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Ariadne went back to Draco's room with a nice buzz in her brain. The grand staircase proved a bit difficult to maneuver, but she clutched to the railing like a lifeline and made it all the way to the bed. She leapt and dove into the silken covers, rolling around in them for a minute until she found a comfortable spot. Only then did she realize that Draco was not in bed with her. She sat up abruptly, causing her world to spin threateningly fast.
"Draco? Where are you, damnit?" she snarled into the darkness. When no response was given, she threw back the covers and stomped around the room. "Are you over here? In the closet, maybe?" she flung the door of his walk-in closet open and almost succumbed to the urge to take every shirt and bury herself in the pile they'd make. Ariadne did take one shirt, however, and pulled it on over the dress she still was wearing. Her search lost, she retreated to the green sea of sheets and curled into a ball until morning.
A soft hand gently shook her awake. Expecting to see Draco, she turned over with her most spiteful look ready to fire. Instead she was met by Narcissa's concerned face.
"Are you all right, dear? I wanted to wake you so we could go have a look around Diagon Alley." her voice was soothing and sympathetic—Ariadne wondered why she sounded so solemn. The answer to that question was quickly evident once Ariadne glanced into the mirror. Her hair was a frizzy mass of knots, and the makeup that had looked so chic the night before was smudged all over her face.
"Thank you for waking me. I'll be down in twenty." She rubbed her knuckles in an itching eye and stumbled into the bathroom to shower. The moment the water was scalding hot she stepped in, relishing the stinging sensation on her sore back. It loosened her muscles and completely relaxed her.
"Nocturne, what in the hell do you think you're d-doing?" a startled voice stammered. Ariadne sleepily glanced over to the voice and was snapped from delirium instantly. Across from her in the claw-footed bathtub was Draco.
"Well what in the hell does it look like I'm doing, Draco? Normal people sleep in beds, not bathtubs, you loony git." At this point, Ariadne didn't even care that she was bare in front of her adversary. All the more to make him jealous/angry was fine in her book.
"Aren't you going to cover up, then? Merlin's beard, assault me the moment I wake up why don't you?"
"No, I'm not. If it bothers you so much, why can't you look away?" she said. Draco clenched his fists and said through gritted teeth, "It's this crazy phenomenon called hormones. I don't know if you've ever experienced them, but as a male it makes it quite difficult to look away when a naked woman is showering before your eyes!" Ariadne laughed coyly and cranked up the temperature of the water even more, fogging up the glass with steam and obscuring her view from him.
"Sorry to bother you, Drakie. I was just soo filthy and needed to be cleaned up." The sultry tone her voice had adopted only sent Draco further into anger and arousal. With a poorly hidden blush on his face, he snatched the blanket and pillow from the tub and tromped back into his room, slamming the bathroom door with such force bottles of shampoo fell off the shower's bench.
"So testy in the morning." Ariadne said to no one, scrubbing her body clean and shutting off the shower.
XXX
Narcissa and Ariadne were soon walking down the cobble-stone streets of Diagon Alley. The place was bustling with witches and wizards, all scrambling to buy the last-minute gifts they had forgotten. Enchanted decorations littered the store fronts, enticing buyers and window shoppers alike. They began with a light breakfast at the Leaky Cauldron, consisting of a Danish pastry and tea. Narcissa preferred boysenberry preserves in her flaky treat, while Ariadne went for the cream cheese. The two women paid and started in Twilfitt's and Tattings. The establishment was painted a periwinkle blue, with silver windowpanes and loopy lettering on its sign. Inside were the finest robes, hats, and clothing Twilfitt and Tatting swore money could buy. Narcissa must have been a regular here, because a plump old woman scurried over to the couple and began prattling off.
"Mrs. Malfoy, darling! It's so nice to have you back! Please, come see our newest apparel! Is this your daughter? I've never seen her before, she's quite lovely if I dare say." she grabbed Ariadne's wrist with a sweaty palm and pulled her over to a rack of beautiful dresses.
"Need a holiday number, dearie?" A different associate asked. This witch was younger, with long black hair and high eyebrows.
"Why not? I've got money to spare. What's the sexiest thing you carry?" she would show Draco more hormone-inducing "displays" at the Christmas Eve dinner tonight. She wanted to make him squirm in his seat. The witch yanked five or six dresses off their racks and hung them in a dressing room for her.
"Just let me know if you need different sizes or anything!" she said warmly. Ariadne thanked the woman and pulled the dressing room curtain shut. She handled each dress very carefully, noting their price tags with a keen eye. The first she tried was a full-length dress the exact color of a sunset. The back cut dangerously low and had rhinestones on the halter top.
"It's more summery, isn't it?" she asked her reflection. Ariadne re-hung the dress and put it in her newly-specified "no" category.
"Oh, why did I wear my black dress last night?" she groaned. "That would have been perfect!" After one dress that billowed on its own like a Flutterby bush, another that looked like a tutu gone terribly wrong, and a style that made Ariadne look as thin as a skeleton, she finally settled on her dress. It was a white ruched dress that was strapless. The top was sleek and met in the middle with a rhinestone detail that lined up with her cleavage. The empire waist gave way to a ruched skirt that was made to look entirely made of small rosettes. The material clung to her tightly and, as every other dress she owned, stopped above the knee.
Without allowing time to change her mind, Ariadne bought the dress. Narcissa summoned a House-elf who immediately took the garment and disapparated back to the mansion.
"I hate having to carry all those bags, you know." Narcissa purchased a handsome black travelling cloak for Lucius and exited the store.
"Where to next?" she said brightly.
"Anywhere is fine, I just don't know what to get Draco." she admitted sheepishly. Narcissa gave her a knowing look and suggested she start in Quality Quidditch Supplies.
"He always begs me to take him here, as most of the stuff is expensive and he's wary about spending his own money. I'm sure you'll find something he'll like!" Ariadne had no objection starting here. She loved going into the Quidditch shop. One could watch the Snitchmaker create a new box of the golden orbs, smell freshly-sewn Quaffles and sometimes test-fly a broom. An expensive Broomstick Servicing Kit caught her eye. It included calfskin washrags, a large jar of Fleetwood's High-Finish Handle Polish, a pair of silver Tail-Twig Clippers, a brass clip-on compass, and a handbook titled, "Do-It-Yourself Broomcare". She added to the gift a fresh pair of Seeker's gloves and rung up the purchase.
"Now all I need to get gifts for are Wyvern, The Malfoys, Mum and Da—" she broke off suddenly, almost missing the step out of the store. She would never need to get her parents a Christmas present again. The thought was heartbreaking to Ariadne. A girl without a family on Christmas. She wondered vaguely if this is how Harry Potter felt, or should she say feels. Apart from the Dursleys, he really had no real blood relation to anyone. Both of her parents never had siblings, and her grandparents died a long time ago.
She really was alone in the world. Once she got married, and the Nocturne name was dropped, her family's legacy, the proud Nocturne bloodline, would be gone forever. Her heart felt as if it weighed thirty pounds in her chest. In a moment of weakness, she sank on a nearby bench to cry.
About twenty minutes into her solo sobbing session, she heard footsteps approaching her. Too ashamed to look up, she kept her eyes glued to the cobblestone floor, which blurred in and out of focus due to the flowing tears.
"No one should be crying on Christmas Eve, Ariadne." a familiar voice said quietly. Could it really be? She looked up, expecting to see Hiro, but was crestfallen when she locked eyes with Harry Potter. Realizing how stupid that change of expression must have looked, she twisted her face into a smile.
"Harry! How are you?" she smiled weakly. Harry had two ice-cream cones in his hands—one a pistachio and the other a strawberry. He handed her the strawberry cone and sat beside her.
"I've always seen you get this from Florean's, so I thought you could use one now." he licked a large mouthful of the pistachio off his own cone and offered his hand.
"Why are you always so damned nice to me, Harry?" she grumbled. Harry shrugged and said in reply, "I'm not sure. It certainly can't be your good looks, you're as ugly as Filch in a hoopskirt." he joked. Ariadne laughed half-heartedly and tasted the ice cream. It was amazing, as always. Her father would take Crete and Ariadne to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour once a month, to celebrate something silly like the new moon or a Tuesday. She missed the small things like that already.
"Thank you, Harry." she squeezed his warm hand with her cold one and he smiled.
"Where are Hermione and Ron?" she asked conversationally. Harry gestured to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes down the street.
"Checking out Fred and George's new merchandise." Ariadne nodded in acknowledgement and gingerly bit the side of her cone, allowing the strawberry ice cream to run down her hand slightly.
"Still pestered by Draco?" he asked suddenly.
"Like you wouldn't believe." With a toe she nudged the Quidditch supplies underneath the bench and out of sight.
"He's up to something. Voldemort has given him a plan, I can feel it. I see things that Voldemort wants me to. Something's coming."
"Why does everyone confide in me?"Ariadne demanded the cobble-stone floor. The ground offered no answer and she looked back to Harry.
"Draco isn't up to anything," she lied. "Trust me. That git is so incompetent, he wouldn't be able to hit water if he fell from a boat." Harry pictured this and chuckled.
"I'm worried about Snape, too." he whispered.
"Snape is the least of your problems right now. Voldemort is killing his own Death Eaters off. He killed my parents just last week."
"Oh, Ariadne. I'm so sorry." He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close to him. He smelled like cinnamon and pistachio ice cream. It was soothing, but not as soothing as she imagined Draco would smell like.
Wait, back that up, what? Ariadne was imaging Draco comforting her? Why did her brain plant such impossible images into her brain?
"So I guess I can finally say I know how you feel." she said feebly. Harry saw Ron and Hermione, who waved to Ariadne and began walking over.
"I don't want them to see me like this. Just tell them Happy Christmas for me, won't you?" Harry squeezed her hand again and whispered, "If you ever wanted to escape, all you have to do is come to me. I can help you." his fingers grazed across her covered Dark Mark as he rushed over to his friends. He left Ariadne half-shocked and confused.
Did he know?
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Ariadne finally found Narcissa in Madame Primpernelle's Beautifying Potions, a cosmetic supplier slash hair salon that got rid of "warts and worse." Narcissa got her black lowlights re-dyed by the Madame herself.
"Oh, Ariadne! Are you all finished?" the girl glanced at the bags in her hand. She got Wyvern a box load of candy from Sugarplum's Sweets and a pretty necklace, Narcissa and Lucius complementing bottles of perfume and cologne, and went back to the Quidditch store to get Harry a pair of gloves as well. She'd send them with an owl as soon as they got home.
"Yes, I am, thank you, Narcissa."
"Then get your hair done while you're here! The Madame has a new coconut-vanilla shampoo that smells heavenly." Another stylist shoved Ariadne into a chair and began kneading her long fingers throughout the white-blonde tresses.
She decided she'd relax now, if only for a short while.
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Once the two women returned to the Malfoy Manor, preparations for the party went quickly under way. It seemed as if all the Death Eaters summoned their personal House-elves to assist the Malfoy's usual crew. One couldn't take more than three steps without trodding over one of the tiny creatures. Ariadne re-decorated the Grand Ballroom with twice as much candor. Within the hour, the room exploded with tasteful holiday spirit. Instead of red and green, per tradition, silver and gold replaced all the decorations. The blonde girl cast an enchantment that charmed the ceiling to act similarly to the ceiling in the Great Hall at Hogwarts. It would be "snowing" during the party that night.
With her part of the work completed, Ariadne rushed upstairs to get ready. She flung open Draco's bedroom door and ran smack into him. The force that she hit him with sent them both tumbling onto the wooden floor. Draco's head knocked against the surface with a sickening thud.
"Can you stop getting in my way?" Draco growled. Ariadne stayed where she was, completely on top of him, and clapped a hand over her mouth in mock worry.
"Draco! I'm so sorry I ran into you! I hope I didn't harm that devilishly handsome face!" she slapped his cheek for good measure. Draco rolled his icy eyes and stared at her blankly.
"Get off of me." He asked her. Ariadne silenced the next slew of curses about to spew from Draco's open mouth with a kiss. It stopped Draco dead in his tracks.
She slowly ran her hand through his white-blond hair, massaging his scalp and eventually supporting Draco's neck with said hand. He responded by placing his hands on her hips and drawing her down so she was laying on top of him. They stayed that way, kissing and tangled, until someone threw open the door.
Pansy Parkinson shrieked in horror and stamped her feet, throwing a tantrum like a screaming child.
"Drakie, how could you do this to me?" she whined. Draco ignored her complaints and merely kissed Ariande with more fervor.
"My father will hear about this!" she sneered. Draco broke the kiss and shouted after her, "Hey! That's my line!"
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