Summary: Mrs Busby asks Delia to check in on Auntie Blod after she has an accident.
Disclaimer: Call The Midwife belongs to the BBC and others - I am simply borrowing their beautiful characters.
Author's note: This is cross-posted from Archive of our Own. It is the fourth in the 'Tea Series'. I have taken a few liberties with this, but it was fun to write, so do forgive me! You might want to read the Other Tea stories first if you haven't already.
This isn't beta'd - so apologies for any mistakes. Enjoy...
"Tell me again why you're dragging me all the way to Finchley," Patsy grumbled as she followed Delia to the upper deck of the bus. She smiled grimly. At least she had trained Delia well enough to go straight there so that she could smoke.
Delia wedged herself next to the window after opening it using the winder. "You didn't have to come, Pats," she pointed out reasonably.
"This is our only time off together for another week. Of course I'm coming with you." Patsy sounded positively affronted.
Delia turned and smiled softly. "You're too good for me."
"I fundamentally disagree with that notion, but all the time you think so, I will make the most of it," the tall midwife returned, a lop-sided grin on her face.
Delia's smile turned wistful. "I know you wanted to go out, but I promised Mam I'd look in on Auntie Blod. She's worried about her."
"Why? I thought Auntie Blod was just as tenacious as your mother and I can't ever imagine your mother asking for assistance," Patsy demurred.
"Auntie Blod is quite formidable," Delia agreed easily. "But she's broken her ankle. Of course, she hasn't asked for any help as she is far too proud, but Mam was worried that she hadn't got any groceries in or that she might not be able to manage at home."
"How on earth did she break her ankle?"
"I have no idea. Mam wouldn't say."
Patsy frowned. Delia sounded amused by the whole thing. "What am I missing?"
"Nothing. Mam just sounded irritated by it all, so I suspect it was an accident that could have been avoided, if I know Auntie Blod."
Patsy's frown deepened. That didn't help at all. She took the time to light a cigarette and inhaled deeply before releasing a large plume of smoke. "Does she at least know I'm coming? I'm really not up for being the focus of suspicion all afternoon."
"Honestly, Pats, you'll be fine. Auntie Blod is lovely."
Patsy pursed her lips. She was not convinced. "And what do I call her? I can't call her Auntie Blod."
"Blodwen will be just fine," Delia advised.
"Absolutely not. I've never met the woman. I can't possibly call her by her first name." Patsy's breeding came screaming to the surface.
Delia furrowed her brow. "Would you be more comfortable with Miss Davies?"
"Much more. Wait a minute, Miss Davies? Is she not married?" Patsy had just assumed that Auntie Blod had moved to London to be with her husband.
"No. She's a spinster like Phyllis," Delia told her.
"No one's a spinster like Phyllis," Patsy decided, grinning along with Delia as they shared a look.
Forty minutes later found them outside a narrow fronted house in Finchley. The front door and window sills were freshly painted and there were pots of well tended flowers crowding either side of the front step.
Delia tapped on the door and then flipped open the letterbox. "Auntie Blod? It's Delia."
After hearing a faint voice, Delia located the string that held a front door key and they entered the house. The Welsh nurse led the way through to a small sitting room where a small dark haired woman was seated. Her left leg sported a cast and it was resting on a footstool.
"Delia! I'm so glad to see you, cariad. I'd get up but..." She smiled effusively as she gestured to her leg.
"Don't be silly, Auntie." Delia immediately closed the distance and leaned down to hug her aunt tightly. When she straightened she gestured back to where Patsy was hovering in the doorway. "Auntie, this is my friend Patsy."
"Don't stand in the hallway, Patsy. Come in and take a seat."
"It's nice to meet you Miss Davies," Patsy replied formally.
"Call me Blod."
"Oh, I couldn't possibly," Patsy protested instantly.
"Yes you could," Auntie Blod corrected firmly. "If you can't manage that, then call me Blodwen. Only my class calls me Miss Davies."
"Your class?" Patsy was curious.
"Auntie Blod is a primary school teacher just up the road," Delia explained.
"Not right now I'm not, cariad. But hopefully I will have mastered crutches by next week so that I can at least go back and take some classes. Apparently, assembly just isn't the same without me." She smiled over to where Patsy was still standing. "I'm the music teacher. There's no one to play the piano for morning hymns and the children are getting fractious."
Patsy grinned. "I'm sure they behave when you're there," she commented.
"Oh definitely. Every new class gets to see my temper at least once and then we have impeccably behaved children for the rest of term. I like to think of it as a rite of passage."
Patsy couldn't help but laugh. There was such a twinkle of mischief in Auntie Blod's eye that Patsy would swear that she was looking at an older version of Delia. She also looked a lot younger than Delia's mother.
"Auntie Blod, Mam's worried about you. Do you need me to get some shopping in, or help with anything?" Delia asked dutifully.
"You didn't need to come all the way here just to check up on me," Blod objected.
"I came to see you, Auntie. Helping you out is the least I can do while we're here, especially as you're on your own."
The older Welsh woman sighed in frustration. "I did tell your mam not to fret. And that I have plenty of help. She won't listen." Auntie Blod smiled softly at Delia. "But as you're here, how about you put the kettle on and we can all have a nice cup of tea."
"I'm happy to do that, if you'll trust me in your kitchen," Patsy offered.
"Of course I do, Patsy. It isn't huge so you should be able to find everything." She raised an eyebrow just slightly. "I have nothing to hide, so feel free to look in the cupboards for cups, although I do prefer a proper mug of tea."
As soon as Patsy left the sitting room, Auntie Blod looked at her niece carefully. "Is Patsy the woman you were at Nurse Training School with?"
"Yes. She's..." Delia hesitated for a fraction. "She's my best friend, I suppose."
"You suppose? Oh, cariad," Auntie Blod smiled indulgently. "Tell me about her," she invited innocently.
Delia's eyes lit up as she provided the routine details she used to describe her relationship to Patsy to any of her family. She couldn't help but wonder at Auntie Blod as she sat and listened avidly, with an enigmatic smile on her face.
"Is this the girl you were going to share a flat with?" Blod asked once Delia finished.
Delia was a little surprised by the question. She didn't think her mother would tell anyone else about that snippet of information. "Yes. It made sense after they decided to demolish the Nurses Home."
"I'm sure it did, sweetheart," Blodwen smiled indulgently. "So why aren't you sharing now?"
Delia blushed. The question felt intrusive somehow, even though Blod asked kindly. "We haven't really discussed it since I moved into Nonnatus."
Blodwen frowned, catching the hint of frustration in Delia's voice. "Then perhaps you should," she advised firmly.
"Who's for tea?" Patsy breezed in, unknowingly breaking the slight tension that had developed. "I do hope you don't mind, but I've opened a packet of digestives. We'll go shopping later to replace them." The tall blonde placed a tray on a nearby table holding three mugs of tea, a bowl of sugar and a neatly arranged plate of biscuits.
"Nonsense Patsy. Biscuits are meant to be shared. I'm glad you liberated them." She gestured for Patsy to sit down and stirred a spoonful of sugar into the weakest looking brew.
"Is it a Busby trait to have milky tea?" Patsy asked in amusement, as she saw Delia grab the next palest tea.
"It's a Davies trait. Definitely carried through the female side of the family." Blodwen corrected Patsy firmly.
"Are you sure? Mam always has hers brewed strong," Delia refuted.
"Always been contrary has that one," Blod dismissed with a roll of her eyes.
Patsy grinned. It really was like looking at an older version of Delia. She was just about to make a comment to that effect when the front door opened.
"Bloody hell, Blod. If I have to sit through another assembly with Michael Colman butchering the piano accompaniment I will not be responsible for my actions. I am not letting you up a step ladder ever again." The voice trailed off as its owner stepped into the sitting room. "Oh. Sorry. I didn't know you had company." A tall blonde woman smiled widely at Blodwen before looking at the room's other occupants, even as Delia sprung up from her chair.
"Delia! What a lovely surprise."
"Hello, Liz," Delia greeted, hugging the woman with an easy familiarity. "I suppose it's been you keeping the place tidy and stocked full of food?"
"Well I have to help Hop-a-long Cassidy somehow," Liz replied with grin. She looked to where Patsy was seated. "Do forgive me. Have we met?" She asked politely.
"Liz, this is my friend Patsy." Delia couldn't help but lay a hand gently on Patsy's arm as she introduced her.
Patsy automatically stood and shook hands formally before Liz waved them both to sit back down. She perched on the edge of Blod's chair and looked down at her fondly. "How have you managed today?"
"Not too bad. Now that I have two nurses on hand, I might have another go at using the crutches," she told her confidently.
"Don't push yourself. You know what they said at the hospital."
Patsy stared at the two women and then looked at Delia in astonishment. It was quite obvious to her that they were 'friends' in the same way she and Delia were. As she glanced at Delia however, she realised that the brunette was completely oblivious to the dynamic.
"What did they say?" Delia asked dutifully.
"Don't listen to her, Delia. You know how overprotective Liz is," Blod deflected.
Delia was not to be denied. "Auntie?" She prompted.
Liz laughed. "Don't fret. Blod just wants to run before she can walk," she told her. "Literally," she added with a wink at Blodwen.
"You're the one that wants me back at assembly," Blod pointed out indignantly.
"Yes I do. But I can put up with caterwauling children for a few more weeks as long as you fully recover."
The words were spoken with such unguarded affection that Patsy looked at Delia once again, hoping for the penny to drop. Once again, Delia appeared unaware. Patsy frowned in disbelief and then realised that Liz was looking at her appraisingly. The teacher flicked a glance at Delia before looking back at Patsy and raising a speculative eyebrow. Patsy failed to keep the blush from her cheeks, but nevertheless nodded a fraction, gratified when the movement garnered a small smile and a wink.
"So how did you manage to break your ankle?" The red-head asked.
Patsy filled her lungs with cigarette smoke, held onto it for a long few seconds and then exhaled. She watched Delia rub the condensation from the window so that the view from the bus would be unobscured. "How long have you known Liz?" She asked. The midwife still couldn't believe that Delia hadn't put two and two together.
"Gosh. A long time. Even before I came to London to train, if I visited Auntie Blod with mam, she would often be there. She's lovely." Delia was effusive in her praise.
"And how did your Auntie Blod come to be friends with her?" Patsy stopped herself from rolling her eyes. She had a feeling this could become protracted.
"Oh they met when they were training to become teachers."
"Did they now?" Patsy put a sing-song element into her query but it seemed that Delia still wasn't putting all the pieces together.
"Yes. I think that's why Auntie Blod moved to London in the first place. Liz got offered a job there and Auntie Blod followed." Delia looked back at Patsy and smiled gently. "Thanks for coming today. I'm really glad you got to meet Liz as well."
"I really enjoyed myself. Deels, how long have they shared a house?"
"Why would you think that they share a house?" Delia sounded perplexed.
"Well, Blodwen did break her ankle while they were decorating the hall together," Patsy pointed out carefully.
"They've been friends for years. I'm sure they've helped each other do all sorts of things."
"I'm sure they have," Patsy muttered under her breath. She sighed as she took another drag of her cigarette. She tried again. "So your unmarried aunt has lived in London for all these years by herself, and is helped with everything by her best friend," she surmised.
"You're making it sound odd. It's no different to us," Delia objected.
"Exactly," Patsy replied, raising an eyebrow. She saw the precise moment when Delia connected the dots.
"Oh my god. Are you saying..?" Delia was practically speechless.
"I don't think it's beyond the realms of possibility," Patsy replied cautiously.
Delia stared ahead and allowed her thoughts to race. She considered all the permutations, and tried to recall all the occasions when she visited Auntie Blod. Liz had been there every time. She frowned suddenly. "Why would Mam want me to check on Auntie Blod when Liz was there?"
"I suspect it was more to check that Liz was looking after her sister as she ought to do," Patsy replied after some consideration.
"How did I not see it?" Delia was astounded. "Right under my nose, and I just thought that they were best friends." She shook her head.
Patsy gave a lop-sided smile. "With a bit of luck, that's what everyone will think of us," she mused.
Delia's eyes widened. "Does that mean you're thinking about us sharing a flat again?" She asked hopefully.
"I don't think it's beyond the realms of possibility. Do you?"
~Finis~