"What? It's not a party without a good bit of tipple. Ah, here we are... mm, nice drop, too."
"Of course it is. Get everyone nice and sloshed before dinner arrives; I expect that's the plan."
"You ask me, some of these buggers could do with a bit of loosening up."
Clotho had already stopped listening, had stopped the moment they'd walked through the door. Atropos was always impossible at parties. Crone though she may be, she'd always been a social creature and she'd leap on any chance to join the throng, to get herself dressed up, to meet and occasionally flirt shamelessly with new people, to get herself very tipsy and pretend to be a lot drunker than she really was. At least, Clotho thought she was pretending; sometimes it was hard to tell. When Atropos let loose, she really let loose.
And the Crone had certainly gone all out tonight. The vibrant red mane of feathers sprouting from her mask danced high over her head, their colour perfectly matched to her bright crimson dress. It was outrageous and yet somehow, Clotho thought, it suited her perfectly.
Lachesis was slightly more subdued in dusky blue silk and a silver mask with an elegant lunar design. Her expression was still tight and she eyed Atropos with a frown, although in truth her consternation had little to do with their elder sister. No, Lachesis was well used to the Crone and her antics, and though she would still utter rebukes from time to time she had long since learned simply to enjoy herself at these events and let her sisters take care of themselves.
Pheme was the source of her discomfort. Pheme, that many-tongued, gossip-mongering, two-faced, rabble-rousing witch - Pheme didn't throw a party simply for the joy of the company. The little minx had something in mind and whatever it was, Lachesis didn't care to get caught up in it.
But Clotho - Clotho didn't care. Not now, at any rate. Right now, she was content simply to soak in the moment, to savour the golden glow of the ceiling above them, the buzz of conversation and the flurry of masks and finery around her. She smoothed a crease in her white dress and smiled from behind her delicate metal mask, allowing the noise and the bustle to wash over her.