Ciara & Court | Upstairs, overlooking the play
“Do you only trust her with your life in regards to medical matters?” Ciara didn’t think that was the case with Courtenay, but she was quite sure that was the only field in which some other men took Viola Rosier seriously.
Rather than risk a sticky conversation by confirming the accurate assessment Court had on the man who had once been intended to marry Viola, Ciara instead considered his next point. “How do you go about showing you disagree? Do you flat out state as much before she gets a chance to explain why she feels the way she feels?” Given how respectful Courtenay had been during their sessions and out, Ciara couldn’t imagine he would ever dismiss Viola’s opinions for the simple fact that she was a woman. But Courtenay was a man, and one with strong opinions at that. Perhaps he was so used to expressing them without fear that he had not thought about how that could come across to someone who had lived their whole life needing to watch their every word and action.
When the conversation lingered on the topic of Blair Adler, Ciara reached for her drink, taking a sip to fortify herself as much as she did to buy a moment to think. “It sounds as though you have already come to your conclusion then. If you can’t strike back at her, and you risk harm by being in her presence, then you don’t seem to have much choice but to avoid her. It must be frustrating, but is that really any loss? It isn’t as though she has anything to offer you that you’ll be missing out on.”
One of Ciara’s eyebrows arched slightly when Courtenay simplified his language. Whilst it was true that she didn’t have close to the level of education that he had, Clovennian was a tool she could use to get what she wanted and consequently Ciara had made it her business to learn as much of it as she could. She didn’t think the point was worth bringing up though, particularly when there were much bigger ones to address. “Why do you need to be the Marshal’s friend?” But of course, Courtenay was at the top of the social ladder and could therefore pick and choose his steps. Searu didn’t let a thing like personal feelings get in the way of a profitable alliance. “What I mean to say is, you don’t have to like the Marshal to count him as an ally. If you can be of some assistance to one another, then why not make use of that? You aren’t obligated to go out drinking together afterwards.”
Tucker’s name warranted another sip of her drink, and Ciara shrugged slightly. “Lord Belmont behaves exactly as a Clovennian Lord is exected to. He hasn’t fought in foreign lands, so it’s really no surprise that he is not like you. All this talk you have of catalysts makes it sound as if you want things to be set off. I would be warier of being on his bad side than some ignorant small-town Marshal…” Another shrug at the mention of Carnivale, feigned indifference washed down with yet another sip of her drink. “Do you usually have to be on guard for Carnivale? They say anything goes, but it’s still just a party. Provided you avoid Adler, I can’t see you coming to any kind of harm.”