𝖈𝖆𝖕𝖗𝖎𝖈𝖎𝖔𝖚𝖘

chapter nine

When they arrived at hogwarts, Elizabeth had to separate from the four slytherins and make her way over to the gryffindor table in the great hall, sitting herself next to Dean, winking when she saw Seamus on his other side, and opposite the golden trio. To her left was Fred, who sat alongside Lee, opposite George.

During the sorting, the new defence professor, Lupin kept staring at her, catching the attention of those around her.

"Liz?" George asked.

"Yeah?"

"What's up with the new defence teacher?"

"What d'you mean?"

"He means why's he staring at you?" Fred explained, drawing her attention to the man.

Elizabeth turned to meet Lupins stare, raising her eyebrows at him and giving him a scowl as if to say 'what?' across the hall.

Infuriatingly, the man only chuckled to himself, smiling and looking away.

"God knows," Lizzie frowned, "he seemed nice enough on the train."

"What happened to you on the train?" Harry asked, resulting in Hermione hushing him as Dumbledore was doing his speech. Although he ignored the girl beside him, talking in hushed tones, "You went to look around and you didn't come back."

"A bloody dementor happened," she grumbled, clapping as the conversation continued, with the speech coming to an end and everyone beginning to eat, "ended up in Draco's compartment with the slytherin lot and passed out."

"So did I," Harry supplied, "did you hear people screaming too?"

"No," she answered, causing a drop in Harry's shoulders, "but there was someone shouting, and then there was..." she trailed off, preferring not to talk about the years she spent with Walburga.

"What?"

"Hmm?"

"Then there was what?" Harry asked.

"Nothing," she mumbled, "just the shouting."

"Right." Harry sighed, disappointed that he had been made to feel crazy again, having heard screaming. He was sure it had to mean something, but he was sick of being the only one to be on the receiving end of bad or suspicious things. He was also irritated by the fact that Lizzie was clearly hiding something, not to mention the annoyance that bloomed inside of him from the pitying looks Hermione and Ron were giving him.

"Potter?" a voice called out before them, turning out to be Draco, "Potter!" he hissed, "Is it true you fainted? I mean you actually fainted?"

Harry could feel the annoyance bubbling inside of him again, ready to lash out at Draco for being a prick, before someone stood up for him.

"Pipe down goldilocks!" Elizabeth yelled, "As if you weren't shitting yourself thinking I'd died."

"Rude," he scoffed, "that was concern thank you very much! I cant believe you're using it against me."

"Can't believe you're being such a dick," she countered, grinning as his expression morphed into one of shock.

"You're so annoying," the boy complained, "I cant ever badger saint Potter in front of you, it's just a joke, and you always ruin it!"

"Quit being dramatic," she laughed as the boy turned around, "family are supposed to fight."

Their spat was interrupted by the food that appeared in front of them at their respective tables, an array of dinner time options presented before them.

Everyone around them began tucking into the food, Elizabeth especially as she ate her first proper meal since her visit to Dean's.

She helped herself to plenty of carbs and proteins, knowing the crisps and bread she lived off of during the summer wasn't likely very sustaining.