Page 11 (1/2)

"I find myself curious as to the activities of the lower orders No insult intended, my dear Ivy, but even as the , you will have a certain amount of contact with less savory elements of London society I would appreciate????inforards to these elements on occasion"

Mrs Tunstell was overco this that she was moved to dab at one eye with an embroidered handkerchief "Why, Alexia,at last? Oh, it is too e, Miss Ivy Hisselpenny’s social position had prevented her fro, while Miss Alexia Tarabotti had suffered under the yoke of just such events As far as Ivy was concerned, this yielded up a poor quality and quantity of gossip The Alexia of her girlhood had not been curious about the interpersonal relationships of others, let alone their dress and manners

The handkerchief lowered and Ivy’s face beca in particular you wish me to look out for?"

"Why, Ivy!"

Mrs Tunstell sipped her tea coquettishly

Lady Maccon took the plunge "As a ards to a threat upon a certain peer of the realm I cannot say more, but if you wouldn’t e was to be decommissioned"

"No, Ivy, not that kind of threat"

"And the Duchess of Snodgrove’s chaht actually not affix her hat properly for the midsummer ball"

"No, not quite that either But this is all intriguing information I should appreciate your continued conversation and company even after your evolved circumstances"

Ivy closed her eyes and took a small breath "Oh, Alexia, how kind of you I did fear???" She flipped open a fan and fluttered it in an excess of senti "I did fear that once Tunny and I launched this endeavor, you would be unwilling to continue the association After all, I intend to perhaps take on some small rolesseen to take tea with the wife of an actor is one thing, but taking tea with the actress herself is quite another"

Lady Maccon shifted forward as much as possible and stretched out a hand to rest softly atop Mrs Tunstell’s "Ivy, I would never even consider it Let us say no more on the subject"

Ivy seemed to feel the time had come to move on to yet another pertinent bit of news "I did have one other thing to relate to you, ive over my position as assistant to Madame Lefoux Of course, I shall miss the society of all those lovely hats, but I was there just the other evening when a very peculiar event occurred Given your husband’s state, I iht of you"

"How very perspicacious" Much to her own amazement, Lady Maccon had found that Mrs Tunstell, a lady of little society and less apparent sense, often had thewell that the best encourageave Ivy a dark-eyed look of interest

"Well, you should never believe it, but I ran into a scepter in the street"

"A scepter????what, like the queen’s?"

"Oh, no, you knohat I h it I went, all la-di-da I could hardly countenance it I was completely unnerved After I had recovered ood sense Subsequent to e to articulate some information She see at night only because er than expected Otherwise, you understand, I have always found your habit of toting daytihly esoteric Never host see about it Wanted to know if it did anything, apart from shield me from the sun, of course I informed her flat out that the only person I kneho boasted a parasol that extruded things was my dear friend Lady Maccon You re in the north? Well, I told this to the ghost in no uncereot most stimulated and asked as to your current whereabouts Well, since she was a ghost and, as such, tethered within a shortened area of the location, I saw no reason not to relay your new address to her It was all very odd And she kept repeating thea cephalopod"

"Oh, indeed? What exactly did she say, Ivy?"

" ‘The octopus is inequitable,’ or soht continue her discussion, except at that h the open parlor door

"Alexia, your sister appears to be most unbalanced I a a le out into public I cannot countenance it"

Lady Maccon closed her eyes and shook her head "Never mind that now, Ivy"

"Convinced, I tell you How rehost, Ivy?"

"I think itto do with the OBO"

This coht Alexia up short "What did you just say?"

"The Order of the Brass Octopus--you must have heard of it"

Lady Maccon blinked in shock and put her hand to her stomach where the infant-inconvenience kicked out in surprise as well "Of course I have heard of it, Ivy The question is, how have you?"

"Oh, Alexia, I have been working for Mada over, but I am not so unobservant as all that I am well aware that when she is in town, she undertakes fewer hat-orientated activities than hat-focused ones She runs an underground contrivance chamber as I understand it"

"She told you?"

"Not exactly If Madaainsay her? But I did look inside some of those hatboxes of hers, and they do not always contain hats I did inquire as to the specifics, and Madame Lefoux assured me it was better if I not become involved However, Alexia, I wouldn’t want you to think s, and I have eyes enough in my head to observe, even if I do not always understand"

"I apologize for doubting you, Ivy"

Ivy looked wistful "Perhaps one day you, too, will take me into your confidence"

"Oh, Ivy, I--"