"Have you found a date for the Ball?" Ron asked him.
"Sure! Have you?"
"No. I thought of maybe asking Hermione. I don't think anybody has asked her. Who'd be interested in a bookworm?"
ShopKids' Books
'You'd be surprised,' Harry thought. "Why don't you ask her and see for yourself?"
Ron returned a few minutes later, looking furious. "She rejected me! Said she already had a date, but wouldn't tell me who. I'm sure she lied!"
Harry felt offended for Hermione. "She doesn't lie. If she says that she has a date then she must have one. You should look elsewhere."
Ron looked suspiciously at Harry. "Are you her date? You should have told me!"
"No, Ron. I'll be with somebody else at the Ball, and you should find a date as well."
Discover moreAnimeRead MangaCartoonsWatch CartoonsComicsRon looked quite grumpy. "Maybe Ginny can suggest one of her classmates. I'd better ask her now."
ShopKids' Books
\/\/\/\/
Just too soon, the dreaded evening arrived. Despite having Daphne as his date, or maybe because of it, Harry felt quite tense. He wasn't sure he could danceas well as she was expecting. He didn't want to disappoint her in any way. Somehow, her opinion had become more important to him than anybody's else, although he wondered why. He also dreaded the reaction to them being together. Ron, as well as most Gryffindor students, would not understand at all. Ron would think Daphne had bewitched Harry to be with her, that she had some sinister motives for that. The Slytherins wouldn't react much better. Having one of their pure-blood princesses date the Gryffindor Golden Boy, a half-blood, would make her target to nasty remarks, at least. He didn't want Daphne to suffer any harm. He swore in his heart to protect her, no matter what.
ShopKids' Books
Discover moreRead BestsellersBooksConsult LawyersFan fiction booksFan fiction writingHe and Hermione were the last to leave the common room. "Relax, Harry. Daphne wouldn't have stuck with you if you were any less than perfect for her."
"But what if Ron or Malfoy try to hex her?"
"Let them try! She's better in charms than any of them and as good in DADA as I am. I wouldn't worry."
"Yet you are almost as tense as me," he shot back. "Why?"
"I've never been the date of an international star. It is somewhat stressing."
"You've been getting a lot of attention just being my friend. You'll be alright, I'm sure," he tried to calm her a bit.
She smiled nervously. "I hope you're right."
Discover moreWriting toolsFreelance writing servicesMobile app developmentApp store optimizationMobile app marketingIt went smoother than they had both expected. Fleur went first, with her date, followed by Victor and Hermione. Everybody seemed to look at her, either admiring the way she looked or just envying her, for getting a date with an international celebrity, until Fleur let a bit of her allure loose, just enough to move most of the attention from Hermione, who later thanked her. Cedric and Cho followed, getting more applause than the other champions. Then it was time for Harry to go in with Daphne. He heard some cheers as his name was announced and then there was a deafening silence, once he passed the door, holding Daphne's hand.
ReadSci-Fi Books
The silence lasted almost until they reached the champions' table. It then turned into a thunderous whisper, as everybody seemed to comment about the unexpected couple.
"You do know how to make an entrance," Cedric said to him with a wink. "What made you two come together?"
Discover moreFan fiction communityFiction writing guidesFiction book clubFiction writing softwareWriter workshopsIt was Daphne who answered. "I just looked for the most adorable champion and he couldn't resist my charms."
Cedric laughed at her explanation, not believing it for a moment. Hermione just smiled. She knew this was closer to reality than any other explanation that could be given.
Daphne seemed to enjoy herself. She freely talked with Hermione and Cho; she tried some of her French with Fleur, as did Hermione; she talked amiably with Viktor Krum and even joked with Cedric Diggory, while Harry was dragged into each conversation, yet he felt quite natural, to his surprise.
Once the meal was over, it was time for the opening dance. Harry felt his nervousness rise. "Just imagine we are still practicing," Daphne whispered in his ear. "You're already a better dancer than most. Relax and enjoy holding me close."
Harry just nodded, not too sure. The music started. Daphne walked into his embrace. Everything else seemed to suddenly fade away. He danced perfectly. Not for the audience; not in order to prove he could; he only danced so Daphne would enjoy her time with him. And it was wonderful. They danced together for most of the evening. They only exchanged partners twice, so that Harry could dance with Hermione, first, and then with Fleur, who also wished to dance with him.
Discover moreFind Rare ComicsWatch Sci-Fi FilmsDanceTake Dance ClassRead BestsellersRon was sitting at the side. Ginny had managed to find him a date with Luna Lovegood, but even Luna wouldn't stand listening to his rants about Harry and Hermione "associating with the enemy". Finding himself alone, as his other dorm-mates danced with their dates, didn't improve his mood. He was furious and angry at the whole world and especially at his two best friends.
Daphne's feet started aching eventually and she felt too hot from dancing. "Let's go to the garden to cool out and let our feet relax for a while. There's also something I want to tell you," she suggested.
They found a secluded bench in the garden. Daphne cast a few spells around while Harry was just admiring her dress and the parts it didn't hide. He failed to notice when she stunned a bug which was perching on a nearby leaf. He didn't fail to notice when she sat down and asked him to sit as close to her as possible.
Daphne cuddled into his embrace. "Do you like being with me?"
Discover morebooksBooksConsult LawyersFan fiction booksFan fiction writing"Sure I do! You're beautiful and smart and funny and I feel lucky you persuaded me to be your date..." she frowned and he corrected immediately, "... I feel lucky I managed to convince you to be my date." She smiled in reward. "I know you can also be fierce, demanding and intimidating and I appreciate the way you used these qualities to make me a better date."
Her smile broadened. "You really are sweet when you try a bit." She then turned serious again.
"I promised to tell you why I was interested in you. I'm not sure this is the right time, but I think you deserve to know."
Harry looked expectantly at her.
"When I was a little girl, I thought I'll find my handsome wizard and fall in love with him, like all little girls dream. Then, just before starting Hogwarts, my parents told me NOT to associate with boys, as I had a marriage contract since I was a baby. I've already heard about such contracts, but I thought my parents loved me enough not to force me into a contract. I was so appalled by the idea that I wasn't even interested to know who I was promised to."
Harry frowned. "I thought this archaic custom had long since been eliminated. It's really unfair to you and probably to the other party as well. What can you do?"
She smiled apprehensively. "That was all that I was thinking of throughout the first year. I checked booksand discreetly asked other girls. Nobody could help me. I was bitter and quick to anger and that brought me my 'Ice Queen' reputation, which eventually proved quite beneficial."
"There really should be a way out for you. Can I do anything to help you?"
Her smile broadened and Harry thought there was some mischief in it as well. "It turns out you can, though I'm not sure it would be needed. You see, it was only after the second year, after you've done something extraordinary, which I'm not yet sure I have all the information about, that my parents talked with me about the contract again. They said that a couple of good friend of theirs, at the time, had a boy only a few weeks before I was born. As his mother was an old friend of my mother – since first year, and his father was a business associate of my father, both couples decided to make a contract to assure the well-being of both children. My parents were supposed to be his guardians, in case his parents died, and his parents were to become my guardians in the inverse case."
This sounded like a reasonable agreement, except for deciding the fate of the children without their consent.
"Dad also showed me the contract. It had several clauses that could allow each party to get out of the contract with only token penalties if it proved unsuitable for me or for the boy by the time we both reached eighteen. This calmed me down a bit. It still took my parents more than a year to persuade me to try and get to know my fiancé. Now I think I'm getting to like him."
Harry looked confused. "If you like him, then why are you with me?"
Daphne just gave him a long enigmatic smile, yet Harry only felt more confused. Eventually she decided to give him some more information.
"His parents died at Halloween, about a year later, yet somehow his guardianship passed to somebody else. My parents tried to change it, but failed."
Harry felt this was getting too close to his story, yet he doubted that his proud Gryffindor parents could have anything to do with a Slytherin couple. Daphne could see the turmoil in his eyes. She then added softly, "My mother was a Ravenclaw. She befriended Lily Evans since before the sorting ceremony. The Potter estate still controls about half of my Dad's business."
It finally clicked into place in Harry's mind, although it seemed too weird to believe. "You mean that we are promised to each other?"
"Yes, but if any of us wants out of it, then, once we come of age, we can cancel the contract with no real effect on us. If we don't cancel it, then we must get married before our twenty-first birthday."
It suddenly didn't look so bad. He was getting to like Daphne since they started practicing. She was just as good a company as Hermione and even more attractive and much more knowledgeable in the ways of the wizarding world. She was also beautiful and he had already felt how curvy she was. He had also noticed some envious glances towards him, once he was seen with Daphne at his side. He could give it a chance, at least.
He tightened his embrace. She didn't seem to mind. "I think I like you. Maybe we should give this a chance, although I have no experience at dating."
She seemed to relax in his embrace. "I have no dating experience either, but if we are attentive to each other, I think it can turn quite nice."
She looked so beautiful! Harry just couldn't resist. He bent his head, his lips going closer to hers. Daphne met him midway.
It was a chaste kiss. Not much more than a peck. They parted almost as soon as they touched, yet there was a definite change both felt. They were no longer the Gryffindor Golden Boy and the Slytherin Ice Queen. They were now the future Lord and Lady Potter.
They looked each other in the eye for a bit longer. "How about some more dancing?" Harry finally asked.
"That would be nice," she said, straightening up. Harry stood up and helped her to her feet before they returned hand in hand to the Great Hall.
Harry didn't notice the passage of time. He was holding his fiancée, moving in tune with the music and feeling content. Then the music stopped. It took them some time to notice they were the only couple still hugging on the dance floor. Both blushed as they disengaged, yet they still held hands.
"Will you be safe in your dorms?" Harry asked.
"I'll be safe, at least for tonight. We leave early in the morning, while most will still be asleep. Just make sure you're ready on time."
"I will be," he promised solemnly.
When he arrived to the Gryffindor common room, after escorting Daphne all the way to the Slytherin dungeons, he found only Hermione there. She was crying.
"What happened, Hermione?" he asked as he sat at her side on the sofa.
"Ron happened! The git just can't understand how we both 'associated with the enemy'. I had to use a silencing hex to stop him, as he won't listen to any logical explanation. Then Ginny and the twins took over." She smiled despite her tears.
Harry shuddered. Both Ginny and the twins were not known for subtlety. He wondered in what condition he would find Ron in the dormitory. Yet he needed to cheer Hermione first.
"Have you enjoyed the ball?"
"Oh, yes! It was fantastic! Viktor is a good dancer, although not as good as you, and I also enjoyed dancing with Cedric and with Neville. I believe you have enjoyed the ball too, haven't you?"
He smiled widely. "Daphne was really fabulous. I think you two were the most attractive girls at the ball, although dancing with Fleur was also nice."
"Will you continue dating?"
Harry looked pensive. "I surely hope so. Daphne is really nice, once you get to know her, although she can be even more intimidating than you, if she chooses so."
This made her laugh. She looked very beautiful now and very feminine. Almost as attractive as Daphne. She then yawned, hiding it with her hand. "I just wanted to know how it was. I think we're both tired enough to go to bed now. We'll speak in the morning..."
"Oh... I'm not sure about that. You see, I'm leaving for the rest of the winter vacation. We'll have to talk after I return. Good night, for now."
"Good night, Harry, and enjoy your vacation." She was already too tired to ask more questions. Harry watched her almost stumble on the stairs as she climbed to her room. He then went to his and didn't even spare a look at Ron, who was snoring on the adjacent bed, his hair and his face showing bands of green and silver.