Post by Greenie on May 13, 2010 0:07:58 GMT -5
Prompt chosen by Shinigami. <3
42. Still
Characters: Cadence
Word Count: 559
Cadence was never sure if she was going to make something of herself. Words like “still” and “but” shaped every sentence about her. She was only a Four, but she was a Heart, and still her parents were of good lineage. Still, her brothers turned out better. Still, she had room for improvement. Still, she was not quite good enough as she was. She could see it on her Papa’s face every time he visited, and her heart positively ached to be good enough for him, to be the high-ranking aristocratic daughter he’d always wanted. If she’d only been born Riordan, he could be proud of her and who she was. She could see it on her Mama’s face every time she had to go away for a diplomatic visit, the worry that Cady would never live up to the promise and potential of her brothers and the family she’d been born into.
Her parents were both Kings.
Her brother was a King.
Her half-brother was a Queen.
Another half-brother was a King.
And still, Cadence was a Four of Hearts. She was ten, bursting into double digits and failing to change any number but her age. She knew her parents only meant well, that they understood the difficulties of living as a four in the society they were a part of and wanted her to live a happy and healthy life, but they didn’t understand how hard it was for her to not be good enough for them as she was. Her entire childhood she’d overheard the conversations about how “wonderful and delightful” she was, “if only her rank weren’t so low.” Her sparkling personality just wasn’t enough to detract from her shortcomings. Still, at least she wasn’t a two. Still, at least she wasn’t a Club. Still, even Kelsier was better off, starting out as a Seven.
Still, she just wasn’t good enough.
It was ironic, really, that the men of her family didn’t have to, didn’t NEED to, work for anything in their lives. Riordan was a King of Spades, already being primed to shoot into some sort of diplomatic position; with the family he was born into, why not? Kelsier was a Seven of Clubs, nothing to brag about, but nothing to snub; he surely would make something substantial of his life, even if it wasn’t as notoriety-worthy as Riordan. Who was the other sibling? That girl, the one with hallucinatory problems? Oh, it was just Cadence – that Four. Too bad, so sad, that she turned out to be the only Heart. What an awkward litter.
Cadence desperately wanted to crawl into her inadequacy and stay there. She wanted to pretend she was oblivious to her potential for improvement and stay a bland Four of Hearts for the rest of her life and live in the shadow of her famous family, partaking in the benefits but never quite fitting in. She knew, though, if she did that, that she would always be questioned and always be looked down upon with pity. She would never simply be “Cadence, Four of Hearts,” she’d be “that unfortunate child that never progressed.” It wasn’t an acceptable alternative. She had to improve, or she would never be accepted.
The real question was would she continue to be “Cadence, still a Six,” or “Cadence, still an Eight,” and never simply Cadence?
42. Still
Characters: Cadence
Word Count: 559
Cadence was never sure if she was going to make something of herself. Words like “still” and “but” shaped every sentence about her. She was only a Four, but she was a Heart, and still her parents were of good lineage. Still, her brothers turned out better. Still, she had room for improvement. Still, she was not quite good enough as she was. She could see it on her Papa’s face every time he visited, and her heart positively ached to be good enough for him, to be the high-ranking aristocratic daughter he’d always wanted. If she’d only been born Riordan, he could be proud of her and who she was. She could see it on her Mama’s face every time she had to go away for a diplomatic visit, the worry that Cady would never live up to the promise and potential of her brothers and the family she’d been born into.
Her parents were both Kings.
Her brother was a King.
Her half-brother was a Queen.
Another half-brother was a King.
And still, Cadence was a Four of Hearts. She was ten, bursting into double digits and failing to change any number but her age. She knew her parents only meant well, that they understood the difficulties of living as a four in the society they were a part of and wanted her to live a happy and healthy life, but they didn’t understand how hard it was for her to not be good enough for them as she was. Her entire childhood she’d overheard the conversations about how “wonderful and delightful” she was, “if only her rank weren’t so low.” Her sparkling personality just wasn’t enough to detract from her shortcomings. Still, at least she wasn’t a two. Still, at least she wasn’t a Club. Still, even Kelsier was better off, starting out as a Seven.
Still, she just wasn’t good enough.
It was ironic, really, that the men of her family didn’t have to, didn’t NEED to, work for anything in their lives. Riordan was a King of Spades, already being primed to shoot into some sort of diplomatic position; with the family he was born into, why not? Kelsier was a Seven of Clubs, nothing to brag about, but nothing to snub; he surely would make something substantial of his life, even if it wasn’t as notoriety-worthy as Riordan. Who was the other sibling? That girl, the one with hallucinatory problems? Oh, it was just Cadence – that Four. Too bad, so sad, that she turned out to be the only Heart. What an awkward litter.
Cadence desperately wanted to crawl into her inadequacy and stay there. She wanted to pretend she was oblivious to her potential for improvement and stay a bland Four of Hearts for the rest of her life and live in the shadow of her famous family, partaking in the benefits but never quite fitting in. She knew, though, if she did that, that she would always be questioned and always be looked down upon with pity. She would never simply be “Cadence, Four of Hearts,” she’d be “that unfortunate child that never progressed.” It wasn’t an acceptable alternative. She had to improve, or she would never be accepted.
The real question was would she continue to be “Cadence, still a Six,” or “Cadence, still an Eight,” and never simply Cadence?
