Sick Of Me [Ondina]

[grey xavier slater]

Ondina Nell Weasley

The fated day; the Yule Ball. A few weeks earlier, Grey Slater had a reawakening of sorts. It was suddenly brought to his attention that his recent obsession with Ondina Weasley was of the most fabricated kind imaginable. She had somehow managed to slip him love potions daily to keep up the absurd charade that he was madly in love with her. Fortunately for her, it had worked for a couple of weeks. Unfortunately for her, he had people who cared more about him than she knew, and managed to get him sorted out before the inevitable happened. Despite being fixed up near the beginning of December, Grey decided it would be fun to keep up with her little farce, at least until the Yule Ball. He didn’t care at this point if she had another date arranged and had planned on ditching him from the start. Looking back at it all, he was positive her ulterior motive was to cause some sort of embarrassment or shame to him. She had managed to do that, luckily it had only been shown in private to Irina Krum immediately after she slipped him the antidote. Now it was his turn to do some damage, or at least figure out if the Yule Ball had been her plan from the start. Grey liked games. And the ball was in his court right now, whether Ondina realized it or not.

In the weeks leading up to Christmas, he had stayed the exact way he had been near the end of November. Completely and utterly obsessed with Ondina. Except this time it was all a ploy. Lucky for him that antidotes to love potions didn’t immediately clear the feelings and emotions elicited by them. Somewhere deep inside of him there was still a tiny piece that loved Ondina. Pulling and pushing this tidbit of emotion, Grey was positive he had continued his puppy-dog obsession act the same way he had done it while under the effects of the potion. The constant supply of antidote he took every day was enough to keep anything he was still slipped at bay as well. He was sure there had been a day or two where he still screwed up and got taken over by it again. At least this time he knew the warning signs.

Grey got down to the entrance hall earlier than most people had. There was still a decent number of students and Ministry workers milling around already, but if he wanted to keep his act up for the opportune moment during the dance, then he needed to look like he was overly eager to see her. Not trying to press his luck too much, Grey hovered around the entrance to the dungeons. He was ready to pounce the second she stepped out. He knew deep down she didn’t even care about any of this since it was all for show and to mess with him. This was easily going to be one of the greatest nights of his life, and hopefully left a little dent on hers.

[Deleted]

the dress
@jill16

If someone had told Ondina that Grey had figured out about the love potion, she would have laughed. But she also would have laughed a couple months ago if she'd been told she'd 'go' to the Yule Ball with him. Of course not seriously. None of this had been serious. Just a way to keep her amused for a while. But it'd run it's course, and she was growing bored of it all. God, she hadn't known just how mundane Grey. But, she'd keep up her end of the charade just a little longer, even though it felt like she was losing brain cells every time he spoke.

The day of the ball finally arrived, and Ondina was ready before most of her year mates. Why? Because she wanted to see if the rumors were true. The one about her mother coming to Hogwarts to be the Librarian after Christmas. The woman would be there tonight either as a Ministry employee or a Hogwarts staff member, and the only way to find out would be to ask her. If it was true.. Well, Ondina wasn't happy, obviously. The last thing she needed was her mother lurking about, potentially stopping her from having her fun. So, she planned on at least getting a straight answer out of her mother before Grey showed up. Heading up to the Entrance hall, with the intent f finding her mother she stopped short. Because there was Grey, foiling that plan in it's entirely. "Grey."

[grey xavier slater]

Ondina Nell Weasley

“Ondina.” He responded in his best charmed voice. The one caveat about love potions was that even after being fixed up, he still retained all of his memories, down to every last detail. For the most part that seemed like it was going to kill him on a daily basis, knowing that he had felt even the slightest bit towards her, but it was also critical to his understanding of how tonight was going to go down. Knowing all those false feelings, emotions, and fabricated pleasantries meant he could do his best to fake it until he made it; probably not far off of what she had been doing to him the whole time. It was rather sickening to be returning the favor this way. He would have preferred to just call it a day and never talk to her again. At the same time he wanted to see her reaction. Grey kind of hoped that she’d try and fake like he hurt her or something, only to have Finn or Irina come to his defense about the love potion. He knew she was too smart for that though, and she would probably try and pass it off like it she didn’t care. But if she didn’t care, why do it in the first place? Even if it was for fun, she still had to care enough to continue dosing him every day. That amount of love potion was insane, and he was sure that the dosages had changed over time. The feelings from when he assumed it started were far different from the ones near the end. Out of control and radical thoughts had turned to rationale and level-headedness. Scary that a potion could do that to someone.

It was unfortunate she was like this too, because she was attractive. Not his type, of course, but attractive nonetheless. He wondered what his love-struck self would have been thinking right now. Maybe he didn’t want to know that, since it would have been easy to guess. Sad that she was such an awful human being. Grey made sure to stare at her for a decent amount of time, not saying anything to make it look like he was still trying to formulate words. He remembered that part all too well. Stupid little snake was laughing at him the entire time, he was positive of it. “Wonderful...” He trailed off, making his eyes look like they were still fixated on her. Grey cleared his throat. “You look wonderful. Shall we, uh, shall we head in then?” He offered his arm out to her. This was too much fun.

[Deleted]

Ondina should have taken some pleasure in his reaction. That he still seemed just as enchanted as before. But her mind was still elsewhere, focused on the possibility of having a parent at Hogwarts. Now, she had nothing against her parents. She loved them dearly. But they were... over protective. Understandable considering her childhood but as a young woman it irritated her to no end.

Alas, she'd have to address that particular dilemma later, because Grey was offering her his arm. Somehow she'd been so caught up in her own thoughts that she'd missed whatever he was he'd said up until that point. It didn't take a genius to figure out what he'd said though. Or at least make an educated guess.

Immediately Ondina forced that well trained smile to appear, hiding all hint of her previous annoyance. "Of course." she answered politely as she stepped forward to accept the offered arm. "I hope you weren't waiting long?" she asked, faking a sincere tone.

grey xavier slater
(I'm a terrible human being for making you wait so long D: )

[grey xavier slater]

Ondina Nell Weasley

There was that smile. The signature one she had put on numerous times. The one that had caused him to have heart palpitations while she had him entranced. He was still getting a sped up heartbeat, except this time it was from raw adrenaline. Grey was excited that he had the chance to put a dent in her life. He knew it wouldn’t be too much of an effect in the long run, but it was still a notch on the perfect record she seemed to have with boys lately. He returned the smile with one of the goofy ones he remembered having only a month earlier. It was a test now: which one of them could outperform the other with their fakeness. Ondina’s was natural and obviously something she had perfected from years of practice. It probably started when she was just a small sickly child with her parents, getting whatever she wanted from there. He kind of felt bad for them, and her siblings, knowing that she was demon child and being able to do nothing. Or maybe she acted like a little princess around them. If he hung around long enough before breaking the news, maybe he’d spot an interaction or two with some of her adult family members. There were enough in the ministry that surely they’d bump into one or two.

Grey continued the grin as she asked if he had been waiting long. He wasn’t sure how to answer that. Overdo it? Yes. That was always the answer. He was supposedly madly in love with her after all. “Only all month.” Cheesy, but it would fit with the way he had been. She took his arm, and he turned to lead her into the Great Hall. There was too much confidence in that, but she was at his will now, and trying to pull anything in this crowd would get her nowhere. If she wanted to keep up appearances, tonight was the perfect night to test that resolve. “So uh…” he started, pretending to be hesitant with what he was saying. “Are these types of things common? With your family, you know, being who they are.” It was a stupid question, but he really wanted to see how much she was going to sell the sweet little girl act.

[Deleted]

Only all month was a dramatic answer that almost made Ondina roll her eyes. It was only years of practice that stopped her, and instead made her smile widening just a little and a touch of pink touched her cheeks. Faking embarrassment was harder then other emotions, but a few choice thoughts and she'd figured it out. She chose not to respond, feigning that subtle and shy embarrassment as the entered the Great Hall. A suitable reaction to his comment.

The Great Hall was, obviously, exquisitely decorated, the ceiling enchanted to appear as if snow was falling in a clear night sky. "Isn't it nice?" She asked as means of 'small talk', referring to the decorations. She only looked back at him when he hesitantly asked her a question. Both eyebrows raised in surprise. "Balls and parties? No, not really. My family isn't much into anything like this. What about yours?"

grey xavier slater

[grey xavier slater]

Ondina Nell Weasley

There had to be an award for this. Was she actually buying all this? Grey couldn’t tell, because he knew she wouldn’t let on no matter the cost. If she had already figured it all out, then this was simply a game of who was going to spill the beans or get bored first. He had to give it to her though, she could have a promising career as an actress if given the chance. There was no response to his stupid comment about waiting all month. He mentally cheered, knowing that something as idiotic as that had to be killing Ondina to make some kind of snide remark. This was great.

The Great Hall was surprisingly impressive. Since the night was going to be a flop from the start, seeing as the shenanigans he was currently in had to end at some point, at least there was the memory of the hall being vastly different from normal. If he hadn’t been in there earlier in the day, he might not have recognized it at all. Grey wasn’t sure if Ondina’s question about it being nice was real or not. He couldn’t even give her the benefit of doubt because that would mean he actually believed what she was saying. “Doesn’t even look like the same place.” That was a simple enough statement. He was utterly boring after all.

For some reason, he was surprised that she said her family didn’t go to balls or parties. The way she always handled herself made it seem like that, and the family name didn’t help either. From how he understood it, Weasleys were of much higher standing than they used to be. Apparently not all of them though. “No. But my parents probably expect me to be in a position where I can attend things like this someday.” That was possibly the most honest thing he had said so far. “I don’t really care what they think though. They can pester my sisters for that if they really want to. Claire, the oldest, has taken that to heart. Always had to be perfect.” Grey knew that wasn’t exactly how things went with her though, but for the story’s sake, he needed to throw her under the bus. “I’m sure there’s lots of competition with a family like yours. Hard to stand out mostly.”

[Deleted]

Ondina had to agree with him. They'd done a bang up job wih the Great Hall. She wished Hogwarts did this sort of thin more often and not just for the Tournament. But at least she'd managed to see it once. Once was better than nothing.

Ondina glanced up at him as he spoke, about his parents wanting him to be in a position to attend these sort of funtions and how he didn't care. About his sisters, and then throwing it back to Ondina's own family. Well, he was right about that. "Lots? I have ten relatives still at Hogwarts. Eight with the Weasley name. And if you say 'Miss Weasley', five of them will look." She answered with brutal honesty. That was part of the whole act. Hints of truth, shrouding the lies. "Do you know what it's like? Where most people seem to think once they know you family name they have no reason to get to know you, or see who you are. Because you're just another Weasley. You can't have anything for yourself, because people don't see you as individuals. They just think once you know one Weasley you know them all." Ondina forced herself to pause, letting a smile play at the corners of her lips. "I hope you aren't like them, Grey. That maybe you can tell us apart."

grey xavier slater
(You can have Grey let the cat out of the bag whenever. I'll try to give you some possible set ups in this post and others if you want to keep going.)

[grey xavier slater]

Ondina Nell Weasley

Grey tried to keep a straight face as Ondina went on about her cousins. Had he touched a nerve? It definitely seemed like it. He was well aware of the Weasley dilemma, having four them in his own house, and one (meaning Lily) who would probably look as well if the last name was called out. As for the other comments about not needing to know anything about her because the last name meant she lost her individuality, Grey could see some honesty there. Obviously that reasoning was what had caused her to act out like this, bullying other students, drugging them with love potions, virtually everything that made her who she was now. But that’s what family was for right? To show that you were either a carbon copy of the rest or your own unique person. “Well they’re dolts for thinking that. I know enough of your family to tell that every single one of you are different. Imagine how messed up that would be, having a dozen of you running around, or a handful of Lily’s.” He mentally apologized to Lily for using her like this, but he had to stay on Ondina’s good side. At the same time, he hoped that she wouldn’t have caught the slight malice in his words as he stated a dozen Ondina’s would be a bad thing. He’d be dead by now if that were the case.

The fake smile appeared again, and he reciprocated with one of his own. As he did so, it seemed like it was time for the champions to dance. Obviously one of them was Ondina’s cousin, so that probably didn’t help with the conversation they were just having. “Don’t think I asked, but did you put your name in to enter?” He was somewhat aware of her health conditions, and tweaking another nerve or two wouldn’t be too bad, would it?

[Deleted]

Ondina genuinely laughed at the idea of a dozen copies of Lily running around, completely overlooking the fact that he'd also included her in that. "I don't think Hogwarts would survive that many of her." she answered. Oh, Lily was a wild fire, that was for sure! Lily was destructively energetic and and flamboyant. The definition of insanity in Ondina's mind.. Lily was exhausting. Yes, entertaining too, as long as you had the energy to put up with her.

His asking if she had entered her name did, as he hoped, strike a nerve. There was that momentary flash of disgust at the idea but Ondina hide it behind a frown as she looked away, feigning slight disappointment. "No. I'm not suited for that sort of thing. I'd be no good." Not just because of her health problems but because the last thing she wanted was to be one of Neville Longbottom's pawns. Still frowning a little she glanced back up at Grey. "Did you enter?"

grey xavier slater

[grey xavier slater]

Ondina Nell Weasley

Of course Hogwarts wouldn’t be able to handle that many Lilys. It could barely hold onto one as it was. Ondina seemed to find it funny though, and in the genuine sense as well. That was relatively interesting. From what he understood of Lily, she didn’t have too many enemies, if any at all. What a world that must be…he could only imagine what it must be like. “I’d like to think I could wrangle a few of her on my own, but the more I think about it, one is really all we need.” That and it made her unique. That was always a redeeming quality to have. He was just utterly boring for most people.

The real question was about entering the tournament. They could talk at length about Lily another day, or maybe not, because he really was tired of this whole fakeness thing. Regardless, Ondina mentioned that she couldn’t enter because she wasn’t fit for it. Grey put on a smile. “No, I guess you wouldn’t, would you.” He paused, letting it sink in for a few seconds. “I entered, though I kind of regretted it right after. It’s not really a tournament made for someone as dreadfully boring as I am. Doubt I’d take it seriously anyways.” He shrugged. If his cover wasn’t blown already from the last two comments, then the last one would do it. “I’m also not that great at potions either, but I’ve heard you have an apt hand for it, or at least know someone that is. I’d love to see that at some point.” Grey struggled not to smirk at her, knowing full well that he could bring the wrath of Ondina down on him right then and there. Most likely though, she was going to play it cool and silently seethe that he wasn’t as stupid as she had initially taken him for. He’d have to agree with her on that one, it had taken a month for someone to figure it all out.

[Deleted]

Ondina gave him a little smirk when he said he'd like to think he could handle a few Lily's on his own. She almost said he could have Lily if he wanted, but decided that sort of answer was a little too snarky for her 'sweet' persona. Didn't want to raise unwanted alarms, did she? Even though the potion should make him see past most trivial comments like that it was better not to take her chances.

What happened next though...

There was a moment where Ondina was still, silently processing everything he said. Not reacting. Her expression bare of all emotion. When he'd started to speak, it'd immediately raised her suspicions. But as he finally reached that last point, about potions, and she knew for sure. Knew that somehow, someway, he'd found out about the potions. Slowly, extremely slowly, Ondina started to smile. There was no hint of that faked innocence from before. It was cruel, wicked. "You are dreadfully boring." She answered, making sure to keep her voice soft to avoid anyone overhearing. "But not nearly as stupid as I first thought." The act was up, so she didn't have to pretend anymore.

grey xavier slater

[grey xavier slater]

Ondina Nell Weasley

He had really wanted to see some kind of visceral reaction on her face when he revealed that he wasn’t under her love potion anymore, but alas, Ondina Weasley was too composed to allow him that. It was a pipe dream, hoping that she’d get visibly upset at him for figuring it all out. The smile she put on her face was definitely something he had expected though; what everyone had been trying to tell him about while he was under the effects of the potion. Ondina was an awful person, and it was astonishing that a potion could make all of that go away in a blink of an eye. “See? We agree on something at least,” he laughed out. Everyone knew he was boring. That was nothing new. “As for my intelligence, I think you’re closer on that mark. I don’t try to hide my flaws like some people do.” It was a subtle jab at her personality, or lack of one. There was no way anyone found the real her remotely appealing at all. They’d have to be equally superficial and fake. Plastic was a good descriptor in his mind. Ondina probably had a lot of deeply rooted issues, maybe the ones she had admitted to about her family were part of it, and this cover she was always hiding behind was nothing more than that; a fallacy. Unfortunately that was too much effort for him to put into words, and it really wasn’t worth getting into an ideological war on who she was at this point. He was done with all of that now that he was free from her grasp.

Grey sighed as he stared at Ondina. If this had been earlier in the month, the thoughts that would be going through his head would have been completely different. It was hard for him not to want those back, because to him, they had been so real. There wasn’t a love potion running through him anymore, and obviously things would never actually work with Ondina, so there was absolutely no reason for him to still be standing in front of her. “Well, it was a pleasure being your slave for a month,” he said quietly, “but I have better things to do right, as I’m sure you do too. Let’s not do this again?” Grey turned away from her and headed off into the crowd. He had other important people to talk to now that all of this was out of the way. There was still an entire night left before him.

[Grey Out]