It was her utopia. It was indeed, the happiest she had been since had figured out the truth about Baxtart's when she was eleven. As Joshua held her in his arms, they moved against the slow rhythm which flooded the hall.
Elizabeth saw Pevlos and Melissa, looking as content as ever. They were dancing as well. In the front of the hall, instruments had been charmed to play by themselves and were carrying out a melancholic tune. The drinks were refilling themselves as the clear glasses loosely swayed in the students' hands. Elizabeth heard the door open, then noticed Joshua's grip on her waist tightened and he had gone tense.
"You okay?" she whispered, taking her head off of his shoulder. His eyes were locked on something behind her.
"No," Joshua narrowed his eyes. Elizabeth turned her head around to see what he was looking at. There he was. Tom stood, leaning against the wall by the door. His jacket was hanging over his shoulder sloppily. His hair wasn't in tact as it had once been, for it hung loosely on his head. Elizabeth gently turned his head back to her.
"He's probably here for Walburga," Elizabeth tried to explain. "Just let him go." Joshua's eyes softened and she felt his muscles relax. They continued dancing to the slow melody. As they gradually turned around, Elizabeth was able to see Tom, watching her from the entrance. He looked tired and stressed, of course, masking it over with a smirk. He was usually better at hiding his true emotions.
"I don't like him, not one bit," Joshua muttered, grumbling as he was now the one facing Tom. "Why is he looking over here?"
Elizabeth looked past her shoulder, "Most likely looking for Walburga." Tom was looking at her and she knew it. Walburga was hard to miss and if he were truly looking for her, he would have found her.
Joshua recaptured her attention, "No, he's looking right at us." He was right. Tom didn't even pretend he was looking somewhere else. "I'm going to tell him to leave," Joshua let go of her and began walking, but was soon pulled back by Elizabeth.
"No, I'll just go tell him where Walburga is. That way, he'll get out of our hair and he won't go all mad because you aggravated him," she offered.
He opened his mouth to say something, then closed it again and finally answered, "Sure, go ahead. I'll get us something to drink." He walked away and Elizabeth budged her way through the crowd and met Tom.
"I don't think that one likes me very much," Tom nodded in Joshua's direction, showing amusement.
"Why are you here?"
Tom looked falsely taken aback, "Me? I'm just enjoying the ball." Elizabeth furrowed her eyebrows and and crossed her arms over her chest.
"How did you even find out about this?" she questioned.
"I wanted to talk to you about something and figured you'd be here. Certain people weren't very hush hush about this ball," he looked over at Walburga who held a goblet of Firewhiskey in one hand and the shoulder of an older Slytherin boy in the other.
Elizabeth remembered she was supposed to be in a fight with Walburga, "Can't keep anything to herself, that one."
"Another reason why the two of you aren't friends anymore?" he questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, I never said we weren't friends anymore."
Tom looked annoyed, "Whatever, I don't wish to be involved in your female issues, but I do wish to speak with you about something."
"What about?" Elizabeth looked back to where Joshua was pouring two cups of something. Hopefully it was Firewhiskey, because, boy, she needed some.
"It's about what I discussed with Professor Slughorn," he spoke quiet and crisp. "I believe you'll be interested in what I have to say."
The Horcruxes. Elizabeth hadn't even told her parents about her own. Why did Tom trust her with that secret? "I don't think I have time for that, not tonight," she avoided the subject, for she knew that she couldn't keep the Horcrux to herself.
"It's in your best interest to listen to me, Maryn," Tom eyed her carefully. She could tell he wanted to ask her about Horcruxes. It was the one thing she couldn't lie about. The only reason nobody knew is because nobody ever asked.
"I think I should be getting back...Joshua is probably wondering whe-," she started, but was cut short by Tom grabbing her arm and pulling her to him.
His teeth were gritted, the frightening look returning to his face, "I did not ask."
"The bloody hell are you doing, Riddle?" Joshua growled from behind Elizabeth.
Tom's smug grin returned to his mouth as he let go of Elizabeth's arm, "Just having a little chat with Miss Maryn." Elizabeth was looking at her shoes.
"You need to go," Joshua commanded loudly, causing couples around them to turn their heads and stare at the commotion.
"No, I was just about to have myself a glass of punch," Tom retorted with a cheeky smile. Elizabeth could see his hand above his pocket, his fingers coiled around his wand.
Joshua clenched his jaw, "Leave." Elizabeth gingerly looked down and saw Joshua holding his wand and aiming it at Tom. She felt obligated to stop him.
"You don't really want to do that, Corrington," Tom nodded at his wand. He didn't look one bit scared of dueling with Joshua. Elizabeth really wished they wouldn't because of the hexes she had taught Tom. They would surely take out Joshua or cause him the worst pain imaginable.
"Please don't," Elizabeth whispered, mostly at Tom, but she figured Joshua interpreted it as towards him.
He lowered his wand, "Fine. Let's return to those drinks." He took Elizabeth's hand and began walking away. As he did, he stumbled forward, releasing her hand from his. She turned around and saw Tom, pointing his wand at Joshua's back.
"Never said I wouldn't," his words slithered like a serpent between his lips. Elizabeth reached for her own wand and aimed it fiercely. By then, all students had their eyes on the two. She knew he couldn't do it. Elizabeth was the only one more powerful than him in that hall and he wouldn't risk it. His eyes narrowed as if he were waiting for her to make a move.
Elizabeth looked to her side and saw Joshua laying on the ground, stirring groggily as the effects from the hex wore off. As he regained consciousness, he staggered to his feet and pointed his wand again. Elizabeth lowered hers.
"Arrogant twit," Joshua mumbled under his breath. He flung a non-verbal spell at Tom along with a grunt. Tom blocked the spell nonchalantly with a wave of his wand.
"Is that the best you've got, Corrington? Been with that one for two months and still can't perform a decent stunning spell? I've had one conversation and look where I am now" Tom pointed at Elizabeth with his wand.
Joshua looked at her, "What is he talking about?" His deep eyes sparkled and a bruise had been formed on his cheek.
"I-I don't know," she stammered. "Let's just go."
Joshua lowered his wand and put his hand on the small of her back. "Just a small friendly duel," Tom addressed the confused students with an arrogant upturn of the lips. They laughed as if it were simply a friendly duel. Elizabeth wished it were only that.
Her and Joshua walked back to the refreshments table. They sat down and Elizabeth sipped on her cup timidly. The thoughts running through her head were incomprehensible, even to her. Joshua finally spoke, "Is something going on between you two?"
"No, of course not, why would you think that?" Elizabeth could barely keep herself from breaking. Her palms were caked with sweat and she nervously rubbed them against the sides of the chair.
He sighed and ran his hand through his golden locks, "You're always with him. The other day, I saw you sitting with him at breakfast, before you came to me. I thought it was just you talking about Walburga or something, but it's just been too consistent."
"If you knew Walburga like I do, you'd know that it takes real convincing to get anyone, let alone Riddle, to ask her out," Elizabeth tried to explain. "Matilda and Melissa are doing it too, I guess you just don't notice it as often."
He let out a heavy sigh, "I don't care if you talk to him, but just let me know that you truly don't feel any emotional connection to that monster."
Elizabeth couldn't. She couldn't deny her feelings toward Tom. She knew they weren't neutral so why did it even matter? "I don't have any feelings toward him other than annoyance and hatred," she lied, nearly letting her voice crack. "He's an awful human being and I want nothing to do with him."
"You don't know how wonderful that is to hear," Joshua gave a small grin. Elizabeth felt so awful lying to him. Her insides ached like they never had before. They both took a sip of Firewhiskey.
"This was such a delightful evening," Elizabeth changed the subject.
"It really was," he replied, half-heartedly. Did he know that she was lying? She looked out at the students who were dancing without a care in the world. A quickly paced song had come on and the people began to swing dance. Matilda's blonde hair was bouncing as she danced rapidly with another boy. "That looks thrilling," Joshua commented as a girl was nearly thrown into the air by her partner. The Firewhiskey had kicked in and everyone was active as ever.
"I say we give it a go. Have you ever swing danced before?" Elizabeth asked, rising to her feet and pulling him up with her.
"I did once at my muggle aunt's wedding," he recalled. They both walked out to the dance floor. Elizabeth and Joshua joined hands and smiled at each other, then began abruptly as the song hit a new beat. They spun around in a tight circle and then dipped her down, pulling her up quickly to him. Their faces were only one apart from each other. The next part of the dance was the lift. Elizabeth was afraid he wouldn't be able to pick her up, but before she could do anything, she was up in the air, above everyone else. Her body gracefully came back down into Joshua's arms and they continued spinning and dancing.
Elizabeth saw Walburga's shiny black hair, followed by her slim, tan arm drawing another boy out into the core of the crowd. She couldn't see who it was. Every time she was spun around to face Walburga's direction, someone was blocking the boy. Elizabeth had an awful feeling about who it was.
At the sharp hit of the beat, Elizabeth met the cold eyes of Tom. He was dancing with Walburga. Elizabeth was both amused and oddly jealous. She felt anger boiling inside of her. Just as she felt she couldn't get any more emotional, the door opened once more. Elizabeth resisted the urge to pinch herself awake, hoping it was all a dream. But no, Asher Bennett was standing right there. She looked away and continued dancing, watching him as he walked over to the food table.
The trumpet flared as Elizabeth was lifted into the air once more. She could feel beads of sweat dripping down her back, but she kept dancing. Swing dancing was exhausting. The constant, rapid movement was more than she could handle. Strands of hair that had once been in her bun were falling out as she spun ferociously.
Joshua locked his hands on hers and she looked at him with a confused expression. "Saw this one at a party once," he started.
"What?" Elizabeth yelled frantically over the music.
"Don't worry, I won't let you fall, just jump!" Joshua yelled. Elizabeth jumped and before she was aware of what he was going to do, she was nearly upside down, flipping around his shoulder. Her feet landed with a thud and for a lack of wanting to embarrass herself, she kept going. The song slowed down and so did they, panting as the instruments finally concluded the tune. A slow song came on and many of the girls took that opportunity to go off to fix their hair. Elizabeth did the same. As she was walking over to the hallway that must have included a lavatory of some sort, Matilda grabbed her arm.
"Oh, that was so delightful!" she exclaimed. Her small face was beat red and her golden hair was frizzy and worn. The flowers had fallen out of both of their hair.
"Did you see Tom dancing with Walburga?" Elizabeth asked as took her hair out of the bun.
Matilda frowned, "Yeah. I wanted to ask you about that. I know Tom didn't make us seem as if we were fighting for Walburga."
Elizabeth sighed and realized there was no point in lying, "How'd you figure it out?"
"I saw them dancing. There's no chemistry or anything between them. I know that you know what's really going on and I want you to tell me."
"Alright, but not here," Elizabeth whispered.
"We should go to the lavatory. Not the one here, but the one down on the first floor," Matilda said. "Nobody ever goes in there because that girl is crying there all the time."
Elizabeth let her hair hang at her back. Matilda was tying hers up in a ponytail. They both passed through the protection charm and exited the ball. Elizabeth and Matilda took off their shoes and tiptoed down the hall in their stockings so they wouldn't be heard. The light from the torches flickered against their faces.
"I can't see anything," Matilda whispered.
"Lumos," Elizabeth whispered. The portraits yelped at the two girls, for the light was blinding their eyes. Elizabeth put her wand under a fold of her dress to dim the light.
They walked down many stairs, which clunked and shifted around them. Finally, they entered the first floor lavatory. The girls sat down with their backs leaning against the wall.
"Now can you please tell me what is going on?" Matilda pleaded, exhausted from the long walk.
So she did. Elizabeth ended in tears and Matilda was holding her hand.
"Beth, I'm... I'm so sorry. I can't believe what you've went through," Matilda uttered, sniffling. "Losing your brother... and I can't believe that you still are sane after all of that."
Elizabeth hadn't told her about the Horcrux. She couldn't, even though Matilda had never once spilled one secret. Still, if Tom attempted to use Veritaserum on Matilda, he could find out. "I'm fine now. I had a whole summer to cope with it."
"So you do know Asher?" Matilda asked Elizabeth in between sniffs.
She nodded, "I don't have any interest in reconnecting with him... none at all." Elizabeth looked Matilda in the eyes, "You have to promise you won't tell Walburga or Melissa any of this."
"Oh Beth," Matilda's eyes expanded to saucers, "I wouldn't even tell Dippet if he threatened to suspend me." She squeezed her hand, "Your secrets are safe with me." The small dimple in Matilda's right cheek reappeared as she gave a reassuring smile.
The two girls both stood, wiping their tears. As they did, the door opened. On impulse, and risk of it being a teacher, Elizabeth and Matilda ran into the cubicles. Elizabeth wished they had been in the same one, but they had separated in the rush. She put her feet up on the toilet seat and saw Matilda do the same. They held their breath.
Various clunks and noises of stone moving echoed throughout the lavatory. The knot in Elizabeth's stomach tightened. She could feel her dress becoming wet in the toilet bowl, but she kept quiet. A cold, slithery voice spoke, not in English, but in an unknown tongue.
It continued and Elizabeth tried her hardest to hear who it was, but she couldn't make it out, for they had turned all of the faucets on to mask out the voices. It continued on for what felt like hours. Elizabeth's feet had fallen asleep and she saw a pool of water drifting towards her on the floor. Whoever had turned the sinks on was letting the lavatory flood.
The noises finally stopped and the faucets squeaked shut. Stone moved again and then there was silence, followed by the sound of footsteps splashing through the puddle. They heard the door close.
Elizabeth gripped her wand and put her feet down quietly. Matilda's feet gracefully splashed to the floor. They both opened the doors and walked out to the area which contained the sinks. It looked normal, except for the flood.
"I don't like this, Beth," Matilda clung behind her as she held her wand out in front of her. "Can we just go back to the party?"
Elizabeth hesitated, "You go ahead, I am too worn out. I'll just head up to bed."
"You sure you'll be okay?"
She nodded nonchalantly, "Of course."
Matilda hugged Elizabeth as they exited the bathroom, "Get some sleep, we are going to Hogsmeade tomorrow."
"I thought we weren't allowed?" Elizabeth questioned.
"Oh shoot, well, let's do something fun then," she smiled. "Love you, Beth," Matilda waved goodbye over her shoulder as she walked back silently in the direction of the party.
Elizabeth walked back quickly to the dormitory. Her hair was a mess and her dress was soaking wet from the knees down. She whispered the password and entered, letting the door close behind her. Of course, Tom was sitting in his chair, still having his dress robes on, his jacket hanging over the arm of the chair. He turned around when he heard her.
"Oh," he turned his head slightly, "Hello there, Maryn."
"Enjoy the ball?" Elizabeth asked sarcastically, leaning against the wall by the stairs.
Tom smirked, "It was delightful, although, I could barely escape Miss Black." Elizabeth chuckled. "You look like you enjoyed yourself. Why have you returned so early?"
"I got tired," she replied.
"Slumber does sound most promising now, doesn't it?" Tom closed his book.
She nodded.
He stood, "I think I'll be getting to bed also." He walked past her and halfway up the stairs, then stopping. "Goodnight."
Elizabeth nearly gasped as he continued walked. She should have known. Who could it have been other than him?
His slacks, they were completely drenched from his mid-calves to his ankles.