Peculiar ~A T.R fanfiction~

Chapter 4 ~The party~

"Are you excited about Slughorn's party?" Maria asked Julietta as they sat in the dorms doing their homework. "Mimi! Of course, she isn't excited about it. She is going to paraded around like a show horse then told of all his other fabulous past students," laughed Jezebel and soon the rest of the girls had joined in. Eileen looked up from her homework and declared "I would rather shove a Gobstone up my ass than go to one of his stupid parties." The girls burst out into another round of laughter at her crude language. "Oh, the Quidditch game is coming up soon. Bel, do you think you can win against Slytherin?" Asked Maria and Jezebel automatically replied "Of course. We mighty eagles will swoop down and eat those snakes alive." This just caused the other girls to laugh at her complete and utter seriousness and determination to win. After an outburst like that who couldn't laugh.

Julietta wasn't used to this. She never had friends before and she kind of liked it. It felt warm and she had never laughed so much in her life. Not that she laughed often, she was never into comedy until now. She didn't even know if this was comedy it was more just friendship. She was spending her Friday night with these girls and for the first time in a long time, there was nothing missing. Even at home, she felt like she should be somewhere else or that something was missing. For the first time in a long time, she felt happy and whole. Her smile was real for once, not that anyone could tell the difference as she was a very good actor.

The next day Julietta arrived back to the dorm from her usual run to be greeted with Jezebel asking "Why would you wake up at 5:00 every morning to go for a run? That is insane!" Julietta just shrugged, "I think it is because it calms me. It gets rid of all my jitters and a wave of calm rushes over me. I think it keeps me sane more than anything else." Eileen sat up, rubbed her eyes and agreed "I feel the exact same way about Gobstones. Bel feels the same way about Quidditch just like Mimi feels the same way about being social. If she doesn't talk to someone she slowly goes insane just like how I need Gobstones. If I don't play a game a day I start shaking." Maria, hearing her name suddenly joined the conversation. "I swear she relates everything back to Gobstones. I played Gobstones, Slughorn is horrible like my last game of Gobstones, my gosh that is as pretty as a gold set of Gobstones. You are addicted." Maria teased and Eileen quickly replied, "I feel attacked." Maria not being able to stand not having the last word retorted "We aren't attacking you. This is simply your intervention."

The girls spent there day doing homework and playing wizards chess until Julietta had to go get ready for Slughorn's party. She pulled on a dress made of black lace and she left her hair out in its natural waves. She placed earrings in her ears that matched the necklace she always wore. The violet gems just brought out her eyes even more. She felt strangely uncomfortable with her hair out. Her hair up always made her seem less approachable and more business-like. She took it out while sleeping and when she was alone but not even in front of her siblings. She pulled the top half of it up giving her a half up, half down. With her hair in place, she was ready to leave for a night of being paraded around.

When she walked into Slughorn's office there was a large circler table in the middle with one empty seat clearly meant for her. All the others who sat at the table were captivated by the young girl's beauty. "Ah, welcome Julietta. Please take a seat and we can start with the first course." She made her way to seat with dread filling her stomach. When she was invited to dinner parties, balls, galas and many other kinds of events she would often feel this kind of dread. She would attend, people would ask invasive questions and she would give vague or none existent answers. She knew about her family talent for being mysterious and she had certainly inherited this ability. She would often talk to people without giving a detail about herself. This was the way she liked it.

As she sat she noticed she was squashed between two very handsome young boys. One with hair that was platinum blonde who she automatically recognized as Abraxas Malfoy. He would often be at the same pureblood events that she was invited to as a child. He, on the other hand, seemed to love them. He would always be trying to sneak champagne and he would always be shamelessly flirting with her and every girl in a five year age range of him. She had watched him so his tricks plenty of times before so when he gave his signature smile she just raised an eyebrow. He was young, charming and filled with a love of life.

To her right was the boy who was getting an award the first day she arrived at Hogwarts. He was a different kind of handsome to Abraxas. He had dark brown hair that sat perfectly on his head. He had dark green eyes that made you feel cold and uneasy when they looked at you. He had pale skin, even paler than Julietta's. He looked like the sun had never even touched him with its harsh rays. He had a lean yet slightly muscled build that was obviously natural. His face had sharp features that made him look dangerous and yet enticing at the same time. His smile was charming but clearly fake to someone as smart as Julietta. Although he was not as perfect as Julietta he certainly came close. She did not notice his features as she was focused on Slughorn's speech.