Friendship on Fire (A Harry Potter Next Generation/Heart Scar series book)

The Yule Ball

The Yule Ball

            Christmas came faster than I wanted to and everyone was running around getting ready for the ball. The Great Hall had been closed all day to convert it for the ball so the House Elves brought food to each houses common room. Everyone in Gryffindor gathered there for breakfast and opened up gifts that morning together. I was still ignoring Max and he had actually stopped trying to get me to talk to him. That was a relief but also worried me that because of me, we wouldn’t be how I wanted us to be.

            I sat in my dorm room and watched Melinda, Rebecca, Lena, Hannah, and Taylor rush around the room fixing their hair and doing their makeup. I was just leaving my hair down straight and I had put on some eyeliner and called it good. There was still an hour and a half before the ball started and figured I’d get my dress on fifteen minutes before I left. Darren was meeting me right outside the Fat Lady painting at eight thirty and the ball started at nine. Melinda looked at me quickly with her hair curled around her face and her makeup done beautifully.

            “How do I look?” She asked with a nervous tone.

            “Beautiful, Mel. Fred will love you.” I told her.

            She grinned and said, “You think?”

            I nodded. “I know.”

            She plopped down on my bed looked into my eyes. “Are you going to get ready?”

            “I am ready. Other than the dress, that is. I’m saving that for before I leave.”

            “So you’re going for the natural look. Suits you.” She smiled.

            “Thanks.” I smiled back.

            Forty five minutes later, I got on my dress and heels and looked at myself in the mirror. I looked good, I guessed, but it wasn’t gonna get better by now. Melinda and our roommates said I looked beautiful and I said the same to them because they really did. We walked down to the common room together and the first person I saw was Max standing there in his dress robes. Great. He looked handsome. That’s just what I needed. His eyes grazed over my body before he met my eyes. He bit his lip and I took a deep breath before finishing walking into the common room and saw Fred and Teddy there too.

            “You girls look great.” Teddy commented.

            “Thanks.” Melinda smiled and looked at Fred; who was practically drooling as he looked at Melinda. “What do you think, Fred?”

            He snapped out of his fantasies and said, “You look amazing. Just… wow.”

            “Thanks.” She grinned more. “Shall we go?”

            “We shall.” He took her hand and they headed out of the common room.

            I followed them and right outside the door, Darren was waiting there in his dress robes. He looked good in them and I smiled as I saw him and he smiled back. “Paige, you look amazing.” He said as I reached him.

            “Thanks.” I hugged him. “Let’s go.”

            We walked down to the Great Hall and joined the other students and visitors down there. Everyone was either talking outside the doors or going inside. Professor Jordan made her way over to us and had us go in a line with Brad, Valentina, and their dates. She then went off to find Max and Prudence and Valentina looked at me.