Chapter Text
Eliza sipped on her glass of wine carefully as she scanned her eyes across the ballroom. She was stood to the side of the dance floor with her younger sister Peggy and her friend Kitty, both who had been a bit more voracious with their wine intake and were giggling about nonsense together. Eliza had hoped she would spot her older sister and be able to engage in a more tolerable conversation but struggled to find her amid the busy room.
A raucous laughter erupted from the opposite side of the dance floor, which Eliza imagined was caused by her elder sister. Angelica was made for balls; she knew how to captivate a crowd and dazzle them with her humour and intelligence. Eliza had her own form of humour and intelligence, but she didn’t feel the need to grab the spotlight so much, besides, she preferred to be more selective with whom she shared it.
Eliza excused herself and made her way towards the other side of the room where the noise had now evened out. As she cut through the people she noticed Angelica surrounded by a merry group of soldiers, hanging on her every word. She almost laughed at the sight; these poor soldiers were obviously in dire need of some female company, all competing with one another in an attempt to gain her sister’s attention. One of them caught her eye for a brief second and his bright azure eyes dazzled her, causing her heart to jump in her chest. She felt foolish, how could one glance affect her so easily? Maybe she had consumed more wine than she had realised. It took her a few moments to realise she was still staring, her eyes falling to his lips when he let out a small chuckle at her thunderstruck state.
“Eliza!” Angelica’s voice pulls her back into reality. “So nice of you to join us.”
Angelica was smirking knowingly, looking between the boy with blue eyes and her sister. Yet when she met her eyes there was something else hidden behind the smirk, something akin to a wariness or disillusion.
“Gentlemen, meet Elizabeth Schuyler.” Angelica introduced her.
Eliza curtsied, “It’s a pleasure to be acquainted with you.”
“Schuyler?” The boy with the eyes enquired, raising an eyebrow at Angelica.
“My sister.” She nodded, smiling wider than necessary.
“The pleasure is ours Miss Schuyler.” He bowed let out his hand so he could take hers and placed a kiss on it.
“Please, call me Eliza.” She could feel her cheeks burning and prayed it didn’t show up in the candlelight of the ballroom.
“Alexander Hamilton.” He finally introduced himself.
She nodded with a smile before Alexander was pushed to the side by one of his fellow soldiers, who introduced himself as Lafayette and began to introduce the rest of the men: Hercules Mulligan, John Laurens, James McHenry and Aaron Burr.
The conversation continued and Alexander was speaking with such conviction and passion about Laurens’ campaign of an all black battalion that Eliza struggled to focus on anything other than the animated man before her.
A few minutes into the conversation Peggy and Kitty interrupted, “Angelica, introduce us to these fine men.” Peggy exclaimed.
Once they all became equated and had fallen into a new conversation Eliza pulled her sister to the side.
“What do you know of Alexander?” She asked, glancing back to make sure he wasn’t listening.
“I know some, why do you ask?” Angelica enquired, although she had a feeling she knew already.
“He talks so passionately I can’t bring myself to focus on much else.” Eliza bit her lip.
“Hmm, he seems to have that affect on people.” Angelica agreed.
Eliza looked back to the group and noticed Peggy laughing at something Alexander had said whilst Kitty was eyeing him cautiously.
Her eyes widened as she looked back to her sister, “Oh, that’s the Alexander Kitty has mentioned?”
“Him and Kitty?” Angelica raised an eyebrow.
Eliza nodded, “It was a short-lived correspondence from what I’ve heard.”
“He sure knows how to make his way around the ladies of the town.” Angelica exclaimed.
Eliza frowned at this, disappointment etching her features.
“You like him.” Her elder sister stated knowingly.
“I didn’t say that.” Eliza sighed.
“You don’t have to my dear sister. It’s quite obvious.”
“But how do I get him to notice me in a ballroom of elegant women?” Eliza asked.
“Just be yourself.” Angelica held onto her arms gently shook her a little.
“That’s easy for you to say. People always notice you, it’s not so easy for others.”
“They notice me because I make them. You can do the same, just go and talk to him.”
“I don’t know…” Eliza began to say but Angelica had pulled her back to the group.
“Alexander, my dear sister here has dance moves which beg to be experienced, maybe you could accompany her on the dance floor?”
Eliza felt her chest tighten in anticipation, what if he didn’t want to dance with her.
“It would be my pleasure.” He held out a hand for Eliza and she took it and led him to the dance floor.
She was so caught up in the moment that she didn’t notice the lingering glance held between him and her sister as she led him away.
Alexander quickly shook his head; clearing it of the confusion Angelica had left him with. She had been seemingly flirting with him the whole evening, and now she had unexpectedly offered him to her sister. He wasn’t sure exactly what was going on, but it settled uneasily in his stomach.
He looked down at Eliza who was smiling shyly at him and there was something in her dark eyes that captivated him. They steadied him, easing any anxiety he had felt in such a reassuring way that he almost forgot what he was doing. So much so that he moved his foot in the wrong direction and stepped on her toe.
“I do apologise. I am quite rusty.” He frowned apologetically.
Eliza smiled reassuringly, “It’s okay. We do not have to dance if it is not to your likening.”
“And miss the pleasure of experiencing this dance with you?”
“It would save my toes the trauma.” Eliza chuckled as he miss stepped again.
Alexander’s cheeks flushed, he smiled coyly and Eliza felt the rest of the room disappear around them. All she could see was him, her eyes scanned his face and focused on a faint freckle below his lip. She wanted to reach out and caress it gently with her fingers, but she refrained, instead placing her hands on his hips.
“Here, like this.” She told him, helping to guide him through the moves until he finally got the hang of it. Her fingers tingled where they met with the warmth of his sides and she wondered if he could feel it too.
When she looked up she found Alexander smiling at her fondly, his eyes sparkling in the candlelight. He parted his lips as if to say something but caught himself, shaking his head and looking away.
“What?” She questioned, gaining his eye contact again.
“You were going to say something.” She stated.
Alexander paused; he was usually so good with words, but the words he was going to say were not his usual topic of conversation and it bewildered him that it felt so natural to do so with the woman in front of him.
“I was just going to say, this brought me back to memories of dancing with my Mother. She gave me my first lesson during a quiet period in the shop she owned. There wasn’t much space but we made do.” He smiled tenderly at the memory. “I had forgotten it until now.”
Eliza found herself imagining the scene cheerfully, but there was a longing in his eyes that made her consider something.
“Do you no longer see your Mother?”
Alexander shook his head, “No,” he averted his gaze, “No, she passed when I was 12.”
Eliza nodded sadly knowing nothing she could say could take away that sort of pain.
“Did she like to dance?” She asks instead, wanting to learn more about her.
His face lit up again, “I suppose she did, but she loved singing even more. I always knew where she was due to the sweet melodies she’d sing as she worked or cleaned. I don’t think she even realised she was doing it half the time.”
“One of my little sisters is similar, she’s always singing around the house.” Eliza grinned.
“How many siblings do you have?” Alexander asked.
“More than I can count.” She replied with a giggled. “Do you come from a big family?”
“No, I have brothers, but we are unable to see each other due to distance.” He answered diplomatically. “I feel I would have enjoyed having sisters though.”
“Well, you can share mine if you wish. However, I’ve been told we can be hard work when we’re together, though I feel that’s more aimed at Angelica and Peggy.”
As if she’d been waiting to hear her name Peggy let her presence known, “Time to share Colonel Hamilton, Betsey!”
Eliza raised an eyebrow at her younger sister but stepped away with a laugh, allowing Peggy to take her place, mouthing a “Good luck” to Alexander.
She went to search for Angelica but was stopped in her tracks by Aaron Burr who held a hand out for her, “Care to dance?”
Eliza smiled and curtsied before apologising, “I am currently looking for my sister, maybe later.”
He bowed and nodded, “I believe she went out for some fresh air.”
“Thank you.” Eliza made her way to the outside area feeling concern creep up within her. Angelica never usually needed fresh air at these types of events.
On route she bumped into John Laurens who was making his way back inside.
“Colonel Laurens, have you seen Angelica?” She questioned.
He glanced back out to the door leading to the patio area and back to Eliza.
“She’s outside.” He rubbed his hands together uneasily and it made Eliza nervous.
“Is something the matter?”
“No, no. Not really.”
“Not really?”
“It’s nothing to be concerned about, she just in the middle of a full blown debate with Hercules and Lafayette right now. I’m sure she will be back inside shortly, why don’t we dance in the meantime?”
“I’d rather we sat, my feet are quite sore.” She motioned to an empty table at the side of the dance floor.
“Ah, that’s a common complaint after dancing with our dear Hamilton.” He grinned, pulling out a chair for her to sit.
“You dance with him often?” Eliza remarked.
John chortled, sitting down beside her. “You’d be surprised at what merriments happen between soldiers. We have to keep ourselves amused somehow.”
“That doesn’t surprise me as much as it might ought to.” She answered enjoying the vision she had in her head of the soldiers she met tonight creating their own dance parties between their tents in the camp.
“Whoever has to dance with Hamilton gets the short straw.” He joked.
“I don’t believe that.” Eliza smiled. “What he lacks in footwork he makes up in charisma.”
John arched his eyebrow at her statement and Eliza bowed her head.
“I’m sorry, that was probably improper of me to say.”
“Of course not. I believe we are all aware of Alexander’s charisma. He has never had any trouble in enamouring the fairer sex.”
Eliza twisted her lips at this comment, remembering that he was quite the ladies man. “I guess not.”
John noticed the regret in her features.
“I’m didn’t mean to paint him in that light. I just meant… well…” He paused considering whether to share the information he knew.
“What is it?”
“I probably shouldn’t be the one to inform you.” He sighed.
“Well now you must.”
He groaned; he shouldn’t have started this conversation.
“Please.” Eliza asked, her dark eyes begging him to relieve her.
“It’s just, you sister appears to be quite enamoured by him too.”
“Peggy?” Eliza exclaimed, looking back to her sister who was dancing with Alexander, “She’s like that with most men, she’s enamoured with everybody.” Eliza laughed.
“No, not Peggy. Angelica.”
“Angelica?” Eliza’s eyebrows furrowed.
“Yes, they were engaged in quite a long conversation earlier, and well they seemed quite charmed by one another, your sister in particular.”
“Oh.” Eliza tried to swallow the lump in her throat and the sinking feeling of her stomach. “But then why did she initiate the dance between Alexander and myself?”
“Why do you think?” John questioned.
Eliza sighed, deep down she knew; her sister would do anything to see her happy, even if it meant sabotaging her own happiness.
“I’m sorry, maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned it but…” He wanted to reach out to tell her he knew what it felt like, to want Alexander but to not be able to have him. It was part of the reason he felt the need to share the information with her, for he couldn’t bear to see Alexander to string her along any further before the inevitable was revealed, for either of the women.
“No, I’m glad you did.” Eliza interrupted him. “Thank you John.”
Angelica had been putting her first since the day Eliza was born, and for once Eliza was going to stop the unnecessary cycle. She had only met Alexander a mere hour earlier, only danced and spoke to him for minuets and she had enough experience with men to know that good first impressions could quickly dissipate after a few meetings. Sure, Alexander felt different to any other man she had ever met, but that didn’t mean they were destined towards a great future together. There would be other men, but she only had one elder Sister.