Shadow in the North

Chapter Four - The Uncredited Player

'She speaks really quite fast,' complained Mrs Hale to her husband. 'And so dark; she is so dark. I have no a clue what she ought to wear if ever the occasion arose for her to put on a gown - a complexion such as hers; I know not what would suit it!' Mr Hale frowned, and attempted to tell his wife that Isabel was not so very tanned, but simply that the Hales were noted for having very fair skin.

'And she speaks remarkably well - certainly for one who has not lived in England for more than twenty years!' reminded Mr Hale.

'Perhaps,' sighed Mrs Hale, 'and she does appear to be quite caring; she was very attentive to my health the evening she arrived, and all day today - she has made herself useful to you or sat with me and asked how I am feeling. She is quite solicitous of my wellbeing!'

'Certainly!' smiled Mr Hale, really quite pleased that Isabel had decided to join his household, for he knew his wife would enjoy a companion who would listen to her complaints of ill health.

'Although,' whispered Mrs Hale, 'she cannot embroider. She said she has never made up a garment in her life!' Mr Hale shifted awkwardly in his chair.

'Perhaps dress making is not valued where she is from. Perhaps embroidery is not a valued pastime?' Mrs Hale shook her head - quite grieved - and determined that she would have to school Isabel in the ways of a lady, or should would be ill-suited to Margaret by way of companion. Impatient was she, then, when the following morning, Mrs Hale approached Isabel with an embroidery hoop, and Isabel replied that she could think of noting she would be more ill-equipped for.

'I cannot be idle. I must seek an active occupation. I have not the patience, nor the skill, for such intricate work, Mrs Hale. I fear I am a lost cause.'

'Oh!' frowned Mrs Hale, looking to her daughter for support, but Margaret had no great passion for embroidery herself. 'What of painting? Mr Hale said you do not paint?'

'Not at all, I'm afraid,' replied Isabel, indifferently. Her seeming obliviousness to her own failings piqued Mrs Hale's temper - which was shorted through their move north - and she could not keep the edge of scolding from her voice.

'Pray, what are your accomplishments?'

'I can ride; I am a good rider.'

'That should hardly serve you well in Milton?' laughed Margaret.

'No, indeed!' smiled Isabel. 'I can cook, and of course, I have a knowledge of medicine.'

'Cook? What do you cook?' Margaret asked, intrigued.

'Pastas, pizzas.' At the blanket faces, Isabel laughed and stated that her skills were limited to "foreign fare". Mrs Hale was displeased, for no young lady should know how to cook if the family had the means to keep a servant. She felt sure that her husband's goddaughter was not quite the lady - however kind she appeared to be - and once again, she fretted that Margaret was to have her as a companion.

And yet concerns about Isabel's lack of accomplishments and her notable eccentricities were swept aside upon the Hale's removal from Heston, for, where the sea air had proved cold but invigorating, the smoky, close air of Milton was oppressive. The air was so very thick with the soot of the machine, that Dixon walked about the house in Crampton complaining of the need for new furnishings, for surely, "any fabric light in colour shall be black with soot within a week!" The papers, Isabel was pleased to note, had, indeed, been changed, and Mr Hale, having seen the offending wallpaper with his own eyes, was much relieved. So too, was Margaret, who had received a vivid description of the ghastly papers from her father. Only Mrs Hale, who had not been fully enlightened as to the vulgarity of the aforementioned papers - so as not to alarm her - felt the need to express dissatisfaction with the newly-papered walls. Where the others knew the papers to be a great improvement, she could compare them only with those which had adorned the walls of Helstone, and of course - because Helstone was long-gone and never to be home again - everything fell short of Helstone; wallpaper and all.