By some unspoken agreement, after the end of the ball, the girls all filed to Morrigun's room to gossip and talk of the evening's events.
Fallon, having learnt her lesson from that mortifying experience her fourth year with Morrigun, Montague and the feathers, knocked and waited for the girl to bid her enter before opening the door.
Morrigun was still in her dress robes, looking lovely in the blue-gray lawn which brought out the rich reddish tints in her curls, was removing hairpins from her head, and brushing her hair out by the mirror. The hand holding the silver hairbrush was...
Fallon rushed forward, and grabbed her friend's hand. Morrigun was blushing. "Wait until the others get here..." the older girl murmured. Fallon grinned, and gave her friend a quick, impulsive hug.
Akasha and Malice arrived together, the former throwing herself on her couch with a satisfied sigh. "That was soo nice," she said, stretching like a contented feline. Fallon quirked an eyebrow at her.
"Will you still be able to touch unicorns, Akasha?"
The older girl grinned, "Not telling."
"I'll take that as a 'no' then," Fallon said to herself.
Minutes later, Persephone, Xanne, Slaine, Ai, Calypso, Jeannie and a wickedly-smiling Ravyn had all arrived. Kate, usually quite punctual to everything, was not yet there. The girls glanced at each other, and Morrigun deliberately took out a small clock and waved her wand over it. The numbers were replaced with words, and the hand that had Kate's name on it now pointed to "Requisite conversation by door, complete with come-hither eyes".
A few minutes later, the door to Morrigun's room burst open, and Kate rushed in, her pretty face flushed. Morrigun glanced at the clock, the hand now pointing to "Freshly snogged and blushing", and looked up at Kate with a slight smile, putting the clock away.
"S-sorry I'm late, everyone," Kate was saying, "I got a little... erm... sidetracked..."
Fallon raised an eyebrow slightly as she grinned at her flustered friend, whose lipstick looked rather smudged, "And would the sidetrackER happen to have the initials KB, and the sidetrackING occur due to some sort of.. 'Quidditch' discussion?"
Giggles rang out in the room, and Kate blushed ten shades of red. Morrigun patted the spot next to her, gesturing for Kate to sit down, and the younger girl sat, still blushing to the roots of her nut-brown hair. Everyone looked at Kate expectantly, "So... tell."
Kate paused, and then blurted out, "Kevin was escorting me back to the dormitory. At the door, he said that he'd had a marvelous time, and hoped that I had, too. I said that I did, and I leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. But somehow, I ended up kissing his lips... he'd turned his head... and... I was MEANING to kiss his cheek, honest!"
The girls giggled again, and Morrigun smiled serenely, "Of course you were, darling..."
"I was, I swear! We WERE only friends!" Kate exclaimed, and looked down, blushing still, but smiling a little to herself.
"We know," Akasha grinned, "Are you going to be as sweet as Morrigun and Montague now?"
Kate made a mock-scandalized face, "I don't think that's POSSIBLE! Morrigun and Montague... wait a minute!" She, like Fallon had, earlier, seized Morrigun's hand, "MORRIGUN LENNOX WHAT IS THIS HERE ON YOUR FINGER??"
And all of the girls crowded over to see Morrigun wearing a silver ring with a sparkling sapphire. Morrigun blushed, "It's a promise ring. Alexander gave it to me."
Many cheerful (and slightly naughty) questions were then directed towards Morrigun, and Fallon joked that she could FEEL her teeth decaying with all the sugar floating around.
Ravyn shot Fallon a grateful look, and pulled off the jewelry that she'd borrowed, "Here's your things back," the younger girl spoke, and then smiled impishly, "And thanks for the spectacular show with Pansy. That was the most bloody hilarious thing I've seen since that time someone accidentally levitated Professor Flitwick in Charms."
Fallon grinned back, "Believe me when I say that it was my PLEASURE... I'm going to go and put the earrings and things back in my room, I'll be right back."
As soon as she had shut the door behind her, Xanne gave the others a wicked smile, "Warrington spent half the night drowning in envy of Philippe Callais. BE-sotted, that one..."
"Five Galleons that they'll start snogging early next year," the usully-quiet Persephone piped up.
Money and bets were collected and written down, and when Fallon had returned to the room, the conversation had shifted once again to Pansy Parkinson and her newly-acquired facial hair.
* * *
The Parting Feast at the end of the year was the most gloomy one that Fallon had ever had. Cedric Diggory was dead, supposedly murdered by Voldemort. Dumbledore made a speech honoring Cedric, and all of the students, of each and every house, as well as the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang visitors, raised their goblets in honor of the boy. Even Fallon, who now had an abiding hatred of Hufflepuffs in general, raised her glass in acknowledgment.
Their bags were packed, and they were once again stepping onto the Hogwarts Express. Fallon, on her way back from the Prefect's compartment where she had been talking to Morrigun about her OWLS (she'd received fairly good marks, with a perfect score in Potions), bumped into Kyle Holden.
And she realized that she did not fear him. He was a revolting, contemptible, despicable piece of shite, and she would never be afraid of him, or the likes of him.
Holden, like most Hufflepuffs, was upset at Cedric's loss, and spent his time between blaming Potter, everyone's favorite scapegoat since he'd arrived at Hogwarts, and blaming the Slytherins, everyone's OTHER favorite scapegoat. He'd muttered something incoherent but distinctly unpleasant-sounding when he saw her.
Fallon calmly sneered at him, "I'm sure your saintly Cedric Diggory is watching from Heaven right now... and he's so PROUD of you." Then, she'd just as calmly and coldly kneed him in the groin, and walked to join her friends without another glance at him.
* * *
The train ride was otherwise uneventful, except for the incident towards the end when Ravyn had found Draco Malfoy and his goons lying unconscious and hexed on the ground. The girls had dragged Draco into their compartment, and Ravyn had, with Persephone and Fallon's help, reversed most of Draco's hexes as the blond boy recounted what had happened to him.
Ravyn had shaken her head disapprovingly, "Tut tut, you shouldn't provoke those Gryffindorks... The rest of the school might think that they're saints, but they're still going to hex you, five to one, if you anger them."
Draco had protested that Crabbe and Goyle had been with him, so it technically wasn't five to one.
Ravyn had maintained that they didn't count. Draco had shrugged, and their conversation had then shifted to what each was planning to do for vacation, and such. Fallon tuned it out.
There were too many confusing things in her mind, after the conclusion of this year. Why couldn't things stay simple? Everything had been so easy, so stress-free, when she had been a child and her days had consisted of going about her business and hating Cassius Warrington.
Things had changed. And she did not know exactly what to think or do.
* * *
End Chapter 13
* * *
Wheee! One more chapter.... and then, perhaps, an epilogue. w00t!
Fallon, having learnt her lesson from that mortifying experience her fourth year with Morrigun, Montague and the feathers, knocked and waited for the girl to bid her enter before opening the door.
Morrigun was still in her dress robes, looking lovely in the blue-gray lawn which brought out the rich reddish tints in her curls, was removing hairpins from her head, and brushing her hair out by the mirror. The hand holding the silver hairbrush was...
Fallon rushed forward, and grabbed her friend's hand. Morrigun was blushing. "Wait until the others get here..." the older girl murmured. Fallon grinned, and gave her friend a quick, impulsive hug.
Akasha and Malice arrived together, the former throwing herself on her couch with a satisfied sigh. "That was soo nice," she said, stretching like a contented feline. Fallon quirked an eyebrow at her.
"Will you still be able to touch unicorns, Akasha?"
The older girl grinned, "Not telling."
"I'll take that as a 'no' then," Fallon said to herself.
Minutes later, Persephone, Xanne, Slaine, Ai, Calypso, Jeannie and a wickedly-smiling Ravyn had all arrived. Kate, usually quite punctual to everything, was not yet there. The girls glanced at each other, and Morrigun deliberately took out a small clock and waved her wand over it. The numbers were replaced with words, and the hand that had Kate's name on it now pointed to "Requisite conversation by door, complete with come-hither eyes".
A few minutes later, the door to Morrigun's room burst open, and Kate rushed in, her pretty face flushed. Morrigun glanced at the clock, the hand now pointing to "Freshly snogged and blushing", and looked up at Kate with a slight smile, putting the clock away.
"S-sorry I'm late, everyone," Kate was saying, "I got a little... erm... sidetracked..."
Fallon raised an eyebrow slightly as she grinned at her flustered friend, whose lipstick looked rather smudged, "And would the sidetrackER happen to have the initials KB, and the sidetrackING occur due to some sort of.. 'Quidditch' discussion?"
Giggles rang out in the room, and Kate blushed ten shades of red. Morrigun patted the spot next to her, gesturing for Kate to sit down, and the younger girl sat, still blushing to the roots of her nut-brown hair. Everyone looked at Kate expectantly, "So... tell."
Kate paused, and then blurted out, "Kevin was escorting me back to the dormitory. At the door, he said that he'd had a marvelous time, and hoped that I had, too. I said that I did, and I leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. But somehow, I ended up kissing his lips... he'd turned his head... and... I was MEANING to kiss his cheek, honest!"
The girls giggled again, and Morrigun smiled serenely, "Of course you were, darling..."
"I was, I swear! We WERE only friends!" Kate exclaimed, and looked down, blushing still, but smiling a little to herself.
"We know," Akasha grinned, "Are you going to be as sweet as Morrigun and Montague now?"
Kate made a mock-scandalized face, "I don't think that's POSSIBLE! Morrigun and Montague... wait a minute!" She, like Fallon had, earlier, seized Morrigun's hand, "MORRIGUN LENNOX WHAT IS THIS HERE ON YOUR FINGER??"
And all of the girls crowded over to see Morrigun wearing a silver ring with a sparkling sapphire. Morrigun blushed, "It's a promise ring. Alexander gave it to me."
Many cheerful (and slightly naughty) questions were then directed towards Morrigun, and Fallon joked that she could FEEL her teeth decaying with all the sugar floating around.
Ravyn shot Fallon a grateful look, and pulled off the jewelry that she'd borrowed, "Here's your things back," the younger girl spoke, and then smiled impishly, "And thanks for the spectacular show with Pansy. That was the most bloody hilarious thing I've seen since that time someone accidentally levitated Professor Flitwick in Charms."
Fallon grinned back, "Believe me when I say that it was my PLEASURE... I'm going to go and put the earrings and things back in my room, I'll be right back."
As soon as she had shut the door behind her, Xanne gave the others a wicked smile, "Warrington spent half the night drowning in envy of Philippe Callais. BE-sotted, that one..."
"Five Galleons that they'll start snogging early next year," the usully-quiet Persephone piped up.
Money and bets were collected and written down, and when Fallon had returned to the room, the conversation had shifted once again to Pansy Parkinson and her newly-acquired facial hair.
* * *
The Parting Feast at the end of the year was the most gloomy one that Fallon had ever had. Cedric Diggory was dead, supposedly murdered by Voldemort. Dumbledore made a speech honoring Cedric, and all of the students, of each and every house, as well as the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang visitors, raised their goblets in honor of the boy. Even Fallon, who now had an abiding hatred of Hufflepuffs in general, raised her glass in acknowledgment.
Their bags were packed, and they were once again stepping onto the Hogwarts Express. Fallon, on her way back from the Prefect's compartment where she had been talking to Morrigun about her OWLS (she'd received fairly good marks, with a perfect score in Potions), bumped into Kyle Holden.
And she realized that she did not fear him. He was a revolting, contemptible, despicable piece of shite, and she would never be afraid of him, or the likes of him.
Holden, like most Hufflepuffs, was upset at Cedric's loss, and spent his time between blaming Potter, everyone's favorite scapegoat since he'd arrived at Hogwarts, and blaming the Slytherins, everyone's OTHER favorite scapegoat. He'd muttered something incoherent but distinctly unpleasant-sounding when he saw her.
Fallon calmly sneered at him, "I'm sure your saintly Cedric Diggory is watching from Heaven right now... and he's so PROUD of you." Then, she'd just as calmly and coldly kneed him in the groin, and walked to join her friends without another glance at him.
* * *
The train ride was otherwise uneventful, except for the incident towards the end when Ravyn had found Draco Malfoy and his goons lying unconscious and hexed on the ground. The girls had dragged Draco into their compartment, and Ravyn had, with Persephone and Fallon's help, reversed most of Draco's hexes as the blond boy recounted what had happened to him.
Ravyn had shaken her head disapprovingly, "Tut tut, you shouldn't provoke those Gryffindorks... The rest of the school might think that they're saints, but they're still going to hex you, five to one, if you anger them."
Draco had protested that Crabbe and Goyle had been with him, so it technically wasn't five to one.
Ravyn had maintained that they didn't count. Draco had shrugged, and their conversation had then shifted to what each was planning to do for vacation, and such. Fallon tuned it out.
There were too many confusing things in her mind, after the conclusion of this year. Why couldn't things stay simple? Everything had been so easy, so stress-free, when she had been a child and her days had consisted of going about her business and hating Cassius Warrington.
Things had changed. And she did not know exactly what to think or do.
* * *
End Chapter 13
* * *
Wheee! One more chapter.... and then, perhaps, an epilogue. w00t!