Amelia’s anxiety not being calmed by the wait, she had taken to fidgeting with the ring on her right hand. It felt out of place there, for Amelia never wore rings, but it had been of her mother’s design. Rings interfered with playing piano, with writing, and with a whole host of other activities Amelia found more productive than parading wealth, which was probably the intent of the ring. If she had had pockets, Amelia was certain she would have removed the offending piece of jewelry, but silk dresses did not often come equipped with such practicalities.
What if he doesn’t show? Antoinette will never let you live it down, not to mention the emotional scarring it will probably give you. As if he hasn’t done enough damage already. You were foolish to accept the invitation at all. You’re just giving him another opportunity to let you down.
Her mind was reeling, as it usually was in these types of situations, but just as she was beginning to grow nervous enough to have to remove herself from the immediate area of the dance floor, Amelia was approached by a girl she recognized by reputation, but not by direct introduction. She knew the girl to be in Slytherin, and it took her only a few seconds to identify her as Suzannah Malfoy. The girl’s reputation preceded her, but Amelia was not overtly fond in placing much stock in reputation. Having been a victim of the rumor mill more than once in her life – though she certainly brought the “Ice Queen” business on herself – Amelia was able to mirror the girl’s smile, though not failing to notice that Suzanna’s smile didn’t quite reach her eyes.
“Amelia Lyons” the redhead echoed her name, grateful that she had enough social training to at least manage this much, even in spite of her nerves. Perhaps having a conversation would be enough to distract her thoughts from wandering off to Elijah again, on whom they had already spent far too much time.
The compliment on her dress was unexpected, but then again, flattery was part of the social process at events such as this one. Amelia wanted to return the accolade, but as her eyes swept down Suzannah’s choice of attire for the evening, she could not find the appropriate adjective to choose. The dress she wore was definitely dramatic, made with black lace in varying degrees of transparency. Amelia knew with the utmost certainty that she would never be bold enough to wear anything like that, so when she could find no words to repay the compliment, she merely nodded politely in thanks.
Curse this inability to focus… Amelia thought to herself when she came up short of words to prolong this conversation with Suzannah. Amelia had never been particularly good at making conversation, and when she was able to, it took every bit of her concentration. That concentration, try as she might to direct it, seemed to keep wandering off on her, right up until the subject of such wanderings appeared behind her, unbeknownst to Amelia until she heard the telltale tones of his voice.
Amelia nearly jumped in surprise at Elijah’s voice, but was able to keep her feet planted firmly on the ground, though her physical reaction was not completely hidden. Her eyes widened as she processed the greeting she knew had come from the Slytherin boy behind her, but she was not yet able to get her feet to turn herself around to face him. Her heart was skipping in her chest, which was completely empty save for that organ, or at least it seemed that way with the way the beats echoed in her ears.
She had visually stiffened at the sound of his voice, but she was not so taken by surprise that she did not hear the next words he offered to Suzannah. At this, Amelia’s eyes narrowed slightly, and it took her a few seconds to recognize the feeling that had just bubbled momentarily inside her: jealousy. It was not typical of Amelia to feel such an emotion, nor to be unable to quash it with a single thought. The Ravenclaw girl was still reeling from seemingly being overlooked when, without warning, she felt Elijah’s breath on her neck and his words in her ear.
The heat of his breath was nothing compared to the heat which rose to her cheeks at his words, and it was only these that managed to change Amelia’s legs from stone to moving limbs as she turned on the spot to face him. She had intentionally pulled slightly away from Elijah in the hopes that she might be able to organize her thoughts better at a distance, but this plan seemed to have been thwarted the moment her eyes took him in.
To say he looked handsome would have been, in Amelia’s opinion, an inadequate use of adjective. For a moment, her cupid’s-bow lips fell open slightly as her eyes moved over him, impressed as she always was at his ability to dress so casually and yet still leave such an impression on her. He had layered a light grey jacket over a plain white, long-sleeved shirt, and had opted for jeans. Although he might have been considered under-dressed compared to the other men in attendance, his carriage more than made up for his opt to go casual. His hair was slightly shorter than it had been a few days earlier, but it still fell away from his angular face in such a way that made her chest feel like someone was intentionally pushing on it.
After a few seconds of staring, Amelia’s subconcious was able to force itself through the fog that had infiltrated her mind, it’s first instruction being to close her mouth and stop looking like a codfish. Upon completing this task, Amelia swallowed hard, lost for words and blushing a deeper crimson now than she had been at Elijah’s initial flattery. Seeing as he still had full function of his eyes, Amelia was certain he would not have missed her once-over of him, though Amelia still clung to a desperate hope that he hadn’t noticed. She had come here determined not to show Elijah the effect he had on her, wanting to keep her composure and maintain that nothing remained between them, but, as usual, Elijah had thwarted even her best laid plans.
“Thank you,” Amelia finally managed, pulling the only coherent words she could think of from the recesses of her mind. “For the compliment, I mean,” she added hurriedly afterward, realizing belatedly that Elijah might interpret her thanks in a different way – like as an appreciation of letting her undress him with her eyes, for example – and she nervously tucked a few strands of hair behind her right ear as a distraction from her own thoughts, which were getting dangerously rebellious considering her rationale’s attempts to reign them in.
Stop acting like an idiot. Say something that might even stand a chance at making him think this relationship is platonic. And for Merlin’s sake, stop ogling him!
“I… ah…” Amelia began, stopping to compose her thoughts again midsentence, for she seemed to have lost her train of thought again in the midst of her mind’s accusations.
“You look nice as well,” Amelia said too quickly, revealing only a fraction of her true thoughts on Elijah’s appearance, and mostly managing to keep her voice level and appropriate for a small-talk-esque conversation that she might have had with anyone, and not the one she was currently having with the boy who unfairly dominated her thoughts whenever she let her guard down even slightly.
“I see you already know Suzannah,” Amelia added awkwardly, turning slightly to allow Suzannah into the lopsided triangle the three of them were now making. She had nearly forgotten about the other girl until just a moment earlier, as in her desperation of something semi-normal to say, her eyes had fallen on the Slytherin girl’s shoes. It was a pity that there were no introductions to do, for Amelia was out of ideas already, and instead stood inelegantly between the pair of Slytherins, focusing an inordinate amount of energy on not letting her eyes wander over to Elijah any more than was socially acceptable.
by 
