February 23rd, 1891 - Prewett Birthday Party

Camilla was pleased to be attending the birthday party for the Prewett twins for several obvious reasons, although she suspected the invite likely came because of Matilda's ties to the Longbottoms et cetera. Not that it mattered - anything that put her in the general vicinity of Fitzroy Prewett was pleasing to her, and the more she could be pretty and pleasing in the vicinity of Harriet Prewett, the better that was, probably.

So perhaps she ought not to flirt as directly tonight. She hadn't had the opportunity yet, besides, and was instead mentally practicing her skills at telling the Prewett twins apart, because she did not want to accidentally flirt with the wrong one later. She could not be obvious about such a thing, though, and they had been here for just long enough for Camilla to drink half of her wine glass.

"What do you think are the necessary components of a birthday party?" Camilla asked Domitian, knowing he would probably not care a whit and not caring a whit about that. Conversation with her brother, that made it seem less like she had machinations in her head, didn't it?

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Domitian Zabini Reuben Crouch

  

If he'd had his druthers, Domitian wouldn't have come at all. He didn't go out of his way to interact with the rich, pureblood crowd — not for the past ten years. Even when no one was bringing it up directly, he always felt that his own blood status was lurking in their minds, and that they were judging him, or pitying him, or feeling superior to him, none of which were things he wanted to encourage. He didn't want to be seen as desperate to fit in, but he knew he could also not be noted to be openly unfriendly towards anyone. At least as long as he had an inheritance (as long as his son had an inheritance) from Cosmo Zabini, he had to keep on as though nothing had changed, though of course everything had changed, and everyone knew it.

Sometimes he felt it would be a relief if his father disowned him, just to be done having to pretend — but if he was disinherited, Matilda would probably leave, and likely take the children with her, and that he could not stomach. So he'd keep pretending, keep treading water as long as he needed to. If having to be surrounded by these people left him tense and irate by the end of the night, at least he was used to it, by now.

He glanced up at his sister's question. He'd been watching his wife talk to one of her sisters across the room, trying to discern from her expression the content of the conversation, and hadn't noticed Camilla approach. The question itself was inane; she was probably expecting him to say something vague and complimentary about Mrs. Prewett's hosting skills, but he wasn't in a particularly fit mood to do so.

"A person born on the day in question," he replied dryly. "And some other people who weren't, to make up a party."

  

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Bree made this!

Camilla's lips twitched up at her brother's answer; she hadn't expected Domitian to have any interest in the question, obviously, but she hadn't expected his eventual answer to amuse her, either. "Oh, Domitian, you're so clever," she said, as if they were in on the same joke and she was not just trying to make conversation with him to continue the impression that she was pretty and proper and surely the Halfblood thing could be overlooked, anyways.

"It's been a minute since I threw a birthday party, though, so I have been thinking of them," Camilla added - she had not, in truth, been thinking of them, because she would not be throwing a birthday party this year. It wouldn't do to remind anyone of her age, least of all herself, and the only person she liked enough to throw a party for was Bellona. Bellona did not need the reminder, either.

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He wasn't sure if she was trying to drop a hint or not. If she was, he wasn't picking up on it. His own birthday wasn't until October, so if she was trying to get him onboard for some sort of lavish party she could have a hand in throwing, she must have been particularly eager. Both her own birthday and Bellona's were earlier, but if she was planning something for either of them there was no reason to involve him beyond sending an invitation when the time came. It was unlikely she was interesting in throwing a party for either of his children, given that they were... children. And if she had some strange desire to celebrate Matilda, she really ought to have taken it up with her directly, not with him. He was close to his wife in the way that he was close to his butler — it was a matter of necessity, given that they lived in the same house and did many of the same things. It was not as though they had much in common, he didn't think — nothing that would keep them together if his father switched to another heir.

That would likely be the next birthday in the Zabini household, but he was very well aware no one related to him would find it cause for celebration.

"I'm sure you could find a friend to celebrate, if you tried hard enough," he said, mostly just to steer the conversation away from family. "Is it just the opportunity to throw a party outside the social season and not be thought crass for it that intrigues you? If so, I don't imagine it much matters whose birthday it is," he pointed out.

  

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Bree made this!

Domitian was following her supposed train of logic more than Camilla was; for a second, at his answer, she looked surprised. "Oh," she said, "I suppose that you're right." If she wanted to throw a birthday party then surely she could find someone she liked rattling about the social scene who bore a spring birthday. The thought of putting energy into making sure another debutante was the center of attention grated on her, of course, but that wasn't the sort of thing one could express verbally.

"But I intend to keep myself reserved to dinner-parties-if-anything until the season begins in earnest," Camilla continued, tapping her finger against the side of her half-empty wine glass, "Unless of course the opportunity for something interesting arises early."

Truth be told, with Calliope more pregnant every day, Camilla was eager to spend their father's money; people thought she did not think of money at all but she did, and if he was going to try for another son with That Woman then Camilla was going to express her displeasure through the necessary dramatics in the meantime.

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set by bee

Domitian looked sideways at his sister at that comment. If anything, hm? He hadn't expected Camilla to be one to purposefully absent herself from an event, particularly not as she edged closer to the upper limit of what was considered the prime of her debut years. Perhaps this was a scheme in and of itself; a leave them wanting more sort of thing. He wasn't sure it would be terribly successful, but then, he was skeptical of any scheme intended to get his sisters, who were known to be halfbloods, married to pureblooded gentleman. He was also skeptical of her ability to stick to it. The season was still three months away.

"That sounds terribly boring," he pointed out. He hadn't been paying much attention to his own glass of wine, but took a sip now while he contemplated the possibility of Camilla sitting at home doing nothing for three months. The same home, notably, that was occupied by his father, the new Mrs. Zabini, and soon by whatever thing was lurking in her belly.

"I'd wish for something interesting for you," he said with a shrug, "But I think in order to do so in good conscious I'd have to know what you meant by interesting."

  

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Bree made this!

"Mm," Camilla hummed in agreement. It would be boring to take off from hosting until the season. It would be unlike her, as well. Was that a good thing or a bad thing?

So what did she mean by interesting? She took another sip of her drink and considered it. "I suppose I really mean different," she said, "As in - if a ball is just a ball, is it really worth my effort hosting?"

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set by bee

"Oh," said Domitian, as though he'd figured her out. "So you're feeling uninspired, is all."

This was a little better than it being a deliberate scheme to try and convince pureblooded men to find her desirable. It meant she wouldn't be disappointed when it inevitably failed — though it did mean that perhaps she was at least a little disappointed already. The thing was, she was perfectly desirable — just not to the sort of man she had her sights set on. And, unfortunately, as long as their father was in control of things, that was not likely to change.

He considered the surface of his wine. "It might help to get out of the house for a while," he suggested. A while meaning until Calliope was done being pregnant — though the addition of the baby would not make the house any more welcoming to her, he assumed. Maybe it would die. Domitian hoped it would die — but since Camilla and Bellona were unmarried women, they likely took mourning as a more serious threat than he did. A dead child was not a threat, however, in the way that a living and healthy one was.

  

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Bree made this!

Was she uninspired? Camilla had not been thinking it until Domitian verbalized, but he sounded so sure that she had to consider the issue. She was seeking something different. She was seeking something that would make her stand out this season, that would not consign her to the doom and burden of spinsterhood. She was also, perhaps, seeking inspiration.

A little miffed to have been found out before she figured things out on her own, Camilla took another sip of her drink. His next sentence was much easier for her to deal with - they all knew why things were tense in the Cosmo Zabini household, although Camilla had never verbalized such a thing to Domitian.

"I suspect that would be helpful," she agreed with an easy smile, "If I am able to arrange it." Meaning, of course, that even though their father did not keep her on the shortest of leashes - he was not exactly going to let her travel to France on her own, either.

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Domitian hesitated. He considered extending an offer for Camilla to stay with him, if she wanted, but... well, it wasn't as though the house he shared with Matilda was filled with laughter and levity. If she wanted to go somewhere to take her mind off of their father's new family, his house wasn't the ideal place. And he wasn't sure what Matilda would think of it, either. She would say it was fine, of course, but what she said and what she thought were two different things, often.

It was a shame Camilla had never become an animagus. That was the one thing in Domitian's life that had remained constant, since the day he'd first mastered it. No matter what else was happening, he could always retreat to the wilderness and hunt something. Camilla, on the other hand, was stuck in her skin.

"I'm sure you could stir up an invitation or two," he suggested with a shrug, in lieu of offering that invitation himself. "If you were inclined." She was personable, and she did society things; surely she did not lack for friends. Of course, there was a difference between who one called friends and who one actually trusted and liked — the latter could be significantly harder to find.

  

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Bree made this!

Camilla hummed her assent. "And once it's spring," she said, "There will presumably be country parties, as opposed to the - wintery nonsense." Scotland was cold and London was dreary; Camilla wanted the retreat that riding a horse and pretending to have an interest in the show of 'men killing something' would bring.

Spring would also bring with it Calliope's infant, presumably; this was best not discussed.

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Domitian didn't have a problem with 'wintery nonsense,' as she put it. He enjoyed winter weather, and thought some of the types of entertainment available in the snow and ice were at least novel enough to hold his interest more than just another summer garden party. But he wasn't a debutante, so presumably he had different considerations for what made an event interesting. Camilla might put great stock in what colors were fashionable in the different seasons and what looked best on her, which Dom would never have considered as a gentleman whose wardrobe consisted entirely of shades of grey.

"Young women ought to tour the continent the same way young men do," he mused idly. It would at least give them something to do outside of the social season, and the warmer air of the Mediterranean might do some good compared to the sleet of Scotland. Of course, they couldn't exactly tour the exact same way young men did, which was presumably why they didn't. As a father to a willful girl, Dom only trusted Zenobia as far as Hogwarts because it was a necessary component of her education — he certainly wouldn't have sent her to Europe without tailing her himself to ensure she stayed out of trouble.

  

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Bree made this!

"Oh, I would have loved to spend a season circling the Mediterranean," Camilla agreed. Of the many things she missed from before the scandal, one was the freedom an Italian summer visit had offered - the warm summer sun beating down and the breeze through the grass. She'd fancied the idea of marrying an Italian and living in the countryside outside of Rome, privately, before the scandal had broken - of course now Italian purebloods had nearly as much distaste for her as British purebloods did.

"Especially with all these languages we have," Camilla said - really it was just the Italian and Asante Twi that set them apart from other debutantes, (and Asante Twi was a language to be used for gossip with her sisters, she had never used it to use it), but, still, the point stood.

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set by bee

Sending her abroad might actually have been good for her prospects, Domitian thought distantly. There were Zabinis abroad who were pureblood, so it was feasible someone might see the name and not ask too many questions (though of course he could not advocate for actually lying about it, when it inevitably came up — but maybe by the time it did whoever she ensnared would be too smitten with her to care), and even if she was publicly known as a halfblood at least she would be out from under the shadow of the scandal ten years earlier.

"Might not be too late," he said with a shrug. If ever there was a season to find an excuse to not live at home with Cosmo Zabini and his new wife, it would be this one — with the baby incoming.

  

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Bree made this!

"Might not," Camilla agreed, except the truth was that she could not see herself abandoning Bellona. They were stuck in this together, the pair of them - for better or worse, and while Camilla was determined to get herself out of these circumstances and then drag Bellona along with her, spending the spring sprawled on a Mediterranean yacht in the sun was not likely to fix this for her.

Still: a girl could dream. Maybe her honeymoon?

"You toured, didn't you, before the Ministry and Matilda? Did you have a favorite place?"

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set by bee

When Domitian thought back on his European tour, the fondest memories he had were not of a particular place, but of a particular girl — one of the women who spent her youth trading intimacy of various types and degrees for expensive gifts, essentially but not actually a prostitute. She'd had green eyes and lived in Istanbul, but he'd invited her along to Greece where she'd stayed all day in the little cabin on the cliff side, overlooking the Mediterranean waves. She'd played some sort of musical instrument which he'd now forgotten the name of, but not the sound of. He'd stayed two extra weeks in Greece because he knew he couldn't ask her to carry on to Italy, where people actually knew him, and then eventually he'd said goodbye and bought her a ticket back to Istanbul, where she'd presumably moved on to some other likely young man with money burning holes in his pockets. This was not the sort of thing he could tell his sister about, of course, so instead he lied and said, "Spain is nice. Odd mix of architecture. Some from the arabs, some from the Italians, some from the Gauls, all mashed together in their cities."

Before the Ministry and before Matilda; a fitting title for that portion of his life. He'd originally joined the Ministry more out of curiosity for what it was like than any need to work, though he obviously felt the need for it now. His marriage to Matilda, too, was something he had initially taken a bit for granted, up until the scandal.

"Funny how backwards it is for men and women," he remarked. "We have all our freedom before marriage, and then we hand it over to our wives during the wedding."

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   Camilla Prewett

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Bree made this!