milliways_bar | (no subject)

As usual at this hour the kitchen is deserted apart from Gil and the rats. Much though he values his staff he quite likes these quiet times when he can just potter around at his own pace.

Sooty is sleeping - sort of - and the Bar is quiet and breakfasts and lunches are all prepared and ready to go.

"What shall I do, Ratty?" Gil asks. "Even dinner is easy tonight - chicken casserole, spinach and ricotta quiche and beefsteak with chips, onions rings and peas."

Ratty, trying to impress upon the remaining eight baby rats the importance of staying out from under peoples' feet, squeaks unsympathetically that she has enough trouble thinking for her offspring without doing it for him and he grins at the babies' sympathetic looks.

"All right," he says. "In that case - since I haven't done much to help with the building I'm going to do some decorating. There are lots of walls that need some undercoat - it's hardly skilled work. Then at least I can say I've done something to help."

Ratty squeaks loudly and chases him across the room to the back door with the babies whooping in pursuit.

"Of course," Gil protests, rolling his eyes. "I know where the dustsheets are kept. No, I won't. Yes, I'll be careful. I won't go up ladders on my own." Then he sighs and looks down at Ratty with a frown. "I can read you know! Emuslion is for walls and gloss is for woodwork. Even I can't get those muddled up, they smell different."

He smiles at her, waves at the babies and goes to the new wing. Ten minutes later, happily perched on a ladder, he is applying white emulsion to the magically dried plaster work and humming to himself.

It's almost as much fun as cooking.