The days leading up to the ball were full of excitement and a bit of tension, mostly on the boys' part. It seemed as though the majority of the Hogwarts population had unanimously decided to procrastinate on asking a date to the ball, and most were now anxiously scanning the hallways, classrooms, and tables of the Great Hall for a potential candidate. Rose had been asked two days before the ball by a seventh year Gryffindor, Jacob Pellerin, who, she was well aware of by now, always had a crush on her. Though the idea of taking him had not particularly appealed to her, she didn't want to risk it and wind up going alone, so she accepted, much to his delight.
"I mean, he's not that bad to look at," whispered Lily, sparing a glance at the boy in question. Her and Rose were huddled around the fire in the Gryffindor common room, talking in hushed voices with their heads bowed together, silhouetted in the eyes of others against the bright orange crackling flames beside them.
Rose shook her head. "He's so. . . eager," she whispered back disdainfully. "I mean, I guess it's better than going with someone who couldn't spare a second glance at me, but. . . ." She trailed off, opting to stare into the fire so she wouldn't catch Jacob's gaze, which happened to be coming their way quite frequently. "Who're you going with, Lily?" Rose asked with a bit of desperation.
"Eric Collins," she told her proudly. "He asked me at lunch today."
"Oh, he's nice," Rose said off-handedly.
"And he's gorgeous," Lily laughed. She leaned into her cousin and lowered her voice another notch. "I hear Rita Dimitria was really angry though - that blonde sixth year? I think she was hoping he'd ask her. . . ."
"Oh don't mind her," Rose assured her with a wave of the hand. "She's just jealous." After a pause, she added, "Just be careful of what you drink; I wouldn't put it past her to go spiking your pumpkin juice with some awful poison." Another pause. "And watch what she gives Erik, too: if she tries to hand him anything edible, don't let him take it."
"Rose, I know you haven't dated a lot of guys," - at this, she rewarded her disgruntled cousin an apologetic look - "but they usually run in the opposite direction if you're too controlling. And that seems really unnecessary. I highly doubt she's going to poison him."
Rose leaned in to speak into Lily's ear, shooting a glance at Rita, who was sitting cross-legged and cross-armed in an armchair across the room, her foot jiggling restlessly. "My dad told me about this one girl who had a crush on your dad - this was in their sixth year - and she gave Uncle Harry these cauldron cakes filled with love potion. My dad ate them one time accidentally, and he fell madly in love with her. For a couple hours, anyway. He was pretty much ready to throw himself off the closest balcony if he didn't get her hands on her. Uncle Harry told me that he had to take my dad to the Potions professor to fix him right."
Lily shoved her fist in her mouth to keep her from laughing too loudly. "Are you serious?" she managed to get out between giggles.
Rose nodded solemnly, but cracked a smile all the same. "And he had a girlfriend at the time. She was not pleased." She paused. "I don't think mum would've been too happy either, come to think of it."
At that, a head full of jet black hair shoved its way between the two girls. "What are you talking about?" Albus asked nosily.
"Dresses for the ball," Rose answered promptly, sending Lily a sidelong glance.
Albus made a face. "Oh. Well, don't let me interrupt."
"We weren't planning to," Lily shot back.
Albus pushed his sister's head out of the way as he stood up to leave. "Wait!" Lily exclaimed. She stood up to get to his level, although the feat wasn't quite achieved - her eyes barely came level with the bottom of his chin. "Who are you taking to the ball?"
His mouth, which had opened in the prospect of throwing out a quick answer, snapped shut just as suddenly. "None of your business." And he turned around and headed up the stairs to the boys' dormitories.
"Wha- wait!" Lily cried, and broke into a bit of a run to follow him up the stairs. When she caught up to him, she grinned at the look of contempt she was receiving from Albus, whose hand was frozen on the doorknob below the sign that read, "Seventh Years."
"Forgot I could come up here, did you?"
He didn't answer.
Both heads turned as they heard another set of footsteps advancing towards them - a flash of long red hair told them it was Rose.
"I'm curious," she said simply, answering the unasked question hanging between them.
Lily turned back toward her brother expectantly. "Well?"
"Well what?" He crossed his arms.
"Who are you going with?"
Albus grinned, leaning back against the threshold of the doorway. "I never said I was going to tell you if you followed me up here."
Lily sighed exasperatedly, mimicking his actions and folding her arms across her chest as well. She couldn't help but think that he's learned way too much from his older brother.
"You're going to find out tomorrow anyway." he pointed out. "I don't know why this is such a big deal to you."
"Because. . . because. . ." Lily stammered, grasping at justifications that she couldn't find. "Because, you know, what if she's really rude and horrible, and you don't know, but I do? I could warn you! I could. . . protect you!"
Albus raised his eyebrows, smirking. "Right." He looked at Rose, who was determinedly examining her colorless fingernails. "Who're you going with?"
Rose looked up and opened her mouth to speak, but Lily interrupted her. "Oh no! You can't just refuse to answer my question, and then ask the very same question to someone else! You'll find out tomorrow anyway! Right, Rose?"
"Jacob Pellerin," she said monotonously, returning to her inspection of her nails. Lily stared at her cousin, flabbergasted, her mouth hanging open furiously. Albus raised his eyebrows; amused, no doubt, at his cousin's honesty and willingness to defy her best friend's demands. "I'm not going to get in the middle of your argument."
Albus, first shooting a look to Lily, nodded. "Well, since you so non-argumentatively complied with my wishes, I guess I'll tell you who I'm going with." And, as Lily watched, fuming, Albus leaned in and whispered a name into Rose's welcoming ear. At the news, she smiled, seemingly satisfied.
"Sixth year, yeah?" Albus nodded. "She's nice. A friend of mine had Potions with her and introduced us. I don't think Slughorn's too fond of her, but I think you'll like her."
And with that, Lily stomped her way down the stairs of the boys' dormitories, and announced, "I'm going to bed," over her shoulder, not bothering to beckon Rose along.
"I think I better go," Rose said quietly, inching away from the door.
"Wait! Who's Lily going with to the ball?" asked Albus quickly.
She looked up at him slowly, then shrugged. "Dunno, do I? She wouldn't tell me." And before he got the chance to inquire any more, Rose flew down the stairs and made her way up to the girls' dormitories.
She stopped at the landing labeled, "Fifth Years," and knocked softly on the mahogany door. When she didn't hear anything, she turned the knob and pushed it open.
"Lily?" she called out quietly.
There was no answer, but she saw a body shift under the covers of one of the beds, so she made her way across the room. She knelt down on the edge of the four poster and prodded the girl's back gently. "Lily?" she repeated. At first, there seemed to be no response, but the girl grunted and flipped over so she was facing Rose.
"What?" she hissed crossly.
Rose sighed softly, then grinned at her cousin. "Do you want to know who Albus is going with or not?"
Lily's eyes widened excitedly and she immediately sat up.
"Did you honestly think I wasn't going to tell you?" Rose laughed.
Lily toyed with the frill on the edge of her bedcovers, her head hung. "Yes," she said quietly.
"Well, I'm here, and you're going to love the irony of it all," Rose began deviously.
Lily's head shot up, and she stopped preoccupying herself with her sheets, and instead clutched them in a ball beneath her tightened fist. "Ooh, who is it?" She leaned in, clearly intrigued.
Rose left a pregnant pause hang in the air for a few moments for dramatic effect before answering, "Rita Dimitria."
Lily gasped, clapping a hand over her mouth to muffle the noise. "No! But you said to Albus that she was nice!"
Rose shrugged, smirking mischievously. "That's what he gets for being a right git to you."
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