Chapter Text
My dearest readers, ladies and gentlemen,
This year’s London Social Season promises to be a more "bountiful" harvest than ever before, not in terms of the sheer number of eligible lords and ladies coming of age, but in its unprecedented, delicious entanglement. The writer begs leave, with all the curiosity a righteous storyteller ought to possess, to introduce the figures who shall stir the aristocratic drawing rooms in the months to come.
To be precise, the power ranking of the London ton, if anyone were bold enough to set it down on parchment, would look like this, and this author, of course, has audacity to spare:
At the very pinnacle sits the Duke of Sterlingward, the pillar of London society and head of the Jourdain, who serves as the guardian of the young Viscount Ashbourne. Immediately following His Grace is the Marquess of Kingsford, Soobin Choi, who set sail on a Royal mission just this morning. He ought to be accustomed to this, having taken to the sea continuously for the past eight years since first assisting his father at the age of nineteen, yet this departure is entirely different. This author suspects that His Lordship faces the tides with a restless soul, having left half his heart behind at the harbor.
Next are two Earls. The Earl of Harcourt, Ryul Kim, two and twenty years of age, the coldest man in London and (by this author’s observation) utterly unprepared for whatever awaits him. The Earl of Thornfield, Yeonjun Choi, a gentleman of nine-and-twenty who is on the verge of being forced by his family to wed anyone with a pulse and a womb.
Following them is the Viscount Ashbourne, a mere eighteen years of age, entering his first Season, and still under the impression that love is a simple waltz easily mastered. He has just been presented to society under the grand patronage of his influential paternal uncle, and walking quietly beside him like a shadow is the private secretary of the Jourdain House, whom this author shall describe in greater detail shortly.
Three names compel this author to take a sip of tea before putting quill to paper once more: The Honourable Beomgyu Choi, eldest son and heir to the Baron Whitmore, seven and twenty years old, five Seasons without fruition, and whose mother is fast losing her patience. The Honourable Kai Kamal Huening, six and twenty years of age, eldest son of the Viscount Pembroke, childhood friend to Mr. Choi, a gentleman so gentle and loyal that this author wonders if anyone has truly noticed. And The Honourable Taehyun Kang, eldest son of the Viscount Ashford, of the same age as Mr. Huening, who has just returned from Paris with a shocking collection of waistcoats and an infuriating charm that makes half of London wish to slap him, while the other half wish to dance with him.
Occupying a position that is rather… unfavorable: The Honourable Woojin Jeong, second son of Baron Etheridge, possessing no fortune, no inheritance, nothing but oil paint on his collar and a smile that, this author must admit, is quite difficult to forget. A presence vibrant enough to illuminate the dimmest of drawing rooms, for indeed, the spirit of one's twenties is something that cannot be replicated.
And, at the very bottom, where the peerage rankings hold no space to record a name: the private secretary of the Jourdain House, named Ohyul Kwon, four years senior to the Viscount. No title, no lineage, no status whatsoever. Yet, if you were to ask this author, and even if no one asks, this author shall say it anyway, sometimes it is precisely those who stand outside the rankings who possess the most remarkable tales to tell.
Nine individuals. Countless secrets. And this author believes that, during this Season, not all vows will be spoken aloud.
Yours forever faithfully,
Lady Whistledown
________
If I lose my tongue then I'll be dancing for you
Even when I cannot find a place to do
Viscount of Ashbourne, nephew of the Duke of Sterlingward - Louis Elliot Jourdain
x
Private Secretary of the Jourdain family - Ohyul Kwon
If I had wings I would fly to you
If I had fins I would swim to you
Marquess of Kingsford - Soobin Choi
x
Earl of Thornfield - Yeonjun Choi
Even if it doesn't make sense at all
Eldest son of the Viscount of Ashford - Taehyun Kang
x
Eldest son of the Baron Whitmore - Beomgyu Choi
x
Eldest son of the Viscount of Pembroke - Kai Kamal Huening
Yeah I fell in love
Come kiss me, wake me up
Earl of Harcourt - Ryul Kim
x
Artist, second son of the Baron Etheridge - Woojin Jeong