*Tarquin*
At that very moment I hear the click of heels. We all turn to find Beta Justin Fiebvre making his characteristic flamboyant entry. He pauses for a moment in the doorway, throws back the lock of hair that constantly… and, one has to believe, deliberately… obscures his eyes, and cries, “Such beauty! I feel as though I am entering the garden of the Hesperides.”
Lucy is tucked under his arm, her long snout nuzzling the shot silk of a quite extraordinary pearl-colored silk coat, embroidered with silver arabesques and pale blue beads.
my mother straightens her shoulders, a sign of irritation. She allows Justin to vex her, which is foolish, to my mind. Justin is not entirely English nor entirely adult, but under all the frills he is a decent fellow.
“Beta Justin,” she states. “May I
