Kitty's Point of View

"Are you sure you're alright, Georgiana?" I asked my friend, who was still pale from her encounter with none other than Severus Snape. She nodded, but I could see tears in her eyes.

"Tell me what's wrong," I ordered her. Georgiana smiled slightly, but she took a while to speak.

"George…he kissed me."

"Georgiana! You lucky girl!" I shrieked, throwing my arms around her. She weakly patted my back, but I heard her sniffling. "What on earth is the matter?"

"Nothing! I just—can I trust you?"

"Absolutely and completely."

"Thank you. Did…Lizzy ever tell you about…Mr. Wickham?"

"Wickham? I mean, we all learned how bad he was when he seduced Lydia. Is that what you mean?"

"Sort of. I—Kitty, I was almost in Lydia's place at one time."

"You what?!"

Her breath shook as she drew it in, and I just stared at her, spell-bound by this new revelation.

"I almost eloped with Mr. Wickham. I thought that he loved me, and I…thought I loved him."

Everything made sense now. Why Lizzy was so protective of Georgiana, why Georgiana had been holding George at an arm's length, why she was so scared of the kismet that clearly existed between her and George.

"You think George might have the same motives as Wickham?" I guessed. She nodded, letting the tears drip down.

"I—he seems like such a gentleman! He was going to sacrifice all of this for me—I think. But what if he is not what he seems?!"

"Georgiana, why would you think that he isn't?"

"Why would he drag me into a closet and kiss me?!"

"Georgiana, in this place—"

"Excuse me, aren't you Kitty Bennet?" a small voice at my elbow asked me. I glanced down to see one of the first-years gazing up at me hopefully. I smiled at him, and he grinned.

"Yes, I am."

"Then I have to give this letter to you," he said, holding out a thick envelope to me. I snatched it from him eagerly.

"Who sent it?" I demanded. He smiled.

"I'm not supposed to tell."

"Well, thank you anyway," I said, slightly disappointed. He glanced at Georgiana.

"You wouldn't happen to be…." He consulted a folded sheet of paper in front of him. "Miss Darcy?"

She nodded, shock invading her features.

"Well, yes, but—"

"Here you go, then!" he exclaimed, practically throwing the paper at her and running to join his friends.

"Ooh! Let's read yours first!" I shrieked, grabbing the sheet from her. She tried to get it back, but I didn't let her even touch it before reading the whole thing.

Dear Miss Darcy,

I really hope you feel better soon. I'm really grateful for you helping me out. I love Hogwarts, and I'd hate to have to leave, which I would have to do if you hadn't saved me. Please forgive me for what happened in the closet. I really like you, and we were in there, and I just got carried away. Please forgive me. I promise I'll never make you do a prank again. By the way, did you know the Margaret got clean away while we were being caught? The girl's a natural at pranking. She's going to get it soon.

Sincerely,

George Weasley

"Ooh, Georgiana! He likes you so much! He even apologizes!" I crowed loudly, tossing her the paper and watching her avidly read it. Her face turned pale, then red, then finally settled on a lovely rose tint that became her very well.

"I—I can hardly believe it…N-now yours, Kitty," she stammered. I ripped open the seal and read it aloud.

Dear Kitty,

When I got your note, I couldn't help but feel surprised. After all, I hadn't noticed you bestowing any particular favors on me. That's not to say that it didn't gratify me—because it did. It was a pleasant surprise, especially because I have begun to feel something similar for you as of late, and I was wondering exactly how to express my feelings to you. Now, before I continue, I think it would be best if we didn't speak of this outside of our letters. You can give your letters to Georgiana, who can give them to George, who will give them to me. It's not that I'm ashamed of loving you—I just want to make sure that you don't get hurt for being mine.

Sincerely,

You-Know-Who (Not the Voldemort one, the other one)

"Oh! Oh! Oh, he likes me!"

"Who, dear?" Georgiana asked gently, prying the piece of paper from my hands and glancing over it herself. I felt my eyes positively glitter as I whispered,

"Harry Potter!"

"The one…the one with the scar?"

"Isn't he quite the most handsome person you have ever seen?" I demanded, spinning around and clutching the note to my chest. Georgiana's cheeks turned a bright pink.

"I…well, we have different tastes, you know, dear," Georgiana replied, raising her hands to her cheeks as though to cool them down.

"Tall red-heads with crooked smiles and soft hazel eyes?" I teased her, dancing around her and shaking my finger. Her cheeks burned brighter.

"Hey, Kitty Kat!"

I turned around just in time to see Fred, bearing down on me with his arms outstretched.

"Fred! He likes me!" I exclaimed, jumping into his arms. Fred spun me around, laughing.

"That's great! Hey, introduce me to your friend here."

I pouted, disappointed that he hadn't begged for details about Harry Potter liking me.

"This is Georgiana Darcy. Your brother knows her." That set Georgiana blushing. Fred grinned at her.

"Yeah, I know. He talks my bloody ear off about you. Apparently, you're a natural in Potions?"

Georgiana shook her head, blushing even more.

"N-no, not at all. I—You must be Mr. Fred Weasley?"

"At your service. Hey, can I ask you some questions?"

"Well, I have Care of Magical Creatures in a few minutes, but you could walk down with me if you like," Georgiana offered shyly.

"Sure. I have it with you! Should be fun."

I was infuriated—they had completely forgotten me and my triumph! Weren't these two my best friends?! But before I could say anything, they had walked away from me without so much as a farewell how-do-you-do!

Georgiana's Point of View

"How do you feel about George?"

With wide eyes, I stared up at the redhead who held my arm in the crook of his.

"Pardon?"

"How do you feel about him? Do you like him? What do you think about him?"

I felt my cheeks grow red.

"I-I…he has been very kind to me."

"Is that all?"

"No. I think that he is amusing and…quite handsome." Then, I straightened myself up and stared straight at Mr. Fred Weasley. "And I am certain that he is a true gentleman."

He smiled, and I smiled back.

"He thinks you're a real sweetheart, too."

We walked down the hill towards the large cottage in silence for a few moments before I finally asked,

"Why don't you tell Kitty how you feel?"

Fred stumbled and would have tumbled down the hill if I hadn't pulled him back up.

"How did you know that?" he demanded after catching his breath. I shrugged.

"I think just the way that you looked at her."

"Oh." He seemed quite bemused. "She's just so—"

"Gather 'round!" a quite large, hairy man shouted from beside the hut. I drew in a sharp breath, but the giant just smiled at me.

"You must be Miss Darcy! I've been lookin' forward to meetin' ya! Dumbledore says that you should be quite a good student for me! Me name's Rubeus Hagrid—but just call me Hagrid."

I smiled at him and whispered,

"It's nice to meet you, too."

He beamed at me and turned to the rest of the class.

"Today, we'll be meeting a couple o' unicorns. Boys, stand back—they usually prefer girls. Just wait a mo' as I get 'em."

He turned the corner of his hut, and a polite murmur of conversation started up. Fred had stepped to the group of boys, so I was left with the girls—none of whom I knew.

"Excuse me, are you Georgiana?" a girl with quite tan skin asked me. I nodded.

"I'm Alicia. I—George Weasley asked me to look out for you. Sorry if that seems like I'm your keeper or something. He asked me to look after his little sister, too."

Her smiled seemed forced, and I couldn't help but feel a worried yearning in my heart. George trusted this girl this much?

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Alicia. George has been so kind to me. Have you known him for a long time?"

"Oh, the longest. Ever since we got on the train. We're kind of…" she trailed off, her smile growing broad and her expression dreamy.

"Oh, really? You're very lucky—he has been so kind to me," I said mechanically, feeling like an actress who has forgotten her lines. I saw a quick flicker of sympathy cross her face, and she was about to say something when Hagrid said,

"Alright—here they are!"

I gasped as the two pure white creatures galloped into the yard. Hagrid continued speaking,

"They'll come to the person they like most—don't try to encourage them. Just let 'em come. They like people like them—pure."

I watched in absolute astonishment as the two unicorns made their way to me. The taller one pushed his nose against my neck, and I reached up to pet him as I did with my horse at Pemberley. His almost clear eyes stared into mine, and I felt a sense of absolute loss as I thought about George and Alicia. My eyes filled with tears. The unicorn nickered softly in my ear, and I could hear Hagrid complimenting me a lot in the background. But my attention was on this creature. The smaller one was nuzzling my legs, his little nub of a horn bouncing against my knee ever so often. I ran my hand through the taller one's mane.

"You understand me, don't you?" I whispered, resting my forehead against his nose. He responded by nickering once more. Suddenly, I felt a large hand clap on my shoulder, and I glanced up to see Hagrid standing there.

"Class is dismissed, Georgiana. You were wonderful! I've never seen anyone keep their attention for so long." Then, he stared at me in shock. "You cryin'?"

I reached up to feel my cheeks and found that I was. The unicorn nosed my neck again, so I turned back to it.

"What's wrong, Georgiana?" Hagrid asked gently, talking to me as though I was one of his wild animals. I kept my eyes on the unicorn as I whispered,

"It doesn't matter, Hagrid. Really. I'm just being foolish—I…I will be alright eventually."

But he didn't leave my side.

"Ah, thar's no shame in cryin'. Why don't you come in, and I'll fix you a nice pot o' tea?"

I nodded, but I saw the unicorn shed a diamond tear as I walked away from him.

"Can I come back to visit them?" I asked Hagrid as we walked towards his hut. He nodded.

"Oh, sure! But I'll be releasin' 'em back to the Forest in a few days. But I think they'd come back to find you."

I nodded, allowing myself a small smile.

"Now," he said, after putting a kettle on the fire, "suppose you tell me what's got you so upset."

I took in a deep breath before saying softly,

"I have been quite stupid."

"So have we all—but I don't believe ya," he scoffed. I smiled slightly.

"I—When I was fifteen, I almost ran away with a man that I thought was in love with me. In the process, I nearly shamed my older brother. And…I nearly made the same mistake here. At Hogwarts."

"No! I don't believe it!"

"It's true. I…I have fallen in love with—with a boy, but someone has just told me that she already has an understanding with him."

"Aw, c'mon—I'm sure that there's some explanation. Who is he?"

I whispered George's name, hoping that Hagrid wouldn't hear.

"Aw, what are ya on about—George is as free as a bird! Thar's no harm in you lovin' him!"

"But isn't Alicia—"

"Oh. Well, I don't know 'bout that. You should ask him, Georgiana. George wouldn't hurt you by playin' ya—and I don't believe you'd fall for him if he hadn't put himself forward. Am I right?"

I nodded and took a sip of the tea from his huge teacups. Then, I put it down and stood up.

"Thank you, Hagrid. You've helped me a lot. Can I come back and see you some other time?"

He beamed at me.

"Sure! Maybe you could come see me when Hermione comes on Thursdays! You know Hermione, right?"

I shook my head.

"I have not yet had that pleasure. But I will come on Thursday, and perhaps meet her?"

He grinned.

"Perfect! You'll like Hermione—in fact, you two have something in common."

"Oh?"

"Yer both head over heels for a Weasley!"

I laughed, and before I left the hut, I walked up to him and threw my arms around him.

"Thank you, Hagrid. So much," I whispered, feeling tears come to my eyes. He patted my back before pushing me away gently.

"Aw, away with ye," he grumbled gruffly. I smiled over my shoulder at him one last time before leaving the cottage and heading up to the castle. My smile slowly disappeared as I remembered Alicia. She seemed so nice that I felt bad for stepping in between her and George, but if they were together, how could he bring himself to kiss me like that? Even in the moment, he would have remembered his intended, I'm sure. I found that I had no stomach for dinner, so I turned around and gazed over the grounds, looking for a peaceful place to daydream.

I found one.

The lake was a smooth mirror, reflecting my world so well. The only break in its surface was the mast of the Durmstrang ship. I went to sit by a tree whose roots dangled temptingly over the water. If this were Pemberley, I would have no scruples in jumping in. But this was Hogwarts—a public place. And I had to act properly. But, I reasoned selfishly as I stripped off my shoes and socks, there could be no shame in dipping my toes in. Just as my large toe hit the tip of the water, a voice from nearby exclaimed,

"AMAZING!"

I shrieked and grabbed for my discarded shoes and socks. But then someone grabbed my arm.

"No—no, you don't have to leave. Sorry for scaring you, I just get excited about Herbology," a young man in a blue sweater vest apologized. I stared up at him, still clutching my shoes and socks.

"Er…my name is Neville. Neville Longbottom."

He did not seem to have any ill intents, so I smiled shyly at him.

"Hello. I'm Georgiana Darcy," I murmured, subtly trying to hide my ankles among the tree roots. He smiled at me.

"Oh, the one George talks about! You helped him prank Professor Snape. You sure must be brave."

I threw down my socks and shoes and grabbed his arms.

"Please tell me, Mr. Longbottom—for I am desperate—is George in love with Alicia?"

Neville snorted.

"She'd like for him to be! But no, definitely not."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"Absolutely?"

"Positively."

"Okay."

Neville grinned and sat down next to me. I smiled back. He was very nice, and I liked him the better for it.

"I think someone else is in love with George, though, eh?"

I wrapped my arms around my torso.

"Does it show?"

He laughed.

"Only when you grab people's arms and demand if he has a girlfriend!"

"Oh…I'm sorry—I didn't mean to…"

"I know. Don't worry about it."

We smiled at each other, and I was about to say something, when suddenly, a large tentacle shot out of the water and grabbed my ankles.

"AGH!" I shrieked just before it dragged me down below the surface of the water.