“Haven’t we all?” It was dry. “But that does not make her any more capable. I cannot believe my sister, of all people, would allow you to elevate someone to a position they simply cannot do. What was she thinking?”
“She was thinking that Rhea has the skill, she just has a mental block against using it.”
“Then she’s useless—”
I glared.
“—as a replacement for you. You know she is.”
“I know her background—and her heart! There’s no one better. She just needs some—”
I stopped, halfway through the thought, which was the same one I’d had last night.
“Needs some what?” Gertie demanded.
“Time,” I said slowly. “Which isn’t something we have, in my era, but you—”
“Oh, no. No, no. We are not—”
“But why not?” I forged on, before she started talking over me again. “You’re training me—”
“You’re a Pythia fighting a war against an entire pantheon, all on your own! Whilst she is—”
“Agnes’ daughter. With Jonas Marsden.”
Gertie blinked. I saw her.
“She has the skill,” I said, pressing my advantage. “And then some. And she’s true and loyal and kind and fierce and everything, everything she needs to be, except confident, because Agnes always treated her like a dirty little secret—”
“I’m not listening to this.” Gertie stood up.
“You started it,” I reminded her, getting in front of the door.
“I can just shift out,” she told me, with another eyebrow. “Unlike certain other people.”
“But you won’t. We haven’t finished talking yet, and you know I’m right—”
“I know nothing of the kind!” Gertie looked at me in exasperation. “I have my own duties to perform. Am I expected to train your whole court?”
“No. You’re not even expected to train Rhea. Agnes is—”
“Agnes also has duties!”
“Yes, one of which was not fucking up her daughter!”
Gertie looked shocked, probably at my language, so I kept on talking. “She didn’t mean to do it; she was trying to protect her. But she just ended up making Rhea feel unimportant and useless and untalented—none of which is true. But now . . .” I spread my arms, and sloshed some tea around. Gertie didn’t seem to notice.
“Now?” she demanded.
“Now it’s destroying her. She can do the job, but she doesn’t believe she can and she’s terrified of letting me down. Hilde’s been working with her and so have I, but I don’t think we’re what she needs. I don’t even think you are. I think the only way she can work through this—”
“If she does.”
“—is being trained by her mother. Agnes made this mess; she needs to clean it up. And,” I added, because Gertie looked like she was going to interrupt again, “don’t you think she’d want to? If she knew the truth—”
“She can’t,” Gertie said emphatically. “I have to memory charm all of this away, once you’re done training. The stronger the emotion, the harder it is to overwrite entirely. Things slip through, even subconsciously, as Dr. Freud would say—”
“So, don’t tell her. Just see to it that Agnes trains her.”