✯ Carlisle ✯

“Oh! You’re the fiance who needed to be rescued!” She was instantly more animated in her response. A moment later, she realized how her impulsive comment probably sounded, and she bit her lip. “I’m sorry, that came out wrong. Carlo is a good friend of mine and he came to visit me when I was recovering from the riots, and he told me about what he and his brother did to help you. He kept trying to pretend it wasn’t anything to be impressed by. Does Arden suffer from the same problem?”

Carlisle’s brows shot up from beneath her mask at the words. She knew the other surely meant no harm by it, but she couldn’t help but feel a bit defensive. She’d gone through way too much in her life to be painted as some damsel in distress. But as Adelaide quickly went on to explain, she let out a soft breath and relaxed. “Ah... Yes, those two never quite listen. They were incredibly brave to go out in the midst of it all to come get me. They got me home without a scratch.” Her smile became a fond one as her gaze landed on her fiancé once again. “He told me there was no other option to him. Didn’t even think about if he’d get hurt or not, just came and got me without hesitation. They’re great men, the both of them.”

“I don’t care, just get it sorted,” Martina exclaimed before she ended the call with a loud groan of frustration.

Carlisle couldn’t help the small smile that formed on her lips as she caught the ending of the woman’s phone conversation. It reminded her quite a bit of a few calls she’d made in the past, though the other certainly had a much more demanding quality. That of a Head, of course. She respected that deeply. “I’m sorry, Lady Montague, but I saw this slip from your bag.” She hardly wanted to disrupt the woman, but a paper of some sort had fallen and Carlisle wasn’t going to just ignore that.

“I really am, and I’ll be sure to pass along your compliments.” She nodded at the question. “Yes, I’m here with Rafe.” It seemed a simple enough statement and she needed to get used to saying it. “Are you here with anyone, or just here to show off how incredible your fashion sense is so the rest of us can be jealous?”

Rafe... The name sounded familiar and Carlisle could only guess it was a Romano, though she couldn’t be sure. “Not sure I know Rafe, but I’m sure he’s lovely.” She offered with a small smile. As soon as the question turned to her, though, she lit up and her eyes found Arden. “I’m here with my fiancé, Arden Romano. That handsome man standing over there.” She gave him a small wave before turning back to the other woman, “Though the jealousy doesn’t hurt. Just gets me more business.”

“Oh, thank you. I wish I could take credit for it, but I’m lucky enough to have a friend with good taste who helped push me in the right direction.” The topic itself was innocuous enough to engage Adelaide’s small talk skills and snap her out of the swirl of thoughts she had let overtake her before. But she had to smile slightly at the introduction the woman offered. “It’s all right, it’s unlikely we’ve ever met before and the masquerade does make it difficult. My name is Adelaide. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Ah, well you pull it off beautifully. And you’re very lucky to have such a friend.” Carlisle continued, pleased to see that whatever had been worrying the other woman seemed to be slipping away. Even if only for the moment. ”Adelaide, what a lovely name. And it’s a pleasure to meet you as well. Are you here with anyone tonight?” 

Gabi’s face grew hot; it was mortifying to be in this situation. Normally she was much better at controlling herself, and now she was starting to think she ought to have just stayed home tonight. “I know,” she said, reaching up to fidget with her mask. “Yes, I’m fine - I’m really very sorry. Just - lost in thought.” It was mostly the truth, and she doubted anyone would be interested in knowing what those thoughts were precisely. “I’ll just find somewhere safe to stand where I can’t cause any trouble.”

Carlisle hadn’t meant to embarrass the woman further, just caution her gently. “No, please, there’s no need to apologise.” As the woman went on to suggest she should just find somewhere to stay out of trouble, the Capulet knew she wasn’t quite enjoying the night. So she gently placed her fingers against the other’s arm and took up a place beside her, “Why don’t we head outside and get a bit of fresh air, hm? You can tell me a bit about what you’re thinking about. Or we could discuss something to keep your mind off of it. I’m Carlisle.” 

Gabi slipped between two groups of people on her way to a spot that seemed less crowded. She should have just given in and found some sort of ugly smart watch that would at least allow her to keep up with her texts better; taking the phone out of her clutch was annoying. Her stomach was in knots, but she and Dulcie had finally had a very serious conversation about why Gabi had been so protective, and discussed ways to alleviate some of it, and she couldn’t argue with a party that was so well-chaperoned, especially when Dulcie looked so excited. But Gabi did not like being here while her daughter was somewhere else. Lost in her thoughts, she missed the person in front of her and walked into them, with a startled exclamation. “Oh my god - I’m so sorry!”

The champagne jumped out of the glass she was carrying, but thankfully spilled away from her. Nothing on her dress, therefore nothing to worry about. Still, she was on edge as to who it was that ran into her and why. But when she turned to the woman, it became clear she was as surprised by the impact as Carlisle had been. “No harm done, though I do suggest you be a bit more careful. I can’t imagine some people would be too thrilled to have their drinks spilled on them.” As she spoke, she waved over one of the servers, alerting them to the spill so no one would slip on it. Her voice was soft as she turned to the other again, “Are you alright, though?”

Rafe had just walked away to get a drink? Talk to a family member? He had told her, but she was so overwhelmed by the atmosphere that she hadn’t really processed exactly what he had said. All she knew was that there were so many strangers here, and with the masks she couldn’t even tell if she did recognize anyone. This was her first time meeting the Romanos, and she had not thought it would be like this. Carlo introducing her to his family because they were friends? Sure. Rafe introducing her to his family as an arranged claim? Borderline panic inducing. She stood awkwardly at the side of the room, not sure what she should do. She was so wrapped up in her thoughts, when someone came up next to her and spoke she jumped. “I’m sorry?”

“I said you look lovely. That dress is something to be envious of. And makes me upset I hadn’t thought up the design first.” Carlisle smiled sweetly, sensing the nerves of the other woman. Of course, she had no idea of her situation, but all she could assume was it was perhaps one of her first events like this. “These masks make it so difficult to know who everyone is, so if I do happen to actually know you, please forgive me. But I’m going to introduce myself anyways- Carlisle Capulet. Hi.”

“Costumes and masks, hmm the possibilities,” Lottie remarked as she saw the email from Martina forwarding the invite to the Romano party.

“Is that about the Romano masquerade?” Carlisle asked with a bright smile, thrilled that there was an event she could look forward to amidst all the stress of the aftermath of the riots, and her own claim ceremony to think about.