Basil was pleased with how this year’s ball was going. The Great Hall was crowded with families and suitors, and all around everyone seemed to be having a merry old time. He was terribly sad, of course, to be saying goodbye to this year’s particular group of seventh years. Some of his best and brightest were graduating, and between Mr. Selwyn and Ms. Chang, Basil had lost both of his most keen assistants. He was not thrilled for all the extra work this left on his plate next year, but he was proud to see them off, and as such had made an extra special effort for this years Coming Out Ball.

Despite Basil’s general disdain for the frivolities of society, he took his role as an educator very seriously. And, while his primary focus and responsibility was teaching his students transfiguration, he also considered general life skills to be under his purview as well. As such, he made an exception each year at the Hogwarts Coming Out Ball to dance with a few seventh year girls and to chatter away politely with the rising gentleman he had something of a connection with. It was his duty as both educator and functioning upperclass member of society to make sure they were prepared for what came next - even if for most it was ballrooms and frivolity.

With this in mind Basil added his name to a few dance cards, always pleasant and engaging - the perfect gentleman Atticus always wished him to be out in the real world. He chatted with a few of the gentlemen and then, that accomplished, he finally accepted a decent drink and joined Mason Skeeter on the outskirts, to watch the ball progress. He had a dance or two yet before he was to escort Miss Pompfrey. Basil took a generous sip of his drink. “Being a functioning member of society is exhausting,” he said then, under his breath to Mason. “I don’t know how the ton manages to do this day in and day out.” Never mind that he was supposedly part of it.

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