Rather against Grace's feeling, Rachel drew her on, so as to come up
with Lady Temple and her friend in the midst of their conversation, and
they heard the last words-"Then you will give me dear Bessie's direction?"
"Thank you, it will be the greatest kindness--"
"Oh, Grace, Rachel, is it you?" exclaimed Fanny. "You have not met
before, I think. Mr. Keith--Miss Curtis."
Very young indeed were both face and figure, fair and pale, and though
there was a moustache, it was so light and silky as to be scarcely
visible; the hair, too, was almost flaxen, and the whole complexion had
a washed-out appearance. The eyes, indeed, were of the same peculiar
deep blue as the Colonel's, but even these were little seen under their
heavy sleepy lids, and the long limbs had in every movement something
of weight and slowness, the very sight of which fretted Rachel, and made
her long to shake him. It appeared that he was come to spend the Sunday
at Avonmouth, and Grace tried to extract the comfort for her mother that
two gentlemen were better than one, and Fanny need not be on their minds
for chaperonage for that day.
A party of garden-chairs on the lawn invited repose, and there the
ladies seated themselves; Fanny laying down her heavy crape bonnet,
and showing her pretty little delicate face, now much fresher and more
roseate than when she arrived, though her wide-spreading black draperies
gave a certain dignity to her slight figure, contrasting with the summer
muslins of her two cousins; as did her hot-house plant fairness, with
their firm, healthy glow of complexion; her tender shrinking grace,
with their upright vigour. The gentleman of the party leant hack in a
languid, easy posture, as though only half awake, and the whole was
so quiet that Grace, missing the usual tumult of children, asked after
them.
"The boys have gone to their favourite cove under the plantation. They
have a fort there, and Hubert told me he was to be a hero, and Miss
Williams a she-ro."
"I would not encourage that description of sport," said Rachel, willing
to fight a battle in order to avert maternal anecdotes of boyish
sayings.
"They like it so much," said Fanny, "and they learn so much now that
they act all the battles they read about."
"That is what I object to," said Rachel; "it is accustoming them to
confound heroism with pugnacity."
"No, but Rachel dear, they do quarrel and fight among themselves much
less now that this is all in play and good humour," pleaded Fanny.
"Yes, that may be, but you are cultivating the dangerous instinct,
although for a moment giving it a better direction."
"Dangerous? Oh, Alick! do you think it can be?" said Fanny, less easily
borne down with a supporter beside her.