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Fanny’s face fell. “How awful,” she mumbled.
Shrugging, he leaned on the arm of his chair, leaning closer to her. Whether it was intentional or not, Fanny didn’t quite know, but her heart leaped nonetheless. “I expect the kitten was happy with the arrangement,” Percy said. “She was no longer required to be called such an awful name, nor was she required to endure my company.”
“What did the kitten look like?” Fanny asked in a quiet voice.
Percy paused, and she could sense deep wheels turning in his head, recalling old memories and images he had lost. “The top of her head and ears were grey like charcoal. So were the spots on her back.” He closed his eyes. “Her face and paws were white, and her nose was pink. Her eyes were a mixture of gold and green.”
Fanny leaned closer to him without thinking, eager to learn as much as she could about him—to understand any piece of his heart. His eyes opened suddenly and she saw, as she had several days before, her own reflection in them.
“Fanny?” His voice was abrupt.
“Yes?”
Percy was careful, quiet when he asked, “What do you look like?”
She was taken by surprise at the urgency in his face, as if he needed to know the answer, as if it would ease something for him. Her heart pounded fast in her chest. “It—it is difficult to explain.”
“What color are your eyes?” he asked.
“Blue,” she whispered.
He smiled. “What kind of blue?”
“I—I don’t know…is there more than one sort of blue?” But Fanny knew there was—for she had never seen such a dark blue as Percy’s eyes.
“Of course. You do tend to reflect on color more when you can no longer see it. There are hundreds of shades and tones.”
“Well…I suppose they’re light blue. Closer to the sky in the morning than the sky at night like yours are.”
“And what of your hair?” he asked.
“Blonde.”
He raised his eyebrows for her to continue.
“Oh! Yes.Darkblonde. Golden, I suppose. Fairly long, but my maid always arranges it in some sort of coiffure.” She laughed awkwardly. Her hand flitted to her hair, feeling the twists that threaded from both sides into a large compilation on the back of her head.
“Thank you,” Percy said. “I confess I have always liked blue-eyed women.”
Fanny scoffed, sitting back in her chair. “Would you have been disappointed if I said I had brown eyes? Green?”
“No. I’m not curious about what you look like in order to see if I approve. I’m curious only because I wish—so desperately—that I could see you. I already know I would find you beautiful, no matter what.” His smile was fading, something warm and serious growing behind his eyes, a longing she couldn’t decipher. “But in truth, I have never believed in love at first sight. Love has to come from something besides sight, or it is meaningless.”
Her breath caught in her lungs. Was he implying that he…loved her? Surely not. She nearly shook her head in protest of the idea.
His face was only a foot away from hers. His hand lifted from the chair, and it took Fanny a moment to realize what he intended to do. She moved away fast before his hand could touch her face.He can’t know.The words flashed in her mind and her heart raced.
Percy dropped his hand, apparently sensing her movement, and sat back again. Whatever pull she had felt toward him in that moment was now replaced by uncomfortable silence. Percy’s brow creased and his eyes still seemed to be fixed on her. “Forgive me.”
“No, no.” Fanny shook her head. “I just, well, I—”
“You don’t need to explain.” Percy crossed his arms, and his throat bobbed with a swallow.
Silence fell between them for a long moment.
“You never told me about your misfortunes,” he said finally.
Fanny swallowed, leaning even farther away, curling her legs in her chair. “Not today,” she choked.
