Now, I'm well aware that Shakespeare isn't everyone's cup of tea. Personally, I hated it until I acted in one and now I love it. But, whatever your stance on Shakespeare, you have to admit that he was good at telling a story. The key to those stories? The classic themes and plot points that crop up in several of his plays.

Chaser One: Cross Dressing. Write about someone dressing as another gender.

3 (dialogue) "Are you really eating pizza in the middle of this?"

7 (emotion) disappointment

14 (character) Theodore Nott

There was not a more beautiful sight to be seen. Simone Moreau had a dark tan complexion dotted with a few hard to see freckles and sparkling green eyes. As for her hair, well, Theo thought he'd never seen such perfect hair before.

"Earth to Theo." Malfoy threw a bread roll at his fellow Slytherin, which bounced off of the boy's head. Scowling, Theo pulled his eyes away from the beautiful girl from Beauxbatons.

"Wha —?" Theo glared at Malfoy, returning the roll with the same amount of force.

"We've been discussing the next task. What do you think it will be?"

Theo shrugged his shoulders. He was tired of hearing about the second task. They'd find out when it was time and right now there were more important matters at hand. For example, the Yule Ball. Theo looked down the table at a few Slytherin girls and shuddered to himself. He had no desire to ask any of them to the dance, but as for Simone Moreau, that was another story.

Theo sulked through the remainder of his classes that day as he racked his brain trying to come up with a way to ask the beautiful foreign girl out. He knew if he just went up to her she would laugh in his face. He knew this because it had happened to Ron Weasley just last week. Since Ron was friends with Harry Potter, it didn't exactly make him popular, but it was still a step up from whatever Theo was. What he needed was a way to connect with Simone somehow, to approach her without raising suspicions and get to know her. Later that evening, he watched — perhaps a bit creepily — from a distance as she browsed through the library. Susan Bones, the shyest Hufflepuff in their year (Honestly, had anyone ever heard the girl speak, ever?), walked right up to Simone and started talking to her as if it was the easiest thing in the world. Theo's jaw dropped. Girls obviously didn't have as much trepidation speaking to each other as boys did approaching them. Then a Lumos went off in his brain, and without bothering to put back the book he was pretending to read, he ran out of the library and down to the Slytherin common room.

"Milli, Milli, I need your help," Theo said impatiently. Millicent rolled her eyes and looked at her housemate expectantly.

/

Magic, as we well know, can do spectacular things. It can transform a pair of slacks into a skirt and a pair of boots into heels. Charms can make hair grow long (until the charm wears off at least), and potions can change a voice from baritone to soprano. One thing magic cannot do is to give the witch or wizard the courage to approach their crush. Theo pulled on the skirt he was currently wearing. He felt completely exposed, even though the skirt was longer than how most of the girls wore them around the school. He had wanted to leave the newly grown hair down, but after nearly choking on it a few times, Millicent decided to plait it for him.

Simone was in the great hall when Theo finally located his target. She was studying at one of the large tables. How had Susan made it look so easy to just walk up to the girl and start talking? Theo nervously walked to the table where Simone sat and squeaked out "Mind if I study here?"

The French witch looked up. "Pardon?"

Theo cleared his throat and tried again. "Mind if I study here too?"

Simone shrugged and nodded before returning to her book. Theo sat down with a grateful smile.

After a while, Simone looked up with concern. "Are you alright? You look so nervous. I thought you wanted to study."

Theo jumped and turned bright red, realizing that he hadn't even opened a book yet. "Uh, yeah, sorry. I was just thinking."

Simone raised an eyebrow as if she didn't really believe that for a moment before returning to her own studies. Realizing that he was losing his chance to strike up a conversation, Theo sucked it up and started talking to the girl across from him.

/

Millicent Bulstrode had been completely shocked when her friend came to her earlier that day in a complete panic about some girl. She laughed at the idea of Theodore Nott being scared of anything, but one look at his pale gaunt face and she knew he was beyond terrified of the (inevitable, in her opinion) rejection. She tried talking him out of it, said it really would be better if he just tried to talk to her. Theo had a plan, at least, for getting to know the beautiful girl from France, and so after begging and pleading she had agreed to help him pose as a girl from Hogwarts in order to have a chance at starting a conversation. Millicent and Theo had been good friends for many years, even before Hogwarts, and she had hoped that he would have asked her to the ball, at least as friends, but it was clear he had his heart set on Simone. Watching from the Slytherin table she could see that at last Theo was talking to Simone. Students and staff began to flood the Great Hall as dinner would be starting momentarily. The tables began being cleared of textbooks and parchment as the food was sent up from the kitchens below and a dejected Theodore came over to sit at the table. Groaning, he slumped down and threw his book bag to the floor.

Millicent gave him a puzzled look.

"What's wrong?" she asked while filling her plate up with the offerings provided.

"She's amazing. She likes to read, muggle fiction of all things, plays Quidditch, and is into music." Theo put his head in his hands, the plait that remained in his hair falling forward.

Millicent raised her eyebrows "I'm not sure I see the issue here. Well, besides muggle fiction, although I hear some of it can be quite good. And you like quidditch and music, so you must have a lot to talk about."

"But that's just it! Now she wants to talk to Evangeline, she's not going to want to talk to Theo," the boy moaned. "If I go to her and start talking as myself she's going to think I'm some sort of a stalker."

"Ah," Millicent said noncommittally. Pretending to be someone else might not be considered stalking, but it certainly wasn't great either.

"Are you really eating pizza in the middle of this? I'm having a crisis here!" Theo asked with a huff.

Millicent looked at her friend, her mouth still stuffed with the cheesy delicacy. "What? How often do the elves even make pizza? I'm not missing out on this. Go change back into yourself and go talk to her," Millicent encouraged. "And if you don't want your piece, can I have it?" she added, eyeing the slice of gooey goodness, untouched, on Theo's plate.

Theo scowled slightly and pushed the plate over to his friend before leaving for the common room. He knew Millicent was right, and he headed back to the common room to put himself back together. Although, now that he'd gotten used to it, he rather liked the skirt.

/

"Hi, Simone right?" Theo asked, much more confidently than he felt as he approached the French girl in the owlery a few days later.

"Oui. And you are?"

Theo shuffled uncomfortably, then cleared his throat. "Oh, I'm Theo. It's nice to meet you." He began tying his letter home to one of the school owls before giving it a couple of treats and sending it on its way. Now or never, he thought to himself.

"Um, Simone, I know you don't know me really, well at all, actually, but I wondered if you would maybe like to go to the Ball together?"

Simone was clearly taken aback by the surprise proposal of the young Slytherin she had just met. However, she couldn't stop herself from smiling at him since he was the first boy who had even approached her. Many of her school mates had noticed that almost all of the Hogwarts boys seemed terrified of them. "You must be joking," she said in disbelief, not because she thought less of the boy in front of her, but more out of complete surprise.

Theo found his shoes fascinating at that moment. He hadn't expected that response. "Sorry, I'll just go then," he blurted out.

"No, wait, zat came out wrong."

Theo's eyes lit up, but then confusion shadowed his face when he saw Simone look disappointed. Perhaps she didn't want to go with him after all.

"But zer is someone else I was 'oping to go with. Perhaps you know 'er? 'er name is Evangeline, she is a Slytherin like you."

If words could make you feel like you've been punched in the gut, Theo would be in the Hospital Wing.

"I am very sorry, perhaps you will find someone else. Oui? Au revoir."

Theo stared after Simone in complete shock for several long moments then shook his head.