[ 1 ] EXPLODE ( r. black ! )

twenty-two || advice

"I'm getting a second opinion." Eleanor corrected, then left the Hall in a hurried fashion, yet still managing to glide across the floor elegantly. That was something Dumbledore admired about her, he thought as he tucked into his treat, but he was sure that Eleanor Archord would add more things to that list soon enough. At least, if what he had been told was true... but those were thoughts for after festivities and feasts, he reminded the cogs working overtime in his brain.

On her hunt for the one person she knew would be free for a chat that didn't own a magnificent beard last time she saw her and was deadpan honest, Eleanor bumped into a Ravenclaw girl she knew during the days of Jordan Rickson. Her pale lips that matched her tight dress announced that Kelsie Selwyn had been spotted by her own eyes in the next hallway. With her search suddenly made easier, she thanked the girl and headed that way.

As luck wouldn't have it, Eleanor's seemed to be running out of the limited batch that she owned because Kelsie seemed to have disappeared. Picking up her skirt, Eleanor deeply sighed to show the gods her discontent and continued her search. Not long after she begun it again was her arm gently grabbed and her body suddenly spun so she landed in arms that fit perfectly to spring her into dance with music that was enchanted to play softly in the hallways surrounding the Ball.

Not a single part of her was shocked to lift her head to lock eyes with Regulus and she jokingly rolled her eyes at his smug grin. "That was smooth."

"Thank you," He replied, voice as quiet as she didn't realise hers was but, with bodies so close, it was only natural. "Why are you wandering the hallways and not dancing with some lucky loser in there?"

"I'm looking for Kelsie." Eleanor stated. What she'd expected was her mouth to let out a smart remark in response to his comment about her dancing with somebody else but it never came.

Apparently, he seemed to be waiting for it too. When the pause became too long to tack anything on the end of her statement, he shook his head to hide his smile. If her breath hadn't already locked itself in her throat forbidding her remark, it definitely did then. Unlike his brother, Regulus' best friend wasn't gobs of Fleamont Potter's Sleekeazy's Hair Potion, even though he did use it, so it allowed his hair to wisp around. Not as absently as her thoughts had once been, she wondered what it would feel like to run her hand through it. Soft, she bet herself.

"Funnily enough, I'm looking for Kelsie too. I figured she'd be the one of two people who wasn't busy dancing who I could talk about what I said to you earlier." The boy explained once his eyes met hers again. "The other was Severus and I doubt he'd stand two minutes without Hexing me into next year."

"Not too far to go." Eleanor remarked lamely. She rolled her eyes at herself and repeated the action at his eyebrow raise – they both knew she could do better. Instead of having a second go, Eleanor straightened herself up in hope to give herself more confidence before she spoke. "I'm not dancing with anybody but you, why don't you talk to me?"

Biting his lip, he somewhat prevented his smirk. "Do you really think you can listen without cutting me off for once, Archord?"

Like he apparently was, Eleanor thought back on all their arguments. In all of her arguments with anybody, really, she would find it impossible to keep her brows stuck down and face not wide in angered shock before sliding her words in after they said something she regarded as wrong. Most of the time it was when a Slytherin brought up their War and Voldemort related opinions but she was pretty sure she had cut Regulus off for not enjoying the works of Robert Louis Stevenson once or twice too.