Harry
Valentine's Day was fast approaching, and Hogwarts was decorated for the occasion. Harry, Ron and Ginny had just finished Quidditch practice and were waiting in the Great Hall for Hermione, Anna and Isabella.
"So apparently Seamus asked Anna to the Ball tomorrow night" said Ginny. She rested her back on Harry's chest. "Oh get over it, Ron" she added sharply, seeing her brother's expression of disgust.
"I'm still not used to this" he grumbled. And then his face changed. "Wait, did you say Seamus?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Why? He's a git!"
"Agreed" said Harry. "Did she say yes?"
"Ask her yourself" said Ginny. Hermione, Anna and Isabella approached the table and took a seat.
"Oi Anna, are you going with Seamus to the Ball?" asked Ron bluntly.
She flushed bright pink. "Yes" she answered. "Why?"
"He's a git."
"Oh, he is not" objected Hermione. "Besides, it's not up to you. Anna likes him, so she's going with him."
"Well, I don't like him" said Anna quickly. "We're friends."
"I agree with Ron" piped in Isabella. "He's a git."
Anna looked hurt.
"Maybe he's not that bad" reasoned Harry, and he stood firmly on Ron's foot with the heel of his shoe.
"What?" yelped Ron. Harry jerked his head at Anna when she wasn't looking. "Oh – sorry Anna" said Ron, looking sheepish. "I was just overreacting."
At that same moment, Sirius walked in to the Great Hall and suddenly the room filled with loud whispers and giggling.
Ron snorted. "I bet there's a bunch of girls who wish they could ask Sirius to the Ball."
"Apparently somebody did" whispered Ginny excitedly.
His head snapped in her direction. "No way!" he exclaimed. "What happened?!"
"Well obviously Sirius declined" replied Ginny, rolling her eyes. "And McGonagall apparently got up them."
"Who was it?" asked Harry.
"No idea" Ginny replied. "I heard it in the bathroom."
Ron slumped back in to his chair, seemingly disappointed.
"Who are you going with, Bells?" asked Ginny.
"Nobody" sighed Isabella, and she theatrically clutched her heart and pretended to feint. Hermione and Anna laughed.
"Oh, come on" said Ginny, rolling her eyes again. "As if no one's asked you out."
"Ok fine" said Isabella. "I've had a few people ask me, but I'm just not interested." Suddenly, she leaned in on the table. "Besides, I've been way more interested in whatever's been going on with Snape and Swan."
Harry, who had just taken a sip of pumpkin juice, almost choked. "What?" he spluttered in between breaths.
"Don't tell me you guys haven't noticed?!" exclaimed Isabella. Nobody reacted. "There's definitely something going on!"
"Come off it" waved off Harry.
"Yeah" scoffed Ron. "That's as bad as Anna and Seamus." Harry stomped on his foot again. "Sorry – it's just that Swan is nice, and Snape is…"
"A hero?" offered Isabella, sarcastically.
"It's just weird" said Ron. "Snape with anyone is weird." He looked as if he was about to say more but when his eyes met Harry's, quickly shut his mouth.
"Who knows" said Hermione briskly, and she stood up. "We should get to the library, and you need to start on your Transfiguration paper" she finished, looking at Ron.
"Fine" he huffed.
"Coming Harry?" asked Hermione. She gave him a knowing look. "You haven't started on it either." He nodded quickly and hoped the others wouldn't ask to join them.
Once seated in the library, Hermione rounded on Harry. "Was that uncomfortable for you?" she asked. Ron looked sheepish.
"I don't know" replied Harry. "I guess, sort of."
"It's all come out of nowhere, right?" she said. "We never even considered Snape to be with anyone ever, and suddenly we know about him and your Mum, and now him and Swan…"
"I'll say" muttered Ron. "But still – him and Swan?"
"It's not all about looks, Ronald" said Hermione crossly. She edged away from him.
"That's not what I mean, Mione" sighed Ron, shaking his head. "She's like the nicest professor here, and Snape, well, he's still a git."
"He's done so much though!" protested Hermione.
"But think of all the times he hurt your feelings" countered Ron. "He was Neville's boggart for crying out loud!"
"It doesn't matter" said Harry quickly, before Hermione could respond. "Any of it. I saw Snape's Pensieve, he's been in love with my Mum for almost all his life. I doubt he'll be getting over her any time soon."
Amaryllis
It was after dinner and Amaryllis and Severus had gathered in his class room to mark papers. Amaryllis technically didn't have any papers to mark, but she enjoyed Severus's company, even if it was in silence. From her seat across from him, she looked at him closely and she concluded after some time that she was completely attracted to him. But she couldn't understand why. He was certainly no Prince Charming by the stretch of any imagination, or even a gentleman by society's standards. No, Severus was a total enigma. A mixture of all four seasons all at the same time, unpredictable and unarming. And that terrified her.
Friendship would be best for them.
And safe for her.
But still her mind probed possibilities, and suddenly it sopped on the knowledge that tomorrow was the Valentine's Day Ball. She wondered if he had ever had a date…
Perhaps she must have become caught in some kind of trance, because the next few words that left Amaryllis Swan's lips did not get any approval from her brain: "Severus, would you like to go to the ball with me?"
Severus did not answer for at least ten seconds, though it felt much longer to her. Finally: "No." He did not say it unkindly but Amaryllis felt a wave of humiliation wash over her. She looked away from him and cleared her throat to ground herself.
"Yeah, of course…" said Amaryllis. "I don't know why I thought…just…forget I said anything." She stood up hastily. "I should probably get going…um, I'll see you tomorrow." And she all but ran out of the dungeons, back to her quarters.
Once she was inside, she burst out laughing. She didn't know why; it certainly wasn't funny.
Before dinner, she had asked Sirius to come to her quarters to help her choose a dress to wear to the Ball. When she heard the door knock, she rushed to answer it.
"No wonder everyone thinks we're together" he joked, when Amaryllis opened the door. "I must spend at least five nights here a week."
"I've made a terrible mistake" she groaned.
"What did you do?" She opened the door wider, so he could enter.
"So you just…asked him to the Ball, like a date?" said Sirius from the kitchen; he had offered to make tea.
"No, just as friends" replied Amaryllis hastily. "It all happened so fast; I didn't even think of clarifying to him." She put her hands over her face. "I suppose I wasn't thinking at all."
Sirius brought two cups of tea in to her bedroom. He carefully put them on to the coffee table before flopping on to her bed.
"What about this one?" asked Amaryllis, and she showed him a navy-blue floor length gown. He scrunched his face and she tossed it on the chair next to her. She showed him four more dresses before finally picking up an emerald green gown.
"I like this" approved Sirius, sitting up.
I don't know…" said Amaryllis slowly. "I wore green to the Christmas party." Truthfully, she didn't want to wear green or anything else that would remind Severus of Lily.
"So?" said Sirius. "Who cares if you wear the same colour again? Besides, only a couple of us were at the Christmas party."
"I just want to wear another colour" she answered quickly. Sirius looked at her with a calculating expression for a moment, but then he shrugged, and laid down on the bed again.
"That's nice" he said, when Amaryllis showed him a black gown. It was floor length with a flowing skirt, high neck and no sleeves.
"Are you sure it's appropriate to wear without the sleeves?" she asked nervously.
"Definitely" said Sirius. "It's a Ball, you're supposed to wear non-work attire".
"I do like it…" said Amaryllis. She held the gown against her body. "OK, this is the one." She hung it on her dresser, and then laid down next to Sirius. They were face to face. "What have I done?" she murmured. "I finally had my friendship back, and now I've blown it."
"Don't even worry about it" said Sirius gently. "Snape's daft anyway." She looked at him doubtfully. "OK, maybe he's not that daft."
"So what do I do?"
"Live your life" he said simply. She laughed. "Seriously" he continued. "See friends, get to know new people…enjoy your days. Life is too short to spend it worrying over stupid boys." They laughed after that, even though nothing was funny anymore, and Amaryllis Swan felt a rush of affection for Sirius Black, far greater than she had already felt for him. He truly was a good friend.
