Thanks again as always for reading and reviewing! I cannot deny, I got such a hoot out of some of the reviews y'all left with the last chapter :oP Larry is fun to write ;o) but villains usually are! Anyway, here's the next installment; in my headcanon, I always imagined Sybil being an early developer, but I also imagined her having not the most pleasant experience when it came to going through puberty. You'll see what I mean, in a sense. Thanks again for reading!
She Walks in Beauty
August 1909
Gone is the buxom beauty he saw developing last summer.
Well, that's not entirely true, she's still quite buxom actually; the only problem is that other parts of her have grown as well. Her waist is nowhere near as slender as her sisters. Granted, she's only thirteen, but his mother has always said that "it's never too early for a girl to start wearing a corset!" He finds himself nodding in agreement.
Yes, Sybil is a little fuller now. Fuller breasts, but also fuller hips, thighs, and middle too. That's not all. She's spotty. She seems to "perspire" much more than a girl should, and her flushed face betrays her, revealing several ugly, red spots along her brow, chin, and jawline.
Indeed; the changes a girl must go through to become a woman, have not been kind, and Larry finds himself wondering whatever had possessed him to find her beautiful in the first place?
Not that it matters, he tells himself as he sips his lemonade. She's far too young anyway…
It's just another typical Downton garden party. Lord Grantham is introducing Patrick to other guests, laughing and smiling and slapping Patrick on the shoulder as if the younger man were his son. But he's not; he's simply the future Earl.
Larry pulls out a flask that he's been keeping hidden in his pocket and pours some of its contents into his lemonade. He notices how his own father is also beaming at Patrick, nodding his head to every compliment Lord Grantham declares.
He doesn't even bother with putting the flask away; he takes a good long swig from it before turning from the display of "old man wanking", as his father and Lord G fawn over the future earl.
Edith is hovering nearby too, the only girl in the small crowd. The way she gazes up at Patrick as if he were a gift from heaven causes Larry's eyes to roll. He takes another swig before finally stuffing the flask back into his pocket.
Mary is elsewhere, no doubt doing her own duty as future countess by playing hostess with Lady Grantham.
His eyes wander back to Sybil who is sitting on a stone bench in the shade of a tree, her spotty nose buried in a book. Such a pity; but she might as well enlighten her mind, since her looks will be no good to her.
A pretty blonde, who looks to be Sybil's age, runs up to join her. She's dainty and giggling and she blushes when she catches his eye. Sybil looks up from her book briefly to scold the girl. "Hush, Imogen!"
"What are you reading?"
"Lord Byron," Sybil answers, her eyes already back on the page.
Imogen's eyes have moved as well. She blushes again when she looks at him.
She's fair and slender, and there's not one spot on her face. She has the desired waist, but hardly any breasts.
Ah well, you can't have everything, he thinks as he drinks his "improved" lemonade.