Chapter 16
The next day, Harry did indeed go and ask Ginny to the ball. He decided to ask her during breakfast so as to get it over with or the Weasley twins would drive him nuts. He walked into the great hall with Ron, Hermione, Kayla, Jason, and both sets of twins. They went to sit down with Ginny all knowing that Harry was going to ask her.
"So, Ginny, do you have a date yet?" Harry asked calmly. Ginny nearly spit out her bite of eggs. She had never expected Harry to say that line that in male dictated a wish to ask a girl out. She stared at him mutely for a minute before finally shaking her head no and picking up her goblet to take a gulp of her pumpkin juice. "So, would you want to go with me? As friends of course. I just feel more comfortable asking you than anyone in the school. I constantly feel as if they just like to be with me on the off chance that they will become famous, too. I know you don't feel that way. At least I think you don't…" he tried to lighten the mood by joking around. He could tell that she was nervous. "Well? Would you go with me?"
"Um…yeah. Sure." She glanced unobtrusively at Jason who then smiled brightly and held up to thumbs up. She giggled which she quickly turned into a cough when her brothers looked at her weirdly. Jason convulsed in silent laughter and only barely managed to make it to his seat and get his laughter under control.
* * * * * *
The weeks went by, and the musketeers became comfortable in their new settings.
The Gryffindor musketeers became very close with the Hogwarts trio but they
didn't feel bad for leaving Jake and James to fend for themselves. The two
Ravenclaws could always be seen in the presence of at least a few of the
intelligent, not to mention gorgeous, girls of their house. They fell into a
daily routine that never changed. They went to classes in the morning and
afternoon. Then had Quidditch practice after dinner. After the finished that,
they had their self-defense practice. Then, once a week, they met with Hope so
that she could give them the advanced training that they needed. That way,
during class they could help her teach the rest of the class. They continued on
their potion's projects and did all of their work for their other classes.
Harry and Ron had even convinced Jason to make up the divination work.
However, the entire school was looking forward to the up and coming ball. That
is, all of the students. Even the Slytherins were excited. It was weird, since
the arrival of the Americans, many of the Slytherins had mellowed out just a
little bit. With the exception of Malfoy and his lackeys, the entire house had
become less mean spirited. In fact, the only rivalry was the same as between
the other three houses: friendly competition. Too bad Malfoy messed it up.
Finally, it was the week before the ball. That Sunday was a scheduled Hogsmead
trip that everyone took advantage of to plan their costumes. That morning, if
you happened to be passing through the town, you would have been amazed that
not all the students were in Honeyduke's or even Zonko's. In fact, the most
crowded stores were the costume and robe stores where students swarmed trying
to buy last minute things.
The two sets of twins could be seen walking down one street talking about what
they were going to wear. The Hogwarts trio plus Ginny were traveling from shop
to shop trying to decide what to go as. This left Kayla and Jason by
themselves. Not that they minded the time they got by themselves. They relished
the time alone that they got. They were all going to meet at the Three
Broomsticks at 3:00 for a butterbeer along with James and Jake and their dates.
The fourteen of them would take up a large part of the pub…but they didn't
care.
As they walked down the streets, hand-in-hand, Kayla and Jason looked into
stores trying to get ideas for what to wear. Suddenly, Kayla stopped in front
of a window and stared. "I've thought of the perfect outfits for us,
Jason!" she exclaimed.
As they walked down the streets, hand-in-hand, Kayla and Jason looked
into stores trying to get ideas for what to wear. Suddenly, Kayla stopped in
front of a window and stared. "I've thought of the perfect outfits for us,
Jason!" she exclaimed.
She dragged him into the store and started to pick up items and throw them at
Jason. "Here, hold these," she called as she tossed more things at
him.
"Sure," he laughed at her antics. "But, would you mind telling
me what they all are?"
"I will," she answered. "But, later. Let me finish." She
continued gathering what she needed for her brilliant idea. When she finally
said that she had everything, she pulled Jason, who was laden down with so many
parcels that he could barely see, to the checkout counter. The witch behind the
counter just smiled at them and collected their money.
They left the store, Jason carrying the two large bags of supplies.
"C'mon," Kayla said as she led Jason to a large park. "Let's go
sit over there and I will tell you my idea." They sat down on a bench and
put the shopping bags on the ground. Jason turned expectantly to Kayla and just
raised an eyebrow at her. "Okay, well, let's go as vampires!"
"Huh?"
"Well, it will be perfect. My dress robes are all black with just a little
green and I just bought a cape that will go with it. So, I will wear my hair
down and put some glitter in it. For you, wear black pants and a suit and wear
your bluish-black robes as a cape. Then, I found this book in there that has
charms to enhance costumes and there is one to make our canine teeth elongated
like vampires. Then, I bought a lot of make up and stuff to make us both just a
little bit paler and all that. I think I will have to do yours, so you will
have to break the tradition of guys getting ready with only 10 minutes to
spare. But, where should I do yours? The common room has too many people? How
about you just come up to my room? I will ask the girls to get ready in the
fourth year room. That will work. What do you think?"
Jason, who had only really heard about half of what she said just nodded
mutely. Finally he managed to get out, "Sounds great! How did you think of
that so fast?"
"I don't know. I guess I just saw the supplies in that store and I know
what robes we bought, so it all just came together."
"You will never cease to amaze me. Well, I guess it is time to meet up with
the others. C'mon, let's go." He stood up, and then helped Kayla to stand
and then picked up the bags. They made their way to the Three Broomsticks. They
walked into the pub and a young witch made her way over to them to give them
their drinks. The only thing minors could drink was a butterbeer so they didn't
have to order. Kayla carried their drinks as they made their way over to the
others in their group.
Once everyone was there, they all wanted to know what Kayla and Jason were
going as since they had bought the most stuff. But, no matter how often they
were asked, they refused to tell anyone what they were going to go as. The
others just sighed but wouldn't say what they were wearing unless Jason and
Kayla did.
"Girls, would you mind getting ready in the fourth year
dorms?" Kayla asked her roommates as the talk died down.
"Not really," they answered after glancing at each other.
"Why?"
"Oh, well, I need to help Jason get ready and it was the only place I
could think of to get privacy."
"Sure," they said as they laughed.
Their Ravenclaw boys couldn't miss this opportunity to tease their friends.
"So, what exactly are you two going to be doing alone? In a dorm
room?"
* * * * * * *
The week flew by and, soon enough, it was Halloween. During classes that day,
no one could sit still and each house lost nearly a hundred points for
misbehavior. That night, there was no dinner for the school since the ball
would include one. For the younger students, there would be house parties in
the common rooms where they didn't have to go to sleep until the students at
the ball did. It would probably be more fun for them than going to the school
wide ball would be for them because of their ages. They would have food and,
for the night, the common rooms were magically linked to the Great Hall so that
everything that the band played in the hall would also be played in all the
common rooms for the benefit of the younger students.
Because of the mini-balls, everyone in the common rooms were rushing around
getting ready, especially the girls. Actually, only the girls besides Jason,
who was holed up in Kayla's dorm with her. Their friends had all joked about
what they were really doing in their alone, but they just smiled and ignored
the comments.
In said room, with said couple, Jason was reaching for his outfit to put it on.
Kayla saw this and snapped, "What are you doing?"
"Um…I was going to get changed…" he answered uncertainly.
"Not before I put on the make-up." He wrinkled his nose at the word
"make-up." "It is just stage make-up, you know," she added,
seeing his face.
"So, why can't I change first?"
"Because then it will all get on your clothes, and that would be
embarrassing."
"Okay, fine." He allowed himself to be pulled to a chair and pushed
into it.
"Close your eyes," she ordered. He did as she was told so he couldn't
tell what exactly she was doing to him so he could only pray that she wouldn't
do anything that would ruin his manhood. He could feel her putting something on
his cheeks and nose. Then his eyes. Then his lips. Finally, she said,
"Lean back so I can get your neck." He did so and he could feel he
hands applying something to his neck. "Now down." She walked behind
him and her hands rubbed up against the back of her neck as she applied the
same stuff to that part of his body. She walked back around to his front and
put something else on his lips. "Okay, you can open your eyes now. I am
done."
He cautiously parted his eyes and she held up a mirror so he could see
what he looked like. His skin was very pale, except for his lips, which looked
brighter than usual. "I am going to put a charm on this stuff so that it
doesn't just brush off or fade. I will also put a shield on it since I know
that that works and I've never tried the charm before." She first held out
a hand and he could feel her power moving to mingle with the make-up she put on
him and settle there. Next, she pulled out her wand and muttered, "Facium
Statum."
She walked over to her bed, where she had dumped all of their parcels. She
searched around until she found a pair of black gloves. She tossed them at him,
"Here, wear these. They will cover your hands since I can't make them
white." She pulled out the rest of his clothes and handed them to him. She
motioned him to the makeshift changing she had set up in one part of the room
for him to use. "Get changed. And try not to muss the make-up."
She sat down to do her own make-up. Kayla pulled her long, black, curly hair
with a clip at the back of her head, totally off her shoulders and neck. She
started to apply the whitening stuff to her face. She heard Jason come out and
stand and watch her in amazement. She looked at him and smiled. "Do you
think you could come here and do the back of my neck?"
"Yeah, sure."
He walked over to her and she said, "Just take some in your fingers and
rub it into the back of my neck. Try not to get too much in my hair." He
did as he was told and finally stepped back. "Thank you," she smiled
up at him. She finally finished doing the white layer. She next put on lipstick
much brighter than she had ever worn before. She added some silvery eye shadow
and black mascara. She looked at herself and nodded, she had finished her face.
She mentally created a shield holding it all in place and then took out her
wand and repeated the same charm she had used on Jason. She undid her hairclip
and separated her hair into one-inch strips. Onto every other strip, she
applied some silvery hair glitter that she mentally forced to cling to each
strand of hair in their exact stripes. When she was finished, her hair looked
very shiny and glittery.
She applied the same shield and charm to her hair and stood up. Without looking
at Jason, she picked up her robes and stepped into her changing room. A couple
minutes later, she stepped out and looked at her boyfriend. "Wow!" he
breathed. "You look awesome, Kayla."
"Thank you," she replied courteously. She grabbed her own gloves off
the bed and put them on. She took Jason's robes/cape and secured it around his
neck. She picked hers up, but before she could put it around herself, Jason
took it out of her hands and did it for her. He leaned down and kissed her
gently.
"So," he began. "Do you think it is time to meet the
others?"
"Almost," she answered. "I still need to perform that charm for
our teeth." She reached down for the book and flipped a few pages. Holding
her wand out in front of Jason's face, she said, "Carnivorous
Enlargus." He could feel his teeth elongating and forming into sharp
points. He would have to remember not to bite his tongue. It would hurt. She
performed the same spell for herself. "Now, let's go impress everyone with
how good we look," she said as she took his hand and pulled him to the
door.
"Slightly conceited there, my dear?" he asked although he went with
her to the door and even opened it for her.
As they descended the stairs to the common room, those waiting in the room took a collective gasp. Everyone stared at them as they walked across the floor to meet up with their friends. The twins were going as princes and princesses. But, the girls had broken down and told Kayla, in secret, what they were going as. On top of their form fitting dress robes, they were wearing long, black, cloak-like apparatuses. They went to the floor and had sleeves that billowed out from about the elbow. They were laced in the front and it was possible to see the dress robes under them through the opening. They had braided their hair loosely and were wearing tiaras on the top of their heads. The Weasley twins were wearing brown leggings, white shirts, and red vests on top of it all. At their sides were strapped swords: they were fake, of course. Tori and Keri, however, were wearing all too real daggers at their sides, and they had a few hidden in other places, just in case.
The other four were just wearing their dress robes. They looked stunning though. Hermione had straightened her hair and pulled it into a bun at the top of her head, leaving a few strands to frame her face. Around the bun she entwined ribbons of silver and light blue that matched her dress robes. Ginny was wearing navy blue and silver dress robes. She had left her hair down and curled it. It looked awesome on her and Harry had to work hard not to stare. The boys, too, looked nice, but they were wearing normal dress robes. Harry's were the same green as last year and Ron's were a blue so dark it was almost black. He cut a really handsome picture with his hair that was so vibrant against the darkness of his robes. Pranksters they may be, but Fred and George had taste when it came to colors. After all, they never made pranks that made the victim change colors that clashed with their clothes. They were considerate in that respect.
Kayla looked around at everyone. "What are you all staring at? We don't look bad do we?"
"You worry too much, cousin," Harry replied, jokingly. "You look great. I love the teeth especially."
"Oh, well if that is it…Let's go." Kayla and Jason led the way down to the Great Hall. Just inside the door, there was a photographer taking pictures of the couples as they walked in the room. He positioned Jason and Kayla so that they were facing each other. Kayla's back hand was placed around Jason's waist, and his hand was put around her shoulders. They were told to look at the camera and open their mouths as if they were going to bite someone. The photographer took the same picture with two different cameras. One that he would develop in magical chemicals so that they moved, and the other would be normal developing fluid so it wouldn't move. They would have the option of which one they wanted to buy. They could get either, or both.
After their pictures were taken, Kayla and Jason walked over to the table where they would be sitting with the other Gryffindors with them and also Jake and James and their dates. They sat down and waited for the Hall to fill up. Within 10 minutes, everyone was in their seats and awaiting Dumbledore to begin the dinner. When he finally made his entrance, the students began to eat.
Soon, the hired band, the Magical Threesome, began to play. Kayla immediately jumped up and pulled Jason with her. "Kayla! Do I have to dance?" he whined.
"Need I remind you of a certain incident in Russia just a little less than a year ago?" she asked all too sweetly.
"Nope," he grumbled obviously not pleased with her love of dancing. "Might as well get this over with or there will be another Mikhail Nicholai on our hands here," he muttered so that the musketeers could hear him. They nodded.
"If you want, we can dance with her later, Jase," offered James.
Jason just raised his eyebrows at them. "I don't think your dates would like that very much. Besides, are you going to be up for dancing later?" They blushed and got the hint to shut up.
As Jason led Kayla to the dance floor, Harry turned to the remaining musketeers. "Who is Mikhail Nicholai and what happened in Russia a year ago?"
The Americans looked at each other and sighed. Tori spoke up, "After all of our Quidditch games, the home team hosts an informal dance. It was after our first game and Jason didn't want to dance. Kayla walked off and Mikhail Nicholai asked her to dance. Jason told her not to since he could sense something was wrong, but she did just to show him that she could. In the middle of the dance, he stabbed her in the back. Since then, Jason refuses to let anyone besides himself or the bozos, over there, dance with her. But, everyone knows how much he hates dancing. He would much rather dance than lose Kayla though."
A few dances later, Jason convinced Kayla to sit down so that he could get them some drinks. She sighed, but she sat down anyways to wait for him to come back. While she was waiting, she looked around the room so see what her friends were doing. As predicted, James and Jake were making out with their girlfriends in a dark corner of the Hall. The twins were dancing along with Hermione and Ron. Harry and Ginny were sitting at the table with Kayla, talking. Every time they stood up to dance, Harry got nasty glares from the Weasley boys, even though they were the reason he asked Ginny. She was content with just talking with him though. It was the first time they had actually sat down and talked with each other and it turned out they had a lot in common.
"Here you go," Jason said, handing her a cup of punch. She barely noticed that he watched her intently as if trying to make sure that she drank the whole thing. When she finished it, he suggested, "Why don't we go for a walk outside? No one will mind."
"Sure," she replied, smiling. "Why not? Although, I bet you just want to avoid having to dance."
"You caught me," he answered, laughing. He helped her to stand up and led her out of the hall, one hand around her waist.
A few minutes after they left, Jason walked to the table carrying two cups. "I'm sorry it took so long, but there was a really long line…" he trailed off when he saw that Kayla wasn't there. "Kayla? Kayla! Where did Kayla go, guys?" he asked Harry and Ginny.
They stared at him as if he lost his mind. "What do you mean?" Harry wanted to know. "You just left with her. You went outside for a walk."
"No, I didn't. I have been getting drinks…" he trailed off, again, as he figured out what must have happened. "Oh, no! This can't be happening!" he cried. He dropped the drinks and ran out the door.