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NOTE: THIS IS THE FINAL CHAPTER!!! I have a long thank you section at the bottom for all of those who nagged me to continue, praised me, gave constructive criticism, and even took the time to flame me ( I think there were 2 flamers)... And all of my special thanks to the avid supporters of this story. Much applauding!
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Grey Gaze
*Chapter 7*
Preparation and Perfection
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by Ashley (Hype)
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Lavender sat in a large leather chair in the Gryffindor commons, staring intently at the fire roaring before her. It was nearing midnight on Tuesday, and she was waiting for Fred to appear. She had quite a few things to discuss with him....
I drew my cloak tighter around my shoulders, which nearly felt frozen off. I had forgotten how chilly it could get in February in the Hogwarts castle. A door made a slight moaning noise from age, which would have gone unnoticed if the common room wasn`t as empty as it was. I turned in the direction in which the noise had come from and saw Fred`s bright red hair illuminated by the firelight as he walked across the room, each of his footsteps slightly echoing. Finally, he took his place next to me.
"Lav, what`s up?" he asked, grinning his usual bit.
"Mmmm," I wasn`t quite sure how to start this. As I was not the one to beat around the bush, I said: "Well, I`m having second thoughts on this scheme. See, I think I`m starting to like Draco again..."
Whatever Fred was expecting to hear, that wasn`t it. "What! Have you gone mad? We planned this whole thing and now you`re telling me to shrug it all off? I haven`t the time to find a new date!" he said, sounding in all respects frantic.
I almost laughed at his last statement. Surely the Fred Weasely of Gryffindor could find a date for the Hearts Ball in a day. If not, I most certainly could find one for him. Nevertheless, this wasn`t the matter truly at hand. "Fred, what am I to do? The ball is one day away and I still can`t make up my mind!"
"Lav, this whole plot is not about making up your mind, remember? It`s about revenge," he said, calming down a bit from his last outbreak. "Do you remember those things he said about you?"
I bit my lip. "How do you know he really said them? I mean, you only heard it from Cho..."
"I can trust Cho`s word as much as you can trust Abraham Lincon`s word. Believe me, Lav, Cho, contrary to popular belief, is indeed a trustworthy person. Besides, why would she lie about something like that?"
"I don`t know." It was true; I didn`t know. In fact, I knew very little about Cho.
"Look, this whole plot is for revenge to Malfoy, who blasted your heart into smithereens."
"He did not!" I retorted. "I didn`t really like him all that much."
Fred laughed and rolled his eyes sarcastically before leaning back into his chair. "Yeah, right, and I`m the Queen Mum who just gave birth to a flock of sheep nearly two seconds ago, really."
I laughed, despite the circumstances. "Alright, so perhaps I did like him...I do like him....Oh, I don`t know..."
"Lav, straighten up. This I-am-wallowing-in-self-misery look doesn`t suit you one bit. You have to get your priorities right. You are Lavender Brown, Beauty Queen of Gryffindor," I grinned as he went on, "Now, correct me if I am wrong, but to my knowledge beauty queens don`t wallow; they get even, which is precisely what you are doing. So quit this sulking state of yours and grow a backbone! Draco Malfoy needs to be taught a lesson for his devious ways."
"Right!"
At precisely eight `o clock in the morning, I walked into the Great Hall with Parvati, linked arm-in-arm as tradition. After quite a few strides, we reached are place at the Gryffindor table and sat down. Breakfast was, as usual, mainly uneventful. Couples of all houses were sitting together, anxiously awaiting the Hearts Ball that would take place in the evening hours.
Among these couples were Ron and Hermione, who were idly chatting about something. I smiled a bit, seeing that Ron had a bit of a black eye from where Hermione had hit him upside the head with her Transfiguration book the previous day in Potions. Currently, she seemed to be making it up to him by hanging off his shoulder and whispering things in his ear. These whisperings mush have been good things, for Ron had a dazed expression and silly grin on his face.
Also wearing a dazed expression was both Harry Potter and Ginny Weasely. The two were so engrossed just looking at each another that Harry didn`t notice when Dean`s ice-cold pumpkin juice spilled across the table and onto his lap. I guess he noticed somewhat ten seconds later when the juice soaked through his pants and he jumped up, letting out a yelp from the coldness. I simply shook my head with amusement and looked around the Great Hall.
Couples were everywhere, smiling and laughing with their pre-planned dates. I sighed, knowing that I was not to be with either of my dates in order to keep down the suspicions of onlookers. It made me sad seeing them.
Professor Sinistra`s voice droned on about cosmic energies and formations as I stared down at my parchment, idly drawing red hearts with my quill. My mind was on a million things at once, as it so often was. Mainly, though, it was focused on Draco. He had perfect, and I mean perfect, silver-blond hair...So soft, I remembered, when I felt it that night in the library...His hair wasn`t the only thing perfect about him. He had the perfect, hard-to-maintain, milky- white skin complexion, the perfect muscular build, the perfect teeth, the perfect confidence....The perfect gray eyes. He was the sole definition of perfect, save one flaw: he was crude.
I looked over at his seat next to me. He sat there, seeming quite content as he folded his origami figurines with his wand. I absently wondered why Professor Sinistra never noticed the massive heap of figures piled at the corner of his desk. Just then, he looked up at me, his grey gaze locking onto mine, and smiled. It seemed this was becoming a more common occurrence; or at least I hoped so. I smiled back and returned to my heart drawing. Just as I put down my quill to figure another red heart, one of Draco`s origami figures landed squarely on my parchment and read "open me" in Draco`s flawless scripture handwriting. Curious, I opened the figurine along its folded creases and read the note.
L.,
Meet me during lunch in this room. I have something to confess.
D.
I folded the note up quickly and turned to look at Draco, but he was gone. The bell had already rung for next class.
I hurried out of the Transfiguration room, stumbling occasionally over a few stray first years in the fourth corridor. I ran down the fifth corridor and met a flock of sixth years filing out of the Charms classroom. Quite remarkably, I made my way through them to the hidden staircase which lead to the Astronomy tower. Luckily, there was no one on the Astronomy staircase as I made my way up the winding steps, as I was sure I would knock someone down the flights of stairs headlong if I should cross them.
Out of breath, I reached the top of the eight-flight staircase and faced the door of the Astronomy classroom. For a few moments I stood with my hands on my knees, gasping desperately for air. My, my, I was becoming out of shape. I used to be able to sprint up those steps like a jack rabbit on a hot date. I laughed mentally at myself as I realized I used one of my aunt`s ridiculous American phrases.
After I caught my breath, I straightened up and checked my watch to find that I was five minutes early. Of course, I am not the one to waste time, and as I am always prepared for the worst, I pulled out my emergency make up kit that Parvati had given me last Christmas. It was my savior. Parvati always gave the best gifts during Christmas.
After reapplying my eyeshadow, curling my eyelashes, and putting on a new lipstick, I gave myself a once-over in the compact mirror. I was fully restored to my beauty queen title. Quickly, I folded the case closed and returned it to it`s proper place in the depths of my beloved purse. I walked forward a few paces and turned the knob of the Astronomy classroom`s door and opened it.
Draco stood by one of the windows leaning against the frame and looking out at the giant squid splashing about in the lake. Slowly, he turned his head and looked at me.
"I knew you would come," he said so softly that it was barely audible.
"Well, why wouldn`t I?" I asked, setting my purse and bag down on a nearby desk.
He sighed and leaned back against the window frame, folding his long arms across his chest. "Well, I don`t know, Lavender... In fact, I don`t know a lot about you at all lately."
I bit my lip somewhat remorsefully. "Sorry..."
"No need to be," he said in a dismissive tone. "About my confession..."
"Yes, what is it?" I asked, curious.
"Well...Do you want to know the reason I asked you to the Hearts Ball?"
I went rigid. "I guess...."
"Because you are... You are what I want to be," he said, pronouncing each word so carefully and precisely one might have thought he was an English professor.
"Excuse me?"
"You are nice... I want to be nice...Nice like you." Draco shifted his weight onto his right foot and looked down.
I made an indigent sound, causing his head to snap up with alertness. "You just asked me to the ball because you wanted to be nice? Well, that certainly wasn`t what I was expecting!" I said and grabbed my purse and bag and started off towards the door. Before I could get there, Draco dashed in front of me, blocking my reach of the rusty brass handle of the old door.
"That isn`t what I meant, Lavender," he snapped, but then softened. "I want to be with you... I want you to teach me the things I couldn`t teach myself... I want you."
I stopped my desperate attempts to get around him and looked up.
"Look, I know we haven`t really known each other but...I want you to be my girlfriend."
I was in heaven. I swear I could hear harmonic bells ringing in my ears....
"I lived my life up to this moment just to be with you, Lavender. I couldn`t ask for more than you," he said, sounding sincere...looking sincere. Hell, he was sincere. He won me right there at that moment. Still, he went on, "All my life I have lived crude and cold....Guide me, Lavender, to what is right...."
"You`re a poet," I said, though I really don`t know why, and kissed him.
The kiss lasted for a good minute, and rightfully so, as we had held off for so long. It was filled with the passion that I had left that one day in the library with him, the warmth his rare smiles radiated, the magnetism in his perfect gray eyes, and the fates that pulled us together. We belonged.
I sort of drifted through the remainder of the day in a dream-like state, but I was rudely awakened that evening when Dumbledore made an announcement. "All fourth year students and up may report to their dormitories to prepare for the Hearts Ball this evening. That is all."
I was in a frantic hurry to find Fred in the Gryffindor common room. People were crowded around the rooms, holding loud conversations. Finally, I spotted some red hair and ran, or attempted to, towards it. It turned out to be Ron, who looked great in new robes of a deep navy.
"Ron, have you seen your brother?"
He raised an eyebrow. "Which one?"
"Fred."
"Oh, I think he`s up in the dormitory getting ready," he said, looking down at me from his great height.
"What room?" I asked, preparing to make a mad dash to the boy`s dormitory and find Fred before McGonagall caught me in the forbidden place.
Again, he raised an eyebrow. "Twenty-three...Why?"
I didn`t have time to answer as I dashed up the stairs towards the boy`s dormitory. I ran down three halls before finding room twenty-three and swinging it wide open, revealing a roomful of half-dressed seventh years.
"Where`s Fred?" I demanded, paying no mind to the blushing lot of boys quickly trying to stuff themselves into their dress robes.
Someone came up behind me and covered my eyes. "Guess who? It`s me, Fred!" he said jovially and taking his hands off my eyes. "Sweetheart, what are you doing up here, you naughty girl, you!" he teased. "You`re not supposed to see these guys desperately trying to dress themselves out of your view... McGonagall would have their heads for indecent exposure, as she so favors the girls of the Gryffindor house." The other seventh years, now fully contained within their clothing, laughed at Fred`s joke. "Now, what`s the matter?" he asked, pulling me out of his dormitory and into the hall. He placed both of his hands on my shoulders and looked down at me with his brown eyes.
"I`m going with Draco."
"To the ball?"
"Yes."
Fred frowned. "I knew this would happen...I just knew it. Well, what about me? What do I do? I haven`t a date now."
I looked up at him, then I looked down. Then an idea came to me and I looked back up at him. "You could go single!"
He let out a snort of laughter. "Me? Go single? Everyone there will have a date!"
"True, and every girl there will have a date that won`t dance at all! However, you are a magnificent dancer and you could dance with every girl in the room whose date won`t dance with them. Think about it, Fred... There would be no commitment to dance with just one girl," I said mischievously, hoping he`s pick up. He did.
Fred grinned wickedly, leaned forward, and kissed my cheek. "You`re brilliant, Lavender Brown. Brilliant."
Gryffindors began to queue up behind the portrait hole, some in arms with their dates, others waiting to meet theirs on the other side of the portrait hole, and some, like Fred Weasely, waiting to get on the dance floor with every girl willing to dance. I waited somewhat patiently next to Dean Thomas and Fred and George Weasley, all of which kept complementing me on my red dress. I took sight of Parvati, who had linked arms with Greg Stacy, a seventh year, some ten feet in front of me. I made my way towards her and her date.
"Hey Par!" I shouted, trying to get her attention through the loud commotion that had begun to reach its peak in decibels. She turned her lovely brunette head over her should and caught sight of me and smiled, motioning me over. After as much difficulty as you could possibly get through in seven feet or so, I came to a halt on the right side of her.
"Awww...Don`t Harry and Ginny look so sweet?" she asked, looking at the couple in front of her, Ginny and Harry, of course, who where holding hands and simply looked at each other with glorious eyes. "So how is the plan going?" she asked, turning back to me with her brown eyes looking anxious.
"Er....Actually, I`m going with Draco," I said, pausing a bit and waiting for her reaction
Her neatly manicured and make-up applied eyes widened. "You are?!"
"Ah...Yes. See, I... I don`t know how to explain..."
"How it happened?" she finished for me. "Let me guess. Draco gave you a note telling you to meet him in the Astronomy tower during our lunch hour. You did meet him there, as planned, and he went on in some poetic sense about guiding him and then you kissed and now you`re going with him."
I just stood there, openly gaping. How did she know?!
"Oh, honey, do shut your mouth. That look doesn`t suit you," Parvati said, smiling.
"But....How...How did you-?"
"How did I know? Well, I have my ways..." she said, a sly grin crossing her face. "I was in the tower getting the book I had forgotten and found the note next to it. Really, Lavender, you should keep track of the notes people give you better, dear. So naturally, I was curious and I stayed in the tower during lunch. I must say, he looked absolutely fetching in those Armani pants with that build."
I simply grinned. Her date, however, seemed particularly annoyed. "Parvati, dear, as much as I find Armani pants fetching, I really do think that it is time to be heading towards the Great Hall now," Greg said, looking down at us from his great height with a clearly annoyed expression. Greg struck me in a peculiar fashion, for I had never actually met him before. Parvati normally went for the Quidditch stars and party-goers of the school, but Greg was, in one word, articulate. I had seen him before, coming out of Advanced Transfiguration and carrying twice the load of required books. He was tall, standing two heads above Parvati and I, had brown hair, blue eyes, and wore thin-framed glasses. He was also at the top of his class. He was also right, as people were beginning to file out of the common room through the large portrait hole. Nervously, I adjusted my fake diamond tiara and the straps of my red dress and stepped through the portrait hole behind Parvati and Greg.
It was crowded. I was being pushed and pulled several ways along with the mass of students, and I was beginning to worry I would never find Draco in the swarm. Just as I began to fret a bit, my arm was grabbed and I was pulled from the crowd into a notch which shared a statue in the main hallway. I looked up and my eyes met the familiar silver ones of Draco, but they were different. They seemed more alive and welcoming than ever. I smiled.
"Hey beautiful," he said, returning the smile. "I have something for you."
"Really? What?" I asked, barely being able to contain my excitement.
He smiled even more and from behind his back he pulled out a corsage of three red roses. "For you, m` lady," he said as he slipped the corsage onto my wrist. I looked down at the beautiful arrangement and back up at him.
"You are incredible," I said, then I kissed him softly on his lips. "Now I believe we have a dance to catch."
He nodded and offered his arm, which I proudly took. We rejoined the tail-end of the crowd and entered the Great Hall.
The faculty of Hogwarts had pulled off a spectacular arrangement of decoration for the Hearts Ball. Fairy lights fluttered around the ceiling, creating a dim glow in the room. Red and white streamers criss-crossed the enchanted, starlight ceiling. The long, standard tables had been replaced again with the hundred candle-lit tables with deep red cloths over them. A band was playing on stage and, in the midst of the dance floor, was Fred Weasely dancing in the middle of a large circle of admiring women to a fast beat. I smiled at the picture... That was my favorite Weasely.
The song soon ended and the band began to play a waltz. Draco looked down at me. "Care to dance?" he asked, grinning mischievously.
I was almost dumbstruck, for Draco had never struck me as a dancing type. "Can you dance?"
He grinned and took my hands, leading me onto the dance floor. He raise his eyebrow, as if daring me to do something. "I believe the real question is can you keep up with me." He swept me up in his arms and began to waltz through the crowd. Draco was an amazing dancer and matched my excellence of ballroom dancing.
"So," he said, twirling me around and bringing me back, "who are you making jealous tonight?"
I smiled, pulling myself closer to him and whispered into his ear, "Everyone."
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NOTE: YAY!!! This is the first series I`ve finished! Mmm... The polls were tallied and Draco was by far the popular vote. So naturally, I made him the ending man. I`m really happy with the way it turned out. In fact, I`m so happy with it that I`m about a sequel sometime soon. Let me know what you think about it:)
As promised, the thank you section is here. There has been many influences and people I`d like to mention. I would like to start with Elani Wrapdon (Eliza now?), who has been such an avid supporter of my fictions and hosts both them and my artwork on her site. Also, a big thank you to Static, Viper, and Cat Samwise, who always give me excellent reviews every time and are devote readers and reviewers to all of my stories:) I would like to thank Kirsten (you know who you are) for being such a great inspiration for all of the giddy conversations between Lavender and Parvati:) Also, I HUGE thanks to everyone who had me on their Author Alert and/or Favorites list... You guys are the best!
So now I give thanks to everyone else who have given praise, flames, ideas, and constructive criticism to the evolution of Grey Gaze. Thank you:
Fuzzy Blue Owl~Zephyr, Lizzy/Tygrestick, Hermione L. Granger, Static (*applauds*), You-Don`t-Know-Who, ssavrider, Can`t go to sleep or the clowns will, Blue Bell, meee, Labyrinth Dumbledore, William 212 (I just added another couple to the list, didn`t I?:), Julius, ~*moe*~, Ron`s Babe (*applauds* R/Hr for your pleasure...Also, I heard you loud and clear:), Lavender&Parvati Fan, *Altra*, Tonna M. Riddle, :) (who has an odd-looking name, but happy:), Elani Wrapdon (*applauds* much love to you, girl!:), unknown, Cheshire Cat (*applauds*), Blue Bells, Burrow Gurl (hurry with your D/Hr story:), me, Mandy, Matrix 14, Fluff, Viper (*applauds*), *May-Usagi*, katt, Lizzy, Angel, Richard Canine, Thorn Baggins, Christi Talmer, Nettie, Dreamer, BoyFlea, Firecorss (who took the liberty of pointing out the invisible dress code:), Iris Pseudacorus, Rosmerta, Lav + Seamus 4eva, Xoni Newcomer (I never had a ditzy Cho in mind to begin with:), Crymson Tyrdrop, Lily_Potter, AnimeGirl, Lunamew, Candy, Miss Padfoot, Angel of Ice, Orange Girl, Professor Issabella Snape, meagan, Nika, Ultimate Element, potteraddict, and Jenna.
Also, to all of those 1,137 readers who never reviewed but took the time to read I have a message for you: REVIEW, DAMMIT!:) Hee hee.... Well people, it`s been fun hearing from you and writing this story. Let me know what you think about a sequel in the future. That`s all for now!!!
- Hype (Ashley) -