Happy Friday! As is standard, have another chapter to celebrate the end of a good week. Lord knows we all deserve it. Everyone get your dates, the Yule Ball is coming!

Thanks to my readers, all of you, and to the ever constant KRP for your review. And KRP, even if the Transphasic Project worked like you think it did, how would he grab hold of Katie? No, he'll have to rely on something else. And there are fifteen Quicksilver Projects, some are more secretive than others. You'll know when they pop up, Esdras' eyes will change color in response to the cloak.

And to everyone else, please review! I'd love to hear from y'all. There used to be a lot of reviews, then they all disappeared. It's kinda sad…

Oh, and a note on currency. A quarter of a million Galleons (according to the handy currency converter in the HP Lexicon) is roughly 2.5 million U.S. Dollars.

Anyway, same rules apply as always, text in italics is in Azkabaaner, and I don't own HP.

Chapter 12 – The Easiest Challenge

A still smoldering Esdras laughed brightly as Katie tackled him, almost knocking the freshly won golden egg from his hands. He held her tightly and kissed her. When she finally broke the kiss, she stared deep into his fiery red eyes and smiled seductively. "And I though your green eyes were sexy…"

The Dementor looked confused. "What do you mean?" Katie smirked and pulled out a compact, holding the mirror out to him. Esdras took one look at his reflection and let out a low whistle. "I'll have to tell Kira about this. This is definitely an unexpected side effect."

He slipped from the Firestorm cloak and, sure enough, his eyes returned to the comforting green that Katie had grown accustomed to. She slipped her hand into his and leaned against his arm. "Well, at least it didn't affect the cloak. You were amazing out there, my dear."

Esdras grinned, taking the rare opportunity to bask in his success. He was interrupted by a hand clasping him on the back. He turned to face Cedric Diggory, who was all smiles. "Well done out there, Esdras. That was some excellent transfiguration out there. Those really looked like bars of platinum."

The Dementor laughed and scratched the back of his head. "Well, Cedric, you see, I didn't really transfigure anything. I had Commander DeCay and Lieutenant Trieste go to the bank for me and make a small withdrawal from my vault." He turned to Katie. "You know, those two are becoming quite the couple."

Katie laughed. "You mean someone finally tamed Malachi the bachelor?"

Cedric, however, was still pondering the loot. "You mean…that was all real?"

Esdras nodded. "Every last ounce, every last gem."

The Hufflepuff champion shook his head. "I don't believe it. All those bars must have been worth over a hundred thousand Galleons."

The Dementor sighed, eager to leave the topic behind him. "At current market price, five bars of platinum, three bars of gold, two bars of silver, and almost two hundred carats of diamonds works out to over a quarter million Galleons." He hefted the golden egg up and inspected it closely. "And the mama dragon gets something for her hoard. I think it's a fair trade."

Cedric gave the Dementor a strange look before nodding. "Well, still, congratulations."

Esdras nodded absently and continued to inspect his egg. Katie walked silently with him for a few moments. "So, are you going to open it?"

He turned to regard her for a second, and then shrugged his shoulders. "Sure." He carefully pulled the lid of the egg off and almost immediately, they were bathed in a horrible screeching sound. The Dementor flinched and nearly dropped the egg. "Cloaks of the ancients, what the hell is this?"

Katie pressed her hands to her ears shouted to him. "Close it! Close it!"

Esdras closed the lid and the screeching stopped, he held the egg at arm's length. "What just happened?"

Cho, who had the misfortune of being close enough to hear the noise as well, looked incredulously at him. "What was that? It sounded like nails on a chalkboard but a thousand times worse."

The three regarded the ovoid with suspicion. The Dementor's voice was steely and cold. "Damned if I know, but it sounded familiar. I have three months to figure it out, though, and I doubt a bar of platinum will help."

Charms class was usually fun for Esdras. While he had a full compliment of Azkaban spells to do the exact same things that he was learning to do, knowing the mortal equivalents was a pleasant change of pace. Professor Flitwick was also very good about allowing him to nod off in the corner or work on other homework or fleet paperwork if he had already managed to show proficiency at the day's topic.

Today was a bit different, though, as Flitwick took to the center of the room to address the class. "As I'm sure you all have seen by now, the Yule Ball will be held on Christmas Eve. The heads of house have been asked to make sure that all students have at least some introductory lessons in dancing before this event." He turned to face the Dementor. "Esdras, wake up, you'll need to pay attention to this."

Esdras startled and his head shot up from the desk quicker than he could put on his mortal face. "I'm awake."

The diminutive professor nodded. "Good. You'll have to pay special attention, as the champions are expected to open the ball with a dance. Of course, I assume you already have a date in mind, so I won't tell you that you need to find one."

Laughing slightly, Esdras nodded. "I have someone who I think would say yes to me."

Nodding, Flitwick turned to the remainder of the class. "Well, let's clear these desks out of the way and I'll see if I can't teach you some of the old steps I used to know."

It turned out that Professor Flitwick wasn't half bad for being so short. He managed to give reasonable instructions and soon, the whole of the class was swinging around the classroom in time to the music. Esdras, who had paired up with Cho, added in an amusing little step where he spun them in midair. As they danced, the seeker laughed and looked up at the beater. "So, have you asked Katie yet?"

Esdras shook his head. "Not yet, I know she'll say yes, so I want to make it special. I need to ask for Professor Flitwick's help after class."

Cho shook her head and smiled. "You spoil her."

The Dementor laughed and spun them in midair again. "She deserves it. How about you? Any prospective dates?"

Cho smiled shyly and looked down. "Well, there is one. But I don't think he'd want to go with me."

Esdras, well versed in reading his friends by now, rolled his glowing eyes. However, his voice was humorless. "I'm sure Harry does. The question is if he'll have the guts to ask you."

Cho paled. "How did you know?"

The Dementor shook his head and spun her again.

It had been going on for days now, and Esdras was tired of it. Stopping by the Gryffindor table to spend time with Katie during meals meant that he was also privy to the qualms and complaints of his Gryffindor friends. And at this point, he was fed up with Harry and Ron. He had long since given up dropping hints to Harry that his task was far, far easier than he could have possibly imagined.

But the Dementor could not solve all the problems of the world. Cho had come into the common room earlier that day, positively exuberant that she had been asked to the ball by Cedric Diggory. So, as the Dementor sat beside Katie at the Gryffindor table, he couldn't help but notice the forlorn looking Harry who sat opposite him. He turned to face Katie and sighed. He spoke in Azkaban, which Harry had yet to try to learn. "I tried to help him, I really did."

Katie nodded sadly and replied similarly. "I know you did, my dear. But asking out someone that you like is never easy."

Esdras huffed. "I had no problem with it. The only rough spot we had was when you found out I was a Dementor."

The mortal laughed softly. "Yes, but that didn't last very long. And besides, you have almost three centuries of extra experience on him. Asking girls out should be easier for you."

The Dementor shook his head. "Oh no, I'm not that experienced. And you never get used to rejection. Never." He smiled and switched to English. "But, since we're talking about it, do you have a date to the ball yet?"

Katie shrugged her shoulders. "Well, you know how it is. There's this guy I'm seeing, but he hasn't said anything yet. I don't know what's going on with him." She sighed dramatically. "I may just have to go alone."

Esdras straightened up in mock indignation. "Well, we certainly can't have that. I must insist then that you accompany me to the Yule Ball."

She gasped in shock. "But, what about the guy I'm seeing?"

The Dementor reached into his robes and pulled out something which made all conversation at the table cease. In his hands, he held a beautiful rose that had been crafted from platinum. The artistry was exquisite, for the shining metal flower looked exactly like a real one. Esdras held the gift out to Katie. "Please, would you go with me to the Yule Ball?"

Katie took the shining flower and held it close to her heart. Her eyes were tearing up. "Of course I will."

As dinner let out, the Ravenclaw Quidditch team gathered around Esdras. Katie was walking ahead with Alicia and Angelina, holding her platinum rose out for all to see. Roger Davies let out a low whistle. "I take it you had some platinum left over from the first challenge?"

Esdras nodded. "I had a bit left over. Malachi took the rest of it back but I kept part of a bar for this."

Cho smirked. "Is that why you were waiting to ask Katie?"

The Dementor smiled and nodded. "Professor Flitwick is very good at metalwork, but I wanted it to be perfect. It took him a few days to do it. He refused to accept any payment, too. He said he was happy to do it and that he didn't get to practice enough. But the result is absolutely amazing."

They were interrupted by the platinum blonde form of Fleur Delacour stepping into their path. She had a shy look on her face as she addressed the glowing eyed Dementor. "Bon jour, Esdras. I was told that you ave not asked Katie to zee ball. I was hoping perhaps you and I might go together?"

The Dementor was sincerely apologetic. "Fleur, I'm sorry. I just asked her tonight. I had a reason for waiting, and I'm sorry that you took it the wrong way." He looked around desperately. "Roger! Fleur, Roger here doesn't have a date. He's a very good friend of mine."

Roger, always quick on the uptake, straightened up and put on his best smile. "Actually, I'd be honored if I could have the pleasure of escorting you to the ball."

Fleur looked from Esdras to Roger, and then gave him an appraising glance. She was silent for a moment before extending a hand to Roger. "Very well, then, Roger. I shall go with you to zee ball."

Roger took her hand and politely kissed it before she walked off. As the quarter Veela walked away, Roger turned to face his Dementor friend, a look of hero worship in his eyes. "That was bloody brilliant."

Esdras laughed and floated on. "You're telling me."

The Dementor was still laughing as he was plucked from midair before the other members of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team the moment he passed into the Entrance Hall. Katie Bell had a handful of his cloak and smiled to the other Ravenclaws. "Excuse me; I just need to borrow Esdras for a second." She pulled him down to eye level and whispered into his ear. "Trophy Room, as fast as you can."

Nodding quickly, Esdras wrapped his arms around her and vaulted them up into the air to the third floor. They sailed down the hall until they came to the heavy door protecting the room filled with shining mementos of days long past. The Dementor sat the mortal down and looked around. "And why did you want me to bring you back here?"

Katie grinned, the platinum rose in one hand and Esdras' shirtfront in the other. She pulled him down and kissed him deeply. "Isn't it obvious? I wanted to thank you properly."