Parvati Prevails

Chapter Eight: Fool For You

Some things you just can't control

There's no way of letting go

Don't you know

I don't want to be alone

But I don't want to be in love

No, I don't want to be a fool for you

Draco was waiting at the bottom of the sweeping staircase in the Entrance hall, casually leaning against the banister as if he owned it. As Parvati descended the steps, he looked up and smiled. Smiling was one of the few pleasant things Draco did-and fairly infrequently as well-but when it was genuine the effect was rather devastating. Parvati felt warm and comforted down to the tips of her toes.

'Late again. Who would have predicted that?' he drawled, indicating his watch.

'You would be much better company if only you kept that pretty mouth of yours shut all the time, Draco,' answered Parvati, only slightly disgruntled.

'Don't talk nonsense,' said Draco. 'My sparkling wit and naturally dazzling charm make for exceptional company. Not to mention my stunning good looks and impeccable manners.'

'And gold,' added Parvati. 'Lots of gold.'

'Who can forget?'

'No one. You Malfoys are constantly reminding everyone about it,' she pointed out.

'Precisely. That is the secret to our success, you know.'

'What, gold?'

'No; relentless boasting.'

'In a fair world, you would get beaten to a pulp for that.'

'That's where the gold comes in useful,' said Draco, nodding wisely. 'Don't be jealous.'

Parvati stopped abruptly in her tracks, stunned. I think you're right, Harry's voice echoed in her mind.

I think I am jealous.

'Parvati?' Draco turned back to look at her, concerned. 'What? Was it something I said?'

'No, I...'

'Are you feeling all right?' he asked, taking her hand. 'Look, if you're feeling unwell you don't have to come. Honestly, my parents will understand. I'll stay with you.'

Parvati smiled. 'You really don't want to go, do you?'

'Not especially. It'll be boring.'

'I'm fine. And I do want to go. I want to see your house, and meet your Mum.'

'You can meet her anytime, she's not going anywhere. And the house isn't that great, you know.'

Parvati raised an eyebrow.

'Alright, so the house is really great,' Draco admitted.

'Then let's go,' said Parvati, leading the way.

They travelled in the most luxurious carriage Parvati had ever seen, gleaming black with the Malfoy insignia in silver on the outside and creamy leather seats inside. It was a flying carriage like the one Parvati remembered the students from Beauxbatons having, and Draco told her that in the air it was invisible to everyone, not just muggles but Wizards as well.

As they flew, the sky changed from a dusky pink to a luminescent blue dotted with tiny, shining stars. At the end of the journey, it had deepened to a dark, velvety blue. From a distance the lights illuminating the Manor had made it seem merely huge, but close up the size of the grounds was overwhelming. The long driveway ended by circling a large round pool before the main entrance, but instead of a fountain there was a Fire sculpture suspended above the water. Four horses, with flaming yellow manes and fierce, blazing eyes were reflected in the dark pool. Parvati felt the heat radiating from them.

'Wow...' she said, staring at the beautiful horses. The figures seemed dangerous to her, powerful and untamed and they gave the distinct impression that any moment they would break free from whatever spell was holding them and canter off into the night.

'Come on,' said Draco, leading her to the open door.

Parvati would have loved to explore every corner of the Manor; the passing rooms she glimpsed were lavish with style and grandeur. But Draco led her through and outside in to a garden where a large outdoor pavilion had been set up. Music was playing, guests were dancing or milling about talking, helping themselves to flutes of sparkling champagne or refreshments which were making the rounds on invisibly supported silver platters. The whole place was lit up with braziers along the footpaths and burning lanterns which hovered in the jasmine-scented air above them.

'Draco,' greeted Lucius Malfoy, having earlier excused himself from a conversation. 'And Parvati! Excellent, you're here. Come say hello to Narcissa.'

Parvati stared at Draco, who looked impassively back.

'We'd better go meet my mother,' he said to her in a low voice.

'How does he know I'm not Padma?' Parvati whispered, following Draco and trying to ignore the people who were watching them intently.

'I don't know,' Draco replied. 'But I think we'll soon find out.'

Parvati shivered. She suddenly felt very chilled, probably due to grim implications that Draco's answer brought to mind. Maybe it was the daunting prospect of meeting Narcissa Malfoy, or the group of Slytherins sending her far from comforting death glares from where they were all seated together to the right. Or perhaps it was the thin dress she was wearing that revealed a tad more cleavage than necessary.

Parvati's first impression of Draco's mother was that she was absolutely beautiful. When they approached the table, Narcissa was entertaining the other guests, gesturing dramatically. Her silver-blonde hair fell in loose curls, and she was resplendent in pale pink. Lucius walked up and placed an arm on her shoulder causing her to turn towards him, still laughing.

'What is it, dear?'

Draco stepped forward, placing a kiss on his mother's cheek.

'I'm glad you're finally here,' smiled Narcissa, lifting her shining grey eyes to her son. 'How's school, darling?'

'Fine. You know, same as always.'

'And you must be Parvati.'

'I'm pleased to meet you, Mrs Malfoy.'

'Call me Narcissa,' she said. 'That's a gorgeous necklace you're wearing.'

'Thank you.' Parvati fingered the pendant nervously. 'Draco gave it to me, actually.'

'Well, it's nice to know I raised my son to have good taste. The food is going to be ready shortly, would you like to sit down?'

'Thank you,' said Parvati, taking a seat between Narcissa and Draco.

'You have a lovely name; are you Indian, Parvati?'

'Yes, half. My mother was French.'

'Best of both worlds, you lucky thing. And do you like it at Hogwarts?'

'Mother, what is this, an interrogation?' asked Draco.

'No, it's fine, I really don't mind,' Parvati protested.

'We're just talking, Draco. Calm down,' said Narcissa. 'Stop worrying.'

'I'm not worrying.'

'Why would he be worried?' asked Parvati, confused.

'I'm not worried,' said Draco flatly.

'He's afraid I might tell you embarrassing stories about him.'

'Mother, I paid you to keep quiet about those.'

'You said you would pay me, dear. You haven't yet.'

'Will you tell me?' Parvati pleaded.

'You're going to spread them around the school, aren't you?' Draco accused.

'Please, give me a little credit,' said Parvati severely. 'I'll use them for blackmail.'

Narcissa laughed. 'You're teaching her terrible things, Draco.'

'That wasn't me,' Draco answered. 'She's devious all on her own.'

'Even better,' his mother approved.

Draco looked pained. 'See, this is why I didn't want to come.'

*

Harry took his time walking back up to Gryffindor tower alone, wondering why his life seemed to have an unfair amount of complications. Whatever he had done to deserve these punishments must have been something terrible, because apparently being hunted down by Voldemort wasn't enough. He also had to deal with girls.

According to Hermione, he had issues understanding the opposite sex and while most males answered to the same problem, that didn't help him in any way. And Parvati...he'd always assumed he understood her perfectly well but as it turned out she was more confusing than all his other friends put together.

He thought she might have liked him, even if it was just a little bit. Figures he'd read it all wrong. Ron was right, Hermione should write a book translating mad things girls do so boys can understand them, including a specific and simple chapter with point-by-point explanation and examples on How To Tell Whether She Likes You Or If You're Really Just Friends And That's It.

Because that would have helped him. A lot.

Had his jealousy really been that obvious? He hadn't even noticed it himself. Harry hadn't been concerned about Ernie, after all, and he'd been infatuated with Parvati and everyone knew it. But Ernie had never been a real threat, said the voice in Harry's mind. Unlike Malfoy. As much as he hated to admit it, Malfoy was rich, confident, more experienced and better looking than him despite being an obnoxious git.

He's actually... a really nice guy... and yeah... I think I really do like him.

She'd told him herself, in the faerie garden. He'd forgotten that, of course, but he'd acted on impulse, stupidly admitting he was jealous and...

If you had told me that a year ago, perhaps it would have been different.

Harry wasn't sure what happened now. It was a fairly desperate situation...

He strongly suspected he'd have to ask Hermione and Ginny for advice.

Great. Just great.

*

Dinner seemed an endless affair of delectable dishes, and Parvati lost count of the many number of courses. Everything was delicious, but dessert was Parvati's weakness. When the Tiramisu was finally brought out she wanted to cry with joy.

After dinner, there was dancing. Needless to say, Draco was an excellent dancer, but Parvati already knew that.

'You should teach me,' Parvati told him. 'I've always wanted to learn the foxtrot.'

'No you don't,' said Draco.

'Hm... I can't dance anyway.' It was true; Padma was the one with the natural grace. Parvati enjoyed it more, though, and she knew enough not to look completely stupid. However, when it came right down to it co-ordination was not one of her strong points.

'Yes, I can see that,' said a voice. They turned around to find Blaise Zabini, looking surprisingly unlike her slutty self. She was gorgeous anyway, dark hair in elegant waves and a tasteful ruby dress that suited her perfectly. 'Mind if I cut in?'

'Yeah, sure,' Draco drawled. 'I'll go sit back down and wait for you, shall I?' he said to Parvati.

'Uh uh,' said Blaise, 'you're not getting away that easily.'

'Do you mind?' Draco asked, and Parvati shook her head, smiling.

She made her way back to the table they were sitting at earlier, but before she could sit down Pansy Parkinson was at her side.

'She's a bitch, isn't she?'

Parvati stared at her in shock. 'What?'

'What, don't tell me you don't think so? I knew you Gryffindors were too nice for your own good, but surely you agree with me.'

'About Blaise?' said Parvati, wide-eyed. 'Yes, she is a bitch.'

'And a complete slut, as well,' added Pansy.

'Aren't you two friends?'

'Yeah. Doesn't mean I like her.'

'Um... right...' said Parvati, completely confused.

'She's trying to steal Draco from you,' Pansy remarked needlessly.

'I know.'

'Well, it's not the first time.'

'You too?' Parvati remembered Draco and Pansy having attended the Yule Ball together in fourth year. But thinking about that brought to mind other things she didn't want to consider, so she stopped quickly.

'Yeah, but I didn't care anyway. Draco's an ass, really. No offence.'

'None taken.'

'Get that a lot, huh?'

'Yep.'

'They're right you know. Your friends. He isn't a nice guy,' said Pansy, watching her closely. Slytherins didn't mince their words, as Parvati knew all too well. She shrugged.

'Suit yourself. But take it from me, Slytherin guys are overrated.'

'Like Goyle, you mean?'

Now it was Pansy's turn to stare at her, before bursting into a fit of unexpected giggles. 'I didn't know you had a sense of humour, Patil.'

'Well, we've never exactly been great friends, have we?'

'No. But I'm a bitch, no one denies it.'

'At least you're honest about it, I guess,' said Parvati. 'So what? You're telling me you prefer Gryffindors to Slytherin guys?'

'Merlin, yes,' said Pansy.

'Anyone in particular?' asked Parvati, ignoring the thrill of fear snaking its way down her spine. It doesn't matter if she likes him, she told herself firmly. It doesn't matter if she says Harry Potter. He was the obvious choice, though, wasn't he? But I don't care if she likes Harry, I don't-

'Ron Weasley,' answered Pansy promptly. 'But if you ever tell anyone I'll hunt you down and tear you limb from limb. And that's not a promise, Patil, it's a threat.'

'B-b-b-but...' Parvati was dumbfounded. 'Ron? Really?'

What was it with that guy? Parvati's mind refused to believe it. Here she was, chatting to Pansy Parkinson, when they'd hated each other for years and she was telling Parvati that she fancied Ron Weasley, of all people!

Had the world gone mad?

'I love your shoes, by the way,' said Pansy, wisely changing the subject. If anything could divert Parvati's attention, it was shoes.

'Thanks. Your hair is gorgeous,' Parvati replied, returning the compliment because it was unwritten girl code rules. But she did envy Pansy's stylish shoulder-length cut, which had been parted at the side and perfectly coifed.

Pansy touched her hair lightly. With another girl, the gesture might have been self-conscious but Pansy only seemed surprised that Parvati had mentioned it. 'I had it professionally done. Do you really think it looks good? I wasn't sure...'

'No, it's really pretty.'

They went to sit back down at the table and talked fashion, gossiped and bitched some more about Blaise. Parvati was pleasantly surprised to find that she enjoyed Pansy's company. Who would have thought it was possible? But then again, she'd learnt from experience that there's nothing like mutual hatred to bring people closer together.

*

'And then what did she say?'

Harry shifted uncomfortably on his bed. He wasn't completely sure how it had happened, but here he was in his dormitory with Hermione, Lavender and Padma. All the other guys had cleared out sharpish as soon as they had heard that the girls were going to have an important 'talk'.

'Well,' said Harry. 'Then she, er, walked into the door, sort of.'

'Why am I not surprised?' sighed Padma.

'Oh, poor Parvati,' said Lavender sympathetically.

'And what else?' asked Hermione.

'That's it,' said Harry. 'Then she left. Now can you all please leave, so I can get to sleep?'

'I'm really sorry, Harry,' Padma apologised, immediately standing up. 'Lavender and I... we were just worried about her, that's all.'

'I'm sure she's fine,' said Hermione firmly. 'People have made far more embarrassing mistakes than that.'

'Especially Parvati; she embarrasses herself a lot,' Lavender assured him.

'It's Parvati. I know my sister,' added Padma. 'She'll recover.'

Lavender earnestly clasped both of Harry's hands in hers. 'Don't worry, Harry. Things might not turn out as you expect, but it'll all be fine.'

'Goodnight,' said Padma, and she and Lavender left the dormitory.

Hermione looked back at Harry after they'd gone. 'That wasn't all, was it?'

'No,' said Harry glumly.

'You said something else to her?'

'Yeah. I told her she was right about me being jealous.'

'That was brave of you,' said Hermione kindly.

'No, it was stupid,' Harry disagreed.

'But...I didn't think she actually liked Malfoy for real...'

'She does, she told me. Before tonight, I mean.'

'Oh, Harry,' said Hermione, looking sad.

'She said that if I'd told her a year ago, it would have been different.'

'And?'

'And I have no idea what that means.'

'Oh, Harry...'

'You keep saying that.' Harry smiled slightly.

'I think... she's liked you for a long time.'

'But not anymore?'

Hermione squeezed his hand in a comforting way. 'I don't know, Harry. But she'd be an idiot not to like you.'

Hermione was absolutely right, as usual. The only problem here, she thought wryly, was that sometimes Parvati was a bit of an idiot.

*

'Have either of you girls seen Draco?'

Pansy and Parvati turned around in their seats as their conversation was interrupted.

'Oh there you are, Pansy,' said Narcissa. 'Are you having a good time, darling?'

'Yes; it's been a brilliant evening, thank you,' answered Pansy.

'I'm glad to hear it. Now, does anyone know where my son is?'

'He was dancing with Blaise last time we saw.'

'Well, he definitely isn't outside...'

'We can help you look,' offered Pansy.

'Would you? Thank you. Lucius thinks it's a good idea to start opening presents soon, before the guests start passing out.'

'Probably a good idea,' smiled Parvati. The many red-faced adults around them seemed to be making an awful lot of noise.

'Make sure you don't split up, Pansy. I don't want Parvati getting lost on her own in the Manor,' Narcissa instructed firmly as they stood up to leave.

'Why not?' asked Parvati curiously as they headed indoors.

Pansy gave an evil smirk. 'Oh, you don't want to know, trust me.'

'I suppose you know your way around then.'

'Mostly. Enough to stay well and alive.'

This was not in any way reassuring. Parvati gave a weak laugh.

'I wasn't kidding,' said Pansy seriously.

'Sometimes you just have to laugh,' answered Parvati in a very worried voice. 'When the only other options are to run screaming, or cry.'

'Or you could hex someone.'

'Or that.'

They paused at the huge entrance parlour to decide which way to go first.

'Why does this place have to have so many doors?' Pansy complained. 'I can never remember which one leads to the snake pit.'

Parvati stared at her with undisguised terror this time.

'I'm only joking this time, Patil,' grinned Pansy. 'You should have seen the look on your face, though.'

'Yeah, I'm not laughing,' she snapped.

It was then they heard voices coming from the room closest to them, on the right.

'That's probably them,' said Pansy. 'I can hear Blaise laughing. Merlin, she has the most annoying laugh ever, I just want to strangle her every time-'

Parvati led the way, and Pansy was forced to follow after. She reached up to the door and opened it, and they found Draco.

Found him attached to Blaise Zabini's face, that is.

Naturally, Blaise and Draco sprang apart at the unexpected interruption. There was an agonizing silence, as the couple struggled for composure and Parvati struggled for the right state of mind in this kind of situation. Whatever that was. Parvati was confused, not because she hadn't quite grasped the significance of the scene that had played out before her very eyes (no, she understood that perfectly well), but she felt quite calm about the whole thing. She almost wanted to laugh out loud, and that was extremely puzzling.

'Well,' said Pansy. 'Who didn't see this coming?'

'What the hell do you think you're playing at, Blaise?' Draco yelled. 'Parvati, I wasn't kissing her, I swear.'

Parvati bit on her lip. 'Is that right?'

'For the record, he's actually telling the truth,' informed Blaise. 'We were just talking about you. I only attacked him when I heard the door opening.'

'How unfortunate that the hinges haven't been oiled. ' Pansy shuddered.

'Why were you talking about me?' asked Parvati suspiciously. 'And I don't think I quite believe you anyway.'

'I'm not lying,' said Draco coldly. 'I've never lied to you before-'

'No, but you've hidden the truth well. Stop it with the act, Draco, she's not worth anything.'

'Not worth anything?' echoed Parvati. The calm and almost-funny feeling was draining away from her; it was now being replaced with a creeping unpleasant coldness.

'Blaise,' growled Draco, eyes flashing angrily. 'Shut up.'

'Why are you still protecting her?' asked Blaise. 'You're not seriously in love with her, are you?'

Draco met her gaze. 'No,' Parvati replied. 'He isn't. Tell me, what is this about?'

'He's been using you,' offered Pansy quietly.

'Using me? But I haven't...we didn't-'

'No, not that. For information. You're close to Harry Potter, right?'

'Is this true, Draco?'

Draco wouldn't look at her directly anymore. 'Yes.'

'Under orders, of course. We have to do it all the time,' said Blaise. 'Don't cry, Patil.'

'I'm not,' spat Parvati angrily. She hadn't realised that her fists had clenched themselves, or that she'd been biting down on her lip hard enough to draw blood. The taste was bitter in her mouth.

'I guess I'll leave now, shall I, seeing as I have no inside information to offer you? Have a fucking great night all of you.'

Parvati was halfway out the door when Pansy stopped her.

'I tried to warn you-'

'I know,' said Parvati shortly. 'Am I supposed to thank you?'

'No, I'm just saying. You aren't laughing off this one, are you?'

'I'm running away this time. Maybe hex someone.'

'I'm really sorry, Parvati. But it's orders... you don't understand.'

'You stay away from Ron,' said Parvati, before running out the door and down the steps.

She wasn't ever planning on coming back again.