The Forging of the Bonds

Chapter 20. The End of the Ball.

When Elizabeth returned to the Great Hall, she was disappointed to see that Michael wasn't there. Neither was Kate Longbottom, she noted. She spotted Goyle's date, Sandra Murphy, dancing with Evan Thomas. They seemed to be enjoying themselves. There was no sign of Goyle. Her father had left as well, although Potter was still there.

She heard a loud crash at the entrance, as Robert Goyle and Patricia Nott stumbled in. She blinked, wondering what had happened to make them both look like they had just been fighting, and both lost.

"Malfoy!" Goyle shouted.

"What do you want?" Elizabeth asked, mostly out of curiosity. The Ball was getting really boring, and this was something unusual.

"Not here." Nott gestured towards Potter, who was looking in their direction.

"Sure." She stepped out of the Great Hall. "What the hell happened to you two? Fighting?"

"Weasley," Goyle replied.

"He beat you up?" Elizabeth stared. This was hard to believe, especially since Goyle was much larger than Weasley. Nor did she see any possible reason Michael would do such a thing.

"He kicked us out of the Room of Requirement," Nott said. "And he took twenty points from Slytherin. That puts us behind!"

Elizabeth thought for a moment before keeling over. "And what," she said, giggling, "may I ask, were you two doing in the Room of Requirement?"

Both Nott and Goyle blushed red. "I see," Elizabeth said. "Next time, don't use the place everyone knows about," she suggested.

"Where else are we meant to go?" Goyle asked. Nott slapped him.

"If I tell you, everyone will know about it, and then I won't have a place to use," she replied and left that standing. How did I miss the Goyle-Nott reunion, she thought. Oh, well. But if they start snogging in class again, there's no chance of Slytherin winning the cup. She sighed. The Ball had turned out to be one, big, tedious chore... well, except for that brief period of dancing with Michael, she amended.

"Can't you do something?" Nott demanded.

"What?"

"Take points off some Gryffindor, to make us even," Goyle said.

Elizabeth hesitated. "You won't do it?" Nott asked. "Oh. It's because you like Weasley..."

"I do not--"

"I saw you two together. You--"

"Shut up, Nott." She reached for her wand.

"Malfoy?" Montague approached her. "It's the last dance of the night."

"Excuse me," she told Nott. She didn't really want to dance anymore, but it was better than continuing the argument. Might as well get this over with. Montague led her onto the floor.

Elizabeth danced absentmindedly. "Malfoy?" Montague asked, as the dance was closing. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she replied. "I just need a breath of fresh air."

"You're going outside? In this weather?"

"I am not asking you to come with me. In fact, I'd rather you didn't," she snapped back. She didn't care about Montague in the first place.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Figure it out," she said, pulling on her cloak. Montague approached, but she drew her wand. "Don't follow me." Montague, obviously realizing that he would be outmatched in a duel, retreated. She was going to take a walk outside to clear hear head, and then she was going to find Michael.