Flashback ( PDFDrive )

“So, you guys had the galas for Alvar already?” she asked, trying to
at least steer the conversation toward less dangerous territory.
“Yeah.” He reached up and ran a hand through his hair. “Alvar had
two. One when he first entered the elite levels, and another after he
graduated.”
She turned to study the hall again, trying to picture it full of fancy
elves in their fanciest clothes. “What were the galas like?”
“I don’t really know,” Fitz admitted. “I wasn’t invited—though I did
sneak into the second one and steal some cake. But my dad caught me
after, like, five minutes.”
“Why weren’t you invited?”
“Winnowing Galas are restricted to the people on your match list
and their parents.”
Sophie frowned. “So . . . you don’t get to have any of your friends
there?”
There was a beat of silence before he said, “Not unless they’re one
of my matches.”
Which made sense, Sophie supposed.
Winnowing Galas weren’t just pretty parties. They were a way to
start scratching names off your list—or circling them.
“So . . . you could technically end up throwing a party for an entire
room full of strangers,” Sophie realized.
Fitz nodded. “I mean, usually you at least know of them—either
you’ve seen them at Foxfire, or your parents know each other, or
something. And in some ways that might make it easier? My mom
said she was friends with everyone at hers and it was super awkward.
And I can kinda see how it would be, since . . . how do you choose who
to talk to first? I think that’s why they came up with the dance cards