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Azzo pulled a chair out for Melody to sit in after the formalities of introductions were done. He then took a seat between the two. Looking over to the fondue pot.

He paused, "Heh I've seen it on some of the Cooking shows Grams likes to watch... I haven't actually ever had any." He said softly, of course it would see that he hadn't really minded their awkwardness of the recent conversation.

He pondered perhaps he should get grams a fondue pot for her Brithday then he'd have a reason to actually have it.

"I think the hostess went pretty much all out, so I wouldn't be surprised if there weren't a few sorts. I know there are different kind of cheese sauces, and chocolate, and even some meat or jumbo styled sauces. So don't fill up too much with the appetizers."

-She smiled, lifting her fork before glancing among the first course of offerings. Talking about food was comfortable, and her two companions, seemingly unthreatening. Not to mention she had the upperhand of being more knowledgeable in the subject, something that would let her lead the evening, and that always settled the ivory haired girl's nerves.

Skwering a cube of bread, she dipped it lightly into the pot, twirling it cautiously until the cheese stopped dripping, before promptly guiding it to her mouth.

Excellent! Warm and flavorful. She smiled, nodding in approval, speaking once more only when she'd finished chewing and swallowed.- "So Melody, what kinds of classes are you taking this semester?"

Sitting next to Azzo, and sitting in front of Aurora, she thanked him then turned to answer the question asked of her. Which was a very good one and she had to take a moment to remember what her schedule was. A thoughtful frown crossed her features for just a moment.

"Orchestra, for sure. Along with English, math and science." She was looking to maybe trying for an art class when she had the chance and there was a history lesson in there somewhere... A faint blush of embarrassment. "However I haven't memorized the schedule just yet, so I'm not sure of all the classes I'll be taking."

Reaching a slender hand out, Melody moved to try the cheese fondue. The chocolate one she was used to was ever so good, surely this one couldn't be too bad? Mimicking Aurora's actions, the blonde found that she was not let down in the tastiness of the cheese fondue.

She pressed a carnation on Imogen, too; with the number she was giving away, her hairdo was starting to look a little... disheveled. It was astonishing she'd managed to give away as many flowers as she had without the braid coming completely apart. "Yes, it has," she agreed; "since Fallon's dinner party, right? Mhmm!" Elke wasn't setting her hair back in order; that would be rude, since she was at a table now.

"I'll be good," she said to Grayson, smiling an adorably dimpled smile as she picked up a fondue fork gingerly; "Oh! how rude of me. Imo, this is Ignacio. He went to Barren Pines as well. Ignacio, this is Imogen." The lack of nickname for Elke was a slight; she liked nicknames. Loved nicknames, really. Grayson had only avoided one because her nickname for him was 'big brother'.

She dipped a piece of bread in the cheese carefully. Having been raised in Europe, she knew most European traditions, and had no desire to kiss the man on the left. Not the way the tradition called for, anyway, she would quite happily never kiss Grayson that way. "I wasn't dancing because I should not be allowed to dance," she said cheerfully; "I'm told I look like a marionette in a windstorm! Or worse, like I'm having a seizure. Can you imagine?" The correct answer from all parties was no Elke, I cannot imagine at all. Hopefully they would know that or she would have to frown at them.

"He's my brother. He's the best partner," said Elke to Imogen, and she smiled again.

Tate was not having such a good time. If Ladon was looking now, oh my ******** god it would be terrible--she directed her gaze back towards Howl, smiled thinly. "I'm glad your curiosity has been assuaged," said the brunette. Ugh. Was he still talking to that redhead? The green-eyed monster, as her mother had always called it, disapproved. And so did Tate.

"So where are we going," she asked after a moment; she smoothed her dress, fussily.

Spearing a small piece of bread, Fallon dipped it neatly in the fondue, sniffed it, and then popped it into her mouth, chewing slowly. It was very good actually, some kind of cheese blend though she could only identify a few of the tastes. Hm. She'd need to work on her cheese palette, apparently. What would her fellow Frenchmen think?

Magenta eyes moved back to Calintha, jaw working the bread across her tongue. A sympathetic smile touched at her lips. Yes, all the Barren Pines kids were fine. And those that weren't were good at pretending. Or they saw a shrink. Fallon fell into all three, in some ways. "Apartment? Are you not... don't your parents...?" It was an awkward question to ask. If Calintha was living in an apartment, then it was probably for a good reason, the kind of reason that might not be good dinner conversation. But the words were out and there was nothing Fallon could do.

Spearing another piece of bread, Fallon felt her ears p***k. Elke had just said her name, but she couldn't hear the rest. If she weren't so wrapped up in her conversation with Calintha, she might have tried to eavesdrop.

Ladon’s fumbling about was also a clue as to why he could only list his friends on one hand. Actually, 2 fingers, but maybe 3 if Ivan Konstantin counted. These two were Tate and Pierrette, and at the moment, he wanted to curl one finger down to just Pierrette. With his reluctance to go to parties like this and his general suspicion of others, it wasn’t a wonder why he had so few friends, and then there was keeping said friends. While Pierrette listed her friends, finishing off with “many others”, he gave a smile that touched on envy. Was it just him, or were girls just more popular and had more friends than guys?

At the invitation, he took a glance out in the distance. It wasn’t the first one either. During his talk with Pier, he kept Tate at the corner of his sight as she danced in and out of his line of sight. Very little was missed. The soft waltz that brought the pair close, the flush of Tate’s face, the general merry laugh from Howl that cut through the crowd right into his ear. They looked comfortable, familiar, and at ease with each other. If he wasn’t Ladon, which he wished sometimes, he would look at them and say they were made for each other. Gag maybe at their antics, but nonetheless say that they matched each other perfectly. The finesse they both had. He knew Tate was richer than he was, and Howl looked refine enough to guess that he came from an upper-class family. They were both tall and slender too. They both danced a waltz they seemed to know. Ladon didn’t know the waltz.

His gaze whipped back, eyes flashing as he looked at Pier. “I would love to meet your friends. ” The dance had ended and Howl and Tate were moving towards them. He reached out and gentle set his hand at the crook of her elbow, leading her gently away from the bar. “Pierrette, this is a Singles Party. I can’t be dating if I’m here. I’m alone, and I don’t want to sit by myself. I’d be happy to sit at your table if you'll let me.” They brushed past, leaving their spot before Howl and Tate could approach.

“The dance floor is much too crowded anyways.” He managed to narrow his eyes a bit as he looked at Tate before whipping his head back around to look straight ahead, away from his friend.

Was she giggling at him.

Oh my god, that little redheaded tart was giggling at him. Ugh! Her turmoil--and jealousy--was rather plain on her face. Ladon was her friend, hers! Damn it, she didn't want to share with someone else, she was already second best to Parker, what was next? Second best to Giselle?

"No, thank you," she said, barely managing to maintain a polite tone of voice. Someone else was turning their back on her. Why did this always happen?

It was lucky for Howl she was so distracted; she spent more time avoiding Ladon's gaze than thinking on where they had come from, and she just put her head in her hands and sighed. What had she done wrong? "So are you trying to get me and Ladon to talk again, or something," she asked, after a long moment; and then, without waiting for an answer: "Never mind. Thank you, Mr. Wickham, I'll be right back." And she backed away, heading towards the restroom--she had to reapply her makeup.

Ah, Miss Tatiana did not disappoint. She had caught Howl in the act, but before he could admit defeat, she had fled to the restroom. Out of habit, he nodded his head, but he suspected he would not be seeing much of Miss Tatiana for the rest of the evening.

Letting out a casual sigh rather than an aggravated one, he ordered himself a simple Shirley Temple to drink. Once he had his drink at hand, he turned to face the rest of the room, his teal eyes casually looming over the crowd to see if he could find anyone else of interest for the evening.