The question of the Tri-Wizard Tournament had to be put on hold for a while. Eric had to finish three remaining papers demonstrating a mastery of fourth-year principles for the Hogwarts instructors, and there was his studies with Professor Frugilagus to cover. The tournament provided ample cover for his usual studies, and his talents with spell theory managed to keep him from needing any references from the Restricted section, at least for the time being.

The holiday season was approaching, and Eric was doing his best to be invisible. He had word that Lenora Surrey was looking for him, and he didn't want to be found. Between back hallways and discretion charms, he had managed to keep out of sight for a month. He knew, however, that he couldn't keep things up indefinitely.

There was something about Lenora he couldn't put his finger on. The way she treated him was something like a yo-yo; pulling him close only to cast him away again. He wanted to understand why before having to encounter her again.

He was pondering this in the library when Naomi interrupted his thoughts. "Hi. Can you help me with this? I'm having trouble sorting out these leaf formations for Herbology." Eric looked at the leaf patterns, and pointed out the distinctions. "Thank you; I should probably take things from here." She folded up her papers, then looked straight at him. You know, the Yule Ball is in a few weeks."

Eric looked back at her. "I would've thought you weren't interested in that sort of thing."

"Well, usually not, but the Weird Sisters are going to be there. I hear they're really good, only third years can't go unless they're invited by an older student."

Eric was mildly amused at her slightly apprehensive expression. He decided to take a lesson from Riley O'Padraigh and play it for all it was worth. "Naomi – could you find it in your heart to honor this most unworthy soul, and accept this invitation to the Yule Ball?" Her slight smile and nod was worth the trouble. "Excellent. I shall meet you in the common room at, say Six?"

She shuffled out of her seat. "That's fine. I hope you'll excuse me, but I forgot some things back in my Dormitory." Eric actually made a point of getting out of his chair to help her gather her things before she left. It just seemed the thing to do.

He settled back to the books he was reading, but didn't get far along before another shadow robbed the light. Lenora had finally found him. "Where have you been? I know you don't follow a usual class schedule, but I figured that you would have to come out to eat."

"I've been busy. My last few papers haven't developed as easily as I hoped."

She plopped into the chair across from him. "So – when were you going to ask me to the Yule Ball?"

Eric felt his stomach knot up. "I'm sorry, but I'm already going with someone else?"

Lenora's eyes darkened. "Someone else? Who could you possibly find to take to the Ball?"

He started to feel his temper rise. "You've seemed interested in me for a while. Now you're suggesting that I'm not worth going out with?"

"Obviously not, if that's how you're going to treat me!" She stormed out of the library, slamming the doors. Eric shrugged – the whole scene went a lot smoother than he anticipated.

By the evening of the Ball, he had managed to get all his papers done and had found time to work with Willy on making some formals. They were older in style, ruffled in the front with laced sleeves, but it was all black. The only color that could be found on the garment was the Ravenclaw emblem on his cloak. Looking in a mirror, he had to smile. Sheena's combat exercises had kept him so fit, he actually looked good in formals.

There was no way, however, that he could have been a match for Naomi. She was dressed in black formal, too. However, her dress was fashioned as a corseted evening gown with a wide hood and cape. From a distance, her silhouette appeared as a great, black owl. Up close, however, the effect was stunning.

As they joined the crowd at the Yule Ball, Eric took in the scene for a minute. Between the noise and the conversations, the sound was deafening. Taking time to pick out certain people, he found that Cedric was dancing with Cho Chang, while Viktor Krum had taken Hermoine Granger. Panning away from the champions, he saw that Sheena had apparently hooked up with George Weasley. At least, he hoped that was George.

Looking over to Naomi, he was becoming more than a little nervous. "Do you want to dance?"

She shook her head briefly. "Actually, I could use a drink." She looked more pale than normal, and her voice was unreasonably shaky.

Eric tried to lead her through the crowd to the punch, but it was slow going, and they were constantly bumping into people. They were only half-way to the table before she broke away from him, making a straight dash for the nearest exit.

He thought about chasing after her, but decided to get drinks first. Obtaining two small cups of punch, he exited the hall. Looking about but seeing no one, he drew out his crystal ball. With a bit of concentration, he found that she had bolted upwards, into the loft above the main hall. Collecting the cups, he made his way slowly and carefully until he could see her. As she starred down at the crowd, he could hear soft sobs coming from her hood.

"I used to come up here a lot." He waited until she took one of the cups from him and began sipping slowly. "I can remember the last five sortings before I started, and who won the House Cup. It was most often Slytherin, but I seem to remember one Ravenclaw victory a long time ago."

"I shouldn't have asked to be invited. You could have asked someone else, then you'd still be able to have a good time." She hadn't looked at him the whole time, but her unhappiness was evident.

"Naomi, there's no one I would've rather asked. I really like you, a lot." He couldn't believe that he was admitting all of that.

"Eric, there's something you have to know. There's a reason why I say and do strange things. ... I'm a Legilimens."

Eric let it sink in for a while before responding. "Well, that does explain a lot. You've always seemed to be one up on any conversation."

Naomi's voice shook; she was on the verge of tears. "I don't mean to do it! It happens automatically. That's why I can't stand the crowd downstairs. You hear the noise of the band and the conversations. I hear the band, the conversations, and a thousand petty thoughts swirling around me. I've been trying to study Occlumency, hoping that if I couldn't avoid their thoughts, maybe I could close them out of mine. It has worked, but only sort of."

He sat down beside her. "I don't understand. I thought Leilimency only works if you meet someone's gaze."

She sighed deeply. "Not always, and I usually don't pick up proper thoughts. It's like constantly hearing people whisper in a quiet room. You can't make out what they're saying, but you know that someone's there. After a while, it can get maddening"

She sipped slightly before continuing. "It has it's advantages. I've always known that you like me; and I know what you're really thinking instead of having to depend on just what you do. It's helped me to go easy on you lately. By the way, you do know that Lenora's just trying to use you, right?"

Eric smirked at her. "I don't suppose you've picked up on why?"

"She's trying to date Draco Malfoy, only he's too self-centered to be interested in her unless she was making eyes on somebody else. Look at that." Down in the crowd, Draco was sulking furiously as Lenora danced with Crabbe. "The slug has got two left feet and she's horribly embarrassed to be there, but she's finally gotten Draco's attention."

"You can tell all that from here?"

"Only that Draco's paying attention now, and I don't need to be a Legimens to see that. The rest is obvious based on the situation, if you know how to read people."

"So much depends on being able to read people. I don't have enough of a talent, while you have too much. I guess we're both doomed."

She pressed against his side. "You've been able to figure me out well enough. Maybe we should just stick together."

He settled his arm around her shoulders. "Seems good to me." Looking about, he saw that they had the loft to themselves. "You know, there's enough room to dance here, though I'm not very good at it."

She looked up at him. "I know better than that, Eric Sable; but no, I don't want to dance. Remember when we both stood in front of the Mirror of Erised?"

He paused uncertainly. "Yes."

"Well, I told the truth when I said I just saw the two of us. What I didn't tell you was, we were a bit more like this." She spun herself around to face him. "You're not going to turn into a wolf on me, are you?"

Eric's heart was racing. This was the most uncomfortable situation he had ever been in, but he wanted nothing more than to stay. "Um, it's pretty unlikely. Quarter-bloods like myself aren't as subject to a werewolf's curse as purebloods or bite victims. I've been studying techniques to control it, but I probably won't pursue it. As long as I don't try to become a wolf, I can probably avoid problems for life."

"Good." Setting her head on his shoulder, she settled him against a wall. They ended up spending the whole evening in the loft, listening to the music and occasionally watching the dancers while enjoying the peace of each other's company. When midnight came, they found an abandoned route back to the main staircase. From there it was a quick turn to the Ravenclaw common room, where a surprise note waited for him.

The Romuls had been in the neighborhood. They couldn't stay, but they left all of Eric's gear in a small cave just inside the Forbidden Forest, easy to reach in daylight. In addition, Grandmother Frona left a Christmas gift: the broom Eric modified at the Tournament.