EDITED
January 14, 2014
Please inform me politely of any mistakes I have made. I am trying to edit this book and fix it; I am no professional author nor do I claim to be. Thank you.
...
I love you all'! Just had to say it ;]
Dress in the sidebar--->
Pay no attention to the girl, haha.
LOTS OF OPTIONS HERE, THIS DESICION WILL BE USED VAGUELY THROUGHOUT THIS BOOK, AT THE END OF IT, AND IN THE SEQUEL:
Ash & Harry (:
Ash & Ron (:
Ash & Fred (:
Ash & George (:
Ash & Draco (:
Ash & Neville (:
I am currently shipping Ash with one of the twins or Neville oops
...
[ Chapter 12: The Yule Ball.]
Despite the very heavy load of homework that the fourth years had been given for the holidays, I was in no mood to work when term ended, and spent the week leading up to Christmas enjoying myself as fully as possible along with everyone else. Gryffindor Tower was hardly less crowded now than during term-time; it seemed to have shrunk slightly too, as its inhabitants were being so much rowdier than usual. Fred and George had had a great success with their Canary Creams, and for the first couple of days of the holidays, people kept bursting into feathers all over the place. Before long, however, all the Gryffindors had learned to treat food anybody else offered them with extreme caution, in case it had a Canary Cream concealed in the center, and George confided to me that he and Fred were now working on developing something else. I made a mental note never to accept so much as a crisp from Fred and George in the future. I still hadn't forgotten the time they gave me something that made steam shoot from my ears.
Snow was falling thickly upon the castle and its grounds now. The pale blue Beauxbatons carriage looked like a large, chilly, frosted pumpkin next to the iced gingerbread house that was Hagrid's cabin, while the Durmstrang ship's portholes were glazed with ice, the rigging white with frost. The house-elves down in the kitchen were outdoing themselves with a series of rich, warming stews and savory puddings, and only Fleur Delacour seemed to be able to find anything to complain about.
"It is too 'eavy, all zis 'Ogwarts food," I heard her saying grumpily as we left the Great Hall behind her one evening (Ron skulking behind Harry, Hermion and I, keen not to be spotted by Fleur). "I will not fit into my dress robes!"
"Oooh there's a tragedy," Hermione snapped as Fleur went out into the entrance hall. "She really thinks a lot of herself, that one, doesn't she?"
"Hermione-- who are you going to the ball with?" said Ron.
He kept springing this question on her, hoping to startle her into a response by asking it when she least expected it. However, Hermione merely frowned and said, "I'm not telling you."
"You're joking, Weasley!" said Malfoy, behind us. "You're not telling me someone's asked that to the ball? Not the long-molared Mudblood?"
Harry and Ron both whipped around, but Hermione said loudly, waving to somebody over Malfoy's shoulder, "Hello, Professor Moody!"
Malfoy went pale and jumped backward, looking wildly around for Moody, but he was still up at the staff table, finishing his stew.
"Twitchy little ferret, aren't you, Malfoy?" said Hermione scathingly.
"Mudblood." He muttered again.
I shot him a deathly glare and clenched my fist tightly; his eyes softened, I never heard the end of it from Harry, how Malfoy had a soft spot for me.
"Is that all you have to say? Is that your comeback for everything Draco?" I asked, crossing my arms.
"As long as it makes her mad, yeah. Pretty much." He shrugged again, "Ivory, do you have a date to the Yule Ball? I wouldn't mind going with a famous pureblood… Even if you are a Gryffindor."
Ron and Harry's mouths dropped, and mine was close to it. Hermione stood, wide-eyed. Despite how utterly stunned I was by his question, I tried to play it cool.
"Are you asking or telling?" I demanded, not batting an eye.
"Whichever one works for you." He said with a wink and smirk.
I tried to cover my mouth, but I couldn't. Loud, obnoxious giggles exploded from my throat. I think I was a bit hysterical. Malfoy, the soulless Slytherin just asked me, a Gryffindor, to the ball?
"Actually," I was smiling from ear to ear, "I already have a date. I'm sure you could always ask Pansy, though. You two really deserve each other."
I turned on my heels and bounced happily away, leaving a shocked Malfoy as, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and I went up the marble staircase laughing heartily.
"I can't believe Malfoy just asked you! And you rejected! Haha!!" Ron was clutching his sides in laughter, "Told you he had a soft spot for you! Oh, the look on his face! Priceless, I tell you!"
"That was bloody amazing, Ash." Harry sniggered, "If you weren't going with someone, what would you have said?"
"Honestly?" I asked, and the three nodded.
"Before said person asked, I was on my way up to ask you, Harry."
Harry looked a bit taken back, "M-Me?"
"Yeah," I nodded, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, "I really wanted to go with you… but no matter now. I like this guy and you two are going with the Patil twins, so I guess it worked out. And I know Hermione's going with--"
She slapped a hand to my mouth and shot me a wicked glare, "Shut up, Acacia."
Hermione was going with a Bulgarian that I took her to meet one day while Viktor and I were practicing. I knew it embarrassed her to be going out with an older guy who was also foreign and very cute, but I didn't understand why she wanted to keep it hidden.
"Hermione," said Ron, looking sideways at her, suddenly frowning, "Your teeth..."
"What about them?" she said.
"Well, they're different... I've just noticed..."
"Of course they are'- did you expect me to keep those fangs Malfoy gave me?"
"No, Hermione, Ron means, they're different to how they were before he put that hex on you... They're all...straight and-- and normal-sized."
Hermione suddenly smiled very mischievously, and I noticed it too: It was a very different smile from the one I remembered.
"Well... when I went up to Madam Pomfrey to get them shrunk, she held up a mirror and told me to stop her when they were back to how they normally were," she said. "And I just... let her carry on a bit." She smiled even more widely. "Mum and Dad won't be too pleased. I've been trying to persuade them to let me shrink them for ages, but they wanted me to carry on with my braces. You know, they're dentists, they just don't think teeth and magic should-- look! Pigwidgeon's back!"
Ron's tiny owl was twittering madly on the top of the icicle-laden banisters, a scroll of parchment tied to his leg. People passing him were pointing and laughing, and a group of third-year girls paused and said, "Oh look at the weensy owl! Isn't he cute?"
"Stupid little feathery git!" Ron hissed, hurrying up the stairs and snatching up Pigwidgeon. "You bring letters to the addressee! You don't hang around showing off!"
Pigwidgeon hooted happily, his head protruding over Ron's fist. The third-year girls all looked very shocked.
"Clear off!" Ron snapped at them, waving the fist holding Pigwidgeon, who hooted more happily than ever as he soared through the air. "Here-- take it, Harry," Ron added in an undertone as the third-year girls scuttled away looking scandalized. He pulled Sirius's reply off Pigwidgeon’s leg. Harry pocketed it, and we hurried back to Gryffindor Tower to read it.
Everyone in the common room was much too busy in letting off more holiday steam to observe what anyone else was up to. Ron, Harry, Hermione, and I sat apart from everyone else by a dark window that was gradually filling up with snow, and Harry read out:
Dear Harry,
Congratulations on getting past the Horntail. Whoever put your name in that goblet shouldn't be feeling too happy right now! I was going to suggest a Conjunctivitis Curse, as a dragon's eyes are its weakest point'-
"That's what Viktor did!" I whispered
but your way was better, I'm impressed. Don't get complacent, though. Harry. You've only done one task; whoever put you in for the tournament's got plenty more opportunity if they're trying to hurt you. Keep your eyes open -particularly when the person we discussed is around and concentrate on keeping yourself out of trouble.
Keep in touch; I still want to hear about anything unusual. And tell that pretty--
Harry skipped that part seemingly embarrassed before reading again.
Good Luck.
Sirius
"He sounds exactly like Moody," said Harry quietly, tucking the letter away again inside his robes, "'Constant vigilance!' You'd think I walk around with my eyes shut, banging off the walls...."
"But he's right, Harry," said Hermione, "You have still got two tasks to do. You really ought to have a look at that egg, you know, and start working out what it means..."
"Hermione, he's got ages!" snapped Ron. "Want a game of chess, Harry?"
"Yeah, okay," said Harry. Then, spotting the look on Hermione's face, he said, "Come on, how'm I supposed to concentrate with all this noise going on? I won't even be able to hear the egg over this lot."
"Oh I suppose not," she sighed, and she sat down with me to watch their chess match, which culminated in an exciting checkmate of Ron's, involving a couple of recklessly brave pawns and a very violent bishop.
...
I awoke very suddenly on Christmas Day. Wondering what had caused my abrupt return to consciousness; I opened my eyes fully, and saw something with very large, round, green eyes staring back at me in the darkness, so close we were almost nose to nose.
"Dobby!" I yelled, scrambling away from the elf so fast I almost fell out of bed. "Don't do that!"
"Dobby is sorry, miss Acacia!" squeaked Dobby anxiously, jumping backward with his long fingers over his mouth. "Dobby is only wanting to wish Ash Ivory ' Merry Christmas and bring her a present, Miss! Acacia did say Dobby could come and see her sometimes, miss!"
"It's okay," I said, breathing faster than usual, while my heart rate returned to normal. "Just-- just prod me or something in future, all right; don't bend over me like that...."
I pulled back the small curtain, luckily all of the girls in my room were deep sleepers and my yell hadn't awoken anyone. I was very excited for them to awake, however, because I had gotten everyone two presents each. The first present was one everyone got, they each got a mirror that was charmed to reflect back and show everyone they loved, and only they could see it. If another person looked, they'd see different people. And the second gift was different for everyone. For example, though I was currently sickened by Parvati, I bought her a pair of shoes she had been dying for.
I had even gotten Draco presents because despite how awful he could be... maybe I have a soft spot for him too. He seems really misunderstood a lot of the time. I refused to put my name on the package, but along with the charm glass, I'd gotten a ring that looked like a snake.
I turned back to Dobby, who was now standing nervously next to my bed, still looking worried that he had upset me. There was a Christmas bauble tied to the loop on top of his tea cozy.
"Can Dobby give Ash Ivory his present?" he squeaked tentatively.
"'Course you can," I said. "I've got some presents for you too."
I quickly opened my trunk and pulled out a charmed mirror glass, and then a pair of mittens and socks that were wrapped neatly in a box. The socks were striped different colors, mostly neon’s, I had never before worn them, and I figured Dobby would appreciate it.
Dobby stared at the gift, his eyes gleaming in sheer excitement.
"May I open, miss?" He asked politely.
I nodded with a smile and he tore into it.
Slowly pulling out the charmed glass first he stared at it in awe, "I see Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Winky, Hermione Granger, Hagrid, Dumbledore… All of you!" He squeaked.
"It's charmed to show you the people you love." I smiled. I didn't expect him to see me. We hadn't been acquainted very long.
He went back to examining the items, next, the mittens.
"These are for when your hands get cold." I told him, noticing his slightly confused facial expression, and helping him put them on.
He wiggled his fingers, laughing giddily, before lastly pulling out the socks.
"Socks are Dobby's favorite, favorite clothes, ma'am!" he said, ripping off his old ones and pulling on the neon ones. "I has seven now, miss... but miss..." he said, his eyes widening, having pulled both socks up to their highest extent, so that they reached to the bottom of his shorts, "they has made a mistake in the shop, Acacia Ivory, they is giving you two the same!"
"How come I didn't spot that?" I asked, smacking my head in amusement.
Dobby now handed me a small package, which turned out to be-- socks.
"Dobby is making them himself, miss!" the elf said happily. "He is buying the wool out of his wages, miss!"
The left sock was bright red and had a pattern of pink hearts upon it; the right sock was blue with black stripes.
"They're lovely!" I smiled. I understood Dobby couldn't afford much, and he thought so much of me that he went to all the trouble of knitting them. That spoke volumes about his heart, "Thank you so much Dobby, I love them. This is a great present." I said, and pulled them on, causing Dobby's eyes to leak with happiness.
"Dobby must go now, miss, we is already making Christmas dinner in the kitchens! Thank you for presents." said Dobby, and he hurried out of the dormitory, waving good-bye to me. I waved back.
I gave Malfoy's present to Snape to put in the Slytherin common room; I did the same for everyone else that I might not have had the chance to see-- the presents were in the appropriate common room. I was going to give the teachers their presents later on, as a late gift.
The girls slowly woke up, and we began to exchange presents.
From Hermione I received book on Athena and the love potions and charms she created. Along with her charmed glass, I gave her the book set on Spells from Medieval times (She had been asking around for them and they were always out of the library, so I decided to buy them).
I gave Lavender a perfume set, which gave off the scent that was most appealing to whoever smelled it. For instance, when she wore it, I smelled cotton candy, and she claimed she smelled Honeysuckle. In return she gave me a leather-bound Journal.
After Parvati finished squealing about her shoes, she gave me a hug and a box of Persian & Swedish chocolate (FOOD. SHE KNOWS ME SO WELL).
Harry and Ron met up with Hermione and me in the common room.
"Here you go!" I handed the two boys their gifts.
They both pulled out the mirrors first.
"A mirror with your face in it?" Harry asked.
I began laughing, "You see the people you love in the mirror. Look at it again."
"Now I see Sirius."
I began smiling, "This is why I love charms."
"Thanks!" they both said, before giving me hugs.
The personal items I had chosen for them were a bit more difficult to find. For Harry, I bought a kit to change appearances (Figured he could use it to change up Hedwig's color) and for Ron, I bought a small white rat. I heard about scabbers, and well, I couldn't help myself.
Ron ran upstairs delightedly to put up the new rat (Named: Geronimo - Jerry for short.) in its cage, and we went down to breakfast together. We spent most of the morning in Gryffindor Tower, where everyone was enjoying their presents; I handed out and received a few more, then returned to the Great Hall for a magnificent lunch, which included at least a hundred turkeys and Christmas puddings, and large piles of Cribbage's Wizarding Crackers.
Ron and Harry said I wasn't allowed to see their presents for me until later. This could be very good or very bad.
We went out onto the grounds in the afternoon; the snow was untouched except for the deep channels made by the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students on their way up to the castle. Hermione and I chose to watch Harry and the Weasleys' snowball fight rather than join in, and at five o'clock we were going back upstairs to get ready for the ball.
"What, you actually need three hours?" said Ron, looking at us incredulously and paying for his lapse in concentration when a large snowball, thrown by George, hit him hard on the side of the head. "Who're you going with?" he yelled after Hermione, but she just waved and disappeared up the stone steps into the castle, me not far behind. I could briefly hear the twins ask about who my date was.
The Fat Lady was sitting in her frame with her friend Violet from downstairs, both of them extremely tipsy, empty boxes of chocolate liqueurs littering the bottom of her picture.
"Lairy fights, that's the one!" she giggled when Hermione and I gave the password, and she swung forward to let us inside.
...
Hermione was picked up not moments ago by Viktor's Bulgarian friend, Derek.
I was wearing a dark blue dress that gripped the bodice firmly, showing off curves. It was a masquerade dress I had had for years, and I finally had an excuse to wear it. The poofy part at the bottom was draped with lace, and the upper part was sequined beautifully. My makeup was done to perfection, and my hair was staying in place for once. It was volumized, but straightly layered, and fell perfectly mid-breast. I felt like Cinderella, except… this Cinderella was a bit late.
I pushed on the door, trying to get out, but it wouldn't open.
"Fat Lady!" I yelled, "Please open and let me out."
She began giggling hysterically, "Let's play a game first."
"Please, I'm late." I begged, banging on the door from the inside.
"Then I'm doing you a favor…" She slurred, "What's the first thing that comes to your mind when I say glitter?"
"Uh… unicorns?"
The door opened as she continued to babble, "That answer is okay, but I like rainbows better."
Rushing through the empty corridor, I went through twists and turns, trying not to trip as I ran, holding up my dress to prevent it from dragging on the ground. The Great Hall was visible; I walked down the stairwell where the other champions and their partners were.
"Sorry I’m a bit late, the Fat Lady is drunk out of her mind." I shook my head, "She refused to open unless I played a word game with her first."
When all I heard was quiet, I looked up, noticing all eyes were now on me. It certainly wasn't negative attention though. Harry was staring wide-mouthed, and even Parvati was smiling. I noticed she was wearing the shoes I bought her. I finally saw Viktor's date, a beautiful Ravenclaw girl with long black hair and jade green cat-eyes-- he was smirking in my direction. Even Professor McGonagall was looking at me admirably. I had done well at keeping my composure until I saw Cedric. His dark hair fell neatly, and the accents on his dress robes made his gray eyes seem brighter. He flashed a Diggory smile, and I blushed, before finishing the flight of stairs to approach him.
"You look lovely." He whispered.
"Use that line on all the girls, do you?" I asked, nudging him playfully, "Thank you. I'm charmed."
We talked for a moment or two, and I told him that I got him a present that I intended on giving him after the ball.
"Her? Why her? Bet she used some of her Great Grandma's magic." Fleur hissed every now and then. I opted to ignore her.
Professor McGonagall, who was wearing dress robes of red tartan and had arranged a rather ugly wreath of thistles around the brim of her hat, told us to wait on one side of the doors while everyone else went inside; we were to enter the Great Hall in procession when the rest of the students had sat down. Fleur Delacour and Roger Davies stationed themselves nearest the doors; Davies looked so stunned by his good fortune in having Fleur for a partner that he could hardly take his eyes off her. Cedric and I were close to Harry.
When the doors to the Great Hall opened, Krum's fan club from the library stalked past, throwing Viktor's date looks of deepest loathing.
Pansy Parkinson gaped at me as she walked by with Malfoy, and even she didn't seem to be able to find an insult to throw at me. Malfoy stared, wide-eyed. I smirked back at him as if to say 'surely-you-didn't-think-I-was-lying.'
Once everyone else was settled in the Hall, Professor McGonagall told the champions and their partners to get in line in pairs and to follow her. We did so, and everyone in the Great Hall applauded as we entered and started walking up toward a large round table at the top of the Hall, where the judges were sitting. I blushed a bit from the reactions we were getting; ours were perhaps worse (or better… depending on your perspective) than Viktor and the Ravenclaw girl's.
The walls of the Hall had all been covered in sparkling silver frost, with hundreds of garlands of mistletoe and ivy crossing the starry black ceiling. The House tables had vanished; instead, there were about a hundred smaller, lantern-lit ones, each seating about a dozen people.
I concentrated on not tripping over my heels. Parvati seemed to be enjoying herself; she was beaming around at everybody, steering Harry so forcefully that he looked as though he were a show dog she was putting through its paces.
They seemed a lot more forced than Cedric and I, not to brag. I couldn't help but feel at ease around him, all while feeling like a princess at the same time. Then again, Cedric seems to have that effect on everyone.
Dumbledore smiled happily as the champions approached the top table, but Karkaroff wore an expression remarkably cold as he watched Krum and Ravenclaw girl (Jenna, I think) draw nearer. Ludo Bagman, tonight in robes of bright purple with large yellow stars, was clapping as enthusiastically as any of the students; and Madame Maxime, who had changed her usual uniform of black satin for a flowing gown of lavender silk, was applauding them politely. But Mr. Crouch, I suddenly realized, was not there. The fifth seat at the table was occupied by a young man with red hair and freckles. Although I'd never formally met him, I could only assume it was Percy Weasley.
When we reached the table, Percy drew out the empty chair beside him, staring pointedly at Harry. Harry took the hint and sat down next to Percy, who was wearing brand-new, navy-blue dress robes and an expression of smugness.
Cedric and I sat together, the conversation flowing, and the smiles being shared non-stop. We were really clicking and I hadn't felt this at home with anyone before. God help me I'm turning into a girl. Excuse me while I drown myself.
My eyes scanned the crowd and that's when I saw her.
Hermione had done something with her hair; it was no longer bushy but sleek and shiny, and twisted up into an elegant knot at the back of her head. She was wearing robes made of a floaty, periwinkle-blue material, and she was holding herself differently, somehow-- or maybe it was merely the absence of the twenty or so books she usually had slung over her back. She was also smiling-- rather nervously, at Derek, it was true-- but the reduction in the size of her front teeth was more noticeable than ever.
There was no food as yet on the glittering golden plates, but small menus were lying in front of each of them. I picked mine up uncertainly and looked around-- there were no waiters. Dumbledore, however, looked carefully down at his own menu, then said very clearly to his plate, "Pork chops!"
And pork chops appeared. Getting the idea, the rest of the table placed their orders with their plates too. I glanced up at Hermione to see how she felt about this new and more complicated method of dining-- surely it meant plenty of extra work for the house-elves?-- But for once, Hermione didn't seem to be thinking about S.P.E.W. She was deep in talk with Derek and hardly seemed to notice what she was eating.
"Veil, ve have a castle also, not as big as this, nor as comfortable, I am thinking," Derek was telling Hermione. "Ve have just four floors, and the fires are lit only for magical purposes. But ve have grounds larger even than these - though in vinter, ve have very little daylight, so ve are not enjoying them. But in summer ve are flying every day, over the lakes and the mountains -"
"Now, now, Derek!" said Karkaroff with a laugh that didn't reach his cold eyes, "Don't go giving away anything else, now, or your charming friend will know exactly where to find us!"
Dumbledore smiled, his eyes twinkling. "Igor, all this secrecy, one would almost think you didn't want visitors."
"Well, Dumbledore," said Karkaroff, displaying his yellowing teeth to their fullest extent, "we are all protective of our private domains, are we not? Do we not jealously guard the halls of learning that have been entrusted to us? Are we not right to be proud that we alone know our school's secrets, and right to protect them?"
"Oh I would never dream of assuming I know all Hogwarts' secrets, Igor," said Dumbledore amicably. "Only this morning, for instance, I took a wrong turning on the way to the bathroom and found myself in a beautifully proportioned room I have never seen before, containing a really rather magnificent collection of chamber pots. When I went back to investigate more closely, I discovered that the room had vanished. But I must keep an eye out for it. Possibly it is only accessible at five-thirty in the morning. Or it may only appear at the quarter moon-- or when the seeker has an exceptionally full bladder."
Harry snorted in his food and laughed a bit, and Dumbledore winked at him.
"I have something for you." said Cedric, breaking me out of eavesdropping.
"What is it?" I asked.
"I'm not telling you." He chuckled.
"Then why bring it up?" I pouted, "I was excited for no reason."
"I was just letting you know, for when we exchange gifts later." He smiled, making me melt on the inside. Cliché right? Ugh.
Meanwhile, Fleur Delacour was criticizing the Hogwarts decorations to Roger Davies, as if she hadn't pointed out nearly enough problems.
"Zis is nothing," she said dismissively, looking around at the sparkling walls of the Great Hall. "At ze Palace of Beauxbatons, we 'ave ice sculptures all around ze dining chamber at Chreestmas. Zey do not melt, of course...zey are like 'uge statues of diamond, glittering around ze place. And ze food is seemply superb. And we 'ave choirs of wood nymphs, 'oo serenade us as we eat. We 'ave none of zis ugly armor in ze 'alls, and eef a poltergeist ever entaired into Beauxbatons, 'e would be expelled like zat." She slapped her hand onto the table impatiently.
Roger Davies was watching her talk with a very dazed look on his face, and he kept missing his mouth with his fork. I had the impression that Davies was too busy staring at Fleur to take in a word she was saying.
"Absolutely right," he said quickly, slapping his own hand down on the table in imitation of Fleur. "Like that. Yeah."
I looked around the Hall. Hagrid was sitting at one of the other staff tables; he was back in his horrible hairy brown suit and gazing up at the top table. I saw him give a small wave, and looking around, saw Madame Maxime return it, her opals glittering in the candlelight. Their kids would be freakishly huge.
Hermione was now teaching Derek to say her name properly; he kept calling her "Hermy-own."
"Her-my-oh-nee," she said slowly and clearly.
"Herm-own-ninny."
"Close enough," she said, catching my eye and grinning.
When all the food had been consumed, Dumbledore stood up and asked the students to do the same. Then, with a wave of his wand, all the tables zoomed back along the walls leaving the floor clear, and then he conjured a raised platform into existence along the right wall. A set of drums, several guitars, a lute, a cello, and some bagpipes were set upon it.
The Weird Sisters now trooped up onto the stage to wildly enthusiastic applause; they were all extremely hairy and dressed in black robes that had been artfully ripped and torn. They picked up their instruments, and I, had been so interested in watching them that I had almost forgotten what was coming, suddenly realized that the lanterns on all the other tables had gone out, and that Cedric was standing, with a hand out for me. I grabbed it and scuttled away with him quickly.
The Weird Sisters struck up a slow, mournful tune; I walked onto the brightly lit dance floor, carefully avoiding catching anyone's eye, since I didn't want to share this moment with anyone else. Cedric lightly placed one around my waist, and was holding his other tightly in mine.
"Ready?" He asked quietly. I decided right then that one of my favorite things about Cedric was the mischievous little twinkle I caught in his eye every so often.
"If you are." I murmured back, smiling.
It wax then that we swayed back and forth, spinning occasionally. I was having such a fun time dancing, and I hoped I didn't look like too much of a maniac from the constant grinning. Very soon, almost too soon, many people had come onto the dance floor, so that the champions were no longer the center of attention. Neville and Ginny were dancing nearby-- Ginny winced frequently as Neville trod on her feet-- and Dumbledore was waltzing with Madame Maxime. He was so dwarfed by her that the top of his pointed hat barely tickled her chin; however, she moved very gracefully for a woman so large. Mad-Eye Moody was doing an extremely ungainly two-step with Professor Sinistra, who was nervously avoiding his wooden leg.
As the night went on, it only became more enjoyable, if that were even possible. Hermione seemed to really like Derek, even though she had already gotten into a fight with Ron about 'fraternizing with the enemy.' That was incredibly ridiculous… He was ecstatic when I got him Viktor's autograph.
...
"Hey--Harry!" Cedric called as I waited for him in the entrance hall below.
"Yeah?" said Harry coldly as Cedric ran up the stairs toward him.
Cedric looked as though he didn't want to say whatever it was in front of Ron, who shrugged, looking bad-tempered, and continued to climb the stairs.
"Listen..." Cedric lowered his voice as Ron disappeared. "I owe you one for telling me about the dragons. You know that golden egg? Does yours wail when you open it?"
"Yeah," said Harry.
"Well... take a bath, okay?"
"What?"
"Take a bath, and-- er-- take the egg with you, and-- er-- just mull things over in the hot water. It'll help you think... trust me."
Harry stared at him.
"Tell you what," Cedric said, "use the prefects' bathroom. Fourth door to the left of that statue of Boris the Bewildered on the fifth floor. Password's 'pine fresh.' Gotta go-"
He grinned at Harry again and hurried back down the stairs to where I had been standing. Cedric rushed over to me, with a smile on his face.
"What was that all about?" I asked, gesturing up the stairs.
"I was trying to help him solve the egg… indirectly…" He shrugged.
"Oh…" I said, "Well, here you go."
I handed him the small box. He opened the lid carefully, and like everyone else, pulled out the charmed glass first.
"You put a spell on the mirror? Very clever…" He complimented, before pulling out the next gift.
"It's a dragon scale." I pointed to the glittering object under the torch lights. The scale was attached to black string, and made into a necklace, "It's the one from the Swedish Short-Snout that you went up against. I had to beg Hagrid to let me keep it."
"That's… extremely thoughtful. I love it." said Cedric with a very broad smile, tucking the box away in his left pocket.
I smiled, glad that my gifts had pleased him. He pulled another box from his right pocket and handed it to me.
It was a small black box tied in dark blue ribboning. I untied the ribbon and opened the top; inside was a silver bracelet with hearts that had a different word on each of them (Beauty, Leadership, Charm, Wit, etc.)
"Oh, wow. That's gorgeous." I said admiringly, "You have good taste."
"Each word is a reason why I'm about to ask this question…" I held my breath. He could have been asking anything. "How would you feel about being my girlfriend?"
I couldn't stop the bubbly teenage giddiness that started to creep through me.
"Cedric I- I--" I was smiling broadly, too tongue-tied to give any sort of thought out response.
"Ash, now would be a good time to give an answer," He gave a nervous laugh, "I like you a lot and I'm sort of terrified."
"Of course, you big goof!" I laughed, shaking my head at him. I threw my arms around his neck and squeezed tightly.
He hugged me back, and I felt the warmth radiating from his body. Cedric Diggory. My boyfriend.
Pulling back, he swooped down and left me with a polite, well-mannered kiss, making me blush a deep crimson. I'd never been kissed before.
Cedric walked me back to Gryffindor Tower, hand in hand; we both took long graceful strides.
"Well this is your stop." Cedric murmured.
"Sadly. I'll see you soon." I gave him another hug and kiss on the cheek, "Goodnight, Diggory."
"I'm your boyfriend now, are we not on a first name basis?" He teased.
I grinned, "Not quite."
After he left I noticed the Fat Lady and her friend Vi were sitting in the picture over the portrait hole, red eyed and irritated. Someone must've woken them before I'd came.
"Fairy Lights." I whispered, knowing they must've been hungover.
"At least she didn't scream at us." The Fat lady said, rubbing her forehead.
I climbed into the common room and found Ron and Hermione having a blazing row. Standing ten feet apart, they were bellowing at each other, each scarlet in the face, while Harry stood watching.
"Well, if you don't like it, you know what the solution is, don't you?" yelled Hermione; her hair was coming down out of its elegant bun now, and her face was screwed up in anger.
"Oh yeah?" Ron yelled back. "What's that?"
"Next time there's a ball, pluck up the courage and ask me before someone else does, and not as a last resort!"
Ron mouthed soundlessly like a goldfish out of water as Hermione turned on her heel and stormed up the girls' staircase to bed. Ron turned to look at Harry.
"Well," he sputtered, looking thunderstruck, "Well-- that just proves-- completely missed the point--"
Harry didn't say anything. Surely he was thinking the same as me, and was too afraid to speak his mind-- Hermione had gotten the point much better than Ron had.
"Why didn't you tell us Diggory was your date?" Harry asked, with a tad bit of noticeable bitterness in his voice, after a few moments of silence.
"Even if I did, would it have made a difference?" I shot back.
He smiled a bit at my natural sarcasm. I was in a great mood, but that seemed to be his first smile of the day.
"I s'pose not." He chuckled.
"Harry, let's give her the present." said Ron, getting up.
Harry nodded before turning towards the dormitories, "Close your eyes."
I patted down my dress and sat in a squishy chair, cupping my eyes delicately with my hands, "Oh, alright, but I'm not tasting anything."
Moments later, I felt a small pressure on my lap, and then heard a soft purring. What the...?
Opening my eyes, I saw what looked like a baby cheetah, purring and curling up on my lap.
"You got me a wild animal?" I asked, a hint of bewilderment coming out in my voice.
Ron had Jerry perched on his shoulder, and Harry stood beside him smiling.
"No, actually, we found him in a wizarding shop in Diagon Ally. He's supposed to be that small forever. He was cursed to have a good temperament, be very obedient, intelligent, and look like a baby cheetah." Harry explained, "We figured it's as close to a cat as you'll be able to have since you're allergic."
The cheetah blinked its blackened eyes up at me. He seemed to possess a very human-like quality about him.
"It's from both of us." Ron added, "We saw him and thought of you… that time you said you liked wild cats."
"He's… perfect." I said, rubbing my fingers across the golden fur that was tainted with the black cheetah spots.
Setting the fluffy, enchanted cheetah on the floor, I stood on my tiptoes and gave Ron and Harry hugs. (I was careful to avoid Jerry's shoulder.)
"What are you going to call him?" Harry asked.
Looking down as he rubbed against my dress, I said, "Simba."
With the last goodnights, I took Simba up to my room and layed down, with him curled against my stomach.
Best Christmas ever-- my first real Christmas. And I had been surrounded by the people I loved.
The darkness ensued me, pulling me into a pleasant, dream-filled sleep. And anywhere I went in those dreams-- Cedric wasn't far behind.