Snippet #2774315

"You must join us, Lord Avery- I'm sure I am not alone in wanting to hear all the gory details of your mid-trip adventures!" Col called to Avery. Avery turned towards him and the princess and gave a cordial nod of his head to acknowledge he'd heard the man. He however, had absolutely no desire to talk about the attack. If anything, it was a matter for the prince to hear to ensure the safety and security of his borders. For all he knew, one of the nobles here had orchestrated the attack to eliminate rival houses. That was for later pondering, however. For now, he had a lady to escort.

When Adelina paused to debate her answering, Avery thought she would refuse him. She certainly paused long enough to make him feel uncomfortable., or maybe he was coloring her actions. He knew that most of the ladies here would be far more interested in the princes, but he still wanted to form some connections, romantic or no. He wondered if it was his appearance that seemed to turn her off slightly. He certainly wasn’t the richest looking noble, though his family was quite wealthy thanks to their crops. Or maybe his reputation as a man of work had preceded him and she had no desire to be seen with a lord who would ‘stoop so low’ as to work in the field himself.

When the lady did accept his invitation, Avery pushed away those thoughts. They had no place here and had no business poisoning his relationships with noblemen and ladies ha had not previously gotten to know. He offered her a charming smile as he took her offered arm to escort her. “You honor me with your acceptance,” he said then as he began to walk her towards the table. She was certainly beautiful; the Black Beauty indeed.

And it seemed there were no specific seats for each of them. Avery’s eyes widened slightly as one of the Thorne brothers moved to pull the princess’s seat out and then sit at the head of the table. He certainly wasn’t shy about his intentions, was he? He would have to keep an eye on that lord. He did not want to get tangled up in some mess. Col’s comment however intrigued Avery. He’d known many nobles to take such a slight seriously and call out the other’s wrong doing. Col did not. His polite comment was amused in a way and he seemed unperturbed by the other. Perhaps Col too could be a good friend and ally. He would have to watch him as the events progressed.

For now, however, he still needed to pick a seat for himself and Lady Adelina. Avery remembered and heard the royal family’s welcome to sit close by, and Col’s request as well. Avery didn’t particularly care to spin a tale about his ‘adventure’ that day though he did want to get to know Col. Adelina at least may appreciate being seated close to the royalty. If he sat next to Princess Westerly, she may think he was trying to give the princess his attention rather than her. And either way he’d be close to Bastion and he wasn’t interested in that in the least.

Perhaps sitting nearer Prince Declan would be the better option. With his mind made up, Avery escorted Adelina to the head of the table where Declan was seated with Lady Emery. He gave a nod of greeting to both before he was quick to pull out a seat for Lady Adelina and inclined his heads towards her. “My lady,” he invited. Once she sat down, he sat beside her. It put him right between her and Declan.

In one sphere, he understood she would want to get the prince’s attention, but he was still a man, and she still the one he’d invited to escort. He wanted to gauge her personality and what perfect way than this? He would be able to see if she preferred to talk around him to get to the prince, indicating she was solely interested in rank, or if she did indulge in conversation with him, and thus a relationship could be formed with the beautiful lady, either friendly or romantic. He wasn’t here really for marriage, but connections were always welcome, and it wasn’t often one found friends in court.

“Lady Adelina, won’t you tell me a little about what you like to do in your pass-time?” he asked her then. “Perhaps we have come common ground.” He then poured her a drink as the food began to arrive.

---

Elliot was amused by how surprised Lady Isabel was that he wanted to escort her. He wondered if she had reservations because of who her family was. True, she was not like the other noble ladies and that was precisely why he’d chosen to escort her. She was exciting, had a chance to experience and be things that others of this court could only dream of. He wanted to know what it was like to live a life on a ship, visiting far away ports and truly being alive. It was a freedom he could only graze. Maybe he could learn from her. The evening at least wouldn’t be boring. Elliot’s siblings always did say his head was up in the clouds more often than it was grounded but he liked to be a dreamer. Maybe he and Isabel had that in common.

“Yes, I would like to escort you,” he mused and took her hand in his and kissed her knuckles before he began to lead her to the tables. “I must admit, I am fascinated by the life you live. It sounds like you are able to grasp a freedom denied to most of us. I would love to hear all about your travels.” The young lord paused when he too witnessed the power play Bastion attempted. He arched an eyebrow a bit curious. It was early in the evening to make such bold power plays, but it was intriguing to say the least. And the way Col brushed it off was admirable. His eyes lingered just a touch long on Col. He was handsome. Bastion himself was tall, dark, and handsome. That confident smile on his face would have made him shiver, if not for the fact that Elliot knew he would be playing with too high a risk with him. Bastion was a wild card and with the rumors of how power hungry he and his family was, he did not want to become a pawn in the political game that was easily thrown into the pyre.

Elliot’s eyes settled on his brother then and was once again surprised. Avery was going to sit beside Declan? What was his brother playing at? First he gets the princess’s attention and now he was going to sit beside the future king? Did he not realize how this would look to the other nobles? Was he really trying to get into the family’s good graces and win the princess’s heart? He’d never taken his brother as the sort to play the game this way. He was really going to have to pull his brother aside and ask what the hell he was doing. How was he supposed to help Avery and be his eyes and ears if he didn’t tell him what he wanted? Well, there was nothing he could do about it now.

Unlike his brother’s calculated seating arrangement, Elliot simply decided to sit at table two because it wasn’t filling as fast as table one and had far less power-hungry nobles it seemed. And besides, with Bastion and Col right there, he was going to have a hard time not staring at them. He did want to give Isabel her due respect and his attention after all. “Please, have a seat,” he cooed to her and pulled out her seat before he too sat down just as the food was being set. “Would you like a drink? And What would you like to know about me, my lady? I have already asked much of you.”

---

Adriana was watching her brothers escort their ladies to the table while she waited. She should have been looking over the potential lords that were still available, but she was far more concerned with her siblings. Both were very dear to her and she didn’t want anything bad to happen to them. Thus far, they both had had their hearts broken and she wished she could protect them from another. Though it wasn’t often a luxury they could afford with their title, she did want them to be happy and find love or companionship.
"Lady Adriana, may I escort you to dinner?"

The words caught her a bit off guard, and she gasped as he turned his gaze to the lord standing in front of her. A light flush touched her cheeks at being caught so unawares. She must really look a fool. Where was her calm confident focus? She was better than this! She was not some silly fragile maid. She could take care of herself if given the chance. She would not appear as a weakling now, even with her frazzled and out of her element.

She offered a bright smile to Lord Callum and gave a little curtsy to him. “Lord Callum, I would be delighted,” he answered him. She offered her hand to him then so they may begin walking towards the table. Both of her brothers seemed to already be engaged in conversation, that was good. Maybe even Avery would enjoy the company then. The poor thing was lonely though he’d never admit it to anyone. He wondered just how much his brother hid from her and Elliot. He always seemed to carry the world on his shoulders.

She brought her attention to Callum them and offered a smile. She’d heard of Callum’s finesse with the blade and the honor given to him as Commander of the King’s Army. It was an honor few would achieve. It seemed like he was an honorable man. She wondered what else was behind Callum’s political mask. “Lord Callum, I have heard of your skill on the battle field and the respect you’ve earned from your men. I must say that is rather admirable. You must truly take your job seriously. Do you enjoy it as well? It is amazing when duty lines up with passion. It makes the duties easier,” she mused then.