Disclaimer: While there are some aspects of the Harry Potter story and universe I will be attempting to maintain, this is an AU-story and as such I will be taking liberties with them both.

"Speaking aloud."

"Speaking aloud while emphasizing a word."

"Thinking silently."

§Parseltongue§

Regulus Black III

Chapter 19

1994

"The Yule Ball is approaching…a traditional part of the Triwizard Tournament and an opportunity for us to socialize with our foreign guests. Now, the ball will be open only to fourth years and above…although you may invite a younger student if you wish…" Professor McGonagall said at the end of their Transfiguration class.

Regulus could hear giggles throughout the class from several girls, but Professor McGonagall ignored them. "Dress robes will be worn," she continued, "and the ball will start at eight o'clock on Christmas Day, finishing at midnight in the Great Hall. Now then…" Professor McGonagall stared deliberately around the class. "The Yule Ball is of course a chance for us all to…let our hair down," she said, in a disapproving voice. "But that does not mean," Professor McGonagall went on, "that we will be relaxing the standards of behavior we expect from Hogwarts students. I will be most seriously displease if a student embarrasses the school in any way."

Regulus of course had known about the Yule Ball already, and had the unfortunate and awkward experience of being informed by his own head of house that he, along with the other champions, would open the ball with a dance. Now, Regulus didn't find the experience unfortunate and awkward because he was told that he would have to dance, it was the fact that Professor Snape, who looked like he had never danced or fraternized in his entire life, was the individual who had been the one to tell him.

Regulus had never known so many people to put their names down to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas. Everyone in fourth year and above seemed to be staying, and all of them seemed to be obsessed with the coming ball…or at least all the girls were, which only highlighted just how many girls actually attended Hogwarts. 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. For Regulus it was all rather new to see girls behaving in such a manner. He was accustomed to regal and proper women and teenagers whose behavior was much more controlled and refined. This giddy and child-like excitement he bore witness to at Hogwarts, all for some dance, befuddled Regulus to a certain extent.

Regulus was thankful that Hermione hadn't seemed to contract what the other female students did, as her behavior was for the most part unchanged, which made asking her about the phenomenon a bit easier.

"Hermione?" Regulus asked as they both studied in the library.

"Yes?" she replied, not looking up from the parchment she was jotting notes on whilst reading a textbook.

"Do you know why most of the female student body is so…excited about this ball?" he asked, looking around to see if anyone else could listen in on their conversation, and thankfully it seemed like they were both alone.

Hermione paused in her note taking, obviously caught off-guard by the question before she set her quill down and looked up at Regulus with a small look of disbelief on her features, "Are you serious?"

Regulus looked mildly offended by her skepticism.

"I'm sorry it's just…you really don't know?" she asked, trying not to further insult him.

Regulus continued to look around the library, hoping no one could hear, while he tried not to appear too embarrassed by his question, "I've been to many dinners and balls with my grandparents…and I've never seen any of the kids and teenagers there look as excited as everyone here does at Hogwarts…" Regulus explained, continuing to look for any eavesdroppers.

He missed the sympathetic smile on Hermione's face. "Everyone is excited because…" she paused, trying to put into words exactly why everyone was looking forward to the event, "…it's a chance to have fun, a chance to socialize with friends and the foreign students, and the girls in particular are looking forward to…fraternizing," she said shyly, "with boys."

"Fraternizing with boys?" Regulus repeated with confusion.

Hermione stammered before blushing a deep red, "Haven't your grandparents ever told you about the birds and the bees?"

Regulus quirked an eyebrow, "Birds and the bees? Is that some sort of fairytale for children?" he asked, completely oblivious to the muggle-term.

Hermione seemed to choke on her own voice as she sputtered nervously whilst trying to string words together.

"You know…" she said so quietly he had to lean forward to hear her.

"No…I don't," he said just as softly, brows now furrowed in slight irritation.

"Love…marriage…children…" she stammered, her entire face beat red with embarrassment.

Regulus' eyebrows rose high, "Oh," he said in understanding. "I have no intention of proposing a marriage contract at this ball…I was lucky enough to sell mine a couple of years ago. So this fraternizing with boys is a means to negotiate marriage contracts then? I see…"

Her embarrassment seemingly forgotten, she looked at him in what appeared to be a mixture of shock and a small bit of horror. "What!" she yelled, causing the librarian from the opposite side of the library to shush them both in response. Hermione ducked her head before lowering her voice, "Just what…you can't be…how…how insulting…" she trailed off, unable to finish her sentences as she couldn't settle on how exactly to verbalize her apparent disgust.

"Oh, do muggles approach marriage a bit differently?" Regulus inquired, wondering if it was simply a difference between the wizard and muggle world.

"It's different with both muggles and wizards!" she replied harshly.

Brows furrowed and eyes looking up in thought, Regulus couldn't recall wizards marrying in another way, he had only ever known of marriage contracts growing up, "That's what my grandparents taught me," Regulus replied, not really knowing what else to say to his nearly irate friend.

"What exactly did your grandparents tell you about marriage?" Hermione asked, almost apprehensive to hear his answer judging by the look on her face.

"Choose someone who is from a powerful and wealthy family, and make sure she is attractive so that your children will inherit the best traits and characteristics possible," Regulus replied almost instantly, he had heard his grandmother recite the very same words at least once a week when he was at home. Although oddly enough his grandmother hadn't said such a thing in quite some time.

Hermione covered her face with both hands before she took a slow and deep breath, exhaled, and readjusted herself in her seat before she entered what he recognized as her lecturing mode. "Marriage is a bond of two people who love one another…love is shared feelings of affection and romantic attachment…and one of the most common ways to find love is social gatherings like the Yule Ball, which is why the female students are so excited about it. Do you understand?" she asked.

"Marry for love…that's different," Regulus mused. "I think I understand, thank you for the explanation Hermione," he replied with a smile, causing much of the fire in her eyes to become subdued.

"You're quite welcome, Regulus" she said, red still tinting her cheeks, but for what reason Regulus couldn't determine as Hermione had seemed to go through a wide range of emotions and temperaments throughout their conversation.

While Regulus' conversation with Hermione in the library had certainly explained a lot, it also brought with it a lot of new questions that Regulus couldn't quite answer. His grandparents had been married through a marriage contract and he had never seen them fight his entire life, he was quite certain that they loved each other, but did the contract or love come first? Which prompted which? And if he married for love, then he had to ask himself what exactly it was that Regulus looked for in a woman. While Regulus still thought his heritage and family history was important, after everything he had gone through marrying someone for their name just didn't mean anything to him anymore. He didn't need power or wealth, he already had plenty of both, and with the popularity he had to endure at Hogwarts he certainly didn't want any more of that. Attractiveness was about the only thing left of his grandmother's words that actually applied to marrying for love, but Regulus knew without much thought that marrying for mere appearances wouldn't make for a long lasting and happy relationship. Attractiveness was important, but there were other things Regulus valued that needed to be present…he just didn't know what those things were right now. Yes, his conversation with Hermione gave him much to think about, as if he didn't have enough things to worry about already.

While Harry had been attending Quidditch practices with Hufflepuff for their upcoming match against Ravenclaw, Regulus had been trying to decipher the clue from the golden egg that they obtained from the first task of the tournament. After he first opened it he was bombarded with a horrendous screeching. He had promptly shut the egg. The second time he opened it he casted a silencing spell on the egg which muted the screeching, during which time he examined the insides of the egg for clues. The oval shaped egg inside contained what appeared to be water with bubbles repeatedly rising to the top. After examining the egg thoroughly he submerged the egg in water after cancelling the silencing spell; having access to the prefects' bathroom due to his captaincy of the Slytherin team certainly had its perks. Surprisingly there was no horrendous screeching but he heard something vastly different beneath the water, it was a song.

Essentially something would be taken from each champion, and they would have an hour long to retrieve it from wherever it was underwater, likely the Black Lake at Hogwarts. Regulus had promptly informed Harry and Hermione of his discovery. Regulus had suggested that Harry ask Professor Sprout for some Gillyweed, as the magical plant would allow Harry to breathe underwater for at least an hour, as Harry had great difficulty performing the Bubble-Head Charm. Regulus had requested the same magical plant from Professor Snape; although the Bubble-Head Charm would allow him to breath underwater, and he was very confident in his ability to perform the spell, Gillyweed on the other hand would allow Regulus to swim faster which was crucial given the time limit.

Regulus hadn't waited to solve the clue for the second task as he didn't want it hanging over him during his holiday break, and Harry seemed to be very appreciative of the heads up.

Harry had met with Regulus in the library after classes and arrived later than the scheduled time, but looked unusually happy. Harry's happiness piqued Regulus' curiosity, so much so that Regulus didn't even bother to fret over Harry being late.

"What's got you in such a good mood?" Regulus inquired as he researched on the creatures present in the Black Lake so that Regulus could help Harry prepare for the second task.

Harry set his bag down on the table and sat down, a wide grin spread across his face, "I asked someone to go to the Yule Ball with me…" he said as his smile seemed permanently etched across his face.

"And who is the lucky lady?" Regulus drawled, turning the page of his book and scribbling down notes.

Harry cleared his throat before saying, "Luna Lovegood."

Regulus paused, then looked up with a bewildered expression, "Who?"

Harry looked down at him, "Luna Lovegood," he repeated.

"I heard what you said…but I've never heard of her," Regulus said, slightly exasperated.

"She's in Ravenclaw, a third year," Harry explained. "Hermione and she are friends."

Regulus hummed in response, "Congratulations."

Harry nodded in excitement, "Thanks!"

Regulus slid the parchment he was previously writing on toward Harry and said, "Now this is a list of known creatures within the Black Lake, you would do well to study them."

Harry took the parchment and nodded, "Thanks again Regulus, for all the help…it means a lot."

Regulus waved him off dismissively, "Don't mention it, please," Regulus replied with a tiny smirk.

"So…" Harry began, taking out his homework for class and putting it on the table, "You ask anyone to the Yule Ball yet?"

Regulus looked up with a quirked brow, "No."

"Really?" Harry replied with a tone of surprise.

"Really," Regulus confirmed.

"Hmm," Harry said before they drifted into silence, both working on their homework, until several minutes later Harry piped up, "You know…no one has asked Hermione yet…" Harry tried to say innocently.

Regulus looked up with narrowed eyes, slightly threatening, and Harry quickly buckled under Regulus' gaze and held his hands up in defeat. The remaining hour was silent as they both sat there in the library doing school work.

The Hogwarts staff, demonstrating a continued desire to impress the visitors from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, seemed determined to show the castle at its best this Christmas. When the decorations went up, Regulus noticed that they were the most impressive he had yet seen inside the school. Everlasting icicles had been attached to the banisters of the marble staircase; the usual twelve Christmas trees in the Great Hall were bedecked with everything from luminous holly berries to real, hooting, golden owls, and the suits of armor had all been bewitched to sing carols whenever anyone passed them. Several times, Filch the caretaker had to extract Peeves from inside the armor, where he had taken to hiding, filling in the gaps in the songs with lyrics of his own invention, all of which were very rude.

After lunch one day, as Regulus was walking away from his table for the library, out of the corner of his eye he caught the sight of someone trying to intercept him. As he turned and glanced to the side he saw none other than Fleur Delacour stop in front of him.

"Excuse me, Regulus…do you 'ave a moment?" she asked, tossing back her long hair and fluttering her eyes at him.

Regulus' face remained quite neutral as he quirked a brow and stared at her curiously, "Only a moment," he replied.

She faltered slightly as her attempts to fluster him with her beauty were quite unsuccessful, but she bounced back a moment later as she smiled her pearly white teeth at him, "I was wondering if per'aps you would want ze 'onor of taking me to ze Yule Ball?" she asked in what she probably thought was a seductive tone of voice.

Regulus almost laughed aloud as he witnessed her behavior up close. Regulus couldn't help but find such behavior unattractive. It certainly marred Fleur's physical beauty, to the point that he held absolutely no interest in her whatsoever.

"No, I would not," Regulus replied simply.

Fleur instantly frowned, "Why not? Did you ask someone already?" she asked.

"No, I have not," Regulus replied, just as impassively as before.

"I do not understand…" she said looking increasingly upset.

Regulus cleared his throat, garnering her attention, and Regulus realized that most of the students were watching his conversation with Fleur, "I find your personality and attitude very unattractive. And I believe your moment is up," Regulus said with finality before walking away, effectively ending the conversation.

As Regulus walked away he quickly realized that vanity, arrogance, and self-absorption were definitely qualities he found unappealing. He knew that intelligence, a keen mind, and having a knack for magic were certainly traits he could respect and find attractive. There was only so much stupidity that he could tolerate after all.

It was with that thought the next day when Regulus and Hermione were studying together in the library that he realized there was only one girl that came to mind when he thought of such things.

"And this spell contains how many?" Regulus asked, tutoring Hermione as they tested one another on an upcoming exam.

"Seventeen," she replied. "And this one?" she asked.

"Twelve," he answered. "How many layers are in this spell?" he asked before using the very spell in front of her eyes.

"Oh please that's too easy, twenty-seven," she said with a smile. "How many interactions does this spell contain?" she asked, swishing her wand around to cast the spell.

"Thirty-one," he replied. "Would you like to go to the Yule Ball with me?" he asked, a playful grin creeping on his face as he watched his unsuspecting friend with subdued excitement.

"That's…wait, what?" she asked, confusion clear on her face before it morphed into nervousness. She couldn't string words together for several minutes as her face blushed with embarrassment to an unbelievable shade of red. Eventually she had to settle for simply nodding her head, a permanent smile now on her face as they silently continued to study.

Hufflepuff managed to defeat Ravenclaw in their Quidditch match, Regulus hadn't attended, as he wanted to get ahead of his normal and advanced homework. He was still proofreading each and every draft of the Daily Prophet, as well as waking up bright and early for his team's Quidditch practices; his teammates were no longer tardy as they had gotten tired of running laps around the field very quickly.

Despite the very heavy load of homework that the fourth years had been given for the holidays, most of his peers were in no mood to work when the term ended, and spent the week leading up to Christmas enjoying themselves as fully as possible. Regulus and Hermione were probably the only ones who were close to finishing. The Slytherin common room was more crowded and rowdier than was usual for the Christmas break and Regulus didn't exactly enjoy the chaos, as such he spent most of his free time in the library.

Snow was falling thickly upon the castle and its grounds now. The pale blue Beauxbatons carriage looked like a large, chilly, frosted pumpkin next to the iced gingerbread house that was Hagrid's cabin, while the Durmstrang ship's portholes were glazed with ice, the rigging white with frost.

Fleur Delacour seemed to be able to find anything to complain about, her mood and attitude having only worsened since she was so very publically rejected in front of the entire student body by Regulus.

"It is too 'eavy, all zis 'Ogwarts food," Regulus had heard her saying grumpily as Harry, Hermione, and him left the Great Hall behind her one evening. "I will not fit into my dress robes!"

"Oooh there's a tragedy," Hermione snapped as Fleur went out into the entrance hall. "She really thinks a lot of herself, that one, doesn't she?"

It was quite uncommon for Hermione to be so hostile towards someone, but Regulus imagined that with all of Fleur's complaints, most of which were aimed specifically at the school, it would quite grate on Hermione's nerves given how much pride she took in Hogwarts and its history.

As Regulus awoke the next day, which happened to be Christmas, he decided that for today he could take a break from his homework. Regulus had purchased an original book for his grandparents that detailed the history and time period of the Founders and it even included its original enchantments on every page; needless to say it was very rare and expensive, but of course that was hardly an issue for one Regulus Black. For Harry, Regulus decided to finally return that which was not his to begin with and he gave Harry back his Invisibility Cloak; Regulus hardly needed the item to remain hidden and it just didn't feel right to continue holding on to stolen property from a friend. Regulus hadn't signed his name, but he had written a little note to go along with the Invisibility Cloak that read: "Next time, don't be so careless." Since returning something that was originally Harry's didn't sound very much like a gift, Regulus had also purchased two black leather wand holsters for him, as Regulus had occasionally seen Harry stick his wand in his back pocket. For Hermione, Regulus had given her an old book from his family's library that gave a detailed account of house-elf culture and history; he also bought her a luxurious eagle-feather quill, a play on her house's mascot. For Sirius, it took a bit more forethought to decide what would be an appropriate gift, as anything too extravagant might be too much given their relationship had only just begun to heal. Regulus decided on giving him a copy of the Black Family history book with the standard enchantments, and a copy of a diary of Regulus' father, Sirius' brother. When Regulus had been brought to his grandparents that fateful day by his mother, she also had in her possession a diary that his father had written in quite often. Regulus had also placed two pictures inside the Black family history book: a picture of Regulus Black II with the Slytherin Quidditch team, and a picture of Sirius and his school friends that Regulus had found in Sirius' old room at 12 Grimmauld Place.

Regulus' grandparents had given him a Burke family history book and brand new dress robes for the Yule Ball. Hermione had given him a book, Quidditch Through the Ages and Harry had given him an enchanted notebook that absorbed notes that had been written into the pages which could be recalled verbally at a later time, it was essentially a notebook with an infinite number of pages. It uncomfortably reminded him of Tom Riddle's diary, but he certainly didn't hold that against Harry as he had no idea about it. Sirius had given him several magazines of scantily clad muggle women, some of whom were completely nude; needless to say Regulus was thoroughly embarrassed by the gift and quickly hid the magazines away in a secret compartment in his blood trunk. The next time he saw Hermione she had given him a very heart-felt hug, thanking him quietly for the gifts. Harry had given him a knowing smirk when he mentioned that someone had returned his Invisibility Cloak that he lost during his first year at Hogwarts, Regulus of course played innocent.

The three of them went down to breakfast together. They spent most of the morning together, enjoying their presents, then returned to the Great Hall for a magnificent lunch, which included at least a hundred turkeys and Christmas puddings, and large piles of Cribbage's Wizarding Crackers.

They went out onto the grounds in the afternoon; the snow was untouched except for the deep channels made by the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students on their way up to the castle. Hermione and Regulus chose to watch Harry and his friends from Hufflepuff engage in a snowball fight rather than join in, and at five o'clock Hermione said she was going back upstairs to get ready for the ball, but not before giving Regulus a bashful smile.

There was no Christmas tea today, as the ball included a feast, so at seven o'clock, when it had become difficult for those in the snowball fight to aim properly, Harry and his Hufflepuff friends abandoned their snowball fight and they along with Regulus trooped back inside. Harry and Regulus bid each other farewell and walked to their respective dormitories to prepare for the ball.

The Slytherin common room was filled with extravagantly dressed students, all wearing either expensive dress robes or dresses. Regulus had a formal black robe on, and underneath he was wearing a black dress shirt with black pants, and black leather shoes that had been shined. He had tied his shoulder-length hair into a ponytail.

Regulus and Hermione had agreed upon a meeting place that apparently wasn't too far away from the Ravenclaw dormitory. He stood at the top of some stairs that were at the end of a corridor as he patiently waited for Hermione. After having to endure several passersby's he finally saw her, although he almost didn't recognize her. She had done something with her hair; it was no longer bushy but sleek and shiny, and twisted up into an elegant knot at the back of her head. She was wearing robes made of a floaty, periwinkle-blue material, and she was holding herself differently, somehow…or maybe it was merely the absence of the twenty or so books she usually had slung over her back. She was also smiling…rather nervously.

Regulus just realized his mouth had been hanging open in shock, before he recovered and closed it, giving her a polite bow as he greeted her, "Hermione…you look beautiful," he said.

She smiled and blushed at the compliment, taking his outstretched arm as he escorted her to the Great Hall. "Thank you Regulus, and you look lovely as well," she replied quietly, obviously a bit nervous.

The entrance hall was packed with students, all milling around waiting for eight o'clock, when the doors to the Great Hall would be thrown open. Those people who were meeting partners from different Houses were edging through the crowd trying to find one another.

"Champions over here, please!" Regulus heard the voice of Professor McGonagall call out.

Regulus walked with Hermione forward through the chatting crowd that parted to let them through. Professor McGonagall, who was wearing dress robes of red tartan and had arranged a rather ugly wreath of thistles around the brim of her hat, told them to wait on one side of the doors while everyone else went inside; they were to enter the Great Hall in procession when the rest of the students had sat down. Fleur Delacour and Roger Davies, the Ravenclaw Quidditch Captain, stationed themselves nearest the doors; Davies looked so stunned by his good fortune in having Fleur for a partner that he didn't see that she was sparing glances at Regulus. Harry and who he assumed to be Luna Lovegood were close to Regulus and Hermione. Viktor was with a Hogwarts student Regulus didn't recognize, most likely an upper year student from outside Slytherin house.

Once everyone else was settled in the Hall, Professor McGonagall told the champions and their partners to get in line in pairs and to follow her. They did so, and everyone in the Great Hall applauded as they entered and started walking up toward a large round table at the top of the Hall, where the judges were sitting.

The walls of the Hall had all been covered in sparkling silver frost, with hundreds of garlands of mistletoe and ivy crossing the starry black ceiling. The House tables had vanished; instead, there were about a hundred smaller, lantern-lit ones, each seating about a dozen people.

Dumbledore smiled happily as the champions approached the top table. Ludo Bagman, tonight in robes of bright purple with large yellow stars, was clapping as enthusiastically as any of the students; and Madame Maxime, who had changed her usual uniform of black satin for a flowing gown of lavender silk, was applauding them politely. Both Pius Thicknesse and Karkaroff appeared indifferent of the whole affair.

When the champions and their partners reached the table, Bagman drew out the empty chair beside him, staring pointedly at Regulus. Regulus, although reluctantly, sat down next to Bagman, while Hermione sat beside Regulus.

"I never did get the chance to commend you on your excellent flying in your Quidditch match against Gryffindor, have you ever considered trying out for the professional league?" Bagman inquired, trying to initiate small talk while Regulus quite frankly would much rather have conversed with Hermione. However, Regulus would never have been so rude as to ignore Bagman and acquiesced the man's desire for conversation.

"Thank you, Mr. Bagman. And no, I have not considered trying out for a professional team," Regulus replied curtly.

Bagman clapped his hands together, "Oh my dear boy, I think you'd have an excellent shot in the professional league. I still have quite a few contacts if you're ever interested, don't hesitate to ask," Bagman said, beaming at Regulus with a wide grin.

"I'll keep that in mind, thank you Mr. Bagman," Regulus replied with a polite bow of his head before he leaned toward Hermione and whispered in her ear.

"Please save me from him," Regulus whispered.

Of course Hermione could only blush at the physical closeness between them, and his hot breath trickling across her ear only cause her to stammer and blush, but much to Regulus' great relief she managed to speak, "Have you looked at these menus Regulus?" she asked, referencing the small menus that were lying in front of each of them. There was no food as of yet on the glittering golden plates, so Regulus picked up the menu rather curiously.

Dumbledore, however, looked carefully down at his own menu, then said very clearly to his plate, "Pork chops!" And pork chops appeared. Getting the idea, the rest of the table placed their orders with their plates too. Both Regulus and Hermione had ordered food, but spent more time talking than they did eating.

Regulus could hear Viktor talking with the older Hogwarts student, comparing Hogwarts and Durmstrang, "Vell, ve have a castle also, not as big as this, not as comfortable, I am thinking. Ve have just four floors, and the fires are lit only for magical purposes. But ve have grounds larger even than these…though in vinter, ve have very little daylight, so ve are not enjoying them. But in summer ve are flying every day, over the lakes and the mountains…"

"Now, now, Viktor!" said Karkaroff with a laugh that didn't reach his eyes, "don't go giving away anything else, now, or your charming friend will know exactly where to find us!"

Dumbledore smiled, his eyes twinkling. "Igor, all this secrecy…one would almost think you didn't want visitors."

"Well, Dumbledore," said Karkaroff, displaying his yellowing teeth to their fullest extent, "we are all protective of our private domains, are we not? Do we not jealously guard the halls of learning that have been entrusted to us? Are we not right to be proud that we alone know our school's secrets, and right to protect them?"

"Oh I would never dream of assuming I know all Hogwarts' secrets, Igor," said Dumbledore amicably before sparing Regulus a knowing glance.

Meanwhile Fleur Delacour was criticizing the Hogwarts decorations to Roger Davies.

"Zis is nothing," she said dismissively, looking around at the sparkling walls of the Great Hall. "At ze Palace of Beauxbatons, we 'ave ice sculptures all around ze dining chamber at Chreestmas. Zey do not melt, of course…zey are like 'uge statues of diamond, glittering around ze place. And ze food is seemply superb. And we 'ave choirs of wood nymphs, 'oo serenade us as we eat. We 'ave none of zis ugly armor in ze 'alls, and eef a poltergeist ever entaired into Beauxbatons, 'e would be expelled like zat." She slapped her hand onto the table impatiently.

Roger Davies was watching her talk with a very dazed look on his face, and he kept missing his mouth with his fork. Regulus had the impression that Davies was too busy staring at Fleur to take in a word she was saying.

"Absolutely right," Davies said quickly, slapping his own hand down on the table in imitation of Fleur. "Like that. Yeah."

Regulus was ever so thankful that he had turned down Fleur, he wasn't sure if he would've had the patience to listen to her insult Hogwarts as she was doing throughout dinner.

Harry's date, Luna Lovegood, was quite…peculiar, to put it mildly. She had straggly, waist-length, dirty blonde hair, very pale eyebrows, and protuberant eyes that gave her a permanently surprised look. She looked dreamily distracted. She was wearing a spangled silver dress with what looked to be Silver Star earrings. Harry and she seemed to be engaged in a conversation about something called a Crumple-Horned Snorkack, which was something Regulus had never heard of in his entire life.

"Have you ever heard of a Crumple-Horned Snorkack?" Regulus whispered to Hermione.

She giggled before covering her mouth, "Luna has some rather…unusual beliefs, lots of superstition," she whispered back.

"I see," Regulus said in understanding.

"She wants to become a Magizoologist," Hermione added before taking a bite of her food.

Regulus hadn't particularly thought too much of the future, given that he was understandably preoccupied with defeating Voldemort, and perhaps even a small part of him thought that when it was all said and done he might not even be alive long enough to think of a career, his brush with the Dementors had put a bit of a morbid spin on his outlook on life.

"Have you thought much about your future?" Regulus asked Hermione, prompting her to pause in thought as she pondered the question.

"Perhaps somewhere in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, or maybe the Department of Magical Law Enforcement," she replied. "What about you?"

Regulus frowned, he wasn't sure he had an answer to that question, but he couldn't exactly blame her for asking since he started the topic.

"If you had asked me that question two years ago, I would have said politics, but now…I haven't the faintest idea," he said.

"Quidditch my boy, Quidditch!" Bagman said, interjecting himself into the conversation.

Regulus gave the man a weak smile.

When all the food had been consumed, Dumbledore stood up and asked the students to do the same. Then, with a wave of his wand, all the tables zoomed back along the walls leaving the floor clear, and then he conjured a raised platform into existence along the right wall. A set of drums, several guitars, a lute, a cello, and some bagpipes were set upon it.

The Weird Sisters now trooped up onto the stage to wildly enthusiastic applause; they were all extremely hairy and dressed in black robes that had been purposely ripped and torn. They picked up their instruments, and Regulus along with the other champions and their dates began to stand up.

Regulus politely escorted Hermione to the brightly lit dance floor as the Weird Sisters struck up a slow, mournful tune. Regulus had attended so many social gatherings with his grandparents he had lost count, and without fail he danced with at least one person each time, so needless to say he was an extremely capable dancer. Hermione, thankfully, seemed to know how to dance as well. Regulus had placed one hand on Hermione's waist and gently held her hand with his other as their bodies slowly moved with the rhythm of the song. Regulus stared into Hermione's eyes, the latter of which was blushing profusely at having his undivided attention, occasionally looking down.

"Relax," Regulus whispered, causing her to look up at him and smile. She nodded her head and her previously tensing hands and shoulders relaxed.

"So…" Regulus began as they both turned on the spot, continuing their fluidic dance, "…were you looking forward to fraternizing with me?" he asked, causing Hermione to accidentally step on his foot, which made him smirk.

Her entire face was red with embarrassment and Regulus idly wondered if he enjoyed embarrassing her a little too much, he seemed to be taking every opportunity to do so, he realized in hindsight.

"I…umm…well…" she sputtered trying to find words.

Regulus playfully quirked an eyebrow, "Are we not fraternizing?" he asked.

She continued to search for words as her embarrassment reached an all-time high.

Regulus abruptly closed the distance between their bodies so that they were both flush against one another and he whispered, "What about now?"

Her eyes were so wide that Regulus couldn't possibly keep a straight face and he broke out into laughter at her expression.

She looked somewhat miffed at being the butt of the joke, but Regulus showed mercy and resumed their previous positions, their bodies now at half an arm's length.

"Forgive me, but outside of social functions with my grandparents I'm not quite sure how to behave…teasing you seemed like a good attempt, yes?" Regulus asked.

Hermione had almost recovered from the embarrassment, her face now only slightly pink and wry grin slowly creeping on her face.

"You are supposed to have fun with someone, not at someone," she lightly chided.

"I will make sure to remember that next time," Regulus said with a bow of his head before spinning her around, causing her to gasp in shock before giggling.

By then, the people who had been previously watching the champions dance were now on the dance floor. Dumbledore was waltzing with Madame Maxime. He was so dwarfed by her that the top of his pointed hat barely tickled her chin; however, she moved very gracefully for a woman so large. Moody was doing an extremely ungainly two-step with Professor Sinistra, who was nervously avoiding his wooden leg.

Regulus heard the final, quavering note from the bagpipe, signaling the end of the song as the Weird Sisters stopped playing, and applause filled the hall once more. The Weird Sisters soon struck up a new song, which was much faster, and definitely not something he ever heard played at his grandparent's social functions. Hermione soon had sweet revenge against him as she teasingly began to teach him how to dance to the different music.

Thankfully the song ended and Regulus was spared further teasing. Harry and he had gone to get drinks while Hermione and Luna spoke amongst themselves.

"How's it going?" Harry asked him as they headed for the table with refreshments.

"Surprisingly pleasant. How are you and…Luna was it?" Regulus asked.

Harry nodded, "Luna Lovegood. We're having a lot of fun!" he said with sincerity.

"How long have you two been friends?" Regulus asked as he grabbed two Butterbeers from the table and handed them to Harry.

"The beginning of third year on the Hogwarts Express," he replied, taking the offered Butterbeers.

"She certainly is…unique," Regulus said, choosing his words carefully so he didn't offend the Hufflepuff.

"I think she's cool…and loyal, and she didn't befriend me just because of this scar," Harry said a bit sourly as his eyes drifted up to his forehead.

"I can see why you like her then," Regulus admitted, causing Harry's sour mood to disappear as his previous smile was back on his face.

"Yeah," Harry agreed as the two of them walked back to Hermione and Luna with Butterbeers in their hands.

After some idle chit-chat while they drank their beverages, the four of them returned to the dance floor. Regulus and Hermione danced until the Weird Sisters finished playing at midnight, everyone gave them a last, loud round of applause and started to wend their way into the entrance hall. Many people were expressing the wish that the ball could have gone on longer, and Hermione happened to be one of them, much to Regulus' surprise.

An idea sprung into Regulus' head and a grin spread across his face. Hermione looked at him a little apprehensively but daringly asked, "What's that smile for?"

Regulus turned to her and said, "Would you like to have one last dance?"

She blushed but nodded her head excitedly and he began leading her up the stairs. They continued upward until they reached the seventh floor in the left corridor of the castle. Once Regulus found the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy, he walked past it three times focusing on what he needed, and at the sound of Hermione's gasp he knew that the door had appeared.

He opened the door for Hermione and they both walked inside. The room was small, but had a lit fireplace, luxurious carpeting, several high windows that showed the outside of the castle, and a phonograph sitting atop a small table.

"What is this place?" Hermione asked in awe as she looked around the room, "I've never seen this room before."

Regulus smiled as he took off his leather shoes, having found them quite uncomfortable after so many hours of dancing, "This is a room…of requirement. If you walk past the tapestry outside three times and focus on what you need, this room will provide it."

"This is amazing…I don't remember reading about this in Hogwarts, A History…" she trailed off examining the walls and looking outside.

"I'm sure there are many things not mentioned in that book concerning this school," Regulus replied before soft and slow music began to play from the phonograph that Regulus had just turned on with his wand.

Hermione looked back at Regulus who was standing by the fire with his hand offered, "May I have this dance?" he said with a smirk.

She smiled and shook her head at him in amusement as she removed her heels and walked toward him barefoot. She placed her dainty hand in his and much like most of the evening they held one another and moved in tune with the music. Regulus would twirl and spin her around, causing her to giggle in childlike delight. Even when the song had ended they still danced as if it were still playing, until eventually they had both decided that it was getting late and they should return to their respective dormitories.

While Hermione put her heels back on, Regulus stood by the window and looked outside. It gave a direct view of the lake and Forbidden Forest, in fact, it gave a perfect view of where he had been attacked by Dementors last year.

Regulus closed his eyes as the horrifying experience seemed to rush through his body, face grimacing as the familiar dread and fear seemed to coarse through his very veins. His eyes were closed painfully tight as he tried to ignore the memory, attempted to compose himself and control his emotions to shrug off the trauma, but as always nothing ever worked when his mind decided to playback the worst experience of his life.

And as Hermione's hand gently squeezed his shoulder the memory and dread evaporated. The volume suddenly got turned back on as he heard her concerned voice asking if he was okay.

"I'll…be okay," he replied, though even to his ears he knew how unconvincing he sounded.

She was standing beside him now looking out the very window he had been previously, and she seemed to realize exactly what it had been he was thinking about.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked with genuine concern.

One part of him, his pride, didn't want to talk about it at all, he didn't want to appear so weak. Another part craved to confide in someone, yearned to get his feelings off his chest. And the remainder of him was simply confused and unsure of what to do altogether.

But before his mind could make a decision his heart didn't seem to care and his mouth was already moving, "I nearly lost my soul that night," he said, teeth clenching as he struggled to find the words.

"For the most part it felt like my mind and body had given up…while a small part…the most self-aware part…was fighting all it could to resist and live…you suddenly realize how important something like a soul truly is…I don't know if that's to make the experience more torturous, but living through that changed me…for the better, I think…but occasionally it feels like there are still…traces of what happened that night…and I go through it all over again…" he said before letting out a sigh, suddenly feeling very tired.

"I'm sorry…here I am making a very fun evening depressing…" Regulus began before Hermione took his hand with both of her own.

Regulus looked to his side where she stood and she was smiling at him, her eyes held sympathy, pity, and concern, but there was also understanding, appreciation, and trust.

"It makes me happy…for you to trust me with this…it couldn't be further from depressing," she said with an ear-to-ear smile.

As Regulus escorted Hermione back to where they had previously met before the ball, he idly wondered if it was more than just coincidence that the Room of Requirement had created a window that gave a perfect view of where he was attacked. Perhaps when he had walked past the tapestry, thinking about a place for Hermione and him to dance, a small part of his mind also wanted a place where he could talk to someone about what he had lived through.

"I truly had a wonderful evening Regulus, thank you," Hermione said with a warm smile.

Regulus gently took her hand and said, "I did as well, Hermione," before placing a chaste kiss on the top of her hand. Her cheeks once again reddened beyond belief and he smiled at her before leaving, feeling much better than he did before the night began.