Knowing she wouldn't have much time to eat after the surgery, Celia sent down to the kitchens at eleven-thirty for an early dinner. The food, she had discovered, was rather good, plain but fresh and generously served. Though, as always in a hospital ward, finishing a meal in peace was unlikely. She was halfway through a plate of spiced beef and buttered bread and cucumber slices when Mrs Shaw rang her bell and asked for something to help with the pain. After ascertaining that it was not an unusual pain, Celia discovered that no one had told her where the aspirin was kept and had to go to Matron's office to ask about it. That meant a trip to the dispensary downstairs and a lecture on the protocols thereof. It was all very instructive to Celia, who had never had the charge of a dispensary before, but the length of the lecture meant that Mrs Shaw had to wait fifteen minutes for her aspirin and that Celia did not have time to finish her dinner before readying Mrs Pearson for surgery. While Mrs Pearson was in the lavatory, Celia went to her desk to snatch another bite of spiced beef, only to discover to her annoyance that the housemaid had already taken the tray away. She drank some water to fill her stomach then went to get the brandy and carbolic acid to perform the surgery preparations on Mrs Pearson.

At twelve thirty, Mrs Pearson was sitting up on the operating table in the surgery, smelling of carbolic and brandy, and looking rather nervous. Doctor Fane and Doctor Culpepper had changed into white surgical gowns, and Matron Howard had put an apron over her dress.

"Ye look like butchers like that," Mrs Pearson complained. "An' ah feel like t'pig."

"Now, now," Culpepper said. "You won't feel a thing. You'll take some deep breaths through this cloth then you'll just go to sleep and wake up with everything over. Like a dream."

Mrs Pearson eyed the chloroform mask warily. "There's good dreams an' bad dreams, Doc."

"It is, in fact, a dreamless sleep," Fane said, dousing the mask with chloroform. "Lie back, Mrs Pearson."

"'Old on." Mrs Pearson put a hand over her mouth. "Jus' give us a minute."

"Please lie back, Mrs Pearson."

"Jus' a..." Mrs Pearson opened her mouth wide and let out a meaty belch. "...Sorry. Tea gives us guff."

Fane froze with the chloroform mask in his hands. "You've been drinking tea?" He turned to Celia. "Has she been drinking?"

"I didn't give her anything."

Fane set the chloroform mask carefully back down on the surgical tray. "Mrs Pearson, when did you drink tea?"

"Oh, 'bout 'alf-an-'our ago, Doc. Ah needed summat ta wash down t'beef. It were rare dry."

Fane's long, delicate fingers tensed into open claws. He turned to Celia, who felt the shadow of doom folding over her. "You gave her food and drink?"

"I did not, sir. She must—"

But Fane had turned back to Mrs Pearson. "I am afraid we will have to postpone your surgery."

Mrs Pearson licked her lips. "Oh, if tha say sa, Doc. If it mun be."

"Matron Howard, if you will take the patient back upstairs, I will speak to Nurse Barnes."

Matron Howard gave Celia an unimpressed glance and helped Mrs Pearson from the operating table. Celia braced herself. Fane had spoken without heat, but there was something quite terrifying about the coolness of his tone. Culpepper's round face was grave.

Fane waited until Matron Howard and Mrs Pearson disappeared into the passage. "Well, Miss Barnes?"

"I'm very sorry, sir."

"And that makes it all better, doesn't it?" Fane's voice rose. "An apology makes up for all the lost time. For us having to come back here tomorrow when we've other appointments. For the extra day that Mrs Pearson will have a life-threatening tumour lodged inside her."

Celia felt tears pricking at her eyes and bowed her head to hide them. "It is not entirely my fault. She must have stolen my dinner tray while I was out of the ward."

"And why on earth did you leave the ward? You are a nurse. Your job is to take care of the ward."

"Mrs Shaw required aspirin."

"And why did you not have the aspirin ready?"

"It was in the dispensary."

"And why didn't you get it from the dispensary when I told you she would need it?"

"No one told me—"

"Oh, no one told you. So I see, I must tell you every little thing you are ever to do here. What is the point of even hiring you then?"

Celia darted a pleading glance at Culpepper, who was intently examining his fingernails. "I... Doctor Fane, I..."

She did not know what to say. He would see any defence as an excuse, no matter how true it was.

"You can't dismiss her, Doctor Fane!" someone cried from the door. "She has only just come!"

Celia turned to the new voice. A tall, thin woman stood in the doorway carrying a basket of hothouse flowers. She wore a black hat about the size and shape of a Pomeranian puppy, and between the hat and flowers her face was an insignificant white blotch. Doctor Fane stared at her too.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"Miss Nittleton!" Culpepper said warmly. "How do you do?"

"Very well thank you." Miss Nittleton swept into the surgery and ran a narrow gaze over every inch of Celia. "You must be the new nurse. I won't let that cruel Doctor Fane dismiss you." A serene smile hovered about her small, pale mouth. "I have my influence upon him."

"You can no more prevent it than I can effect it," Fane growled. "The board controls all such decisions."

"I won't let them dismiss her either." Miss Nittleton deposited her flowers on the operating table, revealing herself to be dressed in a wool skirt and jacket of the very latest cut. "Now that we've finally got a new nurse — and you seem like such a good one, I've an eye for a woman's character — we can't possibly let her leave again."

"There is no talk of Nurse Barnes leaving," Fane said, picking up Miss Nittleton's flowers and pushing them into her arms. "Only you."

Miss Nittleton's small hazel eyes opened to their widest extent. "Why me?"

"Because this is my surgery. Get out!"

"Goodness." Miss Nittleton swayed leisurely towards the door, her slender hips making the movement more snakelike than seductive. "You are in a temper today, Doctor Fane. But never mind. I shall tell Daddy that we have done very well in the new nurse. I am quite satisfied with her." She turned back at the door and gave Celia a tinkling wave of her fingertips. "Ta-ta, I hope we shall be friends."

When she was gone, Fane scowled at Celia. "I've lost my train of thought now."

"You were asking me what the point of hiring me was," she said politely. The intermission with Miss Nittleton had given her courage. Miss Nittleton was ridiculous, but she had made Fane appear ridiculous too, and Celia suspected Fane knew it.

"It was rhetorical. We need a nurse, and you're the one we've got." The cold fire had gone out of Fane's voice. He sounded merely irritated now. "Don't make this mistake again. When I tell you a patient is not to eat, you will not let her eat. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Doctor. I apologize, Doctor."

"Save your apologies. All I require from you is good work."

He left the room, his surgical apron flapping against his knees. Culpepper gave Celia a sympathetic glance.

"No harm was done," he said. "And it's not all your fault anyway. Annie Pearson knew better."

It must have been quite deliberate, Celia thought, to have stolen her entire tray, but at least Culpepper wasn't yelling at her or being sarcastic. "I had to get the aspirin."

"I know you did." Culpepper hesitated. "Fane's got a high temper, but it blows over quickly. And he never lets it interfere with his work."

Celia busied herself putting away the surgical instruments so that she could avoid meeting Culpepper's eye. As Fane's assisting nurse, she was part of his work, and a high temper interfered with her. Displays of anger made her nervous and distracted. But it would only make her look weak to explain that to Culpepper, who would probably not agree anyway. It was best just to suffer the doctors in silence. At the very least, Culpepper seemed gentle enough, even if he was a little obtuse. And she could deal with Fane; he was not the first impatient doctor she had known and he would not be the last. Patience was a virtue only for nurses. Doctors did not bother with such time-wasting nonsense.

"I'm very sorry about my mistake, Doctor Culpepper," Celia said. "I will make sure it doesn't happen again."

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A/N 2021-05-25: It may surprise you to learn that Doctor Fane is, in fact, the eventual romantic interest of this story. Emphasis on eventual: he has some way to go as a man before he's worthy of women thinking of him as one.

I'm going to be doing some first round edits to this story soon. I think I'll change the name of the village (it's going to be delightfully twee) as well as some of the physical details of the setting now that I've done some more research into what the countryside is actually like in Yorkshire. Oh, and the chapter titles will change too.