Chloe walked through the ball on the arm of Heinrich, her Durmstrang champion. She smiled brightly up at him, as they walked. "They really wanted to make this fabulous. And I think they accomplished that." She said, looking at the beautiful decorations. Her mind had solely been on her and Heinrich the entire night. Her thoughts didn't stray to Rohan or Rod or even Mason and Thea. It was only on her and him. The best couple at Hogwarts.

"Have I told you lately how lucky I am to have you?" She asked adoringly. "Because I am so lucky. The luckiest girl here."

"The luck, the honour and the delight are entirely mine, Liebchen,"  Heinrich replied, placing a lingering kiss on her hand.  "To be here with you now is nothing short of magical." His statement was a a little on the purple side but he wasn't at the top of his game.  He had a number of things on his mind. 

He hadn't resolved things with Rohan. 

He wasn't certain that he would be returning after the break with the rest of the Durmstrang contingent, especially after being dragged before his headmaster after the first part of the duel.

Being with Chloe was a welcome break from his troubles but even then there were issues.  Traditionally the men in his family married Muggles.  Was Chloe Muggle enough to meet muster or was she going to be forever the outsider with the Fausts, a witch among the wives?

And when exactly had he started thinking about whether marrying her would be a problem?

"Have I told you how beautiful your dress is?" he asked.

Chloe blushed. "Heinrich," She started, a smile spreading across her face. "I don't know where I'd be without you." She said. Chloe straightened her dress, fixing the skirt of the blue fabric. She placed another hand on his arm, and looked up at him. She wondered about how they were going to make the winter break work. She didn't want to see how her brothers would react to a wizard from a different country. Knowing them... And the cricket bats....

Needless to say, it wouldn't end well.

"Bingo,"  Rohan said quietly when he saw Harris at last.  It had taken a while to find her due to a combination of her height and his height.  Due to this,  he had initially sought out Heinrich, figuring he was at least a little taller than her.  Graham tentatively pulled his wand from his pocket, twirling it in his fingers while he thought of the right spell.

  When he had a clear shot at Chloe's back, he casted a non-verbal diffindo,_{Cutting spell} hoping that no one had noticed the brief flash of white light his wand emitted.  He hung around for a little, wanting to see the outcome of his actions.

Chloe then felt her dress split down the back. Her eyes went big at the horror, knowing now that her entire backside was bare. The only thing separating her completely was her bra and her underwear. "Ohmygod, ohmygod, my dress. Heinrich. My dress is all ripped!" She said in something slightly louder than a whisper. She tried desperately to cover up her backside, but the dress had been a tighter fitting dress. The fabric did not want to be held.

Her face went bright red, as she started to think about how this must appear. She wasn't even looking for who had sliced the dress. All she knew was that it had to have been a spell. Her back wasn't cut at all, just the dress. And she would have felt the knife if it was a knife.

Rohan grinned, watching Chloe desperately try to fix the problem he made.  When he realized Chloe had turned to talk to Heinrich, he aimed another cut right down the front, crouching down so he'd be less noticeable.  The moment Heinrich started to look for him, he'd leave the great hall and take the action upstairs so no professors caught them. 

when she had turned, the dress was then split again down the front. She squealed as she then tried to cover up. It was like she was wearing a robe. Not even a robe anymore. She tried to cover up anything she could, feeling utterly miserable. Her face had never been redder. There was pounding in her ears. Things slowed down. Her eyes started to water. People were starting to notice. Some started to snicker.

She didn't know what to do. Or what to say. She just tried to keep covering herself up.

"Protego Duo!"

The shielding spell surrounded them.  The sudden disintegration of the seams of Chloe's dress could be nothing other that a tasteless joke.  "Take this," Heinrich said, throwing off his own dress robes and wrapping them around her.  Even in nothing but his underwear, he was wearing far more than Zoe and it would certainly be less embarrassing for him than it clearly was for her. 

"My spell will keep us safe for a minute or two.  I'll conjure a quick robe to wear while you see if your dress is fixable."  Heinrich wrapped his arms around Chloe, trying to give her some measure of comfort.  It was hard to do with his back to the crowd.  Whoever was picking on Chloe would have a clear shot at him as soon as his shield went down.  He could hear the whispered comments and the snickers.  He just hoped Chloe hadn't been too exposed.

"It looks like Hogwart's is full of misogynistic cowards.  The staff her doesn't seem to have any ability to enforce discipline." 

That brought a whole new round of comments, none of which seeming to show any agreement with Heinrich's opinion.

"Hey! Faust!"  Rohan yelled in an American accent to disguise his identity, feeling a little like Batman,who talked  like he had a frog in his throat so no one discovered he was Bruce Wayne.  He then promptly turned, looking for the exit.  His shoes clicked on the ground as  he sprinted to escape the great hall.  He ran like an idiot, unsure if Faust knew his style.

 He figured a bit more antagonizing was necessary, and wanted no staff interference whatsoever.  Rohan  figured he could simply lead Heinrich around the school if Faust followed and elude him before he was caught.

Chloe watched as Heinrich threw up the shield, and she collapsed into tears. "I, I just don't get it anymore!" She said loudly, crying into her hands. "Why does this keep happening to me? What I have I even done wrong?" She asked, crying. Heinrich handed her his dress robes, and she slipped them on. She loved his hugs. They were the one thing that could calm her at anytime.

"My dress is ruined. Completely." She held up the two strips of fabric, that was once her blue dress, with a sad smile on her face. "I have an extra one up in my room though. My mom bought me one. It's hideous, but I have it." Chloe said. "I'll be right back, okay?" She smiled a little.

Heinrich turned when his name was called and watched Rohan run out of the Great Hall.

He used Chloe as bait.  Even now, he's still using her.  He doesn't know me very well if he thinks I'm going to chase him into some kind of trap.

"You go get changed, Liebchen,"  Heinrich said, giving Chloe a soft kiss on the forehead.  "Just remember to bring my robes back with you."  He gestured to the conjured robes he was wearing.  "I'm not exactly what you'd call a fashion designer and this isn't really appropriate for a Yule Ball.  Lounging after a shower perhaps but not a Ball."

Once she's gone I'll need to find her friend Morgan.  No, Mason.  His name is Mason.  If Rohan thinks he can lure me into a trap, I wonder what he's going to do when he finds himself double teamed?

Chloe nodded, sniffing, before hugging him once more. He acted on impulse to put her above himself. In that last minute, Chloe had seen why they were such a good couple. He really just wanted to make sure she was okay before himself. He kissed her on her forehead, and then she turned, walking briskly through the ball, her first dress in rags and in her hand, and knowing her second one was upstairs.

Chloe hurried up the stairs to Ravenclaw tower, which she saw empty. No surprise. Everyone was at the ball. Chloe went to her closet, where she pulled out the gift her mother had sent her when Chloe let it slip she had to go to a dance. It was bright. Bright pink. Nauseatingly pink.

Chloe slipped out of Heinrich's robes, putting on the pink dress which made her hips look huge. She took down her hair, and put on bigger pearls. Mom had even slipped in a little bag to wear on her wrist. In there, Chloe put her wand, which she didn't have with her before. Chloe then folded the robes, and started down the stairs back to the dance...

..In her bright pink dress.

It didn't take Heinrich long to find Mason.  "We have a job to do,"  the German boy said.  "Rohan just pulled a nasty prank on Chloe and ducked out the door, after making sure I saw him.  Can I interest you in helping me track him down and teaching him a lesson?"

His tone was calm and casual but there was real anger visible in his features.  Rohan had crossed the line once too often and now Heinrich was going to make sure he paid.  He fully intended to make the price high enough that Rohan would think twice before he decided to bully anyone ever again.

Mason had been pulled a side by Heinrich, the exact person he was looking for. "I'd be more than interested Faust, he's been up to tons of dirty tricks tonight. I just want him to stop before he ruins anything else for Chloe and the rest of the Ball." Mason said, putting his hands in his pockets.

"He probably went to hide in the dormitories." Mason looked up towards to direction of the entrance, and saw Chloe in the ugliest dress he'd ever seen. It had her mother written all over it. "Oh, that woman is horrid." Mason said, staring, then thinking better of it, looked at his shoes instead.

Chloe came back to the party, and walking slowly, dreading every step. She saw Mason and Heinrich standing together, socializing. With Heinrich's robes in hand, she approached them, a sad smile on her face. She hated the dress. But had no other options. She was lucky this was even an option. "I, uh, brought your robes back," she said, holding out Heinrich's clothes. "Thanks. I really needed them." She said.

She smiled the sad smile at Mason. "Hey. You look nice." She complemented, fixing her hair. She felt so self conscious in the dress. "I, uh, think I'm going to grab some punch. Maybe." She said, holding one arm straight down and the other crooked, holding on to it's elbow.