• Thanatophobia ~ {HP} • Discontinued

1.33: Date's For The Dance

"But — I don't —"

"You heard me, Potter," said Professor McGonagall in a very final sort of way.

"Any maybe Mr potter," the professor started, looking at Nico, "You may use this as a chance to invite Miss Black,"

Cassiopeia had never known so many people to put their names down to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas; she always did, of course, because the alternative was usually going back to her mother, (Archie would also be with his younger friends at this time) but she had always been very much in the minority before now.

This year, however, everyone in the fourth year and above seemed to be staying, and they all seemed to Cassiopeia to be obsessed with the coming ball — or at least all the girls were, and it was amazing how many girls Hogwarts suddenly seemed to hold; he had never quite noticed that before. Girls giggling and whispering in the corridors, girls shrieking with laughter as boys passed them, girls excitedly comparing notes on what they were going to wear on Christmas night.

Every time Cassiopeia walked down the hallways and saw Nico, he would turn around and walk the other way. She would be lying if she said it didn't bother her.

The last week of the term became increasingly boisterous as it progressed. Rumors about the Yule Ball were flying everywhere, though Cassiopeia didn't believe half of them — for instance, that Dumbledore had bought eight hundred barrels of mulled mead from Madam Rosmerta (It did spark an idea though). It seemed to be a fact, however, that he had booked the Weird Sisters.

Some of the teachers, like little Professor Flitwick, gave up trying to teach them much when their minds were so clearly elsewhere; he allowed them to play games in his lesson on Wednesday.

Other teachers were not so generous. Nothing would ever deflect Professor Binns, for example, from plowing on through his notes on goblin rebellions — as Binns hadn't let his own death stand in the way of continuing to teach, they supposed a small thing like Christmas wasn't going to put him off. It was amazing how he could make even bloody and vicious goblin riots sound as boring as Percy's cauldron-bottom report.

Professors McGonagall and Moody kept them working until the very last second of their classes too, and Snape, of course, would no sooner let them play games in class than wash his hair. Staring nastily around at them all, he informed them that he would be testing them on poison antidotes during the last lesson of the term.

Since Harry had given Nico the egg, he had put the golden egg upstairs in his trunk and hadn't opened it since the celebration party after the first task. There were still two and a half months to go until he needed to know what all the screechy wailing meant, after all.

All the Gryffindors were in the common room, discussing the ball. Cassiopeia was 'quietly' freaking out.

"So how did he do it again?" she asked her best friend exciting

"I told you, we were by the black lake and he said, 'Wanna go to the ball with me?'. I said 'sure' and he said 'cool'." Nathaniel recounted for the 25th time.

"My Cousin Theodores, Asked you to the ball! Soon you'll be married and we'll be related! And I'll be an aunty and-" Cassiopeia rambled.

"Slow down, you sound like Nico discussing your future," Nathaniel asked and raised his eyebrows when he saw him go bright pink,

"What are you not telling me, I said this sentence last year and you literally threw up. Now your hair is pink," asked Nathaniel. 

"I don't know, maybe it's because he got hot this year or when he accompanied me during my mental breakdown or maybe it was that date or maybe his goofy smile or his dork attitude or-"