Julia smiled and nodded,"We can get something to drink." She said,"I still have time to figure out the gift ideas." She thanked the witches who had helped them and went with him outside, looking around. She didn't get to come to Hogsmeade too much and liked to look around when she could.

---

Frank looked at it and then ant Caelum,"I can look for something else if you would like to give her the bracelet." He said,"But I think she'll love anything you give her."

"To the Three Broomsticks it is!" Aren't announced as he started marching through the snow.

As soon as he sat down with the mug of butterbeer in front of him, he started asking questions.

"So do you have a gift ready for me?"
"What are our friends names?"
"Are they pretty? Psshh, I'm sure they're pretty."
"Do they know we're Slytherins?"
"Would they be alright going to the ball with Slytherins?"
"How much butterbeer could you drink?"
"Ever tried drinking a whole carton of fire whiskey?"

---

"No, you give that to her." He told his friend as he looked back at the gift he chose for her. "And you're right. She's that type of person. She's ... she's too good that it feels unreachable."

Julia giggled,"One at a time." She said, trying to calm him. She answered his questions:

"Yes I have a gift ready for you and no I won't tell you what it is."
"My friends are Olivia Lovegood and Amira Patil."
"I think they are pretty, but you'll have to judge for yourself."
"Yes they know you are Slytherins."
"Yes they would be alright going with Slytherins."
"I don't know, I don't usually drink very much butterbeer."
"No, I don't think I could handle that much honestly."

---

Frank blinked a bit. He never heard Caelum talk like that about any girl before. He smiled,"You really do like her, don't you?" He asked gently,"If you don't like anything here, we can always keep looking."

Aren grinned as soon as he heard Amira Patil's name escape Julia's lips. "Seriously?! The Amira Patil?!" He stood from his seat and rejoiced. "Yeah!" he celebrated then started showering Julia with his unconditional love gratitude. "You're the best, Julia!"

---

"No. This is it. It's just ... I don't think it's enough." He sighed as he walked to the counter, paid, and left with Frank. As soon as they stepped outside and felt the snow crunch beneath their shoes, he sighed yet again. "Just because I bought her a gift means that I like her?" he scoffed.

He paused to remember the previous week, especially the 'grand tournament' that was help in the Slytherin Dungeons. "Do I ... Do I really like her?"

Julia giggled,"I guess you're excited about taking Amira?" She said, watching his excitement,"I'm glad. She and Olivia are my best friends, so you and Frank better not offend them too much." She made sure to have a playful look on her face,"I just hope everyone has a good time at the dance. I'm really looking forward to it." She pulled her red hair up in a ponytail,"I honestly wasn't expecting to be asked."

---

Frank looked at him,"You invited her to the big dance... You worry about what to get her for Christmas... You blush lightly when anyone says her name and you always have such an innocent look when you talk to her." He said to his friend gently,"To me, that's what it seems. And if you do, that's wonderful. If you don't you shouldn't really play with a girl's emotions like that."

"Wasn't expecting to be asked." Aren muttered. "Julia, if only you'd seen him. Ever since the beginning of the school year, he's been acting different. In the years past, he wouldn't have cared where you were or who you were riding the carriage with. Especially not hexing almost half the Slytherin population for you." He grinned as he shook his head. "That dense boy. Didn't even know why he always looked around for you. Didn't even know he was changing."

"It's all on Frank and me, you see, to decode the mystery that is Caelum Malfoy's thinking process. We have both concluded that he is a very calculative person, but bring a Potter to the equation and he just stops ... well ... working. He, as muggles say, 'short circuits'." He winked at her. "Ever since they announced we'd be having a Yule Ball, Frank and I already made bets on when he'd ask you. And guess what," he paused for dramatic effect, "I won three hundred galleons."

---

"An- An innocent look?" Caelum stuttered, imagining a cherub with his face on it. He shivered. "Me, a Malfoy, putting on an innocent look whenever I talk to her?" He scoffed. "Impossible."

He paused and thought for a moment until he asked Frank a rather pressing question. "Please tell me that I didn't look like a love-struck puppy that just found a perfectly seared steak on a platter. That I, at least, had a decent look on my face."

Julia listened, looking a bit surprised,"I see..." She said, feeling a bit bad that he seemed to be changing because of her,"I wonder if all of this is a good thing. I didn't want any problems for him, especially with his housemates. I just wanted us to stop acting like we hated each other when there was no reason to. And knowing he got attacked like that, partly because of associating with me, really bothers me..."

---

Frank laughed,"No, nothing at all like that." He said,"It's your usual Malfoy smirk. It's just not as full of cunning as it usually would be when it's for Julia." He patted his back,"Look, in the end, I just want you and Julia to be happy... whether it's you guys just as friends, or you guys dating."

Aren went silent for a while before speaking again. "Actually ... We appreciate the change. Caelum's never been the happy carefree kind. He was always so mindful of what others thought of him. Pff, you know how the Malfoys are. They're so ... Malfoy-ey." He shrugged as he chugged down the last of his butterbeer. "He needs more people who care about him in his life, especially when Frank and I aren't around. So, thank you, Julia." He said with a very sincere tone in his voice.

Suddenly, his face turned to grin. "Now let's go shopping for those gifts. Have you gotten a gift for Amira? I know of a scarf that would look absolutely perfect on her!"

---

"Dating ..." He echoed, a certain pink tinge creeping onto his cheeks and the tip of his ears. A side effect of th cold, he would reason if he knew that he was blushing. "As if Julia would date me." He sulked, immediately denying the possibility.

Julia giggled,"OOoooh no not yet, let's go!" She said, letting Aren lead the way,"Heck I ought to buy a bunch of new clothes anyway since I have a friend who knows fashion." She said,"Would you want to help me?" She giggled.

---

Frank smiled,"I know she would." He said,"She's told me that herself, just yesterday when we were in class and we were partners. I wasn't supposed to tell you, but since you seemed to be in a bit a doubt... you know now." He looked at Caelum,"That was why she was surprised you asked her to the dance... the reason she took it so hard that you seemed to hate her after before... she really cares about you, Caelum...Don't let pride and worrying about what others think interfere with your happiness..."

"Lead the way!" Aren gestured towards the doorway as he stood up from his seat.

---

Caelum had blushed all shades of pink after hearing what Frank said and later cleared his throat. "E-enough of this subject. We've bought the gifts. I don't think there's anything else to buy. Do you know where Julia and Aren are?"