Alfred watched Bruce run to the staircase and disappear upstairs before turning his sights on the crowded room. It took a moment to figure out how to get everyone’s attention, but the butler settled on the age old classic of tapping a glass with a spoon until the room was quiet and all eyes were on him.<br/><br/>“I’m terribly sorry for the interruption but master Bruce is not feeling very well. Thank you all for your sympathy in this time of grief and distress, but if you please, the boy needs some time to rest.” Alfred’s little speech was met with a few outbursts by some of the more snooty of the high society about a butler dismissing the gathering, but otherwise people seemed to get the message and began saying goodbye to one another, picking up their coats and leaving the manor once more in peace.<br/><br/>As Alfred shut the door on the last one, he let out a long sigh and surveyed the damage waiting for him. There was the table of platters to clean up, as well as scattered plates and glasses that no one seemed to know to place back on the empty trays, or even on the table.<br/><br/>Grabbing one of said trays, Alfred began his rounds picking up the discarded dishes, carting them back to the kitchen to wash. The same was done with the platters, while the furniture was straightened out, garbage was disposed of, and everything else was put back in order.<br/><br/>It took a little longer than Alfred would have liked to get everything done, but when he did finish he made up a plate for Bruce, a pot of tea, and carried it all upstairs on a covered tray. Reaching the boy’s room, Alfred knocked lightly before turning the knob and entering.<br/><br/>“Master Bruce?” Alfred said, turning the light on with his free hand. “I’ve brought you something to eat, and some tea. Thankfully those vultures weren’t any messier or I never would have been done.”