Chapter 9: The Rice Family
The Yule Ball had concluded with a triumph, for most of the students except Holly who ended her night early in bed with a book. Many students had remained at Hogwarts overnight deciding to take the train the following morning. Holly awoke quite early, with the sun peeking through the curtains of her dormitory. She raised up slightly to see Hermione sleeping peacefully in her bed, her hair had returned to its regular bushy self.
Holly got out of bed, making her way down the hall to the bathroom. It was quiet except for some seventh-year girls who had fallen asleep on the bathroom floor due to getting drunk on spiked punch. She rolled her eyes stepping over them to get ready for the day. She put on her Weasley sweater that was dark purple with a white H. She combed out her hair before making her way down into the common room to sit with a book.
She was reading when Hermione, Ginny, and Mallory came down. "Holly! Holly!" Mallory rushed to her side, "I had the best night! Remy and I danced all night! Mom and dad even let me stay up till midnight!"
Holly smiled at the blonde, "That's great, I am glad you had fun."
"You danced with that Durmstrang boy that was nice of him."
She shrugged closing her book, "He probably did it out of pity."
"At least you danced."
"I was fine not even going."
The portrait swung open and in walked Fred with Hallie, "Did you two meet up this early?" Mallory asked.
"Um…" Hallie started looking at Fred and then at her sisters and friends. "Yeah…"
"Ew. I hate mornings, unlike Holly loves mornings."
"Another reason we are all glad not to share a room with her."
Hermione looked up from reading the cover of Holly's book, "I share a room with her and I typically wake up early with her."
"Bookworms," Fred and Hallie joked with a laugh.
"Has anyone seen George?" he asked
The Gryffindor girls shook their heads, "He never came back last night. Disappeared probably with some girl," Ginny said. She had
"I'll be back," Fred went upstairs.
"I'm going to go find Alicia," Mallory said then left.
Hallie waited downstairs in the common room with Hermione, Ginny, and Holly.
"Ok, Mal is gone I can tell you that Fred and I did it."
"Wait…are you telling us that you and Fred?" Hermione gasped putting a hand over her mouth.
Hallie nodded as the girls gasped with laughs, "Well?" they asked as more of the girls started gathering.
"He was so kind and gentle. It was amazing."
Holly wrinkled her nose, "We are fourteen."
"And? Peri lost her virginity last year and she was fourteen."
"That is not someone I would want to be my role model."
Hallie waved that away, "You are just mad at her because she has Draco and you don't."
"Well, yeah. It isn't fair."
"You are a half-blood and a Gryffindor. Malfoy would never ever, ever pick you. You are an amazing girl, Holly, but Malfoy would never lower his standards," Ginny advised the blonde.
Holly crossed her arms, "Peri is a half-blood."
"But she is a Slytherin."
Holly huffed, leaving the common room as Fred returned down the stairs with a parchment-covered gift.
Holly made her way to the Great Hall which was empty at the moment, but it soon began to get busier as the morning continued. Her housemates soon joined her, Fred ate his breakfast while discussing pranks with Lee. Hallie pulled her notebook from her bag.
"Harry? Can I ask you something?" Hallie asked.
Harry had been in a conversation with Ron and Hermione, although Ron and Hermione were not really on speaking terms after she got mad at him for not having the courage to ask her himself then getting mad she went with Viktor.
"Um…sure," Harry said sounding confused as he looked at Ron who shrugged.
"What did you think of the Yule Ball?"
"The Yule Ball?" he questioned glancing at Holly, who shrugged unsure what her sister could want
Hallie nodded, "Yes."
"I don't really know, Hallie. It was fine I guess."
She groaned looking at Hermione, "Hermione, please be more helpful. What did you think of the ball having the second-hottest guy in the school on your arm? He isn't the hottest because Fred is but he's still attractive."
"I'm not answering that Hallie."
Hallie groaned again, "The three of you are boring."
"You only asked two of us," Ron spoke up.
"Are you a champion or the date of one? No, so you are not helpful to me."
"You said three."
Hallie groaned, "Ron, please stop talking and eat your murder meat."
Ron had a plate of bacon and sausage. Fred rubbed her back calming her while continuing his conversation with his brother and friend
He looked at the bacon and sausage on his plate, "What does Fred see in her," he whispered to Harry and Hermione.
Fred looked over hearing this, "I find Hallie to be amazing, unlike you who can't even get a date," he teased kissing Hallie's cheek.
She smiled at him closing her notebook, "I'll ask Cedric and Cho."
She went to stand, but Fred pulled her down before pulling her into a kiss. "Where are you going?"
"Nowhere," she said against his lips.
"Can you two please get a room?" Ron said in disgust.
"We did last night," Fred smirked at him, pulling away from Hallie.
Ron shook his head, "Ew! Ew! George, tell Fred that he is gross."
George sat down next to Fred and looked down the table at Ron, "Is he snogging Hal again?"
"Yeah!"
"Cool," he said casually, "Did you two?" he asked Fred as he filled his plate.
Fred looked at Hallie, "Oh, yeah."
"Nice!" George clapped his brother's hand. "I got some, too."
"With who?"
George nodded his head toward Peri who was sitting at the Slytherin table with an annoyed-looking Draco. Everyone who had been listening looked to see who he was talking about
"Peri? We already knew you two were sleeping together."
"Isn't she dating Mafloy?" Ron asked looking back.
George nodded, "Well…she is just a…"
"Boys, this is corridor and locker room conversation, not meal conversation," Hallie said
Fred looked back at her, "Sorry, love."
The Daily Prophet soon arrived, and Holly opened her book but glanced at the cover of the paper. There on the cover was a picture that had been captured of Peri and Draco dancing and laughing, enjoying each other's company but could have easily been changed into something else if one wanted to believe it.
Has the Half-Blood Princess found love with a Slytherin Prince?
She watched as Peri take Draco out of the Great Hall. She returned to her book but kept allowing her mind to wander. She was never going to be with someone, she was not wanted by anyone. Her mom married her Hogwarts sweetheart and Hallie appears to found hers. The love that will conquer all.
She sighed looking at her watch before standing up, "I will see most of you later. I have to go find Cassie and Richard we are going to her parent's house. I think I will see some of you at the New Year gala if not see you back at home in a few days."
"Bye Holly," they said as she left.
She left the Hall finding the entrance hall empty except for Hallie talking to Cedric and writing in her pink, sparkly notebook with a matching pink feathered quill that wrote in black sparkled ink and smelled of strawberries. Hallie wanted the one the wrote in pink but figured it would be hard to read so she chose the one that wrote in black ink.
Holly approached them, "Hello Cedric."
"Hi, Holly," he said to her.
"Hallie, we should be going. Cassie and Richard want us to meet them in their suite."
Hallie looked up from her notebook, "I suppose we should get going. Thank you, Cedric. Speak again soon."
"For sure."
He left the twins standing in the entry hall and they headed for Cassie and Richard's suite.
They reached the suite, finding they were almost the last to arrive. Mallory was there before them, Alicia was always there as she did not have a house table since she was too young to attend just yet, and Peri had not arrived yet. Holly noticed Cassie was wearing a burgundy dress, but this was one of her upper-class casual wizarding dresses. The ones she wore when with Richard's parents. Richard was dressed in an equally expensive casual, but a modern wizarding suit. His suit was a dark black color with a matching burgundy tie.
Peri arrived shortly after them.
"Excellent. Everyone is now here. I need all of you to change out of Molly's sweaters into these," she gestured to brand new dresses hanging along a clothing rack with tags hanging from the hangers with their names written on them.
"Why?" Alicia groaned, picking up the dark red almost black dress that had matching black tights and ballet flats.
"Your grandparents are very particular…oh the bows!"
"Bows? We haven't worn bows since elementary school," Alicia commented from behind a changing curtain.
"Grandmother," Peri reminded her sister as she took the forest green dress from the rack with her black tights and two-inch heels.
"Exactly," Cassie said as Alicia walked over to their mom, who instantly began to fix her youngest's hair. She tied a black bow to her auburn hair.
The others finished getting dressed. Hallie was in a plum-colored dress with the same tights and shoes as the others, Holly was in a magenta-colored dress, and Mallory was in a navy dress with nude tights and black ballet flats.
"Beautiful girls," Cassie said after fixing their hair, "ree, Richard?"
Richard looked up from the paper he had been drinking to pass time while the girls finished becoming more presentable for Cassie's snobbish parents, "Can the older three lose the bows? Perhaps pearls instead?"
She turned to them, "Fine. Peri and Hallie, use your wands to quickly curl your hair," she stepped over to her vanity where she had a small chest of jewelry. She picked up three pearl necklaces with matching earrings. She put the first on Holly, "This belonged to your mother," she clasped the necklace together as Holly placed a hand on the pearls looking at herself in the mirror.
"Mother's?" she asked as Hallie looked over as she finished her hair, transfiguring her bow into a headband.
Cassie nodded, "I kept all your mother's things for both of you, which you will receive the rest when you become of age as well as the Porter family fortune. Your father gave your mother this set on her sixteenth birthday." She picked up another pearl necklace and earring set, "And this one though was an engagement gift," she placed the pearls around Hallie as Holly put the earrings in.
Richard looked at the girls proudly, "Better. They look like fine, young ladies," he said approaching the fireplace.
Cassie went to her husband taking a hand of floo powder, "Alicia."
The youngest Banks child approached her and then entered the fireplace with her as they called out Fernsby Manor. They were followed by Richard and Mallory with the twins behind them.
"Fernsby Manor," Hallie and Holly said together in unison.
They came into a parlor that was a dark red, nearly black in color. The group was gathered around speaking with a woman dressed in traditional wizarding dress robes of emerald green with gold trim. Her hair was dark and long similar to Cassie's, but her eyes were dark green.
The woman looked at them exit the fireplace as they dusted the soot from their clothes. The woman before there, who was surely Cassie's mother, turned her nose up at them in disgust.
"Where is that daughter of yours?" the woman asked becoming irritated.
"She will be here, mother." Cassied ushered the twins over to their small group. "Hallie. Holly. Come meet my mother, Aurelia Rice."
They stepped closer to the group offering Aurelia their hands.
"They are the twin daughters of Ann and Patrick Porter. You knew Patrick's parents."
Aurelia shook their hands unwillingly, "Yes, I knew them. I did charity events with his mother."
The fire suddenly rumbled and there was Peri dusting herself off. Everyone turned to see her exit, "There she is," Cassie spoke, "Periwinkle, darling. Come meet your grandmother."
"Periwinkle?" Hallie whispered to her twin.
"It is her name," Holly whispered back.
"I know, but why is Cassie being overly formal."
Holly shrugged, "It is her mother and her mom has always been controlling of her. They disowned her for having Peri."
"Then why are we here? If they disowned Cassie."
"Because Peri is famous now I guess."
"Still doesn't explain why they care to know her now."
Holly began to understand what Draco meant by her never being accepted into his world, "Title and power are everything to pureblood supremacists. They rarely accept those less than pure unless they are someone special like Peri has become."
Peri stepped forward to her family standing nearest to her Cassie and Richard, "Hello Periwinkle," Aurelia spoke. "I am pleased to welcome you to our home."
She gave a small snort at this, Cassie shot her a look of disapproval.
Aurelia's brown eyes narrowed at her granddaughter before they instantly softened as she returned to her previous tone, "Your mother and Aunt Victoria were raised here as girls, your aunt married a Parkinson. I am sure you have met your cousin, Pansy, at school. Such a lovely girl. They will be here this evening for dinner, we are having a late Christmas dinner."
Aurelia pursed her lips and then turned to the adults.
Peri made a silly face making the girls snicker, Cassie shot them all looks.
Aurelia ignored them, "Juniper," she called out.
With a pop, a small house elf appeared beside them, " , calls for, Juniper?" the elf asked with a high-pitched voice.
"Yes. We are ready for luncheon, please inform Eirling that his daughter, Cassandra, and her family are here and that we will be eating luncheon in the golden dining room."
Juniper nodded, "Yes, Mrs. Rice, Juniper will inform Mr. Rice of the luncheon being served." The elf turned to Cassie, "Welcome back, Ms…forgive me it is now."
Cassie smiled softly at her former family house elf, an elf who raised her from birth till she left due to her pregnancy. "It is alright, Juniper. I am pleased to be home with my family."
Juniper smiled then with a pop disappeared again.
The family followed Aurelia down a long corridor lined with fabrics of rich burgundy. The portraits of ancestors watched as they walked past, "Cassandra is back…" they gossiped between them.
"The blood traitor," a male ancestor hissed.
"Filthy blood!" another hissed towards Peri, "Ruined the Rice name!"
Peri stared ahead as the words were thrown at her and her mother specifically. Hallie kept close to Holly. As slurs were thrown at them as well, "I don't like this, Holly."
"It is alright, Hal. Won't be forever."
"No…but you want to marry a family like this. This is just Cassie's family, not Draco's."
Holly remained quiet as they entered the Golden Dining Room.
Erling stood in the middle of the Golden Dining Room staring out the large window with a glass of fire whiskey in his hand, he turned to his family entering the room. He was a tall man with salt and pepper-colored hair, but Holly could see clearly his relation to Pansy as his features heavily resembled Pansy except he had the same blue eyes as Cassie. He finished the rest of his fire whiskey before he crossed from the window to reach them, "Cassandra. Richard," he spoke almost cold sounding. His voice sent shivers up Holly's back.
From the stories she had heard over the years, Richard had removed Aurelia and Erling from their wedding moments before Cassie was to walk down the aisle due to the inappropriate slurs used about Peri, Hallie, and Holly. He had also forbade them from ever meeting their future children till they decided they were ready for the moment.
"Father," Cassie spoke in an equally cold tone, her blue eyes narrowed at her father.
Richard simply eyed him, an expression she had never witnessed from him. He was typically a pleasant expressed man, he kept his children behind them the best he could in an attempt to protect them from his father-in-law's cruelness. Erling turned to him and the children, "I would like to meet my granddaughters."
Mallory and Alicia looked at their mother and father then at each other before stepping forward, "Hello," Mallory spoke quietly, "I am Mallory."
Alicia the more outspoken and braver of the two Banks sisters spoke more confidently, "I am Alicia."
He eyed them till Aurelia spoke placing her hand on Mallory's shoulder making her stiffen, "She's the heiress for the Banks family."
This seemed to interest him, but he ignored Alicia taking more interest in Mallory.
"Any veela in your family?" Aurelia asked Richard.
He shook his head, "No. They are all purely witches."
"Her blonde hair and blue eyes would make me think otherwise, but you would know more than I would." The two turned to Alicia, "And a ginger-haired daughter…how unusual, we do not see that often in purebloods. Typically only the…whoever those friends of yours are Cassandra."
"The Weasleys," Cassie answered. "And she gets that from your side, mother. You come from Irish purebloods. Her hair is more auburn than ginger."
Erling noticed Peri while they discussed Alicia, "And you must be the one we are making a prominent uproar over at our annual gala."
The group turned to Peri, "Yes, sir." Her voice was cold as her dark eyes stared into his blue ones.
He stepped closer to her examining her further this made her feel uneasy but she refused to show it, "Aurelia, will she pass for a debutante?" he asked not looking at anyone except his granddaughter.
Aurelia approached examining Peri closely, "She is tall and she has a good complexion. Alejandro and Giovanni will be here on New Year's Eve to prepare her. I received her measurement from Madame Malkin and sent them to our dresser. I am informed she does well academically in school and the Malfoy boy has taken an interest in her. She is dressed to satisfactory terms currently, but not proper enough for a future bride."
"Bride?" Richard, Cassie, and Peri spoke in unison but were ignored as Erling gave a slight nod of approval and without another word, he turns at his heel. He makes his way to the table taking a seat at the head, where the plates are instantly filled with their luncheon.
The rest of the day continued uneventfully minus the coldness between Cassie, Richard, and her grandparents, especially Erling.
Around dinner they remained in their dressy casual clothing, sitting in the drawing room as they waited for the Parkinsons to arrive. "They are late," Aurelia hissed looking at the grandfather clock at the top of the mantle.
"That is unlike Victoria," Cassie spoke sipping her martini.
"Pansy has taken an interest in fashion in recent years and it tends to make them late for many functions."
Peri glanced at Hallie, who had been unusually quiet the entire day, the mention of fashion caught her attention. "Hallie designed my first task outfit."
Hallie looked excited to speak finally on a topic of interest and not get knocked down for it. Holly perked up herself to listen as she sipped her tea, she was more of a coffee drinker than a tea drinker unless it was iced, which was not heard of in England.
Her grandparents scoffed at this, "That was not an appropriate outfit for a lady," Aurelia informed them, "Much too revealing."
"It is what I feel most comfortable in."
"Peri," Cassie gasped, "She does not mean that. She took all her etiquette classes in New York, she had high marks. She knows how to…"
Erling raised a hand silencing his youngest, "She will be regiven these classes during the Winter Holidays, we must ensure that the Malfoys adore her. Their son might but we cannot ruin another match. To have Periwinkle married into one of the sacred twenty-eight would bring our name back to proper standards. Your wedding twelve years ago helped, but this will ensure our placement. You owe us this."
The girls looked at Cassie in silence, Peri appeared to look disappointed as the fire lit up and outstepped the Parkinsons, "Ah, there they are," Aurelia announced standing.
"Apologises, mother," Victoria crossed from the fireplace kissing her parents' on the cheek.
"Hello grandmama. Hello grandfather," Pansy greeted kissing their cheeks as she took a seat on the couch beside Peri.
Once the elf attending them had given Victoria and her husband drinks, the conversation resumed but to introductions, "Sweetheart, you remember my sister, Cassandra…excuse Cassie. That is what the papers name you."
Pansy's father, shared the same dark black hair as the rest of the family except his eyes were a green color not blue. "Pleasure to see you again, Cassie. This must be your husband…"
Cassie looked at Richard with a proud smile, "Yes, my loving husband Richard."
"Nice to meet you."
The two men exchanged handshakes, which seemed more business-like than friendly.
"And my nieces…I believe the one next to our Darling Pansy is…" Victoria looked to her sister for support.
Cassie sighed, "Periwinkle, but she goes by Peri. She is the current Triwizard champion for Ilvermorny. A mistake her name was entered but it is a contract that she must participate."
"Ah yes! That is right. I have never met Peri, you left before she was even born. I did see her pictures in the paper a few times as she grew up. Resembles her father, the greasy-haired boy that you used to spend time with in the common room. What you ever saw in him is beyond me. Sirius was a perfect match for you until he became a blood traitor, mass murderer, and now is a criminal on the run."
Cassie's nostrils flared angrily at this besides Ann, Sirius was her closest friend. "He is not any of those things. Sirius is a good man, he loves his children too."
"Has any even met them?"
Erling cleared his throat, "Enough!"
The sisters instantly quieted.
Richard decided to break the silence looking to Hallie and Holly, "We were discussing Peri's first task outfit before you arrived. We mentioned that Hallie designed it," he gestured to the twins sitting on the sofa across from him.
Victoria gasped, "You designed that? You have quite a gift for design."
Hallie smiled proudly, "I am hoping Peri learns more about the location of the second task for me to design something better for her. I will take into more consideration the appropriateness of her attire. I was working to fit her style, but I did not take into acknowledgment of those in attendance."
"I must pass your name on to my friends. They will be wanting you to design everything for them. I should have asked you to design Pansy's Yule Ball gown. What disaster that was."
"I designed my gown for the ball and the gala. Madam Malkin designed Holly, Alicia, and Mallory's gowns for the ball and gala. Peri's Yule Ball gown was designed by Ménagerie Mythique."
The adults in the room grow stunned turning to Peri, "You have a dress made by Ménagerie Mythique?" Aurelia questioned with shock.
Peri gave a slow nod, "Yes, my birth father paid for it."
The others now looked to Cassie, "The greasy-haired freak has access to the most exclusive designers in the entire wizarding world?" Victoria asked.
"I had no idea…"
"And I got Alejandro designing her gown for her debut," Aurelia groaned, "It is going to look like a day dress compared to one of their dresses."
"I would not call it a dress. It had pants with a skirt overlaying it," Hallie spoke up.
Aurelia and Victoria looked at her then Peri, "You did not even wear a skirt?" they both asked in disapproval.
"It was more me. They designed it to fit me. It also was not light blue, but a forest green dress. I prefer darker colors."
"Well you will wear white at the gala, a debutante cannot be presented in any other color except white. It is to represent a wedding dress, showing a woman's purity."
Holly snorted at this, "My apologies." She went back to sipping her tea while her complexion turned a bright pink in embarrassment.
The adults stared at Peri in horror, "She is fifteen," Erling and Aurelia hissed at their daughter and son-in-law.
Thankfully dinner was announced before anyone could speak again. The dinner remained silent, much to everyone's appreciation.