Mysterious Ways

"Miss Tyler and Miss Evans, for the third time, please pay attention!"

Alice looked up guiltily from the scribbled note she was reading. She and Lily had been throwing pieces of paper back and forth to each other throughout the lesson. Normally Alice wouldn't do anything that might make McGonagall angry, but she was feeling quite bad for her best friend. The ball was in three days and still James had shown no sign that he was going to ask Lily. Alice didn't know exactly what he was thinking, but he was cutting it a bit fine. If he didn't ask her until a couple of days before the ball, it would seem like he assumed she'd be waiting around for him. Not that she was, Lily had assured Alice. She just thought that since they'd been getting along so well recently, he might want to ask her.

"Sorry, Professor," she and Lily recited dutifully. Alice bent her head over her desk, trying to concentrate on her work. As it was, she couldn't. She was too preoccupied thinking about the bloody ball.

The one thing I made up my mind not to get obsessed about, Alice sighed, and now I can't get it out of my head.

Of course, thinking about the ball certainly took her mind off other things - her uncle, Tom Riddle, and whether they actually had a chance in bloody hell with a weapon that fit into an envelope. Alice firmly pushed this thought away from her mind before she let her imagination run away with her. Dumbledore obviously knew what he was doing, and it wasn't really any of her business. She knew he wouldn't tell her, so she may as well just stop musing over it. After all, curiosity killed the cat... or something. Unintentionally, her mind wandered back to the upcoming ball.

It had actually been a whole less complicated when she had planned not to go at all. Now she had a date - with a Malfoy, of all people - Holly had a date (she had come into the library squealing that Remus had asked her a couple of days ago, earning herself a glare from Madam Pince), even Belinda had a date - with a Hufflepuff boy who had asked her yesterday. She had, she informed Alice, forgotten all about Sirius - in fact, she couldn't even remember his name any more. Alice had nodded with a smirk and gone back to reading her book.

Now, in the present time, Holly was sitting across the classroom with her hand on her chin, lost in some daydream or other, and Lily was glancing behind her, looking slightly put out. Alice swivelled around in her seat to see James sniggering with Sirius about something, and not paying the slightest bit of attention to Lily. Alice made up her mind to talk to him after the lesson to see what he was bloody well waiting for.

Alice turned back around and almost fell backwards off her seat. McGonagall was standing about two inches away, glaring pointedly at her.

"Detention tomorrow night, Miss Tyler," McGonagall said crisply. "And twenty points from Ravenclaw. I've given you more than enough chances. I suggest that if you want to stay in this lesson, then it would be wise to start paying attention. Do you understand?"

Alice nodded so fast that she felt as if her head were about to fall off. McGonagall gave her one last cold look before sweeping back to the front of the classroom.

Lily was sending her sympathetic looks, but Alice didn't care. Detention! In her entire six and a half years at Hogwarts she hadn't gotten detention once. Now there would be a mark on her unblemished record!

Alice let her head fall onto the desk. Stupid bloody ball.

An almighty crash from behind her sent her head snapping back up again. Turning around, she saw that everyone was craning their necks to see what had happened. Suzanne Moore, red-faced and with tears in her eyes, was sitting a few inches away from what appeared to be an overturned chair, except for the fact that its legs were missing. Sirius, sitting a couple of seats away, had his wand out and James was shaking with laughter. Alice took in the situation in an instant.

"Mr. Black!" McGonagall said, nostrils flaring. "How dare you interrupt my lesson this way!"

"It was an accident!" Sirius protested. Alice and Lily looked at one another and rolled their eyes. Yeah, as if anyone would believe that.

"Twenty points from Gryffindor, Mr. Black," McGonagall snapped. "And you will join Alice in detention tomorrow night."

"What?" Alice spun around in horror.

"Is that a problem, Miss Tyler?" McGonagall asked, glaring at her.

"No, Professor," Alice muttered. Oh, this day is shaping up to be bloody fantastic.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Well, that went well," Lily said in a falsely bright voice after the lesson was over.

"Ugh," Alice moaned by way of reply.

"It's not that bad," Lily tried reassuring her.

"Ugh," Alice repeated. At this moment in time, she was incapable of forming complete sentences.

"Well, at least she didn't make you miss the ball!" Lily said cheerily.

"Ugh." Yes, God forbid I miss the ball.

"Well, the way things are going, it looks like I'll be the one who won't get to go," Lily said with a sigh.

"Ugh," Alice said automatically, before registering what Lily had just said. "Oh, Lily - I'm sure he's just waiting for the right moment to ask you."

"Oh, I didn't mean I want James to ask me," Lily said quickly. "You know, it would be nice if - somebody - did. Nobody at all has asked me yet."

"They will," Alice replied confidently, as she and Lily reached the Great Hall. "You're gorgeous, Lily, and you're a great person. I mean, what guy in his right mind could resist you?"

"How about every single guy in school?" Lily asked wryly. "Or that's the way it seems, anyway." Just as they were about to enter the Great Hall, Lily frowned. "Damn - I've left my quill in the classroom. I'll meet you back here in a minute."

"No problem," Alice said absently, spotting James standing a couple of metres away and deciding to go over and talk to him. She waited until Lily had rounded the corner and then marched over to James.

"What exactly are you doing?" Alice demanded, hands on hips.

James frowned. "Going to have dinner?"

"Not that," Alice stressed. "With Lily, I mean."

"What are you talking about?" James asked incredulously. "I'm not doing anything with Lily, much to my regret."

"Guess I'm going to have to spell it out for you," Alice sighed. "Why haven't you asked Lily to the ball yet?"

"Oh, that," James said with a smirk. "That's all part of my grand plan."

"You have a grand plan?" Alice raised her eyebrows.

"I'm playing hard to get," James explained. "The more I ignore her, the more she'll want me. Then I'll ask her at the last minute."

"Oh, of course," Alice said sarcastically. "After all those times she's told you to leave her alone and how much she's sick of you harassing her, added onto the fact that she's upset because she doesn't have a date for the ball yet and it'll make you look a complete git if you wait until the last minute to ask her... it's genius. I don't know why I didn't think of that in the first place."

"Hey, who are you going with, anyway?" James asked curiously.

"That's not important right now," Alice said hurriedly. She definitely didn't want to see James' reaction when he heard she was going with a Malfoy. "The issue here is that your plan is stupid!"

"Hey, you can say whatever you want - I know it's working," James said confidently.

Alice spied Lily coming back round the corner. "Fine," she replied, shaking her head and waving. James turned to see who she was waving at and jumped like he'd been hit from behind with a jinx.

Lily gave a sort of frown when she saw who Alice was standing with and made a gesture for Alice to come over. "Yep, that's one good plan, James," Alice commented as she started making her way over to Lily. Before she could get there, though, somebody beat her to it.

Alice frowned. A boy she didn't know the name of, but who she vaguely recognised as a Hufflepuff in their year, was talking to Lily. Quite loudly, actually. Alice found she didn't even have to strain her ears to hear the conversation.

"Lily?" the boy asked nervously.

"Yes?" Lily frowned.

"I'm David Madley," he added.

"OK... well, hi," Lily said with a brief smile.

"I realise I've waited a bit too long to ask you, and you've probably already got a date, but... would you like to go to the ball with me?" David asked in a rush.

"Oh!" Lily said, sounding surprised. "Erm, well..." she glanced over Alice's shoulder and Alice wondered how she could turn around too without looking too obvious.

"OK then. I mean, yes, I'd like to go to the ball with you," Lily said, flashing David a smile.

"Really?" David's face broke into a grin.

"Absolutely." Lily hitched her bag onto her shoulder. "I'll meet you outside the Great Hall at seven."

"OK, great!" David seemed slightly dazed, as if he wasn't sure what had just happened.

"See you then," Lily beamed, and practically skipped over to Alice. "Let's get some dinner, I'm starving," she said, ignoring James completely.

Alice turned to look at James' face. His expression was one of pure rage, and was directed at David Madley's back as he wandered off down the corridor.

Alice sighed. "Well, that worked out fantastically, didn't it?" she whispered to James as she and Lily walked past. As Lily pushed open the double doors, Alice shook her head. "Boys."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Which robes do you think I should wear?" Holly bounded over to Alice, who was lounging on Lily's bed. "The blue or the pink?"

Alice studied the two sets of robes Holly was holding up. They looked exactly the same to her, just in different colours. "I don't know," she said with a frown. "Whichever ones you like best, I guess. I'm not so good at this fashion stuff."

"The blue," Lily said without hesitation, before Alice had even finished speaking. "They'll bring out your eyes so much better than the pink ones will."

"Thanks," Holly replied gratefully, bouncing back over to her chest of drawers.

"How should I wear my hair?" Lily fretted, tugging at a strand of her auburn tresses. "It just looks so blah - I want it to look special on the night."

"You've got great hair, Lily, and it'll look fab however you decide to wear it," Alice said lazily. "I'm the one with the boring, crappy hair."

"Yes, but there are ways you can make it look great," Holly said enthusiastically.

"Thanks," Alice said with a mock-hurt look. "So you think I've got crap hair?"

"Oh, no - I didn't mean -" Holly protested, beginning to turn red. Obviously she thought that Alice had taken what she had said to heart.

"Holly, I'm kidding," Alice said with a friendly grin, which was soon wiped off her face when she checked her watch. Sighing, she pushed herself up onto her elbows and swung her legs off the bed. "You guys keep talking Christmas ball. I've got to go."

"Where?" Lily frowned, smoothing out a crease in one of a million sets of dress robes that were currently strewn over Holly's bed.

"To meet my doom," Alice said dramatically, heading for the door. She noticed her friends' confused expressions and raised her eyebrows. "Detention, remember? Yesterday, Transfiguration, McGonagall practically having a heart attack in the classroom?"

"Oh, yeah," Lily said, her face clearing. "Well, have fun!" She hastily scooted backwards as Alice sent her a death glare before disappearing out the door.

Alice walked to the classroom with a growing feeling of dread mounting in her stomach. McGonagall was an excellent teacher, but she was very strict, and when she was angry... Alice didn't know what she was going to have to do, but she was sure it would involve hard work.

McGonagall was marking some papers and didn't notice Alice come in. "Erm... Professor?" Alice asked nervously.

McGonagall looked up with a grim face. "Ah, Miss Tyler. Did you by any chance see Mr Black on your way here?"

Alice shook her head. Thank God. The less I see of him the better.

McGonagall sighed. "That boy is so irresponsible..." she started scribbling furiously on a piece of parchment on her desk.

Alice frowned. McGonagall seemed in a very bad mood, much more so than usual. Surely it couldn't be just because of her and Sirius' behaviour during the lesson? It hardly warranted this sort of anger.

"Professor... is something wrong?" Alice asked timidly.

"Everything's fine, Miss Tyler," McGonagall said crisply, head still bent in a manner that suggested that everything was not fine. "The trophies in the trophy room need a good cleaning. I suggest you get started right away, or you'll be here until the morning."

"Yes, Professor," Alice said dully, turning and exiting the classroom. Cleaning the trophies. Doesn't that sound fantastic? She didn't notice Sirius until she almost walked straight into him.

Alice jumped backwards, clutching her chest. "What are you trying to do, give me a bloody heart attack?"

Sirius shrugged. "You were the one not looking where you were going."

Too tired to start an argument, Alice just sighed. "Well, you'd better hurry up. McGonagall's really pissed off."

Sirius rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "It's just her way of hiding how much she loves me."

"OK, whatever." Alice began to walk away, but heard Sirius speaking behind her.

"Are you really going to the ball with Lucius Malfoy?"

Alice stopped in her tracks. Spinning around, she gave him a hard look. "Who told you that?"

"Peter said he'd heard it from some Slytherins."

"How?" Alice frowned.

"Dunno, must have overheard them talking." Sirius narrowed his eyes. "Is it true?"

"Is it any of your business?" Alice said snippily, turning to leave again.

"So it is true!" Something about the incredulous way he said it annoyed Alice, and she whirled back around.

"Yes, it is true!" she said in exasperation. "Why is that so hard to believe?"

"Because he's a bloody Slytherin, that's why," Sirius snapped. Alice was slightly taken aback. "Do you know how pissed off James is going to be when he hears about this?"

"Well then, it's a good thing James isn't in charge of everything I do," Alice said shortly, and began to walk off.

"You're going to regret it, I'm telling you," Sirius called after her.

"Screw you," Alice shot back. Oh, well done. That was witty.

Later on, scrubbing the bedpans, Alice couldn't believe the nerve of him. Why the hell does everyone think they have the right to tell me what to do with my life? And how does he know that I'll regret it, anyway? Just because he's a Slytherin? But she couldn't help the nagging feeling in the back of her mind that maybe, just maybe, he was right.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Oh my God, you look fantastic!"

Alice, lying on her bed on her stomach and flipping through a magazine that she had stolen from Suzanne's drawer, looked up briefly to see what Jennifer was squealing about. Belinda had just stepped out of the bathroom, wearing dress robes of pale pink silk, and her hair was done up in such a high, complicated style that Alice wondered how the hell it actually stayed up.

"Thanks," Belinda smiled regally. Alice shook her head and returned to her magazine. She would never normally read something as superficial as the gossip magazine that was open in front of her, but she had found herself feeling quite jittery and unable to concentrate on a book. She had settled for idly flipping through the pages, with what she hoped was a nonchalant air.

"Alice, why aren't you dressed yet?" Belinda asked disapprovingly.

"Belinda, the ball doesn't start for another hour," Alice replied, turning the page.

"Exactly!" Belinda sounded so horrified that Alice wasn't sure she'd heard her right. Rolling over, Alice faced Belinda, whose eyebrows were raised so high that they almost met her perfectly coiffed hairline.

"All I've got to do is get dressed," Alice pointed out. "That's going to take five minutes, max!"

"Yes, but there's your hair, and your make-up!" Belinda sat down on the bed, nudging Alice's legs out of the way. "You know how long that stuff takes, right?"

No. Generally Alice just stuck her hair back in a ponytail, or on special occasions, brushed it and left it loose. As for make-up, well, she had only worn it once in her entire life, for Lily's sixteenth birthday party, and that had been a disaster. She had forgotten it was there and a couple of hours' worth of rubbing her eyes and face had resulted in smeared lip-gloss, clown blusher, and eye make up that was so smudged she looked as if she had been through fifty rounds in one of those boxing rings she had seen on Muggle television at Lily's. Never again.

Belinda must have noticed the expression on Alice's face, because she heaved a long-suffering sigh. "Look, just let me take care of it, OK?"

Alice jumped up, sending the magazine scattering to the floor. "Erm, no thanks, Belinda," she said, backing away hastily. "I'll just -" Before she could exit the room, however, Belinda had performed the Leg-Locker curse on her almost lazily.

"Hey!" Alice protested, almost falling to the floor and gripping the doorframe to keep her balance. "That's so unfair!"

"Alice, you are going on a date with a Malfoy," Belinda stressed, summoning a bag filled with make-up products into her hand. Alice struggled even harder to move her feet, to no avail. "You have to look halfway decent."

"Oh, thanks," Alice said sarcastically. "First Holly commenting on my hair, now you. Am I really that repulsive?"

"Shush," Belinda scolded, and, much to her surprise, Alice shut up. Belinda clicked her fingers at Jen and Suzanne, who scurried over like the obedient little lap dogs they were. Maybe this won't be so bad, Alice thought hopefully, knowing it was useless to argue any more - Belinda was like a steamroller once she got going.

An hour later, after way, WAY too much primping, Alice stood in front of the mirror, unsure what to think. The dress robes she was wearing had been hand-picked by Lily, and Alice didn't think she had ever worn anything so girly in her life. They were quite simple, made of satin, and a shimmery pale lavender colour that Alice had to admit was rather nice. Belinda had performed a charm that had turned her hair into soft ringlets, most of which she had left loose, save for a couple of bits at the front that she had pulled back and pinned behind her head.

The only really bad thing, Alice thought, was the make-up. It emphasised her features, but it all the wrong ways. She looked like a prostitute in training.

"Well?" Belinda asked, mascara brush held aloft in triumph.

"It's a bit, erm, much," Alice said, putting heavy emphasis on the word much.

"You look great," Belinda reassured her. "Look, we've got to go, or we're going to be late."

"I'll be there in a minute," Alice said, frowning into the mirror. "You guys go ahead."

Belinda shrugged. "Fine. Come on, you two." She, Suzanne and Jen left, trailing an invisible cloud of very strong perfume behind them.

Alice studied her reflection in the mirror again. "Hmm," she muttered to herself, taking out her wand. Maybe if I just made an adjustment there... and got rid of some of that bloody eye shadow... there! A couple of charms performed, Alice stepped back and smiled at herself. The make-up was a lot less heavy now and - dare she say it - she actually looked halfway decent.

Alice checked the time. Seven-oh-five. Ah, well. She was just going to be - what was it they called it? - fashionably late. With a hint of a grin, Alice practically skipped out of the door.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"I need to talk to you!"

"Bloody hell!" Alice felt somebody yank her by the arm as she made her way through the swarm of students congregating outside the hall. She almost tripped over the hem of her dress and staggered into somebody, knocking half her hair off-balance in the process. "Graceful as ever," Alice muttered, fixing it with a quick flick of her wand and turning to see who had grabbed her so violently.

It was James, and he did not look happy.

"What?" Alice asked, annoyed.

"What the hell is this?" he practically exploded.

"What the hell is what?"

"You," James spat, "at the ball with a sodding Malfoy."

Alice sighed. "Really, James, you need to grow up. I can go to a ball with whomever I want. And so could you, if," she added pointedly, "you'd actually asked her well in advance!"

"That's an entirely different situation," James snapped. "Lily's not a scumbag Slytherin."

"Ever heard the phrase, 'judging people before you get to know them'?" Alice asked, eyebrows raised.

"Ha!" James laughed bitterly. "I know what he's like, thank you very much. He's a fucking inbred with no sense of moral -" his words were cut off as he noticed something over Alice's shoulder. Alice spun around to see Lily, looking gorgeous and slightly nervous in emerald-green robes. Alice took the opportunity to sidle away and over to her best friend. "Lily, you look fab!" she said in Lily's left ear, making her jump slightly.

"Oh, Alice!" Lily relaxed slightly. Then her eyes widened. "Alice!"

"Yeah..." Alice frowned, looking down at herself. "What's up? I haven't got anything on my robes, have I?"

"No, it's just - wow, you look fantastic!" Lily said approvingly. "I love what you've done with your hair!"

"Yeah, thanks," Alice replied, distractedly. She couldn't see Malfoy anywhere, and come to think of it, Holly was nowhere to be seen either.

"Lily?"

David Madley sidled up to the girls, smiling nervously at Lily. "Oh, hi, David!" Lily beamed.

"You look - erm - great," David said, with a slight blush.

"Thanks," Lily replied with a hint of self-consciousness. "So do you!"

There was an awkward silence, during which Alice decided she had never felt so much like a gooseberry in her life. She was just about to make an excuse and leave, but David spoke first.

"So, are you ready?" he smiled, holding out his arm to Lily.

"Sure." Lily glanced at Alice slightly worriedly. "Will you be OK?"

"'Course," Alice assured her. "You guys go on, and have a great time!"

"OK. I'll catch up with you later," Lily told her, hooking her arm through David's and floating away, shooting Alice a nervous but excited glance.

Out of the corner of her eye, Alice could see James sending death glares in David and Lily's direction. Standing next to him, vainly trying to get his attention, was a blonde girl who Alice recognised as a Hufflepuff in sixth year - his date for the evening, she presumed. Poor girl.

Making up her mind to go and wait by the door, Alice began weaving her way through the diminishing crowd. Most people were making their way into the Great Hall by now, and Alice was quite relieved when she saw Malfoy standing by the doors already.

He didn't look too bad actually, Alice reflected. His blond hair was slicked back and he was wearing robes of a dark blue colour, which didn't clash too horribly with her own, Alice noted. He didn't speak when he saw her, just raised an eyebrow and held out his arm for her to take.

Well, that's flattering. Not in the mood to gripe about things now, though, she just gave a rather weak smile, took his arm and allowed herself to be led into the Great Hall. On their way, they passed David and Lily, who winked surreptitiously at Alice as she poured some punch out for herself, and James, who was alternating between glaring at David and Malfoy, paying his date absolutely no attention.

As always, the Great Hall was decorated stunningly. Wreaths of mistletoe and garlands of tree branches sprayed with some sort of magical paint to make them shimmer were arranged everywhere; the enchanted ceiling was emitting softly-falling flakes of snow, which disappeared just before they reached anyone's head, and a huge Hogwarts flag was hanging proudly from the far wall, bearing the emblems of each of the four Houses. The tables had been pushed back against the walls to make room for students to dance, and these were now lined with plates of food and bowls of punch.

"This is - nice, isn't it?" Alice asked, at a rather pathetic attempt at making conversation. Malfoy didn't reply, just made a gesture with his head towards the dance floor, where students were already gathered.

Alice shrugged. "OK then." Dancing was actually one thing she didn't mind doing. There weren't a lot of opportunities to talk, but that was OK - she didn't really know what to talk to a Malfoy about. The Dark Arts? Quidditch? Hair care products?

Malfoy had obviously had professional dance lessons, Alice noted as they slowly spun around the dance floor. He was much more elegant and graceful than she was, and she began to feel a bit awkward. Well, guess that all comes from being one of the most respected families in the wizarding world. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Remus and Holly sweep past. Holly beamed at her as they spun away to the other side of the floor - a sort of, "oh my God, I can't believe I'm here with him" sort of smile, and Alice felt happy for her friend. She and Remus made a cute couple, and Holly obviously loved his company. Wish I could say the same about my date.

The song ended, and Alice was actually slightly relieved. "Do you mind if I just go and get a drink?" she asked, with the intention of finding Lily.

"I'll get them," Malfoy said with a smirk. Can't that boy ever say anything without a smirk on his face? Alice noticed a group of Slytherins crowded around the drinks table, and she guessed that Malfoy probably wanted to go and speak to them. Alice smiled briefly and headed in the opposite direction, where she had seen a glimpse of red hair.

Lily was standing with her back turned to Alice, and spun around when she tapped her on the shoulder, a beaming smile on her face. "Oh - I thought you were David," she said, a hint of disappointment in her voice.

"Thanks!"

"Oh, you know I didn't mean that," Lily said, rolling her eyes.

"I take it things are going well," Alice grinned.

"You know what? They really are," Lily said, sounding blissful. "He's just so nice and sweet and humble - so different from -" Here she bit her lip and looked at Alice.

"You can say it, you know," Alice teased. "So different from James."

Lily sighed. "It's just that - I know where I stand with David," she said, choosing her words carefully. "James has spent six years being an arrogant tool, asking me out on a daily basis, and then - all of a sudden, he changes this year - and I find myself beginning to get on with him better. Then all of a sudden he starts ignoring me - just when I was sort of hoping he might ask me to the ball - but he doesn't even mention it! Then, out of the blue, I get asked by somebody else - David - and I wasn't going to accept at first, but then I thought, why not? James doesn't own me, and why should I wait around for him when there are other perfectly nice guys out there?"

Alice raised her eyebrows. "Big speech, Lily. So, where is the Boy Wonder?"

"He's gone to get drinks," Lily said absent-mindedly.

"So has Malfoy," Alice said moodily.

Lily's eyes lit up. "Yes, how are things going with the Slytherin Prince?" she asked mischievously.

"Pretty crap, if you must know," Alice said bluntly. "I don't know what to talk to him about. We don't really have much in common, you know? I wish I hadn't bothered coming, to be honest."

Before Lily could answer, Malfoy suddenly appeared at Alice's side, and handed her a drink. "Ready?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at Lily. Lily ignored him. "See you later, Al," she said, before walking away.

The rest of the evening consisted pretty much of dancing, eating, drinking, and more dancing. Alice had to admit it - she was bored stiff. Malfoy obviously wasn't a talkative person, and the only time Alice actually had any fun was when she took a break to catch up with Lily. She saw Holly a couple of times, too, who was, she informed them, having a great time.

When the crowd began to thin, and the other students began to look tired instead of excited, Alice decided that it was time she called it a night. "I think I'm... y'know... going to get going," she said awkwardly, faking a yawn. "I'm pretty tired."

Malfoy's expression didn't change. "I'll walk you back to your common room."

Ugh... will it never end? Alice tried to look grateful, though, and resisted the urge to pull away when he put his arm around her shoulders. They passed Lily and David on the way out, and Alice shot Lily a grimace. Lily gave her a sympathetic look over her goblet of pumpkin juice.

Most of the corridors were deserted, save for a few students, giggling, arm-in-arm. Alice walked silently, thinking that trying to make conversation was pretty pointless right about now. The walk back to the common room seemed to take forever, and when they reached the suits of armour, Alice turned to face Malfoy with a weak smile. "Erm... thanks a lot, this was great," she tried to say brightly, all the while thinking, never again. Before she could turn around to go in, however, she found herself pushed up against the wall by Malfoy.

"What -" she began to say furiously, but she never managed to complete the sentence, because Malfoy's mouth came down over hers.

Ughhh... his kiss was sloppy, and all Alice could think of was how much her mouth felt like it was being attacked by a hoover. She tried to push him away, but he had her pinned to the wall in an iron grip; Alice desperately tried to yank her head backwards, but she only succeeding in smashing her skull against the wall before he continued an even more vigorous attack on her mouth. Her head throbbing, Alice managed to twist around and brought her knee up as forcefully as she could. It worked; she connected with his crotch, and he let go of her immediately, cursing. Alice frantically searched through the layers of her dress until she located her wand; she whipped it out and aimed it straight at Malfoy, whose face was still twisted in pain.

"Do that again and I'll hex your balls off," Alice snapped, breathing heavily.

Through his wincing, Malfoy managed to speak. "You'll pay for this, Tyler," he spat, his face filled with loathing. "This isn't over, believe me." Sending her a look of pure hatred, he turned away and tried to walk away with as much dignity as possible, despite the fact that he was still slightly bent over.

Alice stood there for a second, hardly believing his nerve. "Cocky, arrogant bastard," she muttered to herself, turning to enter the common room. As she did, she couldn't help but feel a slight twinge of worry, though. He had told her that it wasn't over... and Alice couldn't help but believe that that was true.