A/N: I was able to get this chapter finished early! I hope you enjoy ;)
Grace shuffled slowly down the stairs to the dungeons, a scowl on her face. She had begged Eloise to come with her, but, as usual, she hadn't done any of her homework and had to stay back in the common room.
This wasn't her fault. Why was she being punished for something that stupid Potter did? And yet, here she still was, in front of the door to the Potions classroom, waiting for her first detention and barely into her first year.
She leaned against the wall, sighing loudly. This was a complete disaster. Something shifted in her pocket, and she pulled out the letter she'd received this morning. She still hadn't opened it.
"I hope you're happy, Granger."
Grace rolled her eyes, stepping away from the wall to see James Potter marching angrily over to the door where she stood.
"Oh, I'm thrilled. And it's Granger-Malfoy, if you don't mind," she hissed, her voice dripping with sarcasm, and James scoffed.
"Forgive me if I don't want to say that dirty name," he said with a smirk, and Grace folded her arms, anger boiling inside her.
"Well, maybe you should-" Grace began, but the door to the classroom was thrown open and Professor Rosier stalked out.
"I'm pleased to see you two are getting along," he said darkly, and the two of them filed inside the classroom, shooting each other glares. They took a seat at one of the tables, backs turned to each other.
"Today we'll be doing something easy," Rosier said, shutting the door behind him and sauntering into the classroom, his dark robes flapping behind his brisk steps. "You too will each be writing a letter."
"A letter?" Grace asked questioningly. Why on earth would they be in detention just to write one blasted letter?
"Yes, Miss Granger-Malfoy, a letter," Rosier said, sitting down at his desk and giving them both a weary look.
"But to who, sir?" asked James, and Grace rolled her eyes at how nice his voice sounded when he talked to the professor.
"To Grace," Rosier said simply, and both kids turned to him, eyes wide.
"What?" both Grace and James said in unison, shooting each other disgusted looks. What would she even write about? This was the worst form of punishment she could ever imagine.
"You'll be apologizing for the spectacle you made in my class yesterday. And for the things you said to each other. And just in case you're getting any ideas, I'll be reviewing these before you're allowed to leave. I'm expecting them to be good," Rosier said with a small smile, sorting some papers on his desk as he spoke.
"But Professor-" James began, but Rosier silenced him with a sharp look.
"Unless you'd rather de-bone some of the dragon meat I received yesterday, I expect both of you to be silent for the rest of class," he demanded, before immersing himself in his papers.
Grace pulled the sheet of parchment on her desk towards her, smoothing it out delicately. A quill was waiting for her, too, and from the seat beside her she could see James glaring at his own paper.
"Listen, Potter, I know it might-"
"Miss Granger-Malfoy, what did I just say?" Professor Rosier said in a booming voice, and Grace shrunk back into her seat, scowling.
"Sorry, sir," she said darkly, turning back to the piece of parchment sitting on her desk. Yawning, she picked up the quill and rolled it between her fingers, staring at the blank paper.
What was she supposed to write? She didn't know what Professor Rosier even expected her to say. She dipped the quill in ink, looking through the corner of her eye to see James already scribbling across the parchment.
Dear James Potter,
She hated this, and she was certain she was going to get a whole lot of teasing from Eloise when she returned to the common room with a letter from James Potter.
I'm sorry for calling you cruel and black-hearted. And for saying you wanted to be just like your father. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me.
Sincerely,
Grace Granger-Malfoy
Grace picked up the letter and marched over to Professor Rosier's desk, handing him the letter.
"Finished already?" he asked, his eyes scanning the few sentences she'd written, then sighing loudly. "This isn't sincere, Grace. If it doesn't sound like your real thoughts, I'm not going to accept it."
"But you said-"
"I said they should be good. They don't have to be what I want to hear, but you should be able to apologize without sounding like a complete idiot. Or a hothead, for that matter," Rosier said, crumpling up the sheet of paper and handing her a new one. "Go on."
With a glare, Grace stalked back to her seat, picking up the quill. If he wanted real, he was going to get it.
Dear James Potter,
I think that you are one of the most infuriating people I've ever met. I've barely met you and already I don't want to speak to you ever again. You make me wish that I'd never met you in the first place.
I want you to take back what you said about my parents. It's not true. My mother would never betray her closest friends and my father is not disgusting. He's a bloody brilliant man, just like you think your own father is.
I want to be able to say that I won't take back what I said, but I am sorry for what I called your dad, really. I don't really know what happened between our parents but I shouldn't make assumptions about you just because of what your father did. That's not what my mother would want.
But I don't think you know what you're talking about, either, and I still think that you are trying to be just like your father. That's what we're supposed to do, isn't it? Be the same as our parents? I get it, you know. I know what it's like to have that kind of pressure on you.
Anyway, this doesn't mean that I'm forgiving you for what you said. I don't, and I still don't like you. I may not know the whole story of what your father did, but I know that he was my mom's friend once and so he must not be all bad.
Maybe one day we won't hate each other, but today isn't that day.
Sincerely,
Grace Granger-Malfoy
The quill shook in her hand and she quickly placed it down on the desk before she dropped it. It was like everything she'd been thinking had poured onto the parchment as she wrote, every word she was processing. And it'd ended up being a lot nicer than she intended.
She got up and handed the letter to Professor Rosier, who read it over with a soft smile.
"I think that's satisfactory," he said with a glint in his eye, and James sauntered over to the desk, holding his letter out.
"I'm done!" he sang, and Professor Rosier took it from his hand.
"Excellent work, the both of you," he said, and he quickly crossed his hands, holding James' letter out to Grace and visa versa. "But I expect the two of you to have no further outbursts in my class, do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, sir," they chorused, and he shooed them out of the classroom with an extra Potions homework assignment for good measure.
"What did you write me, Granger-Malfoy?" James asked with a smile once they were out in the hallway, and Grace lifted her chin.
"Nothing important," she said, before turning on her heel and stalking off down towards the common room.
"You had to write a letter?" Isabelle asked, tilting her head. "That sounds like the easiest detention ever. We should get in trouble more often!"
"Let's see his, then," Jemma said, holding out an expectant hand. The four of them were sitting out in the Hogwarts courtyard, Gryffindor scarves wrapped around their necks to shelter them from the evening chill.
"I don't think-" Grace began, but Eloise ripped the letter from her hand, unfolding the parchment. "Eloise, don't."
"Dear Grace-"
"Stop!" Grace shouted, pulling the letter back, and Eloise rolled her eyes, a smirk on her face.
"Oh, relax, Grace, I wasn't going to read it," she said passively, and Grace shot her a glare, smoothing out the paper. She hadn't had a chance to read the letter yet, and she knew it was going to be terrible. She didn't need the humiliation from Eloise reading the insults aloud, either.
Jemma and Eloise started interrogating Isabelle about the muggle world, giving Grace the perfect chance to read the letter.
Dear Grace Granger-Malfoy,
There I said it. Wrote it. Malfoy, Malfoy, Malfoy. Happy?
You annoy me. So condescending, like you own Hogwarts or something. I don't know. It's like you expect to be brilliant and liked and everything just because your parents were great.
But listen, I know I was a bit of a jerk yesterday. I don't think your mom was a backstabbing traitor. My dad doesn't either. He's never said that, anything like that, he just doesn't really talk about her at all. Every time someone mentions her he gets kinda tense and walks away. And they were friends, or whatever, so she can't have been all bad.
But your father… I don't really know much about him, but my Uncle Ron tells me he was my father's worst enemy. He didn't really seem like he was a decent person to your mother, either. So, I'm sorry, but I can't take back what I said about him.
And I don't want to be my father, just so you know. Also I don't think I own Hogwarts. So you shouldn't go around saying that. Also, this doesn't mean that we're friends, or anything. One stupid letter doesn't make us anything. We can go back to being enemies, if you'd like that. I would. Anyway, I guess I'm sorry for what I said. Really, I am. Mostly.
Sincerely,
James S. Potter
Grace stared at the letter, re-reading the words. He was still a complete jerk, even in his letter, still talking about her father like he did him some personal wrong. And mostly sorry? What kind of an apology was that?
Furious, she stuffed in the pocket of her robes, only to find another envelope waiting for her.
"Oh, no," she sighed, pulling it out of the fabric. It was addressed in her mother's neat handwriting, and she wasted no time in ripping it open. Best to get it over with quickly.
Dear Grace,
Gryffindor! I'm the proudest mother in all of England. I knew you'd follow in my footsteps. Now, I'll admit, your father was a bit upset that you weren't sorted into Slytherin, but he managed to get over his disappointment, and he's just as proud.
I hope you are working hard in all of your subjects and studying hard. Be sure to get your homework in on time and don't get into too much trouble. Also visit the library! Merlin, I miss that place. I can't wait to hear about your friends and all the fun you're having there.
We miss you so much at home! It's so strange without you here. Your father has tried his hand at making dinner for me when I get back from work, and let me tell you that you're not missing anything. He, well, needs some practice. It's so quiet without you.
Well, I just wanted to send you something short to remind you that we're always here for you, and to send our best.
With much love,
Mother
Grace grinned at the letter. So she didn't know about the detention. Yet. But either way, the words brought her back to home, and she ran her finger over the indents from the words where her mother's quill had been a few days ago. She missed her. So much.
"Now, I expect you all to be able to levitate this feather without difficulty, as we've been practicing this spell for two days now. Don't forget to swish and flick," Professor Jarbin said, her long braid flipping behind her as she spoke, demonstrating the motion of her wand.
Grace yawned, pointing her wand at the feather again. She was obviously not as brilliant as her mother was, as she'd been told by various teachers, and she couldn't seem to get the feather to move.
"Wingardium Leviosa!" she exclaimed, staring at the feather and swishing her wand. As usual, nothing happened. "Oh for Merlin's sake, what am I doing wrong?"
"I'm not certain, but mine only worked when I added an extra little twist thing at the end," said a voice from her left. Grace turned to see a tall, red-headed girl giving her a concerned look. She knew exactly who she was. "I'm Seraphina Weasley."
"Grace Granger-Malfoy," she said hesitantly, waiting to see what the girl would say. If she was anything like her cousin Potter, Grace would probably end up in detention again, which she wasn't eager for.
"I know," the girl said simply, looking at her with wide brown eyes. She didn't look much like Ron Weasley but for her hair, Grace decided. She must take after her mother.
"And…" Grace prompted, but the girl just shrugged.
"My father might have been hurt by your mother, and I'm sure your mother was hurt by my father, but why should that bar us from being friends?" Seraphina said plainly, and Grace's eyes widened. "And I'm sorry about James. He's very stubborn. Gets that from his father."
"I- agree. I guess. Yes," Grace babbled, a bit surprised at the girl's forwardness. She wondered if Ron had told his kids more about the dispute than Harry and Hermione had. "Can I ask a strange question?"
"Those are often the best kind," said Seraphina in a lyrical way, and Grace nodded slowly.
"About our parents- do you know what exactly happened? Because I've heard my mother's brief summary, and I've heard a bit of Harry's, but I'm not really sure what the real story is."
"Well, I'm sorry to say that I'm not either," Seraphina replied, poking her feather with her wand. "My dad refuses to talk about it. Any time you ask him, or even say the name Hermione, he'll clam up. It's not that he hates her, or anything. He just has some resentment buried somewhere inside him that he's not ready to share."
Grace could understand that. It was the same thing that was no doubt happening with her mother.
"Well, thanks anyway, Seraphina," she said, and Seraphina smiled.
"Anytime. And you can call me Sera," the girl said, and Grace nodded. Sera was definitely better than Seraphina. "Now, about that feather…"
Grace pointed the tip of her wand at the feather, taking a deep breath. Charms was definitely not her strong suit. Swish and flick.
"Wingardium Leviosa," she said, and at the end of her swish and flick she curled the tip of her wand just a bit. Suddenly, the feather lifted into the air, swaying slightly on the breeze from an open window.
Grace turned and grinned at Sera, who smiled serenely back.
"Thanks, Ravenclaw," Grace added, and Sera rolled her eyes.
"Of course."