Year 5: Out of Sync

Chapter 44: December 2017

Over the course of the next few weeks, Dominique and William began spending more and more time with each other until finally, Dominique declared that William was now her boyfriend. William seemed more than happy to accept his new title, giving Dominique the title of girlfriend in return, and suddenly all the tension that had been building between Dominique and Brooke recently dissipated.

It annoyed Dominique a little, in the far back recesses of her mind, that it took her settling for one guy for Brooke to accept her again, but she was too happy to let it create any unnecessary drama.

The only person that remained unhappy was Miles. But Dominique suspected that she knew what the problem was. If she was happy with William and Tom and Brooke were happy with each other, Miles clearly just needed a girl to be happy with. And so, Dominique threw herself into a new task – to find a girlfriend for Miles.

"What about Holly?" Dominique suggested, naming one of her dormmates. Holly was nice and down-to-earth.

Miles shook his head. "I don't think so," he said.

Dominique sighed. "What's wrong with her?" It had been half an hour already and Miles had shot down every girl she'd suggested.

"She's too quiet," Miles replied. "She never says anything."

"Alright," Dominique allowed. "Then what about Hilary Gordon?" she named one of their Ravenclaw classmates. "She's always talking. She doesn't even put her hand up in class half the time, she just spits out whatever she has to say."

But Miles shook his head again. "She's too obsessed with schoolwork," he said. "We'd spend all our time in the library."

"What about Rachel Singleton?" Dominique suggested.

"She's got really big hands," Miles vetoed this option as well. "It's weird."

"Big hands?" Dominique demanded. "That's why you won't go out with her?"

"They're disproportionately large compared to the rest of her!" Miles defended himself.

Dominique groaned in frustration. "How about Lorna Pye?" she asked.

Miles scrunched up his nose. "Her name is Lorna," he pointed out.

"So?" Dominique asked, throwing up her hands in exasperation. "What's wrong with that?"

"It's like a name you give to a grandmother," Miles said. "Not a teenage girl."

"You realize that every grandmother was one a teenage girl, right?" Dominique asked, now that Miles' reasons were descending into the land of lame excuses.

Miles sighed. "I'm just not interested in Lorna," he said.

"Well who are you interested in then?" Dominique demanded. "There must be someone!"

Miles hesitated, and then shook his head. "I'm sorry Dominique, but no. I just don't have any interest in going out with any of these girls."

"Well then what do you want from me?" Dominique demanded. "What can I do to put you in a better mood? I can't remember the last time you actually seemed happy."

Miles shrugged. "There's nothing," he said.

Dominique suspected that he was hiding something, but she could also see that he wasn't going to tell her what it was. Whatever was bothering Miles, he was insisting on dealing with it alone. And while Dominique desperately wished he would tell her what it was, because she was sure she could remedy the problem, she also respected his right to privacy.

"Well let me know if there's ever anything I can do," she said gently, but also making it clear that this was an order.

Miles smiled sadly and nodded affirmatively. "I will," he allowed.

DdDdDdDdDdD

Later that evening, Dominique and William had plans to meet up. William waited for Dominique at the top of the Grand Staircase and then together the two began to head downstairs for a nice evening walk around the lake.

Before she'd started dating William, Dominique hadn't really thought about the very limited dating options that Hogwarts castle provided. There were lots of places where students could hook-up, as Dominique knew well from experience. But there weren't that many activities to do as a couple. Lucky for her, William was very creative.

Now that it was December, Dominique absolutely needed her winter cloak if she was going to go outside. She didn't mind covering up though. She was no longer attempting to catch guys' attention with her provocative attire. She had William now, and he seemed to remain interested in her regardless of what she chose to wear.

"What do you think the giant squid does in the wintertime?" Dominique mused as she and William strolled around the lake. Their hands were interlocked between them, and despite being exposed to the cold air and wind, this hand was currently the warmest part of Dominique's body.

"I don't know," William confessed. "I guess it just sleeps at the bottom of the lake until the ice melts in the spring."

"Are giant squids nocturnal?" Dominique asked.

William looked sideways at Dominique with an amused expression. "You mean like owls?" he asked.

Dominique frowned. "No wait, not nocturnal," she shook her head. "What's the one that bears do?"

"I think you mean hibernation," William supplied her with the word.

"Yes!" Dominique exclaimed, glad that they were on the same page. "Do you think giant squids go into hibernation?"

"I don't think so," William replied. "They are known to prefer colder water though, so its possible this squid is actually happier in the wintertime."

Dominique smiled as they continued their evening walk. "It's so nice having a boyfriend in Ravenclaw," she said. "You're so smart."

"I'm not that smart," William said modestly. "I just know a lot of random facts."

"Well I think you're smart," Dominique insisted.

They finished their walk around and decided to head back inside, as it was getting colder the further the sun set. William walked Dominique back up to the seventh floor, where the two would usually part ways, each to their own common rooms.

"So, there's another Hogsmeade weekend coming up on Saturday," Dominique said hopefully. "We haven't really talked about it, but – "

"Of course I'd like to go with you," William agreed immediately. "Maybe we could meet in the village though, because there's a quick errand I'll need to run first."

Dominique's heartrate immediately picked up speed. An errand that he needed to run without her? He had to be buying her a Christmas present. Dominique's vision tinged slightly pink as she again realized how much she loved being with William.

"Alright," Dominique agreed, taking a step closer. "We can discuss the details later."

William nodded, and Dominique placed her mouth over his, kissing him fully and soundly. It was the best way she knew to show how she felt, and all she knew was that after a month of dating William, she was getting impatient with waiting.

She appreciated that William wanted to go slowly, and that he wanted to respect Dominique and not expect anything from her. But this wasn't him taking advantage. Dominique wanted this. She knew what it felt like and wanted to experience it with William.

She pushed him backwards, into the very same alcove as on the night of their first date, and just like that first time, William grabbed her hands and put them by her side, pushing her off of him just a bit.

"Dominique, we need to stop," he said. "I can't – "

"Then don't," Dominique said seductively, pushing herself back onto him.

It wasn't hard. William's resolve to keep her away was weak, and she could feel him melting into her. But he was stronger than she thought and managed to break away once again.

"I want this to be perfect," he said. "I want to make it special for you. I don't want it to be rushed, in an alcove where anybody could walk by."

It was sweet. It was exactly one of the things that Dominique liked most about William. But in this moment, it was also the most irritating thing she could imagine.

"Just shut up and let me kiss you," Dominique insisted. "I don't care about special, and there's no such thing as perfect. This is what I want."

It seemed that whatever resolve William still had at this point broke, and he gave himself over to Dominique wholeheartedly.

It was different than the other times. The other guys that Dominique had been with had been strangers. They'd been classmates and housemates and other fellow students, but they'd all been people Dominique had never really talked to previous. They were all people with whom Dominique had no connection.

With William, there was a connection, and it made all the difference. Her other encounters had been enjoyable, of course, but now Dominique understood that this was what she'd been searching for. There was a degree of comfort and of intimacy with William that she'd never found with the others and she knew that even if she and William broke up, she couldn't go back to her old ways.

When it was over, William looked at Dominique sheepishly.

"I had plans," he admitted. "It was going to be special."

"This was special," Dominique assured him. "Because it was with you."

DdDdDdDdDdD

The day of the Hogsmeade trip arrived. The weather was less than ideal, but Dominique was still determined to enjoy herself and the time she and William could spend away from Hogwarts.

They'd agreed to meet up in the afternoon, so Dominique decided to spend some time with Miles before meeting up with her boyfriend, feeling kind of bad for how little time she spent with him now that she was always meeting up with William in the fifth-year lounge.

As Christmas was fast approaching, both Dominique and Miles had some Christmas shopping to do. Dominique had to buy something for her parents and her siblings, as well as her Aunt Hermione, who she'd received as her Secret Santa that year. She also wanted to get something for each of her friends, and most stressful of all, something for William.

Her Aunt Hermione was the easiest to shop for. Dominique and Miles' first stop was Tomes and Scrolls, where Dominique picked up a copy of Magic in Andean Prehistory. Though Hermione enjoyed books of all kinds, Dominique knew that she had a soft spot for history books. Dominique also picked up a book on astronomy for Louis, since he enjoyed the subject so much. Miles also picked up a couple of books that he would be giving as gifts to various family members.

They went to Dogweed and Deathcap next, where Dominique purchased a pair of gardening gloves for her older sister, who seemed to have decided that herbology was her chosen career path. They popped over to Gladrags Wizard Wear after that, where Miles insisted that they shop separately, leading Dominique to believe that he was buying her Christmas present here.

Dominique bought a nice scarf for her mother, a sweater for Brooke, and for Tom and Miles, she got them each a pair of socks with little beater's bats on them. At some point, she also intended to visit Honeydukes to get them some candy to go with the socks.

For her father, Dominique dragged Miles to Scrivenshaft's, where she purchased a very nice quill for him to put on display on his desk at Gringotts, and Miles purchased some stationary for his mother, who enjoyed writing him letters.

Finally, there was only one gift left that Dominique needed to purchase, and it was the one she needed to get before meeting up with William.

"I don't know what to get him," Dominique wailed, looking to Miles for support. "We've only been going out for a month! I can't get him anything too fancy, but I also don't want to get him something lame."

"You could get him a bookmark," Miles suggested.

Dominique rolled her eyes. Miles was clearly not going to be any help.

They poked around a few more shops, where Miles finished the remainder of his shopping and Dominique remained on the lookout for the perfect gift. Then, as they were heading towards Honeydukes for the second time, they passed by Dominic Maestro's Music Shop, and Dominique suddenly felt the strange urge to go inside.

"But William isn't a musician," Miles challenged her.

"I know," Dominique replied. "I just want to take a look."

Dominique had never been inside this particular store and was blown away by what she found inside. There were all sorts of various musical instruments, shelves and shelves of sheets of music, and all sorts of other objects that Dominique didn't recognize. The sound of music filled the shop, even though there was no visible source of the sound, and a middle-aged man stood in the center of the room, polishing what appeared to be a cymbal.

"How may I help you?" the wizard asked, looking over at Dominique and Miles.

"I'm not exactly sure," Dominique admitted, looking around and feeling rather lost.

"She's Christmas shopping for her boyfriend," Miles supplied, obviously wanting to speed up this endeavor. "But she doesn't know what to get him."

"Ah," the wizard nodded. "Then you have come to the right place. I have just the thing."

He led Dominique over to a display case and pulled out a small, plain box, setting it down in front of her.

"What is it?" Dominique wondered, picking up the box and turning it over. She opened it, but it was empty.

"This is a magical music box," the shopkeeper informed her. "With one simple spell, it will be imbibed with the heart song of the one who enchants it. If you use the spell while thinking of your special man, your feelings for him will be turned to song, and anytime he opens the box, he will hear you."

It was a beautiful concept, and one that Dominique hadn't heard of before. She looked the box over yet again, but it still looked as plain as ever.

"That seems a little much," Miles said to the shopkeeper. "They've only been dating for a month. This seems like more of a one-year type of gift."

"I love it," Dominique interjected, ignoring Miles and his opinions. It wasn't up to him what Dominique bought for William. Miles didn't know them, and though it had only been a month, Dominique had never felt as strongly for anyone as she did for William. "How much?"

The amount the shopkeeper quoted was a lot higher than what Dominique had intended to spend on William, but she bought the music box anyway. The shopkeeper also gave her a small scroll with the box, on which the spell for the enchantment was written out. He instructed her to make sure to study it in full before casting it, as it could only be cast once. Dominique assured him that this wouldn't be a problem. Spells had always been a specialty of hers.

Back out on the street, Miles immediately began pestering Dominique about her purchase.

"You couldn't have just bought him some candy? You barely know this guy," he insisted.

"I know him better than you think," Dominique insisted. "And now, he'll know how I feel too."

"What if you buy him this huge gift, and all he buys for you is a box of puking pastilles?" Miles asked.

"I think William knows me better than that," Dominique assured him.

Miles continued to harass Dominique as they made their way to the entrance to the Three Broomsticks, where she and William had arranged to meet up. Despite Miles' warnings, Dominique felt good about her purchase. And really, it was none of Miles' business what she and William were to each other.

They approached, and as they did, Dominique was able to see William already waiting for her. If he'd made any purchases, they were hidden in his cloak, as he wasn't carrying any bags, so Dominique couldn't get any idea of what he might have got her.

Just before going over to join him, Dominique watched as Summer Snow appeared and walked right over to William, engaging him in conversation.

"What's she doing over there?" Dominique demanded angrily. "What's she doing talking to William?"

"Calm down," Miles said, pulling her back. "I'm sure they're just talking."

Even as he said it, Dominique watched as Summer leaned in to try to kiss William. To her relief and amusement, William leaned away from her, going so far as to take a step back to avoid her, and she fell face first into the snow.

Dominique burst out laughing and hurried over, not wanting to miss an opportunity to make fun of Summer Snow.

Summer pushed herself off the ground, furiously brushing the snow and dirt off her robes.

"I'm sorry," William was saying, "but you know I'm dating Dominique, right?"

"Yeah, that's right Summer," Dominique said, jumping right in. "He's dating me. He doesn't want you. So back off, because I've won."

Dominique knew she was being childish and immature, but it was so satisfying to finally see Summer put in her place.

Seething, Summer looked right at Dominique.

"You may have won the battle," she admitted. "But I'll win the war."

And with that said, Summer turned around and fled.

Dominique turned to face William, smiling happily, and leaned in for a quick kiss.

"Thank you for not kissing her," she said.

"Why would I kiss her when I have you?" William asked, making Dominique feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside.

Miles appeared, declaring that he was going to head back up to the castle, and Dominique handed him her shopping bags to bring back with him so that she wouldn't have to lug them around all day. She gave him strict instructions not to peek, as his gift was there too.

Miles left, and William led Dominique into the Three Broomsticks for a butterbeer. As they sat down, Dominique found herself feeling overwhelming joy and gratitude that she had William in her life. She looked forward to doing the music box enchantment, and even more to giving the box to William. She wanted him to know how much he meant to her.

The rest of the day passed quicker than Dominique might have liked, and before she knew it, she back in Gryffindor Tower, getting ready for bed. Today had been a good day, and Dominique looked forward to many more like it in the future.