dursley [h. g.]

••dursley•• || ok, i guess

With the end of term came the height of the excitement for te Yule Ball. None of the older students went home, save for a few who didn't have a choice in the matter. Several grumpy third years were spotted boarding the train to return home for the holidays as they weren't allowed to attend anyway and nothing held some of them to the castle. Mabel was one of these grumpy third years. She had loftily said that she didn't want to be in a castle full of students who did nothing but make heart eyes at each other for two whole weeks, but she mad missed her mother and everyone could tell that she wanted to go home.

Damon had opted to forgo the dance to accompany his sister. He clearly had not forgotten about the letter his father had sent him and wanted to make sure that his inter and mother would be safe, or at least that he wouldn't have to spend weeks worrying about them. Kendra had thought that this was a terrible idea, but she knew she couldn't change Damon's mind once it was made up.

Luna was also going back to her father for the holidays, though it was with much more grace than most of the others on the platform. "Daddy will be lonely without me," she had said, smiled lightly at the rest of them, and hopped on the train. They had all waved good-bye at her curiously, though the moment passed quickly and they were quickly absolved back into their conversation.

"Mabel, are you sure you don't want to come? I'll take you as my date, if you'd like," Kendra said, trying to conceal her worry. It would solve both of her problems- the fact tat she didn't have a date and the fact that Damon and Mabel might be walking straight into a trap.

"I don't even have a dress, Kendra," Mabel said, not blindly. "But thank you for the offer. I's not a big deal, though. I mean, it's not as though I'll be a lonely maid forever if I don't find me someone right this moment, right?"

"Look who you're talking to," Kendra snorted. She turned her attention to Damon and instantly the concern appeared on her face. She wrapped him into as tight of a hug as she could manage and whispered in his ear. "Be careful, Damon."

"I'll write if anything goes wrong," Damon replied, his voice low. They pulled away and he smiled at her. "By the way, Matt apologized to me."

"That's great!" Kendra beamed.

"Yeah, well, whatever you said to him made it seem like he let really bad for what he did. I'm not sure if I want to know, though," Damon grinned at her teasingly. "Maybe you'll have to teach me, just incase I ever get a sugar daddy and-"

"Damon!" Mabel cut him off in disgust, covering her ears. "I'm innocent!"

"Bullshit," Lisa snorted. "Have fun with your mum."

And that was the last of their goodbyes, any further conversation abruptly halted by the angry whistle of the train. In another 20 minutes, Lisa and Kendra were back in the castle.

"So you're still looking for a date, then?" Lisa said, pensive.

"Yes?" Kendra replied slowly, worried as to what Lisa had in mind.

"I'm going with Travis Wrost," Lisa said, a proud grin on her face. "The guy I went to Hogsmeade with last weekend?" Kendra didn't remember this detail at all but it didn't help to admit that.

"Yeah," Kendra agreed.

"He's got some friends in Slytherin, our year, that you could go with," Lisa said. She paused and thought about it for a moment. "His friends aren't the greatest people ever so don't feel like you have to say yes. But I don't think they would do anything bad to you?"

'As long as I'm not getting hate crimed it's okay, right?' Kendra thought to herself, biting her tongue.

"Who do you have in mind?" Kendra swallowed. She didn't want to judge people by their house, but if Lisa was trying to set her up with Crabbe, she could be pretty certain that it would end poorly for both of them.