Their interview lasted about 10 minutes then marcus went up to the nursery and the earl to his formal dining room and that was that in retrospect it was nothing short of remarkable that marcus was not utterly miserable at eaton he certainly had no idea how to interact with his peers on the first day when all the other boys were running about like in the words of his father’s valet who had dropped him off a pack of savages marcus stood to the side trying not to stare trying to look as if he meant to stand at the side looking off in the other direction he did not know how to act he did not know what to say but daniel smythe smith did daniel smythe smith besides being the heir to the earldom of winston had five siblings and 32 first cousins if ever there was a boy who knew how to get on with other children it was he within hours he was the undisputed king among the youngest boys at eaton he had a way about him an easy smile a happy confidence an utter lack of shyness he was a born leader able to make decisions just as quickly as he made jokes and he was assigned to the bed directly next to marcus’s they became the best of friends and when daniel invited marcus home for their first holiday he went daniel’s family lived at whipple hill which wasn’t very far from windsor so it was easy for him to make frequent trips home marcus on the other hand well it wasn’t as if he lived all the way in scotland but it did take more than a day to get back to the northern reaches of cambridgeshire plus his father had never gone home for the minor holidays and saw no reason why his son should do so either so when the second holiday came up and daniel invited marcus again he went and then again and again and again until marcus was spending more time with the smythe smiths than he did with his own family of course his family consisted of exactly one person but still if marcus stopped to think about it and he did quite frequently he spent more time with each individual member of the smythe smith family than he did with his father even a noria anoria was daniel’s youngest sister unlike the rest of the smythe smiths she had no siblings close to her own age she hung off the end of the family by a good five years a presumably happy accident to cap off lady winstead’s marvellous pro-creative career but five years was a large gulf especially if one was but six years old which was a noria’s age when marcus first met her her three oldest sisters were already married or engaged to be and charlotte who was 11 wanted nothing to do with her neither did daniel but absence must have made an aurier’s heart grow ridiculously fond because when he was home from school she followed him around like a puppy don’t make eye contact daniel once told marcus as they were trying to avoid her on a hike down to the lake if you acknowledge her it’s all over they walked purposefully heads forward they were going fishing and the last time menoria had joined them she had dumped out all the worms daniel she yelled ignore her daniel muttered daniel she went from yell right to shriek daniel flinched faster he said if we make it to the woods she won’t find us she knows where the lake is marcus felt compelled to point out yes but danielle she knows mother will have her head if she goes into the woods alone even she’s not foolish enough to press mother on that done but she cut herself off and then in a voice so pathetic one could not help but turn she said marcus he turned no daniel moaned marcus anoria called out happily she skipped forward coming to a bounce and a stop in front of them what are you doing we’re going fishing daniel growled and you’re not coming but i like to fish so do i without you her face screwed up don’t cry marcus said quickly daniel was unimpressed she’s faking i’m not faking just their interview lasted about 10 minutes then marcus went up to the nursery and the earl to his formal dining room and that was that in retrospect it was nothing short of remarkable that marcus was not utterly miserable at eaton he certainly had no idea how to interact with his peers on the first day when all the other boys were running about like in the words of his father’s valet who had dropped him off.

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