Open One Last Ritual Humiliation

[Aine Thompson]

Aine liked the idea of the Yule Ball in theory. Dressing up was sort of special (at least it was more so if you only did it once, not every year), and celebrating was nice. And it wasn't quite as bad as Valentines, which felt extremely alienating when you didn't have a date. But it still felt wrong for Aine to be in the hall without a date yet again, especially since it had been the same every single year by now. She had wanted to break the streak this year, but she hadn't braved up enough to ask anyone. Monday probably would have said yes, but she didn't want to ask him entirely to spare her own feelings. Instead, she'd just put her big girl pants on, walk into the hall alone once again, and at least hope that the whole authoratitive aura drove people away enough that she could eat in peace and not have to deal with any mystery mistletoe again.

Although, kissing a stranger again might have been fun. It wasn't like Aine was going to be hanging around Brightstone or Obsidian next year, anyway, so what was there to lose? She shook her head. That was probably a bad look, though, so maybe she was better off just keeping everyone at bay.

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd was dateless at the ball again, it wasn't exactly a shock because he hadn't asked a single girl to ask to go with him. He just sucked at that sort of thing and couldn't get over the small talk barrier. He wondered if perhaps he was just boring. Even the one girl he had kissed had shown no interest in pursuing anything further, which stung, especially considering she was now head girl and seemed to be everywhere he turned, including at the Yule Ball where he noticed her pretty quick, and also on her own. Deciding to confront his doubts, Todd approached her attempting to act casual as he initiated the conversation. "Oh, hey there, Aine, remember me?" he said, pointing to himself.

 

[Aine Thompson]

Well, s**t. This was awkward. Aine had just suspected she wouldn't see Todd again, which was a foolish suspicion to have since it was a small school. But he'd seemingly been weirded out by her, as most people were, and even though they'd kissed she'd figured it would only have been a matter of time before he said something hurtful or made her feel like there was something wrong with her. Which there likely was, but she didn't need anyone else to tell her that. "Oh, hi Todd, fancy seeing you here," she awkwardly blathered, downing a drink so fast she almost seemed at risk of throwing the contents of her cup all over her face. "Um, how have you been?"

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd was relieved that she remembered his name, it gave him hope to think that maybe he had made an impression on her. Enough to not have forgotten him at least, "Yeah, fancy seeing you too." He said, trying to be casual whilst watching her chug a drink and wondering what that was all about, "I've been alright. Uh - you?" He looked above their heads and attempted a joke, "Better watch out for mistletoe this time."

 

[Aine Thompson]

Aine had to just call upon her training to shut everything out, to not make it quite as obvious that she was feeling sorry for herself. Of course, anyone who knew her knew she was feeling sorry for herself most of the time. Nobody really knew her that well, though. She swallowed her drink, putting the cup aside and staring up at Todd with a look that gave very little away. "Oh, you know. Busy," she said, which wasn't even a lie. "I thought mistletoe would have learned its lesson from last time." That didn't even come out right, but she didn't know what else to say without making it worse.

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd chuckled awkwardly, trying to decipher what Aine meant by her comment about mistletoe learning its lesson. Did she mean their kiss had been a mistake? He couldn't be sure. "Yeah, I guess mistletoe can be a bit stubborn," he replied, hoping he was on the right track but not entirely sure if it was. "Anyway, uh, wanna dance? Might as well make the most of the evening, especially since you've been busy, right?" He offered his hand, hoping to lighten the mood and salvage the conversation.

 

[Aine Thompson]

Aine blinked a few times, before swallowing again and going back to looking as expressionless as one could. "Dance?" she repeated, waiting for the penny to drop. If he was pranking her, he was really stubborn about it. As though she wasn't the one who ran away last time before any pranking could be finalized. "With me? Wouldn't you rather dance with someone who's nicer, prettier, can hold a conversation and doesn't run away?" She reached her hand out regardless, though she hesitated before taking it, her hand awkwardly hovering in the air. As though she expected to be shocked. "I mean, sure, if you're that desperate I guess."

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd was not very good at chatting to girls at the best of times, and if he had to rate this exchange, he'd say pretty awful. He had anticipated rejection, not the self-deprecating response he received. However, he found reassurance in the fact that it wasn't a personal rejection of him, just her own insecurities surfacing. That was a silver lining, right? He did not share her sentiment, he thought she was beautiful and really it was him who struggled with chatting to girls, not the other way around. But most of all, yes he was desperate enough to dance with her. "I don't think any of that. Is it a yes though? You'll dance with me?" he kept his hand out for her if she wanted it.

 

[Aine Thompson]

Aine supposed she was possibly projecting on the last point at least, she was kind of desperate at the point as well. It was kind of sad for her to somehow make Head Girl and still not be asked to any of the dances. And asking anyone herself was just like putting a target on herself saying 'please hurt my feelings'. She exhaled, getting to her feet and taking Todd's hand with a small smile. Maybe it wouldn't be terrible. Maybe he wasn't going to make fun of her. Maybe she could threaten to deduct house points from him if he got too handsy. "I don't really know how to dance, though. Haven't exactly had much reason to learn. Do you know how?"

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd couldn't believe that he'd actually managed to persuade her to stand up and dance with him. If he was the one being pranked, then he didn't even care at this stage. He smiled gently as she took his hand. "I know a few moves," he admitted, trying to reassure her. "Just follow my lead, okay? It'll be fun, I think." He offered her a comforting smile, hoping to make her feel that this wasn't going to be a horrible experience for her. He was still in disbelief that she'd even agreed to do this with him, the head girl of all people. Everyone knows that the head girl doesn't get that position for nothing.

 

[Aine Thompson]

Aine raised an eyebrow, gazing at Todd with an almost mirthful look. Laughter was the best way of dealing with things, after all. Laughter and distraction. "Your confidence is extremely reassuring," she said, sarcastically. Her movements were stiff, hesitant. "It'll be fun always comes before disas-" she started, cutting herself off as an awkward step had her slip and stumble, clinging onto Todd far more than she would have liked to retain some balance. "Effin' heels. Who designed these bloody things, anyway? Sorry."

 

[Teddy Pirrip]

Teddy was just passing by, he recognised the two students and would have to let Lucy know that their prank had led to love.

 

[Todd Cobbler]

"Good, I'm glad you feel reassured," Todd laughed, realising this was turning out to be quite enjoyable. He supported Aine when she clung onto him for balance and complained about her heels. "Oh, I know that one. They were first worn by Ancient Egyptian butchers to keep their feet clear of animal blood," he said, wondering if his chat up lines needed work. "Here, follow my lead. Put your hand on my shoulder and hold my other hand," he instructed, putting his other hand on her back and hoping she didn't mind. "When I step back, follow my lead and step forward. Like this." Todd started to do the steps to the waltz slowly so that Aine could follow.

 

[Aine Thompson]

Aine very quickly righted herself and stopped holding on for dear life, feeling extremely embarrassed and looking down at the floor steadily. This way, she could watch where her feet were going and also not see other people making out. Her whole body tensed at the hand on her back, as though she was ready to enter fight or flight mode. She'd never been one for people entering her personal space - she wasn't much of a hugger, for instance. At least the fact kept her mind somewhat otherwise occupied. "Really? Huh, and here I was all set to blame the French, as usual." She moved slowly, following Todd's lead. "Tell me some more random facts. It's a nice distraction."

 

[Todd Cobbler]

It was slow dancing, but it was working because they were dancing. "You're doing great," Todd encouraged, glancing at Aine, who appeared uncomfortable to say the least. He lessened the hand on her back so that he was barely touching her. "Another random fact. Well, okay, let me think." He scanned the room for inspiration, then returned his gaze to her when he thought of something. "Going back through millions of years of evolution, the clavicle, that's the collarbone, was part of the skull. It's also the only horizontal long bone in our body," he explained, sharing the first random fact that came to mind.

 

[Aine Thompson]

Aine rolled her eyes, shaking her head with a wry smile. "You don't need to lie to spare my feelings, it's fine," she retorted, naturally defaulting to barbed defensive mechanisms. "Huh. That makes sense, though I can't say I ever thought much about it." She was grateful for the random facts, thinking of her own to add to it so she could keep the conversation going and add to her own distraction. Besides, if he was weirded out, that could be her cue to leave. "Right, my turn. Hm, did you know that in parts of Australia, you can't carry weapons unless they're electrified briefcases, which are apparently totally okay?"

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd didn't think Aine was doing too badly on the dancefloor. He wasn't going to enter them into any upcoming dance competitions, but it was good enough for tonight. He listened to her random fact and thought about it, it was weird. "You mean like a loophole? I wonder how you make an electrified briefcase anyway." He mused, he wasn't exactly sure what it was but would gladly attempt to make one. The random fact game had the opposite effect on Todd, and he couldn't concentrate on two things at once. He went wrong with his steps and accidentally trod on her foot, at least it felt like a foot beneath his. "Ah, sherbet. I'm sorry. Have I hurt you?" he asked, stopping to check if she was okay.

 

[Aine Thompson]

Aine shrugged, glad to be thinking about something else. Even if it was her studies. "I'm doing some muggle schoolwork and remembering the completely useless stuff," she said, dryly. Unfortunately, however, her mental blocking wasn't working as well as she would have liked, and she was jolted out of her thoughts of being anywhere but here with the sudden pressure on her foot. Aine winced, swearing under her breath. Immediately, she stopped moving, stepping backwards as she was brought back to the moment, realizing exactly where she was. "Uh, it's fine...I should just...go." One hand moved to cling to the other arm, subconsciously warding him off with her stance. "I knew I shouldn't have come tonight. Sorry."

 

[Todd Cobbler]

Todd's expression shifted the moment he realised he'd messed up badly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to— can I do anything to help?" He faltered when she said she shouldn't have come, the words piercing his chest. "Yo-your leaving?" This was the pattern whenever people hung out with Todd—they left. He wanted her to stay, but beyond tears or casting incarcerous, he felt powerless to make her. Binding the one girl who agreed to dance with him wasn't exactly the vibe he was going for this evening, and he refused to cry in public. Instead, he steeled himself to face the harsh truth that whatever this was, was over. With a deep breath, his expression hardened. "Fine, see you around, Aine." Though he didn't intend to be cold, it was a defense mechanism, a facade. Later that evening, alone with his thoughts, he'd scream into his pillow, consumed by anger at himself for ruining everything.