Maria was NOT nervous. She'd been going to parties as a child in Cainhurst, and had years of experience in how they were conducted, and how to conduct yourself. Conducting yourself tended to break down as soon as the blood came out, but that was only to be expected.
She'd even gone to parties at the academy, and had learned to be prepared for some sort of Dark Magic-related incident. Her carriage was full of weapons and supplies, and the horses were wearing saddles so she could simply unharness them and use them for pursuit if and when the Dark Magic wielder managed to escape. Again.
So she was most definitely prepared and not at all nervous as she sat in her carriage in her best clothes, her best weapons, a nice broach for her cravat, and enough gunpowder bombs to kill a dragon. Under the seat, of course. That many bombs on her person would have her rolling like she weighed… well, as much as Katarina should, given how much she ate. Yes, she was not nervous. Not at all. She was alert! Awake! Enthusiastic! Not nervous at all.
"Maria-sensei, relax," Katarina said. "There's no need to be nervous."
She wasn't nervous. At all! "I'm not nervous," Maria assured her. "At all."
Katarina smiled brightly. "Yes, that's the right attitude!" she said. "There's no reason to be nervous. We're just going to go there, hang around the buffet table, and eat. It'll be fine."
Maria nodded. Yes, that was what they were going to do. They were hang around the buffet table and— "We are not hanging around the buffet table!" Maria snapped sternly. "You are going to properly socialize with your peers and not linger around the buffet table like a Covetous Demon pining for the baneful queen."
"Darn it! Maria saw through my plan!"
"Of course I saw though your plan." The embarrassing thing was it had nearly worked, but she didn't mention that.
"I suppose I should have expected that from Maria-sensei, who was at the top of the class," Katarina muttered. "Ah, all that food going to waste! I just want to eat the cakes… and the cupcakes… and the good beef, there's always good beef at these things…"
"My squire, please stop thinking about food."
"Wha—?! How did you know I was thinking about food? Did you read my mind?"
"You were saying it out loud."
"I was?"
Really, Maria had been worried for a moment there when Katarina had nearly managed to trick her with such a childish ploy, but apparently that had so exhausted her mental faculties her thoughts had dropped straight down to her mouth.
She took a moment to double check her squire's attire. Her smiths had tried, they really did, but unfortunately even the most generous estimate they could give her had said that even the lightest set of formal armor for Katarina wouldn't be done until tomorrow, and so her squire was wearing an appropriate party dress that she had written to the Duchess for and which Katarina's mother had picked out.
The dress provided was in the rich deep blue that Katarina favored, similar to the dress she had worn at their graduation from the Academy, but that was where the similarity ended. It had a high neck that came up to a thick, starched, closed collar at her neck, and covered her shoulders, with short sleeves that made it all reminiscent of a military dress jacket. There were even some ruffles with embroidered edges that invoked the image of gold braids and epaulets. The skirt was divided for ease of movement—though Maria though that was unnecessary given how well Katarina moved in a dress— and had little volume. It had come with leather gauntlets had had been sized for a woman's hand and had fit Katarina perfectly, as well as blue boots that were just rugged enough to knight in and just ornate enough to be party appropriate.
The Duchess was clearly sending a message of support with her gift. Despite its softness, it was clearly a suit of armor appropriate to this, the battlefield where Duchess Millidiana Claes reigned as supreme as the Father of Giants.
The belt and scabbard at Katarina's waist completed the look, despite the fact it contained a wooden sword. But that sword's handle was worn with use, sweat and care, and no knight would go anywhere without their weapon of choice, so it hung there in that place of pride at Katarina's side.
Katarina had wanted to wear her shield as well, despite her distaste for parrying with the implement, but unfortunately there had been no time to teach her how to properly wear it for a formal setting, and so it had been reluctantly left behind, its nice new coat of blue paint and golden edging unpresented.
Dame Matthew had given Maria some accusing looks about that, but how was she supposed to teach Katarina how to wear a shield? She didn't use one! They engendered passivity. Well, unless your name was Matthew Romani. Then they engendered blunt force trauma.
Sir Cett and his wife normally lived in the capital in a town house, but they also owned a small estate outside it. The party was being held there at a large private garden that abutted a field. It was a popular destination for knights who lived in the city and wanted to practice their archery, since there wasn't room in the city for it except at the castle and the keeps of some of the larger knight covenants, and even then those tended to be small. Not ideal for those who wanted to practice with the greatbow.
Maria was surprised they hadn't been commissioned to have nightflowers for this party, until Sophia had explained that the party wasn't meant to go late into the night, in deference to attendees who had night shifts.
There was a line of carriages waiting full of people waiting to disembark… or rather, there was a line of carriage waiting to move on to park, since they had all contained knights and knights were rarely the sort to wait in their carriage for a quarter of an hour just to traverse a distance they could walk in a few moments. And so, many of the carriages waiting to progress were empty, their knights having already gotten off and walked to the house, leaving only the people who'd brought their spouse along, and even then, only those who didn't want to walk, of which there weren't many.
Maria and Katarina had followed suit after carefully making sure the carriage was locked. Maria took the lead, and after a moment Katarina recalled her etiquette and began walking at her side and slightly behind. They passed the line of mostly empty carriages, save for one or two which contained a patiently long-suffering knight and their spouse.
At the door, Maria presented her invitation, and was guided to the garden that abutted the archery field. "Lady Maria Campbell, Knight," the steward announced for the benefit of those who had arrive before her. Not that they were late, but the others had simply been admitted inside before them. "And Squire Katarina Claes."
Kataria didn't start waving in greeting until Maria did, but she did give a large, friendly smile before following Maria's lead and copying her gesture. She seemed to find it amusing for some reason. Still, after they finished waving at everyone, they stepped down into the garden, and a servant offered them refreshment. Katarina, as a squire, got well-watered wine, and Maria took some of the same for herself as well. After all, she did not drink… wine, but it would be impolite not to be seen having anything.
Sophia and Dame Matthew were already there. Katarina's cousin was occupied talking to a knight with a scythe on her back, but Sophia went straight to them, wearing a pink and rose dress that made her invoke the image of a moon covered in blood, and seemed intended to de-emphasize her scalelessness and any possible connection to the paledrake. She was carrying a large plate full of food for some reason.
"Dame Maria! Lady Katarina! You came!" she said cheerfully, wearing a plain but elegant bandoleer on her chest that held her firearms and loaded cartridges. They were single shots of the kind that they could offer for public sale, and Katarina blinked and stared when she saw them, as if she'd never seen the weapons before… which she probably hadn't, Maria realized. "Lady Katarina, I got you some food from the buffet that I thought you'd like."
She couldn't directly see her squire's face, since Katarina was to the side and slightly behind her, but Maria could practically feel the sun-like warmth as Katarina no doubt broke into a wide smile.
"Sophia, please don't sabotage all my hard work trying to teach my squire proper conduct." Maria paused and considered that statement. "No, please don't sabotage Shana's hard work trying to teach my squire proper conduct."
Katarina winced guiltily at the reminder of her hard working little teacher. She straightened, fixing her sword and putting her hand on it in the polite casual ready position before offering Sophia a strained smile. "Ah, thank you for the offer So—er, Lady Sophia, but it wouldn't be right for me to so overindulge. Ah, but I appreciate your recommendations. Why don't the three of us share?" That last had a clear note of looking at Maria pleadingly.
Maria considered the food. They had a lot of meat, sweet cakes, no blood… the kind of foods Katarina preferred. "My squire and I would be happy to share with you Lady Sophia. Over conversation, of course."
Katarina let out a badly concealed sigh of relief at not having to reject the food.
Sophia stared at Katarina, then at Maria. "I don't know if you're a miracle caster or some kind of demon," she said in tones balanced between awe and revulsion.
Maria shrugged. "She should already know this."
"But you're ruining what's wonderful about Lady Katarina!" Sophia wailed. Quietly of course, since they were in public.
"Are you saying you won't consider Katarina to be wonderful anymore if this continues?" Maria said blandly.
Sophia's face became haunted, as if she faced a grave and terrible metaphysical conundrum that threatened her very heart and Dark Soul.
"Ah?" Katarina said, blinking. "Sophia? Are you all right?"
"I hate you so much right now, Maria Campbell," Sophia said, voice bland and level. "I hate you and your stupid insightful questions SO MUCH."
+10 Insight
Blue Squire Dress
A finely tailored formal dress worn by Katarina Claes.
The Chosen Lord did not want the power to revolutionized the world, but their Fire Keeper needed them. Open your heart and talk to people, and anybody will accept you.