[b]Collab with @lady horatio & @rodiak[/b] Cassandra listened to Arabelle and Erik's quarrel, she found it laughable that these two were to be wed. She was sure that at least after they were married their sex life would be entertaining to say the least. She took a shot of whiskey and decided it was time to have a little fun. Phillip hadn't seen her since before her move to America, so she was in rare form to tease him a little bit. She put down her glass and glided across the room silently, her pale skin in stark contrast with her dark dress, she must of looked liked a corpse bride on the hunt. She briefly walked close to Asher sliding a hand along his back and giving him a small smile. She would have some fun with him later. She was sure she would be getting into plenty of trouble do to his ... bountiful tastes in women soon enough. She would intercept the siblings before they could make it to their destination and she gently stepped in front of them giving Phil a hug. She looked over and gave a mischievous smile toward Gen and Imani as she let go. Poor girl still couldn't stand being in public. [Color=fuchsia]"Phillip darling! It has been a while. I can't believe that I haven't heard from you, a lady could get her feelings hurt you know? And Gen, I am so happy to see you out and about, very brave indeed. You have grown so much it truly is astounding!"[/color] Cass said, hoping to catch the pair off guard. Imani saw the pale woman approaching the trio from the corner of her eyes. The way she carried herself and walked over to them while blatantly ignoring her reminded her of her older sister Lara. Lara had been the first one to always remind her that Imani was just a bastard and she would amount to nothing. Lara, who would probably be in this ball. While the stranger, who she recognized as Cassandra, leaned in to hug Phillip she pulled her arm back from his to let him hug her. Imani just stood there with a small timid smile playing on her lips. The woman in front of her intimidated her, much like Lara had when she was smaller, but she didn't back down. Instead, she cleared her throat and introduced herself. "Ah, hello. I'm Princess Imani Kore of Massylii- but you can just call me Imani." She smiled at the woman and reached out her hand. There was a colder tone to her voice that was just subtle enough to not be noticed. After all, this woman was a stranger to her. Cassandra pulled back as the princess introduced herself. She happily took her hand, trying her best not to match Imani's tone. She might as well play with her too. She was Phil's fiance after all. [Color=fuchsia]"I must apologize, but when I saw my old friends I just got to focused. Cassandra O'Brien, Dal Riata, but please call me Cass, royal titles mean very little to me. Phil and I grew up together, even before all this."[/color] She gestured to her body lazily. [Color=fuchsia]"We were very close. And Gen as well, like a little sister."[/color] She wondered how far she could push this game before Phil stopped her. Hopefully her coming over disarmed him enough to give her a little more time. But for now the princess of Massylii wanted her attention. So she would give plenty of it. Phillip was, indeed, startled by Cass’s sudden hug and the way she was talking a mile a minute before she’d even released him. A surprised laugh spilled out of him before he felt Imani step away and caught a subtle tensing in Gen’s features. Inwardly, he winced. Drawing attention to how “brave” it was for Gen to be here—not the best opening salvo. Cass meant well, and Phillip always loved how very much [i]herself[/i] she was—but [i]herself[/i] was a lot for a pair of introverts. “It’s good to see you, Cass,” he agreed, moving to put a hand on Imani’s back once more. “I’m sorry it’s been so long.” Raising his eyebrows, he said, “I would like to point out that [i]I’m[/i] not the one who decided to base my wildly successful business in a foreign country.” He smiled, a warm but humored twist of his lips. “You look good.” And she [i]knew[/i] she did, of course. “We were just walking around to see who was here. I promise we would have gotten to you if you hadn’t gotten to us first.” He tipped his head sideways, indicating the princess beside him. “You’re the first person I’ve gotten to introduce to Imani.” The hand on her back was reassuring to Imani as she watched Cassandra carefully. It only took her seconds to realize she didn't like the woman very much. Although the fact that titles meant nothing to her, she didn't have to be a bitch about it. Imani took a deep breath and a sip of her drink to keep her nerves down. Cassandra was not Lara- Imani had to remind herself of that- and yet her words painted her just like her half-sister. Her words towards Gen had been just as bad. "It's nice to meet an old friend of Phillip's, Miss Cassandra." Imani kept her tone cool as she continued to call her by her full name. She glanced over to Gen to see if the younger girl was okay. Imani understood her discomfort. Cass tried warmly smiling to Imani. She was unsure how she felt about the woman so far. She seemed nice, but it felt in a forced way. She didn't know enough about a lot of these people since she didn't care to much on politics outside of what she was forced to learn in case she had to take the throne one day. But this is the woman one of her oldest friends was to marry, she should at least make the attempt to know her. [Color=fuchsia]"Your family has an estate in the Dal. But I must admit, running Janus and has been taxing. Tomorrow will be the first day that I haven't stepped foot in the company. But of course you all are welcome to come visit me at any time, it would mean the world to me. Imani dear, I would like to get to know you better. Now if you must excuse me I will allow you to introduce the lovely lady to everyone else. It was a pleasure, and it was good to see you again Gen. I am sorry if my excitement got the better of me. I was just so happy to see you guys again."[/color] Genevieve seemed to ease. “It was nice to see you again, too,” she said. “I’m sure it’ll be hard to slow down, when you’re used to being so busy.” "The pleasure was mine, Miss Cassandra." Imani gave Cass a curt nod. Her shoulders relaxed, just the tiniest bit as the woman continued to say her goodbyes. “Hopefully we can all enjoy the break,” Phillip agreed. Eyeing Cass, he added, “I dare you to stay off of your phone for at least twenty-four hours,” raising an eyebrow in dubious challenge. [Color=fuchsia]"I will do my best, but I am sure I already have missed calls and a pile of emails.if I had known adulting was this hard, I might have made a few more trips to the beach with you. Take care now."[/color] Cass turned and felt her phone buzz in her handbag, she fought every urge not to reach for before she was out of eye sight of Phillip and his damn challenge.