February 12th, 1895 - CUPID's ARROW LOVE DAY BALL
Thick, calloused fingers plucked at his high collar, tugging on it as that will loosen it; if Bri was here, surely, she’d be slapping his hand aside, warning Al off before he snapped some stitches – something, something, too strong for his own good and too careless by half…
Fuck, he wished Ena was here – she’d make this whole thing much more bearable with her snarky commentary… Eva would do the same, but she’d turned down Fi’s request to join the two of them, unfortunately.
The pair of them wouldn’t even be here if Grandmother Danaher hadn’t wrote him, implying heavily she’d hassle Fi (and her job security) if neither of them were spotted at this gaudy pink and red affair of a ball tonight; he’d been tempted to only pop his head inside and call it a day, but then Mam’s letter had reached him and he’d caved at her simple request to go for a few hours to keep the peace – if not for himself, then for her and Fi’s sake.
Convincing his little sister had been a task, but… well, here they were. Uncomfortable, expensive outfits and all. Just the two of them… bored… and lurking along the fringes of the crowds for a while, slowly working their way to the refreshments table; he could certainly use a stiff drink for the night ahead.
He’d kept his eye on the Cupid statue most of the night, mostly because his little sister had said it was moving every so often and firing arrows at people and it made her antsy, so when it moved in his peripherals, he reacted like a restless dog that had been made to sit for far too long. With reflexes honed on the quidditch pitch, he pulled Fi aside—
And felt something hit him square in the chest. He stumbled a step back, huffing in surprise – and bumped right into someone.
Fuck, he wished Ena was here – she’d make this whole thing much more bearable with her snarky commentary… Eva would do the same, but she’d turned down Fi’s request to join the two of them, unfortunately.
The pair of them wouldn’t even be here if Grandmother Danaher hadn’t wrote him, implying heavily she’d hassle Fi (and her job security) if neither of them were spotted at this gaudy pink and red affair of a ball tonight; he’d been tempted to only pop his head inside and call it a day, but then Mam’s letter had reached him and he’d caved at her simple request to go for a few hours to keep the peace – if not for himself, then for her and Fi’s sake.
Convincing his little sister had been a task, but… well, here they were. Uncomfortable, expensive outfits and all. Just the two of them… bored… and lurking along the fringes of the crowds for a while, slowly working their way to the refreshments table; he could certainly use a stiff drink for the night ahead.
He’d kept his eye on the Cupid statue most of the night, mostly because his little sister had said it was moving every so often and firing arrows at people and it made her antsy, so when it moved in his peripherals, he reacted like a restless dog that had been made to sit for far too long. With reflexes honed on the quidditch pitch, he pulled Fi aside—
And felt something hit him square in the chest. He stumbled a step back, huffing in surprise – and bumped right into someone.