A loud crash sounded behind Harry. Neville was putting on his dress robe and he had accidentally knocked over the things on his table. Neville grinned sheepishly at the room in general, and then bent down to pick his things up. No good-natured teasing came from the other boys in the dormitory, they were all too nervous to say anything at the moment. Seamus had been struggling with his tie for about ten minutes now, Dean couldn't decide which pair of socks to use (as if anyone would see them, Harry thought wryly), and Ron was still trying to remove all traces of lace from his maroon dress robe. For his part, Harry kept flattening his hair and looking at his reflection in the mirror, from which he was currently surveying the dormitory.

A few minutes later, he decided that his hair was about as flat as it could get, and he turned to face his dorm-mates.

"Let's go, Ron, Nev," called Harry.

Ron looked miserably at his dress robe, decided to give up on it, and walked with Harry and Neville out of their dormitory. They were shortly followed by Dean and Seamus. The five boys waited for their dates in the common room, seating themselves in a group of chairs under the Gryffindor banner, directly facing the stairs to the girls' dormitories.

Harry leaned on the back of the chair that Dean was sitting on since there were no other seats available in that group. He looked at his dorm-mates and suddenly saw how nervous they really were. Neville and Seamus looked like they were about to vomit, Dean was fidgeting on his seat, and Ron…. Well, Ron was just staring blankly at the rug. Harry wondered what he was thinking.

Harry was going with Ginny, so he definitely wasn't as nervous as the other four, but he was still feeling a little jittery. He wished that she would come down already. About ten minutes later, she did.

Ginny came out from the girls' dormitories and walked gracefully down the stairs. She was wearing a green, lightly patterned dress. Her long, red hair, which was usually windswept, fell smoothly down her back. It somehow glittered golden under the common room light.

Harry's eyes widened. He'd always known from the moment he met her that Ginny was pretty. But he never really gave much thought to it, it was just one of those things that he accepted as is, like her fiery hair or her freckles. Now, with Ginny standing at the top of the stairs, it suddenly struck him how pretty she really was. It was almost unnerving.

Someone whistled quietly near Harry. "Wow…" they murmured appreciatively.

Harry let go of the breath he didn't know he was holding and closed his slightly open mouth. He turned to the person who just talked and was about to say his agreement when he realized that it was Dean.

"What?" Harry asked tonelessly.

"She looks great!" Dean said breathlessly.

Harry did not like his excitement. "I am quite aware of that," he said with the slightest hint of irritation.

"I'm just saying," said Dean, holding up his hands.

Harry ignored Dean and walked towards Ginny, waiting for her to descend to the bottom of the stairs.

"You look great," he told her honestly.

She grinned at him as she stepped on the common room floor.

"Thank you," she said, doing a mock-curtsey.

The clock on the dressing table read 7:29. Ginny stared at it as the second hand began its course around the clock's face. For every tick that sounded, her heart beat faster, louder. She wasn't entirely sure why, but she was very nervous, more nervous than she should be. It was her first time wearing a ball gown, she wasn't used to wearing heels so she might trip, and it was her first ever school dance, but none of those seemed really enough reason for her to be so bloody nervous. Her heart was beating so loudly, it seemed to be pulsing right next to her ear.

The second hand reached the 12 o'clock position—7:30. Ginny stood up, took a deep breath, cleared her throat to make sure that she could hear her surroundings over her loudly beating heart, and headed for the common room.

Midway down the stairs, she saw him, standing across the room. Harry was talking to his friends, and then, as though in slow motion, he turned to face her and for a fraction of a second, her heart stopped beating entirely. She took him in, his messy hair, his self-conscious bearing, his slightly nervous smile. And oh, his eyes, his emerald green eyes, twinkling behind those glasses. It struck her how handsome he was and she was suddenly overcome with this strange feeling. It was almost like drowning.

A second passed. Ginny brushed the feeling away and continued to walk down the stairs. Harry walked towards her and waited at the bottom.

"You look great," he said.

She grinned, pleased with his compliment.

"Thank you," she said, curtseying playfully. "You look quite handsome yourself," she added, lightly but honestly.

Harry grinned at her and awkwardly flattened his hair. He was never able to handle compliments about his appearance well. It was kind of cute.

Ginny followed Harry to the group of chairs under the Gryffindor banner, where Ron, Neville, Dean and Seamus were sitting. Ron was going with Padma Patil, so they had to wait for Parvati so that she could introduce them properly.

"Here Ginny, you can take my seat," offered Dean, practically jumping from his chair and smiling brightly at her.

"Thanks," she said, confidently returning his smile.

Ginny settled herself on the chair and smiled self-consciously at the Gryffindor boys. They were all beaming at her. Except, of course, her brother.

"Where's Hermione?" Ron asked urgently.

Professor McGonagall's voice sounded over the chatter of the students in the Entrance Hall. "Champions over here please!" she called.

The three Champions and their dates walked forward, the crowd parting to let them through, and followed McGonagall to one side of the doors. Everyone's eyes were on them. Harry looked at Cho. Her silky black hair fell smoothly past her shoulders and down the back of her deep red dress. She stood confidently, one hand holding Cedric's. Her pretty smile, which used to make Harry so happy when he saw it, now sent pangs of regret and disappointment through him. She looked stunning; he wished for a moment that it were his hand she was holding right now.

"She's beautiful," Ginny whispered admiringly beside him.

"Yeah," he said unhappily.

He tore his gaze away from Cho and looked at Ginny. She hadn't meant Cho. He followed her gaze, towards the girl who was standing next to Viktor Krum. Harry's jaw dropped.

"Hermione?" he said in a shocked voice.

He turned back to Ginny, mouth still open. She nodded knowingly at him. He turned to Ron, intending to point Hermione out to him, but Ron was already staring at her. He was frowning so hard his eyebrows had formed one continuous line. Whether he was hurt or angry, Harry couldn't tell.

Presently, the door to the Great Hall opened, and McGonagall ushered them in. The Champions were to enter the Great Hall in procession when the rest of the students had sat down. Harry and Ginny smiled at Hermione as they went past the Champions. Harry glanced at Cho for the briefest of moments before entering the Great Hall.

He and Ginny chose a table near the entrance at the right side of the Hall. They shared it with Ron and Padma, Neville and Parvati, Seamus and Lavender, and Dean and his fifth year girlfriend. After a few minutes, the Champions and their dates entered the Great Hall to the sound of applause. They reached the top table moments later and everyone else returned to their own tables.

Seamus and Lavender, Ginny thought wryly, are meant for each other. They were sitting across from her and Harry with their lips glued together, the food on their plates forgotten. Ginny was still eating, and it was rather scandalizing. She tried teasing them in the hopes of making them stop or at least go somewhere else, but somehow, that only made them more enthusiastic. Dean was sitting next to them, but he and his date were too busy talking to, and sometimes feeding, each other to notice; Parvati and Padma were too busy checking out the Beauxbatons boys in the next table to care, and Ron, who was staring at Hermione, was probably too busy plotting Krum's 'accidental' death. Neville concentrated on his food and tried to look everywhere but Seamus and Lavender. Ginny and Harry tried to distract each other with comments about the food like "pork chop's good," or "try the fillet," but that didn't really work.

Thankfully, Dumbledore decided that it was time for the dance to start. He asked everyone to stand up, positioned the tables and the chairs along the walls, and conjured a raised platform into existence along the right wall. Musical instruments were set upon it.

The members of the Weird Sisters started trooping up the stage. The Weird Sisters was Ginny's favorite band. She clapped enthusiastically with everyone else, and was one of those who stood up in excitement. The vocalist walked up front and performed the Sonorus charm, then the first chords were struck and the Champions and their partners started dancing to one of the band's slower songs.

"What's this song called?" asked Harry.

"The Last Dance," Ginny replied automatically. It was one of the songs in the Weird Sisters' new album, but she wasn't surprised that Harry didn't know it. He was pitifully ignorant when it came to the music scene, which was ironic considering his godfather was one of the best musicians in recent times. Quidditch, Harry could spurt the latest team and player standings in under a minute, but music…go talk to someone else.

"Oh," said Harry, looking like he was hoping that it really would be the last dance.

She suddenly felt the need to explain the song to him.

"It's about these two childhood friends who have dance, er, 'sessions' together, and they—well, they fall in love," she said, looking up and meeting his emerald green eyes. "See, the chorus goes: our hands were held together, and I had been so unaware, that you taught my heart what it was to truly love and care…."

She trailed off, realizing the gravity of what she just said. Harry was looking at her, waiting for her to continue. She could see that he was sincerely interested in what she was saying. His eyes were suddenly too bright for her and Ginny looked away, unable to gaze into them for a moment longer.

"Just, er, wait for the chorus," she said quietly, staring at the people on the dance floor but not really seeing them. She didn't know why she had felt the need to explain the song, it was really unnecessary. But at least, she thought, Harry wasn't making any immature comments like Ron would have.

"Come on, Lav," Seamus said loudly, interrupting Ginny from her thoughts.

Lavender took the hand Seamus had offered and he led her to the dance floor. Dean and his girlfriend followed them a second later.

"Er…would you like to dance?" Neville asked Parvati.

"Yeah, sure," said Parvati, taking Neville's hand.

Parvati lightly touched her twin sister on the arm and gave her a look that could mean 'good luck with him' or 'sorry for partnering you up with him'. 'Him', of course, could only mean Ron, who was frowning at Hermione and Viktor Krum as they danced to the music.

The Weird Sisters started playing their more upbeat songs. Harry cocked his head to one side, Ginny tapped her foot lightly to the music, Ron frowned, and Padma waved to one of the Beauxbatons boys from the next table.

"Hey, what's this one called?" Harry asked Ginny. Ron sighed loudly beside her.

"Just a Smile Away," she replied. Ron gave an irritable huff.

"Yeah? It's good," Harry said simply, grinning at her. She gave an awkward smile and looked away from him again. Ron let out another frustrated sigh.

"What is your problem?" she asked her brother in annoyance.

Ron looked stonily at her for a minute before turning back to the table without giving her a reply. Ginny closed her eyes for a moment, summoning the last ounce of her patience.

"I'm sorry about him, Padma," she told the girl evenly. "He's just pissed—"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ron asked irritably. "What are you apologizing for?"

Harry tried to intervene. "Guys—"

"Isn't it obvious, Ron?" she said angrily. "You are being the worst date in the history of dates. And not only that, you are spreading your angry aura all around you! This would've been an enjoyable evening if you weren't sitting there huffing and puffing like you're trying to catch a Blast-Ended Skrewt!"

"Ginny," Harry said weakly.

He tugged on her arm. She pulled it away. Ron opened his mouth again.

"You know what Ginny, this was a lovely evening until you started talking to me," said Ron. "Your voice is irritating and I don't care what you think, so just mind your own damn business!"

Ginny looked angrily at her brother, her jaws clenched. She had a million things to say to him. He had no right to call her irritating. He was the one who was irritating. If he wanted her to mind her own business, he shouldn't have been sitting next to her interrupting her conversation with Harry. If he wanted to go with Hermione, he should have asked her sooner. And now that she's with Krum, he should be a good sport about it.

Ginny couldn't—wouldn't—let her brother ruin the night. She took a deep breath in an effort to calm herself and turned to Padma.

"I'd go dance with someone else if I were you," Ginny told Padma. She turned to Harry and without really thinking, she grabbed his arm, said, "Let's go dance," and dragged him to the dance floor.

Ginny let go of Harry when they got to the middle of the dance floor. He looked awkwardly at her, and then around them, looking quite lost as to what to do. She was still fuming because of Ron and wasn't really too keen on dancing.

"Oi, what are you two doing?" Fred called over the loud music. "Don't just stand there."

"Dance, dance," said Angelina, nodding fervently at the two of them.

Angelina let go of Fred's hand and pushed Harry nearer to Ginny. Fred took Angelina's hand again, winked at Ginny and Harry, and led Angelina away. They 'accidentally' bumped into Malfoy and he was pushed towards Pansy Parkinson so that their faces were inches away from each other. Ginny made a face; she would not want to be the one kissing Malfoy. Disgusting. Parkinson didn't seem to mind, but Malfoy didn't look too happy. He whipped around to see who had pushed him but Fred and Angelina were already on the other side of the room.

Ginny's mood lifted up. She turned back to Harry and grinned at him. She started swaying her shoulders, then her whole body, to the music. Harry stood still, looking at her with an amused smile on his face.

"What are you doing?" she asked, hitting him lightly on the arm. "Dance, dance!"

The current song ended and the next song started playing. Ginny recognized it the moment the first chords were struck. She happily clapped her hands.

"Come on, Harry," she said cheerfully. "This is my favorite song!"

Ginny sang along with the Weird Sisters, dancing all the while. Harry grinned at her and started bobbing his head. The next second, he was dancing enthusiastically to the music.

"See, it's not so bad," she told him.

And it really wasn't. The Weird Sisters were playing their upbeat songs and everyone was dancing together. At one point, a break dance took place and Ginny clapped enthusiastically with everyone else as a fifth year Hufflepuff showed off his dance moves. Fred and Angelina also approached Ginny and Harry from time to time and the four of them would dance together. George, who was going stag so that he could 'dance with every girl', also came and pushed Harry out of the way because he 'wanted to dance with his little sister'. Harry pushed George back and he went to pester Lee Jordan and Katie Bell. Ginny laughed at her brothers' antics. They always managed to make everything a lot of fun.

Presently, the current song ended. The vocalist cleared his throat. "Alright," he began, "this next song was originally by Ephraim Lewis, who was a genius by many standards."

The vocalist signaled to his bandmates and the song began, with the sax player, guitarist, and drummer playing the intro. Ginny could tell that it was going to be a romantic song. Fred put his arms around Angelina and pulled her towards him, George stepped closer to the Beauxbatons girl he was dancing with, Dean and his girlfriend put their heads together, and Viktor Krum took Hermione's hands and put them around his neck. Harry looked at Ginny and grinned awkwardly as he nervously tried to flatten his hair. The vocalist started singing the first lines of the song.

Feel the ground it's slipping away
Like a sigh that greets the close of day

Ginny grabbed Harry's hand.

Betaed by: PadfootProngs7 and NancyDrewGirl

Additional Disclaimers:

"The Last Dance" is a translation of a Filipino song called "Ang Huling El Bimbo", by a band called "Eraserheads". It is a very sad, yet deep and profound song. But it is not merely a song. One could say that this song is ingrained in the culture of recent Philippines. And one could safely assume that if someone is Filipino, then they know this song.

"Just a Smile Away" is a title from an "APO Hiking Society" song. Again, they are a Filipino band.

Ephraim Lewis is a real-life musician. He died in 1994. "Drowning in Your Eyes" is my favorite song of his. The song was released before Christmas of 1994, so reality will not implode. Let's just assume in this story that he's a Wizard who also played his music in the Muggle world.

Review questions and answers that everyone else might like to know:

Q: Can you please add Luna to the story?
A: Luna will be in this story but you'll have to wait about seven chapters for her to make an appearance.

Q: Lupin is permanent?
A: All I can say is Lupin won't get sacked.

Q: When can we meet Harry's parents?
A: We'll meet Harry's parents at the end of his fourth year when they meet him in Platform 9 and 3/4