Chapter Fifty-Five

BREAKFAST HAD BEEN very awkward the next morning. Everyone had been woken by a curse that made all the portraits sing at their highest note. Aria had woken up in a mood, which had not been improved upon looking across the hall and seeing George helping the girl from the day before up onto her feet.

She felt jealously surge through her body at high speeds and turned to kick Malfoy. "Wake up you rat."

He groaned and held his stomach, "Merlin, Snape. If you want to get in all you had to do was ask." He held out his arm and opened up the sleeping bag a little.

"No!" She exclaimed and rolled her eyes. "Get up. It's almost breakfast and they want the hall cleared."

He stood up a moment later, messy and scruffy from his sleep.

"Nice hair." Aria chuckled and watched in amusement as his hands raced to smooth out the blond strands that were standing static atop his head.

She made her way to the common room, Draco trailing sleepily behind her and Anna at her side.

"That was fun." Her friend groaned sarcastically, placing a hand on her back and stretching. "Think I broke my back, Madam Pomfrey is going to have to take a look."

Aria smiled at her best friend as they made their way up to their dorm room to get dressed.

Matilda was also there and they had passed Madison on the way up. Aria made a point to ignore both of them.

"Heard about what you did to that third year yesterday, Aria," Matilda muttered as she finished brushing her hair.

"Yes and I suggest you stop talking to me unless you want to be next." Aria snapped back, suddenly remembering that the Gryffindor girl was to be her next victim. Matilda would have to wait her turn.

She muttered something under her breath and left the room in a hurry, much to Aria's delight.

"Why do you do that?" Anna emerged from her cupboard.

"Do what?"

"That. You just threatened her for no reason."

"It wasn't no reason. That pest has been horrible to me since we met. You should be asking Matilda why she wants to be threatened."

Anna sighed in defeat and changed the subject. "I heard you talking to Malfoy last night."

Aria felt her cheeks heat up. "What did you hear?"

"Not much, I stopped listening after you said he kissed you. Well, I fell asleep actually."

"Oh, he did kiss me." She confirmed.

"And?"

"And what? I told him to piss off."

Anna sent her best friend a suspicious glance. "Of course you did. Honestly though," she fell onto her bed and giggled, "He's not that terrible to look at. I can see why all the third-year girls like him."

"You can? All I see is a little boy that pays too much attention to his hair."

"Well, I wouldn't mind getting a piece of that." She sighed, "But I know he's all yours."

"What in Merlin's name are you talking about, Anna?"

"You're telling me there's nothing between you two? Nothing at all?" She raised her eyebrow.

"There's not. He's a third-year, he's like two years younger than me that would just be weird." Her face scrunched in disgust at the thought.

"And if he wasn't? Say he was also in the fifth year?"

"Still no. I have no attraction to him or anything."

"That's too bad. Pity I can't say the same for him."

"Yes, he's made his ridiculous feelings very clear."

"He's been looking at you that way since we were in the third year. At first, I thought he was weird, but he has... matured."

"Well," Aria did her tie and got ready to leave the room, "have fun fantasizing about a third year, I'm going to breakfast."

ϟ

Two days had passed since everyone had slept in the Great Hall and besides dealing with detention and having to walk in the opposite direction when she saw Malfoy approaching (to keep George happy) things were going pretty smoothly.

Aria was on her way to the Quidditch pitch to watch George play. Of course, she couldn't exactly cheer for him, but he knew he had her support.

She went to sit down, almost gasping when someone who she least expected sat beside her halfway into the game.

"Professor Lupin?"

"Hello, Aria." He adjusted his scarf. "Just reminding you about your detention in case all the excitement allows you to conveniently forget about it. Again."

"I'll be there professor." She had skipped one measly detention and he had not taken his eyes off of her since. Aria had half a mind to tell her father about Professor Lupin's disturbing antics.

She watched as Lupin walked back to his seat, then turned her attention to the skies.

Not far above the game, the sky was filled with dark, wispy figures. Aria shivered and looked away from them, only to see a very familiar figure falling to the ground.

Someone nearby yelled his name, "Harry!"

And the game was suddenly over, everyone had stopped talking and waited in anticipation. Had the chosen one lived?

ϟ

George had immediately run to the hospital wing and Aria had followed closely behind.

They crowded around Harry along with the rest of the Gryffindor team and that girl who made a point to stand next to George. She was on the Gryffindor team too, it seemed. Aria ignored the way she made her blood boil and looked up at her boyfriend. She needed to show that he was her property.

"Looks a bit peaky, doesn't he?" Ron was the first to speak.

"Peaky?" Fred chimed in from beside Aria. "What did you expect him to look like? He fell fifty feet."

"Yeah, c'mon, Ron. We'll walk you off the Astronomy Tower and see how you come out looking." George added, Aria smiled up at him and the girl to his right laughed loudly at the statement.

Aria glared at her and she looked away, blushing.

"Probably a right sight better than he normally does," Harry mumbled as he woke up.

Aria grinned. She had become rather fond of Harry and didn't want him dead or unconscious. She felt bad enough for almost trying to kill him the previous year, seeing him in such a state brought back terrible memories for her. She pushed them to the back of her mind.

Hermione asked how he was feeling. It was the first time that Aria had properly looked at the three of them this year and she had to (begrudgingly) admit that they had grown. They were all taller than her, except for Hermione, which made Aria feel a little bit better.

"Brilliant," Harry replied and smiled.

"Gave us a right good scare mate," Fred said, George nodded.

"What happened?"

"You fell off your broom."

"Really? I meant the match."

Aria glanced around the room. Everyone had sullen expressions on their faces, their team had just lost the Quidditch match. Aria wasn't sad, though. She didn't care for the stupid sport.

"No one blames you, Harry," Hermione assured him. "The dementors aren't meant to come on the grounds. Dumbledore was furious. After he saved you, he sent them straight off."

"There's something else you should know." Ron placed a package on Harry's lap. "Your Nimbus, when it blew away... it sort of landed in the Whomping Willow. And well..." he revealed Harry's broken broom.

While they fretted over him, Aria pulled George to the side. "Who is that girl?"

"What girl?"

"The one who keeps standing by you and laughing at everything you say. You're not even that funny!"

George smirked at the accusation. "I am pretty funny, actually." He gave Aria a once over. "Are you... jealous?"

"Actually, you're not funny." She corrected him. "You're annoying and I am not jealous."

He moved closer, backing Aria into the wall, placing one hand on it, above her head, keeping her there. "Am I now?" He leaned closer, his mouth by her ear. "You didn't seem to think I was so annoying when-"

"George, you're all wet!" Aria didn't let him finish his sentence before she cried out as water dripped from his hair onto her exposed neck. She shivered as the droplets connected with her skin.

"That makes two of us," He whispered so softly that Aria wondered if she had imagined it. Regardless, she allowed him to slip his tongue into her mouth and push his cold body against hers.

She peeked over his shoulder and sure enough, the girl was staring. She smirked and wrapped a hand around George's neck, pulling him closer to her. She all but forgot they were in public, only pulling away from George's lips when Fred groaned. "Not again. My eyes have been scarred enough."

"What?" Ron questioned curiously and turned to see Aria and George.

"Don't tell me you were lucky enough to not... catch them in the act in Egypt. It's all I bloody saw. Ruined my vacation it did." Fred complained.

Aria snorted and pulled George closer, hugging him and making a point to look directly into the girl's eyes.

He's mine.

She thought possessively, glaring even more defiantly than before at the girl and smiling in triumph when she looked away, ashamed.

"You're cute when you're jealous, did you know?" George laughed.

"Shut up," She said, but couldn't stop the smile from spreading across her face.

All mine.