Eden at Yuletide // Lindensea 4

XVII. The Children's Party

The morning of the children's party dawned bright, cold, and very still, but nobody had time to think about the weather. 

The party was to be held in the Princess Alice room; on the second floor, it was painted a pretty blue, and its high windows overlooked the east lawn. Maids had cleaned and polished the room until it gleamed, and now nimble footmen were busy climbing ladders to decorate it. Lucy dashed from one task to another, still lugging the leather binder with her; helping here, advising there.

"The children from the home are getting here in two hired omnibuses after tea," Lucy addressed her team of volunteers, which now included Otto and Sebastian. "There will be guards on the door to make sure nobody wanders off, and children can only use the bathrooms inside the room itself."

"Grown ups can use the bathrooms across the hallway," Otto added. "We don't want too many people in them at once."  

"Anything else we need to know?" Roderick asked.

"Nobody is allowed to open that big cupboard at the back of the room during the party," Lucy said, pointing to it. "It says so in the book."

"What's in the cupboard?" asked Penelope.

"Absolutely nothing," Lucy said. "You can see for yourself if you want."

They all trooped over and examined the built-in cupboard. It was tall, wide, and had double doors; when opened, it revealed only a large empty space with no shelving. The back of the cupboard had an intricate design, which seemed odd for an otherwise very plain cupboard.

"I can't imagine why nobody is allowed to see inside this empty cupboard of mystery," said Aubrey.

"Probably so that a child doesn't shut themselves into it by mistake," Otto suggested.

"Is there a key to it?" Eden asked. "If we kept it locked, then nobody could get in."

"No, it can't be locked from the outside," said Lucy, sounding slightly harassed. "We just have to keep people away from this part of the room."

"We hear and obey," said Sebastian, giving Lucy a salute. "We do not question orders, my captain."

"There's tons of greenery brought in for decorations," Lucy said, changing the subject. "Yesterday some of us worked all afternoon and evening to tie them into wreaths and garlands with ribbons and baubles, and colour them with paint."

"My fingernails are still stained silver and gold," Aubrey moaned.

"Oh stop bragging about your pretty nails," Roderick said with a smirk.

"Otto, you're the tallest, so could you please help the footmen hang evergreens around the ceiling, and anything high up?" Lucy said. "Roddy, Aubrey, and Penelope, I'm putting you on general decorating duty. Walls, picture frames, candles – if you see a space, cover it with holly and ivy."

"What would you like me to do, Lucy?" Eden asked.

"Would you and Sebastian mind doing the Yule tree?" asked Lucy. "The decorations are in that big box next to it, and I'll help whenever I can." She raced away to supervise Otto and the footmen.

The Yule tree was a tall holly, pruned into a conical shape, covered in bright red berries, and planted in a sturdy wooden container that had been painted dark green.

Sebastian looked at Eden and said with a smile, "Well, Lucy has favoured us. Decorating the tree is by far the most enjoyable job. Shall I do the higher branches?"

"It's probably for the best," Eden admitted, moving towards the box of decorations.

"It feels a bit ungallant of me to suggest it though," Sebastian said as he opened the box. "The lower branches are the ones with prickly leaves, for some reason."