Chapter 9: An Encounter

Daphne

A smirk adorned Daphne's lips as she watched Professor Jackson handle the DADA 'professor' known as Umbridge. The woman had shown up in the forest, her pink ensemble an eye-sore amongst the leaves and dirt, at the beginning of the class period under the guise of evaluating professors to ensure they live up to the ministry standards. In her opinion, Professor Jackson had little to worry about. Despite only being at Hogwarts for a few months, he had shot up Daphne's list of favorite professors, and she was positive that most of the classmates would agree.

Maybe it was his enthusiasm, which admittedly most of the professors at Hogwarts lacked, his humor that brightened the students' morning who were still wiping the sleep from their eyes. Maybe it was the way he encouraged you to improve, his willingness to answer any question, no matter how trivial it may seem. Maybe it was the environment that he cultivated during his classes. There was no fear of being judged for a wrong answer or a silly question, he put a stop to that behavior right away. His one rule was to treat others with respect and he knew how to enforce that… turns out the professor could be pretty intimidating when he wanted to.

Regardless of what it was, there was just something about the Professor… something that made you strive to do your best, to seek praise and his approval. He just had this inspiring presence that would wash over you, lifting your spirits and forcing you on the path to improvement. Daphne once again thanked whoever was listening that she had allowed Tracey to convince her to take this class she deemed so unimportant.

So, Professor Jackson had nothing to worry about with the evaluations… if that was really what she was there for, at least. Daphne liked to think she was a bright girl, smarter than your average pureblood, not the highest bar to cross but nonetheless. She saw right through this Umbridge woman and the ministry's machinations. She had heard whisperings from her 'father' through their family manor of the moves the purebloods were making in ministry. Manipulating their spineless minister to discredit Harry Potter and the Hogwarts headmaster, keeping their secret safe until they were ready to strike at the wizarding world as a whole. It was sickening really, how useless the ministry was, letting a threat fester under their noses that threatened the eternity of the wizarding world because they were too afraid to see it; to even consider the possibility.

If all goes to plan, Daphne and her mother would be long gone by that point, away from the grasp of pureblood society and free to pursue their whims and fancies elsewhere. They had talked about America, a world devoid of the prejudices that plagued English wizarding society. Daphne was no fool, there still had to be lingering ideals in America, but at least it wasn't at the forefront of their society. Maybe they would find a pegasus during their travels…

Daphne jerked as she felt a hand smack quietly against her shoulder. Daphne jerked her head to see Tracey's hand coming to rest at her side. "You missed it, Daph! Professor Jackson just told off Umbridge. Never seen her so sulky."

"Is that so?"

"Oh yeah, looked like someone had just kicked her cat." Daphne raised an eyebrow, scanning the forest clearing for a mass of pink cotton that stuck out in the sea of browns and greens. Tracey was right, that woman was noticeably missing from their class. Shame, Daphne wished she could have seen that, it really would have made her day. She voiced her disappointment towards her friend, who nodded excitedly in response.

"It was truly glorious."

Daphne didn't doubt that one bit. If she learned one thing from spending time with Blackjack, and coincidently the Professor, it was that he could be quite creative. Daphne could only imagine the look on Umbridge's face as she stalked through the trees back to the castle to no doubt complain about the new professor to the Minister, hopefully not getting him fired.

Daphne fixed her eyes back on the Professor, watching his face lighten after averting his gaze from the direction that the diminutive DADA 'Professor' had retreated. Daphne was sure glad that his glare had yet to be directed at her. She had been near other students who had broken his one rule, just the residual effects forced her to avert her eyes; it was almost… wolf-like, or what she imagined facing down a wolf would be like, at least. A dense weight was lifted from the clearing as the Professor's face lost all the malice that had been present mere moments previous, Umbridge having left. He continued on with his lecture, something about the diet of a Harpy, Daphne wasn't focused that morning, a fact she was not proud of. Daphne prided herself on her ability to focus, except History of Magic of course, especially in classes that she found herself enjoying, like Professor Jackson's.

Today was an exception however, and she hoped that the Professor would not notice. Daphne had received a letter from her mother during the morning post, delivered by an owl that she didn't recognize. It had landed right in her breakfast, sticking its letter-carrying leg towards her. She had quickly untied it and given the owl a bite of bacon before it took off to do whatever owls do whenever they're not delivering mail. It had been from her mother, a rare occurrence these days. She must have taken great care to sneak around to get that seemingly insignificant slip of parchment out of the manor. It had detailed her excitement at Daphne's description of Blackjack marveling at how Daphne seemed to be so close to their shared dreams; soaring on the sky, free from the societal shackles of their world, if only for a short while. She had reaffirmed her belief that she would be joining her one day, venturing into the unknown with her daughter after her graduation from Hogwarts.

She had ended the letter with a small note, she had been feeling under the weather recently, but reassured Daphne that there was nothing to worry about. Daphne had found it odd that she would put that in the otherwise jovial letter and it had been gnawing at her since leaving breakfast. It had distracted her during her favorite class, robbing her of that time listening to the enthusiastic professor tell off their resident ministry mole.

It still ate away at her mind as she left the forest clearing, Professor Jackson dismissing them to their own whims. It had distracted her enough that she had walked silently besides Tracey towards the edge of the forest. She paused briefly, turning towards the rays of sunlight peering over the lake.

Tracey turned towards her oldest friend, eyebrow raised and a question alight in her eyes. Daphne spoke, eyes still fixed on the lake, but knowing the question that was moments from leaving Tracey's lips.

"You go on ahead, Trace. I'll catch up with you later."

Tracey hesitated, worry for her friend flooding her mind. She had never seen Daphne like this before, she has always had that quiet confidence that Tracey admired so much. "Everything alright, Daph? You've been out of it since breakfast."

"Yeah I'm fine, it's just… ah, never mind."

"You sure?"

"I am, thanks Trace, really." She turned and offered Tracey a soft smile. "I just need some alone time to think. I'll catch up with you."

Tracey nodded slowly, begrudgingly turning her back and heading towards the castle. Daphne watched her back as she walked away, wishing she was able to share her concerns with her friend, but not finding the willingness to tell her. Daphne needed to figure it out herself first. If there truly was nothing to worry about, then why did she mention being under the weather in the first place.

Daphne adored her mother. She had been there for her when her father had not… which was essentially all the time. Until Daphne met Tracey at school, her mother and her sister were the only things she held dear in this world.

Her sister Astoria had drifted away in recent years unfortunately, taking to the pureblood ideals with a vigor that she hadn't shown in any other aspect of life. She craved the title, the wealth, the power and the lavishness that came with the pureblood families from old money. Money that most of them today hadn't earned a sickle of, mind you.

Daphne could understand being cocky about it if you earned the money yourself, but to have it handed to you on just the merit of being born into the right family? They're all stuck up and handed everything on a silver platter - none of them know the value of working to earn something. They know how fragile their power is, that's why they fight so hard to keep their power trip going. And serving under a mass murderer with the same ideals gives them the perfect opportunity to keep their fragile egos intact.

Daphne swears most of them are useless in anything other than talking a big game, with no abilities to back it up -

Snap!

Her wand was in her hand in a flash as she spun around, the snapping twig jolting her into action. A snarl immediately found its way on her face as the figures came into her view. The ever-present arrogant smirk on his pale face, the rays of sun reflecting off his, somehow shiny, platinum hair and the colors of her house sewn on his breast, Malfoy stood tall in his non-existent glory.

He was, of course, flanked by his two ugly thugs, did they go to the bathroom together too? Their faces the epitome of 'lack of intelligence' as they sneered at her, failing at intimidation.

"Daphne, Daphne…" he chided, "we just want to talk." He gestured towards her drawn wand held stiffly at her side. She didn't move her wand.

"Somehow I doubt that." Daphne responded, keeping her face blank as she had trained herself to do in these situations.

"Well, I just want to talk… these two, they don't talk much." He joked. It wasn't funny. The atmosphere in that small area of the forest was heavy, a far cry from what she imagined the air would be like just fifty paces away. She couldn't believe she had to deal with this prick today of all days. She already had enough on her plate, worrying about her mother all morning.

When she didn't react to his joke, Malfoy just sighed. "Regardless, I just wanted to make you aware I received some… news." There was just simply no world in which news from him would ever be good for her, it wasn't possible. She kept her mouth shut and her expression stone-like. He seemed to be a tad dejected he wasn't getting a rise from her.

He paused as he waited for her to say something, anything… and she was oh so tempted, but she held her tongue still. "It would be wise if you learned to speak when spoken to, seeing as you're soon to be my wife."

Sure, soon-to-be-wife, her mother would never allow it. She would have been betrothed since she was twelve if her mother wasn't so strong of will. Why would she give up now of all times?

"My mo-"

"Yes yes, your mother would never allow it. My father always complained of how much of a pain she was. Of course, he doesn't think she'll be a pain much longer." His infuriating smirk returned and Daphne was that much closer to breaking character and hexing him into oblivion. She, of course, had more self control than that - but that didn't stop her from imagining how glorious it would be. Still, when it concerned her mother, Daphne couldn't help but question it.

"And why is that?"

"Oh, you have no idea, do you. You poor thing." He strung out the word 'poor', mock pity lacing his tone.

Daphne ground her teeth, slight pain shooting through her mouth as the pressure got too much. It was all she could do to keep her cool, to stop from doing something she might regret.

"There's been rumors swirling of the illustrious Lady Greengrass lately." He feigned a thoughtful expression, glancing into the leaves as he did. "Apparently, she has been stricken with a rather nasty case of the Dragon Pox… and we all know how deadly that can be, especially you."

Daphne's blood ran cold and her breath hitched, almost forgetting to inhale. Her dear mother, struggling with this ailment. Why did she not mention it? Why didn't she warn her daughter? Daphne knew all about the disease, it had taken her grandfather - her mother's father far too young, when Daphne was but a mere child. She barely got to know his kind face before he was stripped unceremoniously out of her life. She remembered visiting St. Mungo's, how much pain he was in… it was heartbreaking. She was there when he had succumbed to the deadly ailment. And, if what Malfoy was saying is true, her mother was destined for the same fate. She needed to write a letter.

She was shaken from her thoughts when Malfoy's obnoxious drawl reached her ears. "Of course, Lord Greengrass has no interest in paying for treatment, I wouldn't either, after how much trouble that woman has been. She is quite the looker, just like you, but it hasn't been worth it." Daphne's anger grew red hot at his continuous mocking of her and her mother, her blood rushed in her ears, blocking out any ambient noise as she focused her rage on a singular target. Said target wouldn't shut his mouth… he probably should.

"I would shut your mouth if I were you." Daphne's voice came out low and dangerous, slightly raspy. Even if what he was saying were only a ruse, it still made her blood boil. How dare he mock them, mock her mother's pain. Her eyes glared holes into the forest floor as Malfoy began to take steps towards where she stood rooted to the spot.

"Once your mother is out of the way, there's nothing stopping your father from signing that piece of parchment." He was almost in her face by now. Daphne swung her glare to lock onto his, and he hesitated as their eyes locked. The malice contained in her irises was nearly overwhelming his tirade. He regained his composure a mere moment later. "And then where are you going to go? You're going to come crawling Right. To. Me."

He barely finished his last syllable as his head lurched sideways and he fell to the forest floor. Daphne hadn't even felt her right arm rocket towards his face, but she certainly felt the pain in her wrist after her fist connected with the arrogant blonde's jaw, her wand forgotten in her left hand. She shook her hand in an attempt to alleviate the pain as Malfoy yelped and tumbled into the dirt of the forest floor.

Despite keeping her expression hard, Daphne was shocked at her willingness to use physical force. She had a wand, why didn't she just use that? Not to mention striking the heir of a most noble and ancient house, Daphne might well have just brought hell down upon her family with her knee-jerk reaction in that one second. Not that she particularly cared for her father, and her sister has drifted towards the pureblood ideal - but she was still her little sister, Daphne hardly wished to see her ostracized from the only world she had ever known. They were still family, after all. That was all a moot point now anyway, what's done is done.

It took Malfoy a moment lying on the dirty ground to recover from his shock. One hand held loosely against his jaw where a bruise was already forming. His expression gradually transitioned from appalled to fury.

"Get her!" His lip was still trembling as he gave the order to his two henchmen, despite the fury present in his eyes. They both drew their wands and stalked past Malfoy's spot in the dirt, forcing her to raise her own wand and sink into a defensive stance. Malfoy had risen to his feet at this point, brandishing his own wand. Daphne was more scared of him than the two blockheads flanking her. Despite his childish arrogance, Malfoy was good at magic, having been trained by the best tutors money could buy since he could walk on his own.

Quickly running through a list of effective spells in her head, her preparation was interrupted by a commanding voice that emanated from the tree line. The four students quickly sheathed their wands as Professor Jackson emerged from the greenery, high stepping to avoid large roots and ferns.

"What's going on over here?" He asked as he reached the small group. Daphne didn't move a muscle as the two goons made their way back to Malfoy's side.

"Just having a friendly chat, Professor." The blonde had adopted an innocent look on his face, out of place from what Daphne knew to be true.

"Is that so…" the Professor said slowly. "In that case, you should be heading to your next class, no?"

"Of course, sir." Malfoy gestured towards his thugs as they turned and walked towards the direction of the castle. Daphne made to follow them before the Professor's voice caused her to stop in her tracks.

"Miss Greengrass, a word?" She turned and walked back to where the Professor was standing.

"Sir?" He continued to look over her shoulder, not meeting her eyes. He waited, presumably for Malfoy's gang to exit earshot, before he returned his eyes to her.

"Everything okay?" His concern threw Daphne off. Wasn't he going to reprimand her? She wanted to tell him what happened, but he had been so good to her so far, she didn't want him to judge her for losing her composure.

"Yes, sir. Everything is fine." He didn't look convinced.

"Your wrist is swollen." He stated plainly and pain immediately filled the receptors in her brain. It had slipped her mind as the adrenaline kicked in, in anticipation for the fight with the Malfoy gang. It must have just worn off, 'cause it hurt. She grabbed it unconsciously with her opposite hand, hoping to rub the pain away.

"Tripped on a root. Wasn't watching where I was going."

"Miss Greengrass." He narrowed his eyes and offset his head. "I haven't known you for long, but I know you're not one to not pay attention. Besides…" a smirk appeared on his face. "That punch wasn't half bad."

Daphne's eyes widened slightly, embarrassed the Professor had seen her lose her cool. "How long were you there?"

"Long enough to be on your side. Though if he said those things about my mom…they'd have to carry him out of the forest."

Daphne couldn't believe Professor Jackson would talk so openly about hurting a student, even if said student is Malfoy. Maybe he adhered to the 'honesty is the best policy' state of mind. Anyway, Daphne kind of respected him for it, in an odd sort of way.

"I don't think you'll get in trouble." He shook Daphne out of her thoughts. "If you're worried about that. Something tells me he would never admit to being beat up by a girl. Me.." he placed his open hand on his chest. "I know plenty of girls who can beat the shit out of me, I admit that. But, these purebloods, I'm pretty sure they won't look too kindly on the heir to an important house to have been physically embarrassed by one." He chuckled at the thought. Daphne couldn't help but feel a little better at his thought process, even if there were a lot of factors that went on behind the scenes the Professor probably didn't know about.

This could still come back on her. Malfoy senior could twist the story and use it as blackmail against her house, though it sounds like her father wouldn't need much more convincing to sign the contract. But it could mean they were stuck under the Malfoy's thumb for a long time to come.

"I hope so, Professor."

He smiled a lopsided, warm smile. "Why don't you go to the hospital wing, get that wrist looked at. Tell Madame Pomfrey you tripped on a root." He winked and his smile dissolved into a mischievous smirk. A smirk unlike Malfoy's arrogant, haughty look. But, one that was humorous, and forced you to feel better about yourself. She smiled and nodded, accepting his course of action.

He said one more thing before she was able to leave. "Anything you want to talk about, Miss Greengrass?"

She wanted to, wanted to spill her guts, but she couldn't. Couldn't admit her faults to her favorite Professor, who had helped her feel more alive than she had in years. She couldn't ruin anything. So she shook her head slowly. "No, sir."

She turned to walk away, reaching the tree line before pausing her stride. "Daphne." She gazed at Professor Jackson from over her shoulder. "If you ever need to talk, I'm here. My fiancé always said I was easy to talk to."

Daphne never knew he had a fiancé, that was nice to know. She hasn't known the Professor long, but she knows he deserves at least some happiness. She smiled and nodded, fully intending to take up that offer sometime. She began her path up to the hospital wing, feeling much better than she had after dealing with that blonde ponce's antics.

She watched the school owl fly off into the distance, following the dot until it disappeared from her sight into the horizon. She had continued on with her day after a quick stop in the hospital wing. She had used the pitiful excuse of tripping when questioned by the resident healer. It felt pretty uninspired, even to her. She was positive that even the most dull of thoughts could have caught her in the lie.

But Madame Pomfrey had taken her tale with a huff and an under-breath comment on how children are always in a rush these days. She had suffered through the rest of her classes that day, Malfoy's words laying heavily upon her mind. He was a weasel, and would say anything if it were in his benefit, so by all means, she shouldn't believe him.

But what if he was right?

Her only constellation being that Malfoy refused to meet her eyes the remainder of that day's schedule, leaving her to mull in her thoughts, which was nearly worse. She would prefer he continue to antagonize her, maybe it would distract her mind from its continuous cycle of jumping to the worst case scenario.

Daphne let out an extended sigh and rested her forearms on the stone window overlooking the forest, carefully avoiding the owl dropping that had accumulated from the hundreds of birds that frequented the tower. It really was quite a view, the best one she'd seen so far. Maybe they'd have good views in America, or France…

The scuffling of shoes brought her back to the reality that she had decided to hang out in a not so private part of the castle.

"Oh, ummm… didn't know anyone was up here." Of course it was Potter that just had to ruin her moment with the landscape. "I'll just, uh, leave then…"

She decided to take pity on the boy and allow him to do his business in the tower, though she didn't relent her glare. "Send a letter if you must, Potter. I don't bite."

He looked like he was itching to descend the stairs from which he had come, wishing to retreat. But he soldiered on, finding his courage, he shuffled over to the beautiful snowy owl that everyone and their mother knew belonged to the great Harry Potter. The owl was too attention grabbing, if you asked her…

He tied a letter to the owl's leg, positioning in such a way that it would be impossible for Daphne to glimpse at the contents, not that she was trying to, mind you. It was just suspicious the way he was handling the letter. He whispered something in her ear and she swiftly took off into the autumn air, letter hanging from her leg.

"So…" he rubbed his wrist with his opposite hand. "Why are you hanging around up here?"

"What's it matter to you? A woman can't desire a moment to herself?" She had hoped her hostile response would scare him away, Daphne wasn't so lucky. He suddenly found a bout of courage, it seemed.

"It's just…curious. I just notice things sometimes." Daphne raised a well-manicured eyebrow at him. "Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle followed you towards the lake, they were in potions, you weren't."

"What are you getting at, Potter?" She narrowed her eyes. He just shrugged off her hostility, seemingly at ease. A far cry from ten minutes ago.

"He had a bruise on his chin. Nobody made a fuss, but I noticed." His tone wasn't accusatory, wasn't judgy, it was level - merely stating a fact.

Daphne leaned back on her forearms, peering out the opening in the stone. She hesitated before issuing her response. "He got what he deserved." An amused noise came from deep in his throat, manifesting itself into a small chuckle.

"Fair enough."

They fell into a silence, only the breeze and the chatter of the tens of owls filling the space. It wasn't awkward, per se, but it wasn't comfortable either, it just… was. It wasn't long before Potter broke the silence, wiping his hands on his pants.

"Well, I'm going to grab some dinner. Have fun up here." Daphne rolled her eyes as he walked towards the staircase. As he rounded the corner and began to descend, Daphne called out.

"Don't think this makes us friends, Potter!"

"Wouldn't dream of it, Greengrass!" His voice echoed into the owlery from the stone staircase, distorted by the walls. Dinner didn't seem all that bad of an idea… Daphne's stomach growled at the thought. Thank Merlin Potter had already left to eat some food of his own.

Daphne took one last moment to overlook the landscape around Hogwarts castle. There aren't too many scenic opportunities in the dungeons. She smiled as she watched a black horse circling over the lake. An exhilarated shout echoed across the treetops as Blackjack entered into a steep dive, hoofs scratching the water's surface, leaving mist in his wake.

She finally turned after watching blackjack descend into the trees, her legs carrying her towards the stairs and away from the owlery. Yeah, dinner didn't sound so bad.

Daphne was relieved as she was finally allowed to sink into her mattress at the end of the night. Her silk pajamas soft and comforting against her skin.

She hadn't closed her curtains, and she could feel Tracey's eyes burning a hole in the side of her head. "Everything alright, Daph?"

Daphne begrudgingly opened her eyes to meet Tracey's gaze and nodded slowly. Tracey wasn't convinced.

"Daphne, if you don't want to tell me, I respect that. But, you're my best friend and I just want to make sure everything is alright. I haven't seen you all day and you don't even talk to me at supper."

"I'm fine, Tracey."

"Is it Malfoy again?" She barely let Daphne finish before blurting that out.

"I-" Daphne just nodded, not finding it within herself to confirm Tracey's suspicion.

"You should count yourself lucky to have caught the eye of a Malfoy."

"Shut up, Parkinson!" The venom in Tracey's voice was so thick that Pansy visibly flinched from across the room, bringing no small amount of joy to Daphne's soul. When Tracey's eyes softened in concern once more, Daphne spoke, softer this time.

"Listen, Trace. I'll fill you in soon, promise. But, it's been a long day and I just want to sleep right now." Tracey didn't look happy, but relented anyway.

"Alright. Goodnight, Daph."

Daphne responded in kind, going to shut her curtains. "Tracey." She caught her friend before she was able to form the barrier of a lush curtain around her mattress. Their eyes met and Daphne offered a small smile. "Thank you."

Tracey's own smile graced her features and she nodded, before slowly closing the curtains surrounding her bed. Daphne did the same, and she was left in solitude, her own private sanctuary. She laid down and drew the cover over herself, nuzzling in for warmth and security as she closed her eyes and drifted into the realm of dreams.