Love like winter

by jennygiraffadil

It's the Yule Ball and Harry and Ron both have dates. Somewhere during the evening, something shifts, and they end up going home together. But they're not the only ones.

Title: Love like winter.
Pairing: Harry/Ron; Ginny/Cho.
Disclaimer: I wish.
Summary: It's the Yule Ball and Harry and Ron both have dates. Somewhere during the evening, something shifts, and they end up going home together. But they're not the only ones.
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They met through Harry -- ironically. Well, officially met. It was the Yule ball, both of them sitting out while their dates ran off chasing a gut instinct -- or so they said.

"Just popping outside for a bit," Ron had told Cho.

"Just gonna check on Hagrid," Harry had told Ginny.

Hermione thought 'gut' was aiming a bit too high, but she said nothing. Instead sat, as a friend should, and talked with them until the subject got onto Quidditch where she decided it was time for her to go get them all drinks. Her own date, currently incapacitated in the hospital wing after taking several bludgers to the head from a 'friendly' with the twins, leaving her to be the Hermione every knew all too well. Smart Hermione. Warning them that the punch had been spiked with exploding potion. Surely enough, as Neville scooped up two cups (one for him and one for Trevor, he'd forgone girls after the disaster of a kiss with Lavender, who hadn't even known he'd asked her out on a date) he ended up with the chest of his brand new dress robes doused in dark red goo.

"The boys are taking an awfully long time," Cho said softly after the two of them had finished dissecting the latest Ravenclaw-Hufflepuff match, "I wonder what's taking them so long."

"It's Harry and Ron," Ginny replied, with a shy giggle, as if that explained everything, "Knowing their knack for trouble, there's probably a whole troll rebellion outside now and they got caught in the middle of it".

Cho, luckily, laughed. Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

She really was very pretty, Ginny noted. In a long white ball gown, spelled to shimmer with alternating shades of glitter. She was, Ginny amended, extremely pretty. She smiled and blushed silently.

Hermione, of course, never returned. Having found herself indulging instead in a rather heated debate with a sixth year Hufflepuff girl about the enslavement of house elves. And although she didn't seem too involved in the conversation other than a nod and a smile every now and again, Hermione kept talking. At least she hadn't brought the S.P.E.W badges to the dance.

It wasn't until an hour or two later that Harry and Ron returned, accompanied, of course, by none other than Severus Snape. Two rather ruffled looking boys shuffling ahead, smiling nervously at the girls as they passed and being pulled to a stop right in front of Professor Mcgonagall.

"I figured I should return these to you," Snape said dryly, unlike the other teachers, he wasn't dressed up in anything spectacular. Nothing except his usual dusty black robes. His hair didn't look quite as greasy as usual -- but whether that was his unique way of 'dressing up' or just the lights (live faeries inside glass snowflakes) was a complete mystery.

Harry and Ron, trying to straighten their clothes, had the decency at least to look embarrassed as Snape then explained the circumstances of their reprimand, "I caught these two out in the bushes," he spat out, "And their robes dishonouring Culbert the Careless."

Ms.Mcgonagall, too, looked slightly flustered. Perhaps she'd, also, had a little too much firewhisky. "But that's on the other side of the school." she said sharply, staring at Snape then the boys, then glancing off in the distance to Cho and Ginny watching, resolutely.

"Exactly," Snape all but purred, apparently pretty pleased with himself, "I do recommend, Minerva, that perhaps next time you allow that dratted Finnegan boy to enchant the punch with an anti-lust potion instead. Some, I am glad to say, are quite potent".

And with that, his robes flying behind him, he stalked off, back out into the grounds, no doubt. To try and catch more students. It's not like being social was any fun for him.

Ms.Mcgonagall, thankfully, didn't keep them too long. Simply setting them both with a rather surprised look before telling them they would discuss it tomorrow -- after the ball. And dismissed them.

"I do, however," she said as they turned to leave, "strongly suggest you two go and explain this whole situation to your dates".

The two boys exchanged a rather flushed look, self-consciously tugged - once more - at their robes, and approached the table.

Ginny and Cho had, however, heard everything. Hermione, conveniently, was right back, sitting in between them. Looking unsurprisingly shocked.

Harry and Ron, looking rather awkward, shuffled nearer and simply sat down - one at either side.

"Umm. Enjoying the ball?" Harry asked, glancing around.

"It's alright," Cho said, with a smile. Looking between him and Ron as she folded her legs neatly.

Ginny remained silent. Instead, fostering her gaze on Hermione, slow and steady until a flush spread up into her cheeks from her neck.

"You knew!" she hissed, under her breath, "You -- you knew!"

"What else was I supposed to do?" Hermione whispered back, careful as to not let the boys hear, "I couldn't tell you or Cho the real reason they asked you. And I certainly couldn't let them come together. Ron is in enough trouble with the rest of the school as it is after that stunt the twins pulled at Halloween!"

"So that's why you asked us?" Cho turned, obviously having been listening in. Hermione's cheeks pinked.

"I thought the boys were just too shy." Ginny added.

Hermione laughed. Thankfully, the other two did too.

They talked a lot after that. Nobody mentioned what had happened outside. Nobody mentioned Snape or the embarrassing situation with Mcgonagall ("in front of the whole school!" they imagined Ron yelling, his face bright red). It wasn't until late that they all slowly retired back to their dorms that night, deciding, in light of the snow covering the whole of Hogwarts in a thick white blanket and the beautiful full moon, to walk back through the grounds. Snape was still about, they noticed, peering around bushes, sneaking behind statues. Hoping to catch more kids at it, no doubt.

They all giggled as they sneaked past him, dropping their voices to a whisper as Harry and Ron blushed.

They said goodnight when they reached the statue of Culbert the Careless, and parted ways. Ron and Harry now walking close enough it was impossible to tell whether or not their hands were on their own bodies -- from the slight fisting of robes between them and Hermione's laughter, Ginny guessed no.

Bidding goodnight to her too, Ginny turned to Cho and smiled.

"Seems we have more than Quidditch in common," she grinned, shaking her head and watching as Cho's eyes lit up like the dark sky.

"Yeah, our dates decided they preferred each other to us," and they both laughed.

"I only went with Ron as a favour to Harry," Cho admitted as they both moved out of the way of a group of rowdy Ravenclaw boys who were carrying (an ungracefully de-robed) Draco Malfoy in the direction of the lake, chanting something that Ginny wasn't sure a girl should be hearing.

She glanced at Cho, a little shocked, rubbing her hands together in a pitiful attempt to fight the cold, "My brother was a favour?"

"Well. It's Harry."

"Another thing we have in common," Ginny giggled, "Both of us have, at one point, been completely in some sort of love with Harry Potter. And both of us, at one point, have been pushed aside."

"For Ron." Cho added.

"For Ron."

And their eyes met, both with mischievous glances.

Another group passed them, this time a group of boys from Gryffindor. They both smiled and waved, laughing as the twins (at the centre of the group) started a battle with the joke wands they'd made. Now popular enough around the school for the boys to get actual orders. So long as they kept it from Mrs.Weasley, it would work out fine.

"You know," Cho started softly once they passed, looking out at the deserted paths and back at Ginny, "I'm still glad I came tonight. Despite everything. I got to know you so much better."

Ginny nodded, "It has been great," she agreed.

"I'm also glad our dates turned out to be gay," Cho laughed as her fingers brushed against Ginny's, just barely -- just softly.

Wrapping her own hand overtop and linking their fingers, Ginny smiled.

"Me too."