long way to heaven || marauder ff

15- sluggy slug club

"I went down to the river,
I set down on the bank.
I tried to think but couldn't,
So I jumped in and sank."
― Langston Hughes

✵✵✵

Though Elaine didn't admit it aloud, Marlene had been right.

As soon as the French calmed down enough under the shower to actually wash her hair and realize that the cat ears and her tail disappeared under the steady flow of water, there had been a banging on the door, reminding her of the fact that all five girls in the dormitory were supposed to shower. A mere second after she left the bathroom, Marlene pushed Mary through the door, bellowing orders to the other two girls watching amusedly.

All five Gryffindors had been invited to Slughorn's party, Lily and Elaine since they were two of his favorite students, Luana due to her family, and Marlene and Mary both had brothers who had attended Hogwarts before, being prestigious ex-students of the Potions professor.

"Now, El, have you finally decided on a dress?", Marlene asked exasperatedly, looking at the mess inside the magically extended closet. In the middle of it sat Elaine, two dresses clutched into her hands. One was gifted to her by her aunt April, a short turquoise dress that had spaghetti straps, bound together in the back with an intricate pattern. The fabric reached almost down to her knees, flaring slightly from the hip on, embroidered with a stitched design. Though Elaine had to admit, it was quite short on her- not that she had grown much since the dress had been given to her, but it was naturally more of a suggestive dress.

The second one had been a gift by her grandmother on the motherly side before the woman passed away, a stunning, navy blue dress that was a bit longer than the other, however still not reaching her knees, differentiating it from the first one, as the top of the dress was see-through, the transparent fabric covered by a pattern of stars that wove together to create signs, zodiacs and galaxies. The golden symbols seemed to come from the sky itself, glowing in the slight shade of the closet.

"Is that even a question?", Lily asked confused, slightly cocking her head to the side. "The second one is easily the most gorgeous dress I've ever seen", she added thoughtfully. At those words, Mary tilted her head into the picture from inside the bathroom, her wet hair drenching the floor. "I agree with Lils. The first one would make you the center of attraction in terms of rivalling Lin Andrews or Emmeline, the second one makes you look like you hung up the sky yourself. Not much of a choice there, El"

"Thank you", the French whispered quietly. Obviously, she loved the navy dress dearly. But today she just couldn't shaker the immediate connections in her head, memories of said grandmother resurfacing.

"Do you have shoes to go with it?", Marlene asked loudly, bursting the silence that had presented itself like a bubble. Elaine nodded, searching through her boxes for the strapped high heels that would finally raise her up a few centimeters. With a successful yelp, she pulled out the matching pair, raising the navy-blue heels up for the other girls to see. They shared the same pattern as the top half of the dress, also being adorned by multiple golden stars.

"How in Godrics's greasy gibberish do you want to walk on those?", Lily exclaimed shocked, pointing her finger on the culprits. "These look like they are 10 centimeters high, at least!", she added, growing more and more appalled.

"Lils, calm down, I'm sure El knows all about walking in these shoes", Luana laughed from her comfortable place on her bed, where she was enjoying a bowl of freshly cut mangoes, token from her trip to the kitchens. "Otherwise she would never be able to see eye to eye with other people", she added nonchalantly.