Lizzie was pounding her fist on Ernie bedroom door, trying to wake him up.
"Ernie! Get out of bed! Open the door!"
She heard a groan from the other side of the door, and felt a small smile grow on her face.
"Ernie, I can hear you. Open the door," she called, knocking on the door a couple more times. She smiled again as she heard footsteps coming towards the door she was stood in front of. Lizzie bounced up and down a couple of times, her entire being filled with excitement.
The footsteps stopped and Lizzie heard Ernie sigh, "if I open the door will I regret it?"
Lizzie rolled her eyes, "no…"
He groaned again and the door opened a crack, enough for Lizzie to be able to push into his room and give her brother a bone crushing hug.
"Happy birthday!"
"Yeah, yeah, you do this every year," but he returned the hug, and whispered a happy birthday back to her.
Lizzie pulled away, "okay, can we go and open presents now?"
Ernie gave her a small smile, "if you really want to."
Lizzie squealed, bouncing up and down, whilst clapping her hands. "Thank you, thank you, thank you," and with that she dragged him out of his bedroom and downstairs to the dining room.
Lizzie always loved her birthday, same as most she supposed but still. Her parents didn't always spend the entire day with her and Ernie, but they had more freedom than normal and this meant Lizzie didn't really mind. That being said, she would have preferred if they took the day off to be with them.
She liked spending time with her twin though, and Ernie would randomly come up with things for them to do for their birthday. Again, she just wished her parents would make sure to spend the time with them.
Breakfast was always amazing on their birthday: Minky made their favourite food all day long (meaning pancakes in the morning) and their parents were somewhat social and talkative.
"Happy birthday to you both," their father had said at the very start of breakfast.
"Thank you, father," Ernie replied.
"Thank you, father," Lizzie had echoed.
"What are you both planning to do today," their mother asked, looking at them over her plate rather than her book.
Lizzie looked to Ernie, "I don't really know, Ernie normally comes up with the plans."
Ernie smiled, "I haven't thought of anything, I was hoping you'd think of something this year."
Lizzie grimaced, "do I have to?"
She heard her mother laugh, actually laugh. Ernie and Lizzie both looked at her in surprise, even their father seemed to be slightly confused by the action.
"Oh, Elizabeth, have you really no idea of anything that you would enjoy doing today?"
"Not really, no."
"And Ernest, you haven't thought of anything either?"
Ernie shook his head.
"Well then," she looked at her husband, "we'll have to think of something."
Lizzie and Ernie looked at one another in shock, was this actually going the way Lizzie thought it was?
"You… what?" She stammered out.
Her mother smiled, "your father and I will think of something?"
Lizzie exchanged another look with Ernie, she didn't want to get her hopes up but she could see that he already had.
"For me and Ernie to do?"
"Yes," her mother said, nodding as though that would give better confirmation of the fact.
"Just me and Ernie?"
"No," their father joined the conversation, "your mother and I will be spending the day with you."
Lizzie saw Ernie's face light up with a smile, and she was sure her's was doing the same. Still, she was scared to become too excited over the fact.
"How much of the day?
Her father sighed, "Elizabeth, can't you just be happy that we are taking time out of our days to spend your birthday with you."
Lizzie felt like someone had punched her in the stomach, and she knew it was just easier to go along with what her parents wanted to hear. "I'm sorry father, I'm very happy that you're spending today with me and Ernie."
Robert nodded, seemingly satisfied with her response. Lizzie wasn't sure if he was or not, but knew better than to persist with this.
Ernie spoke up at this point; defusing the tension that was slowly building in the room and making Lizzie send him a grateful look. "What did you think we should do today?"
Their mother spoke, also apparently trying to defuse the tension building between Lizzie and her father, "well, I have been owling Narcissa for a few days now and we've arranged for you two and Draco to spend the day together and we'll all have a family meal in the evening at a restaurant."
Lizzie didn't even need to look at Ernie to know that his excitement would have visibly lessened after that had been said.
She also knew by instinct that he wouldn't ask anything, so she did.
"Why are we spending the day with Draco? Why aren't we spending the day together as a family?" She looked directly at her father whilst she said this, hoping he would appreciate the fact that she asked him personally rather than saying it to the room in general.
Judging by the look on his face he didn't, "because your mother and I are busy and we can only spare time for you in the evening."
Well that hurt.
He continued, seemingly ignorant to the fact that he had practically told her and Ernie that they weren't worth their time, "we thought it would be good for you both to spend the day with Draco and get to know him more."
Lizzie looked towards Ernie, who was quietly continuing to eat his pancakes and trying to stay out of the conversation. She sighed, "it's our birthday, we've always had it as a family day."
'Even if our family haven't really been around,' she thought to herself.
"Elizabeth, you can either spend the day with your brother and Draco or you can both stay home. That will mean no meal this evening."
Lizzie looked to Ernie, silently praying that he would catch her eye; luckily he did and sent her a pleading look. She gave his the faintest nod and turned to their father, "thank you for giving us the choice, father," the sarcasm was faint but definitely there, "but I believe I would rather stay at home today."
Ernie gave her a faint smile, before returning his attention to his pancakes. Lizzie could only wait for the explosion that would surely come.
She saw her father sigh and heard, rather than saw, her mother give a slight gasp. She didn't exactly blame either of them; she knew she wasn't acting as a daughter supposedly should. However, she couldn't quite bring herself to care since she knew she was saving Ernie from a day of hell.
A couple hours later and she was still stuck in her room, after having been sent there following her outburst at breakfast. She'd read a few chapters in some of her new school books but had been laying on her bed for around 23 minutes (she was that bored, she'd been counting). It wasn't the best birthday she'd ever had, but she wasn't entirely sure it was the worst either. What she really wanted to do was see Ernie; they'd always spent their birthday together and it felt strange not doing it. She didn't particularly want to risk leaving her room though.
Lizzie sat up, debating on whether or not to walk to the door. She hated how much trouble she got in just for sticking up for Ernie, although she supposed her parents didn't know that she was sticking up for Ernie.
Letting out a groan of frustration, Lizzie fell back onto her bed. There was nothing she could do and she didn't want to anger her parents anymore, but then that would mean Ernie might be spending his birthday on his own.
She sat up again, this time standing and walking over to the door. She could leave her room, she hadn't been told to go there after all, she had because she knew her father would prefer her out of the way after she'd gone against him.
She could leave her room, nothing was stopping her. She could do it, for Ernie. It was Ernie's birthday too and she felt as though she needed to make sure he was okay.
With that thought in mind she reached for the doorknob and twisted it.
It was locked.
Okay, so that would stop her from leaving her room.
Lizzie groaned again and walked back over to her bed, falling onto it and rolling onto her back. 'Well this is turning out to be a great birthday,' she thought, sarcastically.
