The next day was uneventful. Joe anxiously waited for the day to end. Brynner texted him a few times but none shed any light on why she was being so secretive. On top of that, he only saw the Queen in brief glimpses. She was busy planning for Princess Mia's arrival, Mabrey was giving her a hard time- to say the least: she was busy. Joe tried to keep busy but found it was much easier said than done. On one of his many loops around the interior of the palace he nearly knocked Charlotte of her feet.
"Charlotte! I'm so sorry, I didn't even see you!" He helped her regain her balance, Charlotte merely laughed, much to Joe's confusion.
"I'm not sure which one of you is worse!" Joe stared at her blankly.
"What? Who is worse? Charlotte are you sure you're alright?"
"I should be asking you the same question! You've been pacing all day, I'm relatively positive you haven't eaten anything today AND you haven't made your customary midday visit to the Queen." Joe blushed.
"Well, I, uh...I..." Charlotte gave him a concerned smile.
"You're worried Joe, I understand but are you sure you aren't overreacting?"
"You're probably right...Wait, Charlotte what did you mean you weren't sure who was worse? Who else were you talking about?" Charlotte gave him a quick smile before continuing on her way.
"Why, the Queen of course!" She said slyly over her shoulder. Joe watched her retreating form round a corner before she disappeared from his sight. What does she mean? Is Clarisse, er, Her Majesty alright? Is it really that obvious that I visit her at noon everyday? Joe's internal questioning was interrupted by the rumbling of his stomach; Charlotte was right, he hadn't eaten all day. With that in mind he made way towards the kitchen, on a whim he decided to have two lunches made. Charlotte was the first to see him as he walked into her Majesty's study carrying a platter with two lunches prepared on it.
"You're right on time," she whispered in his ear as he walked by her desk.
"Your Majesty," Clarisse glanced up from her desk, noticing him for the first time. A bright smile lit up her face.
"Joseph! What is this?" She asked gesturing towards the platter.
"Lunch," Joe stated simply.
"Oh?"
"Well, a little birdy told me you hadn't eaten and I have yet to eat, so I thought we could eat together..." He saw a frown crease her face and feared he had made a bad decision. "If not.." He added looking a the ground.
"No, Joseph, this is lovely really-"
"Then why don't we go out to the garden, the roses smell wonderful." She smiled at him and he felt his heart melt.
"Well, how could I say no to you?" She said happily as they exited the room together, oblivious to their surroundings.
"Who said you had a choice?" Joe said under his breath as he carried the platter, feeling relaxed for the first time that day. Joseph gazed at her. He didn't even realize he was doing so; usually he was so careful about hiding it.
"Joseph? Joseph? Are you alright?" He was pulled from his day dream by her concerned face.
"Yes, of course, why do you ask?" He quickly responded with a smile. Her eyes looked through him with a skeptical look.
"You were just staring off into space for a good five minutes," he blushed and looked embarrassed, which only made her more amused. She timidly reached across the table and took his hand. He looked at her quizzically but curled his fingers around hers nonetheless. They sat like that for what seemed like an eternity before she gathered her courage to speak.
"Are you still worried?" Joe felt himself be pulled back towards reality. He beamed at her; his eyes bright and sparkling, his telltale smile lighting up his face. He ran his thumb across her knuckles.
"Yes, but no so much any more." She returned his smile.
"And why is that?" He looked down at their intertwined fingers before answering her question, though he assumed she already knew the answer but wanted to hear the words come from his mouth.
"Well, you see, there's this woman who has this magical calming effect on me." He watched her cheeks redden and winked.
"Your Majesty!" She quickly withdrew her hand from his. Joe missed the warmth and promptly frowned. He scanned the area for whoever called her name, however he already had his suspicions.
"Yes, Lionel?" Joe stood over the table menacingly, Lionel looked like a puppy who realized he had done something wrong. "Lionel?" She asked again as Joe stared the younger man down. They looked at the young man expectantly.
"I uh, am supposed to watch you..." Joe practically radiated anger. Clarisse realized she needed to intervene before Joe blew his cool.
"Yes, well, I better be getting back to work anyway." She stood and gave Joe an apologetic smile, the look he sent back nearly broke her heart to leave him there. His eyes steeled when he looked at Lionel, she resisted the urge to laugh as she hurried back to the palace. Lionel fought the urge to run when he felt his senior's eyes upon him. He looked down, afraid of what might happen if he were to meet Joe's eyes.
"Lionel," the older man's voice was dangerously low.
"Y-yes sir?"
"I was just enjoying lunch with the Queen, until it happened to be interrupted by, who?" He asked sarcastically.
"M-m-me sir." Lionel continued to stare at the ground.
"Yes, now don't let it happen again! Understand?" Joe growled.
"Yes Sir!" Lionel's answer came out as a squeak. Joe stalked off leaving the young man unsure of what he should do. Joe found the rest of the day utterly unbearable. He didn't see her at all for the rest of the day. Joe found himself skulking around the palace for the remainder of the day. He had planned on taking his food back to his home before he was cornered by Shades in the kitchen. Joe sat down unhappily at the little kitchen table, Shades sat across from him with a grin on his face.
"So, I heard Lionel caught you and the, uh, Eagle, how do you say, nesting, in the gardens earlier." Shades remarked with a sly grin.
"For the love of God, where did you hear that?" Joe covered his face in his hands and sighed deeply.
"So it's true then!" Shades laughed.
"No! I mean we had lunch together, that's all!" Shades couldn't hide his amusement.
"Well I heard there was definitely some hand-holding going on, Joe you sly dog!" Joe's expression gave everything away.
"Where did you hear that!" Joe asked again, his voice rising slightly. Shades beckoned him closer and they both leaned across the table.
"The maids; they know everything," Joe groaned as his friend chuckled. "You scared Lionel pretty bad though, the kid was scared shitless when I saw him." Joe let out a grim smile as he pictured it.
"Good" he said gruffly as he sunk back into his chair. Shades studied his friend closely and came to two conclusions; One, he was in love, this much he already knew (and had for sometime). Two, he was worried which could be for a handful of reasons.
"So, what's on your mind?" SHades asked happily as he dig into his dinner. Joe laughed curmudgeonly.
"Really? Shades?" Shades looked at him innocently before answering.
"What are you so worried about?" Joe looked at him wearily. "Well are you worried about Brynner? Or the Queen? Or Mabrey? Or people finding out about the garden today? Or-" Joe put his hand up to silence him.
"Okay and I suppose all of those things..." Joe said the last for words quietly hoping Shades wouldn't catch them. Shades nodded like he had known the answer all along, Joe hated that he knew him so well.
"Hmm...Well good luck with that!" Joe watched flabbergasted as shades stood and left him at the table alone. Joe sighed; the usually unnoticeable sound was deafening in the silence. He mulled over what his friend said before finally giving up and retreating to his cabin.
