✦•······················•✦•······················•✦

Y/N's P.O.V. 

Deciding that she and Hermione couldn't spend all day sulking in their dorm, and that they had to go back downstairs to Harry and Ron, Y/N got up from her bed and most of wiped her tears away. 

Her wrist felt heavy, she didn't know why. It felt as though it were being weighed down by bricks.

It was a little odd, knowing Y/N wouldn't go sit beside Harry, cuddle into his side and play with his hair. How could she do that after he said he wanted to ask Cho? That's not fair to Y/N's feelings, to Harry, and especially not to Cho.

It was a little bit more than odd, knowing that Cho would soon take Y/N's place, and that she would share affection with Harry in the same way Y/N did.

Because Y/N only chose Elijah because Harry chose Cho first. Harry said Cho's name. Harry voiced to Y/N that he liked another girl.

"We don't have to go down until you're ready, Trouble," Hermione said quietly, looking at Y/N with soft eyes. 

"No," Y/N said stubbornly, finding a spot on the floor to stare at intensely. "No, it's fine. Gotta go back down eventually, right?" 

"I could tell them that you got tired...or caught up in homework?" Hermione suggested in a small voice. 

Y/N gave her best friend a smile - how could one become more considerate than Hermione Granger. Still, "No, Herms. It's okay, really. Now I can stop saying no to everyone else." 

Frowning slightly, Hermione quickly turned it into a sly smirk. "Elijah?" she cooed, but her eyes were still sad, and Y/N knew that the girl was just trying to distract her from Harry. 

The slightest blush crept up her neck. "Probably...unless he doesn't ask me, and nobody asks me, so I go alone-" 

Hermione scoffed. "If that happened, I'd politely tell Viktor that something came up, and you and I would go ask friends." 

Y/N grinned, but it was watery, due to her...state. "First, he's Viktor already? Like, damn, I know he asked you out...but anyway....Secondly, you'd ditch him?" 

"It's not ditching," Hermione defended. "Viktor would understand." 

Y/N chuckled weakly again, picking up the handmirror on her bedside table to see if any more glowing tears were left on her face. There were the subtle silvery traces down her cheeks, but if you didn't look too closely, you wouldn't see them. 

Y/N tried putting the mirror down, then found that she quite literally could not let it go. Brows furrowing, she shook her hand, but it still didn't come off. Shaking her hand more aggressively, she muttered, "Herms..." 

Hermione turned from her spot near the door. "Yes? Oh, Trouble, don't cry..." Hermione said softly, coming to wipe Y/N's tears off of her face. They collected . "Not over a guy, cry over homework, but not a guy..." 

"Harry's not just any guy," Y/N chuckled weakly. "But that's not the problem. This fucking mirror just won't come off-" 

Once more, Y/N shook her hand with vigor, but this time, the mirror fell her from her grip, hit the ground and shattered. 

"I think it came off," Hermione supplied. 

"Thanks, thank you so much," Y/N said sarcastically, but she couldn't suppress a small giggle. She looked down at the mess of glass, "I'll clean it up later, not in the mood right now." 

Still, as they left the dorm to go sit (civilly)with Harry and Ron, Y/N couldn't shake the feeling. How had the mirror been stuck one second, then falling the next? 

Almost begrudgingly, even though she had insisted in the first place, Y/N sat down beside Ron and avoided Harry's gaze at all costs. 

"What were you getting?" asked Harry dully.

"Huh?" 

"You said you needed to get something in the dorms...what were you getting?" 

"Oh," Y/N waved a dismissive hand. "I couldn't find it." 

"Okay, but what were you looking for?" Harry persisted, his face set in something close to annoyance.

Why should he be annoyed? The person he loved didn't just admit to wanting to take Cho Chang to the Yule Ball.

"Nothing, Harry," said Y/N irritably. 

Ron and Hermione looked between the two, confused and concerned. 

"No, Y/N-" 

There it was with the 'Y/N' again. Why did 'Silv' keep appearing and disappearing? He was probably already curating a nickname for when Cho became his girlfriend. 

Hopefully, Cedric would ask her first. 

"Drop it, Harry."

✦•······················•✦•······················•✦

Y/N sulked for the rest of the weekend. Who wouldn't, after getting their heart crushed? She only left the safety of her bed when Hermione arrived with a message. 

"Who goes there?" Y/N asked dramatically from under the covers, masking her hurt.

"My liege, 'tis I, your humble messenger," Hermione replied in a high-end, posh voice, masking a giggle. 

Peeking her head out from under the blanket, Y/N laughed. "State your purpose," she said in a portly way. 

"I come forth with a message, from Frederick and Georgian Weasley, as well as Leonidas Jordan," Hermione said. 

Y/N crawled out and sat on her bed, Hermione was already sitting at the edge with a piece of parchment. She handed it to Y/N, and Y/N didn't catch the smile, almost-smirk, playing at the girl's lips.

"Go on," said Hermione. "Open it." 

Carefully unfurling the rolled up parchment, Y/N observed the scroll. The handwriting was very medieval, with flourishes at the end of each letter.

╔═-------------------------*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*-------------------------═╗

"To: Your Royal Highness, Y/N Sterling

This letter is to inform you that we, humble jesters, request thee presence of thine. Please, show up -

Nobody said "Show up," back then, Fred, you idiot. 

Sorry, Georgian. But fuck you? We shouldn't have chosen a voice-writing quill. Fuck. We can't even fix it because we used the last of the Medieval Font potion on this damn piece of paper. 

You're actually slow, oh my Merlin. Okay, my turn. 

That's not nice, George. 

Shut up, Lee. 

Your Majesty, prithee arriveth at the statue of selene in the moonlight at noon, nay earli'r, nay lat'r. 

That was actually pretty good 

Lee stop, you're giving him false confidence. It was terrible. 

It was not! I'd like to see you try, George. 

Fine, Freddie. I will. Dam you. 

Guys, we're kinda...missing the point of this whole letter. You know what, lemme start, and then you two can add on...civilly. 

Fine. 

Fine. 

Hello, thy highness. We desire this message finds thee well and in the good graces of God.  We, thine humble court jests, requesteth thy mighty presence.

If thy so desire, prithee make an appearance near the magnificent, marble statue of Selene in the Moonlight. Do keep in the mind to dress thineself in something other than a robe-of-a-group-of-bards.

The time set for this venture is noon, nay earli'r, nay in the latest, my liege - journey safely, one can never be too sure of the dangers that roam thee area. 

In well wishes, 

Your humble court jests,

Fredrick Weasley, Georgian Weasley, and Leonidas Jordan." 

╚═-------------------------*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*-------------------------═╝

Y/N stared at the parchment, her smile was so wide that she was afraid her face would split open. Turning to Hermione, who was already giggling into her hand, she laughed along. 

"What's all this about?" asked Y/N happily. "I know I greeted you in Medieval Style, but why is the letter like that too?" 

"They thought it would give you a laugh - plus, your minds are basically connected, so the Medieval Font was a no go," Hermione laughed. "They could've asked me letter it, instead of using a voice-to-write quill." 

Y/N glanced over the letter again fondly. Her idiots were so idiot, but she loved them anyway. The girl shuffled on the bed, now facing Hermione. "So...noon, then - if I've understood this mess of a letter correctly!" 

Hermione smiled. "You have a whole hour to sulk, but please don't let this actually affect your mental health. I can talk some sense into Harry-" 

"No!" Y/N exclaimed, "No. That'll mean that he'll know that I care-" 

"Why should that matter?" asked Hermione. "Let him know that it means something to you. He's your friend." 

"No, Herms," Y/N said firmly. "Don't you see? He doesn't care - he won't understand. He likes Cho. That's the whole thing." 

Hermione fell quiet, but then cheekily looked at the letter in Y/N's hands. She flopped backwards onto the bed, but Y/N still caught her little smirk. 

Y/N, too, re-read the scrolled message and smiled. She'd bet all her Gringotts money (which was a considerable amount of gold, courtesy her parents - don't think about it...) that they'd paid Dean to draw the fancy symbols at each end of the letter. 

Wondering what it could be for, she kept re-reading it. Then, Y/N realized that it was not signed off by Elijah. In fact, he was not included in the letter at all...or in Hermione's introduction of the letter. It was odd, but maybe he was hanging out with Theo Nott, or something... 

At this point, after knowing that Harry didn't like her, Y/N had butterflies thinking of Elijah. He treated her wonderfully - not that Harry didn't...it's just...Harry was a coward. Oh, nevermind, he wasn't a coward, he liked a completely different girl! 

But Elijah...ugh, he was smart, and funny, and handsome...

She glanced down at her wrists, where all her bracelets lay. She absolutely loved Cedric' shield bracelet. Looking at Harry's bracelet made her heart pang uncomfortably...moving on to Elijah's...his gave her butterflies. 

It was a constant reminder of him - the three metal beads, white, grey and black. It made her feel pink, like she was viewing the world from rose-colored glasses, and Y/N wouldn't change a thing.

✦

Y/N emerged from her dormitory at eleven fifty, ready in her "in something other than a robe-of-a-group-of-bards." She had deciphered that this meant: No band-tees. 

So, instead, she'd worn something casual, but relatively cute. A white, slightly cropped top with a sweetheart neckline, paired with a soft blue skirt (with shorts underneath, of course), and a matching blue zip-up sweater that she left unzipped. Since it was still chilly, Y/N had decided to wear her thigh-high socks. Her wrists bore her bracelets, like usual, but couldn't find any necklaces to put on. 

Hermione had brightly told her to "have fun!" and slammed the dormitory door in Y/N's face, so...Y/N left. 

She hurried past Ron and Harry, who were sitting on a couch playing Wizards Chess. Catching Harry's eye, she looked away instantly, setting her face into indifference. 

Turning into the hallway, Y/N hummed to herself, wondering what Fred, George and Lee wanted. 

The journey to the statue was familiar, so she zoned out most of the way there. Only when she arrived, did she notice that the noise was not present, meaning the boys were not present. She furrowed her brows and looked around, even going as far as to circle the statue. 

Selene looked scared, hand outstretched to the sky with a knife, a mirror in the hand dangling at her side. When Y/N looked closer, she saw a little note tucked in Selene's palm, right beside the knife. 

In all honestly, she didn't care if it was for her or not, it was interesting. It took some pulling, but eventually the note was freed and opened in her palm. 

"Hey, Y/N 

Good to see you've found the note.

Fred, George and Lee not there? That's okay, you're an observant person, one of your best qualities.

And now, I've got you hooked, haven't I? You want to know what all this is about, don't you? 

Go to the painting of The Tale-Bearing Woman on the second floor for your next clue. 

- ?"

Now, this could very well be Draco Malfoy waiting to hex Y/N into oblivion, the boys and girls she had rejected, anyone, really. 

But this person knew her too well, which was rather concerning. She was hooked. Scoffing to herself about how much of a waste of time this was, Y/N raced back down the corridor, going to the second floor. 

See, they had learned about the Tale-Bearing Woman in one of their History of Magic lessons. Y/N just...hadn't been listening. Instead, she and Ron had been playing thumb-wars, ex's and oh's, anything to keep them distracted.

The painting of the Tale-Bearing Woman was a beautiful renaissance piece. She had beautiful flowing hair, covered in the blood from the gash on back. An unknown shadow stood in the corner, holding the knife. It was  large, with a golden frame - wait...

Tucked carefully between the frame and the canvas, right over the unknown shadow's head, was another clue. 

She unfurled it. 

"Good job, found the second one! 

This has always been my favorite painting in the castle...it's just so beautiful - the way the painter captured the fear, the hurt, the emotion and the beauty of the woman. 

Speaking of beauty, 

You're quite beautiful, you know - got the looks a bloke would kill for. 

Next clue? Near the entrance to the dungeons. I know you hate going near there, but...the Slytherin Chandelier is pretty, isn't it? 

- ?"

Ugh, the dungeons. The last line about the Slytherin Chandelier was obviously the location, so she set off, grumbling to herself. If this was all a wild-goose chase and it got her nothing, she would go back to laying in bed and sulking for the rest of the weekend. That meant for another day. 

It was quite a trek, but Y/N made it alive (surprisingly, since she ran into Peeves, but he just grinned at her). 

The Slytherin Chandelier was nothing special, just a couple of snakes wrapped around candles, dangling very low from the ceiling. It was a couple hallways away from the Slytherin Common Room, and usually nobody went near it. 

Something dangled off of the chandelier, but Y/N was too busy looking for the clue.

It was in an odd spot - a Chandelier in the middle of the hall. The sole purpose of it was to alight a podium...with nothing...on it...? 

That was besides the point. 

In the mouth of a snake rested another clue. 

"Final note, I promise

This chandelier is so overrated. Like...it's not even lighting anything up? How has Filch not removed this filth yet? Anyways, you're probably reading this like: Can you just get to the good part? 

Yeah, I'm getting there

But you need to get to the Gardens, near the Greenhouses. Meet me near the Dahlias, near the fountain. I think that fountain is labeled, Fons Dolus.

- ?" 

Finally. Would this crazy person have her running around the whole castle? Now, it was just a two minute walk. She glanced at the clock of an empty classroom that she passed: It was twelve-twenty. 

Y/N was glad that she had worn a sweater this morning, because it did happen to be the beginning of December. It would still be cold, but curiosity won, and she headed towards the greenhouses. 

When Y/N arrived outside, the cold air met her at the door. It was freezing, so she zipped up her sweater and braved on, arms wrapped around herself, teeth chattering. 

The Greenhouses were a little ways away, but she walked (albeit, very slowly) towards them. Not going inside, Y/N took the little trail that led to the gardens, wondering how all the plants and flowers could survive in such harsh weather. Oh, right - magic. 

Wandering aimlessly, she finally found the section that she deemed were dahlias. She found the fountain, but there was nobody there. Y/N saw another piece of parchment. The last one was supposed to be the last one! 

Begrudgingly, she read it.

"Hah, your pout is cute, pretty lady. 

Turn this parchment around."

Without thinking, Y/N flipped the paper around and her eyes widened, heart skipping a beat as she gasped. 

"Will you go to the Yule Ball with me ?

- Elijah ❤ "

Y/N was speechless. This letter was written in much better handwriting, almost cursive - but still legible. A hot blush rose to her cheeks. Her mouth was gaped open in an 'o' shape, almost like a fish.

"Well...?" came a nervous voice from behind her. "Is that a no...?" 

Whipping around, Y/N saw none other than the man she expected - Elijah Collins. He looked nervous and confident at the same time. His hair was styled, and he wore dark brown slacks, paired with a white dress shirt ( how was he not freezing?) - it greatly complimented his entire being.

Y/N found that, in that moment, she had completely forgotten about Harry. 

In Elijah's hands was a grand bouquet of black dahlia flowers, wrapped with red lace ribbon. He offered Y/N, who was still speechless, the flowers. He also pulled out a small box, but withheld it from her with a teasing smirk. "So...Am I getting an answer any time today?" 

"Yes," Y/N hummed, trying to contain her excitement. 

"'Yes,' meaning I am getting an answer? Or 'yes,' meaning-"

"Yes!" Y/N squealed, throwing her arms around Elijah's neck. His free hand flew around her waist and she could feel the indent of his rings through her sweater. She felt warmer now. "I'll go to the Ball with you!" 

Elijah let out a breath, pulling back slightly, squeezing her waist and giving her a fond look. "Oh, thank Salazar. I was terrified you'd see the first note and just ignore, or maybe not even find it at all-" 

"Well," Y/N said, furiously red, "I did, so...here we are." 

"Here we are," Elijah repeated almost breathlessly, looking down at her. His blonde hair ruffled slightly in the wind - his brown eyes bore into her own. 

"Got the others in on it?" Y/N asked. "Fredrick, Georgian and Leonidas?" 

Elijah gave a bark of a laugh. "Yeah - I was with them when they voice-wrote that letter. It was our fifth attempt, and our last piece of of parchment. Sorry about all the swearing, and the mistakes."

Y/N, too, laughed it off. "It was funny," she said. "Now...what's in here..." she asked, peering into the box in Elijah's hands. It was green and silver - Slytherin at heart. 

"Go on," he urged, handing the box to Y/N. He took the flowers, "I'll hold these for you, pretty lady." 

Blushing, she swatted Elijah's arm and carefully undid the bow atop the gift. When she opened the box, there were two things inside - another, smaller box, and a beautiful bottle of perfume. 

The perfume bottle was a rose-tinted pink color, the glass set in the shape of a heart. The stopper of the bottle was a large pearlescent rhombus. On the bottom of the bottle was E and [your initial]. 

Y/N would spray-test it out here, but the scent would be lost in the wind. She thanked Elijah giddily, then he said, 

"Smells...sort of smokey? With a hint of nutmeg...I know it's not your usual scent, but can you wear it for the Yule Ball?" 

"Of course," Y/N smiled. Who was she to turn down such a request?

She picked up the smaller box, which was black, and carefully opened it. Inside, sat two pearls. Y/N gasped and met his eyes. "You did not-" 

"Yeah, I did," Elijah shrugged.

"This shit is expensive!" Y/N scolded. "You could have gotten me chocolate, or something!" 

"Rich, pureblooded, Slytherin parents," he replied simply. 

"Oh. I forgot - wait..." said Y/N. "How'd your parents agree to you asking me? I'm not a pure blood?" 

Both of Y/N's parents were half bloods - her dad was close to pure, but he had a muggle in his family somewhere, yada yada. Her mom was Remus' sister, so also half blood there. 

He shrugged again, but looked at her cheekily. "Lied, obviously. Couldn't take anyone else except you." 

Each pearl had a hole running through it. Elijah took Y/N's wrist, magically untied his twine bracelet, and added one pearl to each end of the metal beads. He gave a self-satisfactory smirk, a smile at Y/N, then fixed the bracelet back on her wrist, above Harry's. 

It seemed as though Elijah didn't even care about Harry's bracelet, which, in Y/N's opinion, was a huge green flag. Everything about Elijah was. 

"Perfect," said Elijah. "Can you tell me when you get your dress? And relatively what color it is, so I can match my suit?" 

"Yeah," Y/N said quietly, eyes still fixed on the new additions to her bracelet. "You didn't have to do all this, you know."

"I wanted to, pretty lady."

The whole conversation made Y/N feel like she was floating on air - she even forgot that they were in the freezing cold. Letting out an involuntary shiver, Elijah noticed and wrapped and arm around Y/N, pulling her close. 

"Let's get her royal majesty inside, yeah?" 

And they trekked back up to the castle, with Elijah's arm around Y/N, guiding her away from the cold. Y/N couldn't stop smiling and giddily thanking him and laughing with him. There would be a lot to tell Hermione later - but Y/N had a sneaking suspicion that the girl had been in on it the whole time. 

✦•······················•✦•······················•✦

The week that ensued was pretty normal. 

Some of the teachers, like little Professor Flitwick, gave up trying to teach them much when their minds were so clearly elsewhere; he allowed them to play games in his lesson on Wednesday, and spent most of it talking to Harry about the perfect Summoning Charm that he had used during the first task.

And how he avoided all those shards of metal...that Y/N had somehow controlled.

Not that Y/N was paying attention to Harry...

Other teachers were not so generous. Nothing would ever deflect Professor Binns, for example, from plowing on through his notes on goblin rebellions - as Binns hadn't let his own death stand in the way of continuing to teach, they supposed a small thing like Christmas wasn't going to put him off. 

Professors McGonagall and Moody kept them working until the very last second of their classes too (Y/N really tried to convince McGonagall to let the whole class off - it did not work.). Snape, of course, would no sooner let them play games in class than adopt Y/N, Harry, Ron and Hermione. 

Harry kept pestering Y/N about who she was going to the ball with. 

Every time, Y/N told him that it was none of his business, smiled at the mere thought of Elijah, and told Harry that he should keep his specky-eyed gaze on his homework. 

Harry scowled and got up, leaving Ron, Hermione and Y/N in the common room. Ron always followed Harry to their dorm, giving Y/N a mix between a sympathetic look and annoyance. 

She couldn't figure out why. Perhaps Harry had told Ron that Y/N had been making weird advances on him, even though he liked Cho, and even though he used to share affection with Y/N.

Harry kept ignoring Hermione's insistent reminders to work on the golden egg. The second task was sometime after Christmas, so, apparently, he was daft enough to ignore it.

Feeling as though she didn't care about how Harry did in the tournament anymore, Y/N never gave her input. Of course, she cared a lot, but Harry didn't need to know that. Whenever Hermione asked for Ron and Y/N to side with her, Ron asked who she was going to the Ball with, and Y/N replied with either: 

"Huh?" 

"Yeah..." 

"Sure." 

"Of course, Herms." 

Yeah, she had a very wide vocabulary.

Harry already had dress robes for the Ball, courtesy of Sirius sending him some. Y/N hadn't seen them, but she supposed he'd look good in them, or whatever. 

They were sitting at Gryffindor table for breakfast when Errol came crashing into Ron's plate of sausages with a large package in his talons. It was labelled, "From: Mum, for the Yule Ball!"

"Go on, then," Y/N said with a smile. "Open it." 

Harry grinned at his best mate, "Yeah, Ron-" 

"You shut up and let him open it," Y/N said dryly, her previous smiley nature gone.

Harry gave her a nonplussed look, but Ron had already ripped the package open and was holding a maroon-colored, dressing-gown looking...thing. 

"Ginny!" Ron called to his sister at a different spot on the table. "I've got something for you, a dress, maybe!" 

Ginny came over, took one look at the bundle of fabric and snorted, scrunching her nose up in disgust. "I'm not wearing that, it's ghastly!" 

Hermione snickered at Ron, "They're dress robes, Ronald," she said. "For you." 

His face adopted a terrified expression and he held the robes away from himself. "I - what?! No! I can't go to the Ball looking like my great-aunt Tessie!" He brought them to his nose and smelled. "...It even smells like my great-aunt Tessie!" he said miserably.

With a laugh and grin, Harry rummaged through the seemingly empty package. "Is there a bonnet?" he asked, then pulled out a piece of white fabric. "Aha!" 

"Nose down, Harry," Ron said gruffly. 

Y/N made a mental note to buy Ron new robes when she went to Hogsmeade this weekend to buy her dress. He really needed it.

✦

On Sunday morning, Y/N was up and out of bed before any of her dormmates, even Hermione. She just couldn't sleep. 

Yesterday, when she had gotten back to the common room late (because she and Elijah were hanging out - no, they didn't kiss. Nothing more than friends...at least, that's what Y/N thought, though she wouldn't mind being more!) Harry was there. 

He barely even greeted her when she sat down next to Hermione and Ron, a blissed out expression on her face. Hermione had immediately giggled and made to drag Y/N upstairs. 

"Do you two have dates for the ball?" he said suddenly. 

"Yeah," the two girls said in unison, smiling at the thought. 

"Who?" asked Ron. 

"None of your business," said Hermione coldly. "Keep on your Chess game." 

They were about to rush upstairs to talk, when Harry pressed on, "Y/N, who are you going with?" 

She didn't want to answer that question - you see, Harry had already made his slight animosity for Elijah very clear, and she didn't need to stir the pot even more. Though, she supposed, he deserved it for carefully carrying her heart for so long, then dropping it, letting it shatter, then picking up Cho's heart instead.

"Not your concern," she replied shortly, not even looking at him, then turning and heading upstairs. 

Now, she was shaking Hermione awake. Today Y/N, Hermione and Liana were going dress-shopping in Hogsmeade. 

Well, Hermione's parents had sent her a beautiful periwinkle blue dress, which arrived yesterday evening, while they were talking about Elijah asking Y/N out. So, Hermione was out shopping for jewelry. 

They were to meet Liana in the Entrance Hall. Professor McGonagall had given the three of them permission to go after receiving a message from Y/N, (signed by Remus). It read: 

"Hello, Minnie. 

I was wondering if my little troublemaker could go to Hogsmeade for dress shopping? You know I don't really dabble in women's clothing, or buying clothes for women, if you know what I mean...

Miss your teaching, 

- Remus (Rems)"

When Y/N gave the message, which had arrived by owl five minutes prior (Y/N had sprinted to give it to McGonagall), the woman teared up and immediately gave them permission.

Damn, Remus had power here. 

The majority of the letter from Remus was jibes about the Ball, and to choose a nice dress, and to get Colin Creevey to take pictures so she could show Remus. Oh...and about how concerned he was that Y/N was able to control that metal, and that he'd explain everything when he saw her in person.

Yeah...that might be an issue, but she'd resolve it on January seventh, the day she'd see Remus...and her parents.

Y/N, expelling the thought from her mind, remembered something the Weasleys had given her for her birthday - a coupon for a dress shop in Hogsmeade. Of course -  cheeky Missus Weasley. She rummaged through her trunk until she found the slip of paper, and stuffed it into the pocket of her jeans. 

Hermione was groggily yawning and getting dressed, pulling her hair into braids and putting on a jumper - black, today, completely opposite from Y/N's white sweater. 

They exited the dormitory with their money and cloaks and hats and gloves at exactly eight-thirty. Y/N didn't know how she was awake so early on a weekend, but...she was! 

"Oh! I thought we were just meeting Liana," Hermione said sheepishly as they walked into the Entrance Hall, where three people stood. 

Liana, Mathew and Cedric were talking in the middle of the hall happily. Liana saw the two girls and waved them over, barely containing her huge smile, and shaking Cedric by the shoulders at a very concerning, rapid rate. 

Mathew stood there chuckling, and when his girlfriend finally released Cedric, he gave his mate a clap on the back and a side-hug, which Cedric quickly turned into a real hug.

The moment Hermione and Y/N joined the group, Liana exclaimed, "HE ASKED CHO!" 

"AND WHAT DID CHO SAY?" Y/N and Hermione in sync, excitedly. If Cho said yes to Cedric, then she couldn't say yes to Harry! 

"SHE SAID YES!" Cedric yelled, grabbing Y/N by the shoulders now and shaking her. She was pretty sure that he had just scrambled what was left of her quickly deteriorating brain, but that's okay - 

Cho was going to the Yule Ball with Cedric. 

Not with Harry. 

Cedric Diggory, not Harry Potter.

Y/N didn't know why she still cared, when Elijah had asked her, she accepted. If he asked her to be his girlfriend, she'd accept - its the obvious choice, right? 

Right. 

Y/N squealed, shaking Cedric with just as much vigor. "That's amazing, Ced!" 

"She sounded excited about it!" Cedric said happily, a dreamy expression overtaking his features. 

Mathew butted in teasingly, "Imagine not already having a girlfriend-"

"I'm sure she was very excited," Y/N said, in a tone that greatly mimicked a mother telling her child, "that rock over there is beautiful, sweetie." 

Cedric then went on a tangent about how beautiful Cho was, how she really like the chrysanthemums, and how she blushed when he kissed her hand. Y/N listened to him with rapt attention - she was happy for him. 

Wait a minute..."Ced...why wasn't I there for this..." Y/N saw slowly, narrowing her eyes.  

Sucking in air through his teeth, Cedric mumbled, "Nobody was...I had just got the flowers from Owl Post and I was going back to the dorms when I saw her...I guess I just went for it." 

"I'm going to cry that's so cute," said Hermione, pretending to wipe her eyes on the sleeves of her black jumper. 

Cedric grinned, then the two boys insisted on being gentlemen and walking the girls to the door. 

Mathew walked with hands interlocked with Lianas - it was still tentative, from both ends, but especially Liana (It was so cute). Liana was wearing a beigey-brown turtleneck with a simple pair of jeans, and obviously, a cloak on top.

Before they could leave, Cedric held Y/N back. "Mum insisted on sending you jewelry for the Yule Ball. She knows you have bracelets, but not the rest...so...I think she's sending some silver jewelry, because that's the kind you wear most, right?"

Y/N's heart melted at the thought. "Awwww, tell Aunt Ettie that she can send whatever and I'll wear it proudly," said Y/N. "But yeah, silver, if she can!" 

"Alright," said Cedric. "Have fun at Hogsmeade, see you when you get back." 

The girls walked into the crisp, cold air, laughing and having fun making jokes. It was awkward only for a couple of minutes between Hermione and Liana, but Liana's charm and Hermione's quick adaption made everything more comfortable. It was like Liana and Hermione had been friends for years. 

Hogsmeade approached quickly - they must not have noticed while talking and laughing. Snow dusted the roofs of houses, and the ground, and basically everything. Wreaths hung on doors and candles could be seen inside shops. Everyone was getting ready for Christmas. 

"Oh," Y/N said suddenly, turning to Hermione in the middle of the street. A little, goblin-looking man had to swerve on his bike to avoid her quick stop. "I haven't told Liana." 

"Told me what?" Liana asked with a curious hint in her voice. 

"Well..." Hermione began slowly as the trio sat down on a snow-covered bench, looking to Y/N to fill in the rest. 

"ElijahaskedmetotheYuleBall!" Y/N blurted out excitedly, grin wide and waiting for Liana's reaction. 

Liana seemed to take a moment to process this, then, her jaw fell open and her eyes widened. Her eyebrows shot so far up that Y/N was slightly afraid they'd fly away. 

"AND YOU SAID YES, RIGHT?" 

"OBVIOUSLY!" Y/N and Hermione yelled right back in Liana's face. 

✦

Y/N, Hermione and Liana had gone through three shops already. Y/N knew that she had the coupon for a store called Gracie's Gowns, but wanted to give Liana a chance to find a dress first. Hermione had decided to get jewelry from Gracie's Gowns, because she'd seen it in an advertisement and liked it. 

Two more stores and and seventeen dresses later, Liana had chosen a beautiful sunflower yellow dress, which was a large, fluffy gown, something that slightly resembled Victorian France. 

Her yellowy-orange ring greatly complimented it, especially when she spun. When she spun, the dress seemed to pulse with a slight orange color, just like the ring.

She did a spin, and fell in love with the dress, purchasing it immediately. Her family was pretty wealthy, and had been in Hufflepuff for centuries. 

Happily, Liana took the dress, which was carefully folded into a bag, and the trio left the shop, back into the cold. 

Y/N had bought Ron a black suit as well, because in all honestly, she did feel bad about the abomination of the dress robes he had received from Missus Weasley.

"To Gracie's, then?" Liana said happily, and Hermione and Y/N nodded. 

Gracie's Gowns was a large store, and when they walked in, there were dresses and gowns of every color everywhere. 

It was a fancy store too, with marble floors and walls, with sky-high ceilings and beautiful, intricate pillars. Y/N could see why it was so expensive to buy from this store, and she was glad she had a coupon, though she still brought money. 

When the entered and rid their shoes of snow on the carpet, the chime of a bell rang overhead. From behind the counter, a woman with blonde hair and kind eyes welcomed them, "Hello! Welcome to Gracie's Gowns!" 

"Hello!" the girls replied cheerily, walking into the shop as the shopkeeper lead them. 

"Call me Gracie," the woman smiled. "Now, what are looking for today?" 

"Some jewelry," Hermione replied with a smile.

Y/N shrugged, "A dress, Hogwarts has an event coming up!" 

Liana gave Gracie a smile, like Hermione, and said, "Just browsing!" 

Gracie nodded, then pointed to the jewelry section, where the girls headed. Hermione eventually settled on a necklace, earrings and a dainty bracelet, all of which were rose-gold in color. 

Then...it was time for Y/N's dress. Sure, the coupon was for a "Free Fitting!" but Gracie said that those count as money as well, since they were bought for that price. 

Y/N tried on so many dresses she could barely keep count, any color, any type, you name it. Liana liked a lot of them, especially a pretty red one, but Y/N and Hermione weren't really feeling it. 

Gracie, seeing their indecisiveness, handed Y/N a black package, that supposedly contained a dress inside. Y/N looked at her confusedly, but Gracie just winked and gestured towards the dressing room. 

Apparently, Hermione and Liana did not see this exchange, and encouraged Y/N to try on another dress in the changeroom. 

"Okay..." Y/N said unsurely, closing the curtain again. 

She carefully unwrapped the large black package, eyes widening when a beautiful purple fabric flowed out, highlighted with a silvery sheen. Y/N slowly pulled the rest of the dress out of the wrapping, and audibly gasped when she held it up with both hands. 

It was absolutely beautiful. It was a floor-length, slightly form-fitting gown of a pretty lavender color. The top was tighter, with a cinched waist that flowed into a skirt that cascaded like a waterfall. The fabric folded over each other a little bit near the end of the bodice, giving the dress some personality. Off the shoulders sleeves were complimented by a piece of fabric that dragged behind the dress.

Y/N slipped into it immediately. The dress fit like a glove, hugging her body wonderfully. She did a spin, looking in the grandiose mirror of the fitting room. Everything complimented her perfectly, and Y/N decided that this was the dress. 

She opened the curtain of the fitting room, and watched Hermione and Liana's jaws drop as they gasped and immediately showered Y/N with complements and confirmation that, yes, this was the dress.

It truly was perfect. 

✦•······················•✦•······················•✦

The quartet was sitting in the common room once more after classes. Y/N and Hermione were diligently doing their homework, whispering and giggling about the Yule Ball, while Ron and Harry lazed around, doing practically nothing, playing Exploding Snap.

"You two should really be doing something productive, maybe potions, since we have a test!" said Hermione. 

Ron laughed, "Nah," he said. "Boring." 

"This is why you're going to fail potions, Ronnie" Y/N said playfully. "Snape hates me, and I still have a good grade."

When Harry didn't answer, Hermione looked severely over at him too. "I'd have thought you'd be doing something constructive, Harry, even if you don't want to learn your antidotes!" 

 "Like what?" Harry said, flicking his hair back in a way that made Y/N's blood boil, because he looked a little too attractive. 

"That egg!" Hermione hissed.

"Come on, Hermione, I've got till February the twenty-fourth," Harry said. 

"But it might take weeks to work it out!" said Hermione. 

"Yeah," said Y/N, a little more aggressively than intended. "You're going to look like more of an idiot than now if everyone else knows what the next task is and you don't!"

"Leave him alone, you two, he's earned a bit of a break," said Ron, and he placed the last two cards on top of the castle and the whole lot blew up, singeing his eyebrows. 

"Nice look, Ron...go well with your dress robes, that will." It was Fred and George. They sat down at the table with Harry, Ron, and Hermione as Ron felt how much damage had been done. 

Oops, Y/N still hadn't given him his robes. She'd leave them on his bed later with a little note, because she didn't exactly want to stick around for conversation...especially with Harry. Well, maybe she'd talk to Dean, Seamus, Ron and Neville...but not Harry. 

Like, okay, sure, he was still her friend, but she was hurt, so she needed a little break. 

"Thanks, you two," Y/N said to Fred and George. She didn't want to say why, since Harry and Ron were there, but the twins understood. 

"Anything for our prankster," Fred saluted.

"Or should we say, your royal highness?" George added with the bark of a laugh. 

Hermione laughed, too, but Ron and Harry looked confusedly between all of them. "Thank you for what?"

"Nothing. Ron, can we borrow Pigwidgeon?" George asked. 

"No, he's off delivering a letter," said Ron. The letter to Sirius. "Why?" 

"Because George wants to invite him to the ball," said Fred sarcastically. 

"Because we want to send a letter, you stupid great prat," said George.

"Who d'you two keep writing to, eh?" said Ron. "Nose out, Ron, or I'll burn that for you too," said Fred, waving his wand threateningly. "So . . . you lot got dates for the ball yet?" 

"Nope," said Ron glumly, and Y/N watched his eyes flicker to Hermione. 

"No," Harry said quietly, looking away. 

Y/N fought the urge to laugh, which then she realized was a little mean. He would be able to go with Cho, because she was already going with Cedric. It made Y/N very smug, and she wanted to rub it in Harry's face, but she didn't. 

"Yeah, we've got dates," Hermione and Y/N said together, smiling. 

"But you already knew that," Y/N said quietly, just to the twins and Hermione. 

Fred and George snickered, then turned to Ron.

"Well, you'd better hurry up, mate, or all the good ones will begone," said Fred. 

"Who're you going with, then?" said Ron. 

"Angelina," said Fred promptly, without a trace of embarrassment. 

Y/N's jaw dropped. "You went through with it? She said yes?" Y/N said, astounded. "Angie is too good for you!"

"What?" said Ron, taken aback. "You've already asked her?" 

"Good point," said Fred. He turned his head and called across the common room, "Oi! Angelina!" 

Angelina, who had been chatting with Alicia Spinnet near the fire, looked over at him, eyebrow raised. "What?" she called back. 

"Want to come to the ball with me?" 

Angelina gave Fred an appraising sort of look. "All right, then," she said, and she turned back to Alicia and carried on chatting with a bit of a grin on her face, and Alicia looked absolutely stunned, but then giggled at Angelina.

"Can't believe she said yes," Y/N muttered playfully, and Hermione elbowed her in the side

"There you go," said Fred to Harry and Ron who looked stunned as well, "piece of cake." He got to his feet, yawning, and said, "We'd better use a school owl then, George, come on...."

They left. 

Ron, frowning, looked across the smoldering wreck of his card castle at Harry. "We should get a move on, you know...ask someone..." He looked at Harry pointedly, which Y/N didn't understand. Maybe Harry already knew that Cho was going with Cedric, and Ron was telling him to move on in that sense? 

"...We don't want to end up with a pair of trolls."

Hermione let out a sputter of indignation. "A pair of...what, excuse me?" 

Y/N's face twisted to anger, "Ron, what the bloody hell?"

"Well - you know," said Ron, shrugging. "I'd rather go alone than with... with Eloise Midgen, say."

Hermione frowned, "Her acne's loads better lately-" 

"And she's really nice!" Y/N added, voice raised. "Nicer than you, for sure."

"Her nose is off-center," said Ron, nonchalantly.

"Oh I see," Hermione said, bristling. "So basically, you're going to take the best-looking girl who'll have you, even if she's completely horrible?"

"Er - yeah, that sounds about right," said Ron. 

"You're an arse, Ron," Y/N said, packing up her homework and Hermione's school supplies into a bag they shared when working.

"We're going to bed," Hermione snapped, and they swept off toward the girls' staircase without another word. 

✦•······················•✦•······················•✦

Harry's P.O.V. 

Harry was taking a walk. The quartet had been taking an after-school wander around the castle, not past curfew, so they weren't getting in trouble. 

But, of course, it had to be ruined by Elijah Collins coming to drag Y/N away to hangout. Hermione seemed completely okay with this, and even encouraged Y/N to go. In the end, the love of Harry's life decided to go off with another guy - not even the same one who she was going to the ball with. 

What happened to Cedric Diggory? 

Why was she with Elijah Collins? 

Was she two-timing them? Y/N would never, his Y/N would never, but...was she? Was that what she had done with Harry? Lead him on, lead Cedric on, lead Elijah on? 

But...Y/N wouldn't do that...

Whatever the case was, Harry politely (not so politely...) excused himself from Ron and Hermione and walked away from them to clear his head. 

On his walk, he saw Cho and her friends walking through the halls. All of a sudden, he felt a little bit of hate for Cho Chang. The moment her name had come out of his mouth was the moment Y/N became distant. But then, wasn't it Y/N's fault? Her fault for saying yes to Cedric? 

But...since he said he was taking Cho, would it hurt to ask her? 

Yes, yes it would hurt. She wasn't Y/N. 

This was so utterly confusing. And hurtful. It just hurt, mostly. 

Y/N going with Cedric...ugh...

He had been starting to quite like Cedric - prepared to overlook the fact that he had once beaten him at Quidditch, and was handsome, and popular, and nearly everyone's favorite champion. Now he suddenly realized that Cedric was in fact a useless pretty boy who didn't have enough brains to fill an eggcup. 

Without even realizing, Harry had been walking around the castle for an hour. Realizing it was getting quite late, he decided to head back to Gryffindor Tower, planning to skip dinner and to just sleep. 

"Fairy lights," he said dully to the Fat Lady — the password had been changed the previous day. 

"Yes, indeed, dear!" she trilled, straightening her new tinsel hairband as she swung forward to admit him. 

Entering the common room, Harry looked around, and to his surprise he saw Ron sitting ashen-faced in a distant corner. Ginny and Hermione were sitting with him, talking to him in what seemed to be a low, soothing voice. 

"What's up, Ron?" said Harry, joining them. 

Ron looked up at Harry, a sort of blind horror in his face. "Why did I do it?" he said wildly. "I don't know what made me do it!" 

"What?" said Harry. 

"He - er..." just asked Fleur Delacour to go to the ball with him," said Ginny. She looked as though she was fighting back a smile, but she kept patting Ron's arm sympathetically. 

"It didn't exactly go well..." Hermione added, but she looked a little bit happy. 

"You what?" said Harry. 

"I don't know what made me do it!" Ron gasped again. "What was I playing at? There were people - all around - I've gone mad - everyone watching! I was just walking past her in the entrance hall — she was standing there talking to Diggory — and its ort of came over me — and I asked her!" 

"Diggory's going to the ball with Y/N," Harry said, trying not to be sad about it. He didn't care if Hermione asked him how he knew. "So..." 

"Ced isn't going to the Yule Ball with me," said a voice behind Harry. "And what's all this?" 

"You don't have to lie, you know," Harry said angrily, turning around to face Y/N, who was saying bye to Elijah at the common room entrance. 

"I'm not lying?" 

"Yes, you are," said Harry. He wanted to tell her how he saw her say yes, but he didn't. He didn't because that meant he cared, when Y/N obviously didn't. 

"No I'm not-" 

"Just drop it, Y/N," Harry said coldly, not looking her in the eye. He didn't think he could right now - especially since Elijah Collins had just dropped her back to the common room. 

Unbeknownst to Harry, Elijah had overhead that Y/N was going with Cedric - Elijah overhead how annoyed Harry was. 

Giving Harry a smug look (which Harry missed), Elijah pressed a kiss to Y/N's hand, like the gentleman he was. He gave her a quick side-hug, murmured, "Goodnight, pretty lady," in her ear, and then departed, stomach filling with nervous butterflies. 

He had Y/N Sterling, and Harry didn't.

─── ☆: *.⋆˖⁺‧₊☽◯☾₊‧⁺˖⋆ .* :☆ ───

damn, thats a lotta miscommunication lowk they should prob sort that out...boo author 🍅🍅 

i love herms n liana and elijah :3 ron was ok in this chapter but harry was an arse. 

elijah is so fine im acc not okayawidawdwadjofbadnvnawod [i have to restrain myself every time he has any dialogue or any appearance] 

MATHEW N LIANA CUTIE PATOOTIES 🥰

lowk i was gonna say sum...hmm...

oh! yes! ok so harry didn't ask out cho bc he doesn't like cho!! staring don't equaling liking and i fully believe that my man was zoned out every time he looked at her! 

and it doesn't make y/n a bad person for choosing elijah, bc, as stated, multiple times

she'd only choose elijah if harry chose cho first

which, he did, verbally and to her face [last chapter] !! 

okay anyways guys i hope u liked the chapter!! [7.8k words] !! 

predictions? 🎤

love you guys!! bye troublemakersss <3 

- dizzy