pride and prejudice | t. riddle

t h i r t e e n

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       It was only a couple of days later after Elizabeth's and Tom's encounter in the stables when Halloween day arrived. Thankfully, the bruise had dwindled down to barely anything as the days passed and now it was practically invisible.

But the nightmares began; every night, she was reminded of the encounter in the empty classroom. However, it wasn't steel grey eyes that bore into her. It was blood red ones that pierced her own. And the chokehold became searing hot as she couldn't breathe. Elizabeth woke up in the dead of night for the past week with her own hands clawing at her neck for air.

Elizabeth was hoping that Halloween would help her forget for one night about Tom.

The castle was buzzing with life as ghosts fluttered all around wishing each student a happy Halloween. Large spider webs were strung high above the hallways in the arches with huge fake spiders occupying the silk. In the great hall itself, lit jack-o-lanterns floated in the air, replacing the floating candles that usually occupied the ceiling.

"Lucy, are you going to make it to the party tonight?" Meg's favorite holiday was Halloween, she made sure that the lion's house always threw a large costume party in their common room. It had become sort of a tradition in Hogwarts. Every house was invited, except for the majority of Slytherins.

"Mhmm."

"You've asked everyone thirty times! Each!" Vivian exclaimed, tired of the constant nagging.

"Oh boohoo, Viv. I just want this year to go perfectly." Last years party was crashed by a bunch of Slytherin purebloods. Mainly Lavinia and Walburga and their own evil group of friends who terrorized the students. "I've only invited two Slytherins."

"Who?" Scott asked.

"Rosier probably." Elizabeth snickered.

"If you must know, yes. But not for the reason you think."

"Enlighten us Margaret." Scott leaned forward on his elbows in false excitement. Meg glared at him with the use of her full name.

"I need something from him."

The four friends looked at each other before bursting out laughing.

"Meg! You sly dog!" Elizabeth exclaimed.

"My little girl, all grown up!" Lucy clasped her hands as she pretended to sniffle.

"No!" Meg yelled in protest. "I need into the Slug Club."

"What? Why?" Vivian asked.

"Theo Diggory."

"Wait what?" Lucy questioned. "From my house? Like Theo Diggory that's practically engaged to Aurora Weasley?"

"What other Theo Diggory is there?"

"You're using Rosier, to get to the club, to get to Diggory."

"Precisely."

"That's evil." Scott stated. "Are you aware that Christian Rosier is practically head over heels in love with you, right?"

"Very." Meg smirked. "And yes, yes I am. But he's a total dog! He likes every girl!"

"Wait didn't you and Diggory snog like a year or two ago?" Elizabeth remembered. Meg had come screeching into the girls dormitory late one night after a detention with Professor Sinistra, waking up everyone from their slumber. She jumped up and down on her bed as she gave too much information of Theo and her making out in some dark closet for an hour.

"It was fifteen months and three days ago, to be exact."

"I don't even want to know why you know that." Lucy scrunched up her nose in disgust.

"You should see my costume for tonight, it'll do the job." She winked.

"And 'you know' with Rosier?" Vivian questioned, slightly shocked by her friend's willingness to use someone like that. Slytherin or not. Meg was extremely promiscuous for this era of traditionalism. She was incredibly ahead of her time in a way, but she wasn't seen in a good light by most at Hogwarts. However, her friends although might disagree with her ideals, who were they to judge.

"Who knows? If it gets me in the club? Then sure." Meg shrugged. "He won't be able to keep his hands off me."

"We don't need to know that." Elizabeth begged, not wanting to see the hot mess she would become to "woo" Christian Rosier.

"Whatever." She waved her hand. "You all have your costumes ready, right?"

They all nodded their head yes. It was a requirement to even attend the party. Meg was very serious about Halloween and firmly believed it wasn't Halloween without costumes.

No costume? No entry. It was her only policy.

"Hey Elizabeth." A new voice spoke out. Looking up she saw the baby blue eyes of Cutler Prewett staring down at her.

"H-hey Cutler."

"Are you going to the party tonight?"

"Yep!"

"Great! What time does it start again?"

"Eight."

"Thanks! See you there!" And with that Cutler had walked off. Elizabeth looked back down at her friends, who all had their jaws wide open.

"What?"

"He's totally in love with you!" Meg screeched.

"What?! No he isn't."

"He basically just asked you to the party!" Vivian beamed at her Gryffindor friend.

"He was being nice!"

"I'm a guy and I know they like to be nonchalant about things like that. He definitely asked you, Elizabeth." Scott said pointedly.

"You're not stupid." Lucy added.

"I really don't think he was..." Elizabeth protested. "That's like the third time we've ever spoken."

"So? You're hot!" Meg failed her arms in frustration.

"Stop it, no I'm not." Elizabeth disagreed.

"Whatever hot stuff." Meg smirked.

"What are you going as Lucy?" Vivian changed the conversation, uncomfortable with all the talk about dates and boyfriends.

"A witch." Lucy stated, not one to beat around the bush. "What about you?"

"Very original Luce." Meg rolled her eyes at her friends blunt mind. "But yeah Viv, what are you going as?"

"Dorothy," She blushed. Vivian was almost always Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, the costume from her childhood still fit her perfectly after she had basically stopped growing their third year.

"Booo. You're always Dorothy!" Meg protested. "What about Dorian?"

"I think Captain America. He's obsessed with the comics at the moment."

"Makes sense. Elizabeth?" Scott asked her.

"Elizabeth Bennet?" Meg joked.

"Ha. Ha. Very funny, but no it's a surprise." Elizabeth grimaced at her friends joke.

"Well who knows? If you do, maybe Mr. Darcy can come sweep you off your feet." Vivian added.

"I highly doubt that."

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