Returning to normalcy (sort of). (Beauty)
There was something oddly appealing about putting on fancy clothes and going to large, decadent events, Errol thought. He would have thought that it was just the pleasure he got from breaking the taboos of his old life, but it seemed to be shared by enough of those that he'd met to decide that it was something commonly shared. He found that common bond of humanity pleasing.
But the events were also occasionally overwhelming, and he was glad to drop back into his ordinary routine and comfortable clothes, letting himself in to Bookmark Books with a bag of breakfast pastries. Back into Bookmark where things would not be quite the same--not since the opera. And accompanying Beauty to the wedding reception. Things were different now. Not bad, but--different. He'd given that a lot of thought, lately.
He made a point of setting the bag of pastries down noisily, announcing himself, a new habit. Near-silence had its time and place, but he felt guilty when he made Beauty jump in surprise.