A/N: I AM SO SORRY OH MY GOD I HAD THIS CHAPTER IN MY COMPUTER FOR OVER THREE MONTHS AND I DIDN'T EVEN REALIZE IT! I AM SO SORRY! TO MAKE IT UP TO YOU GUYS I WILL BE POSTING UP TO FOUR CHAPTERS IMMEDIATELY AS SOON AS I WRITE THEM. My goal is to update every month, but since I've waited this long, I'll just upload it as I type it. Again, soo sorry! D: D:
The first sense that came back to Jane was her hearing, and she heard her friends talking to Madam Pomfrey.
"Poor girl broke her arm, her leg, dislocated her jaw, and, worst of all, received a burst fracture to her lower spine."
"And she received all that from smashing into a stone wall?" that sounded like Hermione.
"Only the leg break and the burst fracture. The arm break and dislocated jaw she got from the fight."
"Who's off worse, Jane or Pansy?" that was definitely Ron.
Madam Pomfrey's tone changed to disapproval, "That is none of your concern, Mr. Weasley. You two can stay here for a while longer, and then you'll have to leave,"
"We can't stay until she wakes up?"
"If she wakes up soon, you can,"
The next sense that came to Jane was feeling, and she felt utter pain. A pinpoint ache in her lower back felt like she was being stabbed over and over and over. The rest of her body was stiff and sore. If she tried to move, the knife in her back dug deep into her flesh, and the soreness grew into an almost unbearable ache. She winced and groaned as she opened her eyes. Hermione and Ron sat on her left side with concerned expressions, and gifts were in their laps. It was the first time she had seen them together in a while. She turned her neck to the side to see them properly and hissed at the soreness.
"Hey there, tiger," Ron greeted her awakened state, "Heard you knocked out Pansy?"
"Did I?" she croaked, her throat layered with thick dust. Hermione dropped her gift into Ron's lap and reached for the glass of water on her bedside table, helping her to drink without having her sit up.
"Sure did. She didn't hit a wall like you did, but she did slam into Slughorn," Ron informed.
Big deal. Slughorn is a fat ball of lard. She hit something soft, I broke through a god damn wall.
"Not sure of her condition yet, but you might have gotten the worst of it just lookin' at you,"
"Ron!" she gasped, glaring at him, then turning back to Jane, "You weren't the only one that was hurt. Eleven other students went to the infirmary because of the explosion,"
"They're not seriously hurt, right?" she asked.
"No, most of them just got bruises, and a few with concussions. None of them ended up in a bed or anything."
"How about Pansy?"
Ron jabbed his thumb across the room at a bed occupied by a brown haired lump sound asleep. From where she lay, Jane couldn't see anything wrong with her.
Madam Pomfrey strolled up to Jane's bedside with a metal tray. Two bottles sat on the tray, one with bright purple liquid, and another with clear liquid. She sent Hermione and Ron away, who left their presents for her recovery on the table at the foot of her bed.
"How long have I been out?" Jane asked.
"A day or two. We've been trying to keep you under in order to mend your bones,"
"How much longer do I have to stay here?"
"A few days at most. Your vertebra is fractured in multiple places, crushed completely. Bone fragments are spread out in the tissue of your back,"
A shattered spine? Oh, Pansy is going to pay for this, Jane thought.
"You'll be good as new soon, but you'll have to be asleep in order for me to find the bone fragments and piece your vertebra back together," Madam Pomfrey picked up the clear liquid bottle and held it to her patient's lips, "This will help me detect where the fragments are," the liquid was tasteless, but extremely cold, "And this will take the pain away and put you to sleep,"
Oh, she'd been waiting for this! Despite the thick, sludgy taste, she gratefully gulped the liquid down and she was out in a few minutes flat, the pain melting away like butter over toast.
She regained partial consciousness a day later. Her eyes were too heavy to open, and the effects of the purple potion had permanently removed her pain – that or she was healed. She could hear the rustling of clothing on either side of her. Had her friends come back to visit?
"I'm afraid I have to insist on the girl's immediate removal from the school. Last time was a close call, neither she nor Mr. Malfoy were hurt. But this time bystanders were injured because of her action!" she heard McGonagall say. Jane could barely feel her stomach churn.
"I am not casting her out, I need her," that was Dumbledore to her right, "Punish her as much as you wish, but she is not leaving,"
"Why do you need her so much? What does this girl possess that is so invaluable?"
"A piece of information that can free us. That is all I can say,"
Silence after that. Then she heard McGonagall get up from her left, "I can guarantee that she will have an extreme punishment, and I will respect your decision . . .but something has to be done, Albus. How much longer before she does kill someone? Or should I say, someone else?" then her footsteps lead her away.
Jane heard Dumbledore sigh by her side, and a few minutes later, just as she was beginning to fall asleep again, "I know you're awake, Jane,"
Barely. Her face felt too heavy to move, making it hard to move her lips.
"We'll have to postpone our meeting to another time. We're getting so close, I just need a few more things from you, a few more pieces to the puzzle."
The third time she woke up, she was in for a surprise.
It was the middle of the night, she discovered, as she opened her eyes. Her body was stiff and acing, but at least she could sit up now.
"Thanks for getting Pansy off my back,"
Draco sat in a chair at her side, legs propped up on the end of her bed, one of her presents in his lap. Jane gasped and glanced around for anyone around her. They were the only people in the hospital wing.
"You're breaking your own rule," she noted.
He ignored her, observing the rectangle box with a green ribbon to tie it all together. He untied the ribbon and removed the lid. Scoffing, he removed the contents: stacks of rolled up parchment and a few quills.
"Homework? That mudblood Granger gives you homework as a get well present? What a joke!" he dropped the scrolls into the box and shoved it away.
The pilot light of anger inside Jane sparked and she sat up swiftly, ignoring her aching bones screaming at her, "Don't call her that. Ever!"
Draco rolled his eyes and grabbed the second box.
"What are you doing here?"
"Wanted to see how my partner in crime was doing. I have to say, you came off worse. Pansy didn't have to stay in the hospital wing overnight. Then again, she didn't hit a brick wall," he snickered.
The present he opened contained Cauldron Cakes and a few chocolate frogs. He opened up the wrapping to a Cauldron Cake and took a bite.
"Hey, those are mine!" Jane grabbed the treat from his hand and moved her get-well-gifts to her side of the bed.
"What rattled your chain?"
"Pansy did, the stupid fucking bitch. Get your girlfriend to get off my case, will you?"
"She is not my girlfriend, I'm done with her. Pansy can go run in front of the Killing Curse for all I care,"
"Just because you're done with her, doesn't mean she's done with you or me,"
"Look, if it makes you happy, I'll tell her to back off,"
"Think she'll listen to you?"
"She will if I claim you as mine to take revenge on,"
The aches in her body were too much to handle and she slumped back on her bed, "Look, I need rest, so -" when she turned her head and got a second look at him, with the moonlight from the window above shining down on him, she almost gasped. He looked like he hadn't slept in weeks, his clothes were wrinkled, the buttons buttoned in the wrong order, one sleeve pulled over his hand and the other rolled up to his elbow and he wasn't wearing a belt with his trousers, "What happened to you?"
His "good natured" snarkiness suddenly dropped from the world, replaced with a brooding mood, "Nothing," he muttered. He got up and walked away, with Jane calling after him.
February rolled around by the time Jane left the hospital wing fully healed. The snow was beginning to melt, leaving a watery, grey much on the castle grounds. Purplish-grey clouds hung over them, changing the mood from a cheery winter white to a post-holiday depression. Sometimes the clouds released short bursts of rain, making the grass slippery and muddy. It was close to Jane's favorite kind of weather, but everyone else seemed to despise it.
As McGonagall promised, Jane was punished most severely. She wasn't allowed to go to any kind of event that wasn't mandatory, including the Apparition Lessons. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday she had detention with a different teacher that began at five in the afternoon and went way past midnight.
On average, she saw Draco twice a week in the Room of Requirement, settling back into the swing of things. Something about him was off, however. On a few occasions he would be his usual self. He would tease her, pick fights, try and seduce her. Then there were some days that he was in a grey area. He was out of energy, grumpy, defensive, and depressing. She had become even more cautions when entering their hideout. If he wanted to find her, he could go to the Astronomy Tower.
And the Golden Trio? They were more secretive than ever. Hermione came out of the library every day pissed off and grumbling about not being able to find something, but when Jane asked about it, she clammed up. Whenever she came near the three of them talking, they were huddled around a table speaking in voices, and stopping immediately in her presence. She thought they were done with all this secrecy. What had changed over winter break?
Lots of things, apparently.
On the day of the Apparition lessons, Jane walked Harry and Hermione to the Great Hall and found that the tables had disappeared. Rapid rain drops pounded against the enchanted ceiling above and at the tall arched windows. The heads of Houses were lined up at the front of the room, including Professor McGonagall, whom glared at her as she stood in the doorway. Jane bit her lip and looked down at her feet.
"I guess I'll . . . see you guys later," she muttered. Harry and Hermione nodded their goodbyes and headed inside. With nothing to do, she leaned against the wall across from the hall and watched the students file in. A few moments later Draco and one of his cronies – Crabbe maybe? – climbed down the stairs. She kept her composure in case someone looked over. It didn't last long, however, as she heard his voice and the words it spoke echoing towards her.
"If you would just bloody listen to me instead of running your useless trap -"
"Awright, then tell me. How much longer we gotta keep this up? I'm tired a being a girl all a the time,"
"Too bad, you'll keep being a girl 'til I'm finished," Draco threatened.
"Why should I when you won't tell me what you an' that girl are doin' in that room?"
The conversation faded as the pair went into the Hall. Jane stared at his back with a curious intensity. Finished with what? That stupid cabinet he's spent the last semester fixing?
Maybe it's time I get a real good look at this cabinet, she thought.
She had examined that piece of furniture from top to bottom, getting many splinters she so did not need. The only thing special she saw in this piece of wooden junk was its ability to make things vanish. She's seen its ability several times while with Draco. What was so special about that? There was no use for it.
There has to be, she thought as she made her way to the Tower, trying to pick a wooden shard from the center of her palm, Otherwise he wouldn't be trying to fix it. Doubt he has an interest in fixing enchanted furniture.
As the Gryffindor Tower porthole came into view, she saw Harry and Ron enter the common room in a rather hasty manner. She quickly gave the password to the fat lady just in time to see Ron stop for a moment, panting up a storm, and Harry observing the room impatiently.
"Are you going to tell me what we're doing, then?" Ron asked.
"Up here," Harry went to the boy's staircase with Ron tailing him. Jane waited a split second, debating whether to eavesdrop, before she quietly stalked after her male friends stopping at the sixth year dormitory, she pressed her ear up against the wood. She could hear very little, nevertheless what she could hear was very . . .
"Malfoy's . . . as lookouts. He was . . . Crabbe and Goyle . . . I want . . ."
It was like that, and only Harry talked the first few minutes until Ron spoke up.
"There! He's in Slytherin . . . with Parkinson . . . Crabbe and Goyle . . ."
"Well, I'm keeping an eye . . . from now on . . . the moment I see him . . . keeping a watch outside, it'll be . . . the old Invisibility Cloak . . ."
"Harry, enough -"
"You heard him . . . he's in the . . . and Jane is . . ."
"Do you really think . . . Jane's got something . . . Draco?"
"I'm not sure . . . Jane's got something . . . do you?"
"Not sure either . . . wouldn't surprise me,"
Jane pulled away like the door was on fire and ran back downstairs quietly as possible, then to the girls dormitory, which, thankfully, was empty. She leaned against the door, breathing heavily as her heart raced.
Something weird was going on here. They were hiding something, Draco was being secretive . . . Jane searched her mind for a reason for all of it, but for the life of her she couldn't figure it out.
Suddenly someone was pounding on the door. Jane moved aside and opened the door to let Hermione inside, whom had a piqued demeanor about her, "Why are you blocking the door?" she grumbled as she went to her bed.
"Sorry, I was leaning against it," Jane explained, "How was Apparition Lessons?"
"Fine," Hermione said curtly.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, fine, just frustrated," she kneeled in front of her trunk and searched its contents for something that she obviously couldn't fine. Jane went to her bed and sat with her legs crossed, watching her become more and more frustrated.
"What about?"
"Nothing, it's nothing,"
Hermione scoffed and grabbed a book before slamming her trunk shut. She flipped through the pages like they were on fire, her eyes going back and forth over the text with a determination to find something.
"Hermione, you know you can tell me anything, right?"
"Yeah, yeah I know that," she answered, not really paying attention.
"So . . . what have you, Harry, and Ron been talking about lately?"
"Not anything very important," she slapped the book shut and stood, throwing it onto her bed, "I'm going to the library, I'll see you at dinner," and she left.
The secrets and distrust in the air were so heavy Jane could hardly breathe. Her friends were up to something, and Draco had a reason for fixing that cabinet for no reason. Whatever he was up to, Harry wasn't going to let up until he knew what it was.
"He's onto you,"
Draco didn't bother to look over his shoulder as he ran his hand over the Vanishing Cabinet's rough wood, "Excuse me?"
Jane stayed just within the ring of light, arms held behind her back in this innocent, but enigmatic demeanor, "Harry knows you're doing something in here. If I were you, I'd avoid this place for a while,"
He paused his tinkering and turned toward her, "Why are you telling me this? I thought Potter was your friend,"
"He is, but . . ." she sighed and ran a hand through her hair, "Look, I don't know what you're doing here, or why, and I don't know if I want to know. I just don't want you to get in any trouble,"
I'm planning the murder of the headmaster, that's what I'm doing here, he thought.
The minute Draco kissed Jane on Christmas Eve, he knew he wasn't going to kill her. Merlin knows why not, but he sure didn't. He hoped murdering Dumbledore would prove he was worthy of his mark. After all, Dumbledore was the bigger threat.
"He also thinks I'm associated with you too," Jane added.
"Might not be a good idea to see each other for a while either," he decided.
"Yeah . . . yeah, I guess so,"
"Still got that ring?"
After rummaging through her black cloak she produced the silver Slytherin ring.
"Good, keep It on you. If you need anything use it,"
"Sure, sure . . . I should go, Hermione thinks I'm talking to Slughorn about missing assignments," Jane turned away and started towards the door until he grabbed her wrist and pulled her flush against him.
"If I'm not going to see you for a while, I need something to keep me going," he smirked. With a small smile on her lips, she stood on her toes and kissed him.