Disclaimers: I do not own Harry Potter, D.Gray Man, DNAngel, Fruits Basket, Fullmetal Alchemist or Legend of Zelda. They belong to their repective owners and creators.
Important! I made a change in the story since people reminded me of an important element I forgot!
Enjoy!
Chapter Twenty One: Plans, Presents and Snow
"So you're telling me that you know those four girls from the group?" asked Kyo.
The three boys concerned nodded. Sunday afternoon, after most of the students had left for the holidays, the seven had obtained special permission to spend the break in one of the common rooms. Since all the Ravenclaw students except for the older blond boy, had left, they had decided on Edward's house. The seven were now sitting in front of the fire while they explained what had happened the previous night.
"What a coincidence!" said Tohru after the story.
"I'm starting to think coincidence doesn't exist anymore. All this is fate," said Daisuke sadly.
"Please do not become another Professor Trelawney! I'm begging you!" teased Link.
They all started laughing at this; everyone except for Daisuke. Link realized that it was a forced laughed: he was trying to conceal his sadness. The Gryffindor could live with the fact that Zelda was mad at him but he did not know how Daisuke took the news. The red head caught Link staring at him and looked puzzled. The blond boy smiled and shook his head.
"Should we do something for Christmas?" asked Daisuke after a while, trying to get his mind off Riku.
"What did you have in mind?" replied Edward, returning the question.
"Well, don't any of you do something during the holidays?"
They all looked at each other and shook their head in turn. Tohru, Kyo and Yuki did not celebrate the holiday because they usually had school. Edward's family never did celebrate it so he never took on the habit. Surprisingly, Link had never even heard of Christmas before arriving at the school. As for Allen, he seemed a bit uneasy about saying anything and the others noticed.
"What about you Allen?" asked Tohru, sensing the slight hesitation.
"Actually, the 25th is the day my foster father adopted me and he made it my birthday," replied the boy, slightly embarrassed.
"Really?" asked all of his friends at the same time.
"Ya…," answered the boy, uncomfortable with all the attention. "But its no big deal, really!"
"Nonsense!" cried Link happily. "How old will you be?"
"I think 18, I'm not sure though…"
"How come?" wondered Daisuke softly.
Allen shrunk into his seat avoiding everyone's gaze. He never actually talked about what happened when was young and was unsure of how to explain the situation.
"Well," he started, taking a deep breath, "I was abandoned by my real parents when I was very little and a man named Mana found me an adopted me. It happened the 25th of December many years ago."
"Oh, and what happened to him?" asked Link softly, understanding that this was a delicate subject.
"He passed away and, you remember the skeleton you saw during the boggart classes?" he asked, addressing the question to Link who nodded. "That is what happened after… I… I agreed to something I should not have and he gave me a curse, the scar over my left eye… The enemies I fight, I'm the only one who can see the soul trapped inside of it. But," he looked at each of them, a smile on his face, "we should be happy right now, it's almost Christmas!"
"So…, maybe we can do something special since it would be not only the first or second celebration for most of you, but also Allen's birthday!" cheered Daisuke as the others agreed, excited.
"We can exchange presents!" suggested Tohru, smiling broadly.
"We could pick names and get that person something!" added Allen, joining in the fun.
"And maybe have a very big cake for Allen!" laughed Link, the others joining in.
"Great! I'll go get some paper and a pen!" cried Daisuke, running up to the dorms he shared with the other boys.
"And I can go later to the kitchens to whip something up!" suggested Tohru happily.
"I'll go with you," added the quiet Kyo, his cheeks slightly red.
"Alright! She agreed.
They others happily chatted, some more than others. This meant Allen, Tohru and Link were more than exited about the idea while Kyo, Yuki and Edward were just happy.
Meanwhile, Daisuke was frantically searching through his stuff, looking for the paper and pen. Near the bottom of his trunk, he found something else: a wrapped present. The gift I got for Riku..., he thought sadly, sitting down on the floor. He remembered the weekend he had dragged; yes, Daisuke Niwa actually dragged someone with him, Kyo along to Hogsmead to buy a present. I realized he wanted to get Tohru something as well, he thought since he surprised the other red head once arguing with himself, trying to figure out a suitable gift for the girl he loved.
Daisuke knew right away that the object he had found was the perfect present for Riku. It was star-shaped locket attached to a dull gold coloured chain, short enough to wrap around her wrist. He did not even hesitate before buying it. He sighed at the thought. Will she still want it? He considered it a moment and then decided to still send it. An apology. Even if she doesn't want to forgive me… He tucked it away back in his trunk, planning to head to the owlery later and sending it to Riku. He then remembered the paper, pen and the others waiting for him. He grabbed the items and ran back downstairs.
They waited until the red head came down the stairs, tripping and falling down the last few steps. Daisuke had been in such a rush, he forgot he was still wearing his robes, which he tripped over. He got up quickly and forced another laugh when the others chuckled at his clumsiness. He quickly wrote down their names and his own, letting each of them pick a piece of paper. Once it was done, Daisuke mentioned that he had to send something and went to go get Riku's present. He quickly left before the others could suggest they accompany him. After an hour, even after Tohru and Kyo left, they started to worry about the red head.
"I'll go find him," suggested Yuki.
"Do you need help?" asked Link.
Yuki just shook his head and left the Ravenclaw common room, leaving the others to wonder where Daisuke had gone. Yuki headed straight to the owlery where Daisuke had said he had gone. While the Slytherin climbed the many stairs leading towards the room, he had time to think about what he would say to the young red head. Yuki had suggested he would go and get him since he knew why Daisuke would take a long time to come back.
"Daisuke?" he called, when he reached the owlery.
Since there was not a reply, he ventured further into the room. He looked around and spotted the red head, huddled in a corner. Daisuke had brought his knees up and wrapped his arms around them while his head rested on his knees. Yuki could not tell if the boy was crying or not since his face was buried near his chest. The Slytherin student sighed and walked towards the Hufflepuff boy, sitting down on the floor next to him. After a moment, Daisuke acknowledge his friend's presence.
"You don't have to be here. I'll be alright," sniffed the boy, his voice muffled by his hidden face.
"What kind of friend would I be if I left you like this," replied Yuki. "At least let me stay until you feel better. And, if you want to talk about, I'm here."
"Al…Alright. But…," Daisuke lifted his head to look at the Slytherin. "I don't know if you… if you…"
"If I know how you feel," finished Yuki. Daisuke just nodded sadly.
"Sorry…" whispered the red head.
"Well, out of all your friends, I may be the one who understands the most."
"Wha…? How come?"
Yuki looked sadly at the floor. He had come to help Daisuke with his problem, not to sort out his own. However, Daisuke had, for a moment, forgotten a bit of his sadness and was listening intently to Yuki, wondering what had happened.
"Well, let's just say I liked one of our friends but she never returned my feelings," replied Yuki, sighing at the memory.
"Tohru?" whispered Daisuke.
"Yes, I… I thought she could one day look at me as she does when she looks at Kyo but… she never will. She'll never know how I felt about her."
"Why don't you tell her?"
"I can't," replied Yuki but continued before Daisuke could interrupt. "I can't tell her now for fear of hurting her. I can't stand to see her hurt."
Daisuke nodded, fully understanding what the older boy meant. He realized that Yuki really did know exactly how he felt since he had gone through the same thing.
"I know that feeling. All I wanted from the beginning was for Riku to be happy. If she doesn't want me anymore, I… I'll try to let her go so she can find someone who could make her happy." Daisuke almost laughed but it was just a sharp intake of breath. "I don't think she would have liked that Dark was my other half. She hated him and thought he was a pervert."
Yuki smiled which made Daisuke smile sadly, remembering exactly how she had said it. However, the tears, which the younger boy had kept inside for so long, escaped. He wiped some away but hid his face once again. Yuki stared at his friend and moved closer, the only action he thought would comfort the boy. They sat there for a while until Daisuke's tears had dried up and he only sniffed a few times.
"Feeling better?" asked Yuki.
Daisuke nodded his head and looked up, taking a deep breath. He stared at the owls around them and then picked up a long, black feather. Thought you might need a pick me up since I won't be able to come out for a while, comforted his other half. Thank you Dark, replied Daisuke. Now cheer up, your friends are worried about you. You have an example right next to you. Daisuke looked at Yuki and nodded.
"Do you want to go see the others?" asked Yuki, getting up.
"Sure," replied Daisuke. Yuki helped his friend up and they headed back to the Ravenclaw common room.
He slowly opened his eyes, wondering what was happening. He still felt exhausted but tried to stay awake to figure out where he was. He looked around the small room, aware that once again, he was watching something from the eyes of someone else. He felt a pull on his hands, which were tied over his head. He tripped forward before his world went black. His vision cleared and he noticed a young man, tied to a chair. However, his face, for now, was blocked from his view by a tall and thin man. His eyes widened in shock when he saw what the man was holding at the other's shoulder: a butcher's knife. The boy in the chair struggled as the knife pierced his skin. Then, the world went black.
When he woke up once again, he could see the boy who had been tied in the chair clearly since he was trying to untie his hands. However, the man from before appeared with his knife and he sliced away at the person, who was barely able to dodge it each time. He saw some metal confirming his idea on the person who had tried to save him. He watched as the boy fell to the floor, blocking the knife, which repeatedly fell on him.
"Edward!"
Yuki woke up with a start, aware that he did not yell out the name this time. It was barely a whisper, muffled by the curtains around his bed but it was enough to alert one of his friends. Yuki massaged his wrists as the curtains around his bed were pulled aside, revealing a worried Link on the other side.
"Yuki, what is it?" he whispered, not wanting to wake the others.
"It's… it's nothing. Just a bad dream," replied the younger boy, without releasing his grip on his sore wrists.
"Are you sure?"
"Ya, sorry about waking you."
"It's alright, get some sleep."
"I'll try."
Link gently closed the curtains and returned to his bed, leaving Yuki to replay his dream repeatedly in his head, wondering why he was having these visions of his friends. What is happening? He though, lying back down in his bed, afraid of falling asleep and seeing another horrible vision.
Christmas Eve arrived in the castle. Allen, Daisuke, Edward, Kyo, Link, Tohru and Yuki headed towards the Great Hall for dinner. Since Edward still did not have a right arm, they had put the replacement one back on. The room had been decorated for the occasion. There were decorated pine trees lined up against the walls. Holly surrounded the bases of the floating candles while the ice affects of the walls and floor were still there. A single table, positioned in the middle, had replaced the four house tables and the teachers table. Some teachers were already seated as well as five students: two Hufflepuffs 7th year and the golden trio: Harry, Hermione and Ron.
"Ah! Here come the last of us!" declared Dumbledore while they took their seats. "Without further ado, dig in!"
During dinner, the golden trio started some conversation with the group of seven. They talked about the other years and their family.
"Hey mates!" cried Ron in the middle of the conversation, "Why don't we have a snowball fight tomorrow? Being Christmas and everything, we should have some fun outside!"
"I'd like that!" agreed Tohru while the others nodded in turn.
"So, will we have teams or something?" asked Yuki.
"Sure! We can decide now," suggested Harry.
It was settled that there would be two teams of five on each. On one team, there was Allen, Tohru, Kyo, Link and Harry. On the other, there was Yuki, Edward, Daisuke, Hermione and Ron. Before the dinner finished, the plates were filled with deicious sweets and, in the middle, in front of Allen, a large birthday cake.
"Before enjoying the wonderful desserts, I would like to take this chance to mention a special occasion tomorrow. On top of being Christmas, one of the students here will be a year older! A happy early birthday Mr. Walker!" cheered Dumbledore happily, making everyone else at the table clap enthusiastically.
"Happy Birthday mate!" added Ron from across the table.
"And the cake was made by Miss. Honda and Mr. Kyo Sohma. It should be delicious!" added the headmaster as Allen helped serve the large dessert.
The cake was in fact very good and Allen actually had a third slice while the others waited for him to finish.
"I can't wait! See you all tomorrow!" cried the golden trio while they split ways, heading towards their common rooms.
The next morning, the boys woke up to the surprised yells of Tohru and Allen. The two urged the boys to come down quickly. Link and Daisuke practically jumped their way down the stairs, followed by Kyo and Edward. Yuki was the last one down and looked like he was still asleep.
"Happy Birthday Allen!" they all cheered, making the white haired student blush.
Kyo made his way towards the older student and pushed him nineteen times, playfully, on the arm
"What was that for?" laughed Allen, rubbing his arm.
"Tradition. Eighteen punches on your 18th birthday and an extra on for good luck," replied the red head, a smile on his face.
"We should start by the presents which are here and then the ones we got each other!" suggested Edward, looking at the pile of presents, finding one for each person.
Link looked at him and then at the presents and went to sit down. I doubt there is anything for me in there…, he thought, watching the others searching for their gifts.
"Hey Link! What are you doing?" asked Daisuke, worried. "You have some presents here too!"
The red head held up a wrapped box while pointing at another small pile behind him. Link's eyes grew wide at the sight and went up to open them, smiling with the others.
"Yuki, you too! Come on!" cheered Allen.
The sleepy Sohma looked up and then at the pile for him. He snapped awake when Kyo threw a bag at his cousin.
"Your fan club's mail, don't disappoint any of those girls!"
At the mention of fan club, the boys stopped with their presents. They turned to look at the pile and saw four more bags, filled to the brim with letters. They then observed Yuki who just stared at the amount.
"You have a fan club Yuki?" joked Link. When the boy did not answer, it made the whole thing funnier.
"Really?" teased Edward.
"Really… I was kind of happy most of the girls here didn't care about how I looked since I was either in Slytherin or friends with someone else besides a Slytherin," responded Yuki, looking through the bag, scanning over some letters.
He stopped and looked though the other bags, giving the same result.
"At least we have something to burn now!" he joked, throwing the bags in the corner.
They all stared at him and then burst out laughing. Yuki, however, did not know if it was the fact he was going to burn the letters or they still found the idea of a fan club funny. He just laughed with them.
Daisuke had finished with his presents until he noticed a little one behind the tree. It was for him so he opened it. A letter fell out and he realized it was from one of his former classmates, Satoshi Hiwatari. However, the message did not reveal why he had sent it nor what it was. All it wrote was that Daisuke should take good care and keep it safe. I will hurt him if it does any harm to you, threatened Dark. Daisuke smiled and opened to small box to find a silver, half moon pendant with markings written across it. Well, I don't sense anything evil from it, commented Dark sadly. Daisuke ignored the comment, attached the pendant around his neck, and tucked it underneath his pyjamas.
Once everyone was done, they had a big pile of wrapping paper thrown next to the bags of letters and a stack of presents next to each of them. However, they waited patiently while Tohru opened her last gift. Inside were a letter, a box of sweets, cards and a new pair of pink pyjamas. At the bottom, however, was another letter.
"Oh look! Uo and Hana sent you a letter Kyo!" cried Tohru happily handing it to the red head.
"What do those two want?" he grumbled opening the letter. "Hey carrot head… hope your treating our Tohru well… if not, we will… Hey! We will come over there and rip you to threads after Hana poisons you! What type of letter is this?"
"Oh Uo, Hana," whispered Tohru happily.
"You heard those girls," said Yuki, amused, "Don't upset Tohru. They really mean what they wrote."
Kyo glared at his cousin while the others tried to hide their laughter. Then, Link remembered something he had heard a few days ago and decided to tease his best friend as well.
"So, Ed, what did you get Winry for Christmas?" he asked, making everyone's attention fall onto the short blond student.
"That's none of your business," he replied, looking away, his face turning red.
"Come on, tell us," persisted Link, aware of how uncomfortable Edward was becoming.
"No."
"Please?"
"No."
"I would like to know Ed if it's not too much to ask," requested Tohru, her eyes wide and expecting.
Edward was about to reply the same thing as the other time but when he looked at his friends, they all seemed interested in what he had gotten Winry. He took a deep breath and without looking at them, told them.
"A silver pendant I made and money to go shopping at Rushvalley."
"Rushvalley?" they repeated, wondering what was so special about that town.
"Yes Rushvalley or Central. But she prefers Rushvalley since it's the automail 'capital' of Germany."
They nodded in understanding, remembering that Edward kept referring to his metal arm and leg as automail and that Winry was the person who made them for him. Next was the part they all waited for: their gift exchange. They all went upstairs to get them and once back downstairs, they sat down, facing each other.
"Who should go first?" asked Edward, eyeing each of them.
"Ladies first!" suggested Link, looking at Tohru.
The girl turned red and got up, holding the wrapped box in her hands. She looked at the boys and then gave the gift to its owner: Allen. The white haired boy was surprised and then thanked the girl. He opened it and found a leather bond book. When he opened it, he realized it was not a book but a photo album. It already contained pictures but they were not like those he knew: these moved. He realized that they all had taken place this year, even the one were the four transfer students met on the platform.
"How…?" he whispered. Allen did not know what else to say.
"I heard of Colin Creevy and asked him if he had taken any pictures of any of us. Surprisingly, he has pictures of everyone in this school, especially those who he likes. I asked him if I could have a few of us," she explained, turning red once again.
"This is great…," he whispered, smiling.
A closer inspection showed that Allen's eyes glistened with tears but he still smiled sincerely. He thanked the girl once again and then rubbed the water away from his eyes. The others crowded around and they flipped through the album. There were a few of them at the Halloween ball. There was one for each of them when they entered and then a larger one when they were all together in the middle.
They took more time at the more recent pictures, meaning the song performances and the play. They then realized why they had seen girls crying at the end of the boys' song: the background of the stage still showed the shadows they had imagined. Colin had taken the picture during the last chorus so they each saw themselves behind the performers.
The following photos were of the play. There were many of these. They all laughed when they spotted a picture of Edward in a dress and then with Link. The boys nudged at Kyo when they saw the picture of him and Tohru. They continued to laugh for a few minutes, remembering that all this only happened less than a week ago. Then, Allen got up and held out his wrapped gift. He seemed to taunt them until he finally handed it to Daisuke.
"Thanks Allen!" said the red head before even opening the package.
Inside, he found a drawing pad with a pack of black pencils. Daisuke stared surprised at this and looked up at the person who gave this to him.
"How did you know?"
"Let's just say a little birdie told me you liked to draw and that you were good at it!" answered Allen suspiciously, smiling.
"I wonder who it is?" he asked slyly, eyeing the short blond boy sitting next to him.
Only one person had found out about his favourite pass time and it was him. Daisuke had been drawing a portrait of Riku in the library the previous year and had not noticed Edward behind him. The blond boy had just complemented the red head's work and the artist fell of his chair in surprise. Edward averted his gaze but smiled back innocently, remembering the incident. Daisuke just smiled back, laughing afterwards with the others.
"Thanks again Allen! My turn next!"
Daisuke got up and pulled out a weird shaped gift from behind him. He did not hesitate though and handed it to its new owner: Yuki. The Slytherin looked at it suspiciously and then opened the present. Before him stood a small cactus like plant. It looked like a bonsai tree in height and shape but, instead of leaves, it had long, thick, dark green, needles.
"Let me guess, a birdie told you I like gardening?" asked Yuki laughing.
"No, lets just say it was a kitty this time!" responded Daisuke, earning a laugh from everyone.
Yuki faced Kyo who had turned just as red as his hair and swivelled around, back towards the others. Yuki smiled and thanked Daisuke.
"By the way, those needles can be removed and they can serve as weapons! It could be a good thing for later on!" added the red head.
"That's sounds perfect. I'll have to find out how to care for this type now!" replied Yuki, testing Daisuke's theory out.
The needle gave way easily and the purple haired boy noticed how sharp the hidden part was. In addition, once pulled out, the needle was the length of his hand. He threw the weapon into the fire and pulled out his present. He eyed the remaining people and, after a moment, handed it to the Ravenclaw boy. Edward took the present and opened it. Inside, there was a thick, leather bond book. He looked on the cover and the spine but could not find a title. He then flipped through it but found blank pages. He faced Yuki, confused.
"It's a special book. The owner decides on five different subjects that he wants to read about. When the owner opens it, thinking about the wanted subject, the pages will be filled with all the information possible concerning your research. So choose wisely!" explained Yuki.
Edward's eyes widened in excitement, he quickly thought of something and opened the book, muttering a thanks to Yuki. They thought he was looking through but they soon realized he had started reading.
"Edward?" asked Link.
The blond boy nodded but did not seem to be listening. Link picked the book out of the blond boy's hand and stared at the previous owner.
"Oh! Sorry," Edward reached behind him and held out a box. "A propose a trade Link. My book for your gift."
Link looked at the box and seemed to hesitate.
"Um… I'll have to think about this…," he teased.
The Gryffindor handed the book back and Edward gave him his gift. Link opened the box and pulled out the object, eyes wide. They all tried to figure out what the object was. It had an oval shape with a pipe coming out from the side. On the other side, there was small round holes. The whole thing seemed hollow.
"What is it?" asked Tohru.
"It's an ocarina," breathed Link.
"I heard him playing one last year and found out he no longer had it," explained Edward. "I thought he would like another one. He is good with it!"
"Can we hear a bit?" asked Allen happily.
Link nodded and started to blow in the mouthpiece. A crystal like sound came out of the small instrument. Link sped the notes up and a soft but joyful song was played. During the song, they thought they were somewhere else entirely. Once Link was finished, he looked at them, wondering if they liked it.
"It reminded me of a forest…," thought Allen out loud. The others agreed.
"Not surprised!" laughed Link. "That song is played by a group of forest dwellers. Let's see what this one makes you thing of."
Link blew of again in the mouthpiece and played a completely different song. This time, it was softer and slower. However, it seemed to have a stronger beat to it. Link added to the music of the ocarina by taping his heel of the floor. The sound completed the music perfectly. Slowly, Link blew harder into the instrument, increasing the volume, making the song rise and fall in crescendos. Once he was done, the others applauded happily.
"That was great!" cried Tohru and Daisuke.
"So, what did you imagine this time?" asked Link.
"It sounded more exotic," replied Yuki, thinking.
"Like in a vast area," added Kyo.
"Like in a desert oasis," finished Edward.
"You guys are good! If you ever visit that place, the inhabitants always play that song. However, I would not suggest you go alone. If you do want to visit, you should call me."
"Why?" they all asked.
"Because I'm one of the few outsiders to be able to go around there freely," explained Link.
The conversation seemed to be closed when Link pulled out his present from behind the couch. This one had the most unique shape since it was thin and long. He tossed it at Kyo.
"Here kitty! Merry Christmas!"
"Don't call me that!" cried Kyo, making the others giggle.
Kyo muttered thanks and ripped of the wrapping. In his hands lay a wooden katana. He held it out and swung it a few times, testing the weight.
"I noticed you liked fighting so I guessed you would like to try a different style. Enjoy!" said Link, smiling.
Kyo smirked and got up. He stepped back and swung out faster and harder. He seemed to be enjoying himself. When he noticed his friends were all looking at him, he stopped suddenly and squatted back down, taking his spot in the circle. He reached behind him and hesitated before bringing it forth. His face turned red again and quickly placed it in front of Tohru. She smiled and thanked him, opening the smaller present before her. It contained a box and inside there was a short light pink ribbon which held many little charms. She picked it up and examined each one, smiling broadly. She was about to say something when another object caught her eye: a pure white ribbon lay folded at the bottom. Kyo picked it up for her.
"I'll tie it in your hair if you want," he whispered.
Tohru knew exactly why he wanted to. It was because on a special day: St-White's Day, the person who ties a white ribbon on you means that your love will last forever. Tohru nodded and turned around, leaving Kyo to tie it around the bottom of her braided hair. She turned around and tears were in her eyes.
"Now look what you did Kyo. You made her cry! Her friends will kill you now!" teased Link but he only got an elbow in the stomach, courtesy of Edward.
"Thank you Kyo!" she cried.
She flung herself on the red head and hugged him, crying. Kyo stared in shock at her and then wrapped his arms around the girl, pulling her closer.
"You're welcome Tohru," he whispered.
"You missed!"
"I'll get you next time mate! Mark my words!"
Ron and Link had been yelling at each other across the grounds for about an hour. This was how long the snowball fight had gone on until then. It was the most fun any of them had had in a long time.
"Heads up!" cried Yuki, ducking down to avoid a snowball aimed at his face, dragging Ron with him.
"Hey!" yelled the red head. Once he landed on the floor, both of them started laughing.
Just then, two snowballs hit Ron. The others had thrown their projectiles high in the air so they arced down once on the other side.
"Another point for me Ron!" cried Link.
"We threw those snowballs Link!" yelled Kyo and Harry.
"Cheater!" shouted Ron, throwing another projectile at Link's head.
It made contact and got the older Gryffindor mad.
"You're going to get it!" he screamed, throwing his snowballs extremely fast.
None of them actually hit Ron but they made contact with everyone else on the red head's team. Yuki, Edward, Daisuke and Hermione had to duck after receiving a few of the projectiles. Thank goodness I still have good aim with my left arm as well! I hope my replacement arm does not come off, thought Edward throwing a snowball back to the other side.
"Hey!" cried Hermione, falling to the floor, laughing.
She had received a snowball square in the back when she was not looking. Ron went up to her and helped her up.
"Who threw that?" he yelled towards the other side.
"Sorry Hermione!" yelled back Allen, poking his head over the side of their snow wall.
However, before he could retreat, another snowball thrown by Ron hit him. He fell back to avoid the others and started laughing as well. Another hour flew by before they all called it quits. However, Ron and Link still seemed to be going at it on their way back towards the castle.
"Enough both of you!" called Hermione as they both bent down to scoop more snow.
"Fine," sighed Ron dropping his while Link tossed it backwards.
The taller blond boy looked behind at the trampled snow that they played in and smiled. It was the most fun any of them had in a long time. Except for when Ed wore dresses, that was funny, he thought laughing silently. Suddenly, he spotted a black, hooded figure near the forest.
"You guys," he started, looking back at his friends, "I forgot something back there. Go on without me. I'll catch up!"
They watched him run back towards the area where they had played and nodded, entering the warmth of the castle.