18 May, 1888 — Welcome To The Jungle Fashion Show, Hogsmeade Ballroom

Ophelia had only had a few weeks back in Hogsmeade as a properly married woman, and she was still adjusting to the sensation. Being away on her honeymoon hadn't really counted as experience in that department, since it had only been the two of them (well; the two of them and a small hoard of accompanying servants, anyway). She was still adjusting to it; being called Mrs. Devine still gave her pause as she realized that they were talking to her, and since her return from her honeymoon it seemed as though she had never gone anywhere of import without Mr. Devine by her side. It was wonderful, of course, but it was also just so different from the way things had been before that it had left her head in something of a whirl.

This was her first event as a married woman, though she was less the hostess and more merely the benefactress for the foreign fashion designer. All the same, she'd had a hand in the planning and things were going splendidly. She had chosen a mask in the guise of a hare as the color matched her chocolate-colored fur shawl. It was a bit warm for fur, but the shrug over her shoulders allowed her to wear an emerald green dress with a much more daring neckline than might otherwise have been appropriate, and she thought the overall effect was rather stunning. Not that many people were looking at her, once the fashion show itself began. Luckily, that was only half the evening, and she had plenty of time after she disengaged from her husband's arm to roam the ballroom being seen.

Only the strangest thing happened to her as she flitted about from conversation to conversation; she began to miss him. Not that that was strange in and of itself, but the fervor of the feeling was. She felt as though her skin was buzzing, longing for his touch — was this what it was like to be married? Granted, she hadn't spent a good deal of time apart from him in the time since their wedding, but she had seen plenty of married persons going about their business and not being overtly bothered by the lack of their significant other. Whatever the reason was, she was finding herself drawn to distraction and becoming increasingly vague in her conversations with her guests, until she determined that she ought to go and find her beau.

She'd forgotten what mask he'd chosen for the night, however, and of course there was nothing particularly remarkable about the suit he'd worn to the event, which made it dreadfully difficult to locate him. Eventually she did find him, and a wide smile spread across her face as she approached from behind, wrapping the fingers of one hand around his upper arm (had he always had such lovely muscles beneath that suit? He must have had, but she had never taken the opportunity to appreciate them before now). "My darling," she greeted brightly, before leaning in just a bit and asking more quietly, "Might I steal you away for a moment?"

Open to anyone who might be confused for Roberto — i.e., white male, twenties-thirties, dark hair, tall.

  

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Nathaniel had always had a weakness for the women in his life. His mother and sisters had always been able to get him to do whatever it was they asked and going to events with them was no different. When Aurelia had all but begged him to go to the fashion show their mother was dragging her to, he hadn't been able to say no. There had been one condition though. That he wouldn't be forced to wear some overly fancy suit or something simply to appease their mother. Negotiations had been made and the small portion of the Herondales, one now a Wallingford, were seen entering the grand event together with Riff quite comfortable in a simple but clean black suit.

He couldn't help the smirk that graced his features when he was handed a mask resembling the features of a monkey. He'd even gone so far as to make a rather monkey like sound to his sister with the hopes of making her laugh. He'd succeeded and even got a smile out of his mother. At one point or another, however, they got separated and Riff had found himself in search of the refreshments table with a strange hankering for something banana flavored.

He'd just turned away from the table, sans anything banana flavored, but with a glass of champagne when fingers were wrapped around his upper arm from behind. A brow was quirked when he looked down to the lady who had done so and then proceeded to call him darling. Confusion was something he wasn't really all that accustomed to. Curious, yes, but not confusion. Then she asked to steal him away and added to his confusion.

"I suppose so?" he answered, his tone clearly full of question though he couldn't help the almost mischievous grin that graced his features.

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Lovely Lady Set!

Ophelia hardly registered the tone of his voice, but only the fact that he'd assented. She simply couldn't wait to be alone with him for a moment, and eagerly reached down to take his hand and twine her fingers through his. The gesture was not a new one for the two of them, after they'd just spent weeks together on a honeymoon, but the fact that she was able to walk hand-in-hand with her beau in the middle of a crowded room was still new to her, and it brought a delighted, girlish giggle to her lips.

"Come along, then," she said, starting off through the crowd. She held his hand tightly in hers, relishing the feeling of even this subtle bit of contact. It was as though his skin was electric. Had it always felt like this? Surely not — she would have remembered feeling like this all the time, over the course of their honeymoon, but she didn't know what had changed. It was as though she were an addict who had been cut off from something she desperately needed, but she had only been separated from him for less than an hour; surely that short a time could not produce such a reaction!

  

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Nathaniel regarded the woman with a raised brow though it was surely hidden behind the monkey mask at her giggle. She almost sounded like a child, which caused him to smile and laugh as well while he was lead away by her after she'd laced her fingers with his own. It was bold yet exciting and fun. He couldn't help but to relish in the contact. Her own soft and delicate hand against his larger and more rough and calloused hand left a rather interesting combination of feelings in him.

"To where do we head," he asked of his new companion, lips now in a mischievous but fun smirk as he looked to the pretty, for he assumed she was by what he could see, little hare next to him leading him away from the crowd.

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Lovely Lady Set!

Ophelia hadn't actually considered that very exactly, and she certainly didn't have any coy response ready. She probably should have had some sort of excuse while they were still in earshot of the public, but since she hadn't thought this ahead that much, she had to go with the truth instead. "Somewhere a little more private," she said, unable to keep an undercurrent of suggestiveness out of her tone. She didn't know exactly what she was suggesting, but she certainly wasn't used to going off in dark corners with any man (even her husband) during the middle of social events. Even something as relatively innocent as a kiss on the cheek would seem deliciously scandalous to her.

An opening presented itself in the form of a door. She wasn't sure where it lead, but it was doubtless away from the ballroom. With another playful giggle, she opened the door and pulled him inside.

  

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Nathaniel continued to grin at the woman as she teasingly lead him along. He was far from a virgin but he'd never been proposition, that was certainly what this was, in such a public and open setting. He couldn't help the bubble of excitement in his chest as a door was opened and he was pulled along behind her.

"And what do you have in mind in here?" he asked, his eyes raking over the woman before him with clear appreciation.

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Lovely Lady Set!

The mask didn't obscure his eyes, and she could recognize the look in them well enough. She wasn't sure that her dear Roberto had ever looked at her quite that way (which was one of the things that had always made him so markedly different from the odious Mr. Dawlish), but he was a man, after all. She must have surprised him by pulling him aside, she thought, and inspired some more lascivious thoughts than he might otherwise entertain. The notion delighted her — she loved the idea that she might have so much power over him, and felt emboldened to do even more in order to illicit a reaction.

"What do you think we could get away with, before they notice we're gone?" she asked, almost surprised at how seductive the question sounded. This was a side of herself she had never imagined she might have, much less explored, even after she crossed the line between virginal and not last month. With a grin, she took a step closer to him, bringing them a bit inside of casual dancing distance, and placed her hand lightly on the front of his pants. The gesture itself would hardly have been considered lewd if not for the particular placement of her hand. It was more of a suggestion than an overt action, but it was scandalous enough to send jitters through her once again. How wicked she was being! And how delightful it was!

  

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A brow was raised under Nathaniel's mask at the woman's bold question. And then she moved even closer, though not exactly too close for propriety. It ended up being the placement of her hand that sent a surge of excitement through his veins. He was a man, after all, so it was hard to deny a reaction when he was all but touched in such a way.

He really should stop what was happening. It was the right thing to do after all. But the trickster within himself was having a hard time of fully deciding that. Perhaps it would calm his guilt if he knew her name first. "I'm sure if we were quick, plenty," he answered with a smirk but brought a hand over to circle her wrist already placed on him, "But perhaps an exchange of names would be a better start."

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Lovely Lady Set!

His hand around her waist sent a thrill all up and down her back, and she shuffled just a bit closer to him, though being careful not to move too far away and break the contact he'd just given her. It was as though his touch was a drug, and she was already well on her way to being intoxicated, but still craved more. His words, however, gave her pause and muddled her thoughts. Was this some sort of flirtatious gesture that she didn't understand? She didn't want to ruin the moment by diverting his attention elsewhere or making him feel self-conscious about the remark if it was just an offhand thing to say, but... well, what had he meant by that?

"What do you mean?" she asked, brows knotted in confusion. It had not yet occurred to her that it was even a possibility the man behind the monkey mask did not recognize her — or else she certainly wouldn't have allowed her hand to remain where it was.

  

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Nathaniel couldn't help but laugh at the woman's question. He would have thought for sure she'd prefer to at least know the name of the gentleman she was about to have a little tryst with in some abandoned room at the event. At least, most women would have preferred that even if fake names were to be given or something along those lines.

"Don't worry," he said easily enough in case she was worried that if he knew her name he would out her as some loose and easy woman, "I promise not to kiss and tell."

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Kiss and tell? What on earth could he possibly have been talking about? A gentleman never would have told others about the private goings-on in a married couple's bedroom, and it appalled her to even consider that in other cases, Roberto might have done just that. Except, of course, he wouldn't have — her Roberto would never have considered it. That left only one conclusion, and Ophelia drew herself back with a look of shock.

"Who are you?" she asked, her tone accusatory as though he had been the one to initiate this tryst and intentionally deceived her, and not the other way around.

  

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Well...That had not been how Riff had expected the encounter to go. But he supposed a little more joking and playful banter could see them back to the route they'd been headed.

"The gentleman you lead away for a little fun break from the festivities," he answered playfully enough, reaching out for her hand in an attempt to win her back to some fun.

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Lovely Lady Set!

Ophelia knew exactly what he was implying when he said a fun break, and was horrified at how close she had come to indulging in exactly that sort of activity, before she'd realized she had the wrong man. Beneath her mask she was blushing furiously, but she was hardly going to stand here with this stranger and apologize for the mistake, or even explain it. She couldn't be left alone with him another moment, or else someone might start to wonder — Merlin, what if someone had already started to wonder! She had held his hand, after all, in perfect view of everyone! Hopefully the mask would save her dignity, but she was the hostess, so she really couldn't count on the benefit of anonymity.

"Stop that at once," she said sharply, in response to his reaching for her as she took another step back. She needed to get away from this man, whoever he was, and she headed back towards the door to the ballroom proper. She only hoped that he didn't follow her and make some sort of scene!

  

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Nathaniel watched as the woman who had seemed all too willing to partake in a little bit of fun turned into a prim and proper miss like a flip of a knut. A brow was arched behind his mask as he watched her, the smirk fading from his lips as she snapped at him and even pulled her hand away. Trickster he may have been in the moments before, he felt a sobering rush through him almost as if he'd been doused with a cold liquid.

Lucky for her, perhaps, he didn't follow and didn't bother saying another word. He just watched her flee like the little rabbit she was but couldn't help to wonder if he'd perhaps encounter her again.

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