"Ouch you are pulling my hair too tight Taia!" Imelda shrieked In front of you as you brushed her hair in an updo.
"There is a saying that goes by 'beauty is pain' so you must endure, otherwise your hair will fall off no sooner than the ball starts" you rolled your eyes when she yelped again, trying your best to be as gentle as possible in this situation.
"I have never heard of that saying before, uph...when will you get ready? Don't you want me to do your hair for you?" The excitement in her voice told you just how much she was loving this little bonding time you were spending together, you hummed softly continuing to put an unholy amount of pins in her chestnut hair.
Once Imelda found out you were attending the ball as well, she would not stop pestering you about getting ready together since. Something about spending quality family time with each other. You smiled warmly at this foreign feeling of having a close kin other than Ella, after all you had no more family members to call your own. But that all changed after finding out about Dante and Imelda, life has been more exciting than before. You had created such a strong bond with the pair that felt almost unreal, there were long nights of laughter and banter and getting to know one another, there were also nights where you had sleep over at Ominis's dorm room until the sun rose outside and Sebastian would complain all night long about how loud the lot of you were, accompanied by non other than Ominis of course.
The once distant cold Gaunt had grown closer to them, him and Dante were spending an awful lot of time with each other as of late, doing homework or even practicing flying much to Ominis's dismay. It made you happy to know that he finally found happiness with you and your family, and he did not need to be reminded of his once disgraceful heritage.
"Taia? Did you hear me? Your doing that thing with your eyes when you are thinking hard about something" Imelda's voice pulled you out of the trance of thought you had plagued your mind with. her hazel brown eyes meeting those of yours in the mirror that faced her, you glanced up from her hair and nodded.
"I'm sorry I got lost in thoughts there, oh Ominis said he likes my hair down so I'm just going to brush it and leave it at that" you finished up at the same time as your hands came to a stop. A satisfying grin graced your features when you took a look at the masterpiece your hands had laid upon Imelda's hair.
"What? Do I look wired?" She asked in a panic about to reach for her hair when you swatted her hand away and glared back at her making her shoulders slump in defeat.
"Don't touch it you will ruin it!" Your scolding voice came out a bit harsher than you had anticipated worried that she may mess it up before the ball had even began.
Her eyes lingered on her reflection in the mirror for a tad too long, almost lost in the intricate details her brown locks were held up with. Her smile widened when she was done examining her hair completely, then turned slowly to you her pupils dilated with much happiness as she beamed brightly at you.
"I love it! Goodness this is the best my hair has ever looked! I can't believe you pulled this off! How did you learn how to do this!" She asked as she got up and started getting dressed in her dress, the dar
You contemplated telling her the truth, knowing full well if you were to divulge information about how you used to do Ella's hair, she would definitely ask you about your sister and her whereabouts.
You shifted uncomfortably in your stance and turned around so her expectant eyes doesn't catch you in the lie you were about to perform.
"Oh I used to play dress up with my friends growing up all the time" the words left your mouth in haste almost disgusted at the fact that you had to lie to your cousin about such trivial matters.
Thankfully Imelda was to engrossed in getting ready that she didn't sense the disturbed tone your words had lingered in the echo of the room.
"Oh that's pretty nice, my mom didn't have many friends while I was growing up, so we didnt have anyone to play with. It was mostly me and Dante really, we were not allowed to mingle with other kids that were not pure bloods or even muggles" she spoke with a sad tone probably reflecting on the memories of her childhood.
"That seems to be the case with most pure bloods here. They act as if muggles were a disease of some sort, it's disturbing!" You finished uncomfortably as you had come across so many of them at school which made you disgusted.
She nodded her head in agreement, she had seen you stand up for the weak all the times which resulted in a lot of purebloods hating you. most obviously Marvolo Gaunt, he would do it on purpose! lurking about the corners waiting on you to be alone just so he could pick a bone with you. For someone who was about to graduate he grantedly was childish and immature.
"Here let me help you zip up your dress, that's the least I can do" Imelda walked over to you helping you into your beautiful blue gown. admiring the details of the lace that hugged at your sleeves and the flowery silk that danced around your hips and ankles.
"Thank you" you watched the dress get tighter around your chest and waist as she zipped it up around you, wishing Ominis could see you in this beautiful piece of art and tell you how beautiful you looked, but that was not possible not tonight at least.
"It was really nice of your grandfather to send you this dress in such short notice, he must truly cherish you. Say, is he a nice person or is he as scary as everyone else makes him to be?" Imelda asked before taking the brush off the table and sitting you down on the chair, getting you ready to the party yourself.
You closed your eyes as the brush slipped between the hair strands that were flowing with each flick, the sensation relaxing you almost instantly as it repeated over and over.
"He is nice to me, he is also nice to the help at the mansion. But he can be scary too when he wants to be! He tried to scare off Ominis when he met him for the first time, but after a deep conversation between the both of them he eased up to him" you giggled remembering the dinner you had went to and how nervous you both were about getting his approval.
"I do have to say I was also surprised that he accepted him. The Gaunts have a um, I'm sorry nevermind" she hesitated to speak, worried about saying something that will soil this nice evening, the candle flickered in the room loudly as the awkward silence has settled between you.
"It's alright I know what you want to say. Their reputation precedes them anyway, but Ominis is not like that. He is just Ominis to me, he is the man I love and chose to be with" you said opening your eyes and turning around to face her.
She nodded her head and smiled warmly at you.
"I know Taia, he is my friend now, and he makes you happy. That's all I could ever ask for my amazing cousin" she said sitting down the brush on the table and ushering you to stand up.
"Thank you Imelda, you look beautiful. I guess green really is your color huh? I'd say a dress looks better on you than those quidditch uniforms" you joked watching her face split in disgust at the reminder that quidditch is cancelled thanks to her mother.
"Ah please I would take my quidditch outfit over this dress any day if it meant I could play again" she shook her head and walked over to the door opening it fast, a reminder that the ball was soon to start and that your dates were waiting on up on you.
"I have to say I'm still surprised you are going to the ball with the Gryffindor seeker. I would have presumed you hated their guts" the teasing words only ignited her excitement furthermore. any topic revolving around quidditch made Imelda all but fired up.
She turned around fast with a blush dusting her cheeks, her once tan ears poking red from underneath her hair strands
"Um he asked me out and well, you know outside of the field he is not that bad..." she stammered with her words almost embarrassed at her own actions from times before with the Gryffindor team. Imelda was never the sweetest or nicest when it came to her rivals, so it was a surprise to everyone when she accepted his invitation to the Yule ball. Even Ominis couldn't believe it and he had never even witnessed her wild and fussy attitude on the quidditch field.
"I should feel more surprised you had decided to go with Ominis, you said you hated those type of events and yet one word from him got you to change your mind. What made him want to come?" She asked as the both of you left the dorm room and started heading out into the common room.
Your heels clicked on the metal floor underneath your legs. The Subject lingering in the air after you heard her question a tad too long. You did not know why Ominis wanted to go the ball, you had convinced yourself with many different answers in your head to that question, disregarding the fact that you never even asked him.
"I honestly don't know Imelda.." was all you could muster to respond. making her halt in her steps in shortly. She turned around and faced you attempting to open her mouth and protest about your short information but stopped soon after she saw the lost look on your face.
She cleared her throat and shook her head.
"Let's just enjoy tonight, it's our first ball together!" She smiled taking your hand and dragging you out of the rusty old Slytherin hallways.
You laughed wholeheartedly, you knew deep down that she was trying to make you forget about everything else. She was never good at showing her real feelings just like her brother, thus she wore her heart on her sleeve whenever she was with you.
The walk to the great hall was cold having to walk in the snowy cold weather from the slytherin room to the hall was making your body shiver uncontrollably.
"Perhaps it would have been better to grab a coat or a sweater with us huh?" Imelda asked watching you hug yourself in order to maintain some bit of warmth from seeping out of your body.
"True. though, we could always use the floo flames too, but someone doesn't want their dress to get dirty from the ash" You said rolling your eyes at her shifty eyes as they tried to avoid yours.
"Sorry! But I can't afford to look like a mess right now. you already have a fiance I'm still single" She walked closer to you trying to warm you up with her presence.
"You may not be saying that after tonight though" You joked as you watched her blush again.
"Well we are here, where are they?" She asked taking a look at the hoard of students that were either waiting on their dates outside the great hall doors or already swooning and gushing on their dates that had already showed up.
Your eyes darted around the room looking for the blond head you were desperate to see, although it did not take long for you to spot him. no matter where you were your eyes would always be attracted to him, he was the first person to catch your eyes and in a split second, as if his senses were addicted to the smell of you, to the presence of you, his body turned in a swift motion towards you. Lips wide with a proud smile that no one else could match or even hope to accomplish.
No one else in the room could possibly understand the way you felt about each other, the strong bond you two share could never be altered or broken. All the worries, the fears go away when he is there, and that was all you needed.
Ominis made his way over to you eager to hold you close to him once more, eager to show everyone here who you truly belonged to. Long gone were the days he would retain his gentleman act, or the sophisticated classy pure blood sharade. the crazy need to display his dominance over you has overtaken him by madness. You drove him insane, and he was never ever one to show how he really felt until he met you, until he fell hard. and that's when it hit him that you had truly bewitched him.
"You look absolutely stunning" He whispered his hand finding its rightful place around the slim of your waist. holding you closer to his body furthermore when he felt you shivering in his touch.
"Oh, and how would you know that?" You leaned in your forehead resting it on the side of his head as you drunkenly soaked in his cologne that was overwhelming your senses from devouring his neck and lips in front of the whole school.
"I don't need sight to know how beautiful my lady looks, I can hear it clearly with the whispers of the males around us, a bit unsettling to say the least. But at least I get to know I have the most beautiful girl as my date" He whispered leaning in your side a bit more closer than what was socially accepted in such a public event.
You hummed surrendering your whole body to him in an instant, letting his hands roam the fabric and details of your dress.
The gentle brush of his fingers against the fabric of your dress sent shivers down your spine. It was a sensual dance, a dance of desire and curiosity. You could feel the warmth of his touch, as if it were an intimate caress, igniting a fire within you.
His fingers traced the intricate details of the fabric, exploring the texture and contours of the dress, capturing the essence of its allure. With each stroke, you could feel his desire to know, to sense, to envision the beauty that lay hidden beneath. a beauty he knew all too well as his hands had already memorised the crevasses of the sensitive skin his hands were used to mark.
His touch was gentle yet firm, exploring every curve and contour with unwavering determination. You could feel the fabric of your dress dancing against his fingertips, igniting a spark of arousal within you. It was as if he was trying to paint a picture with his fingers, a sensual masterpiece that transcended the limitations of sight.
"Ominis.." You dared to interrupt, yet his hands showed no signs of stopping, his lips made no attempt to break the concentration of the picture he was painting in his mind.
You could feel the intensity he absorbed with every sensation, every nuance, every curve of your dress. It was as if he was creating a mental image of his own, a tapestry of desire and imagination.
With every touch, you felt a deeper connection to him, a connection that transcended the boundaries of sight. In that moment, time seemed to stand still. The world outside ceased to exist, and all that mattered was the intensity of his touch, the warmth that radiated from his fingertips, and the whispered promises of pleasure that danced in the air.
All you wanted to do at this exact moment was to grab his hand and drag him back to the room of requirements to show him what truly laid beyond the thin fabric that seperated your body from his.
Your breathing came out in shallow breaths as the words fought he desires he had openly ignited inside of your body.
"Ominis please" You pleaded your voice was strained from the mixture of need and restrain your mind and body were fighting over to take.
"Hm? please what?" He smirked feeling how tense your body had become in such a short moment. His hand settled at your back, pulling you flush against him to show you how much he needed you as well, and to hide his erection from the prying eyes that were still lingering up on the both of you.
"You know what you are doing, Do I really need to ask?" you whined before resting your hands on his chest, feeling the thumping heart beat that danced wildly under your touch.
"I was simply feeling the dress for a better sense of how you look like, I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean" He teased with a warm smile, his thumb rubbing slow circles on the small of your back.
"You seriously-" You were about to start when a voice interrupted the two of you.
"Ah there you are! I was looking all over the place for you, you disappeared all of a sudden!! I should have known you couldn't keep your hands off of her, You look beautiful Taia, truly wonderful" Dante's voice came out loud enough for you to hear over the commotion of the other students. His beaming smile grew once he saw you flush of embarrassment at the realization that he witnessed what Ominis was doing.
"Sorry, I couldn't wait longer when I felt her presence in the room, I had to go get her" Ominis apologized stepping away from you but never letting go of your waist.
"It's alright, I'm sure everyone else could see that" He smirked watching your already rosy cheeks turn a deep shade of red. He snickered softly and tried to cover his mouth with a fake cough.
Ominis smirked proudly not shying away from what he had done, instead wearing it bravely on his face. His motives were only met halfway though, he had yet to set the picture straight as ironically as it sounded.
"Where is your date Dante? I heard you asked Everette to the ball but I didn't see her in the dorm room all day?" you asked trying to change the subject and deflect it on something else or rather someone else.
"She and Marvolo got into it this morning, And that jerk hexed her!! she is in the hospital wing recovering, but she told me to go have fun anyways. I plan to stay for a little bit and then go back. after I grab her some snacks of course" He said the anger in his voice vividly clear at the obnoxious Gaunt's actions. He had been running wild in the school lately, and It was stressing a lot of people out.
Ominis's face split in disgust at the unfortunate asshole he had to call a brother. His hand balled up in a fist, anger evident on his once handsome calm features. You and Dante noticed the shift in his aura and almost immediately jumped the gun to calm him before he started apologizing for him like he always did.
'It's not your fault' or 'He has nothing to do with you' or even 'You don't need to apologize on his behalf just because he is your brother' were some of the words that fell on the ears of the nice Gaunt that had to shoulder the reputation of his lineage.
"I'm sure she will be fine though right Taia? Everette is strong, once I get her back the snacks she will be all good!" Dante's rapid words came firing right in time before Ominis even tried to say anything, dismissing any attempt from the blond to apologize.
You smiled and turned to Ominis with a happy voice "Yes she is a strong girl! So lets do as she said and enjoy the ball! Come on Ominis you owe me a dance" You took his hand in yours unraveling the stress he had bestowed upon his fist, and started walking to the door.
He followed suit with Dante on your tracks, Imelda had already went inside with her date.
"Taia I sincerely-" he started but you cut him off eyes looking forward and head strong and steady.
"No, I won't allow you to keep apologizing on his behalf. Not tonight, not tomorrow and not anymore. I'm your family now, my family loves and adores you, so you need not apologize for someone who is only related to you by name. Tonight you are Ominis just Ominis, and we are going to have fun!" You said dragging him inside the hall, not letting him even respond when all of a sudden you took him by surprise and dragged him to the dance floor before he could even think to reply.
His smile was more than worthy enough for you to know he was thankful for your words, thankful that he had met a soul, who could understand and love him as unconditionally as you did.
Thank you to the AMAZING artist Puridew for this amazing commision you truly captured the moment.
A new chapter will be out tomorrow :) are you ready??? 😁