"You look like an idiot in that thing." Owl couldn't help it. She laughed. Okay, maybe she could help it, but she didn't particularly want to. The deadpan look that Felix was shooting her only heightened her amusement, and it was a long moment before she was able to compose herself once more. With a cough, she straightened up and looked her companion over. If she could overlook the helmet (which was very difficult), he looked respectable enough.

Which was weird, given Felix's primary vocation. In fact, everything about him arranging to play private security for the Jays was strange. He hated nobles. House Jay less than most of them, but it seemed a big jump from tolerating to working for. He'd dodged any attempt to figure out his reasoning so far, replying with just a shrug and a mention that they 'paid well'. "R-right. So, all you have to do is walk the floor. Keep an eye out. Smile and nod." It would have been better for him to be out on the perimeter, away from people and free of the need to play nice. He was stuck reporting to her, though, and by extension, Paige, and they both were kept close at hand, which meant he would be too.

She just had to hope the 'smile and nod' part wouldn't be his undoing.

For his part, despite the faint irritation visible beneath his helmet, he seemed to be paying attention. Between that and managing to look not terrible in uniform, maybe he'd have done alright in the military. Nah, probably not. She thought over any other words of advice she might offer, or any way she could coax an actual word out of him. Instead, she heard a bell ring once, twice, three times, slowly. "Well, that's our cue, dumbass. Don't do anything stupid." She reached out and patted him on the shoulder. As she turned to leave, she felt a sharp pinch on her rear and nearly jumped, spinning around to confront the feline. Predictably, he was halfway to the door already, and she didn't want to yell after him for fear of being overheard. She settled for shooting a glare in his wake and then marching away.

The party was, as best as Owl could tell, pretty typical for these sorts of events. Full of rich guests in expensive attire, with food that looked both smaller and more elaborate than strictly necessary. The guests split off into different conversations, most of which she could safely ignore as being irrelevant to her. Her focus was on trailing Lady Jay (and Blue) at a discreet distance, an effort made more difficult with how they rarely stayed together. Owl glimpsed on occasion the red markings of a guard captain through the rainbow of colors presented by the guests. Paige was out there trailing the Jays as well, keeping close to whichever of the two of them Owl was not covering. Felix was out there somewhere too, but even with his stupid helmet and the uniform of a house guard, the feline was too damned good at being invisible.

She thought she saw a flash of metal past the cerulean blue dress of a noble woman (around Lady Jay's age, the color pegging her as hailing from Cevicha). The moment she shifted to get a better look, it was gone, and she was left frustrated. Whatever, Felix could look after himself. Owl had to hasten closer to Lady Jay, who was currently deep into a glass of wine and a conversation with some graying human man in purple. Owl settled against a wall, just in earshot, and strained to hear what she could.

"...something to consider, my dear Lady Jay. We've efforts across the kingdom, and our influence grows by the day. I, for one, long to see House Jay restored to its former glory."

"Are you implying us diminished?" Hazel asked running a finger along the rim of her wine glass.

"Not just you, my dear."

Owl shifted, narrowing her eyes as she regarded the conversation. Whatever they were talking about, it seemed that a fire had been lit in the man's eyes. Apparently he was impassioned about...this.

"All of us. First the crown and its 'centralization'. Then that upstart guild." He downed the rest of his glass of wine and swapped it for a full one from the tray of a passing waiter. "Now my vassals go running to them instead of letting my soldiers keep my own lands safe. And their precious adventurers still haven't solved the disappearances." Seemingly aware he was rambling, he took a deep breath and another sip of wine, red in the face but looking a little calmer.

"We've endured this long. They'll not find us so easy to stamp out." Lady Jay assured him diplomatically, which seemed to satisfy.

"Yes, quite right. Just keep in mind what I was saying, Lady Jay. It could benefit all of us."

Owl was struck with a profound sense of curiosity about what the conversation had been about, but she also knew that prying into Lady Jay's business was not a good idea. Blue would possibly be more forthcoming, but even as she was tossing the idea of tracking down the young noble girl down, she heard a shout of surprise from the noble man who had just been speaking with Hazel. His once near-full drink was now empty, having spilled onto the floor (and possibly onto him, though the purple made it hard to tell). Standing before him was...of course it was Felix. The catboy looked more contrite than Owl had ever seen him, bowing before the angry, mustached man. He even flagged down a waiter to get a napkin and a replacement drink, but the man still seemed to be fuming when he walked away.

Owl watched him go, quickly glanced over to make sure that Lady Jay was alright. In fact, she was already in another conversation, with the noble in the cerulean dress Owl had spotted earlier. If she had noticed the commotion, she gave no indication. Confident she could be spared for a moment to chew out Felix, she set her sights on the feline, straightening up and preparing to march over there. Instead, she found no trace of him, not where had previously been standing or anywhere else that she could see.