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[springsbloom]

there is simply no time, she would have said. but even with excuses of keeping aurora company, of seeing clarissa and theodorus through their seasons, of helping her mother host evening tea, of being a dutiful wife at biagio's side, priscilla is not so dense that she cannot admit what they are—mere excuses made in the face of reconciling with her maidenhood once more. does aurora not find relief in her own manor? can her younger sister and brother not find their own ways across london? has biagio ever demanded her to stay in a prison of her own making?

the answer comes to her—easily.

england was once her home. even after she forsook the name toussaint and wore auditore proudly like a cloak, is it not still her home for half the year she is here? her friend is right. stepping away from her girlhood for something bigger and better does not mean that alara needs to remain a remnant of a childhood forsaken.

her smile softens, the sharp edges curving her lips fading into something— tender, perhaps, is the word. "you could have written to me, too." this too, sounds like an accusation where there isn't one to be heard. it is merely a fact. she would not be a stranger if alara does the same in return, matching her step for step. "i would have written back to you." and then the words spill: "told you stories about the italian countryside, asked you about marriage preparations, perhaps even share about mine." if priscilla is still capable of much mischief, she's certain that would be what lights her eyes now. it's something close to it, at least. "trading secrets as children do," she finishes, and it's the closest thing to an extended hand. "how have you been, alara? has your betrothed been keeping you busy?"

girl  ·  hood  :      a  time  forgotten,    memory  nestled  fondly  to  her  chest.    it  was  all  simpler  then,    was  it  not  ?    hardly  a  responsibility  in  sight,    no  obligation  looming  in  the  corner      —      not  a  ghost  in  the  room,    the  third  in  a  crowd.    her  chin  lifts  in  time  to  see  priscilla  make  her  way  across  the  room,    the  sea  of  dazed  party  -  goers  parting  to  make  way,    receding  like  a  wave.    oh,    the  secrets  she  keeps  in  the  crevices  between  her  teeth.      ❛      cilla  .  .  .      ❜      honey  -  sweet,    softened  at  the  edges      —      priscilla  toussaint      (    auditore,    she  reminds  herself    )      has  always  commanded  a  fondness  she  can’t  quite  explain,    couldn’t  justify  in  the  light  of  day.    it’s  been  far  too  long  since  they  last  saw  each  other,    measured  in  months  and  miles  and  oceans.    she  supposes  that’s  what  marriage  does    ;    the  thought  burns.      ❛      goodness,    i  wasn’t  expecting  you  back  for  another  few  weeks  still.    do  tell  me  how  beautiful  italy  is  this  time  of  year.      ❜

if  clarissa  is  her  chosen  favorite,    priscilla  is  conquered  land      —      the  fondness  bestowed  upon  her  indicative  of  victory,    her  flag  planted  firmly  in  the  dirt.    crude  to  liken  winning  affection  to  that  of  winning  a  war,    she  knows    ;    the  feeling  remains  just  the  same,    the  summation  accurate.      ❛      you  know  that  i’ll  always  make  time  for  you.    how  could  i  not  ?      ❜      her  friends  are  silly,    foolish,    nonsensical  beings      —      she  could  never  let  a  marriage  separate  her  from  them,    obligation  and  duty  be  damned.      ❛      it’s  so  good  to  see  you  again.    you  mustn’t  be  a  stranger  anymore,    you  know.    i  know  that  you’re  capable  of  writing  occasionally.      ❜

[springsbloom]

location: palace gardens — the garden party.

with: @etheraely — alara.

the flowers in the palace gardens are both a reminder of her england—the one from her childhood and maiden days before she was swept away by her mysterious, handsome businessman to italy—and an england completely a stranger to her. this england makes her feel like a visitor in her own home, sometimes. perhaps it's all that time spent making rounds under parasols and in carriages, sitting in parlors wearing a smile that isn't often truly a smile. there has not yet been enough time for childhood wonders anymore. certainly, no time for childhood friends who are now simply just friends, childhood long forgotten.

so it is a pleasant surprise to see a face that brings back memories from many, many years ago, no longer a childhood friend and maybe barely a friend and more aptly an acquaintance. perhaps pleasant would not be the right word for it. do friends curtsy to each other, priscilla wonders? she bends her knees.

"alara." her voice is warm when she says alara's name, like a greeting meant for someone she has long cherished. surely rissa would not mind if priscilla calls alara a friend, even if just for tonight. "i hardly see you anymore," she says. it doesn't sound like an accusation as much as it is a fact. a smile follows, and it's a genuine one in spite of the words. "with your marriage looming, we won't have much time for each other, will we?"

[springsbloom]

“Persephone climbed into her husband’s lap as if it were her throne, as if she never sat anywhere else. Hades, stiff and frightening to eyes of others, let the flower goddess run her fingers through his hair like any love drunk young man tasting the nectar of a woman’s love for the first time. To the world he was an unyielding and merciless king, but for her he was vulnerable and tender.”

— “Sundown,” Chapter 11 (via thesupersass)

[springsbloom]

location: palace gardens — the garden party.

with: @adaugeos — rissa.

truly, it is a shame that her dearest sister had not been named the diamond of the season, but priscilla cannot deny the relief taking shape in her breastbone, emptying into her lungs and making it easier to breathe in the layers upon layers she is wearing tonight. they are still cilla and rissa, then—cut from the same cloth and destined for the same role.

and yet, the tiny voice inside of her had wanted for rissa to eclipse her. prove them wrong, she wanted to say. it's too late now. with no words of consolation to offer her sister, the best priscilla could say is, "you did not forget your manners before the queen, did you?" it is nothing but an attempt to make sense of her sister's shortcomings.

[springsbloom]

[ sohee han, she/her, cis woman ] — was that PRISCILLA AUDITORE née TOUSSAINT? the TWENTY-EIGHT year old is a LADY, how exciting to see them this season! rumors have it they are SHARP and SOPHISTICATED, but i’ve heard they are CRITICAL and SELF-RIGHTEOUS as well — maybe that’s why they’ve been called the PRAGMATIC. I have even heard that SHE HAS BEEN SEEN DISAPPEARING INTO BEDROOMS THAT ARE NOT HER OWN —only time will tell.

— penned by karin.

⤷ &. INTRO

character summary: second-born out of four siblings. her mother is regency era kris jenner, meaning that she has a role to play in keeping up with the toussaints. said role was to keep her head down during the season and marry well, which was not too difficult to do for priscilla, who fancies herself a proper and well-educated mature lady. enter biagio auditore. a game of cat and mouse, a two-year marriage, and two estates (one in england and the other in italy) later, priscilla and her husband are now in london for the season—she claims she must help her younger sister find a match, after all. she intends to make the most of her visit. she loves her husband dearly, which is why she has taken it upon herself to disappear behind closed bedroom doors—sometimes with her husband following suit.

inspiration: she's a virgo.

aesthetic: a swan taking flight, a clock ticking in the background, the first bloom of spring, gloves slowly removed.

⤷ &. BASICS

full name: priscilla odelia auditore née toussaint.

age: twenty-eight.  

place of birth: brighton, england.

gender: cis woman.

pronouns: she/her.

sexual orientation: bisexual. 

religion: anglican; non-practicing.

family: hugo & franscesca toussaint (parents). aurora, clarissa & theodorus (siblings). biagio auditore (husband).

languages: english (native), korean (fluent), italian (conversational), french (rudimentary).

profession: running the auditore estate, honestly.

label: the pragmatic.

⤷ &. STORY

hugo & francesca have high hopes for all their children. of course, priscilla is no exception. schooled in all manners appropriate for high society, she had always have all the makings of a lady.

she may not be as impressive as her siblings in many other aspects, but priscilla has this: her feet are rooted deeply to the ground. she fancies herself a realist and would like to think that she is ready for the world in many ways they are not.

her debut season had proved to be unsuccessful. a few suitors here and there, but no serious matches—and none good enough for her mother.

it's only many moons later—after an embarrassing amount has passed since her debut—that she meets her match. almost at majority age, she had dreaded having to settle for a safe choice that she knew would only disappoint her parents. then came along biagio auditore.

it was not love at first sight, but it was something. a want that would not go away. and so a match was made.

early marriage life was a whirlwind. swept off to the auditore estate in italy, priscilla found love in her husband—a menacing force to be reckoned with who was only ever tender with her. loved in return, all she had to do was ask before he agreed to allow them to spend half their year in their english estate, bringing priscilla closer to her family once more.

between the romance and the comfort of her new role as biagio's wife, it's long overdue that priscilla auditore née toussaint did something many would consider unladylike: she asked for her husband's permission to seek pleasure elsewhere.

back in london for the social season and her family, her mother has since started asking about grandchildren. between her widowed elder sister and unmarried younger siblings, who else could the responsibility fall on?

⤷ &. WANTED CONNECTIONS

bedroom companions... unbeknownst to most, priscilla and biagio are in an open relationship (sexually). priscilla is picky about who she lies with, but she would with either close friends she knows she could trust or strangers who would not be a threat to her social standing.

fellow married people? high society people who no longer have their time taken up by courtships and can in fact discuss and gossip about married life with her.

childhood friends. people she grew up with! family friends of the toussaints! anything actually!

will add more eventually.

[springsbloom]

“I wanted to come undone like gold thread, like a tent full of birds.”

— Sandra Cisneros, One Holy Night (via illuminosity)