Temporal Exploring 101 - Deep Future

IV.25 End-of-holiday blues and a farewell party

"I can't believe the holidays are almost over," Nancy mused. She turned towards her cousin. "When is your flight back to California, Madison? On Saturday, or Sunday?"

Madison sighed. "On Sunday afternoon already."

Nancy's cousin was in a much better mood after her girlfriend Ally had called to inform her that their friend Fabian's condition was no longer critical and he had been transferred from the intensive care unit to a normal hospital bed.

Nancy nodded. "Makes sense. My parents have planned that grand farewell party for you on Saturday night. You are going to meet all your aunts and uncles and cousins and nieces and nephews and whatnot. Altogether about fifty of them, no less."

The other girl made a face. "Oh joy."

Nancy laughed. "It's not as bad or boring as you may think. Well, not quite as boring. To be sure, there's going to be plenty of stuffy old folks. But there's also your uncle William, who likes to think of himself as a modern-day dandy. And there is your cousin Felicitas. She is cool and real funny, I am sure you are going to like her."

"Well, maybe so." Madison did not appear to be entirely convinced. "Anyhow, I have had an extremely interesting vacation so far. Let's see."

She started to tick off all the exciting incidents and adventures on her fingers.

"I got to take part in an investigation related to the disappearance of several women and of a mysterious tycoon. I got to drive a Rolls. And I got my butt spanked. Twice," she added with a rueful smile. "Also, I witnessed Cathy scaling the wall of an apartment building and getting arrested."

"Kindly do not remind me of that," I muttered.

But it was another part of her cousin's list of incidents which drew Nancy's attention.

"Twice?" she asked. "What do you mean, twice?"

Madison was looking sheepish. "Well, yeah. Turns out Ms Cavernough informed your parents about the cognac incident, and they decided that the governess ought to have another word with me, about that. Which, you know, she did."

"Ouch. Sorry to hear that, Cousin. Anyhow, I appreciate that you kept your silence about the rest of us being involved, in that incident."

"It was my idea in the first place, and it was me who broke into your dad's liquor cabinet."  Madison shrugged. "Anyhow, let's get back to the map Cathy took from that guy's apartment, shall we?" she added, in an effort to change the subject. 

Natty, stretched out on the sofa and meditatively plucking on the strings of Madison's guitar, cleared her throat. "Like I said, that map looks more like the sort of sketch you find in fantasy novels than like a real map. You know, the sort of map where physical distances are not depicted very accurately. Like, a ride on horseback all the way across the western plain takes about ten days, and then fifty pages later you learn that the protagonists negotiate a distance that ought to be comparable, at least according to the map, within a single day."

Madison grinned. "I know what you are talking about."

"I have a feeling that map is merely meant to remind you of certain landmarks you are supposed to pass by in a certain order, on your way from A to B," Natty added.

"That sounds reasonable," I said. "The question is, what are A and B, here? And why would you want to visit B in the first place?"

"All the labels on the map look like they might be in the old Welsh language, Cymraeg. We need to show the map to our classmate Erin to make sure, though, and to possibly make sense of it," Nancy suggested.

I yawned. "Sounds like a plan."

Natty plunged into a spirited rendition of Bob Dylan's 'The answer is blowing in the wind', accompanying herself on Madison's guitar.

I had to admit that, in spite of my initial doubts of Natty's musical talent, she had made considerable progress. Once again, I had underestimated her patience and tenacity when it came to teaching herself a new skill.

"You're getting better and better, Natty," I acknowledged, when she was done with the song.

"Yes, doesn't she?" Madison agreed.

Natty blushed and grinned as she put the guitar aside. "You are just saying that to make me feel good."

"No, not at all."

As the weekend approached, I noticed how people, myself included,  were starting to feel oddly wistful at the prospect of Madison leaving.

Nancy's cousin could be brash and wilful to the point of rudeness, but she also was passionate about causes such as the Civil Rights Movement and the Free Speech Movement, and she did care about her friends. For some reason I could not comprehend, the staff at Kerrington Manor seemed to love her – well, with the possible exception of Ms Cavernough.

True to form, Madison showed up late at the ball on Saturday evening. Most of the visitors had already arrived when she entered the great ballroom. Nancy's cousin was wearing a fashionable but extremely brief black dress that showed off her sun-tanned thighs, eliciting appreciative looks – and in some cases, whispered comments – not only by male guests.

Lady Kerrington welcomed her and graciously led her around, introducing her to each and every one of the visitors.

Although the party was turning out a bit like Madison had feared – the guests were for the most part middle-aged or elderly people, and admittedly a bit on the stuffy side – I was not really feeling bored. For one thing, there was Cousin William, the 'dandy', who could tell wonderfully witty but supposedly true stories about several of the other party guests, and who was perhaps the first real non-conformist I had encountered among British nobility in the 1960s, up to that point. He made no secret of his admiration for the poet and playwright Oscar Wilde whom he constantly quoted and referred to. I strongly suspected that Cousin William was gay and that this was known but not openly acknowledged by the rest of the company.

There was also Cousin Felicitas whom Nancy had mentioned earlier and who as I learned was active in the London art scene.

Last but not least there was an extremely large and appetizing buffet.

All this helped to make the party a huge success, even with Madison herself. As it turned out William and Felicitas were not the only ones interested in the issues and topics that were dear to Madison's heart. Soon Nancy's cousin found herself at the center of a lively discussion.

The event continued into the early next morning, and nobody even thought about sending my friends and me to bed.

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