'

Lord Ren stayed in his room the whole of the next day, with Mr Hux taking up his food. Consequently, it was a nice quiet day and everyone was rather relaxed compared to the previous few days.

Rather than starting on the last closed up room, Rey took advantage of Lord Ren's absence and set to work on the foyer and entrance hall.

Despite how dark the hall was, with its single window and wallpaper in a subtle contrast of a grey black and slate blue, Rey discovered an Aspidistra on a stand in one corner, still green and growing, undeterred by its obvious neglect. The popular nickname for Aspidistras, was the 'cast iron plant', it appeared that it was well deserved. After carefully wiping down it's large, dusty leaves and giving it a good watering, she moved it to the foyer so it would get more light, the only window being above the front doors.

The glass had stained panels, decorated with floral designs and featured the crest that had been on Lady Solo's letter.

The front doors were solid oak below the window, sturdy and heavy, whereas the doors to the entrance hall had large glass panels in them, of the same design as the one above the front doors.

The doormat had seen better days and Rey was uncertain if it was salvageable. There was an elegant wooden bench, furnished with a padded velvet cushion that needed restuffing, an intricate cast iron stand for walking sticks and umbrellas, and a rather fine looking grandfather clock.

The clock had stopped working.

It was as if Varykino itself had paused, waiting for life to restart, to truly be inhabited again. Such a beautiful home deserved light and laughter and joy, to be lived in and appreciated. It's existence at the moment seemed like such a hollow waste, in spite of how much Rey loved living there.

'

While she was by no means an expert on grandfather clocks, (in fact she had only seen them at a distance and even then, infrequently), this one seemed especially grand.

It was black, with a golden face and 'Tempus Fugit' in a flowing script around the top of the clock face. The priest who had been her teacher had tutored her a few latin phrases, enough for her to appreciate the irony of that phrase on a stopped and silent clock, and indeed in Varykino itself.

The black wood of the body was chinoiserie in style, its decoration of pastoral scenes on the front panel of the body and the square bottom were done in gilt, as were the swirls and motifs that framed the more intricate designs.

Due to the delicate nature of the gilt and gold leaf used, it took a long time to painstakingly clean and by the end, her back and joints were stiff and aching.

Back in London, after going to work for Mr Plutt, Rey had discovered the joys of a hot bath. Once a week she would take herself off to the public baths and luxuriate in thoroughly cleansing herself.

Since coming to Varykino, that was one of the few things she missed about London. Her ablutions here consisted of washing herself in warm water using a basin and jug and while she made do, it was a far cry from being immersed in water.

'

Over dinner that night, Rey enquired about a bathtub.

'

Poe had set a tin tub for her by the fire before retiring. Rey passed a couple of hours sewing by the fire, before she felt safe enough to heat some water and fill the tub. There was a modesty screen to put up, which hid the tub and anyone in it from view of most of the kitchen, but she still felt rather exposed all the same.

Although the water was warm at best rather than hot, and that she was feeling rather jumpy, it still felt very wonderful. The scent of her soap, while not pretty, was a scent she associated with being clean and as such, was comforting.

When she was as clean as was possible, she felt several pounds lighter and was very glad there was no one around to see the colour of the water when she got out.

By this time she was more than ready for her bed, but she went about emptying the water, then sat by the fire to comb out her wet hair and dry it as much as she could.

She had always found brushing her hair to have a rather soporific effect and that paired with the fire and her busy day made her less aware than she should be.

The sharp sound of a sudden intake of air, had her jumping near out of her skin, and when she turned to see whom it was, her heart sank right into her feet and her cheeks did their best to spontaneously combust.

Lord Ren stood in the entrance to the kitchen, seemingly frozen in disbelief at the sight of her, his dark hair mussed and his elegant brocade dressing rumpled.

Rey tugged her woolen shawl tighter over her nightdress, mortification and horror leaving her dizzy.

"Lord Ren," her voice was higher than usual but she thought under the circumstances that at least it wasn't a mere squeak, "Is there something I can get you?"

It could be the dim light of the fire, but Rey thought his cheeks had a little colour to them, his eyes, after a brief stare at her, had dropped down to his velvet slippers as one hand clenched at his side, while his other had a white knuckled grip on a water jug.

"I merely came down for some water," he licked his lips and Rey wondered why a man would be born with such a full, pouting mouth.

There was an uncomfortable pause, where both of them seemed to be at a loss for what happened next, then with a curt nod of his head in her general direction, Lord Ren strode over to the sink, filled the jug, then spun on his heel and briskly made his exit.

After a moment of silence, Rey let out a shaky, relieved breath and sagged back into her chair. Thank goodness he hadn't happened upon her whilst she was still in her bath, as she was fairly certain she would have simply died of shame.

She didn't think her nerves could survive encountering anyone else, and she decided that it was time for bed, damp hair be deuced.

'

Yet when she was safely in bed, reality started to set in - he would dismiss her for this, she was sure. It wasn't necessarily her fault, but as she turned the memory over, she became convinced that he was outraged, the way his hands had clenched, the curtness of his answer, the furious line of his body as he walked.

A dampness of her cheeks made her realise she was weeping silently and she angrily wiped them. Maybe this wouldn't be the end, even if she were dismissed, perhaps she could find employment locally, so she would not have to return to london. Lady Solo was a wonderful person, but if working for her meant Rey must return to the city, she found that she would rather try her luck here. The Lake District, Ullswater, was her spiritual home.

With that resolution made, Rey felt a little more at peace, if she was dismissed tomorrow, she would survive.

'

Breakfast had come and gone and she had yet to be dismissed. Mr Hux had not mentioned anything at all about the incident last night, but that was perhaps due to the fact that Lord Ren was still abed.

As she may soon be leaving, Rey raided the pantry where she had spied an ancient looking tin of treacle and some ginger that begged her to be used.

The day was overcast and chilly, and she had always found Gingerbread Cake to be rather comforting on days like these. Mr Plutt had often asked for it in the winter, especially if he were under the weather and it was, in her opinion, very pleasing with a hot cup of tea.

Soon the kitchen was filled with the warm, scent of butter and ginger. Despite the Sword of Damocles hanging over her, the smell made her smile to herself, soothing her nerves a little.

She cleaned the kitchen whilst she waited for the cake to bake, then put it in the pantry to cool as she didn't trust Poe not to steal a piece before tea, indeed, Dopheld had been distracted the entire time it cooked, until she had sent him away to do laundry.

'

Owing to the fact that she had grown to love Varykino, Rey decided to go about her cleaning duties as normal. She hoped that now Lord Ren had seen how much he needed a maid (or two) that he would find another to replace her, rather than letting all her work go to waste. Determined not to let that idea deject her, she made use of some ladder steps she had found folded away in an under stairs cupboard and used them to clean the stained glass in the hall and foyer. Even with the added height, she had to stretch herself, perhaps a trifle recklessly, on her toes to reach the top.

It was well worth it though, the space became so much brighter and welcoming, even with how grey the sky outside was. Of course, in the time she had lived there, no one other than Lord Ren had used the front door, but it was the principle of the thing. The added bonus was that, for a while anyway, he may be reminded of her every time he used it.

No one caught her on the ladder, for which she was grateful as she wasn't scolded for taking risks.

She had become rather cold whilst cleaning the glass outside the front door, so she paused her work for a cup of tea.

Mr Hux and Dopheld were in the kitchen when she entered, already sipping tea with enough in the pot for her and Poe, whenever he came in.

"Ah, Rey," Mr Hux started and Rey suddenly felt the colour leave her face. This was it, this was where her adventure ended. At least she had a cup of tea.

"Yes, Mr Hux?" she asked as calmly as she could as she almost fell into a chair.

"Dopheld tells me you have baked us another treat?" he paused, eyes narrowing a little, "Are you well? You've gone quite pale."

Rey blinked at him for a moment, thoroughly discombobulated, "I, ah, yes… just a momentary dizzy spell. I made Gingerbread cake earlier, it is cooling in the pantry."

Dopheld looked concerned as he brought her a cup of tea, "Are you sure you are well?"

With a smile, Rey shook her head, "Nothing a good cup of tea won't mend, thank you."

"In that case, I wonder if I could cut some of the cake for Lord Ren? He is still… indisposed today and I think it may improve his spirits."

Indisposed? He hadn't looked so last night, though in hindsight he had been very pale, his eyes dark and shadowed, worn.

"Of course."

Rey made to stand but Mr Hux held out his hand, "Please, sit for a moment, I can fetch the cake."

Acquiescing, Rey settled herself back in her chair gratefully and sipped her tea as she wondered what on earth was going on.

As if by magic, Poe appeared at the same time as Mr Hux rejoined them with the cake.

"Oh! Excellent, I'm starving and lunch seems awfully far away!"

While Rey had planned to save the cake for tea time, if Lord Ren was going to have some, she decided everyone else could, too.

Soon the kitchen was quiet, save from contented chewing and little sounds of pleasure. Her own slice of cake did a lot to restore her equanimity.

'

Part of her felt that if Lord Ren was going to have her dismissed, he would have done so by now, but another part observed that if he were ill, he wouldn't be thinking about those sorts of things.

It was rather disconcerting, being so unsure of what was going on, so she concentrated on her work.

After polishing the brass door knob and letterbox, while she was still warm from the tea, she dusted the whole space, then scrubbed the stand for walking sticks and umbrellas and polished the wooden bench to a pleasingly deep honey colour. She had removed the cushion already and it sat in the laundry room to be looked at and hopefully be salvaged later.

All that was left to her was the flooring, Poe had rolled up the red and gold carpet runner to put away until the weather was good enough to beat it, so Rey was able to (slightly indecorously)

roll up her sleeves and scrub the ceramic floor tiles.

As she worked, the intricate and very handsome geometric pattern was slowly revealed in more detail, the cream and terracotta colours became brighter and the dark grey deeper. The motifs fitted together so perfectly despite the complexity of the design and by the time she had finished, she questioned why the tiles had been covered by the carpet runner at all.

As she sat back on her heels to dry her hands and wipe her forehead, the sound of steps made her turn.

"You have done such an excellent job, Rey," Mr Hux said from the door of the library, "Varykino is becoming quite a different house since you joined us."

Rey ducked her head a little, cheeks warm with pride, "Thank you, sir," she paused and licked her lips, then decided to be brave, "I don't know if it is my place to say, but, well, does the carpet need to be here?" she gestured to the now glossy tiles, "It seems a shame to cover them up." When it became clear that Mr Hux didn't think she was being impertinent, she carried on, "The clock is so beautiful and it seems a waste to let it sit quietly, and ah, the doormat is beyond saving."

Mr Hux stroked his chin meditatively, but she thought he may be covering a smile. "I quite agree. Poe can still clean the carpet, but then we will put it away for now. The clock hasn't worked since I came here, which is a crime and I will have the doormat replaced posthaste. I and Lord Ren, greatly value the fine work you have been doing, you see things that our eyes pass over, is there anything else you would like to bring to my attention?"

Should she tell him about last night? His opinion on what Lord Ren would decide would help her prepare… but no, it was simply too mortifying, especially when he was being so nice.

"The pianoforte? It needs tuning, though I suppose with no one to play it, it doesn't matter a great deal."

"No, I think it would be nice to have it tuned. It is in sore need and I understand that even without it being played, tuning it regularly is good for it."

Rey felt a little giddy over all her ideas being met with approval, a warm flush of pleasure filled her as she ducked her head to hide her pleased smile.

"Thank you sir."

"Not at all," he smiled and turned to go, then paused and looked back, "Oh, and Lord Ren very much enjoyed your Gingerbread cake."

Rey ducked her head again, "Thank you sir."

It was strange, she felt proud that he had liked it, but also slightly resentful at the same time. Though could it possibly sway him to the idea of not dismissing her? She scoffed at herself over such a silly thought and started tidying away her cleaning things.

'

'


Authentic Victorian Gingerbread Cake Recipe

'

INGREDIENTS

500g flour

200g butter (salted, or add a generous pinch of salt to compensate if unsalted)

200g brown sugar

500g black treacle

10-15g ginger

3 small eggs (or two large)

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

A little warm milk

'

METHOD

Start by creaming the butter (stirring or beating the butter until it is a smooth, creamy and a uniform texture). Then, add the sugar and spice, ensuring that you mix them in well. Beat the eggs briefly before also adding them to the mix.

Add flour a little at a time, mixing well between each handful. Pour in the black treacle as you go. A little warm water can be used to get the last of the black treacle out of the bowl. Then, add a pinch of bicarbonate of soda to the warm milk before pouring it into the middle of the bowl and mixing everything together.

Once the mixture is smooth, line a tin with butter and brown paper before pouring the mixture in. Place in the oven for about an hour at 180 degrees Celsius (an inserted knife or skewer should come out clean once the cake is cooked). Once ready, turn out the cake and leave it to cool, then cut into small pieces to serve.

If you want to decorate, try dusting with a little plain icing sugar or dipping the cake pieces in some fondant icing.

'

A/N: I realised I had forgotten to add in the story description, that this is a slow burn, indeed, this is going to be the SLOWEST of burns.