It's that time again! Yet another chapter, I'm sorry this took me so long, but I wanted this to be a Christmas present to you guys. Kiiiinda late on that one….BUT I wanted to thank you all for reading this and supporting me.

So, also wanted to tell you all that I am going to continue this series: possibly through the whole 7 books. We shall see! So for one final question, do you guys want a prequel, or to just continue from here? PM me or leave a review as response! Thank you all so much!

All the characters and places mentioned in this fanfiction belong to J.K. Rowling. They are not my own except for my character!

Sorry for any misspellings or grammatical errors. Reviews are welcome and appreciated, but please be nice. Enjoy Chapter 9!

Chapter 9

The Perfect Dress

Winter went from being bloody cold and bare to beautiful and warm in the span of 2 minutes. After an awkward "goodbye" and "see you in Herbology", I found myself pinching my arm to make sure what I had just witnessed wasn't a dream.

Harry asked me to the ball…

Harry-effing Potter asked ME to the Yule Ball.

My head was spinning and I felt faint, and yet I felt so ecstatic at the same time. I couldn't believe it, I just couldn't believe it. Everything just felt too good to be true. The, before I could compose myself, another knock came on the door and Hermione barged in.

"What did he say?!" she squealed, grabbing my shoulders and shaking me, "He was asking for you all day, and when I told him you were in the dormitory, he went running! RUNNING, Bella!"

An enormous grin spread across my face again. He was asking for me..?

I laughed and tried to compose myself as I recounted what had occurred just a few minutes ago. By the time I was finished, my face had turned red again and my knees were threatening to buckle underneath me.

Hermione grinned softly, "Oh Bella…that's so romantic. Which is funny…Harry sucks at romance."

We laughed until our stomachs hurt, and then Hermione got up and raced to gather my robes from my bed.

"What are you doing?" I asked, puzzled at her sudden quickness.

"Get dressed, we're going shopping!" she commanded, grabbing my hand and throwing my sweater and tie at me.

I stared at her in disbelief, "You are way too excited. What happened to my sensible Hermione?"

She scoffed and chucked my robe at my face. Laughing, I dodged, but the robe brushed my hair.

"I'm still sensible. Besides, this is a once in a life time event. I have a right to be excited." She turned and smiled at me. It was a smile I had never seen her use, a girly, sweet smile. One every woman knows.

"Who are you going with then?" I smirked, pulling on my stockings and woolen skirt. "Ron?" I chuckled at her.

Her face flushed as she whipped around to face me, "No! I am not!..." She twiddled her thumbs, "I going with…umm…Krum. Victor Krum."

I raised my eyebrows in surprise, "But what happened to-"

"Never mind that, Bella. It doesn't matter." She huffed.

I stared at her for a moment as I put on my sweater, and then shrugged. If she wanted to talk about it, she would sooner or later.

Hermione headed for the door, "Come along then! We're going to pick out a dress for you. We only have a few days after all, and I'm sure all the good dresses will be gone if we don't hurry!"

Buttoning my robe, I rolled my eyes. To be honest, I hated shopping unless it was for books or animals, but I sighed, gritted my teeth to humor Hermione, and followed her out the dorm door.

Remember how I said that winter had gotten warmer? As soon as we stepped out of the castle, I knew I was wrong.

Hermione insisted we go to Hogsmeade that very minute to go dress shopping before nightfall. I thought she was bloody insane. The wind whipped around us and snow blew into our faces, making it hard to see as we trudged down the covered stone path to the little town below. We slowly made our way through the clustered buildings to Gladrags Wizardwear, a clothing shop for the nearby wizards.

I ripped off my scarf, huffing and shivering from the cold, "Hermione, you're bloody insane.." I mumbled.

"Oh don't get your dragon tail in a twist." She retorted, "We'll only be here a few minutes, I promise."

Hermione grabbed my hand and scurried us off to the dress robes section, eyeing each colorful gown closely.

She picked through the racks and pulled out a blue ball gown, "What do you think of this one?" she asked, inspecting the bodice.

"For yourself or me?" I chuckled, shaking my head. I absolutely hated ball gowns.

She crinkled her nose, as if smelling a fowl odor, "I thought not…" she mumbled, "Well, go on over there, see what you can find!" She pointed over to another rack and began sifting through another rack.

I meandered over to the lines of glittering dress robes and began dissecting the store's contents. I ditched the idea of ball gowns and mermaid dresses and decided on a sleek yellow and green A-line and a flowing purple gown. I threw the two dresses over my back and walked toward the changing rooms in the back corner of the shop.

"Are those your choices?" The voice made me jump and whirled to find Hermione with a large white box in her hands.

"Jeez Hermione," I mumbled, "Yeah…this is what I've got." I pointed to the box in her hands. "Did you already buy yours? That was quick."

She shrugged and smiled, "I knew what I wanted." She glanced at the dresses and ushered me toward the dressing room. "Go on, I'll help you decide."

I filed myself into the cramped space that was meant for dressing and hung my dresses upon the hook. As I removed my cloak and sweater, I decided to go with the yellow and green gown first. The dress was floor length with a mixture of yellow and evergreen fabrics. The colors molded together, making the dress almost look misty. It sparkled slightly and had a full skirt with pickups that folded up to the hip to a forest green flower with small twigs for decoration. The bodice rouged around the middle and came up around my neck into a halter. The bodice too, sparkled with small crystals lining the neck. The dress gave off a sort of an earthy feel, which I loved, being the tree hugger and creature lover I was.

I walked out in the gown and gave myself a little spin to show off the dress to Hermione. She placed her hand on her chin in thought and then began to inspect my face.

"I don't think you love it." She finally said.

I gave her a look, "I'm not going to love anything I put on, Hermione. The question is: Can I tolerate it?" I chuckled as she scoffed and waved her hand.

"It isn't you. Not the design anyway. Too…princessy and…sparkly." she said.

I nodded in agreement. I really wasn't me. It was pretty, and would suit a more girly-girl, but not my tom-boyish self.

I quickly relieved myself of the fairy dress and put on the sleek purple one. To be quite honest, this was the one I liked most. Purple was a neutral color, dark and mysterious, built for a shy person like me.

I walked out in the flowing gown and Hermione gasped. Her eyes widened and she smiled at me. "Isabella…you look beautiful…" She breathed.

The dress was off the shoulder, coming down around my breasts into a heart-shaped neckline, it had a few crystals, but not too flashy like the other dress. The silk bodice laced up the back and came down into a deep purple skirt that flowed when I moved. I felt like I was walking on a cloud…

I blushed slightly, "Do you…really think so?" I asked hesitantly, looking at myself in the mirror next to the rooms.

"Oh Bella, this is your dress. You look gorgeous!" She squealed, taking my hand and joining me in staring at myself in the mirror.

I smirked, "Harry is going to fall flat on his arse."

Hermione laughed and shoved me toward the dressing room, "Okay Miss Sudden-Confidence, go get undressed and we'll buy it."

I laughed with her and did as I was told. We soon left the quiet store and wrestled with the blizzard on the way back to the castle. We met the boys back in the common room and talked for a while before we said our goodnights and went to bed, with Harry escorting me to the girl's dorm.