Author's Note: If I were J.K Rowling, I think I would've said something by now. Since I haven't and I am not her, I only own Alex and anything you don't recognize.

Chapter 15 Preparations

The weekend before the Yule Ball, there was a Hogsmede trip. That Saturday, the Gryffindor fourth year girls, minus Maggie, bundled up warmly and headed to the village. Alex had told them she knew a place that sold dresses. Glancing down at the directions Malfoy gave her, she led the way down twisting alleyways, praying she wasn't lost. They finally reached the street and found the store.

"Well ladies, here's our stop. Have a fun time and if you'll excuse me, I'm going to be at The Three Broomsticks with a nice warm mug of Butterbeer," said Alex as she tried to run but Hermione grabbed her.

"No way in Merlin, Alex!" she hissed, "If I have to go in there with them, you have to as well. Do you seriously want me to lose my mind?"

"Yeah, actually. Then I could borrow your brain for the upcoming History of Magic test," said Alex cheekily but she linked arms with Hermione and walked through the door.

Leaving their coats and other stuff at the front of the store, the girls began their search. Parvati and her twin sister, Padma, were able to find two exotic looking dresses. One was a dull red with a gold hem that was sleeveless and went to their mid-shin. It came with a matching wrap. The other was the same but it was a mild blue with a silver hem. With their hair pulled back in a braid, the twins would look like they just flew in from India. However, neither of the girls had dates yet and complained their dresses would just sit in their closets and collect dust. Alex decided not to mention to Parvati that she had, in fact, been asked and could've had a date. She didn't want to get into an argument with two of her roommates in one year.

Lavender found a gorgeous strapless dress that came just above her knee. It was tight in the bodice but came out just enough at the waist down with a see-through material over the bottom. To Alex's great enjoyment, the color of the dress was lavender, though Lavender insisted it was a light purple and wouldn't listen when Alex told her lavender was light purple. Eventually, she just stopped trying to make her friend understand and just nodded and smiled.

Hermione was very picky about her dress. She finally decided on a light pink dress that, in the front, came up to her knee and became gradually longer towards the back. It had straps and the front of the dress came straight across the chest.

Finally, Alex found one she really loved. It was an emerald green, full-length gown with silver threads woven in so that when she walked, there was a silver sparkle to the dress. When Alex came out of the dressing room with the dress on, her friends gasped and stared in awe.

"Wow Alex," said Lavender, "That looks amazing on you, even though it has the Slytherin colors."

"They have it in red you know," said Parvati, "Do you want to get that one instead?"

"They don't have my size," said Alex, looking in a mirror and twirling around to see every inch, "And besides, everyone knows I'm a Gryffindor and what's wrong with wearing something different for a change?"

Next were the accessories. The Patil twins got matching golden Romanesque sandals with golden bangles and chandelier earrings.

Lavender got a pair of strappy, very high-heeled, silvery shoes. Alex thought it amazing she could even walk in them. Lavender's jewelry consisted of silver hoops and a silver chain with a heart pendant.

Hermione found a pair of heels, not too high but had just enough height, that was the same color as her dress. She also got a pair of pink flower stud earrings with a matching necklace.

Alex found a pretty bracelet that was made of crystals along with a similar necklace and pair of earrings. She also got a pair of silvery high-heels, not as high as Lavender's but higher than Hermione's. The ladies running the store said that the girls could leave their purchases at the front desk and that they would bring them up to the castle for them. The girls thanked the ladies and went back out into the cold.

"Hang on guys," said Alex as her friends headed back the way they had come, "I promised someone I'd visit. Come on!"

She led the girls into Grandma Hinkins' Homemade Fudge store, the bell ringing as they entered. Mrs. Hinkins came from the back and smiled warmly at the girls.

"Hello there, Alex," the old woman said, "Welcome back! I see you brought some friends with you."

"This is Parvati and Padma Patil, Lavender Brown, and Hermione Granger," Alex introduced, "I just wanted them to see this place."

"Well I'm glad you brought them, business has been a little slow but it'll pick up as the holidays come," Mrs. Hinkins said hopefully.

Alex chatted with the owner as her friends went around with wide-eyes, looking at the sweets hungrily. Eventually, they each bought a mixed bag of sweets and left.

"This stuff is delicious!" said Lavender as she munched on a Muggle candy bar, "I haven't had one of these since I was eleven!"

"She should go onto the main street," said Hermione as she struggled to chew her caramel sweets, "People would go nuts for this stuff."

"She can't, there's "not enough room"," said Alex using air quotes and a sarcastic tone, "It all comes down to business. Honeydukes doesn't want to have to compete with another company."

The girls reached the main road and went their separate ways. Alex still had to buy for her father and she wanted to get something for Draco. For her dad, she found a really nice pocket photo album that she would fill with pictures. Draco however, she had a much harder time looking for.

Alex stepped into a watch shop and began searching for something nice, but not too expensive. As Alex was passing, she saw a beautifully made gold plated watch. Its face had the numbers in golden writing with an emerald green background.

"Sir, how much is this?" she asked.

The owner pulled it out and checked the price.

"One hundred Galleons, five Sickles, and three Knuts," the man said and Alex's face fell.

"Wow," she said, staring at the watch, "That's a little out of my price range. Is there anything like it but not as expensive?"

"This is an original," the man said, seeming to be thinking, "Who would this be for?"

"A very good friend of mine," said Alex, "He's helped me a lot this year and I wanted to get him something really nice. Thank you, I'll just keep looking."

"Wait a moment," the man said as Alex turned to leave, "I could lower the price if you give me your necklace."

"No," said Alex in an instant, "This was my mother's, the only thing I have left of hers. I wouldn't give it up for anything in the world."

"Fine then," the man said, "The price is eighty-five galleons."

"I see," said Alex hesitantly. It was better, but still too much.

"Eighty galleons, that's my final offer. I'm practically giving it away."

"Sixty-five galleons or I'm gone," said Alex. She liked bargaining.

"Lady!" the man cried angrily, "I have a family to feed too you know! That's much too low, I won't accept it. I'll give this watch to you for seventy galleons and six sickles, and let me tell you, you won't find anyone else in all of London who would give you such a price."

Alex paid the man and took the watch. She was walking up to the castle when she heard her name called. She spun around and saw Draco coming toward her. Quickly as she could, she hid the watch behind her back and tried to look normal.

"Hey Alex, still shopping for gifts?" he asked.

"Just finished," she said as they walked, trying to keep her packages out of sight, "How about you?"

"Yeah, I did my Christmas shopping and had to buy new dress robes. My old ones were too short. You need help carrying those?" he asked, seeing her struggling.

"Nope, I'm fine," she said quickly, silently thanking fate for then reaching the castle doors, "I'll see you later, Draco!"

She tore up the stairs, barely noticing Draco's confused expression. She reached the common room and went to her dormitory to wrap her gifts. She found the fudge must have had a charm to keep it fresh because it didn't look stale at all. Once she finished, she put her friends' gifts by her night table and took the rest to the Owlry to be sent. Monty wasn't able to carry them all so Alex recruited other school owls to help Monty out.

When Alex returned, she found Harry, Hermione, and Ginny sitting around a very pale Ron.

"What's up?" she asked, "Ron's wand didn't backfire again, did it?"

"Ron tried to ask Fleur Delacore out," said Ginny, "Actually, he more like shouted her out. It was kind of scary."

"Well, did she say yes?" asked Hermione impatiently.

Ron made a noise that Alex had no idea what it stood for. Harry translated for them.

"She just stared at him and walked away," said Harry, "See, we promised not to come back to the common room without dates. I guess it didn't work out too well."

"You mean you still don't have anyone to take?" asked Ginny casually. Alex had to commend her for that. She knew Ginny had a thing for Harry since she first met him.

"I told you two," said Alex, "Take Parvati and Padma, they don't have dates."

"Hey Ron," said Harry as though a light bulb just turned on, "I have an idea, be right back."

Harry got up and went over to Parvati. She smiled and nodded, telling him something. He thanked her and left, coming over to their group with a relieved look on his face.

"I just asked Parvati if she could go with me and she said yes. Ron, she said her sister needed a date, she's in Ravenclaw."

"Good thinking, Harry," said Ron, recovering from his mute state, "Why didn't we do that before?"

"You guys are the most," said Alex, taking a step towards them, "deaf, idiotic," she took another one, the boy backing up, "people I ever met. You're so…so…so like a guy!"

She stormed off to the dormitory and Harry and Ron looked at each other.

"What? Was it something we said?" Ron asked Hermione, who just sighed and went up to bed.

…...

With the Christmas season drawing ever closer, the castle began showing off its Christmas spirit. Alex was out on the snow covered grounds helping Hagrid choose the Christmas trees that would be decorated in the Great Hall. They had already done three and were choosing the last one.

"You think this is tall enough?" Alex asked, pointing to the tallest one she saw.

"Good eye there," Hagrid said and began cutting it down. When he finished, they carried the tree together, Hagrid taking the brunt of the load.

"Hello there, 'Agrid!" Madame Maxime said in an annoyingly girlish voice, "Vould you help me with ze carriage? Ze wheels are caught in ze ice."

"O' course!" said Hagrid eagerly and dropped the tree, leaving Alex alone with an at least ten footer to carry back.

"No really, Hagrid," shouted Alex as Hagrid took off, "I'm fine! Yes, I know it weighs ten times as much as I do, but I got it! Thanks for asking!"

Hagrid either didn't hear her or ignored her. Sighing heavily, Alex pulled out her wand and muttered a spell. The tree hovered and Alex walked it into the school, set it in the corner of the Great Hall, and went back outside to see if Hagrid needed her to do anything else. Not seeing him around, Alex went back indoors and wiped flakes of snow off her hat and hair.

"What are you doing?"

Alex jumped and turned to see Filch shaking with anger. Mrs. Norris was looking pleased with herself.

"Look at this floor!" he shouted and Alex looked behind her. There were wet footprints were she had walked, but they would dry in no time, "I spent all yesterday making this floor sparkle and here you come and ruin it!"

"I'm sorry sir," said Alex sincerely. She forgot that Filch was a Squib and while a normal wizard would have spent five minutes tops cleaning a floor with his wand, Filch had to do it by hand, "I'll clean it up if you want me to."

So Alex waved her wand and it was clean. Filch grunted and went off, Mrs. Norris following. Alex shrugged and decided to take a trip to the Owlry. She hadn't been there in a while and missed the chattering of her owl friends.

Alex arrived and closed her eyes, listening to all of the noise. To anyone else, they would have heard a confused jumble of hoots and flapping wings. But to Alex, it was just like walking into the Great Hall or any other crowded place. Of course, the topics of conversation were about mice and wind patterns instead of upcoming tests and the dance.

"Alex! Alex, I found him!" came the call of her owl as Monty swooped in and landed on the ledge by her head.

"Found who? What's the matter?" asked Alex in obvious confusion.

"I found Professor Lupin! He was hiding out in a cave so it took me forever to find him," Monty explained with excitement, "When I found him, I went inside but he wasn't there at first. He came in but wasn't surprised; he seemed to know who I was. He asked me to deliver this to you."

Monty held out his leg and Alex quickly removed the letter, slipping her owl a treat and going to the window. She unrolled the letter and her eyes scanned the page like lightning, eager to hear about her old professor.

Dear Alex,

When I returned to my extremely humble abode, you can imagine my surprise when I saw this very familiar owl sitting on my cot, cleaning his feathers. However, I soon realized that I should have expected this. Like your mother and aunt, you never give up on those who you call friends.

I suppose you will want to know what I have been up to since Hogwarts. Currently, I am still looking for work. As your owl probably told you, I am living in a cave but only during my time of the month. I have a small apartment in London and still managing to pay the rent. I have an interview with a Wizarding school in Scotland next week so we shall see what happens there. I did enjoy teaching you and your fellow students very much so hopefully I can continue doing that. If not, perhaps I could work in a bookstore up in the Scottish hills. When I left Hogwarts, that was what I did.

I have talked with Orion a little bit and he seems well, does he not? I'm sure he is much happier not being in that cage anymore. He told me about the TriWizard Tournament at Hogwarts and about how Harry was entered.

Alex, I must ask you to keep an eye on Harry. Like his father, Harry has the uncanny ability to get himself in big trouble without meaning to. Make sure he doesn't do anything rash. I ask this of you as well. You are like your mother in that you have a fiery temper. While this is good because you let people know exactly what you think, it is also a curse. Your temper takes over your judgment and makes you do things that you would not normally do if you were thinking clearly. I know your father is worried about you and I am as well. Dark magic is trying to get into Hogwarts and it has evil plans for you and Harry. Be on your guard and stay safe.

I do not know how often I will be able to write with you. Most of my time and energy will be spent finding a job and trying to settle down. Perhaps once things are more stable and calm, I will be able to keep up a more consistent correspondence. Give my best to Elian and say hello to Harry, Ron, and Hermione for me.

Sincerely,

Moony

Alex stared at the letter in her hands for a moment, eyes burning with tears of anger and frustration. Again, she was being told to watch her back and be a good girl! Why couldn't her father and Lupin trust her? She wasn't a baby anymore, but a fourteen-year-old girl! And sure, she had a bad temper, but it was so much better than it used to be. For the first three years of Hogwarts, little things used to set her off. Now, she was able to restrain herself for the most part. Certain things still angered her and would set her over the edge, especially if it was done by the Slytherins, but at least she wasn't afraid to stand up for what she believed in!

And who did they think they were? They only knew her for one year! That was barely anytime at all, yet they acted like they knew exactly what she would do in situations. Alex understood that she was a lot like her mother, but that was it. She was a lot like her; she wasn't her. Alex was her own person and could make her own decisions. She wouldn't do everything her mother did, make all the same mistakes that she might have made while at school.

Alex stared at the letter once more. It was so distant, so cold. It was as if her previous professor was annoyed and didn't want to be bothered with her anymore now that he was out of Hogwarts. She knew that he was probably under a lot of stress, but that didn't soothe the pain in her heart as she reread those words. Fine, if he didn't have time to keep up a correspondence, she wouldn't bother him anymore.

"Alex," Monty said softly, nipping her lightly on the arm, "Why are you shedding tears?"

Alex put a hand to her cheek and realized her tears had overflowed down her cheeks. She wiped her eyes and looked out the window.

"Professor Lupin was always very polite," she said with a dark chuckle, her voice bitter, "This was his way of saying he doesn't have time to write to me. But he still found space to tell me that I need to be a good little girl and not get into trouble. Just keep my head down and make sure Harry does the same."

"You know he does have a lot to worry about," said Monty gently, "Perhaps he told you those things so he doesn't have something else to worry about as he is busy with other things. He really does care about you, Alex."

"I know, Monty. I just wish they'd stop telling me to be good. Yeah, I get that I have a horrible temper but it's not my fault!" she said angrily, "I try my best and isn't that what counts?"

"Of course, Alex. As long as you try your best and are careful, that is all anyone can ask of you. Don't be angry at them; they are just trying to show you how much they care. It seems they are not the best at showing it, though."

Alex sighed and petted Monty's head, feeling herself calm down. The anger was still there, like a burning acid in the pit of her stomach, but Alex knew that what her owl said was right. It still hurt and bothered her, but she just had to try and keep her eyes open. And Alex would make sure nothing happened to Harry in this tournament, even if she had to use that fiery temper of hers to fuel her attack.

That night in the common room, Alex showed Harry the letter she received. Harry read it, his eyes slowing down and rereading parts. When he finished, he looked at the letter before raising an eyebrow at Alex.

"So what are you going to do?" he asked and Alex knew he was referring to if she would write back or not.

"Nothing," she said with a shrug, "If he's too busy, I don't want to bother him. Merlin forbid I show signs of concern or anything."

Harry nodded and Alex knew he was holding back his anger as well. She put a hand on his arm and gave him a half smile. He tried to smile back, but it faltered as he stared at the fire. Alex stood up, took the letter from Harry, and threw it in the fire.

"Don't let his words get you upset," she said kindly, but firmly, "He's just trying to do his best to protect us. All that matters is that we stick together. Besides," she added with a wry smile, "With your amazing Defense Against the Dark Arts skills and my fiery temper, no one would dare take the two of us on as a team."

Harry chuckled and said, "Thanks Alex, I needed that."

"You're welcome, Harry. That's what friends are for," she said with a grin and bade him good night.

…...

"Have a Merry Christmas children! For those of you attending the Yule Ball, I'll be seeing you there!"

Professor Nellie's last Arithmancy class of the day was packing up quickly to get back to their common rooms to begin the start of their holiday. As Nick left, he smiled at Alex and waved. She waved back and was about to leave when Professor Nellie called her back.

"Miss Ratcliff," the old man wheezed, "I just want to congratulate you on your amazing progress this term. You have made quite an improvement."

"Well sir," said Alex smiling happily, "I couldn't have done it without Mr. Malfoy. He's been tutoring me every week and I think that's made the difference."

"Keep it up then, Miss Ratcliff," Professor Nellie said, "I'm glad to see that his House doesn't affect your friendship in the least."

Alex said good-bye and left the classroom. She was walking down the hall when a figure popped out of a corner and startled her.

"Draco!" she said, clutching her heart but grinning, "Holy Merlin, are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

"Of course not," he said with a mischievous smile, "Then I wouldn't have a Potions partner. So, what did Professor Nellie want?"

"He wanted to tell me how happy he was of my improvement in his class," said Alex as they walked together down an empty corridor, "And I told him that it was probably because of you helping me."

"You would have figured it out without my help," said Draco, turning a little pink, "But thanks for saying that. What did he think of that?"

"He said he was pleased that our houses hadn't affected our friendship," said Alex, "My friends don't really like me hanging out with you every Friday, imagine if they knew you tutored me!"

"Yeah, Crabbe and Goyle would just stare at me like I was some circus attraction."

He did an impression by opening his eyes wide and his mouth open stupidly. Alex let out a bark of laughter and Draco smiled.

"But my whole House would disown me if they knew everything," he said with a touch of sadness.

Alex opened a door to an empty classroom and they entered, sitting on the desks next to each other.

"It's a shame that we can't be friends openly," said Alex sadly, "I feel like I'm leading another life and that if anyone knew about it, something really bad would happen."

They were silent for a little while, just enjoying each other's company. Draco had that way about him where he could be comforting even when he didn't say a word.

"You know, Alex," Draco said quietly, "I never really got to choose my House; my father chose for me. The Sorting Hat wanted to put me in Ravenclaw but I knew that when my father found out I wasn't a Slytherin, he'd never talk to me again."

Alex was taken aback by this statement. Even as she had gotten to know Draco more, she had always thought he wanted to be a Slytherin. In fact, Alex really couldn't picture her friend anywhere else. Then again, she did remember the Sorting Hat staying on Draco's head for a bit.

"Everyone has pressure from their parents, Draco," said Alex kindly, "It's natural for them to want the best for you."

"You don't know my father," said Draco darkly, "All he wants is for me to not attract too much unwanted attention. He doesn't care about what I want, only that I do what he says, when he says."

Alex didn't know what to do. She wanted to say something to make him feel better, but she knew there was nothing. So she just put her hand on his and patted it gently. He took her hand in his and sighed.

"This is my own little way of fighting back," he said, still holding her hand, and added quickly, "Not that it happened that way, I've only just realized that."

"So you didn't just choose a random Gryffindor girl to hang out with just to annoy your father?" Alex asked with a half-smile.

He looked up at her and smiled too. "No, everything happens for a reason. And I hope to Merlin this happened for a good one."

Alex smiled and looked down at her hand, which was still in Draco's. He noticed this too and patted it lightly before letting go as they fell into companionable silence. Eventually the two fourth years headed back to their dormitories, each feeling the excitement of the holidays coming closer.

Author's Note: Another chapter completed! Like the last one, I'm really curious as to what you thought of this chapter! Did you enjoy dress shopping with the girls? How about Lupin's letter? I figured that in the original stories, there had to be a good reason why Lupin and Harry never corresponded so this is sort of my way of explaining that. Plus, I love Remus and wanted him to at least make an appearance in this book. And what about Draco in this chapter? If you remember in the first book, the Sorting Hat took some time with Draco. Now you know why! :)

Like I said last chapter, we have reached over 100 reviews! This is absolutely huge for me because I never thought I would get this many reviews for a story before! So thank you to all of my reviewers and if you haven't reviewed before, I encourage you to do so. I love hearing from my readers and their opinions/ideas/thoughts on the story. :D