think you'll scream if you can't get to some place where you can't reach an edge and find yourself back at the beginning."

"Terribly so," he agrees, with an equally straight face, until she laughs, and he joins her.

"But yes. I rather miss having a horizon to chase, knowing it won't dump me straight back at the edge of the lake. And new paths -- or, at least, paths that lead somewhere other than places I've walked hundreds of times."

"There's a riding path, you know," Amy says. "Up along the coast, and then it cuts inland though a wood and across some fields. One of the grooms should be able to show it to you on the map, and it's well marked.

"It's beautiful. Perry and I always try to find a couple of hours for it when we're here."

It's like Royal Date Night. Or Afternoon.

"It's probably still a bit much for the children, but I think you'd like it. You might take Marian."

"I'm sure she'd enjoy that," he agrees. "She doesn't mention it much, but she misses Sherwood a great deal."

True, Kiseki and Lineave aren't here, but that will hardly dampen the pleasure of a ride.

"I was thinking we might take Merry and Susan to the beach for a picnic, too. It'd be a lovely way for them to get outside and give Marta a break, don't you think?"

The Royal Household does, after all, maintain very fine stables.

"I think it's a delightful idea. I shall be quite jealous.

"Though I don't think you should tell Marta you think she needs a break. She's quite fond of mentioning that we're all going to be the death of her, but she's rather less fond of being told that there is anything she cannot handle."

"I wouldn't dream of it," he promises. "Not even to suggest that she might use the time to have a nice cup of tea and take a day for herself."

Marta is far too like his good old Nurse for him to even suggest hurting her feelings in such a way.

"I must say, though, that I'm very much looking forward to the tour of the ship."

Just a bit.

He may have been poring over the plans with Perry whenever the chance arises.

In the grand total of seven minutes that chance has arisen?

"I thought you might be," Amy says.

"I'm rather looking forward to it myself.

"Even if it is going to call for a crown."

Probably one of the heavy ones.

Not, honestly, that Amy owns any light ones.

It was quick poring.

"Perhaps it won't take long," he suggests, without much optimism.

"Or you could take it off mid-way through. You might be a bit hard to see with all those people there. We could run some sort of interference."

Amy laughs.

"I'll be standing on a specially built platform, smashing a bottle of champagne across the hull," she says. "If people can't see me, we'll have planned it very badly indeed.

"I suppose there's a chance people will keep their remarks short . . ." she adds, without any more optimism than he expressed on the subject.

"I meant after that," he points out, grinning over his tea, "but I suppose you're simply stuck with it."

There isn't anything he can say about the comments being short that wouldn't be a flat-out lie, so he only shakes his head, smile rueful, and sips at his tea.

"It's all good and well for you," Amy says. "You're retired royalty."

Amy is still very much active duty.

And it's not really a nine to five job.

"Ah, well. At least it'll be a chance to be outdoors and not stuck in a drawing room or a carriage."

Silver linings.

"Come now," he coaxes. "You don't dislike it all that much."

It's true, of course, that there are a lot of frustrations that go along with the pomp and glitter and the appearance of it all, but those things are trappings for a reason.

"We'll hope for nice weather, at the very least."

"I don't dislike it at all, really," Amy says.

She's very good at being a Queen. It's ever so much more interesting and useful than being a seventh (Ordinary) princess.

Her smile wrinkles up her nose.

"It still doesn't make crowns comfortable."

"Nothing does, I'm afraid," he says, with an answering smile that crinkles the corner of his eyes.

"Though padding might help. They're just so deucedly heavy."

"If only we could bring Royal Straw Hats into fashion somehow," Amy says.

She's not loving her chances on that.

"Speaking of which, the Royal Hatter and Milliner should be along to see you and Marian at some point. Hats are always worn for ship christenings."

And wait till Caspian sees the current fashion in hats in Ambergeldar . . .

There's a certain tone Amy gets, when she knows something he doesn't, and though in general it is rarely bad, it is often something he wished he'd known about, too.

"All right," he says, a little warily. "What sort of hats?"

Occasions requiring hats, in his experience, tend to be Occasions requiring Hats, after all.

In retrospect, the crown, at least, was fairly tasteful.

Amy's grey-brown eyes are very innocent over the rim of her teacup.

"Fashionable ones, of course."

Caspian doesn't think the Royal Hatter would have anything less than the Height of Ambergeldan Fashion, does he?

Yes. That particular look, that often goes with the particular tone.

And the very tiny smile that keeps appearing.

"Oh, naturally," he says, dry. "One would hope they'd be the height of fashion."

Hats, though...well, they are sometimes useful. Shading one's eyes, and whatnot, but he's never really been one to wear them.

"All right. There's plenty of time tomorrow to see them. Perhaps in the morning."

"I'm sure he'll have something to suit you perfectly," Amy says, with an almost completely straight face.

(She could make it a completely straight face -- she's the Queen of Ambergeldar, and she can be completely unreadable when she needs to be . . . but wherever is the fun in that?)

"This has been the loveliest break, Caspian. Thank you. I quite needed it."

Besides, it wouldn't make Caspian nearly as nervous.

"No doubt," he agrees, in a tone which could very well mean quite the opposite, but his gray eyes are laughing.

"You're quite welcome. I'm simply glad they were able to squeeze me in."

He'd never have done it if her schedule was absolutely immovable, but, well...even a Queen ought to be able to have a quiet teatime once in a while.

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Tea with Caspian

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