The great hall sparkles, lit with shimmering light from thousands of candles, adorned with ice sculptures placed in every niche and icicles that hang from every eave. Rose glories in the splendor of it all, the beauty. She knows that the Yule Ball is a once in a lifetime experience.
She had been surprised when the headmistress, Professor McGonagall, had announced that there was to be a ball. From what she knows, the last time a Yule Ball was held, the tournament it had been a part of had ended in disaster and loss.
But she finds she enjoys seeing her classmates in their dress robes, looking handsomer than she suspects she will ever see them. Albus twirls past her as he dances a slow number with his date, Violet Boot of Gryffindor. His bottle-green robes, inherited from his father, flare slightly at the bottom as he waltzes away.
And the spell cast by the ball dissipates suddenly, as Rose realizes that because she has no date, she will never be able to dance one of these magical waltzes. Disheartened, she sinks into one of the white seats lining the walls and puts her head in her hands.
A hand grasps hers, and she feels his familiar, long-fingered hand close around her own. He pulls her out onto the floor, wraps his arms around her waist, and begins to sway with her safely held to his chest. She looks up into his storm-cloud eyes, and a feeling of such love wells up inside her, that she cannot contain it; she twines her arms around his neck and kisses him, full on the mouth.
And, as Scorpius and Rose dance amongst their classmates and teachers, family, friends, and enemies, it feels as if they are utterly alone, but for one another.