Early Summer, 1887 — Dempsey Estate, Ireland

His latest experiment was a coat that adapted to the weather: breathable fabric and light, summer colors in the sunshine, thick grey wool in the snow, and black leather in the rain. The first trial of it had not gone as planned, and he'd ended up in Hogsmeade Hospital (not for the first nor the last time) sitting on an uncomfortable gurney bed while Thomasina Pomfrey used a spell to slowly and laboriously separate the coat from his skin where it had become quite unfortunately attached. Her shift had ended after the coat was off, but he'd been required to stay at the hospital for another two hours while another healer visited periodically with a salve to help ensure his skin didn't scar. He missed her once she was gone.

His parents didn't often throw garden parties, or parties of any variety; they were mostly involved in their creative projects and their children and couldn't be bothered to entertain the whole of society on a whim. He'd encouraged them to throw this one, because it had recently struck him as what a shame it was that most people hadn't had a chance to see the Dempsey Estate. If he was being honest with himself (he wasn't) it was really just one person that he wanted to see it, but having his parents throw an extensive party seemed like the only way to lure her here. It wasn't as though he could just come out and invite her himself. Not yet, anyway — by tomorrow he'd be able to invite her where he liked. Oz hadn't told anyone except Dash what he was planning, but not because he had any illusions that he might not be successful. He'd simply imagined both scenarios in his mind, announcing the decision to his family and friends before or after asking, and had decided he preferred the dramatic reveal better in the second.

His parents might not have known what he was planning, but they couldn't have failed to notice how tense he was during the first half-hour of the party when she hadn't arrived yet. By the time she did show up he was ready to pounce, like a hungry tiger. He'd planned to wait until later in the day, when she'd had a chance to experience the party and take in the house and the grounds and everything, but now the idea of waiting any longer made him feel crazy. He forced himself to take a walk — he couldn't jump down her throat with the question in the first five minutes of her being here. While walking he was accosted by a rogue storm cloud about the size of a carriage — another side effect of the failed experiment with the weather-reactive coat. Oz scowled at it and shooed it away with a spell, but not before it had dampened his hair and coat. He slipped upstairs to try and dry himself off a bit, then returned to the party.

"Miss Pomfrey," he said as he approached, in a tone that would by now have been familiar to her: mild disdain. "How good of you to grace us with your presence."

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MJ is the light of my life <3

Thomasina's father was baffled by the invitation, having heard a few times that the eldest Dempsey son did not care for Thomasina. Thomasina was decidedly less baffled, but had no desire to explain her thought process to her father, and so let him be confused. They arrived a fashionable half-hour after the party began, and the party was large enough — and the garden large enough — that it was easy enough for Sina to find people to talk to. She was having a good time, mystery aside.

Sina was standing near the refreshments table when Mr. Dempsey approached. She took a sip of her wine before she replied to him. (Were his curls slightly wet? Sina could not exactly tell in this light, but if she was right, this would be excellent material for the conversation. She noted it.)

"Seeing as you came to my territory the other day —" Mr. Dempsey had ownership of all-or-most parties, but the Hospital was very much Sina's domain, never mind that he had actually been injured "— I thought I ought to return the favor." Her tone was amused; Mr. Dempsey could approach her with disdain, but he could not take away that Sina had seen him at his most vulnerable.

(Her secret? She'd sort of enjoyed it; not his injury, but the amount of time they'd spent together.)

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Oz didn't smile, but his eyes did light up as she reminded him of the previous week's encounter. It likely wasn't saying much that it was at the forefront of her mind when speaking to him, given that it was their most recent encounter, but he still enjoyed that she'd brought it up; it made him feel as though perhaps she'd been thinking about it in the meantime. (It was a little unfortunate that the first time she'd seen him shirtless was while his skin was all so raw from her recent spell, but perhaps he'd still made an impression).

"Territory," he murmured. "You make it sound as though we're being invaded. Did anyone in your party bring a literal battle-ax this afternoon, or did they just bring you?"

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MJ is the light of my life <3

"I find myself to be more effective than a battle-axe," Thomasina said; her smile curled into a smirk, because she was a little flattered by the comparison. "For one thing, I'm usually sharper. And I doubt I would need a battle-axe to manage you and yours." She only had beef-by-proxy with the rest of the Dempseys, although she had found that the rest of them were not nearly as interesting as Mr. Ozymandias.

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That was nicely played, he had to admit. He hadn't even anticipated the connection between battle-ax and sharp, and internally he had to chide himself for not putting that together before he'd said it. One would think that someone raised by poets would have been able to see a metaphor like that coming a mile away.

Ozymandias watched her for a second, trying to think whether he wanted to continue this conversation or move on to his real purpose in approaching her today. "Let me show you the garden," he decided, reaching for her arm before she could protest. "My mother would be quite distraught if we left blood stains on her rug, so it's probably best we go outside before you lose all restraint."

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MJ is the light of my life <3

Sina allowed Mr. Dempsey to take her arm, but laughed sharply at his comment; it was an excellent play on words. She wondered idly what those around them thought. Sina could have continued the metaphor, if she really wanted to, but Mr. Dempsey touching her allowed her to confirm what she had suspected: he was slightly damp.

"Are you going to tell me why you're moist?" she asked, as they left the room and the main crowd.

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Oh. He'd sort of forgotten about that, and had no witty response ready for her on the subject. If he dodged the question in any way other than a witty remark, though, she would think he'd been up to something and was now trying to hide it. The only thing left to him seemed to be the truth. "Sudden rain storm. Very intense but localized to about an eight foot diameter," he said briskly as they walked outside. It occurred to him that she might not believe that, but he'd devoted all the attention to the issue that he intended to. He'd brought her out here because he wanted to cut to the chase, not to explain how he'd managed to create a small but incredibly persistent weather anomaly by accident.

"I'd let go of your arm, but I don't want you getting lost," he continued as they moved from the patio to the garden proper. "I'm sure this is much larger than what you're accustomed to."

A normal person trying to set a woman up for an offer of marriage might have asked how do you like the house? but that was hardly as much fun.

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MJ is the light of my life <3

Thomasina was not sure she believed him, re: the rainstorm. He sounded more honest than he usually did. She decided to believe him; or, at least, she decided not to ask any more questions about it.

"You always have assumed everyone to have as little awareness of their surroundings as you do," Sina replied; still, she did not pull her arm away from him. She didn't understand why he was showing her the garden, but she was sure he would get around to the point sooner rather than later — even if the point was simply to mock her.

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set by MJ

He'd been hoping that he'd be able to guess from her response whether she liked the estate or not, but her response was fairly opaque on that point. Nevermind — he'd figure it out later. He'd have plenty of time. If she didn't like it, they could live somewhere else while he wore her down on the subject — anywhere but Hogsmeade. Hopefully she wasn't sentimental about living close to her work. Assuming, of course, that she would still want to work — he hadn't considered, but since he had gotten bored of being a gentleman of leisure before he'd even run out of women to seduce, he couldn't imagine she'd be any more content to sit at home doing nothing.

"I'm aware of more than you give me credit for," he said, without elaborating. "My mother is particularly proud of these lilies," he continued, nodding towards a colorful display of them. "Most lilies are gone by this time of year, but these ones always linger longer. She says it's not a spell, but I have my doubts."

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MJ is the light of my life <3

Thomasina expected him to say something biting; she was surprised when he didn't. She glanced over at the lilies. "She should be proud," Sina allowed. She felt vaguely that she was walking into a trap. "Do you have any marigolds?" she asked. She usually wasn't much for non-medicinal flowers, but Sina liked marigolds; the bright yellow flowers, the formation of them, the way they seemed so vibrant.

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Her response may have been positive, but it was unfamiliar ground for him; it made him a little less certain about what came next. Not about the end result, of course, but about the path to get there. They did have marigolds, though (another plant native to this part of the world, and his parents had always encouraged the garden to look more natural than was entirely fashionable), so he nodded and steered her in that direction. They walked quietly, punctuated by one occurrence where her foot had caught on one of the cobblestones and Oz had muttered graceless under his breath.

When they reached the marigolds he let go of her arm. He moved to pick one of the flowers, but didn't offer it to her. Instead he considered it briefly between his fingers before turning his attention back to Miss Pomfrey. "I've made a decision," he announced. "I want to marry you."

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MJ is the light of my life <3

They did have marigolds. Thomasina was not sure how she felt about her arm being released, and eyed him and the flower between his fingers. When he said marry, her heart started thumping faster, and she raised her eyebrows. "I would like to hear your logic," Sina said. She was not convinced he was telling the truth. She was not going to let him get the satisfaction of an answer if he was messing with her.

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   Ozymandias Dempsey

Oz twirled the marigold between his fingers. He hadn't anticipated any particular response from her to this declaration — often, with her, it was best not to anticipate, because when he did she always found ways to surprise him. To that end, he wasn't put out not to receive an immediate yes.

"You'd be quite comfortable here," he explained. She may not have seen the entire house yet, but he trusted that the time she had spent in the house and the garden was enough to convince her of that point. For some women the fact that Ozymandias was in a position to someday inherit a large estate would have been enough, but he didn't expect that to be the case for Miss Pomfrey, who had elected to work instead of becoming a debutante. Of course he also thought she would enjoy having him as a husband (even if she did not admit it), but he couldn't think of a way to say that without sounding far too egotistical.

He twirled the marigold again and arched a brow at her. "It's the last thing anyone would expect of us," he pointed out, which seemed like it might be as good a reason for her as any.

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MJ is the light of my life <3

Both of the things he said were true: she could be quite comfortable here, and they would surprise everyone she knew. Sina enjoyed surprising people. She thought it was fun, and she was pleased that Dempsey seemed to know she felt that way. She considered him for a moment, and tilted her head.

"I would continue to work," Sina said, "I would not do most of the — upper class society nonsense. And you are allowed to argue with me, but you're not to embarrass me in the way your friend will embarrass his future wife." These were the three things she wanted most if she were to marry him: her job, the freedom she had in her current position, and no bastard children.

As long as Ozymandias obeyed these instructions, Thomasina thought he raised an interesting point. She had wanted to kiss him for a while now, after all.

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   Ozymandias Dempsey

Ozy had expected the first two conditions, or something like them. He did not expect that marrying Miss Pomfrey would magically turn her into an entirely different person (and in fact if he had believed this he would have been much less inclined to marry her). The third surprised him, but after a moment's consideration it seemed reasonable enough. She certainly meant Dash, so it followed that she probably meant mistresses, or bastards. Oz had no desire at all to run around fathering children with women he took to bed. Giving up on affairs entirely was a much harder ask, because it would mean a considerable lifestyle change from what he and Dash spent most of their time together doing — but she'd only said she didn't want to be embarrassed, so as long as he was careful and discreet (he always was), it was probably a moot point.

He might have asked for clarification, only he thought that might make her think he was unamenable to her terms. He'd figure out exactly what she meant by it sooner or later, and in the meantime he wouldn't do anything that would embarrass her.

"I hardly need your permission to argue with you," he pointed out. He offered her the marigold.

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   Thomasina Dempsey

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MJ is the light of my life <3

Sina accepted the marigold; if he was offering, that meant none of her requirements were so objectionable that he would rescind his offer outright. Since he had agreed, she was still more excited by the offer than she would have liked to admit.

She twirled the marigold in her fingers. "Before I accept," she said, "I should like for you to kiss me." She wasn't going to say yes if he was a bad kisser, although he certainly had enough practice to be good.

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