glimpseofwonder ( @starsallalight )
This was madness, Éamon thought as he followed the footman into the familiar halls. He really didn’t need a guide to take him through the estate, per se. He and his sister had grown up here, after all; playing boyhood games with Peter and Edmund and companion and honorary siblings to Susan and Lucy. But they were children no longer, and it wasn’t proper to just stroll in unannounced. Particularly when it wasn’t the sisters he’d come to see.
Adjusting his clothes nervously, the Duke of Abercorn tried to swallow the lump in his throat. He could put on an act for the crowds, sure. But in private, when there was no need to play act, he could easily forget the charm and charisma he was supposed to have; his nerves taking over instead.
“Oh!” Éamon gasped as Mary stood, and his eyes landed in the book she’d been reading. “Forgive me, Miss Frame. I didn’t know you were an admirer of Robert Burns.” He gestured to the book and smiled softly, repeating his favorite work.
“Ae fond kiss, and then we sever; Ae farewell, and then forever! Deep in heart-wrung tears I’ll pledge thee, Warring sighs and groans I’ll wage thee. Who shall say that Fortune grieves him, While the star of hope she leaves him? Me, no cheerful twinkle lights me; Dark despair around benights me.
I’ll ne'er blame my partial fancy, Nothing could resist my Nancy; But to see her was to love her; Love but her, and love forever. Had we ne'er loved so kindly, Had we ne'er loved so blindly, Never met—or never parted— We had ne'er been broken-hearted.
Fare thee well, thou first and fairest! Fare thee well, thou best and dearest! Thine be ilka joy and treasure, Peace, enjoyment, love, and pleasure! Ae fond kiss, and then we sever; Ae farewell, alas, forever! Deep in heart-wrung tears I’ll pledge thee, Warring sighs and groans I’ll wage thee!”
Quickly, though, upon finishing, the Duke cleared his throat and rubbed his lips together. “He was a favorite of my mother’s. She used to read his poems to me every night before I went to sleep. And I read them to my sister. I gave that book to Susan on her twelfth birthday. I don’t believe she liked it very much. Scottish poems aren’t much to her taste, it seems, or maybe just not his… Though Lucy was rather fond of me telling them. Regardless, I’m glad someone is getting use of it.”
Susan was outside, with that stranger? Éamon’s brow quirked. It wasn’t like Mary to leave Su’s side… Let alone to leave her unaccompanied with a possible suitor. Resistant as he was to the idea of actually marrying his old friend, he knew that they both could have had a worse match recommended. And, if nothing else, they could at least have a marriage based on friendship rather than hatred. Even if it meant the choice wasn’t theirs, and love was lacking.
“I would question why you’re in here while she’s out there, but I take it that because Lulu hasn’t come nearly tackling me yet that she’s playing chaperone, then? Let them talk. I didn’t come to see Susan anyway…” He stammered, adjusting his jacket once more.
mary wasn’t sure what she thought of him enjoying the same poetry as her. and reciting it so well; he wasn’t another gentlemen who decorated a few lines in order to impress a lady ( and he’d certainly not waste such material on her ). the way his mouth formed around each word betrayed a deep familiarity with the work. “ it has provided me a peak into a world i have never visited. ”
“ i’m partial to ‘to a louse’ myself. ”
“ she was insistent i rest, ” neither lady seemed to quite understand, or simply they preferred to pretend they didn’t, that it was her job to accompany them. whether she was well-rested, something never was, was inconsequential. it was actually part of the description of both of the jobs she was performing: detective mary quinn and spinster mary frame both were meant to stay close to susan and keep an eye out for greedy-eyed men like the count.
her objections had been noted. and ignored. “ besides, ” she tilted her head towards the window, “ they are close. ” the addition was quite unnecessary, and a bad idea in the overall scheme of things, but the idea of éamon thinking she was doing a job rattled her. “ our precious susan is well-looked after. ”
“ i believe the gentlemen aren’t present at the moment. do you wish to leave a note with me? ”