[piosenniel]

Cook joins the battle

‘Ladies!’ Cook’s voice cut through the shrieks and laughter. Ginger and Buttercup hastily turned to face her, their towels quickly hidden behind their backs.

‘Yes, m’am?’ asked Buttercup, one hand coming up to push some errant curls behind her ear. ‘The barley-mushroom soup is simmering and we were just getting the bread cut up for the baskets. Is there anything else you’d like us to be doing?’ Ginger coughed, ducking her chin down to hide the giggles she was trying hard to stifle.

Cook set down the two bottles of brandied wine on the table (there was to be a peach cobbler from last summer’s canned peaches topped with a brandied custard sauce). She picked up a dishtowel from the pile near the sink and began talking about how in her day young ladies knew the proper conduct of things. The two young women watched her as she wet the towel and began to wring it out. There was a fair amount of crumbs from the bread they had sliced and they were thinking she meant to wipe them all up. The two were a bit chagrined also at being caught in their horseplay.

‘Now, this is how we did it in my day,’ she instructed them wringing out the thoroughly wet towel. In a trice she had wound the damp towel in a twirling motion and snapped it expertly at the back of a chair. With a wicked smile she advanced toward Ginger and Buttercup, who for a moment only stood staring at her with open mouths . . .