Engaging the enemy. [Lucian, Landon, Redericks]

[Tierney Harper]

Evening had fallen fast and for once Tierney actually worried about how pressed for time she was. There was little more than twenty minutes before the dance and she wasn't ready. She had been so wrapped up in her school work that she had forgotten until some girls came to flaunt their appearances.

She had then rushed back up to her room and that was where she was now. Tierney sat on her bed, smoothing the silk dress Lucian had given her to wear to the ball. She smiled involuntarily and stood, quickly changing into it and grabbing her wand for some finish touches. A few muttered spells and flicks of her wand later and her hair and makeup were done. Her hair wasn't anything elaborate, just a braid twirled into a bun at the nape of her neck with a few loose strands on either side of her face. Her makeup was simple, a light lip gloss (not the sticky kind, but smooth and with a hint of color) and then smoky eyes, but only very lightly done.

In her ears and around her neck she put the crystal set that Lucian had given her from the 'scavenger hunt' he had sent her on. Checking herself in the mirror she ran her hands over the blue material and smiled again before heading down to the common room where she had planned to meet Lucian. She felt rather suddenly self-conscious - something that didn't happen to her often. She was normally so confident, but she was starting to feel stupid, clumsy, childish, and all together awkward around Lucian. It had only been this way one other time, with one other person - Landon Rederick.

Sighing, she put thoughts of those days behind her, where they belonged, and descended the final steps of the staircase emerging into the common room hesitantly, her eyes roaming for the demon who was to escort her.

[Lucian Lazarovici]

Lucian was just dressed in a simple white tuxedo, his tie silver and tucked beneath his vest. He had finished preparing for this 'Yule Ball' event about ten minutes ago, so he had taken to leaning against a blank wall to wait for Tierney to arrive. He hadn't spotted Kaine anywhere around, so he figured that the other had gone on ahead to the dance. After all, it was starting in a few minutes. Most of the dorm had cleared out for the dance, save for a few people who had opted to get some studying or last minute homework done before the winter break. Where on earth was Tierney? They had agreed to go to the ball together, but... maybe she had gone on ahead?

He was about to leave, when a flash of blue fabric caught his eye, and he looked towards the girl's dorms, where he saw Tierney emerging from the hall. A small smile formed on his face, and he moved over to where she was, offering her a gardenia corsage to wear on her wrist.

"Now, see, that dress looks better on you than it did on the mannequin." He smiled as he put the corsage on her wrist for her. "You look beautiful," he added as he kissed her knuckles lightly. For the first time in a long time, a tiny thrill ran down his spine as he remembered why he had purchased the dress, and what else was going to happen that night. Everything had to be perfect, much like their first official 'date' as a betrothed couple. He wasn't excited, persay, about the meaning behind the events, but more excited about how she would react. Because her happiness was the most important thing right now.

He offered her his arm, and smiled again. "Shall we?"

[Tierney Harper]

When Lucian approached Tierney's stomach tightened. She accepted the corsage and blushed when he kissed her knuckles. "Thank you. You look quite handsome yourself."

She took the proffered arm and smiled warmly at him. She had a feeling the night was going to go well. Nodding, she replied, "Yes, I think that would be good. I'm sorry I took so long. I'll admit I forgot about the ball entirely for a while there. I was quite wrapped up in my school work - forgot the day entirely."

As they walked to the dance hall Tierney was quiet. She was actually nervous. She had never gone to a dance with someone at school. So many people would no doubt see her enter with the handsome Lucian on her arm and she wasn't used to so much attention. Not to mention this was something couples did, going to dances together. In some way it cemented the fact that they were betrothed. They were together, even if they weren't romantically involved.

She took a deep breath as they stepped over the threshold into the dance hall. People did look at the both of them, but thankfully they had gotten there at such a time that there was a line to get in and thus the attention was quickly turned to the next couple. Letting out her breath, that she hadn't realized she had held in, she turned to Lucian with a small chuckle. "This is different for me... having a date to a dance. Forgive me if I seem awkward?"

[Lucian Lazarovici]

Lucian blinked when she mentioned being awkward, and looked over at her. A faint smile crossed his lips. "Well, if it makes you feel better, I've never been to a dance before. Unless you count in the kitchen with my mother, but that wasn't an official dance, so...." He trailed off, giving her an amused look. He patted her hand lightly with his own, and lead her farther into the room and somewhat off to the side to made this whole thing a little less awkward.

His eyes lifted to the room, and he cast a quick look around just to see if he could spot Kaine, which he didn't. Ah... it would have been nice to get an encouraging word from the other before this whole thing went down. Kaine was the closest thing to a best friend to him. This is what friends were for. In fact..... Lucian was pretty sure he forgot to tell Kaine about what was going to happen tonight. It would probably end up as a shocker to the other.... or maybe it wouldn't. Lucian could never really tell with Kaine.

The demon shifted slightly on his feet, looking around. He really didn't know what to do now. Did he ask her to dance right away? Did he get her a drink, or something to eat? Lucian was completely out of his element, so he looked back at her, and smiled.

"Ah, you might have to coach me a little bit here..." he trailed off, his smile turning awkward. Well, there had to be something that Lucian was bad at. Entertaining a girl at a dance was definitely one of them.

[Tierney Harper]

At least Lucian seemed a little out of sorts himself. And when he confirmed he was unfamiliar with dances that did indeed make her feel better. He pat her hand and she tried not to laugh before patting his hand back. "Aw, how cute... and you'll do fine."

"If coaching is what you want I can try. It's not too difficult from what I see... Though there seem to be a lot of choices. Drink, food, dance, talk. It sort of makes my head spin. I guess it all depends on if you're hungry or thirsty or not..." Ramble, ramble, ramble. Tierney rolled her eyes at herself and looked away, exasperated. She felt so... weird, so nervous.

Her eyes swept the room, scanning faces. She didn't know until disappointment set in that she had been looking for Landon. Immediately she blushed and felt stupid. One time, one moment of weakness did not make them friends. Just because he had cared for a fraction of a second, just because he had been sweet for a little bit did not make him her friend. She was just confused because he hadn't been sweet to her since they were little... really little... like five - back when their parents used to think it was cute to see them kiss and hold hands and hug and... other stupid stuff. She sighed and looked back to Lucian, smiling and putting the boy out of her mind.

[Lucian Lazarovici]

Lucian gave her a slightly amused grin as she mentioned food and drink, before motioning towards the food slightly. "Well, would you like something to eat or drink? I'm not very hungry, and I probably won't be thirsty until after we start dancing." He caught himself slightly, his smile turning sheepish. "That is, if you want to dance. We don't have to if you don't want to." Not that he thought she wouldn't want to dance... after all, if she didn't want to dance, she wouldn't have come to the ball. But he felt that he should throw that option out there, just in case. He was totally fine with not embarrassing himself with his dancing skills. Or, rather, the lack thereof.

The blonde took a quick step backwards as someone walked to close to him, and he simply blinked at the couple that brushed unconcerned past them. Inwardly, he made a face, and was half tempted to exact his revenge for being so rude. But then, a flash of blonde hair distracted him and his eyes snapped up. Nope, not Kaine. Better luck next time. Lucian glanced back at Tierney, and gave her a faint smile. "Actually, I'd like to get a drink. Would you like anything?" he asked her politely, before slowly sliding his arm away from her.

A drink, yes, a drink would be nice. His mouth was suddenly dry, and he couldn't exactly figure out why. But it was usually a bad omen, when his mouth went dry like that, and he certainly hoped that it wasn't a sign of what was to happen that night.

[Tierney Harper]

Tierney was going to reply that probably would want to dance, but for one thing she couldn't figure out how to say it without sounding awkward and secondly Lucian moved on to other subjects. He asked if she wanted a drink and slid his arm out of hers. She was momentarily disappointed, but recovered quickly - never letting her expression fall.

"I'd love a drink actually, yes. Er, I'll find a table or something somewhere while you go get them?" She really needed a moment to compose herself and try to stop thinking about Landon which she had found she kept doing now that she realized she had been looking for him. 'How infuriating.' She forced a smile at Lucian and then looked away quickly like she was looking for a table between the mass of bodies in the room.

Nodding at him she wandered off into the crowd and over to the wall where she leaned against it and hit her head a few times as if it would do more than make it hurt. Perhaps this dance was not such a good idea. Maybe she should have declined Lucian's offer to attend... or maybe she never should have talked to Landon in the courtyard that day. Her mind was just playing tricks on her.

She had been upset and vulnerable and now she knew how all those girls Landon had played felt. Oh god! Landon had played her just like all those other girls! He acted sweet and caring (when she knew he wasn't) and she fell for it! "I am such an idiot..." Tierney mumbled, irritated by her stupidity. "How could I fall for that bullshit?"

[Landon Rederick]

OoC: Sorry it's so long. i just started typing and couldn't stop...

Landon glanced at his dashing reflection in the mirror. What in the hell was he doing? He had no idea where the desire to go to the dance had come from, but while he was sitting a lone on his bed staring up at the canopy, it was as if his tuxedo was calling out to him. At first, he just wanted to try it on, see if it still fit since he bulked up a little bit. He frowned as he stood back and looked at himself in the mirror. The three piece black on black tuxedo was a little looser in the waist but tighter every where else. Not to worry, he thought. He grabbed his wand and muttered a tailoring spell that fixed him right up. Landon glanced at himself again and smiled. He looked good.

The tuxedo was black with a bronze tint when light shined on it with black silk trim around the lapels and the pockets. He wore a matching black vest over a deep black shirt and black silk tie. He look at himself again and wrinkled his eyebrows. While the tux looked great, something still wasn't right. Landon grinned and realization hit as he wriggled his barefeet. No outfit was complete without a perfect pair of shoes. He walked over to his trunk and flicked his wand at it. Out popped a shelf six levels high, all covered with his shoes, at least the ones that he decided to bring to school with him. Landon was a definitely a man, but a man that loved to dress in nice things. He grabbed one of his nicest pairs of Italian leather shoes and black socks and slipped them on.

Once everything was put together he glanced over himself in the mirror and sighed. Sure, he looked great, but what was the point. He wasn't going to the ball. No friends to laugh and dance with. There was no possible way that he could enjoy it. Unless...well Tierney would surely be there. And though they had exchanged friendly conversation, it wasn't like they were best friends or anything. He could go, see her, no expectations. And Lucian would definitely be there too. He could meet him and make his own judgements. And he wondered if she would like his tuxedo. He had it made for this occasion, prior to being turned into a social outcast. What was he thinking?! There would be plenty of girls there. He could mingle a little, possibly have some food and drinks. A good, normal time, something he hadn't had in a while. No ill intentions. No expextations. Just some good clean fun.

Landon quickly brushed his hair upward and sclupted it nicely with some gel, rocking the lately fashionable faux-hawk. He dusted himself with his cologne and glanced at himself one more time before he left his room. If he waited around any longer he would probably change his mind. When he got to the ballroom things seemed to be in full swing already. He walked down the steps and stopped at the door, taking deep breaths to lower his heart rate. This was terribly embarassing. He was nearly going to have a panic attack over something he'd always done so easily so many times before. But as of late, he'd been hiding in the shadows. Intentionally avoiding any sort of attention. Hopefully, when he walked in the room, no one would notice him.

But this wasn't the case. Or maybe it was. But when he walked into the room it felt as if several eyes turned to stare at him as he passed by. He smiled faintly as he walked toward that back of the ballroom as people whispered to each other. He just needed to find a table. No, sitting at a table alone would surely be awkward. Perhaps he could find someone that he knew, and start talking to them. But Landon looked around quickly and saw no one that he could approach and casually strike up conversation. He shouldn't have come, but if he left so soon people would gossip about his quick entrance and exit. Landon casually walked over to the drinks and grabbed one, counting down the minutes until he could safetly depart.

But then he saw her. Tierney was sitting at a table not to far away in a beautiful cerulean silk gown. She looked absolutely astonishing. 'What?! He forced a cough, trying to clear his head of his ridiculous thoughts. No attraction whatsoever. She was just the only person in the room that he could talk to. She probably still hated him, even after the nice time that they'd had in the courtyard. In fact, she didn't appear to be too happy. Where was Lucian? Had he bailed on her? He took his chances and approached her with his signature smile on his face. "Hey Tierney," he said softly. "Why the long face?"

[Tierney Harper]

((Hope Lucian doesn't mind but I feel it's appropriate for me to post again this soon, yes?))

Tierney was just starting to get her thoughts under control when they were sent into disarray again. "Hey Tierney. Why the long face?" Tierney jumped a little, startled by the voice. She looked up to find Landon standing near her smiling. If she had been standing she'd swear her knees would have gone weak... which was ridiculous. Quickly she replied, "Oh, no reason. Just thinking." How could she possibly tell him she was upset because she had fallen for his bullshit act? She couldn't.

It was funny, she just realized it was all bullshit and she was still talking to him. She still wanted to. "I'm surprised you made it. I was thinking you might avoid another dance. I mean with everything that's happened and the fact the last one went so badly... I wasn't sure if you were ready to reemerge into the realm of the living."

Shifting in her seat she smoothed out the wrinkles of her dress. A few moments later she repeated the process like it was a bad habit. More like a nervous one. "Your tux suits you... no pun intended." She cracked a smile and looked him up and down. She was not checking him out though, of course not. Being friendly without falling into his trap was hard. He was a charmer to the very end, no wonder he could be a player for so long without the girls revolting. It was so wrong that she could hate him so much and a few nice words broke her resolve so thoroughly.

Well, she wouldn't let it happen again. Now that she realized she would fight it. And now she knew there was definitely something to fight. Before she wasn't completely sure. She thought maybe he really was sincere for a moment, but now with him at the dance in that damn suit and smiling and being all... suave and charming... she knew he was heading back toward his womanizing ways... and he was using those ways on her. Well she wouldn't be one of his victims. It all made sense though...

What better way to pay her back for what she did than to make her his first victim when he got off the bench and back in the game. Tierney stood up swiftly and huffed, nearly voicing her determination to not be entangled in this stupid web. "Where's Lucian?" She asked instead. Calming some, remembering Landon was right beside her she continued, "You need to meet him. I really think you'll like him."

[Landon Rederick]

Landon felt much more relaxed now that he was with her...or rather, someone that he knew and could talk to. In fact, he felt a little more at ease than he expected. But why not? They've practically known each other for their whole lives. He was surprised however that she did talk to him. He'd previously been under the impression that she hated him. And he should hate her too after everything she had put him through.

"I'm surprised that i'm here too. I wasn't really planning on coming. But I didn't want to waste the tux." That, and the fact that he knew she would be there. "Besides, if anything bad happens, I'm sure you can just save me like you did last time." He said it with a hint of annoyance, but hoped that she didn't pick up on it. He wasn't very proud of the fact that he had to be saved by a girl. He cleared his throat, realizing that she might take it the wrong way. "I mean, well, I never told you this, but thank you." His eyes shifted away from her momentarily, not wanting to linger on this subject.

He caught her glancing over him and fought the urge to smile, It made him feel good. Not that it mattered. "Thank you," he said agained. He eyed her, once, though he didn't need to. He'd memorized the way she looked in the dress from the moment he saw her. But it was a skill he had, of course, not something he did intentionally. Definitely not. "You look very nice. I've never really seen you dressed up like this before." He liked it. Well, he liked when people dressed up in general. Yeah.

"Lucian?" Landon tried to suppress his unjustifiable frown. "Oh, I don't know. I haven't seen him." He grnned when Tierney said that she should meet him. "Yeah, sure." It wouldn't hurt. All it would do is confirm how Landon already felt about him. He didn't like him. And he had nothing to base his judgements on but the wonderful things Tierney had said about him and seeing him in passing at Hogwarts. But still, for absolutely no reason at all, he didn't like him. And there was very little anyone could do to change that.

[Lucian Lazarovici]

Lucian watched her walk off, and then headed off towards the drink table. He'd spotted Kaine briefly, and then had lost sight of him in the crowd. And now he couldn't find him again. Absently, he was worried about where the other had gone off to.... he still had to tell him about the engagement, before it happened. Before it was official. But he couldn't do that if Kaine wasn't there.

He pushed the thoughts aside, turning his attention to the drinks. He selected two glasses, and filled them with the punch, and carefully turned around to head towards the table where Tierney was, only to be greeted by the sight of someone he didn't recognize. He knew the other was a Slytherin, but other than that, he had never really associated with the boy.

He pasted on a smile as he went over to Tierney and the boy, offering the glass of punch to Tierney with a private smile.

"Tierney, I'm afraid I haven't met your friend." He flicked his eyes to Landon quietly, observing him. On his way over to the table, he hadn't missed the subtle interactions, and he was pretty sure he didn't like it. True, the wedding was purely superficial, but nevertheless, Tierney was his fiance, and he didn't like the way that Landon was looking at her. He'd seen that look way too many times to think it was just friendly. Casually, he slipped his arm around Tierney's waist, resting it high enough that it wasn't uncomfortable, yet also establishing his dominance.

[Tierney Harper]

((P.S.: forgot to mention earlier, but I love how Lucian and Landon are complete opposites in dress too. Lucian being all white (well and silver tie) and Landon being in all black. Yeah, it's fantastic XD))

Landon shocked her by thanking her for saving him. That was a big step. He seemed more the type to pretend it never happened and never bring it up again. She shrugged. "It was nothing. I couldn't just let you die. Tristise would be heart broken." He further surprised her by saying she looked nice. Very nice actually. She blushed. "Er, uh... thanks. I guess you weren't paying much attention at the masquerade, but who can blame you. You hated me at that time and then the attack... not much time to see how lovely I looked." She acted haughty and arrogant, but really she was just trying to hide how happy his comment made her feel. It was ridiculous really.

As if on cue the blond demon reappeared and saved Tierney from further making a fool of herself and-or making her self more conflicted. He walked up, handed her her drink, and mentioned not having met her friend before sliding his arm around her waist. At first her reaction was to stiffen and feel uncomfortable. Her first thought was that she didn't want to give Landon the wrong impression or drive him off... and then she realized what she was thinking and could have stabbed herself.

The whole point was that she didn't like Landon and she didn't care what he thought about her with Lucian. Lucian was her fiance, her future husband. She was supposed to be close to him and not Landon. She wasn't supposed to want Landon in her life at all. She moved slightly closer to Lucian and felt calmer and almost protected. She slid and arm around his waist as well and put on a smile though she didn't feel cheerful in the least. "Lucian, I don't remember if I've told you about my childhood best friend Tristise Rederick and how I often lived with her family in years past? Well, I did, and this is her younger brother Landon Rederick. He's a sixth year like us."

She looked to Landon, that same smile on her lips. "Landon, this is Lucian Lazarovici." She was tempted to say 'my fiance', but Landon already knew that and seemed to really disapprove whether it was because he didn't believe in marriage or whether it was for some other silly reason she didn't know, but she felt she'd leave the title out so hopefully he'd feel less... awkward... maybe that was the term she was looking for. She lifted her punch to her lips and took a few sips while regarding the two boys watching to see how they responded to each other.

[Landon Rederick]

((Total coincidence!! But very cool.))

“Hmph.” Landon said in response to Tiernay’s statement. He almost wished he could take it back, that he hadn’t said thank you at all. It made him appear weak. And the last way Landon wanted to appear in front of Tierney was weak. It wasn’t that Landon didn’t notice that Tierney looked wonderful at the last dance. In fact, it was quite the opposite. He couldn’t get the picture out of his head. He just couldn’t understand why he couldn’t stop thinking about it and didn’t want her to know that she had noticed. The fact that he couldn’t stop thinking about it disturbed him.

Landon turned his head slowly in Lucian’s direction as he approached them. He sized him up, making no effort to be discreet. He watched as Lucian slid his arm around Tierney’s waist and suddenly felt hot and uncomfortable around his collar. Clearing his throat lightly, he smiled and wished away the sudden discomfort. He could’ve sworn that Tierney stiffened at his touch, but then brushed it off as if he imagined it. Despite his concern, she was going to marry this man. She obviously was very comfortable around him. When she slid her own arm around his waist he inhaled deeply, then he took a quick sip of his drink in an attempt to cover it up.

Landon’s eyes flickered to the floor then back up to Tierney as she introduced him to Lucian. She introduced him as Tristise’s brother. Not even as an acquaintance. From the way she said it, they had absolutely no relationship whatsoever. Was that true? Was there nothing between them? That couldn’t be possible. As much as he had been trying to deny it, there was something there, small as it was. And no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t ignore it. Not that he would say anything to her…

Granted, she didn’t introduce Lucian as her fiancé either, which made him subconsciously grin brightly. He wasn’t stupid. That had to have meant something.

"Landon Rederick," Landon introduced himself firmly and stuck out his hand for Lucian to shake. "New friend of Tierney's?" Of course Landon knew better than that, but he'd said it just so he could see what Lucian would say and what Tierney's reaction would be.