Lunch rolled around, and the children were released from the madness-inducing but technically required grasp of public education. Maria hoped they retained enough ignorance to not go insane or start opening people's skulls to look for eyeballs. It would be heartbreaking if she had to put any of her children down for being too unhinged to function or work at the Ministry with Rafael. Mother joined them for lunch, which was very helpful as it cut the number of children trying to show her what they'd learned in school that day by half. The children really like their new 'grandmother', though they didn't see her often. Maria hoped this marked a change. Mother would know how to better deal with small children, right?
After an enjoyable lunch, and making sure her wards who were traumatized by such things were eating behind a folding screen so they didn't have to see the lords her guests, followed by Katarina taking out her magic tool and letting everyone else have I Scream (the children were already calling it Katarina's Treasure Pot. So were some of the older wards), the children went back to class, and Katarina went back to farming. Apparently studying all month had left her really missing farm work that the brief times Maria had allowed her to work on the fields hadn't been able to sate, as she was really going through those fields. Her retinue and her cousin stubbornly kept trying to keep up, but one by one they had to drop out, their relatively sedentary lives wailing in pain and despair while separated from Katarina catching up to them.
"Where… is… she… getting… that… energy…?" Prince Alan panted, sitting in the shade and gulping down water.
"She'd been sitting down and reading a book for the past month," Maria said, having come down from her office to check on them once they started sitting in the shade. "I suppose she's been feeling pent up and needing release only her favorite hoe could offer her." She sighed as Prince Alan started choking on his drink. "Prince Alan, please do be more careful. Just because I'm around is no reason to be careless with your health. Take smaller drinks of the water."
Lady Hunt was apparently not listening to her as she was gulping down glass after glass, ending with using her Water Magic to splash water all over her head and ruining her hair. "The sun won't stop me!" she declared. "Hang on Lady Katarina! I'll be at your side!"
The Third Prince scowled and started drinking more water as Maria sighed again. Lord Ascart just poured a glass over his head, leaned back on the wall they were leaning against to keep out of the sun, and closed his eyes. Dame Matthew had already fallen asleep, despite her head and neck being fully raised. She would have looked like she was sitting attentively if it weren't for the fact her eyes were closed. Maria had to credit whichever knight had taken her in as a squire, he or she had taught her well. She hoped she was even half as successful at teaching Katarina…
"If they pass out from heatstroke, inform me immediately," Maria told Sadako, who bowed.
Shaking her head, she went back to her paperwork.
Sophia returned in the midafternoon, considerably earlier than she usually did. From the way her horses were lathered, panting and overheated, she had apparently rushed to her appointments, and Maria wouldn't be surprised if she had ballistaed her way through negotiations to get through them quickly. She wondered how many unusually cheap commissions Sophia had just agreed to.
She was overheated half an hour later, and laid out next to her brother, who decided that the responsible thing would be to bring her home. Maria very much expected to receive a note tomorrow saying that Sophia wouldn't be able to come to work that day, and adjusted her schedule accordingly. Then she reconsidered and sent a letter to Lady Berg, to ask if she could take over Sophia's responsibilities for the day, since with her living at the capital she might be closer to potential appointments. Lady Berg usually handled their supply chain for things like raw iron, coal, brass, Sulphur, paper, and niter, as well as reporting on the reactions among the capital's noble circles to their displays, allowing them to know what sort of displays people liked and which were considered underwhelming.
Maria also included an invitation for her– and her prince, by extension, as they had the sort of mutually close relationship the Third Prince wishes he had with his fiance– to come visit her estate for snacks, conversation and working on paperwork together.
Eventually, everyone had to go home. Nicol had to make sure his sister was well-rested, and while the Third Prince and Lady Hunt certainly looked like they wanted to stay, neither were so forward as to find a pretext to spend the night.
"I'll see you tomorrow Lady Katarina!" Lady Hunt declared tearfully, her hair a mess from dumping water on it to fight through the heat.
"No you won't, she has training tomorrow," Maria said.
"Sorry Mary," Katarina said. "But I'm sure L– er, Dame Campbell will be willing to tell you when I next have a free day so we can spend it together?"
Lady Hunt glanced at Maria, who visibly thought it over, then shrugged. "Fine," Maria said. "But only if you learn and Lady Hunt doesn't prove to be a disruptive influence."
"Can I get in on that?" Sophia said.
"You're here every day," Maria said.
"Yes, but I want to know so I can arrange for that day to be a day off," Sophia said eagerly.
"I also would–" the Third Prince began.
Maria held up a hand, and mercifully he and the others already opening their mouths quieted. "Fine, fine, I will do you the great favor of informing you if I choose to give Squire Claes a free day. But if your presence leads to her training being disrupted, that favor ends. Is that understood?"
There was rapid, eager agreement. Maria didn't think this would actually stop them from pestering her to see Katarina, but it at least allowed her to control expectations, however tenuous that control might be.
"Dame Matthew, are you still planning to come to spar tomorrow?" Maria said.
Dame Matthew did not so much as blink in confusion. "Of course, Dame Maria," she said. They had planned no such thing. "Should I bring my great shield?"
Maria hummed, but decided against it. Her saber was still being worked on, after all. "No, that will not be necessary. I would not have anything appropriate to meet it with yet."
"Well, tell me when you will, all right?" Dame Matthew said, sounding eager.
Eventually, Maria FINALLY got them all to go home as Katarina kept waving goodbye at them, until the last carriage disappeared from view.
For a moment, there was silence.
"Did I really pass?" Katarina said. She sounded like I child afraid she would lose her wonderful dream.
Maria nodded. "Yes."
"Even though I only answered a few questions right?" Katarina said.
"Even then," Maria said. "Don't worry, you'll be able to answer the rest soon."
The 'eep' Katarina made sounded terrified.
"Tomorrow, you will wake up, do your morning sword practice until breakfast, and then go back to doing them until I come for you," Maria said. "You're been spending a lot of time sitting, so we'll be getting you back up to strength. We'll start your new training tomorrow."
"Hai, sensei!" Katarina said.
Maria gave her a look.
"It's… still my free day?" Katarina sai.
"Fine," Maria said. "Go back to the dormitory, and have dinner, and remember to be in bed by light's out. Understood, Squire?"
"H–…er, Yes, Dame Campbell," Katarina said.
Maria saw a carriage coming up the road. "Well, go on. Unless you want to help me greet Rafael?"
Katarina turned towards the road and grinned. "Nah, you two have your moment. Have fun!"
She was trying! Rafael was still refusing to ravish! Or be ravished!
Still, she didn't let her sudden burst of sympathy with Katarina's admirers make her change her mind about the current distribution of free days she had planned. She turned to face the oncoming carriage and got ready to welcome her fiancé home.
A Katarina Interlude
Katarina was pleasantly surprised when she went back to the dormitory to find a surprise party for her. the food was a bit different, cooked in a way that brought out more flavor, and they had her sit at the head of the table and sang this weird song congratulating her for getting through 'the Fume', and she got an extra-big portion of food. And while she already knew her roommates names, it was only now they properly introduced themselves, congratulating her on becoming a squire, and offering to spar with her if they had time. Katarina demurred for now. Maria was right, a month of sitting around had probably made her slow. It had been like that in the month of the year's final exams at the academy too.
"But we can spar as soon as I get back in shape," Katarina said confidently. "But, uh, can we wear helmets? I don't want anyone getting hit in the face by accident."
There was a laugh. "Sure, new girl," Dame Marina, a knight with pretty long blue hair and straight-cut bangs, said. "I guess it'll help you get used to the weight of a helmet."
"What weapon do you use?" another knight, Dame Anemone, asked. "I use a long greatsword."
"It's an ultragreatstword and you know it!" someone said, and there was a laugh.
"Oh, my weapon is over there next to my bed," Katarina said, pointing.
Everyone looked.
"You… use a hoe?" Dame Lucy, a redhead with her hair in a long braid, said.
"No, that's just my lucky hoe, L– er, Dame Campbell gave me permission to let me keep it near," Katarina said. "It's my wooden sword, see?"
Everyone looked, tilting their head. "That wooden sword?" Dame Tiese said.
"Yup!" Katarina said. "That's my trusty partner! We've been together for… wow, has it been twelve years?"
They looked at the nicked, scuffed, dented and much abused length of wood.
"It… certainly looks like it," Dame Sortiliena said.
"Don't you have a real sword, Squire Katarina?" Dame Ronie said.
"Mother wouldn't let me have one," Katarina sighed. "She was afraid I'd use it inside the house and cut the curtains or the wallpaper or the doors…"
Well, mother probably had a point. Still! Now that she thought about it, Keith had his own sword, why not her? Katarina would totally be responsible with a sword! She'd register it as an art piece, and oil it every day and everything!
"So… does this mean you don't have a preferred weapon yet?" Dame Selestia said, grinning. For some reason, everyone else grinned as well.
The rest of dinner was spent on everyone trying to convince her how cool their weapons were and how she should totally learn how to use them herself.
Katarina wondered if Snake (version172.1) could count as 'her' weapon. She'd been using it for years too, after all. She'd bet no one else in the world was as good at snake-throwing as her!
A/N: So, my Pat-reon is up now at P.A.T.R.E.O.N.C.O.M -/-SCM2814. If you want to support this fic, that would be great, but no pressure. But if you do, you'll also get advanced access to my new original fiction series about a wizard on the frontier, her dungeon, and the idiots around her...