Chapter 8: The Yule Ball
The evening of the Yule Ball arrived, Holly was in her dormitory while the other girls were in the girls' bathroom down the hall getting ready. She could hear their laughter and squeals as she attempted to read a book. She knew she had to go to the ball, but we avoided getting ready as she had no interest in attending as she did not have a date and did not want to watch Draco and Peri dance all evening together.
Hermione returned to their room, "As much as I love a good book, Holly, you really should get ready."
Holly looked up at Hermione, "You look beautiful!"
Hermione spun a little in a circle, "Thank you! My mum found it in Harrods when she went shopping with my aunt in London. It is such a lovely dress and the most expensive piece of clothing I own but it is perfect. I asked Hallie to fit it to me, that way it would be a perfect fit."
"Well, Hallie is a fantastic designer."
Hermione nodded fixing her hair in the mirror, "I am going to meet Viktor. Want me to wait on you?"
She looked at her dress laying on her trunk, "No. Go ahead."
Hermione hesitated before leaving.
Holly remained reading on her bed when the door swung open, "Peri," Holly questioned seeing her run into the room with a dress box.
Peri stopped at the edge of her bed, "I brought you a gift."
She placed the box on the bed, "Peri, I have a dress."
"You have a pink dress."
"Indeed…pink has been my color since we were young. You have been blue, Hallie has been purple or lilac, even lavender if we are getting specific. Mallory…"
"Blue as well, lighter blue but blue. Alicia is dark pink."
Holly lifted the lid, "This is your dress…"
"I have another dress. Be the princess in your own story."
She closed the lid, "But you have my prince."
Peri sighed, taking a seat next to her, "And Angela is going with mine."
"George?"
She nodded, "My heart breaks knowing especially since she is only with him because he looks like Fred enough. She still treats Hallie as if she is stupid…ok maybe she is most of the time, but just because she won the heart of the man she likes does not give her the right to treat her rudely. I do not love Draco, but it is better to see him dance with me a few times than watch him dance with Pansy."
Holly looked at her, "Cinderella does get her prince in the end."
"She just has to lose her shoe first then he searches the entire kingdom for her," she magically pulled a pair of glass slippers from the air.
They laughed together, "I will wear the pink tonight, but at the New Year's Eve ball, I will wear this. I hear he will be there."
Peri hugged her sister, "You will be beautiful either way…I am sorry you never got a date."
She shrugged, "It is fine. I never expected anyone to ask me, I am only going because you are a champion and Cassie says it would look bad if I did not. Give the paper's reason to gossip as to why a member of your family is not in attendance."
"We will take some pictures then you can leave within the hour."
"I will bring a book."
Peri laughed, "Of course, you will." She hugged her before returning to the Slytherin common room.
The evening came off the ball. Holly was the last to leave her common room, she made her way down the marble stairs with Mallory at her side. Remy approached her, she gave a small curtsy to him.
"My Lord," she teased.
"You don't have to say that. I might be a Lord with a title, but I am just like you Mallory."
She took his hand with a laugh.
"Even Mallory has a date," Holly sighed as she stood next to Alicia.
"You can dance with me, Holly," Alicia said.
Holly looked down at the eleven-year-old, "It would be an honor."
On the opposite end of the entry hall Draco and Peri came up from the dungeons. Peri was wearing a dark, forest green dress with black lace and a corset bodice. The bodice had beautiful hand-sewn lace, not a piece of pre-made fabric attached to it. It was pants with a skirt overlaying it, this was her not the dress she gave to Holly. This dress was Peri.
"You look very…" Draco started before spotting Holly across the hall.
Holly stood in a blush-colored dress, a simple a-line dress. No elaborate details, just simple.
McGonagall approached Holly and Alicia, "Ms. Porter. Ms. Banks. Will you please go wait in the Hall for the champions' entrance?"
Holly looked at her Head of house, "Yes, Professor. Come along, Alicia."
The two girls went into the Great Hall, gathering around Ron, Padma, Fred, Hallie, George, Angelina, Lee, Lee's date from Beauxbaton, Mallory, and Remy.
"I can't wait to see Peri's dress!" Hallie said. "She looked like a goddess at Madam Malkin's."
"Or a princess," Mallory commented. She was trying to look over the heads of the older students.
George noticed her struggling and conjured up a small platform for her to stand on to see. "Thank you, George!"
"Of course, Mal."
Music began and the champions entered with Fleur and Roger Davies, followed by Peri and Draco, Hermione and Viktor, Cho and Cedric, and ending with Ida and Harry who appeared to be the most uncomfortable of the champions and their dates. Everyone clapped enthusiastically as the champions passed by. The dance began with the champions opening the ball and the adults and students joining. Mallory got off her step and went to the floor with Remy. Alicia found some of the girls to talk to as the others walked past Holly as the other students hurried to the floor.
As the Yule Ball was happening around her, Holly stood in the back of the Great Hall watching everyone dance and enjoying the ball.
The first dance finished, Peri gave a curtsy to Draco and he gave her a bow. He led her off the floor, "Excuse me…" he stepped away approaching one of the Durmstrang students who did not have a date, which was very few. Draco spoke in hushed tones to him, then shook his hand. Peri noticed he had slipped something into the Durmstrang boy's hand, before making his way to the punch bowl. He returned with two glasses and she saw the student Draco had just spoken to make his way to Holly.
" 'olly?" the Durmstrang student asked.
She looked at him pulling her attention away from the dance before her, "Yes?" she questioned.
"May I have this dance?"
He offered her his hand, "Me?"
"Is zere another 'olly Porter?"
She shook her head, "No. Just me."
Holly glanced over at Peri and Draco, Peri gave her a small nod. She looked back at the boy before her then accepted his hand, "May I have your name?"
"Nikoli."
He led her to the dance floor.
The next dance was a traditional Viennese waltz. It was a dance to exchange partners, the partners soon changed and Holly ended up in Draco's arms. Her breath hitched as he wrapped them around her waist.
"Holly…" he spoke in a hushed tone.
"Won't you be judged for this?" she asked avoiding his eyes.
"Holly…please. This is our one chance to be with each other for the entire dance. Please don't push me away."
Her emerald eyes shifted to his grey ones, "What is your decision?"
"I want you, but I can't be public with it."
She sighed disappointed, "Then you made your choice. You chose Peri over me. You chose your reputation over me. If cared for me at all you would pick me."
His expression remained the same, "Holly, please." He begged.
She stepped back from him, "Goodbye Draco." She curtsied to him before walking off the floor as the partners changed again.
Holly left the Great Hall as tears burned her eyes.
How could he choose her?
He refused to even try.
She sat on the stairs crying, Hallie came out of the Hall finding her there.
Hallie took a seat next to her sister wrapping her arms around her, "Boys suck. I know."
"Your boy worships the ground you walk on," Holly cried into her sister's chest.
Hallie brushed her hair back, "Perhaps, but most of them do. You will find someone equal to you. I promise. You deserve the best and he is not that."
"How can you be so sure?"
She pulled her sister back to look her in their matching emerald eyes, "Because if he wanted to he would. Fred ignored all the jokes and hate and anything thrown at us. We are not a well-loved couple. Either it is because he is using me for sex — "
"I don't need to know that."
Hallie gave a breathless laugh, "Fine…but it is still the same idea. I am too stupid for him even though all the girls love my dress and wish they had me design their dresses. The point is you will find your person, Draco is not that person."
Holly sniffled as a tear rolled down her cheek, Hallie wiped it away.
"You are kind. You are smart…incredibly smart. You are pretty and girls would die for your curls. Perfect curls every day, you wake up with your hair in perfect curls that most of us need a professional to create."
Holly laughed at that through tears, "Mom. I got them from mom."
"You did. I got dad's boring hair," Hallie told her. "Now believe me. You are going to be special. We are just waiting for you to blossom. You are a flower."
"The name for the holly plant is also known as Ilex in Latin it means holm-oak or evergreen oak. The origin though for holly is considered to come from a reduced form of Old English hole(ġ)n, Middle English Holin which later became Hollen. The French word for holly is houx…"
"Holly, I don't need a history lesson on the plant."
She looked down at her lap, "Sorry. I know too many facts."
"You do —"
Holly gave her a look saying "Really?"
"But…But I wouldn't change a thing. You are my sister and I love you. Even though you are older. Now come let's dance, just us girls!"
"Fine."
Hallie pulled her sister off the stairs and back into the Hall. They grabbed the sisters and danced together as the Weird Sisters started playing "Do the Hippogriff".
When the song ended, Hallie excused herself to go powder her nose leaving Holly with Fred.
"You like my sister a lot don't you?" she asked over the noise.
Fred was pouring himself and Hallie punch, "Yes. I do." He sighed contently as he took a sip of his punch before looking at Holly, "She is perfect to me. She is beautiful and intelligent even if everyone tells her otherwise. She can design dresses far above what a fourteen-year-old could do. The sorting hat would not have placed her in Ravenclaw if it did not think she belonged there. Now as for you me caring for her, I found the person I want to spend the rest of my life with."
"You only met her in August that was only four months ago."
He shrugged, "When you know. You know. I would give anything for her happiness. She wouldn't even let me buy her a Christmas gift, the girl who loves things especially expensive things was happy with a music box I made from a stone I found at the Black Lake."
Holly looked over her shoulder, "I'm going to find Hallie."
Fred nodded.
She left to find her.
She found the nearest girls' bathroom when she heard angry voices coming from Hallie and another girl. Holly remained on the other side listening in.
"What does he see in you?" the other girl asked. "You are a stupid Ravenclaw, an actual stupid Ravenclaw. It is hard to believe you even got into the house, you can barely pass classes."
"Knowledge is not just academics. Knowledge is creativity and power."
The girl scoffed, "And what power could you possibly have?"
Holly opened the door to see Angelina raising her wand, she quickly withdrew her own. "Expelliarmus!" Angelina's wand flew from her hand into Holly's. She turned around to see Holly standing there "I suggest you leave my sister alone."
"You stole my wand."
"Leave her alone or I will report you."
Angelina looked between the twin sisters, "You two should have stayed in America," she shoved past Holly snatching her wand back from her.
Hallie looked at her sister, "Thank you."
"Of course. What else are sisters for?"
She walked over to her hugging her, "I would be nowhere without you."
The two sisters exited the girls' bathroom where she reunited with Fred, "There you are, love. I might have finished your punch while you were gone."
Holly stood with the couple as Hallie's eyes went over to Angelina and the other Quidditch girls before looking back at Fred, "I'm ready."
This caught both Holly and Fred off guard as he snapped his head down to her as he had been watching everyone dance, "Ready?" he questioned before realizing what she meant. "Oh…Ready."
She laughed taking his hand leading up out of The Great Hall and up the stairs. Holly now felt incredibly awkward and took the moment to disappear for the rest of the evening. Tomorrow they would leave to spend a week at Cassie's parents' house. Not something she was looking forward to, the Yule Ball was better than meeting Cassie's parents; this she was sure of.