Chapter Four- The Big Scary Initiation and Getting Booked
Response to all reviews: Thanks so much for all of your support. I'm so sorry for my long hiatus. It was inexcusable; I WAS however on the other side of the country, so it wasn't by choice, per se. LOVE TO ALL! (Or, as I frequently misspell it: LVOE!)
Excerpt from last chapter:
When the Sorting, Feast, and the usual speech by the Headmaster were over (thank God), the houses retired to their common rooms. Once they reached the dungeons, Pansy and Sally-Anne grabbed Hermione's arms and led her through the Commons and straight into the dorms. There, they plopped her down into a chair in front of a vanity-style dresser with a mirror.
"Ready for your initiation?" Pansy asked mischievously.
"...eh, not particularly, but do I really have a choice?" she shrugged helplessly.
"Nope, not at all!" Pansy giggled, as she covered the vanity mirror with black cloth. "We didn't either, but it turned out alright for us, so don't worry your little head! Oh, and by the way, you don't get to see until the very end."
Hermione glared at her, but softened. Pansy's tone, however patronizing, was well-meant. "Fine. Do your worst." She expected to regret that later.
"...Hmm...you could use some color. While being pale is generally accepted in Slytherin, being washed-out is not...eh, darling, is there a color that doesn't suit you? Sweet Rhinestone Jesus, that is so unfair...hmm, the Eyeliner Gods have smiled upon you, Hermione...and now for some new clothes...lovely...lovely...eh, vile, never wear polka dots agian...there, I think that should about do it...and now...
About two hours of conversation and comments (like those above), the Slytherin girls oh-so-dramatically ripped the black curtain off the mirror and sang, "Tah-DAH!"
Hermione marveled at her reflection. Her hair was straighter, but still lightly wavy in some places, she sported black/brown eyeliner with matching eyeshadow and shockingly shiny red lipstick. Her outfit was just as uncharacteristic. Black slacks with white pinstripes, a crisp white cotton button-down, a black vest, and a red tie matched the makeup perfectly and made her feel more classically punk than her usual pop-rock-ish attire. "Whoa," she muttered. "I think you guys really...eh, unleashed my inner rock icon."
They looked a little worried. "Do you like it?" Pansy asked.
"Because we can, eh, undo it if you want," Sally-Anne added. "We wouldn't do that for anyone else, mind you, but you are a somewhat special case. After all, no former Slytherins were ever Gryffindors."
After a moment of consideration, Hermione shook her head. "No. I like it. It will take some getting used to, but otherwise it's all good." She smiled reassuringly. "You did well. Thank you."
The girls grinned. But only very swiftly. After all, Slytherins are never overly excited, of course. "No problem," Pansy said.
They then showed her to her bed and bid her goodnight. Before going to sleep, she gave herself another look-over. "Hmph," she laughed a bit and smiled. "My first night as a Slytherin and I already can't recognize myself...which is fine by me."
The next day, things passed uneventfully. Classes resumed to their usual standard, and there were no run-ins with Harry and Ron for Hermione, due in part to the fact that the members of the Sovereign rarely left her side. It seemed they'd picked up on her wish to not have any contact with her former Gryffindor friends and were only to happy to oblige. She soon discovered that they each played their own unique role, both musically and socially. Salem was a natural-born leader and very amusing; as the lead guitarist, he never took himself too seriously and laughed often. Blaise, who was currently dating Salem, was an odd bird, so his choice of instrument, the quirky keyboard/synthesizer, was quite fitting. Pansy was usually very intense and good for serious conversation, but was humourously imperfect, which was endearing. She made a statement as the Sovereign's drummer (or, as she called it Mistress of Percussion). Draco was quiet but a forceful presence, really handy for when she wanted to do some I-Hate-Gryffindors angst-ing, and a brilliant bassist. Finally, Sally-Anne was girly and crazily spontaneous, regardless of her Slytherin-hood. She was possibly the strangest of the crew and was their technical support-slash-publicist.
"When's the next band meeting?" Hermione asked Salem on their way to N.E.W.T. Potions.
"Well, if you and the others will meet me out by the lake after classes, I have some big news. If you see any of them, let them know, would you? If you don't, I will."
"Sure, no problem. I have Pansy and Sally-Anne in my Trasfiguration class next period, so you'll just need to tell Malfoy and Blaise."
"Alright-y then. Hey, I always wondered, why do you and Draco refuse to use each others' first names?" Salem furrowed his brow.
She gave a little half-smile. "We have a...weird history. We don't hate each other anymore, of course. It's really mostly just habit. Besides, any other way would just be too odd."
"Eh, have it your way," Salem grinned malevolently. "It's more fun to order him around, though, when you use the FULL TITLE of Draco Lucius Albion Malfoy."
She glared at him playfully, "You know I'm politically opposed to ordering anyone around."
"Pshaw. You only think you are because you have not yet experienced the great joy of tyranny."
Later that evening, all the band members met directly after classes under a large autumn-y coloured maple by the lake. Salem stood while the other sat. He looked about to burst.
"Well, you said you had news," Malfoy demanded. "So?"
"Well, my lovely cousin," he replied, "Professor Dumbledore has informed me that he would like to book our band for the Back-to-School Ball. He's letting us know now so we can have plenty of time to practice. The ball itself is in two weeks."
"Two weeks!" Hermione yelled. "I'm the Head Girl, and I didn't even know we were having a ball!"
"Me either,"Malfoy shrugged. "I feel so...unloved by the faculty." He immediately began to feign crying.
Hermione smacked his arm. "Be serious. You really didn't know about this either?"
He shook his head. "Like I said,...the faculty hates us. They're threatened by our superior intelligence and-," he was silenced by yet another playful slap by Hermione.
"Anyway," Salem continued, "we're going to be practicing every day after classes for about an hour so I suggest you clear your schedules. And, in case you're wondering, we'll be playing the entire night, so I also suggest you channel your inner Salazaar, break some hearts, and turn down anyone who asks you out."
"So we're ALL going stag?" Pansy demanded. "I love you all... to a reasonable extent. And this is just Unreasonable!"
"Not really. We'll be going as a group," Salem said. "So, technically, you'll have FIVE dates, albeit of varying sexes. That's alright with me, though." He gave Blaise's foot a teasing kick. "So...get psyched! We have our first official gig!"
"AHEM" Sally-Anne cleared her throat loudly.
"Oh, and everyone say thank you to Sally-Anne, our lovely publicist, for GETTING us this lovely engagement."
They all clapped raucously and hooted loudly. Apparently, they'd followed Salem's advice. They were psyched!