The announcement of the Yule Ball sent a ripple of excitement through the school.
I sat on my bed, listening to Jamie and Pansy talk over each other about their plans, both rather stressed.
"Lucian will ask me, of course," Jamie dismissed. "But how to pick a dress! Mum said she would send over a few to choose from, but what if I don't like any of them?"
"What if Draco doesn't ask me?" Pansy fretted. "Who will I go with? There's no one else worth going with!"
"Your mother has excellent taste, as I recall," I spoke to Jamie first. "I'm sure she'll pick out dresses that are absolutely lovely. Besides, if you want alterations, I have my sewing kit."
I laughed as Jamie flew to my bed and wrapped me in a tight hug, murmuring thank-yous into my shoulder.
"And as for Draco," I turned to Pansy. "If he doesn't ask you, then he's a dimwit and you deserve better anyways. If he doesn't get his act together soon, you should consider finding someone who appreciates you for the witch you are."
Pansy nodded, absorbing my every word as if I were preaching a sermon. She perched on the edge of my bed, watching me intently.
"And," I added, a little hesitantly. "You could always ask him."
"No, I can't!" Pansy's eyes were wide. "That's backwards! That's not how it goes!"
I shrugged, having expected that response. "Up to you, Pans."
"Who do you think will ask you?" Jamie looked up, her arms still tightly around me.
"I say Derrick," Pansy declared, perching on the edge of my bed.
"Peregrine?" I couldn't keep the surprise out of my voice.
"Yeah, didn't you two snog at a party a couple of years ago?"
"Yeah, Pans, a couple of years ago." I gave her a wry smile.
"My money's on Miles," Jamie said. "You two have always been close. It just makes sense."
I smiled down at my lap, gathering my courage. "Actually, there's someone else I'm hoping will ask me."
"Who?" Pansy was practically on top of me at this point, her eyes wide.
I drew a deep breath, looking between my two friends. "George Weasley."
Jamie withdrew her arms from around me, leaning back to give me a look of disbelief. "A Gryffindor?"
"And a Weasel, at that!" Pansy cried, springing to her feet.
"Don't call him that," I said sharply.
Pansy and Jamie exchanged a long look. Then Jamie sighed. "Well, I suppose if that's what you really want, Mackie, then I hope he asks you, too."
I looked to my friend, feeling as if I might cry with relief. "Thank you."
Jamie gave me a tight smile and patted my leg. I looked to Pansy, who still wore the same expression of disdain. She turned away without another word.
Jamie gave my hand a reassuring squeeze.
* * * * * *
I passed some of the first Yule Ball proposals on my way to the library that evening, the number of snogging couples astonishingly high as I walked through the halls.
Once I got to the library, I sat my bookbag on a table and began to pace the shelves, looking for a book on Potions.
I passed Hermione, who was quite absorbed in her book on Astronomy, and gave her a little bump of hello. She looked up, irritated, but her face softened as she recognised me. I plucked a Potions for Beginners book off a shelf and settled at the table next to her, the two of us perfectly content to read in peace.
I looked up as she flipped her book shut, catching a glimpse of the dark night sky through the windows.
"How long have we been in here?" I asked with amazement, glancing down at my half-finished book.
"A while," Hermione replied softly. "We should leave soon if we don't want to get in trouble for being out after hours."
I nodded and tucked the Potions book back onto the shelf, following Hermione out and into the corridor.
We walked together in silence, passing a Hufflepuff student asking a Beauxbatons student to the Ball.
"Have you been asked yet?" I asked, my eyes on the pair of students.
"Not yet, no." Hermione was watching them, too. "Have you?"
"No," I admitted. "But it's only been a few hours since they've announced it, hasn't it? We've still got time."
Hermione hummed in agreement, deep in thought.
* * * * * *
All of Slytherin house was crammed into the Potions classroom, the desks nowhere in sight. Professor Snape stood before us, looking grim.
"The Yule Ball is a Triwizard Tournament tradition intended to encourage comradery and friendship between the competing schools." His voice was flat. "I am required to remind you, however, that the Ball is first and foremost a dance, and thus each of you will be receiving dancing lessons to prepare you for this... affair."
His words were met with mixed reactions from the students, a few voices raised in protest. Jamie and I snickered quietly.
"Imagine," I muttered to her. "Gryffindor house has to do this with McGonagall."
"Not sure which is worse, honestly," she replied under her breath.
"This is non-negotiable," Snape said sharply, silencing the classroom. "Now, each of you will select a partner to practise with, and we will go over the steps."
There was a pause as we all hesitated.
"Now," said Snape.
We all stood, the room suddenly filled with panicked searching. I turned and nearly crashed into Miles, who extended his hand to me. "Partners?"
I took his hand with a grin. "You're going to regret this. I'm a terrible dancer."
"I'm rather good at it, I think," said Miles. "Maybe I can teach you a thing or two."
Snape flourished his wand, and music began to play. We all struggled to follow his instructions, cries ringing out as toes were stepped on. Miles pulled me close to him to avoid trampling a pair of third-years, and I laughed as I caught sight of Jamie glaring at Lucian for tracking mud on her shoes.
"This is chaotic," I observed, and Miles nodded in agreement.
Snape did not look pleased at the sorry state of our dancing. He continued to count off, pacing the front of the classroom as we all fought to keep up.
Miles did his best to keep us on beat, pulling me along. "Do you want to try standing on my feet, and I'll just go for it?"
"If you think that'll work," I shrugged, bursting into laughter as he lifted me up, placing me so my feet were on top of his, and continuing as if nothing had changed. "Miles! I thought you were joking!"
"I reckon we're still doing better than the rest of 'em," he snickered, and I laughed even harder, clinging to him so as to avoid falling.
When Professor Snape at last called for us to stop, everyone looked exhausted. Snape swept his black gaze over us, his expression disappointed. "We will reconvene next week."
"You mean we have to do this again?" someone shouted.
* * * * * *
A week passed. Christmas was approaching, and I still hadn't been asked to the ball.
Lucian had asked Jamie with a grand bouquet of roses, getting down on one knee in the middle of the courtyard with his hair combed just for the occasion. She had thrown herself into his arms with impressive grandeur, nodding furiously and pressing kisses to his face.
Draco had come to his senses and asked Pansy; Jamie and I sat and listened as Pansy raved about just how sweetly he had asked her for hours later that night, although Peregrine told me he had asked her as an afterthought as they passed each other in the corridor.
"Do you think George asked someone else?" I voiced my concerns to Jamie once Pansy had found someone else to tell her story to.
"If he did, he's a moron," Jamie said flatly.
"Maybe I should ask around, see if anybody knows anything," I sighed. "I don't want to hold out if he's already going with someone."
"You could," she agreed. "Or, like you told Pans, you could just ask him yourself. You'd be a feminist legend around these parts for years to come."
"That's true." I laid back on my bed with a groan, a few clever ideas flashing through my mind. "But even if I did, it's not like I have a dress!"
That was something I'd realised recently. Shopping opportunities were rather slim around the castle, and it wasn't like my father was going to send me a dress like Jamie's mother had to her. I'd considered attempting to sew a gown, but the lack of materials presented itself as yet another obstacle. I'd have to cut down curtains from somewhere around the castle, and, amusing as that seemed, the prospect of someone finding out that I'd been forced to scavenge for a gown was mortifying.
"Well," Jamie mused. "My mum is sending me a few to choose from. You could have one of the others."
I sat up sharply. "Really?"
She shrugged. "Sure. You said you have your sewing kit, right? So you could make adjustments so it would fit you. We know we're the same size, since you're constantly stealing that green jumper of mine."
"Borrowing," I corrected, feeling as if I might cry with relief. I threw my arms around my friend. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me just yet," she laughed. "They might be really ugly."
* * * * * *
It snowed that night and into the next morning. I shivered as I walked out of my first class, cutting across the courtyard to minimise the time I spent in the cold.
A snowball crashed against me, hitting me squarely in the chest. I looked down, gaping at the cold seeping through my jumper, then glanced around. No one else in the courtyard had seemed to notice anything out of the ordinary.
I brushed the snow off of my jumper, kicking myself for being too lazy to button my coat before I left class. Then another snowball hit me.
"What in the name of Merlin—" I looked around again, wondering what I'd done to deserve this.
Something bumped against my leg, then, and I looked down to see a small, lopsided snowman—my ugly snowchild—with a Gryffindor scarf in its hands. It offered the scarf to me, and I took it with a smile, realising in that moment who was behind all of this. I watched as it skated a circle around me then spiralled away, disintegrating into a flurry as it went, to where George was sitting on the courtyard wall, watching me.
I caught his gaze and grinned, looping the scarf around my shoulders as I walked over, moving to stand between his knees.
"I tried to think of something special, but this was all I could come up with, and I didn't want to wait any longer and risk you getting nabbed by one of your mates." George looked a little sheepish, pulling me closer to him by the ends of his scarf. "Mackenzie Doyle, will you go to the Yule Ball with me?"
"I'd love to go with you, George Weasley." I couldn't stop smiling. "And, for the record, this was absolutely perfect."
He tugged on his scarf again, leaning down to press a kiss to my lips. I let the kiss linger a bit before I pulled away. "I was just trying to think of a way to ask you. I'd begun to worry you were going with someone else."
"Well, I did consider asking Professor McGonagall first."
I laughed breathlessly. "Why didn't you? Afraid she'd say no?"
George grinned and shook his head. "Fred beat me to it. Besides, as impossible as it may seem, I'd much rather go with you."
I shook my head at him, feeling warm under his golden gaze.
His eyes travelled down to his scarf around my neck. "You know, you've said before that red isn't your colour, but I really must disagree."
I felt my cheeks burn a little at his words, and his smile widened. "Where are you off to?"
"I've got Charms next." I gazed off in the direction of the classroom, wondering how in Merlin's name I was supposed to concentrate after all this.
"I'll walk you," George decided, hopping off the wall and lacing his fingers through mine.
I couldn't wipe the stupid smile from my face all the way to the Charms classroom, George's hand warm in mine. Once we'd reached the door, I turned to face him, hesitantly pulling away.
I made to pull his scarf from my neck, but he shook his head. "Keep that safe for me, will you?"
I bit my lip and nodded, my cheeks warm. "I'll see you later, then," I said lamely.
"Study hard." He winked.
* * * * * *
I lay on my bed that night, that stupid grin still on my face.
Jamie walked in, throwing her bookbag onto her bed and casting a glance in my direction. She froze as she noticed my obvious glee, her eyes wandering to where George's scarf lay folded neatly on my nightstand. "I take it Weasley's come to his senses?"
I bit my lip and nodded. "He has."
"Good." She pulled off her boots. "I was planning on hexing him if I found out he'd asked anybody but you."
I laughed, maybe a little too hard, and sat up. "I feel like I've lost my mind. I can't stop smiling. What's wrong with me, Jamie?"
Jamie pulled on her pyjama top. "Nothing's wrong with you. You're just feeling emotions for the first time."
I threw a pillow at her and she laughed. "No, really, I'm happy for you, Mackie."
"Thank you," I said softly, glowing at her show of support.
"I don't know the bloke, and I can't say I've ever met a Gryffindor that I liked." She pulled on her pyjama bottoms and settled on her bed. "But you've got sound judgment. So he must be alright."
"He's..." I trailed off, trying to put it all into words but failing.
Jamie gave me a knowing look. "I know the feeling."
"With Lucian?"
"Yeah," she said softly. "With Lucian."