Prompt: Daeris/galanoth in a random AU because I can't pick

ah, i understand. (AGGRESSIVELY SHOVES YOU AT NUMBER 34)

His name was Lord Galton Dell, Viscount Daventry, and he was not happy.

There were times in which he enjoyed the prestige he got as a member of Britain's honored nobility, those times were near-uniformly when he was hunting wild game, not when he was called in for more formal events.

At least he could decline a hunt. To decline an invitation to a party such as this would be a grave insult, so no matter how much he despised being made to go, he went ahead and had a suit prepared and carriage readied, and at the discovery that no, this was not just some casual gathering, it was a damned masquerade ball, made his way to the shopping district and got himself a mask as well.

Honestly, he thought, the food had better damn well be worth it.

He'd emerged from his carriage already in a sour mood, and it had not improved at all upon being dragged by his host to meet and greet with various other men he'd never met, and while yes, networking was an important skill to have in the Peerage, it didn't mean he had to like it. Having to constantly adjust his mask only made things more unbearable.

About three hours in he'd managed to slip away from the various people in attendance and found himself wandering the hallways of his host's estate. His mask had been promptly abandoned (apparently it had been fashioned into a wyrm of some sort, not that he cared) once he determined he was out of sight, and the sheer relief of not having anything pressing against his face granted him the first bit of cheer he'd felt all evening.

Shortly in his wanderings he'd found the game room, which brought him his second bit of cheer. There weren't many trophies here, unlike in his own home, and they all seemed to be of small game such as foxes or rabbits.

"Why on Earth would a man limit himself to hunting foxes when there are tigers that roam these God-given plains?"

"Well I don't know about you, but I'd be hard pressed to find a tiger in my backyard."

He turned to find a maiden staring at him, her cocky expression clashing greatly with her servant's dress.

"Though perhaps," she continued, "if your Lordship would be so kind as to tell me where I might find one, maybe I might look into it. Tigerstripes look lovely on walls, or so I've heard."

He didn't answer her musings, instead eyeing her dress, something she noticed quite quickly.

"Don't let it fool you, my uncle is a Viscount. There had been a bit of a spill after we'd arrived, and our host didn't have a Lady on hand for me to borrow a dress from."

Ah. While her story was a bit far-fetched, it wasn't all together unprobable. He had noticed that his host had been alone when he'd been greeted at the door. Perhaps a bachelor?

"The beasts generally make their home in the forests of the Orient. You'd be more hard pressed not to find one there." He offered. "And the stripes do indeed make lovely tapestries, but I prefer the heads myself."

The maiden before him laughed, strong and cheerful and not at all like a proper lady should. "Well then perhaps I might go along with you on your next tiger hunt, and between the two of us we may both get what we want."

She held a hand out for him, and didn't wait for him to return it to introduce herself. "Lady Deangellis, though if you wish, you may refer to me as Daeris."

"Lord Galton," he said, and it was with his third bit of cheer that he added, "though if you wish, you may refer to me as Galanoth."

NOTE: Daeris is a friend of mine's OC, and we recently decided to make our OCs cousins since they're both part dragon. She'll be mentioned a few times in Stop Me If You've Heard This One.