20 June '79: Things I'll Never Say: Benji

[Gracie Peasegood]

20 June 1979 - Athena Fenwick's Flat - Chelsea

I'm tugging at my hair, I'm pulling at my clothes
I'm trying to keep my cool, I know it shows
I'm staring at my feet, My cheeks are turning red
I'm searching for the words inside my head

“Hello Henry,” she said, stepping into the dimly lit pub. “Any mail for Athena?” It was still a few hours until opening time, but she was fresh off her shift at St. Mungo’s and she had promised Athena that she wouldn’t let any of her dear friends' plants die while she was off breaking curses. Athena was lucky that Grace had been quite skilled in Herbology during her years at school, otherwise the poor plants in her flat above the pub might not have stood a chance. Grace wasn’t entirely sure why the former Gryffindor thought keeping magical plants in the flat above a muggle establishment was a good idea, but so far none of the plants had done any real damage to anyone, and Grace had found that she was quite fond of the Wiggentree Athena had recently acquired. It had come with Bowtruckles, which Grace found to be absolutely delightful, even if they didn’t seem to like her just yet.

Henry was back with some letters, and Grace collected the mail from him before stepping out of the pub and walking towards the back, where the stairs to the flat were. She wondered if Athena would mind if she crashed on her friends couch for a few hours - she was due back at Mungo’s for a shift on the fourth floor that she had picked up. Which meant working near Lydia Avery, who Grace found to be one of the most annoying people she had ever met. She had known Avery’s older brother during school, and she found him to be vile. So it wasn’t a surprise that Lydia seemed to be like her brother, and Grace felt that it was strange that the girl who had hung around with the likes of Meredith Mulciber and Cordelia Goyle had decided to take up a healing profession. She and Roderick had discussed their suspicions about the youngest Avery at length, but there was nothing they could do. Lydia was a competent healer, and Mungo’s wouldn’t listen to their suspicions if they had no basis.

Unlocking the door, she dropped the keys on the table by the door and put the mail in the stack, humming to herself as she hung her bag up and headed into the flat. Athena had turned one of the bedrooms into a greenhouse with a bit of magic, and before she headed down the hall Grace made a stop in the kitchen to grab a drink from the fridge. She was still humming to herself when she walked into the spare bedroom, only to be stopped in her tracks. Because someone was already in here with the plants, and Grace couldn’t remember Athena telling her that anyone else would be stopping by. Foolishly, she didn’t have her wand with her - she’d left it in her bag by the door, and she wasn’t entirely sure what to do. Until the person in the room turned, and suddenly she was struck by how familiar he looked. “Uh….hi there,” she said as she stepped into the room, hoping she didn’t startle the man, “Do I know you?”

[Benji Fenwick]

Benji was just making good friends with a bowtrickle when the sound of the front door closing scared it off. He frowned as it hide among the branches of the Wiggintree before turning his attention out, curious to who else had stopped by his sis’s temporarily abandoned flat. He had popped in just to make sure everything was in order, and to look after the plants, naturally, but who else was visiting Nina's flat, or worse...The new order member within him drew his wand, keeping it tight to his side as he watched out of the crack he had left in the door to the ‘greenhouse’. The long-nurtured relaxed part of him continued to sip his tea as he leaned against the Wiggins table, feeling comforted in the knowledge that death eaters didn’t usually hum happily when they were raiding a place. A woman entered only moments later, and Benji straightened on instinct, discreetly pocketing his wand under the guise of setting his cup down. She was immediately familiar to him and he found himself smiling at fond memories of younger years when he was much more carefree and fun. He was growing awfully dull these days. His smile widened exponentially though when she greeted him, as it was clear she had not reconciled his gangly thirteen-year-old self -the last time he could remember seeing her properly- with the person standing before her unexpectedly in her friend’s home.

“Hello to you too.” He said, his smirk now a little mischievous as he crossed his arms over his chest and arched his brows at her. Benji couldn’t help but chuckle at her question which confirmed his earlier suspicions. His best friend’s big sister had no clue who he was and who was he to pass up the opportunity for a little amusement. “You wound me Gracie.” He teased, giving a mockingly hurt face and holding a hand to his chest. “All the years you have known me. All the laughs and adventures. How could you forget me? How could you forget a face like this? I am truly heartbroken.” Benji was smiling so large, willing her with his eyes to remember him, hoping she would because it would be so embarrassing for him if he had to tell her. Arnie would take the mick out of him for it he was sure and it would be a pinch to his ego, because how could he ever forget Gracie Peasegood. Arnie’s super cool, smart, and funny older sister. It would be a shame if she had forgotten him. He leaned forward, looking into her equally dark gaze, and tried with all his might to make her remember. “Come on Grace, you know me.”

[Gracie Peasegood]

It was unnerving to come into a flat you were expecting to be empty only to find someone in said flat’s greenhouse, drinking tea like it was the most natural thing in the world for him to be here. Had Athena told her anyone would be staying - or stopping by? She couldn’t remember, they’d only had a few minutes to talk when Athena had stopped by the hospital before there had been a medical emergency and Grace had been pulled away to assist. She knew for a fact it wasn’t Athena’s boyfriend - Athena didn’t have one. She had a few boys she had been seeing when she was in town, but Athena wasn’t ready for commitment and Grace could understand that. She’d dedicated everything she had to her work since she had graduated, and after things had fizzled out with Bilius in school she really hadn’t had much desire to try again. That being said, there was something about an strange-but-attractive man smiling at her so widely, and it caught her almost more off guard than him being in the flat in the first place.

Clearly she needed to do something besides work and spend time with her bugs though, because she was feeling foolish. There was something about the way he smiled at her, and said her name. It wasn’t unusual for someone to call her Gracie, she preferred it really, but this man clearly knew exactly who she was and she couldn’t place him. She was glad he was giving her time to figure it out, because her brain was blank. Someone who knew Athena - who knew her, had they gone to school together? That would have made sense, but it clicked when he leaned towards her. That mischievous look in his eye, that was one she couldn’t forget. She’d looked the other way for years at school from his and Arnie’s shenanigans. “Benji Fenwick, you are not 13 anymore,” she said with a laugh, feeling herself relax. How could she ever have forgotten about Benji, her brother’s best friend and Athena’s little brother. It had been one of the reasons she and Athena had bonded so quickly, having younger brothers that were friends.

“I can’t believe you are so tall now, and so….grown,” she said with a laugh, before adding, “Not that that’s a bad thing, I just can’t believe it. I can hardly believe Arnie graduated, but I’m sure he’s told you that.” She felt like she was rambling a bit, but it had been a proper few years since she’d had any real interaction with Benji. She hardly knew him, and she was feeling a tad silly for not recognizing him right away. She’d been at graduation, she had seen him then. She also was feeling like she needed to start dating again, if her first thought at seeing Athena’s younger brother was about how attractive he was. “Befriended any Bowtruckles yet? They don’t see to like me so far,” she said with a nod to the Wiggentree, before she made up her mind and stepped forward to pull him into a hug, “It’s good to see you.”

[Benji Fenwick]

He couldn’t help himself, letting a short booming laugh break free when she finally, finally, recognized him. His hands clapped together once, sending her a gleaming smile over them. Happy to have them know each other again and pleased he hadn’t had the embarrassment of having to refresh her memory. “No” he agreed, settling down. “I am not thirteen anymore. Very astute of you to notice.” In the back of his mind, far back, he congratulated himself on being so easy. There was a time he could barely speak to the opposite sex, but that time was long past him now. Thankfully. Otherwise, he would have missed this once-in-a-lifetime chance to tease Grace, something he never got the chance at much when he was younger.

Those years were some of his happiest, it was before the world had washed away in shades of gray. When he and Arnie were together every day, wreaking havoc whenever possible, good-naturedly of course. Their pranks were positively tame compared to some of the things the Gryffindor's put into play. Grace had been an unwilling partner to them, looking the other way whenever possible despite her responsibilities. He had always admired her, and he did so now, especially as she went on. Benji indulged her a prattle, finding it endearing. “He may have mentioned something, I don’t think Nina has wrapped her head around it either. And I am taller.” He ascended, his mind automatically cataloging all the people he knew who towered over him. What he lacked in length, he liked to think he made up for in personality and build. “And I suppose I am quite grown, too.” Benji grinned, liking that she thought so. Liking that she seemed to be seeing him as…something other than her kid brother's best friend.

Glancing to the tree behind him at her mention, he smiled a different smile, one he often wore when looking at plants, his life's passion. “I was trying, but then someone interrupted our little chat.” He turned back to her, intent on answering her question more fully and with less tease in his voice when she took him by surprise for the second time. He returned the hug, hesitantly at first, but it had been long enough without such comforts that he quickly found himself wrapping her up securely and offering a tight squeeze. When she pulled back he was regarding her curiously, wondering…Benji shook off the thought before it could form itself. “It’s good to see you too, Gracie.” If he wasn’t thinking about it, then why was he reaching out to swipe a tendril of hair over her shoulder and out of her face? Resolutely he crossed his arms over his chest, trying for a natural smile. “How goes the healing?”

[Gracie Peasegood]

It was strange seeing Benji all grown up, even though she knew he’d graduated with Arnie. She had been there of course, with her family and Emmeline, but she’d only been able to give a quick hello and congratulations to her brother before she’d had to leave for work. While she tried not to think of the war, it was hard not to when she was seeing the effects of it almost daily. She remembered that Arnie had mentioned Benji had lost someone close to him. She couldn’t count how many patients she’d caught as they collapsed on the ground, the pain of losing a loved one so evident on their faces. Those were the faces that haunted her dreams, as strange as it might have seemed. She dealt with death, she could handle seeing it. She’d been there more than once when E.L.M. came to collect a body. It was telling someone that a person they loved more than anything wasn’t going to make it - or possibly worse, that they’d be a permanent resident in the spell damage ward.

She wished she’d stayed for lunch though, time with her family hard to come by, and she’d maybe not have been so flustered by finding Benji Fenwick all grown up and attractive in his sister’s flat, a place he had every reason to be. She was just surprised because she’d expected to be alone, to water some plants, and catch a few hours of sleep before she was back to her world of bugs. It seemed silly now to sleep when Benji was here, especially if he was crashing here. And not because she was sort of flirting with him and now she was a bit embarrassed because this is your brother’s best friend, get yourself together. Bill and Andromeda would be on shift tonight, and they’d get a whole earful about how she on purpose-but also accidentally flirted with Benji.

But Benji was grown, and while Arnie would always be her kid younger brother, it was hard to not look at Benji and think how unfair it was that both Athena and Benji were that attractive. And she wasn’t even attracted to girls! Or Benji, no she definitely didn’t notice the way he laughed, or that he had quite a few inches on her now. She was so distracted by talking herself out of not being distracted that she was barely listening to what he was saying about being grown. But his grin. She’d received that mischievous grin before, usually when she was looking the other way from their pranks. But it felt different, and while she knew she’d asked him a question her feelings for him for losing someone suddenly felt so strong that hugging him seemed like the right move.

She was glad he hugged her back tightly, and she hoped he could tell that she truly was glad to catch up with him. With her work schedule, she hardly saw anyone it felt like, except the others at the hospital. But that was about the extent of her social group. Do better Gracie, Benji is important to Arnie. The casual way he brushed hair from her face as they separated made her heart flutter, and she could already hear her friends laugh when she told them that the first guy she’d found attractive in a while was her little brother’s friend. “It’s been busy, I’m actually due back at the hospital in a few hours,” she admitted, trying not to think about the butterflies in her stomach, “Sorry for interrupting your bonding time with the bowtruckles., but I’m sure they will warm up to you.”

[Benji Fenwick]

This was not his wisest idea. Not that he was having any ideas about Gracie. That’s right, he was not having ideas about his best mates super sweet, undeniably attractive older sister. Benji flexed his arms tighter where they were crossed at his chest and shoved his fist deeper into his armpits -after of course weighed the possibility of any odor, but with the resolve not to do any more hugging or hair touching until he stopped thinking of her as pretty, it was necessary. But there was no harm in spending some time together, even though she only had a little while to spare, they could catch up, and get to know one another again. He planned to be friends with Arnie for the rest of his life, therefore, being on good terms with Grace was important.

He glanced again at the tree behind him at her last, shrugging. “They’ll come around eventually. It’s all about persistence.” As if summoned by him speaking of them, a juvenile bowtrickle appeared from behind a branch and stuck its tongue out at him. Benji returned in kind, chuckling to himself as it disappeared again before turning back to Gracie. “See, we’re already playing games. They love a good game I think.” He appreciated his sister’s setup and was happy to stop in to see her plants, even more so today with such an unexpected guest here to do the same. Of course, he preferred his own greenhouse at his own flat with the other new order members, but Nina’s had a charm about it that was all her. Benji wondered against his will, what Gracie would think of his greenhouse if she would want to see it as much as he wanted to show it to her. “Anyway, I could let you to it. I didn’t mean to intrude on your time here.” He pushed off from the table, finally breaking his stiff hold on his arms to swipe up his teacup. He made for the door, leaning his shoulder against it to look back at her.

“Or…” Or, you should go. “Or I can make us a fresh cup and you can fill me in on the last few years?” After all, he did resolve to get to know Gracie better, he couldn’t do that if he left now. What harm could a cup of tea be?

[Gracie Peasegood]

Gods, was he flexing his arms on purpose, or was she making him uncomfortable? Grace didn’t know, although she was trying to shush the part of her that was admiring his arms. Bloody hell Grace, are you a teenage schoolgirl or a grown adult woman? But he had brushed her hair over her shoulder, which was obviously not a big deal but also not a normal seeing your best friend's sister for the first time in years sort of action. Grace remembered the years of teases shared between her and Athena when it became all too apparent to them both that Arnie had a thing for the older Fenwick. They’d never wanted to tease Arnie about it directly, no need to crush his spirits, but the number of times Athena had called Grace her future sister-in-law was a number more than 10. Nothing had ever happened between Arnie and Athena, and obviously, nothing was happening now. Not even a little bit, this was a completely normal situation. Just two people being friendly and no thoughts about flirting were going on.

She grinned as a Bowtruckle appeared, glad to see that they were warming up to someone at least. She was sure Athena had befriended them all already, so it wasn’t a stretch to think they’d like Benji too. “Well, that’s the most I’ve seen of them since Athena got the Wiggentree, so I’d say you’re off to a good start,” she said with a determined nod. It was unlikely any other Bowtruckles were going to make an appearance, unless, of course, Benji could coax them out again. Grace would love to be able to report back to Athena that she’d made some sort of bond with the creatures she was watching over. Benji was straightening up and grabbing his teacup, and Grace felt bad for making him feel as if he had to rush off. This was his sister’s flat, after all, he had every right to be here visiting. And if she remembered correctly, he also had a love for plants. “Oh, it’s no intrusion,” she reassured him as he headed to the door of the room, her mind trying to come up with a reason for him to stay and chat.

She didn’t need to though, and she smiled back at him at his offer. “A cup of tea sounds great, I’d like that. I promise I’ve got some good stories from the trenches of the hospital,” she answered with a laugh. He set off to the kitchen, and she busied herself with checking the plants she had to water and making sure they all seemed just as alive as they had been the day prior. Everything was perfect, which she was sure had something to do with Benji’s presence in the flat, and she soon joined him in the kitchen, leaning back against the counter. “How has your summer been so far? I know Arnie and Emmeline are working on moving in together soon,” she said casually, hoping that her question didn’t seem weird. “Have you got your own place?”

[Benji Fenwick]

He wanted it too much. He wanted to stay too much, wanted her to want him to stay too much. Inexplicably, Cheap Trick popped into his mind and it was hard to get the tones out again. ‘Didn’t I, didn’t I,...’ He sang silently as he made his way to the kitchen, entirely too pleased that she had accepted his offer. No doubt she had come here for rest and relaxation before her next shift and as he was offering neither, Benji got to it right away in case she changed her mind and asked him to leave, rinsing out his own mug and grabbing a fresh one for Gracie. “I would love to hear about it, it sounds very exciting.” He flinched, immediately regretting his choice of words. Some of his mates in the Order got banged up pretty bad and had to go to Mongu’s…some never came home. Perhaps he could have used a better word but personal connection aside, he imaged being a Healer was very fast passed, thrilling even. He imagined Gracie was ace at it and really did want to hear her tales.

“Ah, it’s been pretty good.” He said, glancing back at her as he stepped over to the cabinet Athena keep her tea in. He tried but failed at not doing a double take. But man! The way she looked angled against the counter like that… warranted a second look. Benji focused back on the task and went on to keep from drawing attention to his action. “It’s been busy actually. I picked up a job doing mail-order plant delivery. Checking in on Nina when she’s here, her place when she’s not, trying to help Arnie and Em get things sorted, you know that type of thing.”

Her last question, well, he tried not to read into it, because surely Grace wasn’t that interested in his living arrangements. But he wanted her to be. ‘I want you to want me. I need you to need me.’ “Yeah, I’ve got a place with some friends. You might know Doc and Hes actually.” He said, leaning against the counter opposite her as their tea finished brewing. “What about you? Have your own place, or with friends, or a boyfriend maybe?” What?! Internally he was punching himself. Honestly, could he be more obvious? This was treading dangerous territory in this tiny little Nina kitchen. This was Arnie’s sister! And he had no business asking her about her boyfriends or hopefully lack thereof. 

[Gracie Peasegood]

She was pleased that Benji wanted to hear her stories, even calling them exciting. While sometimes the job was terrible - the war was really taking its toll on the Healers and their capabilities - she did love her job. There was something about being busy all day that made work more enjoyable, it was awful to just stand around waiting for something to happen. Everyone knew a slow day at the hospital meant bad things were coming, and if you even dared to mention how quiet it seemed you would be the first one dealing with the next emergency that came in. So while sometimes the healing wasn’t really that exciting and was more depressing, there were parts that she found thrilling. Like her experiments with her bugs, trying to determine if they could be used in new potions or salves to help heal injuries. She hadn’t had an astounding breakthrough yet, most of her time was spent preparing the things they knew worked. But one of these days she’d find a new use for her precious bugs.

Grace tried not to read into the way Benji looked at her twice because she was not thinking about those things. His double take meant nothing, and she wasn’t going to think about what it could mean. “It sounds like a good summer so far then,” she said with a smile to him, “You and Athena have always had a way with plants, I’m a little jealous, don’t think I could keep up a working greenhouse in my flat.” Mostly because she was hardly home enough to keep the poor plants she did have alive, given that she’d recently had to accept her cactus wasn’t going to come back to life. “Actually, have you ever seen the greenhouses at Mungos? They are fascinating, you should come by sometime and check them out.”

She certainly wasn’t extending the invitation because she wanted an excuse to see Benji again besides today, or because she’d enjoy giving him a personal tour of her workplace. He took her question about his living arrangements well, and she grinned when he mentioned her former housemates. Oh, she knew Doc and Hestia well enough to know they could cause trouble if they wanted, but they’d always been good kids. She wondered if they’d ever gotten together, but she could ask about that another time. He returned her question, and gods how she wanted to read into him asking if she had a boyfriend, but he was only being polite. “I’ve got my own flat, it’s nothing fancy. But no - no boyfriend or anything. Just me and my bugs. What about you? Have anyone special in your life?” Okay, so maybe she shouldn’t have been asking him that, but it could just be chalked up to catching up - couldn’t it? Arnie and Em had been together for a while now, but her brother had never mentioned if Benji was involved with anyone.

[Benji Fenwick]

“Ah, nonsense. I think you can do anything you applied yourself to.” Benji suspected she simply didn’t have a passion enough for herbology. No, her passions and expertise clearly lay elsewhere. He had every confidence that in the field of Healer, Gracie was top notch. That is where she applied herself and he appreciated and respected that so much. He was quickly learning that many of his new companions needed healing up from time to time and he was glad that her and others like her were there to assist. Their world needed more people who wanted to fix and build and less people who wanted to control and destroy. That’s what he fought for. People like Grace.

He tried not to think too much about her mention of the Greenhouses at Mongu’s but his heart did a boyish little skip at the prospect of it. The two of them, surrounded by the best, most potent magical plants on this side of the pond. It was…romantic. But maybe she wasn’t thinking of it that way. She was probably just being friendly, probably didn’t mean for them to go together anyway. Well, we’re just going to nip that in the bud right now. “That sounds amazing actually. I’ll have to drop in and take a look. Maybe I could tear you away for a little tour, even, make it a hundred times better I bet.” Benjamin! Alright, that voice sounded more like his sisters than his own and he could almost feel the swift slap to the back of head he might receive if she was displeased. He was being rather bold and he thought that past this point it might be hard to hide his intentions. Not that he had intentions.

Alright, so maybe he wasn’t so far off base. Maybe, just maybe, she was thinking along the same lines as him. Why else would she be curious as to his status? He knew why he had asked her, was it too much to hope that she had asked for the same reason? He thought of Willa, he last relationship, that was months ago now. No, no, she was well out of his life and we was, well, very much single. “Nope, nope. Just me and the plants. They make for excellent listeners. I suppose bugs are good company too. Not sure your bugs and my plants would always get on though. We could always try introducing them anyway.” Now, he was just a rambling mess. What was he even saying?!

[Gracie Peasegood]

Merlin, she was definitely flirting, wasn’t she? She could think of all the times she and Athena had laughs and exchanged glances over Arnie’s crush on his best friend’s big sister, and here she was flirting with her little brother’s best friend! She didn’t even want to think about how much Athena would tease her if news got out that she was attracted to Benji - or how Arnie might feel about it all. Not that either one of them would find out about this whole exchange, because surely nothing was going to come of it. For all she knew, Benji would be totally creeped out if she even suggested it. It didn’t help that he kept complimenting her, and she gave a short laugh at his words. He was right, if she really dedicated some time to it she would be just as good with plants as her friends were, after all, she had done quite well in Herbology during school. “I think my bugs might get jealous if I started spending my time with plants instead of them,” she teased. Truthfully, setting up her own greenhouse would require a re-arrange of her bug space in her flat, and sometimes the bugs could indeed have an attitude towards her.

Mentally, she had resolved not to continue this flirting with Benji that was happening. But words kept coming out of her mouth, like an invitation to tour the greenhouses at Mungo’s. But a tour really wasn’t that bad, and it’s not like her coworkers would think anything of it. Other than Roderick, he was likely to realize something was up the second she returned for her next shift at Mungo’s. He always could read her easily, which she loved and hated at the same time. Her mind was wandering to the times at school she’d caught people snogging behind the greenhouses, and she was kicking herself for even thinking about that. The greenhouses at the hospital were not suitable for that kind of behavior. Not that people didn’t hook up at work, they just often used the resting rooms for the Healers. Why are you even thinking about this? She shot Benji a smile, “Oh please do steal me away for a tour. I could stand to take more breaks from my research and patients truly.”

He wanted to know if she had a boyfriend, and she was inquiring about a girlfriend, and she needed someone to talk to about this. Athena was gone, and would never let her live it down. But Wesley - well he’d give her hell for it, but he had always been a good person to talk things through with. And she was sure her brother wouldn’t mind a visit from her at work, take a break from whatever it was he did all day in Muggle relations. Giving a laugh at his suggestion, she nodded along to Benji’s words. “Oh, I do think some of my bugs might be more interested in eating your plants than becoming friends. But I do have a colony of beetles that are great at keeping smaller bugs off plants, I could bring you some. A housewarming gift of sorts, yeah? They don’t require a lot of care.”

[Benji Fenwick]

Benji tried not to wonder how jealous her buggies would get if Grace started spending time with him, much less plants. He smiled at the thought, not able to feel a lick sorry about their loss. His gain, after all. "They should be more liberal, it's awfully selfish to keep you to themselves when there are…plants out there who would love some attention." Benji's smile tightened, he hadn't really meant to make his statement sound so suggestive. It just sort of happened. Thus had all just happened. He hadn't expected Gracie to be here at all, and he hadn't ever thought he would be feeling this way with her. Flirting with her…

Asking her out on a date! Alright, it wasn't technically a date, not really. He had just said he would stop by Mongus for a visit and maybe she could give him a tour of the greenhouses. That wasn't a date. Was it? Whether it was or wasn't was at the moment, irrelevant because she seemed more than pleased to oblige this request and he was feeling far too excited at the prospect. "Great. That's great. It's a, I mean, I'll stop by soon. Give you a proper break. I'm sure you deserve it, I remember you always working too hard." It was true, his memories of Grace were all of her doing the absolute most at whatever the task was, and being as helpful as possible in the process. If anyone deserved to have a breather, it was her. And who better to give her one than him?

She didn't seem put off by his advances if you could call them that, he wouldn’t be getting any awards for suaveness that was certain. She returned his question about a significant other though, so it seemed things were going well enough. He tried to relax further into the counter, crossing one leg over the other, and listened intently about Grace’s beloved bugs and the possibility of introducing their separate passions. “Bettles you say?” His interest was peeked, it was every grower's constant battle, plant-eating insects. And of course, she had offered to bring them over, which would place her firmly in his flat. Something that was appealing to him more and more by the second. “I quite like the sound of that. You’ll have to pop in for tea one day or, maybe dinner, if you fancy and bring them along.”

[Gracie Peasegood]

Grace had to smile, wondering if there were more than just plants that would love her attention. Not that she wanted to assume that Benji wanted her attention, but it did seem like he was flirting and Grace knew she was flirting. Which was not what she’d expected when she’d decided to come by Athena’s flat today, and she could almost hear Arnie’s protests. But flirting didn’t do any harm, it wasn’t like she was jumping into a relationship with Benji. And it was sweet, her youngest brother’s best friend flirting with her. He was nice to look at, he’d grown up a lot, and Grace wasn’t the girl who got flirted with often. “Oh, just plants that would love my attention? And here I was hoping maybe the beetles would be jealous of me spending time with someone.” Okay, now she was just being obvious, and she needed to get it together.

She didn’t often get visitors at work, mostly because she was always busy during the day. Between caring for patients and mixing up potions - sometimes with sacrifices from her bugs - Grace hardly had the time to eat these days. But she would make time for Benji, and not just because she was feeling attracted to him. He was right, she did work hard. Perhaps too hard, given that she was picking up extra shifts at the hospital. But they never had enough staff it seemed, and with more people being injured by exploits of Death Eaters, any extra help was needed. There were days when she didn’t even leave the hospital for 24 hours. “I certainly haven’t grown out of the habit of working too hard,” she admitted, “But I look forward to your visit! I’m sort of all over the hospital these days, but ask around and I’m sure you will be able to find me.”

She was inviting herself over to his flat, but it didn’t seem like Benji minded all that much. It would be good to see Doc and Hestia if they were around, and she wondered if the two of them had finally made some official out of their on and off during their years at Hogwarts. She would have to find a proper gift for them as well, but Benji seemed pleased at the idea of her bringing some beetles by and she was thrilled. Most people didn’t care for her bugs, but at least he was amusing her. And inviting her to have dinner with him. “Dinner would be great,” she answered him, hoping that her face wasn’t as red as she felt it was. It wasn’t a date, just dinner, even if she was beginning to feel like she wanted it to be a date. “Oh, Bill and Roderick are having a party this weekend, you should come by. It’s for Annette Greengrass’ birthday.”

[Benji Fenwick]

For the love of Merlin and all things holy! He almost came unglued at the seems at Grace’s declaration and they way she looked at him. As it was, his eyes widened, slipped to half mass, and a slow smile spread across his face. “Who needs to hope? Let’s make them jealous,” he said at once, without thinking, a clearly flirty tone in his voice. Her bugs, his plants, all of her ex-boyfriends, he was fighting the urge to not be attracted to her, but he could admit when he was failing. And boy was he failing miserably. How could he though? Arnie was his best mate! What would he think of this? Benji couldn’t risk ruining their friendship, it was one of the most important things to him. On the other hand, how did one fight attraction? Maybe it would just be a passing flirtation. Unlikely.

“How about I come around day after tomorrow about noon?” Eager much Fenwick and no less flirty. Honestly, he would have said tomorrow, but he had training. "I’m sure I’ll track you down. If not, I’ll be waiting with the plants for you to grace us with your presence, Lady Grace. ” He was just full of jokes today. Truth be told, he didn’t even want to see the greenhouses without her and was determined to track her down and go together. It would give them more time to catch us and Grace a chance to shift a little from her working mind and give him more of her attention which he found he quite liked when she was focused on him like this. Maybe if he thought about it further he would show more patience, but with his recent line of work, time seemed more precious. And why wait? He wanted to see the greenhouses and she wanted to show him, why shouldn’t they do so as soon as possible?

Gracie didn’t seem too put off by his advances, she was making advances of her own. Accepting his dinner invitation and even inviting him to a party in her own turn. A birthday party at that, of one of her very good friends, if memory served him correctly. As of late, he had indulged in very few recreational activities, in plainer terms, he didn't have much fun anymore. “That sounds great!” He found himself accepting her invitation on instinct, or a whim, or just pure want to plan another meetup with her. Then reality set in and he adjusted his position against the counter, sipped his tea and chose his words carefully, still attempting to be casual and also convey that he wanted very much to go to Annette Greengrass’ birthday party. “I’m sort of on call this weekend though, but as long as I’m not tied up, I’ll definitely be there.” Not a lie, just very vague. "Where will it be?"