That Damn Weasley Charm II G.W

Part 4, Chapter 25- Dancing Lessons

The school didn't stop talking about the first task of the Triwizard Tournament till the middle of December when we had to have dancing lessons from the head of our houses.

Yeah, you heard me. Dancing lessons.

From our head of house.

Dancing lessons.

From Professor Snape.

Nothing could have prepared me for December sixteenth. "Students!" Snape shouts as he comes into the common room. "After dinner... Every Slytherin student must meet me in the great hall... no exceptions... no tardiness..." He looks around at those who are in the common room which just so happens to include Emma, Walter, Draco, and I.

"What do you think that was about?" Draco asks us. He's been studying with us for the past month or so, he's still having some difficulty with a few of his classes but he won't tell any of his friends that.

"Could be about the Yule Ball. You know how Aunt Narcissa was talking about having a great big celebration or something." I say to him. I peer over at his star map, "Dray, Scorpius is here, not there." I point at two locations on his map. He groans and tries to fix it the best he can.

"But why do we have to have some great big meeting about it? I know I learned ballroom dancing when I was a kid." Emma says.

"Yeah we did too. But I suppose not everyone did?" Draco says. He's got ink all over his quill hand.

"I bet you loads of Slytherins took lessons. It's the rest of the school that doesn't know how to dance." Walter adds to the conversation, without looking up from his textbook though.

After dinner George asks if I want to go do something and I have to say no. I can't believe Snape is cock-blocking me. When the rest of the school files out of the hall Snape magics the tables and benches out of the way so we have room to do whatever it is that he's making us do.

"Now... the Triwizard tournament is... exciting." He says in his basic monotone voice. Everyone is sitting on the benches on the side of the room. "And the tournament... comes with a celebration... a ball... now I assume that each of you came to Hogwarts this year with dress robes, is that... correct?"

Every one nods a few times, Snape pulls the sleeves of his robes up slightly. He flicks his wrist and a music box comes soaring from the other side of the room and lands in the middle of the room beside Snape.

"Everyone on staff is in agreement... We will not embarrass ourselves in front of our guests because our sorry excuse for a student body does not know how to dance..." Snape turns and puts the needle of the music box onto the record that is spinning on it slowly. He turns bac to face us, gentle classical music flows through the air. "Miss Blythe... Come here."

Clarissa steps away from Miriam and a few of the other girls she was with and makes her way over to Snape. "Do you know how to ballroom dance Miss Blythe?" Snape says coldly. The look on his face tells us everything. He's going to demonstrate how to dance by using Clarissa as his partner.

Walter, Emma, and I stifle our laughter along with a few other students. "Yessir, My father paid for my lessons as a child should a day arise that I needed to know." Clarissa says carefully.

"I didn't need a retelling of your childhood Miss Blythe. Give me your hand." Snape takes Clarissa's hand in his. My eyes water cause I'm trying so hard not to laugh. Clarissa looks like she might cry herself. Snape puts his hand on her waist, Clarissa puts her other hand on Snapes shoulder.

"I can't believe I don't have a camera right now." Walter whispers. He, along with everyone else in our house are watching Snape and Clarissa with wide eyes and big smiles on our faces.

"Follow my lead... Do not step on my toes." Snape barks. He steps and Clarissa follows suit. They dance together for a moment, I can hear Adrian and Graham giggling behind us. Snape lets go of Clarissa's hand and wipes both his hands on his robes like he's touched something disgusting.

"Pair up... I will not have any of my students fumbling around like idiots come the ball." Snape practically snaps at us all.

Emma and Walter pair up and start to float around the room. Draco comes over to me, "May I have this dance?" He asks with the biggest, stupidest smile on his face. I get flashbacks to Christmas when we were little kids, Draco and I dancing around our aunts and uncles, and family friends pretending to be like the grown ups.

"Course you can." I take his hand in mine and we walk to the middle of the room.

"I only asked you because I didn't want to dance with Pansy." Draco whispers.

I look over and both Crabbe and Goyle are fighting for Pansy's attention, she however is looking at a few of the girls who still don't have partners.

"Oh?" I say. Draco and I spin around the room, being careful as to not knock into anyone else. "I thought you and Pansy were just friends?"

Draco looks over at her and back to me, "We are. Pansy isn't even interested in guys. But I just don't want the rumors to start spreading again. Especially in the older years." Draco stops talking and looks right at me, "I wasn't supposed to tell you that. You're not allowed to tell anyone that I just told you that Pansy is a lesbian."

"Literally who would I tell? I hate to break it to you darling but no one really pays attention to the fourth years."

"Everyone seems to care an awful lot about perfect little Potter." Draco grumbles.

I try my hardest to hold my tongue but I can't stop myself from saying, "You also care an awful lot about perfect little Potter."

I don't think I've ever seen my cousin blush before. But here he is, dancing with me, blushing like a mad man, "I can't believe he battled a dragon." He says.

"Can't believe he survived battling a dragon. I love you Dray but there's no way in hell you could have ever pulled that off."

Snape comes over to where we are dancing and looks at us, "Your posture is lacking Miss LeStrange. I know your aunt taught you better than that." He snaps. I straighten my shoulders and look at him. He nods once and heads off to bug someone else.

"It's good he didn't get too badly hurt. He seems just fine in all his classes and things. Makes me wish I didn't pretend to be hurt for so long after that Hippogriff attacked me. Must have looked bad on my part." Draco mumbles.

We spin around the room slowly, following the beat of the music, "Are you taking anyone special to the ball?" I ask him.

Draco thinks for a moment, "Pansy was talking about us going together, given the fact that neither of us can go with who we really want to go with and all."

"So if you had the chance, you'd ask Harry?"

"I'm not answering that."

"I think you should."

Draco huffs, "Possibly... a slight chance, maybe... but he's madly in love with some Ravenclaw girl named Cho Chang so I don't see why we are talking about this in the first place.

I laugh at his uncomfortableness, "Well alright then, who would Pansy rather go with?"

"I'm not answering that either."

"Please? We're family, flesh and blood! We tell each other everything!"

Draco laughs at my begging, "She wants to ask that muggle born girl Hermione Granger. But rumor has it that she's going with Viktor Krum."

"Hermione and Viktor? Never thought I'd see that happen."

"Neither did Pansy, she cried about it for a few hours when she heard the news. Not like Hermione even knows that Pansy is interested in her of course."

Snape claps his hands and the music stops, "The ball is happening on Christmas night... I expect you to all be prepared and well rehearsed... and properly dressed." Snape looks over at a few of the fifth year students who are not at all in uniform. "Fourth years and above can come to the dance... however you may ask a younger student to accompany you if you so wish... Off to the common rooms you go."