Another Month Later
"Cassi, you can't go on like this. Why won't you talk to him," Rose said as they walked down the corridors of the castle. They had just passed the twins, and Cassi and George held eye contact for a moment before looking away. She was sure that Fred was giving George the same lecture.
"He ignored me, over the fact that I wasn't sure if I would save a stranger while saving a loved one. Why should I talk to him," Cassi said and Rose puffed out a breath in frustration.
"Because you obviously still like him a lot or you wouldn't be so bent out of shape over this. And he still likes you too, or else he wouldn't look sad whenever he see you. At least talk to him for closure or something, please. I hate seeing you like this, and your bitterness is affecting me as well."
"I'm not bitter," Cassi said indignantly, but Rose gave her a look and she glared at the floor, "I have a right to be a bit bitter."
"Maybe two months ago, but's gone too far. Talk to him Cassiopeia, or I will," Rose told her then gave her a gentle smile, "Yule Ball is coming. You're excited for that aren't you?"
"The one person I want to go with is mad at me, and I'm mad at him. Not really looking forward to it. What about you and your 'boyfriend'?"
"Oh, Ron," Rose asked nonchalantly, too nonchalantly, "He hasn't asked me yet. I keep sending him signals, but he can't seem to pluck up the courage to ask me."
"Why don't you ask him then," Cassi asked, and Rose just shrugged.
"One: it would kill his pride. Two: he seems to have a crush on that Granger girl. No point in getting in the way of young love," Rose told her and Cassi pondered that statement for a moment.
"If he liked her that much he would have asked her. And she already has a date, yelled at him in the Great Hall about it a few days ago. But I agree with you on that. Shame Fred is going with Angelina," Cassi said in a wistful tone and Rose gave her a sharp look.
"You are not trying to set me up with your boyfriend's brother. Twin brother no less," rose said to her and the two girls came to a full stop.
"What, he's nice, good looking, funny. You could do a lot worse," Cassi said matter-of-factly, Rose just sighed.
"Whatever. I have to go. Talk to George, for all of our sakes," Rose said and ran off. Cassi watched her receding back until she was completely gone.
"I can only talk to him if he want to talk to me," she whispered to herself, then walked to the lake to think.
~0~0~0~
"Will you just talk to her? You are making everybody bloody miserable with your constant pouting. And not to mention that it's highly unattractive," Fred said to his moping twin brother next to him as they walked alongside the lake.
"Why would she want to talk to me after what I did to her? I was a total arse hole," George practically whined and Fred groaned out in frustration.
"Then you should talk to her to apologize! She's just as upset as you, and you need to man up and go talk to her," Fred said to him, then saw the young Slytherin girl sitting beside the lake, staring off into nothing. Fred perked up a little at the sight, "Look, there she is," he pointed to the girl, "Now's your chance. And if you don't talk to her, I will."
"No," George said simply and Fred began to move away.
"Ok, have it your way," he said as he took a step away, the two steps. He almost feared that his brother would let him do it, then he heard a groan in frustration behind. Fred smiled, but continued to look forward.
"Ok! Ok, I'll go talk to her," George said a bit helplessly and Fred turned around, beaming at him.
"That's a good man. Now go talk to your girl," Fred said, then pushed George toward her. George tripped a bit, and he turned around to glare at Fred for a second. Fred just shrugged, then made a shooing motion with his hands, and George obeyed. He watched the sitting girl, and he sucked in a sharp breath.
She is beautiful, he thought to himself, What have I done? He shuffled his feet, and tried to make as much noise as possible so as not to startle her. He was just a foot away when she looked up at him, with her sad, startlingly violet eyes.
"Hey," he said gently, and she slowly stood up and faced him.
"Hey," she replied meekly. He took a small step towards her, and she jumped on him. Her lips crashed against his, the kiss forceful and full of want. Her arms were around his neck while his hands were in her hair. It seemed like centuries before they broke apart, and they rested their foreheads against each other.
"I'm sorry. So sorry Cassi. What I did was wrong, and I'm so sorry," he whispered to her and she broke down in tears. He squeezed his eyes tightly shot as she cried, "I'm sorry," he whispered to her and laid his lips gently on hers. She kissed him back, just as gently, and the tears continued to roll down her face.
"You hurt me so much," she said to him and he nodded.
"I know, I'm sorry. I don't know how to show you how sorry I truly am. Please forgive me," he said through small kisses. His hands were holding her face, and they opened their eyes at the same time. Blue met purple, and more tears fell down her face at the sight of him.
"Don't ignore me again," she said to him, her voice thick with tears, "Anger I can handle. But I cannot handle being ignored. I care about you too much, and it felt like a knife was going through my heart."
"I know, I'm sorry. I won't ignore you again. Please forgive me," he whispered to her. She nodded her head and kissed him again with just as much force as before.
"I love you," she whispered, "You don't have to feel the same, but you should know that I love you." George looked at her, and saw who she truly was for the first time. She was a girl, a smart and talented girl, that loves a boy that goes against many of her peers' principles. He could see the pain and struggle in her eyes, and he realized that he felt the exact same way.
"I love you too," he told her, and she smiled at him. She beamed at him through her tears and he kissed her again, "Go to Yule Ball with me."
"Ok," she said, and then Fred came out from behind a tree. He had a huge grin on his face as he walked to the reunited couple.
"Yes! Now we can finally be happy again. You two were making everyone depressed," Fred said cheerfully, making Cassi laugh for the first time in two months. She sighed in content at the feel of the laughter, and George hugged her close to his body. He kissed her forehead and smiled down to her. She beamed back up at him, and she felt like the sun was in her heart, finally healing the hurt.
Day of the Yule Ball
Cassi felt happy. She was back with George, and every time she saw him she felt like her heart was going to burst out of her chest. She was happy, truly happy for the first time, and she never felt freer. Even Rose commented on a certain glow that she had, and all Cassi could do was beam at her. They were getting ready in Rose's dorm room, since Cassi's is so depressing.
"It's going to take all day to get ready," Rose said, excitement in her voice. Cassi rolled her eyes, but she was amused.
"I doubt it would take all day. Three hours maybe, but not all day," Cassi told her and Rose puffed a breath out.
"With the showers, face masks, shaving, hair, make up. Not to mention our hands and feet, it's going to take all day. Then we have our dresses, hair ornaments, and jewelry. Merlin we have to wear so much," Rose said suddenly, her eyes wide when she realized how much they had to do. Cassi smirked and raised her wand in her hand.
"We are witches remember? The only that would take time is our showers, masks, and hair. Since your hair is so temperamental," Cassi told her. Roses cheeks puffed out and her face turned red.
"It's not my fault my hair likes being the way it is. Not all of us can have gorgeous Slytherin hair," Rose told her and Cassi gave her an amused yet confused look.
"Gorgeous Slytherin hair," Cassi asked and Rose puffed her cheeks out again, making Cassi laugh heartily.
"Yes, all of you Slytherins seem to have gorgeous hair. Even that Bulstrode girl in Draco's year. Which is amazing because her face is anything but gorgeous," Rose said, and Cassi spewed out some of the water that she had been drinking. Rose laughed as she patted her back to help her fit of coughing.
"Rose! Watch what you say," Cassi admonished and Rose just shrugged.
"We are in the Gryffindor tower, not the Slytherin Dungeons. I assure you that everyone here agrees," Rose said to her then grabbed some towels and a bar of soap and shampoo and conditioner, "I'm going to go take a shower. You can use it after, then we'll get our masks on." Cassi nodded, then shook her head as Rose danced into the bathroom to her own tune in her head.
~0~0~0~
"Are you ready yet Cassi," George called from the door, then opened the door. Rose and Cassi shrieked since they were in the underwear. Cassi grabbed the closest thing she could to cover up her body, and something to hit him with, and walked over to George.
"Don't you know how to knock," she said as she hit him with a hard cover book. He bent over and tried to cover his head from her assault. He then used his Quidditch speed and grabbed her hand that held the 700 page book. He twisted her arm gently to have her release it. He wrapped his arms around her, a grin on his face.
"I'm sorry love. I should have knocked. Am I forgiven," he asked and Cassi chewed the inside of her cheek as she eyed him warily.
"I suppose so," she sighed out and his grin became wider.
"Can I see you later in that nice little black number you have on right now," he asked and she laughed and shook her head.
"No, I have something better in mind," she admitted and George's eyes widened with amusement and lust.
"Is that so," he asked and Cassi nodded, a smirk on her face. They then looked at Rose who was groaning.
"What Rose," Cassi asked, rolling her eyes at her best friend's reaction.
"You two are so lovey-dovey it's disgusting. Now George, I love you mate, but we girls need to finish getting ready. And you need to go finish putting on your tux and look utterly ravishing," Rose said as she shooed him out. Cassi laughed as Rose kept her head out of the door, "She'll meet you at the stairs leading to the Great Hall!"
"Ravishing," Cassi asked, a single brow quirked up, "Were you flirting with my boyfriend?"
"No," Rose said, but she had a smile on her face, "Why on earth would I do that? That would be very Slytherin of me," she grabbed her wand and gestured to the only chair in the room, "Now sit down so I can do your hair and make-up." Cassi obeyed and sat down, trying to keep her back straight as much as possible. Half an hour later the roles were reversed and Cassi expertly placed Rose's now curled hair to the side with her bare shoulder. She moved to face her and did gold eye make-up and bright red lip stick.
"There, all down, now you just have to put on your dress and you can be completely drop dead gorgeous," Cassi said, then stopped her movement suddenly. Rose looked at her, a bit startled by the sudden stop. Cassi could feel tears prickled her eyes, and her heart felt like it was going break into pieces.
"Cassiopeia," Rose said quietly as she watched her friend. She saw the tears in her eyes, "What's wrong." Cassi looked at nothing, and a single tear streaked down her face.
"Do you feel it," she asked in a whisper, and her violet looked at Rose.
"Feel what Cassi," she asked, and she began to move to the door to call for George.
"The pain, a lot of pain," she crumpled to her knees, her hand holding on to a chair leg. Her body was shaking, and Rose was beside her in a second.
"Should I get George," Rose asked, looking at Cassi with concern.
"Know, he can't know," Rose nodded and Cassi gripped her arm tightly, her purple eyes burrowing into her, "He cannot know." Rose nodded again, then tried to help her up. The mood was decidedly more somber as the two girls silently dressed. The moment wasn't mentioned for the rest of the night.
~0~0~0~
"Will you quite pacing back and forth. It's making me nervous," Fred told his frantic twin as they waited for Cassi and Rose at the stairs leading to the Great Hall. George stopped to glare at his twin for a moment before turning back and pacing again.
"They are taking forever. I don't understand it. They were almost done when I walked in there," George muttered to more himself than to Fred. Fred rolled his eyes.
"They are girls," Fred exclaimed and George stopped to look at him, waiting for him to elaborate, "They always take forever. And just when you think they're finished, they find something to look even more gorgeous for us. They are girls, that's what they do."
"What do we do," Rose asked from the top of the stairs and the two boys looked at her with wide eyes. She had a smirk on her face as she took slow steps down the stairs, purposefully moving her body in a sensual way.
"Whoa," Fred said and George nodded in agreement, Rose smiled at them, then looked at Fred.
"Where's Angelina," she asked politely. Fred took a loud swallow and stared at her with wide, admiring eyes. George cleared his throat when Fred hadn't answered. He shook his head a little as if clearing out cobwebs in his brain.
"She's still getting ready with Katie Bell. She should be down in a moment," Fred said in a dead-pan voice, as if he was on autopilot. George chuckled at his brother when he stared after the red-haired beauty as she sauntered off into the Great Hall. George saw some movement at the top of the stairs and turned to look. When he saw her he felt like all of his breath left him. Her skin was glowing against the green of the dress as the silver highlighted her purple eyes. She had a smile on her face as she walked down the stairs, not as provocatively as Rose. Her lipstick was a deep plum color that made George want to kiss her senseless. He held out his hand to give her support down the rest of the stairs. He stared at her unabashedly.
"You look…beautiful," he said softly, more to himself than to her and she gave a bright laugh.
"Thank you. You look quite handsome yourself. Makes me want to sneak of snog you senseless," she told him, causing him to grin lustfully at her. He wiggled his eyebrows at her.
"That sounds like fun. Let's skip the stuffy ball and go to a secret place somewhere," he told her, but Cassi began to move towards the large doors of the Great Hall. She gave a small chuckle, but her attention was averted when she saw the snowy wonderland the teachers had created. A small snowflake came down and she stuck her hand out to catch it, but it disappeared before it even got an inch within her hand.
"No, I think I want to stay," she told him, her brain a bit side-tracked. She turned to look at him a sweet smile on his face. "What," she asked, a smile reaching her face as well.
"Nothing. I'm just very lucky to find a girl like you," he told her and she leaned in and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. He could feel her smile.
"And I'm lucky to have a guy like you. I love you," she whispered the last three words. She hadn't said them since the day they had reconciled.
"I love you too," he whispered back and they kissed each other again. The hall was beginning to fill up, and they moved to an area where they would see the Champions and their dates enter into the hall. Cassi was clutching to George's arm tightly, nervous about dancing.
"Nervous about dancing love," George asked, a smirk on his face. Cassi snorted indignantly, then covered her mouth when she realized the sound she had made. George laughed at her expression then nudged her shoulder gently.
"I'm just worried you wouldn't be able to keep up," Cassi told him through a smirk. He was about to reply when the music started and the four Champions started dancing. Cassi noted the fearful look on Harry's face as he danced with Parvati Patil. She sighed loudly, and George looked at her with a confused expression. She nodded her head to the youngest couple on the floor, "He should have more confidence in himself. It makes him seem weak."
"What a very Slytherin thing to say," George commented, but nodded in agreement, "But you are right. He should have more confidence in himself. Not because it makes him seem weak, but because he can actually do it."
"What a very Gryffindor thing to say," she retorted and George grinned at her. They saw Dumbledore dance with McGonagall, then more and more coupled moved out to dance.
"Shall we milady," George asked extravagantly, bowing low as he placed his hand out for her to take. Cassi giggled and placed her hand in his and curtsied.
"We shall," she replied and George led her out to the dance floor. He gracefully twirled her, having her land right in his arms. They both had grins on their faces as they moved with the music, their feet practically off the ground. They seemed to be in their own little world as George lifted her up. They both had stupid grins on their faces as they moved their bodies as one.
"I'm so happy right now," Cassi blurted out suddenly. George laughed.
"Me too. You have made me one of the happiest guys on the planet. I'm glad I was able to figure out your name," he said to her and she chuckled.
"I was hoping that you would have taken a bit longer, but it all worked out in the end I think." George nodded in agreement, then Cassi continued, "How did you figure it out? I've been wanting to know." George grinned as he bent close to her ear, his nose just touching her hair, his lips barely brushing against the shell of her ear.
"I went into the deep recesses of my memory, and plucked it out from when we got sorted," he told her, and his grin got wider when he felt her shiver against him. She pressed her lips to his ear, her tongue flicked the lobe just a bit, causing him to shiver back. He could feel her smile against his ear. "How do you escape from being questioned by the teachers," he asked her, his curiosity finally allowing him to ask the question.
"I prove I know the information, they don't ask me question. You smell very tasty," she hissed out the last part, causing his blood to pump faster through his veins.
"Can we leave yet," he asked in a whisper to her. He knew that his voice sounded hoarse, but he didn't care. All he wanted was her. He felt a slight tightening around his pants, and he knew that she could feel hit. She bit his lobe and tugged it hard, and he fought against giving a loud groan. To other couples they were just dancing closely, in truth it was their first true sexual adventure. And the fact that everyone's eyes could be on them instantly intensified the situation.
"Nah ah ah," she admonished him, feeling the bulge in his pants. Her heart was racing at what they were doing, and she felt like all eyes were on them, but she made a quick scan, and they were still invisible to the rest of the attendees. "Not yet. You want to move so quickly, just like lion. You have to be like a snake. Moving slowly, patiently, waiting for your prey to come to you. And then you strike." She accentuated the 'k' in the word and this time George did give a quiet groan.
"You have no clue what you do to me," he whispered to her, she smiled and he kissed her ear, "So why don't I show you?" He bit her earlobe this time, then moved his head lower to nip a sensitive area just underneath her ear. She gave a small gasp, then began tapping his shoulder harshly.
"Professor McGonagall," Cassi exclaimed, and George gave a small grunt as he stood up sharply. He smiled at the wizened teacher as he deftly moved behind Cassi, hiding the obvious bulge in his pants. McGonagall had a stern expression on her face as she looked at the two teens.
"Are you two enjoying the ball," she asked in her stern tone. Cassi nodded briskly as she and George tried to fight the laughter that was trying to break through. Cassi heard him snicker and gave his foot a small stab, and he coughed to cover it up. McGonagall lifted a single brow and nodded then walked away. Cassi and George let loose the laughter as he led them off the dance floor, accidently hitting some of the dancers.
"Did you see her face," Cassi said as the two laughed heartily.
"She knew we were doing something bad, she just didn't have any proof," George said and Cassi nodded, wiping the tears away from her mirth. George grabbed her hand and tilted his head to the punch bowl.
"Come on, let's go get some punch," he said to her. She smiled, took his hand and they walked to the oversized punch bowl. And that's when everything went down hill.
A/N: What did ya think? Did ya like it? Did ya hate it? I want to know your guys' opinion, but nobody reviews and it's making me sad. Am I moving the story to quickly? What? What? Tell me what I want to know.
A/N 2: About the sequel; I am going to finish this story first before I do the final installment of this series. I must say that I wasn't expecting Heir to Apophis Slytherin, formerly known as When Fred Met Lilia, to develop into this. I just want to thank all of those who had been reading from the beginning, and those that have continued to read. I am almost done. Please review, and read the above mentioned. I love hearing your opinions. Thanks and much love!
~Artemis