Note: I do not own Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling is the official writer of the books, as you all know.

Hi! Here's the 7th chapter! Please don't forget to review. Thanks!

------------------------------------------------------------------------ Chapter 7: Another Disagreement

It has been a week since Harry and Hermione got locked inside the library and since then, the both of them have been around each other always. Harry totally forgot about his Quidditch practices with Cho and he started to hang out with Hermione and his friends even more. It was said that Madame Pince intentionally left Harry and Hermione inside the library. She said that she just wanted to play matchmaker for a while but promised the both of them that it will never happen again. The news about the both of them getting locked up inside the library spread like wildfire. Since then, a lot of people have been teasing them. Meanwhile, Lavender still hasn't talked to Ron. Ron finally lessened the time he spends with Sally so that he could make up with the times he lost in spending with his friends.

The grounds were filled with white, thick snow. The students from 3rd year to 7th year will be visiting Hogsmeade for their holiday Christmas shopping. Now every Christmas holidays, shops in Hogsmeade offer discounts and have a lot of new stuff to sell. This is what everyone was so excited about.

The students rode on the usual carriage carried by invisible horses on their way to the village. When they arrived, as usual, Harry and his friends excitedly went inside Honeydukes to check out the new sets of sweets for sale.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------- HONEYDUKES

The sweet shop was packed with Hogwarts students. There were a lot of new stalls of sweets, and jars and shelves were filled with new types of candies and chocolates. Neville quickly grabbed a bag of Cranky's Gummy Candies and some sugar quills with free chocolate flavored ink. Harry offered Hermione some of the strawberry coated, bouncing mint balls but Hermione refused. She's still very particular of taking care of her teeth, as her parents always reminded her to. Ron helped himself with all the sweets he can afford. Meanwhile, while Seamus was browsing at the new stalls, something caught his attention. Placed on a very tall shelf were sweets packed in purple wrapping. Seamus took a closer look at the sweets. When he was close enough to be able to read the name, he was surprised to see that the sweets were labeled with "Lavender Pop Rocks!." He quickly grabbed one and showed it to Lavender who was browsing at the special holiday packs of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans.

"Hey Lavender check this out!" Seamus said as he showed Lavender the sweet he got from the shelf. "The sweet has the same name as yours!" he said sounding a bit stupid. Dean looked at it from behind Seamus' back.

"Really? Maybe Ron could have one of those too!" Harry said jokingly. Ron stared menacingly at him while Hermione giggled. Lavender looked at Harry, rolled her eyes, then moved her head back at Seamus.

"Don't be stupid, Seamus. It's just total coincidence. Besides, it's no big deal" Parvati said as she placed a box of chocolate frogs back on its shelf.

"It's not coincidence. It's intentional." Dean said, still staring at the sweet Seamus was holding.

"What are you talking about?" Ginny asked as she came near Seamus to take a look.

Dean grabbed the sweet from Seamus.

"Guess who made it?" Dean asked everyone but no one seemed to know the answer. "Malfoy Sweets Inc.! No wonder it's named after Lavender. Malfoy probably told his dad about the name.!"

"Ugh. how desperate could he be?" Parvati said disgustedly. Lavender was speechless.

"I guess he's still interested at Lavender." Ginny said with her arms crossed.

"You know what, let's just. go. and let's not make a big deal out of this" Lavender said uncomfortably as she quickly went out of the store first. The others followed.

"Ah. still wanna buy some?" Harry said jokingly to Ron once more, as he handed him a box of Lavender Pop Rocks.

"Shut up." Ron told Harry as he made his way out of the store. Harry and Hermione followed, giggling.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------- After Honeydukes, Harry and his friends entered Dervish and Banges. The store also had a lot of new stuff. There were crystal balls the size of a snitch, a bunch of Megaphone Voice Imitators, wherein it allows someone to imitate the voice of another exactly as it is, some new pocket sneakoscopes twice the size of its original, and a whole lot more. But the very latest, most wanted gadget of all is the Magical Record Player. It allows you to play music by just casting a single spell on it. It is popularly known as CD Player in the muggle world wherein it is run by electricity or batteries.

When Harry and his friends were about to leave the store, a petit, ravenclaw girl was waving at them from the outside. It was Sally.

"Hi Ron! Hi Harry. and friends!" Sally greeted the moment Harry and his friends stepped out of the store.

"Hi. Sally." Harry said uncomfortably. Lavender crossed her arms and stared at Sally with one eyebrow raised.

"Um. Ron. I just wanted to remind you that I'd meet you at around 6:30 pm at the Great Hall entrance on Yule Ball night. I don't want to mess things up so. it's better to. make sure. that things will go right." Sally said awkwardly. Lavender rolled her eyes and stared at the ground.

"Yeah. Right. so I'll meet you then. 6:30. Wednesday night." Ron said awkwardly as well as he stared back and fourth at Sally then to Lavender.

"Ok! See ya!" Sally waved gleefully at them then started walking away then out of sight.

"Let's go to Zonko's! I've been waiting to see the newest joke gadget called Alejandro's Bag of Tricks! It's made in Spain, mind you!" Neville said proudly but before they could move a leg, a familiar voice called.

"Lavender!"

Everyone turned their backs to see who it was and to their disgust, it was Draco, who was usually accompanied by his bodyguards, Crabbe and Goyle.

"Oh. hi. Draco." Lavender said uneasily. Ron stared at Draco from head to foot.

"Hi. I was just wondering if you have been to Honeydukes already."

"Oh. yeah. just a while ago."

"Oh. so you've probably seen this." Draco said as he got a box of Lavender pop rocks from a paper bag held by Goyle.

"Oh. yeah. I've seen that one." Lavender said still with the same tone. Harry and the others were watching them closely, especially Ron.

"Ah. well. this is for you." Draco handed the box to Lavender.

"Oh. thank you." Lavender answered as she reached for the box. "So. I'll see you around."

"Wait. I still want to talk to you.in private of course." Draco said as he stared at Lavender's friends with raised eyebrows. Ron tried his best to control his anger.

"Oh.um.Ok." Lavender said not quite sure about it. "You guys go on ahead. I'll meet you at the Three Broomsticks."

"Whatever you say." Ginny said, shaking her head a bit. Harry and the others left, so has Crabbe and Goyle.

"Shall we go now then?" Draco smirked at Lavender and soon they started walking with the cold breeze brushing through their faces. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------- ZONKO'S JOKE SHOP

Harry and the others went to Zonko's. A couple of new stuff was sold at a very cheap price and one of those was what Neville was talking about. He quickly bought Alejandro's Bag of Tricks, while Dean and Seamus bought some of Pepper's Oh-So-Slimy-and-Sticky Shampoo, which is so sticky that it may rip your scalp off your head when you try to take it off. Fred and George managed to sell their own product, which was one of the newest stuff in the store. It was called "The ToothPASTE" that is literally paste which when you brush it on your teeth it would glue your upper and lower teeth together.

"I thought mom told you not to make those stuff again?!" Ginny said a bit panicky.

"She wouldn't know. Besides we're helping dad earn money anyway." George said casually.

"Yeah! This is for a good cause." Fred said trying to sound noble. The twins smirked devilishly at each other.

After a few minutes, the entrance door opened and to everyone's surprise, especially Harry's, it was Cho. She quickly took notice of Harry.

"Harry!" Cho said cheerfully as she came near him.

"Hey." Harry said with a faint smile. "What's up?"

"Nothing much.I was just. looking around."

"Oh."

"Um. Well. I just wanna ask you.if you want to.like. chat.for a while.have some butterbeer.you know, the usual." Cho said awkwardly. Hermione , who was just a few inches from Harry and Cho, started to listen to their conversation.

"Well.I." Harry took a quick glance at Hermione who quickly turned away upon seeing his glance.

"It's Ok if you're not interested." Cho said kindly.

"It's not that I'm interested!" Harry said a bit jumpy. "It's just that.." He again glanced at Hermione. "I promised Hermione that I'd accompany her all throughout the visit."

Hermione accidentally knocked out a pile of boxes upon hearing this. It surely caught Harry and Cho's attention.

"Are.you Ok, Hermione?" Cho asked.

"Y-yeah.don't mind me." Hermione said as she placed each box back on the shelf. She never expected Harry to say such a thing. a very nice thing. "Well then.I'll see you around.Bye." Cho said as she waved nicely at Harry then walked out of the store. Harry stared blankly at the shop entrance and after a few minutes, he walked toward Hermione.

"What happened to you?" Harry asked her.

"Oh.ah.nothing.. just a.. little clumsy." Hermione stuttered. "So. what did she say to you?" she asked pretending as if she didn't know what Harry and Cho talked about.

"Well.she just asked me if I'd care to chat with her for a while."

"So.why didn't you go with her?"

"'Cause I thought.that it may be a lot more fun if I.stayed here.with you." Harry said nervously. Hermione stared at Harry as if she was seeing something very unbelievable.

"Are.you sure of what you're saying?" Hermione asked.

"Y-yeah.why?"

"N-nothing.it's just that.you never turn down an offer from Cho.I mean, choosing to be here instead of being out there walking with her.it's quite.different.and to think that you like her."

Harry thought about something. It seems that he totally forgot about his feelings for Cho. He stared quietly at Hermione and suddenly realized something. 'I'm supposed to have a crush on Cho but why did I chose to be with Hermione?' he asked himself. He stayed silent to the point that he didn't notice that Hermione was already calling his attention.

"Harry? Are you Ok.?"

"Yeah. I am."

"C'mon let's go."

Harry and his friends said goodbye to Fred and George and headed for the Three Broomsticks.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------- At the moment, Draco and Lavender were walking along the sidewalk, with Draco trying to impress Lavender again with one of his "amazing" stories. Lavender had no choice but listen to him even if it is totally boring the life out of her.

"You see my dad is also planning to buy the famous toy making company in London." Draco boasted. "Also, my dad is planning on constructing the very first theme park for wizards and witches, don't worry, as soon as it gets done, you're the first one I'd invite on its opening day."

"That's.very nice." Lavender said uneasily. If only she could sneak out without Draco noticing.

"Anyway, change topic. What are your plans for the Yule Ball?" Draco said casually.

"Oh. I still---" But before Lavender could finish, Draco immediately interrupted.

"Speaking of the Yule Ball, is it Ok if I ask you to be my date?" Draco asked in a sincere tone, believe it or not. Lavender froze. The most fearful moment of her life finally came. She didn't know what to say. She didn't want to hurt Draco's feelings by just saying no straight to his face. She thought for it for a long time. Suddenly, a vision of Ron came floating in her mind. All of a sudden she felt a bit angry. She just remembered that Ron was going with Sally. Thinking of settling the score with Ron, she decided to agree with Draco's offer.

"Y-yeah. sure." Lavender said more casually now.

"Thanks!" Draco said, giving Lavender a huge smile. Lavender smiled faintly at him in return. Lavender has no idea on how her friends would react to this the moment she tells them about her date and she doesn't know if Ron is going to freak out just like before.

Draco accompanied Lavender to the Three Broomsticks. When they arrived, both of them said goodbye to each other and soon Draco left. Lavender took a deep breath and then she entered the cafeteria.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------- THE THREE BROOMSTICKS

As usual, the three broomsticks was packed with a lot of Hogwarts students. Harry and his friends were seated at the very last table, near the tall Christmas tree. Here, the friends talked about Lavender's so-called kindness to Draco.

"Why does she always agree to talk to him alone?" Ginny asked.

"I have no idea." Dean said as she shook his head in disagreement.

"Why does she trust that evil ferret so much?" said Seamus disgustedly

"For now, we really can't tell." said Hermione.

"Oh no! Maybe Lavender is starting to have a crush on Draco! I mean.for real!" Neville said with great disbelief.

"Get real, Neville. Lavender will never ever admire Draco. She's not even interested! I guarantee you that, whatever that white-faced monkey offers her, she won't accept it. Especially when it comes to dating him at the Yule Ball! No one would ever go with him at the ball especially Lavender. Well.with the exception of the two major losers Pansy and Blaise. I mean, going with Draco is like.eew! And besides, we should trust Lavender. We should trust her that she won't do anything crazy especially if it is Draco related. She's our friend and all.that's the least we should do." Parvati said with her usual girly accent.

Suddenly, Lavender came, and sat on the chair beside her best friend.

"Hey." Lavender greeted as she gave everyone an awkward smile.

Everyone stared silently at Lavender, waiting for her to say something.

"What?" Lavender asked not really knowing what her friends' stares meant.

"What happened? What did he say to you?" Ginny asked with narrowed eyes.

Lavender fell silent. She thought about actually telling her friends directly that she agreed to be Draco's date or just tell them some other time. Ron stared at Lavender irritably. Lavender glanced at Ron and since she just accepted Draco's offer just to settle the score with him, she decided to tell everything she and Draco talked about so that things between Ron and her would be more even.

"He told me a lot of things."

"Like what?" Seamus asked.

"His dad's future plans and the like."

"And?" Harry asked with a more calm voice than the others.

"He asked me something."

"Well.what was it?" Dean asked.

"He asked me if.I could go to the ball with him." Lavender said casually as if it really didn't matter.

"Oh my god.Ugh" Parvati said distastefully.

"You surely didn't agree now, did you?" Neville said questionably. Ron still had his eyes on Lavender.

"Well.I did." Lavender said without hesitations.

"What do you mean you did?" Hermione doubted.

"I did.I agreed to be Draco's date."

Everyone stared shockingly at Lavender. Ron did the same too.

"What?!" Dean said stunned. "Could you just repeat what you said?" Harry said with the same reaction as Dean's.

"I said I agreed to be Draco's date at the Yule Ball." Lavender repeated.

"Are you actually out of your mind?!" Parvati said angrily.

"It's obvious, Parvati. She is out of her mind!" Ron said staring menacingly at Lavender.

"But why Lavender?" Neville asked.

"I know. You just didn't want to hurt his feelings! Is that it? If I knew better, maybe you actually have a crush on Draco that's why you couldn't refuse his offer!" Ron said angrily, without letting Lavender talk.

"Why are you always angry when it comes to this?!" Lavender answered back.

"Because you never listen to us!"

"I do! It's just that.the answer just.suddenly came out of my mouth.and before I know it, I was already saying yes."

"Which certainly means that you like him!"

"Prove it!"

Everyone glanced at each other as they listened once again to Ron and Lavender's fast paced argument.

"Well.you wouldn't agree to that if you aren't interested at him!"

"Why do you always think that I like him?"

"Because you always talk to him privately.and you agreed to go with him at the ball"

"So?"

"It's wrong, Lavender! You shouldn't be making friends with him! You should've waited for one of us to ask you."

"I waited."

"Well why didn't you wait a little longer?!"

"You know what, this conversation doesn't make any sense at all. You always say the same thing when it comes to this and I have no idea why it is such a big deal to you about having Draco as my date when you already have Sally with you!"

"What is she got to do with all this?" "She's you're date right? So why are you so angry that I have to go with Draco at the ball? You should at least be happy for me 'cause I already have a date! And there's still one thing. You are jealous, aren't you?"

Ron didn't answer. He didn't actually want to lie that he isn't jealous. He stared at Lavender with eyes as hot as fire with anger. Lavender continued.

"Well maybe if you weren't so obsessed of Sally and if you weren't so lazy to ask me as early as possible then I should've agreed to go with you.well.if you really had plans of asking me." Lavender said softly as she stood up, walked rapidly and finally made her way out of the Three Broomsticks.

Everyone was still silent. Ron didn't know what to say. If he just asked Lavender, instead of agreeing to be Sally's date then, as Lavender said it, she would accept his offer and that would be a nice thing because he would finally have his ultimate crush as his date at the ball. He felt awful. The great chance of being with Lavender for a wonderful night was gone with the wind and to think that the both of them had an argument would make things a lot worse. Harry and his friends went to the entrance of the village and waited for the carriages to fetch them. Ron wasn't talking the whole trip and when they finally arrived at the castle, he just went to the boys dormitories', still feeling bad, laid down on his four poster bed, and thought deeply, wishing that he could use a time turner and go back to the past and change everything so that he could go back to the time wherein he and Sally were walking down the castle grounds, the same time wherein he agreed to be her date. If only he could change that. If only.

End of Chapter 7

~ Ron is so stupid isn't he? Well.watch out for the 8th chapter soon!

-Kathleen (the-key)-