Bab 135: Yule ball(2)

Nick didn't go overboard and secretly ate a bit of lembas bread to lower the amount of food he needed to take in without totally ruining his appetite. For the little of his hunger that remained Nick merely snacked on something that looked like mini sausages but was covered in a thin sweet glaze. Once satisfied with his food Nick found a chair and sat off to the side of the ballroom floor calmly watching the new people arriving. Malfoy , Nott , Crabbe , Goyle and even Greengrass all amongst those arriving via floo for this party.-

Daphne's eyes lit up when she found Nick sitting off to the side of the ballroom openly observing everyone else. She leaned over to her parents who were looking for a place to be seated themselves. "My friend is sitting over there perhaps we should join him?" she said while pointing Nick out to them. Both of her parents looked amused at the request and sized Nick up and both raised an eyebrow at what they found. As well established political figures the Greengrass couple were adept at reading people based on their posture , expression and movements and so they were surprised to find that Nick was nearly unreadable.-

His body was unnaturally still as if every muscle was under his control while he seemed to radiate an aura that demanded respect. It was subtle but they even noticed how his eyes seemed to hold a sort of detachment to his surroundings despite watching them cautiously. They almost didn't notice that his right hand never strayed far from his wand as though he expected to be attacked at any given moment. Yet despite all of this his posture and movements were relaxed and casual while he had a pleasant approachable expression on his face.-

"Yes , lets see if we can't impose on this young man for a seat." Daphne's father Florian said with a small smile at his daughter. The family started to walk over to the table where Nick was sitting leisurely. He noticed this but didn't react at all since he had excepted such a thing to happen eventually. While she was usually cold on the outside due to her occlumency Daphne really did prefer to surround herself with only people she got along with. Once the family started to get close Nick stood up and politely greeted Daphne's parents.-

"Good evening Mr. and Mrs. Greengrass , to you as well Daphne." he said politely with a friendly smile. The two adults returned his greeting and Daphne merely nodded at him "Do you mind if we join you at this table?" Florian asked politely and Nick shook his head "Not at all , please help yourselves." he said honestly. The family seated themselves with Daphne sitting next to her mother Adorabella Greengrass and Nick sitting next to Florian. "I apologize for any tension the marriage proposal may have had on you and my daughter but it is an opportunity I would regret not making an attempt at." Florian said honestly catching Nick off guard.-

He recovered easily though "I admit it was awkward for a bit after getting it but we both understood the reasons behind it , to be honest you weren't even the first person to send such a thing to me." he said with a chuckle. Florian smiled widely at this "I have no doubts about that at all , I am sure you must be rather overwhelmed with everything that has happened since your heritage was ousted." he said fishing for information in the way only a skilled politician could.-

Nick shrugged "Not really , I had always assumed that such a thing would eventually become commonplace , though I admit I had hoped it would take much longer." he said calmly. This seemed to catch the entire Greengrass family off guard. "Why do you say that?" Adorabella asked curiously. "I assume Daphne has spoken of me to you both to some degree correct?" Nick asked relaxed. The two adults nodded in agreement "Then you should be aware that I am by no means an untalented individual. The truth is that I have no intention of settling for mediocrity both within and outside Hogwarts and this meant politics such as this were merely a matter of time even before my heritage was revealed." he said honestly.-

They thought about it for a moment and could only agree that if he didn't settle for the "good enough" status that most settle for after leaving Hogwarts politics were indeed only a matter of time. Nick chatted with the Greengrass family casually for the rest of the party minus a few interruptions via the other people coming to curry favor with Nick. Daphne had offered to take him dancing but Nick declined on grounds that he both didn't know how as well as being unwilling to do so.

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