XVIII. UNICORN BLOOD MOCKTAILS
On Sunday morning, I headed for the Great Hall hoping like hell that Norbert was safely on his way to Romania, Harry and Hermione weren't caught, and Malfoy would be sitting at Slytherin table in a pissy mood because whatever his plan was blew up in his face(as if I wasn't apprehensive enough, I didn't see him before I left the common room with Pansy, relatively on time for once). Instead, I found a significant amount of red beads missing from the hourglass depicting the Gryffindor house points and, judging by the green beads, Slytherin was in the lead.
Any possible enjoyment I could've gotten out of that quickly went up in smoke when I rushed over to Gryffindor table and found my brother and Hermione looking subdued and gloomy.
Good news first, Norbert's gone.
The exchange with Charlie's friends went as smoothly as we could've hoped for.
And, even better, they got to see Malfoy get caught sneaking around by McGonagall who, hilariously enough, gave him detention and furiously dragged him off by his ear("Detention! And twenty points from Slytherin! Wandering around in the middle of the night, how dare you-" "You don't understand, Professor. Harry Potter's coming-he's got a dragon!" "What utter rubbish! How dare you tell such lies! Come on-I shall see Professor Snape about you, Malfoy!").
Bad news, Malfoy wasn't the only one who got caught.
Harry and Hermione were on such a high after witnessing Malfoy's plan backfire so completely in his face, and watching our Norbert problem literally fly away, that when they left the Astronomy Tower the morons forgot the Invisibility Cloak and skipped off in plain sight and got caught by Filch.
-ah.
I can't express how hard it was for me to stop myself from saying something. I feel like a parent who took a night off-and came home to find the family pet missing("How does a betta fish run away?!")and the laundry flooding the hallway.
I really can't leave these lot alone, can I?
They were hauled off to McGonagall's office and, as if they didn't feel bad enough, when she arrived she had Neville with her(he overheard Malfoy saying that they had a dragon, and he was going to catch them, and snuck out to warn them...only to have McGonagall assume they fed Malfoy a "cock-and-bull story about a dragon" to try to get him out of bed and into trouble-and added that she supposed they thought it was funny that Neville "heard the whole story and believed it too").
They lost 150 house points.
Overnight, as the story spread through the castle like wildfire, Harry went from 'famous, admired, youngest Seeker in a century Harry Potter' to one of the most hated people in Hogwarts-and, because of that fame, he took most of the heat.
"I blame you for this," I was quick to inform Malfoy flatly.
"And that's supposed to affect me how?" he drawled with a smirk.
Seeing my lethal expression, he rolled his eyes.
"Oh lighten up, Potter-just sit back and enjoy watching the entire castle turn on your brother. I know I am."
Suffice to say, Malfoy ended up stumbling into lunch looking like he'd been attacked by a crazed wolverine.
On his heels, I practically skipped to Slytherin table, a satisfied look on my face.
In the days that followed, I found myself getting into several fights defending Harry; my temper dangerously short not only at seeing how shitty he was being treated-but hearing the uncensored thoughts about him floating about the student body(it's so dumb, too; who the fu-it's a house cup, who even cares?! And it's not just the Gryffindors, the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws are being dicks too! I get being disappointed and upset...for a day or two-maybe a week, but they have to realise they're going way too far, right? This whole thing is just a petty overreaction to the other three houses not liking mine, and being pissed that we've put in the work to get a solid winning streak going, so they're basically bullying an eleven-year-old and whining about it like toddlers throwing a bloomin' tantrum-well, screw that shit, and screw them-).
The Slytherins had the best reaction; whenever Harry goes by, they stop to whistle and cheer.
It's objectively funny, just not to Harry, and it says a lot that that's nicer than what the so-called "not evil" houses are doing.
(they literally point at him everywhere he goes and start talking shit purposely loud enough for him to hear-I mean, 'wtf?' And Harry thinks he deserves it, so he's just taking it, but what did he do, really? He lost those points trying to keep Hagrid out of jail-and, I figure, the hairier you are, the more flammable you are, so, there's that-also, wooden hut; he's being punished for protecting someone we both care about and, even if no one but us knows that, he shouldn't have to put up with being literally bullied by the entire goddamn school for it-).
I couldn't react to the things they were thinking, because being exposed as a mind-reader probably won't do much for the Potter image right now-so, whenever someone actually said or did something within earshot of me, I was quick to snap in violent, colourful, and entertaining ways.
It gave me an opportunity to try out the hexes and jinxes I'd been practising in secret, usually late at night when the common room clears(it helps me feel better with Quirrell, knowing I have some way to defend myself)-which is how a second year Ravenclaw found herself under the influence of an out-of-nowhere Full Body-Bind Curse(which is exactly what it sounds like; it freezes the victim's entire body). Then there were the times I abandoned my wand completely-which is what led to the twins having to physically carry me away from a third-year Gryffindor while I shouted abuse at the stunned-looking boy who now sported an impressive black eye.
To underline how peppery I've been lately, Malfoy's even stopped making snide remarks about Harry in my presence.
Malfoy. Stop badmouthing Harry. Yikes.
Despite being Harry's twin, knowing I had detention with Pince and didn't sneak out with the others, no one really had a problem with me(beyond the people who seemed convinced I was at least in on it-or didn't appreciate their black eyes, bruised jaws-and egos, wobbly jelly legs, faceplanting onto the stone floor with their limbs abruptly snapping together, tripping on thin air seconds after calling Harry a nasty name, mouths magically vanishing-or tongues tying into knots, their skin erupting with spontaneous pimples/boils, etcetera etcetera; the thing about using magic is, if no one sees me do it, I have plausible deniability-and the thing about punching them in the face is, it's really bloody satisfying; I seem to be efficiently amassing a list of disgruntled enemies-I'm rather impressed with myself-I wonder if any of them will be dumb enough to try to get revenge? Ooh, weekend plans!-).
It's a sad day when the evil twin is more well-liked than the good one.
(okay, so it's super awkward with anybody that isn't a Slytherin, seeing as the Slytherins seem to view the whole thing as a big joke which I can appreciate, and everybody might be a bit scared of me now, but that's still a huge improvement on how people are treating Harry-especially when he's without, as I'd heard several people snidely call me in their heads/under their breaths, his "attack dog").
Harry's been taking it really hard-and I can't blame him.
It's gotten so bad that not only is he determined to stop meddling in things, the Philosopher's Stone included, but he offered to resign as Seeker and almost gave Wood a stroke.
"Resign? What good'll that do? How are we going to get any points back if we can't win at Quidditch?"
I tried my best to cheer him up, but I couldn't always be around. I even forced him down to the Quidditch Pitch one afternoon to practise for a few hours, just the two of us-which didn't do much, seeing as he hasn't been as excited about Quidditch lately, what with his team not talking to him(and, when they had no choice but to interact with him, referring to him as "the Seeker").
Suffice to say, the Gryffindor team are avoiding me like the plague, none of them eager to be on the receiving end of a scene like the one between me and Flint back in November(minus Fred and George, who wisely took their earful from me and got it over with-"'The Seeker?' You won't even use his name? How the bloody hell old are the lot of you, nine?! Nine and a half?! I'm getting serious primary school mean girl vibes"-something about how they knew, from personal experience, that it was better to just let me yell at them right away because, if they tried to duck me/put it off, it'd only make me madder later; from what Harry's told me, they abruptly went back to normal after I talked some sense into them-and even awkwardly apologised and said that they were just bummed about losing the house cup but that it wasn't worth making things any worse for him than they already were).
The whole situation gave me a new appreciation for Ron Weasley.
While everyone else was quick to turn on him, the redhead stuck loyally by Harry's side, and I couldn't be more grateful to him for it.
"They'll all forget this in a few weeks. Fred and George have lost loads of points in all the time they've been here, and people still like them."
-I'll spare you Harry's Eeyore-ish reply.
He even came to me about how it's worse for Harry when he isn't with me-and to figure out how at least one of us could be with him at all times so, if I can't be there to scare people into thinking twice about opening their stupid mouths, at least he'd be there to have his back and cheer him up.
It hasn't been all roses for Hermione and Neville, either.
Sure, they aren't getting the star treatment like Harry, but no one would talk to them.
Hermione had stopped raising her hand in class, according to Ron, and Neville's completely miserable(figuring we owed him that much, I pulled him aside that same day and told him the truth about Norbert so he knew Harry and Hermione didn't set him, or Malfoy, up and that this wasn't all for nothing; I've been stopping by to see him during meals too-he's been looking lonely-and, to both of our surprises, we've found ourselves in several lively discussions about Herbology; it's apparently Neville's favourite subject and, coming from a Muggle upbringing, I'm fascinated by anything magic, plants included).
The studying seemed to help get Harry and Hermione's minds off everything, which is the only reason I put up with it(all they've been doing lately is mope and study-I have never been happier to be a Slytherin and able to escape the library to another part of the castle they can't enter; I know for a fact Harry Ron and Hermione have been studying well into the night).
It was a week before the exams were set to take place that something interesting happened(and I don't mean me announcing to Flitwick during class that I couldn't continue to cheat on McGonagall with him-or the incident between me and a fourth year Gryffindor that earnt me a shiny new detention; I've had so many lately defending Harry, I didn't even bat an eye).
I'd just left the library with Harry, jumping for the chance to ditch Hermione and Ron and their studying(if I see another textbook, I'll gauge my eyes out-see? This BS is affecting my love for reading and the Hogwarts Library!)-when we heard something coming from the classroom up ahead.
Whimpering.
Sharing a look, we quickly but silently crept over to the door.
Hearing Quirrell's voice, I was instantly on edge.
Without even thinking about it, my hand slipped into the pocket of my robes, gripping the handle of my wand tightly-both for stability and just in case.
I'd been doing it a lot lately whenever Quirrell's around; it gives me peace of mind knowing that, if he came at me, I have a way to fight back.
"No-no-not again, please-"
It sounded like he was being threatened, but I couldn't hear anyone else in the room.
A sudden suspicion gripped my chest, my skin prickling with apprehension and a hint of fear, and I cursed myself for not considering it sooner.
"Alright-alright-" he sobbed.
A pale-faced Quirrell hurried from the classroom, straightening his turban and looking on the verge of tears.
He was so distracted he didn't seem to notice us as he strode out of sight, footsteps slowly fading in the distance.
The new understanding I gained from his vulnerable state was chilling.
Harry peered into the classroom and, when I glanced at him, my feet rooted in place, I knew it was empty-but, at the other end, a door was ajar. Instantly assuming Professor Snape had been the one threatening Quirrell(and would be 'walking with a new spring in his step', Quirrell seemingly having 'given in at last'), he got halfway across the room before stopping short.
Suddenly, he was thinking about his promise to himself to not meddle.
Just as suddenly, he knew he had to tell Ron and Hermione what we'd overheard.
"You go," I told him quickly when he turned to me and opened his mouth. "I have something important I need to do."
"What?" Harry said, startled and confused.
"Just go fill Ron and Hermione in," I urged with a fake smile, forcing myself to not glance at the slightly open door across the classroom, my rising anxiety leaving me jittery. "Trust me."
After regarding me oddly for a moment-and missing the guilt that briefly flashed across my face when I asked him to "trust me", Harry nodded and took off down the corridor.
The second he was out of sight, I sprinted across the empty classroom, but whoever had been in here was long gone.
Biting my thumbnail, I looked around one last time before taking off for the dungeons.
"And you're sure you heard somebody threatening Quirrell?" Professor Snape questioned seriously.
I nodded without hesitation, gripping my bag strap tightly with both hands and anxiously bouncing in place.
"He said 'no, no, not again, please' before giving in-and he was almost in tears," I added, a strained look on my slightly flushed face.
"Didn't you say that was part of his little act?" the Potions Master remarked, clearly picking up more than Harry had as he observed me closely, "acting timid and easily intimidated so those around him would underestimate and overlook him."
"Not this time," I said quietly. "Professor..." uneasiness sparkled in my eyes, "I think-and I can't believe I didn't realise it before-I was just so sure-"
"Potter," Professor Snape interjected, looking at me pointedly to spit it out.
"I assumed Quirrell was the puppet master," I blurted, "because of how wrong he is-but now, I'm wondering, if he's the puppet. Professor, I think Quirrell's working for somebody else-the same somebody that threatened him in that classroom today."
"And what makes you think that?" he asked sharply.
"I-I can't tell you-" I stammered, my shoulders falling helplessly.
"You 'can't tell me?'" he repeated.
"I told you, I can't tell you how I know-I just-do," I struggled to explain, looking at him pleadingly. "There's something really wrong with Quirrell, but he isn't what I thought he was. There's somebody else.Somebody even he's afraid of. And the scary thing is, I have no clue who it could be-or what they even want-" I lied, "but I know I'm right-I can feel it. Whatever it is, it isn't anything good-and, as bad as Quirrell is, whoever they are...they're worse."
Professor Snape sat back in his chair, taking that all in.
"You believe me, don't you?" I couldn't help but ask, my voice suddenly very small and wavering.
He took one look at my expression, and nodded.
I let out a furtive breath, some of the pressure on my chest letting up.
"And you haven't told anybody else about this?"
No, I haven't told my brother. He was actually there with me and heard the entire thing. Why didn't I mention that sooner? Well-
"You're the only one I've said anything about Quirrell to since our talk after the Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff match back in February."
Which is true, technically-and neatly skirts around Harry who, by now, would've already filled Hermione and Ron in.
Professor Snape nodded slowly.
"Good," he said.
"Professor..." I continued nervously, "what are we going to do about all this?"
"We aren't going to do anything," he stated sternly. "I am."
"But-"
"No, Jewel. This situation is more delicate than you know-it wouldn't be safe for you to get involved, even without the other circumstances-"
"You mean, whatever Quirrell and whoever he's working for is after?" I couldn't help but interject.
Professor Snape's dark eyes flashed.
"Yes," he said bluntly, not bothering to beat around the bush. "I don't want you sticking your nose into this-in fact, I don't want you going anywhere near Quirrell, especially in unpopulated places, from now on. Until this is all straightened out, I want you to do your best to-"
"I know, I know-" I rolled my eyes, "act normally and avoid him."
Professor Snape shot me a look, and I sighed.
"I know you're right," I conceded grudgingly, "and that you're just trying to protect me-because I'm a stupid first year and I'd only get in the way, or hurt, or worse-but that doesn't mean sitting on my hands doing nothing doesn't suck. I want to do something to help. You believed me where no one ever-and I just want to-I need to find a way to-"
Struggling to put it into words, I clenched my jaw.
Professor Snape's eyes softened imperceptibly.
"Just by coming to me today, you have," he told me simply.
"Really?"
I couldn't help but perk up a bit.
The Potions Master nodded.
"Now I know there's more going on here," he said, "and that Quirrell is not acting alone. That isn't something I would have been aware of, had it not been for you."
The way his eyes lingered on my face told me he was silently wondering how.
To my relief, he didn't ask.
Maybe he could sense I wouldn't tell him if he did.
After that, still reeling from the realisation that Quirrell wasn't the big bad I thought he was(and wondering uneasily who was), I curled up on the low-backed leather sofa by the fireplace in the Slytherin common room with my copy of Numerology and Grammatica and Tusky snuggled in my arms for comfort. People eyed me and my plush boarhound-and the pink penguin sitting by my feet-oddly but, used to my particular brand of weirdness, just rolled their eyes and ignored me.
When Malfoy came over to be a prick, I told him my fluffy pink penguin's name is Salazar and he's Slytherin's new mascot-which shut him up for a bit.
The next morning, I received my detention note.
Surprisingly, like two-plus weeks after the Norbert thing, so did Harry Malfoy Neville and Hermione.
Your detention will take place at eleven o'clock tonight. Meet Mr Filch in the entrance hall.
Professor McGonagall
Glancing across the hall to see the others' dispirited faces, I chewed on my bottom lip for a moment before I suddenly had the bright idea to try to cheer them up.
From across the room.
"YO, SCOTCHY! 'MIONE! NEV!" I hollered at the top of my lungs, startling my dorm mates and causing them to stare at me with wide eyes-their near identical expressions basically reading as, 'oh no'.
Harry Hermione Ron and Neville all jumped and spun around in shock.
"YOU GUYS GOT YOUR DETENTION NOTES TOO? WICKED! MINE'S WITH FILCH TONIGHT AT 11-HOW ABOUT YOU?"
"Jewel!" Daphne hissed, elbowing me to shut up.
"Violence never solved anything, Daph-" I informed her cheekily, quickly leaning back towards Pansy to avoid another attack, "except for all of that stuff it's solved-"
Daphne glared at me.
"Shut up you nutcase!" she ordered. "My ears are actually ringing!"
"Really? Can you hear the ocean?"
I ducked to avoid being hit with a spoon and playfully threw up my hands, signalling surrender.
"Okay, okay-I give-message received-can the dad jokes-"
When I looked back over at Gryffindor table, I found Neville(who was sitting alone, which honestly bummed me out)Hermione and Harry all looking at me with varying levels of disbelief and bewilderment.
Ron was staring down at what seemed to be Harry's detention note, his eyebrows all the way up to his hairline.
Harry wove me over pointedly.
Unable to pick out what the looks on their faces meant with all of the interference(being the hundreds of buzzing minds and thoughts floating around the hall), I just shook my head with a roguish smirk.
"HUH?" I cupped my ear,"SORRY, I-"
At Daphne's deadly look, I lowered my voice slightly.
"-can't hear you!"
Daphne rolled her eyes, hard.
"We've befriended a crazy person-" Pansy muttered.
"You're just now realising that?" Daphne wryly commented.
I ignored them.
"Hey! Hey, guys! Wanna hear a joke?" I continued mischievously, "Listen-a wasted troll comes crashing into a bar and-wait, I forget the next bit, but I think Ron bites it-funny, right? Anyway-"
There was scattered laughter across the hall.
I could see the twins and Lee chortling diagonally from me.
Down the table, I caught Malfoy trying and failing to stifle his own laughter(I might annoy the ever-loving hell out of him, but he can't resist a crack about Ron's untimely demise,the bloody sadist)and found myself feeling weirdly smug about it.
Daphne and Pansy traded a long-suffering look-probably because of the morbid reference to my run-in with a mountain troll and a bathroom wall.
"Potter!" McGonagall was suddenly there, staring me down exasperatedly with her lips pursed, "kindly stop shouting before I assign you yet another detention-one that, I can assure you, I will personally ensure is particularly unpleasant."
"Don't you think Filch'll argue about being stuck with me twice in a row?" I joked.
This time, Pansy was the one to jab her elbow into my side in a failed attempt to get me to shut up.
The Transfigurations Professor just looked at me sternly, unimpressed.
"Silence is golden,Miss Potter," she said. "I urge you to practise it."
"That's a fun saying," I quipped, "did you get it off a bumper sticker?"
"Allow me to put this in a way that I know you'll be able to understand," she said dryly. "Be quiet or else I'll assign you extra homework."
My mouth snapped shut.
Satisfied I'd stop shouting across the hall given my horrified expression, McGonagall turned on her heel and left.
"Seriously?" Pansy deadpanned in disbelief.
"What can I say?" I mused, running my fingers through my hair, "the woman knows me."
There was a pause.
"Hey, wanna hear a joke?" I said, looking from Daphne to Pansy slyly, "Listen-two friends are walking their dogs together. One has a big black lab, while the other has a minuscule chihuahua. They pass a bar and the lab owner says, "Let's get a beer." The chihuahua walker complains, "That would be great, but we can't take our dogs in there." The first responds, "Watch me." The lab owner strolls in with her dog and orders a beer. The bartender tells her, "Sorry, you can't bring your dog in here." "He's my seeing-eye dog," the woman replies feigning offence. The bartender quickly apologizes and serves her the beer. The other woman follows, her chihuahua in tow, and orders a beer as well. Again the bartender says there are no dogs allowed in the bar. "He's my seeing-eye dog," the woman replies. "Yeah, right," the bartender says, "A chihuahua? Give me a break." Without missing a beat, the woman replies, "They gave me a chihuahua?!"-"
I looked between them expectantly, grinning.
"No," was all Daphne said, getting up and walking away.
"Come on, Daphne-that was a good one!" I called after her.
A moment later, I glanced at Pansy.
"Hey, Pans, wanna hear a-"
"No."
I slumped in my seat, arms crossed and pouting.
꧖ꦿꦸ⊰ ⊱꧖ꦿꦸ
The second I left the Great Hall, Harry Ron and Hermione were quick to jump out, grab me, and shove Harry and Hermione's detention notes in my face.
To my surprise, they were identical to mine.
-which explains their reactions from earlier, I realised dryly.
Why they lumped us all together was a mystery, and I wasn't sure if I was interested or terrified to know the answer(and to find out what we'll be doing).
Later that afternoon, seeing as we didn't get the chance to talk about it yesterday, Ron also pulled me aside and brought up Quirrell and what Harry and I overheard. Taking me off guard, instead of ranting about Professor Snape like I'd half-expected him to, he asked me if I'd "talk some sense" into Harry.
"Hermione said we should go to Dumbledore," he said, "but Harry said we've got no proof-and that Quirrell's-" he glanced at me awkwardly but pushed on, "too scared to back us up. Who'd believe a bunch of first years who shouldn't even know about all this stuff, you know? I told him we should just do a bit of poking around, but he said we've 'done enough'. But no one knows that Sna-someone's trying to steal the Stone but us, and we can't go to the professors, so if we just-"
"Ronnie, Harry's right," I interrupted firmly.
The redhead visibly deflated.
"Not you, too," he groaned. "I thought you, of all people, would get it-"
"I do, trust me," I sighed, absentmindedly running my fingers through my thick, untidy red hair. "It sucks, knowing about all this and not being able to bloody do anything about it. I'd love to go full Rambo and save the day, but you have to know when to pick your battles. We're eleven,Ron. We're no match for a full-grown wizard-who probably knows a shitton of Dark magic. We'd only get in the way, or dead. Sometimes, it's okay to save your own skin. This is one of those times."
It was clear by his expression that the Gryffindor needed more convincing.
"Until something else happens," I added, "we're better off forgetting about it and focusing on the exams. If it comes down to it, we'll storm the bloody castle and tell Dumbledore everything, screw the consequences. Better we get suspended than someone get their hands on that Stone."
Ron seemed to stand a bit taller.
"Right," he agreed with a determined nod.
I let out a quiet sigh of relief.
That night, right before 11, I left the common room with Malfoy(I tried to ditch him, but he noticed and caught up to me before I could do a runner).
"So, what'd you do to get detention this time?" he wondered boredly as we headed down the dungeon corridor.
Realising he hadn't heard about my crowning achievement through the grapevine, I winced.
"Oh, the usual," I coughed, my voice a pitch higher than normal. "Just-you know-defending Harry from the rest of these pricks and-uh-mouthing off and-uh-stuff-"
Malfoy abruptly stopped in the middle of the corridor, putting out an arm to stop me from attempting to continue on without him, and looked at me through narrowed eyes.
"Uh-huh, yeah," he deadpanned, "what did you do?"
"What does it matter? We're gonna be late to-"
"Potter."
"-and you know how nasty Filch can be-"
Malfoy just kept staring at me pointedly.
Realising he wouldn't budge until I told him, I deflated.
"-I...stuck a fourth year Gryffindor to the castle wall," I admitted sheepishly, squinting at the ceiling to avoid seeing the blonde's reaction. "And his cat."
There was a moment of dumb silence.
Then, all of a sudden, loud laughter filled the corridor.
Looking back quickly, I was surprised-but not that surprised; I honestly should've expected this reaction-to see Malfoy hunched over, laughing so hard his entire body seemed to be shaking.
"You stuck a Gry-and his-to a-!" he choked, struggling to regain his composure.
Heat crept up my face.
"How?" he sputtered.
"I taught myself how to do a Sticking Charm," I explained awkwardly, "'cause I figured it'd come in handy, you know, to hang posters in my dorm-"
"But, instead, you used it to hang a Gryffindor on a wall-" Malfoy sniggered. "And his cat."
"In my defence, I regret using it on the cat-" I exclaimed, throwing up my arms, "that was probably a bit of an overreaction-"
"A bit?"
"Quit-quit laughing-it isn't funny-" I groaned, covering my bright red face.
"No, you're right, it isn't funny-it's hilarious," Malfoy continued laughing.
Peeking through my fingers to see him looking at me admiringly with a stupid grin on his face made me feel like even worse of a person.
If I've impressed Malfoy, I've obviously been playing on the same level as stabby serial killer guy-I mean, what kind of sociopath sticks a cat to a wall?!
"Let's just go to detention," I sighed, pretty sure I was pouting as I crossed my arms and started to walk quickly down the corridor.
Malfoy hurried to follow, still grinning at me.
"There's hope for you yet, Potter."
"Shut it, dingbat."
"If I don't, are you going to stick me to a wall?"
"-I really don't like you."
"I mean, I don't have a cat, but we can improvise with my owl-"
"I'd say there's a special place in hell just for you, but you aren't that special."
"That's fine-I wouldn't want to see you any more than I already have to, anyway."
"What, so now I'm in hell?"
"I'm pretty sure you run the place-you stuck a cat to a wall, that's just evil."
"-Asshole."
"Satan."
"That's Miss Morningstar to you, peasant."
When we reached Filch, and saw the unpleasant look he was levelling on us, Malfoy and I stopped bickering-verbally. It didn't stop him from grinning at me, or me from making rude gestures whenever the caretaker wasn't eyeing us with that creepy-looking grin that promised everything but nice things.
"Hey, Jules."
"Holy-!"
Physically jumping, I grabbed my heart and jerked around.
Malfoy started laughing again.
"Don't do that!" I scolded, staring incredulously at Harry Hermione and Neville.
"Sorry," Harry said, grinning sheepishly.
"Hiya Nev, 'Mines," I greeted the other two with a sarcastic smile, "ready to learn your lesson? I have, it's fun, you'll love it."
Neville looked at me oddly.
While she rolled her eyes, Hermione looked less tense than she did a moment ago.
Harry too, for that matter.
That's me: Jewel Potter, professional icebreaker.
Filch didn't seem impressed.
Cool, cool, cool-I don't like you either, buddy.
"Follow me," the caretaker instructed as he lit a lamp, looking entirely too upbeat about the situation-which likely means our detention is going to be particularly nasty. "I bet you'll think twice before you break a school rule again, won't you, eh?" he added with a sneer.
I cocked an eyebrow, unphased.
Mate, I break a new school rule every other week-at this point, I'm pretty much inoculated.
Do your worst.
"Oh yes...hard work and pain are the best teachers if you ask me...it's just a pity they let the old punishments die out...hang you by your wrists from the ceiling for a few days, I've got the chains still in my office, keep 'em well oiled in case they're ever needed..."
"Oh, he oils chains in the hopes of hanging children from the ceiling in his free time," I muttered sardonically under my breath as we marched across the grounds, the moon casting ominous shadows across the grass, "that isn't a red flag or anything."
"Says the girl that sticks cats to walls," Malfoy whispered back, smirking.
"When he murders us in the woods," I retorted quietly, nodding at Filch, "I'll remind you of this-"
"You do that."
"-you'll die rolling your eyes-"
"If you're there, I'm sure I will."
"-Right, off we go," Filch was saying, "and don't think of running off, now, it'll be worse for you if you do."
Hearing Neville sniffling to himself, and feeling kinda bad(I mean, we did get him into this mess-mostly Malfoy, but I feel like I played a minor part), I reached around blindly and grabbed his hand.
"You okay, Nev?" I whispered.
Neville just gripped my hand tightly and whimpered quietly.
Malfoy rolled his eyes, a disgruntled look on his face as he turned back to face Filch.
"Is that you, Filch?" a familiar voice shouted. "Hurry up, I want ter get started."
My head shot up and, spotting the glowing windows in the distance, I couldn't help but brighten.
"I suppose you think you'll be enjoying yourself with that oaf?" Filch said, noticing the change in mine and Harry's expressions. "Well, think again-it's into the forest you're going and I'm much mistaken if you'll all come out in one piece."
I felt a jolt of excitement.
The Forbidden Forest? Seriously? Fred and George have been trying to poke around there for ages! They'll be so jealous when I tell them I was literally ordered to go check it out for detention, of all things.
Neville grasped my arm and let out a quiet moan of fear.
Malfoy stopped dead.
"'The forest?'" he repeated, losing his cool. "We can't go there at night-there's all sorts of things in there-werewolves, I heard."
Still clutching onto me, Neville made a choking noise.
I was about to make a mocking comment to Malfoy about how I'd protect him from the big bad werewolves in the scary forest when Filch started speaking again.
He looked positively gleeful.
"That's your problem, isn't it? Should've thought of them werewolves before you got in trouble, shouldn't you?"
I suddenly scoffed.
"Sure, next time I stick someone and their cat to a wall," I flung back scathingly, my mouth just sort of going off on its own, "I'll think, 'hey, maybe I shouldn't do this, I might get mauled to death by a werewolf in the woods!' Like, seriously, do you get off on scaring small children or are you just naturally this sweet and bubbly?"
Malfoy stared at me blankly, looking as taken aback as the others, and it took me a second to realise I'd, in a roundabout way, stuck up for him.
Excuse me while I grab an umbrella to avoid being drenched by the blood rain and burned by the lakes of molten lava-usual, Doomsday-type issues.
Filch sputtered, his face turning red in anger.
"You stuck someone and their cat to a wall?" Harry's eyes were as wide as saucers.
"I thought you said you got detention for being disruptive in class again!" Hermione exclaimed incredulously.
I rose a finger, opening and closing my mouth awkwardly.
"Well, I mean, objectively-"
Malfoy rose both his eyebrows at me.
"Abou' time," Hagrid said as he reached us, saving me from both Filch and Hermione's wrath-and from being chained up in the caretaker's office by my wrists.
"Ohthankgod," I said in a relieved whoosh.
Hagrid blinked.
Malfoy muffled a snigger.
"I bin waitin' fer half an hour already-Alright, Harry, Jewel? Hermione?"
"I shouldn't be too friendly to them," Filch said icily, shooting a dark look in my direction that I smiled sarcastically at, "they're here to be punished, after all."
Hagrid was frowning, unimpressed.
"That's why yer late, is it? Bin lecturin' them, eh? 'Snot your place ter do that. Yeh've done yer bit, I'll take over from here."
I snorted a laugh, quickly covering my mouth at Filch's nasty look-
"Oof!"
Suddenly, a dark furry body flew at me, knocking me to the ground(Neville almost fell too but let go of me just in time, grabbing onto Harry and just about having a heart attack before he realised it was just a dog and not, you know, Malfoy's werewolf or something).
"Fang!" I groaned as the dog slobbered over my face. "Gross, don't lick my face-yes, yes-I've missed you too, bud-I would've visited sooner, but I've been studying-I know, right?-You're so lucky you're a dog and don't have to put up with this BS-"
Malfoy watched weirdly as I hugged the huge boarhound around the neck, kissing his head as I scratched his back and cooed at him.
"Oh," he suddenly said in feigned realisation, "I get it now-you're a dog person, so you stuck the cat-"
"I don't like you," I stated, looking up at him with a pout.
Malfoy smirked.
"I'll be back at dawn," Filch was saying, still glaring at me for my earlier outburst. "For what's left of them."
I pulled a face, immaturely mouthing along with his nasty remark.
Harry laughed quietly.
"I'm not going into that forest," Malfoy stated the second Filch was out of sight.
When I moved back so I could sit up properly, Fang instantly dropped his body into my lap.
I obediently ran my nails through his fur as I watched the unfolding drama.
Where's the popcorn when you need it?
"Yeh are if yeh want ter stay at Hogwarts," Hagrid retorted fiercely, clearly harbouring a bit of a grudge. "Yeh've done wrong an' now yeh've got ter pay fer it."
"But this is servant stuff-" Malfoy complained, and I rolled my eyes hugely, "it's not for students to do. I thought we'd be copying lines or something, if my father knew I was doing this, he'd-"
"Tell yeh that's how it is at Hogwarts," Hagrid growled back. "Copyin' lines! What good's that ter anyone? You'll do summat useful or yeh'll get out. If yeh think yer father'd rather you were expelled, then get back off ter the castle an' pack. Go on."
Malfoy looked down furiously.
"Damn, Chewbacca-you're on a roll tonight," I commented teasingly, looking up at Hagrid with my tongue-in-teeth smile.
Hagrid's beard twitched.
"But, while we're on the subject," I added, "why am I here? I mean, I get it, the faculty frown on students sticking fellow students-and their cats-to walls, even if the prat in question totally deserved it-but why am I in this detention with that lot?" I nodded my head towards Harry Hermione Neville and Malfoy, "I'm in trouble for a completely different thing than them."
"Heard you had detention, so I asked if I could take yeh," Hagrid explained with a shrug, to everyone's surprise. "Figured you'd like comin' out here with us more than polishin' up the trophy room with Filch-an' I could do with the extra hands, considerin' what we're up against. Right then-" he turned to include the others, "now, listen carefully, 'cause it's dangerous what we're gonna do tonight, an' I don' want no one takin' risks. Follow me over here a moment."
I nudged Fang who reluctantly shifted off my lap, taking Harry's offered hand and hurrying after Hagrid to the edge of the forest. The boarhound stuck close to my side, his tail wagging-mostly because I was idly scratching behind his ears and drawing patterns in his fur.
Hagrid rose his lamp as he came to a stop, pointing down a winding dirt path that vanished into the trees.
A light breeze blew past us and I shivered as it ruffled my hair.
"Look there," Hagrid said, pointing out a shiny patch of thick silvery liquid on the path, "see that stuff shinin' on the ground? Silvery stuff? That's unicorn blood. There's a unicorn in there bin hurt badly by summat. This is the second time in a week. I found one dead last Wednesday. We're gonna try an' find the poor thing. We might have ter put it out of its misery."
I cringed at that, digging my fingers into Fang's fur.
-yeaaah, no thanks.
"And what if whatever hurt the unicorn finds us first?" Malfoy asked sounding scared despite his attempts to pretend like he wasn't.
"Well, then you die," I said bluntly. "You should go first. I'll time you."
"Maybe it's a mountain troll," Malfoy sneered back, "you have experience with those, don't you?"
I made a face, and he smiled nastily.
"There's nothin' that lives in the forest that'll hurt yeh if yer with me or Fang," Hagrid assured us. "An' keep ter the path. Right, now, we're gonna split inter two parties an' follow the trail in diff'rent directions. There's blood all over the place, it must've bin staggerin' around since last night at least."
"I want Fang," Malfoy cut in quickly as he stared at Fang's fangs.
"Alright, but I warn yeh," Hagrid said, "he's a coward."
I sniggered and Malfoy scowled at me.
"So me, Jewel, an' Harry'll go one way an' Draco, Neville, Hermione an' Fang'll go the other. Now, if any of us finds the unicorn, we'll send up green sparks, right? Get yer wands out an' practice now-that's it-an' if anyone gets in trouble, send up red sparks-"
"If Malfoy dies, can I send up a skull and crossbones?" I interjected cheekily. "Or fireworks?"
Harry grinned at me, and even Hermione was hiding a smile.
"Ha-ha," Malfoy said sarcastically, crossing his arms and rolling his eyes.
While Hagrid ignored that, I didn't miss the way his beard twitched.
"-an' we'll all come an' find yeh," he finished, "so, be careful-let's go."
꧖ꦿꦸ⊰ ⊱꧖ꦿꦸ
It seemed like a foolproof enough plan-right up until it was time to branch off.
After walking a little way into the black, silent forest we reached a fork in the path.
Hagrid Harry and I were supposed to go left.
Hermione Neville Fang and Malfoy right.
Simple enough, right?
"Fang, you're with the others-" I attempted to shoo the dog away.
In response, Fang sat on my feet so I couldn't move.
Sticking out his tongue, he started to pant and slobber happily.
"Oh, real mature," I huffed, crossing my arms and staring him down.
Fang nudged me with his head, and I almost fell over.
"Ha-ha, you're hilarious-" I snorted sarcastically, throwing up my arms and turning to Hagrid for help.
Hagrid was grinning at me.
He wasn't the only one.
"Chewie!" I groaned.
After Hagrid came over to free me, I attempted to leave again-and, once again, Fang followed.
I started to walk in circles, the boarhound right on my heels.
"No, Fang-go with Malfoy-I know he seems like an entitled dingbat, but he's really-Okay, Hermione's awesome, you know Hermione, and Neville's a sweetheart-"
Malfoy rolled his eyes to the tree canopy.
The second I stopped, Fang leant heavily against my leg.
The boarhound looked up at me imploringly and, giving in, I scratched behind his ears.
His tail started to thump against the earth.
"I'm going with Malfoy and Neville, aren't I?" I sighed, shoulders slumping.
"Sorry, Jewel," Hagrid said, looking amused.
"'Mione-" I said, nodding over to Harry.
She walked over, smiling at me apologetically and mouthing 'sorry'.
"Come on, Fang-you win," I added grudgingly, patting my thigh.
Fang contentedly followed me over to Malfoy and Neville and, as the others headed off, we silently made our way down the other path and deeper into the trees.
Fang led the way with me right behind him and Neville and Malfoy on my either side, Malfoy lagging behind slightly to my left and Neville sticking close to my right.
We all had our wands out, using Lumos to light our way.
Every now and again, moonlight peeked through the trees-but, otherwise, the forest was pitch-black.
It was giving me serious spooky, suspense/thriller vibes.
-awesome.
Spotting some silvery blood at the base of a tree, I got Fang's attention with a soft whistle, ignoring Malfoy and Neville's surprised looks, and we started that way.
"He really likes you," Neville commented shyly, playing with his sleeve and eyeing the shadows around us skittishly.
"I spent a lot of time at Hagrid's while I was training to try out for the Slytherin team," I informed him with a shrug, absentmindedly snapping at the bands on my wrists(and making my wand light wobble randomly, not that I noticed-or it really mattered with Malfoy and Neville's). "I had to prove myself to Flint so he'd let me play, so I practised. For hours. Every day."
Not that I'm bitter.
All of the general mortal terror I was getting from Neville, and Malfoy's growing fear hidden beneath a cold bravado, was clouding my mind a bit.
Hence, the rubber band snapping.
In a weird way, I was actually glad Fang forced me to go with them-because as hard as it was to ignore Neville's fear, Malfoy's one of those people who are closed-off enough that I find them hard to read(something that used to put me on edge and frustrate me but now-with Professor Snape, and after what happened with Harry in the mirror room-I've come to appreciate any time I don't have to put in as much effort to be sane). With the others, I would've had to deal with Harry and Hagrid-and they're open books, Hagrid especially. At least with Malfoy it was a bit easier to shut it all out and foc-
"Why do you do that?" Malfoy said rudely.
-on the other hand...
"Do what?" I asked, glancing over my shoulder at the blonde.
He looked pointedly at my hands.
"Every time I see you, you're snapping those things, over and over again-" he nodded at the colourful rubber bands decorating my arms. "It's weird."
I faltered and very nearly tripped over the bottom of my robes.
"They're just rubber bands," I scoffed, playing coy. "I snap them. So what? It's just a habit-like how I run my fingers through my hair and use humour as a defence mechanism."
"I've seen bruises on your wrists," Malfoy refuted sharply, narrowing his eyes, "and you just keep snapping at them, even when it obviously hurts-that isn't a weird hobby, Potter, that's psychotic."
"It helps me focus!" I retorted defensively, rubbing my left wrist absentmindedly. "I get-" I hesitated, "spacey. Whenever I have trouble focusing, I snap myself. It's the only thing that works."
Malfoy frowned at me, eyebrows furrowed in contemplation.
Chest feeling uncomfortably tight, I swiftly turned my back to him and sped up.
I struggled to think of something to say to change the subject, and fill the sudden loud silence, but for once my stupid mind was drawing a blank.
Of all the times for me not to have something to say-
To my relief, Neville did.
"Jewel?" he said in a small voice, and I perked up.
"What's up?" I asked a bit too eagerly.
Neville swallowed nervously, his cheeks tinting pink.
"I was wondering-I mean-" he stammered, "can I hold your hand? I-I don't want to get lost, and it's really dark-"
Before Malfoy could make a catty remark to make Neville feel stupid, or even worse about being scared, I switched my wand into my left hand and slipped my hand into Neville's.
Looking relieved, the Gryffindor sent me a shaky but grateful smile.
Malfoy swallowed, a sour look on his face.
"It's not that bad," I quoted cheekily in an attempt to lighten the mood, using my wand to gesture at the dark forest around us. "Well, I'm not saying I'd like to build a summer home here, but the trees are actually quite lovely. Get it? From The Princess Bri-?" Seeing the blonde's confused face, and remembering I was surrounded by Purebloods,I pouted, mumbling, "Muggle quote-never mind."
All I got was another weak grimace/smile.
"Look," I went on comfortingly, "it'll be okay, Nev. If anything pops out, just jump behind me and I'll punch it in the face-or shoot off a nasty jinx or something, alright?"
Neville nodded timidly, clinging to my hand.
"She's out of your league, you know, Longbottom-" Malfoy suddenly said, looking at Neville disdainfully, "but, then again, who isn't?"
Rolling my eyes, I squeezed Neville's hand.
"Ignore him, Nev," I said without looking back, "he's just jealous. Believe it or not, it's sweet guys like you that get all the girls and jerks like Malfoy who-oh, I can't say that, you're an innocent sunflower,I'll scar you or something-uh...he'll become self-sufficient and die alone. Yeah, that's still insulting, but PG-and in my defence, I've been exposed to so much shit, I'm like-the anti-you-I have the mind of a teenage boy-"
I pulled a slight face.
"-yeah, that came out weird."
Neville looked bewildered.
Even without turning around, I could feel Malfoy glaring holes into the back of my head.
"Didn't realize you were into fat crybabies, Potter," he sneered. "I suppose I gave you too much credit."
I flipped him off without looking.
"I'm into-" I paused, "well, I'm eleven, I'm not really into anything yet-not seriously, anyway-but, if I were, better Neville than you."
From the corner of my eye, I saw Malfoy's face go cold.
For the next few minutes, we walked on in silence, Malfoy scowling and Neville clinging to my arm and jumping every time one of us stepped on a leaf or a twig.
After ten minutes, maybe more, we had to stop to try to pick up the blood trail again.
Malfoy leant against a nearby tree, while Neville latched onto me.
If anything, staying in one place just seemed to petrify him more.
(in his defence, this forest has some of the biggest bloody spiders I've ever seen-I spotted one about the size of my head but, luckily, managed to keep Neville from seeing it).
"You think the gingerbread house from Hansel and Gretel's somewhere in here?" I wondered idly, shining my wandlight on the ground, "I mean, creepy forest, witches, kids aren't allowed in here-sounds like a cover-up if I've ever heard one-I bet she used to teach Home-Ec or something-"
When Malfoy didn't immediately make a snarky comment, alarm bells went off in my head-because when does he not have an insult on hand?
I looked up-
And, not seeing the blonde anywhere in sight, my heart jumped into my throat.
"Malfoy?" I called out warily, shining my wandlight around.
Neville whimpered.
"Malfoy? This isn't funny, you git!" I hissed.
When he didn't answer, I bit my bottom lip and swallowed nervously.
Worry twisted up my stomach.
"Come on-we need to find him before he gets hurt-" I told Neville, glaring out into the darkness, "then I'll hurt him."
While wanting so much to not do that, Neville reluctantly stumbled along behind me when I started to slowly walk towards where Malfoy had been standing-if only because he's seen me play Quidditch and knows that, right now, the safest place for him was by me.
I kept hissing Malfoy's name and, when he didn't answer, was surprised to find myself genuinely scared for the blonde prat-weird.
"Malfoy? Draco Malfoy, for Merlin's sake, this isn't funny! Draco?"
Fang pressed against my side reassuringly, and I gripped my wand so tightly my knuckles turned white.
"Draco?" I tried again, throat tightening-
"Boo!"
Hands suddenly grabbed Neville from behind and he jumped violently, screamed bloody murder, and almost tackled me as he wrapped himself around me-and, wand shooting up into the air, released a series of red sparks.
My arm automatically swung-a promise is a promise, but Malfoy grabbed my wrist before I could make the full swing into his nose and Neville hanging onto me restricted my movement.
The blonde Slytherin was in hysterics.
"You should see your faces-'Draco? Draco?'" he pretended to call, doing an insulting imitation of my voice and pulling a fake scared expression, before laughing loudly.
My face flushed angrily.
"That wasn't funny, you jerk!" I snarled, attempting to shove him one-handedly around Neville. "You could've been-eaten or something!-"
Malfoy just kept laughing.
"Shut it! God, I can't believe I was actually scared for you!" I exclaimed, fuming.
Malfoy's head snapped up, his laughter abruptly stopping.
"Yeah right, Potter," he scoffed. "Another minute and you would've sent up fireworks and gone off to meet up with that oaf Hagrid to celebrate getting rid of me-"
"We might not like each other," I said flatly, "but I wouldn't of left without you."
Something about my forthrightness, and the look on my face, made him pause.
Malfoy stared at me unreadably.
A sudden stomping and rustling noise, coming fast this way, broke through our staring contest and we both whipped around to stare, wide-eyed.
Neville was frozen in terror, too terrified to react beyond a tiny whimper and wrapped around me like a malfunctioning koala bear.
Driven by pure instinct, I grabbed Malfoy, shocking him, and pulled him forcefully behind me. I couldn't make Neville budge, so I just rose my wand in the direction of the noise-staring it down with a level of fearlessness that surprised me more than anyone.
I should've been scared, like a normal person.
But I wasn't.
I was angry, and raring for a fight.
-let's not analyse how screwed up that sounds, yeah?
Suddenly, the darkness shifted-
And Hagrid came into view.
"What's goin' on? Everyone okay?"
"Neville sent up red sparks-" I realised with a sigh, the tension leaving my shoulders.
Taking in me holding him at wand point(I dropped my arm sheepishly), Neville wrapped around me looking traumatised, Fang pressed against my front, and Malfoy behind me Hagrid furrowed his bushy eyebrows and looked around cautiously.
"What happened?" he questioned seriously.
I looked back at Malfoy wryly.
"Malfoy thought it'd be funny to vanish then pop up and terrify Neville," I said bluntly, gesturing between him and the blonde. "Discuss."
So, Hagrid was pissed.
By the time we made it back to the others, Malfoy had his arms crossed petulantly and Neville, after having to be physically pried off of me, was holding my hand tightly.
I tried to cheer him up by telling him that he could totally sue the Malfoys, and have them pay for his therapy, but he didn't seem comforted.
Malfoy rolled his eyes.
Seeing me and Neville, Harry and Hermione looked relieved.
"We'll be lucky ter catch anythin' now, with the racket you lot were makin'," Hagrid said, fuming. "Right, we're changin' groups-Neville, you stay with me an' Hermione, Harry, you go with Jewel, Fang, an' this idiot." He leant down to whisper to me and Harry, "I'm sorry, but he'll have a harder time frightenin' you two, and we've gotta get this done. Besides-Fang won' go anywhere without you, Jewel."
Harry Malfoy Fang and I set out into the forest.
We walked for half an hour, at least, without a single word beyond Harry filling me in on what had happened on their end and vice versa(to my disappointment, they got to meet real live bloomin' centaurs-while I got to babysit Neville and Malfoy). The farther we walked, the wider and closer together the trees became until it was almost impossible for us to see without our wandlights, let alone keep following the earth path. The blood seemed to be getting thicker, too.
-that's not an alarming realisation or anything.
There were these splashes of silver blood on the roots of a tree and, up ahead, a clearing that I could vaguely see through the tangled branches of an old oak tree.
There was something on the ground.
It was bright white and gleaming.
I wanted to send up green sparks and leave, because I'm not an idiot.
Harry had other ideas.
"Look-"
He threw out an arm to stop me and Malfoy.
The boys started to inch forward and, muttering a curse, I held up my wand and followed.
The unicorn was as beautiful as it was tragic.
And, you know, super dead.
Its legs were thrown out at unnatural angles and its pearly-white mane spread out on the dark leaves.
It was almost poetic-in a really, really morbid way.
Suddenly, a hand grabbed mine.
Assuming it was Harry, I threaded our fingers together and squeezed back-
Just as Harry took a step forwards on my other side.
My head jerked sideways.
Malfoy refused to meet my eyes, staring determinedly ahead as he gripped my hand tightly.
And, for some reason, I didn't let go.
Then I heard a slithering noise and quickly looked back at the unicorn-and a bush on the edge of the clearing that, to my alarm, was quivering.
Slowly, a hooded figure slunk out of the shadows, stalking across the ground...
As Harry Fang Malfoy and I watched, transfixed, our feet rooted in place, the figure lowered its face to a bloody wound on the unicorn's side and started to-drink.
I watched with a distant, morbid sort of fascination.
There was something about the figure, a sense of wrongness that felt familiar and not only left me speechless in terror-but made my scar start hurting.
The second my scar prickled, Harry winced in pain.
Just as that cloud of darkness started to pull my mind in, my scar beginning to burn and my head spinning(I desperately tried to dig my mental heels in, but I couldn't focus, couldn't control it, and the closer my mind got to that-things, the worse I felt)-
"AAAAAAAAARGH!"
With a horror-movie-worthy scream, Malfoy bolted, Fang on his heels-and, still holding his hand, I found myself staggering blindly as I was dragged into the trees. My head was still scrambled from the brief encounter, my mind brushing against whatever the hell that thing was, and I couldn't think straight.
Suddenly, a crippling, fiery pain shot through my body.
It wasn't until Malfoy was kneeling in front of me, looking shocked and terrified, that I realised I was on my knees, clutching my scar and screaming.
I was half-blind from the pain, my scar on fire-
"Harry," I managed to gasp out, eyes shut tightly.
Tears slid down my face and I gritted my teeth, swaying dangerously.
"What?" Malfoy blurted, taken aback.
"My scar-hurts whenever his does-" I stammered, "it's on fire-he needs-sparks-red sparks-Hagrid-"
Beneath my eyelids, I could see a flash of red.
"Potter-" Malfoy grabbed my arms, steadying me. "We can't stay here-that thing could be right behind us-we need to go-"
"I-I can't-" I sobbed, screwing up my face and clutching my neck. "It hurts-I can't think-"
I started to hyperventilate.
"Potter-!"
Just as suddenly as it appeared, the pain was gone.
I went completely still.
"Potter? Jewel? What-"
Instead of being relieved that my scar wasn't on fire anymore, I felt like I'd had a bucket of freezing cold water poured over my head.
"Harry!" I gasped, eyes flying open. "No-no, no, no, no-"
I attempted to stand up on shaky legs and, if Malfoy hadn't caught me, would've collapsed onto the forest floor.
"Whoa! Okay-stop that-"
"The pain's gone-it's just-and Harry-he's-"
Malfoy tightened his hold on me.
"Your brother is fine, Jewel-" he snapped, "if the pains stopped, that probably means he got away or something-if you charge back there, you'll just get yourself killed-"
"N-no, I need-he has to be okay-" I said wildly, not really hearing him, "I-I don't have-he's all I-"
Malfoy didn't seem to know what to say.
"-Sit down before you hurt yourself," he finally ordered.
When I just kept trying to get up, he rolled his eyes and forcibly sat me at the base of a tree.
Fang dropped into my lap for good measure.
"Good boy," Malfoy said.
I was too scattered, mentally and emotionally, to argue.
Gripping his wand tightly, Malfoy slowly settled down beside me.
"Just-breathe or something," he added uncomfortably, unsure of how to get me to calm down and not really sure what he was supposed to do in this situation.
"W-wow, breathing-I never would've thought of that," I said breathlessly, barking a sarcastic laugh.
"Better," Malfoy muttered, seeming weirdly relieved by my snarky response.
Neither of us spoke for the next couple of minutes as we caught our breaths and struggled to get our whatintheeverlovingshitwasthat?! panic under control.
Hearing something crashing through the undergrowth, out of nowhere, nearly gave us heart attacks-our fearless boarhound protector included.
Fang shot out of my lap, scrambling to try to shove his way between the tree and my back, and, our nerves shot, Malfoy and I freaked and grabbed onto each other.
The loud noise quickened-
And, once again, Rubeus Hagrid came barging through the tree line.
Hermione and Neville followed quickly on his heels.
"What is it? What's happened?" Hagrid demanded, any thought that Malfoy had pulled another stupid prank going up in smoke when he saw how terrified we looked-
And realised Harry wasn't with us.
Malfoy and I sprung apart.
The blonde's face went bright pink.
"It's Harry," I blurted, ignoring the warmth in my own face. "We found the unicorn, and this-thing-it was feeding on it or something-and we ran, but my scar-it started to hurt-it was on fire-and when my scar hurts so does Harry's-and I don't think he's okay and-"
"Potter," Malfoy interrupted, cutting off my panicked rambling.
I took a shaky breath.
"Back there-" the blonde pointed in the direction we'd run, and I was surprised to realise we'd gotten pretty far before I collapsed, "it's in a clearing-you can't miss it-"
Malfoy glanced at me.
"-I'll stay here with Potter-"
"What? No!" I protested, "I need to go get Harry-"
"You can barely stand upright-and you're freaking out!" Malfoy retorted in disbelief. "You need to sit here and breathe before your head explodes!"
"But-"
"He's right, Jewel," Hagrid told me firmly, looking at the blonde in surprise. "Yeh're in no shape ter do anythin'. You two sit tight, I'll take Hermione and Neville and get Harry. Fang'll keep yeh's safe 'til we get back. Don't move."
The pressure on my chest only grew as Malfoy and I watched Hagrid Neville and Hermione vanish into the trees and, for a while, neither of us had it in us to say anything.
"...Do you really think he's okay?"
Malfoy's head jerked sideways.
My voice was so quiet, I'm surprised he'd heard me, even in the unsettling silence.
"Do you want my honest opinion, or do you want me to lie to you?"
"-A bit of both?"
"He dropped dead, but a magical fairy brought him back to life, and now he's fine."
"Thanks for that," I deadpanned but, surprisingly, I actually did feel slightly better.
"You're welcome," Malfoy drawled.
As Fang settled down against my side, I shifted a bit.
My fingers accidentally brushed against Malfoy's, and we both quickly jerked our hands away.
Malfoy cleared his throat, his face slightly pink.
All of a sudden, my scar tingled faintly(making it throb a bit because of how sore it'd become thanks to whatever the hell that thing was-).
My heart leapt, the air rushing out of my lungs.
The second Hagrid and Hermione returned, Harry in tow, I found myself on my feet-and, before anyone had the chance to react, my arms were wrapped tightly around Harry's neck.
He caught me, stumbling back a few steps.
"Don't-ever-do-that-again-" I started hitting him blindly, "I thought you were-and I was so-who the hell sees amaniac sucking the blood out of a unicorn and sticks around? Are-you-an-idiot-?"
"Jewel-would you-ow, quit-!"
Harry grabbed my forearms-but, when he realised I was crying, stopped dead.
I glared at him fiercely.
"Do you have any idea how scared I was when the pain in my scar stopped?" I sobbed out, blindly running the back of my right hand over my eyes. "I thought you were-and I just left you-I mean, Malfoy kinda dragged me,but still-and it would've been my fault-and I can't lose you-I can't-not again-not-you're my brother, and I love you, and I can't-"
I froze, mouth hanging slightly open.
Harry looked speechless.
I think that's the first time I've ever told someone I love them, and meant it. I mean, I love Dakota and Alistair, I just-I can't say it. I've tried, but something's always stopped me(Illyius-and joking around-is a completely different situation). But thinking Harry could've been hurt-or worse-and I could've lost him, I just-
Suddenly, I was being pulled into a tight hug.
"I love you too, Jules," Harry whispered hoarsely into my hair.
For a moment, I felt like that same little girl, staring up at Dakota Morrissey blankly the first time she said I love you because she just didn't understand.
Because no one had ever said it to her, either.
Almost uncertainly, I gingerly wrapped my arms back around Harry, standing there tensely before I finally started to relax.
Squeezing my eyes shut, I let out a quiet breath.