houseofcards_rp | [for Hector, but OTA] I cannot see when the stars are gone

A great deal about Säde is largely inferred rather than directly known. Her personal life, in particular, is largely a matter of conjecture, and fifteen years is enough time to build up a large enough store of data to deduce several things. For example, the thing with Hector, the former Jack of Diamonds.

And today it may be assumed that her agitation has to do with that very man. She keeps her Diamond mask on, but at the edge of her smile is something brittle, fragile, less the rage reserved for something gone wrong and more the anger of a wounded animal.

Not, all things considered, the best mood to leave the Deck in. This may be the first day that Leigh sees something similar in her guardian to the people who came before. Not the physicality of an action, but the light in the eyes that comes before it. It will keep her wary for days until Säde talks about it suddenly, no warning and no regard for the age of the girl she's speaking to. Then there's just an uneasy, pitying accord.

[ooc: Hector first. Anyone else talking to Säde would be coming in on the aftermath of their argument.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"She'll be very good at it. Ava has always been diplomatic." Which she certainly didn't get from her father. "And certainly, she's always worked hard for your Suit. Sometimes her father and I wonder what would have happened if she'd stayed in the Hearts, but she wouldn't have been happy there."

Astrid doesn't understand Diamonds. But then, she only has to try to understand one.

"...yes. She has. Whatever her rank." And that is more than just a statement of agreement. That's an echo of the shouting between her and Hector barely half an hour ago. Her lips draw tight, now, and she takes a deep breath. It would be easier to ask her mother rather than Avery herself.

"I've been... hard on her." The tone isn't quite a question, isn't quite an assertion. It's just... an opening.

It's often easier to ask a person outside the situation, Astrid watches Säde evenly for a moment before inclining her head.

"She believes you feel her personal preferences overshadow any of her other skills," Astrid finally says into the silence.

She crosses her arms in front of her, an instinctive defence. "She has... mentioned as much. And she has not shown any inclination to change her ways until recently. I hesitate to say that it is due to her accident, but..."

Of course, there's another factor to that. But Säde hasn't thought of that. She's still adjusting.

Much of Säde's problem with Avery is likely Astrid's fault. She raised her little girl to be like her, a free spirit, and while she became a free spirit Diamond instead of a free spirit Heart, it does mean that her upbringing just didn't put as much emphasis on what other people think. It put an emphasis on not giving much of a damn about what other people think, and holding your head high regardless.

But her accident is definitely not why Avery's behavior has changed, and Astrid looks contemplative before she speaks. "My daughter," she says, "would likely prefer I not tell you this. But I think you need to understand her if you're to work together." And even as a Ten, Avery with need to work with her Ace.

"When Sieben Dietrich committed suicide, he sent Avery a letter. It was a long letter, discussing his feelings and how he wished he could feel more for her. He told her he wished he loved her." She paused. "Ava didn't wish she loved him, not that way. Mr. Dietrich was a friend and nothing more than that - and there's nothing wrong with that. But suicide notes are affecting to those who get them, and I...suspect that the reason for her accident was because she was still dealing with that letter. And if her behavior has changed, Lady Säde, it's because that letter has convinced her that it must."

Her jaw sets as Astrid speaks, and her eyes flick over Astrid's face, lips twisting to the side. Ah. That is... well, it's no wonder Avery reacted so badly to her when she visited the one time following the accident. "Avery's quite... headstrong, as am I. I had no idea until now how much she had been holding back in deference to me."

Her arms loosen slightly, dropping to wrap around her waist instead. "Is there anything else you're willing to tell me?"

It was not a good time for her daughter, Astrid thinks. She'd lost her rank, and while Astrid had never understood ambition, Avery had always dreamed of being Jack, or Queen, or Ace. Jack had been the only one within reach, and now it was out of reach again, because unless the new Jack did a spectacularly bad job, Avery wouldn't challenge her. She'd lost a friend, and at the time there had been no indication that she'd ever be fully functional again.

The only thing she has left to say is something that's hard for any woman to hear. "Avery used to admire you very much," she says. "That's paled recently. Now she thinks you believe her unworthy to be a member of your Suit, and I imagine relations are mostly strained because of that."

"No one is unworthy to be a Diamond," Säde says sharply, instinctively. She bites the inside of her lip, cutting back any further words until she's reigned her temper in and marshalled her thoughts into something closer to what she ought to be, ought to present as the Ace of Diamonds. "If I have ever believed her unworthy of anything, it is the rank of Jack. I did not set out to establish this in my head when she first took on the rank, I assure you, but the closer we worked together, the more her behaviour reinforced that belief."

She's silent for a few moments before going on, voice forcedly even but brittle. "And the more it was reinforced, the more I've communicated that to her. It is, I think now, a failing of mine as both an Ace and... and as a person." And hadn't Hector said much the same?

Astrid remains silent until Säde winds down, and then she inclines her head with a slight smile.

"I think," she says slowly, "that you and Avery were not ready to work as closely together as Face Cards must work. Her work in the kitchens must have been largely separate from much of the work the Face Cards do, and she'd only managed human resources for a brief time. I think that while it's hard to find any silver lining in her accident, and I am sure Avery doesn't think there's any at all, if there is a silver lining, it's that you now have the opportunity to work together as Ace and Ten in a way that you hadn't been able to before she was named Jack, since she'd barely become a Ten when Lady Helena resigned.

"I hope that you both use this opportunity, because if I know my daughter, her current belief that this fall from Jack means she should be satisfied with being a Ten forever - it's not going to last." And someone would face a challenge, whether it was the yet-to-be-named Jack, or Avery's mentor.

She nods slowly as Astrid speaks, the tension draining from her bit by bit. "I certainly shall. And I- I thank you, for your advice. It will be something to think on while I'm away." Something to stew over, advice and argument both, while making nice with her stepson and daughter-in-law, introducing Leigh to them, going through the motions of a christening and godmotherhood.

She'll decide to apologise, but it won't crystallise fully until she's back in the Deck, soaked in memories of Juuso and how he'd talk, how he'd brag and laugh so full of life.

[for Hector, but OTA] I cannot see when the stars are gone

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject