17 — Socializing for Beginners
17 — Socializing for Beginners
My mother-in-law arrived at the entryway just seconds before I came downstairs after paying Mimosa and Bellis a visit in their room. It turned out that my father-in-law had attended the deployment ceremony in Mr. Fisalis’s place, and had left a long time ago. Thank goodness. He said Lady Fisalis and I could follow him to the military rally.
Lady Fisalis gave me a gleaming white smile when she spotted me.
“Aaah, Vi! You look lovely! Oh, I’m so lucky to be able to walk there with a cute daughter-in-law! I wish I’d had a nice daughter like you, rather than that unsociable son of mine,” she said excitedly.
Oh, no, I only look like this because of Mimosa and the maids’ hard work! My true form is much, much different.
“Oh, thank you. Ha ha,” I replied awkwardly, glad that she was pleased with my post-transformation look. I mean, I’m not sure I’m that gush-worthy... Wait, don’t think that way—this is no time to be pouting! I should tell her the good news about Mimosa! Wouldn’t want to forget that.
Collecting myself, I turned to my mother-in-law.
“I have some news for you, Mother Fisalis.”
“Oh? What could that be?” she asked, her star sapphire blue eyes opening slightly wider in curiosity.
“Mimosa is pregnant.”
“Mimosa? Pregnant?!” Her eyes widened even more, this time in surprise. I was impressed by how quickly her expression changed when I told her.
“Yes. She was unwell this morning, so I sent her back to her room and had the doctor come to see her. I only just found out myself.
“Ahh, that’s wonderful to hear! Bellis must be very happy, too.” She clasped her hands in delight.
“Yes, I think.”
“You think?”
“He seemed really focused on her condition when I saw him, so I don’t think he was in a ‘happy’ state of mind quite yet.” I wasn’t too surprised, after all—he doted on her they were children (and still does!). And right now, he seems mostly worried about her feeling unwell, but I’m sure his brain will catch up with what’s happened, and he’ll be overjoyed. It’ll dawn on him slowly once he calms down a bit.
“Ah, I see. Now I understand,” my mother-in-law grinned as she nodded. It looked like she found that scenario quite easy to picture.
No sooner had she said so, however, than Rohtas politely cut short our conversation to say, “Pardon me, but seeing as we are pressed for time, would you mind continuing your conversation in the carriage?”
Oh, he’s right. We’ve gotta get to the Royal Palace! I nearly forgot. What do you mean that’s something I keep doing?
I followed Rohtas and Lady Fisalis out the door to where the carriage was waiting. We chose to sit across from each other inside, Lady Fisalis elegantly waving goodbye to the manor staff as they all performed their flawless ninety-degree bow and called out their goodbyes to us. My wave was a great deal less refined. I just don’t think I’ll ever get used to them doing that when they see me off. Yeah, that day is never going to come.
With Rohtas’ closing of the front door as its cue, the carriage departed for the palace.
The first thing my mother-in-law asked as the carriage rattled down the road was, “So how is Mimosa faring?”
“She seemed better when I went to see her just before I came down to leave. But Dahlia said that she might not always be feeling her best... She won’t be able to work for a while, but she wouldn’t be able to rest if she were to go home because her parents run a store and don’t have any helpers. So I was thinking that Mimosa and Bellis could stay here in the manor, in their room. What do you think? Maids who are off the clock would be able to check on her, and on days when she’s feeling up to it, I thought that a little bit of work might make for a nice distraction,” I explained, hoping she would give me some advice.
“That sounds like a fine plan. Having maids who are close to her around will be convenient and give you some peace of mind,” she said, easily agreeing to Mimosa staying at the manor.
“That’s what I was thinking. I’ll enjoy having Mimosa nearby, too.”
“We Fisalises have always said ‘you should treat your servants like family,’ so I’ll let her know that she’s more than welcome to stay.”
What a noble thing to say! The manor really is a nice place to work, isn’t it? I mean, I sometimes hear rumors about it, but working at the manor sure seems like less work than working at the Royal Palace. I can see why so many of their employees stay if this is how warmly they’re treated. It’s no wonder they’ve got such a good workforce made up of the loveliest people.
Ah, but I’m getting off-topic.
“Oh, thank you!”
“Then again, considering my husband and I are retired, you could have made that decision all on your own, Vi... You don’t need to ask for my permission,” Lady Fisalis giggled.
“I wasn’t sure if it was alright for me to make decisions on my own without Mr. Fisalis here.” I mean, it’s not my house. I was too shy to say my thoughts out loud, though.
“But, Vi, dear, you’re a duchess. Have more confidence.”
I didn’t say anything back to her. I could only stare, a little aghast, but inside, I did reply. You, my lady, are asking for the impossible. Thank goodness for brain-to-mouth filters!
I still hadn’t fully escaped the mindset that I was just a “show wife.”
“I guess I’m not used to it yet...” I replied humbly, hoping that would satisfy her.
“Heehee, I am not surprised to hear that from you. You normally get lessons from Rohtas and Dahlia, do you not? They’re rather thorough with you?”
“Huh? Er, yes, very much so.” On rainy days in particular. I can always expect a hard day’s work ahead when I wake up to rain.
“I thought so. After all, you move so gracefully now, even when you’re doing mundane things. So have more confidence in yourself.”
“You really think so? Thank you.” My mother-in-law complimented me! Surely being a long-recognized, socially-revered duchess plays a part in being confident. There’s no reason for her to feel like she needs to flatter me, either... Not that she’s the kind of person who would do that, anyway. So I think I can take her word for it.
“You’re very attractive in terms of appearance, too, Vi. I really don’t understand why your self confidence is so low.”
“But... I’m just a plain Jane.” The moment the answer left my mouth, though, my mother-in-law laughed out loud.
“A plain Jane! Oh ho ho ho! You’re not plain at all! You’ll make an enemy of any lady you meet if you go around telling people that!”
“Oh, no, that’s the last thing I want to do. I already have enough enemies simply by being Mr. Fisalis’ wife.”
“What’s that? There you go again! Oh ho ho ho!” she replied as her body shook with laughter.
Did I say something weird?
“Even when you’re not dressed up, you always look so bright and fresh. Since you are dressed up today, you’ll be absolutely unrivaled.”
“But I only look this way because Mimosa and my maids cleaned me up.”
“Well, there wasn’t a lot for them to clean up in the first place!” Lady Fisalis pointed out, echoing what Mimosa had said earlier. “It doesn’t matter how hard one tries—if one hasn’t got the natural looks, that’s as far as they’ll get: ‘they tried.’ You have what it takes, though. Do you understand?” she pointed straight at me as she told me all this, clearly not about to take no for an answer.
“Y-Yes, ma’am!” The sheer power in her voice made my back straighten, and I answered like I was back in school.
“Good. Have more confidence, my dear, and you’ll have no enemies!”
“Alright!” I nodded earnestly, but couldn’t help but feel like I’d been tricked, somehow.
“Goodness, there’s no need to be so enthusiastic about it. At any rate, it is our job to advance our husbands’ careers through socializing.”
“That sounds hard.”
“Well, over time, you’ll learn how to do hard things. For now, though, I suppose listening to what people are saying and observing are the most important things.”
Even I could do that, introducing myself and then just listening to the conversation. And I already like people-watching!
“I see, I see.”
“When you’re listening to someone talk, are you able to tell what sort of person they are?”
“Kind of.” I can tell if they’re arrogant or mean... stuff like that.
“Even a tiny detail like that can prove useful to our husbands.”
“Oh, that’s right.” Hmmm. I don’t have to be the one to start the conversation, then. Phew.
“I guess you could call those my socializing tips for beginners,” my mother-in-law said with a giggle.
It might be more accurate to call them socializing tips for dummies, though.