We hope you enjoy this one :)


The next evening came all to fast from the perspective of the female inhabitants of the castle and Severus was sure that there was not a single girl/woman in the castle that was not concerned that the dress could not fit or that the hairstyle would look awkward. He had never understood things like that, how everyone could be so rushed about it.

"It is something only the women understand", Albus smiled as they were standing next to each other in the entry hall, inspecting the students attire, watching that only the students from the 4th Year and above went inside and secretly they waited for Minerva and Rolanda to come down. Severus had not been able to stop himself from thinking about her since her lips had touched his cheek and he had even dreamt about her, leaving him in a even more confused state about his own feelings. He had to admit that he had been confused a lot in the last months and it was remarkable what powers Rolanda had over him. It was not explainable what was happening to him every time she was around and now he found himself as nervous as the students that were waiting for their dates as he stared at the marble stairs, always in mind to control his expressions as Umbridge, wearing a horrible pink dress, was standing in the entry hall too and that knowledge made it even harder as the two women finally came down the stairs, his heart skipping a beat as his eyes fell on Rolanda, leaving him stunned for the second time within two days.

Rolanda made her way down the stairs to the Great Hall with Minerva. The two had been finishing getting ready together and were excited for the evening. It had been a long time since Rolanda had been to a proper ball, and without a date. Tonight, she was going to embrace her single status. And possibly, a small part of her mind whispered, get herself a more permanent partner. As she reached the bottom of the stairs she noticed Severus. She nearly gasped audibly. The man was wearing black robes, as usual, but these were velvety and had small green decorations. Green! An actual colour was visible. And, moreover, Severus had secured his hair back with a green velvet ribbon! Rolanda couldn't actually believe her eyes when she saw him. She was about to make her way over when Umbridge appeared wearing something that could only be described as an eighty year old night dress that had been the victim of a bubblegum pink paint war. It made her head hurt.

"Miss Hooch, come this way please! Your table is over here, and yes, sit down now, sit down. Your duties for the evening will involve making sure the children are well behaved. Now, goodbye!" Rolanda was fuming. The woman was even enforcing strict segregation amongst people at a social occasion! Rolanda fumed, and made her way over to the buffet table to drown her sorrows. Then she thought again. As much as she desired a cocktail or wine of some sort, she wanted to make sure that she made no rash decisions which Umbridge could punish her for. Therefore, Rolanda selected a glass of pumpkin juice to start her evening off. She would remain sober, sensible and stylish throughout the entire evening, no matter what. As she sipped her drink, she noticed Severus eyeing her awkwardly from across the room. She was about noticed how he refused dances to most people who asked, only allowing Minerva and Pomona, as the other heads of houses, a small turn on the dance floor. And even then, his steps were as awkward and clumsy as ever. Rolanda rolled her eyes. Right partner indeed! Minerva was a fabulous dancer, you only need to see her dance with Albus once to know that. Saying that, Rolanda thought, Minerva and Albus could probably wallow in mud and still make it look graceful, there was so much chemistry between them. As she observed the scene and the night went on, Rolanda danced with Albus, Filius, Hagrid (somewhat awkwardly) and a whole host of other people. But not Severus. He, she noticed, kept vanishing whenever she noticed him looking at her. That and the fact that Umbridge had made it her evening's goal to not allow a single word to pass between them. The night drew on, and though Rolanda enjoyed herself, she missed one presence in the room more than a little bit.

Severus had believed that she had looked wonderful yesterday, but today Rolanda crashed this thought with a loud bang and he had to invest a lot of effort to keep his lineaments from getting out of control. She wore a deep blue coloured strapless mermaid cut dress with a sweetheart neckline that highlighted her beautiful figure, her silvery blonde hair was in a braided up-do hairstyle with a few cheeky curls jumping on her shoulders and a decent make-up made her golden eyes sparkle and he would have loved to drown in them as their gazes met for a short moment, but then Umbridge came and dragged the young witch over to the second teacher table. Albus smiled at Minerva who wore her usual emerald green dress robes and said:"Rolanda looks stunning, just as you, my dear."

He gave her a small kiss on the knuckles while Severus walked into the Great Hall in front of them. During the whole evening he was shooting her glances, wondering why her boyfriend was not accompanying her. The thought of this man stung in his heart and he tried to stop himself from watching her as she laughed with some of the older Quidditch students or danced with a colleague. She looked so graceful and elegant, even with Hagrid as a partner and seemed to enjoy the evening, but it was also visible that she was a little bit tense when Umbridge was near and he noticed that she sticked to pumpkin juice all the time while he drank some vine with the dinner. He spent the evening with a little bit of dancing with Minerva and Pomona, but he did not feel relaxed and was happy when the dance was over and he could return into his corner. It was a little bit disappointing for him that he had no opportunity to talk to Rolanda as Umbridge was extremely busy with keeping them apart during the whole evening and therefore he decided to leave as soon as it was appropriate. He checked if any students who were not allowed to be out of the common rooms were running around, then he made his way to his chambers, feeling sad about the evening. So close but still so far away, a frustrating experience and he felt a little bit foolish about his outfit. Had he really believed that it would change anything of their current situation? Umbridge was as horrible as ever and Rolanda was not interested in him and had a boyfriend.