Post by Elspeth Cameron on Sept 18, 2017 17:17:46 GMT -5
"Ian, this is not a topic I'm capable of being rational about," Elspeth sighed. "My fears are clouding my judgement, and they're too loud to ignore. This..." She paused and waved over the desk in her room, where most of her folders sat, bound by ribbons, waiting to be unpacked and properly filed. "This is my life. I've studied, and earned my knowledge and skills, and the respect of people I've worked with, and did little else since I was a child. The thought of it all being taken away from me... it's frightening. And knowing how irrational that fear is doesn't diminish it, not even a little."
She put her cup down, no longer in the mood for tea. "I know no one would force me into a marriage I do not want... but I know myself, too, and if Mother, or Father, or Uncle presented me with an alliance that would mean a great betterment for the family, I wouldn't have the heart to say no, even if the man repulsed me... not that I think they'd pick someone obviously bad, but trust me when I say that they don't know me as well as they think they do, and what they think of as a good match may in fact be the exact opposite. So I'd rather everyone just forgot about that and let me work in peace. If what I'm trying to do now pays off, the whole of Marlowe will see a boost in both production and profit, but it's a delicate operation and I am anything but, so I need to concentrate on this and not be dragged around by something as silly as courtship." Which was maybe a cruel thing to say to someone who hoped to be allowed to court the lady of his choice, but it also wasn't a stance Ian wasn't unfamiliar with. Elspeth was somewhat notorious for it, after all.
She smiled to her brother, though, when he voiced his hoped again. "I'll do everything I can to open the door for you," she told him. "And I hope you make the most of it." She may not have had the taste for romance herself (at least none that she would admit to), but she wished Ian all the happiness on his romantic voyage.
"Coin does the job more often than not, no matter what it is," she chuckled at his praise. "But I sincerely doubt I'd be any good at flirtation. I'm too direct, and too fond of honesty for it. I'd never pretend to be ignorant and weak or allow myself to be outdone just to stroke another's ego, and, as people keep telling me, men prefer women who make them feel manly and important. Can you honestly see me giving attention to someone so fragile, vain, and insecure? I'd never be able to respect them," she added with a sour kind of mirth, "Besides, you need a partner for flirting, and who'd want to romance a battleaxe like me?" Oh, she knew she was pretty, and she'd had her small, hidden dalliances that were never meant to be more than fleeting moments of innocent excitement, but when push came to shove, she could not imagine a man wanting someone like her for a wife.
She laughed. "As if that's going to stop me from trying," she teased right back. They were too old for these kind of games, but she knew Ian wouldn't give up, so the least she could do was play along and hope he'll know better than to go overboard with it.
Ian Cameron
She put her cup down, no longer in the mood for tea. "I know no one would force me into a marriage I do not want... but I know myself, too, and if Mother, or Father, or Uncle presented me with an alliance that would mean a great betterment for the family, I wouldn't have the heart to say no, even if the man repulsed me... not that I think they'd pick someone obviously bad, but trust me when I say that they don't know me as well as they think they do, and what they think of as a good match may in fact be the exact opposite. So I'd rather everyone just forgot about that and let me work in peace. If what I'm trying to do now pays off, the whole of Marlowe will see a boost in both production and profit, but it's a delicate operation and I am anything but, so I need to concentrate on this and not be dragged around by something as silly as courtship." Which was maybe a cruel thing to say to someone who hoped to be allowed to court the lady of his choice, but it also wasn't a stance Ian wasn't unfamiliar with. Elspeth was somewhat notorious for it, after all.
She smiled to her brother, though, when he voiced his hoped again. "I'll do everything I can to open the door for you," she told him. "And I hope you make the most of it." She may not have had the taste for romance herself (at least none that she would admit to), but she wished Ian all the happiness on his romantic voyage.
"Coin does the job more often than not, no matter what it is," she chuckled at his praise. "But I sincerely doubt I'd be any good at flirtation. I'm too direct, and too fond of honesty for it. I'd never pretend to be ignorant and weak or allow myself to be outdone just to stroke another's ego, and, as people keep telling me, men prefer women who make them feel manly and important. Can you honestly see me giving attention to someone so fragile, vain, and insecure? I'd never be able to respect them," she added with a sour kind of mirth, "Besides, you need a partner for flirting, and who'd want to romance a battleaxe like me?" Oh, she knew she was pretty, and she'd had her small, hidden dalliances that were never meant to be more than fleeting moments of innocent excitement, but when push came to shove, she could not imagine a man wanting someone like her for a wife.
She laughed. "As if that's going to stop me from trying," she teased right back. They were too old for these kind of games, but she knew Ian wouldn't give up, so the least she could do was play along and hope he'll know better than to go overboard with it.
Ian Cameron