The emergency meeting had interrupted Lady Charlotte Christianson’s otherwise euphoric afternoon.

Charlotte tried to look as composed as possible during the battle but she was completely out of her element…and still a bit stoned.

After the battle ended, she walked around, wondering her thoughts aloud. Nicholas came over and began speaking to her but she was a bit distracted at first, as usual, by his lack of shirt. Aside from the obvious “handsome shirtless man” bit, she could not wrap her head around why he wore sleeves. This was incredibly vexing.

She also could not quench the curiosity of how someone like Fern and someone like Nicholas ended up together. Separately, they were quite interesting. Together, they made about as much sense as a soup sandwich. Oh, right. The shirtless one was speaking…

Charlotte rattled off the protocol to Nicholas, which included reporting to Captain Jenkins, despite the fact that she was already becoming annoyed with the Captain. Still, she would not let her personal feelings bleed into her professional life. Though, her “medication” sometimes freed her of one too many inhibitions.

Charlotte returned to the castle with the others and relayed the information to Captain Jenkins. Mid-discussion, she wondered what he would do if she walked up and flicked his nose. The mental image was so hilarious to her that she had to repeatedly clench her jaw to keep from laughing.

From the castle, Charlotte retired to her loft. She curled up on her large bed and relaxed, perfectly content with her mellow buzz.