Unseen Realities ~ Edmund x Reader Hogwarts AU

The Yule Ball

(Image not mine)

McGonagall looked up at Edmund with just as much surprise as I did. "Oh, then right this way, both of you."

I felt Ed's hand slide to the small of my back as we began to walk towards the doors. I didn't dare steal a glance at him while we entered the Great Hall through those giant doors. We were the last to enter- not counting the champions and their dates- so we were each shoved into lines of people opposite of each other. The lines formed an aisle that the champions would no doubt walk down any minute.

Looking up, I finally saw Edmund where he stood on the other side of the aisle. He was even more captivating than usual. Around him, an obviously expensive dress robe draped elegantly off of his shoulders. Unlike Ron Weasley's dress robes, Edmund's were modern and clean, complete with a tie the same color as my dress.

I was hardly aware of the crowd clapping and found it an inconvenience when the champions strutted down the aisle in front of me. My eyes were glued on Edmund. His eyes too were unabashedly focused on me. We looked at each other a minute too long to be just friends.

He flashed his signature smirk, and the shock of seeing him wore off almost immediately. God, I hated how much I loved that smile.

Once the champions had passed us and stepped onto the dance floor, the crowd of people swarmed behind them. This meant that Edmund and I were no longer on opposite sides of the aisle.

I grinned as I walked to him, pointing to his tie, "Stole a piece of fabric from my dress, did you?"

"I thought it would be cute to be matching," he shrugged, offering his arm.

I took it, my skin tingling where it touched his, "If I remember correctly, you bought the fabric before you asked me to the ball."

His ears turned red but his face remained as casual as ever, "I might have been pondering the idea for a while."

I met his eyes for a moment and it was as if flowers grew in my chest. I had to look away quickly or else I was sure I would get lost in those eyes of his. Instead, I watched as the champions began to dance to the waltz music.

Soon, Dumbledore and McGonagall joined in, then a couple of other professors, and finally the students began to spin across the floor to the music. Excited, I pulled on Ed's arm to drag him onto the dance floor. He protested initially, saying that he hadn't practiced much since our night on the roof.

I ignored the excuse and continued to pull him into the crowd of couples dancing. Cautiously, Edmund took my waist in one hand and my hand in the other. We stepped in time with the music and the other dancers around us, most of which were dancing fairly elegantly. There were a couple of people like Harry who had no idea what they were doing.

"This isn't too bad," Edmund grinned, no longer looking at his feet. "I thought I would be much worse at this."

I smiled at him before raising my arm to twirl in sync with all of the other girls. Returning to face Ed, I placed my hands on his shoulder and in his hand before we began to step with the music again. I could hear the song begin to build and took that as my cue to place both hands on his shoulders.

When the music hit its peak, Edmund's hands quickly moved to my waist. With surprising strength, he lifted me into the air and spun around once before setting me back down. I couldn't get rid of the smile on my face as we twirled again and again.

I had never realized how intimate dancing was until I danced with Edmund. Every step was an unspoken word, every twirl was a dare to come closer. Even his eyes told me things I couldn't quite understand yet. I was beginning to drown in those eyes.