"Hey Reg, are you going to the yule ball this year?" Pandora asked without looking up from her book
Regulus hated the yule ball. It was all anyone talked about from the second Halloween was over.
He never attended it. Nobody had ever asked him to go with them and he was not going by himself.
And the only person he wanted to ask was hung up on someone else, asking her consistently every year.
James Potter.
"No" Regulus answered
"Why Reg? You never go and it's so much fun!" Pandora mused
"It's just not my thing Dora. Just stop bugging me about it, ok?" Regulus snapped
"Ok" Pandora said with an eyebrow quirked
~
"Right boys, I have brought you here today for a very important mission! You are going to help me ask Regulus to the yule ball!" James said as he pointed to the whiteboard that he had transfigured from a book.
On the whiteboard were the words 'Operation: Help James ask Regulus to the yule ball'
"Well, one thing I know for sure is that Regulus hates big public gestures. I'd definitely make sure it is just going to be the two of you. And don't do what you did to Lily last year." Sirius commented
"Why don't you pick a place that means a lot to both of you?" Remus suggested
"Yeah, like me! I'm going to ask Sybill in the divination classroom where we first met" Peter shared
"Thanks for the advice guys" James said
That night as James was lying in his bed he pondered all the advice the boys had given him.
He thought back to the summer holidays, when Regulus had moved into his house after running away from Grimmauld Place.
He remembered he saw Regulus reading a book on floriography with an intense focus. He even remembered the meanings of some of the flowers Regulus had told him about.
And that's when he got an idea.
He rushed over to his trunk and pulled out a quill and a piece of parchment. He wrote a note and stuffed it in his pocket before grabbing the invisibility cloak and leaving the room.
The green house was easy enough to sneak into, and the flowers were even easier to find.
~
"Regulus!" James shouted from across the hall beside running over to him
"What is it, Potter?" Regulus asked
Instead of responding, James just handed him a note and walked away. Regulus then unfolded it, eager to find out it's contents.
The note read:
'Meet me on the quidditch pitch at 7pm tonight. And bring your broom.'
JFP.
"What does he want?" Regulus thought
He wondered if it was a prank, or if James simply wanted some late night quidditch practice. Whether it was the former or the latter, it would be better if Regulus didn't bother showing up.
But something inside of him was telling him to go anyway.
And for once, he was going to take that risk.
~
The cold December air hit Regulus as soon as he left the castle.
A huge cloud of dread hung over him as he walked to the quidditch pitch. He was absolutely certain he was about to face total humiliation.
When he got to the pitch, James's face lit up instantly.
"Hi Regulus" James said
"Why did you tell me to come here?" Regulus wondered
"I'll show you" James said as he mounted his broom
"You'll show me?" Regulus asked, confused
Oh this was definitely some sort of prank.
But as James started to fly upwards on his broom, Regulus did the same.
Once they were up at a height that James deemed high enough, James brought out his wand and pointed it to the ground.
"Herbivicus!" James announced
Regulus watched in wonder as red roses, wisteria and aster flowers began to bloom from the ground below.
Regulus stared in shock for several moments at the words the flowers spelled out.
'Will you go to the yule ball with me?'
He couldn't believe what he was seeing.
His cheeks tinted pink as he looked up at James, who's face was as red as the roses on the ground.
"I'm sorry this was stupid, I shouldn't have asked" James began
"James..." Regulus said before getting cut off by James
"I mean you never even go to the yule ball, why would you want to go with me of all people!" James rambled on
"James." Regulus said, starting to be annoyed at the fact James was not listening to him
"You don't even like me, I'm loud and stupid and annoying. You know what forget I even asked" James concluded as he flew back down to the pitch
"I'll go with you to the bloody ball!" Regulus yelled
James stopped in his tracks, looking up at Regulus with a smile that made his heart melt.
"Wait really?! Do you mean it?!" James asked excitedly
"Yes James, I mean it" Regulus sighed
~
"You look amazing! Did you change your mind on the yule ball?" Pandora asked when after Regulus stepped out of the dorm bathroom in his suit
"Pandora! Stop moving!" Dorcas whined before grabbing Pandora's face to hold it still so she could continue doing her make up
"James asked me to go with him" Regulus beamed
"Haven't you been pining for him for years?" Barty asked
Regulus said nothing in response, instead opting to throw a pillow right at Barty's face.
"What? I'm just telling the truth!" Barty whined
"Yeah, he's not wrong Reg. It's been pretty pathetic to watch" Evan chimed in, earning him a glare from Regulus
"Thank you Rosie" Barty said
"I think it's cute" Dorcas added
All of a sudden, there was a knock on the door.
Barty opened it and stepped aside to let in James, who walked in holding a huge bouquet of flowers. The same flowers that were on the quidditch pitch.
"Hi Regulus, are you ready to go?" James asked
"Merlin, he looks amazing in a suit" Regulus thought
"Yes, James" Regulus said before taking the flowers from him, transfiguring a vase from a cup that had been in the dorm for a considerableamount of time, filling it with water and placing the flowers inside.
~
The Great Hall was beautiful. All the tables were gone, and a huge christmas tree sat in place of the high table. There was an orchestra infront of the tree, playing classical music and twinkling christmas lights were hung all over the room.
"May I have this dance, Mr Black?" James asked, pulling Regulus out of his thoughts
"You may, Mr Potter" Regulus
As they danced, Regulus could only think one thing.
This was the best Christmas present ever.