The Downton Princess | A Downton Abbey Fanfiction

Chapter Nine

Darrel was silent for the majority of the walk back to the house from the village. Tobias walked further behind, not wanting to pressure her into talking before she was ready. He could tell that her interaction with Sebastian Carlos upset her. And he had a feeling that she did not want her current suitor to comfort her about meeting with her former suitor.
Darrel did not know how to feel about her interaction with Sebastian. It was her first time seeing him since he moved out of Buckingham Palace, and their first time speaking since he broke off their engagement. When he returned to the Palace to retrieve his belongings, Darrel did not go to see him since it was too painful. Instead, she watched from her window.
While Darrel knew that she would have to see Sebastian again, she did not expect to run into him while with Tobias. If she had it her way, she hoped that the two would not have to meet for a very long time. However, what Darrel found the most upsetting was how cruel Sebastian had been. She did not understand why he tried to scare Tobias off, especially since Sebastian was the one who ended their engagement. She knew that he felt a duty to JF, and she respected it, but she did not expect him to act as hurt as he did. Sometimes she felt as if she had been the one to leave Sebastian, judging by Paul's summary of his roommate's actions.

"How come Her Highness always ends up crying after she sees Mr Carlos?" Benjamin muttered to the other guards, as they walked behind Tobias.
"She is not crying," Allen snapped. "And I do not think that you would be too happy after running into your former fiancée. But then again, I am not sure that you feel emotions the same way that most humans do."
Benjamin glared at the other guard, "You are incredibly irritating. I do not understand why Her Highness has kept you on as her Head Guard."
"Perhaps because he's good at his job, and he isn't a complete ass?" Sydney suggested.
Sydney used to avoid choosing a side when Benjamin and Allen argued. But once Darrel revealed to Benjamin that she knew the part that he played in her falling off her horse, he changed. Since Benjamin knew that he no longer stood a chance to become promoted while working for Darrel, he gave up the pretence of acting like a decent human. It was to the point that both Sydney and Allen complained to Darrel on separate occasions, and asked her to sack Benjamin. However, Darrel told her guards that despite his attitude, he was good at his job. She decided that it would not be fair to Benjamin if she were to tell the others about him undoing her saddle. Besides, she understood that Benjamin received an order from His Majesty. But that did not mean that she had to trust him; she would never trust a man who disregarded her safety so easily. Especially since his job was to keep her from coming into harm's way.

When Darrel returned to the house, she did not go in right away but instead headed through to the grounds. She sat down on the grass underneath a tree, and let out a heavy sigh.
"Are you all right, Your Highness?" Tobias inquired, forgetting that he agreed to no longer use formalities.
"Yes," Darrel nodded. "But I felt as if I needed a moment to compose myself before going inside and seeing the others."
"Would you like me to give you a moment alone?"
"I feel as if it might be dangerous to be left alone with my thoughts at this moment. Please, sit."
Tobias laughed softly then sat down next to the Princess of Wales.
"I am sorry about what Sebastian said to you," Darrel informed.
"You do not have to apologize for his actions," Tobias assured.
"Yes, I do. It was completely unfair, and untrue. I know that my family can be hard to deal with sometimes, and they can be overprotective when it is unnecessary. But they are not terrible people, and I do not believe that you shall be miserable at Downton."
"I know that. And I meant it when I said that I am enjoying my time here. Lord Grantham and the Dowager Countess are simply trying to protect you, which I admire."
Darrel nodded, then looked down at the grass, playing with a single strand.
"My family has not always liked Sebastian," Darrel admitted. "That is part of the reason why he has not always had the best of times here. They...they found out about some of his old habits that they are not fond of."
"His intoxication?" Tobias assumed.
Darrel nodded sadly, "I did not realize that you heard that."
"Only vaguely. And there were rumours about it in the papers back in the day. But, I will never bring it up again if you do not want me to."
"We agreed that we would not keep secrets from each other, so I will tell you."
"Only if you wish."
Darrel nodded then took a deep breath, "Sebastian did not handle his abdication well. It made him so sad, which is understandable. But he never wanted to talk about it with me, or anyone. If anyone ever mentioned Spain or JF...or anything that made him think of his abdication; he would get so angry. So his solution was to go out drinking all evening so he could forget about his problems. He would come back late at night incredibly intoxicated...and sometimes he did not come back at all. Most evenings I would have to send people to find him."
"Is that why Mr Carlos asked if I ever made you sick with worry?"
"Yes. I never slept until I knew that he was safely back at the Palace. But of course, I was not allowed to go looking for him on my own, so I had to depend on others to find him. And it made me feel so powerless, and afraid."
"I am sorry that happened to you."
"Well, it is in the past," Darrel shrugged. "As is my relationship with Sebastian."
Tobias was silent for a minute, as he processed everything that he told her. He wanted to find the right thing to say, but he was not sure what it was.
"Darrel, I know that it must be awkward to talk about Mr Carlos in my presence," Tobias said. "However, I am here for you. And if you ever want to talk, I will always listen."
"Thank you," Darrel replied with a small smile. "I appreciate that, truly. And if there is anything that you ever wish to talk about, you can always speak to me."
"I will keep that in mind."
"Shall we go in? I think tea will arrive soon."
Tobias got to his feet, then extended a hand to help Darrel up. Then they (and the guards) headed back towards the front of the house.

As the group reached the drive, they found a car pulling up in front of the house. The door opened and Bertie stepped out, then helped Edith, Marigold and Michael Pelham out of the car.
"Darrel, darling," Edith smiled, going over to embrace her sister. "It is so nice to see you again."
"Hello, Edith," Darrel nodded. "I am so glad that you made it. Although, I would have appreciated it if you had managed to arrive yesterday."
"Sorry, that is my fault," Bertie replied, "I had some accounts to finish up. But what happened yesterday? Surely nothing too terrible."
"Just the normal interrogation of any new man that dares to come to Downton. And of course, Granny had to invite herself over for dinner."
"Well, we are here now. And we will make it up to you."
"I certainly hope that you do. Because last night was a disaster."
"I am sure that you are exaggerating."
"Not really," Tobias shrugged. "The Dowager Countess found out about my grandfather."
"Oh...I am sorry to hear that."
Tobias shrugged again, not wanting to get into it. Edith had a confused look on her face, but she knew better than to pry into Lord Dankworth's business.
"Uh, how is Montgomery getting on?" Bertie inquired, to change the subject.
"He is ready to take over the Birmingham Estate," Tobias replied. "He's managing almost all the accounts now, and he constantly has new ideas for our father on how to change how he runs the estate."
"Well, that certainly sounds like him."
Bertie knew Montgomery from university. While the two of them were not in the same year, Bertie became Montgomery's advisor in some ways. The families did know each other, so Bertie was instructed to keep an eye on Montgomery.
"Is everything well with you?" Tobias asked, as the group headed inside. "When I told Montgomery that you would be here, he made me promise to ask about your wellbeing."
"I am quite well, things are splendid at Brancaster," Bertie nodded, smiling at Edith, who beamed back.
"Good, he will be happy to hear that."
"We are heading to London after this. Partly for Her Highness' ball, but also so Edith can check on her magazine. So you can tell Montgomery that if he can drag himself away from the estate, we can catch up over a drink."
"I will be sure to tell him that."
"Good."

Edith went to bring Marigold and Michael up to the nursery, where they were very excited to be reunited with their cousins. Then once she returned downstairs, she entered the library where the rest of the family was having afternoon tea.
"Hello, Darling," Cora smiled, hugging her daughter. "I am so glad that you could make it."
"As I am; I am so happy to be back at Downton," Edith nodded.
"And it is not often that I get to have all three of my daughters under the same roof. So hooray for that."
Mary rolled her eyes, not overly enthusiastic about having both her sisters home. While she did care for them (most of the time), she knew that she have to face endless teasing from her younger sisters. Mostly about her so-called 'Mary's Men,' which was never a fun time for her.