Title: Draco's Jade Tiger
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters originally found in any of JKR's book series, I just borrow and make up my own.
Chapter 1: Not All Parselmouths Are Evil
"Why am I being transferred to Hogwarts now? Why couldn't they have done this first year? No couldn't do that, had to wait till I was a fifth year." The young witch ranted to herself as she made her way through the passenger car of the Hogwarts Express. The girl had jet black hair, slightly golden skin with bright blue eyes. She wasn't really tall and not really short, well if you consider 5' 6" short for a fifteen year old girl. She made her way to the back of the train and found a compartment. Of course it wasn't empty. A man with slightly tattered robes and an old satchel was in there sleeping. Quietly, the young girl sat down across from the man and intoned a silencing spell, as not to wake the man. She watched as the man slept on, oblivious of the other occupant. The witch noticed that the man across from her was different, she sensed it when she walked in the compartment. The door to the compartment opened and before the person could say a word, a silencing spell was cast on them.
"Shh." She pointed to the man that was sleeping and motioned for the new person to come in. "Let the werewolf sleep." She whispered to the boy.
"How did you know that he was a werewolf?" the boy had black hair, brilliant green eyes.
"I sensed it." She cocked her head to the side, as if she was listening for something then turned her head back to the boy next to her. "I'm Tigress, what is your name?"
"Harry Potter." He shook her hand, looking at her wearily. "That is a very interesting name."
"My full name is Tigress Jade Black, but people either call me Tigress or Jade. I prefer Jade. So you are Harry Potter." Harry got the 'great, another hero worshipper type' look. "No, don't look at me like that, Viktor Krum mentioned that I should meet you when I get to Hogwarts."
"You know Krum?"
"I am transferring from Durmstrang. I had to hear about this Herm-own-ninny girl, and I thought my name was odd."
"Her name is Hermione. So why are you transferring?"
"Well, since we lost Karkaroff. We had to find a new headmaster, and my grandparents were not really happy when they found out that our last one was an ex-death eater, they made me transfer, which is for the best I guess. But, enough about me, I want to know about you." But before Harry could answer, a boy with flaming red hair opened the door followed by a girl that had shoulder length brown hair that was sort of curly. Thankfully the silencing charm had been cast on the door and Jade's side of the cabin.
"Harry we have been looking all over the train for you." The boy with red hair exclaimed, totally oblivious to the other people in the compartment.
"Ron, calm down. He isn't hurt, he is just in here with some girl and Professor Lupin." The brown haired girl's eyes widened, "Professor Lupin's back? Wonderful, at least we know he isn't evil, like the other's had been."
"Herm, this is Jade. Jade, this is that Hermione that Viktor told you about." Harry nodded towards Hermione.
"It is nice to meet you. I finally have a face to put with the name. Viktor told me I had to meet up with these three students here, he said that they were really nice and that knowing me, I'd probably fit right in."
"He said that?"
"Well, yeah, only with his accent and how he totally butchers the English language. That is the other reason for leaving Durmstrang, the language barrier. I can speak French, Spanish and very little Latin, but Bulgarian is pushing it." The others chuckled.
"So how was your summer 'Mione?" Harry asked, knowing that it would bother Ron.
"It was nice. And no, I didn't go to Bulgaria. Mum and Dad thought that it would be inappropriate that I stay at his home. Besides the age thing, mum wanted me to help out at the office this summer." She smiled, and turned in time to see Ron's relieved-expression. "What about you Ron? How was the Burrow?"
"Loud. The twins have been doing experiments all summer. They have been talking about opening a joke shop in Hogsmead, they say they want to give Zonkos a bit of friendly competition."
"I bet. Dungbombs down the chimney, that's really friendly." Hermione shook her head. "So Jade, where are you from, besides Durmstrang?"
"I am from England, near Yorkshire, where I live with my Grandparents. Their last name is Rothschild's. I never knew my parents, mum died in child birth, and I never knew my father."
"If you don't mind me asking..." Hermione gave a pluzzled glance to the new girl.
"I know, how do I know my last name is Black and such." The trio nodded. "Well mum was a seer, and she knew that I was going to be a girl so when the doctors were filling out the information, she told them what my name was going to be and my father's last name, rather that is all that they wrote on my birth certificate."
"Wow, so what year are you?"
"I'm a fifth year. I am assuming that you are the same." Harry nodded. "Oh look, he is waking up." Jade nodded to where Professor Lupin was. Quickly she removed the silencing charm.
"Oh hello, Harry, Ron, Hermione." Then he noticed Jade. 'she looks familiar. Hmm.' He thought to himself. "And you are?"
"Oh, Tigress Jade Black. I am the transfer student from Durmstrang." Lupin looked at her, disbelieving what he was seeing. "Is something wrong Professor?" Jade felt a bit uncomfortable, sensing this, Harry spoke up.
"Um, Professor, how is Snuffles?" Lupin snapped his head back to Harry and smiled.
"Oh he is already up at the castle. But I guess he is doing fine." He kept glancing over at Jade. 'there is no bloody way that she is Amelia's daughter.'
"Students and staff, five minutes until we arrive at Hogsmead station, all students should be in their robes upon arrival. That is all." The disembodied voice sounded throughout the train.
"Well I am all set, I guess you all will be going to get ready then." A chorus of 'yeah' then the trio left, leaving Lupin and Jade alone in the compartment. "Weird isn't it?"
"What's that?"
"You look like you have seen a ghost. I assure you, I am not one."
"You look like someone I knew from a long time ago. So forgive for staring." Jade smiled.
"It's quite alright." As she said this, Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked back into the compartment.
"Lets go, the train just stopped."
All of the first years, and Jade were gathered at the front of the hall waiting to be sorted. Dumbledore stood and the hall was silent.
"Just a few announcements before we begin the sorting. First off, we have the pleasure of welcoming back Professor Lupin as the Defense Against Dark Arts teacher once again, also he has an assistant teacher that will take over from time to time. I would like to introduce Professor Blanc." The hall clapped. Harry was looking at Lupin's assistant, and realized who it was.
"Ron, look at Lupin's assistant. It's Snuffles," he whispered to Ron. Ron's jaw dropped.
"Well we wont have to worry about him getting caught then." Ron whispered back.
"Also, I would like to introduce our transfer student from Durmstrang, Miss Tigress Jade Black." The hall applauded once more. 'Professor Blanc' got a wide eyed look on his face as he looked at Jade. "Let us begin the Sorting." Dumbledore sat down as Professor McGonagal approached the group with her list.
"Tigress Black!" 'of course, make me go first.' Jade thought as she walked up to the stool. The hat was set on her head.
'Well aren't you just a ray of sunshine.' The hat started picking through her mind.
'Just what I need, a sarcastic hat.' Jade thought to herself and the hat.
'ooh, well I see that you are brave, loyal and smart. You have light and darkness in you, much like your parents.'
'please can we get with the sorting, I really have no clue what my parents were like, so lets just get on with it.' still
'I know just where to put you then.' "SLYTHERIN!"
'why didn't you just through me into the snake pit. Oh wait. You did.' The hat was removed from Jade's head.
'I like that girl, she got spunk.' Then the next student was called. Jade calmly walked over to the Slytherin table and sat down.
"Tigress is an interesting name for a mudblood." A cold sneering voice drawled from Jade's left. She turned her head and sneered.
"Well look what the dragon spit up, a Malfoy. How sweet, already making comments that he has no idea are so wrong." She glared at the blond, and shook her head. "You know Draco, if I really wanted to, I could just owl my grandfather, and I am sure that he'd love to have a conversation with your father."
"What are you talking about Black?"
"Well being that I am from a pure blooded family. I believe you have heard of them, the Rothschild's, and as I recall, they are just as or even older than your family." The realization hit him hard.
"Jade?"
"Well look who just gained a brain cell. I think you should really lay off the bleach Dray, I think it is starting to make you act like a blond." She smiled, and so did Draco, which scared most of the Slytherin table. They had never seen a true smile come from Malfoy.
"Why are you going as Black? If they would have said Rothschild, I wouldn't have made my comment."
"Because, I am a Rothschild by blood, not in name. If they had adopted me, then yeah I would have changed it. But I am content with my name as it is. I really missed you Dray." She gave him a hug, which really scared the Slytherins, because he returned the hug. She looked over his shoulder at all of the horrified looks. "Dray, I think we are scaring them." She whispered as they separated. He chuckled. Then he put on a cold sneer, that made his gray eyes like ice, and turned to the rest of the table.
"Is there a problem?" he drawled, getting the desired reaction, he turned back to Jade, his expression softened. "So how was Durmstrang?"
At the Gryffindor table, Ron was fuming. Make that, practically jumping up and down like a little imp.
"I can't believe we even talked to that Slytherin, and look, she's even hugging Malfoy. Malfoy! Of all the slimy…" He was getting redder than his hair.
"Ron! Just leave it. Jade is in Slytherin, get over it. She is allowed to make friends with her housemates, actually it is required." Hermione tried to calm the red faced red head.
"What is Ron going on about?" Seamus Finnigan asked from the other side of the platter of chicken.
"Oh we met the transfer student on the train. Ron thinks that she was just spying for Malfoy or something. I think that that is a really stupid idea. But it is a shame that she had to get sorted into Slytherin." Harry mused while putting food on his plate.
Jade was enjoying herself. Merlin how she had missed Draco. They had been friends when they were younger. She hadn't seen him since a week before they both left for school. Eventually the Slytherins that were sitting near Draco and Jade, got used to seeing them laughing and smiling. Of course, Pansy was jealous.
'He never acts that way around me. Hmm, I guess I'll have to show the new girl just who Draco belongs to.' She thought evilly. Draco looked up at her, and she blushed. He caught her staring and raised an eyebrow. But then he turned his attention to Black.
When the feast was over, Draco walked with Jade, Crabbe and Goyle, to the Slytherin dungeons. He told her about the paintings on the way, and a bit about how Quidditch was going. Then of course, as they got to the common room, he began his rant about the Gryffindor Trio.
"I met them on the train I think. They seemed sort of nice actually." She noticed his sour expression. "But that was, before I knew that they were Gryffindors. Viktor never said what house they were in. But Ha...Potter, I thought I sensed Slytherin. Must have been the other student on the train."
"Yeah, I wondered about that myself once. See, there wouldn't be this whole rivalry if he'd just shook my hand first year. But no, he chose Weasley over me."
"That is the whole reason you two are enemies? A stupid handshake?" She shook her head and chuckled. "That has got to be the lamest reason. He's a Parselmouth, isn't he?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Well…so am I," she held up her hand so he couldn't rant, "But, I am not evil. I found out last year. Grandfather sent me a python, he thought that it would make a great pet. For weeks I thought I was going mad, hearing a voice in my head. Apparently, I was the only student that had a snake, so that is why I never noticed it before."
"Your Grandfather must have known that you were one, why else would he send you a snake?" Jade looked at him, wondering when Draco was going to freak out.
"You're not mad? I thought you'd hate me because of it."
"No, the fact that you are my best friend overrules that." He flashed her a smile. Jade stood up and stretched out her back, she had been sitting too bloody long.
"I think that I should go to bed now." She tried to stifle a yawn.
"You do look tired. Good night Jade." He gave her a hug and a small kiss on her forehead, she was still shorter than he was by a good four inches.
"Night Dray." Jade made her way to the fifth year girl's dorm. What she didn't know, was that someone had already walked in there waiting for her.
When Jade got to her bed, she noticed that the curtains were closed. Not taking any chances, she pulled her wand and muttered a curse and sent it into her bed. The shriek was all that she needed to know that someone was waiting for her. Jade opened the curtains to see, a horrified Pansy Parkinson and a three foot viper poised to strike, on her bed.
"Well, well, well, isn't this special, what are you doing on my bed Parkinson?" Jade smirked at the other girl while the viper made its way up her arm. She hissed at the snake and it wrapped around her shoulders.
"You're a Parselmouth!"
"No shit Sherlock. Now go away." The frightened Slytherin jumped off of the bed and made a mad dash to the door. "Don't bother trying to get me into any trouble, Snape, Dumbledor, and Draco know already." She smirked at Parkinson and went to work getting ready for bed.
Would Mistress like me to bite that one? the snake hissed and nuzzled its diamond shaped head on her cheek.
No. You can't bite anyone. At that, the snake made an indignant sound. "Finite incantatam." The viper vanished in a cloud of smoke.
The next few days flew by for everyone at Hogwarts. News of there being more than one Parselmouth made its way around the school. Students cleared a path everywhere Jade and Draco walked, for fear of having a snake set on them.
"Don't feel bad, they did this to Potter in second year."
"I bet." Jade looked down at her watch and cursed, "We'd better hurry Dray, we're going to be late for transfiguration."
Double Potions with the Gryffindors, was the last class of the day. The Slytherins arrived in the room before the Gryffindors, and talked loudly. Pansy was still trying to figure a way to get Jade back for stealing Draco from her. A few minutes later, the Gryffindors rushed in, the noise level jumped. Some of the other house tried to stay as far away from Jade and Draco's table, as they walked past.
"You know, I don't see why they are acting this way. It isn't like I am going to sick an anaconda on them or anything." Jade looked around the room at the other students. They'd look somewhere else if they caught her gaze.
"Just ignore them…" just as Draco started, Snape rushed into the room in a flurry of robes.
"Another year of Potions, Merlin help us, if Longbottom can go without blowing up a cauldron." Some of the Slytherins snickered, while the Gryffindors scowled at the potions master. "This year we will be brewing some of the more difficult potions." He gazed over the class and looked right at Jade. "Miss Black, why are you sitting in here, I would have thought that if you wanted to be in the classes under your abilities, that you would be in one of my seventh year classes." The other students turned and glared at Jade, who was blushing.
"Well Professor, I did not know I had that option available." She glared at the Professor. "But if you'd rather I left the class now, I will." Jade started to gather her things. The others were shocked, no one really ever went against Snape and lived to tell.
"No Miss Black, you may stay for this class, maybe you can assist Mr. Longbottom with his potion." Jade smirked at the teacher and set her satchel back on the floor. "Now for the rest of you, I expect you to have this potion brewed and prepared for testing by the end of this class." Snape finished off writing on the board. Her turned to the class. "Are you waiting for and invitation? Get to work."
"What is he talking about." Draco whispered as Jade was getting ready to go sit at the Gryffindor side.
"I'll tell you after class, it's a very long story." Jade walked over to Neville's table. "hello, I'm Jade." She smiled at the nervous Gryffindor, as she set her book bag on the floor.
"Hi."
"Okay, how about, I go and gather the ingredients, and you get the water. Sound like a plan?" Neville nodded and took the cauldron to get the water. Jade walked over to the ingredients table. Harry and Hermione were standing there also. "Hello."
"Hello Black." Hermione grabbed her share of the ingredients and walked away.
"Sometimes I wonder why I even bother trying to be nice to people, maybe I should go round the bend and send snakes after them instead." Harry chuckled as Jade rolled her eyes.
"I think I said the same thing during second year. So how have your other classes gone Jade." They were walking back over to the tables together.
"They're going okay so far, I just want the week to end." She whined as she sat down. Jade looked at the cauldron, the water was ready and Neville looked even more nervous. 'Well here goes.' Jade thought as she went to start the potion.