Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, I probably wouldn't be quite as excited about July 21 and the significance thereof.
Author's Note: Thanks again for the reviews. I hope the last chapter wasn't too corny for you. I'm a big fan of cute "how-he-asked-me-to-the-big-dance" stories and I couldn't resist. But the sappiness and corniness levels should remain pretty low for a while, despite what this chapter might indicate. Anyway, please let me know what you think!
Chapter 4: Shall We Dance?
When the Christmas holidays finally began it was as though no one could speak of anything but the Yule Ball. There were, of course, the necessary dramatics—So-and-So had dumped What's-His-Face for That Bloke and What's-His-Face tried to curse That Bloke and now they've both got boils in unmentionable places—that warranted constant speculation. The gossipy and giggly of Hogwarts were having a field day. And despite the fact that I was rather excited (and nervous) about going, it got to be rather tiresome after a while. You can only really talk about dress robes and dates for so long without getting repetitive.
"I've got half a mind to rescind my invitation," warned Fred one evening when Angelina had gone particularly giggly at the mention of the Ball.
"Oh, let me have my fun," said Angelina, swatting him on the arm. "Girls like this sort of thing."
"It's quite a natural reaction," stated Viv.
"Of course it is," agreed Alicia.
The three of them looked at me expectantly.
"Don't give me that look," I said raising my hands defensively. "You know I'm not quite as mad about it as the three of you are."
"Clearly she's the only sensible girl between the four of you," said Lee, causing Alicia, who was closest to him, to swat him on the shoulder.
"Sophie, stop being practical," scolded Viv.
"It's more fun this way," stated Angelina. Fred shook his head empathetically.
"Stay on the side of reason!" he begged, throwing himself down on his knees, his hands raised in supplication.
"You're our only hope," said George solemnly.
"Actually, I can't quite decide who's being the most ridiculous," I replied as Fred launched himself at my feet, pretending to weep copiously.
"Really? I don't think there's much of a competition," stated Angelina, arching an eyebrow at Fred.
"Are you sure you want to spend an evening with him, Angelina?" asked Vivian as I tried in vain to remove Fred from my feet. "Terrence Whittaker doesn't have a date yet and he's quite good-looking."
"Too late. She signed a contract," declared Fred as I finally detached him from my ankles. He hopped onto the couch, squeezing himself between Angelina and me. "She's stuck with me." He grinned and batted his eyelashes in a manner that was apparently supposed to be endearing.
Angelina raised an eyebrow and turned to Viv. "Terrence Whittaker, you say?"
And so it continued.
In the days leading up the Yule Ball, gossiping, giggling, and the demand for beauty products increased tenfold among the girls. Vivian took advantage of this sudden need and made quite a few Galleons by selling hair tonic and nail varnish at a slightly inflated price. No one was entirely sure where she kept getting the supplies, but I suspected it involved bribing Fred and George to make illicit runs to Hogsmeade.
Despite the growing changes in the female population, the boys as a whole appeared to be entirely unaffected, although Angelina swore that they looked slightly more awkward and nervous as the Ball approached.
On Christmas Eve it was difficult to tell whether the anticipation amongst the students was due to the imminent arrival of Christmas or the approaching Ball. Whatever the exact reason, the entire Gryffindor common room was full of laughter, tinsel, and pure noise on Christmas Eve. The seven of us exchanged gifts that evening, as it was easier than trying to do so on Christmas morning. Viv gave me earrings, Alicia and Lee both got me sweets, and Angelina knitted me a hat. Fred and George, of course, gave me a book wrapped in a box that made a very loud exploding noise when I opened it. After I chased them both around the common room for an appropriate amount of time, we all went upstairs for the evening. I began to fidget relentlessly as the nerves began to settle in more securely.
"What's got into you?" asked Alicia after I accidentally knocked over my bedside table.
"Er…just nerves," I replied as I righted the table and gathered the items that had been strewn across the floor.
"Nerves?" asked Angelina.
"The Ball," I explained. Viv shook her head.
"What's there to be nervous about?" asked Alicia.
"George can be an idiot, but he's all right," said Angelina reassuringly.
"And you're friends, so it's not at all stressful in that way," added Alicia.
"No, it's not that…" I replied, biting my lip slightly. I hadn't told anyone about my inability to dance for fear of appearing foolish. Merlin knows I got enough grief for my aptitude at flying.
I took a deep breath. "It's just…I…I can't dance."
The three of them exchanged looks before bursting into laughter.
"What?" I asked feeling slightly irritated. "It's rather overwhelming for me."
"Is that all?" asked Angelina.
"Oh, Sophie," sighed Viv through her laughter. "There's nothing to it, really."
"Viv, you took dance lessons for your entire childhood," I pointed out. "You're not one to talk."
"She's right, though," declared Angelina. "It's really not hard."
"There's only one formal dance," added Alicia. "It will probably be a waltz, which is easy enough."
"Not for me," I replied.
"Oh, that's it," said Viv, springing to her feet and grabbing hold of my wrist.
"What are you doing?" I asked as she marched me to the center of the room.
"Proving you wrong," she replied. "I'll lead."
"Viv…" I protested, laughing.
"No 'buts'," she said firmly. "Ready…and one, two, three, one, two, three…"
The four of us spent the rest of Christmas Eve laughing and waltzing our way around the dormitory until Katie Bell knocked on our door and informed us that her roommates would appreciate it if we were a little quieter.
The next morning I awoke to Viv ripping open my bed hangings and flinging herself onto my bed. This had become a Christmas tradition and every year she always managed to elbow me in the stomach.
"Argh!"
"Happy Christmas!" she chirped as Chester scurried under the bed in fright.
"What's happy about it?" I grumbled, massaging my stomach.
"Don't be such a spoilsport," she said. "It's quite a lovely day—it's snowing."
"An elbow to the stomach is not my ideal way of waking up," I informed her as I pulled the blankets up to my chin. "Judging from the way my cat reacted, he didn't like it much either."
"Oh, go on." She waved her hand dismissively. "It's Christmas, it's snowing, and the Ball is tonight—an elbow to the stomach can't possibly spoil your day."
I grumbled again.
"I'm going to wake up Angelina and Alicia," she stated as she hopped off my bed. "And then we're all going to open our presents together, all right?"
I grumbled in assent as Viv happily launched herself at the unsuspecting Angelina, who swore quite colorfully, which in turn woke up Alicia, just like every year.
Aside from (unintentional) bodily harm at the elbows of Vivian, Christmas morning was a fairly subdued affair. I got a fair amount of books, as well as a small amount of money and a few pieces of jewelry. I dressed shortly afterward and went down to the common room with my new Complete Works of Shakespeare in hand (a gift from Mum, who was quite keen on exposing me to Muggle literature), planning to read and relax before dressing for the ball that evening. Shortly after I settled down in one of the armchairs, Fred and George came downstairs wearing their winter coats, hats, scarves, and gloves.
"Merry Christmas," they chorused. I looked up from my book.
"I suppose you consider yourselves forgiven for yesterday?" I asked. They both grinned.
"We got you a present, didn't we?" asked Fred. I raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, go on. You know you can't stay cross with us for long, Sophie," said George.
"We're too charming," added Fred with a wide grin.
"That's an interesting theory," I replied, attempting to look angry. It didn't work too well, as their smiles only grew wider. "All right, all right," I conceded. "Merry Christmas to you as well."
"See?" said Fred.
"One day it won't work," I replied. Neither of the twins looked particularly convinced. "Where are you off to?"
"Snowball fight," said Fred with a mischievous sort of gleam in his eye.
"Care to join us?" asked George.
"No, I think I'd rather stay warm and dry today," I replied. The boys pulled exaggerated faces of sadness.
"Oh, come on, Sophie," wheedled Fred.
"It'll be a laugh," promised George.
"Next time, I promise," I said.
"Oh, you always say that!" protested Fred.
"And then you never follow through," stated George.
"I will this time," I promised.
"D'you swear it?" asked Fred.
"On my honor."
The twins looked dubious.
"On my cat?" I tried.
Fred chewed his lip for a moment and then nodded. "We'll hold you to that."
"Otherwise the cat is ours," warned George.
"What are you going to do with a cat?" I asked with a laugh.
Fred shrugged. "Test subjects are hard to find."
I shook my head and went back to my book.
I spent the majority of Christmas morning engrossed in my book, pausing only to go downstairs to the Great Hall for lunch. It didn't seem like much time had passed when Viv marched downstairs and informed me that it was time to get ready.
I yawned and looked at my watch. "It's only four o'clock, you know."
"Precisely," said Viv, taking my book from my hands and snapping it shut. "That's hardly enough time." I rolled my eyes and followed her upstairs.
There are several disadvantages to living with three other girls, namely the fact that the four of us were expected to share one bathroom. Normally, this wasn't much of a problem, as we all were in the habit of showering at different times of the day. However, we all knew that the Yule Ball was definitely going to cause some scheduling problems.
Luckily, we had Angelina.
Angelina was frightfully well-organized. Her days were planned in more detail than any high security wizarding event. We always joked that if Fudge really wanted to solve all his problems, he ought to appoint Angelina as his secretary. She was the sort of person you could turn to during a crisis and she was certainly the sort of person who could solve the problem of four girls sharing one bathroom.
"Right," said Angelina once we'd entered the room. She had a spare piece of parchment in front of her. 'Schedule' was printed clearly at the top and there were four columns with each of our names and rows with the time marked in quarter hour increments. "I've worked it out—we've each got twenty minutes to shower. Viv, you'll go first, then me, then Sophie, and then Alicia. Alicia's decided to varnish her nails the Muggle way, so Sophie you'll have to help her while you wait for the bathroom. We'll start on hair and makeup after six." Angelina looked up from her parchment. "Any questions?"
The three of us looked at each other and shrugged.
"Let's get started, then."
The advantage to living with three other girls is that the process of dressing up becomes less arduous than it would be otherwise. Angelina's organization kept us timely and her talent with styling hair proved to be quite useful. Both Alicia and Viv were quite good with makeup and Viv had a knack for spotting problems before they started—a thread that had come undone or a button that hadn't quite fastened all the way. Alicia's eye for fashion was also a comforting safeguard against an unpleasant faux pas. As for me, I had fairly good knowledge of helpful charms and potions—Anti-Blistering Charm for shoes, Anti-Smudging Charm for makeup, Strengthening Solution for stockings—that made the process easier and the effects longer lasting. Between the four of us, we were armed to the teeth for the Yule Ball.
We were all fairly subdued as we prepared, aside from the occasional joke and Alicia's raucous, off-key rendition of "Hippogriff of Love", which she sang for the entire duration of her shower. We kept religiously to Angelina's proposed schedule, which, as always, was exceptionally accurate.
Viv was the first of us to be ready. In her robes of pale blue silk, she looked something like an ice princess. Her eyes seemed bluer and more striking with the subtle silvery blue eye makeup that Alicia had spent nearly ten minutes applying. Her hair was piled loosely on the top of her head and held in place with tiny rhinestone hairpins.
Alicia finished shortly after Viv. She had selected robes of sage green with very intricate gold embroidery on the sleeves. Viv had tried her best to match the color of Alicia's robes with the color of her eye makeup and the effect was very nice. Her hair hung down her back in thick glossy waves that Angelina had sprayed with various products.
I was the next to be done. Viv had done my makeup, emphasizing my eyes with moderately heavy eyeliner and had chosen a more muted shade for my lips. Angelina had done my hair up in a very soft twist. My robes got the seal of approval from Alicia, who said the soft gold was just perfect for my coloring and that the beading was beautiful, but tastefully understated (whatever that means).
Angelina was the last to finish up, mainly because her hair had taken so long. She had conjured up a very intricate braided hairdo, which was nicely offset by her simple dark purple robes. Alicia had chosen a more exotic look for Angelina's makeup and we all agreed that she looked absolutely stunning.
"Fred will be speechless," declared Viv as Angelina assessed herself in the mirror.
"I doubt it," replied Angelina, straightening her robes. "Sophie will play Quidditch the day Fred doesn't have something cheeky to say."
I groaned. "Is it possible not to think about that for one evening?"
"Oh, go on," laughed Viv. "You know I'm not much better on a broomstick."
Alicia glanced at the clock on her bedside table. "It's getting close…shall we go down?"
Angelina and Viv made murmurs of assent. After the four of us made last minute assessments and adjustments in front of the mirror, we filed downstairs accompanied by the group of fifth years who had asked us to be quiet the evening before. Katie Bell greeted us excitedly, looking quite lovely in a silky set of violet robes.
There were already a fair number of people gathered in the common room, despite the fact that we were not due in the Great Hall for another fifteen minutes or so. Some of the younger students were gathered in the corners of the room observing us and giggling intermittently.
"There they are," declared Angelina, craning her neck over the crowd. I followed Angelina closely as she made her way over to the fire where Fred, George, and Lee had taken over one of the couches.
I must say it was rather strange seeing the boys in dress robes. They didn't look bad or stupid, but it was quite different from what I was accustomed to. Fred and George were wearing robes of a similar style but Fred's were royal blue and George's were a dark emerald green. Lee had elected to wear robes of deep blood red. They all stood up as we arrived.
"You're late," declared Fred.
"Sod off, we're not," replied Angelina cheerfully.
"Whatever happened to 'Good evening, ladies. My, you look lovely!'?" asked Viv.
"It goes without saying," said George with a cheeky grin.
"Looks like Sophie got the well-mannered twin," said Angelina arching her eyebrow at Fred.
Fred shrugged. "Everyone knows I'm much handsomer than George."
"That is disputed," replied George, promptly.
"I don't know which one of us is luckier," said Angelina dryly.
"None of that," scolded Fred. "I put on dress robes for you, woman."
"Try wearing stockings and heels and then we'll talk," I replied.
"Let's keep Fred's private life out of this, shall we?" quipped Viv.
Fred's reply was cut short as people began moving toward the portrait hole.
"We ought to be leaving," said Alicia. She grabbed hold of Lee's arm. "Come on—you're supposed to be my escort you know."
Lee grumbled incoherently. Both Fred and George made a big show of bowing and offering their arms. I laughed and accepted George's arm.
"Come on, Viv, you'll walk with us," said Fred, offering her his free arm. Viv laughed.
"Thank you, Fred," she replied.
"But you know, as the ill-mannered twin, I ought to have slung you both over my shoulders and run out grunting and shouting," he said. Viv laughed and Angelina simply rolled her eyes.
"What stopped you, Fred?" I asked. A wicked gleam suddenly appeared in his eye and he made a move toward Angelina, who promptly swatted him.
"Fred Weasley, don't you dare…" she warned, but her eyes were sparkling with laughter.
"Sophie encouraged me," he replied.
"I did not!"
"Ah, but you did," said George, grinning.
"Now, George, as my date, shouldn't you be defending my honor?" I asked, arching an eyebrow at him.
George looked at the ceiling for a moment, pretending to be in deep thought.
"Not if you deliberately provoked him," he replied finally, with a smile. I opened my mouth to protest, but he put up his index finger. "I saw that glint in your eyes, Sophie. It was clearly mischievous."
"Perhaps you ought to have your eyes examined," I suggested, "for there was no such thing."
"I can spot mischief from kilometers away."
"You cause mischief from kilometers away," I corrected him as we finally approached the portrait door.
He grinned. "Cheeky."
We proceeded from the portrait hole to the entrance hall, where most of the school seemed to be waiting. Vivian disappeared for a few minutes and came back with a very good-looking dark-haired boy with high cheekbones.
"This is Adam," she said, smiling. "Er…Adam, these are my friends Alicia, Lee, Fred, Angelina, Sophie, and George."
"Enchanté," said Adam with a dazzling smile. "Eet's so wonderful to meet Veevian's friends. She 'as said so much about you."
Viv rolled her eyes and laughed. "Come on, I want to show you off to a few more people."
"Git," declared Fred, once Viv was out of earshot.
"Agreed," said George and Lee.
"What?" said Alicia incredulously.
"You barely exchanged ten words with him!" I protested.
"And he was quite nice," stated Angelina.
"Doesn't matter," said Fred.
"I can sense these things," said George. "In fact, I'm detecting the presence of a particularly large git right now."
Draco Malfoy passed by us barely two seconds later with his date, a vile girl called Pansy Parkinson.
"It's a gift," said Fred solemnly.
"Oh, I give up," I replied.
"Someone ought to tell him that black does not suit him," declared Alicia, frowning in Malfoy's direction. She was right—in his high necked velvet robes, he looked paler than usual, not to mention fairly ridiculous. "And she's no better…that has to be the most hideous shade of pink I have ever seen."
The doors finally opened and after the champions and their dates had gone in, we were all allowed inside. Fred, George, Lee, Angelina, Alicia, and I sat down at a table together. Vivian would be dining with Adam and his friends, although she had arranged to meet us on the dance floor later.
Dinner was very good, as usual. Fred, George, and Lee, of course, were extremely entertained by their magical plates and the prospects that they offered. After he had finished eating, Fred ordered several additional helpings of mashed potatoes and proceeded to make sculptures on his plate.
"You know, you could just sit and converse like a normal person," said Alicia.
"You forget that he's not a normal person," replied Angelina. She leaned over and squinted at his plate. "Is that supposed to be Hagrid?"
"Angelina, can't you see it's Filch?" replied Fred.
She frowned and squinted again. "Well…I suppose. That part in there looks like a beard."
By the time Dumbledore had asked us to all stand, Fred had produced a likeness of Filch that we all agreed was fairly lifelike. Sadly, his art was lost mere seconds later when the plates disappeared entirely and the tables swept toward the walls. Alicia barely muffled a happy squeak as the Weird Sisters came onstage with their instruments.
"This is so exciting," she whispered as the champions walked to the center of the floor. "I can't believe Dumbledore managed to book them."
Further discourse was cut short as Weird Sisters began to play the opening chords of a fairly slow tune. There was quite a range of emotions on the dance floor as the champions began to dance. Roger Davies looked rather awkward, but that could have been because he was exceptionally infatuated by his date, the exceptionally beautiful Fleur Delacour. Harry Potter looked as though he'd rather not be the center of attention, although Parvati Patil seemed to be rather keen on it all. Viktor Krum was a surprisingly good dancer and was guiding a smiling Hermione Granger around the floor with unexpected ease and grace. Cho Chang was poised and graceful and Cedric Diggory was just dashing.
"Come on," said George, tugging on my hand.
"What?" I asked.
"Let's dance," he said, pulling me toward the floor.
"George…"
"I rather think that Harry's had enough," he said, nodding at the boy in question. I knew they were fairly good friends, so I tried to swallow my hesitations about my two left feet.
We got to the floor with Fred, Angelina, Alicia, and Lee close behind. George took my hand and placed his other hand on my waist. I nervously placed my free hand on his shoulder and tried desperately to remember everything Viv had said to me the night before.
Despite all my worrying, there wasn't a whole lot to the simplified waltz we were doing. George was fairly adept, and after a few instances of stepping on his feet, I managed to relax a little and made fewer mistakes.
"You're awfully quiet," he said after a while.
"Just thinking," I replied. And I was, although most of my thoughts were focused on not tripping.
"You must do a lot of that, as you tend to be rather quiet most of the time."
"I haven't always got a lot to say," I explained.
"I have a hard time believing that," he replied.
"What?"
"I think you've got plenty to say, but you're too shy to say it. Or perhaps you're shy because the rest of us are so loud. Or maybe we're all too loud and you're normal, but quiet in comparison to us."
"You've put quite a lot of thought into this," I said with a laugh.
"I'm an intellectual."
"Now I have a hard time believing that," I replied.
"And what is that supposed to mean?" he asked with an arched eyebrow that suggested mock offense.
"I think you're quite clever, but you're much too…active to be an intellectual," I explained. "Clearly, you use your brain, but you turn your thoughts into actions rather than just keeping them as thoughts."
"So what am I then?" he asked.
I thought for a moment.
"A catalyst."
"A fancy word for 'troublemaker'," he declared. I laughed and he spun me around.
"Where did you learn to dance?" I asked him.
"Mum," he replied with a grin. "She thought there was a chance it would make us proper gentlemen."
"Perhaps there's still hope for you yet?" I asked.
He shook his head empathetically. "None at all."
I sighed in mock disappointment. "Tragic."
The song ended and the Weird Sisters launched into one of their popular rockers. However, the music wasn't loud enough to muffle the sound of a very familiar voice shouting angrily.
"Comment oses-tu?!"
I stopped and looked around. That was undoubtedly Vivian and she did not sound happy. George tugged on my sleeve.
"Sophie?"
"One moment…"
I had caught sight of Viv. She was standing in front of Adam and shouting in French, her face absolutely white with fury. She finally ended her angry tirade with a sharp slap to Adam's face. She spat another contemptuous phrase before turning on her heel and stalking angrily toward the gardens while some of the onlookers cheered. Adam looked startled and there was a red mark developing where Viv had slapped him.
I turned at George and opened my mouth to make an excuse.
"Go," he said before I could get the words out. I smiled slightly.
"Thanks."
I ran off the dance floor as fast as my heels could carry me and went out the doors and into the gardens. I did not have to go far to find Viv. She was sitting on a bench and positively quaking with anger.
"Viv, are you all right?" I asked, sitting down on the bench beside her.
"Sophie, are you certain that this Anti-Smearing Charm works?" she asked, ignoring my question.
"Positive. Why?"
"Because I don't want that wanker to spoil my makeup," she said, her voice quavering slightly. Her eyes were sparkling with unshed tears.
"What happened?" I asked insistently.
She took a deep, shaky breath.
"Well…it started at dinner. Offhand comments and such…I thought it wasn't anything to be upset about but…but then we started dancing and…" She cleared her throat and looked skyward, blinking furiously.
"H-h-his friends were nearby and they were talking to each other in French and he started saying that he was going to get into my knickers at the end of the night and that it would be easy because I was thickheaded. And it just got worse from there…he kept saying that I was one of those girls who wasn't good for anything but a shag. Then he tried to grab my bum…and that's when I started shouting at him."
I was horrified. "You only slapped him?"
"Well, first I pointed out that even if he'll try to shag anything with two legs, no one in their right mind would even think about shagging him. Then I said that he had probably very little to boast of below the belt other than a variety of infections and if he even thought about touching me again, he'd have less than that. Then I slapped him and said that if he really wanted to insult someone behind their back, perhaps he ought not to assume that they can't understand him."
"Nice work," I said with a small laugh. "But—oh, Viv, you know that what he said was rubbish?"
"Well, yes," she said quietly, looking down at her folded hands. "But I can't help but feel hurt."
"I know…and you have every right to," I assured her. "But it's not true. I just wish that could negate any sort of hurt he caused…but I know it doesn't work quite like that."
She gave a glum half smile.
"Thanks, Sophie."
"If you'd like, I could ask Fred, George, and Lee to have a word with him," I suggested. "I'm sure they'd be quite happy to do so."
She smiled a little more broadly.
"No, I think he's been humiliated quite enough," she replied. I raised my eyebrows. "Well, it will never be quite enough, I suppose, but I think a slap and verbal abuse is enough for one night."
"Vivian?"
I turned around. Dan Crawford was standing on the garden path behind us, looking concerned.
"Dan," greeted Viv slightly breathily, her face lighting up like a Christmas tree.
"I saw what happened and I…well, I wanted to see if you were all right," he said, a slight flush creeping into his cheeks.
"Well, I ought to get back to my date," I said, rising from the bench and giving Viv a small wink. She flashed a brief smile in return. Dan quickly took my place on the bench and I strode away from the happy couple.
George was waiting for me just outside the doorway.
"Have you been waiting here all this time?" I asked.
"You're my date, aren't you?" he replied with a grin.
"You didn't have to—I wouldn't want to keep you from having fun," I said.
"You're my date," he repeated. "How's Viv?"
I gave him an abridged version of what had happened.
"Bloody git," he growled when I had finished. "Perhaps we ought to—"
"No," I said firmly, cutting him off. "Viv said that wouldn't be necessary."
"I was merely suggesting that we give him a lesson in manners," replied George.
"I know what you were suggesting," I said, "and the answer is still no. Besides, I think Dan Crawford is providing sufficient comfort."
George wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
"Not that sort of comfort," I clarified. "Now, come on, let's go back in."
I noticed George gave Adam a very hostile look as we passed him. The red mark on his cheek had swollen slightly and it looked as though he would have a bruise the next day. I smiled slightly—Viv would be pleased. I pulled George by the wrist to hurry him along, as he had slowed in his stride to give Adam the evil eye.
"Come on," I coaxed. "Shall we go sit?"
"Sit?" asked George, raising his eyebrows in surprise. "Of course not! We are going to go dance."
He suddenly grabbed both of my shoulders and began steering me toward the place where Fred, Lee, Angelina, and Alicia were still dancing.
"George, I'm not much of a dancer, you know," I protested as he guided me through the crowd.
"Not yet," he said in my ear. I could tell he was grinning.
George mercifully allowed me to remain standing still while I explained to the others where we had been, but after that was through, he allowed very few exceptions. And although I'm not the most confident dancer, it became easier and more fun as time went on. I was not quite as exuberant as Angelina and Fred—people were actually moving away from the pair lest they be hit by a flying limb—but I certainly became much more relaxed and unreserved than I normally was.
Viv and Dan eventually joined us. Viv looked much happier and Dan looked quite thrilled to be in her company. Viv was hugged by Angelina and Alicia and offered violence on her behalf from Fred, George, and Lee. She accepted the hugs and declined the violence (although she did say it was quite all right to glare at him). The dancing commenced shortly afterward.
During one slower song, I happened to glance over at the tables and noticed Fred and George's younger brother, Ron, was sitting alone at a table with Harry Potter. They both looked rather put out.
"You know, your brother and Harry Potter are sitting at that table by themselves," I said to George.
"What?" He turned me around so he could get a better look at the table. "What of it?"
"Well…d'you think we should invite them over?" I asked. "Perhaps they're lonely. It looks like their dates left them."
"Looks like their dates had a good reason," said George. "Ron looks like he's in a right foul mood."
"Maybe he's nervous," I suggested.
"Nah," said George. "More likely he's being a prat."
"Well—"
"You know, Sophie," said George. "Sometimes you're just too nice."
"Should I take that as a compliment or an insult?" I asked.
"Take it as a blessing and a curse," he suggested.
The rest of the ball passed in a blur of dancing and laughter. By the time the last song was played, I was surprised at how fast the evening had gone, and found myself wishing it could carry on for a little longer. The ball finally ended and we were all instructed to go back to our dormitories. We had the fortune to pass Adam on our way out, so we were all able to dispense glares accordingly.
Dan walked with us up to Gryffindor tower and waited outside with Viv as the rest of us began to file into the portrait hole. Of course, this was not complete without all sorts of comments and catcalls from Fred, George, and Lee. Angelina, Alicia, and I ushered them through the hole as quickly as possible in order to give Viv some semblance of privacy.
None of us were very eager to go to bed, so we all piled onto two of the couches. I went upstairs to change into my favorite pajamas—blue flannel pants, fuzzy woolen socks, and white long sleeved shirt. Everyone else decided that this was a good idea and followed my example, leaving me to reserve the two couches by myself. Viv came back in while everyone else was still changing. She was positively glowing.
"You certainly look happy," I commented as she waltzed in with a broad smile on her face.
"He asked me out," she said, her smile growing even bigger.
"Really? That's wonderful!"
"He was so darling—he said that he had been meaning to ask me for a while, but he was so nervous…and then he said 'Would you mind if I kissed you? I know you generally don't on the first date…well, is this a date really…?' and then he started going on and on, so I finally kissed him so he'd shut up." She sighed happily.
"Oh, Viv, I'm so happy for you," I said, grinning happily. "You really deserve this…especially after your encounter with the world's biggest wanker."
"Talking about me, are you?" asked Fred coming down the stairs tailed closely by George, and Lee.
"Not quite," said Viv. "You've got to do a little more damage before you reach that level."
"Damn," said Fred, plopping down beside Viv. George and Lee sat down on either side of me. "I thought I was almost there."
"Well, with some hard work and ambition, I'm sure you can attain your goals," said Viv as she stood up.
"I'd better get started...so how's Dan?" asked Fred with an obnoxious grin.
Viv rolled her eyes and made her way over to the stairs. "I'm going to go change."
Viv disappeared up the spiral staircase just as Angelina and Alicia came bounding down. Angelina sat down next to Fred and Alicia plopped down on the couch next to Lee, giving him a look that was mildly accusatory.
"What?" he asked. "I didn't do anything!"
"I know," said Alicia. "I just don't trust you unsupervised."
Lee looked mildly affronted.
"I'm very responsible!" he objected.
"Responsible for trouble," clarified Alicia.
"Trouble can be quite beneficial," said Lee with a wise nod.
"For who?" asked Alicia.
"People in general," he said with a vague gesture.
"You're mad," declared Angelina.
"Speaking of mad, Viv looked awfully happy," observed Alicia.
"Dan asked her out," I explained.
"She deserves it after the night she's had," said Angelina.
"I know," I replied.
"Crawford's not nearly as much of a git as that other bloke," said Lee. Fred and George nodded in agreement. "He's very nice—helped me out of some trouble with Filch." He smiled at the memory. "That was a good day."
When Viv returned, she obligingly regaled us with the tale of Dan asking her out, which the girls very much enjoyed. Fred, George, and Lee all looked mildly bored and announced that Dan was "all right" and that it would be acceptable for Viv to date him. Viv just rolled her eyes. The conversation drifted from there. There was quite a lot of laughter, although it became rather subdued as the hour grew later. Alicia nodded off around two and George fell asleep on my shoulder around half past two. Around half past three, Fred, Lee, Angelina, Viv and I agreed that it was time for bed.
"George," I said quietly, shifting my shoulder slightly. "George, wake up. We're all going to bed now."
He stirred slightly and his eyes slid open..
"I'm glad you find us such stirring conversationalists," said Viv genially.
George grinned and yawned. "No offense, but it was quite an evening." He looked at me.
"Thanks, Sophie."
"You're welcome," I replied, not sure if he was thanking me for a nice evening or for serving as a pillow.
We all got up and headed off to our respective dormitories.
"Did you have fun?" asked Viv while Angelina and Alicia were both in the bathroom.
"Yes, it was fun," I admitted as I turned down the covers.
"You and George looked like you were having a nice time together," she observed with a sly smile that seemed to suggest something else.
"Well, of course," I replied. "He's George Weasley, after all."
Viv paused. "I think he fancies you."
"I think you are deluded by your own romantic conquests," I replied with a smile.
"You spent an awful lot of time together," she pointed out with a raised eyebrow.
"I was his date," I countered.
"The ball ended at midnight, Sophie."
I sighed and crawled under the covers. "We are friends."
"Friends can turn—"
"Goodnight, Vivian."
A/N: The French dialogue used in this chapter translates to "Charmed/Nice to meet you" and "How dare you?!" respectively. I don't speak French, so if there is a more proper way to say this, let me know.