Gryffindor Common room was distressingly absent of girls fourth year and above. Ron, Dean, and Seamus sat on the couches near the fire, nervously fiddling with their masks, waiting for their dates to enter. Seamus was wearing a white suit with a green crush velvet cape and green mask to match. Dean was dressed very simply- black suit, blue shirt, and a black mask. Ron was dressed a little wild (for him anyways). He had on a convincing Prince costume, complete with a sweeping royal blue pimp hat. He felt like the biggest prat. If only Harry would get downstairs. Harry had promised Ron he wouldn’t look like a fool.
Meanwhile upstairs in the Seventh Year dorm, the girls were just warming up. Hermione was bending over the Big Book of Girly Spells from Mrs. Weasley, while the other girls were furiously constructing a costume for Ginny; Parvati had even snuck her sister Padma into the dorm for the task. The other girls consisted of Lavender and their other Sixth Year friends, who were all stalking around the dormitory half-naked, searching for their makeup. Ginny’s dress was white, the fabric courtesy of the Hogwarts house elves. They were fixing feathers and fake diamonds to the elegant white gown, and Ginny was trying to do something with her hair.
Suddenly, a rhythmic knock came from the window. Hermione ran over to it, muttering, “Thank god!” under her breath. Luna Lovegood hopped into the dormitory and tossed her broom on Lavender’s bed. She was already dressed and ready to go.
“Just tell me what to do.”
“I almost decided not to go,” Dean commented as he leaned against the wall, staring intently at the staircase to the girl’s dormitory.
“Why?” Ron asked. He usually didn’t talk to the other boys in his dormitory, so he hadn’t heard the gossip.
“Couldn’t find a date.” He didn’t look the slightest bit embarrassed, to Ron’s amazement.
“I know how it is.” There was about a second of silence. “So, who did you ask?”
“Oh, Ginny agreed to come at the last second.”
Ron bit down a very nasty comment. “I thought you two broke things off!”
“Calm down, Ron. I just needed a date. Believe me, I have no intention of trying to win her back.” There was another pause. “Where’s Harry, anyway? Is he even taking a date?”
“No idea,” Ron said with a shrug. “The only thing he said about the dance was, ‘I promise you won’t look like a prat.’”
“That’s…heartening…”
“Ron, you look great,” Seamus cut in.
“There you go, Ron, straight from our resident gay man.”
“I’m not gay!”
“Yeah, says you.”
Suddenly, the door to the boy’s dormitory swung open, and everyone’s jaw dropped. Harry emerged wearing a perfectly fitting black suit, with a stark white shirt. His hair was slicked back, and a short, black top hat was delicately balanced on his head. A black opera cape, lined with red silk, swooped from his shoulders to the floor. His hands were covered with elegant leather gloves, and his mask was white; smooth yet stiff, covering the left half of his face. His emerald eyes stood out like jewels on a black velvet cushion.
“Harry?”
The apparition nodded, and swept across to their couch. “Hey Ron. I told you you wouldn’t look like a prat.”
Ron scowled at Harry. “You bastard.”
Harry grinned. Generously. “Just lose the hat and you’ll look fine.”
Ron tossed the hat away, only too glad to be rid of it. Harry was right-the royal blue and silver of the prince was a splendid idea.
Just then, the girl’s door swung open and out came…Colin Creevey?
“The girls are done.”
There was a very awkward silence that followed, only broken when Dean hit him with Ron’s hat.
“What were you doing in the girl’s dormitory?”
“And how come you’re allowed?” Ron cut in.
Colin shrugged. “I dunno. I was just helping Ginny with her hair.”
Dean fell back onto the couch. “God, kill me now!”
“Why?” Colin asked, looking confused. “She looks quite lovely. You’d be missing out on a great dance partner.” And with that, Colin left to find his Ravenclaw date, leaving Ron and Dean speechless with their mouths hanging open.
“Is he real?” said Ron.
“Is he gay?” Dean exclaimed.
“Think so,” Harry responded, laughing slightly at the thought.
“Then, who’s the girl from Ravenclaw?”
“Oh, he never said it was a girl.”
They sat in silence for a few minutes, taking in the news. Dean finally spoke.
“Hey Seamus, if we throw you up there-“
But just then the door swung open again, and this time the girls emerged.
First to come was Hermione, in a shimmery blue dress reminiscent of Cinderella. Her mask matched the Fairy Tale theme-it was faceted glass, reflecting the firelight so her face was hidden. Ron stood up shakily, gaping at her. She smiled and took his arm.
Next came Lavender, Parvati, and Padma, dispersing to their various dates. Lavender tugged Seamus off the couch and they began to head down.
Then came Ginny. Though her gown was put together last minute, it was quite stunning. The mask was made of white feathers, and a small pair of wings topped the “swan” look. Her fiery hair was pressed into gleaming curls, making her look older and very un-Weasleylike. She outshined Dean completely, not that he minded. His date was gorgeous, and that was all that mattered.
The last to come was Luna, a beauty in crimson silk. Her long and usually knotty hair had been tamed and beaten into submission “ the finished product was almost as stunning as Ginny.
Ginny turned from fixing Dean’s collar (a habit she could not break from having six brothers) to look at Harry, and suddenly felt as though someone had kicked her in the stomach. Harry was offering his arm to Luna, who took it gracefully. She suddenly saw how the red rose tucked into Luna’s blonde mane matched the one in Harry’s pocket. He wasn’t just being nice; he had actually asked her to the dance. So that’s why Luna had clammed up when asked about her date. She hadn’t wanted to hurt Ginny’s feelings. Well, screw that! Ginny thought. The only reason I agreed to go to the dance was because Harry was going. So much for that!
“Is everyone ready?” Hermione asked. The three couples nodded and headed out the portrait hole.
“What’s with the long face?”
“It’s nothing.”
“That’s a parakeet and you know it. C’mon, Ginny, you can tell me!”
“I said it’s nothing.” Ginny couldn’t help but notice that Harry and Luna were holding hands.
“Fine.” Luna tried to skip like she usually did, tripped on her skirt, and would have fallen flat on her face had Harry not been holding onto her hand. “Maybe you’ll feel better once the dancing starts.”
“I’m not dancing.”
“WHAT!?” Dean, Luna, and Hermione all said at once. If there’s one thing Ginny loved, it was dancing.
“I said I’m not dancing!”
The group remained silent down the next staircase. Luna spoke first. “Ginny, what’s gotten into you?”
She was glad of the mask, to hide her emotional face… but wished Luna could have seen the impressive eye roll that accompanied her reply. “I had a dream,” she said, sarcasm dripping from every word.
“Really? So did I!” Luna switched from concerned to excited in the blink of an eye.
“What about?” Ginny asked dully.
“I dreamed that dreamers often lie.”
Ginny snorted. “Sure, they lie in bed, dreaming!” While the others laughed, her mind continued, ‘with nothing but the reflection of their hearts to keep them company…’
“You’ve been listening to the Sandman, then?” Luna asked, pulling Ginny out of her reverie.
“The who?”
“The Lord of Dream, who deals in fantasies and illusions. He is seen as a tall man with skin like moonlight, but with robes and hair of the darkest black. And his eyes-his eyes are black holes into the very soul. They trap men in the land of dreaming, until some believe their dreams are reality, and they will not see reason. They loose themselves in passion and believe it to be love, they convince themselves that friends are enemies, and enemies friends. They hide behind a mask, only to spend their lives running from the truth. They-“
“Luna!” Harry gave her a look. “Stop babbling!”
“True, I speak of dreams-the children of an idle brain, nothing but a vain fantasy. Dreams that, to the sleeper, are thin of substance as their air, and more inconstant than the wind.”
They were almost to the Great Hall. “Luna, that’s Shakespeare!” Ginny said.
Luna grinned, slipping on a black lace mask. “I was paraphrasing.”
The Great Hall was decorated in its usual Halloween get up - though the tables were not the usual long trestles, but small hexagonal ones. On each table were beautiful candelabras and a few miniature trees growing right out of the woodwork. There was no dinner this time; everyone had enjoyed a late lunch.
Many Hogwarts students were simple milling about, or getting drinks. Ron and Dean excused themselves to the drink table and after a moment, Luna followed. Several wizards in black robes were checking the equipment up on the stage that was in the exact spot where the staff table usually was. The main feature was an exceptionally plentiful drum set, with fiery letters on the bass drum that read Celestina Warbeck.
As the clock struck eight, the last stragglers scurried in, and the lights dimmed, but for a bright blue witch-fire burning inside the bass drum. Out came Celestina Warbeck, seeming to appear from the shadows. She was dressed all in black, with lace cuffs. She had no mask, but the outline of butterfly wings was traced around her eyes. Her hair, pulled into a low ponytail, was bright cerulean blue.
The crowd cheered, and she grinned. Now that Ginny’s eyes were adjusting to the light, she saw that Celestina was not, in fact, completely in black. On her left wrist was a worn-looking rainbow wristband.
“Things have changed at Hogwarts since I’ve been here.” She was holding a pair of drumsticks wrapped with crisscrossing blue ribbons. “We never had dances, for one.” Far in the corner, Dumbledore grinned. “So it’s with great pleasure that I come here to perform at my old school. Enjoy yourselves. The first number’s a ballad, so I won’t play just yet.” She let go of the drumsticks, and they hung suspended in the air. “But I’ll sing. Muriel?”
The piano player began to play. Ron and Luna came back to claim their dates, who gladly joined them on the dance floor. Dean tried to pull Ginny with him, but she wouldn’t budge. He shrugged, and scurried off through the crowd in search of another girl to dance with.
Meanwhile, in another part of the Great Hall, a far more interesting conversation was being held.
“Right, who’s that girl?”
“Luna Lovegood.”
“No!”
“Yes.”
“She looks pretty.”
“From far away.”
Snape was wearing his usual black robes and no mask, being strongly against fun of any kind. Draco, on the other hand, was completely shrouded in a silver cloak, black mask (which was currently pushed up on his forehead), and elegant black formal wear. He was playing the game of “Guess Who?” with Professor Snape.
“How about that girl?”
“Who?”
“The leopard one.”
“That’s not a girl, that’s Malcolm Baddock.”
“What?!”
“Are you surprised?”
“No, not really…”
Only a Fool like me would follow you so far.
Someone has to remind you who you are.
They scanned the dancers for another few lines of the ballad, before Draco spoke up again.
“Her. The wallflower in the white dress.”
Snape leaned forward to get a better look, then frowned. “I have no idea.”
Draco gave him an odd look. “Are you sure?”
“I really don’t know who it is.”
The younger man leaned back thoughtfully as the song changed to a faster one. “Strange.” He watched her sitting at a table alone, but no one came back to her. Blaise Zabini stopped by and asked her to dance, but she declined gracefully. Draco stood and pulled on his mask. “I’m going to do a little reconnaissance. I’ll be back in a minute.”
“Well, get me a drink, will you? Something with bloody alcohol…”
Draco nodded and steered his way towards Blaise. He caught hold of Blaise’s arm as he was making his way towards the drink table.
“Who was the girl in the white dress?”
“What? Who are you?”
“Draco!”
“Oh, sorry. I didn’t recognize you.” Blaise gestured to the drinks table and Draco nodded. He began pouring drinks as Draco spoke again.
“The girl, you asked her to dance just a second ago.”
“Oh, her?” Blaise turned around to glance at the mystery girl and shrugged. He then turned back to the drinks and handed Draco something in a glass with little colorful bubbles. “No idea. She turned me down, too…can’t seem to get a dance partner tonight.”
Draco downed the drink and handed the empty glass back to the black haired Slytherine. “You’ve just got to have charm, that’s all.” And with that, he turned and threaded his way towards Snape’s table.
Blaise scowled at Draco’s retreating back. “I didn’t see you dancing either!”
Draco turned just enough to address Blaise. “I don’t dance.”
He turned back just in time to see the girl in white disappear through the doors. Almost without thinking, he changed directions and followed her.
Snape frowned when he saw Draco turn away from the drinks table empty-handed. He followed the young man’s line of gaze to the “white wallflower”, who was heading outside. Suddenly, as he watched her walk, he realized who she was. Who would have guessed this elegant young lady was, in fact...
Ginny Weasley.
Seamus had danced the customary first dance with Lavender, then they parted ways. He and Dean Thomas were now sitting playing cards with some Hufflepuff guys. Dean poked him in the ribs as a dancing pair came into view.
“Seamus, look. Colin’s date was a girl.”
Seamus looked up just as the girl tripped on her dress and they fell into a fit of giggles. “That doesn’t mean anything. It’s just a dance, he could be taking her to be friendly,” he sniped morosely. Seamus turned back to Dean, who was giving him an odd look. Seamus blinked, then sighed. “I just signed my own death warrant, haven’t I?”
Outside Hogwarts, the teachers had again transformed the garden for the dance. Instead of bushes with fairy lights, they had seven-foot tall hedges, like the ones from the Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament. But instead of being dense and concealing, they were thin and sparse, enough to see a person clearly on the other side. Draco glided through the trees, searching for a flash of white. In each hedge, there was a multitude of tiny birds, colorful and bright. As Draco came around the next bend, he saw her disappearing around the next corner. Draco called out to her, and she froze, staring back at him through the hedge.
Ginny caught her breath as mysterious figure gazed at her through the hedge. The man was wrapped in a flowing silvery-gray cloak, and a sleek black mask obscured his face. Ginny took a step closer to the hedge, fascinated. He looked quite familiar, but Ginny couldn’t figure out who he was. She was glad of this, for she was sure that he didn’t know who she was.
Draco stepped closer to the hedge, too. Now that he was closer, he was sure that this girl reminded him of someone. He did not dwell on it - instead, he walked around to the other side of the hedge and faced her. They looked deeply into each other’s eyes and hesitated, almost unwilling to shed a layer of mystery between them.
“Who would not change a raven for a dove?” Malfoy asked, struck by sudden inspiration. His voice was soft and playful; flirting, but mysterious at the same time.
“A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” Ginny replied, smiling. “Act II, Scene ii.”
Draco was delighted; he thoroughly enjoyed reading classics like Shakespeare. He decided to continue. “The will of man is by his reason sway’d; And reason says you are the worthier maid.”
“Things growing are not ripe until their season,” said Ginny. “So I, being young, till now ripe not to reason.”
“And touching now the point of human skill, Reason becomes marshal to my will.”
“And leads me to your eyes, where I o’erlook.”
“Love’s stories, written in love’s richest book.”
Suddenly, a peal of laughter burst from the section of hedges ahead of them, followed by a low chuckle. Ginny’s eyes narrowed. That cadence was familiar - Harry and Luna. Without thinking, she grabbed a hold of the stranger’s arm and pulled him back towards the entrance.
“Hey…wait…damn, you’re strong!” Draco let the girl pull him a few more yards, and then yanked his arm away. “Where are you going?” he asked.
“Back inside,” she replied. “I just--” as she turned away, Draco caught her arm and pulled her close.
“Do you have any idea where you are?”
She looked at him strangely. “I’m in the garden, with you.”
Draco shook his head. “No, love. I mean,” he pointed to his right. “Hogwarts is that way.”
Ginny frowned. “Strange. I was sure we were heading right towards it.”
For the next half hour, they tried to walk back to Hogwarts, but they could never seem to find the exit of the hedge maze.
“I think we’re lost,” Draco announced.
Ginny crossed her arms. “We’re not lost. We’re in the garden, how can we be lost?”
But they were lost. Draco had a feeling that the garden was trying to keep them in there, though he had no idea how or why.
And then it began to rain.
Ten minutes later, they were almost soaked and still lost. Once they had passed the same stone bench for the third time, Ginny gave up and sat down on it. Draco sat next to her, deep in thought. He didn’t know who she was, and yet he liked her. A lot. Fine time to fall in love, Draco thought. Especially since I’m engaged.
Ginny’s thoughts were of the same nature. Am I so fickle that I fall in and out of love as fast as changing a pair of shoes? Part of her was worried, because she didn’t know this stranger at all. The other part of her was glad, because maybe she could stop loving Harry.
They sat in silence for a few more minuets, enjoying each other’s company. Draco wasn’t sure how much longer he could stay sitting calmly next to this girl and not do anything. The sensation of just being with her was overwhelming. Finally, he broke the silence.
“Take all my loves... my love, yea, take them all. What hast thou then, more than thou hadst before? No love, my love, than thou mayst true love call... All mine was thine, before thou hadst this... more.”
Draco looked deeply into her eyes, his heart pounding. He could see her breath catch in her throat, completely unprepared for his statement. Then, he did something totally uncharacteristic of him. He lifted her chin and brought her lips to his.
Ginny couldn’t think; she couldn’t breathe as this mysterious stranger wrapped her in his arms. All she knew, as their lips parted, was that Harry Potter was the furthest thing from her mind, and her thoughts were filled with this nameless man. And as she lifted herself up to kiss him again, she felt sure, for once in her life, that nothing could be more perfect than this.
All it took was a few drying charms in the Entrance Hall, and Ginny was ready to return to the dance. She would rather stay kissing that stranger all night long, but he had disappeared after…well it must have been forty minutes they were making out in the rain!
Ginny smiled and returned to her table. Harry, Luna, and Hermione were sitting together, talking of nothing. Hermione gave Ginny a strange look, but Ginny grinned and sat next to Luna. She had wasted a whole evening being mad at her best friend for a stupid reason. Luna forgave her instantly, and they began to chat. Ginny considered telling her about the stranger in the silver cloak, but decided that now was not the time.
Hermione suddenly stood. “I think I’m going to get drinks. Does anyone want anything?” Ginny asked her to get her something, and she nodded.
A second later, Ron fell into Hermione’s chair. “Has anyone seen Hermione?”
“Yea, she was just here,” Harry responded.
Ron snapped his fingers and stood up. “Damn! Thanks anyway. Bye.”
“She went to get drinks!” Harry called after him. “He didn’t hear me, the stupid git.”
Suddenly, the clock struck midnight. Celestina stepped up to the edge of the stage and called out over the crowd, “It’s been a great evening!” The students all looked up. “Seen some great dancing here. Before we close down for tonight, let’s have one more ballad. A song from my favorite story of all time “ The Phantom of the Opera.” Muriel started playing the piano, the opening chords to “Music of the Night.”
Harry and Luna stood, taking hands to dance again. Ginny looked away, trying to find her silver Prince amidst the crowd.
“Ginny?” Harry asked. “Is everything alright?”
She turned to face him and smiled. “It’s wonderful. Go dance.”
“Is that a guy or a girl dancing with Creevey?” Draco squinted at the dancing couple.
“Guy,” Snape responded. “And it’s Seamus Finnegan.”
“Is he gay?”
“Yes. Beyond a shadow of doubt.”
There were about five seconds of silence before Snape spoke again.
“Draco…”
“Hmm?”
“Go ask your wallflower to dance.”
Draco was about to respond that he didn’t dance, but then he thought. It was the last dance of the night, and the last time he could find her before the illusions of the night disappeared. He stood, pulling his mask back down, and made his way to Ginny’s table. He came up behind her and rested a hand on her shoulder. She started and half turned, looking up at him.
“Care to dance?”
She stood shakily, a smile forming on her lips. “I’d love to.”
He was a phenomenal dancer. Draco may claim not to dance, but he moved with a grace that suggested years of practice. Ginny, too, felt as if she danced with the shine of a thousand stars. He twirled her around, and she soared.
All too soon, the dance was over, and the cloaked stranger was gone. Ginny moved through the crowd of students heading for the door, looking her prince before he faded into nothing.
Before Draco could disappear around the corner, Blaise caught hold of his arm.
“Draco! Nott’s been looking all over for you! He wants to know when Quidditch practice is.”
Draco pushed his mask up to his forehead, all romance forgotten. “Potter’s booked the pitch Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. So that gives us Tuesday, unless the team wants to practice before breakfast, which I doubt…”
Ginny stopped dead in her tracks as she watched her stranger push up his mask. Draco Malfoy?! It couldn’t be! He would never be so sweet, Ron had spent many a day ranting about what an insufferable prat and a slim ball he was. But, no, it was definitely Draco Malfoy, and he certainly wasn’t an insufferable prat OR a slime ball. Ginny wiped the shocked look off her face and rushed past him, unnoticed. She diffidently had more to think about than homework, Quidditch, and Harry Potter…
Draco flopped down on the rug in Snape’s study. A few minutes later, the professor came in, scowling at Draco. “What are you doing here? Get back to your dorm!”
Draco ignored him. “I need to find out who that girl in the white dress is.”
Snape sat in his armchair and sighed. “If I told you who it was and you didn’t like the answer, would you kill me?”
“Of course not!” Draco said lightly. “Waste of a good Potions teacher.” He grinned. How bad could it be?”
“Draco... that was Ginny Weasley.”
Masquerade Ball a Bug Success
Almost 70% of the students 4th year and above attended this year’s Halloween Ball. It was originated last year, based on a petition from the majority of Hufflepuff and Gryffindor (along with some Slytherin and Ravenclaw) girls following the Yule Ball of three years ago.
“This year was much better than last year’s,” said 2nd year Ravenclaw Gabrielle Delacour, famous last year for being the youngest student ever asked to a Ball.
Last year, several pranksters (now believed to be the Creevey brothers) got carried away with showing off and set the garden on fire. However, Dumbledore was willing ot give the Hogwarts students a second chance. This year, the theme was “Enchanted Forest” “ though, as usual, most students did not take notice of the theme at all.
The celebrated singing sorceress, Celestina Warbeck, returned to her old school to perform for the dance. She was excited to be back at Hogwarts and is pleased to see the changes made since she was a student here.
“I wish I could go back and do it all over again!” She says.
All in all, it was a great success.
~Natalie McDonald, reporter for the Hogwarts Times
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. The chapter name came from Phantom of the Opera. Myself and Transcendancer would, of course, like to thank JJ, our beta, and good old Willy and Jo for writing the stories they write so that we can work off of them. Also, thanks to all the people who read chapter one. Chapter three will be a comic chapter, and that's all I can say for now. Please review!!