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[Letitia Swift]

Etiquette is the science of living

It was a thankfully pleasant day and so Letitia Swift made the executive decision to take a stroll through Padmore Park. She was not required to tutor anyone today for the young women (for she was not quite a lady yet!) had gone with her family to France for a month and so until she found some part time employment, her days were quite her own. Perhaps Ixion would win the fortune on the expedition, how splendid that would be if he did though she had her doubts.

It was strange to have the children back home without Ixion; she had only just gotten used to having the house to herself when they all returned, bar Ixion. It was a most peculiar dynamic. At least she would have Cassie for company now that she had graduated, that is until she was to get married. Not that she ever got lonely.

Having had Ismene come with her for a walk (with the school year over she felt rather inclined to interrogate her as to the events of the year and the truth of the scandals she had read about) she lead her youngest daughter to a bench near a quaint little duck pond. "Now, you must tell me all you have learned and done this year at school," she began, smoothing her skirts gently where she sat. Lettie wanted to know exactly what her family had gotten up to and she trusted Ismene to tell all.

Tag: Ismene Outfit Words: 246
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[Ismene Swift]

Just as being at Hogwarts had been strange with her father, Ixion’s absence at home now that Ismene had returned was quite a peculiar sensation, as if the Hufflepuff might have forgotten something. Stranger still was the knowledge that Cassandra—now graduated and officially ‘out’ within society—was now betrothed, making her far more of an adult in her younger sister’s mind. Myles had brought a friend home with him for the summer, a young Gryffindor called Castor, leaving Issie to feel as if hers was the only life not to have changed in the school year that had drawn to a close.

Some things, however, had not altered, and one such thing was Letitia Swift.

Publically, and internally, Ismene had always been propriety incarnate. This was no great accomplishment on the part of her parents, but simply who she was, a fact that few would be foolish enough to dispute. Nonetheless, and in spite of the love that she bore the woman, Issie had always felt inferior in that regard, or at least feared that Lettie would view her as such. The result was that, though she craved attention and recognition from the famed etiquette instructor, the soon-to-be fifth year was never wholly comfortable in the woman’s company.

“I think I have done quite well on my examinations,” the young girl offered hesitantly, uncertain as to what she might offer her mother. If her journal had been kept to its intended purpose, Ismene would have had a lengthy list of daily learnings instead of page after page of (dutifully scratched out, now that he had proved foolish and unworthy) declarations of love for one Mr. Lovegood.

277 words | tagged for mother dearest
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[Letitia Swift]

Etiquette is the science of living

Lettie was not a particularly cold woman, that is to say, she was not cold-hearted. Not at all, for she cared very deeply for many people. She cared for her husband, she cared for her children and for her sister but the sole problem was, that she had great difficulty showing it, on account of the fact that it very often contradicted the rules of propriety and good manners that had been so rigorously instilled in her as a young girl. She had not been taught that to love was wrong, merely that to show it was improper and so that left her in a most difficult situation when it came to her family. She could only show them so much love, to surpass that felt unnatural and wrong to her and yet at the same time she often very much wanted to. She had been taught that love was an irrelevent and misguiding emotion; it was not necessary either in the raising of children nor the maintenance of a stable marriage because all that mattered was upholding morals and social expectations. There simply was no room for love and it was an inner battle she could never admit to. Not to anyone.

While it pained her that Ismene seemed so hesitant and uncomfortable around her, she felt powerless to do anything about it. There simply was nothing to be done. Her duty as a mother was not to indulge the child in needless affection but to set an example and produce a perfect child of propriety and good breeding.

"That is most pleasing," she remarked encouragingly, not really looking at her daughter but straight ahead instead. "I trust you have remained detached from those involved in those shameful scandals referred to in the Daily Prophet?" She had no reason to fear this was not the case for Ismene's name had remained absent from the paper and she trusted both her daughters were models of good manners and brilliant upbringing. Hearing it from the horse's mouth, however, was always a comfort.

Tag: Ismene Outfit Words: 342
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[Ismene Swift]

“But of course!” Ismene responded hurriedly, perhaps too much so, startled that her mother would even ask such a question. Not only was she herself of ideal repute, but so were her friends—and their families. Though it would pain her terribly to cut a girl from her acquaintance, Issie knew she would not hesitate in doing so should the need arise—and it had in the past. “Most of the girls are my senior, and I do not think anyone from Hufflepuff was mentioned.” It was after the fact that the witch wondered if she should have added that. Would her mother perhaps think that was her only reason for her behaving as was expected, convenience?

Nervously, she crossed her ankles beneath her skirts, unable to risk showing anxiety by clutching her fists, as was her tendency. That her mother seemed to be surveying the landscape around them rather than looking directly at her, Ismene supposed, helped; she felt far less like a criminal approaching the Wizengamot for sentencing. “I still associate most with Miss Loretta Browne,” she offered hopefully, “whose elder siblings are both prefects for Ravenclaw, and whose graduated sisters are either respectably married or on their way to being so.” In addition to being well-matched where personality was concerned—for Ismene truly was fond of the girl—Loretta was an excellent friend by her parents’ standards, with plenty to recommend her and no marks against her as far as the Hufflepuff was aware.

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[Letitia Swift]

Etiquette is the science of living

Her eyebrow twitched a degree at Ismene's haste, had she not known better of her daughter for both associating with the wrong sorts and lying to her mother, she might have been suspicious but as it was, she trusted her youngest daughter. "Good, I am glad to hear it." It was so much easier to read the articles of scandal in the Daily Prophet when she didn't feel as though any of her children were at risk of featuring in the next issue.

In truth the silence between them had something of a strain on it, a little awkwardness that many would find uncomfortable but Letitia found perfectly acceptable. She was quite content to remain as she was, it was Ismene who was tense after all. "She sounds a most respectable girl, perhaps we ought to get to know her family better, maybe invite them to dinner one evening this summer. Do you know if they are taken to leaving the country for the summer months?" She suggested this all in a very businesslike manner, starchy and very difficult to read as to what her thoughts were on the matter. "You must also tell me of this new etiquette professor I hear they have hired at Hogwarts, I have heard very little of them," she requested, sounding a little warmer and more amiable in her conversation as her interest was piqued.

Tag: Ismene Outfit Words: 231
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[Ismene Swift]

“They are remaining in the village for the summer months,” Ismene replied, more relaxed now that her mother had offered her approval. “Three of Loretta’s siblings have been drafted by the Ministry, and I do not imagine her father too eager to leave town while their safety is at risk—two of them are female, and so in jeopardy. I do not think, though, that they would be averse to a dinner invitation.” In truth, the girl had never met the parents of her closest friend, but liked to think that knowing Loretta so well, and having at least the acquaintance of her siblings Miss Odira and Mr. Gideon Browne, meant that she had at least a vague notion of the attitudes of their parents.

Besides, Issie did love having company for dinner; it made the dining experience much more interesting, and any excuse to see Loretta was a lovely one.

“Mrs. Harper?” Ismene wrinkled her nose at the mention of the woman. Though the witch was truly well-educated in her field of tuition (not near so well as Ismene’s mother, of course), her character... Issie was hardly one to believe the gossip heard in the halls, but from her understanding, the etiquette professor’s character had been found somehow wanting, culminating in, of all things, a divorce! She did not, of course, say as much to her mother. “I suppose she is a thorough instructor, though I do not think she is so dedicated to the field as you are. I do well in her classes, of course, though I do wish we did not have quite so many.

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[Letitia Swift]

Etiquette is the science of living

Lettie raised her eyebrows in mild surprise at her daughter. "Three? How awful for them, especially being that two of them are girls. I am very glad your sister was not included in this dreadful expedition as well as your father. Hiking does nothing for one's refined state of being nor for one's reputation. Imagine if your sister were to have returned a wild thing! We should all of died of shame if she was not corrected quickly." The topic of the expedition was one of which Lettie had a great deal of opinion upon when it came to the inclusion of females. She had feared if any of her former students were involved it might very well undo all the hard work she had invested.

"Nonsense, Ismene!" she chastised abruptly, "As long as what you are being taught is accurate and of value then it is not a waste of time. Quantity might not equal quality but it cannot hurt either if the content is of worth." It was most definitely a good thing that Lettie had no idea that the teacher had a track record of divorce, she would have quite lost the ability to keep her face schooled into a look of calm neutrality.

"Does she make sure that you are all prevented from developing bad habits? That you are most strictly instructed?" Lettie was now very curious about the etiquette professor, had the position not been taken already she would have very much been interested in perhaps taking it up, she was a little hesitant at the idea of teaching boys and in such large numbers but she fancied she could do a lot more good as far as the mannerisms of the young went if she tackled them all while they were in one place.

Tag: Ismene Outfit Words: 300
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[Ismene Swift]

Ismene said nothing on the quality or quantity of her instruction. Much of what Mrs. Harper taught them, in her opinion, she had learned from the cradle—but then, that was to be expected, given that some of the lower class girls were starting from nothing where decorum was concerned. Besides, it made for easy marks for the fifteen year old, who truly enjoyed the attention with which excellence provided her. “I feel that she is quite an effective instructor in all areas of the subject,” Ismene provided with only slight hesitation, though her words were perfunctory rather than genuine. “Though some of the girls might benefit from a firmer hand.”

As if that would happen. Ismene had little fear that her mother would decide that Hogwarts needed her—at least, not that that need would overwhelm the need of the poor unfortunates who had failed so utterly out in the real world. No, while it would surely have been in the girls’ best interests, Ismene knew that the likelihood of having to dodge her mother at school as she did her father was slim to none. “Not me, of course,” she emphasized, “nor my friends. Any shortcomings they might have had—that I might have somehow overlooked—have been tempered over the years of our acquaintances.”

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[Letitia Swift]

Etiquette is the science of living

Deciding that Ismene's opinion was quite trustworthy, she allowed her curiosity to be sated for the time being. "I imagine those requiring 'a firmer hand' as you so eloquently put it, would be those who cannot afford a firmer hand if any hand at all." It was a simple observation rather than a suggestion of anything, she certainly didn't expect to hear that those requiring more refining were those of the upper class, not that she thought the upper class devoid of disobedient girls for she frequently was paid to correct such girls, but she couldn't imagine the girls from upper class families would act so obviously poor that their families would have allowed them to bring embarrassment upon them by allowing them to Hogwarts without being first corrected.

"I am pleased to hear you are of such a good influence on your friends," she remarked, more or less praising her for her conduct in her own indirect way. "I only hope your glowing behavior does not convert so many that I am left unemployed." It sounded serious as far as the way she said it but it was a jest. Not a conventionally delivered snippet of sarcasm but sarcasm all the same. She didn't really approve of sarcasm all that much but at times, even Letitia Swift bent her own rules a little.

Tag: Ismene Outfit Words: 224
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[Ismene Swift]

Ismene dared not question her mother’s assessment, though could not help but wonder if the woman had taken a gander at the paper in the past year. Several girls—from upstanding houses!—had been plastered across its pages, even names like Potter, Asperhand, leaving Ismene to suspect it was more a lack of morals that plagued them, not a lack of funds.

She could not, however, help but sit a little higher at the compliment her mother afforded her, though she rushed quickly to soothe the woman’s concerns, unable to gauge if they were sincere or not. “Oh Mother, don’t be silly! There are far too many girls who would benefit from your tutelage—girls too rough that I could never associate with them without damaging my own reputation—for there to be a risk of that!”

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[Letitia Swift]

Etiquette is the science of living

Lettie frowned slightly as the word 'silly' left Ismene's mouth. "I don't take kindly to being called 'silly', Ismene, I find it somewhat disrespectful. I advise you to think a little more carefully as to the wording of your sentences in consideration as to whom you are conversing with. I am well aware that there shall always be young girls to tutor, I was merely jesting."

With the mood adequately deflated, Lettie sat for a moment longer before rising to her feet. "I suggest we return home now, I think you have had quite enough sun for one day, do you not agree?" Of course Lettie expected nothing of a contrary nature in reply to her more or less rhetorical question. Ismene surely knew better than that.

Tag: Ismene Outfit Words: 127
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[Ismene Swift]

Her moment of good humour dispersed without warning at her mother’s chastisement, and Ismene’s eyes—quite rightly—cast downwards in shame. “My apologies, mother; in spite of your tutelage, I fear I have not quite learned to mind my words.” This was true only with regard to the most recent evidence; without her mother’s presence to tip her off-balance, Ismene was always painfully mindful of her behaviour. “And I do agree that I have had more than my share of sun; I do worry for my complexion.”

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