Fool's Gold // Sirius Black

Chapter Two: A Malfoy Engagement

Juliette picked at her nails. As the chaos started around her, Juliette silently picked at her nails in the corner.

Four women bustled around, squawking like birds around a fifth young woman in a chair. In fact, the four women flying around the room seemed to precisely mirror tropical birds. They were all dressed in brightly colored and frilly dresses and would not stop their chatter. Their hands picked and preened at the lady in the chair, perfecting her makeup and hair, and making sure her white dress would lie flat.

The four bickering women finally stepped back in awe and looked at their younger sister. Rosalind Pyrite was no longer the girl they laughed at for constantly having mud or scabs on her knees, but she was a stunning young woman.

Rose stood before her sisters and regarded her appearance in the mirror. She was wearing a simple, sleek white gown that reached her knees. There were no embellishments to the dress, but the sleeves fell off her shoulders and a leg slit made the dress an elegant choice. Truly, it was the woman wearing the dress that made it beautiful. Rose's blue eyes glittered nervously behind makeup, which she rarely wore, and her blonde hair was up in a graceful updo. She smiled at all of her family members and gave them a twirl.

"Rosie, you look beautiful!" gasped Angelica.

"She reminds me of me at my engagement party! Doesn't she look as pretty as I did?" Diana exclaimed.

"She looks better," Valeria corrected with a swat. "If you wore that dress, you would have looked like a stuffed sausage!"

"Hey!"

"Rose, Nick is going to faint when he sees you!" Cordelia added.

Rose started to fiddle with the ring on her left hand. It was, simply put, a rock of a diamond. The young woman wasn't used to wearing a piece of jewelry so big or expensive.

"Thank you, for all of your help," Rose said. "I love you all!"

The sisters started to squawk like birds again, and started to tear up, embracing Rose. Then, Angelica seemed to notice her last sister did not want to participate in the family moment. Angelica's eyes narrowed on Juliette, who was still picking at her nails.

"Juliette, do you have anything to say to your sister?" Angelica huffed. Five sets of eyes bored into Juliette's forehead.

Silence. Juliette pulled off another piece of her nail.

"Juliette," Angelica repeated.

"You look pretty, Rosalind," Juliette spoke.

When Juliette said it, her eyes did not leave her lap, which was covered in the remains of her nails. This was not a suitable answer for the sisters. Angelica took a deep breath, undoubtedly about to yell about how this day was not about Juliette, but Rose put a hand on her eldest sister's arm.

"Could you all give us a minute?" Rose asked.

The four sisters begrudgingly left the dressing room. As they exited, they started to mumble about the fifteen-year-old being a spoiled brat. Rose gently closed the door behind them and sat opposite to her sister. Juliette started to flick pieces of her nails off her vibrant pink dress, but still would not look Rose in the eye.

"You haven't spoken to me in weeks, Juliette," Rose explained. "What is it?"

"How could you keep this secret from me?" Juliette hissed.

Juliette's voice shook with anger and sadness. Her blue eyes flashed up to meet Rose's, and the look on her face was one of disappointment. Still, it was hard for Rose to take her sister seriously in her bright pink dress.