Annabel Lee

Annabelle's Point of View

Narcissa was dragging me up the stairs by my shirt sleeve. I tried getting a glance from Severus, to thank him, but I couldn't with her going so fast. The moment we closed the door to our room she was hugging me. I was taken aback, being touched really wasn't my thing, and I didn't like it. But when I was about to tap her shoulder to ask her to stop, I felt her shuddering. Even though she was a little mean to most people, Narrcissa had turned out to be rather protective of people close to her.

The least I can do is be nice since she's so upset. I put a hand on her back and pushed my head on her shoulder.

"What happened earlier?" Her voice was shaken when she pulled away with her hands on my shoulders. I tilted my head pretending to be clueless, but she saw through it shaking her head. "Snape told us that you passed out, but wouldn't say why," she said sadly. I shrugged her hands on my shoulders and smiled walking over to my bed. I had learned that keeping these kinds of things from Narcissa was for the best. While Narcissa was taking off her spare clothes and getting into her pajamas, I got into my sleeping shirt and pants. When she was done she put on a light pink, nearly translucent robe.

Exactly what purpose does that thing serve? I thought sincerely and tapped my chin. She sat down on her bed and started brushing her hair. She kept looking over at me with these big puppy eyes while she smoothed out her silky platinum hair. Finally I sighed and rolled my small wavy curls in my index finger.

"Some people were picking on me," I said quietly. Narcissa's eyes widened and her mouth was open. Narcissa was the only one in our group that knew about how and why people pick on me. But as quickly as her sympathy came her temper came to a boil.

"Wait until I get my hands on those prats? I'm going to bloody kill them!" she jumped up and I pulled her back down by her wrist shaking my head. She calmed down and took a deep breath putting a hand on the top of my head, ruffling my hair gently. "So Snape knows now?" I nodded and she thought about it for a minute. "I guess we can trust him," she said continuing to pet the top of my head. I made a light noise of agreement closing my eyes as I ended up laying my head on her lap. If I hadn't made it quiet clear by now, having my hair played with was the absolute best thing to me, it was so affectionate. And best of all no one had to touch me to do it, only my hair. "So Snape didn't talk huh? He must really like you," she said laughing a little bit. I blushed and sat up shaking my head.

"Cissy..."

"Oh please, you can't tell me that you don't at least like him," she said pulling on my hands trying to bring me back down to the bed. I flopped down, being weaker than her, and she leaned over me. I made slight croaking noises from my throat trying to say something and she giggled. "You do, don't you?! Oh my gosh that's great!" she said giggling like mad and I turned redder and redder trying to cover my face with my hands. When she grasped my wrists away a light of realization hit her eyes. "I have to tell Lucius!" she cheered getting off me and getting close to the door. I paled and crashed my arm around her right bicep, hugging it.

"No," I whispered and she stopped and grinned.

"You really like him, don't you?" she asked quietly and I nodded shyly but smiled. I really had, for a really long time. "Well then I won't tell, but Annabelle," she said walking over to the dresser. "You're going to have to try a little harder to get Snape, and that starts with dressing the part." I rocked back and forth on my crossed legs, looking over her outfit and laughed.

I guess I won't be dating him for some time then.

Severus’s Point of View

I was still standing in the Common Room with Lucius when Annabelle and Narcissa walked to their dormitory. I felt strange when she left; my stomach was warm and numb at the same time. Lucius stepped forward after he had fixed his tie and sighed.

"You have the worst timing you know that?" he asked annoyed but I couldn't reply. I was in my own world. Lucius noticed and smirked. "Man when you fall, you fall hard," he laughed and I snapped out of it.

"Sod off," I mumbled and he patted me on the back.

"Come off it, you know you want to bonk her senseless—" My whole body went hot at the idea as I whipped around to him.

"Stop it!" I shook my head of the embarrassment and rushed to our room that we shared with Regulus.

"Oh shut up, you know it's true," he laughed as I picked up my pajamas out of my draw.

"What's true?" Regulus asked putting down the formally levitating clock.

"Nothing," I shot at him as I changed facing the wall opposite them. I tried to zone them all out and when I finished changing I looked back over to Regulus who was laughing practically rolling around on his bed.

"Honestly?!" he laughed and I sneered at him.

"Lucius you don't know what your talking about, so shut up," I said quietly as my throat became dry. I sat down on my bed and sighed, I had a feeling this wouldn't stop just because I wanted it to.

Just ignore them, it’s the most effective way. I thought leaning back till I fell on my back in bed.

"What's up your arse?" Regulus asked climbing off his bed. "Don't get me wrong, its not that I don't like Annabelle, its just she's so…." he didn't finish and I rolled my eyes.

"Not my type, either. It'd be like shagging a skeleton," Lucius shrugged and Regulus laughed getting up in his face.

"Anyone who doesn't act like a horny schoolgirl isn't your type," he taunted and Lucius smacked him with a pillow. Lucius got a big grin on his face and got up and walked over to my bed.

"But Snape wouldn't mind that now would he?" he said surreptitiously. I closed my eyes in irritation and tried to block them out. "Oh Severus!" Lucius and Regulus laughed as my face turned a deep red and sat up.

"Just picture it, mate," Regulus said slinging an arm around me. "She's under you, saying your name--" he went on and on, and my skin burned the longer I had my eyes closed. When I realized what I was doing I snapped my eyes open and sunk my head into my shoulders.

Block it out. I ran the words through my head over and over. I couldn't stop blushing. It was damn awful.

"Hey take a breather," Lucius said with a small laugh and patted my back. I huffed and brushed him off, pulling the covers over me. My back was facing them so they wouldn't see me in such a state. "Ok, ok, we're done teasing you. We just want you to admit that you like Annabelle." Finally I was so overcome with too many emotions at once my mouth spewed the first words that came to mind.

"FINE, I LIKE HER!" I growled and turned my head to glower at them. It felt like a huge weight off my chest, it honestly made me feel better just by saying it out loud. I was almost afraid to see their reaction, but when I found there faces, they were staring. Just… staring?

"Blimey," Regulus sighed quietly and Lucius behind him smirked. My face fell flat and I glared at the ground.

"Just don't let it get spread about, or you'll be the one on the end of one of my hexes. Who knows what Potter or your idiot brother would do knowing it," I cursed and they shrugged.

"Like we'd ever talk to them," Regulus said and the two of them got into their sleeping clothes. I sighed and silently slammed my head into my pillow. This was way too much for one day.

The Next Morning

I woke up before everyone to get dressed and when Regulus and Lucius came around, groaning as usual, we were nearly late for breakfast. I pulled a book under the table and started reading, but halfway through breakfast the girls hadn't come yet. Lucius was drumming his fingers on his plate and finally he stood up.

"Come on, we're going to their room," he snapped irritated and stormed off. Regulus looked at me and shrugged stuffing the last bit of a muffin into his mouth before getting up too. With a sigh I followed them to the slithering common room and I frowned, we weren't aloud in the girl's dormitories. But really since when did these two idiots listen to reason? When we got to the door we heard Narcissa shouting around.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU WAKE ME UP?!" she asked and Regulus started laughing quietly before banging the door open. I could have been mistaken for a bleeding fish. Annabelle was wearing some sort of t-shirt that hid all but the rim of her shorts. She was sitting up leaning against the bed frame yawning, despite Narcissa shouting around. She was so skinny... in an almost sick way, but she was still incredible. When her eyes finally opened she twitched her nose and her eyes found their way to mine. I couldn't move and must have looked like a real creep the way her eyes went big. Quickly, I pushed my head into my cloak neck.

"NOW OUT!" someone shouted and I found myself outside of the room again. Regulus turned to me and patted my on the back.

"You alright there, mate?" I turned to him and frowned. "Damn, Narcissa's loud."

"That was her?" I asked. We started on our ways to our classes and through the halls

"Yeah but did you see what she was wearing?" Lucius said practically drooling.

"Who?" I asked and they turned to me.

"You didn't see Narcissa!?" Regulus bombarded me and I shook my head shrugging.

"Like I care," I glared and kept walking. Lucius shrugged and walked off.

"I'm going to meet up with Lauren. I'll see you guys later," Regulus said and walked off to meet up at the library. I was distracted on my way outside to Black Lake. I was too out of it most of the time to even make corrections or clip notes in my potions book. Right when I was getting to the end of one of the sections a group of people came up from the corner: the Marauders.

"How's the textbook, Snivelly," Black shouted pushing his hands onto my book and snatching it away from me. Potter came up next to him and shoved my head into the tree, banging it.

"Watch out, let your greasy hair touch the parchment like that and it won't be legible," he sneered as Black threw the book at me and I snapped standing up too. "You know, Lily's been wondering about her little Snivellus, but don't worry. I keep her enough company that she forgets." That was the last straw. I went to lift my wand, but before I could cast anything Potter had his pointed at me. It was a stinging spell and I clutched my head in pain. The Gryffindor started laughing and I lifted my wand.

"You useless gits!" I cursed and flicked my wand at both of them, making their hair turn pink. My head was still stinging and I groaned sitting up while Lupin and Pettigrew went over to help the two, with no success.

"You slime ball, fix them!" Pettigrew said about to jinx me before a girl's voice came up.

"Leave him alone, Peter!" My head dropped into my stomach as Lily Evans walked over to Black and pulled his and Potter's arms. "Come on."

"Come on Lils, look what he did to our hair," Potter said slinking an arm around her shoulder. I tried to keep a straight face but my head was writhing in pain. Lily looked over at me for only a millisecond before waving her wand at the two, who's hair changed back to normal.

"Better? Now come on, you don't need to beat him up to prove anything," she said with slight bitterness that hit hard, the four nodded running off somewhere laughing. Lily didn't even so much as stop the stinging spell they hexed me with. Then, without warning, the pain subsided.

I wonder why it stopped. I thought and took a few deep breaths leaning back against the tree.

Crunch!

My head swiveled over to the tree next to the one I was leaning against. Annabelle was halfway hiding behind the trunk and turned her head away. I turned back to my book and felt warmth by my side when she sat down next to me. The awkward and discomfiting silence would only be once in a while broken by Annabelle flipping the cover of her book open and closed.

"Sorry," I finally mumbled and looked her in the eyes, but she stared at me befuddled. "I'm sorry about this morning," I said, feeling the heat radiate off my face. She then blushed too, but smiled scooting over a little closer than the arms length we had stayed at and shook her head. I smiled slightly and put a hand on top of her head looking the other way. Annabelle immediately smiled and sighed gently. I'd have to thank Narcissa later for that tip.

"Thank you," she whispered, a light pink going over her white face and leaned into my hand. "Can you keep what happened yesterday a secret?" she asked quietly and I looked over from my side. I remembered how painful it was watching her get picked on. Annabelle, sensing my hesitation, took the hand I had off her head and held onto it. "Please," she whispered smiling slightly and squeezed my hand lightly. My stomach did a back flip and I smiled.

"Sure. Can you let go of my hands now?" I asked giving a small cough and she kept smiling and nodded.

"Mhhmm!" she said and let my fingers slip from her palm. Then she leaned over and picked up my old book from the ground where Black had thrown it. I paled and looked down, it was humiliating to have people notice how manky and busted-up my things were because I was poor. Though I'd never told Annabelle, I had the feeling she knew because of the way she handed it back to me gently to make sure it wouldn't fall apart. After a smile she took out her book again and started reading her precious poetry.

And things went relatively normal from there; we spent our afternoon by Black Lake like we usually did and the silence wasn't so awkward. Every once in a while Annabelle would start getting teary eyed at bits of the poems and I nearly called her out on her emotional display, but decided against it. I'd let her enjoy her stories for a while. After all, I owed her for casting the counter spell of the stinging curse on me. And right when it got dark we headed back inside to the Grand Hall so we could have dinner with the rest of the gang.