The Great Hall bustled with students who were annoyingly chirpy for the fact that it was 8 am. Aria shoveled scrambled eggs into her mouth just wanting to get what she was about to do out of the way. She watched Neville Longbottom as his nose was buried in a book about magical botany. Every now and then his head would poke up from the book, glancing in the direction of the Ravenclaw table.
She always admired his passion for plants, it somewhat mirrored their dynamic. Plants are often disregarded, stepped on without a pinch of value for their delicate life. But with a bit of tender care and a gentle hand, they had the potential to flourish into the most mighty tree.
Taking in a deep breath, Aria stood up from her seat and hesitantly walked over to him. She felt as if every single pair of eyes in the room were glued to her, analyzing her every move even though they very well weren't. Just the perks of social anxiety.
She sat down in front of him and his eyes shot to her. "Aria, hey!" he said with his mouth full of toast.
"Hey, Neville. What are you reading there?"
"Oh, I'm just reading up on the Alihotsy tree, also known as the Hyena tree. They say never to eat the leaves of this tree because they cause uncontrollable laughter!" He spewed out the fact effortlessly with his focus still elsewhere.
"That's...cool. Well, I kind of wanted to ask you something."
"Mhm?"
"Do you by chance have a date to the Yule Ball yet?" He shook his head in response to the question.
"Great, how do you feel about going with me?" She asked awkwardly.
His eyes immediately turned to meet hers, "L-like as a date?"
"Well, it doesn't have to be. We could always go as friends seeing as we both don't have partners."
His eyes lingered over her shoulders once more, a slightly guilty look in them. "That...sounds good Aria!" She awkwardly nodded her head at his weird and confused-sounding response before walking back to her seat.
When she sat back down, she began stacking her plates and utensils to make it easier for the elves to clean up. No one was really kind to them so she always took it upon herself to greet them and help them out when she could, and for that, they were very grateful.
"Longbottom's your date to the Yule Ball? Really?" Came a sarcastic voice from a few feet away. Draco leaned across the table looking at Aria with a disgusted look.
"What's it to you?" Her eyebrows furrowed.
"Is that what you were doing, asking him? Pathetic that he couldn't be a man and do it himself."
"Woah there Malfoy, I might start thinking you actually care about what I do with my life."
The boy rolled his eyes and scoffed, "Hardly, if anything it makes sense. No one else would wanna go with a filthy mudblood like you besides that oaf," he spat before turning back to his friends.
Aria's face fell as a hurt feeling took over her. It was foolish of her to think that this dickhead was actually being cordial. However, she couldn't help but feel that he was right. Neville was the only boy in the school who would even think about being her date and even then he seemed to have his eyes on someone else.
She looked back up at him to find his eyes still fixated on something. She followed his gaze which led her to the Ravenclaw table with a smiling Luna Lovegood who was flipping through her Quibbler.
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"Dear Merlin, this is ridiculous!" Aria exclaimed as she stood in the middle of the Gryffindor common room, eyeing the dress she tried on in the mirror. The dress was a ruby red color but it wasn't the color that had Aria freaking out. The neckline was VERY low, causing her cleavage to spill out like two water balloons.
"What?! You have a hot body Wanderlust, you need to show it off," Ginny said, "Especially these," she emphasized her hand motions towards Aria's chest.
"Ginerva Molly Weasley!" She shouted, playfully giving Ginny a smack on the arm causing both girls to giggle.
"Fine, fine. But just so you know, to cover yourself up, it comes with a little bolero...that can easily be unbuttoned when needed."
Aria rolled her eyes, "McGonagall would have a heart attack," she said before Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked into the common room.
"Hey guys, would you tell Aria here that she looks stunning in this dress?" Ginny turned to look at them. Aria reluctantly turned around as the three went wide-eyed. Hermione burst into a light coughing fit while the boys used every muscle in their bodies to bring their eyes up to meet hers.
"I-It's definitely a pretty dress," Harry said, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible. Aria turned back around with an exasperated yet slightly amused sigh.
"At least we know for sure that it was Ginny who picked out the dress," said Ron with his eyebrows raised.
"You guys are no help, you know that?" Ginny rolled her eyes. She grabbed her wand and hovered it over Aria's body, changing her dress without her having to take it off. The bright red got lost in a mist of sparkle before revealing the new color of the dress.
A deep forest green began to emerge. The silk hugged Aria's petite curves as the thin straps draped her delicate shoulders. It was sleek yet sharp, displaying a fierceness that she didn't know she had. Her friends sat on the couch silent, taking in the gorgeous visual.
Before she could ask them for their opinions Fred Weasley entered the common room with George Weasley.
"Bloody hell, Wanderlust, looking like that I just might sweep you off those perfect feet and steal you from your date," he grabbed her hand and gave her a twirl as she giggled.
"You look amazing," said Hermione from the armchair as they all collectively decided that this dress was the one.
"And it's a Slytherin color. You could show those Slyther-bitches that you belong in that house!" Ron joked with a warm grin making everyone laugh.
"Neville get out!" Ginny yelled at the entrance, everyone turned to look at a very startled Longbottom.
"Yeah! Don't you want to be surprised on the big day?" George added.
"S-sorry!" Neville shut his eyes before stumbling backward, bumping harshly into the wall in an attempt to exit the room as everyone laughed.
"It's not a wedding you guys," Aria chuckled.
YOU ARE READING
𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐈𝐂𝐄 | Draco Malfoy
Fanfiction"Pits of perplexing malignance live within all of us but only do few lack the inhibition to test the waters." - sparklyyslut Aria Wanderlust is a Slytherin who feels out of place in her own house. Everything changes when she gets close to Draco Malf...
