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Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters so far...

Severus had been wrong on both counts. When Christmas break started, he did not at all feel like it was a break. Far more students than usual had chosen to stay behind-for the ball, naturally, and the Potions Master was, unfortunately, roped into helping prepare things.

The day of the event was even worse, in his opinion, especially when Dumbledore made it clear that he had to attend as well. But he did, dressed in new dress robes (courtesy of Lucius, gifted to him with a great deal of smarmy amusement), which were black, of course, though he actually quite liked them.

At his seat at the Head Table with the other professors, Headmasters, Headmistress, and whoever else Severus paid no attention to, he sipped at his firewhiskey slowly, watching the other students file into the Great Hall and take their seats at the many round tables. And it was once all of them were seated that the large, wooden doors opened once again, this time to admit the four TriWizard Champions and their dates for the night.

Diggory came first, Chang on his arm. That didn't surprise Severus. He had been witness to his asking and her accepting, as Diggory hadn't really bothered doing it in private, instead asking Chang in the middle of the corridor in between lessons.

Delacour came in next, with Davies. ...Really? Seeing the way the boy could barely keep his eyes off his date even as they walked, left Severus feeling more than a little unimpressed by the boy.

Krum was next, and on his arm was...Granger? A vastly different looking Granger, at that. Severus hadn't thought to see those two together, but it was hardly the worst coupling, admittedly.

And now, Potter came in, arm in arm with-with Weasley!? No, not Ron Weasley. Not Fred or George either. And certainly not the three older brothers who had all graduated. It was the Weasley girl-Ginny, that Potter was with.

...What?

Potter's chosen date brought forth scandalized whispers almost instantly, though neither of the two girls seemed to care. They took part in the opening dance with the other three couples, and then moved to the Head Table, where the Champions and their dates were to sit with the rest of the staff.

Potter, by some strange chance, ended up seated beside Severus, which was a far cry better than Karkaroff, who was on his other side. Potter greeted him politely, Weasley following a bit more stiffly, but they soon began to eat.

For Severus, the meal, though delicious, was uneventful. He kept to himself because he was in no mood to deal with Karkaroff tonight, and told himself he was above listening to what Potter was speaking of.

All four Champions appeared entirely occupied with their dates. Diggory and Chang seemed to be discussing Quidditch, an odd topic, Severus thought, for such a night, but he could hardly judge. Delacour was speaking, but Davies barely seemed to be paying attention, all his focus apparently on Delacour's face. Annoying, to say the least. Krum was attempting to learn how to pronounce Granger's given name, a real task, it appeared. And Potter...she and the Weasley girl were chatting about the impact they had made upon entering the Great Hall. He couldn't blame them for that.

Weasley herself wouldn't even have been able to attend (as she was merely a third year), but why had Potter wanted her to be her date? Even though Potter hadn't shown much interest in boys, she had shown even less interest in being interested in girls in a manner beyond friendship. So why Weasley?

He got his answer not long after. Once dinner was finished, the round tables were moved away off the centre of the Hall's floor, and many of the students hurried forward and began to dance to the music being played by...whoever that group was. Diggory, Delacour, and Krum were no different, taking their dates along with them.

Potter on the other hand, did not follow suit. She leaned into Weasley to say something to her, and the younger girl grinned in response, nodded, and then hurried off where she quickly joined her own year friends.

Potter watched her go, smiling when she saw Granger clearly enjoying herself, frowning when she saw Weasley (Ron) definitely not enjoying himself. Then she yawned, stretched in her seat, and stood, inching towards the doors rather cautiously, as if trying to make sure no one saw her leave.

Having no inclination to remain in here for much longer, Severus gave the girl a few minutes before he too left the Hall, heading to the magically created rose gardens. There were already dozens of teenagers snogging in the bushes, but he paid them no mind at first, in a decent enough mood.

And then Karkaroff found him. His decent mood deteriorated awfully quickly at that point, which meant those rose bushes were now in danger of being blasted apart, and the students behind them of being...whatever. What did it matter?

He brushed Karkaroff off as soon as he could, and continued wandering through the gardens, no actual destination in mind. He just had to pass time until the ball came to an official end, at which point he would have to help in making sure the students all went to their dorms, and then aid in the cleaning.

...He could have been brewing potions right now.

Annoyed, Severus made an about turn, and had taken only two steps before someone literally ran into him. He stumbled slightly, caught off guard, straightened, and was about to berate the idiot, when he realized who it was.

"Potter?"

The girl looked up at him, green eyes wide with surprise. "Oh! I'm sorry, Professor!" She took a step back, away from his personal space, fiddling with the fabric of her emerald coloured dress.

Severus looked at her closer, and then frowned. "Your face is flushed. Are you ill?"

"Huh?" She blinked, and then that flush in her cheeks deepened, travelling down her neck and up to her ears. "N-no! I'm fine! I just...saw...uh..." Her eyes flickered over to the rose bushes.

"Ah." He didn't need her to elaborate. She must have seen a couple in one of the many bushes getting along a little too well. Which meant she was embarrassed, rather than ill. ...How strangely endearing. He regarded her a moment, watched the way she nervously shifted from one foot to the other, which must have been painful in those shoes she was wearing, and then, before he could stop himself, asked, "I had expected you would be inside with your...date."

"...Date? Oh! You mean Ginny? She's busy dancing with her friends."

"Should she not be dancing with you?"

Potter paled. "I don't dance!" she protested quickly. "And the dancing I did earlier was literally because I had no choice. Do you know how long it took Hermione to teach me just that little bit!? Ages! Literally ages! I never want to do that again! ...Uh, sir."

Severus frowned slightly, growing more curious now. "Then you invited Miss Weasley..."

"Cause I didn't care about any of the boys who asked me, and had to have a date. Ginny's a third year, and she was really disappointed that she wasn't going to get to go to the ball, especially because most of her friends had been asked to go with older boys. I think Neville was originally planning on asking Ginny, but then he asked Hannah, you know, from Hufflepuff, and I figured I'd just ask Ginny to go with me, so I wouldn't have to worry about boys, and she'd get to be with her friends, and I could mess with everyone by going with a girl," she finished with a rather unconcerned shrug.

Severus stared. That was...oddly well thought out for a girl her age. She certainly had 'messed' with everyone by attending with the Weasley girl on her arm, that was for sure. Many who had seen the entrance had been utterly scandalized by the sight of the two girls, and Severus knew he was going to be more surprised if tomorrow's paper didn't have Potter and Weasley on the front page.

Honestly, Severus was more amused than anything else (now that he understood her intentions). Potter truly was such a strange girl...

So, the next chapter will be the second task, and the one after that the rest of fourth year. I won't be combining those chapters regardless of their length, so chapter ten will be when things branch out more. Looking forward to reviews! Laterz!