April 5th, 1890 — An Enchanted Easter

— ☙ —

You're dripping like a saturated sunrise
You're spilling like an overflowing sink
You're ripped at every edge but you're a masterpiece

It was the hostess that set the tone for her party; Evalina Rosier knew that hers always left good impressions in her guests' minds, however she intended this one to be a particularly good one. Yes, she'd opened up the invitations to include some of Society's less...fortunate subjects, but that is what a selfless and well-bred woman did from time to time. Seeing as it was her birthday weekend, she also took extra care into making sure this party weighed substantially on her husband's pocketbook.

As she made her way out to the back terrace she stood observing the fruits of her house servant's labor, a soft smile on her lips. Guests were particularly charmed by her the flowers at the entryway, something that Evalina knew people would be talking about. Happy guests meant good whisperings about town. She knew that the flowers spraying the harmless pigment on guests' clothes might cause some temporary outrage, but it was a risk she was willing to take. Her blue eyes focused on one such guest making their way up the terrace, having just been sprayed with the temporary dye. "Don't fret," she said, her soft smile brightening as she took on all the airs of a generous hostess, despite the fact she was still fuming at her husband for sending her to a disaster of a party on her birthday last night. "The pigment won't last long!"

— outfit —

  

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i refuse to break myself into bite sized pieces
i will stay whole, and you will
choke
※

Juliana was hardly a society darling. She tended not to attend events at all unless her mother responded to the invitation on behalf of both of them, frequently reminded her that it was coming up, and then actually ensured she was ready to go moments before their departure. Her reticence regarding social events was probably one of the reasons she had never married (her lack of interest being the significant other). This party, however, was quite pleasant; it was outdoors, for one, and the weather was lovely (whether by chance or by magic), and there were quite a large number of children, whom Jules naturally had a fondness for. She had gravitated towards the children's area rather than the adult games after separating from her parents shortly after arrival, to the surprise of no one who knew her well. She was not an exceptionally coordinated or athletic person, and while croquet was hardly Quidditch, it was still something she did not think herself likely to succeed at.

After spending some time entertaining her niece, Jules had decided to head in for refreshments — and had gotten immediately engulfed in a colorful cloud. She hadn't seen what exactly had happened, but the snickering of a preteen boy told her it had probably been some sort of prank. Children would be children, she supposed, and the fact that her usually lavender dress was now mottled with various shades of sky blue didn't bother her as much as it probably should have.

"Oh, I wasn't fretting," she remarked pleasantly to the woman she thought was the hostess as she exited the garden. "I rather think Mr. Lytton might like to see this; he might be inspired to put together a whole new fashion show," she joked lightly.

  

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

Ah, it was Mr. Lytton's assistant. While perhaps not the most amusing person to talk to at the party (nor the most esteemed person to be seen with at her own event), Evalina still smiled easily at the younger witch. A plainer looking creature, but perish the thought of treating one of England's top designers' assistants horribly! Miss Binns had always been sweet when Eva paid visits though.

Really, she thought, as she looked out onto the lawn and to the unusual amount of children running about the lawn. If Evalina had her way, she'd have kept all of her events exclusively to her inner circle, however, that was not how a society wife held events. "Ah, Mr. Lytton!" she responded easily, "Well I'm certainly glad people seem to be enjoying the garden. Are you enjoying the event thus far, Miss Binns?"

  

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i refuse to break myself into bite sized pieces
i will stay whole, and you will
choke
※

"Oh, yes," Juliana agreed immediately. Of course, there was nothing else that one could say to the hostess, whether she was enjoying the event or not. She did hope, however, that she wouldn't be called upon to support the claim with any evidence, since she hadn't involved herself in much of the proper event yet. The children's garden was lovely, but it was probably not what Mrs. Rosier envisioned as the crowning jewel of the morning. If she asked about anything other than the garden and the refreshments, however, Jules wouldn't have had much to say on the subject.

"My nieces seem to be enjoying everything, too," she continued, hoping to steer the conversation away from anything that she wouldn't have a response for. "They've been in the garden for half an hour already, and they don't show any sign of tiring. I expect their parents will have to cast finding charms for them when it's time to go home."

  

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

So, her bumbling baffoon of a husband perhaps did suggest something right, if the children were enjoying themselves. Evalina let herself give a light laugh at the suggestion of tracking spells on children come the night's end. "I'm sure that would be an entire event in and of itself!" She exclaimed, both immediately bored of this conversation and intrigued by the designer's assistant at the same time.

"Do tell me Miss Binns," She began flicking her wand towards the entryway where they soon would see a tray sporting refreshments floating lazily their way. "You're Mr. Lytton's assistant, do you have any ambitions in the world of fashion yourself?"

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   Juliana Ainsworth

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i refuse to break myself into bite sized pieces
i will stay whole, and you will
choke
※

"Oh!" Jules said in response to the question, quite taken aback by the direction that the conversation had turned. "No, not at all," she continued, though she thought that much was probably obvious. The way that she dressed wasn't exactly haute couture. Perhaps Mrs. Rosier thought that she aspired to dress like one of Mr. Lytton's models and was just too poor to make her vision a reality, but that really wasn't the case. The Binns were not an exceptionally wealthy family, but they did well enough; if she'd taken an interest, Juliana could have had a few particularly nice gowns. Of course, if she'd really been interested in that sort of thing, she could have tried a little harder to find herself a wealthy husband and had the sort of lifestyle that Hugo and Rosie always seemed to be aspiring to. Left to her own devices, though, it was all Jules could do to see that she was properly dressed and in matching colors before she left the house. The dress she was wearing now was one of her newer ones, but even it was at least a year old already. Cutting edge of the fashion scene, she certainly wasn't.

"If a good sense of fashion were a prerequisite for the job, I don't imagine Mr. Lytton would ever have hired me," she confessed. "But mostly what I do is schedule fittings and plan events for him, and that sort of thing. The administrative tasks. There's a whole other side of the work focused on the designs, and I've mostly got nothing to do with it." Which suited her just fine. Honestly, if she could have done even less with the design work, she would have; she only had the job so that she could fund her own projects, and she relished the moments she was able to leave the House of Lytton entirely in order to go about her own business.

  

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

Well, that answered that question, Evelyn thought as she took a glass of champagne from the floating tray and sipped on it. The girl's state of fashion hardly conveyed that she had any interest, so it made sense that she would handle the more administrate – as she'd put it – side of things. This made Evelyn wonder who she thought she'd seen helping Mr. Lytton on other matters during her fittings. Perhaps he had a number of apprentices.

Well, that was all the interest she had in that conversation, however social rule dictated she continue this small talk nonsense with someone she barely knew. "Ahh, yes Mr. Lytton must have such a busy schedule for you to have to look after!" She smiled benevolently again. "Especially with summer fast approaching, and the Coming Out Ball – I imagine you must be keeping quite busy!"

  

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i refuse to break myself into bite sized pieces
i will stay whole, and you will
choke
※

Juliana's interest in this conversation had withered just as quickly as Mrs. Rosier's had, though she was also too polite to show it. She wasn't a natural when it came to matters of society, and no one who knew her would ever accuse her of being charming, but she had been schooled early and often enough by her mother to at least not be an embarrassment. Particularly around the hostess of the event, she would be on her best behavior.

Luckily, it didn't seem she'd need to keep it up for long. Even as she started her reply, she saw someone angling towards them with a look of intent. Juliana didn't recognize them, which lead her to the conclusion that they were probably aiming to interrupt and beg Mrs. Rosier's attention — that, and the fact that basically no one ever had any urgent need of her attention at a party.

"Mr. Lytton certainly knows how to keep everyone busy," she agreed with a smile. Pretending that Mr. Lytton was a mutual friend was a tried and true way of surviving small talk, even though he was usually a friend to neither party. Jules was fond of him, but he was her employer and would never be a confidant. His customers, on the other hand, often confided in him — so perhaps it wasn't all that strange that they were quick to pretend he was a friend when engaged in a conversation with others who knew him.

"But speaking of busy — please don't let me keep you," Juliana continued, indicating the approaching party with a slight tilt of her head.

  

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

Thank Merlin – she thought, turning to follow the young woman's gaze. "Aahhh, Mrs. Eacker." She said, though that's all she managed to get out, for the woman immediately started twittering away. Evalina cast Miss Binns a grateful glance and nodded her head as a departing farewell. "Give my best regards to Mr. Lytton!"

  

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i refuse to break myself into bite sized pieces
i will stay whole, and you will
choke
※