The Christmas season came quickly. It would be the first Christmas that Sybil spent away from her family, a decision that she came to after much deliberation. She had seen her mother and Mary in early December when they came to London to do some Christmas shopping. The visit had not been a total success. To Sybil, neither seemed to fully grasp that there was a war raging on and the usual holiday merriment needed to be tempered.
Sybil had looked forward to seeing them much to her surprise; however, that feeling was quickly squashed when she presented herself for dinner at Aunt Rosamund's where they were staying.
After quick pecks on the cheeks, Cora held Sybil at arms length and looked her over. "Darling, you look like you've lost weight. You must be working too hard or not eating enough. Don't they feed you properly?"
"No Mama, the food can be surprisingly good. Not like Mrs. Patmore's cooking for sure but I quite like it. I think it's that I am so active these days. Many days I'm standing for hours and walking up and down the wards."
"Rosamund says the last time you were here for dinner you spend the whole evening talking to Lord Engleson's son. Are you still seeing him?" Cora asked hopefully.
"James is somewhere in Belgium the last I heard. I wasn't seeing him as you put it. I did run into him a couple of times at the hospital when he was visiting some of his friends and we were able to go out to tea once or twice but that is all." Actually they had gone to the pub twice too but Sybil didn't think her mother would want to hear that at least not the part about the pub.
The rest of dinner seemed to go this way with Cora and Mary asking a lot of questions Sybil didn't want to answer or talking about things that Sybil just wasn't interested in. She was glad when she was finally able to leave with the excuse that she had had an early start that day and was quite tired.
Sybil made excuses for not being able to come to dinner for the next day but asked them to meet her for tea on the day following that. She thought that maybe a shorter visit would go better than an evening dinner.
Of course they chose the finest hotel in London to meet for tea. It had been a busier day than she expected and she was only able to leave by getting Louise to agree to substitute for her for a few hours. Since she was running late, Sybil took the barest of time to change clothes.
They had already ordered when Sybil arrived. In the very elegant room, Sybil did look out of place in her day frock. While it may have been made of very fine materials, and any of her London friends would love to own such a dress, it was decidedly not a dress one wore to tea for the likes of the Crawleys.
"Sybil dear I know you are working but couldn't you take the time to dress properly" Cora gently inquired.
"Oh mama, don't you realize that Sybil thinks she's part of the working class now" Mary tried to invoke humorously but it fell flat to Sybil's ears.
"It's just a dress. I have more important things to care about" Sybil defiantly stated. "Besides" she continued "I thought the important thing was to spend time together."
A lull fell over the table broken only when the server appeared with their tea and the plates of sandwiches and sweets.
After filling their plates, Cora broke the silence "We're going to do a bit of shopping after this. I'd love for you to come with us"
"I can't mama. I had to get someone to cover for me so I could come here and I'll have to relieve them."
This was too much for Cora. "Really, Sybil. You act like you can't spare a second to spend with us. We rearranged our day for this since tea was your idea. We haven't seen you for months, you haven't been back home since you left, you rarely write, I am hurt."
Seeing her mother on the verge of tears did, fleetingly, move Sybil. "I don't mean to hurt you mama. Maybe I've just been so affected by what I've seen these last few months, so many young men dying or their lives destroyed by their injuries. I want so badly to help them. And it's not just the soldiers it's also their families. We see them and some can't cope or can't accept what has happened to their son or husband. Seeing all that makes it seem so frivolous to care about dressing up for tea or dinner or shopping for new clothes that one doesn't really need."
What her family referred to as her "Americanism" came out as Cora rose from her chair and kneeled down by Sybil and hugged her. "Oh my darling I know you care. That's one of the things that makes you you. You've always been so kind and warm hearted. It's why you're such a good nurse. Those men are lucky to have you."
"Do you really mean that mama?" Sybil asked through her tears.
"Of course I do. I miss you so much. I miss your smile and your laughter. I want this war to be over for many reasons but mostly because then I'll have you home again."
Sybil was truly touched by her mother's words. She did love her family although she knew she would never go back to the life she had before the war. Sybil resolved to be more attentive during their visit and did manage to attend dinner at Aunt Rosamund's the next two nights.
But the truce that had settled between her and her mother broke again at their final dinner.
"Mama, just because it's Christmas the war doesn't stop, all the patients don't suddenly disappear. I can't come home" an exasperated Sybil answered.
But Cora would not be deterred. "You've been working so hard. You need a break. They cannot expect you to miss the holidays with your family"
"Mama, even if I could get off it would only be for a day. I would be exhausted traveling to Downton and back in such a short time. It would be better to come in a month or two when there isn't a demand for leave from the other nurses and I could stay a bit longer."
Cora wasn't mollified but Sybil held her ground.
When Sybil had told her mother she couldn't come home for Christmas she didn't tell her that she had already used up all her leave for the year. Tom had returned to London for a second visit in mid-November. He was working on two articles and needed to do some interviews in London.
This time, since he was working, the paper paid his travel expenses. He could have stayed in a nicer hotel but since he was given a set amount and could pocket whatever he didn't spend, Tom stayed in the same hotel as before. He needed to make up for the loss of his Shelbourne wages while he was in London.
Tom was only able to keep the Shelbourne job because the boss was a friend of his cousin's and Tom had found someone to substitute for him in his absence. Since he was doing more and more for the Guardian, Tom hoped that he would soon be working full time for the paper. He thought that as long as he worked in Ireland for the paper he could continue to drive for the Shelbourne. With that job he had a lot of down time and he could use such time to write. In addition, Tom was also doing some freelance work for a paper in Dublin. Between these jobs he had little free time but that was fine with him.
Since Tom was actually working during this second trip to London, he and Sybil didn't have any long days to spend at the British Museum. Sybil worked some hours each day, mainly while Tom was doing his interviews or short write ups of those interviews. He would finalize his articles when he returned to Ireland.
One evening Sybil brought Tom to meet some of her friends at their pub. It warmed Sybil's heart that her friends so easily took to Tom and vice versa. They had a fine evening drinking and eating although Sybil thought the highlight was when she showed Tom her dart throwing skills. It was an evening of easy comraderie and Sybil glowed with happiness.
Every night was spent together in Tom's hotel room. While their kissing and hugging did progress, they stopped short of actually having sex. However, Tom did initiate Sybil into some other intimate activities. Sybil had never dreamed that hands and tongues could bring such ecstasy.
Christmas day was unlike any Sybil had ever had. Since Charlotte and Margaret were both from London they spent the day with their families. Annabella was able to go home to Bath for the day. That left only Louise, from Sybil's closest circle of friends, who didn't visit home that day. Sybil and Louise attended church in the morning. Sybil, who thought of herself as spiritual but not religious, found the service very moving. She recognized some of the nurses and doctors that also attended the service as well as a few of the ambulatory patients.
Since it was a quiet day at the hospital, the nurses were scheduled for four hour shifts instead of their usual eight or ten hour shifts. After church, Sybil and Louise ate an early lunch at the hospital canteen which was decorated for the holiday with much greenery including a Christmas tree. There was a festive air in the canteen with much laughter and even singing breaking out. Both Sybil and Louise then worked the afternoon shift although on different wards.
Returning to her room after her shift, Sybil finally opened her presents. Aunt Rosamund's driver had delivered a large box to her three days ago. In the box were brightly wrapped packages from her parents, each of her sisters, Granny and Aunt Rosamund. The package from her parents contained a beautiful gold necklace with a diamond and emerald pendant. Granny gave her matching earrings. Mary sent an eight by ten framed watercolor of Sybil's favorite flowers. Edith's package consisted of two books. Aunt Rosamund had wrapped a heavy woolen muffler and matching gloves. Sybil felt a little ashamed that she had not bought anything for her family.
The only presents she had bought were for Tom. She had returned to the British Museum to buy him a book from the book shop. She had also bought him two pairs of very warm socks and a woolen blue muffler that she thought matched the color of his eyes. She hoped she had mailed it in time for him to have it for Christmas.
After opening all the packages from her family, Sybil had one more to open - a package from Tom that she had received five days earlier with a note saying open on Christmas. Inside was a beautiful blue flowered silk scarf, a silver book mark in a Celtic design, and three cotton handkerchiefs each embroidered with colorful flowers and another handkerchief embroidered with shamrocks. A note in the package said that Tom's sister Rose had done the embroidery.
Surrounded by her gifts, Sybil thought of how she did miss the holiday at Downton. Since she was a toddler, Sybil had always loved Christmas. There was the huge tree in the grand hall that was gaily decorated by not only the family but the servants too. Anyone who wanted to could participate in the decorating while drinking hot chocolate and munching on biscuits. It was the only time other than the servant's ball when the family and staff mixed freely. There was also a smaller tree in the library that was just for the family. It was here that they would open presents after Christmas luncheon which was always a buffet set up in the library.
As she sat on her bed, deep in thought of past Christmases, there was a knock on her door. Quickly, Sybil put everything but Tom's gifts into the big box and shoved it into the corner beside her dresser.
Sybil had been so engrossed her in gifts that she had forgotten to change clothes. She and Louise were going to the pub for dinner where they would meet some of their other friends.
"Oh Louise, it will just take me five minutes to get ready. I'm sorry I was day dreaming."
"Day dreaming or Tom dreaming" Louise laughed as she pointed knowingly to the Celtic bookmark.
Sybil blushed as she moved to her wardrobe. Selecting a dark green skirt, Sybil paired it with a white blouse and a colorful red, blue, and green silk scarf. She hastily dressed while Louise chattered about the box of chocolates and silk scarf she had received from her parents.
True to her word, it only took Sybil five minutes to be ready. Arm in arm she and Louise then marched down the stairs and out into the cold Christmas evening.
The pub was invitingly warm after their short walk in the cold. While there was no Christmas tree, there were wreaths on the door and over the stone fireplace but there was no mistaking the holiday with the jovial crowd. The two friends were quickly called over by a group of friends who had obviously been there long enough to have already drunk a pint or two. Sybil and Louise joined in with the revelry and soon all thoughts of the war and Downton and her family vanished as Sybil relished the company and friendship of Louise and her new found friends.
New Year's Eve was quite different from her Christmas. Sybil, who generally avoided working the night shift because it was too quiet for her tastes, volunteered to do so. After the festivities of the past week, Sybil was ready for a quiet evening. Sitting in the dimly lit ward, listening to the steady breathing of the few patients, Sybil was deep in thought of the changes that 1917 had brought to her life.
When the year had begun she was snug in her life at Downton, surrounded by her family and servants, dividing her work between the cottage hospital and the convalescent home, sneaking out to meet Tom at the garage. When Tom had been unjustly fired and returned to Ireland, Sybil thought her world had crashed. But now … now she was happier and more content in her life that she had ever been. What she couldn't have known was how 1918 would bring even greater change to her life.