Fine Line || Ron Weasley

Chapter 21

Today was the day of Slughorn's Christmas party. This was a celebration that Slughorn threw for his favorite students, AKA: The slug club. This was a tough place to be invited to, luckily Isabelle's invitation arrived right at her door.

She was excited, knowing it was an exclusive place to go. She was trying to be nicer to students, so this was the perfect place. She even practiced her smile; not too much lip, just the perfect amount of teeth.

Her and Blaise were going together since they were both invited. She tried to get Pansy to go with her, but she refused to be part of it. She doesn't like Slughorn since he didn't send her an invitation.

Isabelle had the perfect dress to wear. It was dark and fit like a glove. She twirled in the mirror, even if it wasn't puffy and it didn't move. Her shoes were sparkly,making her smile every time she looked at them. Her hair was in a loose ponytail, since she wanted people to notice her smile.

She went down to the common room, a smiling Blaise holding a bouquet. A blush rose to her cheeks. "Thank you, Blaise."

He extended his arm for her to grab. "You look beautiful. The dress is stunning." Blaise complemented.

"Thank you." She said while walking out with him. They walked hand in hand through the hallways, until she had the motivation to speak up. "I appreciate you taking me to the party.I know that you would've rather come with someone else."

Blaise shook his head in disbelief. "You know that's not true." He grunted in reaction to his words. "I've fancied you since the first day." He said calmly.

Isabelle stopped in her tracks, letting go of his arm. She didn't even know what to say. She was honestly shocked by the confession. They had chemistry, but nothing serious. She felt horrible for what she was about to say.

"Do you really?" She questioned because maybe she heard wrong. But the nod Blaise did confirmed it. She started getting anxious. "I don't think my cousin would approve of us being together."

Blaise smirked at her. "I thought you didn't care about what your cousin thought." He spoke. "You go against all his wishes anyways. What's one more?"

"I just don't want to make him angrier. " Isabelle backed away slowly. "I have to go." She turned and walked towards the party. Maybe some champagne would make her forget about this.

The room was crowded with students and servers, who were also students. Neville Longbottom was working, so she called him over. "Hello, Neville. Do you have something to calm the nerves?"

He shook his head. "If it's alcohol you're asking for, Isabelle, then no. But I heard that Mclaggen has a special treat if you pay him."

"Thank you." Isabelle smiled at the boy, he smiled back.

There was no way she was paying Cormac for a shot of alcohol, so she just had to avoid Blaise for the whole night. She obviously didn't want to hurt him, but after hearing his words there was no way she could look him in the eyes. If Pansy had come with her, this would have been avoided. Draco would probably find out and want to speak to her.

Suddenly her ponytail felt too tight and her dress was scratchy. After an hour she would leave because she didn't feel like going to a party tonight.

A commotion was taking place in the middle of the room. Some voices screaming, peaking Isabelle's interest. She walked towards the chaos, only to be met with her cousin being escorted out of there.

She turned to the person directly to her left without looking at them. "What's wrong with Draco?"

The person spoke, the voice was familiar. It was Harry Potter. "He was trying to sneak in here. Do you know if he's up to something?"

"No." Isabelle replied, dryer than when she asked the question. When she went to look at Harry again, he was gone heading for the door. She obviously followed him, just to find him against a wall, eavesdropping on Snape and Draco. "What are they saying?"

"If you lower your voice I can hear them." He whispered to her, making sure they weren't caught eavesdropping.

They both stood quietly by the wall. She heard something about protecting, but Harry's breathing made it hard to listen. When they were sure Draco was gone, they started walking back together.

"You know, Isabelle, I think that Hogwarts has done good for you." Harry said randomly. "You are less guarded than when you started."

"You wouldn't know. We haven't spoken." She shot back. "Besides, you are the most guarded person here."

He shrugged. "Fighting Voldemort since you were a baby does that to you."

Isabelle flinched at the words. "How are you planning on taking him down? Can you even defeat him? Because Draco told me about Diggory."

"I wasn't prepared then." He spoke, almost a whisper. The memory of Cedric hurt him. "Now, I am ready for him."

She noticed the way his eyes hardened at the name. "I'm sorry for bringing him up. I didn't know it affected you this much."

Harry shook his head. "It's fine."

They both were silent, waiting for the other to say something. This was the first time they talked. They were both broken, in different ways, but broken. They were similar, but in different ways.

"This is the first full conversation I've had with you." Isabelle broke the silence. "I spoke with Hermione the other day and she's pretty nice."

"We don't have the same world." He replied. "Plus you are usually with Pansy and Blaise."

She chuckled at the words. "I probably won't be with them anymore."

Harry lifted his eyebrows, his scar crinkled. Isabelle had never looked at the iconic scar that sat on his forehead. It looked like a normal piece of skin. She knew how powerful it was. That scar was even more famous than the one that made it.

"Why do you say that?"

"Blaise likes me and I don't like him back." She explained. "Pansy will probably hate me for saying no to him."

"Being mugged off feels horrible, but that's no reason to stop being friends with someone." He assured her. "You just have to let him get over the embarrassment. He has 10 other girls after him; he can find a new crush."

"I hope so."

Harry looked at a watch that sat on his left hand. He cringed at the time. "Slughorn is probably looking for us. We should go back."

Harry was right, Slughorn was looking for him. Not Isabelle, though. Obviously the teacher had more to gain from Harry, not the daughter of a death eater.