Not that he was comparing the two...

Alternate version of the Chapter 27 scene. This was not included, because I lost most of the chapter, thought I deleted it, rewrote it, and then found this after having posted the chapter.

In most ways, Carlotta was entirely unlike Lily.  

Not that James was comparing the two, because he certainly was not.  

The Potters and the Melonis had, as Carlotta predicted, arranged to have lunch together on Saturday at the big grey house belonging to the latter; Mr. and Mrs. Potter talked about the town and the area with Mr. and Mrs. Meloni, while Carlotta’s sisters and brothers entertained themselves, and Carlotta mostly heeded her classmate. While the adults sipped tea, the two seventeen-year-olds walked the length of the Melonis’ wrap-around porch, and James made his silent observations about Carlotta. 

 They were not entirely different, of course, both being clever, pretty, and talkative, and some of their differences, of course, resided in superficial appearance—Carlotta being somewhat slimmer and shorter than Lily, with dark skin easily turned by the sun. Her hair was dark too, of course, but her eyes were neither as large nor expressive as Lily’s. Objectively, perhaps, Carlotta was the prettier; her features resided in perfect proportion, and she projected a much more... relaxed air. But, apart from physical differences, she had a more direct nature and quipped far less than Lily. 

 Not that James was comparing the two, because he certainly was not.