Malvacea

Malvacea is the wife of the diplomat Auberon.


Malvacea is the much younger wife of Auberon, whom she married when he was still the ambassador to her own country. This inherently came with improved lifestyle and status there; her family had already been an overlarge one that struggled to maintain itself, and thus benefitted greatly from the union. However, she had never travelled until her husband was recalled from his post, and was completely unprepared for the changes that came with moving to their current home; and, in particular, the yet more significant rise in status that came with it.

She now has luxuries beyond her previous imaginings, and while she has become accustomed - or perhaps inured - to them, they still never cease to seem extravagant and unnecessary to her.

Previously, being the wife of the diplomat gave her most of her free time to herself; she had the occasional formal requirements to appear beside her husband in a primarily ornamental sense, but she was able to spend most of her time on her passion for cultivating the native plants of her homeland. She grew up around them, and knew them intimately; in this foreign land, the flora and fauna is largely unfamiliar to her, although she has some appreciation for it, as she does for everything that grows, it is not the same.

She does have a limited collection of plants from her home, and makes the occasional, expensive, acquisition of other foreign plants sent from abroad. However, something she must inevitably contend with is her husband regifting them to the queen, who has her own private collection, on a regular basis and without Malvacea's permission. Residing in the royal court also comes with a much busier social calendar she must attend to.

It's possible that Malvacea could some day bond over their shared interest in gardening, and plants, but that day seems far off currently. Malvacea finds Setae's vast ornamental gardens to be overly regimented, and unexpressive; and the only time she might have the chance to strike such a conversation would be in those same gardens - but it is where Setae spends almost all her leisure time, and it is forbidden for those outside her most intimate circle to approach her there.

Malvacea's younger sister, Sterculia, has technically achieved a place within this inner circle, although practically is not within the queen's confidences. Their next youngest sister, Mallow, looks likely to have a future place in the Royal Guard; and their brother, Linden, seems unambitious but certainly satisfied with the courtly lifestyle and freedoms he had now.

These of course have all come about as a result of her marriage to Auberon, and he had become financially supportive of the whole family at that time; and they all came along when they moved. As the eldest, Malvacea feels deeply responsible for their welfare and wants to see them all fulfill their greatest potentials; and while she doesn't exactly resent the strides they have made ahead of her as a result, she does perhaps have quiet resentment in how they all seem so happy doing so.