Plan 'B' Ballerina

Mr Ravenscar, meanwhile, had enjoyed only the briefest glimpse of her. This had sufficed to make him acutely aware of her headdress, but it was not until he saw her approaching the front of his box on Adrian’s arm that he had the opportunity of taking in the full enormity of the green stripes, poppy-red ribbons, and crimson garnets. He was not a man who wasted much thought on female dress, but the difference between Miss Grantham’s appearance tonight and her appearance on the previous two occasions when he had been in her company struck him most forcibly. He had, in fact, thought her a woman of good taste, so he was a good deal astonished at the flamboyance of her attire. Recalling that he had told his aunt that Miss Grantham was not vulgar, he touched her arm, saying somewhat grimly: “You had better be prepared to meet your future daughter-in-law, ma’am. Adrian is bringing her towards the box now.”

“Hallo, Kitten, that’s a devilish fetching bonnet!” said the Viscount, by way of greeting. “But what the deuce made you late? You had best pay off the hack, Gil: no saying how long we shall be here.”

“No, Sherry. Keep the hack!” said Mr Ringwood firmly.

“Why? If we want a hack, we can call up another, can’t we?”

“The thing is, Sherry, there are one or two packages in it,” explained Mr Ringwood, a little guiltily.

The Viscount stared at him, and then took a look inside the vehicle. “One or two packages!” he exclaimed. “Good God! What the deuce possessed you to bring a lot of bandboxes to a wedding?”

“Oh, Sherry, they are things I bought at the Pantheon Bazaar!” said Miss Wantage. “And we had no time to take them to your lodging, and I am very sorry if you do not like it, but I didn’t buy the canary which I wanted!”

“My God!” said the Viscount, realizing his narrow escape.

“Told her you wouldn’t like a canary,” explained Mr Ringwood, with a deprecatory cough.

“I should think you might well!” replied his lordship.

“You’re only a man! You’ve not our gifts!  I can tell you!  Why, a woman can think of a hundred different things at once, all them contradictory!” 
— Georgette Heyer (Powder and Patch)

Georgette Heyer’s “Regency Buck.”

Scandal.

“Is it not unsupportable to be held down to a canter when you long to gallop for miles?”
— Georgette Heyer (The Grand Sophy)