Austen or Bridgerton, pick your Regency.

[ladys_night]

regency romance au

PROMPTS

( 1 ) dancing; whichever dance -- and remember, the waltz was initially frowned upon for how close partners were -- you are dancing. maybe your dance card is full and you'll move on to the next admirer. maybe this is the partner you've had your eyes on forever. whichever it is, enjoy this one dance.

( 2 ) subtle touches; helping her down from the carriage, touching her hand in a crowded ballroom, whatever it is, tonight you're communicating with small gestures and subtle glances.

( 3 ) note passing; have something to tell the one you like but no chance to do so in person? surely there is a servant willing to run an errand or two for you...

( 4 ) awkward carriage rides; you're alone in the carriage without a chaperone. what to make of it?

( 5 ) arranged marriage; your hand was promised to this person. do you like them? do you hate them? will you come to some sort of arrangement?

( 6 ) absconding to the moors; obligatory smut option.

( 7 ) rich/poor; you're from different social classes and your liason would be frowned upon if people knew.

taken from here.

Comments

[not_a_commie]

[I am up for any of them! Just not in a super angst mood tonight, but Regency favs tend to be, note passing subtle touches, and I won't say no to absconding to the moors lol]

[unclesam]

[ ooc: hey sorry, the holidays ended up being INSANE but I'm still here for it if you're interested <3 ]

---

[ The truth of the matter is that Sam's sister should have been his primary focus at the ball. Sam's her big brother, and with her parents having passed years ago, he's the one responsible for finding a good match for her.

A task most difficult considering that they're not exactly swimming in wealth and social standing. Still, they're here. Between owning a fishing business of middling success and investing what they earn into philanthropic ventures, the Wilsons have earned enough standing in society to earn a place.

They're not exactly a family highly sought after for marrying into, but Sam is nothing if not stubborn and determined to secure his sister a comfortable future, no matter how much his efforts have left his own side empty of prospects.

Who was he to presume that might change?

Sam knows very little about one James Buchanan Barnes, except that he's the talk of the night and being swarmed by eligible bachelors and bachelorettes alike this evening, hoping for a spot on his dance card. Sam can see why. The gentleman is handsome, and rumour has it the metal arm has bought him a substantial veteran's pension. In other words: A catch on all fronts that matter to most people.

He's not Sarah's type. Sam, on the other hand, has to stop himself from looking too directly, too obviously. His own prospects aren't why he's here.

And yet...

And yet perhaps he's not the only one who has been looking. ]

[not_a_commie]

[ James used to love to dance, he used to love a lot of things, but you don't come back from what he had returned from, and go back to dancing laughing and smiling, you pretended to, of course, you acted like everything was fine, you told the watered down and polite version of what happened during the war. You don't tell people you don't sleep at night; you don't tell people you cry.

You came back alive, are lucky, and have more money than you've ever had in your life, blood money, guilt money. People forget the part; the money came because no one looked for him; they left to rot, to be tortured, then tried to us what happened against him. It didn't work.

The mechanical arm and money were reminders, and things had started getting better, and he had a few good friends who didn't expect him to keep up appearances. They did, however, expect him to try and find some new kind of normal.

So while Jame Barnes used to love to dance, and part of him still does, he's keener to hover by the table where drinks are being served and wave off the people trying to dance with a war hero.

But his eyes do lift for a moment; there is a flicker of a smile on his face as he sees Sam Wison across the room, being the overprotective big brother of a sister more than capable of handling things on her own.]