Author's Note: I know things have been kind of slow, but this chapter we're moving into the action. Thanks for reading this much. Once again, JKR owns all the wonderful characters and plots you recognize. Happy Reading!
"All these thoughts locked inside
Now you're the first to know
When darkness turns to light
It ends tonight,
It ends tonight.
Just a little insight will make this right
It's too late to fight
It ends tonight,
It ends tonight."
"It Ends Tonight"-The All-American Rejects
Chapter Five: An Ending Tonight
The girls were in Ginny's room in the Heads' dormitory. They were all trying on their purchases from the day in Hogsmeade. Ginny had bought a very pale-green dress that hugged her tight in the torso and then flowed out from her hips on. Along with it she bought a small dark green mask with feathers coming from the corners of the eyes. The mask tied around her head with matching ribbons. Hermione had gotten a deep blue dress that stuck to her body almost as if painted on. Her mask also tied to her head but it was a white and blue mask with white ribbons and rhinestones around the outside of it. Luna had bought a canary-yellow with pale purple trimmings Renaissance-type dress. It tied up her back like a corset and had full-length sleeves. When she purchased it, Hermione mentioned that Luna should use a cooling charm the night of the dance to prevent her from fainting. Luna bought a mask that was held in your hand. It had yellow and pale purple ribbons dangling from the corners of the eyes. Daphne's dress was the shortest of all five dresses. Hers came to mid-calf. It was a simple bright-green dress cut pixie-style at the bottom. Her mask was bright-green and was held, it included green and bright blue feathers along the top of it. Finally Jordayna's dress. The girls wanted hers to be magnificent and stand out the most. They bought her a dress that clung to her upper body. It made her breasts stand out even more than they already did. It was black with an orange lace trim. There was a slit that went from the floor to about mid-thigh on her right side. Her mask was just a plain mask that covered around her eyes about the width of a raccoon's markings. It was black with an orange lace trim, and orange laces that tied behind her head.
It was her turn to try on the full ensemble and step out in front of all of her friends. She still thought the dress clung too tightly to her ample breasts, but they would notice that when she came out of the bathroom.
"Come on Jordayna! It can't be that bad!" That was the thing. She knew she didn't look bad, but she did feel borderline sluttish.
When she stepped out of the bathroom, all four of the other girls' jaws dropped. The dress with the perfect black kitten heels had made Jordayna look like a witch on the cover of a fashion magazine. She stopped to look at herself in Ginny's full-length mirror. She thought about with the perfect hairstyle and the mask she would be considered the best-dressed if not best-looking witch there.
"Merlin, you look spectacular. If we put a curling charm on your hair and left it down with the mask, you would bewitch any guy there." Daphne told her happily.
"Thanks. I am actually looking forward to it now that I've seen myself in this dress. Thanks for all your help guys. It means a lot."
"Hey what is the strangest set of friends for?" Hermione giggled.
Jordayna heard the clock chime nine o'clock. "Is that really the time?"
"It is, why?"
"I have to meet Nott like right now in one of the fourth floor classrooms."
"So how are things working with you and Nott?" Hermione winked.
"No, it's definitely not what you think."
"That's because you guys broke up in fifth year right?" Daphne asked.
Damn that girl for being in Slytherin and paying attention to social gossip. "Yeah, something like that. I'll see you later." Jordayna mumbled as she left. She grabbed her Potions stuff from her room and headed to their meeting place.
"You're late Mallerd." He announced as I entered the room in a flushed hurry.
"I know. I'm sorry; I got caught up with the other Heads."
"Whatever Mallerd, let's just do this and get it done."
He took a sip of our potion.
"Okay, what is your favorite color?"
"Blue."
"Where do you live?"
"The Nott Estate."
"Do you own a pet?"
"Yes."
"What is your favorite class?"
"Transfiguration." He answered while scowling.
"Well I guess that means it works. Okay my turn. Here goes." I took a small swig of the potion.
"What is your middle name?"
I cringed before I answered; this was something Nott had wanted to know when we were dating. "It's Roxanne."
"What's your favorite color?"
"Orange."
"Where do you live?"
"Mallerd Mansion."
"Do you really have a date for the Halloween Ball?"
"No."
"So you lied originally."
"Yes." I started to panic. These questions were beginning to get scary.
"So you just didn't want to go with me."
"Correct."
He shot out of his seat, and hit me. I felt the pain wave through my face. I mentally hexed him. He flew into the back wall of the classroom, and I made a mad dash for the door. I was not fast enough because he called out "Petrificus Totalus." My whole body stopped and became rigid. He kicked me while I was bound.
When he finally stopped I could feel I was bleeding in three or four places. I needed to stay awake. If I fainted, he would get away with it again. I laid there for what felt like days. I could hear the rest of the Heads on rounds in the corridor. If only I could get my mouth to move. Instead I used my mind to make a desk fly at the wall. It made enough noise to draw them into the room.
Once inside, Hermione spoke the counter-spell. I could move again, but just barely. My blood started to flow more freely from the wounds.
"We need to get her to Madame Pomfrey." Hermione said as she started to say Wingardium Leviosa. Malfoy stopped her, and came to lift me up. I gave out a pained whimper, but he cradled me to his chest.
They brought me to the hospital wing. Madame Pomfrey went straight to work on me for the second time in my years here. It was way less times than she saw Harry, but each time she saw me, I had lost a severe amount of blood.
"What happened dear?" She asked knowingly.
"Theodore Nott." The potion hadn't worn off yet. Apparently our potion would be passing the potency test.
I saw Malfoy and Harry exchange a look. It made me uncomfortable.
"Madame Pomfrey, I feel crowded." I voiced. She quickly ushered the other five of them out of there.
"Was it Theodore Nott who did that awful thing to you your fifth year too?"
I nodded. My communication was failing me. I could not lie.
"I thought so. It was right after that I noticed you two were no longer seeing each other. I need to have a word with the Headmistress."
"No! You can't do that Madame Pomfrey. He'll just do things that are worse." I pleaded with her. She shook her head and went off somewhere to talk to McGonagall.
"You know, you're not as brilliant as I thought you were." I heard the drawling voice of Draco Malfoy say from an unknown location.
"Malfoy? Where are you? And thanks for insulting me while I lie here bleeding to death."
"Wow, she's about as dramatic as you used to be when you were injured." Harry's voice said from the same unknown location.
"Shove it Potter."
"Boys, where are you?" I must have looked worried because after I requested, both of them appeared from the corner near my bed from underneath an Invisibility Cloak.
"Ah, the infamous Invisibility Cloak, I should have known."
"Now, I have a question for you. Why would you not want to tell McGonagall that Nott, the insufferable git, raped you?" Malfoy inquired.
"Because I don't want to start…wait, how do you know he raped me?"
Both boys got a guilty look on their faces.
"Because we watched your nightmare."
"YOU DID WHAT?!" I demanded.
They edged away in fear of my anger. My irises had to be black right now.
"We're really sorry. We are, it's just Malfoy was concerned for you, and well I was too. You're a good person Jordayna, and Malfoy suspected something terrible from that nightmare because of the day you had in Hogsmeade. We had to know for sure. Don't be mad at him. I demanded we look at it." Harry sincerely explained to me. Draco exchanged a look with him.
"Fine. But don't think that I'm going to trust you both right away. That was a severe breach of privacy. I can't believe you actually did that."
"I was not going to look at it Mallerd. I just didn't want you to suffer that night." Malfoy pleaded to me. My feelings for him surfaced in that moment. He had wanted to take away my pain. Too bad he was going to end up marrying Pansy and making babies happily ever after.
"Malfoy, I think I hear Madame Pomfrey headed back. Get some sleep Jordayna. We'll come see you in the morning. Malfoy will bring whatever work you miss." Harry grinned.
"Why did you tell her I would bring her work? And more importantly, why did you tell her that you demanded to see the nightmare?"
"I told her I wanted to see the nightmare because I can tell she doesn't trust you fully, and I didn't want her to think you were the bad guy. I told her you would bring her work because you will."
"Why can't Granger bring it to her?"
"We don't have all of our classes with the Slytherins, how would Hermione get her the work from those classes? Plus Malfoy, admit it, you like her."
"I don't think I do."
"You carried her to the hospital wing, getting blood all over your probably over-priced robes. You like her. Ask the damn girl to the ball."
"Fine." I huffed as we entered the Heads' common room. We were attacked by the other three as soon as the portrait hole shut.
"Is she okay?" Little Weasley questioned as she hugged Potter.
"She'll be alright. Nott raped her in our fifth year, and then today he beat her and left her to bleed and die in that classroom. Madame Pomfrey is straightening it out with Professor McGonagall now." Harry answered her.
"That's so horrible." Hermione whispered.
"He's a wanker. I think we should do something about it." Zacharias suggested.
"No, I think Madame Pomfrey will take care of it. If he does something after he's reprimanded, then we'll take care of it our way." Harry said sternly.
I nodded in agreement. It was the first time in the last ten minutes I had actually been actively participating in the conversation. I was extremely worried about her. Potter was right. I fancied her.
The next morning Madame Pomfrey had let Jordayna know that she would be fine, be able to leave for dinner, and that Theodore Nott was to be expelled. Professor McGonagall would not allow such behavior to be tolerated. Jordayna just growled inwardly. This was going to lead to trouble, she just knew it. It was five minutes to lunch time and she was getting anxious. Jordayna didn't know if Malfoy was really going to show up with her homework or not. She really hoped he did because she wanted to thank him for carrying her yesterday.
"You're looking better today Mallerd." She jumped at the ever-recognizable lazy drawl.
"Madame Pomfrey says I will be out in time for dinner."
"Good. The table was out-numbered by Gryffindors at breakfast."
"The table's always out-numbered by Gryffindors. We sit at the Gryffindor table."
"True, but tonight we won't be. McGonagall made an announcement at breakfast that tonight the four long tables will be replaced with big round tables that sit ten. She wants to promote inter-house relations. And ten is perfect for our very unusual group."
She nodded in response. It was true. There were ten of them that hung out on a regular basis. They were known as the Heads Group even though four of them were not Heads.
"Well here is your work. I'm going to head to my afternoon classes. If you want I'll come pick you up to help you to dinner?"
"Sure Malfoy that would be nice. And Malfoy?"
"Yes?"
"Thanks for carrying me yesterday."
"Well for as bright as Granger is, she forgot that you were bleeding and levitating you while bleeding would have made you lose more blood and cause Filch to have a fit. But, as always, the pleasure was all mine."
Jordayna had rested for the rest of the afternoon with her text books. She laughed at this. Only she and Hermione Granger would consider an afternoon with their text books as relaxing. Before she knew it, Malfoy was back to help her to dinner.
"I'll carry your stuff. Just worry about getting to the Great Hall."
When they entered, the entire room had silenced.
"I see good news travels fast."
"You know this place, if there's something happening, the rest of the student body is sure to know."
"Hey Mallerd!" A shrill female voice shouted at Jordayna.
"Yes, Pansy?"
"I can't believe you got poor Theo expelled with your lies! You should be kicked out of this place. They should have known not to let an American in here. Americans are about as bad as Mudbloods! I had respect for you at one time, knowing that your father was wealthy and a pureblood, and that you were sorted into Slytherin, but no one rats out another Slytherin. You're just American garbage." She finished and slapped Jordayna square in the jaw.
Draco's wand went to Pansy's throat.
"Draco, darling, I believe your wand is pointed at the wrong person."
"Actually Pansy I disagree. It's facing exactly who I want it to face."
"But Draco, I thought you were going to take me to the ball?" Pansy whined.
"I wouldn't take you anywhere Pansy. We've long since been over. As a matter-of-fact you can be the first witness to me asking Jordayna to the ball."
Jordayna felt her knees weaken. Did he just say he wanted to take her to the Halloween Ball?
"Jordayna Mallerd would you like to be my date to the Halloween Ball?"
"Why Draco Malfoy, I would love to be your date."
"Do I even have to ask the color of your dress?"
Pansy started to stomp away while both of them pretended to act like they were a mushy couple even though both of them wished they were.
Jordayna furrowed her brow a little, and Pansy fell flat on her face, revealing a hot pink thong to the entire hall.
"Beautifully done."
"You know? Oh of course you would know, it was in the nightmare."
"Yes it was. I'm so sorry it was my potion that made you defenseless."
"Not your fault. He's the one who gave it to me."
He nodded. "I believe our table waits." They joined the other eight at a table in the front of the Great Hall.
"That was quite a show!" Ginny giggled. "Too bad for Pansy she tripped at the end." Draco gave Jordayna a proud look.
"Yeah too bad. I hope Millicent heals her broken ego." Daphne snorted. "So Jordayna, what do you think of the new Great Hall?"
"I love it. It's about time I was only sitting with my friends. Even if a good portion of them are Gryffindors." Jordayna said emphasizing the last word with fake arrogance. Draco pulled out a chair for her and she sat down. He sat next to her.
"So Malfoy, you really going to take her to the ball or was it just a ploy to get out of going with Pansy?" Harry asked with a triumphant grin.
"I really meant it. Here, I'll ask without Pansy as an audience. Jordayna can I have the pleasure of your company for the Halloween Ball?"
"I really would love to."
"Then it's settled. Is your dress really orange?" He asked scowling.
"No it's mostly black with orange trim."
"Which means to match, I still have to wear orange."
"You don't have to match me."
"Sure I do. How inappropriate would we look when we're the only couple in the Heads Group that don't?"
"Except we're not really a couple. We're just going to the ball together."
"Regardless, we will match. I'll condescend to wearing orange. It is Halloween after all."
"Thanks Malfoy."
"We're going to a ball together. I'm wearing orange for you. Plus I just insulted Pansy in your honor. I think that warrants you calling me Draco."
"Okay, Draco."
October went by quickly with very little eventful happenings except for the occasional outside of school dueling between Pansy and Jordayna. Jordayna usually won. She had the unfair (or as she called it: Slytherin) advantage of being able to think things to happen. Her eleven and a half inches of Hawthorn with unicorn tail hair core wand was useful, but having Pansy trip or point her wand at herself made the duels interesting. The duels were always by the lake so as not to get caught by professors. Jordayna did not want to lose her position as one of the Heads. However, Pansy would love it and tried hard to get Jordayna to duel in the corridors.
It was Halloween night. There were three hours until the beginning of the ball and the girls were putting themselves together.
Once they were all dressed, which took forty-five minutes with all the tying, zipping, buttoning, and adding of cooling charms to the dresses, they went to work on each girl's hair. Ginny was the first. She sat down in a chair in her room in front of her vanity. Her wavy orange-red locks fell to right below her shoulders.
"I think if we put her hair up in an elegant chiffon and then magic her mask to stay loosely on her, it would look stunning!" Hermione suggested. The other three girls looked at Ginny and nodded approval. They spent thirty minutes perfecting Ginny's hair and mask.
Hermione took the seat next.
"I'm so glad your hair tamed after all these years Granger. We can do a messy bun of curls with tendrils falling out of it and framing your face." Daphne told her. They also used the ties from her mask to intertwine in her hair. They curled the ribbon to match the curls in her hair.
Luna took the seat next and her vibrantly blonde hair was pulled into a French twist. Daphne said a special charm to remove the mask from its stick and put itself on Luna's face.
"If you want to take it off at any point in the night let me know. I'll say the counter charm." Daphne let Luna know. Luna nodded.
Daphne having medium-length, extremely curly dark blonde almost light brown hair was a bit of a hassle, but the girls decided on a French braid. They first used a straightening charm and then Hermione braided it by hand. She believed she could make it more unique than if they were to use a charm. Then Daphne used the same charm on her mask as the one on Luna's.
Finally, Jordayna had her turn. Daphne charmed her strawberry-chocolate locks to have soft waves. Her hair was at mid-back. Daphne charmed the front of her hair to float towards, but not too close to her face.
"Luckily, this is all she needs." Daphne said delightedly.
"That only makes us fifteen minutes late to meet the boys in the common room." Hermione scoffed.
"We're supposed to be late. It makes them appreciate the effort more." Ginny giggled.
"What takes women so long to get ready? I'm starving." Ron whined. Harry and Draco just looked at him like he was a lost dog.
"They want you to appreciate the effort." Harry said channeling his girlfriend's thoughts.
"I appreciate 'Mione. I asked her way before the ball this time."
"That's because you're supposed to as her boyfriend Weasley. You weren't looking for another girl to be your girlfriend with Granger as your fall-back plan. If anyone gets credit for asking a girl in advance it's me. Your dates were all sure things." Draco lectured in a idle drawl.
"We're ready!" Ginny announced from the top of the stairs.
Ginny was the first to descend. The pale green dress sat low one her breast line. It had thick straps and at her hips, it flowed outward as if she were a fairy tale princess. She wore skinny dark green heels the color of her emerald green mask. Harry could not help but to gawk in awe.
"You don't look to bad yourself." Ginny chuckled. He really didn't in Ginny's opinion. He was wearing a black tux with white shirt (since this was a masked ball boys were not required to wear dress robes, Ron was grateful). He wore a pale green cummerbund, pale green tie, and was wearing a simple black mask which like all the boys only framed around the eyes.
"How can you see right now?" Ginny inquired.
"Charm. It only lasts until midnight so if we happen to be out past that, I have my glasses in my inside pocket."
After Ginny, Hermione made her way down the steps. Her midnight dress was strapless and completely hugged her form all the way to the floor. She wore silver ballet flats with it. Ron's mouth dropped at the sight of her. He was wearing a pale blue tuxedo and deep blue mask which actually looked fetching on him. It was the contrast between his hair and the ensemble.
"I'm really glad I get to take you to the ball this time." He managed to say in spite of his awe.
"Thank you Ronald."
Luna followed Hermione. Her Renaissance dress made her stand out, but not in a weird Luna-way. Her shoes were suede Renaissance style boot-heels she had them charmed purple instead of their normal brown color. It made her seem more graceful or royal. Zacharias was in his black tux with a tie and cummerbund bewitched to change from yellow to purple throughout the night. His mask was charmed to do the same thing his tie and cummerbund were. They were an odd looking couple, but they worked together.
Daphne seemed so out of place in the group with her short pixie-cut bright green dress and extremely high bright green stilettos. That was just her thing; she wanted to be the odd girl out. Her legs appeared to go on for days in such a short dress with such high shoes. Blaise was almost caught off-guard by the site of her. He waited for her at the bottom of the stairs in a white tux with bright green cummerbund and tie. His mask was also bright green.
"Now for the reason we came here. I present to you, the girl of the hour, Jordayna Mallerd!" Ginny shrieked with excitement.
Jordayna stood at the top step. Every male's jaw dropped in the room. Their dates gave them a few minutes to do so. They all believed it would boost the Slytherin girl's ego to be gawked at by more than one guy at a time. She stood in black kitten heels that laced up her legs to mid-calf. The dress was a halter top that fastened around her neck in the orange trim. The top portion clung to her upper body and showed a fair amount of her cleavage. Where the dress gathered at her right hip is where the skirt split down to the floor, orange trim outlining the slit. The dress had a small train that followed on the floor behind her. Hermione had enchanted it to remain spotless during the ball. With her hair down (which it never had been up to this point, always being in a pony tail or bun), she was a sight to behold. Eventually Ginny cleared her throat, and all of the males except for one closed their mouths.
"I don't know about you Malfoy, but I would say you have the hottest girl in school as your date for this ball." Luna said shocking just about everyone.
"Thank-you Luna, but I believe I have the honor of being the best looking guy in school's date." Jordayna giving him a once-over. He had worn a black tux with black undershirt. Instead of a cummerbund and tie he wore an orange vest and bow tie. His mask was also black with orange stripes. "You may hate orange Draco, but it definitely is becoming on you."
"I think I may be warming up to it." He said as he graced her hand with a light kiss.
"I believe we have a ball to get to everyone." Harry announced as he led the group to the Great Hall.
They opened the doors to enter a room with floating candles and jack-o'-lanterns. The room was completely decorated in orange, black, silver, and red. It was a sight to behold. The group went to the table they regularly sat at for every meal. Since Draco and Jordayna were the last couple to enter, all eyes went to them. Everyone could not believe their eyes. The two of them fit perfectly together. They were walking arm in arm.
"Thank you students for attending this year's first-ever Halloween Ball. I just want to say have a good evening and enjoy. Remember that staff will be circulating throughout the evening. If anyone chooses to create mischief there will be severe consequences. With that said, we will be enjoying dinner, and then a first dance led by the Head Boys and Girls." McGonagall announced.
Draco pulled out a chair for Jordayna and she complied. He took the seat to her left. He continued to hold her hand. The other four girls kept stealing glances over at the sign of affection between their friends.
When it was time for the first song, the six Heads approached the middle of the dance floor. The first dance was to be a waltz. It was interesting to see the color scheme that Harry dancing with Hermione and Ginny dancing with Zacharias provoked. The three couples did the first minute with their respective Heads partner, and then when it came time for the rest of the school to join them on the dance floor, they switched to their respective dates.
Draco held Jordayna closer than necessary during the waltz. Once it was over, a new song started to play. It had a faster tempo and the whole group and joined in dancing with one-another.
The evening was going along splendidly until Pansy 'bumped' into Jordayna on the dance floor.
"Pansy, tonight, please just leave it be." Jordayna appealed to her.
"No, I think everyone should know why you have been winning all of these duels."
"What duels?" Jordayna asked innocently.
"Don't give me that Mallerd! You know precisely what duels."
"Miss Parkinson, I don't know what is going on here, but you will not speak to one of the Head Girls that way. Detention in my office tomorrow at eight o'clock in the morning."
"But professor, the ball ends at midnight!" Pansy whined following McGonagall to the end of the Great Hall.
Jordayna let out a sigh of relief. "Do you really think she knows?"
"My guess is Nott told her, so yes." Draco answered hugging her closer to try and soothe her worries.
"And for our final song tonight, 'Magic Works' by the Weird Sisters." Professor Flitwick announced to the Great Hall.
"I love this song." Jordayna whispered to Draco as he took her in his arms. They danced flush against each other as the song played around them.
"And dance your final dance
This is your final chance
To hold the one you love
You know you've waited long enough
Jordayna started to sing along with the music.
So,
Believe that magic works
Don't be afraid
Of bein' hurt
Don't let this magic die
The answer's there
Oh, just look in her eyes
He felt as she sang to him that she was whispering in his ear. It was almost as if she wanted him to do as the lyrics that rang out around the Great Hall around them suggested.
And make your final move
Mmm, don't be scared
She wants you to
It's hard
You must be brave
Don't let this moment slip away
Believe that magic works
Don't be afraid
Afraid of bein' hurt
No, don't let this magic die
Ooh, the answer's there
Yeah, just look in her eyes
And don't believe that magic can die
No, no, no, this magic can't die
So dance, your final dance.
'Cause this is, your final chance."
As the music ended, Draco lowered his lips to hers, and kissed her as passionately as he could. Here's to being brave and making your final move.
