Aaand we're back again! Hope you enjoy this one as much as I did...! Thanks to all who reviewed, as well. I love them more than you could ever imagine!

Oh, and just a side-note... Katie is in the year below the others (I remember it saying that somewhere in the books... If I ever get around to it, I'll give you the specifics on where it says that). Sorry for not making that clear... :\ I hope you all can forgive me!

Anyhow, without further ado... Here's the next chapter!

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

This was it. It was my time. I had gone so long, making sacrifices and waiting for the perfect time. It had taken forever to get to this point. I had payed my dues, now it was time. This time, I knew what I had to do. This time, I knew I could do it. Oh, yes. There was no doubt in my mind about this. This was my time.

"Checkmate." I declared.

Katie was forced to face defeat. She mumbled complaints while Angelina, our spectator, laughed.

We had been playing a lot of wizard chess lately, though I still don't know why. We had never really been into it before, but lately it seemed a lot more interesting. Perhaps we liked the violence... After all, we are "angsty teens" as Katie's grandmother had once put it.

"Rematch!" Katie pouted. She always was a sore loser.

"No can do." I smirked, watching her eyebrows furrow in frustration.

"I'll play you." Angelina offered. Katie smiled as the pieces were reassembled on the board. I got up to allow Angelina access to my spot on the floor. We use Katie's set instead of the one in the common room. The one down there is too nasty. The pieces are so damaged you can barely tell what they are!

I glanced to an old clock on the wall. Ten minutes until seven. Ten minutes until my alone time with George. Ten minutes until my heart would beat three times as fast as it ever should.

"Well, I'm going to go downstairs..." I said, edging my way to the door.

"Oh, that's right! You have that hot date with George..." Angelina flashed an evil smile, which I chose to ignore.

"See you guys later!" I shut the door before they could respond with anything that could embarrass me. I'm sure I'll do enough things to embarrass myself tonight, I don't need their help...

I made my way down the stairs and into the common room. People were doing homework around the room. Others people were simply in huddles, their chatter filling the room. I noticed that a certain red-headed boy was already laying on the couch by the fire. I smiled as I walked towards him.

"Feet." I said, crossing my arms and waiting, smiling all the while. He had been lazily stretched across the small sofa, his feet hanging off the arm rest opposite his head. He had his hands behind his head, and was wearing a sweater with a "G" on it. In short, adorable. Anyhow, he smiled and swung his feet around as he sat upright on the couch, allowing me to sit down. He propped his legs up on a footstool.

I've always loved this couch. Perhaps it's because I've practically grown up on it... I've gone here for years and always favored the area around the fireplace. It's always been my group's little hangout kind of thing. I remember the time Fred put a dungbomb in the fire... McGonagall was furious! All the Gryffindor students were exiled to their dormitories while the house elves and some teachers cleaned and took care of the horrid stench. We were stranded in our rooms for about two hours! Yes, many good times have been spent here...

"How are you?" he said, putting his arm around me... Well, okay, maybe it wasn't around me in a loving way, just a typical 'guy' kind of way. His arm was stretched onto the back of the sofa directly behind me. He wasn't actually touching me, seeing as how I was sitting towards the edge as opposed to leaning onto the back.

"I'm fine, but how are you? What have you been up to?" I casually leant into him, allowing my head to rest near his neck . Oh, God... It just felt so right.

"Have you forgotten already?" he chuckled. "Fred and I have been making an aging potion so that we can enter the Tri-Wizard Tournament. It's not too bad, just a lot more tedious than we thought it would be." He rested his head atop mine.

Oh, God. Please don't be teasing me with all of this bliss...

"You've just been working on an aging potion all this time? Why didn't you tell us that?" I sat up some and shifted to look at him.

The firelight really does make everything look romantic, I swear. His hair was still a bit of a mess, only in a cute way. His eyes reflected the fire, making him look even more irresistible and mischievous. The shadows that danced across his face as he turned his head to look at me added an air of mystery, and perhaps some temptation on my part... He was perfect in every way. I wonder if everybody looks better near a fire? Just a thought...

"Eh, I dunno." He shrugged, looking back to the fire.

"It would have been nice to know..." I sighed, leaning into him again to resume our position. "But anyways... How did you get all the ingredients?"

"Fred and I have our ways." I didn't have to look at him to know he was smiling with devilry.

A moment of silence passed. I just stared off, reveling in the feeling of him being so close. Have I every mentioned how good he smells? I can't really explain what it smells like, though... That is still a mystery to me. If I ever do smell something like it, I'll let you know.

I felt a light tug on my hair, only to find that George was playing with a small section of it. We were both dead silent, still staring into the fire. My heart was racing, yet I felt to calm—so safe. It was all about us. Right here, right now. Him, twirling my hair between his fingers. Me, taking in his scent and wishing with every fiber in my body that he felt the same. It was us, staring into the crackling fire. It was only us.

"So when is it going to be done?" I broke the silence, I desperately wanted to hear his voice.

"Two more days... After that—" he stopped short, ending his sentence awkwardly.

"Continue," I beckoned, "What were you going to say?"

"Nothing."

"Come on... What were you about to say?"

"Oh, it wasn't important."

I sat up straight again and turned towards him. I curled my legs up near me, and propped my elbow on the sliver of couch that his arm wasn't on.

"If it wasn't important, then why don't you say it? After that—what?" I asked simply, flashing him a smile.

He shifted slightly, and turned to face me.

"After that, we can do this every night." His voice was soft as he stared into my eyes.

We were frozen like that. I swear I could feel my heartbeat ringing in my ears. That moment seemed to last forever, even if it was only about five seconds in reality.

He flashed his signature lopsided grin.

"Well, I better go and find Fred. After all, I can't trust him to work on that potion for too long without something going terribly wrong." He stood up and stretched. My eyes briefly wandered to a small section of midriff that had been revealed, and I stood up as well.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." I laughed softly. It was more of a nervous laugh than anything else, something to let me calm down from all of that tension my mind had created between George and I.

We came together in a hug, as we usually did. It killed me that our bodies were so close, yet I couldn't kiss him. We pulled away, and he smirked at me.

"Same time tomorrow?" he asked.

The question sent a jolt of surprise through my body, but it was definitely welcomed. I could feel my smile spreading widely across my face as I replied, "Of course."

And with that, George stuffed his hands into his pockets and left through the portrait hole. I stood, rooted to the spot, that smile still in full strength on my face. I doubted it would fully remove itself at any point that night.

I turned on my heel and marched up the stairs in triumph.

There you have it! I hope you loved it! haha

The timing of my next update depends on how many reviews I get, so if you want more soon...

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