Madeline nodded. "It's calming work," she said, surprising herself a bit with the admission.

"You always keep the gardens so beautiful," Lacey said. She smiled. "I'm glad you have something you like to do."

Madeline blinked before she nodded with a faint smile. She did enjoy the work, and she was surprised Lacey had noticed. She was trying not to get her hopes up too high, though.

Lacey lapsed into silence again, just enjoying the company. It was relaxing, being out in the gardens and seeing what Madeline was able to do with them.

Madeline made sure there weren't any ground squirrels in the garden, or at least not this portion, before she nodded. Good. Now she was basically done. But she didn't head back inside immediately.

Lacey watched Madeline for a bit.

"I used to have a cat as a pet, a while back," she said. "You remind me of her a bit. She would get that same look in her eyes when she was looking for mice." She pulled a bit of a face. "Though she had a habit of leaving the mice where I would find them. Places like in the bath tub or the kitchen sink."

Madeline snorted quietly. "She had to make sure you were taken care of," she said reasonably. "After all, most humans can't hunt, and anything that is pulled out of a cold box can't be as tasty as a fresh mouse."

"I still didn't need mice in the shower," Lacey pointed out with a bit of a grin. "I didn't have the heart to stop her, though, she enjoyed mousing a lot."

"Most housecats do," Madeline agreed. "We have some somewhat feral cats in the barn and garden shed, but that's it. None of the other Ladies were inclined to have pets." Well. Other pets, really, since many of them had considered her a pet.

"Then they had no idea what they were missing," Lacey said. She grinned. "A housecat and a laser pointer make for the best kind of shows."

"Indeed." Madeline looked amused. "You could get yourself both of those things, if you wished."

"Maybe," Lacey mused. She grinned a bit. "Though I can't imagine how a housecat would react around here. It would either be terrified or try to take over."

Madeline shrugged, still looking amused. "It is, of course, your choice." But she thought it was a good idea. It would keep Lacey from getting lonely so often, at least.

"You always say that, and it always sounds like you have an opinion of your own that may or may not agree with me," Lacey observed. She watched Madeline carefully. "I do want your opinion. You know this place better than I do, and I definitely want your opinion if I'm going to consider bringing a pet in around here."

Madeline considered for a moment before she nodded. "I think a cat would be good for you. A cat would give you something else to bond with, and would help to keep you from feeling lonely. It would also give you a source of entertainment. Starting with one cat would be good, in my opinion. Getting others in the future is a possibility as well."

Lacey quirked a bit of a grin.

"We'll see what happens," she said. "If there are only two left wherever I adopt from, I'm not going to leave one behind. I will come home with two cats if that happens."

Madeline nodded. "I can take you whenever you would like," she said. "You have a week until your next official outing."

"Maybe tomorrow, then," Lacey said. "If you find yourself with some spare time. I don't want to interfere with whatever work you need to do."

"There is no pressing work that needs to be done," Madeline said with a shrug. "Nothing that will suffer from being put off for a few days."

"Are you sure?" Lacey asked. "I don't want anything to get ignored just because I want a little furry thing."

Madeline shook her head. "Nothing will suffer," she repeated. "Besides, my primary job is whatever you wish."

"As long as you're sure," Lacey said. She studied Madeline for a moment. "There's something I've been meaning to ask, by the way. Do you do this because you wanted to, or because you have to?"

Madeline was quiet for a few moments before she sighed. "I am tied to this house and to the whims of the current Lady," she said, her voice rather stiff.

Lacey considered that for a moment. It made a certain kind of sense, but she got the feeling she still didn't have all the information.

"Tied how?" she asked cautiously.

"By magic." Madeline shrugged. On this subject, she wasn't going to volunteer information.