Chapter 11

Disclaimer: Don't own Hogwarts, wish I did but I don't. I also don't own Starkid, though I am a major fan.

Once JoMo had finished his dance he joined Denise, Meredith and Lauren at the ice tables. Mere and Lauren still had their mouths hanging wide open, catching the light snowflakes that were falling from the ceiling. Denise was clutching her sides she was laughing so hard and JoMo was still suppressing a smirk. She could see from the other end of the hall Jaime and Joey dancing a waltz next to Julia and her partner. It would only take time for Julia to notice and start laughing as well. Meredith sat with baited breath until she saw Julia do a double take. She then stared across her partners' shoulder at JoMo. She too was holding back on laughing and JoMo could tell she was struggling. Luckily it was nearing the end of the song and when it had run its course Julia had walked across and joined them, laughing the whole way across the dance floor. When she arrived, she squished down beside JoMo and Denise who were laughing with her. Mere and Lauren did not look amused. Eventually Lauren closed her mouth and put her head in her hands. OMFWG! He's with Jaime! All this time me and Mer have been fighting and Jaime's been dating him. I feel so embarrassed. That whole fight with Mer was pointless. I feel terrible; maybe I should apologize but not here, not with everyone watching.

"Mer, will you come to the toilet with me, I need to fix my make-up and you are the best at it" Lauren whispered in Mer's ear. She didn't look at her friend; she kept her head towards the ground.

"I'm sure your makeups fine Lo" Mer replied looking up. After seeing Lauren's pleading irises she knew that Lauren just really wanted to talk. "Um, okay?" The two girls glided out of the room quick enough that the others turned to each other with their facial expressions asking each other what that was going on. When the girls arrived at the bathroom, the tension between them grew awkward. Lauren pulled out her wand and locked the bathroom door before turning to Brian who was looking at the floor. Lauren was the first to speak.

"So he's with Jaime, figures. All the good ones are taken." She spoke but Mer made no movement, her eyes still focused on the group. "Look I brought you here to apologize but if you won't even look at me forget it!" Lo huffed raising her wand to leave when Mer's shoulders started to shake. "Are you okay?" Lauren felt confused and annoyed when a loud infectious giggled erupted out of her. Lauren questioned her with her eyes.

"He… Was….With…Jaime! How did we not get that? We should of guessed that way back when she didn't pick a side in this ridiculous argument. Wow, we are either really gullible or we don't pay enough attention to her. I just can't believe we fell out over Jaime's boyfriend." With Meredith's last remark the two girls collapsed with laughter, tears streaming down their faces at their own foolishness. It wasn't until a few minutes later that they realized the damage they had done to their own make up. They gasped as they looked in the mirror and at one another. Their faces only made them laugh harder. "We look like pandas that have been left out in the rain!" Meredith and Lauren looked at each other for a moment before both girls opened their arms wide and hug one another. "I'm sorry Lo, I didn't mean what I said about you not being in Joey's league. You were by far the most beautiful girl tonight. I mean that."

"Thanks Mer and I'm sorry too. I take back anything mean I said about you." Lauren replied humbly while releasing her friend. "You always know what to say to make me feel better."

"I wasn't just saying that to make you feel better, it's the truth. Did you see the looks you were getting? Almost every guy in the place almost dropped dead when you walked in and almost every girl wished you'd drop dead because they were jealous. Here let me fix your make up before we go back out there. I will do my best but I make no promises. Reperum!" Meredith said as a yellow beam flew out of her wand making Lauren's face tingle. "It's not too bad. Let's go out there and forget all about him, you never know who you might dance with. By the way I don't think we should hold this against Jaime." Lo nodded in agreement. It's hard to believe that just half an hour ago both girls would barely speak to each other. "Oh, and I heard that Joe didn't have a date." After Meredith fixed her own makeup and Lauren had unlocked the door the two girls left, both happy to be united with their friend again.

When they returned, the hall seemed unchanged, except the snow was thicker now and the music was slower. Lauren lightly nudged Meredith when she clocked Jaime and Joey dancing closely together across from the glass tables.

"Hey, look over there. It's Joime." Meredith glanced over in their direction. The other members of their group had dispersed again. Julia was currently dancing with Darren. JoMo was dancing with a fellow Gryffindor called Devin. Dylan was currently at the punch bowl. Brian and Denise were still over at the ice sculpted tables, deep in conversation. Neither girl could see Charlene. The duo walked in the direction of the tables. Lo was still chuckling lightly to herself. It wasn't until the pair were inches in front of Brian and Denise that the two sitting down realized they were there. Both looked up, slightly shocked before a smile spread across Brian's face and Denise huffed. She then leaned into her small purse pulling out a galleon and giving it to a smug looking Brian.

"Ha! I told you they'd make up. You shouldn't have bet! Pleasant doing business with you," Brian smiled while putting the galleon into his pocket. Denise scoffed, looking huffy. She wasn't the only one who looked annoyed. Meredith and Lauren exchanged a look before they stood with their hands on theirs hips, Lauren chewing the inside of her lip and staring at the pair in irritation. Meredith looked infuriated.

"You bet on us? Really? You bet, whether we would make up or not? How sick and twisted is that?" Mer practically spat at them. The pair looked sheepish even when Lauren joined in.

"Yeah, uh, I mean. How could you? That's despicable…." Lauren's attempt to hide her laugh failed. As she burst out giggling she was elbowed in this side by Mer who let out a disappointed sigh before joining her. "I'm sorry but you two make it too easy to pull your chains. You should have seen your faces." Denise and Brian glanced at each other, then after a long pause laughed themselves.

….

The next hour went by without much change. Julia and Darren had rejoined the tables as the music picked up, and became almost fast. The group had danced to many muggle musical numbers, only Brian knew most of them. Charlene hadn't been sighted since the group had dispersed earlier. Only when a moronic tune - by someone called 'the Cheeky Girls' as Brian had called them -was being played that the group sat down and realized their absentee. Lo noticed first as she scanned the room, only stopping for a second when she saw the garish dance that Joime were performing.

"Hey, have you guys seen Charlene?" Lauren asked worriedly. The gang replied as they too scanned the room. "Where is she? Where could she have gone?" The group turned to Lo she could tell by their faces they didn't have the answers. They continued to scrutinize every inch of the room looking for Char. Lo was the first to spot the flash of green but she wasn't alone. She was pulling a confused looking Gryffindor towards the table. His hair was light and was cut short. He had sapphires irises. Lauren stiffed with fear as Charlene and Joe reached the table. The others looked taken back with shock. She turned to Lauren and Meredith.

"Hey guys, sorry I just disappeared on you but I had to go find someone. Glad to see you two made up. Lauren, can we talk to you?" Char asked gingerly. Lauren felt perplexed but curious as she stood up and followed Char and Joe out of the hall.

….

Charlene rounded a corner before coming to an abrupt stop. She stared around the room, almost like she was searching for something. "Anyone here?" She asked the open air. When no one replied she turned to Lo and hugged her, pulling her tight she whispered Good Luck before leaving for the hall. She left the pair in an awkward silence, both staring at the floor, occasionally looking up quickly before returning their gaze to the floor. After what felt like forever Lauren looked up to find Joe already staring at her. Any thought she had about speaking dissolved in her head. She hadn't noticed before that his eyes when the perfect colour of blue that matched his pale skin perfectly. She hadn't noticed that way he brushed his hair behind his ears made her heart flutter. Their eyes remained locked creating a beautiful blend of sapphire and chocolate, until eventually he spoke.

"So, Charlene says that you wanted to talk to me?" Joe asked sheepishly, looking deeply into her soul. Lauren was lost for words. She knew what she wanted to say but the words wouldn't form in her mouth. So instead of saying that she thought he was very handsome in a suit or that she wouldn't mind ripping it off, she mumbled, "Um, yeah, I did."

Joe looked like he was contemplating something. Then he spoke, sending shivers down Lo's spine.

"See the thing is. I wasn't actually going to come tonight. I thought it would be pointless as the girl I liked was head over heels for another guy" Lo's face remained unchanged. "See, so you could imagine my surprise when a girl knocked on my door explaining that I needed to attend the ball this instant." That sounds like something Charlene would do. "To my disappointment it wasn't the girl I liked it was her friend who instructed me to as she said 'Get my arse in gear and tell y-her how I felt'" A light switch was turning on in Lauren's head now. "So I did as I was told and followed her to the hall where she brought me to you." Lauren was smiling now. "So, here goes nothing. Do you think that…. I mean … do you … do you think that you could set me up on a date with Denise?" Joe stuttered. Lauren's face fell about a hundred floors. Tears were attacking her eyes like a thousand pins. She had never felt so terrible in her life, when suddenly Joe began to chuckle slightly. Lauren was into much pain to be confused so instead snapped angrily at him.

"What are you laughing at?" She said narrowing her yes into slits. Joe looked taken back for a moment before her replied.

"It's too easy to pull your chain." Joe chortled. "Of course I don't like your sister. Well, um I do, just not the way that I like you. So, um, will you go out with me?." He trailed of sheepishly. Lauren's brain did a double take. Did he just say he liked me? Did he just ask me out?! "Well, are you going to say anything?"

Lauren mulled over this thought for a moment. She could tell the suspense was killing him.

"Well, I could but seeming as it's so easy to 'pull my chain' I think I might just have to think a little longer yet." She giggled playfully. Her revenge plan would have worked if he had not bent down crushing their lips together. Even though Lauren had been caught off guard the moment was perfect. The two stayed in perfect bliss for a few seconds before Lauren pulled back. Staring deep into his sapphires she smiled before whispering,

"Yes" This time she was ready when he bent his head. She lifted her head up before returning her lips to their previous position.

…..

As the trio left, the group dispersed again. This left Brian sitting alone with Meredith. The pair was sitting in a comfortable silence, watching the ball take place around them. They were currently switching between watching Jaime and Joey, and Darren and Julia. Brian looked absentmindedly across at Meredith. His heart beat started to increase and his palms became sweaty. She looks beautiful tonight but she looks beautiful every day. Wait! Stop thinking like that. She's Mer. She's my best friend. She likes Joey even if he doesn't like her that way. I am her best friend, I shouldn't be having these thought. I shouldn't have been upset when she told me she like him. I shouldn't be upset that she might never look at me the way she looks at him. Anyway, I couldn't risk losing her, she means too much to me. Meredith's cheeks reddened as she realized Brian was staring at her. Why is he staring at me? Maybe he… No, don't finish that sentence. He doesn't like me, he can't. I'm his best friend, he doesn't think of me like that. He couldn't feel the same. For Christ sake, I thought I was over any of my romantic feelings for him. Meredith's thoughts were interrupted by Brian's voice.

"So, I was wondering if you wanted to dance?" he asked. Meredith looked shocked. Brian did what he always did when he was nervous, he started rambling and brushed his hair with his left hand. "I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to but I was just thinking that because this was a ball and you're supposed to dance and you haven't yet that you could dance with me. Just as friends, I mean, I'm no Joey Richter but…"Meredith leaned across the table grabbing his attention as she looked directly into his eyes.

"No, you're not a Joey…" Meredith started. Brian felt his hear sink. "… You are so much better!" She smiled extending her hand to him which he gladly took, guiding her on to the dance floor. Meredith turned to face him as the music started. Meredith and Brian both gave each other a knowing look. They both loved this muggle song: Make you feel my love by Adele. Brian placed his hands gently on Meredith's waist; she wrapped her arms around his shoulders as they started to sway. As Adele reached the chorus Meredith feeling completely relaxed rested her head on his shoulder, turning in towards him. Brian couldn't help but think this was how it should be, him and Meredith. He lowered his head slightly and inhaled her scent. The pair danced effortlessly together, neither wanting this moment to end. But all too soon the song concluded, leaving Brian and Meredith to separate. As she pulled away, she looked directly at him. Their eye absorbed one another, creating the perfect blend of blue and hazel. They stared at each other for a few moments before Meredith felt a tug at her arm. Breaking her eye contact she turned to see the source. It was Jaime, who was looking at the floor.

"Hey, I just wanted to say I'm sorry for acting like such a bitch to you guys. I should have told you and Lauren about me and Joey but I didn't want things to be awkward. I didn't realize how bad your fight was. I thought you would just argue for a couple of days and then be fine. But when it escalated, I didn't know what to do. You seemed to really hate each other and I guess it's selfish but I didn't want you to hate me too. I'm really sorry, like beyond sorry. Can you forgive me?" Jaime said finally facing Meredith, tears threating her eyes. Meredith eyes were threating her as well. She pulled her friend it a hug. Brian whispered goodbye before walking towards the tables. He understood.

"Of course I can! You're one of my best friends and you're my roommate for wizard god's sake. Though you'll have to talk to Lo though, and she might not be quite as forgiving" Meredith was shocked as Jaime pulled back a smile spread across her face.

"Oh, she's fine with it. I already apologized to her when I passed her the hall, as she was making out with that guy Joe."