A/N)………I officially hate my computer now. I started this chapter yesterday, and it was going excellent. I caught details and created a scene like I never did before. It was perfect. Then, for some strange and twisted reason, my computer decided to delete what I had, before I had a chance to save any of it. Yes, I am mad. Anyways, I'm going to try and remember what I wrote before and capture it again. Happy reading. ENJOY!
Disclaimers: MINE!! ALL MINE!! (If you believe that bull, I have a bridge to sell ya.)
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Kittie poked her head in the darkened room. A shadow hovered in front of an enormous window that usually provided a beautiful view, had it not been for the moon and rain.
"Come here, Silcia." The shadow didn't turn from the window for a few seconds. Kittie froze, and the woman glided to her. "I said, 'Come here'!" Her silky voice turning stony. Kittie jumped and threw her shoulders back, breezing in, determined to outdo this woman's elegance.
"My dear, dear, Silcia." Raven Mortar drawled, putting her pale hands on Kittie's shoulders. Her silver eyes bore down on Kittie's for a moment before she spoke again. "I hear you've been quite busy."
Kittie winced as she felt Raven's claw-like nails dig slightly into her skin. "Yes, I've been busy. With the discovery of this tomb, it's hard not to be." She gritted, with a sickly sweet smile on her lips. Raven let her go and snapped her fingers.
The stone wall behind the enormous oak desk slid open, screeching slightly as stone rubbed on stone. Kittie casually rubbed her ear, managing from yelling out loud. Raven didn't wince and motioned for Kittie to sit in a stiff-backed chair in front of the roaring fireplace that stretched across the entire wall.
Kittie maintained her gracefulness and slid into the seat, crossing her right ankle over her left. A house elf scrambled out of the hole behind the desk, as the wall stopped moving, revealing uneven and crudely cut stairs ascending upwards.
The feminine elf bowed twice to Raven and waited until the tall woman sat in the chair opposite from Kittie. Keeping an excellent balance on the silver platter in her hands, the elf bowed to Kittie as well, and offered her the tea.
Kittie realized with surprise that her hand was shaking slightly, as she took the small silver cup from the platter. Her other hand quickly joined it, and she put the cup in her lap, hoping the other woman didn't notice.
Raven sipped on her tea and narrowed her eyes over the rim. "Silcia, why aren't you drinking?"
Kittie swallowed and looked down at the swirling depths of the tea. "I'm not thirsty, thanks." She said, snapping her head back up.
The taller woman in front of her put her cup on the dark wooden table to her right and folded her hands in her lap. "Silcia, I don't think you understood me when I asked if you were busy lately."
Kittie's eyebrows furrowed. Raven never asked for anything. She demanded. Nevertheless, she kept her mouth shut and waited for Raven to continue.
After a brief silence, she did. "I meant of the gossip I hear in the corridors of you and David Bennington."
Another silence as Kittie studied Raven in shock. If she didn't know better, she'd had said that she heard a hint of jealousy in her employer's voice.
"And?"
"And, seeing one of the most wealthy and successful men in the wizarding world is…inappropriate for someone in your stature."
"What is that supposed to mean?!" Kittie demanded. Raven put her hand up, as if that alone could stop the sudden offense Kittie took to the simple statement.
"I mean, you should be spending your dinners and time with someone of your class. A servant, maybe?"
Kittie bristled again. "I'm your assistant, not your slave. You have no right to tell me who to see." She growled, dropping all grace and respect from her voice. Raven chuckled.
"Oh, but I do. Whatever the press writes about you comes back to me."
Kittie stood up and smoothed out her robes. "I'm not taking this." She growled, and headed for the door.
"Ms. Silcia." Raven said, suddenly Apparating in front of her, making her stumble back again. "If you walk out this door, I'll make sure you're ruined."
Kittie brushed past her and pulled the door open before turning to her again. "What are you going to do? Fire me?" She retorted.
It was Raven's turn to bristle. "To fire you would be getting on Bennington's worse side, since he's taken a fancy to you."
"Then, take your best shot, because there's not much you can do." Kittie growled again, slamming the door behind her. Raven glared at the closed door for a few minutes.
"Oh, but that's where you're wrong, Silcia." She hissed into the silence, ignoring the terrified whimpers of her house elf.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Harry groaned. "Hermione! Stop it!"
Hermione stopped plucking at his robes and blushed. "Sorry, Harry. But this is a big deal."
"I noticed." Harry said, looking into one of the many mirrors in the receiving hall's walls. Neville pushed through the crowd and stopped, panting in front of Draco.
"Longbottom, stop breathing on my robes."
Ginny hit Draco and began plucking at Neville's robes. "Oh, Gin. Let him go." Ron grumbled, Apparating beside Harry.
Harry arched an eyebrow and stopped trying to flatten his hair. Ginny grumbled, too, and took Draco's arm. The giant doors flew open, and more than one woman squealed in surprise.
Harry gave his robes a last straightening and fell into the line behind Ron and Hermione.
"Excuse me." A tall woman with piercing silver eyes and unnaturally black hair drawled beside him. "Do you mind escorting me inside? My date had to cancel." She batted her eyelashes.
Harry nodded, and offered his arm, which the woman latched to automatically.
"Um…So, what's your name?" Harry stuttered, as they slowly walked down the middle of the hall.
"Raven Mortar. And I know who you are." She added, as Harry opened his mouth to introduce himself. He stopped and cocked an eyebrow. "Harry Potter, of course." She said, a little louder than necessary.
A few people turned to them at the mention of his name and whispered. Harry felt his face heat up. "Yes." He choked, feeling people's eyes on him. He could have sworn he even heard a glass shatter somewhere.
Suddenly, everyone stopped talking, and looked up at the stage in front, where three male dancers where spinning batons of fire in front of them. The batons seemed to be made of fire alone, and yet the dancers didn't wince. Raven chuckled.
"Dragon tamers." She informed him. "Dragon tamers who know spells to reflect fire and can dance."
Harry nodded, a little disappointed. It would have continued to be a fascinating performance, if Raven hadn't ruined it for him.
When it was over, the crowd clapped politely and a blonde, tall, built man climbed on the stage. He grinned and waited for the crowd to slip into a respectful silence. Harry frowned.
"Who's that?" He asked, Raven, since she seemed to know more about this place than he did.
"That's David Bennington. He's the one paying you." She whispered with a sneer. Harry looked back up at him, quickly.
Bennington's baby face broke into an even larger grin. "Welcome all!" He boomed.
"This ball is held in celebration of finding The Tomb!" More applause. Bennington held his hands out for silence.
"Now, I know you all are curious to know which tomb it is that we've uncovered…" The entire crowd suddenly leaned forward, slightly, in interest.
"Truth be told…I don't know either."
Whispers of surprise and complaints suddenly erupted and Harry pulled on Ron's robes in front of him. "We're going to be going into the middle of Egypt to protect people from something we know nothing of?!" He demanded.
Ron shot him a look over his shoulder, reflecting his own uncertainty. Bennington tried to call for attention again. Raven sighed, as his attempts went unnoticed, and strode to the stage.
A few silver sparks flew into the air and settled. Bennington shot her a look that could only be classified as a glare. He grumbled something to her, and she threw her shoulders back and disappeared into the crowd.
Harry frowned as Bennington began talking again.
"I'm aware that everyone who's going with us tomorrow is a little…erm…surprised. But, be assured, that if it was dangerous or not worth our time, I'll still pay you in full."
Harry scowled as the crowd clearly relaxed.
"Now." Bennington said, the grin returning to his face. "Eat, drink, dance, talk, and be happy!" His voice boomed, followed by his chuckle.
Harry watched as the crowd made their ways to tables and chairs, looking for a place to claim. Ginny yanked on Harry's robes and pulled him to a table next to the stage.
Draco immediately slid into a chair, but the red-headed woman pulled him up again. "We're dancing. I hated standing so still, listening to that git talk. We're moving." He yelped and followed her. Harry chuckled and sat in the seat opposite of Hermione.
"Harry…" She said. "Why don't you go ask a girl to dance. It looks a little…wrong, you sitting here with us like that. You look like a third wheel."
Harry picked up a silk napkin and started playing with it, his old shyness returning. "But…"
"Go!"
"Alright!" He jumped, and threw the napkin down.
~~~~~~~~~
Kittie watched as the people began to file in. Most of them had their arms hooked with another. David laughed from beside her. "I suggest you try to slide into the crowd. I can't show favoritism. Though, you'll stand out, anyways."
She felt the heat rise to her cheeks as he kissed her hand and she pushed through the crowd. She took a glass of wine from a passing waiter and sipped it. The evening already showed signs of being astonishingly boring, and Kittie only hoped she could drink enough wine that she'd be too trashed to tell the difference.
She saw Raven's black hair through the crowd, on the arm of a man with chaotic dark hair and round glasses. She froze, and blinked, hoping the wine wasn't getting to her that quick. Raven grinned cheekily at him, even in his height and said, loudly, "Harry Potter."
The coolness of the glass between her fingers was suddenly gone, and she was jolted back to reality when a house elf asked her to back up so it could clean the broken shreds of glass.
She kept her eye on him through out David's speech. He looked increasingly annoyed. He was taller, and his hair stuck up even more than she remembered. Even from the distance, she could see his emerald eyes twinkling from behind his glasses.
"Eat, drink, dance, talk, and be happy!"
Kittie jumped, as he began to chuckle, and looked up in time to see David wink at her. She gave him a small smile and moved immediately to the waiter with the wine for another glass.
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MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Okay, I'm really going to have to move this along. The fifth book's coming out soon, so I'm going to spit these chapters out as soon as I finish them. This story is going to be a lot shorter…more like an epilogue. Anyhow, I'm on summer vacation (w00t! Go me!) and, I'm going to have to learn to use my time better. Review!
Disclaimers: MINE!! ALL MINE!! (If you believe that bull, I have a bridge to sell ya.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kittie poked her head in the darkened room. A shadow hovered in front of an enormous window that usually provided a beautiful view, had it not been for the moon and rain.
"Come here, Silcia." The shadow didn't turn from the window for a few seconds. Kittie froze, and the woman glided to her. "I said, 'Come here'!" Her silky voice turning stony. Kittie jumped and threw her shoulders back, breezing in, determined to outdo this woman's elegance.
"My dear, dear, Silcia." Raven Mortar drawled, putting her pale hands on Kittie's shoulders. Her silver eyes bore down on Kittie's for a moment before she spoke again. "I hear you've been quite busy."
Kittie winced as she felt Raven's claw-like nails dig slightly into her skin. "Yes, I've been busy. With the discovery of this tomb, it's hard not to be." She gritted, with a sickly sweet smile on her lips. Raven let her go and snapped her fingers.
The stone wall behind the enormous oak desk slid open, screeching slightly as stone rubbed on stone. Kittie casually rubbed her ear, managing from yelling out loud. Raven didn't wince and motioned for Kittie to sit in a stiff-backed chair in front of the roaring fireplace that stretched across the entire wall.
Kittie maintained her gracefulness and slid into the seat, crossing her right ankle over her left. A house elf scrambled out of the hole behind the desk, as the wall stopped moving, revealing uneven and crudely cut stairs ascending upwards.
The feminine elf bowed twice to Raven and waited until the tall woman sat in the chair opposite from Kittie. Keeping an excellent balance on the silver platter in her hands, the elf bowed to Kittie as well, and offered her the tea.
Kittie realized with surprise that her hand was shaking slightly, as she took the small silver cup from the platter. Her other hand quickly joined it, and she put the cup in her lap, hoping the other woman didn't notice.
Raven sipped on her tea and narrowed her eyes over the rim. "Silcia, why aren't you drinking?"
Kittie swallowed and looked down at the swirling depths of the tea. "I'm not thirsty, thanks." She said, snapping her head back up.
The taller woman in front of her put her cup on the dark wooden table to her right and folded her hands in her lap. "Silcia, I don't think you understood me when I asked if you were busy lately."
Kittie's eyebrows furrowed. Raven never asked for anything. She demanded. Nevertheless, she kept her mouth shut and waited for Raven to continue.
After a brief silence, she did. "I meant of the gossip I hear in the corridors of you and David Bennington."
Another silence as Kittie studied Raven in shock. If she didn't know better, she'd had said that she heard a hint of jealousy in her employer's voice.
"And?"
"And, seeing one of the most wealthy and successful men in the wizarding world is…inappropriate for someone in your stature."
"What is that supposed to mean?!" Kittie demanded. Raven put her hand up, as if that alone could stop the sudden offense Kittie took to the simple statement.
"I mean, you should be spending your dinners and time with someone of your class. A servant, maybe?"
Kittie bristled again. "I'm your assistant, not your slave. You have no right to tell me who to see." She growled, dropping all grace and respect from her voice. Raven chuckled.
"Oh, but I do. Whatever the press writes about you comes back to me."
Kittie stood up and smoothed out her robes. "I'm not taking this." She growled, and headed for the door.
"Ms. Silcia." Raven said, suddenly Apparating in front of her, making her stumble back again. "If you walk out this door, I'll make sure you're ruined."
Kittie brushed past her and pulled the door open before turning to her again. "What are you going to do? Fire me?" She retorted.
It was Raven's turn to bristle. "To fire you would be getting on Bennington's worse side, since he's taken a fancy to you."
"Then, take your best shot, because there's not much you can do." Kittie growled again, slamming the door behind her. Raven glared at the closed door for a few minutes.
"Oh, but that's where you're wrong, Silcia." She hissed into the silence, ignoring the terrified whimpers of her house elf.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Harry groaned. "Hermione! Stop it!"
Hermione stopped plucking at his robes and blushed. "Sorry, Harry. But this is a big deal."
"I noticed." Harry said, looking into one of the many mirrors in the receiving hall's walls. Neville pushed through the crowd and stopped, panting in front of Draco.
"Longbottom, stop breathing on my robes."
Ginny hit Draco and began plucking at Neville's robes. "Oh, Gin. Let him go." Ron grumbled, Apparating beside Harry.
Harry arched an eyebrow and stopped trying to flatten his hair. Ginny grumbled, too, and took Draco's arm. The giant doors flew open, and more than one woman squealed in surprise.
Harry gave his robes a last straightening and fell into the line behind Ron and Hermione.
"Excuse me." A tall woman with piercing silver eyes and unnaturally black hair drawled beside him. "Do you mind escorting me inside? My date had to cancel." She batted her eyelashes.
Harry nodded, and offered his arm, which the woman latched to automatically.
"Um…So, what's your name?" Harry stuttered, as they slowly walked down the middle of the hall.
"Raven Mortar. And I know who you are." She added, as Harry opened his mouth to introduce himself. He stopped and cocked an eyebrow. "Harry Potter, of course." She said, a little louder than necessary.
A few people turned to them at the mention of his name and whispered. Harry felt his face heat up. "Yes." He choked, feeling people's eyes on him. He could have sworn he even heard a glass shatter somewhere.
Suddenly, everyone stopped talking, and looked up at the stage in front, where three male dancers where spinning batons of fire in front of them. The batons seemed to be made of fire alone, and yet the dancers didn't wince. Raven chuckled.
"Dragon tamers." She informed him. "Dragon tamers who know spells to reflect fire and can dance."
Harry nodded, a little disappointed. It would have continued to be a fascinating performance, if Raven hadn't ruined it for him.
When it was over, the crowd clapped politely and a blonde, tall, built man climbed on the stage. He grinned and waited for the crowd to slip into a respectful silence. Harry frowned.
"Who's that?" He asked, Raven, since she seemed to know more about this place than he did.
"That's David Bennington. He's the one paying you." She whispered with a sneer. Harry looked back up at him, quickly.
Bennington's baby face broke into an even larger grin. "Welcome all!" He boomed.
"This ball is held in celebration of finding The Tomb!" More applause. Bennington held his hands out for silence.
"Now, I know you all are curious to know which tomb it is that we've uncovered…" The entire crowd suddenly leaned forward, slightly, in interest.
"Truth be told…I don't know either."
Whispers of surprise and complaints suddenly erupted and Harry pulled on Ron's robes in front of him. "We're going to be going into the middle of Egypt to protect people from something we know nothing of?!" He demanded.
Ron shot him a look over his shoulder, reflecting his own uncertainty. Bennington tried to call for attention again. Raven sighed, as his attempts went unnoticed, and strode to the stage.
A few silver sparks flew into the air and settled. Bennington shot her a look that could only be classified as a glare. He grumbled something to her, and she threw her shoulders back and disappeared into the crowd.
Harry frowned as Bennington began talking again.
"I'm aware that everyone who's going with us tomorrow is a little…erm…surprised. But, be assured, that if it was dangerous or not worth our time, I'll still pay you in full."
Harry scowled as the crowd clearly relaxed.
"Now." Bennington said, the grin returning to his face. "Eat, drink, dance, talk, and be happy!" His voice boomed, followed by his chuckle.
Harry watched as the crowd made their ways to tables and chairs, looking for a place to claim. Ginny yanked on Harry's robes and pulled him to a table next to the stage.
Draco immediately slid into a chair, but the red-headed woman pulled him up again. "We're dancing. I hated standing so still, listening to that git talk. We're moving." He yelped and followed her. Harry chuckled and sat in the seat opposite of Hermione.
"Harry…" She said. "Why don't you go ask a girl to dance. It looks a little…wrong, you sitting here with us like that. You look like a third wheel."
Harry picked up a silk napkin and started playing with it, his old shyness returning. "But…"
"Go!"
"Alright!" He jumped, and threw the napkin down.
~~~~~~~~~
Kittie watched as the people began to file in. Most of them had their arms hooked with another. David laughed from beside her. "I suggest you try to slide into the crowd. I can't show favoritism. Though, you'll stand out, anyways."
She felt the heat rise to her cheeks as he kissed her hand and she pushed through the crowd. She took a glass of wine from a passing waiter and sipped it. The evening already showed signs of being astonishingly boring, and Kittie only hoped she could drink enough wine that she'd be too trashed to tell the difference.
She saw Raven's black hair through the crowd, on the arm of a man with chaotic dark hair and round glasses. She froze, and blinked, hoping the wine wasn't getting to her that quick. Raven grinned cheekily at him, even in his height and said, loudly, "Harry Potter."
The coolness of the glass between her fingers was suddenly gone, and she was jolted back to reality when a house elf asked her to back up so it could clean the broken shreds of glass.
She kept her eye on him through out David's speech. He looked increasingly annoyed. He was taller, and his hair stuck up even more than she remembered. Even from the distance, she could see his emerald eyes twinkling from behind his glasses.
"Eat, drink, dance, talk, and be happy!"
Kittie jumped, as he began to chuckle, and looked up in time to see David wink at her. She gave him a small smile and moved immediately to the waiter with the wine for another glass.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Okay, I'm really going to have to move this along. The fifth book's coming out soon, so I'm going to spit these chapters out as soon as I finish them. This story is going to be a lot shorter…more like an epilogue. Anyhow, I'm on summer vacation (w00t! Go me!) and, I'm going to have to learn to use my time better. Review!
