Re: Ball: Clementine, Irene & Declan
The death toll of prior days in older doors remained unknown to this traveler. Although, in every honesty, even if it had been known, not much kept Murphys from their desired parties. Not even Declan, who bemoaned society elbow rubbing and playing dress up. Despite this, he'd been raised well enough to never decline proper invitations printed upon paper. Particularly when one sister was on the receiving end of body parts in parcel, that called for traveling by distance and time.
So he came. And he dressed appropriately in the pinstriped ensemble that Clementine gifted him with. The vintage clothing fit Declan exceptionally well, perfect through the shoulders and trim through the torso. His sister proved to have a very keen eye, although Declan thoughtfully refused to take it as any kind of compliment that she might make mental notes on the size and shape of his body. Girls surely maintained some natural skill in that department.
Once within its opulence, Declan navigated the ball with moderate ease, all thanks to a combination of medication and anti-inflammatory injections recently taken at the emergency room, unbeknownst to any of his family. Declan was not a creature of sharing, he was a very possessive and privatized person. Even those close to him were rarely privy to the smaller details of his life. Clementine knew more than the others, although that was only because she pestered endlessly, much in the way that she'd pestered him into attendance on this night. That was why Declan came, he'd been nagged into doing so and would undoubtedly be mocked for his cruelty if he stood her up. Yes, that was the reason, nothing more.
It took him some time, but he eventually found his sister's likeness. The women both wore green, although the shade varied. From his new point of espial, Declan observed and sipped at a flute of champagne that he'd acquired along the way.
"Ladies? I do hope I'm not interrupting." That proper, charming, Murphy way of speaking found its way home. A subtle accent. Youth-earned English, softened around the edges.