The End Of Year Ball!

Briony smiled a larger than normal smile, she watched as Richard got her a drink and took it from him, gently clinking the glasses together making a tinkling sound as she did so, Briony was proud of herself, and now the holidays were upon her she might have a few spare moments to relax.

"To a year of hard work, and the same next year!"

Grinning Briony sipped her drink and gave Richard a small peck on the lips, happy that he was here with her, and a sense of relief washed over her as she thought about what they could do on their break.

"Hey Richard, do you fancy a holiday somewhere?"

Airen smiled at Charlotte. He led her to her father during the dance. He shook Professor Smith's hand firmly. He was surprised that Cobalt spoke Italian, but he quickly recovered.

"Sempre un piacere, signore," (Alway's a pleasure, sir) Airen replied happily. He chuckled at Charlotte's comment. She may not have found it funny, but he did. He looked at Cobalt. He was glad the man liked him, and he sure as heck was going to try to keep his trust. He followed Charlotte's gaze to the dance floor.

Smiling, he leaned in and whispered in her ear, "Would like to have a dance with your father?"

"Sorry, I need to do something real quick Keiba, Haley." he said and rushed off to find Charlotte Smith. He found her with Airen. "Listen, Charlotte, I want you to look at this." He pulled out a slip of notebook paper. He had drawn a portrait of her in her gorgeous ball gown. It was the best portrait of her he had done so far. And he had drawn quite a few. On the back was a note. "Flip it over after you look at the front. There is important information on the back." he said and placed the letter in her left hand.

Dear Charlotte, his letter read. I know that you felt gypped when Keiba told you I was her escort. We are strictly friends, and I felt like I should let her decide if she wanted to go with me since she is the first friend I made, on the train ride here. I don't feel anything more than friendship for her. You, on the other hand, I am in love with. And I have been in love with you since I first saw your pale yellow hair and those beautiful red eyes. I love your cat qualities that surface sometimes and how your hair changes colors. You are filling the hole that has been in my heart since my parents died. That hole refused to heal until I met you. I haven't dated anyone else, and you are my second crush. I had a crush on a Muggle girl though I was too shy to ever tell her and my crush on her compared to my love for you is...well let's just say tiny in comparison. Meet me on the dance floor after three songs. I have a promise I need to keep to Keiba. Once I complete it I will spend as long as I can dancing with you, the most gorgeous lady in the entire world. Sincerely, Humphrey

Then he walked back to Keiba and Haley. "So, which of you am I whisking away to the dance floor first." he asked the beautiful Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff ladies.

Humphrey saw Parker Emery walk into the Great Hall. He looked slightly awkward and uncomfortable around this many people. but his suit was nice and suited him well. "Oh, girls, come with me. Parker just walked in." he said. They followed him over to the small, awkward boy who was finding the food and drinks. "Ladies, meet Parker Emery, Parker, meet Keiba Namid and Haley Weasley." he said, pointing first to Keiba and then to Haley." he said.

He was running late, because he had lost himself in the novel he was writing. Hurrying down to the Great Hall, he had almost tripped. He paused outside and caught his breath before entering.
Horst walked into the Great Hall decked out in black dress robes with yellow stitching, representative of his house, Hufflepuff. He glimpsed Sofia at the back. "Hello, ladies, how are things going this evening. I apologize for my tardiness Sofia. I lost myself in my novel. You look truly splendid in that gown of yours, Sofia." he said while bending down to kiss Lady Sofia's hand.

He was running late, because he had lost himself in the novel he was writing. Hurrying down to the Great Hall, he had almost tripped. He paused outside and caught his breath before entering.
Horst walked into the Great Hall decked out in black dress robes with yellow stitching, representative of his house, Hufflepuff. He glimpsed Sofia at the back. "Hello, ladies, how are things going this evening. I apologize for my tardiness Sofia. I lost myself in my novel. You look truly splendid in that gown of yours, Sofia." he said while bending down to kiss Lady Sofia's hand.

Victoria was nervous as heck about the ball, though she tried not to show it. All the people at her old school had laughed at her laid back style of dress for years, and her mother had practically shunned her for it, but Victoria knew who she was. In spite of this, she had asked her sister to help her pick out a gown over the summer, just in case something like this came up. It had been their secret.

She looked down at her dress in hope one last time before she entered the great hall. It was amazing what magic had been done to transform the hall. She saw many students and teachers already engrossed in conversation. She didn't want to barge in anywhere, so she took this time to see what food and refreshments they had lain out. She smiled when she saw the Pumpkin Juice. It was almost sickeningly sweet, but it made her think of back home.

She hadn't found a date for the ball, but was determined to have fun no matter what. She spotted many students from classes and smiled at Humphrey when she caught his eye, waving. She wondered what music this was since she wasn't familiar with wizarding pop culture.

He spotted Victoria as she walked into the Great Hall, and she found his gaze and waved, smiling at him. Then she went to get some refreshments. "Come join us Victoria. Vic, this is Parker Emery, Haley Weasley, and Keiba Namid." he said, pointing to each in turn. "You look fantastic, you can't beat classic white. Goes with everything and it compliments you very well." Humphrey told Victoria as he examined her superb dress. Beautiful, just beautiful he thought to himself.

Please don't step on your dress, please don't step on your dress! she thought frantically.

She looked down at herself and smiled softly. Her dress was white lace, something that she always found beautiful, and a black bow that was fashion forward. Her hair was picked up in a bun but that allowed some curls to be free.

Spoiler:

She walked into the ball and looked around. So she wasn't with anyone, but that did not limit her at all, after all she wanted to simply experience whatever the school could give her.

"Hey Tess!" Humphrey yelled when he saw her enter. "Come join our group. It is the coolest place to be in here. We have Haley Weasley, Parker Emery, Victoria Rossmund, and my date for the night Keiba Namid. Okay, now we have an even number so I think we should pair off. I will take Keiba. The rest of you split up how you wish." he said.

Tess McCartney really looked beautiful in that white dress. How come every girl in the school was suddenly ten times prettier and looked like supermodels walking down the catwalk when they entered the great hall? he wondered in his thoughts.

When Humphrey walked over with Haley and a girl he did not recognize, Parker turned to them from the snack table, taking a drink of pumpkin juice and a small pastie. He smiled politely to the three, " Hi, I already know Haley. And nice to meet you...Keiba?" He wondered what house she was from as he took a bite of the pastie. He didn't realize just how hungry he was until now.

When Humphrey turned and spotted Victoria who had joined them he gave her a polite smile and a nod as well. "Hullo Victoria."

All of them were dressed so nicely and he worried for a moment if he looked bad. He usually didn't care about such things, but when everyone had dresses and suits that looked so expensive, he couldn't help but worry a little bit, knowing his couldn't have been worth even half of what their were. Rather then think about it, he finished off his pastie.

Seeing Tess, he gave her a small wave from over by the snack table. He was then looking around for someplace to sit to get away from all these people, he was nearly feeling claustrophobic.

"Come on Parker there are three ladies without a dance partner. I'm sure one of them in particular would love to dance with you." he said. He walked over and whispered, "Ask Haley, I think she likes you." Then he grabbed Keiba's hand and went out to the center of the Great Hall.

Victoria nodded to the students in turn. She recognize Haley and Parker from flying lessons, but she hadn't met Keiba. "Thank you." She said to Humphrey's compliment. I guess Kathleen has good taste after all. She noticed Parker's uneasiness and wondered if he too was unaccustomed to dressing up. In truth she found his brown suit refreshing and familiar. Her dad had a few suits like it and she had always liked the look.

"I saw you in flying lessons. Maybe we could practice together sometime. I'm not very good but I'm kind of hoping to get onto the house team if I practice enough." She said to Parker, smiling.

She was surprised to hear someone call out her name, but smiled softly seeing Humphrey there. She walked over, as smoothly as possible and let out a wider smile seeing everyone there.
Seeing that Humphrey and Keiba, whom she'd never met before walk away, she was nervous and noticed Parker there and some girl. She figured she might as well try to converse with both of them.

"Hello" she said softly. "Crowdy isn't it?"

"Hey Vic! You look extremely hot tonight!" he said with a wink. "And yes I am probably the only person besides possibly you or Professor Starr." he stated.

"It really is. I was just going to grab some food and sit down. Would you like to join me?" Victoria was surprised at how friendly this girl was. I think someone said her name was Tess. "By the way, my name is Victoria. I think we're in Transfiguration together."

Humphrey and Keiba had prepared a surprise. He cued he Disc Jockey who nodded, it was time for them to bust out their secret talents. They had rehearsed a dance to the new pop song 'Moves Like Jaggger' by: Maroon 5 It was simply an amazing Muggle hit that had just been released. Adam Levine could be heard whistling the catchy notes that made it so popular. Then the band entered.

"Oh, yeah
Oh!

[Verse 1:]
Just shoot for the stars
If it feels right
And aim for my heart
If you feel like
And take me away and make it OK
I swear I'll behave

You wanted control
So we waited
I put on a show
Now I make it
You say I'm a kid
My ego is big
I don't give a shit
And it goes like this

[Chorus:]
Take me by the tongue
And I'll know you
Kiss me 'til you're drunk
And I'll show you

All the moves like Jagger
I've got the moves like Jagger
I've got the moves like Jagger

I don't need to try to control you
Look into my eyes and I'll own you

With them moves like Jagger
I've got the moves like Jagger
I've got the moves like Jagger

[Verse 2:]
Maybe it's hard
When you feel like you're broken and scarred
Nothing feels right
But when you're with me
I'll make you believe
That I've got the key

Oh
So get in the car
We can ride it
Wherever you want
Get inside it
And you want to steer
But I'm shifting gears
I'll take it from here (Oh! Yeah yeah!)
And it goes like this (Uh)

[Chorus:]
Take me by the tongue
And I'll know you (Uh)
Kiss me 'til you're drunk
And I'll show you

All the moves like Jagger
I've got the moves like Jagger
I've got the moves like Jagger

I don't need to try to control you (Oh, yeah)
Look into my eyes and I'll own you

With them moves like Jagger
I've got the moves like Jagger (Yeah yeah)
I've got the moves like Jagger

[Bridge:]
You wanna know how to make me smile
Take control, own me just for the night
And if I share my secret
You're gonna have to keep it
Nobody else can see this

So watch and learn
I won't show you twice
Head to toe, oooh baby rub me right
But if I share my secret
You're gonna have to keep it
Nobody else can see this (Ay! Ay! Ay! Aaay!)

And it goes like this

[Chorus:]
Take me by the tongue (Take me by the tongue)
And I'll know you
Kiss me 'til you're drunk
And I'll show you (Yeah yeah yeah!)

All the moves like Jagger
I've got the moves like Jagger
I've got the moves like Jagger
(Oh, yeah)
I don't need to try to control you
Look into my eyes and I'll own you

With them moves like Jagger
I've got the moves like Jagger
I've got the moves like Jagger"

They were both dancers in their own right, and had practiced an intense swing dance choreography to the fun, up-beat Muggle single that was currently topping the charts all over the world. Their danced involved lifts, fancy spins, a through the legs slide and multiple flips of Keiba flipping Keiba with his muscled arms. The rest of Hogwarts simply watched in a shocked silence. And then burst into applause! (in his imagination that is) In actuality they were simply staring at him as he ended the song in MJ's classic dance moves. The Moonwalk and ended with a Billy Jean spin and snap!

When Humphrey had whispered to him before walking away with Keiba, he gave him a bit of an odd look. He couldn't dance first of all, and second off all he wanted to do was spend some time with his friends and eat some food, why was everyone one and especially him so hung up about relationships?

He tugged a bit a his suit shirt uncomfortably, then Victoria said that they should practice sometime and he frowned a bit, embarrassed. "I'm really not one to ask to go flying. I sort of ran off from class before I even flew...I wish you luck though. For the team, I mean."

When Tess came over he smiled at her and sighed "Hey there. It sure is-" Just then Pxyis had rushed over to him and hugged him tightly, nearly squeezing the air out of him. He smiled at her brightly, glad to see her. "Why would no one want to be talking to you?!" as an after thought he added, smiling, "And don't call me that."

When she giggled at his suit, saying he looked wonderful, he looked down at his clothes, smiling and a bit embarrassed, tugging at the jacket and shirt underneath a bit. "I do not. I've never worn anything like this before, never really had the money. So it's really weird." He smiled at her. "You look really nice, too." he took another look around the Great Hall. "Everyone does, really. It's odd to see everyone so dressed up."