"Ginny…Ginny!" he said shaking her gently.
"Huh? What Jay?" Ginny asked and Jay wrapped an arm around her.
"What's wrong?" he asked and Ginny shook her head as they entered the Great Hall. "Stop shaking your head, I know you well enough by now that it means something." he said and Ginny smiled.
"Well I went to visit Jade today." Ginny said and Jay smiled.
"Really? How is she?" he asked and Ginny shrugged shaking her head. "What does that mean?" he asked.
"Jay, when I went to her house, I saw the usual Harry and Zaara who is very big now and adorable. She has her father's eyes but Jade…I didn't even recognize her Jay." Ginny said.
"She looks different?" he asked and Ginny nodded.
"More like a different person. She looks so sad and when we said goodbye, the look in her eyes was like 'don't leave me.' I didn't want to leave her but…damn something's fishy." Ginny said.
"She's probably going through something." Jay said.
"Yeah…she's abnormally quiet but if you hear the way she talks you would feel so bad it's so depressing how things are. She had a few bruises on her face and cuts but she said she fell down the stairs." Ginny said.
"Do you suspect Harry's abusing her?" Jay said and Ginny shook her head fast.
"No…he's not like that. He loves her to death. He used to tell me how much he loved her. He would never do anything like that." Ginny said.
"If you say so." Jay said and Ginny nodded thinking she needed to talk to Hermione.
After a month, Jade got her invitation to Ginny's wedding and was happy after a long time. Happiness was so foreign for her and feeling true happiness and thinking of her sister being married and happy made her felt like the happiest woman ever. She went to tell Harry but knew he wasn't there and noticed a sudden disappearance of him. He would sometimes skip dinner and come back very late at night.
Ginny's wedding date was on August 1st and Jade was excited knowing that her birthday was a few days after that. Ginny told Jade she needed to attend the fittings for dresses because she was going to be a bridesmaid. Jade got ready and dressed up Zaara wanting to take her too. She left a note to Harry telling her she was going for the final fitting and taking Zaara with her. She left locking the doors and went to meet Ginny. Jade saw Hermione since months and hugged her tightly telling her she was gorgeous. Hermione was showing that she was expecting and was a little over three months along and Jade was excited asking her why she didn't tell her before.
"But I owled you many times telling you about my pregnancy but you never responded back. I thought you were busy so I didn't bother." Hermione said and Jade shook her head.
"I never received any mail…believe me, I would have known." Jade said. Hermione and her discussed about the baby and adored Zaara after they fitted for dresses.
"Why did you stop working?" Hermione asked and Jade sighed.
"Harry said it was best if I relaxed at home and took care of the house than having a job." Jade explained. This got Ginny's attention and Hermione and Ginny looked baffled.
"This does NOT sound like you. You graduated from Hogwarts with HONORS, and you're not going to have a job? What does Harry think of himself?" Ginny asked and Jade calmed her down.
"Gin, I also said the same thing but it's okay. He's managing everything. I don't have a problem with it." Jade said. The two were fussing over this clearly pissed that she wasn't working and following her dreams of something she wanted to be since she was born.
After dinner, Jade left back to her home. She saw the lights on and knew Harry was back. She opened the door and saw Harry on the sofa writing a few things out.
"Where did you go today?" he asked and Jade replied to the fittings. "For what occasion?" he asked setting his pen down.
"For Ginny's wedding. She's getting married the day after tomorrow." Jade said feeling a flutter of happiness in her heart. It died down however when Harry said 'No.' Jade didn't think she was hearing properly.
"I beg your pardon?"
"I said no…you're not going to her wedding." he said and Jade felt like truly angry.
"My sister is getting married Potter so you better let me go to her damn wedding! I don't fucking care what you have got to say or not because I'm going. What reason am I not going for? Is it because of the dress? Don't worry; I'll have one of my brother's pay for everything so you should have to let me go anyways." Jade said seeing him look at her dangerously. She knew she said the wrong things but stood strong seeing him stand up. Zaara was crawling around and started chewing the edge of the table.
"How dare you." he hissed grabbing her neck with both hands and strangling her. Jade recognized the voice he was hissing in but couldn't put a finger on it. But during that time, he started to beat her mercilessly in front of Zaara who looked at Jade struggling to get up from Harry who was pushing her down.
"Bitch, today I'll kill you." he said taking out his belt. He struck her hard and Jade for a millisecond couldn't feel the pain but after the millisecond passed, the pain sharply took over. He took the metal part of the belt and hit her. Zaara crawled by as Harry hit her and Jade cried pleading him to stop. Zaara held her father's leg and Harry turned furiously to see who was disrupting him. He grabbed Zaara and placed her in her playpen as she stood quietly watching her mother being thrown from wall to wall. Harry grabbed her hair and took her to the stairs to the basement.
"You think I'm poor and I'm cheap not to want to buy dresses for you that your brothers can pay? I make the money in this household and what do you do? You sit there and eat it, you fat cow." he said pushing her down the stairs. Jade's tailbone hit the stairs and she tumbled down feeling her head, ribs and fingers get the most impacts. Harry turned the lights on and went downstairs seeing that she couldn't even stand up.
"Get UP!" he yelled pulling her by her ears. "What are you, Malfoy now that you can call me Potter? It should be Mr. Potter to you, you selfish whore." he said ripping off her clothes leaving her in her underwear. "I'll put you in such a state that you wont be able to TALK for a couple of months, let alone go to your sister's wedding." he said finishing things off.
Jade was on her bed completely paralyzed with neck braces, bandages wrapped around almost on every part of her body. Her shoulders and ribs were hurting because of the bones scraping her skin as she breathed. Harry told her to heal like muggles do and not get a hint of healing potions to mend her wounds or broken bones. Ginny's wedding was tomorrow and tears came out of Jade's eyes knowing that she wouldn't see her sister get married in front of her very eyes. Harry walked into their bedroom and walked to the side of her bed. He sat on a chair next to Jade's side of the bed and leaned towards her face.
"Too bad you're not going to Ginny's wedding my dear wife. Don't worry though, I'll come back and give you the details on how it was. I'll also do you a damn favor and take Zaara along because you're too ill to take care of anyone." he said laughing coldly.
"You know, sometimes I really love you…I still do don't get me wrong. The only reason why I do hit you is to make you stay in your place…and make you realize who you are and what your status is. I know you used to whore around but it's sad how men don't even whistle at you anymore. You were so beautiful but this beauty" he said trailing his fingers across her cheek. "was a weapon against me. I had to do this to you Jade…please understand this as my helplessness." he said bursting into laughter.
"Helplessness!" he said laughing and leaving.
The next day, Harry left with Zaara to Ginny's wedding. Ginny and the rest of the bridesmaids as well as Molly were waiting for Jade to arrive but Harry told them that Jade couldn't come due to being ill. That she wished Ginny the best and terribly sorry but she was ill and didn't feel like coming. After a lot of persuading, they all settled. Ginny was completely depressed that her best friend, her sister wasn't coming. She wanted her to be there more than anyone else and it was not a wedding without her. Her brothers and friends all went to the reception and sang so terribly that Zaara and Enya started crying. Harry returned in the morning with Zaara in his arms. He took off her dress and tucked her in her crib. He peered into the bedroom and saw Jade lying there with the bandages off.
"Why did you take the bandages off?" he asked and Jade blinked not trusting herself to speak. "Whatever, the wedding was a blast. Too bad you had to miss it." Harry said clicking his teeth. He put the covers over her and kissed her cheek. Jade's mind raced thinking how none of her parents or family members visited her. Harry finally gave her the healing potions because nobody else made his dinners or cleaned the house up after Zaara.
Jade still felt groggy and extremely hungry because she couldn't eat for a week. She somehow managed to use the bathroom but fainted when she went to walk around. Harry caught her and threw her on the bed calling a personal Healer. The Healer told Harry that she was suffering from severe dehydration and starvation. There was nothing in her system and that she looked like she was battered.
"Oh, she fell from a tree when she tried climbing it. I told her not to but she didn't listen." he said and the Healer nodded thinking something was crazy. He put a saline in her and advised that she would have to get as much saline in her possible. He also told Harry that she needed to eat otherwise she would die. The healer mended her bones and injuries and left telling Harry of things to do. Jade was weak and couldn't even breathe properly. She felt someone make her get up and forcefully feed her some food. She saw Harry place a bowl of rice and chicken in front of her and ordered her to eat.
Days passed and followed by weeks. Jade turned 19 long before and was visited by her family and friends. Their jaw dropped seeing her sunken eyes and a skeletal Jade smiling weakly at them.
"Jade…what happened to you?" Molly asked with tears in her eyes. Jade smiled kissing her Mum and hugged her.
"I was sick Mum…dehydrated." Jade said seeing Ginny shake her head.
"She was thin before she was sick and now? This is too much Jade." Ginny said worried about her sister's health. Jade took the abuse everyday and sensed that she was going to die very early. The only reason why she lived was because of her daughter and to make her into a real woman.
