Alvin remembered those days with a wry smile. "Clearly you faired better than I did." It had never been his forte, though in his younger years Alvin had been athletic and coordinated, he had lost the ease with which he moved after he stopped practicing. Pleased to find the conversation was reminiscent of their earlier chats, Alvin found himself relaxing a little, even if he was keenly aware that her arm was still in his.

He'd almost started to say something about how it was something he and Sloane had in common but thought better of it. He'd heard her rants about how miserable it was for her. Alvin had just sort of sloughed through and hoped for the best. Tonight it didn't feel necessary to mention. "How do you feel the night is going?" It felt safer and easier to keep the focus on her, where it should be. The more he talked the more he was likely to say something dumb or that he hadn't thought through all of the way yet; of which there were a lot of derailed thoughts all tangled up that he needed some time to unwind in the quiet of his bedroom.

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"Well." The honesty was out of her mouth before she could overthink it. "It's everything I had hoped it would be." She continued. Her friends hadn't realized quite how much this evening had meant to her, or perhaps they had and she simply hadn't been able to see it, and yet now that it was here, it was what she had dreamed it would be. As long as she didn't think on what was missing, on the gaping holes that had formed in her life. Tonight was about hope, about dreams, about the future, and as such she wouldn't look back. Not tonight. Perhaps she alone of her friends would find the sentiment stoic instead of serious, but she wouldn't deny to herself that it was exactly what she had wanted when she dreamed of this. Now, she merely needed a prince charming to sweep her off her feet. "I do love dancing." She found herself admitting with a soft sigh.

  

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Thank you Bee <3 Your magic has made Sisse bloom

Alvin was glad to hear she was enjoying herself, so he said as much aloud; "Good, I'm glad. You deserve it." It had been a hell of a year and he was sure that at school it had been hard. He'd been able to glean as much from their letters early in the school year, but hadn't been able to decipher much as of late. She did deserve it though. Sisse had been a good friend to Sloane over the years and had been kind to him during some dark moments, too. Hopefully she would get whatever it is that she wanted out of this summer.

"Hopefully you'll get your fill tonight." Alvin hadn't been paying strict attention, but she seemed to have danced each number so far tonight. And she was pretty good at it. He was rusty, certainly, but rarely had the need to practice these days. It wasn't like he was in a good place to be attending events looking to settle down; he hardly had a reliable occupation at the moment and that didn't look good either. But those were not thoughts for tonight and so he settled on a sure smile. "Did you want something to drink?"

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Of all the gentlemen here Sisse was quite certain that he was the only one who could truly understand and make such a statement genuinely. It wasn't just about the hard work of her school years, of lessons and leadership and responsibilities the last seven years had brought to her, but about the heartbreak, the perseverance, the grief, friendship, and love that she had endeared and come through amongst it all. . "Thank you." While she wanted to look down at her skirts, to avoid his gaze, he deserved such honesty returned to him, so she forced herself to meet his eyes and to put in as much genuine sentiment as she could in two simple words.

"I don't think I could ever have my fill of dancing." Sisse laughed, adding merrily, "Although I may be selfish to say such a thing."

The suggestion of a drink was lovely and the musicians were stopping to take a break, besides, Sisse certainly wouldn't mind more time with Alvin. "That would be lovely. I heard the lemonade is delicious but have yet to try it." The house elves always made the most delicious food, Sisse would be sad to leave its reliability for the refreshments at other balls - some, she had heard, were quite ghastly and tasteless.

  

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Thank you Bee <3 Your magic has made Sisse bloom

Alvin was pretty sure he'd had his fill of dancing, but wasn't about to say anything to Miss Thompsett. She was clearly built for this and he was not. "It is your night," so she could do all the dancing she wanted.

"I'll ah, go get some and be right back." Should be easy enough. He could use a glass himself. Leaving her for the moment, Alvin wandered toward the refreshments table on the opposite side of the room. Catching sight of his brother flirting with one of the younger girls (judging by her dress) and had to shake his head. It was turning out to be a better night than anticipated after all. Hopefully his mother was occupied by her friends and not too caught up in what was missing. Focusing on what was there was much easier, he decided and that would keep them moving forward.

After a quick glass of lemonade with Miss Thompsett he would excuse himself to let her enjoy the rest of the evening and start his own little existential crisis.

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