"You've got to come, Jade," Draco exclaimed to Jade, who didn't even look up to her boyfriend.
Jade was very behind on homework, two weeks ago she didn't do anything because she was at her brother's wedding, and after that her mind was too busy to concentrate on her homework or study.
She knew she had to confront Cass about what she found out but should she speak up? Ron, who only knew stuff based on what she had told him, thought she shouldn't, Draco, who knew very well everything and how all worked, thought she shouldn't either, but she wanted to speak up, so she was conflicted.
"Jade?"
"I need to do homework," Jade whispered, she was pretending to be reading a book from Charms. But Draco knew she really wasn't.
"But it's the last match of the season," Draco exclaimed. "If you don't go, Umbridge will know she got to you, and Jade, today we will find out if we win the Quidditch Cup or not."
"Okay, you'll tell me later, I suppose."
"Jade, if we do win, you realize we won because of you? You made the team sharper and better than ever, you made right decisions, and thanks to your new gift you knew what Miles was planning."
"I'm not even in the team anymore, I'm not interested."
But it wasn't that she wasn't interested anymore. Just the thought of watching a match of Quidditch while not even being a player was like a stab in the heart. Slytherin wasn't playing that day but it was a reminder of what she had lost.
"You should go and show Umbridge that she hasn't gotten to you," Draco said and Jade just gave him a look, meaning it was final. "Well, if you change your mind you know where to find me."
Jade stayed, piles of books and parchments in front of her, she needed to stay busy so her mind wouldn't wander and think about Quidditch or Cass.
Jade would never use the word fragile to describe herself, she could think of hundreds of words but never fragile but at the moment she felt fragile.
Years ago she'd have never imagined to be in the position she was, how things had turned out. Everything seemed okay, and now everything was falling apart. Her fiancé had a kid, her best friend was now her boyfriend, she was friends with Harry and Ron, her parents were Death Eaters and proud of it. Her relatives that had been in Azkaban, escaped. She hadn't really talked to them and knew nothing about them, though. Her brother was now married and they had never been so distant in their entire lives and she really missed him.
She also was punished in such a brutal way and it was so unexpected and shocking to receive a punishment like that from a teacher. And she felt trapped and annoyed as she couldn't tell anyone about what Umbridge did to her. She was also kicked out of the team and her parents believed she deserved it. She also, after years of not going through it, went under the Cruciatus Curse for a whole week for not ratting out Harry Potter and pretending he was her boyfriend.
It seemed like Jade's life was not only falling apart but also breaking. She wasn't happy. She was conflicted. Everything she once believed in and supported, was now nothing for her. She was pretty much against a lot of things now and she couldn't be herself in public. She was trapped.
She was fifteen years old and having so many issues, and things teenagers shouldn't worry about. To top the list, having to marry someone she didn't love and having murderers as parents.
Soon her peaceful time ended. People were coming back, but she didn't bother to look at them, she didn't really care. That joy had been taken by Umbridge.
After a few minutes, Draco sat in front of her. He hesitated, would she want to know who had won the match that day? And the Quidditch cup? By her attitude and body language he guessed not, so he didn't say anything and instead started to study with her.
May ended, and Jade continued to study just as hard, continued her private lessons with Snape, avoided Umbridge's classeses as she couldn't deal with that, and even spent more time with Ron and Harry than she had ever done. Thing that Draco and Granger didn't like.
Jade, who had found out about Snape not wanting to teach Harry Occlumency anymore, had offered to help him. She couldn't teach him a thing but she could help him practice and in that way she could practice too.
Harry wasn't too good at blocking his mind and Jade eventually got to see why Snape had stopped the lessons, she felt a bit bad as it was Snape's privacy and Harry's.
"Is that why you told me about your father being not as great as you thought?"
"Yeah, I feel better about it but still bothers me," Harry admitted. "Don't tell Ron... he doesn't know. Snape told me not to tell anyone and basically I haven't."
"And I won't tell anyone," Jade assured him.
There was one time while they were practicing when Jade couldn't really get out of Harry's head and she kept seeing and hearing things, she was getting deeper and deeper into his mind. She tried to stop and even said it out loud but she was out of control, nothing was working.
She saw Harry's first kiss, she saw a part of what happened when Cedric got killed, she saw how unfair his uncle and aunt treated him and how nasty his cousin was. She saw the attack of the Dementors during the summer, and she saw Harry running from a Basilisk.
Sensing this, Harry used protego. It worked. She immediately stopped seeing Harry's memories but then something she didn't want to happen, happened, their positions changed.
Harry was now in Jade's head. He saw Jade going to Hogwarts for the first time, walking behind her brother and Cassius, who were gossiping and laughing about something, her parents were nowhere to be seen. He saw how Flint laughed and mocked her when she told him she wanted to be on the team. He saw the time when she was informed she had to get married to Perseus, she was only a little girl.
He saw Draco and Jade playing in a huge garden, they were around seven. He also saw when Jade's grandmother was telling her all about Blood Status and being pure. He saw Lexion not allowing little Jade to play with them but Cass was trying to get some sense into him. He also saw when Jade arrived at the Burrow last summer and how uncomfortable she felt. And at last he saw and even felt what Jade went through during Easter.
"Wait... did you father use Crucio on you?" Harry asked astonished when Jade finally managed to block her own mind. It wasn't fun being on the other side.
"Why do you ask? You saw it..." Jade said annoyed, or attempted to sound annoyed. But she actually felt ashamed and awkward, how could she deny it now that Harry had seen that? The only person that knew about it was Draco and even with him, she struggled to tell him stuff about it.
"Why?"
"It's the way he punishes us... and I can't do anything about it."
"So, this wasn't the first time?" Jade shook her head but didn't speak. She was shaking a bit, Harry noticed. "Wait... is that why you were so changed when you came back after the holidays? Ron noticed and thought you were... sad."
"I wasn't sad... I was exhausted. Do you know what it's like to be in that kind of pain several nights in a row? Do you know what it feels like to feel so defenseless, because you can't do anything about it? And nobody will help you."
"But you are so good at spells, you even taught others at our meetings!"
"You don't get it, Potter. Maybe I could defend myself but then what? I'd be out of my house for good, nowhere to live, no food, no friends to help because they are just like him... I'd be seen as a traitor by everyone I know. And it's not like I'd be fighting only him. My mother would help him, maybe even my brother if he was around. He wouldn't want to as he knows what it's like but he can't say no to him. And we are talking about dark magic... an unforgivable curse. It's not easy to fight and break that and I wouldn't want to try, fail, and suffer the consequences... But don't feel pity for me, I'm okay."
"No, you aren't. Do you know the reason why the Lestranges were sentenced to Azkaban for life, right?"
"Yeah... they tortured Neville's parents with the Cruciatus curse until they went mad," Jade said, getting really uncomfortable with the subject. She knew Harry knew about Neville's parents otherwise she would have pretended she didn't know. "But you see, they did it to get something out of them, they were desperate. My father won't drive me mad. He is punishing me, he has calculated it. He knows how far he can go."
"Isn't that a little messed up?"
"I never said it wasn't messed up, just pointed out I won't end up like the Longbottoms. Well, maybe if I try to defend myself or mess up even more, he won't care and I will end up like them, just maybe."
"Mess up how?"
"You know how... by joining illegal groups, by going against the Ministry because my mother works there, by befriending people who are not Pure-Bloods, by messing with Umbridge, by not marrying Cass, basically by doing everything I've done all year."
"What are you doing with me then?"
"Because you're my boyfriend, remember?" Jade said with a chuckle to lighten the mood and it did help a bit but it wasn't enough, there was still tension. "Well, because a part of me is like whatever... and another part of me just can't keep doing what I used to do, especially after finding out that thing about my parents. I don't wanna be like them. And I've got to admit I sort of love not doing what I'm told."
"Naturally," Harry said with a smile. "And you aren't like them, you know?"
"Yeah and that can get me killed or at least kicked out of my house and the family and I'll be no one but at least I won't be a bad person."
"You won't be no one. You might be kicked out of the house but who needs that house and life anyway?" Jade smiled a bit at that, knowing it was true. "I'm sure you'd be okay if that happened, you are smart and skillful... and now I can see you are a good person."
"Thanks, Harry," Jade said. "Don't tell anyone I'm good, though."
"Fine," Harry said with a chuckle.
Sadly for Draco, he spent his birthday studying but Jade had managed to get him a very nice shirt and lots of chocolates, he and Jade also went for a little walk around the Hogwarts grounds and got to watch the sunset.
Only five days later, on the 10th, the fifth years started sitting their O.W.L.s and the seventh years their N.E.W.T.s. That day they did theoretical charms in the morning and practical charms in the afternoon.
The Great Hall was used to do the examinations, the four house tables were gone and replaced by several individual tables. Jade was next to Ron, who looked paler than usual, in front of her was Channel and behind her was Neville.
For the practical examination, they were called in alphabetical order. Jade and Draco stood together in line practicing some more. Neville and this other student were the only people in between them. Lias, Longbottom, Macmillan and Malfoy. Neville looked a bit terrified to be so close to Draco but Jade wouldn't let him do anythng to him.
Finally the next group of four was called, Jade, Neville, Ernie and Draco. Two Slytherins, one Gryffindor and one Hufflepuff. It was weird for Jade to be in this group with her boyfriend and two people who were part of the D.A. meetings.
They had to do the Growth charm, levitating, color-changing charm, among others. Jade felt confident but still nervous as she needed good grades for her future career.
Question: How many pets do you have? And what are they? I'm currently with one of my cats so I just got that thought.
Hope you liked the chapter :)
