"Jade!" Jade's eyes slowly opened and she sat up,

"Yes?" She called from her bed as a yawn escaped her mouth. Jade's mother appeared in her doorway,

"Your owl has been bothering Willie all morning." Her mother was frowning but Jade smiled,

"He just wants to play." Jade defended her owl, Ezekiel.

"Well then, he can play with you. Willie's getting older and isn't in the mood to deal with such a young owl."

"Ezekiel!" Jade called and a few seconds later, flapping wings could be heard from the hallway upstairs and Ezekiel soared into her room and landed on one of the posts at the end of Jade's bed. "Come." She patted her bed and the owl jumped down and over to her where she was waiting to pet him. "Yes, you're a good owl." Her mother sighed from the doorway,

"Just because he can be out around the house doesn't mean I want him flying everywhere."

"How else is he supposed to get around?" Jade asked, obviously he would be flying.

"On your shoulder. That's what I thought I was agreeing to." Jade just looked at her mother, she wouldn't say she'd make Ezekiel stop flying but it was clear that's what her mother was waiting for. Finally, her mother gave up with another sigh, "Just… control him." She warned and Jade nodded. "Now, get up. We're meeting the Malfoys in an hour to get your school books and I don't want to be late."

"We always end up waiting for you." Jade told her but her mother pointed at her, a silent warning, and Jade smiled, "I'll be ready."

"Good, get some breakfast." Her mother said with a small smile and then left. Jade got up from her bed and Ezekiel watched her as she changed into her clothes for the day and then left the room to go to the bathroom. Ezekiel's loud screech could be heard from anywhere in their large house and Jade quickly ran back to her room to glare at him,

"Well, come on then." She grumbled at him and he flew over to her and landed gently on her awaiting arm. "The flying I'm fine with but the screeching is uncalled for." She told him as she flicked the lights on in the bathroom and examined herself in the mirror. Jade brushed through her hair and quickly brushed her teeth before heading downstairs and into the kitchen.

"Hello, dear." Her father greeted her warmly as he glanced over the Daily Prophet in his hands.

"Your owl's a nuisance," Rodrick told her before finishing his plate of eggs.

"Careful, I'll make him peck your eyes out," Jade said nonchalantly as she got some eggs for herself that were still warm on the stove.

"Bet you he'd do it even if you didn't tell him," Rodrick said, as he waved his hand his plate glistened clean.

"Ezekiel doesn't do anything unless I tell him to." Jade glared as she sat down across from Rodrick. Ezekiel gave a hoot as if in agreement with Jade's statement and as a reward he got a rub against his chest.

"Ezekiel, come." Rodrick held out his arm but Ezekiel just looked at him. "Come here." He cooed at him but then Willie came from the living room and landed on Rodrick instead. Rodrick smiled at his owl, "Good boy, Willie."

"Father?" Jade asked as she ate her breakfast,

"Yes, dear?"

"Why don't we have servants?" Rodrick and her father looked up at her,

"Where did that come from?" Rodrick asked,

"I was just wondering, Draco says he has them, says most wealthy families do." Her father nodded in understanding,

"We just don't live that way."

"Can we not afford them?" Jade asked and her father, who was trying to get back to his paper, folded it, and placed it on the table instead.

"We can."

"Why don't we have a bigger house?" Jade continued,

"I think this house is big enough, more rooms than we need."

"The Malfoys have a manor," Jade said as she put a forkful of eggs in her mouth,

"Yes. The Malfoys have a manor. Jade, there are people who flaunt their wealth in others' faces. We don't do that."
"Why not?" Rodrick was watching her go back and forth with their father,

"Because we're not better than others simply because we have more money than them."

"We are purebloods though."

"Still not a reason to act superior." Her father was patient with her questions, he thought it was odd, his daughter never asked about this stuff before but now that she was friends with Draco Malfoy and been around other purebloods in Slytherin of all houses, he wasn't surprised if their behaviors might've rubbed off on her a bit. What could you do? They spend nine months out of the year together. He was surprised that Jade had chosen Draco Malfoy as a friend, if he was anything like his father he didn't know how anyone could stand him.

"Is everyone ready?" Jade's mother's voice came from the stairs as she started coming down towards them, she smiled when she saw everyone ready in the dining room. "Good. Shall we go?"

"Yes," Rodrick answered, he gave a kissing noise to Willie and he took off of Rodrick and flew somewhere outside.

"You're going to stay here, Ezekiel," Jade told him and went towards the front door. "But don't worry, you don't have to stay in the house. Why don't you go play for a bit while we're gone?" She asked him as she opened the front door and Ezekiel hooted at her before he took off and flew behind the house.

"Alright." Her mother gently corralled them towards the fireplace and gave them all floo powder. One by one they chanted their way to Diagon Alley. Her mother checked her father's watch, "Very nice, ten minutes early. Now, we're meeting them at Flourish and Blotts so let's go. Come on."

"Mother." Rodrick sighed, "We're going." Their mother eased off of them since she knew they weren't going to be late.

"It's nicer getting your things this year, you just need your new school books." Her mother told them as they made their way down the crowded road. She pulled out the list and examined it, "Gilderoy Lockhart. Never understood why all the women swoon after him." Her mother mumbled which gave her father a large smile,

"I'm happy you're not one of those swooning ladies." He told her and she laughed,

"Joseph, he's absolutely dreadful." Jade's father laughed at this himself and they all stopped in front of the store, there was a large line of women. All women, waiting with books in their arms. A large banner was stretched across the upper windows.

"Gilderoy Lockhart will be signing copies of his autobiography; Magical Me today 12:30 to 4:30." Jade read out loud and Rodrick groaned,

"Hello," Jade's mother greeted the stressed wizard at the door, "We're not here to get anything signed, may we go in?" The wizard smiled at the kindness that came from her mother,

"Of course, ma'am." He stepped aside and the line of ladies objected but Jade's parents just gently pushed her and Rodrick through the door. The shop was also packed with people and Jade watched the blonde wizard standing in front of the large crowd of women. The way the women were dying over this man had Jade thinking he was spectacular but he looked ordinary, he wore fancy blue robes but he himself was nothing special.

"Now, where are your books?" Her mother said mostly to herself as she began wandering around through the crowd, her father and brother dispersed to do their own thing as well and Jade moved closer to the crowd when someone tapped on her shoulder,

"Draco!" Jade smiled and embraced her friend, Draco stood there for a short second before hugging her back awkwardly.

"Maddex." He greeted her as he pulled away, he gave her his signature smirk.

"How was your summer?" She asked him, happy to find someone she recognized. She'd written letters to her friends over the summer but the only people she actually spoke to were her family so it was nice to see someone else's face.

"It was fine. I mostly stayed home. You?" Draco's hair was slicked back like it had been last year but he was a little taller now and his voice a little deeper.

"Same for me." She nodded.

"It can't be Harry Potter?" They heard a loud voice announce and they both turned back to the crowd of people. Gilderoy Lockhart was grabbing at Harry's arm and pulled him towards the front.

"Harry," Jade spoke absently, she noticed the dirt on his robes and face and made her way closer to the crowd. Draco rolled his eyes but followed her anyway. A photographer was taking pictures of Harry and Lockhart and Draco scoffed, Jade flashed him a glare, and just like that the pleasantries were over and they were back to how they normally acted.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Lockhart began, there were very few gentlemen there and none of them looked like they were there because it was their choice. "What an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I've been sitting on for some time!" The crowd began hissing with whispers. "When young Harry here stepped into Flourish and Blotts today, he only wanted to buy my autobiography, which I shall be happy to present him now, free of charge." The crowd began to applaud, "He had no idea," Lockhart continued, giving Harry a little shake that made his glasses slip to the end of his nose, "that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, Magical Me. He and his schoolmates will, in fact, be getting the real magical me." The crowd gasped and Lockhart nodded, "Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure and pride in announcing that this September, I will be taking up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!" The crowd cheered and clapped and Harry fumbled with a large stack of books that were being pushed into his hands. Staggering slightly, Harry made his way from the front of the store, no one really paying attention to him anymore, and stood next to a small red-haired girl.

"Let's go say hi." Jade told Draco and he grimaced, "Be nice." She told him but before they could move forward, Jade's mother and father had spotted them and came closer with Rodrick following behind.

"Jade." Her father smiled, "Who's this?" He asked even though he knew exactly who the boy was.

"This is-"

"Draco?" Jade heard a smooth voice call from behind them and they all turned to see Lucius Malfoy standing with both hands resting on top of his cane.

"Mr. Malfoy." Jade's father smiled politely and walked up to him with an arm extended, "Joseph Maddex."

"Good morning, Mr. Maddex. How are you?" Lucius smiled at him as he shook his hand and Jade's mother made her way to her father's side.

"Amelia Maddex." Her mother introduced herself as she stuck out her hand,

"Lucius Malfoy. How are you?" He greeted her and shook her hand, "Sorry I'm late, I had to run an errand real quick."

"Oh, don't worry about it. We were just getting Jade's books for the year." Her mother smiled and Mr. Malfoy's attention turned to Jade,

"Yes, I've heard much about you, dear." He smiled and Draco turned a light shade of red, "Ready to go back to school?"
"Yes, sir." She smiled politely and Mr. Malfoy nodded. Draco tapped her arm and moved his head to signal for them to leave as their parents began talking. They'd only gotten a few steps away when they ran into Harry and the girl Jade hadn't seen before,

"Hi, Harry!" Jade greeted him warmly and Harry gave her a smile but before she could say anything else, Draco cut her off.

"Bet you loved that, didn't you, Potter?" Draco spat and Jade elbowed him in the arm, "Famous Harry Potter. Can't even go into a bookshop without making the front page." Draco was laughing but it wasn't because he found it funny it was more out of malice.

"Leave him alone." The little red-headed girl glared at Draco and Jade rose her eyebrows, her voice was quiet but steady.

"Potter, you've got yourself a girlfriend!" Draco laughed again and the girl went bright red in the face.

"Malfoy." Jade reprimanded quietly and he looked at her,

"What?" He asked her as if nothing was wrong,

"Oh, it's you." Jade heard another familiar voice and they both looked at Ron and Hermione making their way over to them. "Bet you're surprised to see Harry here, eh?" Ron asked Draco and then turned to Jade, "Hey, Jade." He greeted but it seemed like it was more of a side comment, Jade smiled at him anyway.

"Not as surprised as I am to see you in a shop, Weasley." Draco smirked at Ron, "I suppose your parents will go hungry for a month to pay for those." Draco said as he nodded towards the books in Ron's hands. Ron dropped his books into his cauldron and started towards Draco. To avoid a repeat of their fight last year in the stadiums Jade pulled Draco by his arm as he tried to step towards Ron. Harry and Hermione stopped Ron by holding him back by his jacket.

"Ron?" An older man with red hair made his way through the crowd and the Weasley twins followed closely behind, Jade put it together that that must've been his father. "What are you doing? It's too crowded in here, let's go outside." He then looked up from his son at Jade and Draco his eyes lingered on Draco before flicking to her and he smiled, "Hello."

"This is Jade," Ron explained while still watching Draco, and his father's smile widened,

"Oh, hello, Jade. Ron's mentioned you before." Jade smiled at him,

"Hello, Mr. Weasley. It's nice to meet you."

"Well well, well. Arthur Weasley." It was Mr. Malfoy, he stood behind Draco and Jade, smirking in the same way that Draco does. "Jade, your parents wanted me to tell you they'd be at the ice cream parlour."

"Thank you, Mr. Malfoy."

"Lucius." Ron's dad nodded coldly.

"Busy time at the Ministry I hear. All those raids… I hope they're paying you overtime?" He reached into the red-haired girl's cauldron and pulled out an old battered copy of A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration. "Obviously not. Dear me, what's the use of being a disgrace to the name of wizard if they don't even pay you well for it?" Jade's mouth dropped open but she quickly shut it and exchanged a look with Draco but he was smirking, obviously enjoying his father ripping into Mr. Weasley.

"We have a very different idea of what disgraces the name of wizard, Malfoy." Mr. Weasley bit back.

"Clearly." Lucius Malfoy's eyes drifted from Mr. Weasley and to a pair of parents a bit further back who were watching the conversation. "The company you keep, Weasley. I thought you could sink no lower." Jade had begun feeling very uncomfortable but before she could think of what she should do, Mr. Weasley threw himself at Mr. Malfoy and they both went into a bookshelf. Jade gasped and Draco pulled her a little out of the way. Dozens of spellbooks came raining down on the two men.

"Get him, Dad!" One of the twins said and Draco shot them a glare.

"Arthur, no!" A plump shorter lady shrieked at them, she too had red hair and Jade guessed that that was Mrs. Weasley. The crowd was trying to push through them and ended up knocking over more books and bookshelves and the shop assistant was trying to calm everyone down and get them out of the store before they ruined anything else. In all of the commotion, Jade hadn't noticed Hagrid coming towards them until he lifted Mr. Weasley off of Mr. Malfoy. Mr. Weasley had a cut on his lip and Mr. Malfoy's eye was darkening already from a book he'd been hit with. Mr. Malfoy tossed Ginny's book back at her, his eyes glistening with something dangerous.

"Here, girl, take your book. It's the best your father can give you." Mr. Malfoy adjusted himself and then beckoned towards Jade and Draco for them to leave with him. Jade didn't know how to act as they made their way down the street,

"Are you okay, Mr. Malfoy?" Jade asked and he just smiled,

"Yes, darling. Don't worry about me." He was friendly towards her, which was so odd to see right after the anger in him just moments before.

"Did you get your books?" Jade asked Draco, she didn't see any books in his arms or his father's.

"Yeah, we got them earlier." They were quiet until they reached the ice cream parlour and they saw Jade's parents and her brother sitting inside talking to each other. Her parents saw them enter and smiled,

"Jade!" Her mother smiled, "We've got your books here." Her mother said resting her hands on the large stack of books, "I didn't want to stay around and listen to that Lockhart fool talk about himself for any longer than necessary." Mr. Malfoy smiled at this, Jade and Draco sat with their parents as they talked together. They talked for a while, to Jade's surprise, she had the feeling that her parents didn't like Lucius Malfoy but maybe she was wrong. Draco didn't speak much, Jade didn't either, she was starting one of Gilderoy's books, Voyages with Vampires.

"He's full of himself," Jade muttered, she really wasn't enjoying the few pages that she had read. "He's to be our teacher?" She turned to Draco and he shrugged, "Are you okay?" Jade asked him and he nodded. Jade noticed that Draco really didn't speak much when his father was around. Draco was watching Rodrick who was speaking to a young witch working at the counter.

"How much older did you say he was?" Draco asked her,

"Seven years," Jade told her as she scanned a few pages ahead. "He hasn't even begun talking about the vampires yet."

"When's your birthday?" He asked and Jade looked up to find his attention now on her,

"The eighth of November. Why?"

"You didn't say anything last year."

"When's yours?"

"The fifth of June."

"Hm, well, neither did you." Draco grinned at her but didn't say anything else after that, just went back to looking around the parlour. Jade watched him for a few seconds before turning back to her book but before she could read anything Mr. Malfoy was rising from his seat,

"I believe Draco and I should get back to my wife at home." He smiled at her parents as they rose.

"Of course, give Mrs. Malfoy our best regards." Her mother and father smiled as they shook hands goodbye with Mr. Malfoy.

"Will do." Mr. Malfoy turned to Jade and Draco, "Miss Maddex, it was a pleasure to finally meet you." Jade shook his outstretched hand and gave him a polite smile,

"You as well, sir."

"Draco?" He called for his son and Draco said goodbye to Jade and quickly followed his father out of the shop.

"That went much better than I thought it would." Her father admitted, Jade wouldn't bring up the incident at the bookstore and it seemed like they weren't going to ask about his eye.

"Yes, he was… pleasant." Her mother agreed and Rodrick came to them,

"He's a cretin." He groaned at his family who all turned to look at him disapprovingly. "Come on, just 'cause he was polite today doesn't dismiss all that he's done."

"Lucius Malfoy understands that what he did before was wrong and he said he only did it out of fear for his family." Her father said vaguely in front of Jade. She didn't push it that she knew what they were talking about, how Lucius Malfoy worked for Lord Voldemort when he was at large, instead she gathered her books and exited the shop with her family.

"Is that what you think?" Rodrick asked,

"Rodrick." Her father warned and he sighed but relented. "Jade is friends with Draco, so that means we have to be cordial with his father."

"Right, great choice there." Jade hit him with one of her books off the top of her stack and he rubbed his arm, "How can someone so thick in the head write a book that big? Multiple books?"

"I've read thirteen pages and all he's done is go on about himself," Jade said as she struggled to put the book back on top of the stack as she continued to walk.

"Prick," Rodrick mumbled.

"Rodrick!" Her mother reprimanded.