The Ties of Friendship
Summary: Rapunzel both gives and receives various forms of advice when she returns for a week-long meeting. (This will be a multi-chapter story, but most likely no more than four or five chapters. :D)
Disclaimer: I don't own Sofia the First or Tangled. :D
A/N: Here's chapter two, everyone! Last time, Rapunzel helped out Amber. This time, she'll get to help our favorite steward. :D
Chapter 2: Practically Perfect
Rapunzel sighed in exhaustion as she left the first meeting of the week. She liked it in Enchancia and everything, but these meetings were simply too tedious. She was glad the first day was actually the longest and hardest day—according to Roland, anyway—and that she now got some downtime for herself.
Well, she had promised Amber that they would talk… Oh, well. The other princess could wait. Besides, now she had time to explore a little bit, something that she hadn't gotten to do very much the times she'd visited.
The older princess hummed brightly as she walked into the dining room, observing the elegant table and decorations placed around the room. It was beautiful, and she felt very small standing in such a place. She gasped when she felt someone bump into her and fumble to keep from dropping something. "Oh, I'm sorry!" she apologized quickly, reaching out to halt an accident before it started.
Baileywick sighed in relief as both he and Rapunzel caught an empty punch bowl just before it hit the marble flooring. He looked up toward the blonde girl and smiled gratefully. "Thank you…Princess Rapunzel, right?"
She grinned and stood as he did, still holding one side of the bowl just in case. "That's right. And…I'm afraid I don't know your name."
"I'm Baileywick, Your Highness. I'm the Royal Steward of the castle, and it's my job to oversee production of everything here."
"That's great and everything, but let's not do the 'Your Highness' bit while I'm here, okay? Sometimes I just want to break away from the whole 'princess' thing, and it's kind of hard when I'm constantly reminded that I am one."
He blinked in confusion but managed, "As you wish, Your—I mean, Princess Rapunzel." He smiled sheepishly as she shot him a look. "I'm sorry… As I am addressing royalty, my conscience won't let me go any lower on the scale than that."
She laughed. "I guess it's better than nothing. You have this, right?"
"I do." He sighed and placed the large bowl onto the dining table before readjusting his jacket. "Well, thank you very much for your help. I need to return to my chores…" He looked around and shook his head. "Unfortunately, the windows still need to be cleaned and the floors aren't quite as reflective as I'd like them to be."
Rapunzel smirked and shook her head as she placed one hand on her hip. "You're a bit of a perfectionist, aren't you?"
"Oh, no, Princess Rapunzel… I'm the biggest perfectionist I know, and I have to admit it. Part of my job is making sure everything looks grand for the castle. If I don't do my very best, I feel as though I haven't done my job and therefore am undeserving of any reward."
She giggled and sighed. "Well, who all is helping you?"
"Violet and some of the others are doing other chores, so as of now, I'm the one in charge of the dining room…" He shrugged.
She lit up. "How about I help you?" She grinned. "I'm really good at chores. I used to do them all the time when I was up in my tower." She held out her hands expectantly. "Do you have a broom?"
"P-Princess, I couldn't ask you to help me…" He pulled out his pocket watch, observed the time, and put it away again. "Besides, I'm to adhere to a strict schedule, and I'm already two minutes and seventeen seconds behind."
Rapunzel rolled her eyes in amusement and smiled. "All the more reason for me to help you! I'm done working for the day, and cleaning is therapeutic for me. You want me to be happy, right?"
He eyed her cautiously before shrugging. "If you so desire, Princess Rapunzel… But if the king found out about this—"
"I would tell him the truth," she returned. "That I pressured his darling Baileywick into giving me something productive to do." She grinned as he chuckled.
As they cleaned, they discussed their lives and interests—though it seemed that Rapunzel had far more adventurous interests than Baileywick. After hearing of his times spent with the Buttercups, she had to laugh. For some reason, she just couldn't imagine someone who had such immaculate tastes being involved in the little girls' group. Then again, people surprised her all the time now, so she couldn't really judge from the outside…a lesson learned the hard way.
"So, I get the castle needing to be in a good condition and in an operational mode," Rapunzel began once they'd finished with the chores about an hour later. "But what I don't get is why it needs to be perfect."
Baileywick raised his eyes toward her as he lifted his teacup before pausing and setting it down. "Well…aside from it being my duty to oversee everything to the highest standards, I guess it's just in my nature. I like things to be perfect."
"Well, yeah, clearly…" She looked around as she saw the floor shining with proper reflectiveness and even gleaming shimmers from various objects around the room. "But doesn't that get exhausting?"
He blinked. "What do you mean?"
She laughed a little. "I mean—no one is perfect. You'd probably seriously harm yourself trying to be. Believe me." She shrugged. "I don't know. I think it's fine to try your best and everything, but it's got to be stressful going beyond 'above and beyond' to set some kind of superior standard. I just hope King Roland appreciates you."
"Oh, he does, Princess," Baileywick affirmed after finally sipping some of his tea. "I've been with his family for a long time, and he is one of the people I can count on to stand up for me. For example, a few months ago, another steward was vying for my job. He even tried to sabotage me."
The blonde lifted an eyebrow. "Seriously?"
"I'm afraid so… Well, it took some time and reassurance from not only the king but his family as well. They discovered his plot and disposed of him properly." He smiled lightly when she laughed at his depiction. "And ever since, I've been working even harder."
"That's fine and everything, but don't overwork yourself, all right? I'd hate to see someone so passionate about his work just completely burn out. It's okay to be your best rather than the best, you know."
Baileywick lightened in gratitude. "Thank you, Princess Rapunzel. I do appreciate your concern, and if it makes you feel better…" He pointed toward a plant in the far corner of the dining room. "Do you see that plant there?"
"Yes?"
"I haven't dusted it at all today." He smiled proudly.
"Ooh," the princess replied playfully, giggling at his sheepish look. "Well, it's a start I guess." She yawned and shook her head. "Oh, wow, sorry… I guess I'm kind of tired." She laughed. "I'd better get back to Amber anyway before she sends a search party out for me."
The steward chuckled. "Don't joke. She would actually do that."
"I know." She grinned and stood as he followed suit. "It was nice to spend some time with you, Baileywick. I'll see you around sometime."
"I enjoyed myself, Princess Rapunzel. Have a good evening." He smiled as she left before beginning to clear away the dishes for the night. Once everything was in its proper order, he paused and looked toward the plant he'd mentioned. It looked fine, despite his admission of not dusting it yet. He shrugged and watered it instead, not wanting it to wilt, and smiled thoughtfully. It wasn't perfect, but then again…maybe it didn't have to be.
To be continued…
A/N: I hope you all liked this part. I figured Baileywick would appreciate some help, even if it did come from a princess. Then again, he always works well with Sofia, so this wouldn't surprise me at all. :) And this whole perfection thing…I guess I could reflect that on myself too. I like to make things a little too perfect sometimes, and I have to remind myself that there really isn't such a thing. Just being your best instead of the best is what counts. :D With that, I bid you all a good day. Since we do have a three-day weekend, I may have either another chapter of this story or a new story out soon. We'll see. Keep an eye out either way! ~AquaTurquoise