Ooh, that last part was more deep than comedy - but still good! And you countered it with the last line which I thought was very funny! Good fic

Author's Response: Thanks for being one of the few who R&R! Watch for a major rewrite whenever I get some downtime. My dispatcher hinted today that I might not be moving the entire holiday week, which would cut into my income, but would give me the chance to rewrite and add several mystery guests and to flesh out the story.

This is a really good start, i really like all of your descriptions. Sometimes i reckon it might be a little bit too intense, but still good and nicely in character! il be looking out for the next chapter!

Author's Response: Thanks for your imput. I know my discrips are intense, and sorry about that, my strongest point as a writer has to be my discrips. i am trying to get my second chappie posted, but the mods don't like it. I am not descouraged, this chappie was rejected 28 times! lol

Really funny! I loved the fact that you added Harry's thoughts at the end!but on the 8th day you missed out 2 potions essays btw. Good job!

Author's Response: Thanks for noticing, I had missed it. I think I fixed it, but since I've never submitted before, I'm not sure if it worked. Just in case, the line was 2 potions essays (Do you think he'd believe Crookshanks ate the 2nd essay?)

Lol, novel idea! It sounds like something out of the humor section! What'll happen next? Update soon so we can find out!

I thought it was really good! I love how you managed to tell the story completely through notes! Are you going to write a sequal? Or perhaps one like this set in the trio's time? Please do!! Both!! 10!!!

Author's Response: Hmm, I never thought about a sequal! However, I'm currently working on another fic, so I'm not sure. But thank you thank you thank you!!!!

Yay!!! I was so nervous when they announced it - at first I was like, "No! Who's Vanessa! It should be Nessa!" But then I realised it was Nessa! Yay! Well done for Nessa! I did feel bad for Ariel though - I hope he doesn't lose her - literally or figuratively.

Wow! Ariel got to meet Dream Boy - and he has a name! And - ooh, he recognised Ariel! Did he have that dream too? Wouldn't that be spooky! Ha ha - I liked the fact that Ivy wouldn't let anyone else enter! It's another one of those small character traits of your that I love, much like when you say, "Nessa never finished her plate because the food was making her sick. It was from the nerves, though she would never admit it. "

You know, I'd like to see more of Borislav - I know you said we wouldn't find out who his mother is, but is it anyone we know? Or just some random Bulgarian witch?! But he seems like an interesting character - more so than his father, any way!

Hmm, why is Jacqueline's name familiar? It made me laugh when Ariel was preparing his 'bad luck' speech for Nessa! Aw, that last line was so sweet - bless Ariel! I really hope it doesn't come true! (Update soon so we can find out whether it does or not!)

Author's Response: I have been waiting for your review! Lol, that was funny the Vanessa/Nessa confusion. Yes, Ariel met Bahir finally! I can stop typing Dream-boy! Did he have the dream too? We\'ll just wait and see... I love to write those little traits here and there, I\'m very happy to see somone apretiates it. Don\'t worry that we\'ll figure out who Borislav, it\'s a big compliment when you say that he\'s more interesting than Viktor, thanks. You\'ll find out why Jacqueline\'s name was familiar in the next chapter. ;) Thank you!

Spooky! Who is that guy? And what is up with the head of the school having no pupils?! I liked the line, "which an even worse rumor." - it made me giggle! Though shouldn't it be 'which was an even worse rumour.'?Ooh - I want to know who's going to be picked for champions! There are so many questions to be answered, so I hope you update soon! Good chapter!

Author's Response: Oops, yeah a little mistake there. Something me and my Beta over looked. Don\'t you worry your questions we\'ll be answered in time. I\'ll try an update as soon as possible. I really apreciate your reviews, thanks!

I'd been looking forward to this chapter - the Yule Ball! - and it certainly didn't disappoint! One of your best chapters yet, Harald - be proud! You know, I don't think that anyone can have read this far and not be in love with Ariel. It's really sweet that he didn't want to ask a girl, even though it would have spared him embarrassment, because he was afraid of hurting her. I thought that was really nice - another example of making the choice between what's right and what's easy - although come to think of it, asking a girl to the Ball wouldn't have been easy either! Yep, Ariel was pretty much doomed (let alone with the Christian/Nessa thing!). But at least he did the right thing.

And then, to top it all off, he gets a spot! "It was mocking me." That really made me giggle! As well as this being funny it was nice to have the little input of further teenage trials, something that isn't always written in, which should be. I also loved the little paragraph about all the pre-Ball goings-on, they made me smile too!

Poor John - being turned down eight times is harsh! "even the ugly ones." *dies laughing* The whole conversation with John was funny, especially when he thought Ariel was hitting on him! Especially with the "bored" (what John thought was, anyway!) innuendo! I did think it was a little blunt of John though.

I know how I always mention how I love your little details, but I'm going to have to do it again. "My mother had given it to Nessa as a present on her fifteenth birthday." As I always say whenever I point these out, they make the characters and the story so much more three dimensional - and more than that, they always make me smile.

"Let’s just say that if the Yule Ball was a Masquerade Ball, Ornella could go dressed up as a clown." Oh, that made me laugh! Poor Ornella! That probably wouldn't have helped her nerves too much... It was quick thinking of Ariel to cover his spot with his hair - not quite so sure on John's to be honest, but I loved the comment, "You could practically practice Quidditch against that thing."

Are we going to have illustrations of these Ball outfits coming soon to your Dean's Corner thread, Harald? I think we should - they all sound amazing! Nessa's seemed to really suit her (character and appearance), and it was lovely to see Ornella's transformation. The quote of those few paragraphs has to be, "If I wasn’t gay, I’d be all over you," that was brilliant!

"I would never forget her face that day, she seemed so happy." That line was nice - but to me it sounded a little ominous as well, almost as if there wouldn't be many other times like that. Although that's probably the fever, but that's just how I felt the tone of that sentence. *shrugs*

Aw, poor, poor Nessa! Bad enough that she was semi-stood up (Christian's story does seem a little...unimaginative - surely he could have come up with something more daring or respectable to not go with Nessa!), but she also had her Champion dance to do with him, and it's one of the biggest events of the year! I would really not want to be in Christian's shoes when she confronts him!

You know, Ariel should have really pulled a "Your Mum!" on Ivy - what an evil girl! But what was the thing with Nessa's father - was she just annoyed with Ivy generally (I loved her bitch on the moon come back - that was excellent!), or is there more of a story there? "I still remembered that one time in our third year when she thought that practicing kickboxing with the Whomping Willow was a good idea." *dies laughing* Poor Ariel! You know, you should write a prequel to this...

Something that really made me laugh out loud was when Ariel agreed to go and fetch Jacqueline, and he said, "I’ll be back." I just got such a vivid image of Ariel as Arnold Schwarzenegger, with that accent and menacing look, and it just cracked me up! Sorry about that.

One thing I found a little strange was when Ariel saw Bahir and Sahlah, and commented that "They were embracing each other in a fraternal way." I thought that "fraternal" meant brotherly? And from Sahlah's description, so doesn't sound too much like a brother! I would suggest "platonic", but that could just be my point of view/cultural differences.

Aw, bless Ariel! Things really seem to be getting better and better for him - "Please, don't take long." I'm not surprised that comment meant the world to him! And I'm also not surprised Bahir wants to spend time with him! That was really sweet though - Ariel and Bahir are such a cute couple!

"I opened the door of the closet and while I was staring at the inside, I cursed the person who had come up with the spell to make rooms bigger." That was another great line! Boy, would I love to have Jacqueline's (magically expanded) wardrobe though - it sounds amazing! But gosh, what a poor little rich girl, it must be so hard having all those gorgeous dresses! ;-P

My second (and last!) nitpick - "I needed to use the fashion sense I had inherited of my mother if I wanted to get out of there quickly." I would have used "from my mother" instead of "of my mother" - it just doesn't sound right to me with "of".

I liked Ariel's original plan though, just picking one at random! Especially since it brought this great line (which he really should have said out loud!), "“I could’ve done that myself!” she spat. Yes, but you didn’t!" But when they finally picked one - gosh, it just sounds so mesmerising. I really, really want you to draw us some pictures of these, Harald! (Or, you know, just make me one for my prom!)

""Wait!” she yelled. “I forgot about the perfume!” This must be a very sick joke..." *dies laughing* I'm really enjoying Ariel's dry humour here, you should stick him in awful situations more often! Now, my favourite line of the chapter: "mistletoe hung dangerously in every corner of the hall." I just loved that! As it's so true - mistletoe should come with a hazard warning, or at least a blaring siren if you get too close.

Oh, poor Ornella! That is so awful what happened to her - literally breaking a stiletto (and I adored Jacqueline's phrase of that!) in front of everybody! And when she looked so pretty as well. And at least she danced again afterwards, like you're supposed to get straight back on a horse after you've fallen off, that was very brave of her (I hope she repaired her heel though). And it's nice that Nessa managed to have a great time, even without Christian there.

I can definitely see why Bahir would be a distraction from Taylor! And the conversation with Nessa outside was very nice, how worried she was about their friendship, and how strong he knew it was. It made me laugh that Ariel "found it difficult to breathe properly" when he was smoking, though!

But - oh my goodness - Ariel and Bahir's first kiss! And under that "dangerous mistletoe" as well! So romantic, so perfect, so fitting after the day that Ariel's had! I bet he's going to be having sweet dreams tonight!

Author's Response: Hey Kiara!!!! *huggles* I\'m so excited, this is probably the longest review I\'ve ever received *squeeee* What a nice way to start a day. Ariel\'s desicion of not taking a girl to the ball, it was hard for him to go alone, but he sure as hell rathered to go alone than to have another Taylor fiasco. I had to include the pimple part! I mean, who hasn\'t had a pimple on an important day? I sure have! and more than once. They always manage to pop up when you least want too. It\'s almost as if they had a mind of their own. \"I did think it was a little blunt of John though.\" Well, that\'s John to you. He has absoloutly no people skills. He\'s blunt and always says the wrong things. That\'s why so many girls rejected him. Not because they didn\'t want to go with him, but because he asked them the wrong way. I made Emily (Ariel\'s mother) give the book to Nessa on her fifteenth birthday because Nessa is hispanic, and for hispanic girls their fifteenth birthday it\'s a huge deal. I would love to draw the dresses of the Yule Ball. In fact, I\'ve always had plans of doing so. Now that I have the time, I think I should do it. \"I would never forget her face that day, she seemed so happy.\" I don\'t think I meant that Ornella wasn\'t going to be happy with that comment. Or maybe I did? Right now I\'m not sure of many things. Nessa has a complicated story with her father, you\'ll be seeing more of that in the near future. \"Poor Ariel! You know, you should write a prequel to this...\" I don\'t know if a prequel, but I sure have more than enough material to write a sequel. I laughed so much with your Arnold Schwarstneger comment. I hand\'t realized it, but that line is very Terminator. I\'m sorry about the \"Fraternal\" line. All I wanted to say is that they looked like siblings. Nothing else. It\'s not romance. I think we all want Jacqueline\'s magical wardrobe. Of course, I\'d want it, but not with dresses. lol They\'d probably be in there lots of jackets and coats if it was mine. Thanks for noticing the \"from my mother\" line. It was such a long chapter, it was hard to see alll of the mistakes. I\'m glad you like Ariel\'s dry humor. I\'ll make sure to insert him in more awkawrd situations like this in the future. His humor is probably the part I enjoy writing the most. I loved your comment about the mistletoe, I laughed with the image of mistletoes with alarms and warning sings. WARNING: STEP AWAY IF YOU DON\'T WANT TO BE KISSED I\'m so happy you liked this chaper. And Kiara, in case you didn\'t know, I LOVE your reviews!!!!!!! Thank you so much for another delightful review!

Oh yay! More Nessa! I seriously can't wait to find out who gets chosen for champion. I really like a lot of your little details in here, that all make the characters seem more real, such as Nessa being on a diet. It really helps bring them all to life.

“Nessa looked at Ivy, annoyed. “In case you didn’t listen, only one person can join the tournament.” She pointed at Verona and Berenice. Ornella, John and I giggled a little. Berenice did also but soon stopped when Ivy shot daggers at her.” That made me giggle too! “Nessa looked at Ornella and studied her face. “I know that look. Ariel has it all the time!” She pointed at Ornella’s face. “You saw a cute boy!” ” Oh, that really made me laugh out loud!!

Ooh - another Krum! Who’s his mother?

And Ivy! Oh my gosh, don’t even get me started on her! An excellent character - but oh! How evil! One of those that you love to hate. Poor, poor Ariel! Completely flaunting the fact that she was going out with Christian! Evil!

Whoa, that was a bit of a shock about Christian. I’d thought that he was okay. But now he’s turned into a bit of a mean schizophrenic! Another great chapter, I can’t wait for the next!

Author's Response: What a lovely review! After the flame I got this morning I was scared to click and see the review. *sighs* I\'m so glad it\'s you! I love leaving little details about the characters here and there, I\'m happy to see people apreciate it. The \"Ariel has that look on his face all the time\" line is also one of my favorites. I also have that look on my face all the time hehe. Who\'s Borislav mum? hmmm, I don\'t know if we\'ll ever find out actually. Ivy is meaaannn. She\'s the mother byotch. I think she\'s the character that\'s the hardest towrite actually, I\'m always afraid she\'s going to end up looking caroony instead of a real character. and about Christian, he has a lot of issues to work out, but you\'ll learn more about that later. BTW: On the next chapter you\'ll find out who the champions are so stay tuned!

First of all, I'm sorry it's taken me so long to review this chapter! I loved it though, and I'll try to be quicker with the next one! Ooh - lots of confrontation in this one - lovely! Yes, I'm mean - but it's fun!

My one nitpick would be: "She looked beat " as you refer to 'beat' as in being tired. I would consider that an Americanism, as I don't think I've ever heard anyone say that around where I live - it's certainly not an expression me or my friends would use. However, it may be different in different places, but I'd suggest you change it.

I also found it a bit repetitive in those few lines, as Nessa basically reiterates what Ariel was thinking, about her being 'beat' and in need of a good sleep. I'd recommend you rephrase that so that it's not as repetitive, but that's just me being nitpicky!

I found myself completely torn on the issue between Ariel and Nessa - it's like being the person in the middle, you can see both sides. I did think Nessa was a bit harsh with Ariel's "queer-drama" as she put it - but then he hadn't been very supportive of her. Again - I can see both sides!

"Each word slapped me in the face." I loved that sentence, it was brilliant imagery and a great line. The use of short sentences at that point were great at showing how Ariel felt at the time - overwhelmed and upset at everything. Bless!

I loved how you worked in a little anecdote about John catching the Snitch - thinking it was a bird! That gave us some more insight which was definitely interesting, as we don't know too much about John.

It was great to see Mr. Wimund again - more Ariel, after the "innumerable annoying comments from John" he has to put up with the third person references of his ex-girlfriend's father! It really wasn't his day, was it? And then Christian and Ivy appear! I bet Ariel really wished he could Disapperate - and that you could Disapperate on Hogwarts grounds, of course!

*Actually laughs out loud* - “Do squirrels lay eggs?” Oh. My. Gosh. And you actually had someone say that to you?! Although I once had someone ask me if London was the capital city of England. Yes, I live in England. Yes, I only live about 2 or 3 hours away from London. Yes, the person in question was in one of my classes at school. Yes, it was really funny!

Ornella fancies Borislav? Do I sense history repeating itself? (Hermione and Viktor, Ornella and Borislav?! Which would mean Ornella is Hermione and Ron's daughter - which is a hint for you to tell us, yes!) Oh dear, poor Ariel - his attempts to make up with Nessa (the sign) only made things worse! I can sympathise with Nessa, though, I get annoyed when people spell my name wrong too!

*Giggles* I like Ariel's translation of French - probably tres precis aussi! I also liked how Nessa went to help Jacqueline when she fell in the lake, very Gryffindorish of her - and how Jacqueline was faking - very Triwizard Tournamentish of her! Gosh - Bahir was impressive! I loved how you wrote that scene, I really felt like I was there watching in the stands too.

(There is also more use of 'beat' when describing how Nessa and Jacqueline got back from the task) Aww, I can't believe Nessa came last! That probably isn't going to help matters between her and Ariel. I'm also quite intrigued by Jacqueline now, and am really keen to learn more about her!

"I had followed Nessa and was going to try and stop her, until I realized that anything that touched her in that moment would suffer a very painful death." Ooh, that made me giggle! And was very accurate I can assume too! But oh no - Ariel has to choose between his best friend and his (nearly?) boyfriend - what on earth is he going to do? Although it sounds like he's already make his decision, I'm guessing it won't be as easy to put it into practise.

I loved the last line, it was very effective and definitely leaves me longing for the next chapter, I hope it's up soon! Great job!

Author's Response: Yay!!!! A Kiara review!!! *squeeee* I don\'t mind if you take long to review, as long as you do *innocent eyes* Sorry about the \"beat\" thing, I didn\'t know it was an americanism. I thought everyone used it. I\'ll go fix it. I love that a british reads my story that way I know f there is something that shouldn\'t belong there. I\'m haooy that you see Nessa\'s side of things. I thought people wouldn\'t do it because she was being so extremist and because everyone likes Ariel so much. I like John\'s anecdote a lot too, it shows a lot of his personality. He\'s going to be more included in future chapters. “Do squirrels lay eggs?” Yes, someone did ask me that. Believe it or not. I almost had a heart attack when they did. It happened a long time ago, but then I remembered it and I thought that it was something that Berenice would ask. And I can\'t believe someone made you that London question. Who said Ornella is Ron and Hermione\'s daughter? You\'ll learn more about Jacqueline in the future. Hmmm, I don\'t want to spoil things for you, but the situation between Ariel, Bahir, and Nessa will be very complicated. Chapter 12, is with Lys (my lovely beta) so it shouldn\'t take long before it\'s out. Tanks for the FANTASTIC review! I believe this is the longest one you\'ve made. XD