June 28th, 1895 — Hogsmeade Memorial Assembly Rooms // Public Ball

Kelly played his part, laughing at the offhand joke one of his fellow eligible wife-seeking bachelors made and tried to feel as if he belonged to the gathering and did not stick out like a sore thumb which he was sure he must. If his mother could see him there at the public assembly he knew he'd be forced to deal with her biting tongue and disparaging remarks about how he really was scrapping the barrel and his lack of self respect for surely no proper young lady of good breeding would find herself at such a ball but it would probably do for a man such as he had become. Her comments would probably then be followed by another littany about how he was such a disappointment and would never stack up to his brother and then perhaps again she'd bring up his employment in the ministry and how much of a disappointment he was there too.

She'd have been wrong about such things of course - maybe not about him because he was being constantly told he was a bit of wet blanket - but the public assembly seemed full of far better people than his family thought best to hang around with. He had spotted a great many that were definitely making their names in the world and belonged surely to the upper middle or lower end of upper classes. It was really quite jolly, and far better than the more exclusive events he attended as a Wildsmith where he constantly felt as his family's shadow and as if his every success, and many failure, somehow were all tied into his own name.

He excused himself as he went to get more refreshments and found himself bumbling straight in another person and causing their drink to go straight down their front.

Because of course that's just how his life went as soon as he thought it was looking up.

---

  

Strictly speaking, Warrington did not have to be here but he was always down for a good time. It looked like he was one of the wealthiest names here though it wasn't like he knew for sure. He did not keep up to date on other families finances.

He wandered over to the refreshments where someone bumbled into him. He had not even had a sip of his drink which was now all down his front. There were better ways of getting him out of his shirt, you know. But his mother would probably tan his hide if she ever heard he had said such a thing. Though if things were more private, he would have. "Well, this is unfortunate," he remarked as he put the empty cup aside.

---

  

---

Kelly froze as the drink soaked into the other man’s shirt. Brilliant. Just bloody brilliant. He’d barely lasted ten minutes and here he was making a spectacle of himself.

“Uh, Merlin, I’m so sorry,” he blurted, fumbling for his wand and experiencing a moment of utter panic when he realized it wasn’t in the usual place . Where had he put the damn thing? He patted himself down as he spoke, voice racing a mile a minute.

“I swear that was an accident - Merlin! Where did I put my wand?” He eventually found it in the left breast pocket sewn into his robe and wondered, briefly, why he’d put it there of all places. Ah! So it wouldn’t get in the way during the dancing.

He offered a sheepish smile, somewhere between apology and resignation. “If you stand still, I know a good spell for drying and cleaning.” It was practically a requirement by now if he wanted to stay looking put together after all the mishaps he ran into both on and off the job..

---

  

---