Becoming A Lady

Chapter Two - Kinsington Academy

"Madeline Joan Darbinshire, get your head out of the clouds, young lady. Stay up there too long and you just might not come back down." Snapped Aunt Beatrice, her eyes shooting daggers, and nostrils flared. Annoyed, Aunt Beatrice shut her eyes in the hopes of keeping her frustrations farther from the surface, and pointedly cleared her throat.

"As I was saying, Mister Greaves will be showing us into the parlor room where we can further discuss room and board, as well as class schedules and holidays. Keep up, we do not want to waste Mister Greaves precious time and generosity." At the mentioning of Mister Greaves, the girls noticed her cheeks gained a twinge of pink, betraying her usual stoicism.

Aunt Beatrice spun sharply on her heel, her skirts swished outwards and twirled around her legs in an act of betrayal of her true emotions, only to face Mister Greaves himself, in order to inform him that they were ready to resume the conversation regarding the information for Kinsington. Mister Greaves was more than happy to oblige, and the girls noticed that his voice faltered once or twice before breaking out in a small coughing fit and then muttered something about allergies.

The girls turned to each other and giggled as silently as two young girls possibly could at the notion of her being flustered, and over a man at that. Only allowing a moment or two to pass, Margaret nudged Madeline in her stomach with a sharp elbow jab, and silently motioned with open palms that they should quickly make their way up the steps before Aunt Beatrice noticed they had fallen behind, yet again.

Wrathful words from their Aunt were not something they desired to bring about at the present.

* * *

The girls hastened to climb the stairs and brushed past the doorman who readily closed the door behind them. Upon entering the foyer, Madeline saw a coy smile creep onto Aunt Beatrice's face as Mister Greaves opened the door to the parlor and granted her access to the room first, with a slight bow at the waist and a wave of his hand to motion her into the room. As she passed, Madeline saw a small grin break through his tightly pressed lips, before he composed himself and squelched the emotion from his face.

Margaret pulled Madeline back, gently, and when Madeline looked into her sister's eyes, she could tell that she was not the only one who had picked up on the inconspicuous gestures that had just transpired between the two adults. Neither of them knew what to make of the things they witnessed, for the only other people they had close interactions with, had been their recently late parents.

Margaret looked at her, a questioning expression in her eyes.

Madeline shrugged, her own mind a tangled mess of curiosity, and then lightly pressed her open palm against her sisters back, urging her to walk through the doorway. Having seated themselves, a maid walked in the room asking if the group would like tea. Mister Greaves gave her a short nod, silently accepting her offer to bring tea, all the while continuing his discussion with Aunt Beatrice.

The girls tuned into the adults conversation and discovered that Mister Greaves had actually attended this very same school around the same time as Aunt Beatrice; Mister Greaves only being a year her senior. The pair were sharing old stories and fond memories.

This was most certainly a different side of Aunt Beatrice than the girls had seen previously. She seemed younger in his presence, as her mind carried her back in time with their conversation.

Margaret sat next to Madeline on a sofa, neither of them daring to interrupt. Instead, they drank in the conversation in front of them, hearing many things; some of which they could understand the meaning, while other statements remained a mystery to them. Though what they did understand was that Aunt Beatrice and this gentleman had once been close, and their body language gave more away than their words.

Remember when you and Robert slipped on the butter that Molly had smeared on the floor in front of the door that lead to the boys wing?

A guffaw from Mister Greaves was followed by his quick retort, Ah, yes, but we got even with Molly a few weeks later when Robert pressed a tack into her skirt, pinning her to her chair. Laughter coming from both of them, the air filled with more joy than the girls had experienced since the passing of their parents about a fortnight ago. Joy was a different thing to experience entirely, when lacking the presence of those whom they so desired to be near.

Madeline sat back, reeling from the many thoughts that wafted through her mind and flooded her senses with sadness, and a somberness at the realization that in the past week, she had already grown so much. Her mind naturally seemed to go towards the thoughts of being a lady, and growing through the tragedy which her and her sister were dealing.

What were Margarets thoughts on all of these occurrences?

Margaret was the quieter of the two sisters. She tended to ponder over things that took place, before giving a response, and she was usually the better off for it. Madeline made a mental note to check in with her sister once they were in the privacy of their own living quarters, given that they were even to board together in the first place.

At the thought of the possibility of being separated, even if only in sleeping arrangements, Madeline felt a pang in her heart, and squeezed her sisters hand. Margaret returned the squeeze, albeit not quite as fiercely as Madeline, and gave her a warm smile.

How is it that her sister, the same age as her, could feel so much like a mother to her?

A few moments passed as she continued that line of thought, her heart warming, and her eyes misting. Realizing that she should get a hold of her emotions before Aunt Beatrice became aware of them, Madeline subtly wiped her eyes and focused her mind on the playful bantering coming from the adults in front of her. The maid had already come in and served the tea to the other three.

Margaret, knowing her sister had a tendency for inattention, had accepted a cup of tea on her behalf. The cup sat on the table, which was situated in front of the girls, a small buffer between the conversational grownups who grew evermore enthralled in their passing words which told of numerous memories between the two an era ago.

They sat in chairs perpendicular to each other and the more words that passed their lips, the more they scooted towards the edge of their respective seats, their knees bent towards each other.

Madeline reached for her tea, and wondered what Uncle Jameson would have to say about this; though she knew little about adult affairs, she understood enough to know about fidelity, and infidelity.

As if hearing Madelines thoughts, Aunt Beatrice sat back into her seat and proclaimed, 'Well, I do believe we have gotten quite off topic. We should discuss the schooling and boarding arrangements of my nieces, Mister Greaves."

"Ahh, yes, yes. Indeed we have gone off topic." Came his jesting reply, though he, too, sat back in his seat and resumed his stoic mask from earlier in the morning. "Well, Kinsington has prepared for them to board together. Our Governess thought that would be best for the two sisters, especially given the hardships they have already sustained." At the last of his words, he gave the girls a pitying look, and his voice took on a somber tone.

Madeline supposed this should make her feel cared for, but due to an unknown reason, this interaction caused a rage to boil up within her. Her and her sister were not to be pitied. Yes, they had gone through something no twelve year old should have to endure, but that didn't mean that their life was over. As far as Madeline was concerned, and she was quite sure that Margaret agreed on this, their life was not over.

Far from it, in fact.

♡♡♡

Hello my dear readers!

We made it through Chapter Two of Dear Diary!

Where will Chapter Three take us? What will we learn about our girls?

What do you want to learn about our girls?

Thanks for reading!

Enjoy!