The rest of the day the castle was full of nothing but the news that Caelum was attacked by his own house mates and even cursed with an unforgivable curse. Julia had been heading to the library when she heard the news and was stunned that they would do that to him, as he almost was always considered as a god to Slytherins when they were younger. She wanted so badly to see him, to hug him and tell him things would be alright, that she was so sorry for everything. But she couldn't. After that dementor attack, she never knew how much life could change. She never thought she would start to dislike being at Hogwarts, and now this was one of those times.

She thought about talking to Frank and Aren... But she couldn't. Aren probably hated her guts right now like most Slytherins did and Frank... She didn't know about Frank. Frank was always such a nice guy and she was always willing to chat with him. But she wasn't sure if he would want to now.

After she did some studying, for the first time since the attack, Julia wanted to sit outside for a while. She went back into the common room, bundled up in warm clothes since it was snowing outside, and went down the stairs passed the great hall, and out onto the castle steps. There was a light snow falling as she sat down on the stone steps, rubbing her face and wishing she knew what to do in this situation. This was the one time her knowledge on most things absolutely failed her. 'What do I do?' She thought to herself,'What do I do...?'

Corvus and Dorothea Malfoy demanded for Caelum to leave Hogwarts to stay at the manor when they received the news of his attack and stormed the headmaster's floo when he refused to go home. "I have things to fix." was the only reason he gave apart from reassurances that he will be alright now that the seventh year was going to be put on trial for using an unforgivable. He had somehow managed to convince his parents to continue their plans of visiting Aunt Amelie but with the condition of sending them letters every day.


It was snowing that day, and Caelum had never before been so happy to be a sixth year with a time table that barely even existed consisting of only five subjects. He was walking through the halls when he noticed a certain someone sitting on the steps outside. He had stopped moving then as he continued to look at her, taking in the vision of her since it's been a while since he last saw her.

"What are you looking at? Something interesting outsi-"
"Shush, Aren! He's having a moment!"
"A moment? What momen- oooohhhh."

He walked towards her until he could feel the snow crunching beneath his shoes. He stood between her and the doors where his two friends stood, anticipating. "So ... What brings you here on this snowy day?" He paused, looking at his polished shoes, his breath misting over the green and white scarf tied around his neck. "I came here to ... Well, i didnt really plan to. I just happened to be - ... Uh, well ... You see ... Im ... I'm sorry about ... Well, about everything. It was wrong of me to suddenly ignore you. And with those two by the door taking on the role as bodyguards, I've started to ... Well ..."

"I've missed you."

Julia was silent for a few moments. She didn't really know what to say. A lot of things were running through her mind right now. The first thing she wanted to do was hug him and cry. Then she wanted to hit him and yell at him for how he made her feel. She also started to remember how much his reputation meant to him, and how that fight was because he was talking to her. That really broke her heart, as she had friends in Slytherin and she had never thought that was a problem before. But now, now she wondered if house really mattered when it came to friends or people you cared about.

"I know they cursed you because of me." She said softly, in a broken, hollow sort of voice,"And I know how much your reputation means to you."She let out a soft sigh,"I had done a lot of thinking...and even though I missed you very much too...maybe it would be better if I just stopped bothering you. Then your housemates wouldn't want to attack you for being friends with a Potter. Then things can go back to the way they were supposed to be, with us not talking and sticking to our own houses. " She slowly got to her feet, dusting snow off her,"I've really missed you too... Probably more than I really want to admit." She added,"I just don't want more trouble for you... just because of me."

"It may not have seemed like it, but everyone's been after my head since the beginning. Who in Slytherin couldn't resist taking down the Malfoys, after all? The house of snakes has always been that way, trying to take down whoever is on top. They may respect you at the beginning, but soon they'd want to feel like how it is on top themselves." Caelum took a few steps closer to her. "They've had no reason to go against me for the past five years, always bidding their time, waiting for me to make a mistake - so when they saw the chance to finally get at me, they took it."

"Those stares, those pranks - they don't bother me. That one instance with the unforgivable was due to happen since my family sent his father to Azkaban. So don't you ever think that any of this is your fault or that you're any trouble for us. Even Aren, at one point, admitted that he missed seeing you around."

"Hey!"

Caelum smirked that Malfoy smirk that every Malfoy seemed to have inherited. "I've grown tired of being called the Slytherin Prince, anyway." He stepped even closer to her, close enough to see the snowflakes landing on her eyelashes. "Let them hex at me, glare at me, turn my pumpkin juice into that disgusting carrot extract. What's the worst they can do anyway? Tell their fathers about it? I have two very loyal body guards with more brawn than brains."

"Hey! I'm not that stupid!"
"Hush it, Aren!"

"Now that I've spoken my piece and have hopefully convinced you ... Miss Julia Potter, will you go with me to the Yule Ball?"

(( Kinda fast, but oh well ))

Julia listened to his words sadly. She hated that he was bullied like that in his own house. She couldn't help but smile when he said that they missed her. She was thankful Frank and Aren were looking out for him, especially after that attack. "I wanted to visit you after that attack." She murmured quietly,"But I was afraid. I didn't think you'd want to see me anyway." She could accept his apology; She had missed them, all three of them. She let out a soft gasp of surprise when Caelum asked her to the Yule Ball. She couldn't help but blush in excitement and nod,"Of course I'll go with you." She said with a smile. She leaned over and hugged him gently,"I'm just so glad your okay." She whispered to him,"I heard about the attack and cried for hours.."

Caelum froze when she had hugged him. He was surprised, to say the least. But he quickly regained his composure and held her in his arms, albeit reluctantly since he's never hugged anyone like that before. "A misfit like me does not deserve your tears," he reassured her, as he pulled her away to look straight into her eyes.

He looked at her avada-green orbs for a moment before smiling a smile that one would not expect from a Malfoy. It seemed brilliant and innocently happy, all the signs of sarcasm and cunningness gone. "Now let's get back into the castle before the cold of winter takes us both." He paused for a while before he groaned, remembering his two friends watching by the door. He could hear their unending sniggers that they tried to muffle with their hands. "Those two won't let me hear the end of things. They'd be blabbering until the early morning, I'm sure of it."

As he was making the few steps back to the castle with Julia in tow, he remembered the tiny details required for the Yule Ball. "Do you have dress robes ready? If not, we could always go to Hogsmeade. ... ... Do you even know how to dance, Po- Julia?" He showed a playful smirk. "Wouldn't want you stepping on my toes."

"Yes you do." Julia said softly,"You are a friend and someone I care about. That shows you more than deserve them." She nodded in agreement about heading back into the castle, as it was getting colder as time went on. When she mentioned his friends, she smiled,"True, they might tease." She said,"But that just means if a girl ever shows interest in them, you can tease them right back."

When he mentioned dress robes, Julia shook her head,"No, I'll have to get some." She said,"Honestly, when I first heard about the dance I wasn't sure if I would go really. I could have gone to experience it but I felt it would have been more fun to go with someone, so I didn't bring any with me. I never really thought anyone would ask me really...."When he mentioned knowing how to dance, Julia crossed her arms playfully,"I should be asking you the same." She teased

Caelum raised an eyebrow at her teasing. "Surely you jest! A Malfoy, not educated in the ways of the elite and noble? Preposterous!" He harumphed comedically, ending in a chuckle.

"Did Caelum just make a joke?"
"Aye, I think he did."

"I can hear you two quite clearly from here." Caelum scolded as he looked back at his two friends. "That reminds me ... Frank, your dress shoes have been destroyed by your toad recently, haven't they?"

"Huh? Yeah. What about it?"

"Julia's dress robes and your shoes. I've received news that Twillfit and Tatting's has opened a shop in Hogsmeade and this weekend has been appointed as a Hogsmeade weekend." He turned to Julia. "Would the lady be willing to have us accompany you or would you rather look for dress robes with your friends? Now that I think about it ... Aren would not be a good companion to bring along when looking for anything to buy."

"Hey!"

Julia couldn't help but giggle at the joke. She couldn't hold back a smile when he mentioned it being Hogsmeade weekend,"Thank goodness it's Hogsmeade weekend." She said,"I plan to do some Christmas shopping as well. Just to get a few things for friends as some of the best things can only be found in Hogsmeade." She already knew what to get for Frank, something for his toad. But she would have to ask Caelum what Aren might like for Christmas. He'd ask later if they were alone anytime then to do so.

"I would love to go with you guys to Hogsmeade." Julia said with a smile,"I've missed spending time with you guys and I could use a break from studying... It's all I've done since the dementor attack." Her smile fell for a moment,"I think I worried a lot of people after that attack." She said in a lowered voice,"I think it had affected me a bit too..."

"What's done is done now. Yes, there was a dementor in the school grounds and we lived through it. I think it's time to leave it in the past." He smiled comfortingly at her right before noticing a Slytherin at one end of the hallway twitching his head, signaling that he wanted to 'have a talk'. "Now you've worried your friends enough. You had me worried, how much more for your friends?"

He made to nudge her towards the Ravenclaw tower. "Now go spend some time with them and make sure to tell them that these two are still looking for dates to the Yule Ball." He grinned while his two friends glares arrows into the back of his skull. I was true though, being Malfoy's bodyguard took the social part of their life and threw it down the drain, giving them no time to look for dates to the ball.


As soon as he was sure that Julia was out of ear's reach, he would show those snakes just why he, and all previous Malfoy heirs, were called the Slytherin Prince. He may no longer care for the title, true, but when one would think about it, having an extra buffer to guard him from attacks would help him greatly.