Zelda listened, waiting; impropriety was bad, but Dionisia's actual answer didn't make her feel better, either. It wasn't that being called undesirable was so terrible - people were called undesirable all the time - but rather that this was one of her fears; that she was unattractive and unworthy and her elder sisters would always be better. Dio said Zelda would know the remarks were untrue; the thing was, Zelda sort of believed that they were.)

Still. It might work. Especially with Xena marrying someone old next month; Xena had always been better at Zelda than being a lady, and she hadn't even scored a match she actually wanted. (Presumably; Zelda didn't talk a lot with Xena, about their feelings.)

"That could work," she admitted after a beat, "It could. Especially with Xena and Mr. Bixby, and Brannon does want me to marry eventually. But - can I think about it? I'm not sure I want to hear those things about myself. Even knowing they're false."

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