Home Plot - Part 2

[adifferentlife]

Sybil's day has been nerve-wracking. Her fainting went over well, in that it had distracted her family and the staff, which was precisely what she's wanted. Unfortunately, her mother had insisted that she not go to work at the hospital and instead spend it in bed. There was nothing to be done about it and no argument on the Earth could have dissuaded her Mama from telling her she must rest. Even if Sybil wanted nothing more than to go to work and see if Henri had made it. She'd fretted most of the day, and when it was finally time to get dressed for dinner Sybil felt sicker than if she actually had fainted.

When Anna mentions that Doctor Clarkson and a new, young, French Doctor are coming for dinner she holds her breath. It seems too much to hope for that it might be Henri, but who else might it be? She has to stop herself from running down the stairs, restraining herself and going down with Mary and Edith, barely paying attention to what they say. When she sees Henri seated between Edith and herself she cannot help but smile. Edith asks him about his work, and she forces herself to turn away, and tell their mother than indeed she does feel much better.

Comments

[jaimemieux]

Respite, it seemed, did not await Combeferre, even after dinner’s last dishes were cleared away. Trapped by Doctor Clarkson’s kindness - however much of it was left - and by Lord Grantham’s so-called hospitality, he could do nothing but follow the other men into the library, where he found a world stranger still than the one he had left in the dining room. He refused cigars and liquor alike, not out of unfamiliarity, but because too many social cues and pitfalls seemed to spring up, even when completing the simplest task. Moreover, he suspected that after the dinner conversation, Lord Grantham would prefer it. He would have to sit quietly and say nothing at all, he realized, if he intended to depart with any dignity whatsoever.

But he could only sit there for so long - silent, fidgeting, foolish - surrounded by conversation in which he dare not partake, and with servants lurking strangely in the background. Making apologies, he confessed his tiredness, and the others appeared relieved, frankly. Have someone fetch the chauffeur, Lord Grantham suggested. Yes, you have had a long day, of course, Doctor Clarkson agreed, and then both men returned to their conversation as though he were no longer there.

Whatever the excuse, Henri was glad to finally leave. Head down, he hurried out of the room, not quite sure where he was meant to go now, but terribly relieved to have gotten away. In his haste and carelessness, he nearly ran directly into Sybil as she lurked in the hallway. He swallowed a sharp breath of surprise, but then half-laughed when he saw who it was. “Sybil-“

Henri meant to say more, he was sure of it, but suddenly he could not find the words, so glad he was to see her without other prying eyes around.

[adifferentlife]

“My-“ She stops herself from whispering the word darling to him, just in time. A footman has come to tell them that Branson will be up in just a moment, and Sybil wishes they’d been allowed more than a few brief seconds in which to stare at one another in a dim hall. They are unable to touch or speak and she is aching to do both. “You should go,” she says softly, when the footman departs. Sybil wants to do more, to apologise for her family and for everything that has transpired so far, but can do none of it. “I will see you at the hospital in the morning?”

[jaimemieux]

“Of course. Yes.” Henri was a hair’s breadth away from reaching for Sybil’s hand, but he stopped himself, straightening slightly and managing what he hoped was an encouraging smile. He did not wish to leave Sybil to fret through the night, on top of everything else. He swallowed. “I am sorry for tonight. Perhaps- perhaps everything will make more sense in the morning."

[adifferentlife]

As much as she wants to tell him he did nothing wrong, the words won't come. Surely he could have not risen to her father, her grandmother? Sybil looks away and nods. "I hope that it will."

[jaimemieux]

“Sybil-“ The uncertainty in her face struck Henri’s heart, and for a second he forgot himself, taking a step closer - a small one, but it was enough to render the space between them less than correct - and catching her fingertips, however briefly, with his own.

Ever sensible, he recovered quickly. Taking a step back, he clasped his hands behind him and managed something like a bow. “Please forgive me,” he whispered. “I look forward to tomorrow.” Swallowing hard, Henri turned round and hurried for the door.