Jade tried to delay Draco's return to the castle as best as she could but he was hellbent on going back and telling a teacher about what he saw. He was a few feet in front of the rest of them and by the time they reached the castle, Draco had disappeared. On her way down to the Common Room, she ran into Harry, Ron, and Professor Lupin in the dungeons.
"Harry!" Jade hissed and quickly came to their side. "What are you doing down here?" The boys looked up at Professor Lupin.
"Good afternoon, Jade." Professor Lupin gave her a short smile before turning back to them. "I'll meet you in the Entrance Hall." He left them to talk and Jade watched him leave.
"What's that about?"
"Snape brought me down, he knows I was at Hogsmeade," Harry told her.
"He thinks he was, I came running in and told him that I gave Harry his Hogsmeade stuff." Harry looked at Ron and nodded.
"Thank you for that."
"He doesn't know, he just heard what Draco said, which he could've easily made up to get you in trouble," Jade said.
"Right, but he didn't make it up," Harry mumbled.
"Are you okay?" Jade asked, he seemed distracted by something else, he didn't look upset like he'd been caught and given a punishment.
"He mentioned my father." This seemed to be news to Ron as he shared a look with Jade before they both fell silent, feeling the shift of their conversation.
"What did he say?" Jade asked quietly, Harry kept his eyes downcast.
"He said I was arrogant, had little talent on the Quidditch field, and that I strut around like I'm better than others, just like my father." Harry looked up suddenly and his eyes were burning with an anger she'd never seen before. "I don't strut."
"I know-"
"I don't think I'm better than anyone. The only thing special about me is I've almost died the past two years, and Sirius Black is trying to kill me this year!"
"That's not the only-" Ron tried to add.
"My father saved him, you know. That's why he's always after me, because he's embarrassed that he was saved by James Potter." Harry interrupted again.
"Is that what he said?" She asked,
"No, but that has to be why."
"How'd he do that? Your father."
"He didn't go into detail. He said my father had planned a prank with his friends and at the last minute he changed his mind. Snape was sure if they'd gone through with it he would've died and my father would've been expelled, and that's why he saved him."
"That sounds awful." Harry's eyes met hers again, "Sorry, I just meant-"
"No, you're right, it does. I just… I never got to know my father. How can I say that's something he wouldn't do? What if he was a bad person?"
"He wasn't," Jade said automatically. "My mother!" She exclaimed. "My mother knew him! I could ask her about him, maybe she has some stories to share." Harry's eyes lightened and a small smile softened his face.
"Could you?"
"Of course." Harry grabbed her and brought her into a crushing hug but by the time she reached up to hug him back he had let her go.
"Thank you. We have to…" He gestured in the direction Professor Lupin had gone and Jade nodded,
"Yeah, I'll see you guys later." Jade passed a few stray students on her way to the Common Room, it wasn't as occupied as usual since a lot of the students were still down at Hogsmeade. Draco sat alone at one of the chess tables in the corner, reading something. Jade approached him and stood there, he didn't look up from his parchment. "What are you reading?"
"It's a letter from my father." He grinned. "Are you just going to stand there?"
"What does it say?" She asked, ignoring his non-invitation to join him.
"The hippogriff that attacked me is to be executed." He paused, his eyes moving away from the letter but not meeting hers. "I'm sorry, but the thing could've killed me."
"It wouldn't have if you'd have just listened to Hagrid in the first place." Jade's heart sank into her stomach, she wanted to be angry with Draco but it wasn't his fault. When he got hurt his father was informed and then took the matter into his own hands. She was left with just sinking despair.
"Yeah, alright, I get it. The point is, Hagrid brought a dangerous creature to class and it could've happened to anyone." She could tell he was struggling to keep the snarkiness out of his tone, talking to her like he was repeating himself to a small child.
"Can I see it?" She asked, her hand outreached. He looked at her and then shrugged as he passed it over. The letter was more of a brief note of information than anything else, empty of emotion. She'd never received a letter so stony from her own parents. No mention of his mother or what his father had been up to, no interest in what Draco might be doing in school. "Nice of him to keep you in the loop." She practically growled and tossed the parchment onto the table.
"I didn't ask for it." He immediately went on the defense but Jade held her hand up to stop him.
"I know, just… let me be upset." She left before he could say anything else.
Hagrid looked absolutely miserable during Care For Magical Creatures. Students were whispering about what could be wrong with him, apparently, Draco hadn't gone around boasting about the fact Buckbeak would be killed. Harry, Ron, and Hermione knew but other than that it was kept quiet.
"There's still the appeal!" Ron reminded Hagrid as he turned to leave after taking the class back up to the castle. "Don't give up yet, we're working on it!"
"S'no good, Ron," Hagrid said quietly. "That Committee's in Lucius Malfoy's pocket. I'm jus' gonna make sure the rest o' Beaky's time is the happiest he's ever had. I owe him that…" Hagrid turned abruptly and made his way back to his cabin.
"I hate seeing him like this." Jade sighed as they watched him go.
"Look at him blubber!" She heard the drawl of Crabbe's voice behind her and she turned to see Draco standing with Crabbe and Goyle, chuckling as they watched Hagrid go.
"Have you ever seen anything quite as pathetic?" Draco smirked. "And he's supposed to be our teacher!" She guessed wrong, Draco had told others about Buckbeak. Her cheeks quickly flamed as her anger spiked inside of her. He was such an asshole! An insensitive, intolerable, desperate for attention little-
Hermione brushed past her quickly and delivered a satisfying and very loud slap. Harder than she had ever hit him before, she was sure. Draco staggered back and Jade and the boys hurried over to Hermione.
"Don't you dare call Hagrid pathetic! You foul, you evil-"
"Hermione!" Jade gasped as Hermione's hand drew back again and Ron tried to grab her arm as she went to hit him.
"Get off, Ron!" Hermione pulled out her wand and Draco took a step back, everyone froze. Crabbe and Goyle looked to Draco for any hint of what they should do. Stupid and mindless.
"C'mon," Draco muttered, his blazing gaze meeting hers before the three of them fled into the passageway to the dungeons.
"Hermione!" Ron sighed, sounding both stunned and impressed.
"Harry, you'd better beat him in the Quidditch final!" Hermione turned on him. "You just better had, because I can't stand it if Slytherin wins! Sorry, Jade." She added as an afterthought and Jade smiled.
"No apology needed."
"We're due in Charms," Ron told them, still goggling at Hermione. "We'd better go."
"Yeah, see you." Jade watched them hurry up the marble stairs before making her way to the Slytherin Common Room. She didn't want to see Draco, she didn't want to speak to him. She didn't want to be anywhere near him, she'd do some homework, some studying, see if Gretta wanted to go with her to the library. But as she walked into the room she saw her friends huddled around him. He looked past them and stood once he saw her.
"Maddex!" He was angry, the left side of his face all red, but she continued to walk towards the girls' dormitories.
"Don't talk to me, Malfoy, unless you want a slap across the other side of your face so you have a matching set of handprints." She was halfway there now.
"That's what happened?" Pansy asked.
"Who hit you?" Blaise questioned. She thought Draco said something else to get her attention but it was drowned out by the start of Theo's thunderous laughter. She went through the doorway to the dormitories and quickly descended the stairs. The only thing she could hear was Theo.
