|
Post by Basil on Feb 27, 2009 21:18:13 GMT -5
Basil was having a celebration of sorts.
After watching his funds dwindle steadily for quite some time, he now had a tidy pile that should last him some little time. And all thanks to Capt. Teague and his defeat of the Spanish Armada. Basil raised his glass of Coke in silent salute to the old pirate, wherever he was.
So, the detective was planning to order an especially nice meal, here at an outdoor cafe in the most expensive hotel in the park.
Unfortunately, these American menus continually bewildered him. He'd seen such items as 'flapjacks,' 'hoagies,' 'succotash'...what on earth could those things be?
Frowning, he perused the menu again, looking for something that at least sounded like food.
|
|
|
Post by maidmarian on Feb 28, 2009 13:55:04 GMT -5
Maid Marian and Lady Cluck entered the dining room in the hotel and looked around. They were both walking on two legs. Maid Marian was wearing an elegant princess dress in pink and lilac, and exclusive jewelry around her neck. A pink sheer veil in an exquisite material was covering her hair. This was a fashion for most maidens from the 12th century. Lady Cluck was dressed in a light blue gown, also very elegant, but she was of a more sturdy type than the slender and elegant vixen.
Maid Marian's beautiful dark brown eyes under long, dark eyelashes darted across the room, and for one moment she looked directly at Basil and smiled, before turning to Lady Cluck.
"Oh Clucky, look at the poor man who sits there all alone. Shouldn't we ask him to share our table?"
Lady Cluck smiled and looked over at Marian.
"Well, some men like their privacy, but I expect we can ask."
She walked over to Basil's table and smiled.
"Excuse me, young man. We were noticing you are all alone, and Milady was wondering if you cared to keep us company at our table?"
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Feb 28, 2009 14:17:08 GMT -5
Of course, Basil noticed the two ladies the moment they entered; it was his habit to notice everything.
Noblewoman with her lady in waiting...eleventh, no, twelfth century...accomplished at needlework...plays badminton.
He hadn't expected them to approach him, however. Looking up from his menu, he hastily rose to acknowledge the presence of a lady.
Although he had intended to dine alone, one couldn't very well pass up such an invitation.
"Why thank you, madame. Please tell her ladyship that I accept gratefully."
|
|
|
Post by maidmarian on Feb 28, 2009 14:39:23 GMT -5
Lady Cluck smiled and winked at Maid Marian, and Maid Marian smiled back to her. The two ladies knew each other so well that this was all that was needed to know that the invitation had been accepted. The noble guests managed to get the best table the restaurant had to offer, and Lady Cluck escorted Basil over to the table, where Maid Marian already was waiting for them.
When Basil appeared Maid Marian extended her slender hand in a greeting, and gave him a warm smile.
"Thank you for accepting our invitation, Sir. It is rather dull to eat alone, isn't it? I am Maid Marian, the niece of King Richard Lionheart of England. And this is my Lady-in-waiting, Lady Cluck. I am happy to meet you, Sir. Please, have a seat."
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Feb 28, 2009 14:55:58 GMT -5
"Oh."
Basil bowed then, deeming a more formal greeting necessary for so legendary a personage.
"Forgive me for not recognizing you at once, my lady. Your fame is considerable in my time."
"I am Basil of Baker Street, a humble detective from London. May I say that I am quite an admirer of Robin Hood? Meeting his lady is both an honour and a pleasure."
|
|
|
Post by maidmarian on Feb 28, 2009 15:08:29 GMT -5
Maid Marian smiled warmly and blushed by his gentle behaviour. Lady Cluck smiled too, impressed by the manners of the mouse.
"It is a pleasure to make your aquaintance, Basil of Baker Street. I must say your name sounds most regal. Would you happen to have any nobles on your family tree as well?"
Lady Cluck also turned to him with a smile.
"Young man, you wouldn't happen to be THE Basil of Baker Street? Mylady and I are warm admirers of you and your adventures, and we keep all Doctor Dawson's books in our library. Maid Marian here can't get enough of adventure."
Maid Marian's smile widened, and her dark brown eyes glittered with joy.
"Oh, are you THE Basil of Baker Street? I am so happy I finally got to meet you!"
She found a book in her belongings, with Basil's picture on it. She also found a pen.
"Please Sir, if it is not too much to ask, could I have your autograph, please?"
She smiled and blushed when Basil mentioned Robin Hood.
"Thank you, Sir. I am a great admirer of Robin Hood too. And since you already know us both - would you do us the honor of coming to our wedding as our wedding guest? I think Uncle Richard will be there too. I could introduce you to him."
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Feb 28, 2009 15:19:26 GMT -5
As if meeting the famous Maid Marian wasn't enough, now Basil got to sign his very first autograph!
Beside which, he was invited to Robin Hood's wedding. And he would quite probably meet none other than King Richard the Lion-Hearted.
This was certainly shaping up to be a red-letter day. But Basil managed to control the urge to leap up, fist in the air, shouting 'Yes!'
Instead, he calmly accepted the book with a murmur of, "You flatter me, my lady," and signed it to her with perhaps a bit too much flourish.
"I am pleased that my humble adventures, such as they are, afford you some pleasure. And I would be most honoured to attend your wedding."
Go, Basil! Go, Basil!
|
|
|
Post by maidmarian on Feb 28, 2009 15:37:37 GMT -5
Maid Marian beamed with joy when she got Basil's autograph. She showed it proudly to Lady Cluck, who admired it greatly.
"Oh, thank you, Sir Basil! You have made my baby girl's day complete. To meet the most famous detective in the world was always her dream."
Maid Marian smiled and looked over at Basil, her dark brown eyes under the long, dark eyelashes glittering like stars with joy.
"Thank you very much, Sir Basil! I will treasure your autograph forever! I will tell Uncle Richard and Robin how kind you are. Uncle Richard will be the one giving me away in my wedding."
She sighed.
"I just don't hope Prince John will cause any trouble. He and Robin aren't exactly.... How to say it.... best friends?"
She laughed again.
"But let's not speak of him. If he tries anything, I am certain Robin will take care of it. I am so happy you will come to our wedding."
The famous Head Chef of the kitchen had heard of the famous guests, and now he entered the room and with a glittering smile offered his guests a special menu. He would personally prepare for them anything they required.
Maid Marian smiled and looked over at Basil.
"Basil, you are my guest tonight. Please have anything you like on the menu."
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Feb 28, 2009 15:54:11 GMT -5
Oh, he dearly liked the sound of that! But it just wouldn't do to accept a title that was not his own. Not good form, you know.
"You flatter me, my lady. But I have never been knighted. I am simply Mr. Basil, at your service."
"Yes. I met him a short while ago. Far be it for me to speak ill of any ruler of England, but...well, perhaps, as you say, the less said, the better."
"That is uncommonly kind of you, my lady."
Ignoring the menu, Basil turned to the waiter. "I wonder if you could by any chance prepare a steak-and-kidney pie."
It wasn't the sort of thing one could readily find in the colonies, but Basil had been craving some good English fare for some time.
|
|
|
Post by maidmarian on Feb 28, 2009 16:12:05 GMT -5
Maid Marian's eyes widened in childlike surprise when she heard that Basil wasn't knighted.
"What? But - but you have done so much for England! You deserve to be knighted!!!"
Lady Cluck nodded, agreed with Maid Marian like always. Maid Marian whispered to Lady Cluck.
"I have to speak to uncle Richard about this. Wouldn't it be fun if we can let Basil be knighted in our wedding?"
She listened to Basil when he spoke of Prince John. Even if he didn't say much, the unspoken words told Marian a lot about how the meeting had turned out. She smiled and looked over at Basil.
"Oh, believe me, I know. My father wanted me to marry Prince John - can you imagine? But Uncle Richard put his foot down, and Clucky and I came here to find Robin. I told him about my father's plans, and he proposed to me. Uncle Richard was so happy when I wrote and told him about it. So he said that instead of my father giving me away on my wedding day - he will give me away himself!"
Maid Marian smiled when she heard Basil order a steak-and-kidney pie. She and Lady Cluck ordered the same course. The Chef disappeared into the kitchen, and started preparing the meal.
Then the Head Waiter came over to their table and asked humbly if they would care to order something to drink. Again Maid Marian looked over to Basil and smiled.
"Go ahead, Sir Basil, guests first," she smiled.
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Feb 28, 2009 16:32:43 GMT -5
Maid Marian had quite turned his head with all her compliments, and now this!
It had always been Basil's dream to be knighted. Now visions of the ceremony performed by King Richard himself swam before his eyes, and the detective quite forgot to listen to the rest of the conversation.
|
|
|
Post by maidmarian on Feb 28, 2009 16:40:36 GMT -5
((I told you Maid Marian is his greatest fan ;D ;D ;D ))
Maid Marian looked over at Basil, noticing the expression on his face. She looked over at Lady Cluck, a bit worried.
"Oh, Clucky, do you think he is all right?" she whispered, a bit anxious.
Lady Cluck smiled to the young vixen.
"The most famous detective in the world? Of course he's all right! Aren't you, Sir Basil?"
Maid Marian looked over at Basil again, and gently placed her slender hand over his. She smiled friendly.
"If you want to meet uncle Richard, Basil, he will arrive shortly before the wedding, to make sure nobody makes problems on my wedding day. I could invite you both to tea, so you could meet him. He borrows my books about you when I have finished them. He is a fan of yours too."
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Feb 28, 2009 17:07:24 GMT -5
<<As if his ego wasn't big enough already ;) >>
Her touch recalled him to himself.
"What? Oh, yes. Quite." What had she said? Something about tea?
"Yes, tea would be splendid," replied Basil to the waiter. "Extra sugar, if you please."
|
|
|
Post by maidmarian on Mar 3, 2009 15:34:56 GMT -5
Esmeralda and Lady Cluck looked at each other, wondering what the mouse was daydreaming about. They smiled and focused their attention of him again.
The waiters soon arrived with their tea and dinner, wished them a happy meal and retreated discreetly, leaving the famous guests to enjoy their dinner.
Maid Marian and Lady Cluck enjoyed their meal. They had not expected to find English meals in America. Maid Marian turned to Basil with a smile.
"I hope the meal will be to your liking, Sir Basil? Could you please tell us of your adventures during the meal? I never tire from hearing of them."
Lady Cluck smiled and looked over at Basil too.
"You must forgive the girl, Basil. She is your greatest fan. Please take time to enjoy your meal. Then, if you have time, you can entertain us with your adventures. I too would like to hear the stories told from the great master detective himself."
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Mar 3, 2009 19:25:28 GMT -5
Although it made him positively swell with pride to be asked, Basil really wasn't very good at telling the tales of his own adventures, which is why he needed Dr. Dawson to write them up.
"Oh, a few of my cases did pose some fairly interesting problems," he said with typical British understatement. And he launched into a narrative about an early blackmail case, which might've been quite entertaining.
Only Basil tended to dwell on the minute details rather too much for his audience, while glossing over the more exciting parts.
Still, he got through the tale eventually, enjoying himself immensely.
"So, by replacing the incriminating photograph of his lordship with one of my own making, one so badly done and so obviously fraudulent, I not only saved a nobleman's reputation, but also ruined the blackmailer's at the same time. You see?"
<<If not, don't worry. Basil didn't make his tale as clear as one would hope. ;) >
|
|