![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rix_scaeduThis piece runs to 1,290 words, and I hope that you enjoy it.
Tallaig Nearabhaign's butler was pouring and serving the fortified wine for the assembled after dinner family in his employer's drawing room. As they were a small family, two gentlemen and three ladies were present, Mr Nearabhaign had decided that he and his brother-in-law would join the ladies immediately rather than drinking alone in the dining room. The butler, who went by Khaidhaign, thought this was an admirable idea as it both allowed the staff to clear up the dining room immediately and gave Mrs Nearabhaign little opportunity to rearrange the ornaments in the drawing room. She claimed this was to give the room "a woman's touch" but Khaidhaign suspected that she disliked the fact that her son had rearranged the details of the public rooms of the townhouse after she had removed to her dower property. He did not suspect his employer's mother of stealing, but sometimes after her visits the maids found newer small ornaments tucked into odd places and he didn't think she realised that her behaviour made small theft by others easier. It was part of Khaidhaign's job to be concerned about such things.
Family dinners were usually held by his mother in her dower house but, all the things he'd discovered and realised in the last few weeks considered, Tallaig Nearabhaign decided that it was time that he started regularly hosting his family in his own house. Without a contribution to the evening's plans from his mother - he was trying to make a point. When Khaidhaign had left the decanter on a silver tray atop the small table at Tallaig's right elbow and withdrawn from the room, Tallaig used the door closing behind the butler as he left the room as the signal to propose a toast, "To family, both here and elsewhere!"
The others responded, "To family," and they all drank.
"Anadrasata is the only one of us not here," said Sura, fiddling with the set of the cuff of her right sleeve as she spoke. "Where is she now?"
"I looked it up this afternoon," replied Tallaig as his sisters sipped their drinks. "If nothing unexpected has happened, then her ship should have reached D'Hestoil today. Six more days and she should be safely with our cousins in Tlemutsiko."
"I don't quite understand what it is that she's supposed to do when she gets there," replied Sura slowly. "Great-aunt wrote that she needs someone to assist her now that Great-uncle has died, but I thought when Mother was talking about them once she said that they had children. Didn't you tell me that one of your cousins is called Rudhain, Mama?"
"I didn't think you'd remember that, dear," replied Mrs Nearabhaign. "He's the second eldest boy, there are four of them and two girls, but I never met any of them." She sipped her drink appreciatively. "I gathered that she needs help with her husband's personal papers. She said that her eyesight these days is so bad that she needs to have everything read to her and she has to dictate her correspondence to one of her granddaugthers, while her husband wrote his journals in the old Ghaistonyc script, which none of their children or grandchildren know. He may even have written them in Ghaistonyc."
Castor Fhailaign, the husband of Anna, the oldest Nearabhaign sister, asked, "Does Anadrasata read the script and understand the language?"
Mrs Nearabhaign said, "Yes."
Anna added, "She was always the best of us with them. Before Father died, I think she must have read just about every book in Ghaistonyc he had in his library that he thought was suitable."
"That's a good third of my library," added Tallaig. "Father collected modern printings of the old poems and histories. If you want to read any of the old town chronicles, come to me - I probably have a copy."
"I'll keep that in mind," promised Castor. "Do you have any idea how long it will be before your sister comes home again?"
"It depends on how long this business of helping my aunt takes," answered Mrs Nearabhaign. "Surely it can't be more than a week or two, though. If Anadrasata applies herself, she could be back here by the solstice, but I suppose I'll have to arrange the household festival celebration myself. Speaking of which, when do you think I might have the rest of the money that I was short paid by those thieves?” She referred to a recently discovered fraud in which her son’s man of business had skimmed a percentage off the top of disbursements they had handled on his behalf.
“There is no more money due to you,” replied her son.
“I received the amount they took from my jointure payments,” agreed Mrs Nearabhaigan, “but I don’t have the money they took from Anadrasata’s allowance yet.
“I’ve sent half of that to Anadrasata, care of Cousin Ghrus, in a letter of credit and I’ve deposited the rest in a bank account in her name for when she returns,” replied Tallaig. “I’ve also sent him another letter of credit to be used to hire her an Imperial speaking lady’s maid and fund her a proper wardrobe.” He added, “I should never have sent her off without either.”
“Tallaig, your sister is a spinster without any hope of marriage,” said his mother patiently. “Fine feathers aren’t going to change that. Fluffing her up now is simply going to embarrass her when she comes home to her poor prospects.”
Tallaig carefully put down his glass beside the decanter. “Mother, our absent sister is, I have realised, a considerable heiress. Also, she’s not quite twenty-five – that’s not too old to have marriage prospects. The question, as has been pointed out to me, is what connections we would like her to form. Noting of course that an advantageous marriage for her would improve the prospects of both Sura and myself.”
“If Anadrasata marries, then who’s going to look after me?” Mrs Nearabhaign clutched her glass and looked hard at her children.
“Your jointure is sufficient for you to add a hired companion and a housekeeper to your staff and for you to live in your current style,” Tallaig told her. “If it’s not, then something is very wrong.” Then he asked, “By the way, as you’ve known all along who set up Anadrasata’s trust fund, why did you never share that information with me? When I think about all the years I’ve wasted being meeved and piffed because I thought Father had slighted me….”
“It’s peeved and miffed,” pointed out Mrs Nearabhaign.
She was about to add something else but her son cut her off with, “I know. I was emphasising the juvenility of my reactions. Now, please answer my question. I think we all,” he gestured at his two sisters and his brother-in-law, need to know what you have been thinking.”
“As I just said,” replied their mother, “if Anadrasata marries, then who is going to look after me? Anna is married, Sura is pretty and smart enough that she will be married, and paid companions, like staff, can leave. An unmarried daughter, particularly one without money, is reliant on her mother for character and consequence.”
The younger members of the family regarded her in silence.
13 NAISEN 1893 CE
TO: ANADRASATA NEARABHIGAN PEARLISH DAWN
FROM: TALLAIG NEARABHAIGN UMBRIAL
HAVE MOVED YOU AND SURA OUT OF MATERNAL HOUSE AND INTO MY HOUSE STOP ANNA AND CASTOR RETURNING TO THEIR HOME STOP YOUR ROOM IN MATERNAL HOUSE HAS BEEN STRIPPED BY US TO COLLECT YOUR POSSESSIONS STOP ANYWHERE WE SHOULD SEARCH FOR HIDDEN TREASURES QUESTION MARK SUGGEST YOU IGNORE MESSAGES FROM MOTHER FOR NOW STOP LETTER CARE OF YOUR DESTINATION TO FOLLOW STOP HOPE YOU ARE ENJOYING THE TRIP STOP
no subject
Date: 2024-02-13 03:24 am (UTC)I rather like the idea of Sura as a scholar in her own right, honestly. Married if she likes, but a respected authority in her chosen field.
Two minor catches. 'The butler, who went Khaidhaign' - looks like there's a word missing. In the same paragraph, Mrs Nearabhaign is Mrs Nearabhigan. I bet she'd love that! :P
no subject
Date: 2024-02-13 06:29 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-02-14 12:44 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-02-14 12:39 am (UTC)Which is why you have to either treat them well or pay them well. Of course, as we've seen, she'd much rather not do either.
An unmarried daughter, particularly one without money, is reliant on her mother for character and consequence.
So, in other words, she wants a "slave"or "indentured servant" who *can't leave even if she is being totally unreasonable.
And she obviously sees nothing wrong with this! She's not making herself any friends here.
no subject
Date: 2024-02-14 12:41 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-03-28 07:42 pm (UTC)