Christmas morning arrived just as it should, with a fresh blanket of snow and new flakes still falling softly past the tall windows of Ravenclaw tower and to the ground, so far below. The common room had never been so packed on Christmas. Nearly everyone had stayed for the holidays this year. Caiti had thought she would feel homesick, but so far, she was truly enjoying herself. 

There was a towering Christmas tree by the big windows, adorned in Ravenclaw colors and topped with an eagle that flapped its wings from time to time, showering the tree and anyone standing below it in silver glitter. A ring of the glitter surrounded the ground around the tree in place of the traditional train track. Between the brilliant decorations and her growing excitement for the ball that evening, Caiti was perfectly happy to be where she was, even if it wasn't home.

She Evelyn, Marlowe, and Sean had all packaged their presents inside their quilts and carried them down Father Christmas-style over their shoulders. Now they sat around the fireplace, preparing to open the parcles. No one had changed out of pajamas yet. Caiti's hair was still tied up in last night's braid, now fuzzy on top and with many escaped bits of hair. She tucked her feet inside the legs of her pajama pants, which were too long, and sat with her knees up to her chest, and her chin on her knees, smiling contentedly as the others got themselves situated.

She kept stealing glances at Marlowe. She did not think she had ever seen him with bedhead before. He positioned himself next to her, just close enough that if she moved to sit cross-legged, their knees would be touching.

"Happy Christmas," she said, smiling at him.

Marlowe nodded once. "You too," then he added. "Open mine first so it won't be a letdown."

Caiti laughed. "It won't be. You didn't need to get me anything." But she let her knees fall open to sit cross-legged anyhow (purposely not shifting aside) and rifled through her little pile of presents to find the one from Marlowe. It was wrapped in blue paper, and Caiti smiled to herself when she noticed the excessive amount of Spell-o-tape he had used to secure it. Much, much more than was strictly necessary.

Caiti forced her way through the tape, glancing at him with a sly grin. "Am I not meant to get in?" she asked.

Marlowe grinned sheepishly. "I suck at wrapping presents," he said.

Inside was a book. Caiti had opened it to the back cover so she flipped it around. The title read The Properties of Potion-Making for Inventors: Create Brand New Potions from Scratch.

"This is so cool," she said, skimming the contents. "Thanks, Marlowe!" The book had chapters dedicated to choosing the right ingredients and safe ways to test new potions and all sorts of things.

While she continued to peruse the book, Sean began to open his present from Caiti. He burst out laughing and she looked up. "I hate you," he said, grinning at her. In his lap was a stuffed Mackled Malaclaw, dressed in a baby bonnet which Caiti had shrunk to fit herself.

Caiti put up both hands, flexed at the wrist, and shrugged. "There's something else in there," she said. Sean frowned and reached back inside the gift bag. When his hand reemerged, he was holding a small box. The something inside rattled as he brought it closer to his face to read it. "I really hate you," he said, chucking it at her. The little box hit Caiti in the shoulder, bounced off her knee, and then rolled twice from edge to edge. "Ow," Caiti laughed, clapping her hand to her shoulder.

She had expected Sean's reaction. They always got each other joke gifts. He was grinning and shaking his head.

Until he saw that Marlowe had snatched the box and was now staring at it with glee. "Love-Gloss," he read. Then he turned to Caiti and they both roared with laughter. Evelyn looked slightly uncomfortable, but was smiling a little anyway. "Man," said Marlowe. "I didn't know you had that in you, Caiti. Good thinking."

"I don't need that crap," said Sean, with a glance at Evelyn. "I already have a girlfriend." Her cheeks went pink. Caiti got the impression that no official conversation had ever taken place, though she was sure Evelyn had assumed this was the case anyhow. They certainly acted like a couple. Even more now than they already had.

Marlowe tossed the box back to Sean, still grinning.

In the end, Caiti sat amid her unwrapped packages, a pile of ripped up paper behind her. On her lap was a box of chocolate frogs and a selection of expensive potion ingredients from her parents. A package of her favorite self-inking quills in all different colors sat by her feet. Evelyn was looking especially cozy wrapped up first in the purple, fuzzy blanket Sean had given her, and second under his arm. The Mackled Malaclaw sat in his lap.

Only Marlowe had anything left to open – Caiti's present. He wore the hat Sean had given him now, emblazoned with the symbol of the Ballycastle Bats. ("Man, I'd better not screw it up, now," he'd said, just before he jammed it on his head.)

"Saved the best for last," said Marlowe, holding up the package which was roughly the size of a tissue box. Caiti had wrapped it in green, Marlowe's favorite color.

"Can't disagree with you," said Caiti knowingly. She could not stop smiling prematurely. She had been looking forward to giving this to him for months. It had needed to brew that long, after all. "Tell your mom I'm sorry for showing her up."

Marlowe laughed and started to peel away the paper. He pulled the lid off the box inside and saw eight little bottles, lined up in two rows. He pulled one out and immediately his eyes went wide.

"This isn't..." he said, peering at the gold liquid. "It is. Caiti. You made this?"

She nodded, beaming, and hugged herself just for something to do with her hands. "Liquid luck," she said.

"Wow," he breathed, turning the little bottle around. "Eight perfect days. Wait a second-"

Caiti's smile faltered just a little.

"Was this what you wouldn't let me see that day when I had to stay late in potions and you helped me?"

"Oh," said Caiti brightening up again. "Yeah it was. I forgot about that."

After placing the bottle back inside gingerly, Marlowe placed one hand on her knee, using it as leverage to twist around and give her a one armed hug. "You're amazing," he said, and then he did something he had never done before, and he kissed her on the cheek. Caiti blushed so much she had to hide her face in her lap. It did not help that Marlowe had left his hand on her knee.

"Sorry mine sucked," he said, frowning.

"It didn't!" Caiti said, peeking up again.

"It did," he argued. "But you're better present is coming tonight when I'm the best date ever."

Caiti grabbed a pillow off the nearest chair and hit Marlowe over the head with it. By the heat in her face, she knew her cheeks were still flushed.

The rest of the morning passed pleasantly. After a delicious Christmas brunch of warm, cinnamon-y French toast and egg casserole, they spent a few hours playing Exploding Snap and Wizard's Chess (Evelyn destroyed everyone, as usual) in the common room before the girls announced that they needed to go and get ready

"What do they need three hours for?" asked Marlowe in alarm as they trekked up the stairs, giggling.    

---

At six forty five, Sean and Marlowe tromped down to the common room again. Marlowe had done his best to slick his hair back, something he had not tried to do in years, and had even put on cologne. He felt jittery and nervous. He could not figure out whether Caiti thought this was a real date or not.

He knew what he thought it was.

Sean perched himself on the arm of a chair facing the girl's dormitory and drummed his fingers on his knees. Marlowe could not sit still. He was too antsy.

Finally, he heard Evelyn's voice on the stairs. She appeared first, dressed in emerald green robes. Her hair was done up in an elegant twist with a few little pieces falling down around her face.

Next to him, Marlowe heard Sean breathe, "Wow," and he stood up. But Caiti had just come around the curve of the spiral staircase. She paused when she saw Marlowe, her hand on the wall and her lips slightly parted. He thought she looked nervous too, which actually made him feel much better.

She looked beautiful. Her blonde hair was pinned back on one side, loose, glossy waves falling over her shoulders. She wore pale blue robes, almost silver, and they were so fine and silky they almost looked like water when she moved. Evelyn had already reached Sean by the time Caiti started moving again, but Marlowe had no idea what they were doing. Some sort of a blank had formed in his mind. When Caiti reached him, he toppled over backwards.

She jumped back in alarm, but Marlowe grinned stupidly and sat up on his elbows. "You look stunning," he said. "Get it? Stunning."

Caiti shook her head, laughing without sound. "Weak," she said. She offered him a hand and helped him up.

"Yeah, that was pretty bad," said Marlowe honestly. "I'm off my game." He reached behind him to the end table where he had placed the corsage his mom insisted he order. Caiti frowned, still smiling, when he held it out to her. "My mom said it's a muggle thing," he explained.

"Thank you," said Caiti, as he helped her put it on her wrist. Her voice was small.

Slipping his hand into hers, they started to head out, a short ways behind Sean and Evelyn. Caiti's hand felt smooth and small in his. "For the record," he said quietly, once he was sure Sean was far enough away, "I meant it."

Caiti gave him a curious look.

"You're beautiful," said Marlowe, not quite managing to look at her.

"You don't look too bad yourself," said Caiti easily.

Her tone was the same good-natured sarcasm she usually used, but Marlowe knew it was genuine. This was not the first time he had seen Caiti hide compliments behind an air of inconsequence when she felt shy.

She gave his hand a little squeeze.

---

The great hall was unrecognizable. The usual night sky was hardly visible beneath so many gold, glittering stars hovering above them. They cast the whole room in a bright, joyful glow. The table cloths looked white from far away, but as Sean approached, he saw they were woven with bits of gold as well. A tree, three times as large as the one in Ravenclaw tower, had been dressed in golden ribbons and stars like the ones floating overhead. Even the tableware was a brilliant, pure gold. Sean thought he would feel guilty eating from it.

He and Evelyn sat directly across the table from Mr. Fenwick. The little pin glinted on his lapel, as always. Evelyn spotted it and made eye contact with Sean. Now that he knew, he found he could not un-know it. He didn't want to, but he saw Mr. Fenwick differently. He looked healthier than he had seen him yet, but still, Sean found he was a little wary of him.

"Ah, Mr. O'Connell," he said, when Sean had sat down at the round table. "Don't believe I was able to speak to you after the first task. Brilliant work. Really spectacular." Sean had never seen him so jovial. In fact, he had always found Mr. Fenwick to be a little stern, though not unkind. His face looked a little red. Sean wondered if he had begun drinking before the feast had begun. This, again, struck him as odd.

"Thanks," he said, glancing at Evelyn again.

"And this must be your date. Why don't you introduce us, son?"

"Oh," said Sean. "This is Evelyn O'Sullivan." Mr. Fenwick was still staring at the two of them expectantly. "My girlfriend."

"Wonderful," he said. "Lovely girl."

"Thank you," said Evelyn, graciously.

Not long after, Oscar sat down with his date -- a Slytherin girl Sean knew only by sight and name -- and Mr. Fenwick was distracted.

"What's up with him?" Sean muttered.

Evelyn shook her head. "No idea."

When their plates suddenly appeared full of food, Sean found he no longer cared. There were roasted potatoes and a large Christmas ham, asparagus, and dark rolls, still warm. Their glasses had been filled with champagne as well. Professor Osset, seated three seats over from Sean's right, lifted his glass and spoke to the table at large. "To our three champions, without whose participation and commitment to the tournament, this competition would not be possible," he said. They all raised their glasses, clinking with those nearest them, and drank. It felt pleasant on Sean's tongue, warming him all the way through.

Evelyn was blinking very quickly when she set her glass down. She placed one hand on her chest. "I've never had that before," she said.

"Good? Bad?"

"Good, I think," she said, laughing. Sean found it difficult not to stare at her.

No one talked much while they ate. The house elves had outdone themselves this time. Sean had never had a better meal at Hogwarts. As everyone began to slow down, stomach's over-full, talk broke out again surrounding the second task.

"I'm sure you 'ave all been preparing," Madame Maxime was saying, smiling around at the three champions. Sean felt his stomach turn over with guilt. He had not given the tournament a second's thought since the day of the first task, and now he had little more than a month to prepare. Oscar was going on and on about how much time he had spent preparing and the sacrifices necessary to do well in this tournament, which only made Sean feel worse. He had, after all, put a lot more focus on his love life in the past month than on the second task, or even his school work.

"What's wrong?" Evelyn said, under her breath. He turned to her and she was looking up at him through her eyelashes, her bright eyes fixed on him.

"Nothing," he said, but then, thinking better, "I'll tell you later."

"And of course, Mr. O'Connell has the advantage," said Mr. Fenwick loudly. "Should be exciting to see which item you'll choose. I know if it were me I'd-" but Mr. Catchlove shushed him quickly.

"Don't go giving away the secrets of the task, now Robert," he said patting him on the arm in a patronizing manner.

"Ah, of course," said Mr. Fenwick, and he downed the rest of his fourth glass of champagne. The cup had been refilling itself all evening.

"No doubt, you have been giving considerable thought to the matter, though," said Mr. Catchlove to Sean with a kind smile.

"Er," said Sean. "Yeah. I mean, it's all guessing though, isn't it?"

"Yes, of course, of course," said Mr. Catchlove, smiling. "All guesswork. But I don't doubt you'll be able to prepare just as well. You've been given much more than the last time around and you managed perfectly well then. I can't pretend I wouldn't love a Hogwarts victory."

Eline scowled. Sean felt embarrassed. He wished they had not had to sit in this arrangement. He got on with Oscar well enough, though he found him rather pompous, but neither champion was really someone he was interested in a genuine friendship with. And if he was being honest with himself, the only person he really wanted to talk to tonight was Evelyn.

He had not told her, yet, how pretty she looked and it was eating away at him almost as much as how unprepared he was for the task. Marlowe was right. He sucked at this. He was not charming or romantic. He did not know how to flatter a girl. And he had no idea how to dance with one, which he was meant to do in a matter of minutes in front of the entire school.

When the plates cleared, Sean could not decide if it had happened too soon, or not soon enough. Professor Osset stood and made a few remarks about the occasion and then, before Sean felt prepared at all, he was introducing the champions for the first dance of the evening. Oscar stood quickly and helped his date from her chair, kissing her hand. Eline's date, another Durmstrang boy, tried to mimic this, but she had stood before he could manage.

Everyone began to stand as the champions and their partners headed for the center of the room. The tables vanished, or otherwise were relocated to the edges of the space, making more room for the dancers. Sean heard a small orchestra tuning up to his right.

Evelyn took his hand. "I'll lead," she said quietly, smiling.

Sean laughed a high little laugh, squeezing her hand a little tighter. His palms felt sweaty, and he hoped she hadn't noticed. They followed the other champions out to the dance floor. Leaving their hands clasped, Evelyn placed her free hand on his shoulder. Sean's hand moved to her waist. She smiled at him again. There were so many people. So many pairs of eyes all around the dance floor. "Don't worry," Evelyn whispered. "Just you and me."

Then the orchestra began to play and Evelyn took charge, leading him through a simple dance. He was so focused on following her direction, and on not looking up at any of the faces watching him that he barely noticed other people joining in after a minute or so. Not until the dance floor was about half full did he finally begin to relax. "Not so bad, was it?" she said, sliding her thumb back and forth over the place where his collarbone met his shoulder.

"You look nice," Sean blurted out. "I mean, no... I mean... you look..." His cheeks felt hot again. He could not come up with the right words.

But Evelyn smiled, pulled her hand out of his, slid both arms around his neck, and clasped her fingers. "Thanks," she said, looking up at him. Sean's other hand hovered for a few seconds in the air, unsure what to do, but finally, he slid both arms around her lower back and pulled her closer to him so that they were in a sort of odd rotating hug. Evelyn pressed her cheek into his chest, giving him a little squeeze.

"You look really, really, really pretty," Sean managed finally. Evelyn giggled and he loved the feeling of the little shake in her spine under his hands.

---

The orchestra finished playing, and Ricky and the Houselves, the band that had been hired to perform for the remainder of the evening, took their places on the stage that had been set up where the faculty table usually stood. "Alright, Caiti," said Marlowe, grinning. "Get ready."

Caiti had not stopped smiling all night, whether at something funny Marlowe had said or at Sean's expense (watching him stumble his way through the dancing had been a riot). Her cheeks hurt already. 

She took a look at the stage now and her jaw dropped open comically. "Wait, I didn't realize the band was actually houselves," she said. Marlowe turned to look too. Sure enough, one man – presumably Ricky – stood at center stage, but the rest of the band members were houselves, all wrinkly and wearing dirty old pillowcases as clothes. One stood atop one of the golden chairs that had sat around the tables in order to reach the keyboard, and another had stacked six or seven books on top of his own chair to reach the drum kit. What really got Caiti, however, were the two in front holding a bass and a guitar, each about three times the size of the elf. The instruments actually dragged on the ground.

                She and Marlowe looked at each other and burst out laughing. They had not yet subsided when the band began to play a popular radio song called "Ghouls and Ghosts."

                "Oh I love this one!" said Caiti.

                "Well come on," shouted Marlowe over the music. They had joined in near the end of the champions dance and were situated on the edge of the dance floor, but now Marlowe grabbed Caiti's hand and pulled her to the center of the dance floor, right in the thick of everything.

                Marlowe was actually a fantastic dancer. He was surprisingly cool, and Caiti was perfectly happy to bop around awkwardly at his side. She had no fear of making a complete fool of herself in front of him. She only lasted the one song in her heels before she kicked them off and performed a banishing spell on them. They flew over to the corner of the great hall, knocking many people on their way. No one minded. Everyone was being knocked around by their neighbor's elbows as it was.

                Caiti and Marlowe ended up with quite a large circle of space around them, however, due in equal parts to Marlowe's erratic dancing and Caiti's general klutziness. He grabbed both her hands, pulling and pushing opposite arms forward and back so that they twisted their hips and feet. Caiti let her hair swing around her shoulders, brown eyes alight, and half laughing all the time.

               He let go of one of her hands. "Twirl," he said, grinning. Caiti wasn't even sure which direction she was meant to go in but she made it up, spinning around under his arm. She almost tripped over her own foot but Marlowe caught her and made it a part of their silly little dance. He dipped her back and she let out a squeak, her eyes going wide and round.

               After about a half an hour, the band announced that they would be playing one more song before taking a short break.

               "We're going to slow things down, a little, play an old classic," said Ricky in a husky voice. "This one's called 'Charmed.'"

               "Oh, I love this one," said Caiti again, taking hold of Marlowe's hands, only this time it was a different sort of love. 'Charmed' was one of those songs everyone knew. It had been around forever, a popular first dance song at weddings, everyone's mother's favorite. Marlowe slipped his arms around her and Caiti put her own around his shoulders. It was a bit of a stretch for her to reach all the way around his neck, and Marlowe couldn't help but laugh a little.

"Shut up," said Caiti. This only made Marlowe laugh more.

"This is fun," he said after a minute.

Caiti pressed her lips tightly together, smiled, and nodded once. "I'm glad I'm here with you," she said.

But Marlowe was looking up for some reason, frowning. Caiti looked up too, recognizing what Marlowe had been staring at just as he looked back at her with a triumphant smile. His dark eyes were glowing as brightly as the star strewn ceiling and the dimple in his right cheek was more prominent than ever. "Mistletoe," he said with finality. Vines were spiraling down from the ceiling all over the dance floor, ending in clusters of perfectly shaped green leaves and red berries. "You have to kiss me now. Come on."

"Yeah. Freaking. Right," said Caiti. But then she pushed down on his shoulders, stood on her highest tiptoes, and kissed him full on the mouth. If Marlowe had not seen it coming and met her halfway, she would not have been able to reach properly. He pulled her closer, one hand sliding up to rest between her shoulder blades. He nearly lifted her off the floor. They broke apart just as the song was wrapping up. Caiti's cheeks felt warm, but there was a bright smile on her face. Into the relative quiet, Marlowe punched one fist in the air and shouted "Everyone! I kissed Caiti O'Connell!"

If Caiti had been blushing before, it was nothing compared to now. She hid her face in his arm quickly as laughter and applause broke out all over the room. Marlowe lifted her face back up to look at him. He placed one hand on her cheek and Caiti felt the butterflies stirring up in stomach in a way they had not had time to do before. This time when he kissed her, it was much softer, much sweeter. All around them, people were moving off the dance floor to get drinks or take a rest while the band was on their break, but they stayed right where they were.

"Damn, Caiti," said Marlowe finally. "Where'd you learn to kiss like that?"

Caiti let out one high laugh of shock and embarrassment before Marlowe added, "On second thought, I don't want to know. Worth the wait though."

He looped his arm over her shoulders as they headed off the dance floor to get drinks. Caiti crossed one arm over her stomach and pressed the loosely closed hand of her other arm to her mouth to hide her smile.

They found Sean and Evelyn sitting at one of the tables that had been lined up along the wall and Marlowe pulled up a chair for her. "I'll grab drinks," he said. Sean apparently could not make eye contact with Caiti, but Evelyn beamed at her and mouthed "Happy?"

Caiti bit her lip and nodded. Her whole body was buzzing. It wasn't just the kiss that had her worked up. It was the whole evening. Marlowe was so much fun. He wanted to dance with her and he didn't mind doing stupid things in front of everyone just to make her laugh. There had not been a dull moment in their conversation at dinner, either.

Evelyn gave Caiti's arm a squeeze. "We'll talk later," she whispered. Caiti could only nod again. Marlowe returned a minute later with two glasses of the punch Sean and Evelyn were already sipping on. He handed one to Caiti and sat down next to her with his arm around the back of her chair.

"Thank you," she said. His fingers toyed with the end of her hair.

"Having fun?" Marlowe asked the others.

Sean was treating Marlowe the same way he was Caiti. That is to say, he wasn't. He seemed suddenly incapable of seeing them or hearing anything they said.

"We are," said Evelyn happily. She reached over for Sean's hand, threading their fingers together. He finally looked at them.

"Seems like you are too," he said. Caiti had never seen him looking more uncomfortable.

"Oh, get over it, Sean," said Caiti. "I like him, okay? He's still your best friend."

"Excuse me," snapped Sean, "if I'm not thrilled to have my best friend snogging my little sister in public and boasting about it."

Marlowe opened his mouth to retort, but Evelyn held up her hand. "Don't fight," she said. Her voice was calm. "They're happy. We're happy. It doesn't matter." Sean let out a heavy sigh through his nose and didn't speak again.

When the band returned, Marlowe stood, holding out his hand for Caiti. "Let's go dance," he said, and she smiled and let him help her up. Sean stood abruptly, grabbing Marlowe's arm.

"Come here a minute," he said. Marlowe glanced at Caiti, but she only shrugged and took another sip of her punch so he followed Sean a short ways away.

"Listen," Sean said once he was sure they were out of earshot. "I don't- I don't really care if you want to like... take her out and stuff. Just don't hurt her, okay? Theo messed her up. You didn't see what she was like this summer."

Marlowe was pretty certain he had seen more of what Caiti had been like that summer than Sean knew, but he didn't voice this opinion.

"I'm not Theo," said Marlowe. "I would never. And anyway, she broke up with him, didn't she?"

"Yeah, I know. Just... don't."

Marlowe thought there must be more coming, but Sean just gave him a hard look and headed back towards Evelyn. Marlowe followed behind, turning his smile back on when he reached Caiti.

"What was that about?" she asked as they walked away, arms locked.

"Don't worry about it," said Marlowe. "What I want to know is if you meant what you said. You like me?" He gave her a cheeky grin.

"Of course I meant it," she said. They had just reached the edge of the dance space which was already filling up again. She bumped him with her hip and he laughed, bumping her back. Caiti opened her mouth in mock shock. Marlowe grinned and pulled her into a tight hug, rocking side to side.

"Me too," he said. "It's been years since I was kidding."

Any thought of Sean's attitude was forgotten.

---

Back at the little table, Evelyn sat with her arms folded and one leg crossed over the other watching Caiti and Marlowe having fun. "Why don't we go dance, too?" she asked.

"Alright," said Sean, but he did not stand.

"What's up with you?" asked Evelyn. She was starting to get annoyed. He was making the night much less fun than it should have been, stirring up arguments, and letting them ruin his mood.

"Nothing," he said. His voice was short, a little defensive.

She turned towards him, sitting sideways in her chair. "Sean. You can't tell me you're actually surprised. What's really bothering you?"

"He just makes me feel like..." but he didn't finish his sentence. He was watching the two of them dancing, both jumping around madly with their arms in the air. He could see their mouths moving to the words of the song.

"Like what?" Evelyn prompted.

"Like I'm not good enough. He's so good at this stuff. At girls. I don't know what I'm doing."

Marlowe caught Caiti around the middle from behind and she doubled over laughing, pulling him down with her.

"I don't know what I'm doing either," said Evelyn, watching them with a small smile on her face.

Sean glanced at her and she turned, catching his gaze.

"I don't care what Marlowe does, okay? I don't want all that anyway."

"Yeah but he does everything right. And I didn't even know how to tell you I thought you looked pretty." He blushed again just saying it and turned away. "Which is always true by the way."

Evelyn smiled and looked down. "You're sweet," she said quietly. Sean did not speak again so she went on. "Look... all that stuff they're doing, the crazy dancing and stuff. I'm happy for them, because they're having fun how they have fun. But that's not me. That's not us. I don't want that. He's good for Caiti, but you shouldn't be jealous of him." she looked down again. "Marlowe's a good guy, but he's... he's brash, and a little insensitive, and he likes to be the center of attention too much. And anyway, he's not you."

Sean laughed a bit at her critique of Marlowe, which was a little cruel, but not inaccurate.

The song had just changed to one somewhere in between an up-tempo and a slow dance. "Come on," she said. "We're not spending all night worrying about them." She pulled him out to the dance floor which was in chaos. No one knew what to do to a song like this and lots of people had stopped moving altogether and were looking at their friends and dates in alarm. Evelyn didn't much care what the tempo was. She wrapped her arms his neck and Sean put his around her waist again, but she saw him looking over her shoulder at Caiti and Marlowe who had made their way to thick of things again.

"Hey," she said. He made eye contact with her, finally. "Just you and me, okay?"

Sean nodded and lowered his head so that it rested in her hair. She pressed herself right up close to him and felt his lips press into her hair an inch or so above her forehead, sending shivers all the way up her spine. She smiled and shut her eyes. 

---

Sean and Evelyn walked up the spiral staircase to the boys dorm side by side. They were the first ones back to the common room.

"Can I just borrow your clothes?" she asked when they were standing in his room.

"Yeah," said Sean, pulling out a pair of sweatpants and his softest old t-shirt, a freebie from a Ministry of Magic Take Your Child To Work Day. It had been almost a dress on him when he had first gotten it. His father didn't even work for the ministry anymore. She removed her makeup in the bathroom sink and left a pile of pins she had pulled out of her hair on his bedside table before crawling under his covers. Sean shut off the lights and headed back to the bed. "Where are you?" he asked, laughing a little. His eyes had not yet adjusted. Evelyn held up a hand, groping blindly at the air for a second before she made contact with his arm.

"Right here," she said. He could hear her smile before his eyes were able to see it. He slid under the covers and laid on his side, facing her.

"So it didn't suck, right?" Sean asked.

Evelyn laughed much more loudly this time. "No, it didn't suck." Her voice rung in the silence and darkness of the room. She rolled onto her back, her hair fanning around her.

"Good," he said. He reached over, brushing a lock of hair off her face. He had not kissed her all night. There had been so many people around. "I still don't think I make a very good date."

"I think this is better anyway," said Evelyn.

"Me too," he said. He pushed up on his elbow and kissed her on the cheek and then, because he had seen something in her eyes, he finally gathered up enough courage to kiss her for real. It was still so hard every time, but he could feel it getting easier, more comfortable.

He laid back down, on his back now. They stared up the ceiling, shoulders pressed together. "Yeah that does get better," he said.

"What?" asked Evelyn laughing. But Sean just smiled and shook his head, making swishing noises on his pillow. She rolled onto her side and then her belly, looking down at him, and said, "Okay, then let's do that again." And she pressed her lips to his once more before settling herself down on his chest, curled up right next to him. "Goodnight," she said.

"Goodnight," said Sean, though he knew he would not be able to sleep for a long time.

Somewhere deep in the back of his mind, the fear he had felt at dinner regarding the second task perked up again in the dark, but he pushed it aside. He could worry about that tomorrow. 

---

Contrary to their friends, Caiti and Marlowe were among the very last to return to the common room that night. It was past one in the morning by the time the final song had been played. Caiti collected her shoes from the corner on their way out and carried them by the straps on one finger. Marlowe wrapped his arm around her shoulders and Caiti put her own around his waist. She yawned deeply. She was going to be exhausted tomorrow.

Although it was late, their eyes heavy and their bodies aching, and although Caiti could not wait to be lying comfortably in her bed, to be off her feet, they took their time walking up. Caiti had not done much exploring of the castle at night. This was the latest she had ever been out. It was peaceful and so, so quiet, if a little drafty. She snuggled herself a little closer to Marlowe and yawned again. She could not stop. 

Neither of them said anything the whole way through the halls, the only sound that of Marlowe's shoes and Caiti's bare feet padding along the stone floors, and sometimes the creaks of sleeping suits of armor as their empty helmets nodded forward, or the snores of the portraits on the walls.

When they reached Ravenclaw tower, the bronze knocker was so tired that the only question she managed to come up with was "How was the ball?"

"Wonderful," said Caiti. She yawned again as the door swung open.

The common room was deserted. Everyone else was in bed already. Caiti was so ready to sleep, but still she lingered outside the steps up to her room. She peeked up at Marlowe who had stopped there with her. Neither of them knew quite what to say. Finally, Caiti hugged him, right around the middle, and she felt his arms close around her upper back. "Thank you," she whispered. "I don't think anyone else could have had that much fun."

Marlowe laughed through his yawn. "It's easy when you get to go with your best friend," he said. He smoothed one hand over her hair and then, in the familiar sly tone he adopted in these many instances, he said "So I have to ask. For old time's sake... do I get to kiss you goodnight?"

Caiti tipped her head back to look at him and her smile said yes for her.

---

Just out of sight, Caiti held in a squeal and spun around. A night like this seemed impossible, too wonderful to be real.

She crept up the stairs and found her pajamas before she tiptoed into the bathroom to remove her makeup, now mostly melted off with sweat anyway. Her eyeshadow had caked into the creases of her eyelids. She stared in the mirror at herself for a while after she had scrubbed her face clean. Did she look differently now? She certainly felt different.

She had forgotten what this felt like, the beginning of something, before it became comfortable. She had forgotten the agonizing butterflies that never go away and the way it became difficult to eat and sleep and think about anything other than that one person who was causing all the problems in the first place. She had forgotten the way her stomach squeezed itself whenever she remembered the feeling of his hands on her back, or on her cheek, or in her hair. 

And they had kissed.

She had not known, when she met him that night, that she was going to do it. But in that moment it had felt so right. She couldn't help herself. She let out a little squeak of delight, one hand covering her mouth. She dragged the other one through her hair, staring unfocused at the floor with a wide, goofy grin. It was not the grimy bathroom tiles she saw, but Marlowe's face as he had said goodnight.

When she finally crawled into bed, she found that she was wide awake again, reliving every detail, every conversation, every little thing that had made her smile.