Two Plus Two Equals Awkward Galore [Rosaria/Al/Dusti]

[Deleted]

For the first time in...well, possibly ever, Gaius had actually bothered to care about his appearance.

Not that he minded his usually scraggly hair for the stubble on his face and chin that would never quite grow out to be a full beard, but tonight was an exception. The Yule Ball was hosting the Ministry, meaning he needed to at least present a good visual impression on the people he would be working with in six months' time. Plus, his father was here, and wouldn't want to be embarrassed by his son looking scruffy—and while Gaius didn't even know if Raven was coming, he knew if she did, she would look immaculate.

But mostly—he was going to be attending the Yule Ball with Rosaria. And he didn't want her to be embarrassed to be there with him. Not that he thought she would be if he turned up looking like he normally did—but she was easily flustered by attention of any kind, and he didn't want to be more fodder if anyone did decide to be mean to her.

So he waited in the Entrance Hall for Rosaria to appear from the dungeons, dressed in a deep blue robe with the slightest hint of silver threading through it—Slytherin silver. He'd shaved his face (though Gaius had the kind of face where he seemed to have a five-o-clock shadow, even while cleanshaven), and carefully cut his hair into what make pass for an actual style. The solid silver chain from his watch, visible from his pocket, completed the look, making him seem older and giving him more presence than his normally unkempt appearance ever could.

@rosaria
@dusti
@al

[Deleted]

@gaius
@dusti @al

She wasn't late. Rosaria was never late. In fact she had been ready an hour previous. However there was one lesson of edicit taught to her that she could see the value of in this specific situation. A lady should always make a dramatic entrance. While her plan, simply arrive slightly late, would be entierly dissapointing to her family, it seemed to be fitting for her situation.

Her hair lay in gental curls on her shoulders, half up, half down. The whispy fabric of her dress was irridecient in the light of the commonroom, the silver specks showering sparkles across the walls. She checked her reflection one last time then left the comfort of safety. 


The stairs seemed too short, not enough steps between her and him. Between hiding and reality. This ball seemed some sort of crossroads for her. For years, she had been avoiding this, countless encounters avoided. All to end up here, wanting nothing more than to dance with Gaius. Strange how drastically her life had changed. The last step came. Rusti took a breath then turned the corner to where Gaius said he would be waiting for her. Her eyes landed on him and she didn't have to fake a smile. The gesture lit her face up and she glided toward him, her heels clicking against the stone. 


"You look handsome, Gaius." she complimented softly as she approached. He looked like he belonged in this type of event, socializing with important people. A bout of insecurity, not an uncommon occurance, shot through her. But she ignored it. Tonight, she would enjoy. And so she took his arm and smiled up at him. "Thank you for asking me here."

[Deleted]

@gaius && @rosaria && @dusti

the great hall looked very different. he wasn't actually sure if he liked it though. for him it seemed too much but he was more of a simple decor person. though he wasn't going to pay too much attention to things around him in that moment. he had dusti by his side and she looked amazing. she was what he was going to focus on tonight, her eyes, the way she might smile, the little laughs she sometimes did against his neck when they were close and the feeling of her being in his arms. that's what tonight was about. them being together. well it would be, after they spent some time with her sister and gauis. he'd spent more time with rusti than he had gauis, even though they were all in the same year al hadn't really gravitated towards others often. but tonight he would because he knew how much rusti meant to dusti. he squeezed her hand as he spotted the two standing at the bottom of the stairs. he paused though for a second, giving dusti a quick kiss as he reached toward one of the large free standing vases that were lining the hall they were in and he plucked out two of the blue flowers that were poking out of the top as they walked past. "m'lady" he said with a grin as he held one of them out to dusti. when they reached gauis and rusti he came to a stop by them. "fancy meeting you two here" he said, the smile still slightly on his face but not as quick as it had been when he'd smiled at dusti. he twirled the flower in his fingers for a second before holding it out to rusti. "you look beautiful rusti" he said as he wrapped his arm around dusti's waist to hug his girlfriend from the side.

[Deleted]

Dusti rolled her eyes and smiled a little at Albus' flower. He was certainly up for playing the part of gentleman tonight, even though neither of them planned on staying long. No, literally they'd only planned on staying long enough to make sure everyone else knew they'd come, then would probably go somewhere private. Parties, crowds, dancing. It just didn't appeal to Dusti and she loved that Albus was the same.

One person they did need to prove their attendance to was Dusti's identical twin sister. Despite being identical it was always easy to tell Dusti and her sister apart. Even tonight when they were both 'dressed up'. As she spotted her sister not to far away Dusti's smile softened just a touch. Then, to no surprise. Her gaze flickered to Gaius, Head boy and Rusti's date. Her smile vanished temporarily. When she felt Albus' hand at her waist she leaned into him and forced her smile to reappear. "Are you two heading in soon?"

@rosaria
@gaius
@al

[Deleted]

His eyes flickered here and there. It wasn't often that Gaius ever put effort into his appearance, and now that he had, people were noticing and making a big deal out of it. It was obnoxious, and it was not helping his discomfort. There was so much going on tonight that he didn't need attention on top of it. And then there was the fact that he'd be drawing attention, which he'd been trying to avoid doing. He should have realized that he needed to show up looking like he normally did. Stupid of him to—

Oh.

She was here.

She was smiling—her real smile, the one that completely changed the way she looked and could make people stop and stare. And she was smiling at him. Gaius felt his brain stop for just a minute. It was an odd feeling. If someone had lied to him right that instant, he would have agreed with them, because he wouldn't have understood what they said. Her dress flowed with her, silver and blue like his robes, and her hair was done up. Suddenly he was no longer worried about his appearance—he'd made the right call. Probably hadn't done enough, honestly. She'd clearly put in more effort than he had. And he had a feeling his unexpected shave and a haircut wouldn't be nearly out of place now. In fact, he expected more than one person tonight would finally realize that Rosaria Flint was a woman.

It was sobering, because she could easily do better than him. Gaius needed to earn her feelings.

“You look handsome, Gaius. Thank you for asking me here.”

With their arms looped together, he could smell her shampoo. He was only an inch taller than she was, and he found that he liked that they could look each other in the eyes so easily. “You look radiant, Rosaria. I'm glad you accepted.” Gaius reached into his robes and pulled a box from an extended inside pocket. His father would punch him straight in the face for asking a favor from the Headmaster, but luckily his father was simply likely to assume Gaius had purchased the flower outright.

Gaius opened the box, revealing a single moonblossom arrayed around miniature, baby blue roses. A pin for Rosaria. Exposed to the nighttime, the moonblossom opened up and began to glow softly, a tiny source of silvery moonlight. It had been difficult to grow, something he'd started even before Halloween, one of half a dozen ideas he'd had to try and give gifts to Rosaria. He'd mostly abandoned those ideas in favor of his own words and honesty, but moonblossom seeds were expensive, so he had continued to take care of his, since Longbottom had given him one for free. “I thought you'd like one. The moon's kind of shy, but she's most beautiful when she really shows herself, you know?”

He was not going to admit how long he'd been practicing that.

His attention was caught by two more approaching people. Albus Potter and Dusti Flint. Gaius knew before looking that he shouldn't. But he looked anyway as the two newcomers greeted them. And felt his teeth grind on instinct at that fake smile on Dusti's face. I will hold it together. He had to, tonight. If he had to treat this whole dance like a political thing, he would hold himself together. In a way, it was, really. Particularly when his father would drag him off to read situations for him. But he'd just wanted to treat it like a date if he could.

So much for that. As long as Dusti pretended to be okay with this, he was going to be a twitching, angry mess or a stone-cold politcian.

Oh, Merlin.

He turned to Rosaria—and was surprised by the wave of calm that washed back over him. It was enough to let him turn back and greet the two of them. “Evening, Potter, Flint. I was about to ask Rosaria that very question.” He turned back to her and offered a tentative smile. “Would you care to enter?”

Then he added in a low whisper, “I actually had to help set all this up. I worked on the setup and design of the Great Hall and the courtyard. I hope you like them.”

@rosaria
@al
@dusti

[Deleted]

@al
@gaius @dusti

His compliment distracted her for a moment, causing a soft blush to rush to her cheeks. But she caught the glint in his eye again. Rusti decided she loved the look he had on his face. The look of utter amazement. It was probablly her dress, it had been custom made at the insistance of her mother. It didn't matter what it was, she would find out later. Besides, Gaius had pulled a box out of his pocket and it caught her eye immediately. He opened it slowly, as he did, the moonflower inside opened its petals and began to emit a soft glow. Her hand came to her heart as she admired the beautiful flower surrounded by soft blue roses. She had never actually seen a moonblossom before, they were supposed be incredibly rare. And somehow, he had gotten one for her.

"I thought you'd like one. The moon's kind of shy, but she's most beautiful when she really shows herself, you know?" It seemed as if this night was going to be all smiles for Rusti. She felt her lips stretch even farther, finally letting them part just a bit. Despite the many times she had agonized priavetly over Gaius' knowledge of her true self, it was worth it.

"Thank you. I love it." She replied admiring the glowing flower as she pinned it to her dress. As soon as she was done, she laced her arm with his again. He turned to two newcomers and Rusti smiled to see her sister. Gaius however, tensed next to her. Rusti didn't have time to glance at him before Albus twirled a blue flower in his hand and dramatically handed it to Rusti, complimenting her.

Smiling polietely, Rusti accepted he flower with a nod of her head. "Thank you Albus." She said, noticing how the Potter boy pulled her sister close. Those two had become very attached to one another. Dusti posed the question about entering the ball and Gaius, who's mood seemed to have lifted just as quickly as it had fallen turned the question on her. The smile he gave her made her knees go weak and she was thankful that she was holding onto his arm.

"I would love to." came her reply hoping the walk to the doors would steady her balance.

The began the march to the doors, and thankfully her knees became much more stable. As they walked, Gaius leaned down and whispered in her ear abouthe decorations. She turned her head to look at him while they walked, their eyes almost level. "I'm sure it is amazing. I can't wait to see it." she said, her smile shining through her voice.

The distance closed between the two couples and the doors to the great hall. There was a slight creak as the doors opened without prompting revealing the splendor of the great hall. Rusti gasped quietly as she took in the transformation of the familiar room. "You did this?" she asked as she looked around in wonder.