Closed Fun with Friends

[Hayley Elridge]

Hayley had almost hesitated over going to the Yule Ball this year, worried that it would be full of memories of her time with Lizzie. But eventually her friends had persuaded her that it would be worth going for fun, together like they used to before any of them got into romantic relationships or worried about any of that stuff. And as Hayley came up the stairs into the entrance hall, she was knew she had made the right choice. All the students in their fancy clothes were worth seeing merely for the aesthetics, and that was even without the fun of dancing. Yes, this would be a great night, just an innocent fun time, and she wasn't going to think about Lizzie at all. Hayley walked into the great hall and hesitated in the doorway, scanning the room in search of her friends. They should have arranged to meet up beforehand, like sensible people, so they could find one another. She spotted Ainsley, dancing with Amber, but it wouldn't do to disturb them, particularly on their last Yule Ball. What a strange thought that was. Hayley decided to hang around near the entrance for a little while, until she spotted someone, or someone spotted her.

 

[Harley Tsuji]

The Yule Ball had come around once again, and that meant that it had somehow been a whole year since Harley had managed to screw up her own life entirely. With some distance from the situation it was easier to accept that while Odette had definitely put her in a crappy position, she had overreacted pretty majorly, and deserved more of the blame than she had originally been willing to take. That was all in the past now though, and having dealt with her role in the break up, Harley was finally willing to put her leftover feelings about Odette to bed. There was nothing to dwell on anymore, and holding onto anger felt petty after what Odette had been through last year. Harley was ready to move forward with her own life, and do it with her favourite people at her side.

And that was exactly what she intended to do. The plan tonight had just been to hang with her friends, but Harley had lost track of Rose and Rory pretty early, something Harley was mildly concerned about. Rose was coping with the aftermath of a far more recent breakup, and Harley wanted to make sure tonight was a fun evening for her, and she wasn't dwelling on the past. She assumed they would reunite when they got the he Great Hall though, and made her way downstairs happily. Upon arriving in the hall, Hayley was the first of her friends Harley spotted and she sneaked up behind the other girl, grinning as she wrapped her arms around Hayley's middle, thrusting her chin onto her friend's shoulder. "Christmas huuuuuuuuuuuuugs!" She greeted Hayley happily, giving her a light squeeze. "Excited for the dance?"

 

[Hayley Elridge]

Hayley jumped as someone grabbed her from behind, then grinned and chuckled when she realised who it was, relaxing into her friend’s embrace. "Harleeey! Merry Christmas!" After a few moments she reluctantly pulled out of Harley's grasp and turned around so she could look at her. "You look fantastic," she said, and meant it. "That jacket is freaking awesome." Hayley didn't want to take her eyes off Harley, but she was surprised neither Rose nor Rory had butted in or joined the hug yet, so she glanced around behind her. "Hell yes I'm excited! Where are the others?" She'd assumed the Gryffindors would arrive together (and how jealous she was of their ability to do that), but it seemed she was mistaken.

 

[Harley Tsuji]

Harley laughed, trying not to let how much Hayley's compliment affected her show on her face. They complimented each other all the time, Harley didn't know why small interactions with Hayley like this had felt so much more serious recently. Well... that was a lie. If Harley really thought about it she could understand why, but that raised a lot of nerve-wracking questions that Harley wasn't ready to think about yet. So she ignored it, grinning back at her friend. "Thanks! Your dress is so cute too!" She said happily, then shrugged in response to Hayley's next question. "No idea... I lost 'em in the hallways." Looking around the Great Hall, it took Harley a moment to spot Rose chatting with some other prefect and she snorted. "Looks like Rose is already occupied." She commented, gesturing in their direction. "Least she looks happy." Harley had been a bit worried about Rose tonight, but she seemed cheerful enough talking with the other boy. Hopefully that was one less thing to worry about tonight.

 

[Hayley Elridge]

Hayley glowed at Harley's compliment . . . and did she dare believe that there was something more to it than their usual friendly interaction, some note in Harley's voice and her expression that wasn't quite the same? Or was that just wishful thinking? Someday, someday soon, Hayley would work up the courage to tell her - but not tonight. That conversation needed to be intimate, not public; Hayley couldn't face it if Harley rejected her here (not that she could bear it any better alone), and tonight was just for lighthearted dancing and fun times. "Thanks," she said grinning. "You lost them? How did you manage that? Not like you're all in the same house or anything," she teased, shoving Harley lightly, hyper-aware as always of the contact. Hayley followed Harley's gaze and found Rose. "Oh, that's, um, Kauri, right? He seems nice." Hayley scanned the crowd, but she still couldn't locate Rory. "Eh, I'm sure they'll find us. Wanna dance?" She asked casually, but the thought of having the opportunity to dance with Harley, just the two of them, sent an electric thrill up her spine.

 

[Harley Tsuji]

Harley rolled her eyes at Hayley's teasing, giving her a light shove back. "Shut it!" She scoffed, rolling her eyes. "The corridors were really packed, a bunch of kids got between us. Doesn't even matter, looks like Rose is having a good evening." She made a mental note of the boy's name as she watched him do some stupid movement and then head out onto the dancefloor with Rose. She was a little wary of some guy trying to dance with Rose so soon after her breakup, but there was nothing romantic about the way he was moving, and Rose looked like she was having fun, so Harley was contented to leave it for the moment. She was distracted from monitoring her friend when Hayley suggested they dance together and she looked over at her, a little surprised. There was nothing weird about dancing with Hayley, sure, usually Harley would get in at least one dance with all of her friends, but with the way Harley's feelings had been changing recently, it felt more significant before. That was all in Harley's mind, and she did her best not to let it distract her as she nodded, grinning quickly. "Let's tear it up, c'mon." She took Hayley's elbow, leading her onto the dancefloor excitedly.

 

[Hayley Elridge]

Hayley chuckled and shrugged. "Fair." She watched as Rose and Kauri headed onto the dancefloor, concerned for her, but she seemed to be doing all right, for now. And she and Harley could always step in if things changed. "Yeah, glad she seems to be having fun. Haven't caught Rory yet, though." Hayley wasn't honestly too concerned about looking for their other friend, though, not when she had the unprecedented chance to dance alone with Harley. "Hell yeah," she agreed as Harley took her arm, her hand warm and dry and delightful. As she let Harley lead her out onto the dancefloor, Hayley began moving to the beat, trying not to let her nervous excitement show. She couldn't help but imagine doing this next year as a couple, how thrilling it would be to kiss Harley on this dance floor, to imagine the taste of her lips - not that there would be anything like that tonight. She tried to stop herself thinking or hoping, tried to let herself be content with this dance, this night.