Enchanted By The Thought

FOURTEEN: Guess We Haven't Grown Up Yet

Storms don't last forever.

Maggie and Beth walked to Hagrid's hut on Saturday, whispering to each other about Draco. Both girls were trying to deduce if the Slytherin Prince had feelings for Beth as well. When they passed the Whomping Willow, they overheard shouts of delight and Beth looked up from the ground. Kat and a few Slytherins were dancing around the tree, egging each other on. One glance at her friend told Beth all she needed to know; Kat had changed into someone they didn't recognize. Her hair was wild and unkept and she had a burning intensity in her eyes that warned Beth of danger.

As if sensing their gazes, Kat turned to look at them and her expression cleared. Her arm moved as if to lift it but it fell back to her side. Blaise turned around to look at them, his eyes narrowing. Beth sent him a dirty looked before she grabbed Maggie's hand and pulled her away from the group, spotting the smoke rising in the air. Kat had done something unforgivable and Beth wasn't about to let her friend forget either.

When the two got to Hagrid's, Fang was outside sniffing around the place. At the sound of their approach, he let out a bellowing bark and barreled towards them, howling at the top of his lungs. He jumped up on Maggie's chest and the two fell backwards; Maggie was laughing and attempting to push the boarhound off of her. Fang leaned back and licked Beth's hand gently, whining. Beth smiled fondly and patted his head, enjoying the coarse hair that covered his body.

Hagrid was tending to his pumpkins when they approached him, humming under his breath. When he spotted them, he waved cheerily. "Oi! Thought I saw you two comin' down 'ere."  Hagrid greeted, setting his huge pitchfork down. He enveloped both girls into a bone-crushing hug. "'Aven't seen Kat around, 'ave ya?" He asked them curiously. "She promised ter help wit' somethin'. Top secret." He winked at them and they both giggled.

The small group went into Hagrid's hut and he made tea for them while Beth attempted to eat one of his rock cakes. Her teeth felt like they were attempting to bite through granite but she still managed to take a bite. Hagrid seemed to be in a cheery mood, whistling as he poured them both a giant cup of tea. And they chatted together, talking about the normal things they did. Night fell as the sun slipped away and Hagrid ushered them back up to the school, promising to save them one of his pumpkins.

On their way back, Maggie was chatting excitedly about a boy and when Beth came to her senses, she felt her stomach sink to her feet. "Yeah, I mean, he still feels kind of weird about it and everything, considering he dated Kat and I was one of her best friends, but I think that he's coming around."

Beth stared at her friend, her eyebrows raised. A little part of her wanted to snap at Maggie but the bigger part of her stayed silent. "Who?" She asked dumbly and Maggie sent her an exasperated look of annoyance.

"Colin, who else?" She answered and Beth closed her eyes tightly. Oh no, this was turning into one of those drama-filled scenes from a muggle drama film movie. She could already tell how everything was going to play out; she was epically screwed. If Kat found out, if Kat found out, there would be no mercy for Maggie. In fact, there would be no mercy for Beth either. They'd both be dead. She might as well pick out her tombstone now.

Beth shivered once and glanced around uneasily. "Maggie, he's Kat's ex. You can't date an ex. It's an unspoken girl code." Beth whispered frantically, as if afraid someone would overhear her. "And if, no, when Kat finds out, we're both burnt marshmallows roasting in a fire pit. We're dead. She'll kill both of us and probably have her Slytherin friends conjure our spirits up just to kill us in the afterlife as well!"

Maggie started laughing at Beth's comments and patted her shoulder. "Oh, Beth. You're so paranoid. She can't do anything, she's with Zabini. She has no claim over Colin anymore." Maggie answered confidently and Beth shook her head quickly.

"Girl code, Maggie. Girl code." She insisted. "You broke it and now you've condemned both of us to certain death!"

~

It was strange seeing Colin and Maggie together, all other differences aside. They were a cute couple, in Beth's opinion. They weren't quick to claim to love each other and they appeared to be taking things slowly. Colin treated Maggie as he had treated Kat and Maggie treated Colin better than Kat had treated him. They were like two magnets drawn together. Beth watched the two together and they seemed to be oblivious to how they acted around each other. If Maggie moved a fraction of an inch to the left, Colin mirrored her. It was sweet and Beth knew that perhaps their strings of fate were now woven together.

When Kat had found out, she'd reacted exactly as Beth had predicted. Despite them all sharing a dorm room, the girls awkwardly avoided her and never hung around her. They didn't bother to tell Kat that Maggie was with her ex because they didn't want the daylights hexed out of them in their sleep. Beth watched her old friend from afar and she noticed how the whole Gryffindor house shunned her for befriending the Slytherins. The once popular girl had been tossed from the top.

Maggie and Colin had been sitting together at breakfast, whispering about their Potions homework, with Beth being their awkward third-wheel. A strand of Maggie's hair had fallen free from her ponytail and he'd brushed away from her eyes and they kissed. Unfortunately, Kat had been watching them from the far end of the table. Beth had looked up at the same time that Kat's eyes had darkened into a brewing storm. The girl waited for the outburst that Kat was known for but there was nothing; Beth should've knew something was up.

Colin had turned away to talk to his friend and Maggie had rose to go to the bathroom. But Beth had an uneasy feeling and had looked up to see Kat following her old friend. Beth had quickly excused herself and hurried from the hall, wondering at what lengths Kat would go to get her revenge. She'd walked into the bathroom and had stumbled upon Kat on top of Maggie, her fist connecting to her chin. Both of their wands were nowhere to be found and Beth had jumped into the fight, attempting to pull Kat off.

"Kat! Stop!" Beth cried, her gentle hands turning into claws as she dragged her nails down Kat's shoulders in an attempt to pull her off. But Kat was ruthless, her eyes fixed upon Maggie's bloodied face. "Katherine!" Beth screamed and shoved with all her might, sending her friend tumbling off. Maggie let out a soft moan, rolling away from the two.

Kat's wild eyes landed on Beth and she smiled, her face cold. "Did you know? Huh? Did you know she was shagging my ex? Did you know she took my left overs? You know what my mom always says-" She looked over Beth's shoulder at Maggie, who had pushed herself to her knees. "-always give to the poor. Always give to the mudbloods." Kat let out a shriek of laughter and Beth's fist connected to her nose with a sickening crunch. Kat let out a faint wail of pain and doubled over, holding her nose.

Beth bent over her, her gaze red with rage. "You don't speak of her like that, do you understand? You ungrateful, arrogant, pig-headed bitch. How dare you mock her! How dare you beat down upon her for breaking a code that you are no longer subjected to! You used to be up here with us-" Beth's finger poked Kat's shoulder. "-but now you're down here-" she stomped on Kat's foot, earning a yelp. "With the rest of your precious snakes. If I ever see you so much as glance in Maggie's direction, I will make sure you regret ever being born." Beth hissed softly and Kat looked up at her with wide eyes.

Her threat must've scared Kat because not once did the Gryffindor acknowledge Maggie. And Maggie, her face was healed up but she had small bruises all over her face. Colin had been livid when he'd seen her and Beth had to remind him that he wouldn't earn himself points if he attacked a female.

Even Harry, finally, had noticed that there was drama going on with his sister. On her way to class, he'd caught her off guard. "What happened to Maggie?" He whispered to her, his eyebrows raised as he walked beside her. Beth's patience with everyone had worn thin and she was close to breaking someone's arm. Draco had been avoiding her as well as her issues with her friends; her twin chose the most stressful times to pay attention to her. Why couldn't he go on ignoring her?

"Kat." Beth answered tartly and caught the gaze of Draco, who was currently walking with Blaise. Draco looked disheveled and exhausted but he offered her a smile. Beth looked away, not bothering to care with his silly little games at the moment. Harry seemed to have picked up on her mood and he nodded mutely, falling into step beside her. She wanted to scream at him to leave her alone; it was all she wanted at the moment, to be left alone. But she could sense his own emotions brewing within him and she sighed, knowing that her rejection would just piss the both of them off. She was tired of Kat's sudden personality change and Maggie's constant whining. Why couldn't everyone just grow up?