location: café in kensington time: afternoon date: 21 February
[ @pxrkinsxn ]
Parliament was obnoxiously masculine. Of course it had gotten better over the years, but there were still two times as many men than women. Most of the time Narcissa liked this dynamic because it allowed her to stand out. For this reason, and others, she had yet to form any close bonds with female MPs. She preferred to entrench herself with male colleagues as it allowed her to escape the assumptions that were usually applied to female politicians. While she’d never be considered “one of the guys” Narcissa was certainly respected by men more than some of the other women.
However, Narcissa grew up around girls and women, and she often missed their companionship. Her mother was one thing, but without the constant presence of her sisters she needed female friends. There were a few girls from school she kept in contact with, but most of them lived far away or led lives that kept them too busy for frequent met-ups. Thankfully, Narcissa had a few friends in the city who, though equally busy, were able to make time for coffee every now and again.
On this particular afternoon Narcissa was meeting one such friend, Ava Parkinson. She’d always been impressed by the other woman’s business acumen, and since her interest in The Syndicate had skyrocketed her interest in Ava had grown simultaneously. Narcissa did truly like Ava though, and was excited to talk to her. The café was warm and a bit to cozy for Narcissa’s taste, but as she waited at a table by the window she became accustomed to the pleasant background chatter. Ava would be there soon, and in the mean time Narcissa sipped her almond milk latte and watched the rain run down the glass next to her.
