June 28, 1894 — Misses & Matrons Ball, Thread Roulette
Alcyone Slughorn Tycho Dodonus

Adam didn't attend many balls, so he was honestly a little out of his depth here. Still, it was something he thought he probably ought to do, and as with most things, Adam found it was really not as bad as he'd made it out to be in his own head. At least now that he was here, and in the thick of things. It helped that it was attached to a competition--he did like the spirit of competition, personally, and rather thought that ladies should have more opportunities to indulge in it.

Speaking of ladies, he was making his way through the crowd now to claim his next dance. He tried not to think too hard about how young the fresh debutantes looked--when had he gotten so old? "Miss Slughorn," he greeted. "I believe the next dance is mine."

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Alcyone was greatly enjoying being on the social scene as a debutante. She felt a flutter whenever a man penciled himself in on her dance card. Though this man had been among the older of them but she still made a point of giving him a charming smile. She gave him a small curtsy before holding out her hand for him. "Indeed it is, shall we?" She asked brightly as he came to claim his dance.

  

Adam offered Miss Slughorn his hand and then led the way to take their positions for the next dance. "Are you enjoying the evening?" he asked.

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She smiled as the man asked if she was enjoying her evening. "Very much so! I had wanted to participate in the competition myself but that was not in the cards," she admitted with a chuckle.

  

"A pity," Adam said. "I found much of the competition very interesting to watch." For his part, Adam appreciated a chance for friendly competition in general, even as a spectator.

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"Did any of the casting appeal to you in particular?" She asked, wondering if he would favour one of the illusions, conjurations or whatever else had been done. There had been different categories and each with their own delights.

  

"I think I liked the transfiguration the best," Adam said. "It's a tricky skill to master, and it's always gratifying to see it done well." His own preference was specifically for spells with very practical purposes, but that wasn't really the point of the competition. Still, skill was skill.

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"Did you ever make an attempt at becoming an animagus?" She asked curiously, though perhaps he was one already. Still, she knew it was a rare occurrence and not all wizarding folk were capable no matter how skilled they might be.

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"Ah, no, I'm afraid not," Adam admitted. "I've read about the process, though, and honestly I'm impressed anyone has the dedication to go through it." The process was as complicated as you'd expect something so rare to be.

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