23 The Valentine's Day Ball

Cedric and the twins were dressed in traditional wizarding robes, ready for the ball. They looked adorable as they waited for Agustus and their dates.

Cedric had been asked by many first-year girls, which made him really distressed and indecisive. The twins had suggested that he go with Cho Chang, a first-year Ravenclaw who had a crush on him according to the twins.

Fred and George, on the other hand, had easily approached Alicia Spinnet and Angelina Johnson, who were both future Quidditch players and agreed to go with them.

There was something special about Angelina. She could always tell George apart from Fred, even though they were identical.

"Ah, Agustus is sure late. Look, even the girls are ready," Fred said, glancing at the clock.

"Yup, it looks like the prince of Slytherin is taking his time," George said, teasing their friend.

Cedric laughed and said, "More like the isolated prince. Nobody approaches him, not even the pure-blood group. They all stay away from him."

They were referring to the incident that had happened in the Great Hall. After that, the parents of the other students had advised them not to approach him rashly. As for the house ties, they left it to the lords to handle.

"Sup, guys?" They heard Agustus's voice and turned around to see him and Dora holding hands.

Agustus was wearing a dark maroon waistcoat and robes that looked like a combination of a jacket and a cloak. He looked very handsome and elegant. He was also wearing the resurrection stone ring that he had commissioned the goblins to remake, and they had done an exceptional job.

Dora looked like a princess in her light pink dress that suited her perfectly. She was wearing silver earrings that sparkled in the light. She smiled brightly as she saw the others.

The twins and Cedric were amazed by the sight of Agustus and Dora, who had arrived at the Ball together.

Cedric glared at Agustus and said, "We waited for you here, and you betrayed your brothers and left us for your girlfriend."

Agustus shrugged and said, "Looking good, poster boy of Hufflepuff. Are the three of you starting a boy band or something?"

Cedric bristled at being called poster boy, and the twins laughed at his expense.

Just then, Cho appeared, wearing a sky blue dress that complemented her dark hair and eyes. Cedric's face turned red as he saw her, and George and Fred teased him mercilessly.

Alicia and Angelina also joined them, wearing red and brown dresses respectively. They looked stunning and confident, and the twins walked with them.

With everyone gathered, they made their way towards the ballroom.

As they arrived at the ballroom, they saw students gathering in groups and Hogwarts faculty at the centre. Professor Dumbledore was chatting with Minister Bagnold, who had come to attend the event.

A special singer had been hired by the Ministry for the occasion. His name was Lorcan d'Eath, a part-vampire wizard who was widely fancied by witches. He had spent nineteen weeks at number one with his hit song "Necks to You."

The ball was about to start. Professor Dumbledore raised his hand and announced, "Let the ball begin!" Students cheered and began dancing with their respective partners.

Agustus looked at Dora, who shyly took his hand and followed him to the dance floor. She had not been feeling well at the last Ministry ball, but this time she was determined to enjoy herself with Agustus.

The twins and Cedric also took their dates and started dancing. They were having a lot of fun, laughing and joking with each other.

The Minister of Magic was standing on the side, sipping red wine. She was wearing a blue dress that accentuated her features, and many boys were stealing glances at her.

As Agustus and Dora swayed to the music, they felt a connection between them. They smiled and gazed into each other's eyes. After a while, Dora got tired and asked him to take a break.

Agustus and Dora made their way to a table and sat down. They were about to have a conversation, when they heard a voice from the side.

"You two danced really well." It was the Minister of Magic, who had approached them.

Dora was a little surprised and flattered. She said, "Thank you, Madam Minister."

The Minister smiled at her, then turned to Agustus and said, "It's nice to see you again, Heir Peverell. I hope you remember we agreed to have a meeting."

Agustus nodded and said, "Of course I remember, Minister. How could I forget?"

The Minister of Magic gave him a coy smile and said, "Well, Heir Peverell, I've been sitting here since the beginning of the ball, and nobody asked me to dance. Would you like to have a dance with me?" She pretended to be a pitiful soul.

Agustus laughed. He said, "Sure, Minister. It would be my honour." He got up and offered his hand to her.

Dora watched them go, feeling a pang of jealousy. She wondered what the Minister wanted from Agustus.

At the dance floor, the minister of magic and Agustus drew a lot of attention.

Agustus had grown a little taller than her, and they made a striking pair.

They danced for a few minutes, when the minister whispered to Agustus, "So, Dumbledore is supporting that idiot Fudge, and Crouch is out of the picture, right?"

Agustus, whose hand was on her waist, smiled at hearing this and said, "Oh, is the beautiful and strong minister of magic worried?" as they continued dancing.

She laughed lightly at his carefree response and said, "Who wouldn't be? He is the greatest wizard alive."

'At what? Spoiling his robes? Agustus really regrets not taking a picture of dumbledore that time, it would have been a legendary photo' thought Agustus, but he kept silent.

Agustus said "So?"

"Just a lot of pressure on me Heir Peverell" sighed Magic of minister.

She stopped for few seconds, then She continues "Malfoy stopped targeting the Greengrass family recently. You visited them, didn't you?"

Agustus was still smiling, but his eyes were cold. "Oh, keeping tabs on me, minister?" He didn't liked that.

The minister just laughed at his expression and said, "You're new to politics, heir Peverell, I forget sometimes your 11 Year old. I just made a guess, and you confirmed my suspicions. You should take some lessons from me about politics. I can be a great teacher."

The minister of magic had only suspected this, as it had taken a lot of Malfoy's wealth to keep the Greengrass family at bay, and they had suddenly stopped their feud. There had to be a third party involved, which she guessed was Agustus.

Agustus sighed at his mistake and said, "Well then, professor, I will see you in the summer?"

The minister smiled at Agustus and said, "See you later, then, my dear student."

She was about to leave when Agustus said to her "Dumbledore may not support fudge..? Who knows?"

Hearing this she looked at his face and a big stunning smile appears on her face.

She kissed him on his left cheek and left him on the dance floor.

The students who witnessed this were shocked and many boys were envious of Agustus.

Agustus then approached Dora, who suddenly took his hand and ran out of the ball. Agustus was surprised by her action.

They ran towards the Room of Requirement together. Once inside, she took her handkerchief and wiped the lipstick off Agustus' face and said, "That old witch, she kissed you."

Dora was really angry at the minister right now but she looked so adorable, her hair had turned red.

After making sure there was no trace of lipstick, she kissed Agustus on both his cheeks and said, "Don't wipe them off." She was claiming Agustus as her own territory, little did she know the future...

After that, Agustus dropped her off at the Hufflepuff house.

After leaving Dora, Agustus apparated to his room in Drakul Manor, where he had a special reason to be excited. Today was the day that the egg of the Ice Phoenix would hatch.

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Question:

If given a choice to buy one bike or one car. You don't have to worry about the money for the car or gas, diesel, patrol or whatever. Which car or bike will you buy?

Seeya