"He put his mouth where?" Liara exclaimed

"Please don't make me say it again." Verushka blushed, endeavouring not to melt into the floor.

"In the pantry?!" Mina scrunched up her face with undisguised distaste.

"Well, perhaps he was hungry." Liara grinned facetiously.

"Liara!" Both maids shouted in horror.

"Don't, 'Liara' me. I'm not the one soiling our sacred space."

"I wasn't 'soiling' anything." Verushka scowled, her cheeks burning with embarrassment. "I don't even know why I told you two."

"Sure you do," Liara affirmed, reaching over to swipe the untouched pancake from her friend's plate. "Mina weaselled it out of you. And if you hadn't wanted to be found out, you shouldn't have called Mel to clean up the pantry, because she was obviously going to confide in Daniel who told Cynthia who mentioned it to Jeff who blabbed to me."

"I didn't call Mel!" Verushka wailed in her defence. "It must have been Cain."

"The result is still the same." Mina shrugged. "You can't keep secrets from me."

"Speaking of Cain," Liara commented between mouthfuls of maple syrup. "Don't you have to go meet him and the Queen soon?"

Verushka nodded and quickly grabbed two slices of toast with a thick slab of cheese in the middle and shoved it in her mouth as she headed for the door.

"You know, I still don't understand why you don't melt that cheese like every normal person when you make cheesy toast." Mina called out, clearly worried about what was now a regular occurrence.

"It's madness I tell you. Madness." Liara concurred.

Verushka rolled her eyes and waved back at her friends, glad for their quick moment of peace in a usually busy kitchen. "Bye! Wish me luck."

"I don't know how much more luck we should offer you. Any more felicitations and Her Majesty will need to sanitise her sitting room."

"Liara!" Verushka screeched as she fell through the large kitchen doors onto the other side. Picking herself up, she dusted the bread crumbs off her Buckingham Palace apron and ignored the muffled laughter behind her.

Throwing on a large overcoat to hide the royal insignia Verushka walked quickly in the direction of Pall Mall. She hesitated for a moment to appreciate the morning light as it reflected off the large glass windows of the Palace as she approached its open U-shape that was somehow inviting and forbidding at the same time. Verushka listened to the nearby fountains of St James Park that soothed the constant rumble of wagon wheels in the dirt and wondered at all the people who wished and dreamed of seeing within those royal walls, and those who dared not even dream it.

To her right was Green Park, where she had caught Victoria's eye the day before in the crush of the crowds and her life had immeasurably changed. And, now she was about to venture where no bastard born kitchen maid was ever to have likely ventured before. Her heart beat beneath her breast in tandem with the clambering of carriages down the road. Was she even ready for such an upheaval to her existence? She questioned the beating of butterfly wings in her stomach. Whether she was or not, Queen Victoria was waiting for her and even Verushka knew that one should never keep a Queen waiting.

She stashed her coat behind an overgrown fern and greeted the nearest guard with a tentative smile as she entered the Royal Mews. Several horses pawed in their stables as the morning's oats and hay were tossed and grooms busied themselves with polishing their prime stock. Multitudes of staff traversed the courtyard in a flurry of activity as an odd pack comprised of a greyhound, spaniel, and deerhound nipped playfully at their heels.

Verushka ignored the interesting tableau and turned right to follow the path east. She skirted the riding school where Her Majesty's horses could be heard cantering and snuffling within as they were put through their paces. Edging away from the open stable doors, she put some distance between herself and the calls of grooms behind her readying the next team of horses and walked swiftly beneath the overhanging mulberry trees. Rays of sunlight filtered through the voluminous soft leaves, eventually giving way to a vista unlike any other Verushka had seen.

The southern façade of Buckingham Palace rose up from the curving path. It dominated the far end of the lawn beyond the central lake. Huge limestone blocks posed a smooth uncluttered surface for the perfect angles and lines of the numerous windows that ran along the length of every floor. Verushka paused for a moment. The imposing beauty of the building from the eastern front was nothing compared to its garden view, reserved only for the resident royals of the house. Rolling green gardens wrapped the back terrace and widespread branches concealed high exterior walls to block out the rumble of London's distant traffic. Its front held all the pomp of court, while the back incorporated the peaceful serenity of the country.

Verushka fixed her eyes on the glass panelled conservatory closest to her and remembered the detailed instructions of her mentor. Dodging through the Grecian style columns that lined the rectangular building, she aimed for the exterior door directly ahead that would lead into the servants' quarters. Numerous trades people, builders, mason workers and maids traversed the area with an unabashed slovenly pace, their behaviour ill-fitting with the grandeur of the premise they stood upon. Verushka avoided meeting their gazes and dashed free of the last of the stone shadows and darted forth until she was flush against the surface of the house proper. Ordered scrapes and scurries were audible within, unlike the chaos of many other homes of London's ton and Verushka self-consciously dusted her apron.

Turning the faded brass handle she entered a workroom of sorts that may have once been the kitchens but sections were being pulled apart and furniture removed with the painstaking persistence of servants who knew that their tasks were nowhere near completion. No one paid her any attention bar the keen eyes of a young serving girl attempting to sew by the poor filtered light of an upper window. Verushka hesitantly smiled and ran her fingers over a worn table surface as if checking for dust.

"Ow!" Verushka exclaimed, pulling up the tip of her index digit for examination. A small splinter stuck out accusingly at her flimsy attempt at deception. She attempted to pick out the tip with the broken nails of her other hand when she heard a small giggle from nearer the hearth.

"You know, the light is better here." The young maid offered.

Verushka's shoulders sagged with defeat. "Thank you. Do you mind?" She gestured to the spot nearer to the window.

"Not at all," the girl responded politely.

Verushka tottered over and scrutinised her now red and painful fingertip. She had managed to push the tiny fragment of wood even further into her skin and any further progress looked to be minimal.

"Would you like some help?" the maid queried kindly. "I have the use of this needle and experience with three boisterous brothers to recommend my skill."

"What do you plan on doing?" Verushka's lips scrunched up warily.

"I can pluck it out carefully, or at very least more gently than you are able to. Surely that is preferable to your current predicament?"

"Ok," Verushka squawked, thrusting her wounded appendage in the direction of the maid. "Please help."

Not one to endure the sight of blood, Verushka averted her eyes and focused on the busy staff around them. "What is happening here? Why is everything being moved?"

"You don't know?" The other maid ceased her pricking momentarily.

"I'm new," Verushka explained quickly.

"Oh, that explains why I haven't seen you before. There are so many new staff that I feel a bit lost sometimes and I was born here!"

"Born here?" Verushka's head snapped back and then quickly focused on the soot stained wall and an intriguing line of inquiry instead. It never hurt to be well informed.

"Oh, yes. Fourth generation servant to Buckingham House. Not quite to the mulberry gardens of King James but certainly part of King George the Third's household," she preened. "My name is Judith, Judy for short."

"Nice to meet you Judy," Verushka nodded, reluctant to share her name. "I'm... Sarah."

"Well, Sarah if you need any help getting around here just let me know. I'm one of the maids to the Queen and her ladies in waiting. I'm not usually down in the hovels here but I've been displaced due to all the constructions going on. That's the reasons for the chaos. Since Her Majesty's marriage to Prince Albert, they have decided that the Palace needs a number of renovations."

"What could possibly be wrong with a Palace?" Verushka winced at a particularly painful pin prick.

"Plenty," Judith laughed. "A few of the toilets are not ventilated, the bells don't ring, and many of the thousand windows here don't open. The Queen has only been in residence for the last three years and before then it was practically empty so it didn't seem necessary for us to keep cleaning all the furnaces and ensure the plumbing was, well, flowing."

"Ew," Verushka couldn't help utter.

"Yup, 'ew' is right. It also doesn't help that Baroness Lehzen is here, supplanting our housekeeper and it feels like the staff are being deliberately difficult just to spite her. Oh, I shouldn't even be saying these things but there is something in your demeanour that makes it so easy." Judith eyed her curiously. "But, I s'pose we will be fast friends soon so it hardly matters. Anyway, I'm almost done. One last jab, ready?"

Verushka whimpered her assent and felt a sudden sharp poke into the flesh of her hand. "Ahhh," she yowled and stuck the wounded tip into her mouth.

"Finished." Judith grinned.

"Thank woo," Verushka mumbled around her wet finger. "Wery muth."

"No problem at all. Let me know any time you need a hand. Working in a big house can be very difficult sometimes. Which part are you assigned to?"

"Oh," Verushka startled, overacting her surprise to avoid answering. "I'm late! Sorry Judy, I have to go. I'll see you later."

"Bye" Judith called out as Verushka headed left out the side door. "I'll keep an eye out for you."

Worryingly, Verushka was certain that her new friend would do just that. If she had learnt anything, it was that the quiet girls sitting by the hearth and watching the world around them were the keenest eyes in any household.

Verushka tumbled into the house proper, down a long gallery carpeted in rich red and lined with marble busts of people she assumed were once very important. Turning right she swiftly walked to the eastern end and searched for any discernible door, but there was none. Verushka felt along the white panelled walls with dextrous fingers, minus one, however no secret panel yielded to her touch. Plonking herself on a silk upholstered chaise she bit her lip and frowned at her surroundings. Perhaps the Duchess was wrong. With all the new renovations, it was conceivable that the side entry that bordered the servants quarters and the State rooms were blocked.

"What now?" she exhaled, exasperated.

"Now you stop soiling that chair with your dirty bottom and refrain from keeping our Queen waiting." The Duchess of Bexley slid opened a door flush with the wall to reveal a tiny antechamber that rivalled a closet for size.

"Awk!" Verushka fell of her chair. She struggled to her feet and vaguely remembered to curtsy. "Sorry, Your Grace. I didn't see you there."

"Clearly." The Duchess winked before her eyes flicked to an insignificant stain on Verushka's uniform. "Why is it that these days you always appear to have blood on you? At least this time it appears to be your own."

"Ah..yes, Your Grace," Verushka stammered. "I just-."

"Tell me later," her mentor smiled with swift reassurance. "The Queen is waiting."

Verushka gulped.

A second panel on the far side of the Duchess's cupboard clicked open as the Secret Service's Director slipped into the shadows and pushed Verushka's unwilling form through to the other side.

"So kind of you to join us," Queen Victoria commented blithely from the end of a cavernous hall.

****

V for Verushka. 

V for Vote

V.O.T.E !

A/N:

Sorry about the short chapter, but we are getting to the stage where even the smallest details take up a lot of research time. My nose is buried in  historical books, architects floorplans from 1840 and Victoria's journals! I thought you would appreciate even a small update such as this, and I hope I was not wrong.  :) 

xx Inara

Queen Victoria's Pets: Queen Victoria had numerous pets, most notably her Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Dash who was originally given to Victoria's mother, the Duchess of Kent, on 14 January 1833 by Sir John Conroy, the Comptroller of the Duchess's household. Her Majesty's Favourite Pets, painted by Landseer in 1838, shows the spaniel Dash, Lory the parrot, the greyhound Nero and deerhound Hector.

Buckingham Palace:  The marsh swamp grounds of the palace were originally part of the Manor of Ebury in the middle ages and went through several changes of owner as well as architectural design before it formed part of the mulberry gardens of James I in the 17th century and eventually formed the principal royal residence in 1837, on the accession of Queen Victoria. While the were a riot of gilt and colour, the necessities of the new palace were somewhat less luxurious. For example, the chimneys smoked so much that the fires had to be allowed to die down, and consequently the court shivered in icy magnificence.Ventilation was so bad that the interior smelled, and when it was decided to install gas lamps, there was a serious worry about the build-up of gas on the lower floors. It was also said that staff were lax and lazy and the palace was dirty. 

The Conservatory: The Chapel was created by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in 1844 in what had been designed by John Nash as a conservatory in the south west corner of Buckingham Palace. It was bombed in World War II (1939-45), and converted into the Queen's Gallery in the 1960s. It currently displays items from the royal collection

Johanna Clara Louise Lehzen: (3 October 1784 – 9 September 1870), better known as Baroness Louise Lehzen, was the governess, and later adviser and companion, to Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. Lehzen and the Queen were very close, especially in the absence of her own mother's love, and Victoria came to rely on her heavily.

Glossary:

Pall Mall: is a street in the St James's area of the City of Westminster, Central London. It connects StJames's Street to TrafalgarSquare and is a section of the regional A4road. The street's name is derived from 'pall-mall', a ball game played there during the 17th century. 

Sanitary (adj): 1823, "pertaining to health," from French sanitaire (1812), from Latin sanitas "health," from sanus"healthy. I had to look this one up to ensure the word was time period appropriate!

School: Horses are often exercised under human control, ridden or competed within designated fenced or enclosed places, usually called schools, pens or arenas. These can be of almost any size, provided they are sufficiently large for a horse to move freely, and can be located indoors or outdoors.