Taking on staff

His part in the excitement of the afternoon seemed to be over, blessedly. Newbury slipped into the house again, moving quickly to the servants' dining room. He had no notion of what would happen next, with Captain - no, Major - Vickery gone somewhere upstairs and Cotton and Pye still outside. It was probably best to wait until Cotton came wandering back in.

One of the maids peeked in, saw him, and withdrew quickly, before he had a chance to greet her. Odd, but not unexpected. He was still a new face. Shrugging, Newbury helped himself to a chair and tried to squeeze some more water from his trouser legs. He could hardly present himself to his potential new master looking half-drowned.

Out the window there was a rattle on the drive as a carriage pulled away, the one that had brought him and Jenny. It was leaving, and she was in it.

His attention was distracted by the noise of a carriage outside and he rose to cross to the window, so he might see who was arriving. Only it was no one arriving, but rather someone leaving. Newbury caught a glimpse of a face inside the carriage before the vehicle was on its way down the drive.

He stood at the window for a long time, well after the carriage had gone, feeling a distinct heavy feeling of numbness settling onto his bones. This was grand.

"Joe?" Maggie looked in, holding a pair of trousers draped over her arm. "Gabe said as you might need these. Give us them boots and I'll see what we can do about 'em before you talk to the major. Though he won't mind, I'm sure, since he knows you from a ways back."

What? Oh. Right. Trousers. Trousers and boots. He needed to be as presentable as he could manage. So he could go meet the major. For a job he wasn't even convinced he wanted at that moment.

"Aye," Newbury said, dragging himself away from the window. " 'Bliged, Missus."

Cotton came in, leading Pye. Three pairs of clean trousers was going to stretch even his resources here. He wondered if Robert had a second pair he could lend Pye - the lad was more likely to have something to fit Pye than Cotton was, after all.

Which left only himself and Newbury to find a change of clothes for. And of the two, Newbury was in more need than he was - Vickery knew him, had done for years. Well, he knew Newbury too - and Pye, come to think of it - but Cotton was the only one of the three in the Major's service, and he had been for over nine years now. Which was a pretty long time by anyone's standards.

Trousers. Right.

He turned to head for his room to see what he could find for Newbury to wear. And there was Maggie, heading into the servants' hall. He changed direction to follow her.

She was just pulling the door shut behind her. "He's getting dressed," she explained, tilting her head toward the door. "I gave him your brown trousers. I'll give Robert his boots to see about. Will he see him before dinner?" She was still anxious about Vickery's early return and its effect on her carefully timed afternoon meal.

"Right. Me brown trousers? Should be all right. An' likely the Cap... Major'll want to see him afore dinner, aye - he'll have dinner at the usual time this evenin'. Won't be any point makin' 'em hang around till afterwards, will there? Plenty of time 'tween now an' then." He grinned. "He's seen worse'n a pair or two of wet trousers, the Major - an' on them two an' all."

Pye stood in the new room, feeling awkward. tilting his head to see where Cotton had gone, he decided that maybe he could follow what he knew, rather than be tempted by the contents of the room which he from now on was not allowed to touch, store or exchange. He did not know what use he could really be. Older now, with a number of things wrong and the feeling he did not belong here, in this grand house.

He stood there nervously for some time and then, without a word turned and stalked after Cotton.

The door opened to admit Pye, who didn't look all that comfortable. Cotton sighed. "What's wrong, Zack?"

"Nothing. Nothing wrong. " He spoke timidly. "Only,.. it's too much. You're used to it, but me. I'm not right for this place. It's so grand."

Cotton smiled encouragingly. "You don't have to be inside, if you don't want to be. There's other places where you could work, if you'd rather. Like, oh, I dunno. On the estate itself or summat."

"Oh.. it's not that I don't want to, Gabe. It's....I'm afraid I will break something, or something goes missing and then I'll be blamed. " He held his hand up. "I don't mean I'd steal it. Oh no, not from Captain Vickery. Never."

He fidgeted. "You know this life.. and I feel like I'll be kicked out of it, tomorrow and I don't want to get used to something that... is this nice. You know. The army was pretty cosy.. and it was not half as fine as this. To me. And it was hard to let go..."

Cotton thought for a moment. "You'd be happier out o' doors, wouldn't you?" Like me, he nearly added, but didn't. "What about bein' a game-keeper? Reckon the Captain's got room for you there, if you want. Um. Major, I mean."

"Game-keeper? " Pye studied Cotton , startled as to why Vickery would have wanted him to do so and, what exactly that job would demand of him. Where would he stay. " I can't be selfish and demand...anything be granted to me. ..What does it mean?""

"Means, well, lookin' out for anythin' likely to disturb his game. Gettin' rid of vermin - stoats, weasels, stuff like that." He shrugged. "It's out o' doors a lot more'n anythin' in the house is. Dunno that you'd be the head gamekeeper, but it's summat you could do, I think."

Apart from that, he really didn't know what other position would suit Pye.

"So... I would sort of.. hunt?" Pye's expression cleared a little. "And rabbits?..... would I be allowed to hunt those?" He shifted, knowing that it was asking for a lot, but at least the other vermin he would have been glad to get rid of, for Vickery.

He would be allowed to go about with a rifle on someone's estate. Be allowed to,... technically, Cotton suggesting it did not mean it was an agreed deal at all. He straightened a bit.

"Dunno about the rabbits. That'd be summat you'd have to ask him yourself." Cotton shrugged. He grinned. "You feelin' more like yourself now, then?"

"Yeah....As long as... you won't kick me out, will you? Or have me wake up just now?" Pye smiled sheepishly. "And....and...If I work double as hard can I get ter bathe in hot water... just once a long while is alright! I just.. It feels so good!" He did look dreamy about it.

"Will do anything you ask me..unless.. unless that's too much to ask?"

"Kick you out?" Cotton asked, amused, and reached out to pinch Pye's arm. "Wouldn't do a thing like that, not a mate from the war. You'm awake, trust me."

"Ow!" Pye jumped almost as if he had been shot and not only pinched. His eyes tared wildly at Cotton, accusingly so... then, there was Cotton still standing infront of him and nothing changed. The room was still the same, he was still pretty much standing in the same spot and he was not waking up so this could not have been a dream. Technically he did not know whether a dream could pinch you and if that would make one wake up but he convinced himself that all was well and he was indeed awake!

"Seems I am." He relaxed first then took a step forward and gave Cotton the heartiest of hugs. He was grinning from ear to ear, and his hug was strong and true. "I'm awake!!" He exclaimed and laughed softly. "Awake and this is all still here."

Cotton had stepped hurriedly back at Pye's reaction, and blinked when the younger man threw his arms around him. "Steady on, there! 'Course you'm awake. Don't reckon I'd have three kids an' be this much older in your dream, do you?" He was grinning as he spoke, though. If the truth were to be known, he hadn't exactly expected this turn of events himself, either.

"Well.. I guess in my dream you'd be old as earth and I think I counted 10 kids , always imagined you with that many. " Pye teased, looking happy enough to burst. He took a step back again, to give Cotton some space.

" Ten that would be yours. .and about six or more that you'd have picked up on your way home." He grinned. "And called them yours."

Cotton chuckled. He and Maggie were just about soft-hearted enough to do something like that, of course, if they'd been able to.

"No, it's only three, that all are ours," he said, grinning. "Can't mistake 'em for bein' ourn, either."

"Three's a lot too." Pye agreed. "Are you thinking of having...ah.. pardon." He flushed beat red. "I'm glad you two got it turn out right in t' end. Really deserved it." He nodded, a big grin on his face. "Really did."

He hesitated. "Well, you don't need to worry. Gabe. I don't bring anyone with me so it will be just my mouth to feed and I promise I'll eat little and work lots." He smiled. "And I can even cook what pests I remove, so it might get even easier there."