The room recalibrated.
Every man in the chamber looked at Elara, then at Bellatrix, then back at Elara, then at the box, then at each other, conducting a silent group survey that produced a unanimous result: since when the fuck are these two friends?
An alliance between Bellatrix Drakenfell and Elara Vaelor was so unprecedented that everyone was convinced something had gone catastrophically wrong in the universe.
Then Elara saw Avalon.
She clapped her hands together once, bright and sharp, and crossed to Petra with the focused delight of a woman spotting exactly what she wanted to see.
"Is that a NEW tuxedo? Avalon, look at you! The silver threading is gorgeous. Is that Valdressian? Petra, you outdid yourself."
Avalon preened the way only a creature who was told he was a good boy ten times a day and never had experienced self-doubt could preen.
