A new friend

Jeeves let out a chuckle. The young were always so full of life and energy, and it would seem that Miss Priscilla was by no means an exception.

"Then, you've been to the wrong museums m'lady. Though admittedly, this one isn't so bad"

It was a bit too modern for Jeeves' personal taste. He prefered Louvre, but there was little reason to spoil her fun. He found that the older he got, the more he indulged the young.

"Yes yes, I'm comming, I'm comming" he said, and followed her through.

Priscilla stopped in her tracks after entering the museum. She turned each way, taking in all the artifacts on display.

"Thank you so much for showing me this place.", she smiled at Jeeves. "Look at this!", her voice was studious now, as her eyes studied the sculpture before her, "This is one of the two Early Dynastic Period limestone lions. You can see it's been repaired. There have only been a few finds from Koptos, Egypt in that period, two lions and two or three statues. When the locals rebelled against Diocletian's rule, the city was destroyed, leaving hardly any remains to tell us the story of this once great city." She eyed the limestone lion before her, taking note of the worn look to it. But the way it lay there, majestic in its' time and still holding the same majestic power now, even though encased, was mesmerizing to her.

Priscilla was almost oblivious to anything else around her, absent-mindedly talking to herself with brief historical facts on certain peices of art.

"Ohh Mr. Jeeves, this is all so wonderful. Some of the most precious things in the world are resting within these walls. Some of these things are from artists I've never heard of, but hold such beauty, I plan to study up on them when I get the chance." She put his hand lightly in hers and squeezed gently as she gave him a look of 'thanks', releasing his hand she moved on to the next piece of art which was hanging on the wall.

If Jeeves had been surprised by her enthusiasm before, he was now quite overwhelmed. He felt a bit like a tree in a hurricane. Luckily for Jeeves he was a willow and not an oak, so when the winds blew too fast, he simple leaned in the general direction. He knew most of the things she were saying, he had after all had four times the time to get to know them in.

"Pity to remove those poor lions from their Egyption homes I'd say..."

and with a chuckle he followed her on.

"For me a picture has to be something pleasant, delightful and pretty...yes, pretty. There are enough unpleasant things in the world without us producing more. That's what Pierre-Auguste Renoir said. Look at this! His painting, 'By the Seashore', I wonder who the woman is in the picture." she asked.

Further down she commented on another painting, "Oh, Leonardo da Vinci. Did you know he was a vegatarian? He thought the murder of animals to be as bad as the murder of humans, but oddly enough, at one point in his life, he designed miltary weapons."

After awhile of walking around, Cilla started to notice her feet getting tired. She turned to Jeeves, "Would you mind if we call it a night, Mr. Jeeves? I beleive the museum will be closing soon, and I have to admit, I'm a bit on the tired side. You must be as well."

Jeeves looked at the painting for a moment, then replied

"When you're old and grey like I, you will probably see it a bit different. Pleasent, delightful, pretty....hmm...they're good, good for young people. Young people need ideals. At my age you will want beauty and contrast. Something to puzzle your mind and please your eyes"

He followed her to the Da Vinci.
"Designed the machine gun...he was also homosexual I believe....though I guess there is an odd sense in creating things to destroy the only animal capable of actual evil"

"Tired? Ohh, not really. I am rather used to working late I'm afraid. But please, allow me to escort you back to your hotel"

"Tired? Ohh, not really. I am rather used to working late I'm afraid. But please, allow me to escort you back to your hotel"

"I appreciate that very much Mr. Jeeves." Priscilla said with a smile. As she made her way back towards the exit, she was still observing everything in the museum. "I'll have to return here when I have more time to look around."

As she walked, she wondered about the man beside her. He looked old enough to be her pappa's age, he seemed very intelligent, and had an old world charm that she had caught glimpses of throughout her brief time while in his company. "If I may ask you, what is it you do?", she continued her slow stride to the exit.

"Yes, I'm sure the museum will be there tomorrow as well" he said with a smile.

"I am...a butler...and a manservant for Sir Aron Swiftwood. Rather old-fashioned I suppose, but I enjoy it all the same. The benefits are incredible"

He chuckled lightly. The benefits were incredible indeed, had made him older than any human he knew of.

"Ohh, how interesting Mr. Jeeves! I hope you don't take this the wrong way, but I've never met a butler before. Do you and Mr. Swiftwood get along as friends or is he one of those snobby people you often see in movies or read about in books. Do you have certain attire you have to wear while working? Are you the owner of that Ask Jeeves website?" Priscilla laughed out loud, filling the emptiness of the museum. "Please forgive my questions, it's as I said, I've never met an actual butler before, I've only read stories or seen movies with them in it."

Jeeves chuckled at her barrage of questions.

"It's perfectly allright, I'm rather used to it these days. I am ot the owner of the Ask Jeeves website, though you may ask Jeeves as much as you'd like. That is a reference to the famous Wodehouse charecter I'm afraid. Very entertaining books, but a bit cliché. I do not have a specific attire as such, though Master Aron ofcourse prefers me being well dressed. We are very close friends, I and Master Aron. I think we've been together for so long now, that we probably couldn't live without one another...... It is sad though, being a part of a dying breed. There are not many of us left these days."

"It is sad though, being a part of a dying breed. There are not many of us left these days." he said.

Priscilla said nothing, she only looked at him with respect and a hint of sympathy in her eyes at his words.

"Well, Mr. Jeeves, the sky is very dark now. Since I'm taking you up on your offer to escort me to the hotel, I think we should be on our way, so I don't keep you away from your nightly routine for too long.", she said with smile as she pushed the door to the outside open.

((Priscilla out))

"Ohh, you shouldn't worry about that at all. There's hours yet till I have to go back. But it would ofcourse be an honour to escort you" He held the door as she walked out and then followed. She was a curious girl, very curious indeed. Or perhaps he was just getting old.

((Jeeves out))