The Sweetest Downfall

Backfire

So she kept pretending. She kept treating him like she always had, sans the passionate sex and time together that made the stars in the night sky shine with force.

"Why is this even happening to me right now?" Snapping her away from her silent, repetitive musings, Hermione heard Harry's loud, torturous-like groan. "Someone save me."

Hermione was torn between laughing or scolding him as he banged his forehead against the wall they were standing by. "Hush now, Savior; you've got to be at your best." Finally decided, she grabbed the back of his black blazer to stop him from another one of his forehead thumps. "This is the annual Remembrance Ball and you're Harry Potter. You have a duty to the people of the Wizardying World and the war's survivors."

Harry turned, his face grimacing like he was in dire pain. "You and Ron were there, too. You both played an important part in ending the war. Why can't either of you do this blasted speech? I don't even need to be here."

"I'm not doing your homework for you, Harry," the brunette scolded.

"Of course you would look at it like that," her best friend huffed in return.

Hermione gave him a parental scowl, but still laced her arm through his like she did so many times when they were in school, walking through the grounds on the rare times they had nothing to worry about. She squeezed his hand, looking up to give him a reassuring smile as she navigated them through the large hall where the Remembrance Ball was taking place.

The ballroom was quite a spectacular sight. It was large enough to hold the four hundred attendees, plus the orchestral group that was set up at the end where the stage was with their shiny instruments. The hall itself was breathtaking; the white, marble walls were all-around detailed with thick, smooth gold detail from the bottom and to the beginnings of the ceiling. The thick gold was arched over the windows, on the linings of the doors, and even in the little crevices of the walls that people hardly noticed. This golden detail came in form of flower patterns, vines, leaves, simple arches, crowns, lions, and even scantily robed Angel figures. The gold accentuated everything, captivating all eyes, tempting and creating the deepest urges to run fingers over the detail. As exquisite as the walls of the ballroom was, the ceiling was a masterpiece of its own, too. It resembled in every way possible the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, which doned famous paintings from the like of Michelangelo.

As if not to interfere with the grandness of the ballroom, the decorations were simple. All the rectangle tables, strategically placed throughout the hall, were adorned with white, beige, and the lightest of gold-colored cloths. Three small, branchy trees were placed on every single table for decoration. These dainty trees held repetitive flowers that held their own language: burgundy nasturtiums to represent victory in battle; yellow zinnias for remembrance; glowing, white orchids for love; and red roses for respect. Little balls of light were ignited throughout the branches to light everything up.

"Oh, good, you found him." Hermione stopped her and Harry's path when she found a small group of familiar redheads and her date. Mrs. Weasley, Harry's mother-in-law and somewhat of an adoptive-mother figure, rushed over to him with a scolding look of her own. She finger-combed his unruly hair, trying to get it into place as best as she could, and then she adjusted his clothes and fixed his black tie.

The people in the background laughed at Mrs. Weasley's fuss, but Ginny was the only one who looked annoyed by it. Her mother seemed to forget quite often that none of them were children, they could take care of themselves well enough. Not to mention that her mother's worry made Ginny feel like she was lacking in her wifely duties.

"All right, Mum, that's enough," Ginny cut in, respectfully motioning her mother to back away. "He does this every year, it's fine. Now," she turned her gaze onto her husband, "you have to get ready. Your speech is scheduled to start in ten minutes."