Penstagram Direct Messages
Rosaline Blight
Amity: Hey, Aunt Rosie, can I talk to you?
Rosaline: Oh hey Amity
Sorry I only just now looked at my phone
Rosaline: I've been swamped with paperwork
Amity: I can talk to you later if you're too busy.
Rosaline: oh no no no no
Rosaline: I'm on my lunch break, it's fine
Rosaline: Besides I feel like I never get to talk to you, what's up?
Amity: Well, I'm worried about Emira. She was being really weird. And then she had some sort of mental breakdown.
Rosaline: How so?
Amity: Her eyes were glowing blue, and she was talking to someone who wasn't there.
Rosaline: Has she ever done that before?
Amity: The glowing eye thing? Not that I know of.
Rosaline: Have you talked to her since then?
Amity: I wouldn't even know what to say. That's why I messaged you.
Amity: No, I didn't. I figured it would be best to give her some space. And I was thinking that you would know better on how to approach things like that, being a therapist, and someone Emira actually likes.
Rosaline: I thought you two were on good terms
Amity: It's…complicated.
Rosaline: Hm
Rosaline: Well, first things first: are you looking for my advice as a therapist or your aunt? Because I have two different pieces of advice to give you, even though they might sound the same
Amity: I don't know, both? Whatever you think is a better way of approaching this.
Rosaline: okay
Rosaline: What happened before the breakdown? Anything different?
Amity: I don't think so. I was reading in the living room and she came home late, then mom came in and she said I need to improve on my grades and then she told Emira to "keep up the good work" and then she left and Emira went into the kitchen and that was when she started freaking out.
Rosaline: wait backup
Rosaline: what did she mean by "keep up the good work", why did you put it in quotation marks?
Amity: I don't know. It looked like she wanted to say something else but didn't because of me and then Emira got mad.
Amity: Oh! And right before I asked her if she was okay and it almost looked like she was going to say no but then mom came in and she put her concealment stone (I almost forgot she had her concealment stone off when she came home)
Rosaline: When she was talking to nobody, what did she say?
Amity: Something like "I don't understand why everything I need to do needs to be perfect, you already have Amity joining the Emperor's Coven"
Amity: Which I don't get since my mom practically worships the ground she walks on.
Rosaline: You really believe that?
Amity: I mean she gets annoyed with them when they mess with her patrons and sometimes get sort of passive aggressive when she gets B minuses instead of As but she mostly just harps on me.
Rosaline:...
Rosaline:...
Rosaline…
Amity: Hello? Aunt Rose?
Amity: You there?
Rosaline: Sorry, it's just your mom wouldn't like me talking about this
Amity: About what?
Amity Tell me!
Rosaline: Okay, okay. But you can't tell anyone I was the one who told you.
Amity:
Rosaline: When the twins were first born, your mother wasn't exactly thrilled. While the pregnancy was planned she was disinterested in the actual prospect of motherhood. She didn't want to hold Emira when she was born, she didn't even want to hold them after they were all cleaned and swaddled
Rosaline: Of course me and your dad assumed it was just exhaustion and stress from childbirth, but her attitude didn't change when they got home from the hospital
Rosaline: She barely so much as breastfed them. But again we cut her some slack since she just went through a physically demanding life altering experience
Rosaline: So your dad did most of the work while your uncle and I helped pick up the slack
Rosaline: At this point your mom was acting more and more unlike herself. She wouldn't go out and socialize, or even do demonstrations. She would just sit in bed all day, not so much as brushing her hair or teeth.
Rosaline: So we thought it was just postpartum depression, so we got her to a healer and he prescribed her elixirs to treat it. And that helped a little but it didn't change anything. So it was mostly me and your dad taking care of Edric and Emira alone with your uncle helping here and there. As they got older she started being more involved, but it was mainly scolding or teaching them how to act in high society and the business
Rosaline: Everything from potty training to magical tutoring was left to us, private tutors and nannies.
Rosaline: Then you were born and while she seemed more miserable during her pregnancy, when you were born she was much more attentive.
Rosaline: Granted she wasn't exactly affectionate, but she did ask to hold you the second she got out of surgery, and she did opt to immediately breast feed you rather than immediately bottle feed like she did with the twins (not that there's anything inherently wrong with that, but she rarely gave Ed and em the bottle herself)
Rosaline: Of course your dad, uncle and I still had to provide the nurturing and play time. By that point your mom had taken upon herself to shape the twins into what she wanted. Even in the baby class she was critical of their grades. If they got anything less than a good star she would rip it up in front of them
Rosaline: Honestly she was the most harsh with Emira criticism wise, she mainly just frustrated with Edric and eventually just gave up on him entirely
Amity: Wow. I had no idea.
Rosaline: Of course that's only the stuff I witnessed, I'm sure there's a lot of other stuff that only Ed and Em know
Amity: How do I even talk to her about this?
Rosaline: Honestly the best advice I can give you is be direct but don't push it. Let her lead the conversation. And more than anything, just be there for her
Rosaline: And in terms of what to actually say, try saying "Can we talk about yesterday?" "Is there anything you wanted to share with me?" Or "what can I do to help?"
Amity: Okay, I'll try.
Amity: Thanks, Aunt Rose. 😸
Rosaline: no problem
Rosaline: Oh and Amity
Amity: Yes?
Rosaline: just so you know you can always talk to me
Amity: …
Amity: I'll keep that in mind.
Rosaline: All right my lunch break is almost over, so I gotta get going
Rosaline: Talk to you later, love you
Amity: …
Amity: …
Amity: you too