All That Glitters is Not Gold PV Finished

"Dragons! Really?" Ami's eyes were as wide as dinner plates as Scott tried to hastily explain the history behind the trophy to her. He was doing quite a subpar job, but she got the general gist. Scary tasks, an ultimate grand prize, and the marvelous Harry Potter won it all again.

"This Harry Potter dude sounds like quite the catch," she added, only half-joking. "Just- imagine! How many muscles he must have had, to defeat a dragon, plus he had the magical skill to do so... wow. I wonder who he's married to now?" 

But this topic was getting boring. This wasn't Keeping Up With the Kardashians, this was Take a Tour of the Trophy Room with Scott Alexander. "Where to, now?" They had almost taken a full walk around the Trophy Room, and nothing of extreme interest or consequence had happened.

It was most likely leftover adrenaline, if that was even a thing, from the brief fight with Dorian and Eris, but Ami felt every muscle in her body tensed up and ready to explode at something, pummeling her fists at it. Of course, she would never do that to Scott- after all, he had been so good to her for so long. 

But nothing was happening... trophy rooms, it seemed, were ultimately just boring old rooms left over for the old people to relive their glory days, and nothing more.

Scott blushed at her questions, and avoiding her eyes he followed her as she kept walking.

"Yeah, maybe.. um.. That Weasley quidditch player I should think! She's a chaser."

He grinned and wondered if she got that. Either way it wasn't that funny, and he didn't actually know what position Ginerva Potter played.. or if they were still married. Scott should hope so, because he knew for a fact that it was the redhead who was a "catch" in his brother's eyes, and should a divorce be made public then he would most definitely change his five-year plan that instant.. not that Scott could blame him.

"Ben's sort of in love with her, I think. He's got an old Holyhead Harpies poster in his room.. Though don't tell him I said that! I think he's already got a girlfriend. Don't tell him I said that, either.."

"Where to, now?"

"I don't know, feels like we've had our look around. Can you walk better now? Looks like you can, we might even make a case of stairs or two, unless you need to go back and rest?"

Scott studied her up and down, she sure did look like she was in less pain, and not too exhausted.

"There's plenty of places I haven't even really been, too, so this is fun for me as well."

Ben! With a girlfriend! The words, "I want a girlfriend, too," almost slipped out of her mouth, but she had a particular feeling that it wouldn't be all too welcome. They were 12, after all, and were not to be thinking about romantic relationships yet. It would be quite improper to do so.

Ami fidgeted rather uncomfortably as Scott let his eyes examine her, flicking up and down. It reminded her of hospitals, of doctors, which just made her skin crawl. "Stairs!" she cheered brightly, covering it all up, like she always did. "Let's try stairs. I'm probably dumb for doing so, considering that there's a high chance that you could let go at any moment out there, and I could just go tumbling down the stairs... but I'm willing to risk it."

Ah, the beauty of danger. The jolt of adrenaline it sent through the young girl's body, as frail as it was. While she wouldn't notice it, she really was getting stronger. After Mia had shown her the way to the kitchens, she had finally been getting the meals she needs with the nutrients every growing kid needed. While she was still unhealthily thin, it no longer looked like you could knock her over with a feather. She was growing taller (growth spurt season, y'all), and her face no longer looked gaunt and haunted, like it normally did.

Quite the miracle school could do, really.

"Let's hit the ballroom," Ami suggested excitedly, a certain, slightly-terrifying gleam glowing in her eyes. "You know, before I completely collapse of exhaustion... I didn't get to dance at the Blossom Ball, because of that stupid Charles York kid. Fancy a dance?"

“Fancy a dance?”

Scott frowned puzzling, and blushed as they exited the Trophy Room and headed out for the corridors.

“Well..”

There wouldn’t even be any music, he assumed, but that the question had been lighthearted and rhetorical went over his head.

“I suppose.. well! You know, I wasn’t even there for the dance, at all. Now I sort of wish I was, how was it? I don’t know why I hesitated. I like dancing, I really do, and parties too.. what I mean is I’ve never actually been, so the adventure continues.”

The ballroom was only one floor up, he was pretty sure of that. He’d passed it curiously whenever heading for the library, or the rehearsal room. Still, the distance was significant in their situation. He didn’t want to examine Ami again, (he wasn’t the nurse, so what did he know?) but some responsibility was still necessary, he felt.

”You hang on to me, yeah? When we get to the stairs, I mean.. I’d hate to drop you, if you’re going to dance then you’re re going to need your ankles, and if you’re gonna bear with me dancing then you’re gonna need patience. Both of which I hear you can lose quite drastically after tumbling down a case of stairs.”

The Blossom Ball was tough for Ami to relive, for many different reasons. For one, freaking Paracelsus Adger Myth. “I was supposed to go with Lorelai, as friends,” Ami explained, not quite sure it was necessary to give Scott all the details. “She never showed, though, which was a massive bummer, because I really like dancing. After- ”

Her breath hitched just slightly, but... if she couldn’t trust Scott, who could she trust? “After my dad lost his legs,” she spat out quickly, desperately trying not to make a big deal out of it. “Mom still wanted to dance. I... well, I guess I just got dragged along, and ended up learning how to ballroom dance.”

Oh crap. What if he told someone? He couldn’t, she couldn’t live with that right now. “If you tell a single soul what I just told you, I will not hesitate to take all of your chocolate,” she hissed threateningly, glaring harshly at him. “Not even Amadea knows this, not the dancing, not my dad, and she’s like, my best friend.”

As the pair drifted out into the open corridors, Ami couldn’t help but laugh at Scott’s insistence that she hang on to him. “I’ll keep that in mind,” she reassured him, taking a firm hold on his arm like princesses would do before descending down the glamorous stairs to the ball, letting him guide her by the crook of his elbow. What a fabulous promenade it would be!

[ Ami exits to the Ballroom ]

"I'll keep that in mind."

And I'll keep that in mind, thought Scott as the stairs revealed themselves before them, referencing to the threat he'd just received. Of course he wouldn't tell. Wouldn't have occurred to him even if she'd left the last part out.. to be trusted touched him. But what should he say now?

Scott smiled down at her as he was always a step higher up, waiting for her to take one before proceeding. It was slow and probably more careful than necessary, but this wasn't the time to rush off.

"I promise I won't,"

Of course, he could keep the conversation going. But she looked satisfied with having told him for now. Perhaps, if she needed to, he would get to know more later.

"but I am happy you told me."

Looking up and ahead at how the staircases turned and swung around, it always made Scott happy. He squeezed Ami's other shoulder with his free hand as he turned around, and walked up with his back first- facing her.

"Now I sympathise with the having to dance with your mother. My dad doesn't dance the way mother likes it, and she doesn't feel like she can force neither Silas nor Ben to come with her so it's always me. Of course, Silas still does because he's like that- but she says I'm better. You'll see! Even without music, I'll make you forget all about Loo-re-ly."