Author's Note: Please Read :)
Once I reach chapter 30, or once the Yule Ball portion of this book is finished, I will be revising most, if not all, of my chapters.
There are too many grammatical mistakes I cannot ignore, and several things I'd like to change. The plot won't be altered at all (well hopefully) but if you see a ton of updates from me, just know I'm trying to make this book at least somewhat decent. :)
Now onto the chapter~
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"Mallard! Weasley! Will you pay attention?"
Professor McGonagall's irritated voice cracked like a whip through the Transfiguration class on Thursday, and both Serena and George jumped and looked up.
The pair had been discussing what more they should add onto the nearly completed letter to Ludo Bagman. While Serena insisted on telling the Quidditch commentator straight-up what he did and what he needs to do to fix it, George constantly had to cross out her borderline-blackmail accusations with a disapproving shake of his head.
Quickly stuffing the sheet of parchment into her bag, Serena and George gave McGonagall an innocent smile, to which she responded with an angry look at the pair. "Now that Mallard and Weasley have been kind enough stop secretively scribbling on a parchment," said Professor McGonagall,"I have something to say to you all.
"The Yule Ball is approaching- a traditional part of the Triwizard Tournament and an opportunity for us to socialize with our foreign guests. Now, the ball will be open only to fourth years and above- although you may invite a younger student if you wish-"
Heidi Macavoy, a Hufflepuff, let out a shrill giggle. Annabelle Entwhistle nudged her in the ribs, as she fought furiously not to giggle herself. Both looked at Cedric Diggory, who was sitting beside Ramona. Cedric seemed a little uncomfortable, glancing at the auburn-haired girl on his left, who looked rather annoyed.
"Dress robes will be worn," Professor McGonagall continued, "and the ball will start at eight o'clock on Christmas Day, finishing at midnight in the Great Hall."
"Oh, that's Iyla's birthday," Serena whispered to George, who nodded in slight interest.
"Now then-" Professor McGonagall stared deliberately around the class. "The Yule Ball is of course a chance for us all to- er- let our hair down," she said in a disapproving voice.
Serena snorted, immediately covering her mouth as McGongall threw her a sharp glare. The girl buried her face in George's arm, as if to keep herself from laughing. Only George was struggling himself as he looked anywhere but Professor McGonagall. It made sense, with McGonagall's hair always in a tight bun, she looked as though she had never let her hair down in the last decade.
"But that does NOT mean," Professor McGonagall went on, "that we will be relaxing the standards of behavior we expect from Hogwarts students. I will be most seriously displeased if a Gryffindor or Hufflepuff student embarrasses the school in any way."
The bell finally rang for lunch, and there was the usual scuffle of activity as everyone packed their bags and swung them onto their shoulders. Professor McGongall called over the noise, "Diggory, a word, if you please."
Cedric looked back at Ramona, silently telling her to head on to lunch as he approached Professor McGonagall's desk. "Wonder what that was about," Serena said as she jogged up to her friend.
"I'll catch you later, Rena. Got to show Fred"- George glanced at Ramona- "the thing." With a charming smile, he turned around, setting off the for the Great Hall.
"What thing?" Ramona asked curiously as she and Serena walked towards the Great Hall, as well. All the Gryffindor gave was a vague shrug, but Ramona didn't both questioning further, as she was more excited about what McGonagall had just announced. "A ball on Christmas? Oh, it's going to be wonderful!"
"I dunno, having to wear a dress the entire night, not my cup of tea, really," Serena said, nose wrinkled in distaste as they entered the Great Hall, spotting Magnolia at the Ravenclaw table.
"Oh, Nolie!" Ramona exclaimed, sitting across the brunette as Serena settled on her right. "Guess what McGonagall said in Transfig!"
"What?" she said absentmindedly, more focused on reading her copy of the Book of Spells.
Ramona didn't at all seem put off by Magnolia's lack of curiosity. "There's going to be a ball!"
Magnolia took a sip of her pumpkin juice, flipping a page of her book. "A ball, you say?"
"Yes! The Yule ball!" said Ramona, enthusiastically pouring pumpkin juice into her own goblet. "It's only for fourth years and older, unless you want to bring someone younger. We have to wear dress robes as well, and it's on Christmas."
"Isn't that Iyla's birthday?" the Ravenclaw asked, to which Serena nodded.
"Lucky she made the cut off, Iyla. Imagine if she was a third year, she'd be so upset she couldn't go," Serena laughed.
"Wait, you said it's on Christmas? That means we'll have to stay for the holidays. Damn," Magnolia sighed. "We were supposed to check out that creepy town with the graveyard, Little Hangleton."
"Oh, yeah!" Serena said. "We were gonna spend the holiday with you, since Appleby isn't too far from Little Hangleton. How did Azalea find out about that place again?"
"My brother's girlfriend, Amelia Heartfield- it's weird to call her Florent's wife. Anyways, she's a Muggleborn so she owns a Muggle car and everything. She drove past the village one day, and told Azalea about how spooky it looked. Guess Azalea took her warning as a suggestion for all of us to explore it when she comes home for Christmas."
Serena took a bit out of her sandwich. "Man, maybe we should skip out on this ball stuff and-"
"Okay, no, we're all going to the ball!" Ramona said sternly, now annoyed by their complete disinterest. "It'll be so much fun! We can wear something else other than these black robes all day! And we'll have dates, maybe even dance!"
Magnolia and Serena shared a glance before laughing. "Yeah, I don't dance," they said together.
"And dates?" Serena looked at Ramona, a smirk forming on her face. "'Course you're excited, you'll be going with Pretty Boy Diggory."
"Imagine how jealous everyone'll be when they see Mona all decked out, hand in hand with the Hogwarts Champion." Magnolia grinned at the embarrassed girl. "I'll have to bring my polaroid, you know, to capture the moment."
Ramona scoffed, but didn't look any less red. "Oh, shut up, Magnolia. He'll probably take some other girl that's much prettier than me."
"Come off it! He's been obsessed with you ever since third year!" Serena said. "Who in the world would he take other than you?"
"I dunno, maybe Heidi Macavoy or Annabelle Entwhistle... you saw how they were looking at him in Transfig," said Ramona, playing with her braids. "Or maybe Cho Chang, that pretty fifth year. She's a seeker, too. And I've heard that she likes him."
Magnolia rolled her eyes. "Mona, you insecure little baby, Cedric likes you, so he's going to take you."
Ramona looked up at the pair, still flushed. "Okay, enough about me. Who are you two planning on going with?"
Serena bit her lip. She wasn't too fond of the idea of wearing a dress, but the ball did sound like a good break from the massive amount of homework they had to finish. Maybe... maybe she could go with Fred? As a friend, of course, but perhaps they could have some fun! Maybe-
"Why are you smiling like that?" Magnolia's voice brought Serena out of her thoughts. The brunette was looking at her with a knowing smile. "Hm, I think I can guess who you're thinking about. Perhaps, someone by the name of Fred Wea-"
"No! No, I was not!" Serena quickly denied. "I was simply thinking about.... how I don't have any homework for Charms."
"Yes, you do, because that Gouging Spell essay is due tomorrow and you haven't even started," Ramona said, hazel eyes narrowed at the Gryffindor.
Serena grinned. "You know what, I'll get on that right now, see you later!" The girl quickly stood, drowning the rest of her apple juice before skipping away.
"That girl, always avoiding questions but never failing to get answers out of other people." Magnolia said with a shake of her head.
~~~
Serena had never known so many people to stay at Hogwarts during Christmas. This year, every fourth year and above had put their name down to stay, all because of the Yule Ball.
It seemed as if everyone was obsessed with it. The first through third years were all grumbling about how they couldn't attend, but the rest of the school were simply ecstatic. The Hogwarts castle was full of energy, and though Serena was at first amused with how the boys looked perpetually green at the idea of having to ask out a girl, she soon became annoyed. Girls were giggling and whispering in the corridors, shrieking with laughter whenever boys passed them, and excitedly comparing what they were going to wear on Christmas night.
Everywhere she went, the sound of high-pitched giggles bounced off the walls. She was so close to yelling at a gaggle of fourth year Ravenclaws to keep quiet on her way to the Gryffindor common room one evening, but decided against it. "Honestly," she told Fred and George as they walked up the many stairs, "it's like they haven't got anything better to do than gossip about who's taking who."
"Aren't you supposed to be one of them? You know, apart of the giggling girl squad?" Fred asked with a silly grin.
"You'd better shut it Fred, or I might just hex you," Serena warned as they climbed through the portrait hole.
Goerge hushed the pair. "Look, there's Ron. Let's ask to borrow his owl to send Bagman the letter."
Serena rolled her eyes. "The letter you wouldn't allow me to write."
"Because you're too straight forward and would have insulted him. Even more so than Fred," said George, before approaching Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Iyla, who were sitting at a table by the fire. Ron had built a card castle with his Exploding Snap pack, but just as he placed the top two cards, the whole lot blew up, singeing his eyebrows.
"Nice look you've got there, Ron," Fred snorted as the three took a seat beside the fourth years.
"Ron, can we borrow Pigwidgeon?" George asked.
"No, he's off delivering a letter," said Ron, feeling his eyebrows to assess the damage. "Why?"
"Because George wants to invite him to the ball," Fred said sarcastically.
"Because we want to send a letter, you stupid great prat," said George.
"Who d'you three keep writing to, eh?" asked Ron.
Fred waved his wand threateningly. "Nose out, Ron, or I'll burn that for you too."
Serena turned to her younger sister. "Well, can we borrow yours, Iyla?"
"Sure, but I really want to know: why are you lot always huddled in the corner over a piece of parchment?" Iyla asked her sister.
"None of your business, so stay out of it," Serena responded.
"So," George said, trying to change the subject, "you lot got dates for the ball yet?"
"Nope," Ron and Iyla said together.
"Well, you'd better hurry up, mate, or all the good ones will be gone," said Fred with a grin.
"Who're you going with, then?" said Ron.
"It's a secret," Fred said, glancing at Serena. He got to his feet, yawning, and said, "We'd better use a school owl then, George, Serena, come on..."
The three left the Gryffindor common room, heading for the Owlery. Serena was silent as the twins conversed, fixing any last minute details on the letter to Bagman. Serena could have sworn Fred looked at her when Ron had asked about who he was taking. But, what if he hadn't? What if she was imagining it just because a small part of her wanted him to ask her?
"Oh, for goodness sake," she sighed, before looking up at Fred. In the most calm and collected voice Serena could muster, she asked, "So... who are you really taking to the ball?"
Fred froze, unsure if he heard Serena correctly. "What?"
Serena, expecting a laid-back and vague answer, panicked, mentally face palming herself for asking in the first place. "Er... you know, you said it was a secret. Who you're taking, I mean."
"Oh, erm... that was just so Ron would get off my case," Fred said, ears slightly burning.
"What he really meant," George grinned, "was that he hasn't asked the one person he really wanted to go with just yet."
"Oh," Serena said, heart beating unusually fast as she stared at her sneakers. "So... who do you want to go with, Fred?"
Fred glared at his brother, who had walked ahead of the pair. "Oh, er... no one in particular, really. George is just being an obnoxious prat, as always."
"I heard that, Freddie." George called.
"You were meant to, Georgie!" Fred retorted. He looked down at Serena, almost hopefully. "Is there anyone you want to go with?"
"Me? No one in particular, either." Serena said, voice a little too high. She was sure Fred caught the change in her tone, so she cleared her throat. "Well, I've got to show George which owl is Iyla's, so... yeah." Serena couldn't bring herself to look at Fred as she ducked into the Owlery.
Even as Serena tied the letter onto the small Pygmy Owl, with George talking beside her, she could not get Fred Weasley out of her head.
Not even for the next week. And though she would never admit it to another soul, Serena herself was rather looking forward to the ball. Despite trying her trying hardest not too, her mind always seemed to drift on its own, often wondering whether Fred liked her enough to ask her. She imagined what it would be like to walk down the stairs of her dormitory, all dressed up, to see Fred looking up at her from the common room, long red hair covering the slight blush on his cheeks.
Serena thought about how it would feel to dance with him, and when she would accidentally step on his feet because she was not coordinated at all, how they would laugh together. She pondered what she would do if there just so happened to be a mistletoe hanging over them. Would it be anything like what happened at the bookstore? Instead of dropping a book on her foot, no, Serena would spill punch all over her dress. Maybe all over Fred's dress robes, too.
"Look at this!" a shrill voice exclaimed, bringing Serena out of her day dream. She looked down the Gryffindor table and saw Hermione, face flushed in anger. "I cant believe it, she's done it again!"
Serena wondered what got Hermione all worked up in the morning. The bushy-haired girl was leaning over a newspaper, Iyla looking just as furious beside her, as she read a page out loud. "'Miss Granger, a plain but ambitious girl seems to be developing a taste for famous wizards. Her latest prey, sources report, is none other than the Bulgarian bonbon Victor Krum. No word yet on how Harry Potter's taking this latest emotional blow.'"
The girl then pushed the article toward Iyla, who began reading in a outraged tone that matched Hermione's. "'Though, it can be assumed Harry Potter won't be too heartbroken, as Miss Mallard, a pretty yet rather callow girl, will be right beside the Champion, as students have seen before. With her tenacious grip and shameless obsession over Harry Potter and his attractive lightning scar, he can expect her to offer a box of tissues to wipe his tears dry.'"
Angelina wrinkled her nose in disgust. "What an awful woman!" Alicia nodded in agreement.
Serena scoffed in annoyance, snatching up a copy of the newspaper for herself. "Rita Skeeter has got a lot of nerve slandering fourth years on the Daily Prophet for everyone to read."
Fred patted her shoulder. "If you still want to write a letter with blatant blackmail, that Skeeter is overdue for hers, don't you think?"
Serena chuckled. "Totally."
"Oh, look, Mum sent me something." Serena heard Ron say. Turning, she saw the redhead open a rather than parcel, pulling out long, brown dress robes covered in pink, frilly lace. Serena's eyes widened as Ron held it up. "Mum sent me a dress," he said in astonishment.
Harry chuckled. "Well, it does match yours eyes. Is there a bonnet?" He glanced into the box, pulling out a white bonnet donning several ruffles. "Aha!"
Ron pushed his arm away, laughing as well. "Nose down, Harry," he said, walking down the Gryffindor table. "Ginny, these must be for you."
The girl looked horrified. "I'm not wearing that, it's ghastly."
Serena covered her mouth as Iyla started laughing. "What are you on about, Iyla?"
The girl was laughing so much she couldn't even answer, so Hermione spoke instead. "They're not for Ginny, they're for you."
Serena burst into laughter, but it wasn't just the Gyffindor that did so as well. It seemed as if students from each house table were looking at Ron, their chortles echoing through the Great Hall.
"Well, that was a good laugh, but we've got to head on towards Hagrid's. Can't be late for Care of Magical Creatures," Angelina said, standing up from her seat. Alicia and Serena groaned, but nonetheless stood as well.
The three Gryffindor chasers walked into the entrance hall, and were about to leave through large front doors when someone came rushing towards them. "Serena!"
The girl in question spun around to see Cedric Diggory running up to her. Angelina and Alicia both giggled as he approached, grey eyes highlighted by his dark hair, which was tousled per usual. "Hi, Angelina, Alicia. Mind if I borrow Serena for a moment?"
"Sure," Alicia smiled, "take all the time you need." With one last look at the pair, the two set off for the snow covered lawn.
"Don't mind them, they're a little starstruck." Serena said. "So, what can I do for ya, Pretty Boy?"
Gently, Cedric held her elbow, guiding her to a more secluded corridor. "You really have got to stop with the 'Pretty Boy' name," he pouted. "After you said it in front of my friends, they wouldn't stop calling me it!"
Serena smiled in content. "My impact. Anyways, what did you wanna talk about?"
Serena tilted her head in curiosity at how red Cedric suddenly became. "Well... I was sort of hoping you could help me with something." At Serena's nod, he continued. "Erm... you know the Yule Ball in the next few days... and I thought maybe you would like to-"
Serena interrupted the Hufflepuff before he could finish his sentence. "Go with you? Woah, Cedric, your cool and all, but I thought you and Ramona were a thing."
The girl was even more confused when Cedric started laughing. "Oh no, Serena. I wasn't going to ask you to the ball. I was er... hoping if you could help me ask Ramona..."
Serena let out a sigh of relief. "That makes a lot more sense." She suddenly smacked his arm, quite hard. "I'm so proud of you, Cedric! You've finally plucked up the courage to ask Mona to the ball. Now Nolie owes me three Galleons."
"Wait- you bet on whether or not I'd ask her?"
"No, we bet on how long it'd take for you to ask her. Magnolia gave you a very generous two weeks to get over your timorous nature, while I said the first task gave you enough confidence to ask within the week. I had a little more faith in you."
"Gee, thanks Serena," said Cedric with a shake of his head. "We've got a few minutes before our first class, so you mind if I... practice on you?"
"Yeah, of course!" the girl grinned. "But first, a few pointers. One" -she ruffled Cedric's hair- "Ramona loves your hair all messed up. Second, show her you really want to go with her! Even if other people ask you out, which they will, I mean look at you, make sure she knows you only with her."
Cedric blushed at her comment, but Serena paid no mind to it. "Three, be the adorable, stuttering mess you always are around her."
"Well... alright then." Cedric cleared his throat before looking down at Serena. The girl could tell just by his wide grey eyes that he was beyond nervous. "So... erm, hi!
Serena tried her best to keep from laughing as she acted just as Ramona would have. Playing with a strand of her hair, she looked anywhere besides Cedric. "Hi, Pretty- I mean Cedric!"
The boy snorted before getting back into character. "So er... the Yule Ball... it's next week, you see. And I was erm... w-wondering if you'd like to, you know... go to the ball with me?"
"W-with me? Really? You... don't want to take anyone else?"
Cedric shook his head vehemently. "No! I mean.. no, I- I want to go with you."
The sincerity behind Cedric's words was so real, Serena felt he was asking her to the ball. She genuinely smiled. Not because she wanted him to her ask, but because she was glad for her best friend. Serena knew in that moment, Cedric Diggory really liked Ramona, and she couldn't have been happier for the two. "I'd love to, Cedric."
Serena, in her elated gratitude, wrapped her arms around the boy's neck in a hug. "You mean a lot to Ramona. Thank you for being something she can love. She doesn't get that often."
She let go to see Cedric smiling at her, too. "You're a really good friend, Serena. You and Magnolia."
"One of my many nonexistent accomplishments," the girl said with a wink. With a wave, Serena turned and jogged towards Hagrid's Hut, knowing she was probably late for his class.
Unbeknownst to her, and even Cedric, Fred Weasley has been watching whole thing. And took it the very wrong way.
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Author's Note: Pt. 2:
Wowza! This chapter is over 3.7k words now that's a lot.
So sorry for how late this is! I've been thinking about writing this particular chapter since before I even published this book, and I still think it needs some work but oh well!
Anyways, hope you lovelies had a good day! With all of my love,
~Lena