Still irritated at having to hail for a hansom, Basil was entirely unprepared for the sudden arm grabbing his shoulder. He should have known better than to think he could escape an event like this one that easily however. Stiffly, he paused and rounded on the man accosting him whom he recognized by that irritating voice as none other than Atticus himself. So his brother had deigned to show up after all. (How the familiar facade had managed to escape him all this time made Basil wonder. Had he really been so caught up in his conversation with Ms. Malfoy to have failed noticing Atticus altogether? Surely not.) Basil tugged down his waistcoat indignantly.

“Well I regret to inform you, but I have other more important commitments to keep,” he all but huffed. Basil wasted no time with idle greetings. He’d seen his brother just this morning and undoubtedly would see his again this evening and he was not in a forgiving, pretending mood. Taking in the other’s expression then, Basil steeled his own. He could sense that there were going to be words had on this topic and he was not prepared for them. Especially not here, in this too crowded ballroom. He supposed he had one of two choices: either he and his brother lower their proverbial weapons that had already been brandished (unlikely) or, Basil could turn on his heel and continue on his way leaving Atticus to follow and continue the conversation outside or not at all.

He opted for the latter.

Turning rather abysmally away from his brother with no warning whatsoever, and resisting the urge to snicker to himself about it, Basil continued to make a beeline for the exit. He accepted his hat and other belongings from the usher who was waiting promptly by the door and then stepped out into the corridor. He could already feel some of his unease abating just from the mere absence of the stuffy ballroom and its inhabitants. A nice brisk dive into the cold December night would be just the ticket to clearing a muddled head before he got to the Morgans. Assuming Atticus would let it, or rather him, go without further discussion.

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