November had arrived before long and winter was well under way. Frost sat upon the ground, making it hard and slippery but still the four friends met in their usual place outside, enjoying the fresh air.
Thoughts turned to what everyone was doing at Christmas. Kriss always spent it with her parents and brothers at home with numerous relatives, apart from a couple of years ago when there had been a Yule ball. She used to enjoy going home for the holidays, but this year she wished she could stay at Hogwarts, but she knew her parents would not let her without a good reason. Xanthe said that she was going with her parents, sisters, brother-in-laws and her various nieces and nephews to Norway to visit some distant relatives, they hadn't seen for ages. Lucinda thought she might be staying on, some friends of her rather elitist parents had invited them to their mansion for Christmas, down by the south coast. She informed Kriss that the friends' son was one of her ex's and she couldn't stand him now. Claudette said she was planning to spend Christmas with her father and a few of his old friends as usual. Her mother had died when she was very young.
The friends had met Kriss outside her last class of the day, they went back to the common room for a while to relax then went down to the great hall for dinner. Kriss had noticed Professor Snape had been absent a lot in the Great hall lately. In fact she hadn't seen him around at all much, apart from potions lessons. This evening though, he was there, sitting at the top table with Dumbledore and the rest, his eyes flitting around the room.
Kriss couldn't help it; her tummy fluttered whenever she saw him and the kiss they had shared always came to mind. She was lost in thought as she sat down with the others waiting for the food to appear. However, Dumbledore, revealing he was going to make a speach, awakened her from her musings.
"Could I have your attention please?" The room was silent immediately "Thankyou, now, I am pleased to announce that we shall be having a Yule ball this year for 5th years and above." He paused. There were lots of "what about us's" coming from the rest of the years and lots of "Oh yes's" and "Wow's" coming from everyone else.
"There will also be, a separate Christmas party for the rest of the years before the holidays!" At this the indignation from the lower years turned to cheers. "All this jollity is to celebrate my now, 50th year teaching at Hogwarts" he smiled and looked around, as gasps of astonishment at this revelation, resounded round the room. "Well now that's out of the way, I'll let you get on with your dinner. Oh and by the way let your head of house know if you will be staying over at Christmas, as soon as possible. Thank you" With that he sat down.
The whole of the room was buzzing with talk of the ball, the girls mostly of what they were going to wear and who they hoped to go with. Kriss overheard some of the boys at the Slytheryn table, talking about finding a way to sneak in alcohol. It had always been forbidden for students at Hogwarts to drink alcohol on the premises and anyone caught drunk or in possession was immediately suspended. She and her friends shook their heads at the boys, in derision