Formally Announced or Addressed on Social Correspondence: The Lady Eira Blanchard
Informally Announced or Addressed on Social Correspondence: The Lady Eira Blanchard
Formal Correspondence Salutation: "My Lady," or "Madam,"
Informal Correspondence Salutation: "Dear Lady Eira Blanchard," or, more familiarly, "Dear Lady Eira,"
Addressed in Speech: “Lady Eira” or “Eira” , if addressed by a very close friend or relative
Referred to in Speech: “(The) Lady Eira (Blanchard)”
Social Correspondence Signature: Eira Blanchard
Biography
Eira is kind and occasionally witty, and she does her best to be a friend to everyone. Because of this, she sometimes befriends people she should perhaps avoid instead, and her sweet nature can occasionally get her into trouble. She also gets frustrated with herself when she finds herself having dark thoughts, even about her stepmother, for she's determined to see the goodness in everyone.
Eira had a rather ideal childhood spent riding her horse, taking long walks, climbing trees and sneaking into the kitchens to bake--even if she wasn’t technically allowed in there. The cook and household staff had trouble saying no to the little green-eyed imp.The duke and duchess were devoted to their little girl, also rarely saying no to her. Eira was an accomplished horsewoman, always looking for someone she might race against or to whom she might show off her skills. She always wished she had siblings and a large family, but she was an only child. Close with her cousin The Country Gentleman, Eira visited as often as her parents allowed, following him around, seeing him as the older brother she never had.
Everything changed for Eira on her twelfth birthday. Her mother’s death was followed by her father’s murder when she was fifteen, which left her in the care of an abusive stepmother who hurt her both physically and emotionally. Her stepmother, the woman who had poisoned Eira’s father, controlled the duchy with a firm hand, preventing anyone from helping Eira and keeping the truth of her treatment from the tenant farmers and villagers Eira had befriended over the years. It finally became too much for her to cope with, and terrified that if anyone tried to help her, they too would face her stepmother’s wrath, Eira ran away from home when she was seventeen. She would have perhaps requested aid from her uncle, aunt, and cousin, but her stepmother had lied to the naive girl, telling her that they were dead. When she ran, Eira chose London in the hopes that her stepmother would be least likely to find her there.
She lived on the streets for a few months, learning how to pick locks and pockets as she did what she had to to get by until a chance meeting led to her being given a home with The Rogue. Her feelings for him grew quickly, and she felt she could have been happy with him forever. Eira was thankful that her father had visited London the bare minimum, only when his responsibilities required it, and Eira, even less. It had been nearly seven years since she had last visited London with her parents, prior to her mother’s death, so no one seemed to recognize her as the daughter of a duke, and thankfully, The Rogue didn’t ask many questions. When the truth of her parentage came out, however, he decided to entrust her further care to a friend of his, so Eira now resides with The Matron. Eira was heartbroken, even though she knows it’s for the best.
Only The Rogue knows the truth of what happened during her time on the streets, and it’s important to Eira that no one else discovers the unladylike and illegal things she got up to with him. With her debut in society fast approaching, her new guardian certainly has her hands full preparing her to find a husband worthy of a Duke’s daughter.
