Merry and Bright

[Hannah Pettigrew]

Mr. Pettigrew had excused himself momentarily to fetch a drink, leaving Hannah a few minutes to revel in how well the evening was going. She had been practically vibrating with excitement the entire day, and so far the evening had lived up to every expectation she could possibly have. The gardens had been beautiful, though the company proved to have a monopoly on her attention; it hadn't been long before they had returned to the warmth of the ballroom for a dance.

A few curious gazes had been thrown her way, she thought, but she hardly found it in herself to care. It was fairly obvious that neither she nor her mother had anything to do with the professional Quidditch world; she merely explained to those who asked that Mr. Pettigrew was a friend of the family. It wasn't really a lie; August was her uncle, after all, nevermind that he wasn't present at this particular gathering.

An unfamiliar presence at her side brought her back to the present. Hannah offered the woman a grin, unable to contain her cheerfulness, as usual.

"Happy Christmas!" she said brightly. "It's been a lovely evening, don't you think?"

@Violet MacFusty - for Kayte

  

[Kayte Pettigrew]

Kayte had not noticed the blonde at her son's elbow — or vice verse — until later in the evening. She had been far too busy being the social butterfly that she was and attempting to scout out potential wives. Little did she know, that perhaps Thomas had already found one, all on his own. Pretty, blonde, and young but not too young, Kayte immediately approved of her. Until she realized that the girl was a couple of inches taller than him. That was a tad embarrassing.

Kayte decided to approach her anyhow. If she had caught her son's attention, she was certainly worth some of her own.

"Quite lovely," Her voice was cheerful as she eyed the girl with a tad of suspicion, "Though I suspect that yours has been lovelier yet — as you've spent quite a bit of it in the company of my son. He's quite wonderful, isn't he?"

  

[Hannah Pettigrew]

It was lucky that Hannah wasn't sipping a drink at that moment, for if she was, it would have almost certainly have ended up sputtered all over the woman's dress. Sweet Merlin, this was Mr. Pettigrew's mother. Not only that, but she had seen fit to comment on the time she had spent with her son! Had she miscalculated how conspicuous her presence was at the ball? No, she couldn't have. Though she was by no means part of the Quidditch world, she was hardly the only young debutante in attendance. No one here could possibly know of her father's transgressions, not when she wasn't even confident of their nature herself. It was true, she had spent quite some time conversing with Mr. Pettigrew, but in what world could that be considered a crime? True, he was still in mourning, she supposed, but he was a grown man capable of behaving himself. In any case, Mama certainly would have intervened if she had done anything untoward.

In a moment of childish weakness, she almost turned to look for her own mother, who was engrossed in yet another conversation some feet away, but she caught herself before she succumbed. No, she had done nothing to draw anyone's suspicion other than be an enchanting conversation and dance partner. Her anxiety subsided nearly as quickly as it appeared, her cheerful expression untouched. She could do this. It would take more than a possibly batty old woman to get under her skin. If she had learned one thing in her years of living with Sebastian Echelon, it was how to keep a strong poker face.

"Indeed, Mr. Pettigrew has been a most gracious host," she replied with a smile. "He was just showing me the gardens earlier. Were the poinsettias your idea? They looked marvelous." Yes, flatter her. That would almost certainly help her case. Not that she needed to build a case. They were just talking, for Merlin's sake!