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[Blackguard]

All

The King, accompanied by the Duke of Ablemarle, in uniform as Colonel of the Guard, moved to the French box to greet its inhabitants. Two other troopers followed behind. This caused some whispers in other boxes, especially the one with the Russian and Austrian princesses.

The King's visit was brief, but those in the French box attempted to prolong the stay. The King's French mistress seemed content to hold his attention for as long as possible as well.

In the King's box, the other four occupants did not venture out. They seemed content to speak amongst themselves.

The Austrian box was visited by the Earl of Stafford, for those that knew him. He paused to chat and laugh with the two daughters of Emperors.

Karoline of the Palatinate could be seen in a box with none other than Shaftesbury himself.

Alexandra

Sweeping into her box came a man looking to be in his fifties, but well dressed. "Are you the lady in need of medical attention?" he asked with a polite greeting. "You seem well enough."

[William Gosling]

With the King visiting the French, that provided a convenient means to eliminate them from a list of prospectives persons to visit. Of course, William was always looking for an excuse to eliminate the French from any prospective list. Injuries done to his family more than two centuries ago had not been forgiven. He stood up. The Palatinate was greatly weakened ever since the Thirty Years War and the Peace of Westphalia. But Russia was a state on the rise and Austria was quite powerful if still rising itself. As to their Catholicism, William's family had a rather impeccable record of Protestantism so he didn't fear accusations in that direction overmuch. To be perfectly frank he would have favored the Russian out of the three anyway. The Austrians had this annoying habit of inheriting realms they married into, and the Palatinate could do little but involve them in inane disputes within the Empire, and offer them even less.

William exited his box and walked briskly towards the Austrian one. Along the way he thought of an excuse for entrance. All the same, as he was approached he would see if they were welcoming or would challenge him first. “Greetings your Highnesses, Lord.” He waited just outside the door to wait to be invited in to the box or rejected. “’Tis a most interesting play, of marriage and foreign lands, would you not agree?”

[Alexandra Rosewyck]

Clear blue-green eyes turned towards the voice and met the eyes of the man and smiled to hide her surprise not expecting any guests. "No, I am not in need of any medical attention. You may have been directed to the wrong box. Who might you be looking for, sir?"

[Blackguard]

Alexandra

Feigning puzzlement, the older man replied, "I was told that a beautiful redheaded lady alone in a box had need of my attention." A smile tugged at his lips as he spoke.

"I am Doctor Bartholemew Hyde, Physician to Kings and Princes, at your service," he declared as he gave her a bow. "You aren't really alone in this box are you?" He, of course, already knew the answer.

William

There were two soldiers outside the box -- one Austrian and one Russian. The princesses knew Stafford, but they did not know William. Stafford did not know him either. As a result, the Austrian envoy, a plump middle-aged man, interjected himself between the princesses and thier newest English visitor.

"I am sorry sir. We have not been introduced. I am the Count of Oberwart, envoy of his Imperial Majesty."

[William Gosling]

“Nothing to apologize for, Lord, a man as suspicious looking as me ought to be thrown clear out of England.” William joked, even as gave the man a polite bow, “I am William Gosling, son and heir of the Baron of Wealdmore,” The chances of his father’s reputation having reached the Count, he figured, were relatively low. “And member of His Majesty’s Board of Green Cloth.” He silently hoped the Count wouldn’t know what that meant, and so would overestimate his importance, so he left out the actual title. “I take it by your Germanic County name, the Imperial Majesty you refer to is not the Czar?”

[Alexandra Rosewyck]

A soft blush appear at the older man's compliment being the only red-headed lady alone in this particular box Alexandra figured he was talking about her. Her own lips curved into a meek smile as her eyes met the good doctor's.

"Alas, very alone it seems except not at this particular moment because it seems I have a visitor." Her eyes twinkled her smile deepening to reveal a dimple. "A pleasure to meet you, Doctor Hyde, Alexandra Rosewyck. Lone red-head in theatre box two. Are you here to remedy the absence of a companion during the intermission?" Alexandra wondered if she seemed like one to crave attention and seemed quite sad coming alone to a function like this.

[Blackguard]

William

The Board of the Green Cloth seemed a curious thing to the Count. Was it some mercantile board in charge of cloth? "A pleasure to meet you milord," the Count replied in his accented English. "I serve the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold, ja," he clarified. "Have you made the acquaintance of the Grand Duchess already?" The Count wanted to ascertain the reason for William's approach.


Alexandra

The old doctor smiled at the redhead's humor. "It is in my profession to remedy wrongs. You being alone here is wrong; so, with your leave, I should stay to insure that no malady strikes you. It is all about prevention," he offered with a smile.

[William Gosling]

“The pleasure is mine.” William replied with the standard nicety. “I have not had the pleasure of meeting the Grand Duchess, no. An introduction would be an honor, I’m sure, but to tell the truth my interest and reasons bend more towards the daughter of Russia.” And because of that, he would not be getting William’s reason for approach. He served one of the Princess’s rivals, after all. “Yet, since you do not serve the Czar, with all due respect, I believe you are the wrong representative." He would find it intensely curious if the man represented them both. He already found it strange they sat together. Weren't they rivals?

[Blackguard]

As William announced his preference for the Russian candidate, the Count frowned. It was hard to fathom how anyone might prefer to speak to the Russian.

"Well, I shall introduce you then," came the voice of the 61 year old Englishman in the box. "I am William Howard, Viscount of Stafford." He gave William a nod and then turned to the Russian princess, who by now was interested in the arrival of the younger Englishman.

"Your Imperial Highness Sophia Alekseyevna, may I present William Gosling?" She gave a nod, but did not extend her hand. "Perhaps you might explain the purpose of your visit," Stafford suggested. Meanwhile the Archduchess and Count observed Gosling carefully.

[Alexandra Rosewyck]

With twinkling eyes, Alexandra nodded in acceptance of the doctor's offer. "A protector and preventer of maladies. Such a noble profession." Then a bit of concern crossed her features as she said, "I would not wish to take you from your original company. If they would like to join us as well I would not mind at all. I believe more the merrier." She figured either he was also without companions for this event or was a third wheel to another party but regardless it was nice to have the company when none was expected.

"What do you think of the play so far, Doctor Hyde?" Not quite knowing herself what she thought of the play so far just remembering the emotions from before as something tugged at her heart from her past.

[William Gosling]

"A pleasure, Lord Stafford. And you have my thanks." William bowed slightly as Stafford approached, relieving some of the awkwardness with the Count. William followed the man, only to run into more awkwardness. The Count and Archduchess were paying him rather close attention to the point where it was making the whole thing awkward again. The Russian's coldness did not help matters. All the same, he gave both the Russian and Austrian a proper bow each, royalty was royalty, before speaking, “I shall come to the point, then: Time is short, but if we manage to reach His Majesty before he returns to his box there is a goodly chance Your Russian Highness can be an occupant of that box.” William made a gesture to the box's exit, “I can explain more on the way. Time, as I said, is short.”

His reason had been rendered moot as he came to a realization and a plan. He figured it was some kind of divine justice, since if the Archduchess hadn’t been watching him so carefully he wouldn’t have realized it. "You did come here to get closer to the King, did you not?" He asked, more as a reminder. Going with him was a risk, but she certainly got no closer to him sitting here, simply being seen. And a chance to banter with him during the play, to leave with him to the aftermath, and to be seen with him was worth quite a lot, in William's estimation.

[Blackguard]

Alexandra

"Yes a man who acts noble without a title," he replied with immodesty. "I am better with medicines than I am with carpentry tools or other trades. So, it is just as well."

There is no more of my party to fetch. I came alone. I had not seen this play before and wanted to see it before it moved on. Dryden's work is worth seeing. He's not a noble who thinks he can be a playwright. He is a playwright because he is good at it."

"This play is amusing. Confusing plot devices evoke the most laughter I think," he observed as he sat next to her.

William

Unbeknownst to William, the Russian and Austrian were both planning to leave London on the morrow. They had decided that there was no further reason to remain. They would not bark like trained dogs to please the English King. His mind was made up already, or would be made up without need for further intrigues of the princesses. The further complication was that the Russian was not alone. She was in the company of the Austrian Archduchess and it would be impolite to leave her. Had Sophia been alone, she might have accepted William's offer, even though she felt it might be a waste of time.

"Thank you Lord Gosling," she intoned, "but I could not leave the Archduchess alone when she has been so kind as to invite me to join her." She gave a smile to the Hapsburg, which was gratefully returned. The Austrian was annoyed that William would be so gauche as to invite the Russian in her presence, and not herself.

[Alexandra Rosewyck]

"A small secret I have heard before..." She leaned in closer to whisper, "having a title does not necessarily mean that the man has a noble spirit." A small smile appeared as she continued, "I think what you do is quite important. I always wished to learn how to heal the sick but it must get frustrating on some days."

"Why then we are a perfect match." Alexandra gave a dimpled grin, "I have to admit this is my first time at the theatre so I could not just give up the opportunity to experience it." Remembering Rochester's words regarding an upstart that he used to patron, she asked, "Do you know if Mister Dryden used to be patroned by the Earl of Rochester? I recently arrived and have to admit that I do not know much of the inner workings at court. You seem quite infused with the literary scene and just wondered if it happened to be common knowledge."

"Has Mister Dryden presented a lot of work so far? It sounds like you are very well acquired with his words and have you ever met the man?" Wondering at his connections and impressed by his description of the play they were watching together. "I am lucky that you happened to come to my rescue without an escort as well as someone so learned of the theatre. Quite refreshing."

[William Gosling]

William, of course, had no idea they were leaving or even considering leaving. Indeed, he would have thought otherwise. The Austrians rarely gave up on marriages and the Russians had been seeking such a match for over a century. But he was not privy to either of their inner circles, so obviously he was not the final authority on such things.

At her response, though, William was a bit surprised. He had not considered politeness a factor. In politics such as this marriage, where there would be only one winner, congeniality between two competitors was not to be expected. Indeed, backstabbing was what William would think the order of the day was. More importantly, the idea had struck him in such a way he did not have time to be discrete, and moreover he had little to lose. He had only insulted the Archduchess, who had no chance, in William’s mind, of being chosen. Even if she was, William would just lay low for the couple of seconds it would take for rebellion to foment. The Habsburgs were unreservedly the most anti-Protestant family in Europe.

“I bow to your superior judgment, of course.” William’s response was as sincere as any of his niceties. “You must, however, be rather confident of your suit. Or have you given up?” William did not acknowledge the third option, that she simply did not trust him. The other two were the only ones that made sense to him. A fourth option may have presented itself, that she was truly and honestly polite and could not abandon a host, but William didn’t believe true, honest, or polite royals existed, for the most part.

[James Winchester]

James had managed to secure the last box available - a little chargrined at it being on the lower teir but at least they had one - and he waited in the foyer for the arrival of Agnes Dundas, Anne Scott and whomever else of that household was going to attend.

Decked out in his best outfit James was a picture in pastels, heather velvet coat with intricate blackwork, cream silk brocade waistcoat and breeches, white silk cravat and stockings and a long blonde periwig. A silver chain ran from a buttonhole to a pocket. There were cream silk bows on his court shoes, and as usual he felt somewhat uncomfortable in this outfit. The only splash of distinct colour was an emerald in a silver setting that pinned his cravat.

Reaching into the pocket of his waistcoat where the silver chain disappeared James pulled out an ornate silver pocketwatch, flipped up the lid with it's glass windows and rim set with small diamonds and consulted it for the time before pocketing it again. It had been his prize for collecting the most silver eggs together with Lady Rebecca at the Frence Fete, and was arguably his most valuable possession that wasn't a piece of scientific equipment.

[Blackguard]

Alexandra

"A perfect match indeed," the older doctor replied with an arch of an eyebrow. "I could teach you a thing or two with potions and herbs if you are interested. They are my specialty."

"Dryden and Rochester are rivals. They hate each other." Most persons knowing the theater knew that. "Rochester's work is more bawdy and Dryden appeals to a higher mindset, you might say. Dryden has done more works than Rochester, it you count only plays that is."

William

William was still a novice intriguer. Just because one might like to claw out the eyes of a rival, did not mean that a lady of breeding would ever appear impolite, unless insulted. There was a code that one must follow. The backstabbing was done in private. In public, every nicety was observed. It was what seperated royalty from nobility, and nobility from the common. Politeness was a prerequisite for a lady. Gentility another. Etiquette a third. Without etiquette one would become a barbarian. Every noble boy and girl, if schooled properly, knew that there were obligations of a host and a guest. Sophia was a guest of Maria. She might be able to excuse herself for any number of reasons. Had William wished to converse privately with her, she might have been within protocol to exit herself briefly. Yet, the young lord had spoken quite openly and, in doing so, forced her to decline to upstage her hostess with the King.

Yes, William had insulted only the Hapsburg, who was now seething, but feigned a pleasant smile. Are the English all so uncouth? William flattered Sophia with his accusation of confidence. Yet, in the same breath, seemed to imply that she had given up on being Queen of England. That was both unfair and ungallant of him to ever suggest that to her face. "I am confident," she replied evenly as she forced a small smile to the others in the box.

It was then that the King appeared, having recently quit the French box. The play would resume soon and he wanted to greet each of the princesses. Courtesy dictated such. Both princesses were glad for the interruption.

"Your Highnesses," the King cooed as he entered their box. He nodded his greeting to Stafford, who bowed deeply, and the Austrian envoy. "Stafford, Gosling," he blurted in recognition. "How are you enjoying the play?" he asked each lady.

""It is entertaining," Maria judged, thinking it a bit risque. "Da. Entertaining," Sophia added. "It is nice of you to come visit us." Nothing was said about his visit to the French first.

"I would not wish to see you charming ladies depart from our shores without the full knowledge that the King of England is all the poorer without your excellent company."

[Hope]

In the end it had been only Agnes and Anne who had arrived - Adrian had said something of family business that needed his attention, while Anne had not invited Eleanor at all.

Agnes was a-marvel of the Theatre with so very many tiers, and the scroll work about the interior of the building was a sight for itself, let alone the play. She was entirely distracted by it all. Anne however was acclimatised and more passive of her surroundings, and gave more attention to the people within it. "A nice watch Doctor." she commented as the glint of diamonds had caught her eye. Anyone who knew James for any length of time would realise his watch was garishly out of character, now if Lord Mountjoy had carried it however...

"Your practise is going well I take it?" Anne asked quietly. It was not uncommon for Doctors to be paid by many other means than money, she supposed he must have another Duchess (or Duke) as a patient to have such a fine watch as that - admittedly she was a little jealous. I discovered him first. she unreasonably thought.

[William Gosling]

The idea of royalty stepping out at a mere Lord’s son’s request, after she had given such a cold greeting, would have been more indulgence than William would have expected. Perhaps if she had offered her hand… yet she had elected to greet him with a curt nod, to not speak, to wish his purpose to be stated, which was hardly encouraging of such indulgence. Further, refusing to let him pay his respects by extending her hand was an insult in of itself, implying he was unworthy. And it would have hardly been less rude to reveal to the Austrian that they were concealing something from her so openly. So William had opted for bolder action, and apparently was paying for it.

The Tsarevna revealed she was confident, forcing a smile that told William he had done something wrong again. The woman was quickly proven a liar, though, as the King entered and let slip they would be leaving soon. Well, that was fair enough for him. Removing them from England effectively removed them from his considerations, as both Austria and Russia were states too far away to have any great effect on William in a personal manner. He could ignore them and they would go away. All that was left was to choose a new horse... and unfortunately none of the options left were particularly palatable. He did get a bit of revenge, though, whatever was driving them onward had them humiliate themselves by ignoring an elephant: the issue of his first visit.

William bowed to the King as he entered, about equal to Stafford, and stayed quiet. He could have benefited one, or perhaps both of them, at this point because the King had come in. Yet he felt insulted and condescended to by them in turn so he kept quiet. No doubt to their relief.

[James Winchester]

At the sound of Anne's words James glanced up and snapped the watch shut, smiling as he recognised the speaker and pocketting the watch. "Thank you Your Grace." He replied politely. "It was a prize at the French Féte." He felt compelled to explain, slightly embarrassed. Anne was quite correct that it was an out of character thing for James to own but he had observed that events such as the theatre were places where one went to be seen as much as to see, and as such people seemed to wear their very finest and James was endeavouring to follow suit. Whether or not he was succeeding was a matter of opinion.

"And may I say it is a pleasure to see you again, and Mistress Agnes of course." He said, favouring the pleasant young woman with a smile. "I'm glad you could join me at short notice, I have reserved a box for us, the last one I believe. It seems that this will be a popular showing." James wasn't quite certain what the ettiquette for the theatre was, no doubt Anne would know.

[Alexandra Rosewyck]

There was a blink of surprise at the offer and that quickly changed into excitement. "That would be marvelous. I have been told that I am quite the eager student and driven by curiosity. I imagine it would be something that may come in handy when one least expects it. I would be honored to be taught some herbology as well as the crafting of potions by you, Doctor Hyde. I might as well become a more knowledgeable woman while here and learn things that I have never had the opportunity of learning while at home."

"Oh dear, I had no idea." Her teeth worried the tender skin of her bottom lip. Perhaps Dryden is indeed the one who Rochester was upset over, but did he only specialise in poetry or did the Earl also write plays as well? Of course, Alexandra imagined that Rochester's plays were probably not suitable for a young lady to watch given the type of person he portrayed when they first met. Is it nice to think of someone as lacking a soul? He seemed like he needed someone to love him, but would he think of it as a form of pity not really something he would ever want to experience truly? Perhaps it is just not a concept he believes exists.

With a gentle shake of Alexandra's head to clear her of her mundane thoughts, blue-green eyes met the doctor's once again. "I had once met Rochester when he was reciting some poetry and at some point there was mention of another but it is not important. I suppose Rochester's work is not usually what a lady should hear, but I believe I did not catch that much for concern."

"It sounds like you are in favor of Dryden's work instead of Rochester's. I am sorry to say I do not know much of either to really give a good opinion though myself but what part of Dryden's overall works do you admire?" She answered in the neutral for herself not really knowing who she could like more but curious to hear Hyde's own personal thoughts on the matter.

[Charles Blount]

Just prior to the beginning of the play he and Ursula had been chatting amiably with the delightful Mirtel when he felt a slight squeeze on the arm his wife was holding. Ursula was only about four months pregnant and was just beginning to show but she was no longer in her early twenties she sometimes felt suddenly fatigued. Always an extremely proper and polite woman she would never mention her discomfort but Charles was attuned enough to his wife’s condition that a slight pressure on his arm was all he needed to realize that Ursula was feeling a bit unwell.

As the play was about to start anyway he escorted Mirtel to her box with the assurance that they would speak again during the intermission. However instead of taking possession of his own box he quietly escorted Ursula to their carriage to see her safely escorted back home where she could rest.

Thus it was not until halfway through the intermission that Mountjoy returned to the Theater for, mindful of their position in society, Ursula had insisted that he return to be seen and fulfill the family’s social duties.

Entering as the king was making the rounds of the Princesses he looked around to get a feel for the situation. many groups had formed to mingle. Some appeared social some political and some even random. He did notice the Austrian Archduchess shooting daggers at someone he could not see and the Princess Karoline in her box alone with none other than Shaftesbury himself. He began to make his way towards the German Princess and the notorious Whig and if not approached otherwise would insert himself between the two.



[OOC: Please forgive my assumptions of Ursula’s indisposition and Mirtel’s acceptance of being escorted to her box as it was a convenient way to explain my characters absence.]

[Hope]

As he quickly hid the watch away, Anne understood she'd embarrassed him. He was such a dear fellow. She smiled with fondness and assured with a white lie, "It suits you."

"I've heard such a little about the French Fete, and the young Lady Chartres... Did you have occasion to speak to her Doctor? I would be interested to hear your opinion of her candidatency."

"It's very grand." Agnes turned to James with eyes bright with interest. "No doubt we are in for quit a treat, even in London terms." It was already far grander than anything she'd seen.

[Mirtel Hardwick]

Lord Mountjoy was of great help to Mirtel, who wouldn’t have known where to start looking for a box on her own. It only spoke well of lord Mountjoy for him to be so attentive to his wife as well. A delightful couple, Mirtel decided after shad had thanked lord Mountjoy ofr his kind assistance and promised to catch up with them later.

Settling in comfortably, Mirtel peered around curiously as this was her very first theatre visit and she wanted to enjoy everything about it. But the play quickly captured her attention and she watched with rapt interest; now and then giggling delicately behind her fan as she listened to the actors. Once she even caught herself quietly humming along to one of the songs. Thankfully she had been humming very quietly under her breath so that her voice couldn’t have carried out of her box. Ah, George had been so thoughtful in reserving the box with the privacy and good view it offered.

As the intermission started, Mirtel Christabel sighed happily, closing her eyes and slowly fanning herself as she envisioned the most spectacular scenes of the play so far.

OOC: No problem. I'll just have to catch you again at some other time! *hugs and stealthily sneaks a target onto the back of Blount's coat*

[Blackguard]

William

The King made small talk with each of the pair of princesses, flatterin them on how much London had benefited from their visits, wished them safe travels,and then took his leave. The Earl of Stafford did likewise, bowing and preparing to return to his seat.

Alexandra

"Excellent, when do you wish to begin your studies?" he asked with relish. "I shall put myself at your disposal."

The play was about to resume. "Rochester's work, you are correct, is not the sort of work that a lady's father would approve. Dryden is a professional. Rochester does it for sport." With that, the musicians began to play.

Charles

As Charles approached Karoline's box, the intermission was coming to an end. If he still wished to enter the box, he would be welcome.

All

The servants circulated and warned everyone to return to their seats. The orchestra could be heard to begin playing.

[Charles Blount]

Karoline’s Box

His own box had stood empty for the first act and he saw no reason to retire there to watch the second alone so he entered Princess’ box with a gracious bow to Karoline and a less effusive but still polite bow to Shaftesbury.

"Your Highness," He said in greeting. "The Magravina found herself a trifle indisposed so I fear I am bereft of charming company thus you find me wretchedly begging at your door beseeching you to take me in. My Lord Shaftesbury, how charming to see you here." To be arch he wanted to add ’what a delightful counterpoint to her Highnesses charm.’ but this was a social occasion and no cause for him to be rude. Besides, he needed the Whig Lord politically so, as most politicians are wont to do, was willing to accept him a strange bedfellow.

"It appears that the second act is about to start… may I join you?"