This is a fan made story. I don't own the rights to SHIELD, any of its characters or any characters within the MCU… Much to my disappointment. This is a Regency Era based AU and I will be pulling characters from all over the MCU. Fair warning. Constructive criticism is welcome but if you don't like it simply because you don't like the line of thinking, please don't attack me for it.
Chapter 3: London Calling
The next few weeks passed in a blur for those of the Coulson family. Leo spent quite an extensive amount of time writing to different business partners as well as to the Steward of Tillsbury Park, their country holding. Daisy on the other hand was simply enjoying her newfound freedom. She insisted on top of her 'morning exercise' she be allowed to go for daily walks near the seaside since they were so close anyways. As for Jemma, she spent most of her hours arranging, through letters, all the necessities of bringing a young lady of Daisy's caliber out into society.
Jemma felt glee at the idea of all the control she had over the situation. Her husband was much more respectful of her ability to think than her father had been and as such she had been allowed a lot of liberty when it came to things that many men thought of as 'men's work'. Jemma thanked god nightly that he should bestow such a wonderful husband upon her, and she took full advantage of assisting her husband in the fullest with all the expectations of responsibilities.
Leo had made it abundantly clear that all things related to household expenditures were within her field and gave her full access to their expenses knowing that Jemma wasn't one to spend money unnecessarily. Jemma appreciated this detail as it meant her husband showed her far more trust than most would. Jemma turned to look at the other three occupants of the carriage. They were finally headed back to London and she couldn't be happier. While she enjoyed summering in Tillsbury Park, London held her heart during the Season. Between the entertainments to be had, the gossip to be gleaned and the latest advancements in both fashion and science, there was no place she would rather be.
She smiled as the smallish cottages merged to wooden homes. Next would be the stone as they got into the better parts of the city. She had already arranged for a visit to Madame Moreau the next morning to start on the new dresses. The seamstress in Weymouth could make a decent gown but it simply wasn't up to the standards of the first circles they would be moving in. Jemma had no doubt that Daisy's elegant appearance would draw attention to the young lady. The lack in general of women of an Asian persuasion would add an appeal of the exotic to her and her linage would no doubt garner the attentions of even the highest of nobles.
Jemma could wring Leo's neck over his negligence over telling her about the girl's connection to the Chinese Emperor, but she supposed it was mostly because he was never a man to focus on things like connections. She could only hope that they would be successful in finding a husband for Daisy who was clearly of a similar mindset. Jemma shifted and nudged her husband to wake him as they approached their home in the Bloomsbury district of London.
As the carriage stopped, Daisy and Miss Morse woke as well. They weren't quite to the town house yet. However, traffic had forced them to slow to a stop. Daisy looked out the window and smiled before settling back into her seat as the carriage moved forward once more. It took only another quarter hour for them to reach their home.
Jemma refrained from talking about the house again because she spent the first half hour of the day describing all the updates made for Daisy's room. Daisy on the other hand was focusing on an environment that she hadn't encountered for six years. She had, in truth, spent more of her life in China than she had in England. She had even been born in China. She had only lived in England for three years between the ages of 10 and 13. Now, she would spend the rest of her life in England. So far, she had a level of excitement over everything. She was ecstatic that there wasn't an insane amount of bowing to her because she was related to the Emperor.
The amount of freedom afforded to her now was also an exciting prospect. The lack of crowds was also intriguing. When the carriage stopped at their house in Bloomsbury, Daisy had to be reminded by Miss Morse that she had to be helped out of the carriage. Leo held back his laughter but was smiling as he held his hand out to help her down. Daisy rolled her eyes but took his hand and stepped down and looked about as Leo helped Jemma and Miss Morse down as well.
By the time they were all out, the housekeeper and butler were at the entrance. Jemma smiled at them as they bowed and curtseyed. Daisy sighed but knew that it was only because it was the first time they were meeting Daisy. Jemma had to hire most of the present staff as Leo had little need for them in the townhouse, spending most of his time at Tillsbury Park before his marriage. The previous cook had been someone with only cursory skills as Leo only rarely entertained and as such hadn't paid much attention to such things.
"Daisy, Miss Morse, this is Mrs. Hanson, our housekeeper, and Mr. Stafford, our butler. Mrs. Hanson, Mr. Stafford, this is my sister, Miss Daisy Coulson, and her lady's companion Miss Barbra Morse," Leo smiled as he introduced Daisy to the two primary servants. When they went into the house, the rest of the servants were already lined up to be introduced to Daisy and Miss Morse.
When the process was done, they all were able to retire for a rest before dinner. Jemma wrote a quick note to Leo's aunt, Lady Victoria Hand. She had promised the lady that she would be informed immediately of their return. In all honestly, the woman terrified her a little, but she had also offer to assist with bringing Daisy out into society and Jemma knew that would make things easier for herself. Lady Victoria had already been informed that they would be arriving on this day, but Jemma didn't want to take any chances of offending the strict noble woman.
She expected that the lady would be arriving just after they finished their breakfast the next morning. Leo spent his time introducing his current staff to those who were brought with Daisy. Miss Morse, happy to finally be finished with travel for a while, took a nap before refreshing herself. Daisy wandered around the house, attempting to familiarize herself with the place that she would likely spend a large amount of time for the next year at least.
Daisy knew that she would likely be expected to find a husband quickly, but she was in little rush. She had both time and her parent's approval to choose for herself who she was to marry. Her brother was in accord with her parents on this as well. Her uncle only told her that she should marry to bring honor, she had no idea of how her father's sister, Lady Victoria would express her wishes but hoped it was in her favor. Aunt Victoria had been kind to her and fond of her when she was a child so she could only hope the woman would remain so. At the very least her letters had remained so.
The rest of the day passed quickly for all the residents of the Bloomsbury home. It was obvious to Daisy that Cook Min Li hadn't been involved in the process of making bother dinner and supper, but she figured that the lady watched the other cook like a hawk and would probably be involved in all future meals. It was a bit odd for her to be tasting food so different from what she was accustomed to, however she knew that would be occurring a lot more frequently now. It would hardly be reasonable to expect the others to eat Chinese dishes solely because it was what she was familiar with.
When they all retired for the evening, Daisy sighed as she looked at the bed before her. Xui had already remade her bed with things that had been brought from China for her. Again, she knew that these accommodations weren't the norm. The silk bedding could hardly be customary in England where so much silk was a luxury in the extreme. In fact, she knew that even in China it was reserved for those of the upper classes. She sighed at the comfort, though, of such familiar aspects of her room. Jemma had explained that her mother had sent a letter that gave exacting instructions of how the room was to be made up.
Daisy allowed herself to relax into her bed. Xui had had a cot set up in the dressing room for herself and exited immediately when Daisy had ordered her to. The maid was a light sleeper so there would be little risk to her person. Daisy also knew that her bodyguards would likely take shifts of sleeping and occupying the main floor as it was a custom that was long established with them. These were reassuring thoughts as she drifted off, knowing full well why such precautions were made.
She knew her parents had written in the letter about the kidnapping attempts that had already twice occurred. While it was unlikely that such would happen in England, none who cared for her would take the risk. She had no doubt that her uncle had already written to her parents about the pirate attack that was eerily focused on the ship she had been on.
The next morning, just after they finished with breakfast, Lady Victoria was announced and entered the drawing room. While all of them stood, Lady Victoria completely ignored Leo and Jemma and walked directly to Daisy. She circled the young woman before nodding and smiling. The first genuine smile Jemma had ever seen on the Lady.
"Daisy, the portrait your parents sent me last year does not do you justice. I trust Philip didn't pay the painter too much. You have certainly grown into your beauty. I believe you will do your family proud. I trust you are ready for the business necessary in the operation of finding a suitable husband," Lady Victoria's smiled indulgently as she spoke. Jemma was in full blown shock.
When the Lady finally broke her attention free from Daisy, Leo had already greeted his aunt as well. Jemma was the last to greet her, "Lady Victoria, it is a pleasure to see you again. Might I offer you some tea?"
"No, thank you, Mrs. Coulson. In your note yesterday, you mentioned that Daisy brought more materials than expected. I hoped to examine them before we head to the modiste appointment I arranged for today. Madame Moreau is expecting us soon so we shouldn't linger," Their aunt's smile fell abruptly as she addressed Jemma.
"I anticipated your wish. I had one of the maids take small samples from all the fabrics sent with Daisy. They are in this basket," Jemma smiled gently and gestured to a nearby basket.
"Well! I will get out of you ladies' way," Leo stated simply before hastily retreating to his study.
"Excellent. Daisy, you stand there. We will compare the fabrics to your complexion and have the maids set aside those we will arranged to be sent to Madame Moreau's," The noble woman gave Jemma a brief but genuine smile of approval before collecting the basket and pulling out the swatches of fabrics.
The next half hour was spent comparing the options and deciding which would be used immediately and which would be saved for the future. Daisy resisted the urge to sigh several times during the process. In the end, the two older women decided to bring a large selection for review and choose the cloth based on the designs that they had to choose from.
When they arrived at the modiste a quarter hour later, the mistress of the establishment placed them under her full attention. Lady Victoria was a lady who was among the trend setters of the Ton. The Lady might have been stern, but she was also recognized as one of the Lady Patrons of Almacs as her mother-in-law had been before. The samples were shown to Madame Moreau who was thrilled to use such fine materials directly from China. A full hour of debating several designs for dresses resulted in six dresses being commissioned for immediate use and a solid dozen more to be finished by the end of the month, with even more to come later.
After Daisy's measurements were taken, they were finally released from the modiste. Another hour passed while Lady Victoria directed them to several high-level establishments on Bond Street for accessories to go with the gowns being made. When they finished, Jemma suggested they stop at a tea shop for refreshments. Lady Victoria agreed much to Daisy's relief.
"…And then Miss Formenst said that if the Imperial Prince wished to make her his Empress than she saw no reason to object to such a scheme. Needless to say, that the Empress was infuriated," Daisy stopped with her tale of what happened to the previous French Ambassador's family.
They were approached by an older man and two younger gentlemen. All three were in uniform. The eldest of the three wore the rank of a General, "Lady Victoria Hand. It is always a pleasure to see you."
"Brigadier General Garret. It is wonderful to see you well," Lady Victoria's voice was carefully controlled as she spoke, her smile one of civil politeness and nothing more. "Might I inquire as to the identity of those accompanying you?"
"Of course, Your Ladyship. Might I introduce the Honorable Right Colonel Grant Ward, the younger brother to the Earl of Mulberry and Major Antoine Triplett. They are both staying with me as they have been stationed at the War Office," General Garret gestured to the respective men.
"How lovely. These are my nieces, Mrs. Jemma Coulson and Miss Daisy Coulson. Mrs. Coulson is my nephew, Leopold's lovely wife, of course and the daughter of Rev. Charles Simmons," Lady Victoria didn't bat an eye as she admitted to her nephew marrying a parson's daughter.
"Forgive me, Your Ladyship, but I am already acquainted with both the ladies. I attended Cambridge with Mr. Coulson and we are good friends. I attended his wedding and was visiting Tillsbury the last time Miss Coulson was in England. It is, of course, an absolute pleasure to renew the acquaintance," Col. Ward explained.
Daisy paused briefly, trying to remember the man and with thought realized it was true, although he hadn't been in uniform then, "Of course, forgive me for not remembering before now. I was rather young then and it has been quite some time since then." Daisy curtseyed again at the men.
"I am actually acquainted with Major Triplett as well, Aunt Victoria. His family also lives in the neighborhood I grew up in," Jemma offered before smiling at him.
"Well, since we are all acquainted, perhaps you gentlemen would join us for refreshments. We were just headed for a tea parlor," Lady Victoria offered to be polite.
"Unfortunately, we have some business to attend to. My apologies," Garret shrugged as he glanced at the major who held a case in his left hand
"Well then, I was planning on hosting my nephew and nieces for dinner the day after tomorrow. Perhaps you all would like to join us?" Although it was phrased as a question, the expression on the lady's face made it clear that she expected a positive response.
"Well, I could hardly do otherwise than to accept. I would hate to deprive my men of such a pleasure as your lovely company, nor the company of you esteemed nieces," Gen. Garret's smirk made Daisy uncomfortable.