The Arrangement: Theo Nott Short Story

Chapter 8 - The Moment They Knew

It was still on the hanger and she found herself questioning if she could pull it off. It was a Parkinson design and they assured her that it would compliment her in the best way. However it wasn't normal attire for her. 

It was black in color, the whole thing sparkled with black glitter. The straps were thin and the neckline plunged down, exposing her chest. She wasn't worried about the slit up the side, it was more about the open back. It stopped right before her underwear, leaving her skin exposed completely. 

Pansy entered without knocking and Kat gave her a look of 'really?' However, the raven hair witch waved her off and brought her attention to the dress. "What bothers you about it?" Pansy asked, seeming genuinely concerned with her comfort.

She took a deep breath, "I can't pull something like that off Pans." She said, looking down at the marble flooring of the bathroom. "Everyone will know that I'm pretending."

"That's the thing Kat, you're not pretending. This is who you are now, the both of you." She walked over, picking up the dress and walking back to Kat. Unzipping the expensive fabric and helping it over her head. She tried to protest but Pansy shushed her. 

The fabric hugged her body as Pansy zipped up the back. They stood there staring in the mirror together. Pansy held her shoulders with both hands, placing her chin on her shoulder and smiling at their reflection. 

"Listen, I know most of us were horrible in school. I said cruel things to you and for that, I am so sorry. I didn't realize how much damaged I would cause at the time. We all thought we had it figured out and we were doing everything we could to keep our parents proud." 

"Pans-"

"Let me finish." She scolded. "We were wrong. I know their are people here that will think less of you, even some that will still be cruel." She squeezed her shoulders before finishing. "So we are going to go out there and show the world how amazing Katherine Nott is, Arrangement Law or not." 

Kat felt tears prickle her eyes but she fanned her face to prevent them from falling. The girls laughed as Astoria entered the bathroom, her eyes wide. A smile broke across her face before she squealed. "Theo's going to blow a fuse!" She shouted. 

A knock at the door caused them to look up. Platinum blonde hair entered the room, his hand over his eyes just incase. "Is everyone dressed?" He said, holding out his other hand and waving it around in front of him. 

"No, we're embracing the nude together." Pansy said, sarcasm dripping from her voice. Draco dropped his hand with wide eyes, his shoulders slumping when he realized Pansy was lying.

"Draco!" Astoria cackled, almost doubling over in laughter. 

"I'm a man, what did you expect?" He said, walking toward Astoria. His arm found her waist as he pressed a kiss to her temple. "You look so beautiful." He whispered privately, making Astoria blush. 

"I have something for Kat, we'll just be a moment." The girls nodded and left the room. Kat looked up at Draco, a small smile reaching her lips. "You must feel terrible, yes?" He asked. 

She looked at him with furrowed brows, "I'm sorry?"

"Well, you're going to break all the single hearts tonight so I figured you would feel bad about it." He smirked, sending her a friendly wink. "Theo asked me to give you something. I wasn't allowed to look at it."

She laughed and took the velvet box from his hands lightly. The box creaked just like the other one did when Theo had given her his mother's ring. A dainty diamond necklace was stretched out in the box. Diamonds lined the entire necklace, sure enough to hug her neck nicely.