( SO SCANDALOUS )

[PASCAL ,]

It had been a rediculously long time since this ex-Slytherin had been to a social gathering quite like this. She even kept on forgetting what this dance-thing was all about. Christmas! The time of year she adored most of all, not just for the presents, but that definately was a bonus seeing as now she was living of herself and her own pathetic wages at the Leaky Cauldron. What she liked the most was the whole atmosphere, and what you can do in December that you can't do in August. Doryen was a sucker for winter. She preferred it to the blazing, long days of the summer. She preferred the icy cold and quick days of the winter, where you can spend all day playing and going crazy in the snow. She was still a big kid, and was guilty of the eight-foot tall snowman that stood right outside the Leaky Cauldron. Muggles would have to stop and show their amazement by staring, and poking at it. Doryen was fairly proud of her icy sculpture. This was, sadly, the highlight of her weekend. She barely had the chance to get out with some friends and have a good ol' snow-ball fight. Those were the best, and it didn't occour to anyone that what was coming next were freezing limbs. Doryen loved it afterwards, warming up by the fire, in her cucoon of blankets and sheets, with earmuffs, gloves, scarves, you name it! And a hot cup of milk chocolate. A perfect way to end a perfect day.

Christmas was definately something to celebrate, more or less because Doryen hadn't much else to celebrate anyway. The birth of her best friend's triplets should have been a celebration, but Doryen wouldn't attend. Babies and children, they're just irritating. Who would want kids? Doryen would probably end up setting the poor thing on fire. No, Doryen wasn't a motherly person. Everybody knew her as the kick-back-and-relax jackass-party person who always seemed to be happy and relaxed in her own skin. But was she? Nobody had really seen under Doryen's skin, not even her best, all time friend, Kelsey Leblanc, she now had a husband and kids to worry about, Doryen would just be getting in the way, she couldn't dump all her problems on Kelsey, it'd make her go nuts! And apart from Kelsey, Doryen really had nobody else to turn to. There were dozens of friends she had, but they weren't the kind to take her life seriously and listen.

Doryen had arrived with a group of friends. They had all dressed up for the occasion. Doryen had attented in a simple yellow shirt and black tie with black trousers. Her hair looked as though it hadn't been touched from the morning she woke up, but it was Doryen that could pull that sort of stuff off. Her group had claimed a large table towards the back of the room, and had caused a racket through the start of the night, but their voices soon mixed in with all the other people in the building tonight. Doryen rose from her seat and headed for the bar, with a cigarette in her hand and her empty wine glass in another. She propped her glass onto the bar, and motioned to the barman, whom of course knew Doryen, and set off to refill her drink. Doryen patiently waited and turned to view the room from the bar. She caught sight of a girl who has been eyeing Doryen all night, and had then walked up to her and asked her for a dance. Doryen had only grinned and pushed her breasts together. The girl suddenly looked appauled and red in the face. Doryen had only laughed as her ex-admirer stormed away. But Doryen couldn't blame her, she did look rather masculine tonight. Her eyes darted over to see someone else, and her eyes locked on one of the most eye-catching and gorgeous faces of the night.

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[rosered]

Lauren Grey wouldn’t have been caught dead at a large gathering like the holiday ball, but her younger sister Miranda was quite the social butterfly. She strode into the hall without a single fear or qualm- on the outside that is –and immediately took command of the attentions of some of the more gullible young men there. She was dressed in all black and white. Black miniskirt, white lace-trimmed bodice with black strips and bows, black and white argyle leggings, black fashion boots, and onyx jewelry, all set off perfectly by her flashing pink hair. Miranda was a connoisseur of style, and knew how to get the craziest and most awesome looks for her hair, but tonight she had gone somewhat subtle. Her rosy locks were trapped in two long braids that reached to her waistline, tied off with white bows. Behind her right ear she had pinned a gorgeous white rose, just to add that special touch. All of this with her usual dramatic makeup made quite the impression.

Immediately upon entering, Miranda snapped up one of the Ravenclaw boys who had been staring at her. As they danced, she tried to put on her ‘cool’ face and pretend that his moves were nothing she hadn’t seen before, but he was actually somewhat good. A few minutes after they started, Miranda found herself claimed by a different young man, a Gryffindor boy she hadn’t met. It went on and on that way, with Miranda switching dance partners like crazy, for a good solid hour before she finally excused herself to get a drink- or, she tried to. Her latest dance partner, a Slytherin seventh year that she had seen around but never formally met, insisted that she take a seat on the wall and rest while he brought her a beverage. Laughing at the pretended chivalry of it all, Miranda collapsed into a chair and began surveying the room.

Many faces she recognized- some she even waved at. Miranda did her very best to be a social creature. She knew sometimes she came on too strong, but if she didn’t, she just knew that no one would notice her. Everyone always noticed the rest of the world before Miranda, back before she had made a name for herself at Hogwarts. Now she was the eccentric, psychotic heart of Slytherin shallowness, and damn proud of it. Sure, it probably wasn’t what her parents or sisters expected of her, but who cared what they thought anyway?

Miranda’s ‘friend’ returned with a bottle of butterbeer for her, which she accepted gratefully. She took a few sips, still gazing around the room. Noticing her companion’s wandering to the dance floor again (more specifically a pretty brunette with the grace of a ballerina), she winked and made a shooing motion with her hand. He grinned and took off. Miranda’s attention returned to surveying the room. Her eyes lingered on the bar as she contemplated whether or not they’d deign to give her something stronger…

Her breath hitched in her throat for a moment. There was a handsome young man staring directly at her from his place at the bar…no, wait. That was no man. With the figure that fashion-diva Miranda could discern under the wardrobe, this could only be a lovely young lady. Why, then, would she dress like a man? Miranda knew the most probable answer, and was utterly intrigued by it. This was new.

Well, Miranda always had enjoyed new things. She raised an eyebrow and her butterbeer bottle simultaneously, a silent toast to her new admirer.

[PASCAL ,]

The first thing that she noted about this girl was the way she was dressed. Provocative much? But hey, she'd gotten Doryen's admiring attention, and there'd been numerous times back in the day when Doryen used to dress like that. Like the woman she used to be. Now look at her, all that was feminine was her platform heeled shoes. She had taken up quite a reputation as they guy, er girl, who really just doesn't give a shit, but with a twist. She, unlike some pricks in this world, cares about other people's feelings. She's probably one of the most thoughtful and generous jackasses in the world. Such a character, there was nobody else like Doryen, nobody knew who she used to be, mostly because they'd get confused. See, Doryen was born by a different name, her father's choice. Alyson was her birth name. For fifteen years, Doryen didn't mind it, but then her mother died, and naturally, Doryen felt as if she'd betrayed her mother. But it wasn't her, it was her father, whom had remarried in the same year, for christ sake! It was plain that Doryen hated her new family with a passion. She wasn't a Goyle, no. She was only proud of her mother. And so, Alyson died, and was replaced with Doryen. Not a lot know of Doryen's past, just because she doesn't talk about it a whole lot. Doryen's fcus is the now and the future. It's looking bright for now.

The little devilish madam was drawing Doryen in, and it was lucky that the lass hadn't noticed Doryen until now. She'd seen the pink-haired beauty making her way through every lucky get she could pass. How many was that she'd danced with? Doryen had lost count, but she was just as lured in as all those boys. Doryen saw that the girl had the same deathly pale skin as she, and miss what's-her-name seemed fairly involved in burlesque. Had Doryen not seen this girl before? Surely she'd seen her at school or something. Yes, infact! She'd could briefly recall seeing a mess of bright pink hair dashing past her in the corridors sometimes. Only now had Doryen been able to see the face that went with the crazy hair. It was extremely odd, but Doryen could see an angelic side to this girl, though in probably every other girl's eyes, she might seem a bit desperate and seductive. Seductive, Doryen liked, the only question now was if this girl could be interested in Doryen, let alone swing that way!

Doryen had watched the girl for a few good minutes, and had made sure to dart her eyes away immediately if ever the girl's face came close to her direction. Doryen probably looked dipit when she would twitch her head off in some random direction and pretend to admire the walls or decorations. The eventually, the young temptress was alone. Doryen saw her making eye contact with her. She waited for a reaction, and saw the girl raising her drink, toasting to Doryen. She smirked to her and raised her own now-full glass and took a sip before gesturing with her finger, requesting that the girl come over. Doryen sure had her way with the ladies sometimes, weather it be her charm or her looks, she didn't know.

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[rosered]

Little Miss Miranda smiled her razor-sharp smile- the one that was a bit too dangerous for just ordinary flirting. This was the one that bothered the weak-hearted. It was also the one that had so far run off most of the older boys she’d been involved with. She was too ambitious, too eager, they had said. She was going to get them all into trouble if she didn’t act her age. But where was the fun in that? If Miranda acted like every other airheaded bubble-brained fifteen-year-old girl, she wouldn’t be much of anything. She’d be dismissed like a fly, only noticed for her irrational temper tantrums. She didn’t want that kind of reputation circling around, that would be the end of her. So instead she went wild, took more risks than necessary, and became known as a human tornado.

The tornado watched with her stomach in knots, waiting to see how her toast would be received. Would she be cast aside again? Assumed to be nothing more than a mindless whore, and tossed away without a second thought? Certainly she hoped not. It wasn’t like she didn’t know what it felt like, she was actually pretty well used to it- but after a while, turning your back on the harsh words becomes a bit hard.

When she saw that finger crook, Miranda’s spirits lightened. So she wasn’t just being passed off without a thought. It even looked like this girl might like her. The rose-haired femme fatale took a deep breath, then rose gracefully from her seat. She crossed to the bar, the ribbons in her hair flowing behind her. It was so delightfully Victorian, Miranda simply loved it.

She moved carefully, making sure that her heels didn’t make too much noise on the hard floor. That kind of behavior was impressive, when you were five, trying on Mommy’s heels. Now, all she wanted to do was be sultry and lovely, dispensing with her usual obnxiousness. She softened the smile on her lips, and tucked a small strand of hot pink behind her ear.

Miranda reached the bar feeling like the queen of the world. She was so glamorous and fabulous that nothing in the world could bring her down. That was her determined mindset. She propped one arm on the counter, subtly popping one knee. He spare arm with its bottle of butterbeer went to her hip.

“You look like you’re having fun,” she said smoothly. “Not much one for dancing? You’re missing out.”

[PASCAL ,]

How long had it been since Doryen had seen someone? Scratch that, how long had it been since Doryen flirted with someone? Too long. Her last decent relationship was with a Hufflepuff, Helena Greyback who'd most definately moved on. A new boyfriend, a new life, and hey, when Doryen and Helena eventually started speaking, Helena thought it was a swell idea to pronounce she was pregnant! Doryen couldn't fathom why it was her who was told first. Who was even told in the first place. Doryen was Helena's ex, and it was fair to say, that their first meeting after the break-up wasn't its smoothest. Doryen had called their 'thing' off. Why? Because Doryen is shit scared of commitment, she didn't want to be tied down to one person, and it looked like they might have been going somewhere. So Doryen did the unthinkable and broke her girlfriend's heart. She broke her own a little bit, too. The young Goyle wasn't the best at getting serious. But was this maybe a lesson? Could Doryen try again, and actually grow up? There was onlyone way to find out.

As Doryen curld her finger, in the direction of her newest, shall we say 'victim' for now, the girl's face seemed to lighten up, delighted by the way Doryen had responded. This clearly wasn't a friendly greeting. The way that girl smiled at Doryen, she was beginning to feel very warm. This girl was kind of cheeky, a huge turn on for Doryen. She watched as the the devil rose and walked towards her with such grace that she may have been floating to her. But as she stopped, her smile softened. Where did the minx go? Doryen could sense a hint of shyness in the girl, and Doryen almost mirrored her new 'friend', her own smile that was the smile of a young child, knowing they'd done something wrong, and being told off poorly, knowing they'd get away with it. That smile had faded to be replaced with a charming and friendly face.

“You look like you’re having fun,”

Doryen turned her body around to face the exotic beauty and she shrugged casually. "Time of my life!" She responded with slight sarcasm, but in all honesty, she was enjoying herself, especially now. She rose her glass almost drunkenly, too high and then realixed where the bar was, and placed it down. Was she drunk? Doryen's eyes widened for a second, her focus became slightly blurry. It was roasting in here! Then she heard her voice again, smooth as silk, and she had Doryen's fullest attention again.

“Not much one for dancing? You’re missing out.”

Doryen glanced to the dancefloor that was lit only with the disco lights of neon colours and sparkling diamond-like shapes swirled around the walls of the room. Doryen noticed a friend of hers dancing his socks off. He caught sight of her and waved, taking sight of the person whom Doryen was now talking to, and gave Doryen the thumbs up. Doryen bared her teeth but gave him a rather rude gesture with her finger and turned back to the corest-wearing kitten. "Nah, I don't know how to dance. Mostly I just do awkwurd headbanging and flap my arms around. I need some lessons." She joked, taking a longer sip from her glass. She looked to the girl's beverage and raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Sure you don't want anything stronger?" She offered, her lip half-curling into another of her taunting smirks. She wasn't trying to offend this girl, she was attemptig to be polite, a respectful gentlewoman?

It had been bugging her since her eyes fell upon her, and with a lick of her top lip, Doryen eventually spoke, "And your name is?" She asked, still with the prince-charming type of act. God help her.

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[rosered]

She had style, Miranda had to admit, but not the same kind that she did. This girl appeared much more comfortable in her skin, as if she had no worries. Envy burned in the very back of Miranda’s mind- how she wished she could be that comfortable. But she was invisible when she didn’t make a statement, several years of living with her family had taught her that. Being forgotten by relatives, unrequited crushes, always coming in second to her sisters- no, Miranda didn’t need any more reminders. Working hard for her own image as a small price to pay.

A light giggle escaped her mouth as she twirled her neon hair with one finger. A classic move, but not entirely cliché. She felt like quite the vixen. Of course, her companion held her own interest. Much as Miranda wanted to view her as just another conquest wrapped around her finger, she felt some kind of dominance there. The girl was a bit tipsy, she could tell, but judging by the glass in her hand, she wasn’t one for the fruity cocktails that Miranda enjoyed. She was hardcore, underneath. If nothing else showed it, her sarcastic response to Miranda’s comment did.

"Nah, I don't know how to dance. Mostly I just do awkward headbanging and flap my arms around. I need some lessons."

Miranda grinned. “I suppose someone will have to teach you, sometime,” she purred. Of course, in her mind, that someone would be her. She knew it, chances were her new friend knew it, and it would probably remain a silent understanding between them. At least for the moment.

”Sure you don’t want anything stronger?”

This was where Miranda reached a problem. She was dying to go for something stronger, because it would fit her image perfectly, but she just couldn’t stand the hard stuff. Most people made fun of girls who only drank cute little cocktails because they couldn’t handle the heavy junk, but that wasn’t Miranda’s problem. Her alcohol tolerance was just fine, she just didn’t like the harder liquors. Was there something wrong with liking things for the way they tasted? Plus, Miranda was a control freak. She liked power, not necessarily having it, but being around it. She was fine with taking control, she was good with accepting someone’s control over her, but to have no semblance of it at all? Miranda couldn’t take that. She preferred a light buzz to being completely smashed. Still, though, the young woman was offering…

“I’m not a big fan of the hard stuff,” she said quietly, “-but I wouldn’t say no to something lighter.” She shrugged delicately, trying not to look completely hopeless. She liked this girl, and didn’t want to turn her off by seeming too…anything. Not too extreme, not too wishy-washy. This was the time to be careful, but not too careful.

“Miranda,” she supplied, in answer to the name question. “Miranda Grey. May I have your name in return?”

[PASCAL ,]

With nothing to hold in her hands, and with her glass back on the bar, Doryen could find nothing to do with herself. She became very conscious about her body, like the way her feet were planted on the ground. She looked down and fitted them to, what she thought, was a more suitable place for them to be. She was leaning slightly on the bar with her elbow laying on it. Deciding this was unsuitable, Doryen took her arm away and instead stuffed both fists inside her trouser pockets, though not too feircly. She was fairly expert at doing things ever so softly so that nobody would notice, and those who did, would pass it off as typical human behaviour. It may not appear so, but Doryen was doing everything she could to look and be interesting. It was working so far, Doryen had reeled this girl in with hardly any effort, but why wasn't she relaxing? She had a way to solve her problem, and she reached out her pocket and took another dainty sip from her beverage. The liquid tingled down her throat and seemed to spark a fire. Doryen licked her lips and suddenly felt completely at ease. This must've done the trick, and finally her fullest attention was on Miranda Grey, and she wondered what Miss Miranda thought of Doryen. Probably a pathetic alcoholic, she was taking so many sips from her drink it was amazing there was still some left. With that thought in mind, Doryen's body jerked away from her glass, she wasn't going to be thirsty for a while.

Doryen heard Miranda laughing for the first time, and her eyes sparkled with delight. What an adorable little giggle she had. Doryen couldn't help but show a small, admiring smile for Miranda, and that was all that was for. The fact that Doryen couldn't dance was completely true. She wasn't a dancer, nor was she a singer, but that never stopped her from stepping onto the dancefloor and swinging to the music. Of course she'd never do it infront of a new aqquaintance, especially a gorgeous one, quite like Miranda. Doryen didn't usually care about other people's opinions, but she liked to make a good impression on the ones she wanted to know better. This was precisely what she was doing with Miranda. Playing it cool and safe for now. Doryen was actually going a bit far, just assuming that Miranda would date women. It appeared so, but did Miranda have experience? Was she a virgin? That second question was highly unlikely. Doryen was certian that the neon-headed girl had fallen nto bed with plenty of lucky bachelors, not that Doryen was implying Miranda was a slut or anything, but she'd sure be able to get plenty of men.

“I suppose someone will have to teach you, sometime,”

Was she playing? Doryen's eyes widened ever so slightly, but she grinned and her cool, confident expression returned. "Well fingers crossed I get a teacher as ... breathtaking as yourself." And so, Doryen waited for the daggers to appear, and a slap across her face. Doryen really didn't know which word to use, there were so many to choose from. Miranda was a lot of things, and this was through knowing her for thirty seconds! She didn't have much of a clue what she was doing, she just decided to take a shot while she was still young. Doryen had few regrets, and she'll always look back on things and be proud of saying 'I did that!'.

She would really appreciate some guidance on the dancefloor, the fact that she was perhaps getting lessons from the most gorgeous girl in the room was a sensational bonus. Doryen had her fingers crossed that Miranda would take the bait. What else could Doryen do? Be more obvious?

“I’m not a big fan of the hard stuff,” she said quietly, “-but I wouldn’t say no to something lighter.”

Doryen's face turned into a shadow of grimace and frustration. She really shouldn't have said that. Doryen, you're a loser. But Miranda didn't appear to have been turned off by this, so Doryen slapped that smile back on her face and turned to the bar tender. She ordered him a sparkling purple liquid. It was much like what Miranda had in her hand now, but this had much more taste, and a hellova lot more kick. She turned to Miranda and gave her her new drink, taking Doryen's own and clinking both glasses together, and again, Doryen noticed she was drinking again. She stopped herself and laced her glass firmly on the bar again.

Miranda finally introduced herself ad Miranda Grey, and Doryen's head flicked back to Miranda. Her thin lips twitched into a smirk of triumph and she took Miranda's hand, involuntary, and softly brushed her lips over her hand. "Pleasure, Miranda. Your new admirer is Doryen." She respnded to Miranda's own question, and gave her back her hand. Doryen didn't bother to say she was a Goyle, to her that was a huge turn-off, an embarrasment to herself. Doryen was just Doryen, and that was just that.

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[rosered]

This was getting much more interesting than Miranda had initially bargained for. That wasn’t a bad thing, it was just so different, flirting with another girl. Miranda liked it. It made her feel a bit more…understood. As another female, this girl would know the kind of work Miranda’s image took, and hopefully she would appreciate that she went to all of that work for her. It also gave Miranda a chance to really appreciate the features that all females had…for example, she sincerely wished that Doryen favored more skintight clothing, the way Miranda herself did. Of course, she wouldn’t be saying that. No point in embarrassing herself and ruining all of her chances.

She sized Doryen up, as she could see the other girl was doing to her. Miranda was quite used to those looks. The ones that obviously said, ‘Is she a complete whore, or just eccentric” or “How long will it be before I’m the best thing she’d ever had”. Miranda always went back and forth as to how she felt about those looks. Some of them she didn’t mind, but sometimes…well, every girl wants to be known for who she is, and not what she looks like. Even Miranda Grey, whose life was entirely centered around her appearance, felt that way sometimes. Including right now.

"Well fingers crossed I get a teacher as ... breathtaking as yourself."

This comment, despite the fact that she’d seen something like it coming a mile away, took her aback. It was so different, coming from a girl…or was her use of the word ‘breathtaking’? Certainly none of the young men Miranda had seduced had used that kind of vocabulary. ‘Sexy’, ‘hot’, that was more the range they were used to. But ‘breathtaking’? That was a new one, and Miranda had to admit, she loved it. She loved being called ‘breathtaking’. It was a very, very good feeling.

Except now she had to respond to it! It was like being told you’re gorgeous- how is one supposed to accept praise that high without feeling completely vain? Especially if other girls are around. What if someone was just casually eavesdropping and heard something like that? Would it make her enemies? Would people wander around saying to themselves, ‘Oh, that’s the girl that’s completely full of herself’? What in the world could Miranda say?!

She decided to just not say anything, but the smile on her face was answer enough. Her eyes were downcast, her cheeks a bit more rosy than usual. Luckily, she was spared the problem of being forced to open her mouth by the arrival of a new beverage that Doryen had ordered for her. The liquid was a bright purple, and it looked like a sparkling something. That was a good sign. Miranda accepted the glass, trying very hard to disguise her intrigue. She clinked her glass with Doryen’s and took a tentative sip-

It was one of the best things she’d ever tasted. Much like the butterbeer she’d had, it warmed her from the inside, but more like fire than a glowing hearth. That exciting way, like chili peppers instead of hot chocolate. It tickled her throat as it went down, and Miranda found herself entranced. She was so distracted that she almost didn’t hear her new friend introduce herself. In fact, she probably wouldn’t have heard it at all had her hand not been claimed…and kissed.

"Pleasure, Miranda. Your new admirer is Doryen."

Miranda set her glass on the bar, just to free up her other hand. There was an evil little idea forming in the back of her mind. She smiled her most gracious smile. “It’s so lovely to meet you, Doryen.” As Doryen let go of her left hand, Miranda took her right and placed it on her companion’s shoulder, drawing her forward so she could kiss her cheek. “I must say, you have a beautiful name.”