Chapter 153: 136: Dance Partner

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Harry had never known so many people to put their names down to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas; he always did, of course, because the alternative was usually going back to Privet Drive, but that was a thing of the past now. He now had an idea what many folks could be looking forward to, a nice break, some time with friends and family, but now they were all throwing it away for a ball.

This year, everyone in the fourth year and above seemed to be staying, and they all seemed to Harry to be obsessed with the coming ball — or at least all the girls were, and it was amazing how many witches Hogwarts suddenly seemed to hold; he had never quite noticed that before.

Girls giggling and whispering in the corridors, girls shrieking with laughter as boys passed them, girls excitedly comparing notes on what they were going to wear on Christmas night. . . .

"Why do they have to move in packs?" Terry Boot asked him as a dozen or so girls walked past them, sniggering and staring at Harry. They took to hanging out together, it was a good thing to get to know his future vassal.

"How're you supposed to get one on their own to ask them?"

"Lasso one?" Neville suggested. "Got any idea who you're going to try?" the Gryffindor turned his question on Harry.

Harry didn't answer as he stayed silent on the subject. He knew perfectly well that wasn't an option.

Terry seemed to know what was going on inside Harry's head. "Listen, you're not going to have any trouble. You're a champion. You've just tamed a dragon with ease, a whole flock of them. I bet they'll be queuing up to go with you."

The Ravenclaw had no idea how right he was, he already was able to avoid those dreadful invitations, but for how long, he did not know. It wasn't too long it would seem as a curly-haired third-year Hufflepuff girl to whom Harry had never spoken in his life asked him to go to the ball with her the very next day. Harry had no idea how she had snuck up on him, but he politely turned her down when he was left with no choice.

The following day, two more girls asked him, a fourth year and a fifth year, and that was when it began. Every day he would be jumped by a Hogwarts girl or even a foreign student to the ball. Harry wondered to himself why he had to show off at the first trial.

Witches were drawn to power, and he had shown he had an ample amount of it.

Hermione's words about Krum kept coming back to him. "They only like him because he's famous!" Harry doubted very much if any of the girls who had asked to be his partner so far would have wanted to go to the ball with him if he hadn't been a school champion.

On the whole, though it wasn't too bad; there seemed to be fewer Support Cedric Diggory badges around too. AS of course Harry did much better than him in the first trail, thus more people were beginning to cheer for him, and betting all their odds that he would win the triwizard tournament for Hogwarts.

Draco Malfoy, of course, was sulking as his father must have received the fine that Harry had Mr. Tonks send him.

In the halls one day, Hagrid greeted him, "Heya, Harry!"

"Hey, Hagrid," Harry returned the gesture. Since it was on everyone's mind these days, he asked, "You coming to this ball thing on Christmas Day, Hagrid?"

"Though' I might look in on it, yeah," Hagrid said gruffly. "Should be a good do, I reckon. You'll be openin' the dancin', won' yeh, Harry? Who're you takin'?"

"No one, yet," Harry quickly answered. "What about you, though?" he turned the question on the half-giant.

"Eh?" Hagrid said looking surprised.

"Yea, you," Harry smacked him playfully on the shoulder. "Going to take that someone special to the ball?"

"I.... we... 'ren't..." Hagrid stammered out. Then changing directions, he said, "I better be goin'"

Watching as the big man ran off, Harry chuckled to himself as he shook his head. "It seem like some were just as stuck as him."

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The last week of the term became increasingly boisterous as it progressed. Rumors about the Yule Ball were flying everywhere, though Harry didn't believe half of them — for instance, that Dumbledore had bought eight hundred barrels of mulled mead from Madam Rosmerta.

It seemed to be fact, however, that he had booked the Weird Sisters, a very famous musical group. And the Great Hall would be the centerpiece of the ball.

Some of the teachers, like little Professor Flitwick, gave up trying to teach them much when their minds were so clearly elsewhere; he allowed them to play games in his lesson on Wednesday, and spent most of it talking to Harry about dueling tactics that Harry might use in the coming trials of the Triwizard Tournament.

Other teachers were not so generous. Nothing would ever deflect Professor Binns, for example, from plowing on through his notes on goblin rebellions — as Binns hadn't let his own death stand in the way of continuing to teach, they supposed a small thing like Christmas wasn't going to put him off. It was amazing how he could make even bloody and vicious goblin riots sound as boring as Percy's cauldron-bottom report.

Professors McGonagall and Sirius kept them working until the very last second of their classes too, and Snape, of course, would no sooner let them play games in class than adopt Harry. Thankfully Harry did not have the nasty despicable man, though he guessed he did trade in for someone equally as bad.

That being a manipulative old man that like to put on a false grandfatherly face. The two of them were back to their usual lessons, very informative like always as Dumbledore was after all the most powerful wizard in land, but he had to be on guard at all time from his evil machinations.

"Mmm... you're not exactly straining yourself, though, are you?" Hermione asked Neville one day during breakfast, looking at him over the top of her Potions notes. Neville was busy building a card castle out of his Exploding Snap pack — a much more interesting pastime than with Muggle cards, because of the chance that the whole thing would blow up at any second.

"It's nearly Christmas and the term is almost over, Hermione," Harry said lazily as he was rereading Flying with the Cannons for the tenth time in an armchair near the fire. Hermione looked severely over at him too. "I'd have thought you'd be doing something constructive, Harry, even if you don't want to learn your antidotes!"

"Like what?" Harry asked as he watched Joey Jenkins of the Cannons belt a Bludger toward a Ballycastle Bats Chaser.

"That egg!" Hermione hissed.

"Well you will be glad to know I am working on that, Hermione," Harry said cheekily.

"Really?" Hermione asked as she narrowed her eyes at him.

"Yep, already figured it out, this contains disembodied merpeople voices singing a song to the champions, letting them know that they had to come to the lake and rescue something very valuable to them."

"You are not supposed to tell me that!" Hermione shouted.

"Well would you have left me if I didn't," Harry grinned.

"He is right about that," Fred chuckled.

"Whatever," Hermione said, then taking on a more serious tone she said, "Harry come meet me later tonight in that room."

"What for?" Harry asked, as he knew pretty well which room she was talking about, the room of requirements he had shown her.

"Just come!" Hermione said as she closed her book shut.

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*Gulp

Coming to the arranged location, Harry regretted his decision, he should have known he would be falling into a trap. And like the idiot he was, he walked right into it.

In the room was quite a few familiar faces that he knew very well and intricately including; Lavender Brown, Tracey Davis, Fay Dunbar, Susan Bone, Daphne Greengrass, Hermione Granger.

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It really was never a good sign when the woman you have been sleeping with all gather together in one room. Better to turn tail and run, but before he could do that they all turned their eyes on him, holding him in place.

"So good you could make it," Tracey chuckled as suddenly the door behind him slammed shut and he could hear it locking in place.

Turning around Harry saw Lavender smile at him as she set aside her wand.

"Hey girls," Harry did his best impersonation of being calm and collected while in the inside he was very much the opposite of that.

"Come on take a seat," Daphne said as she pointed to an empty chair.

"Yes, like I told you, we would like a word with you," Hermione said.

At her comment, Harry felt like shouting, 'no you didn't'!' If he had known all of them would be here, forget coming, he would have made himself scarce for a while.

Nevertheless, he took the seat he was told to take, and sat there watching the grins on all their faces.

"Don't worry, Harry," Fay said with a friendly smile as she rested a hand on his shoulder while there was plenty of mirth in her eyes. "We won't bite..."

As if he would believe that, still though he made a show of being at ease and glad to be here. "So what did you girls want? I have been summoned, and I have come," he said, making a silent plea to them to show mercy.

"Nothing much," Lavender Brown shrugged her shoulders and bashed her eyelashes at him.

"We want to talk about the Yule Ball," Susan Bone cut to the chase.

"Oh, that," Harry said, playing dumb and hoping that it would somehow work. "What about it?"

"We just want to know who you would be taking," Daphne spoke up, playing along with him in his game as she stated the obvious.

"Ahhhh...." Harry uttered as he really had no answer to give. He didn't want to play favorites and pick one. That wouldn't be good not only for him and his conscience, but also for them as there might be hard feelings and jealousy cropping up. Then the answer presented itself to him, he did not know why he hadn't thought of it before, but now that it was looking him right in the face it was so obvious.

"Well," Harry cleared his throat as he puffed up his chest, "I was going to take you all to the ball! Now what do you say to that!"

Silence greeted his answer for a while until Daphne finally spoke up, "I kind of like it!"

"Really?" Harry asked as a hopeful expression crossed his face.

"Oh, that sounds lovely," Lavender perked up, "why didn't we think of it."

"So you girls already had a plan," Harry asked as he stared at them each in turn, not believing what he was hearing. Why did they make him suffer so for so long.

"Aaa, don't worry," Tracey said as she waved her hand at him as if it wasn't of any concern.

Ignoring him totally, Hermione asked the group at large, "But can we? Isn't everyone supposes to bring one partner only?"

"Where does it say that in the rules," Daphne sniffed. "The only rule there was I believe was that you need one partner, if you have more, well then," she shrugged her shoulders.

Susan was the only one kind enough to lean over and whisper to him, "We planned to choose among ourselves who got to go with you to the ball. Though your idea sounds much better for everyone."

"Then we have a deal then," Fay spoke up.

"I have a lot to prepare," Lavender gushed.

"You will need to prepare your best, Harry," Daphne uttered, "you can't be making up looking bad."

Looking at all of them as they already started to plan everything out, Harry wondered to himself if it would have been better if he let them choose among themselves.

Nevertheless Harry put on a benign smile, "Do I ever disappoint!"

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As the Yule Ball fast approached, many people went to desperate measures to get a partner for the ball.

There were a few highlights like Ron asking Fleur Delacour to go to the ball with him. Harry wondered what happened to him, but now he looked like perfectly alright asking a girl out though he hadn't seen him in the Gryffindor common room after he kicked him out of the house.

Anyways he tried to fight back a smile, but couldn't help shake his head sympathetically as everyone watched! The fool really should have thought it through, as they stood at the entrance hall where everyone was goggling, but with the hazy look in his eyes, Harry couldn't blame him for not thinking through it.

His situation wasn't helped as Fleur looked at him like he was a sea slug or something. She didn't even answer as she turned her head away from him and walked away.

He was glad to see some people had better luck as Hagrid was able to ask Madame Maxime to the ball and got a yes. Every time he has seen the half-giant after that, he always had a stupid smile on his face, and Harry couldn't help sharing it too.

At any rate, it had nothing to do with him, he had to get outfitted with a dress robe for the upcoming ball.

As soon as the weekend arrived and they were all off class, he was dragged to Diagon alley by the girls. It seem like none of them trusted him to wear the correct piece to the Yule Ball so they found it in themselves to take him out shopping.

He didn't know what was it with girls and shopping, because he spent all day trying out one piece after the other, then it was to different stores then back to them again. Just to get them to stop, he turned the matter on to them, promising to buy them all the dresses and clothing they could want.

Anything to break free from this tiresome and endless cycle.

That opened the floodgates as hours later, he was in the end of the group carrying with him countless bags in his hands, armpits, head, and even mouth as they finally left the shopping district.

"Ohh, we need to so come tomorrow," Lavender spoke up.

"Yeah, I so wanted that scarf from that store," Susan agreed.

"And I wanted that lovely summer shirt..."

Just listening to them carry on, Harry uttered a low groan as he submitted himself to his fate. The only person he had to blame was himself, why did he have to go get a harem. Couldn't one woman be enough for him...

Oh well, he thought to himself, if this the price then so be it...

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