"Are you playing hard to get?"
"Oh please, you think I'd play anything for you? I'm just simply hard to get"
"Just admit it, you're in love with me LeStrange"
"Don't flatter yourself, Diggory"
...
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Belle wasn't sure she had ever hugged anyone harder than she hugged her best friend. Okay, other than Ned of course. Still, she was extremely grateful to finally have Amora back. The celebration didn't stop once they made it back to Fleur and Bill's house. Even though the couple had left for Hogwarts to help prepare for the incoming war, Belle was glad to finally have a peaceful night.
She watched happily as Amora dashed up the stairs, Cedric in tow. She understood how urgent it was that Amora was reunited with her child. In fact, Belle found herself wandering up the stairs as well, drifting into her and Ned's room. To her surprise, Ned was in there as well.
Ned's brown hair was a mess, but he still looked as handsome as ever. He wore a flannel shirt, revealing his muscular arms. His eyes were spaced out, looking towards a small part of the rug. Meanwhile, little Alicia had dark black tufts of hair sticking out wildly, identically to Frank's. They had the same brown eyes as Ned, and shared Belle's features.
"Shh, shh, shh..." Ned whispered to a fussy Alicia. He had taken a seat in the middle of the floor on a small mustard carpet, watching the twins play happily with their toys. Frank was trying to fit a small square block into the circular hole while Alicia was sitting on Ned's lap.
"Hey," Belle murmured, sitting next to him. He wrapped an arm around her lower back, and they melted into each other naturally. It was just so easy with him.
"You feeling a bit shaken up?" Ned asked, and Belle shrugged.
"We have her back, but...I don't feel good about the way we had to do it," Belle explained.
"Yeah, I never though I'd ever have to use that spell. Not after what happened to Mum and Dad," Ned's voice broke at the last part of the sentence.
"Ned," Belle whispered softly. The moonlight broke through the stained window, showing the tears in his eyes. However hard it was for Belle, she knew it must have been ten times harder for him. He buried his face in her shoulder, and Belle held him. She didn't mind that he was getting her favorite yellow dress adorned with sunflowers wet. As long as she was able to comfort him, that comforted her.
"Belle, I'm scared," Ned admitted once he had calmed down.
"Ned, you're a brilliant dueler. The Death Eaters should be quaking in their boots," Belle snorted.
"Not for me. I'm scared for you. For us. This family we've created. My entire life all I wanted was a family that was more than just me and Neville. Now that I have it, I'm afraid to lose it," Ned confessed. Belle sucked in a deep breath. It was as if he had read her mind. She was worried sick about Ned and her children as well.
"Ned, when I was really little, my grandmother used to tell me this same thing all the time," Belle started. She wasn't sure of this would make things better or worse, but she had to try.
