Chapter 18

"Sage, Olive fell in a hole." Harper entered into the common room, walking straight over to Sage, who was on the couch. "She what?" Sage frowned. "She fell in a hole. Come look." He grinned. "You didn't help her?" 

"No. I wanted you to see first." Harper rolled his eyes, as if it were the obvious answer. "Come look, it's a really deep one." He chuckled, and she followed him out of the common room. "How exactly did she fall in a hole?" Sage hurried after him, and he led her out of the castle.

"She tripped, obviously." Harper scoffed, and they made their way to the forbidden forest. "You left Olive in a hole, in the forbidden forest, after dark.." Sage gaped at him. "You're worse than I thought."

"Thank you." He grabbed her hand as they entered the forest, leading her into a large clearing. "Where is she?" Sage frowned, in the distance she could see a small box, with a radio sitting on top. 

"Right over.. Here." Harper hurried over to the box, pressing a button on the radio as music began to play. "Voila." He grinned, leading her by the hand to the centre of the clearing. "What is happening right now?" Sage laughed. "Olive didn't fall in a hole?"

"No, Olive's in the library." Harper chuckled, positioning Sage's hands around his neck, and placing his own on her waist. "We're dancing?" She smiled, and Harper nodded. "Olive's okay?" She went on, and Harper nodded again. "Okay.." She eyed him suspiciously. 

Sage had not quite comprehended what was happening, it was very out of character for Harper to set up something so romantic. And yet, it was perfect. The sky had not completely blackened, it was still a dark blue. The moonlight shone through the trees, and the only sound other than the music, was the the sound of cicadas and their own breathing.

"This is nice." She whispered, admiring the set up. "You like it?" He smiled. "It's lovely." She rested her head on his chest as they who danced. "Good." He mumbled.

They danced silently, but it was a comfortable silence, which Sage used to her advantage. As they danced, she decided that this must be when he'd ask her to the ball, again. She had time to prepare her answer.

Sage thought hard about it, and she had decided she'd accept his request. After all, Cedric was almost certain to ask Cho Chang, and she had to get a date before him. It had hurt her, seeing him with her so much, as of recently. 

Cedric seemed to spend every moment that he wasn't with Sage, with Cho. Laughing and joking, as if Cho had never tried to ruin their friendship. Sage could not find it within herself to excuse Cho's behaviour. 

And here Harper was, in all of his glory. He had been there for her, he had set up a nice little romantic moment for her. He had put in the effort, and not run off with other girls. He was the obvious choice. 

"Sage?" Harper spoke after a long while. "Yes." She pulled away from his chest. "Do you want to be my date to the Yule Ball." He grinned. 

"I'd love to."

----

"He didn't!" Jill gasped. "He did!" Sage grinned as Olive and Jill leapt over their beds, squealing and jumping around the room. "Sage, that's so romantic, i'm so jealous. Rowan just asked me in the library, it was super casual." Olive frowned. "At least you have a date." Jill sighed.

"What are you going to do about Cedric?" Asked Olive. "I have no idea." She groaned. "He's probably going to go with Cho. So, I was thinking.. I don't tell him until after he asks Cho, and then he can't get mad at me, because he's going with her." She nodded. 

"Foolproof." Olive agreed. "What if Cedric ends out asking you first, and not Cho?" Jill gasped. "He won't." Sage shook her head. "Did you see him and Cho in the library, researching for that stupid egg. She was all 'Oh, Cedric, you're so funny'." Olive scoffed. "She was all over him, and he didn't say a single thing about it, he probably enjoyed it." Jill added.

"That's foul." Sage frowned. "This is so annoying, what am I going to wear?" She sat back down on her bed. "And we need to find Jill a date, what do we do about that?"

"If Jill doesn't get a date, i'm ditching Rowan and we'll go together." Olive smiled. "I'll ditch Harper, too." Sage nodded. "Absolutely not." Jill and Olive gasped. "You can't ditch Harper after what he did for you! He set up a freaking late-night-forest-slow-dance." 

----

Sage rested her head on half of her parchment paper, writing on the other half, lazily. She lifted her head slightly as a small group of Slytherin boys tried to push Graham Montague towards their table, but payed them no more mind when she looked back down.

As Sage continued writing her Potions homework, she found it increasingly more difficult to ignore the Slytherin boys, and set her quill down. Across from her table at the library, Graham was still fighting off his friends, who were laughing and shoving him closer.

"What's wrong with Graham?" Sage turned to the Olive, Cedric and Jill, who all shrugged. Harper and Rowan were in the common room. "Fine!" Graham laughed, shoving his friends off. "He isn't coming over here, is he?" Olive frowned, as Graham approached their table.

"Jill.. Can I speak to you for a moment?" He swallowed nervously, and Jill turned to Olive and Sage in confusion. "Go." Olive whispered, and Jill followed him out of the library. "There's no way he's asking her to the ball.." Sage stared after them. "Graham pretty much bullied her."

A couple of minutes later, Jill returned, very red in the face. As she sat down, Sage noticed how stiff and uncoordinated she was, and had to bite back a laugh. "Graham just asked me to the ball.." She exhaled. "And I said yes." She buried her head in her hands. 

"No.." Sage and Olive gasped, as Cedrics eyes flickered towards Sage. "I thought he hated you?" Olive gaped. "So did I." Jill clutched her chest, swallowing hard. 

"Actually, Sage. I was wondering if you wanted to meet me in the astronomy tower after dinner?" Cedric whispered to Sage. "Oh- actually, i'm super tired, maybe another day." She smiled sheepishly. 

Although Sage was tired, she had enough energy to meet him. Sage assumed that his inviting her meant he found out that Harper was her date, and she couldn't enter into a discussion over it, until after he'd asked Cho.

"Oh." Cedric looked taken aback by her refusal. "Okay, no. That's fine, another day." He smiled. Sage could tell he wanted to say something else, so she quickly returned to her homework while Jill and Olive discussed Graham's unexpected proposal.

At dinner that night, Cedric asked Sage again if she was feeling up to meeting her. Sage told him she was still tired, and for the remainder of dinner had to exaggerate her exhaustion, as to not draw suspicions to herself.

Sage also had to keep her distance from Harper all through dinner, in case he brought up the ball, and she was exposed. However, as the group made their way back to the common room, Harper ambushed her.

"Sage." Harper smiled, grabbing her wrist and drawing her to the back of the group, which unfortunately, Cedric noticed. Sage watched as Cedric's eyes flickered down to Harpers hand, which was clasped gently around her wrist.

"Why did Cedric want to meet you at the astronomy tower..?" He asked when they were out of earshot. "I think he found out you're my date. Can you not say anything until he asks Cho? I don't want to start and argument until I have to, and i'll need to use his asking Cho out against him." She sighed.

"You're not going to tell him until he asks Cho?" Harper frowned. "No. Sorry, Harper." She didn't know why she was apologising, but Harper seemed hurt that she wasn't telling Cedric, so she did it anyway.  "No, it's fine." He shrugged. "Have you got a dress yet?" 

"Not yet." She shook her head. "You'll look beautiful, no matter what you wear." He whispered into her ear, and she felt her face heat up. "Thank you.."

When they arrived at the common room, Sage bade her friends goodnight. She had to be convincing. When Olive and Jill met her in their dorm a few minutes later, she had to explain why she was not actually sleeping. 

----

By the time the Christmas holidays had rolled around, Sage, Jill and Olive had all bought their dresses. Almost everyone had stayed behind to attend the ball, and Sage found herself being asked out regularly to the ball. A lot of these times, Cedric was with her.

"I'm really sorry, i've already got a date.." Sage told a Durmstrang boy, who had asked her out. "It is okay.." he nodded humbly. Sage had no idea who the boy was, but she was glad he took the rejection so well. Others had not been so gracious. 

"He was nice." Sage watched as the boy walked away, continuing her conversation with Cedric. "You need to hurry up and ask someone." Sage laughed. "I've been trying to." He sighed. Sage didn't know what he'd meant, surely Cho would have leapt at the opportunity. 

----

"SAGE!" Olive burst into the room, two days before Christmas Eve. "Sage! You'll never believe what I just saw!" She panted, dropping to the floor and clutching her heaving chest, panting. "I-- I just saw.. I just saw Cedric ask Cho to the Yule- to the Yule ball." She tried to catch her breath.

"You did not." Jill sat up. "I did! I know that we knew he'd ask her.. But it still came as a shock." She shook her head sadly. "Tell us everything." Sage got up and sat beside Jill.

"So I ran into peeves on the seventh floor, and he was walking around with this bucket of water. So, of course, I ran away. I thought he'd probably dump it on my head if he saw me, so I slipped into the next corridor, and hid in between these pillars. But, then!" She paused for dramatic effect.

"I saw Cedric and Cho at the end of the corridor, and they were talking. So, of course I moved closer, still hiding, though. Don't worry." She clarified.

"They were looking out the window and talking about snow, and then Cedric just asked her. He said, and I quote 'Cho, would you like to go to the ball with me?' It wasn't very original." Olive concluded. "And I was shocked, honey. I was.. In tears." She shook her head. 

"I crept away, and then ran all the way here. I ran into peeves again, but I didn't stop, I was that desperate to get here. I could've been soaked, but I didn't care. This was more important." Olive puffed her chest out.

"I knew he'd ask her." Sage groaned. "It took him a while, though. Didn't it? I mean, its two days until the dance." Jill frowned. "He told me he'd been trying to ask someone, so he probably just never had the right time, till now. He must've been freaking out." Said Sage.

"I can't wait to get all dressed up and dance with Harper. I'll get to spend time with Harper and piss of Cedric. Killing two birds with one stone." Sage sighed, laying back on the bed. "I hate liking two boys at the same time, it hurts." She pouted.

"At least now you admit it."