Dragon Boy

Christmas Comes To Hogwarts || QTK

Her particular favorite was the snowflake. Even though Liz didn’t particularly like being out in the snow, she still enjoyed the look of it, especially when the snowflakes were big enough to almost be able to see all the unique patterns in it. It jingled slightly on her wrist because of the bell charm. “Alright, I just wanted to make sure.” She smiled into her response to the kiss, placing a hand on his cheek tenderly. “It’s hard to stop worrying. But this is really beautiful.”

"I see there might be another early Christmas present for both of us," she said, looking over at the crutches. "I’m glad you are up on your feet and away from that awful chair. And I’m sorry that I didn’t make it to the hospital wing but I needed to make up that potion that I missed because I was sick…. How’s it like to be back on your feet, kind of."

#Christmas Comes to Hogwarts

He was well aware of her dislike of cold weather he'd learnt that over the months though they often got an amazing view of the snowfall from their Common Room - being in the tallest of all the towers. "You should know by now you're the thing that makes me happiest in life. . . Always will be." He smiled as she raised a hand to brush his cheek his head tilting a little. "Well you have me now. . ."

"Yes. . . I thought I'd surprise you with this one too." He said with a smile his eyes flickering down to the crutches and back to her. "So am I. . ." He nodded his head hugging her gently. "That's fine I know you still have lessons to go to. . . It's nice. . . Hopeful which is good."

Christmas Comes To Hogwarts || QTK

"I just thought it would be best to leave her to her business for now," Liz said softly, leaning her head against his shoulder as his arm came to settle around her. "I’ll just talk to her later. Right now, I have you." She smiled up at him, her arms going around him briefly for a hug.

The bracelet was beautiful, silver like her other one, though this time full of Christmas themed charms: a tree, a wreath, a bauble, some holly. Liz loved it, immediately putting it on. But she also felt conscious of the fact that she didn’t have anything for him. “Are you sure? I just feel bad that you got me this and I don’t have anything to give to you.”

"Yeah. . . I don't think she'd want to be bothered right now she looks. . . Uhm preoccupied with. . . things. . ." He frowned a little but shook his head looking away and back to Liz as she settled in his arms hugging her back tightly as they sat there. "Yes you have everything I have to give you."

He'd taken a lot of thought into what to put on the bracelet and it seemed like a nice idea after all it was Christmas. He watched her put it on his own smile widening. "Yes. Definitely. Totally a hundred percent sure." He lightly pressed a kiss to her lips. "Stop worrying. You're astounding as ever."

Christmas Comes To Hogwarts || QTK

She couldn’t help it. Any time she saw Max now, she had to smile, it was her first instinct. The fact that he was alive was still a blessing for her and to see him without that chair was even better. “I was hoping you would fix it. I would have gone to see Emma but…” she gazed over at her best friend, surround by a gang of people, most of whom Liz didn’t particularly want to converse with. As he sat down she moved closer to him, just enough to be right by his side.

When he brought out the present, Liz’s face lit up again. Her hands reached out for the present carefully, tearing into the packaging slowly before she reached the box with the bracelet. She beamed at Max as she put it on, the same wrist with the other charm bracelet she had from him. “Thank you,” she murmured, the bright smile still on her face, though it faltered slightly. “But I don’t have anything for you.. I’m sorry Max,” she murmured, staring down at the bracelet before looking him in the eye again.

"Of course I'll fix that." At the mention of Emma his brows furrowed a little and his gaze went across the hall to where she was surrounded by rather questionable characters. "Yeah. . ." He trailed of shaking his head letting her move to settle right beside him so he could settle his arm around her gently.

He was grinning like a child as she tore the paper away to reveal the bracelet within to go with her other one. "You're welcome." As her smile faltered and she spoke again he shook his head ."I have you that's the only gift I'll ever want. Nothing you could ever give me would equate to you just being here." Max spoke confidently obviously totally assured that this was the complete truth.

Christmas Comes To Hogwarts || QTK

Though typically Liz would have accompanied him to his therapy with Madame Pomfrey, today she had a grading concern she had to bring up to Slughorn, and so she had let Max go alone, feeling slightly guilty. And while she was out and about she had decided to visit the Great Hall, get some breakfast and maybe talk to some students. Except for the fact that she could no longer tell who she should talk to. The upcoming war, as she had always heard about from.. well everyone.. was splitting the school in two and it was almost easier to not talk to anyone. Which is what Liz had decided to do, and instead ate her toast in solitude.

She was too enthralled by Flitwick’s decorating that she didn’t hear the familiar sound of Max’s crutches, but when she heard his voice she turned to look at him. Her smile turned into a bright grin as she noticed that he was in crutches, that damned chair no where in sight. “She couldn’t find anyone to sit with,” she reply with a slight shrug. “I would love it if you kept me company. I was just admiring Flitwick’s decorating.”

He'd been surprised when she hadn't turned up but he knew that she had other things still to attend to around the school and potions was one of those things. So Max had gone alone to the Hospital Wing and he'd decided today would be the first day he'd try to get around school without his chair. Sure it hurt but he felt good for it and that's what counted. With the war fast approaching he was well aware of the dangers posed inside of Hogwarts aswell as those outside of it and so he'd tried to keep his head low - not too difficult when most of his time was spent with Liz in his rooms or in the grounds.

He approached slowly though when she turned his eyes gazed at her bightly. Seeing her smile turn into a radiant grin he felt his heart beat that little bit faster like every time he set eyes upon her. "A shame. Though one to be remedied." He said as he seated himself down beside her setting his crutches down before bringing his backpack off of his shoulders taking out a small wrapped Christmas present inside being a new charm bracelet with a silver Christmas tree on it and other Christmasy charms. "I got you something." He said with a bright look in his eyes. "Merry early Christmas."

Christmas Comes To Hogwarts || QTK

Liz couldn’t help but stare as Professor Flitwick started to levitate the shiny baubles onto the branches of the tree. It was odd to think that they had done this every year without fail, decorated Hogwarts with a festive spirit, where it was a miracle if even the slightest of decorations had found it’s way up in the Queen manor. That was another odd thing to think about; home. Or what was the only thing she could ever even slightly consider home. Her father was dead now, according to Jac, but that didn’t stop the man from haunting her. Even with Max’s constant assurances it was still difficult for her not to imagine him still alive, still a threat. And where all of her fellow students were getting in the Christmas spirit, she just.. couldn’t.

And so she just sat there and watched; watched students walk around singing carols, Hagrid dragging in new trees to put in the hall, professors hanging garland and tinsel around the Great Hall. Spreading jam onto her slice of toast she sighed, wishing that she could find the Christmas spirit too, but if it existed it was buried down deep inside her. She just wanted Max to get done with his therapy today (He was finally able to walk in a way, though most of his strength still came from his arm and it was still recommended he used his chair. Once Max was back by her side, maybe she wouldn’t feel so alone.

Max had been working as hard as he could to try and get himself back on track. For Liz's sake more than his own he knew how much they'd both been through and he felt guilty for making her wait longer. Though at least they didn't have the concern of her father looming over their heads now which felt like one weight lifted off of his chest. Christmas was only a short time away and with the help of Madam Pomfrey combined with his stubbornness today would be the first surprise for Christmas. He was fed up with that wheelchair and for the past few months he'd been working endlessly to get rid of it.

The progress down to the Great Hall was slow but he was feeling better about himself, instead of being bound to the chair he had crutches settled under his arms using them to aid his progress through the castle until he made it to the Great Hall. He paused upon arriving his eyes scanning until he found Liz gazing up at the tree being decorated by Flitwick. Taking up his journey again he slowly approached his smile warm and festive. "My what a beautiful lady, though why is she sat alone? Might I keep my dear lady company?" He said to catch her attention as he approached the table.

Woah, Liv are you on?

Hello? I've been in the Jacuzzi for the past while.

Reunited| Max & Liz

"Oh really? I thought maybe it had just been the warmth of your body, but this explains it a lot better… I liked sleeping by the window because it felt less likely that someone would take me while I was sleeping, with you in the way," she confessed, the reason she had never minded sleeping by the window when he insisted. "Oh I know.. well maybe you should. I’m good at potions.. it’s just all the healing.. never my strong suit."

Liz smiles as he kissed her forehead, settling sleepily into a comfortable spot next to him. Pressing her lips softly to his chest, she smiled drowsily up at him. “You don’t have to miss it ever again,” she mumbled, curling her fingers to brush his sides gently. Her eyes closed slowly.

"Well I am very warm." He agreed anyway. Max listened to her reasoning and a smile appeared on his lips then. "I wouldn't let anyone take you away from me and even if they did I'd find you." He assured her. Once she was settled sleepily in his arms he made sure to keep her close his fingers lightly tracing her back. "I don't." He agreed closing his eyes.

#Liz #Reunited

Reunited| Max & Liz

"No, no you couldn’t… I would have appreciated it, and nor do I think you could have actually let me be in that position in the first place. You’re pretty nice like that." She couldn’t keep the smile off her face, just happy she had her Max back. "Well probably a lot of money. But as you know.. I’m not much of a healer."

She didn’t particularly mind waiting for him, knowing that this was just going to be a process she was going to get used to. But once he was there, she moved in closer and settled back into the familiar position that she knew. She sighed contently as he wrapped her up in his arms and she rested her head on his chest, the smiled still hovering on her lips. “Oh Merlin, I’ve missed this..”

"You always got the side near the window - after all they had heating charms on them so they'd keep you warmer." He smiled a little not ever having explained that particular reason as to why he insisted she sleep to the window. "A very large sum. You know I might just look into that in case we ever need some money. Potions always was my strong suit."

He seemed to relax as she settled beside him, he heard her sigh but it was one of contentment and he lightly kissed her forehead cuddling her close to his body as they lay there. "I've missed everything." He agreed quietly.

Reunited| Max & Liz

"And by I one of us, you mean you. I never remembered doing much hanging off the bed," said with a chuckle and a playful grin. She watched him take out the bottles, downing them one after the other, making facing with each bottle. "I think it’s against their rules to make it taste good. As Madame Pomfrey always told me, if it tastes good, it’s not doing it’s job."

She was already curled up, finally deciding her legs were cold, tucking them under the covers by the time he wheeled his chair around and over to the bed. She watched the process it took to get him onto the bed, first his body then his legs, and when he laid down she was still staring at him thoughtfully. When he opened his arms, she smiled softly, scooting over and draping an arm across his chest while settling against him.

"I couldn't let you fall off the bed and hurt yourself so obviously it was me doing the hanging - no other way about things." He took each bottle at a time but once they were gone his grimace faded. "Probably but imagine the money you could make if you could invent that." He shut the trunk and twisted the dial on his watch counter clockwise four times.

It took time for him to shift from the chair and onto the bed but he did it with practised skill and now it took less time than what it had. Once he was settled he met her thoughtful gaze. Opening his arms so she could settle against his chest he made sure to wrap her up tightly before drawing the covers up a smile on his lips as he did so.

Reunited| Max & Liz

Yep. This was definitely Max’s room, from the piles and shelves of books, to the other odds and ends throughout the room, Liz could tell. It was a nice size as well, being larger than the dorm, which was nice, because not only would it be an excess of stairs that Max should have to deal with, the dorms weren’t particularly made to be easily maneuverable for wheelchairs. “This is a nice room. Large enough. Private. And hey! We can both fit on this bed easily.” She smiled at him.

As he wheeled over to the chest, she removed her jeans, seeing as they weren’t comfortable to sleep in and crawled onto the bed, curling up to watch Max. She had acquired the habit of making herself as small as she could when she didn about anything and sleeping was not as exception. She curled up tight, resting her head on the very edge of the pillow..

"Yeah, and we can sleep comfortable without having to worry about one of us hanging off the bed." He smiled a little as he set the three bottle out and took the first unstoppering it he downed it in one with a grimace. "You'd think they could make these taste better." He grumbled as he followed suit with the other two bottles he'd drawn out before setting them down into the case once again.

As he turned the wheelchair about on itself and wheeled back to the bed he set his hands down onto the arm rests before transferring his weight from the seat to the bed. He didn't usually wear anything too constricting trousers wise mainly to aid the pain in his legs and he gripped the joggers enough to lift his legs up and onto the bed with a slight wince. He gazed at her for a few seconds, she looked so tiny there and as he settled down he was sure to open his arms. "Come here." He requested quietly waiting for her to settle against his chest as they used to when they slept.

Reunited| Max & Liz

She sat still as he wheeled them around the room into the bedroom and she looked around taking in the sights as they did. When he stopped she kissed him softly then eased from his lap to give his legs relief, moving to sit on the bed. “I see you still have The Hobbit on your bedside reading stack,” she said with a slight smile, looking at him. “Do you need help with anything?”’

The room was mostly made up of bookshelves filled with books ranging from short stories to novels, amongst them being a few other bits and pieces tucked away. Had no one actually been told it could've been mistaken for the rooms of one of the professors. As they arrived at the bedroom he returned her kiss gently letting her get to her feet. This part of the rooms was about the same size as a dorm though with only one larger bed.

"Yeah I do." He smiled faintly though a watch strapped around his wrist seemed to vibrate drawing his attention he sighed before quietly wheeling himself over to the chest and lifting the lid up on it. "Oh no. . . Make yourself comfortable." He answered as he drew out three out of the vast array of bottles setting them down on the lid of the chest. He made sure to check the labels before unstoppering the first and downing it with a grimace before taking the other.

Reunited| Max & Liz

She could just stay here forever, sitting on his lap (though she was still worried that she was hurting him). Her eyes fluttered open partway to look at him, the smile still bright on her face, which only grew at his murmur of love. She loved that she could now say I love you back to his, or like this point, start it off. It was freeing and refreshing. “I’m always tired nowadays,” she murmured, closing her eyes again. “I suppose I could stand a nap..”

He wanted to stay here, with here forever but the pain that was beginning to cramp his legs was forcing him to have to move them. He managed a faint smile as her eyes fluttered open. He was proud of how far she'd managed to come in the past year more than he could put into words but it was evident just in his gaze. "Then a nap we shall have." He concluded carefully wheeling them around the room and into the bedroom in which there was a vest of various vials and other assortments along with another bigger pile of books including The Hobbit at his bedside.

Reunited| Max & Liz

For now it was only a question of what she wanted to try to do, not whether she could do it. And Liz was fairly certain that sooner or later, new ideas would raise their heads and one by one, she’d try them out and see if she enjoyed them. But at the moment, she was fine with simply relishing in her new freedom, even if parts of her were still scared. As long as her father was alive, she couldn’t help the fact that she would treat freedom as something that could be easily taken away. She poked his chest playfully again. “Hey, I never really noticed what was comfortable or not.. it was all a game of dress up before… I know you would.. it’ll just take some time to figure out what I want to wear now.”

His kisses were worth the difficulty breathing, and their smiles reflected one another’s. But she kept her eyes closed, just taking back in the feeling of this, much more intense then previous, most likely through the intensity of the events they had gone through. And she just need him to hear the one thing on her mind, the one thing overtaking her thoughts, and when he said it back she brushed her nose against his tenderly.

That would change when Jac next saw Liz, the other boy was fed up with the net he was trapped in and that meant there was only one route he would choose to follow which would both bind his fate and free Liz in the process. He glanced down as she poked his chest his lips pursing together in a slight smile. "Well now you can do what you want without any worries." He concluded.

His forehead rested against her own gently though his smile was always in place now. His eyes had opened to gaze at her quietly. He murmured the line quietly but with more emotion conveyed with it than he had in every other time he'd spoken it. "Are you tired?" He asked quietly wondering whether or not she was after everything that had occurred.

Reunited| Max & Liz

She didn’t want to be Elizabeth Queen, the pawn, the doll, the liar, the whore, any of the things she had been called and felt like her entire life, because of her father and the surrounding politics. She wanted to be Elizabeth Queen and whatever she was going to make of herself now. The only thing she knew for sure is that she wanted it to be with Max, whatever it was. “Well you make me comfortable,” she murmured with a childish smile. “Now I just have to figure out what was actually comfortable to wear out of my closet…”

When she noticed his eyes gently close, she followed suit, pressing herself against him more. She could hear their heartbeats mingling together, feeling the beating grow slightly faster as they went on.It was lovely to be able to kiss him again. Kiss him like this. And when he broke the kiss, only then did she notice her lungs on fire. She let her forehead rest on his, and smiled as they tried to catch their breath. “I… love… you.” she murmured, moving an arm from around his neck so she could hold rest her fingers on his cheek.

Max was going to try everything in his power to open doors and opportunities for Liz in every which way she might desire. He'd remove the shackles that were involved with being a Queen and let her take her rightful place as a free woman and leader - as he saw her. Max was going to give her room to grow and develop - to learn and try all the things she ever wanted to do and couldn't because that's what he believed she deserved. "I know I do and I aim to continue to keep you comfortable." He returned the boyish glint in his eyes evident though he couldn't stop himself from laughing at the next comment. "Whatever you feel like. No judgement from me. . . You could bundle yourself up or wear nothing at all and I'd love you all the same." He smiled sheepishly but it was the plain truth.

He always enjoyed their proximity, finding it ever so relaxing whenever he was with her. His breathes came in short bursts but he was smiling more widely than he had in what felt like a long long time. His eyes opened as she spoke with such a tone that it struck some chord deep inside of him. "I . . . Love you too." He felt his voice waver a little from the emotion that was overtaking him.

Reunited| Max & Liz

Together. That was the most important thing. They were finally together again, no more barriers or rules against them staying together forever. They could look after each other, and yes Liz was determined to look after Max even after he was fixed up, because, as she had learned from him, when you care about someone you look after them. “Oh.. Yeah, I could see that. Less like the Queen I always had to act like, more like.. the actual Liz… it’s going to be nice not to have to do that as much.”

The warmth that spread through her at being pressed against Max could never compare to anything else. Oh, how she had missed this warmth. She wanted nothing else but to stay like this for as long as they could. Until they had other things to do, or had gotten tired and decided to move to the bed, where she would still feel this warmth in her sleep. She didn’t care about breathing for the moment, just wanting to continue to press her lips to his continuously. All the breath could be knocked out of her body, and she’d still want to kiss him more than she would want to breathe.

Max knew he'd taught her a lot, and he was proud that she'd taken on the things he had to teach her because it'd allowed him to find out just who Elizabeth Queen really was. After stripping away the masks he'd finally found the little girl who'd been so scared her entire life and he'd set about fixing her albeit slowly. "You should stop bothering about how you look now and just think about what makes you comfortable." He concluded with a nod.

For now he was happy to just hold her but the pain that was beginning to cause his legs to cramp would force him to move. His eyes had drifted closed during the kiss their breath intermingling along with their heartbeats. He could feel the steady rhythm of her own heart against his chest and it was just another reminder that this was their future. To stay together and help each other through whatever might come. That promise carried into his kiss and only when he felt like his lungs were on fire did he break away his breathing fast his forehead resting against her own; lips still hovering in close proximity to hers.