Sister

New York City
It was a crisp fall morning, and because Charlie preferred to be outside when possible, he had decided to go for a walk about the grounds to clear his head and gather his thoughts.
In a few short weeks, he would be off to attend high school at the New York Preparatory School, not far away in Manhattan. Though he was certain he would see his parents frequently, the idea of going off to school after so many years of being tutored at home was a bit unsettling. His friend Walter would also be attending, so at least he knew he’d see a familiar face. Nevertheless, he was quite fond of his parents and thought he would likely miss them quite a bit, despite knowing they would visit regularly, and he could come home often.
Though he had determined to push thoughts of Mary Margaret Westmoreland out of his head months ago, he couldn’t help but wonder if he should write her another letter once he knew his school address, on the off chance that she might finally care to answer his correspondence. After sending four letters and hearing nothing in response, he had all but given up. His father gave him few details of what transpired when he had called upon the Westmoreland residence on his visit to their home after the first letter, and since his father was genuinely an optimistic soul, his lack of detail made Charlie think things had not gone well. Nevertheless, his parents told him he should press on and send Mary Margaret a letter now and again in case she may be curious as to what his life was like in New York.
Charlie was beginning to wonder if Mary Margaret even existed.
After a vigorous stroll that had his heart pounding and his lungs burning, he decided to make his way back toward the house. As he approached the front porch, he heard the sound of piano music coming from the parlor and hurried inside so that he might catch his own private concert put on by his older sister, Grace. She was quite the pianist, and he loved to sit and listen to her play whenever he had the opportunity.
At eighteen, Grace Ashton was the talk of high society. She had her coming out ball earlier in the spring of that year—the first such event Charlie had ever attended—and since then there had been an endless stream of gentlemen callers leaving calling cards at the Ashton home. Having graduated from finishing school and proven herself quite the capable young lady, Grace Ashton would certainly be choosing a suitor soon, and it wouldn’t be long until these concerts were no longer held at the family home.
Charlie sat in a leather chair across the room from her where he could get the full experience. The acoustics in the room were wonderful from every seat, but from here, the music seemed to surround him. Grace gave him a quick glance and small smile as she entered a particular difficult portion of Liszt’s “Liebestraum No. 3” and Charlie leaned his head back and closed his eyes. Though he had never learned to play himself, he greatly appreciated the art of playing an instrument, especially one as complicated as the piano, and as his sister continued, he absently wondered if Mary Margaret knew how to play and if she did so well.
Just as he was about to drift off to sleep, his sister changed her song and began thrumming out the faster paced, more jovial sounds of a ragtime piece. His eyes flew open, and he sat up to see her laughing at him as she pounded away at the keys. He wasn’t familiar with this particular tune and knew it must be something she learned when she went off to school as there is no way her stuffy old piano teacher, Mrs. White, would have allowed her to play such a “scandalous” song.
“You’re awake then?” Grace called as she pounded out the last few notes and finished with her hands poised over the keys.
“I certainly am now,” Charlie laughed as he strolled over and joined her on the piano bench. “Wherever did you learn that one?”
Grace laughed. “My friend Harriet taught me. Isn’t it grand?”
“It’s definitely not what I was expecting to hear,” Charlie nodded. “I hear that sort of music is becoming more popular though.”
“It’s wonderful!” Grace exclaimed. “It’s so much more interesting to play than those classical pieces Mrs. White made me practice for hours on end.”
“Has Father heard it?” Charlie asked smiling up at his sister who was slightly taller than him still.
“Not yet, but I don’t think he should mind too much. Father has always been a bit of a progressive. Mother loved it, though. She said I should learn more.”
Laughing, Charlie said, “Now that I’m not at all surprised to hear.”
“She just cautioned me against playing it for any suitors who might happen by. She said I’d need to make sure I had a good one before I tested out whether or not he should allow me to play popular music.”
“I can’t imagine she’d like for you to marry anyone who would disagree.”
“Quite true,” Grace nodded, her fingers tinkling over the keys quietly as she spoke. “I would never marry a man who wouldn’t let me play anything I choose.”
Charlie nodded and then dropped his eyes to the keys, her last words catching his attention. Grace certainly did have a lot of choices in front of her. He wondered what that must be like.
“Are you all right, Charlie?” she asked. “Have I upset you?”
“Oh, no, not at all,” Charlie replied, the smile returning to his face, though it was a bit forced this time. “I was just thinking about how nice it will be for you once you’ve found the perfect husband, and you can go off and start a family of your own; that’s all.”
Grace looked at him scrupulously. “You know, Charlie, this whole bit about Mary Margaret Westmoreland—does it bother you?”
His forehead crinkled, Charlie asked, “Why should it?”
Grace pursed her lips, drawing them to one side of her lovely face. “Well,” she began, “you’re about to go off to school for the first time. You’ll have less supervision, less time with parents. More time with your friends. More possibilities of interacting with young ladies. I was just wondering if, perhaps, you might be excited to have the opportunity to see where that might take you, that’s all. You’re fifteen. Surely the thought of young women excites you. You seemed to enjoy my ball.”
Charlie listened intently as she went on, his eyes wide with curiosity, but by the time she finished, he really didn’t know what to say. Finally, he shrugged and said, “I don’t know, Grace. I’ve always known I was meant for Mary Margaret. I’ve never really spent too much time thinking about other young ladies.”
“Well, you should,” Grace said with a humph as she did a quick scale with her left hand.
“Why do you say that?” Charlie asked, scooting out of her way a bit.
She practiced a few more runs before she answered, “Because—I just don’t feel it’s very ladylike for someone to ignore several letters, that’s all.”
While he agreed with her, he was very defensive when it came to Mary Margaret. “You don’t know for sure that she’s ignored them,” he said turning a bit to face her. “There are lots of reasons why I might not have received a letter yet.”
Grace rolled her eyes, but she didn’t turn to face him, her gaze locked on the keyboard. “Very well, then, Charlie, waste your youth waiting for a young lady who is likely so spoilt she has no idea what she’s missing.”
“Grace!” Charlie exclaimed. “Please don’t speak of Mary Margaret that way. You don’t even know her.”
“No, I don’t, Charlie. That’s my point,” she said spinning to face him. “Neither do you!”
“I will!” Charlie argued back, sliding off the end of the bench and turning to face her.
“In the meantime, get to know the world, Charlie. You have no idea what you’ll be missing if you don’t!” There was no anger in her tone, just a sense of longing and romance.
Jamming his hands into his trouser pockets, Charlie pivoted on his heels to go. She slammed her hands down on the keys, which caused a bit of anger to well up inside of him. He turned to face her again, and she was sitting with her elbow on the keyboard, her chin resting on it, obviously frustrated. “Grace, I suppose you mean well, but please don’t attempt to tell me what I should or shouldn’t do. Going off to school is difficult enough without thinking about what I may or may not be missing out on. Father has asked me to do this, and that’s what I intend to do. Why is that so difficult to understand?”
She sighed loudly, removed her arm from the keyboard, closed the cover, and slowly rose. Walking toward him, she reminded him more of their mother than the little girl he had run about with in the back gardens not that long ago. “I understand Charlie,” Grace replied, placing her hand on his shoulder. “I just don’t want you to miss out on anything. You’re my brother, and I love you. I can’t imagine what it must be like to be in your situation, and I just hope that it works out for the best, that’s all.”
“While I thank you for your concern,” Charlie said with a deep breath, “I assure you it is unwarranted. Everything will work out fine, Grace. Just like it always does.”
Nodding, Grace drew him into her arms and hugged him tightly. “I certainly hope so,” she said quietly. “I certainly hope so.”
As he made his way to his room, Charlie wondered what it was that his older sister knew that he did not. She’s always seemed wiser and more worldly than he was. Going off to school had made that particularly true. Still, despite not having heard from Mary Margaret, Charlie was certain that everything would turn out as his father had explained, and he would be betrothed to Mary Margaret and then married. Climbing the stairs, he wondered what he might be able to do to encourage her to write to him. Then, an idea popped into his head. “That’s it!” he said aloud. His last few letters had not been as personal as he had intended. He wanted Mary Margaret to feel as if she truly knew him, as if they were friends. He’d send her a likeness. Then, she’d be able to see his kindness and sincerity in his countenance. Surely, that would do the trick. It just had to.