It's a Good Life, Sir by Iridaceaena (PG)

[thirstyrobot.livejournal.com]

Fandom: JEEVES & WOOSTER 
Pairing: gen
Author on LJ: iridaceaena
Author Website: lj fic tag
Why this must be read:

World War II is looming, but this isn't a war fic. iridaceaena, in fact, calls it "an unwar fic," which is just what it is. We've got the same old problems-- Aunt Agatha wants Bertie to marry some girl, Jeeves dispenses with her lecture in pitch-perfect fashion (a bonus is a rare and deft glimpse of a hint that Aunt A. might actually be human), and Bertie wants out of it. Through conversation woven out of Bertie-isms and literary references, we gain a bit of backstory for both Bertie and Jeeves, and an illustration of how protective Jeeves is of Bertie's sunny innocence.

I won't spoil it for you (not that I could really explain it), but the same magic that Wodehouse commands to keep Bertie's world untouched by the serious and the weighty is in force here, and I'm happy to accept it as canon fact.



“That someone in my nephew’s... position,” she decided after a brief pause, “should continue to fritter away his time on trivial nonsense when he could be taking an active part against the war is intolerable. Miss Prudholme-Phelps is a strong-minded girl who will be able to exert her influence over Bertie and finally make something of him.”

I was not normally in the habit of addressing Lady Worplesdon beyond what was necessary in order to perform my duties; I did not feel it was my place, and certainly she shared the sentiment. However, while I tended to view Mr. Wooster’s romantic entanglements as a pleasant enough diversion, I was not quite at ease myself at the time, and I was in no mood to be diverted from the more delicate task already at hand. Any additional complications were only likely to prolong the situation.

“If you will pardon my saying so, your ladyship,” I ventured, “I believe there is not yet cause for such concern. Mr. Wooster will take such action as he feels appropriate when he is ready to do so.”

Lady Worplesdon made a noise that I can only record as a snort. “Saying that we have no choice but to trust in Bertie’s judgment seems to me to be more than sufficient cause for concern.”

I coughed discreetly. “I was given to understand that it was deemed safer if Mr. Wooster remains ignorant of his role. Indeed, I believe Mr. Wooster himself prefers it that way, given his generally light and passive nature. This means, however, that those aspects of Mr. Wooster’s personality with which we are familiar do not accurately reflect his abilities in this regard. It is his subconscious -”

“ 'Conscious' or 'subconscious' does not change the fact that my nephew is a frivolous nitwit who expends all his energy pretending that it’s been 1910 for the last thirty years!” Lady Worplesdon said sharply, abandoning her position by the door in favor of pacing restlessly. She paused by the window for a moment, and while she is in many respects a well-preserved woman, direct morning sunlight is rarely kind when illuminating the marks of age. Lady Worplesdon’s thoughts had apparently followed a similar line, for she sighed and turned back to me. “I know I'm an old woman, Jeeves,” she said. “Most of my friends are dead by now. I probably ought to be as well.”

“ ‘Be content with what you are, and wish not change; nor dread your last day, nor long for it’,” I murmured. “I’m sure that Mr. Wooster, at least, believes we shall all live forever.”

It's a Good Life, Sir

Comments

[mxdp.livejournal.com]

Oh gosh -- digging up treasures are we? I do hope you'll rec some more, my exams are almost over, and I need some quality reading material ;)

[cordelia-gray.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much for the recs so far! I have read and enjoyed both a great deal.

I do hope there will be a few more before the month is out, because I am looking for new things to read, and you, good sir/madam/robot, clearly have excellent taste.