Embers and Neon Signs

[Lydia Warrick]

It had been a bit surprising, the invitation she'd gotten, Lydia had never expected to be asked to the Yuleball, she had no idea why she'd been asked by him, but the girl even with a lack of a back up had actually been pretty happy to go agree to go with him. After all, harbouring no real feelings aside from friendship the teen was just happy to spend the night doing something a little bit different. And this meant spending the night with someone who had invited her to this event, and she was feeling pretty excited, she got to wear a dress and dress up a little. As the girl stood in the mirror looking over the outfit she'd picked, she fixed her her hair, placing stray strands in place and ensuring her make-up wasn't out of place against her dress, Lydia felt like she might be a little underdressed for the event, but the teen didn't really mind, she hoped that he would feel the same.

With everything looking perfect, or as perfect as Lydia could admit that she was going to get it, the teen slipped on her heels and then left the dorm room, heading straight out and down to the Great Hall, she expected herself to be a little earlier than their pre-agreed time, which was why she wasn't rushing, instead just taking her time, wandering down the halls until she reached the Great Hall, where she stood a little awkwardly at the mouth of the hall. She was brushing down her dress, flattening out the edges of the skirt though mostly as something to do with her hands, she hadn't expected to be even a little bit nervous about this evening, but it appeared as though she was in fact nervous about it, it was perhaps those pre-nerves of any event, but really the teen was just looking forward to having a good time with someone she considered a sort of friend.
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[Jean Snow]

Jean had really intended to ask Victoire to the Yule ball. He really had. But then he'd made the impulsive decision to sign up for the auction that had fallen through. By that point, the Gryffindor had managed to convince himself that asking Victoire to the ball, even as friends, would be a mistake. There already were so many rumors surrounding them, and with them having just become friendly again, Jean didn't think he wanted to add any extra pressure to things. So, after a wild patch meeting thing, Jean had stopped Lydia and asked her. They hadn't spent a great deal of time together, but Jean found her attractive and knew he wouldn't mind getting to know her better. He'd been pretty pleased that she'd said yes so quickly and had left the meeting with a bounce to his step. It was nice to have something to look forward to, and Lydia seemed like a nice girl. If his brother could date a Puff, he was sure he could get along with one easily enough.

As the day of the ball arrived, Jean found himself getting ready for the ball with some of his dorm mates. He hummed to himself as he finished dressing and finally left the room to meet Lydia. They'd agreed to meet outside of the Great Hall like most people did when they were from different houses. Jean arrived down to the main hallway right on time. The area was crowded with people waiting for their dates, but over the murmurs in the hall you could hear the sounds of music coming from the Great Hall. Jean looked around and quickly spotted Lydia. He smiled as he waved to her and side stepped a couple of people to finally reach her. "Lydia" he spoke as he stopped in front of her. "You look lovely." It was true. She wasn't showing a lot of skin like some of the other people who walked by, but she looked nice anyway. "I bought this for you. I'm not sure it goes with your dress, but...here" he finished awkwardly, holding out a small yellow corsage for her wrist. She was a Hufflepuff so he figured she'd like the color. "Ready to go in?" he asked.

 

[Lydia Warrick]

The young hufflepuff spotted Jean with ease as he walked over to her with a small greeting on his lips, she just smiled warmly at him, noting how charming he looked and glad that she had agreed to this, it would be in her mind rather nice, a rather lovely and enjoyable evening. Lydia smiled her thanks at his compliment and blushed slightly, "You do too," she returned with a warm smile, since she did indeed believe that he did, at the corsage, she could help but laugh lightly that was a strange tradition of formal balls she had never expected to happen to her. She had always associated it with muggles and prom but she gladly held out her arm so that he could slip it on, "It's lovely, thank you," she told him it's an honest smile, pleased that he was being so lovely to her. Lydia was really pleased that Jean had asked her to the yuleball, even if she didn't know too much about him aside from their mutual interest which she believed was why they were attending this yuleball together, she had no clue about who his friends were in the same way that he didn't know who hers were.

At his words she adjusted the corsage slightly and then nodded at his question, leading him straight out on to the dance floor, since she didn't really want to have to stand around awkwardly making strange conversation just yet instead they could just dance for a little bit. Lydia glanced at Jean as they got out to the dancefloor, and although she was looking forward to the fun which they could have with this she was really just a little unsure of how best to dance with Jean she expected him a little to take the lead just so that she knew what to do, since she thought of them as friends obviously, and knew he felt the same so she was unsure as to what that meant for them in terms of dancing but she just began dance as she was standing in front of him, and knew that they could just have a good time if all ther issues were forgotten and they just got to have fun.
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[Jean Snow]

Jean didn't see anyone else with a flower like he had, but he'd seen in a muggle magazine once that guys have them to their dates when there were big dances. The Yule ball had to count as that. His apprehension slipped away as Lydia stated that she liked it. As she slipped it on, a smile crossed the Gryffindor's face. This was going to be a good night. He was sure that he'd made the right decision here. There'd be no awkwardness with Lydia because they didn't have any history. They did have some things in common though. They both played quidditch and they both were part of the wild patch club, though he was sure she was more into it than he was. Jean had mostly joined for Archie, but he'd grown to enjoy the meetings and events.

Before he knew it, Jean was on the dance floor. Lydia was already moving and Jean quickly found the rhythm. He liked dancing, and he was actually pretty good at it. So was she. Thankfully, the music was quick and there was no awkwardness about where to put his hands or anything. He held onto Lydia's hand as he danced, occasionally turning her and singing along to the more popular songs. Normally, he wouldn't have done anything like that but with the music as loud as it was, he had no reason to feel self-conscious about anyone hearing him. It was good to just let all of the stress from the semester fly off of his shoulders as he danced. Prefect duties, quidditch, and lessons would be back before long, but he didn't have to worry about those things right now. All he had to do was dance, which he did for a few songs. Finally, Jean gestured his head towards the drinks. "Want to grab a drink?" he leaned closer and shouted. His throat was dry from all of the dancing and singing.

 

[Lydia Warrick]

Lydia smiled at him as they began dancing, it was simple and easy and very quickly Lydia could say that she was having a good night, there was nothing attached to this, and while she was definitely glad she'd been asked, it was almost better that there was no stress attached to the situation, that she didn't need to think too much about it. Joining the wild patch club had been something Lydia had done on a whim, and it was very different from how she had thought it might go, but it was interesting nonetheless, it wasn't like anything else she had experienced at Hogwarts and the teen was pretty happy to be doing that, she was constantly in the shadow of her brother who had been gone from the school for a couple of years but in her own mind the shadow he cast was still largely looming over her.

Dancing and occasionally joining in with Jean's singing to the more popular songs was definitely the most fun she'd had in a long while, she was smiling more than she'd smiled in a long while, and it just felt good. She was just forgetting about all that she'd been worrying about and was enjoying a good night. She stopped dancing a little, when Jean motioned over to the drinks and she just nodded at him, that definitely seemed like a good idea and the girl just lead the way over to the drinks table and poured him one before pouring herself one. It was such a good night so far, and she was sure that he was having a good time too, and that's what was important, as long as the night remained fun that was all she really wanted. Lydia took a long sip of the drink and realised just how thirsty the dancing and singing had made her, "Good dancing," she told him with a smile, "And I definitely didn't realise you liked to sing," she wasn't teasing him about that fact, but complimenting him on it, the ability to just let go in such a fashion was enviable.
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[Jean Snow]

“You too. You’re really good” Jean replied easily enough as he took a sip of his drink. The boy enjoyed dancing, especially when the music was fast. It was when the music slowed down that things tended to get awkward. Thankfully, that hadn’t happened at all while they’d danced. Jean was grateful for that. He and Lydia were friendly, but they weren’t friendly enough for him to be comfortable figuring out where to put his hands and how close they should get to each other. The teen blushed as Lydia continued. “Oh no” he groaned. “Was I that loud?” he asked, an embarrassed expression on his face. The Gryffindor only ever sang in the shower. He didn’t have a great voice, especially not when he attempted to sing English songs with his heavily accented voice. It was barely passable really, but they’d been playing such good songs and it had been loud enough that he thought he could get away with it in the Great Hall. At least Lydia was cringing away from him or hadn’t asked him to shut up. Maybe his voice wasn’t that bad after all.

Glancing around the room, Jean spotted his brother and his girlfriend. Unlike Lydia who’d dressed a bit conservatively for the event, Clara had gone all out to show as much skin as she could get away with. Lucien seemed pleased by it though. Figures, Jean thought to himself as he took another sip. He continued looking around and spotted his little sister with a Ravenclaw boy, the same boy she’d been hanging around with at the protest. The teen’s eyes narrowed at the two as he watched them, the overprotective brother side of him rearing its ugly head for a moment. He’d be having a talk with her over the holidays. “Will you be staying in the castle for the holidays or are you heading home?” Jean asked Lydia before taking another sip of cider. He didn’t know her well enough to know if she was the kind of student who always stayed or always left. Jean was heading home himself the next day, and he couldn’t wait to sleep in his own bed.

 

[Lydia Warrick]

Lydia nodded happily in thanks and then couldn't help but laugh a little at his reaction, "Not at all," she told him, it wasn't even that she had been listening to how well he was singing just that it was always nice to just see someone let lose and sing away like he had, it was a nice confidence that she figured probably came with being a Gryffindor, she had definitely seen the same sort of thing in her brother, and in her cousin. It was a nice thing to just be able to do, let go and sing, "It's always nice to see someone just sing away," she told him with a warm smile since she did believe it, she thought he sounded alright, definitely not something he could make money from but someone that he wasn't awful at, it was nice to hear someone able to just sing like he had.

Lydia looked around the room, as there was a small lull in the conversation as she took a small sip of her drink, she could spot her cousin with that boy she was sure she liked and she could spot the leader of the wild patch club with the guy she imagined was the best friend, or perhaps they were together, Lydia had no idea, but it looked sweet. At Jean's question she glanced back up at him and smiled, "Heading home, excited to as well," she told him brightly, since she really was, Christmas had become quite the affair with her family, they spent it usually with Stefan and Stefan's wife, usually at his home, just a small but action filled day, far different from the boring christmasses her brother described them having back home before moving, "It'll be good to see my brother and see hows he's getting on, and we usually go round to my older cousin's house for Christmas dinner, so I'm looking forward to it" the teen told Jean, "What about you? Heading home?" she returned the question to him with a smile, taking a long sip of the drink she held in her hand, almost sure that Jean was one of the people who went home for the holidays.
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[Jean Snow]

Jean had never had anyone compliment him on his singing. He stood a little taller at that, enjoying the feeling of pleasure at receiving a compliment. He realized that it probably wasn't a common thing to just out and sing, especially if you weren't super confident in your voice. But, it made Jean happy to sing so that's why he did it. It wasn't about doing it for anyone else or to make money off of it, her knew that would never happen. But, it helped relax him and pass the time. As Lydia began to speak about her plans, Jean listened. It was nice to learn more about her. As they spent time with each other, Jean was more pleased with himself about having asked her. It was turning out to be a fun night. Jean leaned towards the table and snagged two cookies. He held one out to Lydia before answering. "Yes, I go home every year. I'm not exactly sure what we'll be doing this year though" he added. "My mother's side of the family doesn't really celebrate Christmas, but if we just stay home it should be fun. We usually have a big dinner and then all of my siblings might show up" he finished. He had plenty, not counting his quad siblings and Emma. "Then, I'll just sleep and play quidditch for the rest of vacation." Jean was looking forward to his bed.

Finishing off his cookie, Jean reached for Lydia's hand. "Let's dance some more" he urged, giving her hand a small squeeze. The Gryffindor always liked holding hands. He liked the feel of his much bigger hand enveloping a smaller, softer one and the warmth between their hands. As he moved towards the dance floor again, Jean was already moving his head to the beat. He really liked this song. "It's always so weird to see the professors dancing" he joked as he spotted two of them dancing together. It was fun to people watch sometimes. Sometimes it wasn't though, and the smile slid off of his face as Jean spotted Victoire dancing with some guy. Jean recognized him from the quidditch team, though he didn't know his name. He was pretty sure the guy was new to the school. He'd never seen him before. The Gryffindor's eyes narrowed slightly before he turned his attention back to Lydia, forcing himself to smile again. It became a lot easier as he stared down at the girl. "Thanks for agreeing to come with me this evening" he stated as they finally reached an opening where they could dance. Of course, it wasn't that far from where Victoire was dancing.

 

[Lydia Warrick]

Lydia happily took one of the cookies from Jean and bit into it as he began explaining his Christmas, she didn't know why they didn't celebrate Christmas, it was a muggle thing admittedly, but the teen found it to be a lot of fun and there was the element of creating happy memories amongst a family which had been a little torn apart, but she got the idea by the way he talked about a big dinner than it wasn't big in the sense that she knew christmas to be but far far bigger, just so huge that she wouldn't like be able to wrap her head around helping make the food. At what he said following she had to agree, sleep and quidditch were definitely good things to do with the rest of the holiday, "Sleeping and quidditch are two perfect things to do during the holiday," she agreed finishing off the cookie and wiping her hands on the edges of her dress.

This motion was done just in time for Jean grabbing her hand and then lightly squeezing it, she smiled warmly at him and nodded slightly, actually wanting to dance some more, after all the night was still so young and she couldn't wait to just let loose a little more. It would be great fun, and so she followed a little behind him as they walked to the dance floor and nodded along to what he was saying, "I'm pretty sure I spotted the nurse and I think the new nurse too, but I'm not sure, still weird" she agreed with him, looking round and spotting teachers dancing, it was so strange but obviously normal, since they were just normal adults, normal people. She began dancing to the music as they began dancing in the spot that Jean had picked out and she just nodded, "Thanks for asking," she told him, "It's always nice to spend this evening with someone rather than alone," she shrugged at him as they moved to the music, "I usually spend this time with my cousin but she's here with someone and I didn't want to be the awkward third wheel," Lydia giggle slightly at this and smiled at Jean, she really was glad he'd asked her along.
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[Jean Snow]

Unlike when they’d first been on the dance floor and mostly just danced, Jean and Lydia were speaking as they picked up dancing a second time. Jean didn’t know about Lydia, but he felt much more comfortable with her with each passing moment. She was really easy to speak to, and although he still didn’t know how much they truly had in common, it was enough for them to pass this evening easily together at least. The teenager nodded his head in agreement. Being here with a date sure beat coming stag. There was no doubt in his mind about this anymore. Jean wasn’t sure if he’d come to any more Yule Balls without a date. It was nice to have someone to dance with and speak with as the night wore on. “It looks like a lot of people are here with dates this year” Jean stated as he glanced over in Victoire’s direction once more. She was still dancing with that guy. It seemed that most of the people in his year or higher had come with a friend or a significant other of some kind. He figured it was a sign of them all getting older. The teenager only had two more Yule Balls before he’d be out of the school and off into the real world. It was too heavy of a thought for the night, and the Gryffindor pushed it away. “Who’s your cousin?” he asked, genuinely interested to learn more about Lydia.