This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the Harry Potter universe, which are trademarked by J.K. Rowling. I do not claim ownership of these characters nor the locations such as Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, etc. that are Rowling's creations. This work also includes Pokemon, which belong to the Pokemon Company, and I again claim no ownership of these characters.

I thank both Rowling and the Pokemon Company for the universes they have created that allows me to do something like this for my own entertainment and, hopefully, the entertainment of the readers.

Term ended a week before Christmas and while usually that would accompany throngs of students departing Hogwarts castle to spend the holidays with their family that was not so this year. Almost everyone from forth year and above would be staying at Hogwarts over Christmas, the Yule Ball creating a lot of excitement, particularly from the female part of the school. Even the boys who weren't looking forward to the dance, like Ron, were still interested on what the Ball would be like, with Ron's particular focus being on the food.

As McGonagall had told them an additional Hogsmeade weekend had been arranged for the students in order for them to be able to get suits and dresses to wear to the ball. Gladrag's Pokémon Ware, the foremost clothing store in Hogsmeade, had agreed a deal with their neighbouring shops such that they'd expanded across nearly half of Hogsmeade's main high street to cater for the swarm of students that would be requiring their services.

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny had entered in what would usually have been Quality Quidditch Supplies, Ron seeming to be hoping that there would still be some Quidditch merchandise for him to amuse himself with. Unfortunately for him there was not.

"Who on earth would possibly want to buy this?" he asked perplexedly, standing before a mirror wearing one of the suits that had been picked out for him.

Harry personally agreed. The number Ron was wearing was a burnt orange colour, which Harry doubted would look good on anyone but certainly not someone with Ron's complexion. He looked a bit like a rather large carrot.

"What about this one?" Hermione suggested, holding out a more reserved blue piece on a hanger. "There are some trousers to match and you can wear it with a white shirt. Try it on."

Ron did so, shrugging out of the orange as though he was allergic and pulling on the blue one. It fit him well.

"Hey," he said, looking back into the mirror. "This isn't too bad." He gave himself an appreciative look, turning so he could see the back.

"I thought blue might be better," Hermione said, sounding pleased with herself.

"Definitely," Ron agreed. "Are the trousers blue too? I can see that working." He was still wearing the orange trousers from the last suit. "How much is it?" he asked, playing with the pockets. Hermione gave a pained look.

"Why don't I just get it for you," Harry stepped in quickly before Ron could see Hermione's expression. "It can be your Christmas present."

"I thought you'd already got me a present," Ron said with a frown. It was true, Harry had gotten him a new poster of the Chudley Cannons, Ron's favourite Quidditch team, but Harry wasn't ready to admit that.

"Great," Hermione said, ignoring Ron's reply. "Well, I'll just leave it to you then, Harry." She made to pass the hanger, with price tag attached, over to Harry but Ron was quicker. He nabbed the hanger out of the air and pulled the tag towards him. He gulped.

"There's no way I can afford that," he said, shaking his head. Harry and Hermione shared a look.

"Fine, we'll keep looking," Hermione sighed, taking the blue suit back from Ron and returning to where she'd found it.

Another hour of searching produced no better result. The problem was simply that there were very few suits that looked good on Ron, and those that did were almost always more expensive than what Ron could comfortably afford.

They'd gone through about half the shop before Hermione turned to Harry.

"Do you mind looking after Ron for a while?" she said, as though he was some sort of child that needed constant supervision.

"Why, where are you going?" Harry asked.

"Ginny and I need to find dresses," Hermione told him. "You know that'll take much longer than it'll take you guys."

She left, disappearing towards the back of the shop where the women's section had been set up, leaving Harry to deal with an increasingly dispirited Ron.

"This is hopeless," he complained, looking down the long rack of suits he'd tried and rejected for one reason or another. "I should just get that stupid orange one and sit in the back or something. Where's Hermione?" Harry told him.

"Bet she'll have found a dress before I find something here," Ron said miserably. "I mean, she'll look good in anything. I just look like a thumb." He looked really pathetic.

Harry sighed. "Will you just let me buy you the blue one?" he asked, annoyance starting to leak into his voice. He'd been hoping he wouldn't have to spend long searching for a suit, hoping to finally get the chance to properly explore Hogsmeade, but as the day went on that seemed increasingly unlikely.

Ron vigorously shook his head. "I can't let you do that."

"Why?" Harry questioned. "You know I've got more money than I know what to do with, why won't you just let me help you?" Ron flushed.

"I just don't want to be treated like a charity, okay," he bit out harshly. "You've got money. You don't realise how embarrassing it is to have to ask for it just so you don't look like an idiot."

"I'm not wanting you to ask for it," Harry told him. "I just want you to accept. This is what friends do, Ron. They help each other. Please, just let me do this."

"I wouldn't be able to pay you back," Ron said stubbornly.

"You already have," Harry argued. Ron just frowned at him. "I don't think you realise this but you're the first friend I've ever had. Everything you've done for me is worth more than gold. You introduced me to your family, you had me over in the summer, you let me stay in your room. You don't owe me anything, I owe you."

Ron looked a bit uncomfortable. He shifted slightly where he stood, not looking at Harry.

"Don't be thick," he said eventually. "You don't owe me anything. I wanted you there."

"And I want to help you," Harry replied calmly. Ron let out a breath.

"Fine," he said, running a hand distractedly through his hair. "Fine, we'll do it your way. But you're not paying for anything else today, alright."

"Fair enough," Harry agreed, doing his best to hide his relief at the fact he'd finally be able to get out of there. He'd already got his own suit more than an hour ago, an emerald green number that Ron tried to veto because it reminded him too much of Slytherin. "I'll go tell Hermione."

Finding Hermione, however, proved to be more of a challenge than Harry had expected. A quick search down the aisles turned up nothing and led Harry to do too many circuits before realising they must be in the changing rooms. A quick conversation with the guy running the store, the owner of Quality Quidditch Supplies, led Harry to the right cubicle and he knocked on the door.

"Hermione?" he said. "Hermione, are you in there?" He hoped he was right. The moment he had knocked a whispered conversation from inside had gone quiet and Harry had to wait nervously as the ruffle of shifting fabric sounded through the door and eventually it was cracked open.

"Harry." It was Hermione, though she kept the door mostly closed, only just peeking through the crack to talk to him.

"I convinced Ron to let me pay for the blue one," Harry explained at her questioning look.

"Oh good," she said, clearly relieved. "I was worried we'd be stuck here forever. There's nothing good in his price range."

"I know. Anyway, we're just about to pay," Harry told her. "Are you and Ginny ready?" There was a slight murmur behind the door, too quiet for Harry to pick up, followed by a lot of giggling. Through the crack in the door Harry could see Hermione's grin.

"I think we're going to be here for a while," she said, not sounding remotely unhappy about the prospect. "You two should go ahead, we'll catch up with you later." And Hermione closed the door on him, the giggling rising in volume as Harry was shut out.

He explained the situation to Ron when he found him, hovering near the counter. Ron just shook his head.

"Women," he said, as though that explained everything. "Anyway we should get going. I still haven't had the chance to show you around Hogsmeade yet."

And show Harry around Ron did.

Their first stop was Honeydukes, one place Harry had actually been before but still enjoyed to have a look around again. Quality Quidditch Supplies was a place Ron had wanted to show Harry for a long time but since that's where they'd just come from, and that all traces of Quidditch related products had vanished, Ron instead took him to Zonko's Joke Shop, the one shop, Ron said, that Fred and George worshipped.

Indeed they found Fred and George in there, along with their friend, Lee Jordan. They were laden with a Gladrag's bag each, having clearly completed their shopping for the ball earlier, and had laughed mercilessly as Ron described the burnt orange suit he wore earlier.

Their last stop on their tour around Hogsmeade was a trip to the PFG store, where Ron insisted on getting Harry a booster pack, before the two of them sat down for a butterbeer at The Three Broomsticks and inspected Harry's pieces.

"Frogadier's good," Ron said, picking out the frog like Pokémon and ignoring the other three. "See, it has a purple attack and a blue attack. It's a hard piece to get rid of. Plus it can poison other pieces."

"So can Bayleef," Harry pointed out. Behind Pikachu and Charizard Harry felt that Bayleef was his most reliable piece.

"Yeah, but Bayleef has a really large miss section," Ron pointed out. "Frogadier is a better defensive piece. Bayleef has a much higher chance of being knocked out if attacked."

Their conversation was interrupted by the ring of the bell above the bar door, indicating someone had just entered, and Harry looked up to find Hermione and Ginny, rosy faced from the cold outside, but looking quite pleased.

"Sorry it took so long," Hermione said as she dropped into a seat at their table, placing her bag down next to Harry's. "We had to make sure we got it just right."

"Did you only just finish?" Ron asked, amazed. Harry was quite surprised too. He and Ron had gone through almost the entire collection in just a few hours but Hermione and Ginny had been looking for a lot longer.

"There are a lot more things to think about when it comes to girls clothes," Hermione told them. "You have to think about what style you want and what fabric. Every woman suits a different design."

"I think you're just picky," Ron grumbled.

"Yes, because you know so much about fashion," Ginny shot back, giving her brother a glare.

"Do you want to get a butterbeer?" Harry said quickly, cutting in before Ron could think up a suitable retort for his sister. Weasley squabbles could get out of hand quite quickly, owing to their characteristic fiery personalities.

Hermione took a moment to think, then shook her head. "It's getting late," she said. "It'll be time for dinner soon and I want to drop my dress off before then."

With that decided Harry and Ron finished the last of their butterbeer and stood up, Harry grabbing his Frogadier piece off the table, along with the others; Mankey, Tyrogue and Plusle. He picked up his bag, making sure he hadn't accidentally switched with Hermione, and followed his friends out the door.

The road up to Hogwarts was almost completely deserted, at least it seemed that way. It was really quite late and most of the school would have already returned, and with darkness having fallen hours ago there really was little light for the foursome to see more than a few meters ahead.

"Man, I'll be glad to get back inside," Ron muttered, rubbing his hands together. He had gloves, thick and well worn, but even so the temperature still approached freezing. It was a good thing there weren't any outdoor events held over winter.

"It's not far now," Hermione assured him, her teeth chattering somewhat as she spoke, quickly pulling her scarf back up to protect her frail skin from the harsh winds.

The castle was the one spot of light for them to follow, shining out of the windows up every level and littering the grounds below in patches of light. Up ahead a group of Beauxbatons students, accompanied by the hard to miss form of Madame Maxime, were scurrying across the grounds to the castle doors. They'd probably never experienced weather like this.

"Madame Maxime," a voice spoke, carrying down the road to where Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny were walking. "Do yeh mind if I take a minute?"

It was Hagrid, though his form was completely obscured from view from where they were standing. That was until he stepped forward and into the light. His appearance raised some eyebrows.

"What iz it Mr 'Agrid?" Maxime asked imperiously.

"Oh my," Hermione gasped and she grabbed Ron by the back of his jacket and pulled him behind a tree, Harry and Ginny following in confusion. "He's going to…" Hermione trailed off.

From behind the tree Harry peeked out, though he was sure there was no way they'd be spotted in the darkness, and surveyed Hagrid's new appearance. His hair, usually wild and untamed, had been tied back into what looked like some form of ponytail. His beard had been combed, sitting neatly down his chest, and he was wearing his finest clothes, despite the cold. In his hands he held a bouquet of flowers.

"Madame Maxime, I, er, I would like ter ask yeh somethin'," he said nervously, shifting on his feet in the frost. "Yeh see, it's not often yeh meet a girl of yer caliber an' I was wonderin', if you would be so kind…"

And Harry knew where this was going.

"Would yeh go to the Yule Ball with me?" Hagrid asked hopefully.

Silence was his answer. Madame Maxime, having not moved an inch since Hagrid had started his proposal, was watching him with an unreadable look on her face. Hagrid, almost seeming to be sweating from nerves, grew even more awkward the longer she stayed silent. After a while he held his bouquet up higher, as though to show her he'd brought them, before giving her another hopeful look.

"My answer iz no," Maxime said shortly, her voice cold. "I 'ave a duty to my students. I cannot accept proposals for dates." Hagrid looked heartbroken.

"Ah," he said, looking a bit at a loss. "Of course. Yeh need ter do what's best for yer students. I understand." He stood there awkwardly. How were you supposed to deal with someone who'd just rejected you?

"I will be going to ze Great 'All," Maxime said and she turned on her heel, walking away from Hagrid without a backwards glance.

Hagrid did not follow. For the longest time he stood there, looking after where Maxime had vanished, then he turned back the way he had come.

"I can't believe it. Poor Hagrid," Hermione said sadly, watching him go.

"What a bitch," Ron said angrily, not bothering to keep his voice down. There was no one around anyway. "You know that was just an excuse."

"It's not her fault if she says no," Hermione pointed out. "You're allowed to turn down an offer for a date."

"Bullshit," Ron replied. He seemed to be taking this personally. "You know three weeks ago she'd have said yes in a second. It's that darn Skeeter article that she read. What a bitch! Can't even see what's right in front of her." Even after he finished his rant he fumed silently, staring angrily at the castle doors. Ginny was looking in the other direction.

"He looks so sad," she said softly, watching the lumbering figure disappearing from view. His whole body was slumped over and the bouquet of flowers was dangling limply from his grip.

"Should we go over and say something?" she asked earnestly, looking around at the others. "Maybe we can help."

"We should leave him alone," Ron said immediately, drawing scandalised looks from Hermione and Ginny. "Poor guy's put himself out there and got shot down. Believe me, he won't want to talk to us."

Hermione and Ginny looked at each other, wondering over Ron's words. Then all three of them turned to Harry. He sighed.

"Ron's right," he said eventually, though he hated to admit it. "There's nothing we can do to help right now. Anyway, he's got Fang, Norbert and Aragog to look after him. They'll do a much better job than us."

They did visit Hagrid the next day, sans Ginny. Despite the night's rest Hagrid was still clearly miserable but he didn't bring up Madame Maxime and Harry, Ron and Hermione, not wanting to admit to eavesdropping on their conversation, didn't either.

A/N: Hi, thanks for reading. I hope you've enjoyed this chapter.

I just wanted to take this moment to say something I meant to say after the last chapter, which is to explain why Harry chose Fletchinder for the first task when it was rightly pointed out that Pikachu would seem the smarter choice. My answer is that Harry wasn't expecting to go up against Charizard and when he found out that's the Pokemon he was matched with it threw his entire plan out the window. Harry had no time to recover and think up a proper strategy and so instead he simply turned to the Pokemon that had more experience and that he trusted more.

I don't mean to say that Harry doesn't trust Pikachu but that Fletchinder had been with him for a lot longer and consistently came out with victories until his accident. When you are thrown for a loop and you have no time to plan you automatically go with what you're used to, what you know works. After all, Harry's original plan was to use Charmeleon, because out of all his Pokemon it is Charmeleon that has been there since the beginning. Fletchinder was simply the next best thing once he realised Charmeleon was not an option.

I hope this makes sense, though I doubt my explanation is as clear as it could be, but nevertheless I hope this gives you at least an idea of why I had Harry use Fletchinder rather than Pikachu.

Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed the story so far and I'll see you again in the next chapter.