Chapter 9 – Preparations and Expectations
Harry took off at a run for the dormitory, knowing the girl would never catch him before he got to the Gryffindor common room. She was broken off in mid-sentence. There was no way he was going to hear what she had to say.
"Harry, wait!" she shouted in desperation. She received no answer as a blur of robed red and gold sped away in escape.
Ron was sitting on his bed when Harry entered the room.
"Great game, Harry! I think it was one of your best games yet. You really know how to put on a show out there." Ron stopped chattering when he saw Harry's face because he could tell something was not right.
"The girl I obliviated in the library, Abby, waited for me after the game. I think she was going to tell me she loved me, from the way she was talking, but I didn't want to hear any of it, so I blew her off and sprinted here. Now all I want to do is sleep."
Ron began the taunting immediately, "Harry's got a girlfriend! Harry's got a girlfriend!" He sounded just like a first year. "Just wait until Ginny finds out. Then you'll be in real trouble."
"That is so childish, Ron. I mean, come on, who does that now that we're sixth years?"
Harry wished Ron had not brought up the topic of his sister. They had dated briefly in the past, but the whole relationship thing had not gone very well, so it fell apart almost as fast as it had come together. Now Harry and Ginny were just very good friends. Harry left Ron standing in the common room and headed up to his dormitory to take a nap before dinner. He hoped against all hope there would be no more surprises for him now.
Hermione had come back from the library just as Harry disappeared up the stairs. "What's with him?" she asked Ron, who was still standing dumbfounded in the middle of the room.
"I'm not sure," Ron replied. "The girl who found him in the library waited for him after the Quidditch game today. I think she likes him, but he doesn't like her from what he said he did before."
"Ooh, I hope he'll be okay. There has to be some way we can help Abby figure out that he doesn't like her and hopefully we can get her out of his hair." The little gears in Hermione's head had already started turning, figuring out a brilliant plan to help her best friend.
The Slytherin dungeons were hissing with excitement about the upcoming weekend event that Dumbledore had just announced that Thursday morning at breakfast. There was going to be a "Welcome Back to Hogwarts" dance in the great hall on Saturday night. The dance was going to be a semi-formal, and robes were not necessary, but proper attire was required.
Draco, Crabbe, and Goyle huddled together in a dark corner, planning different ways to sabotage the dance.
"We could find some spare potions and spike the punch," Goyle suggested.
"You dolt," Draco almost shouted, "That's already been done before. It isn't original."
"Oh."
"What if we were to "enhance" the baked goods," Crabbe suggested.
"That's just as bad as spiking the punch. It's done too often. And besides, all the teachers would know exactly who did it, and we'd get caught instantly."
"Oh. Okay then, what is the plan?" Crabbe asked.
"We find a stripping spell that causes skirts and pants to drop to the floor. Then, when we cast it on unsuspecting people, we make it look like someone else wanted some action in that department, if you know what I mean." He whispered, grinning wildly at his plan. The other two boys smirked at each other at the thought of half-naked girls in the middle of a crowded room.
Draco wrote out specific directions on scraps of paper for Crabbe and Goyle to follow. Hopefully, the fat asses wouldn't screw anything up this time. Once the group split up, Draco hurried off to his room to figure out what he could wear to the dance. He also had to figure out whom he was bringing to the dance with him.
Ever since that night last week, Draco had been very confused. That girl, what was her name? Addie? Well, no matter. Whatever her name was, she had been permanently etched into his mind. He had to find her again, but how? She was a Hufflepuff - a third year even. They had no classes together, and there was no way for Draco to get into the Hufflepuff common room, since he was not friends with anyone at the school except for other members of Slytherin House. He just had to hope against all hope that Addie would be at the dance on Saturday.
Saturday morning, Abby was too excited to sleep. She couldn't wait for the dance, where she might see Harry again, and she already had her entire outfit, complete with jewelry already picked out. Her roommate Alex groaned as she chattered wildly at 9:30 in the morning.
"What on earth are you doing, Abby?" she moaned. "Do you realize that it is not even ten in the morning yet?"
"Yes, I perfectly well know what time it is," Abby retorted. "I was just getting ready for the dance."
"The dance? Honey, the dance is not until way later tonight. You have plenty of time to get ready. Now go back to sleep." Alex rolled over and was asleep again in less than five minutes.
Abby paused mid-step for a few seconds to ponder what her best friend had said. Alex was right. This was silly. Even though she had just gotten out of the shower and still had soaking wet hair, Abby decided to try to go back to sleep. She lay down on the bed and attempted to remain still until her unconscious mind had taken control of her body. Unfortunately, she could not get comfortable at all. So even though Alex was sleeping, she began babbling again, constantly muttering something about a faulty floo connection in the dorm room.
Alex had listened to this noise for long enough. She clumsily sat up in bed, reached for her wand, and said "dormis," pointing her wand directly at Abby. Even though Alex was half asleep, the magic worked, and Abby remained asleep until Alex woke her up in the middle of the afternoon.
"Who what now?" Abby started after being poked in the side. "What time is it," she asked, rubbing her eyes.
"Three," Alex said nonchalantly. "You still have plenty of time to get ready. Don't worry."
Abby flipped out when she realized how late it was. She had only five hours until the dance, and needed at least an hour and a half of those hours to do her hair and makeup. She was also debating whether or not to walk the longer way to the great hall, just to go past the Gryffindor dorm to see if she could intercept Harry on the way. She was so paranoid about getting ready for the dance that she didn't even realize that she was hungry.
Alex just smirked a little as she left to room to find something to eat. Maybe she'd be nice for once and bring something back for Abby, even though she knew Abby probably wouldn't eat it. Alex had heard all about Harry Potter, and hoped that for just one time Abby would use some of the common sense that she seldomly used. She didn't want Abby to get hurt in a bad relationship, and she wasn't sure Harry was the girl for her right at the moment.
Before she knew it, the clock in Abby's dorm chimed 7:30. Where were all her friends? They were supposed to be there at 7:30. She knew it took them a while to get ready, but prayed to Merlin that her friends would be on time for once. Eventually, the whole group had sauntered into Abby and Alex's room. Everyone looked so pretty with their makeup on and hair all swept back in lots of curly locks. All Abby had to do now was get them all out of their dorm and convince them to walk past Gryffindor House on their way to the great hall.
As they walked through the quickly filling halls and saw more people dressed to the nines, Abby was reminded of a picture of her parents from their youth. Her mother was well built with a few freckles and auburn hair. In the picture, she was wearing a red strapless dress with a full, billowy skirt, which looked perfect for dancing. Her father was a tall man, with light brown hair. He was wearing a white tuxedo accented by a red tie. The two were dressed up for his high school prom, and the picture showed the level of excitement the two lovebirds shared. She knew she wasn't supposed to do magic – she wasn't planning on using any – but she convinced him to hold her wand in an inner pocket of the jacket. Abby only knew this from the stories her mother told her about the wonderful night. She drifted back to reality, and realized that she had lost her friends in the crowd.
Abby found herself standing near the picture of the fat lady that guarded the entrance to Gryffindor. She looked around hopefully, just wanting to glimpse Harry in the crowd. The one fear she had was that Harry would not be alone on his way to the dance. She had heard rumors from various sources about two Gryffindor girls that he might have some sort of interest in but hoped they were not true. She glanced at the time-keeper she wore around her neck and realized that the dance would be starting in five minutes. Harry was nowhere to be found; he must have gone earlier with his friends. Not wanting to be alone on the night of the big dance, Abby ran off toward the great hall to catch up to Alex and the rest of her friends.
As soon as Abby had entered the room, Draco had spotted her. Man, that girl really knew how to dress for the occasion. He definitely wanted to dance with her at some point during the night. But how would he get to be with her without looking suspicious?
Abby casually entered the giant room with another group of latecomers so she wouldn't look silly walking in alone. One fast glance at the dance floor told her that the party had not even really started yet. She let out a sigh of relief as she quickly spotted her friends, who were gathered around the nearest table of food, and went to join them, preparing herself for some light chastisement.
"What took you so long," Alex started, "Did you stop to spy on anyone after we lost you in the crowd?"
"Or maybe you just got lost again like you always do," Sierra chimed in.
"I did nothing of the sort," Abby replied, knowing that Alex would see right through her lie. A giggle burst out from across the table.
"You were SO waiting for Harry Potter, weren't you? I should have realized that we lost you in the crowd somewhere around that Gryffindor tower," Alex practically shouted in enjoyment of making her friend blush in embarrassment.
Abby got that silly look on her face again and immediately looked to the floor to hide her blushing. It seemed like some strange ritualistic behavior she did every time she got caught lying. "Yes, I was," Abby admitted. There was really no point in her even trying to lie anymore, since at least one of her friends always saw through it.
Finally, much to her relief, Dumbledore decided to get the dance floor shaking just as Abby had admitted to her friends what she had done. She still had not seen Harry at the dance yet, but there was still time. Nothing really mattered now anyway, since Abby was swept up in a mass of people surging toward the dance floor, ready to party all night long.
At long last, Draco was able to evade his cronies and escape to a corner to plan the attack on his unsuspecting victim. He had spotted her as she made her way onto the dance floor with her friends. She was dancing there still, and this was the perfect time for him to make his move since an announcement was made that one of the upcoming songs was "gentlemen's choice".
Harry Potter was not much of a dancer, especially at school functions. Luckily, Cho Chang had caught him on a good night and convinced him to dance with her after only three songs had played. Hermione cast an approving glance as she and Ron swept past Harry as they danced their seventh or eighth dance together. Ever since day one, she knew how much Cho meant to Harry, and she was glad to see them having fun together. The one thing that kept Harry from fully enjoying himself was the little pit in his stomach that brought with it the feeling of surveillance from somewhere in the room, focused right on him.
After realizing that the "gentlemen's choice" song had a tango beat, Draco snaked his way through the crowd. He had managed to sneak up behind Abby, and startled her when he tapped her on the shoulder.
"Dance with me," he practically demanded.
Abby was shocked by the order, especially when she realized he was the same blond who tormented her in the hallway during the previous week. As she was dragged onto the dance floor, she wondered what this creep was going to do to her. A thousand images raced through her mind as Draco led her around the dance floor in a maniacal dance.
She loved to dance, but this was insane. She decided to attempt to figure out his motives, without seeming too suspicious. "Why did you want to dance with me?" Abby looked up at her dance partner to see that he now held a black rose tightly in his mouth and was staring into her eyes.
"I like you," he answered through his teeth. "You're very pretty for a mudblood."
Abby was very frightened. She didn't want to dance with Draco anymore, but couldn't break away from his strong grip. Her eyes began to dart rapidly around the room. Luckily, when Draco threw her back into a dip, her eyes locked with Harry's, and Harry knew that his stalker was in trouble as soon as he saw who she was dancing with. He needed to help her. Unfortunately, right at that moment, a pair of ice blue eyes met Harry's. The showdown was about to begin.
