it's my sweet beginning.

When did this happen? Indi had relationships and flings in the past but this was different. She furrowed her forehead, upset at the thought that it was different. She wasn't ready for anything to be more than fun and this was more than fun. She felt like shit because she couldn't have him. This wasn't fun.

Maybe it's because he's the one person she couldn't have. She could always get other people but she couldn't get Regulus. Yes, that had to be it. Right? Indi shook her head, trying to shake the thoughts from her head. She was thinking far too much. She should have been moving and letting him go on his way.

She didn't expect him to say anything but he did. "You want to talk?" she said softly because of the stone in her throat. She tried to choke it down. She didn't want to look weak. "What is there to talk about?" Indi's voice had come back. "Pandora will be waiting."

Indi still couldn't move.

"Err, thanks" he ran a hand through his hair, messing up the neat style that Charity has helped him with. "Are you enjoying the ball?" what a lame question Ted he thought to himself. "It's kind of cool seeing everything decorated like this- I love Christmas anyway and this just makes it all feel even closer."

"Who couldn't be enjoying the ball? It's bloody fantastic!" Indi ignored Regulus in the back of her mind. "Came with my best friend, got to dress up, getting to dance as much as I like," she leaned in to whisper, "having a drink or five," she pulled back. "It's utterly wonderful. And you're right. The decorations make things that much better. Christmas can't get here soon enough. It will be so nice to see the family. I'll have to tell grandpa Newt all about you, Ted Tonks."

Regulus' expression was sullen as he filled up drinks for both him and Pandora. It's not that he was having a bad time, he *wasn't*. If there was one person in the world whos company he would never grow tired of, it was Pandoras, he loved her, he loved her dearly but she wasn't who he had wanted to be here with. He doesn't know when his feelings for Indi had started to shift, she had always been...Greater than everyone else. But it's pretty poor fucking timing for him to have developed feelings now. When him and Pandora are moments away from being engaged if their parents have any say in it, and, Regulus' at least, have all the say. He hadn't thought it a problem, not really, not until Indi asked him to the ball, which only had made things even worse. At least when he thought his stupid crush wasn't reciprocated he could tell himself that it was pointless anyway, but knowing that she liked him too, well, all he could think about now was her. It was stupid, he really never felt more pathetic. Picking up the drinks, he was about to walk away from the table when right when he turns around he runs into none other than Indi, only just narrowly avoiding spilling the drinks on her "Shit! I'm sorry!" He apologizes anyway because...Well what else he supposed to say?

She hated that she admitted to Alice that she liked the stupid boy. Why did she like him anyway? ...why wouldn't she like him? They got along wonderfully, she saw so many things inside of him that were genuine and enjoyable. She wished she didn't but she did. It wasn't until Alice that she realized she had any feelings for him other than that of friendship. She was jealous of Pandora. That was the tipping point.

Regulus ended up leaving the circle breaking Indi's attention. Instead of trying to find him, she moved through the crowd, searching for anyone to talk to. She could feel that her demeanor had flattened and she needed a pick-me-up. She then remembered she had a flask of firewhiskey in the band of her dress. To the drinks table.

Indi made her way to get a drink and almost ran directly into Regulus. Are you fucking kidding me? "The dress is fine so you're okay," she said, smoothing her dress. "Seems you're having a good time. I'll get out of your way." Indi said, planning on moving from his path but unable to.

Alice reached out and smoothed Indi’s hair as she listened with an impassive expression. There was a lot to unpack in her friend’s outburst. Indi never wanted to talk about the impending war, or the way pureblood culture and politics fed into it, but there was definitely an opening there. Alice could’ve taken it, but she was more concerned with what else was going unsaid. “And what is it that you want, that Pandora’s stopping you from getting?” Indi was gorgeous, and friendly, and fun; Alice could think of any number of people who’d be happy to be her date to the ball. But she wasn’t sure Indi was just upset about not having a date.

“And you’re the incrediblest Scamander. Anyone would be lucky to be your date, you know that. And if Regulus doesn’t, then his head is obviously even further up his ass than dear Bella’s.” Alice tugged  the covers back down so she could see Indi’s face. “So what’s wrong?”

She sat up listening to her best friend's questions. They were questions Indi didn't want to think about let alone answer. "I don't know. It just seems like since Pandora came into the picture I haven't seen Reg as much. He's been such a good friend and now he's slipping away..." she trailed off. It wasn't a lie but was it the entire truth?

"I --" she sighed and mumbled under her breath, "I think I like him but don't say anything." She changed the subject by perking up and asked, "If anyone would be lucky, would you be my date, Alice Moody?" Indi's face lit up at the thought of walking through the doors of the ball with her best friend. "I've been stupidly upset about a boy when the best date is sitting right next to me."

“That’s exactly my point! The first years are getting stupider, we were dumb, but we weren’t that dumb.” Alice pulled her knees up to her chest so she could untie her shoes, then kicked them off. She was primed to continue whinging philosophical, but Indi’s mood, and her words, distracted her. She always preferred confronting other people’s problems, anyway, even if Indi was someone that Alice was more comfortable airing her grievances with. 

Alice turned onto her side to face Indi and propped herself up on her elbow. “Do we need to bash Pandora? Because we can do that, I mean, she’s a great kid, but she’s no you. Plus, she’s a Selwyn, those snotty 28 families always have baggage.” It was all in good fun, but Alice wasn’t totally above putting someone down to gas her best friend up, at least not when no one else would know. “Your family’s a delight, just like you.”

"I wouldn't bash her. She's perfectly fine. I mean, it would be nice to get her somewhere else so I can get what I want, but that's not likely going to happen. They're betrothed. What the actual hell? Why are purebloods so obsessed with marrying their kids off? Keeping blood pure -- that's disgusting." As the words came out of her mouth, she didn't realize she was saying things very Order centered instead of staying neutral. She was so in denial that the war was real that she didn't hear herself sometimes. She turned to Alice. "Baggage for sure."

When Alice mentioned her family, Indi smiled. "My family is incredible. No one can fight a Scamander." She breathed in. "But a Selwyn is taking her spot." She covered her head with a blanket. "Why?"

Alice blew into Indi’s room without knocking. It wasn’t that she didn’t care about polite things like knocking and waiting to be invited in, it was more that they’d long since passed the point where those kinds of niceties applied to each other. Instead, Alice flopped face-first onto Indi’s bed and groaned loudly before rolling over. “I swear, first years are getting stupider.” Normally, Alice didn’t like complaining, especially about kids being kids, but Indi was her safe zone for all of the petty and rude thoughts she had. “We were not this dumb when we were eleven. I had to supervise study hall because two kids kept trying to start a duel! Babysitting is not part of the safety czar job description.” 

It probably wouldn’t have annoyed Alice as much as it did if it hadn’t interrupted her own study schedule, but it had. Instead of spending a couple quiet hours in her dorm working on an essay that was due in two days, she’d only had thirty minutes before she was called to the Great Hall. It had created a domino effect of throwing off her plans, and she knew if she didn’t get it off her chest the frustration would eat away at her concentration.

She wanted to engage in the conversation more, but Indi had complaining of herself to do. "I'm irritated too. I found out today that Reg is taking Pandora to the Yule Ball. He was supposed to go with me. Okay, so he and Pandora are betrothed, but who cares?" Indi didn't know why it was bothering her so much but it was. "I'm not supposed to go alone. He was it." She turned to Alice. "Not to bash Pandora at all, but he should be going with me," Indi whined.