Phipps' Report: Bad Day
Next day...
'Good morning, Earl Phipps.' Linnea and Snake greeted.
'Good morning.' Phipps greeted. 'Linnea, I would like for you to make Curry during my stay here.' he requested. 'Of course, the Earl Phantomhive's will still be as he wishes. He wants seafood this week, correct?'
'Yes sir.' Linnea nodded. 'However, please understand that during lunch and dinner, I will be cooking the master's food first because the smells of two different dishes will confuse my sense of smell and may botch things up. My cooking of curry tends to be too aromatic.'
'Alright.' Phipps nodded.
At least in breakfast, its Sebastian who makes breakfast for 'Ciel and himself' since Ciel wants Breakfast in Bed. So Linnea can fully-focus on curry breakfast and the kitchen's smells is a very fragrant, but mildly-mellow.
Of course, breakfast is the...
'Since strong dishes are bad in the mornings, let's start it off with Medicinal Curry.' said Linnea, putting food on the table. 'To prepare you for later. Heheh.'
'Medicinal Curry?'
'Yes. It is Si Wu Tang or Four Substance Decoction, made with both medicinal herbs and spices.' said Linnea. 'I cook this for us at least once a week every sunday for the whole day ever since the Curry Fair last year when I had to do research. But of course, I change the medicinal herbs to target the entire body in a year.'
'I see...then...' when Phipps ate it, it warmed up his body in minutes and its also very delicious. "T-Too good...she's way too good..." he choked out as he ate in great vigor and asked for seconds, which she predicted.
'...may I ask the recipe for her majesty?' Phipps asked her, quickly giving her paper and pen making the two servants think with sweatdrops, "That's fast!"
'Sure, but I'd like it patented if possible.' said Linnea. 'Its not easy working this out I won't be happy if someone claimed it for himself even though he didn't work for it.' she explained as she began writing down the recipe. 'The ones who know I created this is Prince Soma, Mr. Lau and Ms. Ranmao, and everyone in the house.'
'Of course.'
By the end of it, she wrote different recipes with the same basis.
xxx
'Earl Phipps really likes it.' said Snake as they did work together on the stairs, polishing the staircase banisters.
'Well, so would anyone really.' Linnea snorted. 'The reason I'm a good chef is because with magic, I can read the ingredients and how to exploit them. The problem was making them all match for the flavors to consolidate and come out delicious. Now that, I have to put real effort in.' she said wryly. 'I'm just glad its not Grey. I heard he ate a whole pot of curry by himself back when the master is doing a murder case here.'
'Yes...that was...problematic.' Snake twitched as he remembered that night wherein Bard's eyes nearly popped out from seeing the emptied pot. 'It was thus a good thing you had the foresight to shop a lot or we'd have problems. Bard was furious.'
'I can imagine since he's possessive of the kitchen!' Linnea laughed.
'How long will he be here again?'
'Until I complete the soap so he'll be here for a loooong while...' Linnea stated as she rolled her eyes. '-its hard having the Queen's eye on us its mentally taxing in a way.' Linnea sighed. 'Ciel isn't comfortable at all, I can feel his ire all the way here since we're still connected through a Summoning Bond since the Weston College case.'
...and thus for the next few days as promised, Linnea delivered to her promise. As she makes curry in the kitchen after Ciel's meals, the strong smell in the kitchen is...amazing Phipps swore Grey will KILL himself for annoying the maid who is less likely to cooperate with his presence. The girl is a virtuoso spice master her curries are way better than that of the Palace Chef's. However on that day its Sebastian who presented as she could not be on stage as her age and appearance will raise eyebrows and her credibility questioned just by her looks alone and nobody would believe her of being a chef, and everyone knows it. So Sebastian has to be the stage boy that day.
Every sunday is laundry day.
Phipps was looking at the Laboratory as that Sunday, Linnea was doing the laundry and Sebastian, is training Snake for the whole day thus Phipps was his day's replacement.
Sundays were for clothes, but on the fourth sunday of a month, its every dirtied fabric in the house.
In the laundry room, there was already water in the needed tubs. And they are all numbered.
Linnea is washing clothes, including Phipps' clothes. On laundry days, she wears a different uniform from her usual one. A peach-colored maid dress with white collar and lace trimmings, and a white apron but the skirt is above-the-knee length and she's not even wearing stockings and on her feet are a pair of sandals that he could see her feet, a great breach of the rules as showing legs is equivalent to showing a man their intimate parts to his horror when he saw her which was why she said,
'On laundry days, the young master knows not to come to the backyard.' said Linnea, explaining away to the blushing man. 'Besides, its only my boyfriend who sees my legs on laundry days!' she squealed with a blush. 'Its perfectly OK with us!' she stated happily.
'For me it's not!' and Phipps ran away.
His first sunday is met with social horrors.
The bare legs, are just a start.
Sunday is apparently, social faux-pas day for the Phantomhives, and every social rule known in society, was broken.
It was even to the point Ciel and Linnea are snarking at each other with playful banter of black comedy and Tanaka is reading pocketbooks on the couch. And on free times, each Servant does things differently.
However on Sunday, its also an opportunity for Phipps to ask Linnea for a match in baking.
The theme was separated into fours. Cake. Pie. Bread and Tart.
In three stages, they were of equal skill. Its the bread Linnea bested Phipps in.
xxx
To my liege, Her Majesty Victoria,
This week was very...eye-opening to say the least.
I requested Linnea to specifically cook curries for
Servant Meals while she separately makes the Earl's
choice of food for the week as he wanted seafood
this week. However, she must cook separately as the
scent of two dishes cooking at the same time will
confuse her sense of smell so our meals are late.
For her, curry is serious business as she deeply studied
how to use the spices. The girl is an incredible Spice
Master her curries are extremely delicious. I trust you
already tasted her medicinal curries for everyone's
health improvement? That's just the start.
The other curries are much, much more delicious.
I fear I might gain weight as I keep asking for thirds
when normally I can only go as far as one helping in meals.
I may have to do serious workout when I return home.
The wait was worth it. As for my job of being in
Secret Service temporarily, the young earl is very
sneaky, cunning and devious, and he goes for an 'an
eye for an eye' form of retribution depending on
what was done and how. I have seen his true nature
and there's two personalities within him.
The Queen's Watchdog who is incredibly pragmatic
and uses all means to an end with a dark smile on his
face as he tends to talk down to the 'strays' condescendingly
before putting them away...and the gravity depends on
whether they deserve the pound, or being put out. This
side of him greatly worries and disturbs me because he
can be this sort of person, at only age 14. Rest assured
he is loyal to our queen and her country, he just has a
rather morbid way of showing it when out of the public
eye. His brutality in dealing criminals their just desserts
is...shocking to say the least. He has a tendency of
playing wth them until he gets bored. They usually die
when they bore him.
Then there's The Child. I have only seen this side of him
in what appears to be 'Social Faux-Pas Day' which is
every Sunday. In this manor, all social rules, manners
and etiquette ingrained into us by our parents and elders,
is basically 'forgotten'. Everyone does what they want
on this day and do what they feel like doing in whatever
attitude they wanted. Snake acts as if he's still in the
Circus, and sometimes his hands wander too much at
mealtimes eating with them on Sunday is awkward.
The Earl and Linnea would snark and banter with each
other as if they weren't employer and employee, Sebastian
who is pretty much like me tries to chide them to no avail,
and both are being bratty, snarky kids while still doing their
jobs.
Tanaka would lounge on the couch with his shoes on,
sleeping and snoring unslovenly, and then when they're
in the mood, Snake and Linnea are into very public
displays of affection! And this morning, I have had the
horror of seeing her legs as Laundry Uniform for the
maids...bares a lot of arms and legs. The skirt is
hideously short! She and Maylene on this day doesn't
even wear stockings or shoes, just slippers on their
bare feet which was their usual routine. If its Snake,
she happily doesn't care if he sees her legs since he
sees more than her legs at night anyway. The other
men of the house thankfully, still don't cross this line
even on Sundays and Earl Phantomhive puts his foot
down and hardly leaves the house unless he has to leave,
but would never go near the laundry area. Well, he
has a fiancee right? Our Head Knight's daughter?
I, am very shocked.
I never thought Phantomhive Sundays are like this.
They even encourage me to do as I please as long as
I get my job done in a manner I want it to and not
being a professional on Sunday. Well, even if they want
me to, there's no way I can bring myself to be like that.
I'd sooner give up on cake! I can only imagine what
my father and grandfather will say to me as they take
pride in our family's hereditary position and work...
...at least if there are guests around, they still
behave formally and professionally, making an
exception but if no guests, why, do as they will!
I finally got the chance to challenge her in Baking.
We're equal in Cake, Pies and Tarts in taste, texture and
aesthetic appearance, but she exceeds me in bread so
I suppose I lose as its 3-4.
I wonder what else will I experience in this mansion...
-Phipps.
'OOOOOK?' Grey blinked owlishly as John was done reading.
''Social Faux-Pas Sundays'?' Queen Victoria swooned in utter dismay. 'Oh dear!' one day of...misbehavior for her Secret Service? She could only imagine the events by listening to John alone! And girls showing too much arms and legs on a chore? Why? Maids can do it just fine with sleeves and long skirts!
'Well, doing it just because no one is looking...well, Phipps is looking but as of the moment, he's one of them so they don't care showing him at all.' Grey grinned. 'That sounds interesting.' he said, perking up playfully.
'Grey~~' the queen gave him a chiding glare. Grey meeped. 'But still, this report is...illuminating, to say the least.' she stated with a frown. 'My cute boy worries me.' she said. 'I'll have Phipps observe his mentality and personality even more. For him to change to this extent...sometimes I wish Vincent never died that day.'
xxx
It took three more weeks, and Bard, Finny and Maylene are back.
'Good work you three.' Linnea chirped. 'Take a bath and you have about one week off to recover from the operation. Its the young master's treat.' she said cheerfully.
'Really?!' Bard squawked as his eyes shone at the prospect.
'Cool!' Finny squealed. 'I can play all day!'
'Off-days~' Maylene swooned in delight.
As the returned servants goofed off happily, Snake sighed.
'At least when their vacation is over, its our turn to have a vacation.' said Snake wryly. 'I want to hibernate for at least, two days.'
'Now now, let's endure a bit more.' said Linnea weakly. 'They earned it and they rarely go out...and darling, humans can't hibernate. We call that 'comatose' and being comatose is a bad thing.'
Phipps just watched looking rather exasperated.