Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, and I make no money from this work of fiction!
WRITTEN IN THE STARS
The Professor groaned when his alarm went off, then groggily got up. What a night! He knew factually that dreams were very, very short, but it seemed to him that he had spent the entire night looking for someone. Not just any someone, but a certain someone. Nanny, to be exact. He had been surrounded by many women, but he had only wanted Nanny, so had taken hours to push through crowds, following a blonde one way only to find it was not Nanny, then seeing a profile that he thought was her, so fought his way in that direction ... in vain. Then he had been standing in front of a minister, being told he could kiss his bride. Turning to the petite, veiled figure beside him, he had lifted the veil to see Nanny's lovely face looking up at him. But the alarm had awakened him before he could carry through with the kiss. "That just figures," he grumbled, dressing quickly. One glance out the window had shown the sun shining brightly. His first class was later in the morning, so he would have time to walk to the university today.
As he came into the kitchen, Nanny was at the stove. Without looking around, she said cheerfully, "Good morning, Professor! Your coffee will be ready in a second. I'm just frying these eggs ..."
"Good morning, Nanny! Lovely day, isn't it?" A stray thought crossed his mind that she was very much a part of his home now ... part of his family... a very important part of his life. Dreams were usually ridiculous, but maybe the one he had had was more prophetic than he knew!
"Yes, it is, Professor. And we have company," she turned finally and indicated behind him.
Surprised, he looked around, then tried to smile at Nanny's aunt who stood up from her chair behind the table. "Aunt Henrietta! How ... nice. I thought you had moved on to rejoin the circus."
"I just had to come back. I saw it in my crystal ball, and the stars and planets confirmed it. I tell you, Phoebe, it's fate. Kismet. It is meant to be. Professor," She fixed her eye on him sternly, wordlessly demanding his full attention before declaring theatrically, "it is written in the stars!"
"I see," the Professor said, rather inanely. He looked at Nanny who returned his questioning stare with an almost imperceptible shrug. Turning to the older woman, he asked, "Aunt Henrietta, exactly WHAT is written in the stars?"
"I wish you hadn't asked that," Nanny said softly, then she spoke up, "A cup of tea, Aunt Henrietta? Then you can read the tea leaves ..."
"No need, Phoebe, dear," Aunt Henrietta waved the offer away dramatically. "I see I shall have to educate the Professor first in the meaning of his astrological sign."
"My what?"
"What a month this will be for you, Professor Everett! Your teaching is going well, you're getting along with your children and friends, and love is just around the corner! Have you had your horoscope read lately, Professor?"
He dumbly shook his head. Nanny tsked and said quickly, "Aunt Henrietta, I DO think we should let the poor man eat his breakfast, don't you?" She put a cup of coffee down on the table near him. "These eggs are ..."
"Nonsense, Phoebe! He'll be excited to hear what I have to tell him!" Seating herself at the table with a flourish, Aunt Henrietta said, "Now, Professor, as a Sagittarius, your symbol is the Centaur-Archer which is associated with Chiron, the wise centaur of Greek mythology. Half-man and half-horse, the centaur points a bow and arrow straight up to the heavens, symbolic of aiming for a direction, goal or target. Sagittarians usually have more than one objective or destination that they are aiming for and prefer to follow their own course unhampered by any type of restrictions. You're a dual sign with your feet on the ground and your head angled toward the heavens. Your earthly animal side is drawn to the open road, where you relish speeding on a quest for adventure and knowledge. Luckily, you're blessed with foresight that verges on the prophetic. That protects you, to an certain extent, from misadventure. Your keyword is self-projection. Whether you're running a race, arguing a case or teaching, you live for self-expression and desire diverse outlets to exert your spirited energy. You are enthusiastic, gregarious, generous and cheerful. When you project your thoughts and knowledge in earnest, your listeners learn. It's the spirit of the human upper half of the centaur that yearns to know all the answers and to find the truth that will set us free. And it's in your altruistic nature to share what you've learned with others. Your frank honesty, wisdom and sincerity make you a wonderful teacher. However, you most enjoy being able to talk with others of equal or greater brain power, regardless of who they are. Your love for diversity extends to romance, making you the bachelor of the zodiac."
"Aunt Henrietta!" Nanny exclaimed, scandalized by her aunt's frankness.
Aunt Henrietta ignored her, AND the pathetic sound the Professor heard escaping from his own throat. "Sagittarius has a positive outlook on life, Professor. You are full of enterprise, energy, versatility, adventure and eagerness to extend experience beyond the physically familiar. You enjoy travelling and exploration, the more so because your mind is constantly open to new dimensions of thought. You are basically ambitious and optimistic, and continue to be so even when your hopes are dashed. Your strongly idealistic nature can also suffer many disappointments without being affected. You are honorable, honest, trustworthy, truthful, generous and sincere, with a passion for justice. You are usually on the side of the underdog in society, you will fight for any cause you believe to be just, and you are prepared to be rebellious. You balance loyalty with independence. In personal relationships you are reliable, seldom betraying any trust given to you. You are magnanimous in forgiving offenses and are responsible when looking after your family. Yet you're nervous about commitment even after marriage. You want to be with someone who's pioneering, courageous, exciting, enthusiastic and up-to-speed intellectually and energetically. Which brings me to Phoebe, who is an Aries ..."
"Aunt Henrietta ..." Nanny spoke warningly, but again was ignored by the woman who was in full swing now.
"The astrological symbol of Aries is the Ram. Like the popular conception of the Ram, Aries people are able to accomplish a lot by sheer energy and force of will, literally ramming their way to their goals. The Ram is definitely a leader in the belief of the slogan 'lead, follow or get out of the way'. They don't mind if someone else is apparently in charge, provided they are the power behind the throne. It is the rare Aries that is truly shy. Aries is a leader by right of the position as first in the zodiac. Occurring at the beginning of spring, Aries represents the latent life-force of the previous cycle just starting to create growth. Their enterprising nature is reflective of the force of this energy reserve, ready to renew itself in actualization. To be independent, self-assertive, and to set an action in motion are an Arian's prime objectives. Action is the keyword. Normally brave and courageous, the Aries individual can be depended upon to assess a situation, take charge and act without delay in an emergency. Aries find it easy to endear themselves to others with a wonderful ability to make them laugh. As lovers, they are passionate, warmhearted, ardent and generous with their affections. Their best relationship will be with someone independent and self-assured, charming and warm, who thrives on the energy of love. In a sign noted for independence, it is often difficult to tie an Aries down. This sign does not like to be stifled. In personal relationships, Arians are frank, direct and candid, and make enthusiastic and generous friends. They are liable to have a high sex drive and make passionate lovers. Arians are highly devoted to their children, even to the point of laying down their own lives, so that the children might live. You will not find a more defensive and loving parent in all the zodiac."
"Aunt Henrietta, I hardly think the Professor needs to hear about ME!" Nanny tried to speak again, shocked by her aunt's rather explicit description.
"Well, to get back to my original reason for coming," Aunt Henrietta began speaking grandly again, "I did an astrology chart for you, Professor, and amazingly enough, it came out that as a Sagittarius, you are particularly close to Phoebe, who is an Aries!" She waited for either of them to comment, but neither moved. Clearing her throat, she continued doggedly, "Lucky Sagittarius is ruled by Jupiter, planet of travelers, sages and chance-takers. Like Aries, Sagittarius can be very spontaneous in taking romantic risks. Aries and Sagittarius strike many sparks. A Sagittarius activates Aries' ninth house of philosophy, theology, idealism and romance. This could be a stellar match. Both are hard-working, spontaneous and adventurous. Aries has a built-in directive, "Do it now!" which is a great formula for the work-lovers to share. In addition to creating a fire too hot to cool down, since the Aries is a VERY passionate lover, the traits of these two signs make a good basis for a long-term romantic relationship. So, in answer to your earlier question, Professor, what is written in the stars is ... your marriage."
"Marriage?" he repeated. "MY marriage?"
"Well, yours and Phoebe's."
"WHAT?" Both Nanny and the Professor exclaimed in unison. The Professor sat limply back in his chair and tried to digest all he had heard.
"Now, Aunt Henrietta, you're becoming much too much like a certain uncle we all know. You KNOW I am not looking to be married off ..." Nanny said, briskly, recovering her aplomb.
The Professor perked up. "Uncle Alfred, right? I rather thought he was trying to find you a husband the last time he was here. He probably sent dear Chumley here for you, too. Do you know Uncle Alfred, Aunt Henrietta?"
Outraged, the dowager glowered at him in silence. He turned to Nanny and raised his eyebrows in question. She smiled a little sympathetically at him, and whispered, "Aunt Henrietta married Uncle Alfred years ago. The marriage lasted about three hours ..."
"Two hours, forty-seven minutes and twenty-three seconds, to be precise!" Aunt Henrietta spoke in a clipped voice.
"Then you were divorced?" the Professor hazarded a guess.
"Certainly not!" Nanny frowned at him. "That is simply not done by a Figalilly!"
"Oh. Annulled?"
"Oh, no. No, Professor, they are still married. They just have not spoken nor met since that fateful day so many years ago."
"HOW many years ago?" he asked.
"That has no bearing on your situation, Professor," Aunt Henrietta said. "As for why the stars have decided to reveal the truth about you two to me now, well, all I can say is that it must be that Jupiter is stuck in Aries, forcing change in your life."
He rolled his eyes, but Nanny merely smiled and nodded agreement with her aunt's endless astrological explanations. "No doubt that is what it is, Aunt Henrietta. Jupiter forcing change."
The Professor had been trying to assimilate all the information Aunt Henrietta had thrown at him in the last few minutes. "I'm Jupiter, you say?"
"That is the planet associated with Sagittarians," Aunt Henrietta agreed.
"And you think I'm stuck on Nanny, who is an Aries, right?" He was beginning to enjoy himself when he saw Nanny flush slightly at his words. "And together we'll light a fire of passion that won't be equalled? This could be very interesting indeed!"
"I don't think that is what she said," Nanny said quickly.
"But it is certainly close!" Aunt Henrietta beamed. "My dear boy, you WERE paying attention!" Then she turned to Nanny. "Phoebe, you have an ascendant Aries moon which is ruling your emotions. Aren't you tired of trying to ram down the barriers, to make everything work the way you think it should? Perhaps you should just accept that this time the stars are in charge. Marry your professor and you will never regret it."
"Tell me, Aunt Henrietta, is there any way you could write this all down for me, so that I can study it?" the Professor looked at the clock, then at Aunt Henrietta. "I need to get moving ..."
"You shall have it immediately," Aunt Henrietta promised. "I'll deliver it myself. If I leave it here with Phoebe," and she cast her niece a scathing glance, "you may never see it. One thing I ask. I want to be invited to the wedding, and I do NOT wish to have to suffer the company of that fool, so he is not to be invited, do you hear?"
"I hope you're not talking about me," the Professor grinned as he gulped down the coffee Nanny had poured for him earlier.
"No," Nanny said, not looking at him. "She means Uncle Alfred. Aunt Henrietta, I DO wish you would ... er ... re-consult your crystal ball. I am sure you are mistaken about ..."
"Nonsense! I am never mistaken!" Aunt Henrietta spoke with certainty.
Taking the briefcase that Nanny held out to him, the Professor looked at her subdued demeanor and winked when she lifted her eyes to his for a brief moment. "Cheer up, Nanny, we'll weather this just as we have every other storm caused by your various relations!" he whispered, and impulsively leaned down and kissed her cheek. She backed away in confusion, her face growing redder.
Then the Professor escaped what he privately thought had turned into a madhouse in the last twenty minutes. It was written in the stars that he was to marry Nanny? He snorted derisively as he drove to the university, and pushed down the memory of the joy he had felt in the dream at the sight of Nanny standing by his side, his bride. Aunt Henrietta had to be one of the clinkers Uncle Alfred had warned him to be on the lookout for when it came to Nanny's relatives! Imagine, those two had been married once, however briefly! He wondered what had gone wrong, then decided it didn't matter. Who could live with someone who relied so heavily on such hogwash as astrology?
He managed to put the morning's talk out of his mind and got through three classes before it came crashing down on him again -- in the form of Aunt Henrietta sitting regally in his office with several sheets of paper clutched in her hand.
"Here you are, Professor Everett," she said, handing them to him solemnly. "Everything written down just as I told you this morning. There is simply no escaping it. You are destined to marry Phoebe. It is so easy to see once you are aware of what to look for. She will be wonderful with your children, not to mention you! It is a perfect match, I must say!"
"Tell me, Aunt Henrietta," he said, accepting the papers with a cursory glance, then looking back at her quizzically. "I thought Nanny was betrothed to Chumley. What about THAT?"
Aunt Henrietta waved that inconsequential detail off airily. "She is not in love with him. He is not right for her at all! Just because her parents and his are friends and hoped to have closer ties between the two families is no reason to tie her to someone she cannot possibly love as much as she does you."
For some reason, that last statement took the Professor's breath away. "She LOVES me?" he finally managed to choke out. "Just how would you know? Has she said anything to you?" He couldn't believe that Nanny would ever say something that personal, even to her aunt. Yet, what did he REALLY know about Miss Phoebe Figalilly? She had appeared mysteriously, refusing to give references, saying nothing personal about her background except that she was a highly skilled nanny, a fact which she had proven over and over the last two years. Every attempt he had made to find out more about her had failed.
"Of course she hasn't said anything to me, Professor! Phoebe is very close-mouthed about her private feelings, as no doubt you are well aware. I'm afraid you'll have to ask her yourself!" With that, Aunt Henrietta sailed out the door, leaving a confused and unsettled Professor behind.
That night, after the children were in bed, the Professor looked outside to see Nanny sitting on the bench in the backyard, her head tilted up as she gazed at the stars overhead. He had read Aunt Henrietta's scribblings over and over, finally dismissing them as absurdities. Yet he couldn't help but agree with her assessment of both his character and what he knew of Nanny's, which led him to wonder whether the prediction of a successful romantic relationship would also prove true. What could he do but test out the theory? After all, that was his usual approach to any problem he encountered!
Quietly he approached the bench, but he was still a few feet away, when Nanny said, still not looking at him, "Good evening, Professor. Before you say anything, I must warn you that no one in the family takes Aunt Henrietta seriously."
He sat down beside her, carefully not looking at her, either. "Why not?"
"Why not?" she sounded incredulous. "You read what she wrote, and you STILL ask why not?"
"It was very interesting," he said, and turned to look at her. Her face seemed to glow in the soft light of the stars, and her eyes were luminous as she gazed up at him. She was truly beautiful, he thought, startled that he had never really looked at her in this way. Her lips trembled slightly, and he wondered how they would taste if he were to kiss her as he was suddenly tempted to do.
"It's late, Professor, and I should go in." Her eyes dropped and she looked away.
His hand on her arm stopped her attempt to rise. "Nanny."
She looked up at him, and his blue eyes held a mixture of gentleness and entreaty that melted away her reserve.
"Please," he said, "Talk to me." He released her, giving her the option to run if she truly wanted to leave.
"But I can't ..." she began.
"Why not?" he asked simply.
"Just ... just because." She took a deep breath then said adamantly, "I've made it a rule never to become intimately involved with an employer."
"I'm not asking for intimate involvement," his voice was grave. "Not yet, at any rate. I just want ..." He paused again, then looked over the yard and contemplated his thoughts before speaking.
For a moment, Nanny let herself drift into the realm of fantasy, a world where he would never hesitate to kiss and caress her; a world where she could run her fingers through his hair, or rub his shoulders after he'd had a long, hard day, a world where she cooked and cleaned, not merely for the professor and his children, but for this family that was hers through love.
She almost jumped when he finally broke into her reverie and spoke. "Since I've spent time with you the last two years," he said, "I've noticed just how ordered and rational my existence has become after the chaos which reigned here after my wife's death."
"Order and rationality aren't terrible things," she said softly.
"Yes, but if you choose reason and logic, then you can't have excitement and spontaneity. You end up living a life that is very ordered but rather dull."
"Oh, Professor ..."
"That's one of the things I really admire about you," he said. "You do the unexpected. You're impulsive and funloving. You're capable, competent, yet at the same time you're full of spirit." He turned to face her, and his hands came up to her shoulders. "Please, Phoebe ... just talk to me. Tell me something about your background. Stop hiding from me. Spend some time with me. That's all I ask. Give this ... spark or attraction or whatever it is we are feeling a chance. You know you feel it as much as I do. It's impossible to deny."
Oh yes, she felt it all right. Slowly she looked up at him, knowing she must respond yet not wanting to reveal too much. She felt flustered, which was most unusual for her, as was sitting here with him in the romantic moonlight under a canopy of bright stars. How could she admit in one breath that she did indeed feel something for him and then turn around and tell him that she had no intention of responding to those feelings? She didn't know, but she had to do it. She HAD to. "It's just that, well, I can't ... react to it."
His eyes were very intense. "But why? Tell me why you don't want to react."
"I didn't say I didn't WANT to react ..." she began impetuously, then paused before whispering, "I can't! I DO have some natural ... urges ... where you are concerned, but that does not mean I have to give in to them."
"I don't see why not," he said stubbornly, his fingers tightening on her shoulders. "Do it for me, if not for you!"
"Professor, PLEASE! It's important to me to do a good job as the children's nanny! I can't do that if I am paying more attention to you ..."
"Then don't do it as their nanny. You're fired." She stared at him blankly, but before the shock sank in, he added softly and persuasively, "I want you to give in to your desires. And the more I think about it, the more I realize that I want you to do that as my wife. With my help. And most of all, with my love."
As her lips parted in surprise, he swiftly bent his head and kissed her. Then he raised his head and added with a sudden grin, "Besides, we have Aunt Henrietta's blessing. It's written in the stars, you know!"