"I have been tasked with ensuring the reputation of Slytherin House remains, ever always, pristine."
Aria shared a look with Harry while they both tried not to laugh. Professor Snape looked like he would rather be anywhere else than where he currently was, standing in front of the fourth to seventh years of Slytherin in an empty classroom with all its desks pushed against the wall and chairs set out for the students to sit in.
"The Yule Ball is a tradition of the Triwizard Tournament," Snape continued, "highlighting each school's ability to throw a suitable soiree. Such balls were, at one time, regularly hosted by prominent families throughout the continent when such events brought wixen together to discover . . . each other."
"Do you think Professor Snape's ever . . . discovered . . . anyone?" Tracey whispered. Aria slapped a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing. Now was not the time. Not the time.
"There are several components to the Yule Ball of the Triwizard Tournament," Snape said. "There is, of course, the escorting of various dates to the ball. I expect Slytherin House to be the epitome of elegance and manners unlike the Gryffindors whom I suspect will act like a babbling, bumbling band of baboons."
"Say that five times fast," Blaise dared Theo and Draco.
"There is, of course, the dancing," Snape told them. "There is the opening entrance and dance which is performed by the champions." He glanced at Harry who grimaced. "You dance for at least five minutes with your date for the evening with the other champions before the dance floor opens to everyone else. There will be traditional ballroom dancing with music from all over the continent, including group dances, so it would behoove all of you to brush up on your dancing skills. This is not the dancing you'd find around a Samhain bonfire illicitly lit in a standing stone circle."
Aria and most of the students present hid grins.
"After dancing there is dinner," Snape told them. "I will have another session with all of you to go over proper etiquette at the dinner table. And the last component is the people. The Yule Ball is open to a variety of dignitaries from the countries involved. I know for certain all three Ministers of Magic will be in attendance as will several lords and ladies of the Wizengamot, France, and Bulgaria. I also have it on good authority that the Bulgarian Royal Family will be in attendance as Viktor Krum is, as you know, close friends with Prince Nikola."
Several people glanced at Aria who glared at them. So far Viktor had been the only one to be overly friendly with her while Nikola played the balancing act of prince and student.
"Too bad Nikola didn't have another brother closer to his age," Tracey said with a dreamy sigh. "Or Krum."
"I want you all to partner up," Snape ordered, turning towards the phonograph. "I will let you have your own partners, for now, but we will review how to properly step in during a dance and you will practice with various partners."
Aria immediately partnered with Harry and made intense study of Professor Snape showing off some fancy footwork which had Aria wondering he had had ever danced before and, if so, with whom? Lily Potter before she was a Potter? They had grown up together after all.
Harry only stepped on her toes three times before figuring out how to avoid doing so. There were a few older Slytherins, boys and girls, who seemed to have two left feet, making Aria feel better about her lack of dance skills.
"Some of you are going to have to practice," Snape stated before ordering them all to form sets of two lines with their partners for a group dance. He had some of the seventh years demonstrate a dance that he called the Wixen Walk, but Aria thought it was just a Sir Roger de Coverley which she had learned back in primary school during the dancing unit in gym class.
There were other group dances she was vaguely familiar with, thanks to the dancing at the Samhain fire last year and the World Cup that past summer, which made her feel better and more excited about the Yule Ball than ever before.
Once the dance lessons were ended, Aria and Harry gathered their school things and headed towards the library to work on their Ancient Runes project.
As they passed another empty classroom close to the Transfiguration corridor, they heard music and, unable to help themselves, carefully opened the door to peek inside. Inside the 4th-7th year Gryffindors were trying to dance. Aria wasn't sure exactly what the Weasley twins were trying to do, but at least Neville was giving a good effort as he danced with Lavender. Seamus looked like he would rather be doing anything but what he was currently doing, and Dean was looking more at his feet than at Hermione. But it was Ron that made everything hilarious. He was partnered with Professor McGonagall and had one hand around her waist as she yelled out instructions to students. His eyes were wide and face pale, and he moved like he was a robot, unsure what to do.
"Yeah, Ron!" Aria called out, startling everyone. "Show off those dance moves!"
"Shove off!" Ron cried, turning towards Aria. McGonagall grabbed him, putting his hands back where they belonged for the dance. Fred and George and their friend Lee were on the floor laughing. Seamus, seeing his opportunity, made a break for the door, only for Aria and Harry to slam it in his face, literally. They laughed as they scampered off, hearing his curses and McGonagall's scolding as they disappeared around a corner.
"Okay you two, spill."
Aria raised her face from the depths of the Ancient Runes tome she had lugged from the library the other day. She was certain if she had been any other student, Madam Pince would not have let her borrow the book, but the librarian had given her one of her rare half-smiles and checked it out without a word.
Daphne and Tracey now sat across from her and Harry in the Great Hall. It was late afternoon, there were a lot of students from all three schools in the Great Hall for the study hall, books and revisions spread out in front of them as they all prepared for the exams that always came prior to Christmas.
"What do you want us to spill?" Harry asked, glancing at the nearby pitcher of pumpkin juice.
"The truth," Tracey stated seriously. "Are you two going to the Yule Ball together? It's all anyone's talking about."
Aria's mouth dropped open. Harry choked a little on air.
"Why's everyone talking about Harry and I going to the ball together?" Aria asked. Daphne rolled her eyes.
"Because The Daily Prophet had that picture of you two hugging each other after the First Task," she explained.
"Do people think Aria and I are . . . dating?" Harry questioned. "People actually believed that article?"
Daphne and Tracey nodded solemnly.
Aria and Harry immediately leaned away from each other, faces twisting in varying levels of disgust and horror.
"Ew, gross!" Aria cried.
"Absolutely not!" Harry exclaimed.
"That'd be like dating a brother or cousin," Aria added. "Absolutely not!"
"What's wrong with dating a cousin?" Ginny asked. She and Luna were working on . . . something that was clearly not homework. Aria banged her head against the runes tome.
"Apparently Muggles don't marry cousins," Daphne explained.
"That's called incest, Daphne," Harry answered, "and it's illegal in most Muggle societies."
"But you two aren't cousins," Ginny said. "And everyone's related to everyone in the wizarding world. At least, if you're pureblood that is."
"Yes, but you all seem to marry first or second cousins," Aria said. "Even though I'm sure it's legal in the Muggle UK to marry second cousins, it just isn't done. The closer one marries a relative, the more problems your kids are more likely to have. Mental problems. Birth defects, that kind of thing."
"Too many of the same Wrackspurts in the same place cause problems," Luna agreed with a sage nod. "The Muggles are wise."
"Thank you, Luna," Aria said, though she was not sure Luna really understood the whole conversation.
"Regardless of whether or not Aria or I are related is beside the point," Harry butted in. "She's like a sister to me. And I'm like a brother to her. Anything . . . romantic . . . is not going to happen."
"So . . . you're not going to the ball together?" Tracey asked. "Not even as friends?"
"No," Aria said. "Though I suppose if neither of us find dates then—,"
Daphne surged to her feet, clambering onto the top of the bench, and turned to face the Great Hall. She put the tip of her wand to the throat and within seconds, her voice was thundering over the Great Hall, echoing off the walls, and causing the flames on the floating candles to shiver.
"ATTENTION ALL STUDENTS!" Daphne cried. "ATTENTION! ARIA AND HARRY ARE NOT GOING TO THE YULE BALL TOGETHER. I REPEAT, THEY ARE NOT GOING TO THE YULE BALL TOGETHER!"
"Daphne!" Aria shrieked, lunging over the table, trying to yank Daphne down. Tracey laughed uproariously and was no help.
"Miss Greengrass!" Professor Vector, one of the professors overseeing the study hall, "sit down this minute! Five points from Slytherin!" The arithmancy professor glared at Daphne until she was seated once again.
"What was that?" Aria demanded. Daphne was not repentant.
"Really, Aria, don't be obtuse," Daphne said, pouring herself pumpkin juice. "You and Harry are considered prize catches."
"We're considered what?"
Harry preened a little.
"Aria, you're considered one of the hottest girls in our year," Tracey explained. "If not in the entire fourth and fifth years combined."
"I am not!" Aria gasped in disbelief. "Tell them, Harry!"
"Actually, that part is true," Harry answered even as he began laughing. "I'm not sure what she's saying about me, but I can assure you, you're definitely the girl everyone wants."
"Lies!" Aria shook her head. There was no way she was a popular kid. She could remember the popular kids at primary school, and the popular kids from the secondary school who strutted about the streets of Cokeworth like they owned the place. She wasn't one of those people, was she?
"Seamus Finnegan's been trying to get your attention since first year," Daphne said.
"Finnegan can turn his attention elsewhere," Aria said with a sniff. "I've no interest in him."
Around them the Great Hall was abuzz. Several groups of female students were now giggling and looking their way. Harry tried to flatten his hair and failed. Down the table Draco had his head close to Blaise and Theo's, the three of them having some kind of private conference together. Her stomach fluttered nervously. She and Draco had yet to discuss the Yule Ball and she didn't want to give anyone an answer until she had been able to talk to him. Being asked by Draco and dressing up nice and dancing the night away with him and their friends was ever so romantic, but it came with deeply practical problems. There was no illusion in her mind that he might have to ask someone else to the Yule Ball.
"Harry'll have to think hard about who he takes as a date," Pansy said sitting down beside Daphne.
"Why?" Harry asked. Pansy sighed with no small amount of disappointment.
"Because," she stressed, "you have to open the ball with the Champion's Dance. On top of that, it'll only be the beginning of the newspapers being interested in your love life. Celebrity, remember?"
"Oh. Well . . . fine." Harry began looking around the Great Hall. "I'll ask someone of impeccable taste. Someone cool."
Aria, Daphne, and Tracey shared worried looks. Harry turned to the girls sitting nearby.
"Luna," he said, "would you like to go to the Yule Ball with me?"
Pansy barely restrained her high-pitched gasp, helped along by Daphne slapping a hand over her mouth. Further down the table, Astoria's mouth dropped open and her face turned pink. Ginny's eyes widened and she nearly vibrated in excitement for her friend. Luna smiled dreamily at Harry.
"Are you sure?" the girl asked.
"Of course, I'm sure, Luna. You're my friend, aren't you?"
Aria thought that Harry might be making friends too easily. Not that she had anything against Luna. She was just . . . interesting. She could see things that even Aria couldn't which made it difficult with her half the time!
"Yes," Luna said, her smile growing. "I am your friend, and you are mine. I'll go to the Yule Ball with you, Harry Potter."
"Perfect."
"I'll just write Daddy and ask for one of my dresses to be sent. I think a rose pink will do very nicely." She and Ginny gathered up whatever it was they were working on (it was now making a whirling noise and emitting purple smoke) and they hurried off, Ginny giggling madly as they did so.
The Slytherin table fell into silence as the conversation and its outcome was whispered across the Great Hall. Multiple girls drooped their shoulders in disappointment or look angrily after Luna. Aria hoped Luna didn't have any trouble after this. Ginny had once told her that there were Ravenclaws who stole Luna's things out of her trunk, and then they had found her shoes hanging from a doorway.
"I can't believe you asked Looney Lovegood to be your date!" Pansy finally cried once she shoved Daphne off of her. "How's that going to reflect on Slytherin? On you? On House Black?"
"I don't know what my date to the Yule Ball has to do with Sirius," Harry answered, much to the chagrin of their Slytherin classmates who collectively groaned, "but I don't think he'd have a problem with her."
"Can't be worse than having a werewolf as one of your guardians," Crabbe muttered.
"What was that?" Harry snapped. Crabbe and Goyle had the good sense to scuttle off.
"Technically there isn't anything wrong with Luna's pedigree," Tracey said to Pansy. "So I don't see it being an issue on that front."
"Sirius doesn't care if someone's pureblood, halfblood, or Muggleborn," Harry insisted.
"Oh, we know," Daphne assured him. "It's just that he's starting to take more of an active role in the Wizengamot now that he's not living in Switzerland at the sanatorium. Right?"
"Um . . . I think so? He mentioned a few things in one of his last letters, but we haven't had like . . . a deep discussion about it or anything."
"There is so much for you to catch up on," Pansy muttered. She shared a look with Daphne and Tracey.
"I don't like that look," Harry said. "Blaise! Theo! The girls are looking at each other funny!"
"Can't help you," Theo said. He, Blaise, and Draco were gathering their things. "You're on your own." They hurried off.
"Where're they off to?" Tracey asked. "That's suspicious."
Aria was braiding her hair for dinner when there was a knock on the bedroom door. Millicent opened the door, revealing Harry, Blaise, Theo, and Draco.
"What's the emergency?" Millicent asked.
"I would like to speak with Aria," Draco declared. "Alone."
Several beats of silence passed. Daphne was the first to move.
"Of course," she agreed, grabbing Pansy by the arm. "We'll wait downstairs for the both of you."
"What? Why?" Pansy asked. "Draco, why do you want—?" Daphne and she disappeared out the room, Tracey hurrying after them. Millicent sighed and leveled Draco with a very serious look.
"I hope you know what you're doing," she muttered before going after her friends. Aria looked over Draco's shoulder at Harry who waggled his eyebrows and then he too disappeared down the stairs with a Blaise and Theo.
She finished braiding her hair, tying off the green ribbon she had weaved through it.
"Aria," Draco said, "I've thought about this for a bit . . . even talked it over with Blaise and Theo. I know we've talked about keeping our relationship a secret—,"
"For good reason," Aria reminded him.
"But I would like to take you to the Yule Ball," Draco said. "No one needs to know that we've been seeing each other since summer . . . but I really would like to take you. If you're willing to go through the hassle of people's opinions."
"I've been having to suffer that since first year," Aria answered. "I'd love to go to the Yule Ball with you."
Draco did a little happy wiggle before taking it wand and with a whispered spell, produced a wreath of snowdrops that complimented her braid and the green ribbon when he placed the wreath around her head.
Arm in arm, the two of them came down to the common room where the fourth years and now Ginny were waiting for them. Aria tried to ignore Pansy's red-rimmed eyes, but it was hard when she stood sullenly behind Daphne. That would be the most immediate fallout of this entire situation.
"You're missing something," Daphne suddenly said. She whisked out her wand and within seconds there was a small group of snowdrops pinned to Draco's casual robes.
Pansy whimpered into Millicent's shoulders.
The butterflies in Aria's stomach only intensified the closer they got to the Great Hall. While the school year had started off rough with some of the upper classmen, they had toned down their rhetoric since. Not enough that Aria thought they were being kind, but it seemed that for many of the Slytherin purebloods, it was better to let Durmstrang be the villainous blood purists than they. At least while the whole of Europe had their eye on Hogwarts.
Outside the Great Hall their group of Gryffindor friends were just coming down the staircase. Hermione immediately understood what had happened and gasped, squealing with excitement and dashing to Aria and throwing her arms around her. Some of her hair whipped Draco in the face and he sputtered, batting the offending hair away.
"Kill me now," Ron muttered dramatically, studiously ignoring Draco as he marched by. Dean and Seamus looked suitably impressed while Neville gave Aria a thumbs up.
"I look forward to hearing everything," Parvati said as she and Lavender walked by.
"So long as you tell me what rumors pop up," Aria agreed. Merlin knew what the student body would say.
Lavender backtracked briefly to pull Hermione off of Aria and the three hurried into the Great Hall to get a good seat. The Slytherins were momentarily delayed in entering the Great Hall as they realized Neville had stopped and pulled Ginny aside and was clearly stuttering his way through asking her to the Yule Ball. Ginny was more than happy to accept, much to Neville's relief, and she darted into the Great Hall, making a beeline to the Ravenclaw table and to Luna and loudly declaring she too had just been asked to the Yule Ball and that they had to go over hairstyles together.
That was when Draco decided it was time for them to get on with it and the fourth years entered.
As most people were distracted by Ginny talking loudly to Luna, it took a moment for people to realize who was walking arm and arm towards the Slytherin table. The Slytherins were, of course, the first to notice. Aria noted that Adrian Pucey nearly missed the goblet he was pouring pumpkin juice into, and Cassius Warrington did miss his mouth as he attempted to stare and eat at the same time.
"Malfoy! Bourne!" Adrian managed to hiss once he set the pitcher of juice down. "What're you doing?"
"I'm escorting Aria to dinner," Draco answered. "She's agreed to be my date at the Yule Ball."
Graham Montague sneered.
"You've got nerve, kid," he muttered. "Lowering yourself like that."
"You sure about that?" Cassius asked, hitting Graham on the shoulder. "You really think going together's a good idea?"
"We both want to go together" Aria answered. "So why shouldn't we?"
"I can think of plenty of reasons," Graham stated.
"Good thing no one's asking you," Draco snapped, pulling Aria further down the table. Whispers raced around the Great Hall. Aria and Draco sat down so that they faced the rest of the Great Hall and could see the people glancing towards the Slytherin table. A few Durmstrang students sitting at the table sneered in their direction but, thankfully, kept their mouths shut.
Aria immediately knew when the news reached the Head Table. Snape nearly dropped his face into his hands but aborted the movement at the last minute to turn towards Professor McGonagall. The two Heads of House were in a deep and very serious looking whispered conversation for several minutes before Snape turned back to his dinner and proceeded to ignore the entire Slytherin table.
It was not the worse way for the school to discover she and Draco were going to the Yule Ball together. Even with the sharp or disappointed looks being sent their way, she and Draco managed to have a nice dinner with their friends. The rest of their house even left them alone for the most part after dinner when they got back to the common room, which Aria counted as a win.
She sat with Ginny pouring over issues of Teen Witch, gushing over hairstyles for the rest of the evening.