Something There

Liza hummed softly to herself as she made her way around her cosy little bedroom, having to duck every time that she wanted to go near the window to avoid banging her head on the low ceiling. There was no doubt that her home was very definitely quirky, but she loved it for what it was and it was quite large and comfortable enough for her. She was running a little late perhaps, but she was not only a society lady but a showbusiness star and as such, time was of little consequence to her. Besides, she thought to herself as she glanced up at the little golden clock which sat on the shelf over her door, she had quite enough time, and Apparation was a blessing. Even so, she might admit to being a little flustered... and if she didn't, it could be deduced from the various pieces of clothing scattered around the room. Normally, time had no meaning. Tonight was different.

Finley was an old friend. She had known him since they had been at Hogwarts together, and while they might not have been in the same House, the fact nevertheless remained that whenever Liza found herself with a group of friends, there Finn would invariably be. And thus she had, over the years, got to know him rather well. She knew his tendencies, she knew his weaknesses and she knew his total devotion to his cause. And while his proclivities might worry her a little, because as well as being a good friend, Elizabeth was a big sister and she tried to look out for her associates. She wasn't entirely sure that his lifestyle was particularly helpful, but she supposed that it wasn't her place to interfere.

Elizabeth was a rather cheerful person by nature, but then she had a lot to be cheerful about. She came from a rich and influential family, she had a job which she enjoyed, she had a large and rapidly expanding circle of friends. It was therefore perhaps not surprising that a smile was an almost permanent fixture on her face, and especially when she was in company- because to smile made one look prettier, and although Elizabeth's parents were not quite so concerned with her finding her a husband as many others would have been, they were still very much in favour of it, and smiling had therefore become almost an unconscious action for the girl.

Prepared at last, she wrapped herself in a warm grey coat, took a moment to check that she had everything which she was likely to need and especially her wand, and then she took a deep breath, turned on the spot and Apparated. It was not a feeling which she particularly enjoyed, but Apparation was an invaluable skill and could come in very useful at times. It was so much more convenient than flying. Liza opened her eyes to find herself standing a few hundred yard from her final destination and, with a smile adorning her brightly painted lips, she hurried through the cold streets in search of her date for the evening. "Finn!" she called, spotting her friend's head in the crowd.

Elizabeth smiled brightly and suddenly found herself enveloped in a strong hug to which she had no objection whatsoever. One couldn't go around hugging everyone, after all, but she had known Finn for a long time, and she considered him to be a friend. A very good friend, and if one couldn't hug one's friends then who could one hug? His lips touched against her cheek and she instinctively turned her head to face him, smiling up into those deep eyes as she took the man's hand. It was rather amusing, really. She'd known him since she was eleven, if not before- she really couldn't remember; it had been a long time ago, and Finn had become such a basic part of her life that she didn't even really think about it any more. Oddly, Eliza didn't recall ever having actually sought Finn out... he had just seemed to arrive. Which was rather nice, really. He was a pureblood, after all.



And that was another thing. Finn called her Beth. Very few people did. Some of her friends called her Liz, others Lizzie; one or two called her Ellie or Liza, and from that last, she had taken her stage name, which was of course, Liza. But none other than Finn called her by that name. One or two of her siblings did, but generally only when they were feeling in a good mood- what they called her when they were annoyed with her often did not bear repeating. Because her family were well brought up, which meant that when they swore, they did it in private and they really went for it. Though Lizzie still remembered with a shudder what had happened to her the first time that her mother had heard her swearing. It had not been a pleasant experience, not in the slightest.



"Yes, let's." the girl agreed with a dazzling smile, following dutifully as the man led her over to the door and into the welcome warmth of the building. She closed her eyes in relief for a moment or two, before following the witch off in the direction in which, they were assured, their table awaited. "Thank you!" she exclaimed in return to the man's offer, slipping her slim arm neatly out of his and taking a deep breath before facing the crowded bar area. "Chivalry isn't dead after all!"

Lizzie sank into the chair with a smile still on her face, giving her companion a nod of thanks- they had spent so much time together over the years, now that she thought about it, that they no longer needed to speak to convey their own messages. It was nice to go out for an evening- of course, the girl had spent many, many of her evenings out of the house recently, but that was different. Entertaining was her job, and whilst it was a job which she enjoyed and one which she did not really have any actual need to do, it was still work. Whereas her purposes this evening were entirely related to relaxation, and she could think of no better way in which to relax than this; an evening spent in the delightfully chivalrous company of an old friend.

Her smile faded, however, at Finn's comment, and without speaking for a moment, the oldest Greengrass daughter laid a hand on the man's arm. She knew something of what the former Slytherin had been through at home, and while she knew the general outline of events from hearsay and gossip, the particulars were not and had never been of interest to her. She knew that Finn had suffered; that was enough. All that mattered. He was a pureblood, a gentleman of means, an entrepreneur... But sometimes she felt that he was still a small child, still suffering. Not very often, of course. Men did so like to appear strong and infallible... Personally, of course, Liza found a little vulnerability to be rather attractive. She liked to feel that she was helping someone with her presence.

"Who, me?" she enquired with a smile at his compliment. "No, of course not! Who would I possibly want to impress?" Well, that was neither here nor there, for it was a basic principle of pureblood education that one should always be out to impress everyone with one's own beauty and power. Some more than others, of course... But no, she was out to impress no one in particular on this night. She was here to have fun, not to engage in pureblood society politics, and hence, she was dressed merely to impress rather than to stun.

Lizzie blew her companion a kiss across the table as she took the menu from him, skimming it for appearance's sake. She was rather familiar with the range available here, since it had been the site of perhaps one too many post-performance parties, but it never hurt to try something different... although she was somewhat concerned on discovering that there was actually nothing different to try. So she merely handed the menu back with an inviting smile. "Surprise me." she suggested.