A bead of sweat ran down the side of Ellis’ face. Beside him, Mary sat with a tense expression. Feeling his stare, Mary looked up and made eye contact with Ellis, sharing in his pain and anxiety. Then, they looked away from each other.
“Alright!” Ellis blurted out. “I got it.”
Mary held her breath.
Ellis extended his hand over the table and splayed his fingers wide. With a fearful tremor, he reached down and hovered over a piece of cut venison. He hesitated, steeling himself for what was to come. Then, he reached down and pinched his fingers around the piece of meat. Suddenly, a wooden spoon cut through the air and slapped the back of his hand.
“Ow!”
Mary gasped at the suddenness of it all.
Avenell hung his head and leaned back in his chair. Meanwhile, Gertrude withdrew the spoon and tapped it menacingly against the palm of her hand.
“Wrong!” she declared. “The meat is to be taken between the thumb and first two fingers only!”
Ellis rubbed the back of his hand.
“And,” Avenell added, “You should always offer first to those around you. Do not take the best cuts of meat for yourself.”
“But—”
Gertrude slapped the spoon on the table, cutting him off. Ellis yelped and sat up straight. Satisfied, Gertrude nodded and began to quiz them once again.
“And if the food is too hot?”
“Wait for it to cool. Do not blow on it.”
“And if you have to belch?”
“Hold it in.”
“When should you begin eating?”
“After the host has been seated.”
“Do you then wait? Or do you immediately start to eat?”
“Wait politely a few minutes before beginning to eat.”
“And to whom should you speak?”
“Only to those who are near to you, or those who address you personally.”
“And should you need to raise your voice?”
“You should refrain from ever raising your voice in the dining hall.”
Gertrude nodded once more, satisfied with their answers. Then, Gertrude turned her ruthless attention towards Mary and stared her down.
“If you were to see a juicy slab of mutton, Mary? What would you do?”
She gulped.
“I…”
Gertrude slowly ran her thumb along the handle of the spoon as she waited.
“I would pretend to be disinterested.”
Gertrude nodded slowly.
“And if you are handed a cup from which to drink?”
“Be sure the upper lip is fully clean before partaking.”
“Good. Master Avenell?”
Avenell cleared his throat and leaned toward the table.
“What will happen when you enter the hall first?”
They looked at each other.
“The porter will take our weapons,” Ellis started.”But we must be sure to keep a knife for cutting.”
“Then we must ask permission to enter the hall,” Mary added. “Take off all hats, hoods, and gloves. Then we must approach the dais and greet the hosts.”
Avenell accepted these answers, then shared a look with Gertrude. Seated in the corner of the room, and in full view of this unfolding scene, was Telhari. Avenell and Gertrude had spoken with Telhari many weeks ago regarding the basic rules of etiquette in Omnirius. He had, unsurprisingly, been very quick to learn it; and so he simply presided over Ellis and Mary in their final lessons. But now, Avenell leaned himself away from the table and addressed all three of them together.
“I cannot say for certain of the seating arrangements, but I can venture a guess. As you all know, guests will be seated on the outside of the tables, whilst the staff serves the courses from within. It is a stark difference to the way we feast here. Guests of honor are typically seated at the dais and will dine with the Advisory council members and near the heads of state. However, because there will be many dignitaries from the other nations of the empire, it is hard to say who may be seated where.” Avenell rubbed his chin a few times as he thought. “Master Telhari…I am guessing that both you and Sir Perry may be seated on the dais as you are both honored guests in name.”
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Gertrude then turned an eye to Ellis and Mary.
“It is likely that the two of you will be seated elsewhere,” she added. “Along with Ingrid. Normally, children of the honored guest would sit with their parents, however—”
Avenell gave her a look and she stopped immediately.
“My apologies…”
“Its alright,” Ellis said. Though, it was obvious this fact was not lost on him.
Avenell placed an empathetic hand on the table and looked at Ellis.
“If Sir Perry could have his way, he would choose to sit with the two of you. You know this, don’t you?”
They nodded.
“You may be honored guests,” Gertrude added, “But this night is not about you. Nor is it truly about Lord Mannigold…or even you, Master Telhari.”
Mary twiddled her thumbs in her lap as she listened. She was fairly confident in her ability to remember what she had been taught, but she still could not shake this feeling of being out of place. This was something she could never have imagined happening— even in her wildest of dreams.
While it was true that Sir Perry — and yes, even Avenell and Gertrude— cared for them both, the fact remained that they were not Perry’s by blood. Ellis was his nephew by oath only. And Mary? Well, that was something different entirely. Perry’s goodhearted nature and warm temperament had ultimately shielded them from the peculiarity of their situation.
They were commoners in the favor of a Lord.
Kept within his estate and provided for by his wealth. And ever since they had worked with Byles not too long ago, they had both been forced to acknowledge this fact. However, they also had tremendously little experience interacting with other nobility. The last time that either of them had encountered other nobility was in the courtyard of Lord Thistletwat’s manor; and that had hardly gone over well. This time, there was no room for error.
“Let’s keep going,” Mary said suddenly.
Avenell and Gertrude shared a look.
“Alright,” Avenell said as he adjusted himself in his chair. “Let’s see…Ellis.”
Ellis snapped to.
“Yes?”
“I know you like to eat all the meat off the bone,” Avenell said as he wagged his finger, “But you must never chew on the bone. Cut all the meat off first.”
“But why not?”
“Because dogs chew on bones,” Gertrude snapped.
“And, you must be sure to not finish everything on your plate.”
Mary and Ellis both looked up suddenly.
“What!?” they cried in unison.
Avenell shook his head as he spoke.
“The almoner will come to collect the left overs and distribute them to the poor. If you eat everything, you will look stingy. Greedy. It will seem like you are desperate for food.”
“But what if it’s really, really good!?”
“No.”
“But…”
Ellis could feel a tear at the corner of his eye. The thought of not being able to finish delicious food was a travesty of the highest order. Mary patted him on the back, but it did little to ease his aching heart.
“Oh my!” Gertrude said, suddenly. “We forgot to practice with the drinking cup!”
At once, she stood up and ran over to a wooden box which sat in the corner of the room. They heard the clanking of metal and wood as she rifled through the utensils.
“We know how to drink,” Ellis said with a laugh.
“This is different,” Gertrude insisted. “Ah! Here it is.” She pulled from a box an ornate looking silver chalice. It was a bit rustic, but its quality was undeniable. Gertrude took a handkerchief from her pocket and began to wipe it off. “In the barracks hall we use our wooden cups for drinking,” she said. “Mostly because the men have no patience. However, at events such as these, silverware is used to present fine wine and other beverages to the guests.” Satisfied with her work, she brought the silver chalice over to a bucket and filled it with water. Then, she continued to speak as she walked it carefully over to the table. “This vessel is a show of wealth, and its use is an exercise in temperance and generosity.”
Ellis and Mary eyed the cup as she placed it on the table between them. They shared a look with each other and then eyed the liquid.
“So…what do we do?”
Gertrude drew her sleeve back and gestured to the cup.
“First, the men will offer the chalice to the women. To show their respect and to demonstrate chivalry.”
Ellis’ face grew red. He stared down at the cup and watched his reflection ripple in the water.
“Ellis?” Gertrude asked in a commanding tone. “Offer the cup to Mary.”
He reached out, wrapping his fingers around the chalice stem, and lifted. With a slow, deliberate movement, Ellis brought the cup over the plate of food and held it out to Mary. It took a few moments before she made eye contact with him.
“Now,” Gertrude instructed, “Take the chalice, and thank Ellis.”
Mary reached out her hand slowly and nodded her head toward him.
“Thank you,” she said in a soft voice.
Mary brought her hand around the bowl of the chalice; and as she wrapped her fingers around it, Ellis slowly withdrew his own. For a brief moment, their fingers touched, and Ellis felt a jolt move through him. His face grew red and he turned away.
“Now,” Gertrude continued, “Take a sip — though not too much— and hand it back to him.”
Ellis watched from the corner of his eyes as Mary brought her lips to the chalice and drank from within: taking a tiny sip as instructed. Then, she lowered the cup from her mouth and handed it back to Ellis.
He stared down at the cup for a few moments, eying intently the spot that she had just drank from.
“Quickly, Ellis,” Avenell said, “The longer you take, the longer everyone else has to wait.”
Ellis swallowed hard. Then, he took the cup from Mary and brought it to his mouth.
Thwack!
“Ow!”
Ellis choked on the water at the sudden pain. Gertrude withdrew the wooden spoon and shook her head at him.
“What was that for!?”
“We do not drink from where someone else has placed their lips.”
Ellis’ hand began to throb.
“Why didn’t you say so?”
“Here,” Gertrude commanded, as she tossed a handkerchief at him. “Clean yourself up.”
He grabbed it and gave her a sour look.
“Hmph.”
As Ellis wiped the water from his face and clothes, the sound of heavy footsteps approached. Then, the door swung open and Perry stepped into the room.
