Their footsteps echoed down the empty corridors as they slowly made their way back to Gryffindor tower. Amanda was very happy that they were not sending her home, but she was still walking quietly and casting nervous glances around her. Jessica sympathized with her. She knew what it was like, for not only was Hogwarts an impressive place, it was sometimes very frightening and intimidating. Hermione, though very relieved they were not in serious trouble, lead their way down the corridor, fretting over what they could do to continue helping without Dumbledore finding out. Ron was walking behind Hermione, with Amanda, explaining the castle and pointing out various things as they walked. Harry was behind them, just sort of dragging his feet along, not really interested in anyone or anything. Jessica would have been wondering what was wrong with him, if she hadn't been so preoccupied with her own problems. She walked slowly, bring up the rear of their little group, rubbing her
neck and thinking hard. Should she have told Dumbledore about her scar? He did already know about Pettigrew. But still, what could he possibly do to help her?
Her worries must have shown on her face, because Harry slowed his pace to catch up with her.
"What's up?" he asked her, somewhat concerned.
She shook her head, unable to find the words to express all of the terror and guilt she felt inside.
"I see," Harry said keenly, "It's one of those kind of problems."
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"Well, I get those problems sometimes. Those ones where you don't know how to put what your feeling in to words. Is that it?"
"I guess," she said slowly. She wasn't actually sure what was bothering her either. "Harry," she said suddenly, "Do you think we should have told Dumbledore about my scar?"
He thought for a minute. "I guess not, I mean, he knows about my scar, and the only thing he's been able to tell me so far is that it hurts when Voldemort is feeling evil or something. And besides, I get stared at far too much because of this scar...and you don't need that. People already think your odd." She glared at him. "What I mean is that you're unusual," he said hurriedly, "in a good way. No. It's good that you only told Me, Ron, Hermione, and Amanda." He sounded so sure of himself that she relaxed a little bit.
"And what about you Harry? What's bothering you?" she asked turning to face him as they walked.
"Ahhh. A group therapy session, I see?" he said knowingly and she laughed. "Well, I don't know. It's not something that's really wrong. I was just wondering what was in that letter that Dumbledore had in his hand."
Jessica thought for a minute, she had almost completely forgotten about that letter. "Oh, well I don't reckon it was anything big. Why are you so worried about it?"
Harry shifted his shoulders uncomfortably. "I dunno, actually. There was just something about the way Dumbledore looked..."
The front of the group had already turned the corner, and as Jessica and Harry approached it, they noticed that the footsteps had stopped. They walked carefully around and found themselves face to face with a girl. She had short blonde hair, and was wearing a fake smile that didn't reach her hard cold eyes. It took Jessica a moment, but finally she realized it. This was the girl from the library. Jessica thought hard for another moment, and then remembered that her name was Faith.
No one had moved, and the blonde girl just continued to stand there, beaming at them. Then, Faith's eyes fell on Harry.
"Harry! How great to see you! I was just looking for you!" she exclaimed in her false cheerful voice.
Harry was visibly confused. "Er, hi?" he said.
"Oh, can I have a word with you? I have some very exciting news for you!"
"Sure," Harry said cautiously.
Faith beckoned to him to follow her, but he didn't seem to trust her that well yet.
"Why don't you just tell me right here?" he said.
"Oh," Faith said sounding confused. She obviously hadn't planned on him refusing her offer. "Well," she said, regaining herself, "Are you sure you want your...friends here to find out?" Her eyes lingered on Jessica for a moment, and she could see her gaze narrow. "Oh it's you!" Faith exclaimed in fake enthusiasm, "Well, if I knew you were friends with the great Harry Potter, I would have asked you to pass along this message!"
Jessica stood her ground. There was something very wrong about this girl. "That's right. I'm his good friend. Now, why don't you tell us what you wanted to say?" she said, somewhat defiantly, stepping forward to stand right beside Harry.
Faith's plastered smile faltered a little. "Well, alright, if you insist on telling them," she said with a pointed look at Harry. Harry merely nodded, his gaze narrowing even further. He was starting to dislike this girl more and more by the minute. "Well, what I came to tell you is that, as we all know you like Cho, I'm going to try and get her to like you, seeing as I'm her best friend in the WHOLE world. I think she already does like you, she just doesn't want to admit it."
A very tense pause followed this statement. Jessica could feel the heat coming off Harry. She felt bad for him, he had to be so embarrassed.
Faith continued with her cold eyes locked on Harry. "However, doing this will require some work. So, I have a favor to ask of you."
Jessica couldn't believe her ears. This girl had just mortally embarrassed Harry, and now she was asking for a favor?!
Harry made no move.
"You see," Faith continued, her eyes crueler than ever, "I've seen you talking to a certain boy quite a lot. I think his name is Draco Malfoy..."
Harry tensed up beside Jessica.
"We don't talk to that piece of filth!" Ron spat, angrier than Jessica had ever seen him.
"Right, well, anyway," Faith continued as though there had been no interruption, "My friends and I have a bet going. There's a rumor floating around that the school is going to be hosting another Ball, after the success of last year's. Well, my friends have dared me to go with Draco. And, being that I'm in Ravenclaw, I don't have any classes with him...So I'd like you to talk to him for me. If you do," she added, her eyes glittering with malice, "I guarantee that if there is a dance, Cho will go with you."
Harry started to shake. He seemed incapable of words, but Jessica had the horrible impression that somewhere in the back of his mind he was thinking over this offer.
After no one spoke for a long time, Jessica stepped protectively in front of Harry, who still couldn't speak.
"No deal," she hissed, "If Cho won't go with him, then it's her loss. He doesn't need someone like you to help him."
Faith looked a little shocked. She was studying Jessica with intense dislike, when suddenly it hit her. "You're the girl," she sputtered. "I was there. I saw you. You showed Draco a paper or something, then he insulted you and you grabbed him by his head, and...and..."
Jessica started to shake also. How had she seen? The corridor had been deserted...right?
"Cho and my other friends saw it too. That's when they came up with the dare." Then before Jessica could say anything, Faith looked at Amanda, "And who are you? Oh god, don't tell me. We've got another Muggle in our school." She laughed an evil laugh, her voice dripping with bitterness.
"Shut up!" Ron ordered, stepping in front of Amanda.
Faith stopped laughing. She could tell that the situation was getting worse. It was now five against one. She turned to walk away, but before she was out of sight, she spun around and called out, "Harry! My offer still stands." Then she walked away and the corridor rang with her hate-filled laughter. Jessica's scar suddenly stung as though it had been light on fire.
Hermione, who had been oddly silent, said in a shaky voice, "I can't believe she's in Ravenclaw. I mean, of all houses, I thought for sure she'd be in Slytherin."
The stinging in Jessica's neck stopped as suddenly as it had started. She hadn't screamed. It had been more of a mental pain.
Ron walked over to Harry, who was still looking livid, his face a pale red.
"You all right, Harry?" Ron asked, concerned.
Harry didn't answer, he merely turned to Jessica. "Did you feel that?" he whispered.
Jessica nodded. "I thought I was just imagining it though..."
"You weren't," Harry said urgently, "Because I felt it too."
"Would someone like to tell me what's going on?" Amanda asked suddenly.
Jessica jumped slightly, she had forgotten Amanda was there
"Our scars..." she said quietly, "They're only supposed to hurt us when danger...is nearby..."
neck and thinking hard. Should she have told Dumbledore about her scar? He did already know about Pettigrew. But still, what could he possibly do to help her?
Her worries must have shown on her face, because Harry slowed his pace to catch up with her.
"What's up?" he asked her, somewhat concerned.
She shook her head, unable to find the words to express all of the terror and guilt she felt inside.
"I see," Harry said keenly, "It's one of those kind of problems."
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"Well, I get those problems sometimes. Those ones where you don't know how to put what your feeling in to words. Is that it?"
"I guess," she said slowly. She wasn't actually sure what was bothering her either. "Harry," she said suddenly, "Do you think we should have told Dumbledore about my scar?"
He thought for a minute. "I guess not, I mean, he knows about my scar, and the only thing he's been able to tell me so far is that it hurts when Voldemort is feeling evil or something. And besides, I get stared at far too much because of this scar...and you don't need that. People already think your odd." She glared at him. "What I mean is that you're unusual," he said hurriedly, "in a good way. No. It's good that you only told Me, Ron, Hermione, and Amanda." He sounded so sure of himself that she relaxed a little bit.
"And what about you Harry? What's bothering you?" she asked turning to face him as they walked.
"Ahhh. A group therapy session, I see?" he said knowingly and she laughed. "Well, I don't know. It's not something that's really wrong. I was just wondering what was in that letter that Dumbledore had in his hand."
Jessica thought for a minute, she had almost completely forgotten about that letter. "Oh, well I don't reckon it was anything big. Why are you so worried about it?"
Harry shifted his shoulders uncomfortably. "I dunno, actually. There was just something about the way Dumbledore looked..."
The front of the group had already turned the corner, and as Jessica and Harry approached it, they noticed that the footsteps had stopped. They walked carefully around and found themselves face to face with a girl. She had short blonde hair, and was wearing a fake smile that didn't reach her hard cold eyes. It took Jessica a moment, but finally she realized it. This was the girl from the library. Jessica thought hard for another moment, and then remembered that her name was Faith.
No one had moved, and the blonde girl just continued to stand there, beaming at them. Then, Faith's eyes fell on Harry.
"Harry! How great to see you! I was just looking for you!" she exclaimed in her false cheerful voice.
Harry was visibly confused. "Er, hi?" he said.
"Oh, can I have a word with you? I have some very exciting news for you!"
"Sure," Harry said cautiously.
Faith beckoned to him to follow her, but he didn't seem to trust her that well yet.
"Why don't you just tell me right here?" he said.
"Oh," Faith said sounding confused. She obviously hadn't planned on him refusing her offer. "Well," she said, regaining herself, "Are you sure you want your...friends here to find out?" Her eyes lingered on Jessica for a moment, and she could see her gaze narrow. "Oh it's you!" Faith exclaimed in fake enthusiasm, "Well, if I knew you were friends with the great Harry Potter, I would have asked you to pass along this message!"
Jessica stood her ground. There was something very wrong about this girl. "That's right. I'm his good friend. Now, why don't you tell us what you wanted to say?" she said, somewhat defiantly, stepping forward to stand right beside Harry.
Faith's plastered smile faltered a little. "Well, alright, if you insist on telling them," she said with a pointed look at Harry. Harry merely nodded, his gaze narrowing even further. He was starting to dislike this girl more and more by the minute. "Well, what I came to tell you is that, as we all know you like Cho, I'm going to try and get her to like you, seeing as I'm her best friend in the WHOLE world. I think she already does like you, she just doesn't want to admit it."
A very tense pause followed this statement. Jessica could feel the heat coming off Harry. She felt bad for him, he had to be so embarrassed.
Faith continued with her cold eyes locked on Harry. "However, doing this will require some work. So, I have a favor to ask of you."
Jessica couldn't believe her ears. This girl had just mortally embarrassed Harry, and now she was asking for a favor?!
Harry made no move.
"You see," Faith continued, her eyes crueler than ever, "I've seen you talking to a certain boy quite a lot. I think his name is Draco Malfoy..."
Harry tensed up beside Jessica.
"We don't talk to that piece of filth!" Ron spat, angrier than Jessica had ever seen him.
"Right, well, anyway," Faith continued as though there had been no interruption, "My friends and I have a bet going. There's a rumor floating around that the school is going to be hosting another Ball, after the success of last year's. Well, my friends have dared me to go with Draco. And, being that I'm in Ravenclaw, I don't have any classes with him...So I'd like you to talk to him for me. If you do," she added, her eyes glittering with malice, "I guarantee that if there is a dance, Cho will go with you."
Harry started to shake. He seemed incapable of words, but Jessica had the horrible impression that somewhere in the back of his mind he was thinking over this offer.
After no one spoke for a long time, Jessica stepped protectively in front of Harry, who still couldn't speak.
"No deal," she hissed, "If Cho won't go with him, then it's her loss. He doesn't need someone like you to help him."
Faith looked a little shocked. She was studying Jessica with intense dislike, when suddenly it hit her. "You're the girl," she sputtered. "I was there. I saw you. You showed Draco a paper or something, then he insulted you and you grabbed him by his head, and...and..."
Jessica started to shake also. How had she seen? The corridor had been deserted...right?
"Cho and my other friends saw it too. That's when they came up with the dare." Then before Jessica could say anything, Faith looked at Amanda, "And who are you? Oh god, don't tell me. We've got another Muggle in our school." She laughed an evil laugh, her voice dripping with bitterness.
"Shut up!" Ron ordered, stepping in front of Amanda.
Faith stopped laughing. She could tell that the situation was getting worse. It was now five against one. She turned to walk away, but before she was out of sight, she spun around and called out, "Harry! My offer still stands." Then she walked away and the corridor rang with her hate-filled laughter. Jessica's scar suddenly stung as though it had been light on fire.
Hermione, who had been oddly silent, said in a shaky voice, "I can't believe she's in Ravenclaw. I mean, of all houses, I thought for sure she'd be in Slytherin."
The stinging in Jessica's neck stopped as suddenly as it had started. She hadn't screamed. It had been more of a mental pain.
Ron walked over to Harry, who was still looking livid, his face a pale red.
"You all right, Harry?" Ron asked, concerned.
Harry didn't answer, he merely turned to Jessica. "Did you feel that?" he whispered.
Jessica nodded. "I thought I was just imagining it though..."
"You weren't," Harry said urgently, "Because I felt it too."
"Would someone like to tell me what's going on?" Amanda asked suddenly.
Jessica jumped slightly, she had forgotten Amanda was there
"Our scars..." she said quietly, "They're only supposed to hurt us when danger...is nearby..."