11 June, 1891 — Hogsmeade Memorial Ballroom
Topaz had a glass of champagne in hand, but wasn't really drinking it. She'd gotten it half so that she could taste it and see what it was like, and half because it seemed like it would help her blend into the background of this party. She didn't really want to participate so much as she wanted to observe, so that she could have a better mental impression of these sorts of events to look back on later. She had long since grown accustomed to the notion that she wouldn't experience much of the world, and she preferred to stay home to avoid the stares that inevitably followed her any time she went out. She did love to read, though, and it was something to have a mental picture to compare to the descriptions of the written word on the page. That was what she was doing here tonight, really: getting enough mental fodder to use for literary fantasies for years to come.
She'd found an out-of-the-way corner of the ballroom and had started watching a little drama play out on the opposite end of the room. She doubted anyone else had even noticed. If they had, they didn't seem to be watching. Topaz, however, was fascinated. There was a gentleman who was clearly working up the nerve to talk to a young lady. He'd been mooning over her and glancing in her direction every minute or so for the past ten. Twice, Topaz had thought he was about to approach her and ask her for a dance, but before he could make his way over to her she would become engaged in conversation from another quarter and he would lose his nerve. Not very brave, this fellow, but since Topaz was lurking in the shadows hoping no one would notice her, she wasn't really one to talk.
Finally he made his way over to her, with his shoulders thrown back confidently — and a mere two feet from her, the young woman turned in the opposite direction, apparently not having seen him before someone else had called out her name. Another gentleman appeared, offering her a glass of champagne, and she smiled. The poor suitor was quite crushed.
"Oh, no," Topaz breathed to herself as she watched him retreat to lick his wounds. "Don't give up, come on now. You can do it." She was so caught up in this drama put on by strangers that she failed to realize someone else had drawn close enough to her own position to overhear her quiet encouragements to the young gentleman.
She'd found an out-of-the-way corner of the ballroom and had started watching a little drama play out on the opposite end of the room. She doubted anyone else had even noticed. If they had, they didn't seem to be watching. Topaz, however, was fascinated. There was a gentleman who was clearly working up the nerve to talk to a young lady. He'd been mooning over her and glancing in her direction every minute or so for the past ten. Twice, Topaz had thought he was about to approach her and ask her for a dance, but before he could make his way over to her she would become engaged in conversation from another quarter and he would lose his nerve. Not very brave, this fellow, but since Topaz was lurking in the shadows hoping no one would notice her, she wasn't really one to talk.
Finally he made his way over to her, with his shoulders thrown back confidently — and a mere two feet from her, the young woman turned in the opposite direction, apparently not having seen him before someone else had called out her name. Another gentleman appeared, offering her a glass of champagne, and she smiled. The poor suitor was quite crushed.
"Oh, no," Topaz breathed to herself as she watched him retreat to lick his wounds. "Don't give up, come on now. You can do it." She was so caught up in this drama put on by strangers that she failed to realize someone else had drawn close enough to her own position to overhear her quiet encouragements to the young gentleman.
While this thread is open I would love if it was taken by someone who could work for her lonely plot if the chemistry is there!
pinned my hopes to the summit of someday
Magnolia