𝒞𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓉𝑒𝓇 𝒯𝓌𝑒𝓃𝓉𝓎-𝒮𝒾𝓍
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“Up…” There was a beat of silence from Jane before she dropped Iris’ hair, “Down.”
Four pairs of eyes watched through the mirror as they thought over this huge decision. Expressions dead serious as Jane reached to bundle up Iris’ hair in her hands again. Valeria quickly reached over to pull Iris’ face-framing pieces out of the bundle.
Heads bobbed as things quickly started coming together. Sally-Ann directed Jane to make the ponytail higher, Iris twirling her framing pieces to imitate a subtle wave shape, Valeria prodding at the hair flowing down Iris’ back to make it sit just right. And when it was just right, everyone paused, all eyes taking one last, final look…
And smiles broke out. Nodding all around as they all spoke at once. “Simple so we won’t have to spend hours curling it all.” “Easy to fix if it becomes messy through the night.” “The face-framing is a nice small change from normal while still keeping it out of the way.” “Someone is going to be slapped in the face with all this hair.”
Giggles erupted as they all looked to Sally-Ann, everyone finally backing off as they had made their decision. Going back to the last bits of their morning routines before breakfast.
The music from the radio still overpowered as the girls just kept going. Rattling off their plans for the day that had the whole castle alive with energy for weeks.
Remus would be chaperoning, wanting to also get the group together for pictures. So that raised questions of where, and what time, just where, and when would the background be just right and the lighting everything they needed to make everyone shine. And depending on how early their pictures would be would determine how early they would have to lock themselves away and start the process of getting ready. Makeup, hair, dresses, last-minute adjustments, and pairing jewelry. And knowing the process would be hours of working and giggling and chatting, they needed snacks and music to get the day started right.
So much goes into a day of a ball, at least for the girls that so looked forward to it. Still there existed the less exciting parts of any ball.
“I will be going with Dante!”
Thump!
Sally-Ann’s boot dropped from her hand, landing hard against the stone floor as the room finally quieted enough for the music to shine through. The upbeat tune of an ABBA song a stark contrast to the tension that beat its way into that room. Four pairs of wide eyes all turned right on Tracey Davis.
The heavy silence, the blank stares, the held breaths were enough to almost drown out the music again. Almost. Painfully, ABBA continued to fight through, doing nothing to stop the tension.
“Dante Marcella?”
There was no other Dante it could be, the only one to be found on Hogwarts’ grounds could be the only answer. But still, maybe it was just denial, maybe it was just a shock reaction… either way, they all needed the clarification as their heads worked through this.
Tracey could only nod, her jaw as stiff as the rest of her body as she gauged the reactions from her friends. Words couldn’t have possibly have been spoken on her end.
Some of the shock started draining from everyone’s faces, faint nodding going around as heads began working again. But just because the shock was dissolving, does not mean the situation made much sense to any of them. But other things fell into place.
Valeria made the most important connection, “That’s who you have been with at lunchtime when we all split?”
Tracey forced another nod. Shoulders loosened as Valeria looked away, still thoughtful but not adding to the tension.
Jane asked the most important question, “And you are sure he will give you a good night?”
Another nod. Tracy’s jaw slacked as Jane smiled, a forced one but something at least.
Sally-Ann asked a question that mattered more than one would have expected, “Who asked who?
That was a question that couldn’t just be answered with a nod, and it had everyone perked back to attention, eyes less uncertain of the situation though. Just curious.
“I asked him.” Reactions were mixed, but Tracey gave them little mind as she looked to the one friend who had yet to say a word. Those eyes that could freeze souls leaving Tracey stiff.
Iris Blackwell, the friend she had known the shortest but the opinion that mattered most in the matter of this boy. And Iris was careful, studying Tracey for a moment that felt like an eternity… and she was slow as she said all she would on the matter, an inflection that posed it as a question but felt more a warning, “No more looking for love in someone who will never give it?”
“No more of that.”
Something seemed to break as Iris finally moved her eyes, everyone jumping back into action. All but Tracey who seemed not at all relieved after finally getting this off her chest. The tension still lingered in the air as her friends all thought it over while silently finishing their routines.
ABBA still a stark contrast as Tracey just nodded one more time, whispering to herself one more time, “No more of that.”
~~~~~~
The girls hadn’t really gained back their usual energy as they trekked off to breakfast, but things would surely improve sometime easily enough. The news was simply a shock, and no matter what doubts anyone had, those were fights to handle when they came to fruition. And if it turned out that Tracey did, in fact, have poor judgment, it was Dante to have a problem with, not their friend.
And everyone had their own lives to think of. So with the morning getting off on the wrong foot and five heads filled with different things, the girls may have walked together but were as detached as could be.
Iris strolled a few steps ahead of the others. Hands burrowed into her jacket as the emptiness on her side itched at her mind. She was gaining quite some distance from the girls, an unconscious eagerness to find the boy that had irritatingly made walking alone feel so… wrong. Humming a tune as she weaved past the few other stragglers on their way to breakfast, eyes going straight to her destination before she could even finish crossing through the doorway.
Her blink was heavy as she stopped in her tracks, the humming ceasing as what she was seeing stopped her entirely, even her heart having to have missed at least one thump in her chest. Her head fell into that tilt it so often does… and she seemed…cold.
Her friends would notice quick enough, gaining on Iris all too quickly with questions on their minds. Questions answered as they all glanced in the direction of the Slytherin table and so easily spotted the only thing that could have done this to Iris Blackwell.
Some fifth-year Slytherin girl sitting in Iris’ spot, a hand settled on Theodore Nott’s arm as she giggled a bit too hard for anything their unamused-looking friend could have said.
The girls had to share glances and giggle just a bit, heads shaking as the tension between them all seemed to fade away. Sally-Ann nudged Iris with an elbow as they continued their walk, “Just going to watch all day?”
Iris’ eyes shot to Sally, dangerous in a way that had the girl quick to throw up her hands in a calming manner. Her giggles of course continuing to taunt. Grumbling though, Iris finally just relaxed herself and kept walking… relaxed in a comparative sense of course.
Those eyes hadn’t changed.
And really, if anyone had been paying any attention they probably should have feared for the unsuspecting girl they were locked on.
But all would be well, whatever… feelings, had Iris as bothered as she was were kept in line because of one simple fact. Murder is illegal. A reminder she had to have needed as she loomed behind Theodore and the girl.
“That’s my seat.”
Tracey snorted a bit as she slid into her own seat, all the girls seeming to find some amusement as they watched their older peer freeze. Only her gaze able to move as she met that oh-so-cold voice. Maybe murder was off the table but Iris didn’t have to be polite.
The glare directed towards the girl’s hand that still rested on Theodore’s arm was enough for her to act as if she had been burned. Theodore broke into a bit of a smirk into his goblet as the girl who had invaded his life faced his only acceptable companion.
The girl had lost whatever wave of courage had existed to approach Theodore in the first place, muttering who cares what as she scurried away. Face flamed red when she tried to send a smile Theodore’s way, only to be ignored of course.
Iris’ mood didn’t lighten as she slid into her seat, ignoring the giggles of her friends as she made eye contact with the girl who was still watching from down the table. And doing the only sensible thing, Iris grabbed some bacon right off Theodore’s plate and popped it into her mouth. Finally smiling when the no-name looked away again.
Theodore, of course, just had to notice everything, raising an eyebrow at the act he just witnessed. And he would find himself ignored, Iris doing everything she could to just tune into the conversation across from her. The giggling still going as Sally-Ann and Valeria talked about their dates for the ball as they usually did, Tracey now able to find a comfortable place in the dreams for the night.
“Could you imagine a kiss on Christmas Night? It sounds so romantic.” Tracey was gushing, always a hopeless romantic at heart… the girls tried to brush aside just who would be her first kiss. Trying to remain excited for her… they all really tried and surprisingly the one slipping most was Jane.
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Though her reasons went far beyond the questionable dating choices of her friend.
Theodore would be the one to direct attention to the friend most in need, “Still no luck on finding a date?”
Jane looked down to pick at her food as her friends all seemed to remember just the difficult situation one of them was in. Hushing their excitement as the air almost dampened with moods. No one really had any suggestions, anything to help, to say at all really. Everyone could just watch with a shared heaviness.
And maybe that was quite bad. A friend looking down with no options for help at all. And then maybe the timing was just quite bad. Iris looked to Theodore to see his eyes locked on Jane… the image of that girl’s hand on his arm. A feeling she would refuse to name still burning her from the inside out. And maybe the strange tension the morning had started with was quite bad. The reality and full truths of situations fully on Iris’ mind.
All of it contributed to how easily the words flew from her mouth, “Worst case, you and Theo just go together.”
It was a slap to the face. The girls exchanged glances… and Theodore… well he looked as if someone had just told him the most nonsensical thing in the world.
But no one would get in a word as Iris just shrugged, trying so hard to be nonchalant as a coolness reappeared on her face, “We all have thought of it at least once. Just saying it is a simple solution. Get both of your families to relax.”
The silence sat for far too long between the group, drowning out the chatter and joy all around them. And before anyone would even have a chance to speak against the notion, Iris shrugged again and stood up, “Just saying, clock is ticking on any other option besides having to explain when your parents catch wind of you not having a date at all.”
And with that Iris was leaving, a walk no doubt her desire, her friends left to just sit in a tense quiet amongst themselves… glances directed to Theodore Nott. The boy’s jaw tight as he watched Iris walk out the door.
Such a tense morning that was. If only someone had cut it down then.
~~~~~~
Skip-- skip-skip-skip.
Iris scrutinized her throw, still not quite able to even match that record she had set a year ago… when had she hit five the first time? That moment on her birthday? That day in the forest with Hermione Granger? Either way, she would have been elsewhere, clearing her head even if holding a conversation as she did so. Should have been just the same as in this moment…. But no, that… anger still hadn’t quite left her.
And as the next throw went straight into the water… Iris would never admit the image that flashed through her mind one last time.
Iris shot her head to the laughing, puffing her cheeks as she left the shallow bit of water. Taking her time to dance over to the rock Cedric Diggory had been watching Iris from since he found her walking out there all alone.
Lowering to sit beside him, Iris looked over to the bit of water they hung above, Cedric’s longer legs testing at the water, shoes no more than an inch from making contact. Then Iris glanced to what had brought Cedric out wandering alone to spot her… the golden egg.
Each champion had one, it was what they had stolen from their dragons how many odds weeks ago. And within them was promised a key to the next task… weeks away so it should have been no worry and yet as each champion continued to stare at them utterly lost…. the days ticking by…. It was a heavy thought on Cedric’s mind at least.
Harry wouldn’t let Iris see what was so difficult to solve. And racking through any of the champion's minds seemed to come to a dead end… just some weird memories of blank and panicked minds anytime they opened the eggs. A rush to get the egg closed again.
Iris looked back out to the water, letting the oncoming winter breeze cool her skin, eyes closing as she attempted to let the wind carry off the thoughts on her mind. And when the wind passed and they remained… she sighed.
Cedric, maybe just being that caring or maybe just not wanting to focus on his egg for even a moment longer, had to ask, “What are you thinking?”
Iris hummed as she let her eyes open, staring deep into the dark depths of the lake below. Her mood… down, “I am going to be attending the ball alone.”
Cedric blinked, maybe he and her weren’t nearly as close as he would have liked… but there was one thing that everyone at Hogwarts had come to learn about Iris Blackwell. And as much as it maybe still weighed on him to admit… Iris Blackwell and Theodore Nott were inseparable.
Whether Iris would already have a date in the only boy she had shown any real attention all year, it wasn’t even a question, at least not to Cedric. So the question could only naturally begin to tumble out.
“Theodore Nott—”
“He will end up going with Jane.”
“Oh.”
He was lost. Completely lost. Cedric knew for a fact that Theodore Nott only showed any level of interest in one girl. He knew those looks he caught the boy giving her. He recognized that fondness for one girl… Theodore Nott had no interest in anyone else.
And as he thought about it for a minute, he caught the weird phrasing, “End up? He hasn’t asked her yet? Late to asking if he intended to go with her all this time.”
Iris puffed her cheeks, letting her legs sway… it was so unlike her… so childish. Cedric relaxed a bit as he watched with an adoring smile… something just sorta beginning to click, ready for the next bit of information she would give, “He will go with her because it is the right thing to do, and he… cares even if he isn’t obvious about it.”
Iris started tapping her fingers on her leg, looking off in the distance, into the trees, away from Cedric… away from the conversation. Cedric could only smile, looking down at his egg as he connected the dots, “You are jealous about something you are asking him to do.”
Iris jerked. Her body going stiff, her head shooting to Cedric with a harsh look. A shout built in her throat as he started laughing to himself… a laugh that made Iris pause just long enough to back down. The truth of the word a slap to her own brain.
Jealous.
It was new to her. She never had a reason to be jealous before… no she had reason. Her first love in a childhood best friend who always had the attention of other girls. That was just different. Easy. No doubts. And the other young girls were never bold enough to look at him… let alone lay a grubby hand on his arm. Iris was the bold little girl back then…
So why not now?
“I don’t know what the hold up is with you two. But I see how he looks at you, how you look at him. You two are overcomplicating it by ignoring the clear love—” Cedric threw up his hands and paused when Iris sent him a glare, “Too soon for love.”
Cedric laughed as he calmed down again, “Still you two reach one another in ways no one else can. I know it’s overwhelming, falling in lo… falling for someone. But once you get it out in the open, just allow yourself to be vulnerable, it can be easy, comfortable.”
Iris avoided eye contact again… such… a teenager. Just a normal girl hung up on things that seemed too hard to understand. Scared of normal things. Having a talk about normal things. Acting her age…. Even when stressing her out with feelings so difficult to understand, Theodore Nott was good for her.
The conversation was done right there, as Iris decided at least. Trying to clear her pouting looks as she nabbed the egg right out of Cedric’s grasp. Startling the boy, his eyes growing ten sizes as he watched Iris go for the little latch at the top, There was no way to make it in time.
“So anyways what even is th—”
Cedric clamped his hands over Iris’ ears. The girl let out a yelp as the egg flew from her grasp, her first instinct to drop the cause of the screeching. The pair remained stuck as the painful noise sent their brains into shock. The quick second before it plopped into the water felt far too long… but just as quick as it had started.
It stopped.
Just like that.
Cedric noticed first, the ringing in his ears fading first, his first thought when pulling back from where he had burrowed against the back of Iris’ head to check her. Watching as she slowed her breaths, loosened the hold her hands had found over Cedric’s to do anything to muffle the sound more. And then pulling back when she opened her eyes…
Cedric attempted one of his boyish grins, trying to make the moment humorous if nothing else. But… Iris stared blankly down in the water, serious as could be. Her head tilted as she mumbled.
Finding himself once more confused, Cedric tried to ask. Only to be ignored. So he tried again, and again. Repeating her name until she stopped her mumbling and looked at Cedric with a wide grin, eyes alight with some idea, “We cannot sing above the ground.”
Okay, so when Iris Blackwell smiles at you like that… you maybe forget how to function for a moment, “What?”
Iris paused for a moment, waiting and watching Cedric as she waited for it to click… then she registered the problem. Seeing his glazed-over, adoring eyes. Biting down her excitement, her smile fell to a subtle grin. Looking back to the water, she allowed Cedric to break free as she clarified, “The egg, it is singing,” she glanced back as he moved his gaze down where the egg was sinking, “in the water.”
The words clicked as Cedric’s eyes gained the same sort of light Iris’ had a moment prior. So excited, so focused to finally get somewhere with the damn thing that he didn’t even stop for a second to wonder how Iris could even hear the singing.
No instead, he scrambled up, moving to start taking off his shoes before Iris scrabbled up as well, eyes wide, “Wait, wait, wait. That water has to be freezing.”
Cedric’s shoulder fell as he easily conceded to that fact, a bit irritated with the situation as he found he would be waiting even longer to figure out just what was inside the egg…. He almost missed Iris slipping off her shoes, Grabbing her arm, he stopped her with mild panic, “You aren’t going in there either.”
“I’ll be—”
“If you jump in I will follow.”
Iris stopped fighting immediately. Puffing her cheeks one last time, she pulled out of his grasp, fixed her shoe, and plopped back down to sit on the rock. Staring down into the water, “We will have to accio it out at some point.”
Cedric cringed at that as he sat back down, joining her in looking into the dark waters that for the time were sparring their ears from the screeches. They would be very content to just let the egg stay lost for quite some time. The weight of the egg gone both literally and figuratively, the first step in learning something finally taken.
The longer Cedric sat in the moment, freed of his biggest problem, the more content he grew. Letting the breeze run over him, the ripples of the water distract him, and the dance of the trees comfort him.
Smiling, Cedric bumped Iris’ shoulder, “If I didn’t already have a date I would ask you to the ball.” He looked at her for a second, long enough to catch the absent smile of thanks… and long enough to recognize the wistful look on her features, “Theodore Nott is a lucky guy.”
Iris’ smile dropped… a hum her only response as she closed her eyes to join Cedric in just being in the moment.
~~~~~~
It wasn’t late, dinner had not even begun yet. But with winter comes shorter daylight hours. The sun had fully set, students were yawning, and the mood of the castle was settling. These days such a drag compared to the upcoming holiday and ball.
The common room was far from empty, people everywhere as they lazily awaited dinner. Iris wouldn’t even stop for a moment to consider staying in there, very ready to head up to her bed. Maybe even ready to call it an early night.
But before she could disappear from sight, a familiar voice caught her attention, “Haven’t seen you all day.”
Iris would always find her eyes going straight to Theodore Nott… even when she looked less than thrilled to see him. But she had to bite the bullet. Which is why, no matter how much dread nagged at her head, she still approached the table he was reading at. Throwing herself lazily into a chair she shrugged, “Was with Cedric at the lake.”
Iris wasn’t looking at him, staring at the table as she avoided any reaction Theodore would have… missing his quick frown.
Just like that things felt so… awkward between them. Just two teenagers unable to deal with the things between them. Why did they overcomplicate it?
Why did Iris insist once more on something she clearly didn’t want? “You should go with Jane.”
Theodore went tense again, how those words just irritated him. Now twice on the same day. Closing his book, Theodore started bouncing his leg, an anxiousness he never felt, “Why would I?”
Looking back… Theodore would hate how easy she would look back at him, how cooly she would say the next words, “Why wouldn’t you? Not as if we were really dates anyway. Doesn’t matter which friend you go with if you still go.”
He’d hate it so much that maybe he missed the pause from his friend… the way her jaw went tight after forcing out her final words… the anger flittering across her face before she would walk away… “It will just make everything easier for everyone.”
Would they get over it? Go back to the ease of their friendship by morning? Able to continue on as if nothing had happened? Yes… Iris Blackwell and Theodore Nott would be fine.
Would either of them be able to sleep that night though? Would either of them be able to properly lose that bit of irritation that ate at their mind? Would either of them be happy with how things were going? No… Iris Blackwell and Theodore Nott would continue to hold back.