Rose Weasley and the Callamitus Clause

"Albus!" hissed Rose anxiously. "Albus, that's the key!"

It was nearly identical to Lorcan's drawing. The key was ornate and a dull silver, and bore a pair of limp blue wings. There was nothing to indicate why it was hanging on the wall with all of Flitwick's treasures and other accolades.

"Wait, that's the key you and Lorcan have been looking for?" asked Albus with a laugh. "Rose, that's been there all year!"

The more she looked at it, the less sure she was. The key from Lorcan's drawing hadn't, in fact, had those wings, nor had it looked quite so battered. But the shape was the same, and it was the only key Rose had ever seen in the castle, as most doors functioned with spells or passwords, not physical locks. It had to be the key.

Professor Flitwick waddled into the room, pulled himself onto his platform, and began the lesson. Rose did her best to concentrate, but her eyes kept drifting back to the key. She toyed with the Finder, which she had kept in her bag in case she needed it. She was tempted to try it out during the lesson, but thought that it might attract unwanted attention if a key flew at her from across the room while Professor Flitwick talked about the importance of Hover Charms.

As the bell rang, she suddenly made up her mind. "Distract Flitwick for a minute," she mutteredto Albus, running her fingers along the smooth surface of the Finder. "I'm getting the key."

Albus looked like he had a reply formed, but Rose leapt up before he could say it. She had debated over taking the key, then decided that if it wasn't the right one, she could always bring it back with no harm done. And it wasn't like she was nicking anything important, just a dusty old key that no one would miss.

Rose waited until Albus had Flitwick's attention, then casually crossed the room. Standing a few feet away from the wall, she brought the Finder to her lips and inhaled, half hoping that nothing would happen. Ignoring her silent wishes, the key jerked off the wall and flew towards Rose's face. She brought the Finder away from her teeth just before the key slammed into it with a metallic clink.

She quickly stowed both key and Finder in her pocket; she could examine it later. Grabbing her bag, she stood by the door, waiting for Albus to wrap up his conversation with the professor.

"Thank you, sir," he said, obviously relieved to get away. "I'll keep practicing."

Rose grinned exuberantly as soon as they stepped into the hallway. "The Finder worked!" she whispered gleefully. "I got the key!"

"I don't know what you're so happy about," grumbled Albus. He hated speaking to teachers by himself, and still shuddered when anyone reminded him of Flitwick's reaction to him at the beginning of the school year. "You still haven't even found the door it goes to, have you?"

"No," she retorted, "but we will soon." She wondered what kind of Hogwarts door would operate using an old-fashioned key. They were popular enough in the Muggle world, but at Hogwarts?

She waved Lorcan over to the Gryffindor table as he entered the Great Hall for dinner. Wordlessly, she handed him the key, which she had been showing to James.

His eyes lit. "Brilliant," he said, "absolutely brilliant! Did the Finder work, then?"

"Yes, but I found it on my own," she said proudly. "Well, actually, Albus found it, but I recognized it and took it straight from Flitwick's wall."

"I wasn't expecting the wings," admitted Lorcan. "Does it fly?" He dropped the key, and it fell to the floor with a clang. "I guess not. Did you say Flitwick's wall?"

"It was hanging right there," she said, nodding.

Lorcan's lips pursed, and he picked up the key and looked at it curiously. "I wonder... Rose, you'd better hold onto it for now. You know how I am with losing things."

He had a point. Lorcan had once lost an entire set of Wizarding encyclopedias over the course of an afternoon. They would pop up at the oddest times- Rose had found letter Y being used as a shield during a garden gnome battle a few days before she had left for Hogwarts.

"We'll search for the door over Christmas Break," continued Lorcan. Unlike most of the younger students, he and his brother were staying at Hogwarts over break while their parents toured the Amazon.

Rose sat in her room that night, helping Tia Marsh pack her bags. They debated over what she needed to bring- "I have other clothes at home, and we'll be visiting with my Muggle relatives most of the time anyway," said Tia, who ended up leaving all but one of her robes in the dresser. Rose taught the other girls some of the folding and sorting spells that her mother used, and before they knew it, they had four perfectly-packed suitcases.

The Hogwarts Express left the Hogsmeade station the next morning, carrying most of the younger students and the older students who were not interested in attending the Yule Ball. Glad to be free of the normal rules, Rose spent hours in the library, searching for any mention of Trijuska. Sometimes Lysander accompanied her and helped look through the mountains of books.

The castle seemed a lot more private with so many of its students gone. Rose and Albus went exploring with Dmitri, who had never officially toured the grounds. They considered taking a trip into the Forbidden Forrest, but the first snowfall had finally arrived- "I was starting to think that it wasn't going to snow at all," joked James as they watched the first flurries from the Gryffindor common room. He had experience with the Forbidden Forest, and (as he told his younger relations quite emphatically) knew that the Forest was no fun the minute snow became involved.

Rafael had come to stay with the Gryffindors, some of whom weren't altogether thrilled with his presence. As was typical of the Durmstrang champion, though, he mostly kept to himself, opting for an out-of-the-way chair by the wall where he could read a book or write a letter.

"He writes to Mama and Papa," explained Dmitri one afternoon as he caught Rose glance over to Rafael, who was laying out his writing supplies. "They cannot go here, see, so he tells them vhat ve do."

One activity that the entire group could participate in was wizards' chess. Lysander, the resident aficionado, was appalled when Dmitri announced that he had never heard of the game. "You don't play it where you come from?" he asked, aghast.

"No, ve have other game, naming Magheshna. It is not the same," he decided, watching Lysander set up the pieces, "but perhapsing I teach you a time."

Lysander made it his personal goal to teach Dmitri how to play before break was over. Rose even dug out the set her mother had given her, mahogany pieces with amber stone inlays. The queen's crown was made of mother-of-pearl, and though the set was not expensive, it was exquisite.

The common room only increased in volume with the addition of the games. Two were running simultaneously, which made four sets of screaming chess pieces trying to tell their masters what to do.

"What part of this are you not understanding?" one of Dmitri's pieces asked him furiously after his comrade was smashed off the side of the table. "They are knocking us dead!"

"Quiet, you." ordered Lysander as one of Albus' pieces gave a bloodcurdling battle cry and lunged towards Rose's remaining knight.

It was during one of these lessons that Rafael put down his quill and came to stand behind his brother. Lysander ignored him, concentrating on the game at hand.

"Vhy he cannot use all pawns to protect king?" asked Rafael as Dmitri decided on his next move. "No vay to get through them. Building a vall."

"Such an impasse is impossible to reach," explained Lysander patiently. "Your other pieces would be picked off, then you'd have to start moving the pawns. Beginners often try one of two strategies- radically aggressive, or radically defensive. Neither will work. Chess is all about balance. You can't put yourself in check," he said to Dmitri, before his pieces had a chance to protest his latest move. "Try again."

Rafael sat in one of the plush armchairs by the blazing fire and observed the rest of the game. Lysander hid nothing- he explained every move as he made it, as well as the strategy and rules surrounding his decision. His pieces knew him well enough to keep quiet, though they couldn't resist gloating when he took Dmitri's queen. Finally, when the game had ended, he looked up at Rafael.

"Do you want to learn? Dmitri can switch off and work with James for a bit."

"I vould like to learn," nodded Rafael, taking his brother's chair as Dmitri ran to sit by James, eager to start a new game.

Rose knew Lysander's background with chess. As a child, she had often watched as he and Lorcan attempted to disenchant a set of wizards' chess pieces. They would sit for hours as the pieces told them, "That move is illegal, you can't put me there." But the twins fought to out-logic the magic that had been used on the set. And pawn by pawn, rule by rule, they had won.

That set now sat in their shared room back at the Scamander house. "It's a trophy of achievement," said Lorcan with pride when Rose brought up the topic. "Utterly useless now, but perfectly practical experience."

Christmas Eve continued to drift closer until it was only a day away. Seeing how it was the night prior to the Yule Ball, most of the students went to bed early, aiming to pack in a few extra hours of sleep. Rose, however, remained awake with the others as they played chess.

"Check," said Rose proudly, flashing a triumphant grin at Albus.

He winced theatrically. "So close, but not quite, " he said, a falsely mournful not in his voice. "Bishop to h2. Check, and mate."

Scowling, Rose glared down at the board and saw her mistake. "Don't let Mayra see you gloating like that tomorrow night," she said bitterly. "Speaking of which, you really should get rest."

"I'll sleep late tomorrow," said Albus dismissively, "and who are you to judge? You're a girl. Shouldn't you be getting your beauty sleep?"

She rolled her eyes and ignored the jab. "Rafael, who did you decide to go with?" she asked, realizing that she didn't know. He was a private person and kept mostly quiet during their lessons.

The older boy shrugged, scowling down at the board as Rose had done moments before. "I go stag," he said absently. "This is a silly game."

Rose's eyebrows came together. "Don't you have to take someone?" she asked, confused. "As a champion and all?"

"For the opening dance," clarified Lysander when Rafael looked up, as confused as Rose. "It's a tradition. The champions and their partners open the ball with a dance."

"No vun told me of this dance," said Rafael slowly. "You mean to say, I must taking girl to Yule Ball tomorrow night?" They all nodded slowly. "But I have no such girl!"

His expression was such that Rose nearly laughed. For all the time she had known him- for both times they had been in the Hospital Wing together- she had never seen his face contort it quite that way.

The portrait hole swung open, and a ruffled Victoire climbed through. She strode straight across the common room to the fireplace and threw a handful of crumpled parchment into the flames. Only when the parchment had turned to ashes did she spin and face the inquisitive looks of the others.

"Good evening," she addressed them formally. "What are you all doing up so late?"

"Victoire, you're going to the ball, aren't you?" asked Rose suddenly, an idea sparking in her head.

Cautiously, Victoire said, "Yes, I am. Molly and I are going together. Why?"

"Would you consider going with Rafael?" As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Rose knew they had been a mistake. Her cousin's eyes turned cold, and she obtained a mulish set to her mouth that Rose was certain Fleur had never seen.

Lysander hurried to repair the damage of Rose's words. "Just as mates, of course," he amended quickly. "See, Rafael was not told about the opening dance, and doesn't have someone to go with. McGonagall is going to be furious if he shows up alone."

Victoire tilted her head up, sniffed, then said, "Just one dance? Only as friends?"

"I vould not have it other," said Rafael gravely. "I have love back home. You no vorry about Rafael."

"Alright," she said, looking like a valiant martyr. "For the good of the ball. Now, I must retire. Sleep well, all of you."

Rose repressed her laughter until after her cousin had swept from the room. "That is vay to make vomen agree," advised Rafael, looking from his younger brother to the other boys in the room. "Make her feel whole vorld vill break vithout her."

"I didn't know you were in love," remarked Rose, packing up her chess set. Victoire was right; it was getting late.

"I am not," said Rafael simply. When Rose looked up at him, he crooked a smile. "That is how you get girl to be friend. Tell her you are in love. She vill have no romance thoughts."

Rose knew that "romance thoughts" towards Rafael would be the last thing on Victoire's mind, but the technique worked. Victoire walked through the castle all the next day with the same martyred expression on her face. Rose wondered if her cousin would keep the act up through the Ball, but when Victoire emerged from her room that night, she was no less than radiant.

"I am very much honored," said Rafael seriously, kissing the hand Victoire offered as he bowed. ("Now that is a bloke Madame Maxime would be proud of," Lysander whispered to Rose.) "It vill do me much pleasure to have your hand in the dance."

Victoire, looking much like a swan in her soft white dress robes, took Rafael's arm before exiting the common room. Lysander fell into one of the chairs but the fire and picked up a book. "Albus, James, and Dmitri are still getting ready," he said, thumbing through the pages. "Something with Albus' hair. You might want to wait downstairs."

Before stepping through the portrait hole, Rose took a moment to steady herself. She knew that she would be one of the only first years attending the ball, which was enough to cause a small bit of panic. She hadn't spent much time getting ready- she had popped into Victoire's room long enough to borrow a few hair pins, then had run away before her cousin could rope her into helping with the elaborate up do she was creating.

Ron had sent the dress robes and a letter expression just how thrilled he was to hear that his eldest child was going to the Yule Ball. Your mum and I picked these out together. I wanted to get the ones that changed colours, but she said they would be too much. We settled for these instead.

Rose was grateful for her mum's input. She was draped in simple, shimmering golden fabric that fell to the floor in gentle folds that caught and held the light. She smoothed down the silky fabric before climbing through the portrait hole.

The entrance hall was packed with people waiting for their dates. Victoire was on Rafael's arm, smiling and nodding to Molly Weasley, who wore robes of dark blue and a serious expression. The other champions stood nearby, watching people file into the Great Hall.

Suddenly, Dmitri appeared at the top of the main staircase, flanked by Al bus and James. Dmitri wore a precise miniature of his brother's outfit- he was clad in deep, blood-red robes that were accented in dark grey. They were of a finer material than their normal school uniforms, which were made of thick wools and fleeces. Albus, Rose noticed incredulously,had managed to comb his hair into some sort of form, and his green eyes shifted nervously around the hall. Both brothers wore deep black robes trimmed with gold piping and accented with scarlet cuffs on their sleeves.

Dmitri grinned as they reached Rose. "You are very pretty," he complimented. "Vould you vant to enter now?"

Rose looked to Albus and James. "You two will be alright until the Howells arrive?" she asked, mainly for Albus' sake. He was glancing around nervously, his hands clutched together.

James ran a hand through his hair. "We'll be fine," he said, running a hand through his hair. "We'll meet you two inside."

It was a struggle to be confident when Rose was surrounded by floods of older students, taller and in the girls' case, usually wearing considerably tighter robes. Many turned to look at the Durmstrang champion's younger brother, and by the time they reached their seats, her face was tinged pink.

"Do not blush," said Dmitri, coming to sit next to her. "They stare not at you. You do very vell."

It was easier to relax once Albus and James entered. The Howell sisters stood in an almost comic contrast to the young boys; they were tall for their years, and their blonde hair stood out sharply from the Potters' dark locks.

When they arrived at the table, a round of introductions was made. Dmitri had the girls laughing within two minutes, relievingthe tension considerably,but then it was time for the champions to enter.

The first couple was Mariette Croisseux and a Beauxbatons boy who was wearing a perfectly polished grin. Mariette wore her dark brown hair in a traditional French style that Rose had seen Victoire and Fleur wear, piled atop one side of her head and cascading down past her shoulder.

Next came Rafael and Victoire, who looked absolutely stunning, her veela charms silencing the room in awe. The Howells sighed in envy as she passed, her feet barely touching the floor. Rafael was surly-faced until he saw Dmitri's laughing face; then he cracked a rare grin.

Finally, Alistair Trimble entered with a beautiful girl Rose did not recognize. She had smooth olive-toned skin and rich black hair that tumbled down her back in curls. Her almond eyes were a deep hazel that shimmered in the light of the magical candles.

"Who is she?" Rose asked James, who had ended up next to her.

He saw where she was looking. "Lisana Blackwell. Her sister's in your year, isn't she?"

Now that it had been pointed out to her, Rose did indeed see a vague family resemblance between Rafael's companion and Odessa Blackwell, an unpleasant Slytherin girl. It had to be something in the skin tone or hair colour; Odessa had neither the striking physique nor the ability to command attention from a room that her elder sister did.

A calm, melodic piece began as the three couples spun around the room. Victoire's overwhelming grace made up for Rafael's lack; Mariette and her partner danced a slight variation of what the other pairs executed, adding an extra turn every few steps; Alistair and Lisana were both surprisingly good, moving around the room as if floating on a thin sheet of water that pulled their feet along in an effortless, fluid movement.

A band was set up on a stage by the wall. One of the members was not playing; Rose assumed that he was not fluent in cello as well as guitar, one of which lay buy his feet. But then the tips of his hair began to turn green- streaks of emerald were shooting through his bran hair- his face was shifting in hurried, jerking motions-

Everyone was too busy watching the dancers to notice the guitarist's transformation. Rose was about to point him out to James, but then she recognized the cut of the hair, the thrice-broken nose, the thin set of the lips. It was Teddy Lupin.

No, it was a very unhappy Teddy Lupin, corrected Rose mentally. There was no mistaking the set of his mouth, the flexing of his fingers, but mostobviously, the vines of jealousy that had snaked their way through his hair.

There was also no mistaking his girlfriend in the center of the room, dancing with someone else.

The song drew to a finish and everyone applauded as the couples bowed to each other. Concentration shifted to Kingsley Shacklebolt; no one but Rose noticed Teddy hop off the side of the stage and cross the Hall. He stopped beside Victoire for a moment- their eyes locked, and he wore an expression of betrayal. Not waiting for her to speak, he continued walking and exited the room.

Victoire looked torn. Molly, sitting at a table nearby, shot her a look of reproachful disapproval. Ignoring it, Victoire followed Teddy without another moment's hesitation.

Rose fought her curiosity- she wanted to follow them, but she would be noticed getting up from her table. Besides, Kingsley was opening the Ball.

"I think we can all agree, that was a lovely opening dance," he said, and the room clapped once more. "Now, I would like to call the champions and their partners to the head table so that we may begin the feast."

Rafael glanced around in search of Victoire, but the other champions had begun walking towards the dais. He followed and sat next to Ivanoff, not seeming disturbed by Victoire's disappearance.

As the sparkling crustal platters on Rose's table filled with food, she eyed out her route around the corners of the hall. She slid away from the table and concentrated on looking casual as she crossed the room. No one stopped her as she reached the main doors and slid through.

There was no sign of Teddy or Victoire. A cold breeze blew through the entry doors- at closer inspection, Rose saw that they were open a crack.

Stepping outside, Rose was met by frigid winds that whipped at the hem of her robes. Victoire and Teddy were still nowhere in sight. Thinking she saw movement, Rose walked towards the Quidditch pitch. It was lit only by moonlight, the rings only faint outlines against the inky sky.

A figure flew through the sky, the moon's glow catching his hair. Rose stopped where she was to watch as the small boy flew. His form, agile and smooth, turned a circle in the air-

And plummeted towards the ground.

Rose shrieked, unable to hold the sound in as he boy made a smooth line towards the snow. The outline of the broom gave a startled jerk, and five feet above the ground, the boy toppled off.

She ran onto the center of the field where the figure had landed, pulling her wand out as she went., "Lumos," she said, lighting the tip of her wand with a magical ball of light. It illuminated the snow as she crushed it beneath her feet, rushing to get to the form on the snow.

Her light fell upon the boy's face as he struggled to sit up, clutching his side. It was Scorpius Malfoy.

"Are you okay?" Rose cried, kneeling next to him. "You fell from nearly..." She tried to remember how tall the rings were- he had been almost level with them when he had plummeted down- but could not. Albus or James would have been able to tell her in an instant.

"I'm fine," he groaned, now fully upright. It was the first time Rose had heard him speak; his voice was soft, his tone reserved. "And I wasn't falling."

She raised her brows at the unexpected response. "Well, clearly you were," she said, turning her head to the side and surveying his current position.

"I was practicing a dive," he corrected. "I only started falling when you screamed."

Rose felt a blush creep up her cheeks. "Oh, I'm... er... sorry about that," she said finally.

Simultaneously, they realized that they were kneeling in the snow. They both rose, dusting snowflakes from their knees. Rose looked down at the bottom of her dress robes and groaned. They were soaked.

"Aren't you supposed to be at the Yule Ball?" asked Scorpius as Rose wracked her brain for a spell to dry her robes.

"I am," she said, tapping her wand against her leg as she thought.

"Ah." After a moment, he said, "D'you think siphoning the water out would work?"

Rose huffed. She didn't want to take his advice, but the pale gold fabric was beginning to stick to her legs, and the crisp wind bore a nasty chill. "I think I'll just warm up for a bit," she said at last, using her foot (she silently thanked her mother for thinking to put a Water-Repelling Charm on her dress shoes before sending them) to clear a patch of snow. When there was enough room, she pointed her wand down.

"Rosa Inflarum," she said, shooting a red flame from the tip of her wand. Scorpius took an instinctive step back, nearly stumbling over his discarded broom. The fire spread over the cleared patch of grass, filling it to the snowy brim.

Scorpius watched, transfixed by the flames. The red light of the magical fire threw his face into harsh relief, turning his smooth skin into sharp, almost cruel planes. His pale complexion took in the color of the flames, turning his nearly white hair a deep pink.

"It's perfectly safe," Rose told him as he regarded the fire warily. "See? It's not even melting the snow."

Indeed, though the fire was radiating waves of heat, the snow was not melting. Rose stepped closer so that her robes were almost in the flames.

"It can't burn anything," she continued. "It's just heat."

"Did your mum-" began Scorpius, then stopped himself. "Never mind."

They continued drying themselves in silence. Eventually, Scorpius stepped closer to the fire, even nudging it with his foot at one point.

"Where did you get the broom?" Rose asked as she felt the hem of her robes- they were nearly dry. "First years aren't allowed to have their own."

"I borrowed one of the school's," he muttered. "I wouldn't have lost control at the end like that if I had been on my own."

Rose thought back to the second week of school. "For someone with their own broom, you sure didn't fly a lot at the lesson," she pointed out.

"Neither do you."

"I don't fly," she said flatly.

"Neither do I." He picked up the broom, which Rose now recognized as one of the school's. It looked like what Albus used to practice- as a second year, James had been permitted to bring his own to school.

Rose pointed her wand at the scarlet fire. "Finite Incantatum," she said, and the flames blew out as if a strong breeze had swept across the snow.

Scorpius nodded his approval; the spell had been very clean. "Heading back to the Ball?"

"Oh, bugger," she muttered. "That. Yes, I suppose."

Under an unspoken agreement, Rose and Scorpius walked back to the castle together. They both glanced around upon entering the entrance hall. No one was there, but a dull roar was coming from the Great Hall.

They stopped just outside the enormous doors of the hall, neither knowing what to say. Their exchange on the Quidditch pitch hardly seemed real; the memory was aglow with the light of the red flames bouncing off the crystalline snow. They looked at each other, unsure of how to proceed.

"Sorry, again," Rose began. "About the broom."

"Don't mention it," replied Scorpius with an uncomfortable shrug. "I should get back-"

"Me too."

"Well..." He gave a half-hearted wave, then turned and walked towards the stairs that led to the dungeons.

Rose entered the Hall to find the room full of students and teachers alike, their colorful robes swirling as they danced. Albus sat at the table were Rose had left him. He was having an animated conversation with Dmitri, who was waving a stick of celery around to prove a point.

The boys looked up as Rose sat. "Where were you?" asked Albus wearily. "Do I even want to know?"

"I'm sorry I disappeared," Rose apologised to Dmitri. "I wanted to see if Victoire was okay."

"No, it is good," said Dmitri with a smile. "Albus and I, ve have fun. Vhat happened to Victoire?""

Rose explained how Teddy had seen Victoire dancing with Rafael and gotten upset. "I went to see if she had found him," she said, suddenly feeling quite foolish.

Albus raised a brow. "You were being nosy," he accused. "Did you get lost? You missed dinner."

His eyes widened as Rose recounted her discussion with Scorpius. "You were talking with mini-Malfoy?" he hissed.

"It was weird," admitted Rose, "but he was actually pretty nice. He could have been furious- I basically knocked him off his broom."

"From five feet in the air," scoffed Albus. "If he had any skill on a broom at all, he wouldn't have gotten spooked like that."

Dmitri took a bite from the end of his celery stick- though the meal had ended, chopped vegetables and bowls of fruit remained. "Who is this Malfoy?" he asked curiously.

"Scorpius is the son of someone our parents... did not get along with while at school," saud Rose. "Albus is annoyed that I actually had a conversation with him instead of acting like he has the plague."

It wasn't like Albus to be so close minded. Rose tapped her fingers on the table, growing frustrated. He hadn't been thrilled to find out that she had paired off with Scorpius during Potions, but that had been a knee-jerk reaction.

"Why are you acting like this?" she asked, almost worried. "You're reacting like James would."

Albus sighed, bringing his hands to his head. "I'm sorry," he said. "I'm not feeling very well. I have this blinding headache..."

"Go to bed," she insisted. "Marya will survive without you."

But at that moment, Marya Howell appeared beside the table. "Come dance with me," she said, laying a hand on Albus' shoulder. "Opal and James are already out there."

Putting on his best people-are-staring-at-me smile, Albus rose and offered Marya his arm. Rose and Dmitri were left at the table, munching on the vegetables.

"I'm sorry, did you want to dance?" Rose asked Dmitri, feeling guilty for going awol on him. "We could, if you wanted to."

Dmitri looked away, embarrassed. "I cannot really dance," he admitted. "Ve could try, if you are vanting to..."

"No, that's fine!" said Rose, relieved., "I've never danced before either."

They sat and watched the various couples dance. Madame Maxime had found Hagrid and they were two-stepping around the edge of the room, doing their best to circumscribe the students. James and Albus were with the Howells in the center of a group of people. Albus was holding his own, only occasionally glancing down at his feet.

"Aunt Ginny put all of her children through Fauna's Dance Lessons," said Rose as James spun Opal Howell, who laughed with delight. "James is actually surprisingly graceful. Albus is better suited for a broom."

"I see him fly," said Dmitri. "He is very good. They have little sister, no?"

"Lily, yes. She's coming to school in two years."

"I vish I be able to meet her." He frowned, continuing. "I vill come back, I decide."

The ball began to wind down towards midnight. Rafael finally broke away from the head table, where Professor Ivanoff had been chewing his ear off for the past four hours.

"He vould not be silent," he groaned, sitting next to Dmitri. "Vhere did Victoire go to?"

"She had a bit of a personal emergency," explained Rose. "Her boyfriend was here and saw you two dancing and misunderstood."

"Ah," he said, utterly unconcerned. "Vell, she tell him that I have lover at my home. He no vorry about Rafael."