Discovering the differences. Part 2

Elena woke up a few hours later, feeling more refreshed than she could remember when. She immediately had her entourage come in to her chambers, starting to detail the plans for the day.
“Here we go again” she thought. “No rest for the wicked”. When you are the Empress of the Dominium, there are always a hundred things to be doing, every single day. She dressed, all while things were happening around her. She had been doing this for years, and knew exactly what to expect. She remembered the phone call, and asked her assistant what the plan was for the weekend. Could she get some time to herself?
“Empress, there are two minor meetings, to establish trade priorities with concerned parties. Nothing essential.”
“Pamela, can you see if they can be relocated to slots during the week? I really feel that I need just a little time to myself, if the world will just let me.”
She raised one eyebrow - that’s interesting. The Empress didn’t go for time off at all, in all the time that Pamela had worked for her. She whizzed through some calendar entries, and suggested a couple of slots in the middle of the week.
“That would be great. Can you let the groups know? Politely, of course.”
“Empress, I am always polite.” she said, with a smile. “I have worked for you for 30 years, and make a point of being polite - even if I can’t stand the people I am being polite too!”
Elena turned to face her. “Pamela, you are wonderful. I would be lost without you.”
“I know you would, my Empress. That is why I am still here.”
They both smiled at each other, and then both laughed. They knew each other well enough to be relaxed, most of the time, but utterly professional when it was needed.

Philip knew nothing of this, and after he had finished his shift, and handed over to the day crew, he went back to his residence, and slept, with just a taste of that phone call going through his mind, a smile on his face, right before he fell asleep.
Once the day had started for each of them, they continued as normal. Elena had back-to-back conferences all day, with most groups within the Dominium all calling or screaming for attention. Her assistant, Pamela, was always by her side, and towards the end of the packed day, she voiced a thought to the Empress.
“Empress, I have watched you for years. I know you very well. Unless I am mis-reading you today, has something changed? It is nothing major, but there are tiny, tiny changes to the way that you have behaved today.” She looked directly at The Empress. “Am I wrong?”
Elena chuckled. “Really? I thought the day went very well, even though half of the meetings were as boring as they could be. Pamela, as far as I am concerned, there is nothing wrong, but I hear you. I trust your opinion, and we have known each other long enough for you to be able to directly approach me. I expect you to. If I have been even slightly off, then it is probably because I have too much going round in my head. I might need to take some time out, and soon. Can you check the calendar and see if there is a way to clear a week for me to relax? Yes, I know, ‘relax’. I don’t do that, do I.” She chuckled again. “Pamela, between you and me, I think I’m getting old. Ha!”
“Old? You? That’s a good one.” She smiled. If the Empress wanted a holiday, then the Empress will have a holiday. “I will check the calender for the next few months, and see about creating a solid block that is clear. What you do with it is up to you, but sadly, the Empress is never going to have a holiday where she can just relax - ” She stopped, looking hard at Elena. ”- Unless you are going to be arranging something out of the ordinary…?” She continued slowly. “Magda Elena, what’s going on?”
Pamela had probably only used her first names twice in the last thirty years. She was sensing something new, something unpredictable going on, and she didn’t like surprises. Her responsibility to the Empress was absolute. She organised everything on a daily basis, and she could not afford to have unknowns. Elena heard the change in the tone. She was relaxed, and smiled at Pamela. “It is as I say. I have a lot of things going around my head, and I think I need to time to get away from all of this, even for a few days.” She came to Pamela, and put her hands on her shoulders. “You can relax. I have no plans to do something stupid, and I will always keep you up to date on anything I want to do. You have my promise on that.”
Pamela looked at the Empress for a few seconds, then shrugged. “OK. I’ll buy that - but don’t give me any extra stress! I can’t handle that.” She smiled, and they both relaxed, even though Elena knew that now her secret was coming apart. She knew that she could trust Pamela, absolutely, but it still meant that her possible conversations with Philip might have to be done with even more caution, and she would have to try to be her old self during the working day.
“Pamela, let me run something by you. We have known of Earth for only a few years, and yet little progress is being made in communication. Think on this for a while, because I have no shape to it. Would it be possible or practical for me to visit Earth in a full capacity, meet everyone that I need to meet, their President and more, and then have just a few days as a holiday, of sorts?
Pamela’s face was a picture. In all her years, this had never been mentioned, and yet she could see the merit in it. Direct action, rather than keep asking other people to do it.
She concentrated hard for a few seconds, then slowly voiced “Empress. That is so radical. I love the idea! We have all spent too long expecting other people to make things work, when you stepping directly in… It’s brilliant! I will get on it immediately.”
“I have no time frame. If it takes you two or three months to arrange, then so be it. I do feel that we have wasted so much time. These things need to be resolved, and if takes me to meet the right people from Earth, then let’s make it happen.”
Pamela thought hard for a moment. “Empress, this will take a few days. I need to make enquiries, and see who it is that we should meet.” She looked at the Empress. “I say ‘we’. I assume that I am coming with you, on this voyage of discovery?”
“Absolutely! I would be lost without you.”
“Yes, you definitely would. Give me a week, and I will update you with what I find.”
“Excellent! Thank you, Pamela.”