"Greetings, My Lady," they chorused before taking a seat.
"How have you been Lady To'mato, Lady L'ettuce? I recall seeing the two of you at the engagement ball. Please accept my deepest apologies for not having been able to give my greetings."
"Think nothing of it My Lady," replied Lady To'mato with a demure smile. "Being invited itself was an honor."
Bolita supposed her father and the king had been the ones to send out the mass invites, because if it were up to her the two ladies in front of her would not have made the guest list. But her opinions aside, Bolita knew she was not exactly here to socialize despite how it may have seemed. Thus, the trio of noble ladies made small talk regarding the state of various territories and the like for a bit before Lady L'ettuce made her dig into the real meat of the conversation.
"Ah! I have been remiss not to mention," exclaimed Lady L'ettuce, setting down the cup of tea she had been politely sipping away at. "Congratulations on your engagement with His Highness, My Lady."
"Oh, yes, forgive me for my inadequacy, My Lady, congratulations," added Lady To'mato.
"Please, we are all friends here," Bolita waved a gloved hand, the corner of her mouth betraying the slightest hint of her annoyance with a small twitch. "I thank you for your words of blessing. It has been an honor to serve the House of Schmancy in a prosperous union."
Her decidedly not-positive emotions did not go unnoticed, as Lady L'ettuce jumped on the small weakness like a shark scenting blood in water.
"My Lady, I do hope you will not find me stepping out of my position to ask this, but you seem troubled. Would this matter be in relation to your engagement?"
"Oh My Lady, do not take heed of those horrible rumors, I am sure His Highness is not the sort to be caught consorting with the maids," Lady To'mato added.
The 'in public' remained unsaid. The nobility were no stranger to the shady dealings that often happened behind closed doors.
"Nothing of the sort," Bolita frowned, her polite smile stiffening. Although she was not fond of the prince, she was also not fond of treason, so in this particular scenario it was not in her favor to broach any topics that might come close to insulting the other party in her engagement. "His Highness and I simply have not yet begun to cultivate our relationship. Matters such as this are slower to develop."
Bolita would have liked to put an end to the matter, but she knew it would be difficult to gather more information on the inner state of the palace if she halted this portion of the conversation at this exact moment. So, reluctantly, she followed up.
"I am sure that His Highness also understands the gravity of the situation and will take care to ensure that such rumors will not continue to float about in the future."
"It is indeed one thing to be caught consorting with a maid," Lady To'mato began hesitantly. "But I worry that My Lady will not be treated fairly upon entering the palace."
"His Highness," Lady Le'ttuce paused uncertainly. "His Highness does not seem very motivated to secure his right to inheritance."
The guests lowered their gazes to their teacups. Bolita did the same, enjoying the brief calm of the steam wafting up from the depths of the cup. It smelled of some fruity, floral blend that Marie had run out halfway during the conversation to grab.
"His Highness has… plans, most likely," Bolita managed a difficult smile. She sympathized with the two ladies, if only for a moment. It was always difficult to be part of a political party when the leader had no interest in keeping the party afloat. "His Highness would not be so close to his aide for no reason, I hope."
All three ladies simultaneously winced as they remembered the rumors about the prince and his aid. Bolita personally had nothing against such a relationship, only that like most people, she was not fond of being seen as a third party.
"We must take care to consolidate our forces, then." Lady L'ettuce sighed into her teacup, releasing a puff of pea flower and strawberry scented steam. "The princess has been moving to secure the Royal Guards as of late. I am afraid that we have no comparable military backing, even among ourselves."
Despite her reluctance to socialize, Bolita had to admit there was nothing like a tea party for reconnaissance. In these few minutes she had learned more about the political situation in the kingdom than she had in all her other days here combined.
"I'll be meeting with His Royal Highness in a few days. I suppose I will inquire into this matter then."
This answer seemed to please the other two ladies, and they both sipped at their tea.
"Speaking of which," Lady To'mato's gaze sharpened as she picked at one of the finger sandwiches on her tiny plate with an even tinier spoon. "My Lady, you seem to have spent nearly the entire ball at the princess's side. Surely you are not… "
"I am simply assessing the situation," shrugged Lady Bolita.
The twitch of her mouth betrayed Lady To'mato's dissatisfaction at the answer, but she didn't press the matter further.
"Whatever your choice is, My Lady, we will gladly follow," Lady L'ettuce smiled gracefully. "It's the least we could do to repay you after you saved our houses from falling into inescapable debt."
Had the past Lady Bolita done that? The present Lady Bolita couldn't help but be impressed at this instance of noblesse oblige, especially since her opinion of the former lady was that she was an airheaded, generally disliked, slightly villainous shopaholic.
"Of course, that is the least we could do for one of the most noble founding houses of Heareh," Bolita nodded, returning the smile.
"Though we are on your side, it is unlikely if the others in our party will approve of any sudden decisions," Lady To'mato cautioned. "And our houses are not so powerful that we would be able to provide satisfactory backing in such a situation."
"Of course. I'll take care not to be rash."
After a few more thinly veiled references to the delicately positioned equilibrium that was the current balance of power, the tea party began to wrap itself up.
"It was a pleasure, My Lady," Lady L'ettuce curtsied before stepping up into her carriage.
"I hope that we may meet again soon," Lady To'mato curtsied in turn, as she took the hand of a footman waiting to help her into her own carriage.
Bolita dipped her head in a show of respect to the both of them.
"I send my regards to the Marquis and Earl," Bolita responded and then they were on their way.
After a short moment of taking in the breeze near the front gate of the Schmancy mansion, Bolita headed back inside for a long reprieve and to begin steeling herself for the meeting that would happen in a couple of days. It would be nowhere near as pleasant as this one, but she was hoping that it would be civil, at the very least.