𝐑𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐑𝐎𝐒𝐄𝐒

Chapter 2

"Mother says I absolutely have to go, though," Alicia continued, taking a sip of the china tea cup held in her hands, "Lest, Auntie suspects I became French in my absence to France." 

She rolled her brown eyes, and Diana giggled, lifting her own cup to her lips. It had taken the force of very nature itself for her cousin to convince, or rather, gain permission for her leave to France. The idea of her father's mother—Alicia Kirkpatrick's quite overtly French paternal grandmother—residing in such a country was the source of much gossip in Southampton, and Alicia's mother, Lady Hyacinth Kirkpatrick had threatened to never speak to her daughter if she went. But the threat had not really come to pass. 

"How did you find Aunt Hyacinth?" Diana cautiously asked, and her cousin let out a laugh. 

"Mother think's she's quite clever in sending me letters that contained not more than a sentence," Lady Alicia Kirkpatrick rolled her eyes again, "She's still very much offended I went despite her wishes, but she's practically bursting at the seams in order to extract information about my grandmother from me, and I won't give it until she asks in more than one sentence of course." 

"Pray, don't torture her so," Lady Diana Beaumont vouched, a sly tone in her voice as she leaned for a biscuit on the afternoon tea tray. She did in fact, relish the idea of Aunt Hyacinth being tortured so, harmlessly of course. 

"I think such torture is necessary if a lady wants to keep her place in front of her mother," Came the decided response, a proud smile punctuating it. "I would like to have props at hand, for my convenience, but I suppose the best props are words if I should want to avoid being condemned. I cannot have mother ruling my life, despite how much she wants to." 

Diana propped the last bit of biscuit into her mouth, her expression in a state of fake awe, "You must teach me your ways." 

"That's strange, for I clearly remember learning from you," Her cousin prompted, a laugh threatening to spill, as she touched her dark brown hair once. 

"Hush," Diana spoke cheekily, before gesturing to the maid to request a fill in tray for the biscuits, for the one on the table was now all crumbs. 

The ladies were seated in the giant balcony just outside of the west drawing room of Bellevue Hall, which over looked the Bellevue gardens to the left, and the happenings of miles and miles of Southampton, depended on how clear the weather was and how far one's eyes could see. At times Diana could just spot the boundary of the sunflower fields, a mixed hum of yellow and green, a scene scarce offered to her by the clouds. 

They chatted, caught up each other on what the latter had missed on the former's endeavors, before soon the sun had completely set and they had to part in order to meet again at the oncoming ball. 

· • —– ٠ ✤ ٠ —– • ·

"Girls, girls! Is everyone ready?" Lady Ruth Beaumont called from the drawing room where she sat waiting with Lord Beaumont, all dressed up in her finest green muslin gown with her hair pulled back in an elaborate do with added dark green feathers sticking out of it. In her hand, she held an elaborate fan, decorated with feathers and silver ribbon, which she kept desperately shaking to fan herself as a result of the anxiety of being late.

Arriving late, at a ball or simply at a prior engagement, whether it be for the sole purpose of sitting together and drinking tea, was considered severely improper for a lady or a family of a high social stature. It gave the impression that perhaps the lady, or her entire family, was incapable of keeping arrangements and ultimately, her word. Leaving such an impression was a dreadful thing and on the grounds of propriety, the ladies and gentlemen of Southampton would rather cease than encourage it. Of course, people wanted to be invited to future things, didn't they?