two photographs taken in new york show stella and lionel as a happy , smiling duo lionel was all his life a slender man , and as indicated he inherited judge mcintyre 's remarkable green eyes and strawberry blond hair he did not in any way resemble stella and it was remarked more than once by those who knew them that sometimes newcomers into the crowd were shocked to discover that lionel and stella were brother and sister , they had presumed them to be something else if stella had any particular lover , we know nothing of it in fact , stella 's name was never coupled with that of anyone else ( up till this point ) except lionel , though stella was believed to be absolutely careless with her favors where young men were concerned we have accounts of two different young artists falling passionately in love with her , but stella 'refused to be tied down ' what we know of lionel reinforces over and over again that he was quiet and somewhat withdrawn he seems to have delighted in watching stella dance , and laugh , and carry on with her friends he enjoyed dancing with her himself , which he did all the time and rather well , but he was definitely in stella 's shadow he seemed to get his vitality from stella and when stella was n't around , he was 'like an empty mirror ' you hardly knew he was there there are several rumors that he was writing a novel while they were in new york , and that he was quite vulnerable with regard to the matter , and that an older novelist destroyed his confidence by telling him his pages were 'pure rot . '