The Legend of Chime

Chapter six O.W.L.s and Quidditch

Harry's head throbbed as he made his way back to Gryffindor Tower after his Occlumency lesson and he rubbed it absently. He was quite proud of the progress he had made. He no longer had dreams that caused him to awake in a sweat. Well, none that Voldemort had to do with anyway. He was able to successfully block his thoughts and dreams before he went to sleep which gave him some hope at least that he might be able to overcome Voldemort in the future. He surprised himself with that thought. He hadn't really cared if he survived or not as long as Voldemort was gone, until very recently.

"Codswallop," he muttered and stepped through the portrait hole. He thought about the last two days and smiled as he made his way through the deserted common room and up the staircase to the boys' dormitory. He never knew a girl could make such a difference in his life. He hadn't really even been looking for a girlfriend. Sure, he had fantasized about her after he first saw her, drawn to her smile and other obvious assets, but never really imagined she could actually like him. But he found himself wanting to be near her the more time he spent with her and then he found out she was Sirius' daughter. He shook his head remembering how stunned he had been. The disappointment had felt like a heavy blow. He had been sure she would hate him when she found out about the details surrounding his death but she hadn't. She had unbelievably understood and had comforted him. Well . . . after she had told him to 'stop being so damn noble' that is. He chuckled to himself, but still couldn't understand it.

Harry quietly opened the door to his room and shut it behind him. Then he walked over to his bed, blindly sensing his way in the darkness and pulled off his robes and put on his pajamas. Yes, he wanted to survive now. He wanted to be able to live a normal life. He wanted to marry and raise a family. Without even knowing it, Elizabeth had shown him the hidden truth inside him. The one thing he had never dared to hope for after hearing the prophecy.

 He slipped between the sheets and placed his glasses on his bedside table then closed his eyes and emptied his mind of everything but Elizabeth.

He saw her in his mind's eye. She was asleep in bed lying on her side. The moonlight was basking her face but casting the rest of her body in shadow. A lock of hair had fallen in her sleep to gently caress her cheek. She looked very peaceful and very beautiful. He drifted closer to her and raised his hand to brush the hair out of her face. He caressed her cheek and as he did so she turned toward his touch almost instinctively. He smiled and leaned down to kiss her knowing it was only a dream but wanting to make it a very good dream.

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Elizabeth awoke the next morning and opened her eyes. She smiled at the fading images of her dream. She lay there not moving for a few moments then turned slowly over almost as if expecting to see . . . she shook her head at the thought.

She turned and looked over at Hermione who was still snuggled under her blankets. Not wanting to disturb her, she dressed quietly as she peered out the window. The creeping fingers of dawn were just visible on the horizon and it whispered the promise of another glorious day. Then smiling, she grabbed her book bag and headed downstairs, not being able to recall when she had been in a better mood. She felt she could face anything today, even her exams.

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"Where is Elizabeth?" asked Harry as he came down the stairs and spied Hermione alone in front of the fire.

"Oh, she was already gone this morning when I woke up. She has her O.W.L. exams today so I doubt we'll see much of her until dinner tonight," said Hermione throwing her book bag over her shoulder. She noticed Harry's disappointment and added teasingly, "I'm sure you will survive the day without a kiss from her, Harry."

Ron snorted behind him. "I don't know. The way they to act, you would think they wouldn't survive long."

Harry smiled and shrugged.

The three friends headed down to the Great Hall for some breakfast. As they came down the stairway leading from the Entrance Hall into the Great Hall, they ran into Malfoy and a group of Slytherins.

"Where's your girlfriend Potter? Did she tire of you already?" sneered Malfoy eliciting grunting laughter from his Slytherin entourage.

Harry eyed him coldly. "Only in your dreams, Malfoy," he said as he put his hand in his pocket and grasped his wand.

"I'd keep an eye on your little girlfriend if I was you, Potter. You wouldn't want her experiencing what a real man could give her now, would you? You wouldn't measure up," he said bumping his shoulder as he entered the Great Hall.

Hermione grabbed his wand as he pulled it out intending to curse Malfoy 's back. "Harry don't!" she said anxiously.

 

He jerked it out of Hermione's hand as he watched Malfoy take a seat next to Pansy Parkinson and pull her close subtly fondling her breast as he did. Pansy giggled and kissed him.

"That's enough to make anyone sick," said Ron shaking his head in disgust. "And she had the nerve to call Elizabeth a slut."

Harry said nothing as they made their way to the Gryffindor table and sat down. Malfoy was going to be problem.

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"Quill down, please, Ms. Fairchild," came Professor Marchbanks stern voice.

Elizabeth put down her quill and watched as her paper flew onto Professor Marchbanks' withered hand. She bit her lip as the Professor scanned her paper for errors. She had been told prior to starting her Charms exam that her papers would be graded as she finished and would receive the results after her final exam on Friday.

"Excellent, Ms. Fairchild, excellent," said Professor Marchbanks looking up with an impressed smile on her ancient face. "Now if you're ready to continue, we will start your practical Charms exam. Please stand and face me. Very good. Now show me the incantation and wand gesture to make objects fly using this water goblet."

Elizabeth nodded her head and fixing her gaze on the water goblet, she flicked her wand and said, "Wingardium Leviosa!"

The water goblet lifted gracefully into the air and hovered for a few moments before returning soundlessly to the table.

Professor Marchbanks continued to ask her for different Charms for the next hour and Elizabeth easily obliged gaining confidence with every correctly issued Charm.

It was around lunchtime when Professor Marchbanks finally said, "You've successfully completed your Charms exam, Ms. Fairchild. You may break for lunch and I will meet you back here in an hour for your Transfiguration exam."

Elizabeth watched as Professor Marchbanks shuffled slowly out of the classroom then she walked down to the Great Hall and spotted Harry, Hermione and Ron. She gave Harry a tired smile as she slid in next to him.

Hermione gave her a sympathetic look and gently asked, "How are you holding up?"

Elizabeth reached for the sandwiches and answered, "Fairly well, I think."

Ron gave her an encouraging smile and said, "Well, you won't have to do it again . . . until next year during N.E.W.T.s, I mean. But then you'll be taking it right along with the rest of us and you'll have more time to study."

Elizabeth nodded and continued to eat.

"What time did you get up this morning?" asked Hermione, curiously. "I hope you slept okay last night. Exams are dreadful on little sleep."

A smile crept across Elizabeth's face as she swallowed the rest of her sandwich. "I slept extremely well," she remembered her dream and glanced quickly at Harry, "but I still awoke before dawn so I figured I would go over my notes before my Charms exam."

Harry watched Elizabeth smile as she mentioned sleeping well and stared at her curiously. He wondered if her dreams were anything close to his and smiled too. He didn't know how she would react if he tried to do to her in real life what he did in his dreams.

"When is your next exam?" asked Ron.

"What time is it?"she asked wiping her mouth with her napkin.

"Almost one-thirty," said Ron looking down at his watch.

Elizabeth took one last drink of her pumpkin juice as she pushed herself up from the table. "I have got to go," she said, slinging her bag over her shoulder.

Harry stood and reached for her bag, taking it from her shoulder. "I'll walk you back," he said smiling.

Elizabeth let him lead her from the Great Hall and they walked slowly to the empty classroom that was made temporarily into the O.W.L. exam room. She glanced inside the door and noticed Professor Marchbanks had yet to return. She turned around and leaned against the wall to wait. Harry stood in front of her with a strange expression. She leaned forward and kissed him softly then asked, "Something on your mind, Harry?"

He tilted his head to the side thoughtfully and asked, "Did you happen to dream about anything last night? I saw you smile when you mentioned sleeping to Hermione."

"As a matter-of-fact, I did," she said smiling seductively.

Harry voice became husky and he asked, "Do you remember what it was about?"

Elizabeth looked into his eyes and remembered quite vividly but her eyes narrowed slightly and she asked, "Why the sudden interest in my dreams, Harry? Have you put something in my drink to make me dream about you?" She laughed at the sudden thought. "Now that's what I call safe sex."

Before Harry could voice his denial, Professor Marchbanks came around the corner and Elizabeth straightened up as she passed. She gave Harry a quick kiss and muttered, "I'm teasing," then followed her inside.

Harry leaned his head against the wall where Elizabeth had just been a moment before. It was the middle of the day and he needed a cold shower. He took a deep breath and instead headed toward Defense Against the Dark Arts class. Damn, teasing should be illegal.

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Elizabeth slowly made her way up the staircase to the girls' dormitory. She had completed her Transfiguration exam and had studied as long as she could for tomorrow's Herbology and Defense Against the Dark Arts exam and now she felt completely drained. She pulled off her robes and slipped on her nightgown. Then she crawled into bed and almost immediately felt herself drifting off to sleep.

She was sitting down to dinner with her husband. They hadn't been married long. They chatted about the day while they ate, enjoying each others company. When they had finished with dinner, they walked with each other toward the staircase that lead to their bedroom, arm in arm, her husband whispering how much he loved her in her ear. Then a sudden flash of green light and her husband was falling lifeless, pulling her down with him. She pulled out her wand and screamed as she straightened up. The black cloaked figures were surrounding her. She wouldn't let them take her alive. She waved her wand and three of them flew back, crashing into the wall. She turned to run but was immediately struck by a flash of red and she felt herself fall to the ground unable to move. She wanted to scream as she felt herself being lifted off the ground. She heard someone else scream instead.

"Wake up, Elizabeth! It's okay! You're safe!"

Elizabeth awoke to find herself on the floor next to her bed and Hermione standing over her shouting. She looked around slightly disoriented. Her face wet with tears and her breathing coming in gasps. Hermione helped her sit back on her bed, giving her a worried look.

"Are you all right? You started screaming and flailing around like you were trying to get away from something," Hermione said anxiously.

Elizabeth nodded unwilling to speak. Her heart was still beating extremely fast. The images were still quite clear in her mind. She put a shaky hand to her temple trying to mentally calm herself.

"I think I should go and get Madame Pomfrey," she heard Lavender say.

Elizabeth looked up and noticed Parvati, Lavender, and Natalie eyeing her warily as if she had suddenly sprouted two heads. "No, I'll be fine. It was just a bad dream, is all," she said shakily, trying to reassure them of her sanity.

Hermione glared at them and said, "Haven't you ever had a bad dream? She's been under a lot of stress, for goodness sake! She is taking her O.W.L.s, after all! So bugger off!"

Parvati narrowed her eyes suspiciously at Elizabeth briefly then whispered to Lavender as she walked back to her bed, "I bet Harry has given her something contagious. He was having nightmares last year remember."

"Shut it, Parvati, before I do it for you and we all know I'm quite able," Hermione hissed.

Parvati exchanged a look with Lavender then pulled her drapes closed.

Elizabeth took several deep breaths and climbed back under her blankets. The dream was starting to fade slightly.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Hermione whispered, sitting down on the edge of her bed.

"It was so real. As if I had lived it before and was remembering . . . but I couldn't have. I have no family . . . my husband was different this time. . . .the black wizards were the same though," she mumbled.

"I'm sorry, Elizabeth. You're not making sense," Hermione said calmly and Elizabeth looked up at her.

"I had a similar dream yesterday while I was in the bath. I nodded off and dreamt . . . I was at home watching my children play . . . well, not my children, of course . . . who I was in the dream. . . . anyway, a group of dark-cloaked wizards came and killed my husband and threatened my children . . . they wanted me to go with them . . . and tonight, I had a similar dream . . . but I wore different clothes, they were much older . . . my husband was different this time too . . . but the same dark-cloaked wizards apparated suddenly and killed him . . . and stunned me . . . they wanted something . . . something only I could give them. . . ." Elizabeth searched her mind but was unable to grasp the fleeting memory. "I can't help but think it's a warning of some kind. Does that sound crazy?" she asked Hermione.

Hermione shook her head, thinking of Harry's dreams of last year. "No, not really. Have you told anyone else about it? Like Professor Dumbledore?"

"Heavens, no! Why would I bother him with something so trivial as my dreams? I'm sure I'm just being paranoid. I feel ridiculous enough as it is," she said lying back down. "Don't worry Hermione. I'll be fine, really. I'm not like Harry. I have no connection to Voldemort. Thank you for worrying about me but you can go back to sleep now." She rolled over and said, "Good night."

Hermione watched her for a moment longer before walking back to her bed and slipping under her blankets. Elizabeth knew she was still worried and if she was honest with herself, so was she.

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The rest of the week flew by, almost dreamless. She still had a couple about Harry. Elizabeth took her exams all day and studied for the next exams at night so when she completed her final exam on Friday she felt a tremendous amount of relief and had so much pent up energy that she hugged Professor Marchbanks and kissed her on the cheek, much to her surprise. She was so happy she didn't know what to do with herself. In her excitement, she rushed down to the Great Hall and threw herself into Harry's lap without thinking.

"I'm done!" she squealed and Harry laughed and pressed her to him. She turned to Hermione. "Thank you so much for helping me to prepare. But I'm done!"

Hermione and Ron laughed at her enthusiasm.

"Well, tell us how you truly feel!" Ron said and grinned watching Harry's expression. "I'm sure Harry would really enjoy it."

She realized where she was sitting. "Sorry, I sort of lost my head for a moment," she said as she slid out of Harry's lap and onto the seat next to him. "The stress was terrible. I thought my head was going to explode a few times during my Potions practical. But I think I did all right, at least I hope I did."

"When will you know?" asked Harry wishing she hadn't moved from his lap. He had missed her during the week and he had quite enjoyed her sudden burst of energy.

"Professor Marchbanks said Professor McGonagall would notify me some time after dinner tonight. Which means I can watch you and Ron hold Quidditch tryouts," she said, filling her plate.

"Great!" said Ron sounding slightly nervous at the prospect.

They spent the rest of their supper eating and talking about the Quidditch tryouts and the possible replacements for Fred, George, Angelina, and Katie. Ron still seemed slightly nervous about assisting with tryouts and Harry spent most of the time trying to encourage him. Elizabeth even tried to point out to him that she had never seen a game of Quidditch before so if he made a mistake, she actually wouldn't know unless someone told her. This didn't seem to do much for him, unfortunately. Eventually it was time to make their way down to the Quidditch pitch.

Harry stood and helped Elizabeth to her feet and they strode out of the hall and into the Entrance Hall. As Harry opened the main door for her to exit the castle, Elizabeth heard someone call her name and turned.

Professor McGonagall was striding toward her with determined steps, a piece of folded parchment in her hands. She handed her the parchment and gave her a stiff smile. "Congratulations, Ms. Fairchild. Let me be the first one to officially welcome you to your Sixth Year. You have passed all you subjects with flying colors," she eyed Harry, "even with certain distractions. I will look forward to seeing you finally in class where you belong. You will need to fill out the second piece of parchment and hand it into me by tomorrow evening. Is that understood?" Elizabeth nodded smiling and then Professor McGonagall turned to Harry. "I hope you're able to find suitable replacements for the open Quidditch team positions, Potter. I have no intention of relinquishing the Quidditch cup this year. I have grown quite fond of it. It goes rather well with my antique figurines. " With that, she turned on her heel and strode into the Great Hall.

Elizabeth stared down at her O.W.L. results without opening them. She bit her lip and felt herself grow nervous all over again. Hermione grew impatient.

"Oh, just open it already! She told you that you had to fill out your schedule and return it tomorrow. That means you qualified for more classes than you're able to attend. Open it!" she said sounding rather excited.

Elizabeth tore open the sealed letter and read her results:

                              

                           Ordinary Wizarding Level Results

                                 For Ms. Elizabeth Fairchild

                           Charms O

                           Transfiguration O

                          Herbology A

                          Defense Against the Dark Arts E

                          Ancient Runes O

                           Potions O

                          Care of Magical Creatures O

                          Astronomy O

                          Divination O

                          History of Magic O

"Blimey, Elizabeth! You got an O.W.L. in almost everything," said Ron sounding quite impressed. "She got almost as many as you did Hermione."

Hermione smiled and said, "She would have gotten just as many but she didn't take her Arithmancy exam."

"That's because I hadn't really studied for it," Elizabeth said slightly embarrassed that she had done so well. "Arithmancy isn't quite my cup of tea."

"But you know it. You proved it last week when you helped me with my homework when you were supposed to be studying Herbology." Hermione beamed like a proud mother and threw her arms around her, as tears sprung to her eyes.

Elizabeth's expression grew sad with longing and her eyes misty with tears. She hugged Hermione back and saw Harry over her shoulder watching her quietly.

"Congratulations, Elizabeth," he said with a sad, understanding smile. "You would have made your parents proud." He leaned over and kissed her cheek and pulled her into a warm embrace.

Elizabeth let out a quiet sob as she held Harry to her. She had never missed her parents more than in that moment and he had understood without her saying a word. She held him a moment longer and then wiped her tears away with the back of her hand. She looked around at Hermione and Ron and back to Harry and smiled.

"Well, enough of this. We have got to get to the Quidditch pitch," she said sniffing and placed her O.W.L. results into the pocket of her robes.

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Elizabeth was amazed at how fast everyone flew over the Quidditch pitch. Harry was mostly a blur as he circled high above. Ron was the only one she could clearly keep her eye on and even he moved with lightening fast reflexes as he moved to defend the posts. He didn't seem nervous to her at all. Ginny had indeed turned up for the tryouts and played the position of Chaser very well. A Fourth Year wizard with dark brown hair by the name of Andrew Kirke was one of the Beaters from last year according to Hermione. Jack Sloper, a blonde Third Year, was the other. Evidently both had improved quite a bit over the summer, which Hermione seemed quite pleased about.

Elizabeth heard a loud whistle and turned to find Harry back on the ground, waving everyone toward him. About ten people had shown up to tryout for the open Chaser positions and Harry motioned the first two onto the pitch. With another loud blast from his whistle Harry was off circling the pitch again, watching the Quaffle being passed back in forth, yelling encouragement to the newcomers. Every fifteen minutes or so, He would blow his whistle and exchange the newcomers out and after about an hour and a half of this, he finally brought everyone back down to the ground. He consulted Ron very briefly before telling everyone he had made his decision and thanked them for showing up.

"Wesley Hunt and Celeste Warren, welcome to the team. You'll need to stay behind and try on uniforms to see if we have one that fits. If we don't, let me know. Ginny, Kirke, and Sloper, welcome back. We'll begin practicing Wednesday evening for the upcoming season. Any questions?" Harry looked around briefly. "Good. See you Wednesday."

Elizabeth walked down to the Quidditch pitch and smiled at Harry as he strode toward her. "Hermione's right. You and Ron do look quite dashing in your Quidditch uniforms," she said and winced as Hermione pinched her arm. "Ouch!"

Harry laughed and Ron grinned at Hermione who for once didn't turn away and instead smiled back.

"We'll meet you back in the common room. We need to shower and change and I have to make sure Hunt and McDonald find suitable uniforms," he said, giving her a quick kiss on the forehead.

Elizabeth watched Harry walk away and smiled. "What is it about a man in uniform that makes me all weak in the knees . . . and makes me wish I wasn't such a good girl?" she growled. She glanced at Hermione. She seemed to be watching Ron walk away, her eyes drifting over his bum. "Hermione, you're drooling."

Hermione started at her words and blushed. "He's really good, isn't he? I didn't get to see him play the last game of the season. I bet he was wonderful to watch."

"Hermione, do you hear yourself? You have got to talk to Ron," Elizabeth said, turning her by her shoulders and shaking her a bit. "Look, don't tell him I told you, but he told me he really likes you. As more than a friend. He's just afraid to compete with Krum and he's afraid of ruining your relationship." Hermione looked stunned at this revelation. "You are going to have to make the first move. You're the one with the possible long-distance boyfriend, not Ron! So stop admiring from afar when snogging is so much more preferable." Elizabeth finished and turned on her heel and strode toward the castle, leaving Hermione to mull over her words. She hoped she had shocked some sense onto Hermione. Somebody has got to bite the bullet. She just hoped she still has both of them as friends when the dust settles.

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Harry sauntered into the common room and it took a minute for him to find who he was looking for. His eyes finally found Elizabeth at a table in the corner next to the window with a quill in hand. She seemed lost in thought as she stared down at the piece of parchment in front of her. As he watched her, she seemed to make her decision and dipping her quill into her ink, she wrote it down with a slight curve to her lips. Some of her hair had come loose from its braid and gently swayed with every turn of her head. She was doing such an ordinary thing, writing on parchment but to Harry it was so graceful; he never knew writing could be so damn appealing. She tilted her head slightly at the words on the paper, seeming to contemplate them for a moment then folded the parchment in thirds and placed it in her pocket. She must have felt his eyes on her because she looked up at him and her face broke into a breathtaking smile. God, she makes him want to . . .

"Hello, Captain. I was wondering when you would be along," she said as he pulled out a chair next to her and sat down.

Harry stared at her for a moment and she met his gaze. He smiled and reached out a hand to caress her cheek and she turned toward his touch like she had in his dream. A sudden movement caught Harry's eye and he let his hand fall to the table as he turned his head. Colin Creevey ducked slightly behind a nearby armchair but straightened up when Harry coolly said, "No more pictures, Colin. Get out."

Colin's face fell with disappointment and he turned and walked out of the common room.

Elizabeth chuckled and Harry turned his head back toward her. "You can be very intimidating when you want to be. I like that," she said softly.

Harry had the overwhelming urge to be alone with her, if only to talk. But he wasn't kidding himself either. He would welcome anything not quite so innocent too. "Would you like to take a walk with me?" he said simply.

Elizabeth said, "I was hoping you would ask." She slipped her hand in Harry's and they walked out of the common room, through the maze of corridors and down to the school grounds.

The sun had already set and a chill was starting to loom in the air as night approached. They slowly strolled across the moonlit lawn. Elizabeth told him what it had been like to live in an orphanage and Harry told her what it was like to live at with his aunt and uncle on Privet Drive. They realized they had lived very similar lives until Elizabeth had come to stay at Mrs. O' Neil's and Harry had come to Hogwarts. Harry was very interested in her unusual abilities and asked her several questions about them which she answered honestly. He told her about his ability to speak Parseltongue and how he discovered it unwittingly during a duel with Malfoy in his second year but didn't tell her it was related to his scar and Voldemort.

"So what was the heaviest thing you've ever moved?" he asked curiously.

Elizabeth thought about it for a moment. "Well . . . I moved a truck once by accident," she said slightly embarrassed.

Harry laughed and said, "If by accident, you mean, you weren't thinking about it and it happened on its own. I can relate."

Elizabeth gave him a lopsided grin. "Okay, not exactly by accident. But it was blocking my way and no one was around so I moved it. I think I was about nine at the time," she admitted.

A muffled groan in the distance reached both of their ears and they hunched down instinctively. They crept slowly toward the sound. It seemed to be coming from just outside the Quidditch pitch.

Elizabeth put her hand over her mouth to quiet her gasp. Hermione and Ron were in a very compromising embrace leaning against a tree about twenty yards from where they were standing. They obviously didn't know they had an audience. As they watched, Hermione let her robes fall to the ground and Ron kissed her neck.

"Way to go, Hermione," Elizabeth whispered under her breath.

 Harry grinned and motioned for her to follow him back toward the castle.

When they were a safe distance from the newly found lovebirds, Harry said in a husky voice, "I guess it was all that built up tension over the years finally being let loose." He glanced over at Elizabeth wondering if he should do what he was thinking of doing. Ron and Hermione certainly looked like they were enjoying themselves.

 

"I guess a certain amount of tension can do that to two people," she said glancing at Harry as they walked. Kiss me dammit! Her tongue peeked out to moisten her lips.

Harry faltered in his steps slightly, grabbed her hands, and pushed her behind a rose bush then pulled her toward him. "I think it would be best if we don't do that," he said and roughly kissed her.

Remember, Elizabeth, you're a good girl.

 She felt his tongue pull her lip into his mouth.

I'm a good girl.

She felt him suck gently on her lip then his hand wandered down to tease her breast.

Screw the good girl.

She gave in and responded the same way and Harry felt like he suddenly couldn't get enough of her. She couldn't be close enough to him. His hands drifted over her body and she clung to him, meeting his need with her own. She let out a small moan and Harry thought he couldn't burn any more without disintegrating. Her hands were untucking his shirt.

The rustle of approaching footsteps vaguely registered in Harry's mind. He reluctantly pulled away, his breath coming deeply and his body aching for release. He glanced down the path and saw Filch heading straight for them. He turned back and looked into Elizabeth's eyes and saw his desire reflected there. She was slightly out of breath and her face was flushed.

He let out a growl and quickly led her back into the castle, silently cursing Filch. Neither one dared to speak as they made their way back to Gryffindor Tower.

The Fat Lady eyed them suspiciously as they stopped in front of her. Her gaze quickly taking in Elizabeth's disheveled hair and Harry's uncomfortable expression and untucked shirt. She wagged her finger down at them and said, "Me thinks you two have been up to no good."

"Me thinks we didn't ask your opinion. Codswallop!" Harry said harshly.

The Fat Lady raised her eyebrows and gave them a knowing glance as she swung open.

My god, I need a cold shower!

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Elizabeth couldn't sleep. She had lain in bed for three hours staring at the ceiling, praying for sleep to find her but it hadn't. She silently got out of bed and walked to the window. Obviously, making out before one goes to bed is not sleep-inducive. All she could think about was the taste of him and the smell of him. The way his emerald green eyes turned dark as he had bent to kiss her and how his hands had caused such a delicious throbbing need inside her. She shook her and leaned against the window with a slight groan. You're a closet slut, Elizabeth. No denying that.

"Can't sleep?" came the whisper directly behind her.

Elizabeth turned to find Hermione standing there with an expression mirroring her thoughts. "No, I guess not."

"Harry?" asked Hermione bluntly.

"Yeah. Ron?" asked Elizabeth.

Hermione smiled then nodded. "How did you know?"

Elizabeth suppressed a knowing grin and said, "Harry and I went for a walk down by the Quidditch pitch."

Hermione's eyes widened and the tell-tell sign of a blush was just visible in the moonlight. "Oh."

"I guess I sort of have you to blame for not being able to sleep," whispered Elizabeth, bitterly. She chuckled at Hermione's strange look. "No, not that way. I mean Harry and I entertained ourselves after seeing you and Ron. Then Filch decided to put in an appearance and sort of interrupted us, right in the middle. Which, I guess, is a good thing because we both sort of lost our heads for a moment. And Hermione . . . I think I'm a closet nympho."

Hermione giggled and her shoulders shook violently, obviously suppressing a larger laugh.

"It's not funny. I can't sleep. This is serious. Stop laughing."

Hermione grabbed a hold of the vanity to keep herself upright. Elizabeth glared at her, clearly put out and Hermione righted herself and wiped her tears away.

"Well, at least you know," said Hermione trying to keep a straight face but doing a very poor job.

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow and said, "It seems you as well might be having some wayward thoughts, Ms. Granger, or we would not be having this conversation." She watched Hermione's blush deepen and she grinned. "You did remember to pick up your robe when you and Ron were through?"

Hermione's jaw dropped and she gasped, all trace of humor gone, "How much did you see?"

"Enough," said Elizabeth evasively.

"We didn't . . . you know . . . we just kissed a bit," she said, her face on fire now.

"Me thinks the lady doth protest too much," Elizabeth teased. "I think that's how it goes. Anyway . . . at least, I admit it, Hermione."

"But honestly, we didn't . . . "

Elizabeth laughed then covered her mouth to keep from waking the others. "I know, Hermione. I was just joking. I know you wouldn't."

Hermione sat down on the rug with a sigh and Elizabeth followed suit.

"So how did it happen?" asked Elizabeth curiously. "You and Ron, I mean. The last I knew you were recovering from watching his firm arse walk into the locker room."

Hermione rolled her eyes then looked down at her toes peeking out from under her nightgown. "I thought about what you said . . . about Ron having feelings for me but not having the nerve to ask me out. Then I started thinking about the times I had caught him staring at me and how he tries to protect me from nasty comments and how he glares at me if I mention Viktor and before I realized it I had walked into the Quidditch locker rooms. Thank God, no one was inside. I would have died of embarrassment if Harry or one of the others had been in there. So I turned to leave and found myself staring up at Ron. His hair was still wet from his shower and his skin was all flushed . . ." Hermione shook herself and glanced up at Elizabeth.

"Believe me. I can relate. Go on."

"Well, he asked me if I needed something and my mind went blank for a moment. I just stared at him with a stupid expression on my face. I was completely mortified so I pushed past him and walked outside, kicking myself for being so stupid. But then . . ." Hermione smiled, "He must have called after me because he grabbed my arm and he just looked at me for a second then . . . he kissed me."

Elizabeth let out a deep sigh and leaned her back against the window cove. "We are never going to be able to sleep at this rate."

"I know, but I think men have it worse then we do . . . physically, I mean," Hermione said matter-of-factly. "They're probably not sleeping any better."

Elizabeth grinned wickedly. "Good. I would hate to be the only one having a sleepless night. That wouldn't say much for my snogging abilities, would it?"

Hermione shook her head and smiled. "My god, you are bad."

"I never said I was good. I maybe a Chime but I'm definitely not an angel and believe me neither is Harry. We just have a lot of really good moments."