I Learned Your Pulse

"Will you be my date to the Yule Ball?"

"Who are you asking to the ball?"

"What?"

Ginny looked at her like she was insane. "Look, I know you're all buddy-buddy with Ron again, but that doesn't mean he's automatically your date."

"No!" Hermione said immediately, "I wasn't thinking Ron at all. The last thing I want is to make things uncomfortable again."

In all fairness, Ron had been very accepting of her, even after she told him she'd kissed someone too (though she never said who). He and Harry had said something along the lines of 'You meant nothing but an experiment, he meant to betray'. That wasn't exactly true, but she never had intended to be disloyal. Even so, she felt like dirt. Her friends, however, made her feel sixty times better at least. In all the chaos of the previous three days, she'd completely forgotten about the Yule Ball, that they were having Dance Practice tonight, led by none other than McGonagall, and that the Yule ball was in a little under two months. Today was not the only other Dance Practice; they had six, evenly spaced. They were prefects and should dance properly, as Mcgonagall said, and so the prefects would be the only ones not getting just one practice.

"Well, then, who are you asking?"

Hermione shrugged. "Nobody," she said honestly. "The first person who I deem reasonable and who asks me will be my date."

"You're assuming you'll have more than one date offer?"

Hermione gave her a look, and Ginny laughed.

"You're right, I forgot," she said. "At least they got the scheduling fixed. But still! Dance Practice! It's rediculous!"

Astoria came up behind Ginny then, and said, out of nowhere, making Ginny jump, "At least you don't have Slughorn leading yours. Look at those poor other Slytherins, all moping about having to be taught by him." She pointed to a group of sad-looking Slytherin girls who were chattering away in a corner of the Slytherin table.

"Nah," said Theodore, joining the girls, "They're just upset Malfoy's not asking anyone."

"Draco? He's going alone?"

Theodore nodded and winked at her out of the corner of his eye. She punched his shoulder lightly, laughing once.

"Tori! Hermione! Ginny!"

Millicent came running up behind them. "Guess who I'm going with?" she asked, breathless.

"Who?" said Theodore sarcastically, "Oh, I'm betting Draco. Oh,wait, no, that can't be it... hm, who do we know who's desperate enough to -"

"Blaise."

"Oh." Theodore looked ashamely at his feet.

"Blaise?" enthused Astoria and Ginny t precisely the same moment. "Zabini?"

Millicent laughed.

"What were his exact words?" Ginny demanded.

"I'm leaving," Theo announced, and, when nobody responded, he whistled and walked away.

"He said: 'Liccy, I need a date for the dance, and so do you. So, be my date?' And then... wait for it... wait for it..."

She didnt continue her sentence, a wicked grin on her face, waiting for them to cave.

"Well?" Tori askedd eagerly.

Liccy laughed again. "He kissed me!"

Astoria squeaked and clutched Liccy's arm tightly, Hermione exclaimed 'Blimey!' and Ginny asked, "Is he a good kisser?"

"Yes," said Liccy, in answer to Ginny's questions, "he is. But don't think about kissing him," she warned seriously, wagging a finger in the direction of the red-head, who laughed and said she had Harry for that.