"What's wrong, Weasley, never seen a girl before?"
Ron's very obvious staring had not gone unnoticed by Pansy— an embarrassing start to a night that he thought was only going to get worse. Before he could think of something to say, Pansy raised a finger and pointed to his chest.
Ron, still in a bit of a trance, flinched at Pansy's movement. She pulled her hand back reactively and the two stared directly at each other.
"I was just going to say you somehow managed to get the right shade of lavender," she said in a mocking tone. He looked down at his vest and tie.
"Ronald had a bit of help, or so I'm told."
Ron's eyes darted to Daphne, who he had failed to notice up until the moment she spoke. It wasn't because he was staring at Pansy— he tried to think of a reason, but he was coming up blank.
Daphne, who Ron now noticed, had her long, blonde hair curled much more dramatically than Pansy's. Her seafoam green dress was coated with more sparkles than he thought any piece of clothing should have.
"It was mostly Ron. I didn't do much at all," Harry mumbled in response. Ron could tell his friend was trying his hardest to say anything at all to the two girls. He also appreciated Harry's effort to make him look better, but he knew it would be for nothing.
Pansy put her hands on her hips and rolled her eyes, "Weasley and Potter mustering all their intelligence together to not mess up matching a color. High marks."
Somehow, Pansy insulting them like usual eased the tension in the group. Ron never thought he would be in a situation in which Pansy berating him would make him feel better— but there he was.
"You look… nice," Harry told Daphne. Ron winced at the crack in his friend's voice.
The girl responded by taking Harry's arm and tugging him gently to begin walking. Daphne complimented Harry back (several times, all of which made Ron cringe) and the group started to make their way to the Great Hall. After a few more compliments, Daphne turned her head back to Ron and Pansy. "Doesn't Pansy look quite stunning as well, Ronald?" she said in a gentle tone.
Daphne turned back to Harry before Ron could say anything. The discomfort between him and Pansy only grew worse. Ron, for his part, remembered the promise he made to treat his date nicely. It took all of his strength to conjure up the words and he attempted to compliment her, "Good… err… dress."
"What, this dress is good? Are you a fashion expert, then?" Pansy snapped.
"Are you an expert at being bloody annoying?" Ron responded. He was getting better at matching her fast derisions of him.
"I am," Pansy held her nose up sarcastically, "It gladdens me to be recognized by such a prestigious annoyer such as yourself."
It was a joke. Pansy made a joke.
Ever since Pansy had called him out for staring at her, he focused on looking anywhere else. He wasn't staring because she was pretty, mind you. In fact, it took all of that makeup and a dress and her slightly curly hair which bobbed gently when she walked for him to realize she was actually a girl— so it must have been him staring in disbelief. Ron convinced himself of that over and over in his head.
Without thinking, he stared at her lips for a few moments. It almost looked like they were slightly curled up in a smile from her own joke. He quickly darted his eyes away when she looked towards him again. He could have sworn it was a smile, but she was back to her usual, prissy look.
Unfortunately for him, they were beginning to get closer to the Great Hall and more students began filling the halls around them. Girls wore dresses and robes of all shades. Boys mostly wore black dress robes like Ron had on. He felt grateful to at least be spared the embarrassment of having to wear what his mother had tried to curse him with.
Pansy took a step towards him as it got tighter to move down the corridors. Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws gave them prying looks. A few sixth year Gryffindors pointed them out as they walked. Ron tried his best to ignore it.
When they finally reached the Great Hall doors, Ron sorely wanted the night to be over. He would have much preferred standing in the Clock Tower Courtyard in the cold. He stopped his mind from racing and focused on the task at hand. There was no turning back from going to the Yule Ball with Pansy Parkinson now.
It was going to be a long night.
McGonagall was standing at the entrance to the Great Hall. There were students pouring in around her as the doors opened. Most everyone had dates, but Ron spotted Crabbe and Goyle who must have been following Malfoy. Neither of them had dates. Ron grinned to himself at the sight. He wondered before if going alone would have been preferable to going with Pansy, but now he had his answer. Parkinson was better than going alone.
Daphne had pulled Pansy aside and they were talking too quietly for Ron to hear. McGonagall was waving Harry down. Ron supposed Harry and Daphne would be off in a moment.
"You alright, mate?" Ron had to speak a bit loudly so they could hear each other as a wave of excited students were headed inside.
Harry had gotten himself together, "Yeah. Alright. See you in a minute?"
Ron nodded and tried to look as confident in his friend as possible, "You beat a dragon. I reckon one dance shouldn't be too hard."
Harry gave him a crooked grin before Daphne was at his side and the two followed McGonagall. Ron turned back towards Pansy, realizing that he would be alone with her for a good part of the night. Ron sighed as the crowds passed. He could feel Pansy waiting impatiently next to him.
"S'pose we should go in," he mumbled as the cheerful conversations around him drowned out his voice.
"What?" Pansy leaned closer, which only made Ron more uncomfortable.
"I suppose we should go in," he said loud enough for Pansy to hear him. They awkwardly joined the crowd and walked side by side.
When they made it inside, Ron saw the walls of the Hall were covered in shining frost. Bushels of mistletoe and ivy were patterned across the starlight ceiling. There were no House tables like he was used to, but over a hundred smaller, round tables that could only seat a few students.
And now Ron had the task of choosing one.
Where were they supposed to go? There was no way he could bring Pansy to a table with Dean, Seamus, Lavender, and the other Gryffindors. But then there was also no chance he could stand sitting with the likes of Malfoy and the Slytherins. Harry and Daphne would be at the Champion's table, which was a fact Ron wished he would have considered before this moment.
Detention with Snape was better than this.
Most tables were beginning to fill with students, and more than a few were staring their way. Pansy stood in silence next to him. It felt like his frantic search for a table would never end when he spotted Neville and Ginny alone at a table tucked away in the back. Never was he so glad to see Neville Longbottom in his life.
"C'mon," he looked at Pansy and nodded towards the back. He did not wait for Pansy's annoyed look or protest. The pair uncomfortably moved between chairs and tables.
As they were walking, he swore a table of older Slytherins said something to Pansy. The boys at the table were laughing but when Ron stopped to look back at Pansy, she bumped into him. The table laughed harder as Pansy pushed past him and now Ron was following her. There was nothing to be done about it, so he kept moving.
"Over there," he pointed out. Pansy quickly took a seat, leaving a few empty chairs between her and Ginny and Neville.
"Hey, Ron," Neville said nervously as he eyed them, "And err..."
Ginny did not even acknowledge Ron or Pansy. Maybe that was for the best, he thought. Pansy just rolled her eyes before facing towards the dance floor. Ron sat next to her and cautiously spoke, "What did those Slytherins say to you?"
"It's not important," she snapped, not even sparing him a glance.
Ron was just happy to have found a table where he and Pansy would not be noticed by most. There was a table of Hufflepuffs and another with seventh year Gryffindors blocking them in, and neither of them paid Ron or Pansy any mind.
After a dull time sitting without a word spoken at their table, applause broke out. Everyone was standing and moving towards the dance floor. Pansy was off in an instant. Ron followed her as best he could. He was supposed to do that, right? They did come to the Yule Ball together— and that's what someone who was being nice, as he had promised, would do.
Ron and Pansy were pushed together with a mass of other students. He ended up pressed clumsy against her. He tried to play it cool, but between her bare shoulder pressed into his chest and the scent of her perfume— he wasn't sure if playing it cool was possible.
Just then, he spotted Fleur and Roger Davies leading the group of Tri-Wizard Champions and their dates towards the dance floor. He briefly re-lived his Fleur-related embarrassment before he saw who was next. It was Viktor Krum and a girl he swore he recognized.
"Is that Granger?" Pansy said in full astonishment. Ron's heart sank at the realization that Viktor Krum's date was indeed Hermione. She had done something with her hair and was wearing periwinkle-blue robes which flowed elegantly behind her as she walked.
Ron had instant regret upon seeing Hermione with Viktor.
Before he could think too much of it, Cho and Cedric were next, finally followed by Harry and Daphne. The four couples had spread out evenly on the dance floor. Ron did not know whether to watch Harry or Hermione. A familiar waltz began to play as the Yule Ball officially began.
Harry was doing well! Ron could tell his friend was trying his hardest not to mess up. Their dance lessons paid off. Harry and Daphne moved perfectly together as the waltz carried on. "Look at her," Pansy said to Ron, or maybe just to herself, "Daphne's spot on. She's even making Potter look good— always the perfectionist."
He couldn't help himself and glanced towards Hermione. Viktor held her waist tightly as they spun. Ron thought he was going to be sick.
He focused back on Harry to attempt to forget what he saw. Just as he did— it happened. Cho and Cedric had moved slightly too close to Daphne and Harry as they danced. When Daphne stepped back, her heel caught itself on Cho's dress.
With the entire school watching, Daphne Greengrass slipped on Cho's dress and fell forward into Harry's arms. Harry acted swiftly. He swung Daphne up before her knees could get too close to the ground and the couple stumbled back into dancing after a few wobbly steps.
Though Daphne and Harry never completely fell— the damage was done. The laughing and pointing had broken out around Ron. He began to boil with anger. It wasn't even Daphne's fault! It was too-good-for-Harry-Potter Cho Chang who had caused Daphne to trip.
"We need to get up there," Pansy leaned into Ron hard, "She needs me."
Suddenly Dumbledore raised McGonagall's hand in the air and the laughs were overtaken by applause as the they joined the champions on the dance floor followed by a dozen other couples. Pansy looked back at him, and her words were sharp, "I'm serious. Let's go."
Without time to put up an argument, Ron followed closely behind her as Pansy pushed through a crowd of unsuspecting Ravenclaws. They were just at the edge of the dance floor when Pansy turned back to face him. Ron knew the steps. He could do this. So why weren't his feet moving? Why wasn't he grabbing her waist?
"Ron!" she pulled on his upper arm roughly. This was the time to be brave. Anyone looking on be damned, he would not cause further embarrassment as he could tell people in the crowd were beginning to stare.
Ron confidently grabbed Pansy's waist and they stepped out onto the dance floor together. He knew the steps, but Pansy was pulling him towards the middle of the dance floor which made it harder. First they passed by his sister and Neville. Ginny winced as Neville stepped on her toes. Ron was careful not to do the same to Pansy.
Next they passed Malfoy with Daphne's sister and a few Slytherins. Pansy lengthened their strides to move past them as quickly as possible.
Finally, they were near the center of the dance floor. Luckily for him they breezed past Hermione and Viktor without them noticing. Pansy and Ron floated perfectly next to Daphne and Harry.
"Well done, both of you," Pansy told them during a step when they were all close together. Pansy being nice made him feel dizzy. Even still, it did not matter. Harry looked rightfully pale, and Daphne did not smile at the compliment.
Just as they had gotten to their spot next to Harry and Daphne, the waltz came to an end with another round of applause. Students and professors began making their way back to their seats.
Ron suddenly felt Pansy pull away from him. He watched as she pushed between Cho and Cedric to leave the dance floor. Harry was soon standing next to Ron. It almost sounded like he was out of breath, "Daphne. I don't know— I think she just left."
"Left?" Ron grimaced. Daphne must have moved so quickly that he did not notice.
"She did good. Cho got too close and— it wasn't Daphne's fault. We were doing good. I don't know. She said sorry and then just ran off."
"I think Parkinson followed her," Ron responded as he looked towards the Great Hall doors. Just then, Hermione and Viktor Krum appeared in front of them. She was saying something to Ron and Harry but there was too much happening at once. Ron took a deep breath and thought to himself. What did he need to do?
He wanted to talk to Hermione, to either apologize or yell. Maybe both. Maybe neither. But Ron still owed Harry. For the suit, for forgiving him. He knew that. Then Ron knew how he was going to repay him.
"Hermione," Ron looked at her and nodded, trying his best not to rage with jealousy at Viktor. He then turned back to his other friend, "Harry, stay here. I'll go get Daphne."
He did not have time to explain. He bolted off and pushed through a crowd of students. One of them must have been Malfoy since he heard his far-too-familiar whinging. Ron did not stop, not even to hex Malfoy. Nothing was going to hold him back as he darted out of the Great Hall.
He scanned up and down the corridors and analyzed the situation. Which way was the Slytherin Common Room? He mapped out the path in his head before taking off to his right. He came to another split and went left.
Before he could go further, he found Pansy standing over Daphne, who was seated on a stone bench. A few fairies floated above them near bundles of hanging garland. Compared to the Great Hall, it was almost silent. Only a few sobs could be heard coming from Daphne, which sounded as soft as dripping water.
He had no time to think about how he usually stumbled through his words at the sight of a crying girl— quite like the situation with Pansy that got him into this mess in the first place. Instead, Ron tried just speaking.
"Harry said you did perfectly."
Pansy and Daphne both turned to him with surprised looks. Daphne had a handkerchief to her cheek and Pansy's face was scrunched up which meant she was angry. "Weasley, what are you doing here?" Pansy asked bitterly.
He gulped hard, "That's what Harry said. He told me you did perfectly, Daphne. He was going to come tell you himself but—"
Daphne stood after wiping her cheek again. Tears pooled in the corners of her eyes. She spoke quietly, "He really said that?"
"I was surprised to hear it. Harry normally doesn't say stuff like that," Ron's voice cracked. His throat was dry.
Harry had said she did good, but stretching the truth to help a friend and make a crying girl feel better was okay, he hoped. "Just don't tell him I told you that. Besides, everyone knows it was Cho's fault."
Pansy remained silent with her hands on her hips. Her face was un-scrunched. Ron avoided her gaze by keeping focused on Daphne. "Everyone laughed," she stated harshly.
Ron chuckled, "He's used to that. Blimey, it happens all the time. C'mon, those 'Potter Stinks' badges?"
"I made it worse," Daphne said dejectedly.
"Nah. It was Cho's fault. Not yours. You taught him to dance. It would take a perfect teacher to get him to dance like that."
The crying girl started to compose herself. After fixing her dress one final time, Daphne Greengrass straightened her back. "It was wrong of me to leave him alone. He's a Tri-Wizard Champion and I am his date. I shall go find him now. Thank you, Ronald."
She touched his arm and gave him a weak smile before she rushed off. His cheeks were burning. He tried his hardest to fight against it. Girls, he surmised. Ron and Pansy did not move for a moment.
"She was inconsolable," Pansy told him, "How'd you—"
"You said she was a perfectionist."
Pansy gave him a genuine look of shock. Ron, for the first time in a long while, was quite proud of himself. Then Pansy's brows furrowed, "Harry really said that about her? Called her perfect?"
She was far too deductive. Or nosy— which is the way Ron preferred to think of her as she was, after all, a Slytherin. Ron sighed and tried to change subject, "We should get back."
Pansy did not move, "No. I want to know. Did Harry call Daphne perfect or did you just lie to make her feel better?"
Ron threw up his hands, "What does it matter? He obviously wanted Daphne back with him and it wasn't either of their faults that they fell— so let's just go back in there and have a terrible time together."
He started to walk away when he realized Pansy wasn't following. He turned to her and she crossed her arms, "Thanks, I guess."
Pansy ran a hand through her hair, tucking a curly strand behind her ear. Her eyes reflected the fairy-light from above them. When her face was un-scrunched it didn't look so— he was staring again. He stopped the thought immediately. This time Ron composed himself and turned away while mumbling, "Yeah, c'mon."
It was not until they were nearly back in the Great Hall that he realized Pansy had thanked him. It was probably the most civil interaction he had ever had with her.
Pansy entered the Great Hall first, slipping between the large doors that were propped open enough for one person to pass. Ron followed, only to see that nearly everyone was seated. Pansy was already walking quickly to their table far in the back of the Hall.
Their re-entrance had not gone unnoticed. Several tables watched them as they maneuvered the tiny walkways between chairs. Ron was a few strides behind Pansy. He looked towards the front, seeing that Daphne had joined Harry at the Champion's table.
When he looked back to Pansy, one of the older Slytherin boys who had laughed at them earlier had stood up and stopped her. Ron saw him say something but wasn't close enough to hear. He marched forward until he was beside them. The boy was older, maybe a sixth or seventh year. He was not much taller than Ron.
"What do you want, then?" Ron blurted out.
Pansy attempted to move around him, but the older boy stepped in front of her again.
"I was just telling Ms. Parkinson that she should be careful while doing charity work. It's dirty business, or so I'm told," he said sarcastically.
Ron wanted to reach for his wand, but he honestly hadn't remembered which pocket in his very complicated dress robes he had stored it in. Before he could remember it was on the inside of his vest, Pansy was already standing on her tip toes and staring up at the boy.
"Out – of – the – way."
Pansy's threat to her fellow Slytherin scared Ron.
The older boy laughed nervously this time. The others at his table looked away while holding in laughter. He stepped out of the way a moment later. Pansy stomped away fiercely, leaving Ron alone. The Slytherin boy pointed at him, "Draco's trash is the best you can do, huh?"
He really wanted to go for his wand but decided against it. He briskly followed Pansy and finally returned to their table. It was still only Pansy, Neville, and Ginny— but Ron would take the awkwardness of their table if it meant he did not have to interact with any more Slytherins.
Neville leaned forwards and spoke to his plate, "Pork chops!" In an instant, juicy looking pork chops appeared on his plate. Ginny followed and ordered the same. Ron glanced at the menu and decided on the goulash.
Pansy asked for steak, but the plate must not have heard her the first time. "Steak!" she nearly yelled the second time, and it was on her plate almost before she finished saying the word.
Ron wanted nothing more than to tuck in, but he remembered where he was. He took measured, careful bites, fighting his instinct to scarf his food down. Pansy had taken a single nibble of her steak before pushing it away.
Ginny and Neville had started talking about something he couldn't quite hear. There was still something bothering Ron, so he was hardly listening anyways. He glanced around the Great Hall and soon found what he was looking for.
"Loo," Ron told Pansy bluntly. She did not even acknowledge him. Ron made his way through small walkways between tables. Other students had begun moving around while waiting for dessert, so there was less attention on him.
Ron finally reached his destination and lowered his head between two people seated at the table, "I need your help."
Fred and George both turned to him, smiles on their faces. "What will it be, dear brother?" George spoke first.
"Bit off more than you could chew with Parkinson?" Fred inquired.
"It's not that," Ron told them, "It's something else."
After explaining exactly what Ron needed from his brothers, they agreed to help. Though Fred and George took the mickey more often than he liked, they were always there when he needed them.
Now back at his table, Ron's attention was focused elsewhere as he eagerly waited for dessert. After a few moments, it appeared on the table on the table with a pop. There was Christmas pudding, eggnog, sponge cake— and custard creams.
Only a few moments later, several large canaries caused a scene at the table of Slytherins that had laughed at him and Pansy moments ago. Fred and George's Canary Creams had worked perfectly! Laughter broke out in the Great Hall.
"What did you do?" Pansy was leaned forward in her seat, watching with a half-amused look on her face.
Ron grinned, "Nothing."
He gazed over to his twin brothers, who were standing and laughing the hardest. Pansy followed where he was looking and saw them herself, and she rolled her eyes, "You're ridiculous."
The Slytherins eventually molted. Their feathers fell off, returning to their much-less funny Slytherin-selves. Fred and George promised to watch Ron's back the rest of the night, so he tucked in for his dessert and he could have sworn he heard Pansy chuckle to herself.
Not long after his successful revenge, dancing began again. Ron was dreading having to go back out to the dance floor. He wondered if Pansy would even want to— but before he could find out, Hermione was in front of them.
"Ron. Umm… Pansy. Would you like to dance Ron? Just one dance."
Ron was ready for Pansy to say something nasty. But to his surprise, she just quickly responded, "I'll go find Daphne."
Ron followed Hermione to the dance floor. It was a difficult to look at her. Her hair was different, more like the other girls and less like Hermione. Her dress robes were elegant and even her face looked different— it was only make-up, but Ron wasn't thinking straight enough to figure that out.
They stopped at the edge of the dance floor awkwardly. She looked at him and for some reason it was easier to grab Pansy's waist than it was Hermione's then. Maybe he had gotten used to Pansy. After a bit of shuffling, they were dancing together to a steady, almost-boring waltz.
"Who taught you how to dance?" Hermione asked inquisitively, their faces far too close for him to pretend to be comfortable.
"It was— err," Ron started, trying to figure out where to begin. His mind raced to find the right words. He glanced up at Hermione. She was smiling. It was the way she smiled when she had a quip or something funny to tell him. "You already know!" Ron amusingly said, "Why are you asking me, then?"
"Harry told me everything during dinner."
"Look, Hermione—"
"Ron, I'm sorry. I wish you and Harry would have told me before the whole school found out, but I also should have trusted you both and not gone so mad. It's nice what you are doing for Harry. Pansy really is just terrible, and so I jumped to conclusions."
"Well, how do you think I feel? I'm the one who has to dance with her."
They were both laughing. It was like a stunning spell had been lifted from him. Harry must have told her the entire situation and did it so well that she apologized to him. Ron had just found a way to get out of Harry's debt by bringing Daphne back to the Ball, and now he was indebted to Harry once more.
"Hermione, look, I'm sorry too. We should have told you before it got out. She was my only choice, really."
"No, she wasn't. Next time there's a ball, ask me before someone else does."
Ron looked thunderstruck but tried to compose himself. "I'll remember that," he said meekly as they spun together. He sucked in his breath and tried to move on from the subject, "How is Vicky doing, then?"
"Viktor is just fine. Has trouble pronouncing my name but the rest of it has been quite nice."
They talked a bit more and at the end of the song she smiled at him. "Friends?"
"Always," Ron grinned back at her.
They separated, just in time to be greeted by Harry and Daphne with Pansy following behind them. Unfortunately, the next song was already starting.
Harry and Daphne were off dancing. Hermione had gone to find Viktor. That left Ron and Pansy standing in the middle of the dance floor as disgruntled couples stepped around them.
Ron once again reminded himself of his promise to be nice. He stepped towards Pansy and held out a hand, and they slipped together quickly without fumbling.
His hand pressed into her waist. During the first dance of the night, he was so pre-occupied with getting to Harry and Daphne that he did not notice how thin her dress material was compared to the robes they practiced in. Her familiar, airy perfume and her hand on his arm— it was becoming quite natural at this point.
"What did Granger want?" Pansy asked. She was so close that only he could hear her. It was rather intimate talking to someone while dancing, a fact that only made it tougher for Ron to deal with.
Ron cleared his throat, "She apologized."
"She apologized? For what?"
"We both apologized, actually" Ron did not want to give Pansy ammo against Hermione, "Just this whole Yule Ball—"
"Stop," Pansy rolled her eyes, "I forgot that I don't care. And besides— I thought we weren't supposed to talk about Granger."
"You're a git," Ron snapped at her, messing up their step.
Pansy laughed.
Ron could not believe it. It wasn't a snarky, cruel laugh like it usually was when she was insulting him. It was a real, genuine laugh. He called her a git, and she laughed. Pansy pulled him towards her, and they both corrected their next move at the same time.
"Your sister is dancing with Michael Corner."
He almost fell over as he swiveled his head, "Who? Where?"
"Merlin, Weasley! Do you want us to trip like Harry and Daphne?" She broke their front hands away from each other. She placed her hand on his head. Her fingers were soft and cool on his temple. The scent of her perfume was stronger than ever. She forcefully tilted his head and his line of sight locked onto his sister dancing with a dark-haired boy who definitely was not Neville Longbottom.
"That's Michael Corner?"
Pansy sighed, "You really don't know anyone outside of Gryffindor, do you?"
"What's he doing with my sister?"
Pansy sighed again, "Dancing, I imagine."
Their leading hands were clasped again. It happened without him even noticing, "Well, why has he gone and done that?" Ron asked angrily.
Pansy sighed even louder as she tried to steer them away from Ginny and Michael, "Because he probably fancies her."
"He fancies Ginny?"
"She has grown since last year." Ron turned beat red and had nothing to say. She gave him an impish smile, "You have a hard time identifying girls, don't you?" Ron wanted to lash back at her, but she just shrugged. "You're doing good," she said in a monotone voice.
Ron somehow was turning even more red. "Knock it off," he spat out, those being the only words he could put together.
"You managed to dance while having a conversation. You must have had a perfect teacher."
They danced to one more song before going with Harry and Daphne to get a drink. On the way there, the four ran into Malfoy and Astoria Greengrass.
"Daphne! Pansy!" the younger girl pressed her hands together, much like Ron had seen Daphne do several times over the past two weeks. "You both look very pretty tonight."
"So do you," Pansy told Astoria. Ron felt strange hearing the endearing tone in her voice.
The three girls chatted while Draco, Harry, and Ron said nothing. Ron wanted to make a comment— something snarky to take Malfoy down a peg. Ron glanced at Malfoy. He was staring off pretending to be anywhere else. Ron, fighting his instincts, remained silent.
"We'll go get drinks," Harry announced, causing everyone to look at him.
"Punch, please! Thank you!" Daphne smiled.
"Water," Pansy looked at Ron.
Harry and Ron were almost away from the awkward situation when Astoria called to them, "It was nice to meet you Ronald and Harry! You both look handsome tonight as well!"
Ron groaned as he dashed away, leaving Harry to formulate something cringe-inducing to say back to Astoria.
"Had to impress the little sister?" Ron said with a bit of snark and laughed at Harry when they were at the punch line together. His friend just shrugged with a smile. Ron kept laughing, "It must be going well— you seem way too giddy."
"Daphne's nice," Harry knocked Ron's arm with a punch, "You don't seem that upset about being here."
Ron threw his hands up in protest, "I'm miserable, Harry!"
An electric guitar suddenly blared out a heavy riff. Punch slushed out of the side of the bowl as the table next to Ron shook. Drums and bass joined in, and everyone's attention was towards the stage.
Daphne sprinted up to them. She took the punch that Harry had poured and quickly drank half of it. She offered him the other half, which he declined, and then finished it herself. She shouted, "The Weird Sisters!" before taking Harry's hand and leading him away.
Ron was left alone. He returned to his empty table as the Weird Sisters blasted "Do the Hippogriff" loudly. What good was a date when she left you alone? Pansy was nowhere to be seen. She was probably off dancing with Malfoy or some other slimy Slytherin.
Not that Ron wanted to dance to the Weird Sisters— and certainly not that Ron wanted to be near Prissy Parkinson. So, he concluded being alone was an improvement. But if that was true, why was he so bothered?
There was nobody next to him. All the other tables had cleared out. A song or two went by. Ron tried not to focus on thinking about where his date had gone or who she was pressed close to.
"Are you having a pleasant night, Mr. Weasley?"
Ron turned, only to be met by Professor Dumbledore. His white beard was styled more extravagantly than normal, only to be outdone by his white, silk robes which seemed to emanate light.
There was a twinkle in his eye when he spoke again, "Such a marvelous thing, when members of houses which are usually quite hostile to one another manage to set aside such petty grievances for an enjoyable experience. Forgive me, I'm afraid Madame Maxime is waving me down. Have a wonderful night, Mr. Weasley."
Ron, who was back to being alone, wasn't having quite a wonderful night at the moment. The Weird Sister had moved onto "This Is The Night", and some students were getting drinks while the slower song played.
"Ron?"
His attention turned to the voice, and it was Lavender— with Parvati standing next to her. Both of their hair was messed up from dancing, and they had drinks in their hands. Lavender smiled and asked, "Where is Prissy Parkinson? Did you finally tell her off?"
Ron lazily pointed a finger towards the dance floor, "She's out there, I reckon."
Lavender giggled, "So she left you here alone?"
Ron shrugged, not really wanting to engage further, "Something like that." At this point, he would have preferred being alone to dealing with Lavender.
"Why didn't you just ask Hermione?" Parvati inquired, speaking up for the first time over Lavender, "Or anyone else, really."
"What does it matter to either of you?" someone else said harshly.
Ron, Lavender, and Parvati were all caught off guard as they turned towards Pansy. She had her hands on her waist and her face was scrunched up enough for Ron to know there was trouble. "Ron can take who he likes, he doesn't need approval from the likes of either of you."
"Hermione was upset for weeks," Lavender lashed back.
"Granger is not even your friend last time I checked— just because you got stuck with fidgety Finnigan doesn't mean everyone else regrets their choice too. Maybe Ron will ask you next time if you manage to stop being so annoying all the time."
Lavender stared blankly at Ron, waiting for him to say something. He knew better than to get involved— so he just carefully looked back towards the dance floor hoping this would be over soon.
He got his wish. Lavender stormed off and Parvati followed.
Ron looked at Pansy, who shot him a harsh look, "What, was that too prissy for you?" she mocked.
Her nickname was catching on around Hogwarts. She must have heard it. Ron suddenly felt guilty for calling her that more than once. "No. Those two were getting annoying, anyways."
Just then, Dumbledore stepped onto the stage and with an amplifying charm, he spoke, "This will be the final song of the evening— and we will say farewell to a fantastic night at the Yule Ball, and a merry Christmas."
With that, the opening waltz which Ron was far too familiar with played again. Only this time it was softer, the violins taking center stage which gave the dreamy tune a more emotional sound. The Hall went quiet as couples made their way to the dance floor.
"C'mon," Pansy mumbled quiet enough that no one else could possibly hear.
He glanced up at her in disbelief, still seated at their table in the back of the Hall. She started to walk towards the dance floor, but stopped when she realized Ron was not following her.
"Come on," she loudly repeated. If anyone else had said that, it would have sounded like a command. But Pansy's usual indignant tone was missing.
Ron, unsure why his feet were moving, stood up and followed her.
They reached the dance floor, and it was second nature at this point as they folded into each other. Ron's hand gripped her waist without embarrassment and their leading hands clasped without worry of being seen together.
"That felt good back there," Pansy said as they started to dance. The steps were slower, easier.
Ron snorted, "What, telling some Gryffindors off?"
Pansy did not rise to his bait, but just kept speaking, "It's not like either of us wanted to be here. You did it for Potter's sake and I thought it'd make Malfoy jealous and make Granger's head explode. Draco took Daphne's perfect little sister and Granger's here with Krum so— didn't exactly go as planned for me. So, yes, it felt good to tell someone off."
They danced without speaking for a long while as Ron processed. Wasn't she defending him back there against Lavender and Parvati? But at the same time, getting back at Malfoy and hurting Hermione— that was what Pansy said she wanted when she said initially said yes after he mistakenly asked her to go with him. It almost made him as mad as sitting alone.
"Well, sorry this has been such a terrible night for you," he said coolly, trying to mask his anger.
Pansy, once again, surprised him, "It hasn't been all too terrible."
Ron's mind was racing as his cheeks burned. Which part of the night, he wondered, had she thought wasn't terrible? Was it dancing with him? Was it when he got revenge on those Slytherins? Why did it matter to him what part of the night she liked— and why did he hope it was some part that included him?
And just like that— before Ron could fully process that Pansy might have actually liked spending some part of the night with him— the waltz ended with a bittersweet note.
Daphne and Harry quickly found them, giving Ron no time to respond to Pansy. "Let's go back to the Clock Tower Courtyard," Daphne told them, still somehow filled with energy, "We can say goodnight there!"
After a long walk, in which Daphne and Harry talked about all sorts of topics that made Ron want to throw up his dessert, they made it to the courtyard where they had started the night together.
They were under a covered hallway, but he could feel the cold, winter air. It was a bit of a relief, feeling the cool breeze after a night of dancing. Just as he and Pansy stopped, Ron realized that Daphne had whisked Harry away as they disappeared down a corridor. Daphne's giggles echoed and Ron had the sense of mind not to follow them.
That left Ron and Pansy alone. They stood together in silence. Pansy then stepped out into the courtyard. Ron decided to follow.
It was nearly midnight and the last snow of Christmas fell around them. He came to a standstill next to her. Ron wondered if Pansy's feet would be cold. She was wearing heels, after all.
When he looked at her, Pansy was staring up at the stars. He followed where she was looking, making out a few constellations above them. In that moment, he did not mind the silence between them. They simply stared at the stars together.
After a bit of time, Ron heard Harry and Daphne heading over to them. Harry was saying something, and Daphne was giggling quietly.
Ron had done it. The night was over. His massive mistake of asking Pansy Parkinson had been dealt with, and everything could go back to normal after tonight.
But then there, under the starlight, Ron saw Pansy smile at him for the first time. It wasn't a big smile, like one you'd have on your birthday— but the end of her lips curled up just enough that he could make it out. It was a smile like two people would share when they had some inside joke but couldn't speak it out loud.
"Goodnight," she told him without malice, or sarcasm, or ill-intent. He could see her breath as she spoke it. Flakes of snow dotted her black hair like stars across the night sky. Her grey eyes were carefully fixed on him. Her bare shoulders were red from the chill and her lavender dress stood out from the dark around them.
"Goodnight," he responded.
For the first time, Ron admitted to himself that Pansy Parkinson wasn't so terrible to look at— especially when she smiled.