The Ill-mannered Door (humorous sci-fi)

30.3: A Time for Tea

Derek sprang from his chair. "We have to go after her! Muriel, can we borrow that from you?" He said, pointing at the cube that she still clutched in her hand as she stared at the stain of his spilled tea on her white rug.

"I'm sorry, dear, what?" Muriel asked, coming out of a daze.

"We need to go after her and we'll need that," Derek said, pointing again to the cube, "to get the Bounty through the portal to Earth."

"Wait just a moment, how can you possibly know that?" I asked Derek.

"Yes, how do you?" the king said.

"That isn't important. We have to get after the queen..." Derek trailed off, rubbing his chin with a far off look in his eyes before he said, "Muriel, does she know?"

"Know, dear?"

"Does she know who you were, who her father was?" Derek asked.

I said, "Please, I'm sure she knew who her father was--"

"Does she know?!" Derek said, entirely more sternly than I was comfortable with. After all, Muriel was a sweet woman, she had been wonderfully hospitable to us, and her fresh baked biscuits were absolutely smashing. And, with that thought, I went back to munching.

Muriel sat up straight and somehow managed to look down her nose at Derek from her seated position as she said, "Of course she knows."

The color seemed to drain from Derek's face before he said, "That's it. We have to go after her right now."

Before there could be any response, in a flash, Derek snatched the cube from Muriel's hand and headed for the front door, calling back over his shoulder, "We'll bring this back if we can. Sorry about the tea."

The king and I looked at each other awkwardly as we set down our mugs and rose. I quickly stuffed the rest of my biscuits into the pocket of my pink dressing-gown before crossing to stand before Muriel.

"Thank you, Muriel, for everything. You've been most gracious to us, and your biscuits were delicious!" I said, shaking her hand before heading after Derek, who had already stashed the cube somewhere and retrieved his duffles from where they had waited by the front door.

Derek then opened the door and hurried out, but I lingered in the doorway, hesitant to leave such a pleasant home.

The king also thanked Muriel, but when he made to leave, she gripped his arm and said in a voice of one who is long used to being obeyed, "Don't let my Esmerelda get any further than Earth. They'll kill her if she does. Promise me, Barry."

He nodded and said, "You have my word, Muriel."

She peered deep into his eyes for an uncomfortable moment, then nodded once before releasing him.

He bowed, ever so slightly, and then hurried out the door after Derek.

"Oh, and Thomas?" Muriel said as she turned her gaze upon me.

"Yes, ma'am?"

"That goes for you as well."

"Yes, ma'am," I said. Then, with a small bow of my own and a wave, I also went out and closed the door behind us.

I stood upon the front step for a brief moment, my head spinning with what I had heard. I must admit that I didn't understand even half of what was going on, and Derek was way ahead of me, both in terms of information and physical distance. In fact, he was already out of sight, so I jogged down the garden path. It was high time I got some answers from him.

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Which characters are the most interesting to you?

Which are the least, and what could be done to improve them?

What do you think has gotten into Derek?