The one thing that Elinor was glad about this whole situation was that the animal representing her house was a dog.<br/>That, at least, meant that there were dogs around for her to cuddle and stroke while being nervous and worried and, although she did have to brush some hair off of her dress, at least brown fur  didn't show up too bad on red. And, of course, was entirely lost in the fur linings.<br/>Most importantly, though, playing with the dogs made her feel better and, for a few moments, allowed her to pretend that she wasn't stuck under the crushing, inevitable and inescapable weight of her nation's expectations, with everyone's eyes fixed, staring eternally at her seeking the slightest hint of weakness.<br/><br/>No, for a little while all she was thinking was 'puppy is soft and happy', which was certainly a pleasant little moment to have.<br/>Her sword, as much a symbol of things as she was, was lucky in not having to be present, but the redhead knew that she had no such fortune and, with a last little attempt to brush dog hair off of her hips, drew back into the protective shell of what she was meant to be, hiding behind that paper thin lie of calm dispassion as she made her way into the hall, a slightly fixed coldness in her eyes as she surveyed all who were present and frantically held back the signs of panic that would otherwise be peeking out from behind her facade.