On Monday Draco indeed was missing from all classes and around the school. Rumors flew around like spores in the air, mainly sticking to the Slytherin house. I had garnered a few nasty looks from envious females including Pansy who on more than one occasion attempted to physically trip me and make it look like an accident.
My neck pain was getting progressively worse and I worried I would struggle during the Quidditch game that Thursday. If it kept up I would have no choice but to visit Madam Pomfrey. I continued to study English and my school topics between the bookstacks, and to my surprise no texts lunged at my head the entire week. I noted that perhaps the issue was occurring too frequently and Pince had likely fixed it.
It was Wednesday when I finally saw my out of house friends again. I met Hermione and Harry at Hagrid's Hut as they had invited me in the hallway. The day was dark and overcast, coming to a close, and my dainty boots crunched lightly on the snowy pathway through the glum winter landscape. Harry and Hermione stood outside where the pumpkin patch had been in the fall.
"Oh, brilliant," Harry said as I stopped to huddle in close to them, "You made it. Hagrid said he'd be out in a second. He has something neat to show us." He was taking in my petty coat and expensive gloves with interest. I stared back at him with a soft smile.
"How funny it is that you two will be against each other in tomorrow's game," Hermione chirped in awkwardly, darting her eyes between us.
"What a world we live in. We are good sports about et, eh?" I looked at him positively and he nodded, his shoulders were bent high as he shivered against the cool breeze.
"She's better than I am it's not bloody fair," He wheezed at Hermione through chattering teeth. Hermione laughed.
She slung her shoulder bag from one shoulder to the other, "Well, it's about time women were recognized properly at this school for their physical capabilities in the sporting community. I for one am proud, despite our house differences." I considered for a second that she was thoroughly enjoying it, as if living vicariously through me.
"Well now what'r use on about then?" A grumbly deep voice floated over from the hut doorway. A loud dog bark erupted from behind Hagrid, "Fang you silly theng, you hush now. Go on." He gestured forwards at the doorway and a black dog bounded out of the structure to ceremoniously cover Harry's hand with goo while Hagrid shut and locked the door.
Harry winced and wiped the slobber onto his jeans as Hagrid approached. He was wearing what appeared to be several layers of unrecognizable furs and his black wiry beard hung down to his lower navel. The broad man stood at least ten feet tall and I shrank back involuntarily a step as he approached.
"Oh boy whatdowe 'ave here! Another Beauxbatons come to visit for thee 'oliday?" He beamed at me, "I 'ave a special place in me 'eart for that 'eadmistress of youres." He nodded his head and raised his eyebrows with a sweet smile on his round face.
"Madeleine actually transferred here last year, Hagrid," Hermione's high-pitched voice corrected him, "She's a Slytherin, although, you wouldn't think it from her, er, dress choice. It's still quite...remnant of her previous school." I had a feeling she meant to elude instead to my personality that made me an odd Slytherin. I glanced down at my tight lavender coat and periwinkle gloves in agreeance regardless.
"Right well, welcome then. Shall we be off?" Hagrid beamed, "Got a real treat for use today."
He lumbered slowly, a lantern hanging from his thick fingers as we moved quietly down the hill alongside the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest. I tried to ignore the pungent aroma of dog, and something else I couldn't place that was drifting off of him every movement he made. Harry walked closely to me while Hermione found herself on the other side of Hagrid from us.
After a while I realized we were heading down towards the Black Lake. Harry suddenly broke the silence as the sun began to disappear completely, making Hagrid's lantern glow more rapidly, "Hey, Madeleine, I'm sorry I didn't show up on Halloween. We were genuinely studying, and then well, I had this horrible gut feeling that I wouldn't be welcomed there even if you invited me. Me and Malfoy we uh, well we go way back. Not in a good way." He was watching the ground as he spoke, his hands jammed into his coat pockets. I could see fog had formed against the bottom rims of his round glasses.
"Honestly, Harry, you should've just gone," Hermione scoffed somewhere from the other side of Hagrid's huge frame.
"Et is okay, please. I was not feeling very well and was not up for late." I tried to sound reassuring as I spoke the half-truth through guilty lips.
Harry nodded and smiled at me, and I took that as an accomplishment. Everything would be fine. Hagrid reached the edge of the lake and put the lantern down a few feet from the gently crashing waves. We all stood in complete silence waiting for him to explain our presence there. The moon beamed down at us with white light as if someone had cut a circle out the black sky.
I rubbed my neck which was still viciously burning. My braids were at least allowing for some cool breeze to nag at the sore area but that wasn't much relief. Hermione shot a curious look at me through squinted eyes and I dropped my hand abruptly.
The surface of the water was covered at the edges with small shiny objects that occasionally glinted in the heightening moonlight. "Hagrid," Harry pointed his finger at one of the clusters of shiny bulbs, "What is that?"
"Well that there, would be why we is here o course," Hagrid said with a bouncy voice, "That there is the eggs o the great Hippocampus horses. They been growing there a few weeks and oi been watching for em to hatch. They prefer cold waders that don' freeze and this here lake never freezes."
"Right." Hermione said slowly. It sounded like she was having an epiphany, "This would be an ideal evening for them to hatch under the energy of the full moon. I've read about them."
Hagrid nodded as a jostle was heard from within the water nearby. We all narrowed our eyes on a ripple that was growing from a patch of eggs nearby. Then another splash from a different area drew our eyes to the other side of the lake. Gradually the lake was getting louder with splashing as small, barely legible appearances of what looked like half-horse, half fish hybrids began bursting out of the glassy orbs and letting out high pitched neighing. It was spectacular and bizarre all at once, and I watched with my mouth agape at the creatures before us.
"Good thing Ron isn't here," Harry chuckled and whispered in my ear. His breath tickled my neck and I giggled slightly, "He hates anything that's gooey and crawls around."
We had stayed at the lake for a while longer, observing some of the full-grown beasts breach the surface with loud snorts, spraying violent spouts of water for several meters. Fang had barked angrily with confusion several times until Hagrid decided he couldn't keep hushing his dog so we walked back. Hermione had been oddly quiet the way back, sparing small concerned glances towards me. I didn't hesitate to narrow my eyes as her as if to ask what?
Harry and Hagrid were extremely chatty leading up to the hut. Hagrid had also uncomfortably pried me about any personal information I knew about my previous headmistress that he could use to send her a new and exciting Christmas gift from. Harry at one point whispered to me that it was likely my association with the French academy that provided Hagrid with the willingness to befriend a Slytherin at all. Apparently, he had quite the turn-off from my house and from what I'd heard, I couldn't blame him.
When we reached the gates of the castle and slipped inside, Hagrid bid us goodnight. At the turn off to the dungeons Harry and Hermione turned to me to say goodnight. Harry hugged me very tightly and for an extended pause. I noticed he might be smelling my hair. Hermione on the other hand was looking at the ground like she was upset, her eyebrows had been knitting together more and more all the way back.
He turned to look at her, "Hermione, everything alright then?"
"Yes, although, I need to speak with Madeleine. You go ahead." She gave him an empty look and a half-hearted smile. Harry's face flashed with concern, but he headed off anyways.
She stood there looking at me with discomfort across her tiny features. I stared back, "Okay, what is dis?" I asked nervously, defensively crossing my arms.
"We should go to the girls lavatory. There's something we need to check for you. And...I really hope that I am wrong about this." Her voice was shaky and my heart panged with sudden fear. What could this be about that was so secretive?
We walked in silence to the bathroom on that level. When she had clarified that no one was in the room she locked the door and cast a silencing charm. My heart rate starting increasing with worry.
"Okay, I didn't want to bring this up in front of Harry, but I couldn't help noticing your behavior earlier. Have you...been, you know, with someone lately?" She asked in a somewhat frail voice. Her face expressed that she felt sorry for me and I stared at her intensely, searching for answers. I just nodded, assuming we were on the same page about what it meant to be with someone.
"And...you're neck, it's been burning hasn't it? Have you looked at it?" She said, hardly getting the words out.
My eyes widened, "Oui, it has. So terribly. Please 'ermione tell me what 'as you so scared?" I could feel my voice trembling, I was on the verge of tears from the look on her face.
She took a deep breath not breaking her eye contact, and seemed to steady her emotions before speaking, "Madeleine, do you know what a bequeathment mark is?"
I shook my head and my hand shot to the heat emanating from my neck. I turned away from the mirror and tried to glance at the back of my neck, now in terror. Hermione grabbed my arm and turned me back to look at her, "No! Don't look yet. I'll look if you want me to. Listen...A bequeathment mark in the wizarding world is known only to be enforced through some of the Sacred 28 families. Most of them have broken the tradition in the last few centuries as it is completely barbaric towards unknowing women. When a male descendent of one of these families loses his innocence to a suitable...partner... his family emblem burns into her neck. It will continue burning until the marriage is completed. It's intended to protect the sincerity of the bond and the family bloodline. It's intended to burn so that there is less hesitation to complete the...act." Her hand slid down to mine from where it was clasped around my arm as tears brimmed in my eyes. I put my free fingers across my mouth and my head was shaking in disbelief.
"Look," She said with sympathy in her eyes, "I can look for you and tell you what it says. Except, I'm sure you already know who it belongs to. My suggestion to you is to keep your hair down for now and think about talking to whoever it is that gave you that mark. Maybe it could be a...happy ending?" She tried to smile but her lip only twitched insincerely.
"Okay..." I only managed to mutter in a weak voice. I was in shock and my legs felt they would give out if I moved. My mind was racing back to all of the boys who had known exactly what was happening when Draco and I had gone to the bathroom alone. They had peer pressured him by giving him that insanely potent drug. They had meant for him to lose it that night to someone, Astoria? Me? They had caged me and it had been a mere afterthought.
"Just please tell me that you'll figure this out before you lead Harry down a path with you. He's fond of you Madeleine incase you couldn't see." Hermione looked at me seriously.
"Of course." I whimpered, squeezing her hand in mine. I tried to focus on the dainty freckles across her nose and not on my racing mind.
"And," She said her voice more stern this time which sent a shiver of surprise through me, "Please, please tell me it is not Malfoy." Her eyes were pleading, and the way she said his name was dripping with acid. I didn't know what to say.
"It's not" I lied pathetically, looking down at my shoes.
"Okay," She said with more strength and compassion, "Then, I will always be here to help you through this. We could even bring it up to the ministry. As I said it is completely barbaric and should've been made illegal years ago. Perhaps we can even break it - if you want it broken, that is."
Then we left. She hugged me at the door to the hallway bathroom and went her own way back to the Gryffindor dormitories. I covered my neck with my hand the entire way down to the dungeons, fighting back rising panic.