The Story of Blaise Zabini

Chapter 10

To Blaise With Love

Guess what? Potter got away with it. He's officially Hogwarts second champion. Personally, I'll be cheering for him, rather than Diggory, like Malfoy is. At least Potter got past that dragon with some style; he didn't get burnt, like Diggory did.

There's another bit of excitement coming before Christmas; apparently, there's something called the Yule Ball that's a traditional part of the Triwizard Tournament. So that's what the dress robes are for. When I asked Izzy why I had some fancy-looking robes for fourth year, she said she had no idea and that they were on my supplies list. I wonder who I'll get asked by...

Okay, that was scary. I was just thinking about my date - if I get asked that is - when Malfoy's face flashed through my mind. Oh god, now I feel sick. I mean, Malfoy? I must be coming down with something.

Lydia has already been asked; hell, the minute we found out about the Yule Ball, someone came over and asked her. So I'm just waiting for someone to ask me; however, if it gets too late and still I'm partner-less, then I'll ask someone.

"Hey Blaise?" a voice said, snapping me back to the present.

"Oh, hi Alan," I said, smiling at the guy in front of me.

Alan Bole is a very cute Slytherin sixth year; all dark hair and soulful eyes. You know the type. I suppose he's kind of conceited, but then most of the Slytherins are; it's all part and parcel of being a Slytherin.

"How are you?" he asked, sitting down next to me.

I looked at Lydia and she gave me a knowing smile; then she got up and went to talk to her own date. I turned back to Alan, and smiled again.

"I'm fine. You?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'm good." He paused then continued with, "Want to go to the Ball with me?"

I thought about it, figuring it wouldn't do any harm. After all, it's not like anyone else has asked me. Besides, being on Alan's arm would annoy Pansy; she'd been after him for a whole month now, the whore, and here I do nothing and still manage to get a date with him.

"Sure," I said.

"Ok. See you there," he grinned and stood up.

Well, that wasn't so hard, I thought, as I watched him go back to his friends.

"Did he ask you?" Lydia's voice broke through my thoughts.

"Yeah, he did," I replied.

"Oh, that's great!" she said, and hugged me elatedly.

"You seem more excited about it than I am," I said jokingly.

"Just wait until the night of the Ball," she said. "You'll be pretty excited yourself."

"I can't wait," I said, and I was only lying a little.

***

So it was the night of the Yule Ball, and Lydia was right; I was pretty excited.

In the dormitory, Lydia, Pansy, Millicent and I were all still getting ready. Lydia was in midnight blue robes, and she looked really pretty. Next to her, over by her own bed, Pansy was wearing frilly, pale pink dress robes that made her look like a big, pink meringue. Millicent was in pale green, which did nothing for her; I wanted to tell her that she looked awful, but I didn't have the heart.

As for me, well, my dress robes were a pearly, cream colour that shimmered whenever I moved. I decided to wear my hair up in a chignon, which I pulled off pretty successfully, if I do say so myself.

Once we were ready, we went down to the common room, where I met Alan. He looked at me in surprise when I went over to him, and all his mates stared too. Well, that boosted my confidence a fair bit, I must say.

"Hi," I grinned at them.

"Hi," Alan said, gazing at me.

When Snape came into the common room to take us down to the Entrance Hall, I felt really excited, but a little nervous. What if I couldn't dance?

I noticed Malfoy over by the doors to the Great Hall, with Pansy clinging to his arm like she wasn't going to let go. I wanted to go over there and prise her hands off him. Wait, what am I saying? Malfoy totally deserves Pansy's clutch; if he's so eager to get back with her because of some stupid Ball, then he deserved it. He could have asked anyone to the Ball. Lydia - okay, maybe not - a third year, a fifth year. Me ... Where did that come from? I may not hate Malfoy, but I can't stand him most of the time; why would I want to go to the Ball with him? I do NOT like him like that! I don't even like him!

I pushed that twisted thought out of my head, and began the dinner that came before the Ball. All through it, I kept looking at Alan and wondering why I went with him, even though, so far he's been the perfect partner. What is wrong with me? Here I am with a wonderful date, and all I can think about is -

No Blaise, don't even go there, I warned myself, before I could finish that thought.

So then we started dancing; Alan is a great dancer, and I'm not as bad as I'd feared. It was nice, Alan with his arms around me and everything. I almost forgot my earlier, crazy thoughts, and I began to enjoy myself.

Halfway through the Ball, when Alan and I had danced all the way over to the edge of the dance-floor, and we were just beyond the circle of light from the lamps around the Hall, Alan moved his hands from around my waist and started putting them everywhere else. I tried to stop him, but then he clamped his mouth on mine and gave me his version of a kiss.

So by that time, I was struggling to breathe, and no one had noticed. Well, that's not entirely true; people around us had moved aside for someone who I couldn't quite see because Alan had shoved his face right up to mine.

"Leave her alone, Bole," said a voice which I knew to be Malfoy's.

Alan pulled away from me and looked at Malfoy.

"No, I don't think so," he said mockingly, and slipped his hand inside my dress robes. Well that was it for me; I was breathing hard, my hair was a mess, my robes dishevelled and most importantly, I was pissed off.

Malfoy was about to say something but I interrupted him.

"No, no Malfoy. I can handle this."

I drew back my right knee.

"But it was sweet of you all the same," I added to him.

Then I shoved my knee right between Bole's legs. He let go then alright.

He cried out in pain, bent double and gasping, and moved away from me. He didn't move fast enough though; I grabbed the collar of his robes, and pulled him forwards angrily.

"You dirty fucking sleaze!" I hissed in his ear. "Is this how you get all your girlfriends, by feeling them up? You deserve more than what I just did, I can tell you. You ever try it again, and I'll make sure you'll never father a child, get it?"

He nodded feebly and staggered off in the direction of the Entrance Hall.

"Well that was fun," I said, breaking the silence. Malfoy seemed stunned at my reaction to Bole's groping.

"You looked like you were enjoying yourself," he commented. "Looks like I don't need to be here."

"Um ... thanks," I said, "for coming to help me. Not many people would. I owe you one."

Malfoy smiled. "If you'd been Pansy, I'd have left you."

"I'm sure Bole is welcome to her."

"Oh he is. Very welcome."

There was another silence; we seem to have more silences than we do conversations.

"Come on," Malfoy said suddenly, and grabbed my hand.

He led me out of the Great Hall, away from the Ball, and out into the grounds. It was cold out here, but in the Hall it was too hot, so the cold was a welcome change.

When Malfoy stopped leading me around, we weren't that far away from the Entrance Hall, I noticed, but if anybody came outside now, they wouldn't have seen us.

"What's this about?" I asked, my breath coming out in mists as I spoke.

"I wanted to give you your Christmas present now," he said, grinning.

"You got me a present?" I asked curiously, touched that he'd thought of me, since I'd never thought he liked me or anything. Oh, how blind I was.

"Yeah. Here."

The last thing I saw, was Malfoy's grey-blue eyes, alight with amusement, before he kissed me.

And even though I thought I supposedly hated him, he was slowly changing my mind about him with this kiss. The longer it went on, the better he seemed in my opinion; and I think I might've wrapped my arms around his neck, but I'm not too sure. All I know is that I was really enjoying it, that it literally took my breath away and that my lips were slowly warming up with his on them. Any part of my hair that had managed to stay intact when Bole was kissing me - his version remember? - was now ruined by Malfoy's fingers running through it. Not that I was complaining.

He pulled away and looked at me.

"I still owe you one," I said breathlessly.

Malfoy was about to say something but a faint cry of, "Draco!" stopped him.

"Damnit!" he muttered. "Its Pansy!"

"Can't she just stay put?" I said hotly.

"You were right, she is a little lap dog," he said, and laughed softly, running a finger down my cheek.

I shivered, half hoping it was the cold and half wishing he would do that again.

"Then ditch her," I said quietly, knowing full well that he wouldn't.

"Draco!"

This time Pansy's voice sounded closer.

"Look, I have to go," Malfoy said eventually. "Sorry."

"It's fine. Really," I added when he didn't look convinced.

He gave a last parting smile and hurried off to Pansy.

I could've killed Pansy for showing up. She has a horrible talent for appearing where she's not wanted. Still, that's not the only thing annoying me; the fact that Pansy only has to say his name and Malfoy is tripping over his feet for her, is getting pretty damn annoying. If he really didn't like Pansy that much, why the hell is he still with her? Why is he wasting his time with a fake, annoying, bitchy girl like Pansy?

So now, I feel like a fool for kissing Malfoy and really meaning it. I mean, he can hardly be that interested if he won't give up his darling Pansy for me. But what am I supposed to do? Charge up to the pair of them and tell Pansy that Malfoy just kissed me and it felt like he was serious; or tell Malfoy that an insensitive bastard like him deserves exactly what Bole got? Oh, yeah that'll work like a charm. Not.

I'm just going to forget Malfoy, pretend that nothing happened and put it behind me before I do something I might regret.

Instead of heading back to the Ball, I figure I may as well just go back to my dormitory and spend the rest of the night there. What the hell; I might be alone but at least no one can hurt me that way.