Although abandoned on the dance floor by Katherine, Riddle was only left standing alone for a few moments before a 6th year Ravenclaw girl asked him to dance. While he danced with her for a song, a queue of other girls seeking a dance with the head boy formed nearby, having been emboldened by the success of the first. Riddle spent the better part of an hour working his way down this queue, before finally excusing himself, saying he'd promised to meet a friend by the refreshments table.
Luckily, upon his arrival at said table, Abraxas was there to corroborate his story. A few hopeful girls who had trailed after Riddle dispersed back to the dance floor, disappointed upon seeing that Riddle was in fact meeting a friend, and that there was no further opportunity for them to garner his attention.
Riddle wordlessly accepted a drink from Abraxas, and drank it quickly, having worked up a thirst dancing with some very enthusiastic girls.
Abraxas raised an eyebrow at him, waiting for Riddle to say something.
"What?" snapped Riddle, his good mood from earlier in the evening nowhere to be found.
Abraxas shrugged. "I guess you're not going to tell me why Katherine stormed off the dance floor in the middle of a dance, then?"
Riddle gave a long, exasperated sigh. "Apparently, family is a sensitive topic with her. I'm still not entirely sure why," he said in clipped, tight tones.
Abraxas chuckled. "The older the pureblood family, the more drama gets accumulated."
The hint of a smile tugged at Riddle's lips. "And what does that say about your family, Mr Malfoy?"
"Oh, we're all completely mental," admitted Abraxas, laughing. "Really, though, if you want to find out something about the Markova family, you'd be better off investigating it yourself. If they're anything like the Malfoys, they'll be tight-lipped about any family secrets. Family comes first in the old pureblood families, always."
Riddle nodded, considering the advice. "I may have to do just that."
Orion paced back and forth, looking over his shoulder at a group of older Ravenclaw students. At the center of the group sat Katherine, telling a story about the ancient manuscripts in Durmstrang's library that document the origins of runic magic. Her audience was captivated, and Orion was having a hard time working up the courage to infiltrate the group to ask Katherine for a dance.
Finally, he gave himself a shake, and strode over to where Katherine was sitting. Before he could open his mouth, Katherine spotted him and her face lit up.
"Orion!" she exclaimed, beaming. "I was wondering when you were going to come find me for that dance I promised you."
Orion smiled, relieved that she hadn't forgotten. "I didn't want to interrupt."
Katherine shook her head. "I can finish this story tomorrow; we have a study group session scheduled anyways."
A few of the Ravenclaw students groaned, disappointed that they would have to wait to hear the end of Katherine's story. Hestius Bartleby was particularly irritated. "Katherine, I'm not going to be able to sleep tonight if I don't find out what Merpeople could possibly have to do with ancient runes," he complained.
Katherine stood up, taking Orion's arm. "Well, that's a good thing, Hestius. No sleep tonight, the party's only just getting started." She winked, and walked off with Orion towards the dance floor.
A slow, jazzy tune was playing when they reached the center of the skating-rink themed ballroom. Orion lead Katherine in a waltz, holding her lower back and hand with proper form, and a keeping respectable distance between them.
"I've missed you, Orion," said Katherine softly, pulling him closer and leaning her head on his shoulder.
"I haven't gone anywhere," said Orion gently.
"No, you haven't," agreed Katherine. "And yet I feel I hardly see you anymore."
They danced in silence for a few moments, before Orion spoke. "I miss you, too."
Katherine lifted her head so she could look Orion in his warm, brown eyes. "It's silly, isn't it? Avoiding one another just so as to not displease Riddle? And yet…"
Orion nodded, somberly. "And yet."
They shared a look of understanding, and of longing.
"Ah, well," said Katherine, a sad smile on her face. "What significance will a little school-boy drama hold in a few years? You and I, we'll be lifelong friends, even if we can't be close now."
Orion held her gaze steadily. "After Hogwarts…," he trailed off, unsure how to ask a question to which he desperately wanted to know the answer.
Katherine knew what he wanted to ask, and answered simply, and with certainty. "After Hogwarts."
They continued to dance in silence, satisfied in each other's presence, having spoken volumes in just a few words.
At the end of the dance, the pair walked back over to where the Slytherin crew had assembled beneath one of the silvery trees lining the edge of the dance floor.
Here, Katherine noticed that Thaddeus Lestrange had finally arrived at the ball, looking a little worse for the wear. He was playing gently with Celeste's blonde hair, which looked silver beneath the frost-covered tree. They were speaking quietly to one another, creating a private moment within the business of the dance. He stiffened when he saw Katherine arrived, but she waved him off, and he relaxed again, but kept an eye on her.
Abraxas was teasing Adeline, levitating a drink above her head and threatening to spill it. Antonin came to her rescue, sending the drink back over towards Abraxas, who dodged it in the nick of time. Adeline giggled and thanked her rescuer.
Even Charles and Victoria were at peace for the moment, with Victoria leaning against Charles while he sat lounging against the trunk of the tree.
Katherine sat herself down between Orion and Abraxas, and she smiled to herself, surprised at how comfortable and relaxed she felt among these people she'd known only a few months. The only person missing from their group was Riddle, still occupied by some of his admirers from the other houses.
Katherine caught herself letting her eyes drift in search of him, but gave herself a shake, and re-focused her attention on the group around her. For once, she wanted to set the politics aside, and simply enjoy the conversation and laughter shared amongst old friends at the end of a very good night.
A few hours later, only a handful of students remained in the Great Hall. The dancing had long since ceased, and the night was coming to an end. Of course, the group of Slytherins beneath the silver tree had stayed to the bitter end, although Charles and Victoria had left together earlier, ushered out by lewd comments and whooping. "We're engaged!" Victoria had exclaimed in defense as they left, "It's hardly scandalous to go home together."
Abraxas, Adeline, Thaddeus and Celeste were playing a game of Exploding Snap, although Celeste seemed to be mostly asleep at this point. Katherine and Orion had opted out, instead chatting and hunting down the last of the punch Abraxas had spiked with alcohol.
Finally, Katherine picked herself up from the floor, and dusted off her gown. Orion got up too, having offered earlier to walk her back to the dorms. Abraxas glanced over at them, and noticed they were leaving. "You're both giving up already? The sun's not even up yet!"
Katherine laughed. "The ceiling's charmed to look like a clear winter night. The sun's never going to rise."
"Then the party shall never end," he yelled, raising his glass to the ceiling triumphantly.
Orion smirked. "Good luck with that; they're going to start setting up the tables for breakfast in another hour or so."
Katherine laughed and took Orion's arm, and they walked towards the doors of the Great Hall. They meandered down the stone hallways until they arrived at the Slytherin common room.
Riddle was sitting in an armchair there, reading a book on transfiguration as though it were four in the afternoon rather than four in the morning. He closed his book upon seeing Katherine enter, and stood up.
Orion looked uncertainly between Riddle and Katherine. She gave him an apologetic glance, and he sighed began trudging his way towards the stairs of the boys' dormitory.
Katherine caught his arm for a moment. "Remember, Orion, after Hogwarts."
He gave her a small smile, then continued making his way upstairs.
Riddle waited for Orion's figure to disappear around the corner. "What does 'after Hogwarts' mean?" he asked.
Katherine gave him a scathing look. "It's none of your business, like many of the things you asked about tonight," she reprimanded.
Riddle sighed. "Katherine, I want to apologize – "
She cut him off. "Don't, Riddle. Don't tell me how sorry you are for prying into my personal life when we both know you're going to continue looking into my family."
He said nothing, and she knew she was right.
She continued. "It's okay, Riddle. You want to know everything about the people close to you because you don't want to be blindsided. That's just good sense, and it's what makes you such a strong ally. Let's put tonight behind us, shall we?"
Riddle's dark green eyes held her gaze. "I'd like that," he said simply. "And when I said I don't have any friends, I meant it. Friendship and love bring only weakness and vulnerability. But you should know that despite all that, I hold you in high regard, and I'm glad you came to Hogwarts."
Katherine smiled. "And I'm glad you gave me a chance, and didn't kill me as soon as I arrived here."
They both laughed softly, the sound echoing through the empty common room.
"You know, Riddle," said Katherine, taking a step closer to him. "You might be right about friendship and love being sources of weakness, but you're wrong about lust. Sex isn't weakness, sex is power."
Riddle stepped closer to her, closing the space between them. He looked down at her, and she tilted her head up to meet his gaze. "Is that so?" he asked, his breath feeling hot on her face.
Katherine nodded, and slid her hands up along his chest. She let her fingers drag over his shoulders, before resting her arms around his neck. "Most definitely," she murmured.
Riddle continued, his voice soft. "Then why don't you show me just how powerful it is?"
She obliged, bringing her lips down to trace kisses along his neck. She bit into him gently, and he let out a low moan.
"You're not being a very good little pureblood right now, Miss Markova," said Riddle, teasingly.
Katherine looked up at him, a seductive smile on her face. "Well, I've always been the black sheep of my family. Why stop now?"
"Why indeed?" agreed Riddle. He ran his fingers through her dark locks of hair, and pulled her head towards him. He brought his lips to hers in a rough kiss that tasted like whiskey and burned like a cigarette. Katherine's lipstick smeared on her face, but Riddle didn't stop. His fingernails raked down her back, leaving faint red marks trailing along her spine.
Riddle finally paused for a moment, and brought his hand up to cup her jaw. His thumb tugged at her bottom lip, and she exhaled jaggedly, gazing lustfully into his eyes.
When he spoke, it was a growl. "I do feel powerful," he said, a dark smile playing across his features. It was sinister, even menacing, but on Riddle's face, Katherine felt it simply looked right, like a mask finally being dropped to reveal the truth underneath.
He kissed her again, biting her bottom lip hard enough to draw a little blood. Katherine gasped, but didn't pull away. Instead, she dug her nails hard into the back of his neck, deepening the kiss, and slipping her tongue into his mouth. Riddle smelled like parchment and pine trees and magic, and Katherine wanted him closer, wanted his skin against hers.
Suddenly, Riddle extricated himself from the kiss and took a step back. Without a word, he turned and began walking towards the stairs to the boys' dormitory. Just as Katherine was about to sigh in exasperation at Riddle once again getting cold feet when she was starting to feel very, very hot, he turned around to look at her, a cheeky grin on his face.
"Well, come on then," said Riddle expectantly. "My room's this way."
AN: Well it was bound to happen sooner or later! Riddle finally gave in to Katherine's attempts at seduction. Or did she give in to his? Either way, stay tuned for the morning after… ;)
And review to let me know what you think!