Okay, this is the last chapter I've written. I don't know if I'll carry on or not. I might. Please review if you think I should.
Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I still own nothing but the characters I created.
Chapter Fourteen – Elizabeth
A New Relationship and a Thoroughly Gryffindor Halloween
The day George kissed me for the first time was the day I realised that Hogwarts was actually a good place for me to be. I mean, my entire family had been excited to come (or, for some, to return) to Hogwarts, but I found myself disliking the school originally. Perhaps it was being a Slytherin that made me feel less at home here than everyone else did, but I hadn't enjoyed it. The fact that I spent most of my time with Gryffindors made my house predestined to dislike me, I suppose. But I didn't fit into Gryffindor, either. Maybe I should have just listened to the hat and gone into Gryffindor with them.
But the decision was made. I was a Slytherin.
Dating a Gryffindor.
It might have been better if he hadn't done it in the middle of the Entrance Hall, but I think it was mainly (originally) to prove a point. You see, I had kind of been yelling at my cousins.
James and Dan had lived up to everyone's expectations and pranked a couple of Slytherin girls in my year. They had then hexed me because I was related to them. After hexing them back – hell, I wasn't going to take that – I found my cousins and let them have it.
"You two, stop right there!" I yelled. They turned to look at me and took a step back. I knew I looked like my mother when I was angry (not a pleasant thing, let me tell you), and they hid behind the Weasley twins, who they had been discussing their prank with. Will stood beside them.
"Yes, Lizzie?" James asked (always the brave Gryffindor).
"You! You little- I'm going to EVISCERATE you!" I roared at him, stalking forwards. "What on EARTH possessed you to prank them? Did you not THINK of the consequences for ME?"
James looked surprised, briefly, so Dan stepped in and said, "It's just, we thought you could protect yourself."
"No-you-did-not," I snapped.
George interrupted me. "Oh, come on Liz. Get that stick out of your butt. It was only a prank!"
"It was not just a prank, and I was the one hexed out of it! And I'll thank you not to encourage them! They shouldn't be encouraged. And I expect better from you!"
"Then you really have your expectations screwed," Fred muttered. I glared at him and he shut up.
"You knew I would pay for it! Because I'm related to you! This is just another way of getting back at me for being in Slytherin!" I screamed at them.
"Calm down, Liz!" George said, stepping forwards to protect them from me. "Just chill out!"
"I will not!" I snapped. "You can't tell me what to do, George!"
"Why not?"
"Because- because you can't!" I stared at him, confused.
"Alright then," he replied. "Will you tell me what to do, then?"
"W-What?" I stuttered, my anger completely derailed. "You can't distract me, George. I'm mad at my cousins. I'm going to murder them." Even to me, my voice sounded weak.
He smiled slowly, stepping closer. "I can't distract you? You want to bet?"
"Y-you can't," I told him, sounding unsure.
He dipped his head and pressed my lips to mine. I gasped against him and I felt him smile as he chuckled and his tongue flicked out, touching my lips. Completely out of my control, my lips opened and I let his tongue into my mouth.
That was when my mother and stormed into the room. There was a crowd around us already, and everyone turned to see Professor Black – a.k.a. my mother – come in, looking miserable and angry, stop, stare at us, then burst in to tears and run upstairs. I'd stared after her.
"What was that?" George asked me.
I glanced at him and shook my head. "Who knows?"
Then he kissed me again. It was just getting good when my Aunt walked in, we had a brief conversation (I could see where I learnt my threats from) and she, too, had left.
"Those two," I muttered at her back. "They are insane. And no, we're NOT having kids."
"Yet," he agreed. I looked at him and smiled slowly.
"You kissed me what, all of twice, and think we're going somewhere? You're a bit forward, aren't you?"
He smiled and bent his head to kiss me again.
"George," Will said, and he lifted his head. "Don't think it's just our Mother, Aunt and Uncle who will hurt you if you hurt her. I will, too."
George smiled at him. "Thanks for the warning, mate, but I'm not about to hurt her."
"And I am perfectly capable of hurting him for myself," I added with a charming smile. I caught sight of the Lupin twins and sighed. "I was mad at you two."
They smiled at me winningly.
"Fine!" I said, throwing my hands up in disgust. "Just, be more careful in future! I don't enjoy being hexed for pranks that weren't even mine."
"We will!" they chimed.
"Let's go and get some dinner, Liz." George took my hand and we walked into the Hall, sitting at the Gryffindor table as always. It did seem like home, now.
On Halloween morning, I woke up and smiled at the ceiling. Today was my first 'date' with George and we were going to Hogsmeade. Tonight was the Halloween feast. I jumped out of bed and the other fifth year Slytherin girls glared at me.
"Why do you look so happy?" Gina Maitland asked me. "It's too early to be happy."
I smiled. "I suppose I'm just an early riser."
"She has a date with that blood traitor scum," the girl in the corner, Jasmine Tinleaf said. The other two girls in my dorm, Samantha Lowe and Cassandra Thurkell were still trying to sleep.
"Don't call him that," I snapped at her. "He's not a blood traitor."
"He's less of a blood traitor than you are, I suppose," Tinleaf admitted. "You are the scum of the earth. Coming into Slytherin, the house of noble Salazar himself, and besmirching it-"
"Shut up!" I yelled, suddenly so angry I could hardly breathe. "Just shut up, Tinleaf. You don't know what you're talking about! You have no idea! Being a Slytherin doesn't mean you have to be evil! I belong here because I chose to be here, but I can still be a good person. I am NOT a blood traitor! But if I have to be one, at least it's better to be a blood traitor than racist scum like you!" My angry fit over, I grabbed my cloak and wand, threw them on over my favourite robes and marched out.
I stormed through the common room, people scattering out of my way (sometimes, it was useful looking like my mother), and slammed out of the portrait hole. I hurried away, until I banged straight into Draco Malfoy.
"What are you doing in my way?" I demanded. He looked up, blushing.
"I-"
"Oh, don't even bother," I snapped, disgusted. "Probably trying to destroy my friends and family's lives. I know how you work, Malfoy."
"Uh, actually," he hesitated, then said, "Um, Black, I came to find you."
That stopped me short and I stared at him. "Why?"
"I wanted to ask… your permission… to ask your sister out to the feast tonight," he said. Then he blushed fiercely.
"Explain," I demanded, and then it all came out. How Lily had seen him in the Hospital Wing and then come and seen him again the next day, and the next. How the two had talked easily, and how they had begun to be friends. When he had left the Hospital Wing and she had found out what was happening to the Hippogriff, she had stopped talking to him. Malfoy wanted to talk to her again.
"So," I said, staring at him. "You want to ask my little sister out, and she hates you because you are helping your father murder an animal. Let me tell you something about Lily, Malfoy. She loves animals. She loves people being brave enough to stand up for what they believe in."
"But," he started, but I stopped him with a glare. "Right. I guess, then… I have to stop the Hippogriff from being killed?"
"If you want to ever speak to her again," I told him. "Now scat, kid. I have places to be."
"Can't you put a good word in for me?" he called after me. I turned and glared at him.
"I've told you what to do; get onto it, kid."
With that, I hurried off, up to the Great Hall. Merlin, I hated the dungeons. There was literally not one good thing about being a Slytherin – except, possibly, from being able to avoid some of my family most of the time. That was kind of a good thing.
I reached the Entrance Hall and saw a ginger head turn to me and smile. I grinned back at George and hurried forwards. He opened his arms and we embraced tightly. He leant down and kissed me lightly. I smiled up at him, filled with absolute adoration for this boy in front of me. I loved him so much- wait. I loved him…
Oh crap.
Forget that. Forget that, forget that, forget that-
"Morning, gorgeous," he said with a smile and kissed me again. I pushed my freak-out out of my brain and smiled back.
"Morning," I said to him somewhat breathlessly. "Shall we?"
He bowed gallantly and took my arm, walking me into the Great Hall quickly. "You know something?" he asked me. I glanced at him and raised an eyebrow. "I'm really excited for today."
I laughed aloud. "I'm glad I'm not the only one." He grinned and wrapped his arm around me. I snuggled into him as we sat down at the breakfast table opposite Fred and Lee. The two boys looked up at us and smirked.
"Having fun yet, twin?" Fred asked George with his trademark (annoying) smirk.
"Of course, twin," George said back. He slipped his arm around my waist and I leant my head against his shoulder.
"Aren't you two just sickeningly sweet?" Will said as he slid in beside Fred. "I swear I taste vomit."
"Lovely, William," I said primly. "If you do, please aim at Fred; he's annoying me."
"Already?" Lee asked, surprised. Before I could answer, Beth laughed and slipped in beside Lee. I raised my eyebrows at her, surprised.
"Welcome to Gryffindor, Beth. What can we do for you?" I asked.
George laughed and kissed me on the head. "'We'? You a Gryffindor now, Liz?"
I chuckled. "Would you have me?"
He leant closer and smiled slowly. "Anytime."
"Okay," Beth cut in, rolling her eyes. "As lovely and sickly as that is, I just wanted to know if I could come with you to Hogsmeade today."
"Aren't you going with Cho and Mariette?" Lee asked her. I blinked, surprised he knew my cousin's friends' names.
"Cho's going with Cedric," she muttered. "And Mariette is going with Harold."
"Harold who? And Cedric Diggory?" I asked.
"Harold Yaxley, in Slytherin but our year," she said. I frowned and nodded. "Yeah, she and Cedric are dating. A month now. Right after you and George, actually," she added with a laugh. "But you've been oblivious to the rest of Hogwarts since."
"I have not!" I protested as the twins snorted and Lee laughed. "I haven't," I said. Then I turned to George. "I haven't, have I?"
"No, love," he said smoothly. "Never." I smiled and kissed him, then turned to eat my breakfast in time to see Fred and Lee exchange amused looks. I glared at them and they looked away.
After a somewhat hurried breakfast, and an extraordinarily long queue, we were out of the castle and walking down towards Hogsmeade. George and I held hands, and Lee, Fred, Will and Beth walked someway behind us, snorting and whatever else it is that teenage boys (and annoying cousins) do when they try to piss teenage girls off. I took the high road and ignored them (and made a mental note to hex them later).
Our date was nice. We went for a butterbeer in the Three Broomsticks (meeting Rosmerta for the first time was interesting – I only had to smack George once to keep his attention on me) and then went walking around. We had fun planning pranks in Zonko's and bought tons of sweets, laughing at the sweets we had in common (such as sugar quills, chocolate frogs and Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans) and debating the pros and cons of those we didn't have in common (such as pepper imps – which George loved – and fizzing whizbees – which I adored and he hated). We stepped outside and he pulled me to a stop beside it then got down on one knee.
I raised my eyebrows at him and he presented me with a box of Chocoballs (full of strawberry mousse and whipped cream) that he had somehow managed to buy without me knowing.
They were my favourite sweets.
The rest of our date went well and we made our way up to the castle very happy and looking forwards to our next Hogsmeade weekend. The feast was fun – I sat at the Gryffindor table, as did Beth (next to Lee Jordan – was there a spark there?) and then we left to go to our respective common rooms. I kissed George lovingly and told him I would see him soon.
"How was the date with the blood traitor?" Tinleaf asked me as I stepped into our dormitory. I glared at her.
"Oh, will you leave her alone, Tinleaf?" the girl named Samantha Lowe said loudly. "She's in love! Why do you always have to be on her case?"
"I agree with Sam," Cassandra Thurkell said. "You are always such a bitch to her. Black's not half bad."
"She's a blood traitor," Gina Maitland snapped. "Don't stick up for her."
"How is she a blood traitor?" Samantha demanded.
"She's dating that muggle-lover. And she's friends with muggleborns." As if that was enough to damn me, Maitland turned away to brush her hair.
"Excuse me," I said softly, "but I am right here. And I am not a blood traitor. I haven't betrayed my blood at all; surely the only way to do that is to try and wipe out magical blood all together… which is surely what people like you are aiming at!"
Maitland and Tinleaf spun around to stare at me, their eyes wide. "Are you saying that we are blood traitors?" Tinleaf demanded.
I smiled and said coolly, "Why, you catch on quick, don't you girls?"
They both had their wands in their hands when there was a knock on the door and the seventh year prefect poked her head in, saying, "Girls, good, you're changed. You need to come now."
"What's wrong?" I asked quickly.
She shot me a strange look; it seemed almost pitying. "Everyone has to go up to the Great Hall to sleep tonight while they search the castle." Here she hesitated, then explained. "It's Sirius Black. He tried to get into Gryffindor tower."