Saturday morning dawned with Liz Parker asleep at a table in the common room, where she'd fallen asleep studying after Astronomy. She woke with a start as she heard Kyle bounding down the steps from the boys dormitory. The pain in her neck almost made her cry out as she tried to remember where she was.
Kyle slowed when he saw her. "Liz? How long have you been down here?"
She yawned and tried to stretch but the pain prevented most of that before answering, "I think I fell asleep down here."
"Why were you up so late?"
"Because I have been trying so hard to catch on to Charms that I haven't been studying hard enough on everything else and I didn't want to fall behind."
"I can understand that but don't you think your brain is fresher in the morning than at 1 a.m.?"
She grimaced as she realized he was right. "Yeah, I know that. I just kind of forgot that last night when studying seemed like such a good idea."
"Well, since you are dressed and breakfast isn't for another two and a half hours, do you want to go raid the kitchens with me for a pre-breakfast snack?"
A growl from her stomach nearly echoed in the large room and she had to smile, "Absolutely."
Kyle helped her up and led the way towards the kitchens.
Once there, Liz ate only a Danish to take the edge off of her hunger so that she would be able to eat with the others at breakfast.
On their way back to Gyffindor Tower they met Peeves. "Oh look, the new Gryffindors are out early. Trying to find a place to snog? Need a shower to cool off?" he asked.
Before they could begin protest that they weren't out to snog, they found themselves pelted by water balloons filled with swamp water, followed by chalk dust and ashes. They ran for the portrait of fat lady.
As she ran through the common room trying to get to the showers she stumbled and fell into the table, overturning a bottle of ink over her nearly finished Potions essay due Monday. "Oh No!" she screeched trying not to cry.
Kyle tried to think of a charm or a spell to remove the ink but they hadn't covered those yet. He then searched his mind for a way to make things easier for her since he couldn't make it all go away. "Liz, go get your shower. I'll clean this up. Go on," he offered.
"Thanks Kyle. I really appreciate it," she answered trying to be strong in spite of everything.
By the time the others were up. Liz had showered and finished copying her essay to a new parchment. Once the pain in her neck had been eased a bit by the hot water, she was able to move a little better.
After breakfast they practiced Transfiguration with Hermione for an hour. Then it was Potions with Fred and George for the next hour.
Finally! she thought. Today seems to be getting back on track after a rather bumpy start.
But then just as she was putting the last ingredient in the cauldron, five beetle eyes, the top of the shaker on the vial slipped off and about fifty beetle eyes fell in. The potion color turned to a violent purple and began to boil vigorously.
Only Fred's quick thinking kept the cauldron from melting as he added dragonfly wings to the potion, which cooled it to a gelatin consistency.
"Don't worry about it, Liz. Accidents do happen. And it is far better to have them happen up here than down in the dungeon," he said. "Just remember, always check your shaker lids before using them. Your potion was perfect until then."
"Thank you, Fred. I will definitely remember that," she answered. Then she went over to Ginny to practice Charms.
"Ginny, where is Kyle?" she asked as she sat beside of Ginny for Charms practice.
"Oh, he already took care of the lesson. While you were cleaning up from Potions, he came over and showed me his Levitation Charm on a feather, an acorn, a book and a burning candle. So I told him to get out of here so you could work without an audience," Ginny answered.
Would it be easier for you if I held the salt out in my hand? Liz thought grumpily.
Two hours later, after some grueling pronunciation practice, Liz finally levitated a feather. Unfortunately, she was too frustrated and exhausted to succeed with the heavier objects.
"That's fine," Ginny said encouragingly. "We can try again tomorrow for the Acorn. Why don't you take a break the rest of the day? I just heard Fred calling together a Quidditch game. We can go watch."
A tapping at the window drew their attention. Harry walked over an opened the window and a bedraggled looking old post owl flew in and collapsed on the table in front of Liz.
She took the fat envelope from the poor creature and put a piece of biscuit on the table in front of it. Then she looked at the envelope. Oh thank God! It's from Maria. If ever I needed a friend, today is the day. She greedily tore into it.
There were two inner envelopes and she started with the one marked, 'Read me first!' which turned out to be from Maria.
Dear Liz,
Don't be mad at me for sending the letter from Max. He's looked so lost and miserable since you left that I had to do something to cheer him up. Please don't kill me for it. Hey, at least I kept my word and didn't give him your address. Why you wanted to spend your summer in school is beyond me.
Interesting to note that Kyle cleared out of town for the summer too. (Football camp or something.) If you ask me, I think he's spending the summer with his mom but doesn't want people to know. Mom was over at the Sheriff's last night "taking him a pie" (Yeah, right! I haven't ever seen her makeup smudged so badly, and the woman had hickeys.) Anyway, he got a letter from Kyle while she was there and he apparently wrote something about "ticking her off and now she's not talking to me. Will I ever learn to keep my mouth shut?" or at least that is what mom could see on the back page. Mom said if Michelle Valenti is as bad as she remembers her, he's going to have a long summer.
Michael, of course, is pulling that stone wall crap again. But he can't avoid me forever.
Oh well, I really wish you were here chica. Don't study too hard.
Love ya,
MariaLiz smiled as she put down the letter. She looked around the room to see the others going through the portrait hole.
George was the last one in line. He turned back as he was about to exit and asked, "We're going to the Quidditch pitch. Are you coming?"
"Let me finish these and I'll be down," she answered with a smile.
"Great. We'll see you there," he said as the portrait closed behind him.
She turned her attention to the other letter.
Dear Liz,
I know it is a shock for you to receive a letter from me in the middle of a bunch from Maria. But since you left orders that your address was not to be given to me, then this was the only way.
Why did you leave? You know I don't believe in destiny. But you never gave me a chance to prove it. Please come home. Things are all wrong without you. Tess is trying to put pressure on me to do those stupid memory exercises with her.
I am truly in Hell. Please come home. I need you.
Love,
MaxTo her surprise there was a blank sheet of paper behind it that suddenly shimmered and words appeared.
She read:
Liz,
Thank you so much for leaving town. I appreciate the extra time to make sure he is mine. I am the queen, not you. You are just a pathetic human. How could you ever compare?
Just remember when you get back to keep your hands off my man. You know I'd have no problem taking out anyone who stands in my way. That includes you and even your parents.
Oh and don't think about showing trying to show this to anyone else. It's tuned to just you. They won't see anything but a blank piece of paper.
Good luck in Florida, if that's where you really are,
Tess
She sat stunned staring at the paper, then all the anger and frustration that had been building up burst through. With a scream of fury she ripped the paper to shreds and used her wand to burn them in the air. Then came the great need for air as she felt the room closing in on her.
So she ran, blinded by tears, through the portrait hole, down the stairs and out the door. When she reached the outside she started to turn towards the lake but heard the voices of the others and turned the other way.
Sobs of rage and misery escaped her lips with a feral intensity as she ran trying to find a place with both air and privacy. She remembered the exhortation to keep out of the Forbidden Forest as she took her first steps into it.
She nearly stopped at the memory but emotions overrode logic and she forged ahead.
After about ten minutes she stumbled into a small clearing. Tired from running and overwhelmed by emotions she collapsed to the ground weeping.
She remained there until the rustle of leaves and a snapping twig drew her back to her senses. Before she could rise and turn around she heard a man clear his throat.