The Great Hall had been transformed. Almost as much as Jillian. Gone were the four house tables, and instead the slick tile floor had been shined and waxed till it was perfect for dancing. Large, comfortable chairs and couches lined the walls, and along the sides of the doors were long pieces of driftwood hovering about four feet in the air. Panes of glass had been laid on top of them to give it a smooth surface, and they were weighed down heavily with food and drink.
The top of the Great Hall, where the teachers usually sat during meals, had been redecorated: lighting had been set up so that a large circle of spotlight fell on the center of the stage. Microphones, guitars, a keyboard, and a drumset were waiting.
A thrill of excitement raced through Jillian. "I heard that Potion was going to be playing here tonight," she whispered to Celeste. "Is that true?"
Celeste shrugged, eyeing the crowd coolly. "I have no idea. They kicked me off the planning party, remember? I wanted the theme to be Fire and Ice, but they said that was, like, evil or something."
As it was, the theme was some sort of coffeehouse setting. The lights had been dimmed, but yet a frosty haze of orange-red gave everything a different appeal to it. The furniture around the room was squat and funky, though a bit ratty.
Everyone was spread out casually, but the room was still crowded. People lounged in the chairs and couches, and stood on the dance floor in large groups, laughing and talking animatedly. Celeste and Jillian wondered over to the other three Hufflepuff girls, who were standing near the punch bowl.
"Hey, you two," Hannah Abbott said cheerfully, sipping the bright blue punch. "How are you guys? You both look great, by the way."
"Thanks," Jillian said sincerely. "You do, too. I like your earrings."
Hannah fingered the small, thick silver hoops self-consiously. "You do? Thanks. I wasn't too sure about them. So, who are you guys here with?"
Jillian glanced at Celeste, but she was still busy looking out into the crowd. Jillian answered, "I'm here alone. I figure I'll be a single gal from now on. Celeste's got a date… Ron Weasley."
The other girls glanced at each other. "Wow. Celeste, you're really lucky," Susan Bones offered. "He's pretty cute."
"Hmm, what was that?" Celeste mumbled, glancing uninterestedly at the small huddle of girls. "Have you guys seen Ron?"
"I think he's over there," Sally-Anne Perks said helpfully, pointing to one of the couches set up near the stage, all the way across the hall. Jillian saw where she was pointing to, and sure enough a group of three sat, and one redhead stood out. Soon, a huge group of people got in their way, and Celeste had to stand on her tiptoes to see slightly over their heads.
"Let's go, Jill! C'mon, I see him," she said hurriedly, pulling Jillian away. Jillian smiled at the three girls over her shoulder as she was yanked away, giving a quick wave. Laughing, they waved back.
"Okay, okay, how do I look?" Celeste asked Jillian a second before they reached the three on the couch. Jillian looked her over critically and gave the thumbs-up sign, moving ahead of her to the couch.
"Hey, you guys," Celeste said cheerily. "What's up with everyone here?"
She plopped down on the shoulder of the couch next to Ron, and he grinned up at her, his eyes shining with admiration. "A lot, now that you're here."
"Aww," Celeste said quietly, looking down at him, affection written all over her face. "You're a sweetie."
Jillian quickly tuned out their bashful flirting and turned to Hermione and Harry, who were sitting next to Ron. Hermione's jaw was jutted out, her eyes narrowed. The two friends weren't talking, and Harry seemed confused. When he saw Jillian studying them, he stood up quickly and pulled her to the side. "What am I supposed to do, Jill?" he muttered under his breath, casting a sidelong glance at Hermione. "Herm's sulking."
"Do you know why?" Jillian asked carefully. She didn't think that he realized one of his best friends had fallen for his other best friend.
"I have no idea," he spread his arms, looking helpless and lost. "She looked nervous, and so I told her to calm down, we all had dates, everything was under control. Then she looked confused and asked me who Ron was going to the Yule Ball with. I told her he had asked Celeste, didn't he tell her that? And she got all huffy and sulking. What do I do?"
Jillian had to bite her lip and duck her head to keep from laughing. When she looked up, a curl had fallen into her eyes. She tossed her head, saying, "You know what, Harry? You really are clueless, aren't you?"
"What?" he asked, even more confused. "I might be missing something here, but I don't want to be stuck with a crabby Hermione all night, just because Ron's got a date—" he stopped, his eyes suddenly widening innocently. "Oh. Oh, well. Oh, my, I think I get it now. Thank you." He looked so shell-shocked that she laid a hand on his arm sympathetically.
"I'm sorry, Harry. But, yeah, it's the truth. You had to find out somehow," Jillian said softly, smiling at the startled teenager.
"Yeah, well. You're right. I think I should talk to her now," he said, making his way to Hermione. Bending down, he said something quietly in her ear, and she looked up at him furiously. After a bit more frantic whispering, they finally got up and left the couch, making their way to the nearest exit.
Jillian took their places on the couch, leaning over to rub her heel. The shoes she'd slipped on were awesome, but they were new and chaffed her skin irritatingly. When she sat up straight, the lights suddenly went out completely, except for two red spotlights that spun over the crowd. Everyone turned to face the stage, cheering in excitement.
Dumbledore walked out on stage, dressed in slick black robes, a beret perched jauntily on his head. Speaking through a megaphone, he shouted, "And now, the band you've all been waiting for—"
"POTION!" shouted the crowd, and Dumbledore bowed deeply, swishing off stage. The five members of the alternative band ran onto stage, and the lead singer grabbed the front microphone and began singing the opening song, a fast dance tune.
Everyone immediately flooded onto the floor, and as Jillian watched Ron lean over and whisper something in Celeste's ear, she smiled happily. This was going to be so much fun. She loved being part of a moving, dancing crowd. Celeste pulled Jillian up. "Let's dance!" she shouted.
"What?" Jillian shouted back. "I thought you and Ron…"
"All three of us!" Celeste yelled, grinning from ear-to-ear. "Just because I have a hot, awesome, perfect date doesn't mean I'm gonna diss my best friend!" And with that, she pulled Jillian behind her, holding onto the back of Ron's robes.
They began dancing in the center of the room, moving and dipping to the beat. Soon, they were joined by about ten people, and a large circle had formed. They all moved together, laughing at the excitement of it all. The orange red haze had returned, and smoke swirled around their ankles.
After about twenty minutes, Jillian found Celeste in the throng and grabbed her arm. Her friend turned away from Ron with a dazzling smile on her face. "Great, isn't it? Dumbledore's letting a lot slide this year. I just saw Lavender and Seamus making out on one of the couches. By the looks of things, no one had stopped them yet!" Jillian laughed along with her, brushing a curl out of her eyes.
"Actually, I'm going to take a break, okay?" she shouted.
Celeste nodded, wrapping her arms around Ron's neck. "That's a good idea. But I'm having too good of a time," she said, leaning her head back and singing along to the fast lyrics. "Have fun, Jilly! Try the stuffed peppers. Harry says they're great."
"Harry?" Jillian questioned. Celeste nodded. Jillian shrugged. Apparently, he'd quickly gotten over the news about Hermione.
She pushed through the crowd of gyrating bodies toward the hovering driftwood at the back of the room. Even there, the noise filled her ears. Pausing to grab a plastic cup, she filled it with a clear, gooey liquid; someone had told her this sweet drink was very good. Then she moved towards one of the doors, finally stepping into the hall.
It was much cooler there. The castle doors had been propped open so people could walk freely about the grounds, and she started toward the outdoors. When she reached there, she stood on the stone steps and stared down at the activity going on. People had spilled from the Great Hall onto the lawn, and many bodies moved, dancing even more freely than they were inside.
Somehow, this didn't strike her as fun. Jillian just wanted to take a breather, get some fresh air, and cool down a little bit. Then she'd go back to join her friends, maybe dance with that Ravenclaw boy Susan Bones had introduced her to. What was his name? Oh yeah, Terry Boot. Smart kid, really clever. Sharp. And sweet, too.
Turning around, she started to go back inside the castle. Where to go, where to go? Just to close her eyes for a few seconds, wipe the sweat off her brow. Jillian thoughtfully studied a tapestry hanging in the hall, stirring the syrupy liquid with a straw she'd plucked from a cup on the way out. Glancing to the side, she spotted a swinging doorway underneath the Grand Staircase that she'd never noticed before.
Her heart jumped to her throat and a shock of excitement raced through her. She'd just disappear down that staircase for a few minutes, explore a little, and then head right back up…
She slowly tiptoed toward the creaking door, jumping slightly when one of the suits of armor shifted position, readjusting his stance. Chuckling softly to herself, Jillian shook her head, half a smile on her face. No need to be so jumpy, she chided lightly. When she reached the top of the steps, she glanced around carefully before slipping through the entranceway and closing the door behind her.
The staircase was narrow and deeply dark. The steps were cold, crumbling, and hard blocks of concrete. A splintering banister ran down one wall, but she decided against steadying herself with it. Bracing one hand against the cool wall on her right, she made her way down to the depths of the castle.
The staircase twisted and turned, spiraling downward. When she got to the bottom, she released a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. Her pulse was pounding, and she couldn't help but feel slightly giddy and light-headed with the sense of exploration of it all. Where did this place lead? What would she find at the end of the hall?
The hall was a long tunnel of stone, lit barely by flickering torches. Jillian ran her hands along the sides, wondering down the corridor. As she turned corners, following the winding path, she began more and more enthralled by where she would come out.
Finally, it ended in a large room, filled with pillars. The pillars were intricately and ornately carved, and a different figure of an angel head topped each one. Jillian wondered around the room, weaving in and out of stacks of boxes. It appeared to be some sort of storage area, but the pillars suggested it had been a beautiful room at one time.
As she breathed in the musty air, she studied the angels. They were so sad… cold stone tears streamed from the corners of their eyes, and their small mouths were open in sobs.
"Interesting, aren't they?" a voice said behind me. She spun around, her heart pounding. She backed up against the pillar she'd been closest to. Bracing her hands against the marble, Jillian realized her fingers were shaking slightly at the startlingly intrusion on her privacy.
"Who's there?" she said, her voice cracking slightly with fright. The voice had been low and rumbling, and the tone was anything but friendly. It had a ring of danger to it. Jillian glanced around wildly, her stomach dropping. What was the fastest way out of here?
"The detail… the emotion they evoke…" said the deathly quiet, lethally sexy voice. Now it was right behind her. She spun around. A tall, slender figure sulked behind the pillar they shared, but Jillian couldn't make out who it was.
"Who are you?" she challenged, backing up again. Suddenly, the figure moved forward, out of the shadows.
Taut navy blue robes stretched across the barrel-chested youth, and light blonde hair was slicked back stylishly. A chunk of it fell into his pale blue eyes, which flashed with the reflection of the dim torch light. Pale skin, smooth and transparent, glinted with enchantment. He looked up at her through those piercing, alarmingly explosive eyes, eyes fringed with thick lashes. "Hullo Jillian," he spoke softly, staring steadily at her with such a look of concentration that she was soon dizzy with magnetic attraction.
"Draco," she breathed.