A Raven and a Lion

Ask Him

When the Yule Ball was announced, y/n and her friends were thrilled. The dance lessons that they all received from their respective heads of house were really fun. The only problem was probably finding a partner.

"Who are we asking?", Olivia asked her friends as Flitwick gave them a break to drink some water. Maggy looked shocked. "I'm not asking anyone, a boy has to ask me."

Y/n sighed. "No matter who asks who... Why can't the three of us just go together?"

"That's not appropriate", Maggy objected. Olivia rolled her eyes. "Okay, but who do we ask? Or who do we want to be asked by?"

"I have no idea, but I know who y/n wants to go with," Maggy grinned. Y/n raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?"

Maggy nodded and continued to grin. "Obviously. And I think you should go with him."

"Yes, ask Fred," Olivia said too. Maggy shook her head. "He should ask her."

"Slow down," y/n said. "Why is it about me now? You need dates too."

Maggy and Olivia exchanged a look. "Sure, we'll take care of it. If you take care about you going together with the redhead."

Then the break was over again. But as Olivia and Maggy continued dancing, smiling, y/n now had a sinking feeling in her stomach. When she sat down with the twins that afternoon to do her homework, things only got worse. Meanwhile, Maggy and Olivia had gone to Hogsmeade with Nikola and his friends to show them the wizarding village. The two were probably planning to ask a Durmstrang for the ball.

Meanwhile, y/n was busy with her own company. She secretly watched Fred. She could ask him. Of course. But she could also wait to see if he would ask her.

"Tell me y/n, do you already have someone to accompany you to the ball?", Fred suddenly wanted to know very casually. She hadn't noticed him looking up from his homework. His brother immediately raised his head attentively. Y/n suddenly found it difficult to hold Fred's gaze. Still, she decided to drop a hint. "Actually, I have someone in mind. But he hasn't asked me yet."

"Ah yes?", Fred didn't sound like he took the hint. In fact, he sounded quite dry somehow. But y/n couldn't bring herself to be more clear. Besides, Fred's attention now shifted to his brother Ron, who was sitting a little further away with Harry and Hermione. He wrote on a piece of paper and swiped it over to Ron.

"I don't know, who are you going with, Fred?", the younger Weasley asked. Fred had probably written a similar question on the piece of paper to the one he had asked y/n. The twin began to grin. He crumpled up another piece of parchment and threw it in the direction of Angelina, who was sitting a few seats away in the other direction. She looked at him confused. Because Snap, who was in charge of homework time, was standing right behind her, she could only ask him a silent question. So Fred whispered with very clear mouth movements and far too exaggerated gestures. "Are you going to the ball with me?"

He couldn't be serious! Angelina nodded immediately and tucked a strand of her dark, shiny hair behind her ear. Y/n, who had watched everything speechless, had felt like her blood would run cold in her veins. Apparently Fred really didn't understand her stupid hint from earlier.

Now Fred winked at Ron with a cocky grin before turning back to his tasks. Y/n still couldn't take her stunned gaze away from him. But since she noticed that George was watching her like a hawk, she made a move. "I see. So let's resolve the secret."

Fred raised his head again, dumbfounded, but by then y/n had already turned to the other twin. "Georgie, are you going to the ball with me?"

George looked more than surprised at first, but he didn't let her down and grinned. "Oh of course Mylady. I'd love to."

But his brother didn't seem to agree with that. Fred shook his head with an annoyed look. "That's not how it works. He should have asked you himself."

Snorting, y/n now looked at Fred. "Well, he didn't. And before I wait too long and he asks someone else, I'd better ask myself."

Fred didn't understand this hint either. Either he did it on purpose or he was really that stupid.

"Well then, have fun," said Fred a little snippily. He and y/n exchanged another furious look before they both went back to their homework.

When they left the Great Hall, George suggested that he accompanied y/n a little further towards the Ravenclaw Tower.

George walked beside her in silence at first, but then he couldn't stand it anymore and addressed the elephant in the room. "You wanted to go with my brother, right?"

"Who? Ron?" Y/n played dumb and laughed. But George didn't seem in the mood for that. "No, the other one. Looks a lot like me. And when he asked Angelina, I thought you were going to rip off his head."

Embarrassed, y/n pursed her lips together. George had caught her straight away. "I've thought about going with him... Maggy and Olivia said I should go with him and I..."

"Yes, you?", George asked when she fell silent. Y/n sighed. "It probably would have been... quite nice... I don't know..."

George just shook his head at her stuttering. But suddenly y/n thought of something completely different. Dismayed, she put her hand over her mouth. "Oh no. George! Now I've spoiled the ball for you!"

"What?", George laughed at her. "Well you can't ask anyone anymore. There was probably someone you wanted to go with. And I spoiled that for you just because I'm mad at your brother."

George laughed more and more. "Okay very slowly now. I think this ball has far too much meaning for some people here. Yes, it will be a nice evening, but it doesn't matter who I go with. I can go dancing with you and have fun. Don't I?"

"Yeah sure", y/n nodded. "I just wanted to make sure."

"If I would have a problem with you being my date, I would have said no," he winked at her and she smiled at him in relief.