Annie: You're full of... organs, aren't you?
Dale: Why, yes. Yes I am!

Annie: And you wouldn't notice if you were, perhaps, missing a few, would you? Dale: Mmm, probably not.

Annie: Invader Zim Rocks.

Dale. Along with daria and teen titans.

Annie: GIR! Why is there BACON in the SOAP!

Gir: I made it myself!

Dale: WOW.

Annie: Shut your noise tube, Taco Human!

Dale and Gir: But I need tacos! I need them or else I will explode. That happens to me sometimes.

Dale: Ok. On with the story.

The next weeks passed without event, until the day Hagrid assigned the new project for Care of Magical Creatures. The Gryffindors and Slytherins were temporarily at a peace, until Hagrid showed them the new creature they'd be taking care of.

"This here is a slimy wigdisk. Got to be careful, er else they'll… OW! Heh, heh. It's ok, just a little scratch."

Hagrid quickly hid his gashed, bleeding hand behind his back and smiled sheepishly. Draco went into hysterics.

"If you can't control the bloody thing, how the hell do you expect us to?"

Although he was being extremely rude again, Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Raven had to agree. The Wigdisks were round in shape, and rather flat. The edge that stuck out, most likely the one giving them the surname "disk" was covered in dangerous looking spines. The rest of the beast was covered with a tough leathery skin, and its two eyes and nostril slits poked out from the top, glaring menacingly at any poor child who wandered too close. It seemed to have no legs or mouth, and simply spun around to get places.

"Wonder why it doesn't get dizzy and throw up?" said Ron daftly.

"Probably because it doesn't have a mouth," replied Harry. "I don't know how that stupid thing can eat. Mine will most likely die the first week. It's a bad mark, but I have to consider which is worth more, my grades or my life."

"Now, this here project'll be a little different. I've assigned you inter' groups of two. Firs' group, Parvati and Lavender. Neville and Luna. Padma and…"

He went on. Harry wondered which group he would be in. He hoped Raven's but that was highly unlikely.

"And that leaves us with three, after Ron n' Hermione. Oh, dear. Um, the last group'll have to be Raven, Draco…" Harry's heart stopped. "…and Harry."

All three holders of the names stared at him. This was a recipe for DISASTER.

"Alright, Potter." Draco spat with obvious contempt. "Just try not to screw it all up for us, Raven and me. We want to get a good mark, and with stupid partners it won't work. What'll we do with this bloody thing?"

Raven stared at Draco. "Let's just go to the library and find out how to NOT get ourselves killed, alright?"

"Whatever you say, Raven." He drew out the last word and finished with a slight smile at Raven. Harry narrowed his eyes and glared.

"Malfoy, I think it'll work better for you and your precious marks if you let us do the work and you sit back in the Slytherin common room laughing with your cronies about how you shoved the work onto two Gryffindors. Maybe we'll get a better grade."

"No. This time, I'll actually do something. This stupid, ugly old beast is… interesting."

"Sure? Sure your father's not going to get Hagrid sacked or something if it makes you scream? You didn't look so happy- or shouldI say,"interested"-when Hagrid tried to show it to us."

Raven rolled her eyes. She couldn't concentrate on her book and she really didn't care if they worked together or not. But for now, the only way to get through was to make temporary peace.

"SHUT UP! Both of you. We'll do it all together. We'll go to the library tomorrow for 3 hours, find out what we need, then take turns feeding, watering, poisoning, etc. the… Wigdisk. Got it? Now chill."

She walked off. Both boys ran to catch up with her. They walked all the way up to the castle, Malfoy and Harry arguing the entire way, Ron and Hermione behind, and Raven deeply involved in J.R.R. Tolkien.

The next day at the library passed without much fuss. The boys stayed quiet for short periods of time until the school librarian threatened to curse them if they didn't shut their noise tubes. After which they were very silent.

The next week passed with peace as well. The week after Dumbledore announced the first annual winter ball for Hogwarts.

"Due to the amount of... requests...the Hogwarts staff has decided to hostour first annual winter ball. In order to attend, it will cost 2 sickles each. You must also have a dance partner, preferably one of the opposite sex."

There were giggles from the first years at the Hufflepuff table. Plus Beast Boy.

"AHEM. As I was saying, it will be on December 19th, or the Saturday after next. I propose you find a partner quickly."

Harry glanced at Raven. She was very involved in her new book. When she heard the date of the dance, she looked up and Harry could have sworn she looked at him out of the corner of her eye. Then at Draco. He had seemed to notice it too, because he glared at Harry and gave him a look that clearly claimed Raven. But she wasn't his. Harry would get to her first.

"The ladies must ask the gentlemen for this ball. That is all. Enjoy your supper."

Shit.

The winter ball became the talk of the entire school as unimportant things such as homework, classes, etc were pushed idly aside. As the date of the ball grew nearer, one could say a mating dance of sorts began, with every boy in the castle vying for a certain female's attention. Or, in Ron and Beast Boy's case, any female. Unfortunately, despite the futile wishes of the students, exams were still coming up on the 18th, and it was crunch time. Harry barely saw Raven, except when the foursome was studying and in class. All she did in her spare time, besides read, study, and draw, was meditate. And talk to her new friends, of course. She still hadn't asked anyone, but Hermione said she was thinking about it.

Today was the last day for their Care of Magical Creatures project. Harry and Raven had walked to the hill on the edge of the grounds, where they were keeping their slimiy wigdisks at bay, having a debate on the preference of being a animagus or a metamorphagus. Draco was waiting for them, with his usual brilliant smile for Raven and glare for Harry, though to Harry's immense satisfaction Raven brushed right past Malfoy's sparkling white chompers. (hahaha I crack myself up. Chompers! whooo...)

They kept the wigdisks in a steel box, and since they couldn't fly up into the air, they rested on the ground or moved around, bumping into one another and the sides of the box. To Harry, Malfoy, and Raven's surprise, they were all alive. Even though Raven and Malfoy had both admitted to attempting to poison them at some time, these suckers were quite durable. Nearby, Hermione and Ron were aghast at the survival of theirs as well.

"Hermione! Look! They're alive!"

"Brilliant, Ron. You're a genious."

The last task of the project was to transport the wigdisks in their box to the front of Hagrid's hut, which took a very long time, because they weren't allowed to use levitating spells. During this time, the topic of the ball came up. Draco, mainly for Raven's benefit, began to brag about how many girls wanted to go with him, and how many had asked him, and how many he had declined. Raven groaned. Every time he was around her, it seemed, it was brag brag brag. He liked her, obviously, though she did not return that feeling. Harry was different, but due to exams, she had pushed everything out of her mind until yesterday evening, when the ball was announced. Since then it had been a nightmare. Bloody hell.