The Socialite set their cup down on the saucer, thinking. "Well... I'm afraid that the way I find most effective proves your earlier theorem incorrect."
With a straight back and a knowing look, he continued. "Laudanum, tea, wine, they are all well and good solutions, but only when one is truly unburdened. The mind cannot hold all stress alone. The Royal Beth should all but prove that keeping to one's self and keeping one's cards held to their chest is not the path to relief. Mind, I am not saying that one should climb to the roofs and shout their darkest secrets. Goodness knows, the impropriety... Consider any man an archipelago, a cluster of islands. Each man may keep to themselves as much as they so desire, but one may only receive a variety of fruit if one is willing to trade their wood to their neighbor."
The Socialite grimaced. "No, that... that is a terrible metaphor. What I mean to say, as plainly as I can put it, is to find a friend you can trust with all of you and a friend you can trust with only some of you. Nobody else needs to know you so intimately, but if there is even one person with whom you can unload some of the burden, then you will be well on your way to restfulness and ease. Do trust me, I know how difficult that can be, finding the very few people you mustn't treat like a stranger or a rival. It can be difficult to keep two faces. But a gentleman must always have a confidant, even among perfect strangers."
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regna
Re: ... an invited guest arrives.
Date: 2025-07-01 12:00 am (UTC)With a straight back and a knowing look, he continued. "Laudanum, tea, wine, they are all well and good solutions, but only when one is truly unburdened. The mind cannot hold all stress alone. The Royal Beth should all but prove that keeping to one's self and keeping one's cards held to their chest is not the path to relief. Mind, I am not saying that one should climb to the roofs and shout their darkest secrets. Goodness knows, the impropriety... Consider any man an archipelago, a cluster of islands. Each man may keep to themselves as much as they so desire, but one may only receive a variety of fruit if one is willing to trade their wood to their neighbor."
The Socialite grimaced. "No, that... that is a terrible metaphor. What I mean to say, as plainly as I can put it, is to find a friend you can trust with all of you and a friend you can trust with only some of you. Nobody else needs to know you so intimately, but if there is even one person with whom you can unload some of the burden, then you will be well on your way to restfulness and ease. Do trust me, I know how difficult that can be, finding the very few people you mustn't treat like a stranger or a rival. It can be difficult to keep two faces. But a gentleman must always have a confidant, even among perfect strangers."