Christmas morning started out with a very excited atmosphere that promised to only increase as the day went on. The girls opened their presents in their pajamas and then hurried to the common room for the traditional showing off. Beth never had much to say in this category, since her father was frugal and the Scamanders never sent her anything but books and clothing, but this year she awoke to find a silver pendant necklace from Lycaeon among her gifts.
The day passed very pleasantly. Holiday cheer and a delicious anticipation of the evening combined to leave everyone feeling warm and friendly. Even Blaise seemed to be enjoying herself, and when Draco started in on how lavish his father's Christmas parties usually were, she smiled and nodded and let him carry on without very much of her usual sarcasm.
At around five o'clock, Beth and Melissa and most of the rest of the girls left to go get ready for the ball. (The boys stuck around in the common room making fun of them for it.)
Antigone had been dressed since two that afternoon; she lounged in the common room, striking in silky green robes, enjoying the attention of those too dumb to keep from staring at her. Melissa stopped to talk as they passed by.
"I'm going to use your bobby pins in Beth's hair," Melissa told her. "And I'll need the bureau mirror, so stay out."
Antigone twirled a finger lazily around one end of her green shawl. "You're going to make over her?" she purred. "Don't you think you should've started a bit earlier?"
Beth started to make an angry reply, but Melissa broke in: "Why Antigone -- you are planning to conceal that pimple, aren't you?"
Antigone let out a horrified gasp and bolted for the powder room.
"I told her to stay out," Melissa sighed.
"You're brilliant," smiled Beth.
"I know," said Melissa. "Now let's get upstairs -- I've got a lot of work to do."
"Ouch!"
"Stop twitching your head!" Melissa ordered, twisting Beth's hair even more tightly.
"Stop pulling my scalp off!" Beth bellowed. "What're you -- ow -- doing up there?"
Melissa jammed a few well-placed bobby pins into Beth's hair and waved her wand over the whole thing. Beth felt her hair instantly stiffen up. She felt the top of it gingerly. It was as if she was wearing a hat made of rather stringy cement.
"It's a French twist," said Melissa, in a no-nonsense sort of way, "and people with long necks look very nice in it." She deftly threaded some blue flowers through the ensemble. "You're going to be gorgeous if it kills me."
"You're going to kill me," Beth grumbled.
"Beauty requires sacrifice," Melissa said shortly. She went to her dresser and pulled out a compact, then came and sat in front of Beth, eyeing her face intently. Finally she flipped open the compact and said, "Blush. Desert rose."
The powder in the compact faded from white to a rusty pink.
"That's actually kind of neat," Beth admitted, while Melissa was brushing the powder onto her cheeks.
"Don't talk, you'll smear it!" Melissa ordered. "Eye shadow, dark. Mmm ... olive brown. Close your eyes. This one's not the best one out there, it doesn't have all the newer colors ... Pansy has one of those, but I just don't like this season's colors, and I already know what works on me ... Eye shadow, light. Pale brown. Quit twitching!"
"I have an itch on my nose," said Beth between her teeth.
Melissa let out an impatient huff. "Go on, scratch it." Beth obliged. "All right now, don't move. We've got to get eyeliner and lipstick on you ..."
Melissa spent another half hour on hair and makeup before she let Beth even change into her robes. Temporarily deprived of her job, she contented herself with offering advice about how to act.
"When you're spooning the soup, scoop outward," she emphasized, tugging on her own purple robes. "Do not forget to put your napkin on your lap. I will never forgive you ... will you reach this button for me?"
Beth reached over and fastened her friend's robes. "Don't worry, I'm not going to make you look bad."
"You had better not," Melissa sniffed, missing the irony entirely. She adjusted her robes at the shoulder and hip. "Try not to leave lipstick stains on the goblets ..."
She stopped and looked critically at Beth. "We have to do something about that rash."
"It's getting better," said Beth defensively. The itching had entirely stopped, and there was little more than a reddish blotch where the bumps had been.
"Better or no, it's still not attractive," said Melissa. She sat down heavily on the end of her bed. "If only there was some way to cover it ..." She snapped her fingers. "I've got it!"
"They itch," Beth griped. She tugged at the end of one of the elbow-length gloves that had been unceremoniously shoved onto her arms.
"They're better than letting that horrid ivy show," said Melissa. She had finished her own makeup and was putting last-minute touches on her hair. "Besides, they emphasize your nice trim arms."
Beth, who had never noticed her own supposedly trim arms, glanced them over and decided that Melissa was right.
"Let's go over the basics again. Silverware is used from the outside in. Don't butter all of your bread at once." She picked up her purse and started stuffing it with bobby pins, amulets, and makeup cases. "And let's see ... under no circumstances should you talk with your -- aiiiii!"
Bruce had poked his head around the door. His eyes were screwed tightly shut. "Anybody naked in here?" he called.
"Lucky for you, no," said Melissa scathingly. She bent down and gathered the things she had dropped when she screamed. "What are you doing here?"
Bruce opened his eyes but still didn't quite dare to intrude into the female territory. "It's Warrington. He's had a panic attack -- punched a wall -- it hurt, of course, and when he stumbled back he tripped over Mervin and knocked his face on the bedpost."
"Oh no!" said Melissa. "Poor Warrington."
"Yeah, I know," said Bruce. "Mervin banged his head off the ground, by the way, and he's still out cold. But Warrington's face is blooming like a battlefield -- black and blue, not even to mention all the blood --"
"He cannot meet Antigone like that," Melissa said decisively.
Bruce looked relieved. "Exactly. You've got to come over and fix him up. This is an emergency." He glanced at Beth for the first time; then he did a double-take and his eyes widened. "Holy cow, Beth."
Beth let out a wail and bolted towards the mirror. "Is it that bad?"
"No --" Bruce shook his head swiftly. "No, you look great." He fixed his attention on Melissa again. "Please."
Melissa nodded. "I am on my way. Accio." Her entire supply of makeup flew back into the open purse. She closed the clasp and hurried after Bruce.
For the first time all day, Beth was left alone in the dormitory. She approached the full-length mirror nervously. What's it going to be? she thought. Cinderella or an ugly stepsister?
It was neither. There had been no magical change; there was the same old Parson chin, the eyes that she swore were a little crooked, and -- sure enough -- a few strands of bushy blonde hair had absolutely refused to cooperate. But Melissa's efforts had come to something. She looked prettier -- she felt prettier. It occurred to her that maybe those were the same thing.
"She did you up well," the mirror said approvingly.
Beth turned from side to side. The hem of her robes spun around her ankles. "I guess so," she agreed softly. Then she straightened, strode over to her bed and stuffed her wand into a pocket of her dress robes. "Come on, Parson, let's get this done with," she told herself firmly, and went down the hall to join the rest of her class.
The common room was awash with color and slightly warm from the many milling bodies. Beth fought through the crowd to where Aaron, Mervin, Bruce, and Melissa huddled together, all peering anxiously in the same direction.
"Hush!" said Melissa, before Beth had a chance to say a word. "He's about to do it--"
Beth looked across the common room just in time to see Warrington lean over a sofa and extend a hand to Antigone. She took it and came gracefully to her feet. Warrington stood there a moment, gaping; then he very hesitantly offered her his arm and the two of them moved toward the door.
His classmates let out a collective sigh of relief. "We didn't think he'd actually go through with it," Bruce confided. "We were taking bets ..."
"Mervin owes me seven Galleons," Aaron said gleefully.
"I say!" said Melissa. "Here come the fourth-years."
The fourth-years came down together, Pansy and Draco at the fore. Crabbe and Goyle, somewhat alarmingly, wore matching moss-green robes, and flanked their leader as if those positions had been natural to them since birth. Morag was done up in fine Highland style. Blaise, near him, glanced around the common room before she spotted Aaron and made her way over to him. Her hair was done differently, and there was a hint of makeup around her features, but maybe she hadn't had the benefit of Pansy helping her; she still looked quite plain.
"Hi, Aaron," she said shyly.
Aaron turned and gave her a nervous grin. "Oh, hi --" He broke off, and a rush of panic flashed through his eyes. It was covered quickly. "You look lovely."
Blaise smiled, and both cheeks dimpled. "Thanks. You too. I mean -- you look -- quite nice."
"Quite right," said Aaron cheerfully. "Go along then, I'll meet you soon."
"All right," said Blaise, and went back to Pansy and Draco.
Instantly, Aaron turned to Beth with the panic back in his face. "Quick, Beth -- what's her name again?"
Melissa let out a horrified giggle. "Blaise," Beth told him. "Like the fire, only with a soft 's'. Don't worry, you'll do fine."
"Right." Aaron straightened the collar of his robes. "Well -- I'm off ..." He strode up to Blaise, who looked gratified, and the two of them queued up behind Warrington and Antigone.
At the stroke of quarter to eight, Draco and Pansy led the rest of the Slytherins up through the dungeons and into the Entrance Hall. The sight was spectacular. Everywhere, students both foreign and domestic were mingling and chatting, wearing robes of all colors and textures. Even the professors were decked out: Professor McGonagall wore thistles and tartan, and Professor Sinistra had brought out her famous "planetary hat", with a brim as wide as the rings of Saturn.
"Well," said Mervin gloomily, "let the games begin."
Mervin bore a vivid purple bruise on his forehead. It seemed that Melissa hadn't had time to fix him up after taking care of Warrington.
"You first," Beth told him. "The Hufflepuffs are right over there."
The Hufflepuffs were gathered in the mouth of their corridor. Cedric stood with Cho Chang at the front of them, tall and smiling and handsome, looking every bit their natural king.
Mervin nodded, swallowed hard, and went over to sort out which girl was his. She found him first; in muted yellow robes, she looked invitingly warm and pleasant. They exchanged nervous smiles and stood there awkwardly for several minutes, chatting sporadically.
Finally the wooden doors to the Entrance Hall swung open. The Durmstrangers, with Professor Karkaroff and Viktor Krum at the fore, entered to a roomful of curious stares. Viktor was with a girl in blue robes that Beth had never seen before; she presumed they must have met up outside. Indeed, the stone steps and adjoining land were now filled with benches, columns and rosebush topiary -- it would be an elegant meeting place, and a quiet space to walk in if the ball itself became too much. Beth thought about finding Colin Creevey and having him take a picture of her and Josef somewhere amid that rosebush grotto.
Viktor and his date joined the other champions at Professor McGonagall's command. Potter was accompanied by a beautiful black-haired girl. They stood aside as the wide doors opened; the students who were already paired up began to file into the Great Hall, and the Durmstrangers dispersed quickly to find their partners among the crowds.
Maria-Regina spotted Mervin with his date; she strode past them with her head held high and her dark eyes sparkling coldly. Mervin swallowed hard and ducked behind his date a bit as she passed.
Gypsy wore flowing robes of scarlet and gold; her dark eyes and hair were accentuated magnificently by large gold earrings. Cheerfully, Richard dropped her a formal bow. Gypsy curtsied in return and took his elbow, and they swept out of the Entrance Hall like a pair of aristocrats.
Beth tore her eyes away from them and set to work finding her own date. She located Josef Poliakoff in the very back of the Durmstrang group. To her great relief, Josef wore neither bright orange robes nor a fox-fur hat. His dress robes were a dark gray, neatly tailored, and looked more or less like everybody else's. He was craning his neck around the hall, looking a bit lost, so she approached and tapped him on the shoulder. "Hi."
Josef was struck dumb for just a moment. Then he bent and showily kissed the back of her hand. "Krasivi," he declared grandly.
"Er -- thank you," said Beth, uncertainly. "What does that mean?"
Josef offered her his arm. "It means t'at I am starvink. Shall ve?"
"Sure." Beth took his arm and they went into the Great Hall.
The Great Hall was a masterpiece of ivy, pine boughs and mistletoe, all sprinkled with the glimmer of real faeries. The enchanted ceiling shimmered with stars and candles; not a cloud crossed the clear winter sky. Instead of the four long house tables, dozens of small, round tables dotted the Great Hall, each one of them lit by a gently glowing lantern. They joined Melissa and Andrei and a handful of other Slytherins in a corner where their house table usually was.
Josef made a huge show of pulling out Beth's chair for her. Then he pulled out Melissa's, and Andrei's, and the rest of the unoccupied chairs just as a precaution. He had barely taken a seat again when applause began, then roared to life. The champions and their partners had lined up in pairs and were now following Professor McGonagall up the center of the Great Hall to the judges' table, now fantastically decked out in gold, silk and shimmering faeries.
"Charming outfit of Mr. Bagman's," Melissa murmured to Bruce. Ludo Bagman wore brilliant purple robes with, Beth thought, offensively yellow stars.
Bruce's date, the frizzy-haired, brown-skinned Chaser, laughed, then stopped self-consciously. Bruce gave her a nervous, encouraging smile before turning back to Melissa. "Nice of your boy Crouch to show up," he muttered back.
Mr. Crouch was not at the judges' table. In his place sat the oldest Weasley.
Melissa scowled but did not make a reply.
The hall had fallen silent, watching the head table to see what to do next. Beth expected Dumbledore to stand up and make another one of his cheery, sometimes cryptic speeches -- but all he did was pick up his menu, glance through it, and say, "Pork chops!" very clearly to his plate.
Aha, Beth thought. The menus had worked the same way at Melissa's dinner party the previous year. Everyone ordered their meals and dug in (it had been some seven hours since lunch).
Bruce's date was the only one at the table who Beth had never met. That made her the most interesting person to talk to. Beth and Melissa spent the first half of dinner getting to know her -- "checking her out for Bruce," as they had agreed to do earlier that day. She passed all inspections. Kiesha, as she was called, turned out to be quite funny and friendly, once the ice was broken. They chatted about classes and about the Beauxbatons students, whom the Slytherins rarely associated with but whom Kiesha had gotten to know very well.
"They teach us French at breakfast," Kiesha told them, dimples in her cheeks. "All of the boys are mad about Fleur, I mean they'd do anything for her."
"I have to ask," said Melissa, leaning across the table. "That boy who kept trying to ask out Antigone von Dervish. Who is he?"
Kiesha grinned. "His name is Lionel D'Armant. He thinks she's part veela -- and his classmates keep trying to convince him she's all snob." She broke off, apparently remembering that Antigone was in the same house as Beth and Melissa. "No offense."
They assured her that no offense was taken, as everybody agreed with her analysis completely.
"But did he ask anyone else to the ball?" Beth asked.
Kiesha peered around the Great Hall before pointing to a table in the corner. "No. There he is. And if you'll follow his gaze ..."
They all turned. He was glaring across the room at Antigone and Warrington, eyes narrowed. One of them was ringed in black and blue.
The leisurely dinner was followed by hot drinks and more small talk. When everyone seemed to be finished eating (except, Beth noticed, for Crabbe and Goyle who were two tables away), Dumbledore stood and asked the students to follow. A flick of his wand cleared the tables and chairs to the edges of the room; another created a raised platform along one wall. The stage was littered with instruments: guitars, bagpipes, drums, and several less-recognizable articles of music.
There was an expectant hush. Then, whoops, whistles and wild applause broke out as one by one the Weird Sisters took their positions on stage. Beth had only heard their songs on the W.W.N; she had no idea they'd be so -- well, scuzzy. With long hair, torn robes and leather, Beth thought they would not look out of place in a cell in Azkaban.
They began to play a slow song and all the lights went out except for the lanterns at the head table. The champions and their partners stood up and went to the dance floor. They paired off and began to move in time to the music. Harry Potter looked quite uncomfortable, but he didn't do anything wrong, and before the end of the song so many other couples filled the dance floor that you couldn't see him through them all.
"Who's that dancing with Viktor?" Melissa murmured to Andrei.
"He said her name vos Hermy-own," Andrei murmured back.
Melissa glanced at Beth. "Hermione Granger?" she said, with interest. "I thought she was dating the little Weasley. Obviously her taste in men has improved ..."
The song ended and everyone applauded. The Weird Sisters began a fast song and the dancing began in earnest.
"Come on," said Melissa, tugging at Beth, Andrei and Josef simultaneously, "let's dance!"
It took Beth a few songs to really get the hang of the dancing, but she soon found herself enjoying it -- especially after she realized that no one was really looking at her but her friends. She paired off with Josef most of the time, as it was only fair; but she had a chance to dance with Andrei, who was good if a little stiff, and Aaron, who was downright horrible. She didn't ask to dance with Bruce as he and Kiesha seemed to be having such a good time together.
She and Josef had just finished learning the two-step from Professors Moody and Vector (Beth trying to ignore how Moody kept casting very suspicious looks at her elbow-length gloves) when the fast song ended and the Weird Sisters started in on another slow number. Beth and Josef looked at each other.
"Thirsty?" said Josef.
"Yeah," said Beth, fanning her face.
One of the tables along the wall was filled with chilled bottles of butterbeer. They each took one and stood around watching the couples still on the floor. Melissa was dancing with Andrei, apparently without a thought of Galen in her head. Mervin had taken to the floor with the Hufflepuff girl and looked like he was actually enjoying himself. Warrington and Antigone were nowhere to be seen. Richard and Gypsy were likewise gone, although Beth knew where they'd be -- tearing up the Durmstrang ship in an attempt to find the missing Ledger. She forced away the thought of them with another sip of butterbeer.
"Good evenink, Headmaster," Josef said.
Professor Karkaroff was standing near the drinks with a vastly unpleasant expression on his face. He looked them up and down.
"Well, Poliakoff," sneered Karkaroff, his weak chin suddenly uglier than ever. "I am surprised to see that you've found a dance partner."
Beth opened her mouth indignantly, but Josef smiled and bowed at the waist. "And I, Headmaster, am unsurprised to see that you haff none."
He took Beth's arm and whisked her away before the sneer had even fallen from Karkaroff's face.
They didn't stop until they were halfway across the ballroom. "He's going to kill you for that," Beth gasped, with a glance back at Karkaroff. The headmaster was beet-red and muttering to himself while brushing imaginary dust from his sleeve. "You're really -- uh -- Josef?"
Josef was doing a jig in front of the punch bowl. A handful of students had stopped dancing to watch. "Yes?"
"Aren't you --" Beth's attempts to keep eye contact with the bobbing boy fell short. "Aren't you going to get in trouble for mouthing off like that?"
"Nothink I say vill change k'his opinion of me," Josef said breezily. "Come on, t'is is easy." Without warning, he whisked away her butterbeer and grabbed both of Beth's hands. "Just up -- down -- kick, spin, kick --"
"I--" The blood rushed to Beth's cheeks. "I can't --"
"Course you can!" Josef roared. "Come on now, do as I do ..." He whirled her around until she broke down laughing ... and by the end of the song she was jigging as well as he.
The music stopped with a long guitar chord, which went crashing into a percussion beat. On stage, the lead guitarist was raising both hands for the attention of the crowd. He waited until the students were mostly silent. Then he shouted:
"Merry Christmas, 'Ogwaaaaaaarts!"
The crowd roared.
"Hope you're enjoyin' the Triwizard Tournament." Cheers of affirmation. "I hear your 'eadmaster was excited to be hostin' the event, seein' as he won the first one about a thousand years ago."
The students laughed. Across the room, Dumbledore raised his glass to them with a smile.
"Really, it's wonderful to be back at 'Ogwarts. Spent the best nine years of me life here."
More laughter.
"I just wanted to let you know who we are up here entertainin' you all tonight. On bass tonight -- Donaghan Trewlett!"
Donaghan, a handsome black man with a moustache overtop a devilish grin, played a few deft bass lines.
"On drums for you, we have -- Nick Montenegro!"
Nick bashed his percussion around to wild applause.
"And I'm Kirley McCormack." He set off into a long and extremely impressive solo on his guitar. "We're the Weird Sisters -- now let's get back in the music, eh?"
The students cheered enthusiastically and the band started up another song.
Long afterward, Beth couldn't remember much from the evening other than the facts that she danced a lot and enjoyed herself. She wasn't the only one. Bruce barely left Kiesha's side the entire night -- which, Melissa remarked smugly, was a "very good sign." Mervin was sighted laughing at a joke from his Hufflepuff partner. This was spread around with great interest as Mervin didn't laugh a lot at anything. Even Maria-Regina seemed to be having fun; after glaring at Mervin got old, she agreed to dance with one of the Beauxbatons boys, and made her rounds happily with the male students.
Midway through one of the fast songs, Donaghan Trewlett took out a lace-edged handkerchief, mopped his face with it, and tossed it into the crowd. Blaise Zabini caught it and promptly fainted. Aaron Pucey, completely at a loss for what to do, finally whistled for Crabbe and Goyle to pick her up and haul her over to one of the tables, where he very gingerly held a cold butterbeer to her forehead until she recovered. Then she noticed the kerchief in her hand and fainted again.
Later on in the evening Josef roused his male colleagues and they put on a voracious folk dance in a circle in the center of the floor. Viktor didn't join in; he stood with Hermione Granger in the crowd, clapping along with the music and looking happier than he had since arriving at Hogwarts. He'd been a regular chatterbox all evening.
Finally the Weird Sisters announced the last song of the evening, to the disappointment of the crowd, and launched into an achingly mournful slow song. Josef turned to Beth, face flushed slightly, perhaps from dancing. She expected him to make some jest -- but he simply said, "Vant to dance?"
His face was calmer and quieter than Beth had ever seen it. "All right," she said, and allowed him to lead her further onto the dance floor. He took one of her hands in his own and put the other around her waist -- not gingerly, she thought, but carefully. They began to move in time to the music. Josef's lead was slow and sure, not at all pushy, but certain and self-assured.
She glanced up to see Josef gazing back at her. For no reason at all, she blushed and looked away. Josef let out a short, embarrassed laugh and looked away too. Feeling suddenly that she didn't want to look Josef in the eye, Beth kept her gaze on the other couples. A swirl of scarlet and gold caught her eye.
Richard and Gypsy were back from the Durmstrang ship, but neither looked like the spy mission was on their mind at all. They were dancing. Beth knew that they both came from good families, but it had never showed so much as now -- their waltz was easy and fluent, so refined that some people were standing aside to watch. They seemed perfect in each other's arms, and Beth could not fail to notice Gypsy's eyes as she gazed at her partner ... or Richard's, as he looked back.
Beth flushed red and looked down at her feet, and suddenly became conscious again of the hand that held her own. Watching Richard and Gypsy, she had forgotten that she was even in the arms of a boy.
"Beth ..."
She looked up at Josef a little abashedly. "Yes?"
Josef opened his mouth uncertainly -- he glanced down and back again. "This vos a nice ball," he finally said.
Beth forced herself to keep from looking across the room at Richard. "It was," she agreed. "We've never had anything like this at Hogwarts ... well, the Halloween feasts sometimes, but that's different." Oh Parson, she thought to herself, how much stupider can your conversation actually get?
Josef, however, did not appear phased. He was still regarding her closely -- why won't he look away? Beth thought in despair -- and seemed to be working up the courage to say something. Finally he tried again.
"Beth, I ..."
The music ended.
The dancers stopped and a great swell of enthusiastic cheers and applause rose up from the Great Hall. The lights grew brighter. Josef and Beth looked at each other, then broke apart with a little laugh. "Well," said Beth, suddenly pink, "that was fun."
"It vos," Josef said.
In the Entrance Hall they paused again, stood there awkwardly for a moment, both said "Goodnight" at roughly the same time, and parted ways.
Beth hung around in the common room waiting for Melissa to get back. She arrived a few minutes later, with a rose in her hair that Andrei had picked for her from the enchanted grotto. Bruce came in not far behind. He cast each of them a very brief, guilty look -- flushed pink -- and hurried upstairs with no more than a muttered "G'night."
Melissa raised her eyebrows and a thin smile reached her lips. "Looks to me like Mr. Bletchley had a good time, hm?"
Beth blushed brightly on Bruce's behalf. "Come on, you have to help me get out of this dress," she said, and the two of them went upstairs to change.
Melissa, true to form, had spent most of the night hobnobbing with anybody in the area; she brought back plenty of gossip, and one or two tidbits that might be of greater use than just dinner conversation. Fleur Delacour and Roger Davies had apparently been "very friendly" towards the end of the night. So had Hagrid and Madame Maxime. ("Well, who didn't see that coming?" Beth shrugged, tugging at the bobby pins scattered through her hair.) Karkaroff and Snape were seen speaking at several points during the night, but nobody thought it looked like Snape was enjoying it. Dumbledore had proven himself an excellent dancer, but by the end of the night, nobody wanted to be near Moody because of some creepy remark about someone's socks.
Antigone swept in then. The tiara was slightly askance on her gorgeous hair, and her cheeks glowed pink. She had never looked happier.
"How was your evening?" Melissa grinned.
Antigone beamed. "I never knew that Warrington was such a gentleman," she breathed. She started down the corridor to the girls' powder room. "Or so talented."
Beth and Melissa stared at each other. Antigone glided off to the powder room with her shawl trailing like the wind. A few rose petals drifted from her hair and landed gently on the floor.
It was all Beth could do to stay awake until one o'clock. When the hour finally came she was nearly too drowsy to get back out of bed; nonetheless, she forced herself vertical and struggled downstairs with Melissa to the S.S.A. meeting that Richard had so thoughtfully scheduled for that night.
Richard was there in the common room. He still wore his dress robes, but carelessly, as if it had been more comfortable for him to leave them on. Beth felt impossibly scruffy in blue jeans next to him. Her mind flashed back to the sight of him and Gypsy, elegant in an elaborate waltz, and she had to look away.
"Oren's search of the Beauxbatons carriage didn't turn up anything," he told them, even as they were slipping out the common room door. "But Evan's saying he heard plenty of suspicious mutterings -- not telling me anything of course, but maybe there's something in there, we'll pry it all out of him --"
Richard was so excited and so full of news that he didn't stop whispering until they reached the Vase Room. They weren't the first ones there.
Evan met them at the door. "It wasn't Ginny Weasley who took the Ledger."
"Really!" Richard looked delighted. "How do you know?"
"I kept an eye on her all night," said Evan coolly, still not moving from the very entrance to the Vase Room. "She didn't go anywhere."
He let them inside. Something was wrong.
"Salazar's cauldron, the one we make the rings from. It's gone."
~~~~~~~~
Goes to show how much I know about makeup. You're supposed to put on the eyeliner /before/ the eye shadow.
Beth couldn't have found Colin Creevey for a photo even if she'd remembered to try -- he's only a third-year, and not invited.
