Continued from (2211) Formal Court...
The elegance of Adeline's reply brought a smile to Edward's face.
"Fair warning, fairly taken, Ms. Martin." The name rolled off the tongue nicely; Edward appreciated that.
"An intriguingly modern choice, Ms. Martin; you fit the role quite beautifully. My own selection is Julien Sorel from Stendal's The Red and the Black."
And while Edward found Desire to be modern and bold, the approach of Conner as Mitth'raw'nuruodo was far beyond that.
"Good evening, Mr. Wells, or should I say Mr. Thrawn?" Edward couldn't say he approved, even if he had grown up with the novels. "An adventurous choice of character," he added ambiguously. There was a line between a masquerade ball and a cosplay convention, and Edward felt that line had been crossed.
And then they were joined by Helen. Edward gave an initial approving look until he realized she was dressed as a prostitute. Goodness gracious, what a domain this is.
"Good evening, Ms. Kingsley. It has been some time since last we spoke; I do hope you've been well?"
And another, Priscus Baker, Edward's greeting came with a deep nod and doff, "Priscus Baker, good evening. While your umbrella tickles my imagination, I fear I'm failing to place the character. Would you be so kind as to enlighten me?" Despite Edward's Sire's various half-hearted attempts to educate him on the subject, Edward's knowledge of British literature was relatively lacking.
Edward repeated the gesture for the second Priscus to enter, doffing with an almost bow towards Jennifer.
And then another! Edward privately hoped no others would join the seemingly ever-expanding gathering. In hindsight, speaking to the new and beautiful woman had doomed him to this fate.
Edward blinked in surprise as the click of the cane hit Court's floor. A cane held by Connor. Edward, almost unconsciously, readied himself for a fight. A readying visible only through the slight release of tension and a return to a wholly neutral spine position. "Good evening, Mr. O'Brien; your costume dedication has extended to a cane, I see. While I should dearly hate to doubt the thoroughness of your preparation, I feel somewhat obliged to ask whether or not you might have received approval to bring a cane into Elysium?" He asked in part for the man's sake, while there were no officers of the Court present, he could simply leave it at the coat check and return with a loaner.