Chapter 18
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SIRIUS PRIDED HIMSELF ON HIS STEALTH. Concealment and tricks had been some of his innate skills, ones he perfected with all his maraudings during his younger years. Yet, somehow, Narcissa Malfoy seemed to always know where and how to find him.

In the corner of the ballroom, Sirius hoped that whoever it was that he lobbed onto his cousin before evading her had kept her busy enough to lose sight of Sirius. With her mouth pursed and the infamous Black glare fixed onto him, Sirius backed into the crowd, disappearing as he innocently waved at her.

Sullen, Sirius watched the crowd. He wasn't very keen on showing up to the Yule party in the first place, preferring to cuddle up with his boyfriend in front of the fire. Yet, here he was, with a bunch of purebred toffs.

Trays of wine glasses floated around the place, stopping in front of guests to allow them to pick one up. Sirius was avoiding the drinks, a promise to Remus (and to himself) that he was adamant about keeping.

Alcohol never did him any good, and even less so recently.

"Had enough of your childish endeavours, yet?"

Sirius flinched, groaning when he realised whose voice it was.

"How do you always find me? I even put up a concealment spell."

Narcissa simply waved her own wand in front of his face, as if to remind him that she was a witch too.

Sirius groaned again. The charm was still on. No one should be able to see them. Sirius wondered how in the world Narcissa could.

"Cousin, you really must grow up. There are many people here who are dying to converse with you. You must take advantage of that."

Narcissa had been strangely supportive of Sirius ever since he reclaimed his title as Lord Black. Sirius was suspicious of her at first, considering her husband was Lord Malfoy, and Sirius' position in the Wizangamot directly threatened his. Though, Narcissa has a simple answer to that.

"If there is one thing I learned over the past years, it is that family must stick together. My husband and my son mean everything to me, but I am still a Black. And so are you and Andromeda."

Sirius had scoffed. "You didn't seem to care so much about family when she and I got disowned."

"Leaving was your decision, not mine." Narcissa hasn't even bothered to look at him when she told him. "Besides, I was a child. So were you. So was Regulus."

"Since when have you cared about Regulus?"

"Since his older brother left him the same way as how my older sister left me."

Narcissa and Regulus had been similar in that way. Always perfect, always calm. Family came first to them, even if it meant making sacrifices. To them, Andromeda's and his actions had seemed like a betrayal.

Sirius swallowed down the guilt. "We had to leave. They would've killed us."

"I know, Sirius. I know."

Narcissa's views on muggleborns were still the same. She still believed that muggleborns posed a threat to wizardkind. She still believed in blood purity.

Blood was important, no matter what.

And that was why she kept trying to get Sirius to build better relations with the members of the Wizangamot.

Sirius sighed, exasperated. He leaned back against the wall, watching people mingle. "Is there anyone I don't have to bother talking to?"

Narcissa hummed. Wine glass to her lips, her gaze washed over the crowd.

In all honesty, Sirius didn't care for better relations. As much as he hated to admit it, the title of Lord Black had been advantageous, especially since the Ministry wanted to wash its hands over the allegations of false imprisonment.

He technically didn't need to attend this Yule Party. But even with all the benefits his title gave him, Sirius still couldn't get enough statements against Aleyne to build a case. Sure, he could sue them for child abuse based simply on Adhara's claims, but that wouldn't be enough to take down the place as a whole.

They would simply replace Matron Hallewell with someone else.

Thus, as much as Sirius would've loved to spend Yule with Remus, he had a mission to complete.

A smirk made its way to Narcissa's lip. She withdrew the glass of wine, gesturing towards a couple with her chin.

"You don't need to associate yourself with the Rosiers."

A black-haired man was talking with another couple Sirius knew were the Carrows. The man had his arm around his wife's waist, a brunette who kept talking in a rather shrill voice.

"Lord and Lady Rosier."

"Rosier? As in Evan Rosier? Isn't he dead?"

Narcissa gave him a look. "That is Victor Rosier. Evan Rosier's younger brother. And that is his wife, Sirene."

Sirius observed the couple. Aside from the woman's voice, there wasn't anything out of place about them. The husband seemed to be the quiet type. His cheeks were sagging downwards, whether a tell of time or gravity, Sirius didn't know. Tall in appearance, though his wife was rivalling him in height.

All in all, however; they seemed to be a happy couple.

"What flaw did you discover about them? You don't seem to like them very much."

To that, Narcissa smiled. Wordlessly, she settled her now empty glass in the air, which floated away.

"They have a son. Phineas Rosier."

"There's nothing odd about having a son, cousin. You've got yourself one."

Narcissa rolled her eyes. "When he was first born, he showed no sign of magic."

"If the reason you don't want me to associate with them is because their son is a squib—"

"Not exactly." The smile has not left Narcissa's face. She looked quite amused. "Miraculously, about a year ago, Phineas Rosier apparently flung his elf-nanny across the nursery."

"So? Many children take time before their first display of magic."

"You don't think it is a little odd? How the boy showed no sign of normalcy until he was almost three, and then performs such a spectacular feat?"

Sirius ignored the word of 'normalcy'. "You think they're lying? That their son is a squib, and that they're hiding it?"

"Oh, I believe they're lying about something, but not about the elf."

"What do you mean?"

"I think their son is a squib, but I don't think they're lying about the elf being thrown across the room."

Sirius' brows drew close. Narcissa was not making any sense. If their son was a squib, then how would he throw the elf in the air?

Narcissa turned to him, looking directly into his eyes. "Have you ever heard of changelings? Do you believe in them?"

Sirius blinked, caught off guard by the sudden change of topic. "I've heard stories. Fairies exist, so why not?"

"Hmm. And how much do you think humans get inspired by stories?"

"What do you mean?"

"Ever heard of wizarding changelings, cousin?"

━━━━

Harry was disappointed. With all the fuss about the Yule Ball for the past few weeks, he thought there would be more to this dance than just bright lights and music.

It was very disappointing. His robes were nice. His hair looked like. Hell, he even put on eyeliner because he wanted to match with Adhara and that was nice, too.

Except, his date wasn't very nice.

"Look at them, dancing in each other's arms. She just made her twirl! They look so happy. Why can't we be happy like that, Harry?"

Harry huffed, arms crossed. "I tried to twirl you, and you tripped!"

"Over your feet!"

Millie and Padma looked like they were having a fantastic time, so perhaps it wasn't the ball that sucked. Just Harry's night specifically.

Hands joined, both girls leaned back to twirl in circles. Millie's pink hair was adorned with glitter. She put it up in a low bun, held together with a green butterfly clip. Two strands on the sides were braided, and, not that he could see from this far, Harry knew there were silver beads added there, matching with Hermione and Adhara.

Millie matched her dress with her date. A light green dress with pink butterflies that decorated the straps and the skirt. The butterflies were the same colour as Padma's pink lehenga. Except, Padma's dupatta matched her sister's.

"Urg," Ron sneered, steering his attention toward another couple. "I still can't believe she's dancing with the enemy."

Harry frowned. Hermione and Krum were just talking. Hermione saw Harry looking in their direction and waved at him, a small smile on her face.

Harry waved back. But Ron simply scoffed and looked away, making Hermione's smile falter.

Harry was getting angry.

"Can you believe that? She actually dolled herself up for him! And her makeup's making her look all red!"

Harry didn't think that was fair. Hermione looked beautiful. She and Millie had been fussing over their dresses for days now, and Harry was glad to see how much the blue dress made her happy. Hermione's braided hair was magically pinned into an updo, which was a last-minute decision.

"She's fraternising with the enemy!"

"So, what?! It's just a stupid competition, anyway. I didn't even want to join in the first place!" Harry shouted at Ron, staring up from his chair.

Ron looked at Harry with wide eyes. He was surprised to see Harry angry, all of a sudden.

Ron frowned. "Why are you getting so worked up? I was only defending you!"

"Defending me? You weren't defending me, you were being jealous, that's what you were being! For what, though, I have no clue!"

"I'm not jealous! She's dating the competition! Shouldn't you be angry?"

"Why does it matter? Krum's attractive and nice, it makes sense! I wanted to ask Cedric myself!"

Right as the words left his mouth, Harry smacked a hand over it. He stared at Ron's shocked expression, the boy's jaw opened slack.

Frustrated with himself, Harry called Ron "a big wanker" and then scurried away.

━━━━

Surprisingly, Adhara didn't dislike her outfit. The kaftan was far less bulky than Millie's gown. And she didn't have as many extensions and bobby pins in her hair as Hermione did. Adhara didn't have any at all.

They kept her appearance quite simple, just as she asked. Two thin braids at the front with silver beads to match Hermione and Millicent. Apparently, it clashed with her gold and lavender kaftan, but Adhara couldn't care less. And eyeliner, which inspired Harry to copy her.

The only annoying part of her outfit was the gold clip-on earrings Millie got her. But Adhara planned to take those off the minute her pink-haired friend was out of sight.

Which could wait, Adhara presumed. Because right now, she was on a mission.

It might be the Yule Ball. There might be the Triwizard Tournament this year. But these things didn't compare next to quidditch.

Adhara needed to make sure next year's team was perfect. And more importantly, she had to ensure she wasn't the only girl. It would drive her crazy if she was.

And she definitely didn't need another reason to drive too close to insanity. Her genes already did that for her.

Scanning through the crowd, she searched for Astoria Greengrass, who Adhara knew was attending because she caught a glimpse of her during the Champions' dance.

The girl was with her date, which, ironically enough, just so happened to be Cassius Warrington.

"Greengrass."

"Black."

Both girls acknowledged each other with a quick nod. They have never spoken to each other before. Adhara only ever exchanged words with her sister, Daphne, but that was only because they were roommates, and she liked to kiss up to Parkinson.

Adhara glanced at Warrington. At his stare, Adhara's nose wrinkled in disgust.

She turned back to Greengrass. "Walk with me."

"She's not going anywhere," came Warrington's commanding voice instead.

Greengrass simply raised her index at him, telling him to shut up. It made the boy glare at her, it made Adhara smirk.

"What for?"

Adhara quirked a brow. "You would rather stay here with him?"

Warrington budged in once more, ignoring Greengrass' finger. "I'm telling you, she's not going anywhere." He turned to his date. "You are not to move from this table, do you hear me?"

"And why would I do that?" questioned the third-year.

"Because I'm telling you to!"

Greengrass blinked. She peeked at the candle lit in the middle of their table before muttering a spell under her breath. Slowly, she blew onto the candle, and the fire grew several times its size.

Adhara took a step back, eyes fixed on the flame. It spread to the table sheet in a matter of seconds.

Before she knew it, Greengrass was already beside her. Greengrass had hooked their arms together to lead her to walk around the Great Hall. Adhara followed, leaving Warrington by himself at the burnt table.

Greengrass was smiling. A fake smile that she threw at whoever recognized and greeted her.

"What is it that you wanted?"

"Wipe that smile off your face first."

"No need," she replied. She waved at one of the students Adhara remembered meeting at the Wizengamot. "They know very well that it is fake. I'm not trying very hard."

Adhara stopped, turning to look at her directly. "You sound quite open with me. You don't seem to care about being so obvious."

"Should I?"

Adhara looked back at the burnt table. Flitwick was trying to extinguish the fire that seemed to continuously grow.

"I thought Malfoy was supposed to be your fiancé?"

"He is."

"Then why are you here with Warrington of all people."

Greengrass shrugged. "Draco won't speak to me, and I wanted to dress up."

She didn't wear a dress but a suit. A form-fitting black suit with a bow tie. Not very wizard-like, not very traditional. But again, something that Greengrass' very traditional father would not approve of.

Adhara smiled to herself.

"So, Greengrass. I hear you're quite proficient on a broom."

Astoria Greengrass smirked back.

━━━━

Someone blew up a table. Harry took the momentary distraction to find an empty table in a far corner and hide underneath it.

It was snug under there, which was strange. Small spaces were a matter of confusion to Harry. On one hand, he hated them to the point of losing his breath. On another, they felt somehow safe. And right now, being out here meant facing Ron, so he would rather lose his ability to breathe than embarrass himself, any further.

He lifted the table cloth, hunched down to crawl under when someone called him out.

"Harry? Is that you?"

Harry froze.

If only he was a second faster.

He recognized that voice. It was a sweet and soothing voice. A sweet and soothing voice that kindly rejected him when he asked her to the ball.

"H — hey, Cho."

She wore a white qipao, her silky hair tied up in a simple bun. There must be shimmer on her lids because they seemed to sparkle in the light.

Harry tried to get up, only to hit his head on the table.

"Oh, god, Harry, are you alright? You don't look too good."

Harry stopped breathing. Cho Chang was crouching down next to him. Cho Chang was holding his arm. Cho Chang was looking at him with concern.

"Harry?"

Was she calling him?

"Cho?"

Another voice he recognized.

Cedric Diggory joined Cho. He kneeled beside her, looking at Harry with equal amounts of worry.

"Harry? What's going on?"

Harry looked between the two, his confusion growing in a matter of seconds. He started to feel lightheaded.

"Cedric! I don't think he's breathing." She grabbed her date's sleeve. "He's having a panic attack! Oh, he's having a panic attack!"

"Okay, okay. Hey, calm down."

Harry wasn't sure who Cedric was talking to, but he was suddenly coughing. "I — I'm okay. Superb. Abso — absolutely terrific."

Neither of them looked convinced.

"I should go." Saving himself from making a complete twit of himself, Harry stood up. He wobbled a bit, but both of his crushes were there in an instant, each holding one of his arms, keeping him stable.

Yet, Harry felt like he was falling even more. He closed his eyes.

"Harry," Cho's voice began, "let's get you to the Hospital Wing."

"I'm perfectly fine."

"Fresh air then," and that was Cedric's voice. "Come on, Harry. I've got something to tell you anyway."

Harry's eyes shot open. He said something in response. He knew he did. But all Harry could remember was hearing himself blabber in gibberish.

Thankfully, Cedric seemed to have understood. He and Cho carefully lead Harry outside.

━━━━

"Montague."

The boy jumped, spilling his spiked punch all over his robes.

He didn't even need to turn around to know who it was. "Merlin's balls, Black! Quit sneaking on me like that!"

Adhara didn't bother with a response to that. She simply rolled her eyes at the theatrics and scourgified the mess away.

"I come with a solution."

"What are you on about?"

"About next year's Quidditch team."

Montague groaned. "No. No. Absolutely not. I'm not doing this without Flint. Where the hell is he — "

"Locking lips with his boyfriend." In reality, Adhara wasn't sure if that was true. But considering Flint had turned the common room upside down, trying to find a way to ask Wood to be his date for the ball, she can only assume they came together.

And judging from Montague's exasperated groan, Adhara didn't think she was that far off.

She observed the lack of a person beside him. "Do you not have a date?"

The Quidditch captain shook his head. "I don't do that stuff. Now, what do you want from me?"

"I found the third chaser."

"Who?"

"Astoria Greengrass."

Montague snorted.

"I'm serious."

The boy looked at her with a deadpan look.

"I already told her she could."

"And who were you to decide that? I'm Captain."

"And yet I already did?"

"She will still need to try out. You never know, Warrington just might have good chemistry with us."

Adhara pointed in the direction of the burned table. "He just blew up a table. What makes you think that he will be able to catch a quaffle?"

Montague looked over Adhara's head, watching Flitwick and Dumbledore reprimand the boy, his fringe burned off.

Montague looked like he wanted to give up.

"I'll train her myself."

"You fucking better."

━━━━

"What are you doing?"

Cho Chang of all people was outside, checking her surroundings as though she was on the lookout for someone.

When Adhara went back to her and her friends' table, only Ron and Padma were there. The latter seemed to be scolding the boy, and a few feet over, Parvati, Millicent and Ginny were consoling Hermione.

Harry was nowhere to be seen.

"Oh!" Chang was surprised. "Adhara!"

When they became so friendly, Adhara didn't know. But she noticed Harry and Diggory a distance away. Harry was resting against the wall, head bobbing, and Diggory leaned in close, his arm on the wall.

"What are you two doing to my brother?" Adhara's tone was cutting close to a threat.

Shocked at the viciousness, Cho glanced at the two boys, and then looked back at Adhara. She did that a few times before realizing what Adhara was seeing.

"Oh! Oh, no! It's nothing like that, I swear!"

"Then why are you on lookout?"

"Cedric'a telling him something about the next task, s'all! We just didn't want anyone to overhear."

Scoffing, Adhara pushed her aside had marched toward her brother.

She shoved Diggory's arm away, standing between the two.

Adhara crossed her arms. "What do you think you're doing?"

Diggory seemed to catch on quicker as one look at Adhara's expression was enough for him to understand where her anger was coming from.

"No, no. You misunderstand. Harry — Harry didn't look okay, so we brought him out for fresh air."

"Right."

"It's true! He didn't want to go to the Hospital Wing."

Adhara felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Adz, what are you doing?"

Adhara huffed. He threw one last glare at Diggory and told him to scram.

And Diggory, clever as he was, didn't argue. "Yes, ma'am. See ya around, Harry!"

She watched the couple leave before turning to Harry.

"What's the matter with you?"

Harry only shrugged, gaze on his feet. He seemed to have regained his balance, though.

"Cedric gave me a hint about the second task."

"About the egg?"

"Yup."

The egg had been driving them all nuts for weeks now.

"What did he say?"

"To take it with me in the bath," Harry answered right away.

Adhara didn't think she heard that right. "Excuse me?"

"He said to take it with me into the bath."

"...excuse me?"

━━

Harry fiddled with his hands. Adhara was right beside him, leaning against the wall like he was.

She had taken off her earrings, which had left her ears red. She even used a spell to remove both of their makeup, which had started to feel itchy.

Though, Adhara wasn't saying anything, and Harry felt like he was going crazy. He really was going through it right now. He wasn't even sure who he fancied, Cho or Cedric, or if it was okay that he even fancied either of them. One of whom was a boy.

"So," Adhara broke the silence, "which one are you jealous of?"

Harry groaned, head falling into his hands. " I don't know! Both?"

"You're jealous of both of them? Do you fancy both of them? At the same time?"

"I'm not sure! I don't know, ok? I can't choose, they're both so cool and pretty! How do people choose?"

Adhara shrugged. "I don't know, but it's weird."

Harry felt sick.

"It's already weird when people do one, and you've got two."

"What?"

"Fancying people?" Her nose wrinkled. "S'weird."

Harry stared at her for a moment, letting her words register through. "It's fancying people that you find strange?"

"Was there meant to be anything else?"

"Not the fact that Cedric's a boy?"

Adhara blinked, somehow catching up to Harry's train of thought, to which she had been oblivious so far. Then she narrowed her eyes in that way she did whenever she thought someone was being daft, which she did very often.

"...you do know that Millie's a lesbian, right?"

"What?"

"Padma Patil is literally her date. She's not exactly hiding it? Even her dad knows."

Harry said nothing.

Adhara has rolled her eyes many times in front of him, but this was the first time he had seen her look so done.

"I don't care that you like boys."

Harry's palms had gotten sweaty. He wiped them on his trousers. "But, I also like Cho. Like I definitely fancy Cho."

"So?"

"Well, is that a thing? Liking them both? Boys and girls?"

"Why wouldn't it be? And I don't care who you like at all. You could marry a goblin for all I care."

Harry remembered the first time they went to the bank together and shivered at the thought.

He shook his head. "You don't care who I like. You just care that I like anybody at all."

She rolled her eyes again.

Harry snorted, mulling things over. "So. Fancying is strange?"

"Hmm."

"How about other stuff? Snogging?"

Adhara looked like she wanted to gag. "Absolutely not."

"Not boys? Not even girls?"

She shook her head. "You can like them both for me instead."

━━

"Haz."

"Hmm?"

"Remus and Sirius are together. They're both men."

"Oh, yeah..."

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A/N no the Yule Ball doesn't take place on Christmas Day in this universe. I don't see why wizards would follow a Christian holiday.