3rd October 1814, All the Gaiety of a Ball

"No, the service changed uniforms on us - we got confused with the French too often." Torrington grinned. "And his Grace preferred a certain orderliness in his officers' attire, and some fellows walking around like they had escaped from the navy didn't fit in."

He let her to where Vickery was going - since they were among the first on the floor again, they might as well start their own set.

----

"Oh, no, that's not him either!"

Sylvia sounded disappointed.

"I will have to sit this dance out if he does not appear soon!"

"Oh, the poor man! Could he talk to his friend?"

Bella would have loved to talk to her oldest brother again, if only for a night.

"I'm not entirely sure he wanted to, the meeting - if it can be called that - was so very unexpected that it very much unnerved him. I think it was afterwards that he felt he should have said something - although he did not confide as much to me, of course."

He stopped once they were in approximately the right place, and let her turn in to her place.

"Oh, so you were the only ones in blue? But..." She had seen Willoughby and a couple of other hussars that were in blue too and they remained in that colour, though with a larger amount of lace. "Why had he not changed their coats as well? It seems quite unfair." She said softly again. "Which did you prefer, if I may ask?"

++

Willoughby knew that he had probably fallen into a trap. Of course, there was also a possibility that her dancer had bailed on her or that he had a better excuse not to show up or they really missed each other too. He might have been late, quite impolite to do something like that to a lady. He could not say that he would just leave her and then stand a few meters away as well.

"...If your partner does not appear, I can volunteer to take his place, should you prefer it to missing this dance." He had said it, but truly, his unwillingness to cause unhappiness in a lady would be his burial one day.

"Each has its own advantages and disadvantages", Torrington commented diplomatically.

While he prefered the blue one for the colour (and, if he was honest because he had started his career with it and liked the slight difference to the regular officers), he had at times cursed it for making people recognize him as everything but a British land officer, and anyway, he was not going to publicly critizise the decision of a superior.

He shared a quick grin with her.

"And of course both colours make the best out of the golden lace and buttons we have."

---------------

"Oh, would you? Oh, that woul be so kind, Mylord! I would like this of all things."

Possibly realizing that she was laying it on too thickly, Sylvia tried for more composure and added in an attempt at primness:

"That is, if you are not otherwise engaged or would rather play cards?"

"It does. It is a rather flattering combination." She smiled. She was quiet again for a while. As before she did not want to speak for the sake of speaking, and when she was to inquire on something, it would be, because she was genuinely interested. It did not help that she had liked Lord Torrington, and wished even less to present herself as a fool before him.

"Have you bought many horses while in Spain? I've heard that their kinds are quite of quality and trained well. Not all of course."

++

It was a slight opening in the plan and which he could escape if he had wished to, but Willoughby shook his head. He had no intention to play cards and he had no other engagement. Sylvia was perhaps a woman who knew what she wanted and somewhat more persistent and pushy at times, but she did not deserve to be abandoned in such manner.

"Come." He turned to take her to the dance floor, wondering if he would complete the set today, of having danced with all the Bromwell's. Well, Charlotte was still the lady whom he had asked and who was the first.

Bella turned and looked at him solemnly.

"Yes, I suppose it would be. I'm not sure Reverend Miller would approve of it, too. He always says that what we call ghosts are only humours after eating bad meat."

She looked quite dissatisfied with this explanation, since it was not only unhealthy, but also so mundane.

"Will you tell me your own ghost story at one point, Major?

"I admit I bought a few, though they were rather hard won. The French did not leave the famous studs intact, and there was of course a high demand for good horses. I was quite lucky, though - a friend of mine put me in the way of buying a nice mare from gypsies, and Trueno, who has accompanied me all the time, I found the day after my arrival by pure chance."

Talking of horses came easily to Torrington, and it was suitable enough a topic. He left out, of course, that he had attended a gypsy fair in clothing he wouldn't allow his gardener to wear, and had paid the former owner enough to buy three horses for his stallion.

-----------

Gleefully triumphant, although she still tried do play demure, Sylvia took his arm.

"Oh, thank you, Mylord. This will be quite the most pleasant dance of the night now, after I feared it would be the most embarrasing!"

When her oldest sister, rather unenthusiastically being led onto the floor by a Mr. Chichester, passed her by, she was treated to a royal smirk and could only glower - Though her young Miss of a sister would better be prepared for some remarks upon her poaching! Her mother, however, beamed as benevolently as a snake squeezing the last breath out of her victim.

"And this Trueno? What colour is he and what is he like to ride?" Rose asked, interested in the horses brought from Spain. It was perhaps not the most popular past time, but it was something exotic and interesting, unusual and if she thought of the famed horses, perhaps also more.

+

"You are welcome." Willoughby answered, noticing briefly the looks the two girls exchanged and inwardly sighing. Why did the feeling that he had been fooled persist?

Never the less he had gone to one of the forming groups and lead her gracefully into her spot, taking his own as well. The music began to play not too many moments after. He just hoped that he might find someone he would not have felt tricked into dancing with, for the waltz or to sit it out somewhere, perhaps even playing cards.

To Sylvia though he showed just a smile and politeness of a gentleman.

"Well, you have already seen him, I think - He is the big Black I usually ride in the mornings. He is a very good horse, and loves apples, long brushing and to see whether he can catch me out and get rid of me."

Torrington straightened as the music began, and bowed.

--------

Sylvia was walking on air - or rather soon would be dancing. Granted, it was only a reel, but she was dancing with Lord Gwydyr before Fanny! She would show her sister and mother that she could do so much better than a simple Major, personable though he was. And her sister could still have Lord Torrington - he was as boring as she was, so they should deal well. A hussar was much better, and Gwydyr was better suited in age and looked much more dashing!

Rose chuckled softly and merrily, remembering seeing the horse and imagining the witty animal trying its best to outwit its rider. It gave him some very human characteristics , which though were endearing in a horse as well.

She did not miss a beat, her movement graceful and light though as energetic as the melody they had begun to dance. "Has he yet thrown you?" She inquired, a smile playing on her lips.

+++

Willoughby bowed to Sylvia as the music began then started with the step, thankful again for having done some refreshing before he had come to the ball. Had he not done it, this would perhaps have not been as fine, nor as correctly done.

"Oh, my encounter with a ghost was really very dull," Vickery said. "But if you should like to hear it, I suppose the best time to tell it would be on a dark night with the wind howling, when we are all a little tipsy and trying to scare one another silly with tales of ghosties and ghoulies and things that go bump in the night." He grinned and made his courtesy to her as the music began.

"Once, though that was not his fault. We got onto an unstable piece of rock, he slipped and scrambled for a halt. I was distracted by something else, and when he jumped for safety, I neglected to come along. Not very glorious."

He had also at one point parted company with his horse when a bullet had clipped him, and once when both horse and rider had fallen traing to escape from cannon fire, but as this neither was a throw nor in his opinion suitable dancing conversation, he did not mention it.

----

Sylvia skipped through the steps with radiant energy. Her lord was even a good dancer. Much better than Fanny's Mr. Chichester! When they had another moment to converse, she asked sweetly:

"You dance very well, Mylord! Surely you must have often done so in Spain quite often?"

Lady Rose stifled a giggle, finding the way Torrington told his story quite amusing and entertaining. "I hope you were not too injured afterwards!" She exclaimed though. While it was rather amusing, she really did not want Torrington actually hurt. "I bet he took greater care when walking after that."

++

Willoughby waited until they were rejoined again in the dance and nodded. "I've tried a litte, here and there. I do not think I was any good at it, but it was fun." He would not say that sometimes officers danced with each other for lack of women. It was not the type of information she could appreciate.

"You dance well, also." He complimented her, though did not know what to ask. If he said that she must dance often it could also be misunderstood as if to say that she changed partners frequently and not in a good way. "Are you staying for the whole of the season?" It was not a question, innocent enough.

"Only my pride - that was severly bruised." He chuckled. "Oh, yes, he took great care - after having found out how to shake me off one time, he tried to replicate the result on several opportunities. I fear at some point, my horse found life as a soldier very boring and needed something to amuse himself."

-----------

"Oh, yes, Mama would not miss a single day of it. That is, unless Somebody should invite us, of course!", Sylvia blithely told him. She even managed to convey the capitalization - of course only somebody important could lure Mrs. Bromwell from town.

"He sounds like a very intelligent and entertaining animal." She said softly, quite keen on perhaps meeting this star one day. Tame and quiet horses that obeyed dutifully were perfect for riding, however with them one could never hear of stories of what they had been up to, nor all those silly anecdotes.

"Papa recently bought a nice bay mare." She said as she met him in the dance, cheerful and elegant, she was really enjoying herself. "She is sweet and obedient, and seems very careful not to bring you out of balance. She's used to all sorts of sounds too but the silly thing just adores our garden! She's escaped once or twice off to graze in it. Momma was so upset! But, Hortense, that's the mare's name, she seemed like there was no care in the world!"

++

Willoughby nodded leading Sylvia in the direction that the dance required them to go. "Your papa, he is well?" He asked as was perhaps the right decorum.

"Well, otherwise she would be just too perfect!", Torrington teased. "And that way she even provides you with amusing tales. Just think of how dull it would become if we had to confine our conversation mearly to the missteps of humans."

+++

"He is dead." She batted her lashes. "My brother is the head of the house now!"
Her fancy immediately led her to believe that Willoughby was inquiring to find out when he could have an interview with her guardian.

"That is true. The human world tries to make their lives quite serious, but animals never seem to bore of finding ways to make ours terrible or very amusing but almost never a bore." She smiled. "Oh and Hortense, while being the sweetest being to all of us even to other animals, like cats and like dogs, she learned on the first time she tried coming into the garden that the gardener is an evil man. Of course.. he would be the one chase her out! " She smiled brightly. "..and for that reason whenever she sees him,..and he's close enough, smack goes her tail! She'll even try turning so that she could get better aim, it's funny, though mamma does not think so!"

++

"I am sorry to hear that." It was meant for the dead father, of course. "How long ago, if it is not too..intrusive, to ask?Your brother must have gotten quite used to the running of things, no?" It was not the best direction their conversation was straying and so Willoughby thought of what else he might ask her to keep the conversation polite and company entertaining enough.

"I would imagine the gardener does not either!", Edward replied, amused at her enthusiasm. "Did you bring her to London or is she staying in the country?"

------------

"A bit more than three years - Mama was so glad when we were out of mourning, because we had to postpone my first season, of course, and Charlotte's was cut short, and Mama was so unhappy, because Fanny had been as good as betrothed to Lord Spencer, but of course he did not want to wait so long ..."

Sylvia babbled on, but the frequent interruptions of the dance and her own somewhat convoluted narrative style made it very hard to follow.

"Yes, she came with us!" Rose had to interrupt her answer as they had to part again. She was quick on her feet, and fine in rhythm and once she returned continued as if nothing had happened at all. "I asked papa and he agreed that she ought to come and I think that the gardener was thrilled at the news too, as was mama." She nodded. "And quite because she is so docile I preferred to take her. Do you have Trueno here as well?"

++

Willoughby mostly nodded and listened. He tried to make sense of her whole narrative and appear interested even when he was not quite sure what he meant. "You have not attempted to renew acquaintances once you could rejoin the city life?" He asked, wondering how much the marriage of her mother with the man had been out of necessity and economical benefit, and how much had it been of actual affection. Either of course were understandable things for the young ladies to strive for.

"Oh, then you must come and visit us in the country!", Isabella exclaimed.

"There is the nicest fireplace at Walham, with a chimney where you can hear the wind howling like a dinstant horn, and large iron dragons instead of fire dogs. And perhaps you can see the ghosts there! And you can tell us then whether the poor girl really jumped or was murdered by the Roundhead officer she refused to marry!"

The romantic tale had captured her fantasy; while her father, who at one time had taken the trouble to look it up, had assured her that the local church register did not contain any mentioning of the tale, but showed a daughter of his ancestor as dead after severe illness a few days later, had refuted it as later embellishment, she preferred to believe that in the chaos of the war, the church books might have written "illness" to mean "severe burns and broken bones".

"Yes - you will see him soon. Most likely I will be riding him at the quadrille."

Torrington waited for a moment, then held out his hand to her to grasp for the next figure.

"I hope you find the whole affair not too distasteful and will be coming to watch us?"

------------

"He married Claire Debenham!"

Sylvia said it like the personal affront she felt it to be.

"I will most certainly come." Rose promised, her eyes alight with merriment. "It is not something I could miss and I would love to see your Trueno, and his rider performing the fine arts of quadrille." Her mother may have had a stricter opinion of the matter of this near scandalous challenge, but she could ask to accompany Bella, or have even her brother come along to see it. Her mother would not protest, though perhaps she would have preferred that the fiery tempered hussar had not drawn Lord Torrington into this scuffle. She on the other hand found it just a little bit exciting to see the presentation with all the horses that would not normally ride together.

She joined hands with Lord Torrington again, smiling politely. "It is an affair that is quite unexpected." She spoke softly, though more composed and perhaps reservedly like. "Unusual in its way. It is not a crossing of swords though some would have suggested it could almost have been. It's innocent though..and It is a fine spectacle, and I do believe there will be many spectators to see you."

"Ah.. quite unfortunate." Willoughby said, taking Sylvia's hand for the next figure. He wondered about the marriage that Sylvia had missed. If this had been a true possibility, she had really been struck by bad luck. Her uncaring manner about her father's passing however had slightly disturbed him, though perhaps she was merely quite bad with words and was less apt at expressing her mourning as she was at the more practical aspects of a woman's life and the paths she could and had to take to secure her own future.

"What do you think of today's ball?" He inquired, casting a glance briefly to those who stood at the sidelines if it happened to see the dancing partner they had been searching for earlier.

"I shall certainly come and visit Walham this winter, if you do not think your brother would turn me away," Vickery said, smiling, as he led Isabella through the figures of the dance. He enjoyed reels; they were far more lively than the staid and sedate measures of something like the Maggot that had just been danced.

"It sounds like something out of Udolpho," he added. "I do hope there are no mysterious black curtains with bodies hidden behind them?"