Hope caught sight of Henry first as she went ahead of her family and decided to head to the Ball to see if Henry had arrived yet. Sure enough, she saw him standing outside of the hall with his parents, all dressed up in dress robes that Sirius had done a good job picking out, despite not being known for his sound fashion advice. It was good to see that Henry didn't show up in a blouse with a veil draped over it. As soon as Hope was close to approaching them, Sirius and Nixie ventured inside the hall, wearing bright smiles, leaving Hope and Henry alone outside, with the exception of students in passing. 

"You're here!" Henry exclaimed loudly causing her to flinch slightly at the unexpected tone. She could see him wiping his sweaty palms against his legs. He flashed her a nervous smile, which caused her to chuckle and nod her head.

"Yes, I'm here. Surprise!" She said just as loud. "Did you think I wouldn't show up to my own party?" 

"N-no!" Henry waved his hands frantically. "I didn't think that at all, I was just-"

"Ry, relax!" Hope laughed. "I was only joking."

It was so odd to see Henry acting so nervous around her. But it was adorable at the same time.

"I umm...right I...you look beautiful!" He blurted out. "I'm glad you're not wearing a gown. I mean, the dress is not a gown right? It's just a dress? I don't know the difference. Is there a difference? Regardless, it's beautiful and you look great in it. I wasn't saying that you wouldn't look good in a gown, I just though-"

Hope grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him. "Henry, breathe!"

Henry took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, his face become redder and redder by the second. 

"Sorry, I guess I'm just feeling a little ex...ex..."

"Exhilarated?" Hope finished for him.

A bright smile appeared on his face. "Yes. Exhilarated."

The boy looked down at his polished shoes, trying to calm himself down, but it seemed every time he looked up at her, he forgot how to breathe or how to think. All the words that came out of his mouth were either rushed or said just a little too loud. His struggle with stuttering had returned and while he wanted to just keep quiet he couldn't help it.

 It was true what he said earlier. Hope looked beautiful, she always did to him, perhaps it was the Christmas air, or the fact that she looked wildly adorable in her knitted dress, he was just left frazzled and unsure of what to do or say.

Hope seemed to sense his nerves as he felt her take both of his hands to calm him down, but she was completely unaware that it was doing the complete opposite for him. 

"Why don't we go inside?" She suggested. Afraid of what would come out of his mouth again, Henry only nodded his head and allowed her to pull him along into the hall. 

The decorations of the ball had completely transformed the Great Hall into a winter wonderland. Snow fell from the enchanted ceiling causing Hope to pause and look up with a happy grin.

"I definitely need this in my house when I'm older." She told Henry. "Could you imagine how fantastic that would be to have over your bed when you wake up in the mornings....I wonder...I wonder if Dad and Uncle George could come with a product like this. "

"Like what?" Henry asked curiously, staring up.

"Like Enchanted Wallpaper!" Hope screeched causing other students around them to jump. "Oh yes, I need this is in my life!"

"Well, I'm sure your product proposal can wait until after the Ball, right?"

Hope turned to him. "Of course..tonight is about you and I having a great time."

"That's what I'm hoping for." He muttered under his breath, as he rubbed his shoes into the floor. 

Before anything got underway, the two found Fergus who had turned into a puddle of emotions around Armina Longbottom. The girl with the wild blonde curly hair, seemed to be enjoying Fergus' company as the boy did everything he could to redeem himself in her eyes after being defeated in arm wrestling. Little did the stupid boy know that he didn't need to impress her with his bragging of quidditch skills, she liked him just the same. But it appeared she enjoyed listening him struggle with his reasoning. 

Across the way, Stella and Teddy were happily talking with Remus and Tonks, as Tonks had arrived as Remus' date. They appeared happy and Stella looked gorgeous in the silver and green gown that her mother had picked out for her. But that raised concern in Hope as she didn't see Eliza right away. 

Unfortunately, Hope couldn't convince Elliot to come to the Ball as the boy remained behind in the Ravenclaw dorm. It didn't long for Eliza to land herself a date with a boy from Ilvermorny, but it was obviously not what the girl wanted. 

Hope spotted her sitting at a table with her date and a few other Ilvermorny students. She was politely making conversation as everyone expected Eliza to do, but every so often she would look away and scan her eyes around the hall in search of Elliot. 

She wished the two would just realize how silly they were being and just talk things out, but it seemed that conversation was going to have to wait another day. 

"Miss Weasley! Mr. Black, are you two ready?"

The two turned around to come face to face with Professor McGonagall who was motioning the two to take to the dance floor. 

The moment of truth had come for Henry. It was time to see if all his dancing lessons with Professor Longbottom had paid off. He was ready to show Hope that he was actually a great dancer and that she didn't have to lead. However, just as he went to walk with her to the dance floor, the poor boy tripped and fell to the floor.

Sirius covered his face and his wife's, but Nixie seemed more than ready to walk ahead and help her son up. But Hope had it covered.

The girl crouched down, she could hear other students laughing, but as soon as she turned her head, the "badger" glare silenced all who thought it was funny to laugh at Henry. She turned back to Henry and offered her hand to him. 

"Ready to show me your moves?" She asked him.

Henry grinned at her before taking her hand. "Prepared to be wooed, Ope."

"Oh trust me, Ry, I've already been wooed and the ball has hardly started."