#benjy002

Courage officially gathered, Lily makes her way into the bar. It’s not hard to spot Benjy, sitting up at the bar with a free seat next to him. She grins and waves, heading over to him and plopping herself down beside him. “Hey there, stranger.” She pulls him in for a hug and kisses his cheek. “How’ve you been?” 

With a highly publicized event as the National Quidditch Cup, the minister was likely to attend. Which meant that Barty was supposed to attend as well. Luckily, Barty wasn’t expected to be attached to her hip at all times. An acquaintance will drop by the tent and Barty will be sent away. It would usually end up souring his mood but there was solace in knowing that his fellow junior assistant was sent away too. Bagnold was in her tent with someone right now so Barty spent the time waiting outside the tent with a lit cigarette between his lips. A familiar face emerged from the crowd which made him smile. Barty motioned for him to come closer. Seeing the camera in his hands, he asked. “Are you here to take a picture of the minister, or me?” Barty kept his face serious only for it to be cracked by a smile just seconds later.

He knew Benjy had been in hospital for days, felt the guilt for not going to see his friend lingering over him. And for his own peace of mind, Fabian did want to see Benjy. 

But. Going back there. Where he’d seen Athena’s body. The dread he felt at the thought had managed to overwhelm all else for several days, Fabian not able to bring himself to do what he knew he should. 

Making his way to Benjy’s room now, through the fluorescent halls, he felt sick to his stomach. He hated this place. Nothing but a friend could have gotten him to come here. Having sought the room number from a Healer on duty, he knocked once before entering, standing in the doorway and looking for Benjy. 

In a way, they’d been lucky, hadn’t they? The Order hadn’t lost a single member that night. But it didn’t seem that way when he thought about other losses. And who knew if Benjy would recover from this. “Benjy,” Fabian said lightly, “Gideon sends regards. He said he was here yesterday, though. I would have come ... well. Things have been chaotic. But how are you holding up?” 

Emmeline had chosen to forgo a plus-one for the wedding. She couldn’t find the desire to ask anyone to be her date, and any friends she might have gone with were already invited. Besides, first-dates at weddings were tricky. If you didn’t enjoy your date’s company, you were pretty much stuck entertaining them the whole night. Emmeline didn’t want the hassle or the distraction, not when she’d much rather spend the day celebrating with her close friends.

She’d kept an eye out for Benjy and Charity in particular. The roommates were some of her closest friends and always good for a fun time. Besides, Charity had been generous enough to let Emmeline borrow a dress for the occasion, and Emmeline was eager to show her the how it looked. The first of the two she’d spotted in the crowd was Benjy, and Emmeline made her way over with a smile. “Benjy!” She greeted, reaching out to place a hand on his arm for his attention. “Don’t you look nice! I almost didn’t recognize you.” She teased.