Hell Must Have Frozen Over

[Elizabeth Humphrey-Mavis]

It pained her to say, but Betsy needed advice. She couldn't ask any of her friends, because she had pride and they wouldn't be right to ask. Betsy needed someone intelligent, and someone who wasn't... like her. So after a few days of suppressing her pride, Betsy plucked up the courage to ask her wonderful baby sister for advice.

Yes. This was happening. No, Betsy didn't believe it either.

"Pennyyy!" Betsy exclaimed with a huge smile when she saw said sister somewhere in their massive home, "How are youuuu?" She then sat across from her sister,
smiling.

@'Penelope Humphrey-Mavis'
@'Helena Macmillan'

  

[Penelope Humphrey-Mavis]

Belligerently turning the page of her Gaskill novel – which was passable but despite the mild bout of mental frivolity she felt in the summer, far from engaging – Penny actively ignored her sister’s voice. After the morning she’d had she certainly did not need Betsy’s questioning!

However, it was rather difficult to ignore her sister’s presence when she barged into the library fill of vim and vigour.

“Quite well thank you,” she replied simply, saving her breath because she very much doubted this would be the last question. “Is there something amiss?”

  

[Elizabeth Humphrey-Mavis]

In response to her sister, Betsy gave a confident laugh.
"Amiss?" she said, "Absolutely not! Would there need to be anything amiss for me to ask you, my favourite younger sister how you are?" Even Betsy had to admit that despite her great love for her family, she could be a little self concerned and while she did care greatly for their wellbeing it was possibly unlike her to actually go around asking people.

"But now that you mention it, I was wondering... if you, would perhaps by any chance...
help me out?" She added, forcing a smile.

  

[Penelope Humphrey-Mavis]

Whenever her sister required advice – and the occasions were few and far between to Penny’s recollection and she had barely asked her thoughts on anything since they had been small – it seemed something of an inevitability that Betsy would not follow it at all. Of course she might be being pre-emptive, but Penny flattered herself that she was seldom wrong.

With the exception of…him but she was absolutely not thinking about him.

“I’m sure I could try,” she said neutrally, wondering why she had been chosen for the honour over Freddie given what she knew her sister’s preference in siblings to lean towards.

  

[Elizabeth Humphrey-Mavis]

"Well," Betsy replied, trying to string the correct words together, "I have been thinking of late, seeing as my twenty-third" - ew - "birthday is fast approaching and-"

Betsy's confidence suddenly drained away, and she found herself wordless. She stared at her hands, and starting mumbling about her fears about dying a spinster. In this rare moment of vulnerability (Betsy usually preferred to hide her problems with a sunny disposition and several layers of bitchiness), her mutterings were mostly intelligible.

After mumbling something that accidentally accused Penny of understanding what it was like to be heading towards spinsterhood, Betsy suddenly exclaimed (because even now she still had to be completely ridiculous), "Oh no I didn't mean it like that! Especially from what I've heard about you and Marcus Lytton."

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   Penelope Humphrey-Mavis

[Penelope Humphrey-Mavis]

It was on the tip of Penny’s tongue to compulsively make a catty remark about Betsy’s ever-advancing age but her mouth was stilled instantaneously by the mention of Mr Lytton. If her sister knew something then… oh Merlin, what were people saying? She certainly hadn’t mentioned her…interest to anybody – and likely never would – and she had only received a dress from him, not a marriage proposal!

“What about me and Mr Lytton?” She asked sharply.

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   Ellory Pendergast

[Elizabeth Humphrey-Mavis]

Ah yes. This was back onto Betsy's territory. Speaking about her emotions? No. Butting into her sibling's personal lives? Much better.

"Well," she replied, with a cheeky look in her eyes, "Just things, while out and about."

  

[Penelope Humphrey-Mavis]

Eyes narrowing Penny couldn't tell at all what Betsy knew - not that there was anything to know but she desperately needed to know what her sister thought she knew so she could head off anybody else who might think that they knew things. Dratted rumours! Why did he have to be so well-known?!

"What things exactly?"