If Draco had just one look at Jade he would know what had happened and that's why Jade chose not to go to see him. She didn't want to break down in front of him, she didn't want him to see how vulnerable and fragile she was.
But funny enough, Draco didn't need to see her to know that something wasn't right. The fact that he hadn't seen her was enough evidence for him, he knew. And he also had a feeling that troubled him and he couldn't shake it off. Somehow, he knew that feeling had something to do with Jade.
Jade had stayed in her room, not going out for anything, not even to eat. She would only go out when she was called by her father after dinner. Of course, one night of punishment wasn't enough. She needed to learn, she messed up big time.
House-elves were forbidden to go to her room and heal her, the only time they were allowed to do something was when Finley gave them the order and it was because there was an errand she needed to do, or a gathering, or a family meeting and she needed to look perfect. She needed to look normal.
That time, her hair was flawless, her clothes were brand new. She was even wearing perfume and make-up. Something she didn't do often and the twins kept insisting she needed to, to attract boys.
She knew that if she didn't act like she normally did, she would be even in more problems so, she forced herself to fake a smile or two but no one noticed how empty her eyes looked. Anyone would have been able to tell, but they didn't care so they didn't notice.
Many people were there. Olisca's family, all her bridemaids, Cassius and his family and some close friends too. Lexion was in a corner talking to Cass and trying to be as away from Olisca as possible, when possible.
Cassius didn't seem affected or angry, or even bothered by what had happened. Jade and Potter dating. He didn't even bring it up once and Jade couldn't notice any change in him, so she assumed everything was okay with him, even his parents were acting like if it wasn't a big deal, like if it was of no importance.
In that moment, Jade wondered for a bit if she was wrong for getting angry at Cass for showing interest in that French girl. She was thought to be dating Potter, that must have made Cass at least a little upset... or maybe his reaction just showed how little he actually cared about her.
Lucius and Narcisa Malfoy also attended but for some reason she was thankful that Draco wasn't there. He would notice what others didn't and she didn't want to talk about it.
That night, after everyone left, she went through another session of Crucio, but it wasn't as long and as intense as the previous ones. She didn't know why until the next morning when a house-elf woke her up early and healed her and got her ready.
She expected another sort of meeting about the wedding with Olisca and the girls. But before she could go downstairs, the house-elf informed Jade she was taking her, not her mother or anyone else.
It wasn't until they apparated that she knew where she was going. The house-elf left and she sighed. She thought of running away but she knew deep inside that it would be a bad idea.
After five minutes of just awkwardly standing a few feet away from porch , she went up the three steps and knocked on the door of the huge house in front of her and waited. A male house-elf opened the door and invited her inside.
"Jade, it's so great to see you! How's school?" Amberie, Cassius' mother, asked her as she put her hands over her shoulders. It was the biggest form of affection she had gotten in the last few days. It felt foreign.
"It's okay," Jade mumbled, not wanting to think of Umbridge.
"Yeah, I guess. School can't be amazing, can it?" she said with a chuckle. "You must be wondering why you are here, well, I thought it would be good if you and Cass could spend some time together before you go back to Hogwarts. I know you two are good friends."
"Thank you," Jade said with a weak smile. She really was thankful. She knew Amberie wasn't a bad person, she was quite a warm, loving woman and if this was really her idea, it didn't mean anything bad. And she couldn't stand being at her house for much longer. So, it felt good to be away.
A few minutes later, Cassius walked into the living room and he looked shocked but happy to see her. Apparently, it was a surprise for him too. Amberie said some things to Cass and then she went upstairs. Cass and Jade walked out of the house. She didn't know where they were going, she just followed Cass.
"If you haven't noticed, they are trying to get us to spend time together without informing us, anyone would think they want us to end up together... but we will anyway, so, what's the point?" Jade told Cassius as they walked down a busy street.
Jade did love where Cassius live but she preferred the quite, less crowded town where she lived. Here, people were stressed, in a rush. It was uncommon to hear a laugh or see someone smiling.
"I know, right?" Cassius said chuckling. "But it was a nice gesture, wasn't it?" Jade nodded.
They went to eat lunch at a fancy restaurant and now she knew why her house-elf had chosen such clothes for her, she felt a bit overdressed at first but now she was glad she was dressed like that.
Interesting enough, Jade and Cassius talked a lot and nothing was about school or family. Or even Potter. It was just random stuff, and for once she laughed.
"I wanted to ask, Jade, are you okay?" Cassius asked her as they finished their meal. "My mum said she was a bit worried about you. That you weren't well last night and I didn't really give it too much thought about it but today... I can tell there's something off."
"Uh, I guess I'm just worried about my O.W.L.s, that's all," Jade said looking down at her hands, feeling uneasy at the fact that someone did notice she wasn't okay. She was the master of pretending, of hiding her emotions. She couldn't lose her touch.
"I'm sure you'll do fine," Cassius told her but he wasn't convinced with her answer. After all, he knew her since she was a baby.
The pair walked out of the restaurant and headed to his house. It was a cold day for April and Jade had her hands crossed in front of her, trying to get warm. The sun was no longer visible. It was cloudy and grey, and in a way, more depressing.
When they walked inside their house, Cassius went straight to the garden. He opened the shed and took out a broom, he was handing it to her. Jade just stared at it, she didn't take it.
"I can bewitch this thing over here, and he can be our keeper," he said with a smile, nodding at a scarecrow. "I know I wasn't a chaser but I miss Quidditch so much and thought we could play... and it would be an honour to play with the new Captain... I had forgotten to congratulate you, by the way."
Jade continued to just stare at the broom. Cassius knew something wasn't okay when she didn't take the broom right away, and he was sure of it when she didn't brag about being chosen the new Captain or telling him any story about how Quidditch had been that year. And he had no doubts whatsoever when her lower lip trembled as she was about to cry.
"What's wrong?" He asked, dropping his hand and looking at her. Her eyes looked very light as tears filled her eyes and the grey clouds also had an effect on them.
"You don't know?" Jade asked, her voice breaking.
"No, what happened? Don't tell me Hufflepuff will win the Cup or did you lose terribly?" She shook her head. "What is it then?"
"I'm not longer in the team," she whispered and one tear escaped but she was quick to wipe it away but not quick enough.
Instead of asking, Cassius, who was one of the few people that could understand how she felt, being a player too and her teammate for two years, just embraced her. Jade didn't want to cry but she couldn't take it anymore. That on top of her father's abuse for the last few days, just broke her.
Cassius couldn't think of a time when he had seen her cry, the only time was when she was a year old but that didn't count. So, he knew this was serious. The fachade had vanished and only the real broken Jade was in front of him.
Jade wished there was a spell that could make eyes unable to cry, or to dry tears or anything to make her stop crying but there wasn't a spell or she didn't know it.
Eventually, Jade calmed down. She asked Cassius to not look at her, she didn't want him to see her like that.
"Don't be silly," he simply told her. "It's okay to cry."
Then they both went to his room. It looked the same as when he was twelve. Maybe a bit messier. But nothing had changed. He even still had a poster of his favourite Quidditch team on his wall above his bed.
And on his nightstand he had a picture of three kids. The boys were about ten and the girl, who was in between them, smiling with a missing tooth, was about six. It was Lex, then Jade and then Cass. Before they attended Hogwarts, before their lives got complicated.
Jade didn't resemble the girl in the picture. That smile was real, it was easy to tell. Her brown hair was wet as they had been swimming in the ocean that day, Cass' parents had taken them to Brighton for a weekend.
Cass had gone to the bathroom, so Jade tried to grab the frame and look at the picture more closely but instead she pushed it and it fell behind the night table. When she reached for it, she also grabbed an opened envelope.
She didn't want to be nosey but curiousity got the best of her. She read the name Fayette on it, and she knew it was French, she was about to read the letter when Cassius got out of the bathroom, she quickly hid it inside her pocket and pretended to be looking at the picture.
"I've got more pictures," he told her with a smile. "They are in the study."
Jade spent maybe an hour looking at old pictures of themselves. There was one of Lexion carrying a newborn baby, Cassius next to him, looking at the baby with curiosity.
There was another of Lex with Olisca, she was quite an ugly child, plain. Back then, her eyes looked even bigger, making her seem quite scary and weird-looking. There was also a picture of the three of them, mounting little brooms. And one picture of Lex and Cass before they left for Hogwarts.
Before dinner, Jade excused herself and went to the bathroom. She got the letter out of her pocket and then sat on the toilet. A voice in her head was telling her to not do such things as it was wrong but she tried to tell herself, it was worth it.
Cassius,
I've tried to communicate with you but you keep avoiding me. I know what we had was a thing of just one night, and after you told me about your girlfriend I did stay away from you.
But things have changed. I wanted to do the right thing and be able to meet face to face so we could talk. I've sent you several letters to try to get you to meet me and I know you've gotten my letters, so you give me no option but to tell you this through a letter.
Cassius, I'm pregnant. I found out shortly after school was over.
Now that you know, can you be decent enough and at least write me a letter? I'm not asking you for money or to leave your girlfriend, actually, no one has to know. I just thought it was fair to tell you that the baby is yours and would be nice to be able to talk about this.
Fayette.
Jade had to read the letter several times to understand it. Her hands were shaking. She jumped and dropped the letter when somoene knocked on the door.
"Are you okay in there?" Cass asked. "My mother is waiting for you."
"Yes, I was just... doing my hair," she stuttered. "I'll be out in a minute."
Jade was such a mess emotionally that she was having a hard time following the conversation and she also was listening to things she shouldn't. First, she heard the thoughts of a house-elf. Then she heard Amberie's thoughts a few times. She didn't even know she was capable of listening thoughts that didn't belong to humans.
One time Amberie was thinking how cute her future grandchild or grandchildren were going to be, Jade almost choked on her water. When the conversation became a bit boring, she started thinking about Fayette and the letter again.
"Are you okay, dear?"
"Yes, I'm good," Jade said with a small smile.
"You seem... distracted."
"It's just a headache. I've been suffering from migraines," she lied. "Professor Snape knows and he said it was the stress of school and everything else. But I'm fine."
After dinner, Cassius himself took her to her house. She was so overwhelmed and focused on not listening to more thoughts that she forgot to return the letter, which was still in her pocket.
"I had a good time today," Cass told her.
But that wasn't what she heard. If it wasn't enough with what she had endured the last few days and what she had found out earlier, she heard his thoughts this time and she wasn't sure if she was thankful or if it was better if she hadn't listened to them.
"Don't do it!" she said without thinking. Cass could see concern and fear in her now brown eyes.
"What?" he asked confused.
"Please, Cass, just don't do it, if you needed a sign to not do it, this is it," Jade told him, almost pleading. Cass was still in shock but he didn't seem so lost, like if he knew what she was talking about.
"Don't worry, okay?"
Cass kissed the top of her head and then disapparated, leaving her alone in front of her place. She stood there for a long time, just thinking. Her teeth were chattering from the cold but still she wouldn't go in... she needed a few more minutes to process all that happened.
The other day I watched a video about common mistakes that people make in German, and I was wondering, those who speak two or more languages, what mistakes did you make?
I've found out that many people make this mistake... instead of saying. I'm bored, they say, I'm boring.
And personally, I used to say/write tramp instead of trap. It took me about a year to realize I was writing something completely different to what I wanted to say.
I'm starting to think I added too much drama in the last few chapters, and it's a thing after another. What do you think, though?
What was Cas and Jade talking about at the end?
