not like the regulars: closed starter for ava avery
Rohesia Fawley’s annual garden party was something Safiye looked forward to in that she looked forward to it being over. Of all of the various events that the Falweys hosted throughout the social season, the garden party was by far Safiye’s least favorite. For one thing, Rohesia insisted on only inviting the women of society, which had the double downside of being both more boring and more treacherous than most gatherings. Without men talking politics to interrupt, Safiye usually felt like she was going to crawl out of her skin, but at the same time she couldn’t let her show, as the women were usually especially vicious without their husbands around to put on a show for.
At least this year there was one potential bright spot, as Safiye had managed to sneak Ava Avery onto the guest list, and the young woman had actually accepted. Safiye did not know Ava beyond by face, but she knew of her, and the Avery girl’s reputation promised to be an interesting addition to the afternoon. More than that, Safiye truly wanted to get to know Ava, the girl who’d moved out of her parents’ house, worked a job then quit it, and even traveled. In short, Ava was a girl who’d had several of the things Safiye herself wanted, and Safiye wanted to hear about everything.
For the first hour or so of the party, Safiye bided her time. She occupied herself making the rounds, greeting guests, and generally playing at the role of hostess, even though it was technically her mother’s party. She didn’t want to seem too eager and tip her hand to either Ava or Rohesia, the former because she didn’t want to make the girl uncomfortable and the latter because she didn’t want to be seen wanting something.
Finally, Safiye made her way over to Ava with a friendly smile. She started out with an easy question to gauge the girl’s mettle. “Ava Avery, welcome, I’m so glad you could make it. How are you enjoying the party?”
@ava-avery
