Tears and Tulle

[Margo Ellis]

It was a good thing Margo knew her way around the castle, because with her eyes swimming with tears she was relying entirely on instinct to take her back up to the Ravenclaw dormitory. That was where she was going, of course; the Yule Ball had only just begun, but now that Margo's dress had an enormous red stain on the front of it, her night was over. All the preparation, the nerves, and the excitement that had preceded this moment had been for absolutely nothing. Life was so unfair.

Keeping her head down, Margo hurried toward the bottom of the staircase, lifting her dress to keep from tripping over it. But no sooner had she taken the first step than she stumbled, twisting her ankle awkwardly and falling into a heap of tears and tulle. Sniffing, she pushed herself into a sitting position, bringing her knees up to her chest in an attempt to hide the stain. She should have stood up and carried on, really, but her dormitory was nearly a thousand steps away, and her feet were already sore from wearing heels. She unbuckled them and slipped them off, the coolness of the stone floor relieving to her bare soles. Maybe she could just sit here for a while, until she found the energy to move. Maybe nobody would even see her. As usual.

 

[Rose Holland]

Rose was late. This wasn't a new experience for her, but she had never been late in such fancy shoes before. They really made it hard to run and she had given up. No one would really care if she was late anyway, she didn't have a date waiting for her and she was sure her friends were already having fun. She slowed down going down the stairs, she didn't want to trip and die here. That would probably ruin the party for most people. As she made her way down, she heard a sniffle. Looking in that direction, she found a heap of a girl sitting at the bottom of the stairs, crying. Rose wasn't the sort of person that could just ignore that and walk on. Immediately she went over to her, sitting down on the same step. "Are you hurt?" She asked. She recognized the girl from her year. A glance at the stain made her gasp, but then she realized it was too pink to be blood. "OH! I thought you were bleeding. But unless you're an alien, I don't think that's your blood. Are you okay? No, you're crying, stupid question. What's wrong?" She leaned closer, concern on her face.

 

[Margo Ellis]

Margo knew Rose from classes, but they'd never really spoken before; so when the Gryffindor suddenly sat down beside her, making kind remarks and asking her if she was OK, Margo briefly didn't know how to respond. Wasn't Rose friends with Harley Tsuji? Why was she being nice to Margo? The Ravenclaw wiped her face, what little makeup she'd applied to it smudging across her cheeks. She wanted to be comforted by Rose's concern, but it only made her feel worse. She was fraternising with the enemy! "It - it's nothing," she said, between gasps. "I... I tripped, and spilled my drink, that's all. Th-thanks Rose. Don't miss the ball for me."

 

[Rose Holland]

Rose wasn't usually a suspicious person, but she had the feeling that Margo wouldn't be this upset if she had just spilled the drink on herself. It did sound plausible to Rose. In fact, she wouldn't be surprised if she did something like that herself later on. Still, she didn't want to just let it go. "Really?" She asked, looking at the placement of the stain curiously. "I... I don't mean to imply you're lying or anything, but I think it's quite a feat to trip and spill your drink like that. I've spilled a lot of drinks, believe me." She smiled, trying to joke. "It's okay, you don't have to tell me anything, but if anyone was mean to you, you can go to your Head of House. You know?" She didn't know if Margo was being bullied, but if she was she wanted her to know that professors were there to talk to. She changed the subject, looking at Margo admiringly. "It's a shame you're missing the ball, Margo! You look beautiful! I bet you were the most beautiful girl there." Rose shrugged. "I don't mind talking to you, the ball can wait. I don't have a date anyway."