Lover of Mine

by unleeshedd

Cassandra Black thought her life was already complicated enough as she headed into her fourth year at Hogwarts. But, as events no one could have predicted take over, suddenly her whole world is turned upside down. Loyalties will be tested, unexpected bonds forged - and life as she knows it will never be the same again. DRACO/OC. FRED/OC. SIRIUSDAUGHTER!OC. Rated T for language.

8. Chapter 8: The Yule Ball

A/N: Here we go, the Yule Ball! This chapter is a looong one, and an eventful one - so strap yourselves in!

---

Chapter Eight: The Yule Ball

---

Almost like Christmas magic, by the time we reached Christmas Eve it had been snowing already for three days and the entire castle grounds were coated in fluffy white powder. It made everything seem all the more beautiful, and even despite everything that had happened last week, I was actually excited for Christmas and the ball.

I never really went into detail with anyone about what happened with Gorgia, I said we had a disagreement and I pushed her too far and left it at that. Madi and Blaise had been pushing me for more, but I just wanted to try and move on and forget it happened. The Gryffindors had been livid, I'd had to stop Harry from going straight to Dumbledore. I knew he was just trying to help; he knew how much that necklace meant to me but I'd managed to talk him out of it. Besides there was no actual proof she had done it, and I was perfectly capable of handling her on my own, and that was the way I wanted it. This was my fight, and I would be the one to fight it.

Malfoy and I had been avoiding each other as much as possible all week. It was a lot easier since classes had ended, and because I was spending a lot more time with my Gryffindor friends than my Slytherin ones since everything had happened. I had no clue if he knew why Gorgia had done what she did, but they'd practically been attached to each other all week. I'd managed to avoid her for the most part – choosing to eat with the Gryffindors and staying away from her during classes. She probably thought that she'd won – that she'd broken me. But I was just biding my time, waiting for the perfect opportunity to get her back.

"Are you okay?" Harry asked, looking over at me as we walked towards Dumbledore's office. Our dads were due to arrive tonight for the ball, so we were having a little Christmas Eve celebration together.

I hadn't told my father what had happened yet, it didn't feel like something I could put in a letter. I had no idea how I was going to tell him, it felt like I not only let mum down, but him too.

"I don't know," I answered honestly, "I have no idea how I'm going to tell him."

"It wasn't your fault," Harry responded strongly, "And he'll know that," he let out a frustrated sigh, "I still think you should have reported her."

I shook my head, "No, this is one I need to deal with on my own. Getting professor's involved is giving her exactly what she wants."

"You stupid Slytherins and your pride," Harry muttered, and I shot him a playful glare.

The Headmasters office was open when we arrived, and as we started the climb up the stairs my stomach was flipping nervously.

"Oh!" I suddenly remembered, craning my neck to look at Harry above me, "Who did you end up asking to the ball last week?"

Harry gave a little shrug, "Ron and I are taking the Patil twins."

I snorted, "Oh, lovely."

"They aren't that bad," Harry defended, looking down at me with a small frown, "Besides it's not like I had many options left!"

"That was your own fault," I pointed out, "Which one did you get then?"

"Parvati."

He stopped at the top of the stairs to let me catch up, "I can deal with that, Padma's definitely the worst of the two," I sighed.

Harry rolled his eyes, opening the door to the office, "I'll be sure to warn Ron."

"I honestly might feel worse for Padma, we've both seen Ron's dress robes."

We were both still laughing when we finally walked into Dumbledore's office, Ron's hideous dress robes vivid in our minds. We looked around, noting the office was currently vacant. I started wandering around, looking at all the interesting things the headmaster always seemed to have in his office while Harry flopped into one of the chairs at the desk.

"Did you ask anyone else?" I questioned, running my hand over the old books on one of the shelves.

Harry coughed, "I asked Cho…"

I whirled around to face him, "You wanted to go with Cho Chang?!" I asked in horror, "Salazars spit Harry I thought the Patil twins were bad enough!"

"Yeah well she's already going with Diggory anyway, so it doesn't matter," he muttered bitterly, glaring at the floor.

"Ugh," I wrinkled up my nose in disgust, "Diggory could have any girl in this school right now and he chooses Chang? I don't get it."

"Do you just hate all Ravenclaws?" Harry asked, his lips quirking up into a smile at my dramatics.

"They just think they're better than everyone else," I rolled my eyes, "Especially Chang and her little groupies,"

"Is that why you dropped the pumpkin on Marietta Edgecombe, then?"

"I did that for you, you ungrateful prat!" I threw a piece of blank parchment at him angrily, but he dodged it, his mouth dropping open.

"You can't throw things in here!"

I smirked, "I just did."

Harry's eyes gleamed mischievously, and I let out a shriek as he leaped up and ran towards me. It never took him long to catch me, he was that much taller than me that one of his steps was pretty much two of mine. He grabbed me in a headlock immediately, ignoring me yelling at him in protest as he started tickling me. I hit him repeatedly on the leg through my laughter, barely having enough air left to breathe. I hated every minute of it, but this was the most I'd laughed all week, so I found myself not caring as much as I usually would.

"Oi! You heathens, what do you think you're doing?"

Harry and I both froze, standing up and seeing my dad, James and Dumbledore all staring at us in amusement.

"She started it," Harry replied to his dad automatically, and I turned to him, offended.

"Lies, Potter!"

"You threw the parchment!" he playfully shoved me a little again.

"I really thought they'd grow out of the wrestling," my dad shook his head, looking at James in mock disappointment.

"We only have ourselves to blame," James responded, "All those tournaments we held when they were younger…"

Harry and I exchanged a grin, fondly remembering all the photos we'd seen over the years of the two of us in various costumes, wrestling pretty much from the moment we could walk.

"Cassie is still undefeated champ though," my dad turned to me with a wink, and both Harry and James looked appalled.

"Lies! I demand a recount"

"I'm tiny, but I'm mighty," I shrugged innocently, shoving into Harry again for good measure.

Harry was still smiling at me, his eyes shining happily, "Nice to see you smiling," he murmured quietly, and I sent him my own grateful smile in return.

"Merry Christmas then," he moved off to hug James, and I turned to look at my dad for the first time properly, the smile immediately dropping from my face.

He was still smiling, but it quickly dropped when he saw that I wasn't anymore. It was like as soon as I saw him everything came back to me, and I felt the tears starting to prick at my eyes already.

He was in front of me in seconds, "What happened?" he asked, gripping my arms gently.

I didn't respond, I couldn't, I just threw my arms around him tightly and started to cry. He hugged me back instantly, and I could only imagine how confused he must be. I felt his head turn slightly and knew he must be looking over to Harry for some sort of answer, but Harry didn't say anything.

"I'm so sorry, Dad," I cried into him, too scared to lift my head.

"Sorry for what?" he asked urgently, "Kid, what is it?"

I let out one last shaky breath, before I pulled back and looked at him. I didn't say a word, I didn't need to. He saw the look in my eyes straight away, his concern only growing as he quickly looked me up and down, and I saw his face harden when he realised.

"Who did it?" he practically growled.

"I'm sorry," I said again.

He stepped away, turning and taking a deep breath to try and calm himself down.

"What's happened?" James asked quietly, looking between the two of us.

"Her necklace, Dad," Harry replied, and James's eyes widened in shock as he realised.

"I asked you who did it, Cassie," my dad said in a low voice, staring at me intently - his eyes flashing.

"It doesn't matter," I whispered, "It was my fault."

"No it wasn't-" Harry tried to interrupt, but I shot him a warning glare that stopped him in his tracks. My dad and James both looked at Harry, then back to me.

My father's eyes travelled past me, "Did you know about this?" he demanded, and I turned to see the Headmaster had settled at his desk at some point and was watching us quietly.

"No," I said before he could respond, "I didn't report it."

"You-" my dad sputtered, "You didn't report it?" I shook my head, wincing at the utter bewilderment in his gaze.

"I was aware of what happened," Dumbledore said quietly, drawing all of our attention to him, my mouth dropping open a little in shock.

"Miss Black is correct, she never officially reported the incident to myself, or even to Professor Snape. But he became aware of it anyhow and informed me after he had spoken to Miss Black, where she told him she did not want to report it."

My dad looked back at me incredulously, "Why not?"

"Because," I wrapped my arms around myself, avoiding his eyes, "It would just make it worse, I can handle this myself."

"Couldn't you have done something, anyway?" James demanded, looking at the Headmaster with raised eyebrows.

Dumbledore shook his head, "She has not even told Professor Snape the name of the student."

"Who did it?" my dad repeated again, grabbing my shoulders and making me look at him.

"Tell them," Harry snapped, "You keep thinking you can handle her on your own and look where it got you!"

"Shut up Harry," I growled, glancing at him fiercely.

"No!" he exclaimed angrily, "I'm sick of you acting like you don't need anyone else's help!"

"I don't," I hissed, shaking my dad off and turning to my god-brother angrily, "I'm perfectly capable of handling things myself."

"That doesn't mean you have to," my dad responded, sending Harry a stern look to stand down. Harry went quiet, crossing his arms and glaring at me instead.

"Your father is right, Miss Black," Dumbledore said again, "You do not have to go through these things alone."

I frowned, biting my lip while I pondered. I wanted to be strong, I wanted to prove that I could handle things on my own. I would not give her the satisfaction of breaking me over this.

I sighed, looking into my father's eyes, "It was Gorgia Avery."

I saw his eyes widen immediately, looking back at James who looked just as horrified. I frowned a little in confusion, I had expected them to be angry, but this was a different kind of reaction. It almost looked like fear.

He turned back to Dumbledore, his eyes steeled in determination, "We need to do something."

"No!" I exclaimed, grabbing his arm gently, "This is why I didn't want to report it in the first place! If I tell she wins, she wants a reaction and I won't give her the satisfaction of getting one!"

My dad looked confused, searching my face like he was trying to figure out what I was trying to achieve.

"Snape should have done more," he snapped finally, looking over at the headmaster again, "He must have known it was her!"

"He suspected as much," Dumbledore agreed, "But we have no authority to act unless the student directly reports it, or another student who was present. And unfortunately, the student who did end up informing him was not actually present for the incident."

My eyes widened, and I turned to the Headmaster in shock, "So someone did tell Professor Snape?"

He nodded, "That's why he came to you, hoping you would tell him. But when he realised you wanted to handle it on your own, he knew there was no changing your mind."

I smiled softly, my professor knew me way too well, "Who told him?" I asked.

The edges of Dumbledore's mouth quirked up, "You will have to ask your Head of House that, I think."

I rolled my eyes; I knew Snape was never going to tell me who it was.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" my dad asked softly, and I sighed, shrugging sadly.

"I didn't know what to say. I was scared you'd hate me."

His eyes widened, and he pulled me back into his chest, "Never. This was not your fault, kid. Don't ever think it was."

"It was all I had, Dad," I whispered, and I felt him let out a shaky breath before he pulled back, looking at me meaningfully.

"She's still with you, kid," he pointed to my heart, "She's always right here."

I snorted, laughing tearily, "That was ridiculously cheesy."

He laughed too, "Well, I am a dad."

We laughed together for a moment, before he looked at me seriously again.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

I let out a shaky breath, before nodding, "I will be."

"You're too strong for your own good," he said fondly, and I smiled at him in return.

"I get it from you."

"That's probably where the stubbornness comes from too," James piped up, winking at me playfully. We all laughed as my dad shot his best friend a withering look.

I looked at Harry, who still didn't look like he was very happy and gave him a small sigh. He sighed, before returning it with a slight nod. He understood that this was my battle, and not his.

"Why did she do it, anyway?" my dad asked, and I sighed.

"She hasn't even told me," Harry muttered bitterly, and I shot him a glare.

"I told you the truth, I just pushed her too far and she finally retaliated."

"So, there was no specific reason?" my dad raised his eyebrows, none of them looking very convinced.

I shrugged, "Beats me."

He still didn't look satisfied, but he knew me well enough to know that's all he was going to get out of me. I had no desire to make any of them think there was any truth to her reasoning for attacking me. Not that there was, but I didn't want to even plant the idea in their heads.

"Are you excited for tomorrow?" James looked between Harry and I, all of us relieved for the lighter subject.

"I'm excited for Harry to fall on his face in front of everyone," I responded, smirking at Harry, who was not amused.

"You'll be fine," James smiled at him reassuringly, but Harry still didn't look convinced.

"Do you want to practice?" a wicked smile came over James's face, and Harry's eyes widened in fear.

"No!"

I leant on my dad's arm as we both burst into laughter when James ignored his son's protest and started dramatically dancing with him around the room, Harry looking like he wanted to pitch himself off the Astronomy Tower.

"And...1, 2, 3 and Harry lift your feet!"

"I hate you."

My dad nudged me gently, pulling my attention as I looked up at him in question.

"Promise you will tell me if she does anything else to you," he said seriously.

"Dad…" I sighed, but he interrupted me.

"I know you want to handle this one on your own, but there are things you don't know, kid. Just please be careful."

I frowned, wondering what exactly he meant by things I didn't know, but gave him a small nod and then a smile when he visibly sagged in relief. I knew there was something he wasn't telling me, but just like James had said, I got my stubbornness from somewhere.

---

I woke up the next morning to excited squeals echoing around my dorm room. I sat up groggily, rubbing my eyes and then breaking into a grin when I saw the pile of presents on the end of my bed.

"Merry Christmas guys!" Daphne called cheerily, already hugging a beautiful silky dress she'd opened to her small frame.

I looked around the dorm with a grin, everyone's happiness was infectious. I looked to my left and made eye contact with Madi, who shot me a beaming smile back. I felt my heart soar when I saw how happy she looked; I couldn't imagine her ever being this happy when she was at home for Christmas.

I took a proper look at the pile on the end of my bed, it was decently sized as always due to our large extended family. Of course, some of the pureblood girls' in my dorm's piles were almost double the size, but I didn't care about the quantity. I already knew I was going to love everything I opened.

I started with Harry, grinning when I saw he'd gotten me a new pair of Chaser gloves for Quidditch, they were dark green with silver stitching of my initials on the top. Hermione had gotten me a book as usual, this one was on potions and their unknown uses; Ron, a joke book from Zonko's with all snake-related puns; Hagrid had sent his usual pack of sweets, Remus and James had both had the same idea, apparently my sweet tooth was very universally known. My dad bought me a new coat, it was a beautiful emerald green velvet, and I ran my hands over it with a soft smile. He had a talent for knowing exactly what I wanted without me ever asking, I'd looked at this exact coat in Diagon Alley before school had started. Mrs Weasley had sent a knitted jumper as always; it was deep purple this year with white stars embroidered down one side. Madi had gotten me a pair of green and silver stud earrings; Blaise, more Quidditch gear; Theodore had gotten me a leather journal with a snake carved into the spine; and Lillian and Tracey had gone in together on a beautiful silk nightgown (that included a risqué note about how much my boyfriend would love it).

"Has everyone opened mine?" Daphne suddenly said, looking around the dorm with sparkling eyes. Her bed was coated in wrapping paper, much like the rest of the dorms, and everyone quickly scrambled to find Daphne's signature gold wrapped box. Every year Daphne got the whole dorm the same thing, it was always beautiful; usually jewellery, or like last year, the highest quality sweater she could find.

"Daph," Lillian breathed, looking at the blonde with wide eyes.

"This is incredible," Tracey agreed.

My mouth dropped open as I finally got my own box open and pulled out a silver charm bracelet. So far it only had two charms, a 'C' for my name, and a tiny little goblet. I glanced over at Madi and saw hers was the same, except obviously hers was an 'M' charm.

"You know I always like buying everyone the same thing," Daphne explained, "So we all match with something or other, and I thought this would be a good way to do it! I'll just buy a new charm each year from now on, I should have thought of it ages ago."

I looked over at her, my eyes shining, "You have the biggest heart, Daphne Greengrass."

She brushed me off, but she couldn't hide how pleased she was with our reactions, "Don't mention it."

"Yeah, I'm never letting anyone call you an ice queen again," Madi agreed, winking at her playfully.

I glanced over at Parkinson, who was surrounded by probably the most presents in the dorm, and noticed she looked a little shocked to have gotten a bracelet. Not that Daphne ever left her out of her dorm present, she was raised right after all and that would be rude. But this gift felt more exclusive, like we were all part of something. I was surprised that I didn't even mind that Parkinson had been included, even if we were more at odds this year.

"What did your boyfriend get you then?" Madi asked, sliding in next to me.

"I was just about to open it," I replied, putting Daphne's bracelet carefully on the bedside table before reaching for my last present, which was from the twins.

I grinned when I opened it, it was full of the twin's creations, a wicked smile coming over my face when I thought of how much trouble I could cause.

"Typical," Madi rolled her eyes, but her eyes were twinkling as she peered into the box to examine the products inside, before her eyebrows raised, "There's something else in there!"

I looked back at the box in surprise, I hadn't expected anything else at all. I broke out into a happy smile when I realised what it was, pulling out the snow globe. The scene inside was of the Astronomy Tower, stars twinkling in the sky.

Madi looked at me in question, "The Astronomy Tower?"

I smiled softly, giving it a little shake and watching the snow fall down around it, "It's where we had our first kiss. Where we got together."

Madi looked a little taken aback, "Huh, that's actually kind of sweet..."

I bumped her shoulder, "Don't sound so surprised!" I laughed, Madi joining in and shoving me back lightly.

"What did Blaise get you then?"

"That silk scarf I wanted," she winked, "I may have given him a hint."

"Probably for the best," I grinned, Blaise had been subtly asking me for ideas on what to get her all month. I was glad my best friend had caught on and gracefully helped him out.

The rest of the girls had apparently finished opening their presents, now moving onto comparing and deciding who got the best loot this year. Madi leaned forward, examining the rest of my presents through the paper strewn everywhere, frowning suddenly.

"You forgot one."

I blinked in surprise, mentally going through the list in my head, I couldn't think of anyone I hadn't opened a present from. Madi handed me a small box, it was wrapped in shiny black paper with no note attached.

"Oooh, Black's got a mystery present!" Lillian said, coming to sit on my other side with interest.

I turned it over in my hand, it wasn't heavy, so I cautiously started unwrapping it as the other girls all gathered around my bed.

We all let out a collective gasp when I opened it.

"Holy shit," Lillian breathed next to me, her eyes wide.

Nestled in black tissue paper was a silver necklace, much like my mother's one. It had the same cursive 'C' on the end of the chain, except this one had a snake curling around the shape of it, complete with two emerald gems for the eyes. It was absolutely beautiful.

"It's so…" Daphne trailed off, seemingly lost for words.

"Cassie." Madi finished.

I looked between my dorm mates; everyone's faces as full of wonder as mine was.

"It's perfect," I breathed, running a finger along the curve of the letter.

"Who sent it?" Tracey asked curiously, rifling through some of the wrapping paper on the bed.

"There was no card," Madi shook her head, "It was so tiny it almost got lost in all the wrappings."

"Do you know who might have?" Lillian asked curiously, resting her chin on my shoulder to look at it more closely.

I shook my head, still a little shocked.

"Maybe it was your father?" Daphne guessed, "You only told him last night, maybe he had to get it together quickly, that's why there's no note?"

Parkinson peered over Tracey's shoulder, "Would your father have this good a taste?"

I rolled my eyes slightly, but she probably wasn't wrong, it didn't seem like something my dad would buy.

"Well, whoever bought obviously knows you pretty well," Madi said, the rest of the girls nodding in agreement.

Seemingly bored now, the rest of the girls moved off to start getting dressed to head down to breakfast. I got up too, putting Madi's earrings into my ears and fastening my new charm bracelet to my wrist after I got dressed. I picked up the necklace again, still in awe of how beautiful it really was. It was obviously expensive, so sadly I knew it couldn't have been Fred who bought it. I looked at it for a few more moments, before sighing and putting it around my neck and securing the clasp.

My hand immediately came up to rest over it on my chest, and I let out a breath I hadn't realised I'd been holding. I had felt like there was a part of me missing for the last week and having something back around my neck was a comfort I hadn't realised I'd needed.

"Someone's been blinged up this year," Tracey grinned as we headed out the door, noting all my new jewellery.

"Diamonds are a girl's best friend, remember?" Daphne winked, and we all laughed.

Blaise and Theodore were waiting down in the Common Room, and I had to stop myself from turning back around when I noticed Malfoy was with them as well. I quickly glanced around and breathed a quiet sigh of relief when Gorgia was nowhere in sight. That was the last thing I needed right now.

Blaise gave Madi a soft kiss when we reached them, before pulling me into a hug and kissing the top of my head as well.

"Quidditch gear was perfect, thank you," I said as he pulled back, and he shot me a wink in return. He immediately noticed the new necklace around my neck, his eyes widening at me in question, but I just shrugged to let him know I had no idea where it came from. He raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything else, turning back to the others as we headed out of the Common Room.

"Hang on," Theodore frowned as we walked, looking down at Parkinson's wrist as she walked next to him, and then over at Lillian on her other side, "Are they the same?"

We all exchanged grins, holding up our wrists to the boys, their eyes widening when they realised they were.

"Courtesy of Greengrass," Tracey stated.

"Apparently she has a heart," I quipped, looking at the blonde with a grin, "Who knew?"

Blaise pouted a little, "No fair, now it feels like you're all in some secret club we aren't a part of," Theo and Draco both nodded, examining all our wrists.

"If you really want one Zabini…"

"I was kidding," Blaise said quickly, making us all laugh, "Obviously."

I shook my head as we continued to walk, excited conversation starting about the ball tonight. I absentmindedly fiddled with the new chain around my neck, smiling to myself when I realised what I was doing. I prickled suddenly when I felt eyes on me and looked up just in time to catch Malfoy looking away quickly. I narrowed my eyes slightly in suspicion, we'd barely said two words to each other in the last week, why the hell would he be looking at me when I wasn't paying attention?

I headed straight for the Gryffindor table when we reached the Great Hall, nodding to Daphne when she called after me that I'd promised to get ready with them for the ball.

"Merry Christmas!" I exclaimed, leaning over Harry's back and throwing my arms around his shoulders.

He craned his neck to look at me with a grin, "Hey! Merry Christmas, Cass."

I gave him one more tight squeeze before I let go, sitting down next to him and grinning at the group in front of me, "How was everyone's loot, then?"

"So many sweets," Ron grinned happily, staring at the ceiling wistfully.

"Thank you for the book," Hermione said gracefully, "I haven't read that one!"

I cheered quietly, "Mission accomplished!" It was sometimes impossible to find a book that Hermione Granger hadn't read.

"I see you've done well," Harry turned in his seat, noticing the earrings and the bracelet, and then his mouth dropping open a little in shock when he saw the new necklace around my neck.

"Who got you that?!"

"It's amazing," Hermione breathed, leaning forward a little.

"I know," I smiled, touching it gently again, "I have no idea who gave it to me though, there was no card."

Harry raised an eyebrow, "Weird."

"Kinda creepy," Ron agreed, shovelling bacon into his mouth and chewing thoughtfully.

"Do you think it was Sirius?" Harry continued.

"Maybe?" I shrugged, "He must have got it together pretty quick if it was."

Harry looked like he was going to say something else, but he didn't get the chance before I let out a shriek as I felt myself picked up off the bench and spun around.

"George!" I yelled out in protest, not even needing to look to know it was the Weasley twin spinning me.

He put me down gently, ruffling my hair and ignoring my protest as he grinned, "Just trying to wish you a Merry Christmas CB!"

I gave him a little shove in the chest, "Merry Christmas you arsehole!"

He simply laughed, shooting me a wink before he sat down between Ron and Ginny, and I smiled happily when Fred came into view.

"Merry Christmas," he said, hugging me tightly and giving me a soft kiss.

"I loved your present," I whispered, keeping my arms wrapped around him as I looked up at him happily.

He grinned, "I hoped you would."

"And I can already imagine all the mischief I'll be causing with my box of goodies," I smirked, "You spoil me."

He looked so happy that I'd liked his presents that my heart soared. I knew they didn't have much and I hadn't wanted him to think he needed to buy me anything special.

"I could say the same to you," he winked, "Brand new Quidditch gloves, and a tie that I'm guessing was a hint to what colour you'll be wearing tonight?" he questioned with a smirk.

"Maybe," I grinned, playing with the front of his sweater.

"Are you two done yet?" George rolled his eyes dramatically, drawing our attention, "Some of us are trying to enjoy breakfast!"

"Don't be jealous, Georgie." Fred shot back with a wink, and I laughed as George pretended to pout.

"Will you be joining us for our snowball fight?" he turned back to me.

"Count me in," I nodded, "Any chance I can get to piff snow at Ron's face."

"Hey!"

Fred and I just laughed at the affronted look on the younger Weasley's face, which was also still stuffed full of food, making him look even funnier. I smiled as I looked between my friends, this was probably the best Christmas morning I'd ever had.

"You look happy," Fred said softly, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear, "It's nice to see after this last week," his face changed to a concerned frown.

I shrugged, "How could I not be? Christmas at Hogwarts with all the people I love, what's better than that?"

He smiled again, kissing me softly. As he pulled back, he seemed to notice all my new jewelry, his eyes widening as they landed on the necklace.

"Who…?"

"I don't know," I said sincerely, "It just appeared with my presents, no note attached."

"Huh," he frowned, picking it up gently and examining it, "It's very you."

"That's what everyone's been saying," I replied.

"Well," he let it go, glancing at my earrings and charm bracelet as well, "You're very sparkly now."

I giggled, "That's my other present to you, the sparkly girlfriend update."

The frown fell off his face at my joke, replaced with that cheeky grin that I loved so much, "Excellent, I've always wanted one of those."

The others started to stand up around us, and Harry turned to me with a grin, "Snowball fight?"

"Always," I agreed.

"Cassie!"

I almost jumped out of my skin at the sudden sound of Daphne's voice, and turned to see her standing behind me. I looked at her incredulously, I don't think Daphne Greengrass had ever stood this close to the Gryffindor table in her life.

"Greengrass?"

Daphne's eyes flickered between the Gryffindors disapprovingly, making me roll my eyes at her a little, before she settled on me with determination.

"Where are you going?"

"To have a snowball fight," I responded slowly, exchanging a confused look with Fred, who looked just as baffled as me.

Daphne looked appalled, "You don't have time for a snowball fight! We have to get ready for the ball!"

"Wha-" I blinked, "Daphne, it's barely 11am. The ball doesn't start til 8!"

"Exactly!" Daphne exclaimed in horror, grabbing my arm, "We're already behind!"

"But my snowball fight!" I whined, trying to wriggle out of her grip as she started to drag me away, ignoring the Gryffindors snickering in amusement.

"You promised to get ready with us," Daphne turned stern, suddenly becoming what we all like to refer to as 'mother hen Daphne'. And we all knew never to argue with this Daphne, that was digging your own grave.

I slumped, looking apologetically at my friends, "I guess I'll see you later."

"Don't worry," George grinned, "I'll get Ron in the face for you."

I gave them all one last smile before I let Daphne drag me away, already tuning her out as she started to list the many things we had to do to be ready for tonight.

---

"Someone make the torture end!" I groaned dramatically as I stormed into the boys' dorm room a few hours later, flopping next to Blaise where he was relaxing on his bed.

"That bad?" Theodore asked in amusement, glancing at me in the mirror he was standing in front of comparing ties.

"I didn't exactly plan to spend my whole Christmas day getting ready for a ball! I didn't even know there was this much to do," I complained, sitting up, "I mean, I like getting dressed up as much as the next girl, but this feels a little extreme."

Blaise chuckled, tugging gently on one of the rollers in my hair with an amused look in his eyes, "Greengrass got to you, then?"

I let out a sigh, swatting his hand away lightly, "You know how she is when she goes mother-hen mode. None of us stood a chance…"

Blaise nodded in agreement, and I saw Theodore smiling fondly in the mirror and had to resist the urge to roll my eyes.

It was then that I realised Malfoy was in the room too, he was lying back on his bed and pointedly staying silent, reading a book on Quidditch plays.

"How did you want to spend your day then?" Blaise questioned, poking my side playfully and smirking when I flinched away from him. The bastard knew I was ticklish.

"Piffing snowballs at Ron Weasley," I sighed wistfully, "The Christmas Day snowball fight is tradition!"

"That actually doesn't sound so bad, you know." Theodore grinned, probably thinking about how much he'd like to throw snowballs at Ron.

"Sounds childish to me," Malfoy sneered, not even looking up from his book. I turned to glare at him, slightly shocked he'd even spoken. Usually when I was in a room he was also occupying lately he just pretended I didn't exist.

"Just because you don't know how to have fun, Malfoy," I snapped in reply. He rolled his eyes, but still didn't look up from the pages in front of him.

I let my head fall on Blaise's shoulder, sighing dramatically.

"How long do you think before Greengrass comes looking for you?" he asked with a smirk.

"Not long enough."

No sooner had the words left my mouth, that Daphne herself appeared in the doorway, glaring at me furiously.

"What do you think you're doing?!"

The three boys immediately started snickering, trying their best not to laugh and provoke her more.

"Resting?" I supplied weakly, lifting my head off Blaise's shoulder.

"Get your tiny ass back in that room!" she yelled, pointing back in the direction of our dorms.

"You know," I pondered, looking at Blaise thoughtfully, "I don't remember having a mother, but this is what I imagine it would have been like sometimes."

Blaise snorted, trying and failing to conceal his laugh as I stood up with a wink.

"Cut her some slack, CB," Theo commented drily, "She has to somehow wrangle all of you into looking presentable tonight, can't imagine that to be easy."

I smirked, "I already have a father though, thank you Theodore."

Blaise and Malfoy both burst into laughter as Theodore and Daphne both blushed furiously at my insinuation of them being a mother and father.

"Come on!" Daphne said again as I begrudgingly walked towards the door, fidgeting awkwardly, before glancing at the ties Theo was trying to decide between and pausing. "Go with the silver, it'll match Pansy better."

We all looked at her in surprise, feeling the awkwardness grow when Theo made eye contact with her in the mirror and then nodded, giving her a small but grateful smile. Daphne nodded curtly, before grabbing my arm and dragging me out of the room.

I smirked at her as we made the quick walk back to our dorm, and she glared back at me from the corner of her eye. I let out a sigh as we re-entered the mad house, sitting on the edge of my bed and watching Tracey and Lillian trying to fix their hair in place while Madi meticulously painted her toenails, and Pansy was looking at herself in the mirror and crying while Daphne tried to calm her down.

I busied myself by starting to read through the book Hermione had gotten me, tuning out the craziness of the room around me. My peace didn't last long though, soon enough Daphne had bustled over and started taking the curlers out of my head; Madi deciding that now she wanted to paint my nails since hers were done. I smiled softly to myself as I let my friends pamper me, maybe this whole thing wasn't so bad after all. It was nice to just hang out with my friends like we were normal girls getting ready for a ball, I knew I should hold these moments close, they would be the ones I'd remember.

"We need to start getting dressed!" Daphne exclaimed in horror, applying the last of her lip gloss and rushing towards the cupboard, "We're meeting the boys in 40 minutes!"

Everyone started scrambling to finish the last bit of their makeup, before pulling out their robes.

I tucked a stray curl into the updo Lillian had perfected, before waving my wand and making sure it was going to stay in place all night. I glanced at it one more time, nodding in satisfaction. Half of my black hair was pulled into a little bun, leaving the bottom layer flowing over my shoulders, curled to perfection with two perfectly positioned curls on either side of my face.

I already felt different, I barely left my hair out because I hated it getting in my way. It was always in a braid, or sometimes two to make sure it was well kept together. But I had to admit, I didn't mind having it out this way.

"Love it," Madi smiled at me, patting her perfect curls to make sure they were going to stay.

"Same to you," I winked back. I stood up, walking and reaching for my robes which had been hanging on my bedpost.

"Come on!" Daphne said again, clapping her hands together, "Everyone get dressed!" I rolled my eyes slightly at her bossiness, but I knew she was right, we didn't have much time left before we had to meet our dates.

"Oh, I'm so excited to see everyone all dressed up!" Lillian said gleefully as she disappeared into the bathroom.

"All the boys are going to look so handsome," Tracey sighed in agreement.

"Don't let Warrington hear you say that Davis, you already broke Goyle's heart by not being his date we can't have you breaking another," Madi said with a wink, "You'll start to get a reputation." I laughed as Tracey shot Madi a withering glare, turning away to start getting herself into her robes. Tracey had managed to dodge Goyle's sudden advances by securing herself a date with Cassius Warrington, and Lillian was going with the Slytherin Keeper, Miles Bletchley.

I finally stepped into my robes, pulling the zip up at the back and letting out a satisfied sigh at the feeling of the soft material. I turned to the mirror, running my hands down my front, a smile on my lips. The robes were a dark green, embroidered with flowers all along the top before it flowed out with layers of chiffon, the embroidery more scattered along the bottom. The back was open at the top, the straps crossing over each other corset style.

"Gorgeous," Madi said from behind me, and I turned to face her, my eyes lighting up when I got the first look at my best friend in her robes. It was no secret that Madi was one of the prettiest girls in our year at Hogwarts, and these robes managed to accentuate every one of her features perfectly. It was a slim fit, shiny silver material with sparkling details. It dipped just enough at the top to be proper, but just a little bit cheeky. A perfect fit for Madi.

"Beautiful," I said back, grasping her hand and squeezing it gently. I turned to look around, seeing everyone else was in their robes as well, and we were all looking around at each other, beaming happily. Daphne's were grey, with gold embellished embroidered vines and leaves; Lillian's dress was midnight blue and sparkled like the night sky; Tracey was clad in layers of black chiffon, and even Parkinson's much anticipated frilly pink robes weren't terrible.

"Well, we don't scrub up so bad," Tracey grinned.

"I should hope so," Daphne said defensively, "I just spent all day making sure of it!"

"No one asked you to, Greengrass," Lillian said as we started heading out of the dorm.

"You'll be thanking me later," Daphne stuck her nose up, and I exchanged a dramatic eye roll with Tracey, linking my arm in hers as we reached the Common Room. I was meeting Fred outside the hall, but everyone else was meeting their dates here seeing as they were all Slytherin. Thankfully, Malfoy and Avery were not with the group of boys waiting for us.

I followed Madi over to Blaise, hanging back a little as they first greeted each other, smiling to myself when I saw Blaise practically lost for words when he got his first look at his girlfriend. He looked over to me next, a grin breaking out on his face.

"Weasley is not going to know what hit him," he said, pulling me in for a half-hug, seemingly wise enough to realise a full-blown hug would ruin all Daphne's hard work.

I laughed, Madi and I taking one of his arms each as our group started towards the Great Hall. We all chatted excitedly on the way about the night ahead, mostly ignoring Daphne trying to rush as because we were running a little late. I wondered if that girl would relax at all tonight.

Blaise suddenly turned to me with a devious twinkle in his eye, "Do you have it?"

I grinned back mischievously, "I do."

Madi looked between us suspiciously, "What are you two plotting?"

"Nothing," Blaise said to her innocently, before giving me a subtle wink which I returned with ease. Madi still looked a little sus but dropped it anyway as we finally reached the Great Hall.

The entrance way was full of students bustling around, dressed in robes of all different colours and style. I craned my neck, trying to spot Fred's ginger head amongst the crowd. I couldn't see him, but I managed to spot Harry and Ron, so headed their way after promising Blaise and Madi I would find them later.

"You don't scrub up so bad, Potter," I grinned as I reached them, both Ron and Harry turning to me, eyes boggling.

"You look incredible!" Harry exclaimed, and I smirked when I saw the Patil twins both staring at me with narrowed eyes.

"Have you seen Hermione anywhere?" Ron asked, glancing around the room.

"No, have you seen your brother?"

Ron shook his head, but I don't even think he'd been listening to me properly, apparently too concerned about Hermione's whereabouts.

I let out an irritated sigh, trying my best to stand up on my toes to search the room. This proved difficult however because of the stupid heels I was wearing, even if they did make me taller than usual.

"Potter! There you are!" McGonagall came bustling over, "Champions must wait over to the side, you will be entering once everyone else has sat down," she turned to Ron, Padma and me, "The three of you inside, please."

"I haven't found my date yet, Professor!" I protested, frowning slightly as I continued to scan the room.

Professor McGonagall looked around for approximately .5 of a second before she gestured over behind my shoulder, "Mr Weasley is by that column, Miss Black."

I turned, my eyes brightening when I indeed saw Fred waiting with George and Alicia, seemingly searching for me as well. I said a quick goodbye to the other two before I trotted as fast as my heels would take me towards my boyfriend.

"Found her!" George spotted me first, a huge grin on his face as I approached.

Fred turned, his mouth dropping open slightly as I came to a stop in front of him. I looked him up and down in admiration, smiling happily when I noticed he was wearing the bowtie I'd gifted him that morning, making us match perfectly.

"You look absolutely beautiful," he breathed, his arms coming up tightly around my waist.

"Well, it did take a whole day," I grinned in response, running my hand up one of his arms.

"How did I get so lucky?" he murmured, leaning down so his lips hovered just over mine.

"I'm definitely the lucky one," I responded, before happily meeting his lips in a soft kiss.

George cleared his throat, making me giggle and Fred glare at his brother as we pulled away.

"We should probably head inside," he said, eyes twinkling. Fred and I nodded, and I took the arm he offered with a soft smile before we all headed inside the Hall.

I let out a gasp as we walked through the door. The walls were covered in sparkling frost, with thousands of garlands strung all around, a lot I noticed with a smirk that included mistletoe. The usual tables of the Great Hall had vanished, instead hundreds of round tables filled the room leaving a large dance floor at the front. It was spectacular, but I had expected nothing less. Fred and I headed over to one of the tables, I had decided it would be for the best if we sat with the Gryffindors, I hadn't even bothered to ask him if he wanted to sit with my Slytherin friends because I knew what his answer would have been. I didn't mind all that much though as I glanced around and found my friends table a few to the left, noticing Malfoy and Gorgia had chosen to sit with them. The last thing I wanted was to sit through a dinner with those two. Blaise noticed me looking and grinned, nudging Madi slightly who looked over at me with a smile as well. She then looked towards Malfoy and Gorgia quickly before glancing back at me and making a face, which caused me to laugh and shoot her a grin back. I turned towards the front of the room, spotting my dad, James and Remus at the champions table, Dumbledore had offered for me and Fred to sit with them, but I'd said no. I would feel like I was intruding sitting over there.

"I'm going to have to share you a bit tonight, aren't I?" Fred murmured in my ear, seemingly noticing all my looking around, and I looked at him with a shrug.

"I'm very sought after, hard to lock down you know."

He chuckled, "As long as I get you the most."

I pressed a quick kiss on his cheek, "I promise."

Our attention was drawn to the front as the music swelled and the Champions walked in, everyone applauding as they did so. Harry looked incredibly uncomfortable, and I had to suppress a glare at Parvati smiling and waving at everyone like she was the bloody Queen. Roger Davies turned out to be the lucky man Fleur had chosen as her date, and I scowled when I saw Cedric walk in with Cho on his arm. Krum came in last, and I broke out into a huge grin when I realised who his date was.

"Is that…" Padma trailed off, disbelief written on her features, "Hermione Granger? With Viktor Krum?"

"No," Ron visibly gulped, his eyes wide in horror, "Can't be."

I exchanged amused looks with the twins at Ron's obvious jealousy, this was definitely going to be an interesting night.

"Did she tell you?" I whispered across the table to Ginny, who was here as Neville's date.

Ginny nodded, beaming. "Yep!"

I shook my head in wonder, watching as the Champions began to dance. I couldn't help but feel a little proud of my friend, she had managed to snag the most sought-after date within all three schools. I couldn't think of anyone who deserved it more. I had to hold in my giggles while I watched Harry dance, he was so awkward and concentrating way too hard, it made it all very entertaining.

As the dance ended, we all turned back to the table and glanced at the menus. I was confused for a moment as to how it all worked, until Alicia figured out all you had to do was tell your plate what you wanted.

"Ron hasn't stopped glaring at Hermione and Krum since they walked in," George snorted, and we glanced at the mentioned Weasley to see him blatantly staring across the room to the Champions table.

"Idiot, he should have just asked her himself," I rolled my eyes.

"Nah, that would have been the logical thing to do," Fred responded with a wink, making George and I laugh.

"Well, she's definitely the scandal of the night," George remarked.

"Disappointing, this never even came up in our predictions," I sighed, referring to the constant discussions I'd been having with my dorm about tonight.

"Don't think you're the only one who's shocked," Fred responded, and I realised he was right as I glanced at the rest of our table. Padma, Lavender Brown and Katie Bell were whispering harshly amongst themselves, shooting accusing looks towards the champions table every so often. I rolled my eyes, noticing Ron, Seamus and Dean Thomas didn't seem too bothered by their respective dates ignoring them, the latter two happily stuffing their faces while Ron continued to sulk.

We continued with dinner, I spent most of it laughing at Lee Jordan and the twins' impressions of Ron or chatting to Ginny and Neville. Just as we had started dessert, my attention was drawn by my name being yelled across the room by Madi and Blaise.

"What?" I yelled back; eyebrows raised. They simply started gesturing for me to come over to their table, the expressions on their faces telling me they were not going to take no for an answer. I put down my fork, giving Fred a slightly apologetic look before I headed over to their table.

"What do you want?" I questioned, before yelping in surprise as Madi pulled me down to sit on her lap, continuing to eat her dessert around me like nothing was different.

"This is kidnapping," I said bluntly, glaring between her and Blaise.

"Did you know Granger was coming with Viktor Krum?" Daphne questioned, nobody really phased by the fact I had joined their table. Well, except Malfoy, who was pointedly ignoring my presence; and Gorgia, who was glaring daggers at me.

"No," I sighed.

"I can't believe it," Pansy said snarkily, "Out of everyone, he chose her?"

I rolled my eyes, "Maybe it's because Hermione is actually an interesting person to talk to. And she doesn't trail around after him like every other girl in this bloody school."

"Interesting is one way to describe her," Blaise snorted, and I glared at him slightly before stealing his fork from his hand and shoving a mouthful of his pudding in my mouth. He snatched it back from me with an eye roll but didn't say anything further on the situation.

"How's Weasley taking the news?" Lillian asked me knowingly.

"Awfully," I grinned back, "He's so distraught he can't even eat."

Tracey gasped in horror, "Oh boy, it is bad!"

"Well I guess that's some consolation for you all," Theodore smirked, "At least we know Weasley is suffering."

The whole group of us laughed, and I couldn't even stop myself from laughing at the ginger's expense, he really was being ridiculous.

The music started to swell once again, letting everyone know the dancing part of the evening was beginning. I looked back over to my table, and saw Fred was talking with George and Alicia, but watching me out of the corner of his eye. I quickly looked over to the champions table and decided I should probably say hello to my father and the others. I stood from Madi's lap, straightening my dress as I did so.

"I'll catch up with you lot later, I have other people who require my presence!"

They let me go, the girls calling out warnings that I better come back and dance with them later as I went. I exchanged a quick smile with Fred as I walked, but he must have realised where I was going because he nodded reassuringly at me. I frowned a little to myself, this would be so much easier if my two groups of friends weren't mortal enemies.

I reached the champions table, my dad standing up to greet me and pulling me into a hug immediately.

"You look beautiful, kid," he said quietly as he pulled back, eyes shining as he looked me up and down.

"Thanks dad," I whispered, smiling at him softly. He had a strange look in his eyes as he gazed down at me, like he was seeing something in me for the first time. I moved over to James and Remus, hugging them both as well and thanking them when they told me I looked beautiful as well.

I finally looked over at Hermione, who was chatting animatedly to Krum, but looked up when she noticed me looking. I gave her a wink and thumbs up, and she blushed before turning back to her date. I noticed Harry was sitting with his arms crossed, his eyes flicking between Cedric and Cho irritably and rolled my eyes.

"He and Ron are as bad as each other," I stated to the three adults, who nodded in agreement, eyes dancing in amusement.

"I noticed you've been busy tonight already," Remus observed, looking at me knowingly. Out of the three of them he understood the divide I felt between my two friendship groups at Hogwarts. Mostly due to the fact he'd taught here for a year, so had seen it firsthand.

"I'm in very high demand, as a matter of fact," I responded, making them laugh.

"Are you enjoying it so far, though?" my dad questioned, and I nodded with a happy smile.

Most people had moved out onto the dance floor now, and I saw Fred making his way over to us.

"Sorry," I smiled as he reached us, wrapping an arm around my waist, "I was coming back, I swear!"

He chuckled, "It's fine, I just meant what I said earlier."

"Fred," my dad said, and I had to hide my smile at his sudden attempt to be stern, "I hope you know I want her back in her bed by 12."

"Dad!"

Fred only laughed, giving my father a mock salute, "Of course."

My dad grinned back, clapping him good-naturedly on the back and ignoring my annoyed expression.

"How about a dance, then?" Fred looked down at me, and I nodded with a smile, the two of us turning away to head towards the dance floor.

"Black!" Lillian and Madi appeared in front of us before we'd even taken a step, and I groaned when I saw the looks on their faces.

"What is it? What's happened?"

"Greengrass is crying in the bathroom," Lillian stated.

"Already?" my eyes widened in shock, and I saw Fred rolling his eyes in displeasure at my two friends' appearance.

"Theo and Parkinson started snogging at the table in front of her," Madi rolled her eyes.

"Gross," I wrinkled my nose up, trying not to picture Parkinson snogging anyone, before sighing, "But also not fun for Daphne."

"How is any of this her problem?" Fred interrupted, obviously intent on getting the two of them away from us.

Lillian and Madi both glared at him, and I shifted uncomfortably a little at the sudden tension.

"Because someone has to help calm her down," Lillian snapped, turning to face me once more, "And you always know what to say in these situations."

"That's because she actually has a heart," Fred muttered quietly.

"Stop it!" I hissed harshly, not wanting a full-blown fight to break out between my boyfriend and friends, who looked ready to rip into each other. I knew my boyfriend would be more understanding, so I turned to look at him pleadingly.

"Fred, I promise I will come and find you as soon as we've sorted this out, okay?"

He sighed, still looking irritated, before thankfully kissing the top of my head and heading back towards our table.

I could feel a headache coming on, which was not ideal considering it wasn't even 9 o'clock yet. I turned back to my friends, determined.

"Right, let's go remind Daphne Greengrass who the fuck she is."

"Hang on!"

I let out a groan when Blaise suddenly appeared next to me, Malfoy not far behind him.

"Snape just went outside to do his check, now's our chance!"

"You people know I'm only one person, right?" I sighed in irritation.

"Do you have the potion or not?" Blaise replied, and I rolled my eyes, fishing a tiny vial out of my purse and handing it to him quickly.

"You idiots better be fast!" I hissed, looking between them, "Snape won't be stupid enough to stay gone long, I'd say you've got about forty seconds."

They both nodded, before quickly scurrying away.

"And what was that all about?" my dad asked, and I turned back to the three adults, who were looking at me with raised eyebrows after that little display.

I winked at them in return, "Well, someone has to spike the punch."

"And what on earth are you spiking it with?" James raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, that wasn't what we were spiking it with," I waved my hand dismissively, "That was just a little potion to stop Snape from being able to detect that it's been spiked at all."

"I know I'm supposed to be disappointed," my dad said slowly, "But I think I'm more leaning towards being proud…"

"I learned from the best," I shrugged innocently.

"Shit," Lillian hissed suddenly, nudging me, "Snape's back!"

My eyes widened, and I looked towards the snack table where Blaise and Malfoy had just arrived, and then back at the Potions professor who was striding towards them purposely.

"Ugh, I have to do everything myself!" I exclaimed, before making a beeline to the snack table, which thankfully wasn't far from the champions table. I slid in behind the punch bowl and grabbed the vial from Blaise's hand just as he was about to tip it in, causing him to look at me angrily.

"What the hell-"

"Professor!" I interrupted, Blaise's eyes widening in realisation before he turned around and the three of us smiled innocently at our Head of House.

"And just what are you three up to?" he raised an eyebrow, looking between the three of us with narrowed eyes.

Malfoy shifted a little, so he shielded my hands from view, "Nothing sir, just grabbing some refreshing punch."

"Hmm…" Snape said, still looking unconvinced, "You don't mind if I get some first, do you?"

"Not at all," Blaise responded.

I moved to stand with my hands behind my back, acting as if I was choosing to casually stand this way. Snape kept his eyes on all three of us as he collected some punch, before taking a small sip. He was silent for a few moments, before he seemed to decide it was fine and waltzed off with a swish of his cloak.

"Fucking hell," Blaise visibly relaxed, looking at me out of the corner of his eye, "Quick, do it now!"

I looked at Malfoy, who gave a small nod, and I saw he already had his hand in the pockets of his robe. I quickly tipped the contents of the vial into the punch, watching as it fizzed for a few moments with bated breath before it thankfully returned to normal. Malfoy then quickly dumped the flask into the punch, and we all exchanged a grin.

"Right, now I have a crying friend to calm down," I sighed, "Then a boyfriend to dance with, and then probably a sulky champion to cheer up."

"Drink up first," Malfoy said, handing both of us a cup of our new and improved punch, "I think we deserve the first cups for our efforts."

We all clinked our cups together in cheers, before taking big gulps. I risked a glance at Malfoy, this was the most we'd interacted all week, and it was strange how normal it felt to be talking to him again. He met my eyes for a moment, before we both looked away again quickly, and I took another massive gulp for good measure.

"Not so fast!" Blaise exclaimed, looking at me in slight horror as I downed almost the whole cup, "You have the body weight of a malnourished house elf, you'll be on the floor."

I shot him a small glare, before heading off in the direction of the bathroom to find the girls. He wasn't wrong though, even that one cup had left me feeling a little bit lightheaded. I stopped when I saw Daphne herself walk out of the bathroom flanked by the other girls and let out a little sigh of relief that I didn't need to deal with that problem anymore.

Almost like he'd known, I felt arms wrap around my waist from behind.

"Now can I have that dance?" Fred murmured, kissing the side of my neck gently, making me giggle.

"You may, sir."

He led me back towards the dance floor and pulled me in close and I wrapped my arms around my neck as we started to sway to the music.

"I'm sorry," I said softly, "I know I've been everywhere tonight."

He chuckled, tucking a curl behind my ear, "Don't apologise, I understand everyone wanting you around. You are pretty incredible."

I looked up at him, playing gently with the hair at the back of his neck, "I don't deserve you, Fred Weasley."

He shrugged, eyes twinkling playfully as he twirled me around, "Probably not, but here we are."

I laughed, hitting his chest lightly before continuing to dance around the hall.

---

Another hour-and-a-half later, I plonked down next to Harry where he was still sulking at his table, except now Ron had joined him as well. I had managed to dance with Fred for a solid forty-five minutes, before George stole me away from his brother for a dance. Then, the girls had kidnapped me when the music had turned to more fast-paced dancing than waltzing, and I had danced non-stop with them for the other hour. I was exhausted, and it was only just after 11.

"Tired?" my dad asked, looking at me in amusement.

I nodded, "I think my feet might fall off."

"You've been all over the place tonight," Harry observed.

"And you've been sitting here sulking like a loser," I shot back, eyebrows raised, "Seriously, what is wrong with you two? You do realise you are wasting your whole night for no bloody reason, right?"

"I'm enjoying myself just fine here," he replied stubbornly, and I snorted, rolling my eyes.

"Right. Even I felt sorry for the Patil's before those Durmstrang boys saved them."

"Sod off," Ron muttered, evidently not in the mood.

I went to retort but was distracted by Professor Snape returning to the table at that moment, looking like he'd aged twenty years just this evening.

"Professor Snape," I grinned, "You look like you're having a splendid time! Was that Professor Trelawney I saw you waltzing with before?"

His eyes narrowed as my dad, James and Remus all snorted.

"Do not make me give you detention, Black."

My mouth dropped open slightly, "I didn't do anything wrong!"

"Oh?" he raised an eyebrow, "So you wouldn't happen to know anything about a certain plot to spike the punch?"

I smiled innocently, batting my eyes for good measure, "I don't know what you're talking about, sir."

The three Marauders were all trying their best to keep a straight face, my Head of House glaring suspiciously between all of us as I continued to feign innocence.

"You really have raised her in your image," he drawled icily to my father eventually, who simply shrugged before Snape stormed away once again.

"I know we really shouldn't be encouraging her," James grinned, "But anything that gets Snivellus riled up like that has my blessing."

"You're right," Remus rolled his eyes slightly as I reached over and gave my godfather a high-five, "We shouldn't be encouraging her," but even his eyes were twinkling in humour.

"Since when do you plot with Malfoy, anyway?" Harry suddenly asked bitterly, and I rolled my eyes.

"Montague and Flint dared him and Blaise, so Blaise asked for my help."

"So, the potion was your idea then I'm guessing?" Remus raised an eyebrow.

"Like those two could come up with that," I snorted.

"I resent that," Blaise said drily as he appeared in front of us, ignoring the filthy looks Harry and Ron immediately sent his way for even daring to be in their presence.

"You know I'm right, Zabini." I winked, then sighed, "What do you want?"

He held out his hand, "You still owe me a dance, remember?"

I groaned, sliding down in my seat, "I don't think I can take any more!"

"Stop being dramatic for once in your life," he rolled his eyes, pulling me up when I begrudgingly took his hand.

"You raised me to be that too," I said over my shoulder to my father as we went, who shot me a wink in response.

"You better find some more energy soon," Blaise remarked as we started dancing, "We still have the whole after-party to get through."

I dropped my head onto his shoulder dramatically, "When does it end?" I moaned.

He chuckled, shrugging his shoulder to make me lift my head before we continued to dance for a couple of minutes in silence.

"So," he said suddenly, "Seeming as you're so exhausted, does that mean you won't have enough energy to kill me?"

I frowned in confusion, "Why would I want to kill you?"

He simply smirked, looking quickly over his shoulder, making me narrow my eyes in suspicion.

"Zabini, what are you about to-"

I didn't get to finish, squealing in surprise as he suddenly spun me out, so fast that I had no idea what direction I was even going in before I slammed into someone else's chest. I blinked in confusion for a moment, trying to get my bearings before I finally looked up at whoever I'd just been spun into – and immediately scowled.

"Malfoy."

"Black," he smirked, pulling my hands into the correct positions and falling into rhythm like this was perfectly normal.

"Are you trying to have me killed?" I hissed, my eyes darting around for any sign of Gorgia, or my boyfriend, or any of my Gryffindor friends who would be less than pleased with seeing this.

"I think that's a little dramatic," he rolled his eyes.

"You'd be surprised…" I muttered quietly to myself, making him look down at me with raised eyebrows.

"Don't you have your own date to dance with, anyway?" I demanded, and he scoffed.

"I'd rather not."

"Then why on earth did you come with her if you weren't even going to dance with her?"

"Well I wasn't going to come alone," he sneered, "That would have been pathetic."

"Right," I rolled my eyes, "And forcing me to dance with you yet again isn't?"

"Well," his smirk returned to his lips, "You haven't hexed me yet like I'd expected, so I'd say you're actually enjoying yourself."

As if he were trying to prove his point, or maybe just so I wouldn't be able to respond he suddenly twirled me out and back into his chest with a flourish, smirking to himself at how smoothly the twirl had gone.

I looked up at him, trying to catch his gaze, but he was pointedly avoiding looking at me, "What are you playing at, Malfoy?"

He almost looked irritated as he finally met my eyes, "Is it so hard for you to believe I may just want to dance with you?"

I didn't respond, because surprisingly I couldn't just fire a yes back at him, it wasn't so hard for me to believe with how our relationship dynamic had changed this year. I held his gaze, trying to find any kind of plot behind his eyes, but as usual his grey eyes were steeled, and it was impossible to tell what he was thinking.

"See?" he broke our eye contact, smirking in triumph, "I told you eventually you'd realise you like having me around."

I was becoming increasingly aware of the amount of people who were watching us and knew I would have definitely been spotted by Harry or one of the others by now. I silently cursed myself when my heartbeat increased at the thought of Gorgia seeing this, I hated this new power she had over me.

"You've gone suspiciously silent," Malfoy drawled.

"Maybe I just don't want to talk to you," I snapped.

He rolled his eyes but didn't say anything else. The longer we danced the more I started to notice the way his hands felt resting on my waist, and how even though we'd only danced together once before this, how easily we seemed to move with each other. It was making me much more nervous than it should have been.

"Cass."

We stopped, and I quickly detached myself from Malfoy's grip as I turned to face Fred, who was glaring harshly at us.

"Weasley," Malfoy smirked, "Having a pleasant night?"

"What the hell is this?" he demanded, ignoring Malfoy and looking at me. I almost flinched at the look in his eyes, he kept looking between me and Malfoy like he was trying to figure out if I was playing some sort of sick joke on him.

"Fred, it's not what it looks like," I took a step towards him.

"It looks like you're dancing with him," he nodded in the blonde's direction, his eyes steeled.

"Not intentionally!"

"What's the matter Weasley? Are you worried she's finally realised she can do better than you?" Malfoy sneered, and my eyes widened as Fred stepped forward, his eyes flashing.

"Fred!" I held my hand out, stopping him, before shooting a warning glare back at Malfoy, who looked far too pleased with the situation.

"Are you supposed to be better than me, then?" my boyfriend said lowly, still focused on the blonde.

If people hadn't been watching before they were now, and I was becoming increasingly worried about this situation escalating into something I'd rather avoid. It was dawning on me that this was probably exactly what Malfoy had wanted to happen.

"I thought that would be obvious," Malfoy sneered, "Isn't your family used to being second best by now?"

Fred surged forward again, one of his hands going for his pocket where I knew his wand probably was and I quickly stepped in the middle of the two of them, looking at him pleadingly.

"Fred, please, let's just go outside for a minute, okay?"

He still wasn't looking at me, practically shaking with anger at this point, and I didn't even need to look at Malfoy to know he was simply smirking, achieving exactly what he'd been trying to achieve.

"Fred," I said again, grasping his hand and squeezing, "This is what he wants, let's just go."

"You should listen to your girlfriend, blood-traitor," Malfoy seethed. I whirled around to face him, stepping further back so I was right up against Fred's chest to stop him from trying to move forward again, and glared fiercely at the blonde.

"Leave it, Malfoy."

His eyes drifted between the two of us, before he held my gaze for a moment. I glared unwaveringly back at him, frowning slightly when I saw a little uncertainty in his grey eyes, like there was something else he wanted to say. But just as quickly it was gone, replaced by a cold sneer before he stalked off without another word.

I let out a sigh of relief, looking up at Fred who was still watching Malfoy as he walked away and gave his hand another tug. He seemed to snap back to reality, staring back at me with a look I couldn't quite read before he wrenched his hand from my grasp and stormed towards the exit.

I quickly rushed after him, managing to keep up as we made it out into the cold, wrapping my arms around myself instinctively as the cold air hit me.

"Can you just let me explain?" I said quietly.

"Explain?" he whirled around to face me, and I was taken aback at the coldness of his gaze as he looked at me, "Explain what? How I've barely seen you all night? Which, I think I've been pretty patient about, by the way."

"You have-"

"And then I find you after you ditch me again, only to see you having a brilliant time dancing with Malfoy?! Do you think I haven't noticed that the two of you have gotten weirdly close this year? How you always seem to find some excuse, some reason for him being an absolute prat?!"

"Fred, please, this isn't what it looked like!" I felt the tears start to prick at my eyes as I watched him look so lost, so broken in front of me. Had he really noticed me and Malfoy's civility that much this year?

"It doesn't matter what it looked like, it still happened," he said thickly.

"No, you don't understand!" I cried desperately, trying to make him understand that he was wrong, "Blaise tricked me and-"

"I don't care," he cut me off again, his steely expression not wavering, "What I care about is that I'm your boyfriend, I'm supposed to be your priority and tonight just proved that I'm not."

My eyes widened, and I felt the tears starting to fall, "That's not true!"

"It is!" he exclaimed angrily, and I jumped a little, "I have done everything I can to show you how important you are to me, so why does it feel like you don't feel the same?"

I slumped, looking up to try and stop crying, letting out a shaky breath before looking back at him, trying to show him how much he meant to me, "I'm sorry."

His face softened a little as he gazed back at me, "I know you, Cass. I know you struggle to let people in all the way, but I am trying my best here. Is it so wrong of me to ask for a little something back from you?

"No," I whispered, shaking my head, "It isn't, you deserve that. But you are my priority Fred, I promise."

He let out one more sigh, before walking over to me quickly and finally pulling me in for a hug, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of my head as he held me close. I let out a small sigh of relief, we had never fought like that before, in fact I don't think we'd ever really fought at all. I knew he had only gotten upset because he cared so much about me, that's who he was. If he decided to care about you, he cared for you with every part of him, and he was right, I should be putting him first too.

"I don't like fighting with you," he murmured, almost like he'd read my mind.

"Me either," I replied quietly. He pulled back, leaning down and pressing his lips against mine in a kiss, pulling me closer and stroking his thumb along my cheek.

"Do you want to go back in?" he murmured as we pulled back, keeping me close.

I nodded, "Yeah, can I meet you in there?"

He frowned, "Are you sure?" he looked almost guilty, so I gave his arm a comforting squeeze.

"I just need a breather for a second, it's been a hell of a night," he still looked unconvinced, so I stepped in close again, "I promise once I come back inside I am exclusively yours."

He smiled, squeezing me tightly, "Good." I gave him one last reassuring smile before he reluctantly walked back inside, seemingly understanding I just needed a minute alone.

I let out another sigh, ignoring the shiver I was starting to get from being out in the cold so long. My head was a jumble, first I couldn't get my interaction with Malfoy out of my head. The way it had felt so natural to dance with him, how we slipped so easily back into whatever strange dynamic we'd developed lately. Mostly I was just trying to figure out why he had been so set on dancing with me that he'd enlisted Blaise's help to make it happen. The more time I was spending with the blonde, the harder it was becoming for me to convince myself that I was supposed to hate him; and that was the most confusing part of all.

Fred had been right though, even if I hadn't been doing it intentionally, I wasn't making him my priority and that wasn't fair. Especially since I knew I was his, he always went out of his way to do everything he could for me, so why was it so hard for me to do the same? I had always been careful about who I'd let into my life, that's why I had been so hesitant at the start of the year to even get in a relationship with him. I had never been good at letting people see the real me.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by sudden footsteps and looked to the right to see Harry and Ron racing back towards the Great Hall.

"What are you two idiots doing?"

They both almost jumped out of their skin at my voice, both relaxing in obvious relief when they realised it was only me who had caught them.

"Sneaking off for some fun?" I teased as they came towards me, both shooting me withering looks.

"Just needed some air," Ron muttered.

"You and me both, Ronald." I sighed, looking away with a frown.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked, concern etched onto his features when he noticed I was upset.

I nodded, evidently, they'd been outside long enough to miss my spectacle with Fred and Malfoy or they definitely would have brought it up. I was grateful, I didn't exactly feel like re-hashing it all just yet.

"What were you two running from?" I nodded back to where they'd appeared from.

They exchanged a look, like they were trying to figure out whether to tell me something or not, and I looked at them both suspiciously, "What?"

Harry sighed, "We just overheard Karkaroff and Snape arguing."

"Do they know each other?" I frowned in confusion.

"Apparently," Harry responded, "Pretty well I reckon going on what we heard,"

"And what exactly did you hear?"

"Remember what I told you, about Karkaroff being a Death Eater?"

"Where are you going with this Harry?" I narrowed my eyes, noticing the obvious discomfort in them both.

"He was talking to Snape about it," Ron said bluntly, clearly over Harry dancing around the truth, "About the Dark Mark, being a Death Eater."

I looked between the two of them, "Are you mad?"

"Cass, we heard them," Harry defended, clearly surprised that I didn't straight away believe them.

"Well you heard wrong," I snapped, "Snape is not a Death Eater, Harry. Don't be daft, do you really think Dumbledore would employ a follower of You-Know-Who?!"

"Well it explains a lot, don't you reckon?" Harry refused to give up, "Why our dad's hate him so much, why he has such a vendetta against me..."

I shook my head, refusing to believe what I was hearing, "Just because you hate him doesn't mean he's a Death Eater."

Harry was staring at me incredulously, like he couldn't understand why I didn't believe him. But I refused to accept what he was saying at the truth, Snape being a Death Eater just didn't make any sense, it couldn't. All my head of house had ever done was protect us, look out for us.

"It's bloody freezing," Ron stated, breaking the silence, "Can we at least go and argue inside where it's warm?"

I nodded, ignoring the accusing look Harry was giving me still and walking back towards the Great Hall without another word to either of them. The last thing I wanted to be talking about after everything that had happened tonight was my favourite Professor possibly being a Death Eater. As we walked back inside, I realised most people were heading out and the ball was starting to wind down, there was barely anyone left on the dancefloor. Harry and Ron both made a beeline back to the table, but I saw Hermione stop Ron harshly on their way past, Harry being wise enough to keep walking as fast as he could. I glanced to my left and saw Blaise and Madi standing just off to the side, Madi nudging Blaise gently when she spotted me, and he looked at me with wide eyes before they both walked cautiously over to me.

"Are you going to hurt me?" Blaise asked, looking a little worried.

I sighed, "No, Zabini. None of that was your fault."

He relaxed, before his features changed to a look of concern, "Are you and Weasley alright?"

"We will be," I managed a small smile, "I made much bigger mistakes than just dancing with Malfoy."

Madi placed a comforting hand on my arm, "You'll figure it out, don't worry. That boy adores you."

I grimaced, "I know, I think it's me that's the problem."

They looked like they wanted to say something else, exchanging a weighted look with each other, but I shook my head before they could.

"I should say goodbye to my dad and find Fred, I'll meet you guys back at the Common Room for the party, alright?"

They both visibly brightened, "So, you're still coming?" Blaise grinned.

"Absolutely," I snorted, "Either to try and have a good time and save this night, or if that doesn't work, drink away my problems."

Madi shrugged, "Seems reasonable."

They said their goodbyes, before leaving the room with their hands intertwined. I smiled softly after them, at least one couple seemed to have had a good night. I quickly scanned the few people left at the ball and headed towards Fred when I saw him standing talking quietly with George by one of the pillars. They saw me coming and George clapped his twin on the shoulder, giving me a small but reassuring smile as he walked off past me.

"Hi," I said quietly, "Pretty dead in here now, huh?"

Fred smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes fully, "Probably died as soon as we left, I am the life of the party after all."

"Definitely," I agreed quietly, reaching out and taking one of his hands, trying to stop the weird energy that was flowing between us.

"Are you okay?" he frowned, searching my face.

"I should be the one asking you that," I said back, taking a step closer to him, "I feel like I've ruined your whole night."

He shrugged, "It wasn't completely ruined," he gave my hand a small squeeze, "I still got to come with the prettiest girl as my date."

I smiled softly, "Any chance of coming to the after-party with your pretty date?"

He raised an eyebrow, "You're joking, right?"

My smile dropped, "You won't even consider it?"

He snorted, "Do you really think I would want to go, especially after what happened tonight?"

I let go of his hand, slightly stung by the harshness of his words, and I could feel that same tense energy from before rebuilding between us, almost like we'd never even stopped fighting in the first place.

"I thought you might do it for me."

"I can't believe you'd even ask me," he shook his head incredulously.

"Right, how stupid of me," I muttered bitterly, turning away from him.

"Hey," Fred grabbed my arm gently, pulling me back to face him, "Just come back to the tower and we can talk some more, alright?"

I scoffed, pulling my arm away, not being able to stop my anger from building, "That's the last place I want to go, Fred."

"Why?" he genuinely looked confused, and it only irritated me more that he really didn't understand.

"Because no one wants me in there!" I exclaimed, "I'm a Slytherin, and every time I go to that tower, I just know I don't belong, and I know people hate the fact that I'm there!"

Fred looked stung, "That isn't true…"

"It is," I replied firmly, "And you're daft to think it isn't."

His eyes flashed, and I couldn't work out if it was with hurt or anger, or maybe both, "Why have you never said anything to me before? Why didn't you tell me that's how you felt?"

I sagged a little, looking at him heavily, "Because I didn't want you to feel guilty, like it was your fault, because it's not."

"So, instead you lied to me?" he demanded.

"I didn't lie," I whispered, flinching a little even before I said it, "I just chose not to tell you."

"That's still a lie," he responded quietly.

We fell silent, the air between us still feeling fragile, broken. I finally let out a sigh, glancing towards the doors where I saw my father was standing, watching us, and then back at my boyfriend, who was looking at me for the first time like he didn't know what to say to me.

"Maybe we should just talk tomorrow."

He shook his head a little, like he couldn't quite believe what had happened, but nodded, "Sure. I'll…I'll just see you tomorrow."

He walked off without another word, slouched over with his hands in his pockets. I watched him go, not even paying attention when I heard Ron and Hermione yelling at each other as they stormed out as well. I leaned against the pillar, looking up at the enchanted roof and watching the snowflakes dance around. When had everything become so screwed up?

I jumped a little when I heard the scrape of a chair and saw my father settle into a chair to my left out of the corner of my eye, he didn't say anything, just watched me, waiting for me to say something.

"I've really messed this one up, haven't I?" I sighed finally, looking over at him.

He frowned slightly, shaking his head, "I don't think so."

"I try so hard to make everyone happy, and now it just feels like I failed."

He stood up, walking over and wrapping an arm around my shoulder to pull me close, "You being happy is the most important thing, kid. You can't spend all your time worrying about everyone else."

"Do you think he'll forgive me?" I murmured quietly.

"I do," he said sincerely, pulling away a little so he could look at me, "I think he'd forgive you for just about anything."

The weight of his statement wasn't lost on me, and I didn't respond, too busy thinking about how awful of a person I was for hurting Fred when all he ever did was care about me.

He let out another long sigh, "It's times like this I wish your mum was here, she always knew exactly what to say."

I moved from under his arm, looking at him with teary eyes, "You're doing just fine on your own, dad," I whispered. He smiled softly down at me, his own eyes glistening as he looked back at me, scanning me up and down me like he had when I'd first seen him earlier that night.

"When I saw you tonight...you look just like her, Cass."

My heart soared, a traitorous tear sliding down my cheek, "Really?"

He nodded, letting out a shaky breath, "More and more every day," he pulled me back into his chest, placing a kiss to the top of my head.

"It's okay to be confused, you're a kid. Try not to worry about what you can't control and focus on what you can."

I nodded, relaxing as I breathed him in. It was rare for him to talk about mum, but I didn't blame him for it. I knew how hard it must be for him to think about her, and it was the moments like this I realised just how much of her I must have in me.

"I bet mum was never this confused about how she felt," I mumbled into his chest, and I was a little surprised when he laughed, pulling back to look at him quizzically.

"You'd be surprised," he responded, his eyes twinkling, looking around the room fondly like he was thinking of a specific memory.

"Are you still being careful?" he asked after a moment, turning serious again.

I nodded, "I am, I promise." I decided not to mention I was already fearing Avery's retribution for being tricked into dancing with Malfoy.

He smiled back, his face falling back into that same wistful look as he stared at me again.

"Dad!" I rolled my eyes a little, shifting a little uncomfortably, making him laugh and hold his hands up in mock surrender.

He opened his mouth to respond, but he stopped short, his eyes widening as they landed on my neck and he noticed my new necklace for the first time.

"Where did you…"

"Well, I guess that answers the question of whether or not you sent it," I sighed, making him look at me with raised eyebrows.

"You don't know who sent it?"

I shook my head, "It's a Christmas mystery, there was no card or anything attached."

"Wow," he was still a little in shock, "Well, I think it's as good a replacement as any."

I smiled, not realising how worried I'd been that he would be angry that I'd replaced my mother's one so quickly, "You aren't mad?"

"Of course not," he responded incredulously, "I just wish we knew where it came from…"

I sighed, nodding in agreement.

"Come on," he tilted his head towards the door, and I took his arm as we headed out of the Great Hall. Remus and James were waiting just outside, both smiling softly when they saw us. I moved over to them, hugging them both and telling them I'd see them in February.

I hugged my dad extra tight, breathing him in as much as I could.

"It'll be alright," he murmured into my hair, "You'll see."

I nodded as we pulled away, giving them one last wave as I headed off. I didn't see Harry or the others in the entrance way so presumed they'd already gone and made my way towards the common room.

This night had not gone at all how I'd planned, and I had no idea where Fred and I stood right now. Still, I was excited to get back to the common room and just finally relax with my friends. My plan of action was to avoid Malfoy like the plague again, like I had been the last week anyway before he'd decided to ruin all my plans tonight. The worst part was I was still just as confused about our dance as I'd been before, sighing irritably to myself as I walked. I was definitely ready for some Firewhiskey.

---

A/N: Woow that was a lot! Take some time to recover if you need, then get ready because it only gets more complicated from here. Also apologies it was so damn long - I couldn't find a place that I thought worked to split it.