Jackie: Maybe I should start to actually make this fit the Rated-R genre now, huh?
Agent Blorange: I think I'm going to be sick.
Draco-muse: Heh heh…I think I'm going to enjoy this chapter.
Takeru-muse: You promised me action long ago. Nothing. Now, HE gets some before me?
Jackie: That's the way it goes. I'm not getting any either, don't feel left out. Okay, I don't own Harry Potter, but I can't wait to own a copy of HPCS DVD and the new book coming out in JUNE!! So close, and yet so far…
Draco-muse: Now, please enjoy!
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Chapter 7: Happy Birthday
Draco's eyes fluttered open slowly, the pain of the curse now a memory. He looked around, and realized that he was in a bed in the Hospital Wing, although he didn't remember actually making it there in the first place. He looked at the small cart next to the bed and saw an empty potion bottle, and then noticed a bitter taste in his mouth, and figured that Madame Pomfrey had given him some God-awful antidote to whatever curse Weasely had put him under.
"Feeling better sweetie?"
Draco turned to the other side of the bed, and his eyes met two very concerned, very sleepy-looking blue pools. He smiled softly. "I feel fine. How'd I get here?"
She tilted her head sideways and smirked. "Come now, you think that I'm just going to leave you in the middle of the hallway? You really distrust me that much?" Draco shook his head. "Of course not. I'm sorry I doubted you."
Jackie reached over and took Draco's hand. "That's alright. I had to go get Filch to get you the rest of the way there. I love you, but I'm not that strong."
Draco laughed for a second, then stopped. "You…what?" Did she really just say that she…or was she just kidding?
Jackie opened her mouth, but no sound came out as she realized what she had just let slip. Her face turned three different shades of red as she tried to come up with some way to explain herself. Luckily for her, Madame Pomfrey chose that moment to check up on her patient, delaying any awkward conversations to a later time. "Well, it's good to see that you're up, Mr. Malfoy. And relatively unharmed, except for some minor bruising. Which I can't say about your opponent. Miss Ashmore, I don't know where you learned self-defense, but you were taught well! I don't think that he'll be pulling a stunt like that again."
Jackie blushed, and Draco winced just imagining the damage that her strong leg muscles inflicted on that delicate part of Ron's anatomy. Madame Pomfrey finished tidying up the bedside tray, and then turned to Draco and Jackie. "Alright, I think it's time for two 6th years to be heading back to their dormitories. And I mean your SEPARATE dorms, alright?"
Draco and Jackie looked at each other and smirked as they were shooed out of the Hospital Wing. They had to split up now, because the dorms were on opposite sides of the school. Draco and Jackie simply held hands for a minute, standing in the middle of the hallway. Jackie was actually avoiding Draco's eye contact for once, afraid of his reaction. "Well," she said, trying to end the night and hoping that all would be forgotten by morning, "I'd better head over to Gryffindor Tower before Mione makes up some story about us…"
Draco placed a single finger on Jackie's lips, signaling her that she didn't need an excuse. He bent down and quickly kissed her, and then turned and walked away towards the dungeons, all the while thinking about what she had said.
"I love you, but I'm not that strong…"
"I love you…"
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Soft sunlight filtered in through the dormitory windows of Gryffindor tower, falling gently over the red and gold sheets of the four poster beds in the room. Jackie stirred slowly, and opened her eyes tentatively before arching her back and stretching out her legs and arms in a dog-like motion. Before she had a chance to fall asleep again, she quickly slipped out of bed and made her way to her trunk, and extracted a semi-clean robe, as well as her favorite worn jeans and a Hardin-Simmons University sweatshirt (A/n- I'm not excited about college. Nope, not worried, or excited, or…terrified…) to wear that day. Might as well be comfortable…I'm not exactly trying to attract a member of the opposite sex…and Draco should know better than say anything…if he even wants to speak to me ever again…
Suddenly, Jackie heard a familiar rustling sound at the window, and turned to see her pet, Brad, hovering outside the window. She smiled and started to the window to let him in, until someone else noticed him.
"AAAAH!" Hermione shrieked. "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?"
The other girls were now sitting bolt upright in their beds, pointing and stammering about the "humongous man-eating" bird fluttering outside. Jackie rolled her eyes and lifted the windowpane, allowing Brad to swoop inside. He landed with a screech on Jackie's trunk. "Uh, duh! Haven't you girls ever seen a bald eagle before?"
Now that Hermione had stopped shrieking, she leaned forward and examined "Brad" more closely. Sure enough, he was a beautiful creature, with glossy white feathers on his head and neck, with reddish brown feathers on the rest of his body that almost matched Jackie's hair. She was still nervous, though, because Brad's talons were impressive to say the least. "I thought that they were endangered," was all that the frazzled girl was able to say.
"They are. However, we got him from a rehabilitation program. He'd been caught in power lines, and they didn't think that he'd ever be able to fly again. Well, there's very little that magic can't heal if you know how to use it. So now, Brad can fly again, we've got a messenger and pet bigger and stronger than any owl, and best of all, he's less likely to be bothered by hunters or zoo catchers, because there's a huge fine attached to the capture or injuring of a bald eagle…not to mention jail time." Jackie ran two fingers down the side of his neck, carefully avoiding the powerful beak. (Just because it was her pet, didn't mean that he wasn't a wild animal). Brad cocked his head and screeched again, softer this time.
It wasn't until everything had calmed down and the other three girls had vacated the room that Jackie noticed the package that Brad had dropped next to her. It was wrapped in several different colored papers, and she smiled softly. They remembered…
Jackie gingerly opened the package, and braced herself for any surprises her friends may have had in store for her. Instead, she found inside several letters, and many smaller packages. She opened the first letter.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY JACKIE!" The letter screamed in the voices of her friends back home. She laughed as she read the scrawly handwriting of her wizarding and muggle friends alike.
Jackie,
Happy Birthday from America! Do they have you speaking in a British accent yet? Bet they do…you're a born mimic. We all miss you a lot! -Manny
And what's the big idea? Only telling Melody about this new boy toy of yours? How rude! It's like you don't trust us! Just kidding, we love you anyway. -Kyrenda
Well, we all thought and thought about what to get you for your birthday, and we decided that you should smell as good as you look for your new boyfriend…Draco, is that it? Ooh, Dragon boy. Fucked him yet? Just kidding! -Steven
You have to use all of these for the next time you see him…it'll drive him nuts, or at the very least, make him hungry…for you! Or ice cream. I wanted ice cream personally. –Melody
Jackie couldn't help but feel a little homesick as she read the notes her friends had sent her. Manny, of course, didn't mention Draco…they had an understanding of sorts. Kyrenda was probably genuinely upset that she didn't tell her as well as Melody, but it's hard to send messages to muggles from a wizarding school, and Kyrenda knows that. Steven…what a perv. Melody…probably the closest thing to a best friend she had left, since she drifted away from most of her muggle friends as the years went by. Melody was a year behind her, but the younger witch was wise beyond her years in certain matters.
Jackie gave a closer inspection to the various smaller packages inside the larger one. She pulled out, first, a set of Strawberries and Cream shampoo and conditioner from Manny…Strawberries for your strawberry hair. Next was a bottle of body wash that smelled like vanilla from Kyrenda…To match the ivory white of your skin. Next, a tube of watermelon-scented hand lotion from Steven…To match your…heh heh…you know…those. From Melody, she received several tubes of cherry lip gloss…To match those ruby red lips. Finally, at the bottom, she found a bottle of homemade cinnamon perfume from everyone collectively…because we know how much you love cinnamon.
Collecting her presents, she grabbed her clothes and made her way to the bathroom. I think it's time for a shower…
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Draco slipped out of the dorms quietly, so as not to wake any of his still-sleeping housemates. He wasn't able to sleep much that night…he couldn't stop thinking about what Jackie had said in the Hospital Wing. She said she loved me…was it just nerves, or was she just joking? How can I tell? Was she serious? Everything's moving so quickly…I have to know what she meant…
He wandered aimlessly around the halls for quite awhile, lost in thought. He wasn't aware where his own feet were carrying him, until he looked up and made a startling discovery… "I'm lost." It was true…the stairway that he had started to climb had shifted as he ascended, turning him in a completely different direction. He looked around for something, anything familiar. "How embarrassing. Lost in your own school. I've only lived here, what, five and a half years?"
"Did you say you were lost, dearie?"
A woman's voice startled Draco and he spun to find the speaker. He saw no one, except for the portrait of a rather large woman in a frilly pink dress. "Y…yes. I know it's silly, but…"
"It's not silly at all," the Fat Lady interrupted him. "But for future reference, you're at Gryffindor Tower."
Draco took a step backwards. Had he really never been to the enemy's dormitories? He knew that Potter and Weasely had been to the Slytherin dormitories. It was no secret that the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws were often seen in each other's common rooms. And yet, he had never been to another dorm. The thought shocked him, and somewhat amused him. "Well, thank you, I can probably find my way back now."
"Wait!"
That wasn't the Lady's voice, Draco thought. He recognized it immediately. He turned slowly, and saw that the portrait had been swung open, and a small, feminine hand was beckoning him inside. He smirked. Maybe fate just decided it was time for some payback to Potter and Weasely for that stunt second year.
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Once inside the Gryffindor common room, Draco looked around for the hand that had beckoned him inside. The room was strangely empty, and he couldn't find her anywhere. "Hello? Where are you?"
"Right behind you."
The soft whisper was so close that Draco nearly jumped out of his skin. He turned his head to see Jackie leaning over his shoulder, smiling gently. "How is it that you never fail to scare the hell out of me?" He reached up behind him and ran his fingers through her damp hair. She must have just gotten out of the shower. "Where's everyone else?"
Jackie walked slowly around to face Draco. "You've let time get away from you. Everyone else is at breakfast." Draco glanced at the large clock against the wall. Sure enough, it was time for everyone to be in the Great Hall for the first meal of the day. "Oh, and why aren't you there?" he asked, taking her hands in his.
"Oh, I was just trying out the presents my friends sent me for my birthday."
Draco's mouth fell open and his cheeks flushed red. "It's…it's your birthday? Why didn't you tell me? Oh man, I feel stupid, you probably did tell me and I forgot, didn't you? I'm so sorry…"
It was Jackie's turn to silence Draco, placing a finger on his lips gently. "I didn't tell anyone. No one knows but you, and my friends in America. In fact, the letter they sent me seemed to talk more about you than me. The loner finally has a companion." She smirked, in a way that surprisingly mimicked Draco's trademark grin. He mirrored her expression. "I will find a way to make this your best birthday ever. But for now, we should get to breakfast before the Golden Gryffindors start thinking that I'm raping you or something."
Jackie smiled and rubbed her hands over Draco's shoulders as she turned to grab her purse. Before she walked out, she leaned over his shoulder and whispered, "You can't rape the willing." With a quick kiss on the side of his face, she was out of the portrait, leaving a very shocked Draco Malfoy standing alone in the Gryffindor common room, a silly grin plastered across his blushing face. (A/n- I can't believe I just said that. I've heard that phrase too often in reference to something else. Please know that I'm kicking my own ass right now from the shame.)
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Breakfast went on as usual. Ron placed as much distance as he could between himself and Jackie, almost afraid that she would attack him again. Harry and Hermione also kept their distance, shocked and appalled at the events at both the Quidditch match and the following night. Jackie really didn't seem to care, though…what she did care about was the constant buzz of gossip humming in the air, and all the glances and glares pointed in hers and Draco's direction. Don't these people have anything else to talk about?
At the Slytherin table, Draco was barely picking at his food. Now he was more worried than ever. Was she coming on to me? Of course she was! First, she says she loves me, and then this…plus, it's her birthday, what am I going to do for her? I can't just do nothing! I can't believe she was coming on to me…
All thoughts were quieted as the daily rustle of feathers filled the Great Hall as the owls delivered the mail. Jackie looked up and immediately recognized Melody's beautiful grey owl, Eliza. She landed on Jackie's arm and dropped another package in her lap, and hooted happily as Jackie rustled the feathers on the back of her head. "Yes, I missed you too, Eliza. I miss Melody too. You go rest in the owlery now, I'll have a message for you to take back in a little while, okay?" Eliza nipped at her finger affectionately and flew off with the other owls.
Jackie inspected the package. It read, "From Dustin, For Jackie and her Boy Toy, have fun tonight!" Jackie rolled her eyes and cautiously peeked inside the box. Seeing its contents, she sat up and quickly stuffed the box into her bag. Oh yes, she thought, we will be having fun tonight!
She took one last sip of her orange juice before heading up to her room once again, thinking that she should probably put on some nicer clothes. After all, she and Draco would be having a little party that night…
(A/n- There's nothing dirty intended there. You'll see what I mean later.)
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Draco was sitting by one of the fountains outside later that afternoon, working on his Potions homework. He had decided that thinking about what Jackie had said was just going to confuse him, so he tried to clear his mind by doing some assignments in order to speed up his brain function.
Suddenly, a small grey owl that he had seen in the Great Hall earlier dropped down next to him and hooted. He saw that she carried a small piece of parchment in her beak, as well as a letter tied with red ribbon around her leg. He gingerly took the parchment, and recognized Jackie's small, crisp handwriting…
Meet me in the foyer after dinner tonight.
He smiled and shook his head, tossing out all of the not-so-decent thoughts that had been flooding his head that morning. He started to scribble a reply, when the grey owl hooted and lifted her leg, indicating that the other note was for him as well. He untied the small ribbon, and saw that this note was not from Jackie.
Hey dude.
If you're reading this, then Eliza's figured out that you're Draco. My name's Melody, and I'm one of Jackie's friends. As you may or may not know, today is Jackie's birthday. She talks about you a lot to me, but everyone else just found out about you recently. Anyways, in case you need some hints for what to get her, just know this…Dustin sent her something for the two of you to share tonight, at least try it. You'll like it. Second, she likes contact. We're a very touchy-feely group over here, whether or not you've noticed, so get close. Third…flowers. Don't care what kind, she just loves flowers. No candy. I know it sounds weird, but she is weird. She's got her reasons. Finally…by the way, this is Manny talking now, I'm just writing for him… "If you hurt her, I swear to God I will find you and you will know what true pain is. And no one will ever find your body." All that said, have fun tonight!
-Melody and Manny
Draco swallowed hard as he read Manny's final message to him, but he had to laugh at some of the other things. He also knew how he wanted to spend her birthday. He finished writing a reply to Jackie, and also wrote a quick "Thank you" to her American friends, and then set off for the lake.
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"You finished quick."
"I'm a fast eater when I need to be."
Jackie and Draco met up shortly after dinner began in the small antechamber of the Great Hall. Jackie started to walk towards the library, but Draco put his hands over her eyes and steered her the other way, out towards the grounds. "Draco, what are you doing?" she asked, giggling. "Shh. It's a surprise. Do you have Dustin's present?"
"Yes, it's right here in my pur…how did you know about Dustin's present? Or Dustin, for that matter?"
Draco leaned close to her neck, and his hot breath on her shoulder against the cold night air made Jackie shiver. "Your friends have informed me of some vital information." Draco's eyes fluttered shut as he pressed his lips to her long, slender neck, feeling her slow, steady breathing as he moved down to her shoulders. They were right, she does like contact. I'm not complaining.
He continued to walk along behind her, covering her eyes, for several minutes, indulging in a slow worshiping of her neck or shoulders every so often. Jackie thought that she was going to burst with happiness…she was beginning to feel lightheaded from her deep breaths, and strange new feelings were stirring in the pit of her stomach that felt like a mixture of excitement and tension. Every contact between Draco's soft lips and the delicate skin of her neck left trails of fire burning wherever he touched. Finally, he removed his hands from her eyes, and Jackie found herself staring out over the dark waters of the lake, the full moon reflecting eerily in the rippling waves.
She drew a quick breath in surprise, as she also saw a soft blanket spread on the ground, on the center of which a beautiful bouquet of flowers was positioned. She knelt down and saw a card attached to the flowers, which varied from deep red roses to delicate white carnations and every shade of red and pink in between. It was written in Draco's slanted, elongated handwriting, one simple phrase that made her heart skip a beat…"I love you more than you will ever know." A tear slid down her cheek, and she raised her hands to her mouth, unable to speak.
Draco slid down gently next to her, and delicately wiped the tear off of her cheek with a slow, burning motion of his hand against her face. She shook her head and smiled at him. "Let's open Dustin's present, shall we?" She reached into her purse (which Malfoy found, was one of those magical bottomless ones) and extracted a Styrofoam package, containing two magically frozen red drinks, smelling strongly of both strawberries and rum. She handed him one, smiling devilishly. "Strawberry-mango daiquiris. The only kind of alcohol I can stand. I sometimes think that it's Dustin's mission in life to get me drunk." She took a sip from her glass, but the glass appeared to be just as full as before. "Apparently with a bottomless charm on them. He really wants us smashed."
Draco sniffed his drink again. He'd had alcohol before, but only the odd beer on a dare, and some champagne at some of his parents' social gatherings. As he took a tentative drink, the flavor of the fruits almost completely covered the taste of the rum, but leaving just enough flavour to give him a slight head rush. He definitely enjoyed this more that anything he'd ever had before. He took another drink, and set the glass down on the blanket. "Of course, you realize that if we're caught, we're in big trouble." Jackie set hers down as well. "Do you really think that we'll be missed enough for someone to come looking for us?" Draco pondered this for a second. "You have a point." He picked up his glass again and made a gesture towards Jackie before taking another drink. The two were definitely starting to feel the effects of the rum on their systems…both were slightly tipsy by the time Jackie crawled into Draco's lap.
Draco stroked a strand of red hair out of her eyes, pondering what to say. "Um, are you going back home for Christmas vacation?" he asked, hoping it was an innocent enough question, in contrast to the many dirty things the alcohol was making him see in his mind. "Yep. I've got to take some finals, and then my friends and I are just going to enjoy the break together…do you want to come?"
Draco hadn't expected that. "Wha…what? You're inviting me to come home with you? To America?" Jackie laughed and shook her head. "To San Antonio. It sounds so weird when you say America. But, that's beside the point… yes, I'm inviting you home with me, that is, if you want to come. My friends would love to meet you…and I wouldn't mind your company during the season of love." Draco tilted Jackie's face towards his, and stared deeply into her eyes, which looked even more mysterious as the moonlight reflected off of the light blue center and darkened the ring around the iris. Her pupils dilated as she gazed at him, and a soft smile lit Draco's face. "I would be honoured, my lady."
Draco and Jackie melted into a soft kiss, and Draco inhaled the sweet scents of strawberries, cinnamon, and vanilla. It almost made him hungry, even though he had just eaten. His tongue explored her mouth, tasting again the sweet liquor that they had just partaken in. Maybe it was just that, or maybe something more, that sparked the fire that was burning in their bodies at the moment. Maybe it was the memory of last night, Draco fighting for and winning Jackie's honor, and Jackie standing protectively by him even as Weasely tried to take her away. Maybe it was the fact that it was a very special day for them…Jackie was finally 17, and the knowledge that what she and him wanted to do was now "legal" both in San Antonio and Britain. Maybe a combination of all the events of the past 3 months put together. But on that moonlit night by the lake, seen only by the basketball-sized eye of the Giant Squid, everything fell into place.
Draco slowly leaned Jackie back against the soft blanket, all the while deepening the kiss to the point where their lungs burned for air and their lips were sore from pressure. His hands began an exploration of first her shoulders, then down over her soft chest, moving slowly over the delicate mounds, and leaving trails of fire as he went. Jackie ran her hands down Draco's chest, and then up again under his shirt, her fingers lingering over each sculpted muscle. Draco reached the tail of her shirt, and slipped a hand underneath the soft material to trace circles across the flesh of her stomach. His hands continued to creep upwards until his fingers brushed over her breasts through the thin material of her brassiere, eliciting a soft moan from his lover. Draco looked deeply into Jackie's eyes, bent close to her ear. "I love you, Jacquillynne Ashmore."
She closed her eyes and whispered, "I love you too, Draco Malfoy."
As the moon rose higher over the Hogwarts grounds, the lovers were silhouetted against the picture-perfect background, a few sleepy birds the only witnesses to their union.
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Agent Blorange: You are truly evil. I like the way you think!
Takeru-muse: *Smirking* And she leaves it at that! Oh, no action for Draco-muse tonight!
Draco-muse: At least I got some implied action. *Takeru-muse glares at him. Draco-muse's turn to smirk*
Jackie: I tried. I really did. I've been working on this all day. I couldn't bring myself to actually write a full scene. I think my mind was scarred earlier this year…*Shudders at bad memories*
Draco-muse: Don't think about that, Jackie. You're safe with your friends, he can't hurt you any more.
Jackie: Well, please forgive my failure, and stay tuned!