A Potter/Black Alliance
25th December 1994
Alex stood outside the pile of barrels concealing the entrance to the Hufflepuff dormitory.
He was dressed in black dress robes with the Black family crest stitched onto his left breast pocket. He pulled his pocket watch out of his robes to check the time.
"She'll be out shortly Alex, you've checked that thing three times in the last ten minutes" said Cho who was stood next to him waiting for Cedric to exit the Hufflepuff dormitory.
She was dressed in a white and blue Chinese style dress with her hair tied in a bun.
Alex put the watch away.
Cedric walked out of the common room and over to Cho giving her a kiss a few seconds later.
He turned to Alex.
"She'll be out in a sec, she's just waiting for Hannah, your in for a real treat Black" said Cedric.
"You don't have to wait for me, you can go up if you want" said Alex.
"We'll wait, then we can all go up together" said Cho who had her arm wrapped around Cedric's waist.
"You sure you don't mind waiting" said Alex.
"Tired of us already, of course we don't mind waiting" said Cedric.
Alex was about to answer when the entrance opened again.
Ernie and Hannah walked out arm in arm followed by Justin and Sally-Anne, a tall thin boy Alex recognised as Zacharias Smith walking with Megan Jones and finally Susan who locked eyes with him as she walked out of the entrance.
He took one look at her and was rendered speechless.
She was dressed in a pink and turquoise blend sleeveless silk like gown which hugged her curves perfectly. Her long red hair was fastened into a simple braid behind her head as Alex saw the ruby necklace he had given her the previous Christmas hanging around her neck.
She was blushing slightly as she made her way over to him.
Alex took her hand and kissed her knuckles.
"Wow, you are definitely the most beautiful girl in our year, and that beauty just increased tenfold tonight" said Alex.
Susan went slightly red and kissed him.
Suddenly a fake cough caught their attention.
They turned to see Hannah smirking at them.
"Come on lovebirds, if you keep staring at each other you'll miss the ball" said Hannah causing the others to laugh slightly.
"Don't ruin the moment Hannah" said Susan jokingly who just laughed in reply.
They left the entrance to the Hufflepuff dorm and started making their way to the Great Hall.
Meanwhile in Gryffindor Tower…
Harry and Joe were getting ready for the ball in their room. Harry had just finished putting on his dress robes while Joe was still in the process of putting his on.
Harry's dress robes were bottle green in colour with the Potter and Peverell crests stitched on the left breast pocket. He used some gel to slick his hair back to keep it tidy. As he knelt down to tie his shoelaces he saw that Joe had finally got his outer robe fastened up.
Joe's dress robes were cyan in colour and had the buttons fastened together quite high up his chest stopping just a few inches below the base of his neck. The main body of the robes ran all the way down to where the two ends parted just below his waist. The robes were rather simple and ran down to his kneecaps. He tied his shoulder length blonde hair into a short ponytail.
"You finally ready?" said Harry.
"Almost, just give me a sec" said Joe as he tied his shoelaces.
"Done" continued Joe standing up straight.
"Might as well go down then" said Harry.
"You nervous?" said Joe.
"A little, you?" said Harry.
Joe nodded.
"I really like her Harry, I don't want to disappoint her" said Joe.
"You won't mate, she'd never be disappointed with you, she'll have a great time with you tonight" said Harry.
Joe nodded.
"Come on, lets go downstairs" said Joe.
They left the room before walking down the stairs into the common room.
They spotted the Weasley Twins and Lee Jordan stood near the fire and made their way over to them.
They were stood talking with them for a few minutes before Fred and George turned to look at the staircase and started laughing slightly.
Harry and the others looked in that direction and tried to contain their laughter as Neville and Ron walked into the common room.
Ron's dress robes were surely over 200 years old. They were a horrible dark brown and orange with cream frills on the neck and the cuffs. Oddly enough there didn't seem to be any buttons fastening them together in the middle making them look like an old fashioned dress rather than dress robes. They had two deep pockets on the side of the robes that you could easily fit a small book inside.
Ron's ears started to go slightly red when he realised that they were laughing at his dress robes.
"Stop laughing" said Ron angrily.
This only made the twins laugh even more.
"Sorry Ronniekins, we can't help it" said Fred.
"You look older than Dumbledore in those robes" said George.
Ron's ears turned even more red.
"I'm sure your date will love them" said Harry laughing.
"She will if she likes older men, you'll find out soon enough" said Joe laughing.
Even Neville was struggling to contain his laughter now.
Ron stormed towards the common room entrance.
"Hold on Ronniekins" said George.
Ron growled and turned to face them.
"You can't leave without your date" said Fred.
"Surely you don't want to disappoint the lovely Miss Patil" said George.
Ron snarled and skulked off towards a chair sitting down and glaring at the fire.
Neville sighed and followed him as Katie, Angelina, Alicia and Leanne Porter appeared at the bottom of the stairs.
Joe stood staring at Katie in shock.
She was dressed in a gold strapless ballroom style dress which went down to her ankles along with matching gold ballroom gloves. She was wearing a silver diamond necklace around her neck with a gold chain on her left wrist.
Harry nudged him in the ribs as Katie made her way over to him.
"Its rude to stare you know, even if your date looks as beautiful as that" said Harry nodding his head towards Katie.
"You can say that again" said Joe breathlessly as Katie stopped in front of him.
Joe smiled.
"You look beautiful Katie, you'll turn so many heads tonight, as you've already turned mine" said Joe kissing her knuckles before offering her his arm.
Katie blushed slightly.
"You don't look too bad yourself" said Katie taking his arm as Angelina, Alicia and Leanne made their way over to Fred, George and Lee respectively.
The group stood talking to each other as Seamus and Dean made their way into the common room and stood next to Neville and Ron.
Lavander, Hermione and Parvati made their way down the stairs. Lavander went over to stand next to Seamus as Hermione and Parvati walked towards Ron and Neville.
Harry and Joe sniggered as they saw Parvati looking at Ron with a look of annoyance and slight disappointment on her face.
"I don't think she likes older men" whispered Harry.
"Or she doesn't like little boys pretending to be older men" whispered Joe.
"Maybe its just the robes" whispered Harry.
"Its probably both" whispered Joe.
Harry chuckled and turned to face the staircase as he saw Astoria walking down the stairs with Ginny and a black haired third year girl.
Harry looked slightly stunned.
Astoria was dressed in a strapless dark green dress that ruffled outwards from the waist down reaching her ankles. She had her hair curled and was wearing the gold earrings that he got her for Christmas along with a platinum bracelet on her right wrist.
She noticed him staring and blushed as she slowly made her way over to him.
"Its rude to stare Harry" said Joe chuckling slightly.
Harry lightly punched him in the shoulder as Astoria came to a halt on front of him.
"You look beautiful Tori" said Harry as he took her hand and kissed her knuckles.
Astoria went slightly red.
"Thank you Harry, you look really nice too" said Astoria nervously with her cheeks still slightly red.
Harry smiled and held out his arm to her as Ginny made her way over to stand next to Neville while the other third year girl went to stand next to Dean.
He noticed Colin and his brother walk into the common room. Colin was holding his camera and looking at Neville with excitement.
"Hey Colin, come here lad" said Harry.
Colin walked over to him.
"Get a picture of me and Tori please" said Harry wrapping his arm around Astoria's waist causing her to smile at him and repeat the gesture.
Colin took a few pictures of both of them as they smiled and held each other tightly for the camera.
Once Colin was done taking Harry's photos Harry got his attention again.
"I'll pay you to do pictures for all of us" said Harry.
Colin's eyes went wide and he nodded.
He took photos of each couple before doing group photos of all of them together, all the boys, all the girls and even decided to do it for Neville and the others.
Once he was done Harry turned to the others who were stood smirking at him.
"Shall we go down now?" said Harry.
"Of course, we'll let you and Miss Greengrass lead the way, it would do well to have such a cute couple at the front" said Angelina.
Harry and Astoria turned slightly red before linking arms again and walking out of the common room.
The others followed as they headed for the Great Hall.
Once they reached the Great Hall they saw Alex, Susan, Tracey and Blaise stood together near the doors and made their way over to them.
"Where's Daphne?" said Harry looking around for her.
"She has to wait over there with her date, we've only just found out who it is as well, see for yourself" said Tracey nodding her head towards the opposite corner.
Professor Mcgonagall was stood with Daphne and some other students as Neville and Ginny walked over to that corner as well.
Daphne was dressed in a sleeveless blue and white dress with her hair fastened into an elegant braid. Harry and the others were surprised to see her arm linked with Viktor Krum and even more surprised to see that she was smiling and talking to him as if he was no stranger to her.
"Wow, no wonder she kept it secret, she's a champions date" said Harry.
"She didn't even tell me who was taking her, but she's really enjoying herself, that's probably the most I've seen her smiling for a while" said Astoria.
Professor Flitwick appeared next to them and told them to go into the Great Hall.
They walked into the Great Hall and looked around in amazement.
The hall was filled with large circular tables adorned with plates, cutlery, crystal glasses and empty pitchers. The floor was covered in white snow like material as fairy lights illuminated the room. At the top of the hall there was a long rectangular table for the champions, headmasters and ministry officials. The Christmas trees from this morning were still stood in the top corners of the hall but were now coated in the same snow like material that was on the floor.
They immediately spotted a 16 seat table in the middle of the great hall and sat down at it.
Harry held Astoria's seat out for her before sitting down next to her. They turned to look towards the doors which closed when the rest of the students had walked into the hall and sat down.
The two were talking as the doors opened a few minutes later.
The band started playing a loud instrumental marching song as the students started clapping when the four Champions walked in with their dates.
Fleur was stood at the front with a glossy eyed Roger Davies, Krum and Daphne were stood behind them, Cedric and Cho were behind them with Neville and Ginny at the back.
The Champions made their way up to the top table and sat down as the music stopped playing and the people on the champions table picked up the menus ordering food that appeared on their plates.
The pitchers on the table suddenly filled up with water and Butterbeer.
Harry and the others picked up their menus.
"Pork chops" said Alex.
Two pork chops, potatoes and vegetables appeared on his plate.
"Chicken" said Susan.
Chicken and vegetables appeared on her plate.
They filled their glasses up with Butterbeer as George looked around before pulling a small flask out of his outer dress robe.
"Is that?" said Alex as George poured some in his glass before Fred took it off of him and did the same.
"Firewhiskey, keep an eye out for the teachers" said Fred.
"Give us some then" said Lee.
Fred handed the flask to him so Lee could use it.
"Anyone else want some?" said Lee.
"I'll pass thanks" said Joe as the others nodded.
He handed it back to George who put it back in his pocket.
"Just don't drink too much guys, we all remember third year" said Alicia.
"We won't" said George with a hint of a smirk on his face.
Fred, George and Lee raised their glasses.
"Cheers" said Fred before the three downed their Firewhiskey laced Butterbeer.
After they refilled their glasses Harry and the others raised their glasses.
"To life, and to those closest to us" said Harry.
The others repeated his words before they all took a drink.
They resumed eating their food and making small talk.
Dumbledore stood up half an hour later and pulled out his wand.
"Stand up please, the feast is over, it is time for the opening dance" said Dumbledore.
Harry and the others stood up along with the rest of the students.
He waved his wand moving the tables and chairs over to the side of the hall creating a large dance floor.
"Champions" said Dumbledore motioning his hand at the head table.
The Champions and their dates stood up making their way down to the dance floor.
Astoria smiled as Daphne allowed Krum to lead her onto the dance floor smiling at the Bulgarian the entire time.
Dumbledore moved to the side as the Champions and their partners stood on the dance floor ready to open the ball with the first dance.
Flitwick pulled his wand out ready to start conducting the music from the band on the stage behind the Champions table.
The band started to play a slow ballroom dance song as the Champions started dancing.
After a minute Professor Dumbledore led Professor Mcgonagall out onto the dance floor causing most of the students to follow them onto the floor.
Alex turned to Susan and held out his arm.
"May I have your arm?" said Alex.
Susan smiled and took his arm letting him lead her out to the dance floor.
Fred, George and Lee led their dates onto the dance floor after them.
Harry turned to Astoria who looked at him and smiled.
"May I have your arm?" said Harry holding his arm out to her.
Astoria took it and let him lead her onto the dance floor with Joe, Katie, Blaise and Tracey following behind them.
He placed his right hand on her waist as he took her right hand in his left.
She looked up at him and smiled nervously as he began to gracefully lead her round the dance floor.
"Wow, where did you learn to dance like this?" said Astoria softly after a few minutes.
"I had a few lessons" said Harry as he lifted her up by her hips before placing her back on her feet and turning in a complete 360 before swapping hands.
Alex and Susan were dancing not so far away from Harry and Astoria and had their eyes locked on each other.
"God I love you Sue" said Alex as the two got closer together.
"I love you too Alex, never change Hon" said Susan.
"Never" said Alex pecking her on the lips.
"Lets just enjoy the moment" said Susan softly.
The two kept dancing for the next two songs before Alex went to get drinks for them.
When he arrived back Susan perked up as the next song came on.
"I love this one, come on" said Susan taking his arm and dragging him out to the dance floor.
As they were nearing the end of the song they passed by the table where Ron and Parvati were sat down with Neville and Ginny.
Parvati had a pissed off look on her face while Ron was glaring hatefully at the dance floor.
Susan followed his gaze and frowned.
Hermione Granger was dancing with one of the Durmstrang boys and looked to be having a great time.
"Poor Parvati" said Susan.
"Huh" said Alex.
Susan nodded her head to where Parvati was sat at the table.
Alex turned to look at Parvati and frowned.
"Why is she here with Weasley?" said Alex as the song came to a close.
Susan smiled sadly.
"I don't know, but follow my lead" said Susan.
Alex smiled as she led him over to Parvati and Ron.
Parvati looked up at them in confusion as Ron continued to glare daggers into Hermione and her date.
"May we have your arm?" said Susan.
Alex held out his hand to her.
Parvati quickly looked around in relief.
"Arm, leg, I'm all yours" said Parvati sounding relieved.
She took Alex's hand and quickly stood up.
Alex smirked when he saw Ron get even more moody out of the corner of his eye.
Once they were out on the dance floor the next song started to play.
Susan detached herself from Alex.
"He's all yours for this one Parvati, have fun" said Susan chuckling.
Alex smiled and looked Parvati in the eye as Susan started walking back to their table.
He took her hand and waist and started quickly leading her around the dance floor in tune with the faster music.
Parvati smiled as she enjoyed herself for the first time this evening.
"Can I ask you a question Parvati?" said Alex.
Parvati nodded.
"Why did you come here with Ron, I mean he's not really the sort of person who enjoys things like this?" said Alex.
"Neville asked me if I would go with Ron since he couldn't get a date, a small part of me thought that he might actually make an effort tonight, but I was wrong, he's done nothing but glare at Hermione and her date since we got here, he was even eating with his hands like he does at meals, he wouldn't use his knife and fork no matter how many times Hermione, Seamus or Dean told him to, and then ever since the dancing started he's done nothing but glare at Hermione" said Parvati frowning.
"Surely you must have had other people ask you to the ball" said Alex.
Parvati frowned.
"No one else asked me… please don't laugh but I was hoping your Cousin Harry might have asked me, he's a real hunk, and the perfect guy, but when I saw him tonight I could tell he has his sights set on someone else, and she's here with him, everyone in Gryffindor knows Astoria fancies him, and it looks like she's finally got him" said Parvati with pink cheeks and a smile on her face.
Alex spun her around.
"I'm very surprised, a pretty girl like you should have guys falling over themselves to be your date, your one of the prettiest girls in our year, if I wasn't with Susan I'd have asked you to be my date for tonight" said Alex causing her to turn red again.
"You think I'm pretty" said Parvati.
Alex smiled at her.
"Your a beautiful young lady Parvati, and anyone who can't see that is blind" said Alex.
Parvati smiled at him before leaning up and kissing his cheek.
"Wow, Susan is very lucky girl to have you as a boyfriend, your a total sweetheart" said Parvati.
Alex smiled.
"Thank you" said Alex as he continued to lead her round the dance floor.
Once the song ended she separated from him.
"Thank you for that Alex, that was wonderful" said Parvati.
"Your welcome" said Alex.
Parvati walked over to where Padma was dancing with Anthony.
As he sat down next to Susan, Harry and Astoria at his table Ron stormed over and stood in front of him.
"You think you can steal my date and just walk away" said Ron angrily.
Alex sighed.
"Your date… you mean the date that Neville got for you, the one you've spent the entire evening ignoring, its bad enough you couldn't even get a date on your own, but to completely ignore one who agrees to go with you when Neville asked her to, that's harsh Ron, she deserved better than that" said Alex hatefully.
"Of course he couldn't get a date Alex, he screamed at Fleur to go to the ball with him instead of asking her properly, then again she would've still said no even if he had asked her properly" said Astoria laughing slightly.
Harry chuckled before placing an arm around her shoulder pulling her into him.
"And a word of advice Weasley, you take a girl to a ball to dance with her, not to sit on your arse the entire time glaring at your supposed best friend because she got a date and you didn't" said Susan hatefully.
"What do you know about it?" said Ron angrily.
"More than you think, Parvati told me you were glaring at Hermione and her date all night, and with the way you completely blanked Parvati, I'd be surprised if she accepts a Knut from you ever again, let alone a date, or if any other girl in Gryffindor would for that matter, you might not realise it Ron, but you hurt her tonight, and you owe her an apology big time" said Alex.
"Shut up, I can get any date I want, you'll see" said Ron turning around to look for girls without a dance partner.
Alex sighed as Ron ignored his last words.
Ron saw a black haired Beauxbatons girl stood on her own and marched over to her. Whatever he said to her caused her to slap him with an angry look on her face. He grabbed her arm before she shook him off and slapped him again.
Harry growled.
He spotted George's outer robe hanging on the chair and came up with a wicked idea.
He reached over and pulled the flask of Firewhiskey out of the pocket quickly placing it in his own pocket.
Astoria looked at him.
"What are you planning?" said Astoria.
"You'll see, come on lets dance" said Harry taking her hand.
Astoria smiled as he led her back onto the dance floor.
They danced over to where Ron's glass of Butterbeer was on the table and discreetly poured some of the Firewhiskey into it before moving back towards Ron.
They danced very close to Ron who was desperately trying to get a dance with no luck.
Harry quickly slipped the flask into Ron's pocket before steering Astoria away.
"This is what a girl wants from you when you take her to a ball Weasley, you should pay attention to Harry so you can see how its done, you might learn something" said Astoria laughing slightly causing Ron to scowl.
Harry chuckled.
"After this song, we'll let Snape know what's in his pocket" said Harry.
"And watch the fireworks" said Astoria.
Harry smiled and locked eyes with her.
"Exactly, and by the way who taught you how to dance?" said Harry.
"My Mother, she taught me and Daphne" said Astoria.
"Then I owe her my thanks, since you are such a graceful dancer" said Harry.
Astoria smiled.
"Who taught you how to dance then?" said Astoria.
"Aunt Andi and a rather reluctant Dora" said Harry.
"Well I must thank them then, because you are a great dancer Harry, this might be one of the best night's of my life" said Astoria with slightly red cheeks.
Harry smiled.
"Thanks Tori" said Harry.
The music slowed down as the song ended.
Astoria turned and spotted Snape.
"There he is, at the staff table" said Astoria.
Harry followed her gaze and nodded.
"Allow me" said Astoria with a wicked smile as the two walked towards Snape who was sat in his chair with his arms folded and legs crossed.
Snape turned to look at them with a bored look on his face.
"Go away" said Snape in a bored tone.
"We can't Professor, its important, we've seen a student with a flask in his pocket, and when we stood next to him you could smell it, it smelled like very strong Firewhiskey" said Astoria.
Snape looked at them with a menacing stare.
"Who?" said Snape in deathly tone.
"Ron Weasley sir, we also saw him grab at a girl a few minutes ago because she refused to dance with him, we thought it best to report it to you sir" said Astoria.
Snape stood up and swept past them striding over to where Ron had just been slapped by another girl who refused him a dance.
Harry smiled at Astoria.
"Well done Tori, that was absolutely brilliant, your a star" said Harry.
Astoria smiled.
"Your welcome" said Astoria.
"Would you like another dance?" said Harry.
Astoria smiled and nodded.
Snape stopped next to Ron who was sulking.
"Mr Weasley" said Snape in a deathly voice.
Ron paled and turned to look at Snape.
"What?" squeaked Ron.
"Empty your pockets" said Snape in a deathly tone.
"Why?" said Ron.
"Empty your pockets" said Snape.
Ron grumbled and reached into his pockets.
He froze when he felt the flask in his pocket.
"Give it to me" said Snape.
Ron decided to listen to Snape for once and took the flask out of his pocket.
His eyes widened in surprise when he saw it.
"That isn't mine" said Ron as Snape snatched the flask from him.
He opened it and sniffed it.
"Firewhiskey, oh dear, you thought you would be clever enough to bring this to the ball, 50 points from Gryffindor" said Snape loud enough to catch the attention of everyone in the Great Hall including Professor Mcgonagall who started to walk towards them.
The music suddenly stopped as everyone turned to look at Snape and Ron.
"I've never seen that before I swear" said Ron.
"Yet it was in your pocket, if you wish to continue lying to me you should really think a lie through first, that's if your thick skull is able to think in the first place" said Snape.
"What is going on here Severus?" said Mcgonagall.
Snape turned to her and handed the flask to her.
"I confiscated this from Mr Weasley Minerva, Firewhiskey of all things" drawled Snape.
Mcgonagall opened the flask and took a sniff.
"Mr Weasley, explain yourself right now" said Mcgonagall angrily.
"Its not mine Professor" said Ron.
"Yet Professor Snape found it in your pocket, where is your drink Mr Weasley?" said Mcgonagall.
The rest of the students were muttering amongst themselves while some were laughing at Ron.
Ron shakily pointed to his drink on the table.
"That one" said Ron.
Snape strode over to it and picked it up before sniffing it.
"You are a terrible liar Mr Weasley, it seems you have been adding the Firewhiskey to your Butterbeer, detention with me for a month" said Snape.
"But its not mine" shouted Ron causing laughs to erupt from around the Great Hall.
At that moment the French girl who slapped Ron walked up to Mcgonagall.
"Madame, there's something I need to tell you about him" said the girl in a French accent pointing at Ron with hateful glare on her face.
"Yes, go on dear" said Mcgonagall.
"He grabbed my arm when I refused to dance with him making my arm hurt quite a bit, I have also seen him harassing other girls tonight" said the girl showing Mcgonagall a handprint on her forearm where Ron had grabbed her.
Mcgonagall looked angry and turned to Ron who spluttered.
"Well Mr Weasley, you seem to have had an interesting evening, you will serve your detentions with Professor Snape, and that will be two months not one, I will also be writing to your parents to inform them of your shameful actions, as of right now, I think your night is over, please return to Gryffindor Tower" said Mcgonagall.
Laughter and comments could be heard around the Great Hall.
"But you can't, that's not fair" cried Ron indignantly.
"I can, now return to Gryffindor Tower, or do I have to escort you there myself as if you were a child" said Mcgonagall.
Ron spluttered.
"Its so unfair" groaned Ron.
"Well then, it seems I have to escort you there myself" said Mcgonagall striding over to him and grabbing hold of his arm.
She dragged him out of the Great Hall as the laughter and muttering returned.
Professor Dumbledore stood in front of the head table.
"Now that the matter is finished, lets all get back on with this glorious night, music please" said Dumbledore.
The band started to play another song.
After the song had finished Harry and Astoria returned to the table.
George was looking at him with a questioning look.
"He was being a right prat George, we didn't decide to do it until he grabbed that French girl, and I'll buy you some more Firewhiskey" said Harry.
"Yeah we saw, but congratulations Harry, Astoria" said George.
"For a truly brilliant prank" said Fred.
Harry and Astoria laughed.
"Our pleasure" said Harry mock bowing to him.
"Glad you liked it" said Astoria.
"I can't wait to see the Howler Mum sends him, its gonna be absolutely hilarious" said George.
"I hope so, I could do with a good laugh" said Astoria.
Harry looked around the table.
"Hey where's Joe and Katie?" said Harry.
Angelina nodded her head in the direction behind Harry.
"See for yourself" said Angelina smirking.
Harry turned around and cracked a wide smile.
Joe and Katie were wrapped in each others arms sharing a kiss in the middle of the dance floor with their eyes closed.
"About damn time" said Harry.
"Three so far" said Lee.
"Three what?" said Astoria.
"Three times we've seen them making out tonight, ever since the second song" said Fred.
"Next thing, she'll be sneaking him out for a bit of midnight snogging when she's on patrol" said George.
Harry and the others laughed slightly.
At that point Daphne, Krum, Tracey and Blaise made their way over to them.
"Hey guys" said Daphne.
"Hey Sis, you look like your having a great night" said Astoria.
"I am, I hope your having as good a night as I am" said Daphne with a smile on her face.
Harry leaned into Astoria.
"I think she might be in love Tori" whispered Harry.
Astoria smiled and saw that Daphne was holding Krum's hand.
"I can't believe that weird fan boy was stupid enough to get caught with Firewhiskey" said Krum.
The others burst out laughing.
"Well, he's never been the smartest person" said Susan.
"Rather the reverse" said Alex.
"Would you like some drinks?" said Krum as Joe and Katie made their way back to the table.
"That would be great, come and join us, that'll be what, 16 Butterbeers" said Alex.
"We'll help you" said Fred and George at the same time.
"Me too" said Lee.
The three got up and went with Krum to get the drinks from the refreshments table near the doors.
Daphne sat down next to Astoria and turned to her and Harry.
"So Tori, what's yours and Harry's night been like?" said Daphne.
Astoria smiled.
"Wonderful, he's been a perfect gentleman, and an excellent dancer, you should find out for yourself" said Astoria.
Daphne smiled.
"Perhaps I will, how about right now?" said Daphne.
Harry looked at Astoria who nodded before standing up and holding his arm out to Daphne.
He led her out onto the dance floor which was now half empty as a lot of the students had gone to get refreshments.
"She told you yet?" said Daphne.
"Not yet, I think she's been a bit too nervous to do it" said Harry.
"And what about you, if she confessed her feelings to you, what would you say?" said Daphne testily.
Harry sighed.
"I don't know, I like her, but at the moment, I'm not sure if I'm ready for that next step" said Harry.
Daphne nodded.
"I was actually thinking of offering her an alternative for now" said Harry.
"What alternative?" said Daphne testily.
"A courtship of sorts, you know spend a bit more time together as friends that might develop into something more" said Harry.
"You think that's the best choice?" said Daphne.
"Most likely yeah, what about you, anything between you and Viktor?" said Harry.
Daphne smiled.
"I don't know, its been a great night so far, who knows where this will take both of us" said Daphne.
"He's a very lucky guy" said Harry.
Daphne leaned back and looked at him curiously.
"Whys that?" said Daphne.
"Because he got to see the real Daphne Greengrass, Tori was telling us that tonight's the happiest she's seen you in quite a few years, all of us can tell how happy he's made you tonight" said Harry.
Daphne smiled and nodded.
"True, this is the happiest I've been for a while, it just feels nice not to have to wear that Ice Queen mask, that I can actually be myself tonight" said Daphne.
The two kept on dancing until returning to the table at the end of the song.
She got her Butterbeer from Krum before sitting down next to him while Harry sat down next to Astoria.
Astoria turned to Harry.
"Harry, is it alright if we go for a walk?" said Astoria with a hint of nervousness in her voice.
Harry nodded.
"Come on" said Harry standing up and offering her his hand.
She took his hand as he pulled her to her feet.
She looped arms with him and he led her out of the Great Hall.
As Harry and Astoria walked through the doors Alex turned to Daphne.
"You think she's finally gonna tell him" said Alex.
Daphne smiled.
"Yeah" said Daphne.
"About damn time" said Katie drinking her Butterbeer.
Suddenly a slower song started to play.
Susan looked at Alex who nodded.
They stood up and made their way out to the dance floor.
They held each other close for the entire song. As the song drew to a close Alex reached into his robe pocket and pulled out something encased in his fist.
"What is that?" said Susan.
Alex smiled.
"Give me your left hand" said Alex.
Susan held her left hand out to him.
He opened his fist revealing a shiny silver betrothal ring to her causing Susan to gasp in delight.
"A betrothal ring, a reminder of our love and that we will one day be husband and wife, will you wear it?" said Alex.
Susan smiled and kissed him deeply.
"Of course I will" said Susan.
Alex smiled and placed the ring on her left ring finger.
"I love you, now and always" said Alex kissing her once more.
Susan returned the kiss before he held her close with her head on his chest for the rest of the dance.
Once they returned to the table Daphne and Tracey spotted the ring and smiled widely.
"Is that a betrothal ring?" said Tracey causing the others to turn and look at Alex and Susan.
Susan held it up for everyone to see.
"Yes it is" said Susan smiling as she squeezed Alex's hand.
"Its beautiful" said Daphne.
"Thanks Daph" said Susan.
Suddenly another person made their way over to the table.
"Do you mind if I join you?" said Fleur.
"Not at all Fleur, sit down" said Susan gesturing to Harry's empty seat.
Fleur sat down and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Where's Davies Fleur?" said Daphne.
Fleur groaned.
"Over there at the head table, too busy drooling to notice I had walked off, the pig" said Fleur haughtily.
Roger Davies was sat down looking out at the ball taking place in front of him with drool dripping down from his mouth onto the table.
"So he drools at you all the way through dinner, probably through the dance as well and is still drooling right now, he must have really low self control, Longbottom wasn't much different though was he" said Daphne.
"Oui, and his red haired date was glaring at me the whole time as if it was my fault that he was staring at me, talk about low self control, but at least he stopped staring at me when we all went up to dance, where's Arry by the way, I was rather hoping I'd get that dance he promised me" said Fleur after she noticed Harry and Astoria's absence.
"Taking a walk with Astoria" said Alex.
Fleur managed a small smile.
"I saw those two a few times tonight, what a lovely couple" said Fleur.
"They're not together Fleur, not yet anyway" said Susan.
Fleur looked at her in surprise.
"Really, from what I saw I thought they were, they just seemed so right for each other" said Fleur.
"Well, the way things are going for them, we all reckon they'll be together by the summer" said Katie.
Fleur smiled.
"I hope so, because they look perfect for each other" said Fleur.
Meanwhile…
Harry and Astoria made their way out of the main doors and into the courtyard arm in arm.
"Wow, this is amazing" said Astoria looking around in amazement.
Dozens of fairy lights hung above the courtyard as light snow continued to cover the courtyard. There were a couple of black carriages waiting to take the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students back to their ship and carriage.
"It is" said Harry as the two walked through the courtyard and spotted an empty stone bench facing the entrance.
"Shall we sit down for a bit?" said Harry.
Astoria nodded.
They sat down on the bench.
The two remained silent for a few moments before Harry placed his hand on hers getting her attention.
"Tori, I know how you feel about me" said Harry.
Astoria looked slightly nervous.
"Dorcas told you then" said Astoria blushing.
"Yeah, but I always knew you had a little crush on me, you weren't as subtle about it as you might think" said Harry.
Astoria went slightly red.
"I've liked you since I was 8, it was just a crush at first but over the last two years its gotten a lot stronger, especially after you saved my life in the summer, your the only boy I've ever liked" said Astoria.
"Really?" said Harry in slight shock.
"Yes, no one else ever caught my eye, I was really glad when I got sorted into Gryffindor as well since it meant I could be near you, and then when you asked me to the ball I was so excited" said Astoria.
Harry sighed.
"Tori I-" said Harry.
"Because I think I love you Harry, I have done for a while now" said Astoria turning to look him in the eye.
Harry stared into her eyes.
She really loved him.
"Tori, I think I like you that way, I just don't think I'm ready for this yet, I'm really sorry" said Harry in a regretful voice.
Astoria nodded before turning away from him with a disappointed look on her face.
Harry wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
"I can't pretend that I'm not hurt by that, but at least your being honest about it, even if it is hard to hear" said Astoria sadly as one or two tears appeared in her eyes.
"Tori, I'm not saying no to you, I know how you feel but I don't think I'm ready for all of this… but I want to be able to find out if I'm ready for the next step, I know its not what you wanted to hear but I don't want to lie to you, why don't we spend some more time together, just the two of us and we'll see where it takes us, a courtship of sorts" said Harry.
Astoria quickly turned to him.
"You mean?" said Astoria.
Harry smiled and softly wiped the tears from her eyes.
"Yes… Astoria Isobel Greengrass, will you allow me to court you in the hopes that this could turn into something special for the both of us, and please do not cry Tori, a beautiful girl like you should not be crying on a night like this" said Harry.
Astoria managed a small smile as she locked eyes with him.
"You really think I'm beautiful" said Astoria.
"I've always thought you were beautiful Tori, especially tonight, and it made me even happier to see you wearing the earrings I bought for you, I know you have better ones" said Harry.
Astoria smiled at him.
"Harry, I love them, true they may not be as exquisite or fancy as some of the others I could've worn, but that doesn't matter, you got me these, I was always going to wear them tonight, its like they say, its the thought that counts" said Astoria.
Harry smiled and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear causing her to smile.
"So what do you say, will you allow me to court you?" said Harry.
Astoria nodded.
"I know its not what you wanted, if this does lead to where it's meant to lead, then I want it to be special for both of us" said Harry.
Astoria blushed.
"Your right, a courtship may not be what I wanted, but when I think about it I guess I can accept it, you and me together would only work if we both shared the same feelings, besides, I know you and I only ended up coming here together because Dorcas asked you too, that and it would be interesting to see how much you can charm me" said Astoria.
Harry smiled.
"Well that parts not entirely true Tori, when Dorcas asked me I told her I would think about it, taking you to the ball was my choice, to tell you the truth you were the only person I thought about asking, and for the record I think you'll find that I'm quite charming, you found that out tonight, more than once I might add" said Harry.
Astoria blushed.
"I'm the only person you ever thought of asking, little old me, when you could have had your pick of the girls, even some of those Beauxbatons students have been eyeing you up like a piece of meat for weeks, even Fleur wanted to come with you tonight, she would have probably dragged you under some mistletoe if she could find some, or even a broom cupboard" said Astoria.
Harry squeezed her hand.
"Only you, those other girls just wanted me to ask them because I'm a good looking bloke, top student, old family name, the list goes on, they didn't care about what person I am, maybe Fleur does, but you don't care about any of that, you wanted to go with me because you like me for who I am as a person, you like the real Harry Potter, not the Heir to the Potter Family Harry Potter, you wanted the real me, I know I made the right choice when I asked you, I'm having a great night with you, and its not over yet" said Harry.
Astoria suddenly leaned forwards and kissed him on the cheek close to the corner of his lips.
"This is the most fun I've had in years, thank you Harry, your a great person, both inside and out, I was hoping that you'd be my boyfriend before midnight tonight, that you'd give me my first kiss with the man I love, but what we have now is good enough I suppose… for now at least" said Astoria smiling.
"Your welcome, come on, lets go back inside, for the night is still young and a very beautiful young lady deserves another dance" said Harry standing up and offering her his hand.
Astoria turned red.
"Well I think that confirms how much of a charmer you are Harry" said Astoria letting him pull her to her feet.
Harry smirked.
"I thought we already established that, come on" said Harry offering her his arm which she took.
They returned to the Great Hall and enjoyed the rest of the evening before returning to Gryffindor Tower at nearly one in the morning.
Astoria didn't mind one bit when Harry kept his promise to Fleur and danced with her for one song before she returned to her carriage.
The two stopped outside the Fat Lady portrait before Astoria turned to Harry.
"Thank you Harry I had a wonderful evening, you were the perfect date" said Astoria wrapping him in a hug.
Harry smiled.
"Thanks Tori, but there are a few more things before we go inside" said Harry.
"What are they?" said Astoria smiling.
"Firstly, will you accompany me to Hogsmeade on Valentines Day?" said Harry.
"I'd love too" said Astoria smiling as she released him from her hug.
Harry chuckled.
"Great, now for the other thing, I want the both of us to have some time alone whenever we can" said Harry.
"Of course" said Astoria.
Harry smiled and wrapped his arm around her waist.
"You said I was the perfect date, I'm glad you enjoyed your night with me, because I definitely enjoyed spending the evening in your company" said Harry.
Astoria smiled and kissed his cheek.
The two walked back into Gryffindor Tower.
As they entered they saw Joe, Katie, the Twins, Lee, Angelina, Alicia and Leanne sat on settee's near the fire still dressed in their clothes from the ball. They saw that someone had conjured some extra settee's so they could all sit down.
They also saw Ron sat at one of the tables with a scowl on his face drinking Butterbeer obviously waiting for someone.
Joe who was sat with his arm around Katie turned to face them as they walked over.
"You guys gonna join us?" said Joe.
Harry looked at Astoria.
"I am, you gonna join us as well Tori?" said Harry.
"Of course" said Astoria as she led him over to sit next to Lee and Leanne.
Astoria chuckled as she looked at the table in the middle of all the settee's to see a crate of Butterbeer as well as a few bottles of Firewhiskey and dozens of shot glasses.
"I'm not even gonna ask where you two keep getting the Firewhiskey from" said Astoria looking at Fred and George who were sat on a settee with Angelina and Alicia respectively.
"Good, because its a secret" said Fred winking at her.
"Help yourself" said George.
Astoria smirked and looked at Harry.
Harry smirked.
"Which one do you want?" said Harry.
"Both" said Astoria grinning wildly.
Harry looked slightly surprised and chuckled.
He poured two shots of Firewhiskey and grabbed two bottles of Butterbeer placing them on the table.
He handed a shot of Firewhiskey to her as she leaned into his chest.
"Bottoms up" said Astoria.
She and Harry necked their shots before placing the glasses back on the table.
Harry grabbed their Butterbeer's and opened them before handing one to Astoria who thanked him.
"So" said Katie slowly.
"So… what?" said Harry.
"You two finally get together then, the way you were acting with each other at the ball we thought you two were actually a couple, you looked so cute together" said Angelina.
Harry and Astoria shared a smile with each other before looking at them.
"Sort of" said Astoria.
Some of the others looked puzzled until Harry and Astoria explained their situation to them.
As they were finishing their story they heard a familiar voice shout out in anger.
"Where have you been?" said Ron sounding annoyed.
They turned to look at him where they saw him stand up looking at Hermione who had just arrived back at Gryffindor Tower on her own.
"At the ball, with my date" snarled Hermione.
Ron scoffed.
"Your date, you mean that creepy Bulgarian bloke, what makes him so special?" said Ron angrily.
Hermione looked at him in shock.
"Ivan is not creepy, he happens to be a very nice person, a nice person knows how to show a girl a good time, unlike someone else I know" said Hermione in anger.
"What's that supposed to mean?" said Ron.
Hermione looked at him like he was stupid.
"I'm talking about you you insufferable prat, I bumped into Parvati shortly after you got kicked out, she told me all about how you blanked her all night" said Hermione angrily.
"So, I didn't want to go with her anyway, then she just went off with Black" said Ron.
Hermione looked shocked as Harry and the others exchanged shocked looks with each other.
"So why did you agree to take her to the ball when Neville asked her for you knowing full well you were just going to treat her like a brick wall all night, in fact don't answer that, next time actually ask someone to be your date" said Hermione.
Ron snarled.
"I already did, I asked you remember" said Ron.
Harry and the others could see that traces of tears had started to form in Hermione's eyes.
"Asked me, you told me to be your date 3 days before the ball as a last resort, and when I told you I already had a date, you refused to believe me because I wouldn't tell you who it was" said Hermione.
"You could've still gone with me, you could've told this bloke you'd changed your mind, it would have been easy" said Ron.
Hermione looked shocked.
"You would've expected me to go up to my date and tell him, sorry I can't attend the ball with you now, my best friend has just demanded I go with him as a last resort" said Hermione as tears started to fall.
"Should we step in" whispered Alicia to Angelina.
Angelina shook her head.
"No, its their business, it wouldn't be right to interfere, we'll invite her to sit with us after" said Angelina.
"That would've worked out for the both of us, instead you decided to abandon your best friend and spend the entire ball with a complete stranger" said Ron turning around and walking towards the stairs.
"Well you know the solution then don't you?" said Hermione rounding on him.
"Go on then" said Ron angrily.
"Next time there's a ball, pluck up the courage and ask me properly before somebody else does, and not as a last resort" said Hermione.
Ron just started walking up the stairs.
"Yeah well next time I won't bother, maybe you should go and find that Ivan bloke before he finds another girl, if he hasn't found someone else already" said Ron viciously before stomping up the stairs.
"Ron you've ruined everything" screamed Hermione.
They heard a door slam upstairs causing some of them to wince slightly.
Angelina and Alicia jumped up and moved towards Hermione as she let her tears fall and collapsed to her knees.
"Ignore him Hermione, he's not worth it" said Angelina dropping to her knees beside Hermione and wrapping her arms around her shoulders.
"Come on Hermione, come and sit with us" said Alicia.
Hermione wiped away her tears and nodded.
The two girls helped her to her feet and led her over to sit with them on the settee. Fred and George moved up to sit on the armrests while Hermione sat in between Angelina and Alicia.
"Don't let Weasley ruin your night Hermione, have a drink with us" said Astoria sincerely.
Hermione nodded.
"Okay" said Hermione sadly.
George handed her a Butterbeer while Fred poured her a shot of Firewhiskey and held it out to her.
"Get that down you love, it'll make you feel better" said Fred.
Hermione looked at him in shock.
"What if Professor Mcgonagall comes back?" said Hermione.
"She won't, she put the prefects in charge of Gryffindor Tower tonight" said Harry.
Hermione looked at him.
"You sure?" said Hermione.
"Positive" said Harry.
Hermione managed a weak smile before downing the shot of Firewhiskey and coughing slightly.
George handed the Butterbeer to her so she could wash the Firewhiskey down.
"What was all that about Hermione?" said Katie.
"Just Ron being jealous, and he wasn't exactly subtle about it tonight either, he kept making snide comments at me and my date all through dinner" said Hermione wiping the tears from her eyes.
"No, I mean what did you mean by as a last resort?" said Katie.
Hermione looked at her.
"A few days ago, after Fleur turned him down, he was in a bit of a bad mood about not having a date, so me and Neville kept telling him just to ask someone, even a younger year if he had too, we ended up mentioning Eloise Midgeon, that Hufflepuff in Ginny's year, but he said he didn't want to, said she her nose is off centre" said Hermione.
"What a pig, Eloise is a lovely girl, she might be a bit shy sometimes but she's so friendly" said Astoria angrily.
"He started going on about how he and Neville would be the only guys in their year without dates, then Neville told him that he was taking Ginny, and it just made him even angrier, he starts ranting about how his little sister can get a date and he couldn't before completely out of the blue he turns to me and tells me to go with him, in a rather blunt way as well" said Hermione.
"So he wasn't subtle about it then" said Joe.
"Far from it, his exact words were, Hermione, your a girl, you can be my date" said Hermione.
"Wow" said Harry in slight shock.
Hermione nodded.
"But I already had a date, so I told him I couldn't go with him, next thing you know he got mad, started demanding I tell him who I was going with, Neville kept trying to calm him down but it didn't work, then when I wouldn't tell him who my date was he just stormed off" said Hermione.
"Hermione, out of curiosity why didn't you tell him who your date was?" said Fred.
"I didn't want him to make trouble for Ivan, I knew he would if I told him, the poor bloke was quite nervous when he asked me, but he was so sweet about it so I said yes, I didn't want Ron to start threatening him about being my date, which I know he would've done, then tonight he acts like a total prat, me and the others felt so sorry for Parvati, Neville even apologised to her for Ron being a complete prat, in the end I was relieved when Mcgonagall kicked him out of the ball" said Hermione.
Fred and George had heard enough at this point.
"Excuse us" said Fred and George simultaneously.
The two stood up and headed for the stairs.
Hermione looked at the Twins before turning back to the others.
"Don't worry about them, they'll deal with Ron, have another drink, why did you come back on your own anyway, I thought Neville and Ginny would have been with you" said Harry.
"They went for a walk shortly before the ball ended, haven't they come back yet?" said Hermione.
At that moment the Twins reappeared at the bottom of the stairs with Ron, they dragged him through the common room entrance into the hallway.
As they were leaving Neville and Ginny walked in holding hands and looking at the group in confusion.
"What was all that about?" said Ginny.
"Just your brother being an arsehole again, nothing new, come and join us" said Hermione bitterly.
Angelina stood up and conjured a small leather love seat for them.
Neville and Ginny sat down and turned to Hermione.
"What happened?" said Neville as Ginny leaned into his chest and took his hand.
Hermione told them the full story about what had happened in the common room. As she was finishing her story Ron stormed back into the common room followed slowly by the Twins.
Neville stood up and walked over to him.
"What the hell was all that about Ron?" said Neville angrily.
"All what?" said Ron.
"What you said to Hermione, I thought she was your friend" said Neville.
"She is my friend" said Ron angrily.
"My friend definitely, yours, probably not after what you did, why on earth would you say things like that to her, and how could you treat Parvati like that, especially after I vouched for you when I asked her if she would go with you?" said Neville.
Ron just grumbled and pushed his way past Neville.
"Just leave me alone" grumbled Ron.
He stomped back upstairs.
Neville sighed.
"Leave him be Neville, he needs to cool down first, come and have another drink, we've got loads of this stuff left" said Fred.
"Don't worry about it, he'll be regretting it in the morning when Mcgonagall increases the number of detentions he has" said Katie.
"Probably by another month" said Harry.
Neville walked back over to them and sat down.
They stopped up until three in the morning when they decided to call it a night. Fred and George hid the Firewhiskey before they all went upstairs.
Astoria gave Harry a kiss on the cheek and thanked him for a wonderful night before going upstairs with Ginny.