On the 18th of December, Dora woke up early so she could send her mum her anniversary present. It had been 16 years since her mum had married her dad, although it felt as if no time had passed, expect maybe a few grey hairs and a couple of teenage children! She went to see her dad next, in his room, with his present from both Dora and Eugine. It was a small Mimbulus Mimbletonia, one of Neville's favourite plants.
"Morning, dad" she smiled, as Neville wrapped his arms round his daughter and planted a kiss on her forehead. "Happy anniversary to you and mum. Here. this is for you." She handed him his present.
"Oh sweetheart, I love it, thankyou," he said, with tears in his eyes. "Did you gi...."
"Yes dad," Dora sighed, but smiled at the same time. "I sent mum's present this morning, before I came to see you." Her dad gave her a big hug again, and they curled up on his sofa together, to eat breakfast.
On the morning of Christmas Eve, Eugine woke up feeling deflated. He wanted to ask his crush to the Ball, but she had already said yes to someone else. Ah well, he thought to himself, he is still taking one of his friends with him. He had asked Lily Potter to go with him. She was still in her second year, but they had grown up together, so she said yes, just so she could go.
Dora woke up feeling excited. She had been friends with Lorcan since that first meeting in Herbology class, at the start of their first year together. She had had a crush on him for at least a year so far, so was really happy that he had asked her. Her next thought turned to the dress she would be wearing tonight. She gazed up at the pretty dress hanging up by her bed, and smiled.
"Morning Dora," her best friend said sleepily, from the bed next to her.
"Morning Rose," she replied. "So, you ready for tonight? Scorpius is going to love your dress."
"I hope so," Rose grinned.
"He will, I promise. It's gorgeous," Millie said, waking up. "Though not as gorgeous as mine," she chuckled. "But I have to say, Orla's is the best. I would have bought it, but it looks so much better on her."
"Did I hear my name?" Orla stretched.
"Just admiring your amazing taste in clothes, sweetie," grinned Rose.
"Well, I am pretty amazing," chuckled Orla. "Right I'm starving, I'm going down for breakfast."
*****
The girls came in from the snow at about 4pm, so they could get ready for the Ball. It was freezing, but after a nice hot shower each, they were all ready to get made up and into their outfits. At 7pm, they came down the stairs into the Gryffindor common room. James and Albus couldn't believe how gorgeous their dates were. Dora and Rose had already gone down to the Entrance Hall to meet Lorcan and Scorpius. Scorpius greeted his girlfriend with a kiss, but Lorcan greeted Dora with his mouth hitting the floor.
"Wow, you look, you look amazing," he stuttered.
"Thankyou," blushed Dora. "You don't look half bad yourself," she winked at him. "Come on, let's go in." She took her date by the arm and he led her in to the Great Hall. The Hall looked beautiful. There were twelve enormous Christmas trees dotted around the outside of the room, with a thirteenth, even larger tree, with pride of place, right at the front of the Hall, in the centre, where the teachers' table would have normally been. The house tables had been moved away, and instead, lots of smaller tables dotted around the Hall, taking their place. Large silken drapes hung from the wall, giving the appearance of, not stone walls, but something much softer and more delicate. Dora and Lorcan took their seats at a table with Rose and Scorpius, Orla and Albus, Millie and James, and Eugine and Lily. The golden plates in front of them were empty, as they normally were at the start of a feast, but there was no indication on what they would be having. They all looked around and their eyes fell upon Professor Erskine looking at the menu, then looking into her plate and saying into it what she wanted. Everyone around her started copying.
"Roast pork, please," Dora spoke into her plate, and her dinner appeared in front of her.
Once dinner was over, Professor Erskine instructed everyone to stand up. She waved her wand and the tables disappeared. A few reappeared, fresh and clean, at the back of the Hall. The Headmistress waved her wand at the front of the Hall, and a curtain disappeared, producing the Wizarding World's most famous band: The Blue Nargles. Millie and Rose screamed in excitement, Dora grabbed Lorcan's hand and dragged him over to dance.
"I love this song," she shouted, trying to make herself heard over the volume of the live band. She glanced over at Rose, who was completely engrossed in Scorpius, neither of them caring who saw them. Millie and James were dancing nearby too. She looked back at Lorcan, who couldn't stop smiling at her, and rested her head on his shoulder. Across the hall from his sister, Eugine was dancing with Lily. They were having a great time, but he couldn't help but feel a stab of jealousy when he looked over at his crush.
Later that evening, Dora and Lorcan went out to the courtyard. They found a secluded spot, when Lorcan turned to his date.
"Dora," he began, but she shushed him.
"Lorcan, I like you. I like you alot," she said. "I'm glad you asked me to come with you tonight, I was wanting to ask you out, but didn't know if you liked me back." She was about to say something else, when a pair of lips crashed onto hers. She paused for half a second, then kissed him back, hungrily, his arms round her waist, hers in his hair.
