#102: Mary Anne and the Little Princess
Mary Anne, who can be a liiiiitle bit of a princess herself sometimes, now has a regular job as a “companion” for literal princess (well, twenty-sixth or forty-seventh in line to the throne) Victoria Kent. Victoria is a little bit standoffish but also oddly fascinated by things like all the TV channels, the Washington Mall, and Friendly’s restaurants (which, as a New Englander, really makes me laugh - my friend Alex would be proud). The kids at Victoria’s school aren’t really warming up to her and her parents are always gone traveling, so she spends a lot of time with her nanny Miss Rutherford and her driver George.
Mary Anne gets the bright idea to invite Victoria to join her, Sharon, Richard, and Dawn for Thanksgiving dinner (because they don’t celebrate in England) and then immediately gets a stress ulcer about it. Or maybe she just has a stress ulcer about Dawn visiting; I know I would.
In the meantime, Mary Anne, Kristy, and Stacey get invited to accompany Victoria, Miss Rutherford, and George the driver to New York City. Victoria is thrilled and in awe of everything, and Miss Rutherford just keeps screeching about how there’s a 95% chance of getting murdered in NYC… and that pisses Stacey off, because she’s the thirteen-year-old queen of Manhattan. She helps Victoria sneak away from Miss Rutherford for a bit, which almost causes an international incident, but everyone lives and Victoria demands Pizza Hut for dinner. She is also bummed out because her parents don’t join them for dinner; it’s very clear that she is lonely and feels overlooked by her parents.
Mary Anne does her best to convince Victoria that not everyone will leave her, and that it’s okay to make friends even if you’re going to move in six months, and Victoria decides she might like to be friends with Karen Brewer. An inspired choice but Victoria is in for a wild ride! Buckle up, milady.
