Playing around with the timeline again; pretty sure that it was in the spring that the house became a convalescent home. Either way, I hope you enjoy (especially after the darkness of the last chapter)-dedicating this to the-she-celt, who recently reviewed, demanding "mooooooooooooooooooooore!" :oP
Will be posting chapter 33 right after this one, so be sure to check for it too! THANKS FOR READING and sticking with this!
The Sweetest Spirit
April, 1917
Everything has changed.
He wonders if Patrick were here, would he even recognize the place? Despite the "patriotic" reason for why the grand estate has been turned into a convalescent home for officers, Larry can't help but feel that Patrick's future home has been desecrated.
Seeing those changes now, for the first time, is like nothing he ever imagined. And while it's no hospital, there's still a stench about the place, one that has him wrinkling his nose in disgust.
His sweet Sybil has changed too. She's a nurse now, and this is the first time he's seen her in her drab uniform. He can't help but frown at the frock; she looks rather frumpy, it does nothing for her figure. Still, there is a pretty color to her cheek, as she moves at a brisk pace from room to room, and a light that seems to sparkle in her eyes.
As if she's moving with a sense of…purpose.
Sybil isn't the only one. Both Mary and Edith are also doing their part, however they haven't lost themselves into this sense of charitable and patriotic duty the same way Sybil has. One would think that she and Mary have switched places, with the way she carries herself and gives orders to the hall boys and other nurses to "move that there", and "see that this is done", and so forth.
Was she always like this? No, no, surely not. She used to be quiet and thoughtful, her nose buried in a book. The housekeeper always referred to her as a caring child, a sweet spirit, and that's how he remembers her. Not brash, bossy, and opinionated. Not that he's against her "taking charge"—after all, a good wife needs to be that way when it comes to managing a household of servants. So by all means, let her make orders and practice playing "mistress of the manor" while she dons her frumpy uniform. He realizes now that a woman needs to feel a sense of purpose in her life, and clearly that's what this is. So long as she understands that her ultimate purpose is to please her husband, and let him please her as reward for her sweet gentleness.
"I understand this was all your idea?" he asks her at one point, while she's trying to organize some vials in the library.
She doesn't even pause in her task. "Not just mine; Cousin Isobel's too."
"Very noble of you," he compliments, hoping to win a smile from her (or at the very least, just a glance).
He is rewarded with that. "No, not noble," she shakes her head. "It's simply the just thing to do. I don't want what happened to Lt. Courtney to happen to another officer, if I can help it!" There is a passionate rise in her voice, one that almost has Larry backing away.
He's heard this story from Lord Grantham, but refrains from expressing his true opinion about the cowardly officer's suicide. "That must have been horrible for you…" he sympathizes, reaching out to touch her shoulder.
She moves away before his fingers make contact.
"Not just me," she sighs. "It was horrible for us all …" her eyes wander across the room and Larry notices how they rest on a dark-haired medic, one that he remembers used to be a footman. Without another word, Sybil abandons his side and goes to the medic, proceeding to help him with whatever task he's working on.
Housemaids, chauffeurs, and now footmen turned military medics?
He just has to remind himself over and over; this is just a phase, that's all it is. When the War is over, she'll be back to normal, as will Downton.