"DRAGON! THERE'S A DRAGON IN THE COMMON ROOM!"
Jinx was rudely woken up on April 11th by the sound of screams and panic coming from the Hufflepuff Common Room. Penny continued sleeping through the noise, but Rowan was up and alert. The two of them ran out of their room, where Tonks nearly tripped over Rowan's slippers as she was leaving her own room.
"There's a dragon!" Tonks said excitedly, taking Rowan's wrist and running out to the Common Room.
Rowan turned her head and gave Jinx a panicked look. "If there is a-Tonks!" Rowan cried out as she knocked over a potted plant hanging on the wall. "If there is a dragon, then why are we running towards it!"
That was a good point, but Jinx still hurried after Rowan, curious as to how a dragon managed to get inside the dorms. It seemed that everyone else had a similar idea as a large group of people had gathered at the entrance of the Common Room. Jinx strained her head but she couldn't see what was going on.
Suddenly, a large figure swooped toward the crowd. One girl at the front of the crowd, who Jinx recognized as one of the Hufflepuff Chasers, shrieked as the thing roared at her.
"Dahlia! Careful!" someone was shouting as the girl, Dahlia, jumped back in fear. Jinx could see now that it was a dragon, and a very realistic-looking one at that. Dahlia fell backward into the crowd, which sent everyone into a frenzy.
Someone shoved their way past Jinx and ran to the front of the crowd, wand in hand and arm outstretched.
"Oh, Daniel, thank goodness you're here!" a girl yelled. "Dahlia's forehead is bleeding and-"
"More importantly there's a dragon!" Philip, a Second-Year, screamed shrilly.
"Someone help Dahlia up, can't have our star Chaser bleeding out on the ground," Daniel commanded. Immediately, several people bent down to help Dahlia up and she was carried to the closest dorm room. "And as for this dragon, Riddikulus!"
The dragon suddenly turned into a rather large balloon animal, and a few of the First-Years who had been previously terrified were now laughing. The balloon-dragon slowly shrunk until the balloons popped, leaving nothing but a faint purple light as a reminder that it had once existed.
"Hooray for Danny-boy, our hero!" Jinx heard Lenny shout.
"Hooray for Danny-boy!" Everyone else echoed and cheered. Daniel waved to the crowd, his cheeks tinged red with embarrassment, but Jinx could see the relief in his expression. Thank Merlin that dragon had only been a Boggart, and not a real one. Then again, she couldn't imagine how a real dragon could make its way inside the school and not draw more attention than the Boggard already did.
Daniel was helping a young boy stand up, a boy that Jinx recognized as Chauncy. Chauncy rubbed the back of his neck as he took a look at the crowd of Hufflepuffs staring at him.
"Er, sorry about that," he apologized in a high-pitched voice, "I didn't mean to scare you all!"
"Don't worry, Chauncy," Daniel said, patting him on his shoulder. "It's just a Boggart, nothing that we can't handle."
"Just don't let that Skeeter woman here about this," Jane Court chimed in. "She'll be bothering all of us for details and spin the most ludicrous tale!"
A murmur rippled throughout the students, and Jinx couldn't help but nod her head in agreement. She felt someone move behind her and turned to see Rowan and Tonks had returned to her side.
"Poor Dahlia," Rowan said. "Can you imagine what Skeeter will have to say about her missing the rest of the Quidditch season? That looked like a really bad concussion!"
And as Rowan and Tonks talked about how this little incident would affect Hufflepuff's already-limited prospects for the Quidditch Cup, Jinx was unfortunately reminded of the existence of Rita Skeeter.
Since giving her that envelope, Skeeter had completely left Jinx alone. Jinx was surprised, but certainly welcomed the relative peace that came with Skeeter not bothering her. She still wasn't quite sure how she had managed to keep Skeeter away from her, but perhaps Skeeter didn't anticipate Jinx causing more trouble than she had.
When Penny, Rowan, and Tonks began to notice Skeeter's noticeable absence in their classes, they asked Jinx why Skeeter was now avoiding her when she had been so interested in Jinx before. But Jinx liked keeping their confrontation a secret, so she merely shrugged. Penny, in particular, prodded at Jinx for answers, but if she didn't want to open up, then Jinx didn't feel any obligation to give her friend any more fuel to the gossip fire.
So when April 11 finally rolled around, Jinx found it difficult to sleep the night before. She clutched the envelope and blank paper all night, wondering what trick Skeeter had up her sleeve. She managed to fall asleep right as the sun rose, and right as Rowan slipped out of the room for Quidditch practice.
The owl pecking at the window above Penny's bed was what woke Jinx up. It was already eleven in the morning, and as tempted as Jinx was to sleep in to miss Skeeter's announcement, she couldn't help but feel a bit curious as to what Skeeter had planned.
As Jinx entered the Great Hall to see Rita Skeeter (for hopefully the last time in a while), she was immediately surrounded by her friends. All she wanted to do was sleep in, but it seemed Skeeter was set on ruining her day in more ways than one.
Rowan was the first to run up to Jinx, a wide smile on her face. "If my calculations are correct, you're the odds-on favorite, Jinx!" she said. While that might be the case, Jinx noticed the rowan tree branch she had in her cloak pocket; Rowan still hung onto the small hope that she would win and be able to make it onto the front page of the Daily Prophet to promote her family's tree farm.
"I hope you make the front page of the paper so I can use your face for kindling," Merula said, glaring at her from the Slytherin table. Jinx blew her a kiss (which Barnaby and Aubrey giggled at) before walking with Rowan to the Hufflepuff table.
Upon seeing her, Penny, Bill, and Ben stopped their conversation. "Everyone is talking about how you're sure to win the competition, Jinx," Penny gushed.
"Well done, Jinx," Bill said, clapping her shoulder. "You should be proud."
"I'm more concerned about Skeeter's real reasons for being here," Jinx said, trying to calm down the excitement. Skeeter hadn't even announced the winter: the envelope that she had given Jinx had been unopened until this morning. The contents of the envelope had confused Jinx, as it only contained a blank slip of parchment.
"What do you mean?" Rowan frowned.
"Our last conversation was very strange," Jinx said quietly, so only the five of them could hear. "She asked me all sorts of questions about Hogwarts, the professors, and the Cursed Vaults. She said she knows that my brother is still alive, and is being held captive."
"That sounds like a threat," Ben whispered. "I know a threat when I hear one. I can imagine them all the time."
Rowan gasped. "Cound Rita Skeeter be R?! The letter we found talked about severe consequences for not following the instructions."
"She said-" Jinx tried to say, but was interrupted by Rita approaching the podium.
"Thank you again for your hospitality, and enthusiastic participation in this humble competition," Rita cooed. "I told you I was here to find the most promising witch or wizard amongst a talented class, and you did not disappoint. There are still many threats our world is facing, and I am confident that today's winner will lead the charge, and deserves to be recognized throughout the wizarding world. Without further ado, the witch or wizard who has been deemed most promising, and will be featured on the front page of the Daily Prophet is… Going to be announced by Jinx Raider!"
A few of the students who had begun to clap stopped, and joined everyone else in turning toward Jinx. Penny pushed her back slightly, and Jinx stood up rather ungracefully.
"Huh?" she asked, clearing her throat. The professors were all looking rather unamused, but the rest of the student body seemed quite entertained by the new twist to the competition.
Rita beckoned Jinx up to the front of the Great Hall, and Jinx reluctantly obeyed, not wanting to see what Rita would do when angered.
"Don't be shy, dear," Rita cooed, eyes narrowing at Jinx. "We both know I gave you a paper announcing the winner before we arrived. It's in your pocket."
"I don't know what you're talking about," Jinx said, crossing her arms. Behind her, Professor McGonagall whispered something to Professor Sprout, and the two women turned to Jinx with pitying eyes.
This still didn't deter Skeeter. "Such a humble child," she continued. "Please don't keep the people waiting, Jinx. Tell us who earned the victory."
"The paper is blank," Jinx said. She took the blank parchment out of her pocket and lifted it in the air. She thought she heard Snape let out a rather undignified snort from the staff table, but it could've been the general sounds of people chattering.
"Your modesty is getting tiresome," Rita gritted her teeth. "Announce the winner." Jinx had never seen such a forced smile, and it did give her a small sense of satisfaction to see Rita getting thrown off balance.
Who could she pick that would further annoy Rita, but who also truly deserved some recognition and would appreciate it? As Jinx's eyes scanned the tables, they settled on a familiar bespectacled face. Who better deserving than her dearest friend?
Jinx stepped up to the podium, shooing Skeeter to the side. "Rowan Khanna obviously won the competition," Jinx announced. The smile on her face widened when she saw the excited expression on Rowan's face.
Tonks was the one to start the "Let's go Rowan!" chants first, with the rest of the Huflepuffs joining in soon after. The rest of the students applauded politely, although Jinx was pleased to see Ben and the Weasleys cheering too over at the Gryffindor table.
"I'm glad she will finally be recognized for her intelligence, hard work, and bravery," Jinx continued to say over the applause. She reached a hand and motioned for Rowan to walk up to the front of the Great Hall. The applause got louder as Rowan made her way up to the podium. Jinx gave her a quick hug.
Rita regained control of the microphone and forced out a smile. "Congratulations you awkward little farmer," she said, her voice sounding pained.
"Thanks!" Rowan beamed. "Look, I even have my tree branch!" She lifted the rowan branch in the air, and Tonks encouraged the crowd to cheer even more. From the corner of her eye, Jinx could see the flash of a camera. The smile on her face was genuine as she watched Rowan bask in the glory of "winning" the competition. Perhaps she would actually read this edition of the Daily Prophet, just so she could see Rita's sour expression front and center.
"Feel free to return to your dormitories, or whatever these nagging professors would have you do," Rita sighed into the microphone. Then, she stepped down and faced Jinx and Rowan. "Miss Khanna, I will be in touch about an interview for my story with you later. You can leave."
When Rowan looked at Jinx and didn't move, Rita glared at her. "I need a word with Jinx before I return to the offices in Diagon Alley," she snapped. "She is required to craft another breathtaking bit of journalism."
Rowan gave Jinx a hug goodbye before heading out of the Great Hall with a very happy Professor Sprout. Sprout turned around and gave Jinx a cheerful wink. At least this was a decision that the professors would all approve of; Jinx was sure that even Snape probably couldn't think of anything to truly complain about Rowan.
Once the Great Hall was completely vacated, Rita turned to face Jinx directly.
"What was that all about?" Jinx demanded, crossing her arms.
"I wanted to watch you squirm," Skeeter smirked. "To see how you'd respond to the shock, attention, and peer pressure. It'll help inform how I deal with you in the future."
"The future?" Jinx raised an eyebrow. If it were up to her, she would never have to speak with Skeeter ever again.
"I wish you would have chosen Merula over Rowan," Rita sighed, ignoring Jinx, "but the farmer will do. My sophisticated readers love feeling superior to rural folk."
"You better not write anything bad," Jinx warned.
But Rita only laughed and patted her shoulder. "Good luck finding your brother, and the Cursed Vaults," she said. "Remember, someone is always watching, and I am only a letter away."
With glittering eyes, Rita Skeeter walked out of the Great Hall, presumably to find a fireplace to Floo herself out of the school. Jinx watched her retreat and she exhaled loudly. She was grateful, she supposed, that that whole adventure had ended rather uneventfully. And now she knew about another person who was too nosy for their own good and should be avoided at all costs.
When Charlie had asked Jinx to review Care of Magical Creatures with him, Jinx didn't think much was unusual about the request. It was true that it was still early May and exams were more than a month away, but Charlie was passionate about creatures so it wasn't that out of the question. But, when Charlie completely skipped over the section on creatures and continued walking towards the back study area, Jinx became suspicious. She slowed her pace a bit and tried to look over Charlie's shoulder.
Upon seeing Bill's long red hair in the distance, Jinx relaxed a bit. So it was just a Weasley brother plot that she would be dragged into. That wasn't too bad at all.
"And he's here," one of the Gryffindors sitting at Bill's study table announced.
"Hey Tristan," Charlie greeted. Then, to Bill, he said, "We're all ready now."
"Ready for what?" Jinx demanded. She didn't like the way all of Bill's friends seemed to be biting back their laughter, or how Charlie was already grinning widely.
"You're good at keeping secrets, Charlie," a Ravenclaw with curly hair laughed.
"I swear to Merlin," the boy from before, Tristan, shook his head, "you need to find more friends who are girls, Bill."
"Lucy already told you want to do," the Ravenclaw boy said.
"Who's Lucy?" Jinx whispered to Charlie.
"Oh right, introductions are in order," the Ravenclaw chimed in. "I'm Sam Fawley. Lucy, she's my girlfriend, and a very good advice-giver," he directed that last part at Bill.
"Tristan Johnson," the first boy said, giving Jinx a friendly wave.
"And I'm Uriah Levy," the fourth boy, who was bent low over a stack of notes. "I think we met at the end of the school year last year."
"It's nice to meet you, Sam. And the two of you again, Tristan and Uriah," Jinx said, still confused. "So, why exactly am I here?"
At this, everyone but Bill started laughing. Uriah was the first one to settle down his laughter, and he gave Jinx an amused smile. "How are you in the ways of romance, Jinx?"
"Excuse me?" Jinx asked, raising an eyebrow.
"No, no, no," Charlie said, shaking his head, "you're going about this all wrong, Levy! Jinx, Bill is a little bit infatuated with this girl named Emily Tyler. She's a Fifth-Year Gryffindor, do you know her?"
Jinx paused for a moment. Then, she remembered Emily as the beautiful Fifth-Year that Aiden had fancied for a week earlier that year. She nodded, smiling a bit as she remembered how much Lenny had made fun of Aiden for that.
"You know, in Defense, she single-handedly Stupefied an entire swarm of vampire bats," Bill said quietly, his face turning as red as his hair.
"It was pretty sick," Tristan agreed.
"So what should I do?" Bill finally asked, pulling at his hair with his hands.
"Lucy already told you!" Sam repeated himself. "She's roommates with Emily, and knows her well enough."
"Exactly," Bill exclaimed, "she's too close with Emily. I need….an objective opinion!"
Sam groaned at this and looked up at Jinx. "Any ideas, Curse-Breaker?" he asked.
"Just ask her how she feels?" Jinx suggested a bit hesitantly. She wasn't sure at all what the best course of action was, but wasn't that what people usually did when they fancied someone? That or just suffer in silence, but it seemed that Bill was tired of doing that.
"Would you look at that?" Sam said, looking at Bill intently. "Exactly what Luce told you to do!"
"It's not that simple," Bill insisted.
Jinx laughed a bit, but quickly stopped when she saw Bill's offended look. "I mean, it really is that simple," she said. "Look, just go up to her and be friendly, and then just judge her body language. If she doesn't seem interested at all, then you know your answer there and can think of a way to exit the conversation."
Uriah and Tristan nodded in agreement. "It won't be that bad Bill," Tristan said, patting him on the shoulder.
But Bill didn't seem bothered anymore. In fact, he had a new sort of gleam in his eye. "So, Jinx, since you seem to know what to do, maybe it would be best if you just talked to Emily for me," he suggested, looking up at her.
Oh no. No, no, no, no.
That disagreement was rather evident on her face as Charlie burst out laughing, earning him glares from several nearby students.
"Why me?" Jinx whined.
"Well, it would be obvious if anyone else went," Bill said stubbornly.
With Bill's expectant eyes staring at her, Jinx sighed. "Fine," she rolled her eyes, "I'll talk to Emily for you. But mind you this is very low on my list of priorities! And I still think it would be best if you went and talked to her yourself."
"Alright, alright, I get it," Bill rolled his eyes. But he was still smiling at having convinced Jinx to talk to Emily for him.
"I still-" Sam began to say, but Bill cut him off with a look.
"Good luck!" Tristan grinned. "Emily's a bit….intense, yeah?"
"A bit?" Uriah coughed.
Well, that was a fantastic sign. A new memory of Emily Tyler popped up in Jinx's mind as she and Charlie left Bill and his friends to their own studying. When she had snuck into the Slytherin Common Room last year, she had stumbled upon that love letter addressed to Emily. So it appeared that Emily was rather popular, which made Jinx dread talking to her even more. Perhaps she was as kind as Penny was, but Jinx wasn't quite sure she trusted Bill's taste. After all, were sixteen-year-old boys really that trustworthy?
"I don't believe Bill that this is going to end well," Charlie shook his head as they sat down at an empty table. To Jinx's delight, she realized that they were directly across from the entrance to the Restricted Section. This was where the entrance to a Cursed Vault could very well be. The air felt thicker, although Jinx wasn't sure if this was because of the magic of the vault, or the magic of the books in the Restricted Section.
When Charlie cleared his throat, drawing Jinx's attention back to him, she realized that he expected her to say something. "Oh, right, I don't have a good feeling either. But I guess I owe it to Bill considering how he's helped me with far bigger problems," Jinx reasoned.
"I suppose that's fair," Charlie said, although he still didn't look too convinced. "Not that I don't trust your social skills, but Emily Tyler, from what I know, can be a handful. Lucy, Sam's girlfriend, as I'm sure you overheard, is her roommate and has nothing but complaints about her."
"So why doesn't Bill listen to her?" Jinx groaned.
"Because when it comes to people, Bill's too trusting," Charlie said ruefully. "Ah well, at least I can trust you to hex her if she's annoying."
"Charlie!" Jinx laughed.
His eyes wrinkled in amusement before he bent down to get his Magical Creatures textbook out of his bookbag. Jinx's eyes wandered over to the Restricted Section again, where she noticed someone walking towards the section. The figure turned his face to her and their eyes met for a brief second. Jinx recognized him as Felix Rosier, the Seventh-Year Slytherin Prefect, and she was sure that he recognized her in turn.
She quickly averted her gaze downwards, but still made sure to keep an eye on him through the corner of her vision. He tapped the end of the metal chain that blocked off the Restricted Section three times. The chain disappeared into thin air for a moment to allow him to walk through. Jinx got out her own book and pretended to flip through the pages until she could hear Felix's footsteps again. He had gotten his book pretty quickly - the Restricted Section must not be that expansive then. This time, he didn't have to do anything to get the chain to disappear; when he got close to it, the chain vanished on its own.
So that was how it worked. At least it would be easy to escape the Restricted Section after dealing with the Vault in there. Jinx figured that they would have to make a speedy exit, and she wasn't sure about her ability to jump over the chain.
Their plan could now be set in motion.
The morning of the final Hufflepuff Quidditch match was a very exciting morning among the Hufflepuff Third-Years. Dahlia was still out with a severe concussion, which meant that Rowan would be one of the starting Chasers for the first time ever. The sound of Penny squealing as Rowan got ready in her Quidditch uniform woke Jinx up bright early on the Saturday of the final match. Jinx had been up all night practicing spells for the Cursed Vault, and her head still felt a bit tired, but she pushed through the exhaustion to be happy for her friend. Rowan was smiling nonstop as Penny helped her adjust her knee pads.
"Don't I look so professional in this get-up?" Rowan asked, turning around to look at her side profile in Penny's full-length mirror.
"A true Quidditch player," Jinx remarked, "Hildegarde LeFarge has nothing on you!"
Rowan's smile only grew wider when Jinx mentioned her favorite Quidditch player, the rookie French chaser Hildegarde LeFarge. "Okay, maybe not that good, but maybe one day!"
The three of them stayed in good spirits as they headed down to the Great Hall. Along the way, Tonks joined them, her hair spiked up in a vibrant yellow, black, and white updo. "Unfortunately Professor Sprout didn't allow me to make my hair neon," Tonks explained as they walked into the Great Hall, "she said it would be too much of a distraction. Pfft, as if I would ever do that!"
"You could possibly distract our players too, Tonks," Penny rolled her eyes.
"I would be very precise in changing my hair color," Tonks insisted.
"Oy, Khanna!" one of the other Hufflepuff Chasers Jerry Powell yelled from down the table. "Come join us!"
Rowan looked back at Jinx for a moment, but Jinx waved her hand toward Jerry. "Go, Ro, it's your moment!" She gave Rowan a quick hug before Jerry could yell at Rowan again.
"They grow up so fast," Tonks said, pretending to wipe a tear from her eye.
But as Jinx, Penny, and Tonks headed down to the Quidditch Pitch with the rest of the Hufflepuffs, Jinx couldn't help but think that that was very true. Rowan had grown up a lot this year, perhaps without Jinx even noticing. She just wished that Rowan's new direction wasn't Quidditch, as she wasn't much of a fan of Quidditch. But for Rowan, her dearest friend, she supposed she could endure this one match.
The Hufflepuff team appeared to be pretty clearly superior to the Slytherin team. Even with Dahlia being out and less-experienced Rowan playing in her place, the Hufflepuff Chasers just kept on getting more and more scoring opportunities.
"That's Lewis Harmon," Penny pointed out to Jinx as the third Hufflepuff Chaser made a particularly elegant lob. "He's a Sixth-Year, dating Jane Court's little sister who's a Ravenclaw."
"Very relevant to the match," Tonks laughed.
Penny gave her a look, but still went right back to giving Jinx the important knowledge about the Hufflepuff Quidditch team. "He's not our top-scorer, Dahlia was, but he's so so good with assists and defense. Look! He just got another steal!"
And apparently, he did: Jinx didn't see the steal, but she did see the blond Slytherin who had lost the Quaffle yelling out in frustration. She supposed then that she could see the appeal in watching, or even playing, Quidditch: it was fun to mess with the opposing team. And it seemed that Rowan was having fun too, as Lewis Harmon passed her the Quaffle and she scored another ten points for Hufflepuff.
But then one of the Slytherin beaters hit a very well-shot Bludger directly at Rowan's head. Jinx gasped as Rowan barely swiveled out of the way in time. Jerry immediately flew over to check up on her, and the Hufflepuffs started booing. Jinx joined in the booing and was pleased to see quite a few of the Ravenclaws and Gryffindors yelling too. Charlie was leading the charge on the Gryffindor side, and Jinx was surprised to see that Ben was also standing up and yelling. Rowan didn't seem too shaken up though as she waved off Jerry's worries and directed herself back towards the Quaffle.
"Quidditch is so dangerous," Jinx tutted.
"Says the girl who goes looking for Cursed Vaults," Tonks snorted.
Jinx wanted to glare at her, but she supposed that Tonks had a point there. It was a different type of danger, Jinx tried to reason with herself. The Cursed Vaults were inevitable, Quidditch was…well, not inevitable.
Jinx watched the rest of the game on the edge of her seat. She was watching Rowan so closely that she hardly realized when the game ended. Rowan had just scored a goal, giving Hufflepuff a one-hundred-sixty-point lead, when the Slytherin seeker angled his broom upwards and streaked toward the sky. Jinx squinted, and she could barely see the tiny glint of gold hovering far up in the sky. The sound of Madam Hooch blowing the referee's whistle startled Jinx back into paying attention to the Quidditch pitch. Although Slytherin had caught the Snitch, Rowan's goal had put Hufflepuff up by enough points that they had still won the game. A resounding cheer went up through the Hufflepuff stands. Tonks whooped loudly, and Jinx thought she could hear Lenny and Aiden chanting "Let's go Ro-Ro, let's go!" from somewhere behind her.
"And now it's my favorite part of the match," Penny clapped her hands together.
"But the game's over?" Jinx frowned. While she was personally glad that the game was over, she didn't understand why Penny looked so happy that the match was over.
"We won, so the team's hosting a party," Penny explained, looping her arm through Jinx's crossed arm.
A party? "Where?" Jinx asked.
"Oh come on, as if you don't notice the noise every other weekend," Tonks rolled her eyes. "It makes it near impossible to do anything if you're anywhere near the Common Room."
Jinx now spent most of her weekends either in the Library or in Jacob's room, so that would explain why she had not noticed the apparently-frequent parties being hosted in the Hufflepuff Common Room.
"You should come to this one," Penny said, her eyes lighting up.
Jinx raised a doubtful eyebrow.
"Please, please, please!" Penny begged. "It'll be fun, I promise!"
"Will there be any… you know?" Jinx asked, miming drinking from a bottle. From the corner of her eye, she could see Jane Court within eyeshot.
But Penny's eyes were sharp as well, and she giggled. "Well, yeah," she said. "Besides, who do you think goes out and gets the bottles?"
Even after Jinx had been dragged back to the Hufflepuff dorms, she still wasn't sure who, or how many people, fetched the food and drinks because it seemed that the party was already in full swing when they arrived.
"How is this all already set up?" Jinx yelled at Penny, trying to be heard over the loud Muggle rock music someone was blasting.
"They're all very experienced," Penny laughed. "Look, there's Rowan!"
And there was Rowan, standing on the edge of the crowd with a bottle of Butterbeer in her hand. She kept fiddling with her glasses, her hair still slightly damp with sweat. Jinx, Penny, and Tonks made their way over to her, and Rowan beamed when she saw them.
"You played so great!" Jinx said, hugging her friend tightly.
"Thank you!" Rowan replied, her voice slightly muffled as she spoke into Jinx's shoulder. "I was so nervous, but I think I did satisfactory. Not as good as Dahlia, of course, but-"
"Oh, hush!" Penny said, hugging her too. "No bringing yourself down! Tonight is a night for celebration."
"Damn right!" Jerry Powell chimed in from behind Rowan. His face was already red and he was swaying slightly. "Come on, Khanna, drink up!"
Rowan gave him a disapproving look. Upon closer inspection, Jinx could see that the bottle of Butterbeer was still mostly full, although it did look paler than a usual brew.
"I don't like Firewhiskey," Rowan mumbled, looking down at the ground.
"It's the drink of honor!" Jerry said, his words slurring together.
"Don't be an arse, Powell," Daniel called out from the drinks table. "If she doesn't want to drink, then she doesn't have to. Go bother someone else."
"Alright Nelson, alright, alright," Jerry said, stumbling over to Daniel. "Now you listen…" And with that, he hobbled over to Daniel, a group of Sixth-Years following after him.
Jinx was still staring at the bottle in Rowan's hands. The smell of Firewhiskey was familiar to her, both from long afternoons at Tom's pub when Uncle Ellis was supposed to be watching her and from working at the Three Broomsticks.
"I really don't like Firewhiskey," Rowan sighed, "I just don't get the appeal, you know? It really does taste like fire, and who likes that?"
"Still, it's a bit of a waste," Penny remarked, eyeing the bottle curiously.
"Daniel always makes sure it's only Fifth-Years and older who get the real drinks," Tonks explained. "I've tried sneaking in some by pretending to be one of the older students, but he always catches me."
"Well, we have some right now," Jinx said slyly. She took the bottle out of Rowan's hands and took a large swig of the drink. She could see Rowan opening her mouth in protest, but she didn't say anything. Jinx was not prepared for the drink to be mostly Firewhiskey, but the sweetness and fizziness of the Butterbeer offset the burning feeling pretty well.
"Jinx!" Penny squealed.
"Shhh," Tonks said, covering Penny's mouth with her hand. "Let's go up to your room and split the rest."
"I am tired, anyways," Rowan grinned.
So the four of them ran across the Common Room to reach Jinx, Penny, and Rowan's room. Jinx thought she could hear Jane Court yelling after them, but she could only laugh as they slammed the door shut.
"My turn!" Penny said, snatching the bottle away from Jinx. She gave it a delicate sniff and wrinkled her nose. Then, she took a sip from the bottle, and Jinx couldn't help but laugh.
"Merlin, that's awful!" Penny gagged. "It's basically all Firewhiskey!"
"Wicked," Tonks grinned. She took a larger sip than Penny, and Jinx watched as her face contorted in disgust. She gulped loudly and reached for the Sugar Quill on Rowan's bedside table immediately after. "Gah, nevermind, Daniel was doing me a favor by not feeding me this shit."
"I feel like I have to try it now," Rowan said excitedly.
"You have to," Penny nodded. "We all did."
Rowan's reaction did not disappoint: she nearly spat the mixture out and grabbed a Sugar Quill as well. "I don't understand Jerry and his group," she said after a sufficient amount of time to cleanse her mouth. "Imagine drinking loads of this stuff every weekend? I'd be sick."
"I'm sure they do get sick," Jinx pointed out as Rowan passed the bottle back to her. She took another large sip. This time she felt the burn more, but it was still tolerable. She still couldn't imagine taking pure shots of Firewhiskey as she saw patrons at The Three Broomsticks did. Perhaps one day she would, but tonight, as she and her friends passed around this one small bottle of Butterbeer-Firewhiskey, she was perfectly content with her sugary little drink.
As the night went on, Penny and Rowan could still only tolerate tiny little sips. Tonks was able to drink without flinching after a few more sips, and the four of them dissolved into giggles after Jinx had finished chugging the rest. Her face felt warm to the touch, and her throat felt like it was being gently roasted, but it was a nice feeling.
She listened as Penny and Tonks ranked the attractiveness of the school Quidditch players. Rowan was lying down next to her, and Jinx absent-mindedly twisted the end of Rowan's braid around her finger.
"You really played well today," Jinx mumbled. Her words sounded louder, but also quieter than usual, and she didn't know why they also sounded fuzzy to her ears. Perhaps that was because one side of her head leaned against Rowan's shoulder, but the sound of Rowan's racing heartbeat wasn't that loud.
"Thank you," Rowan said softly. "But I don't think I'm mentally ready for Quidditch. I was so so stressed and worried about failing the team. You know, when it's for something larger than myself, I get so much more scared of failure."
"Even if you didn't play perfectly, we're still all really proud of you," Jinx said into Rowan's shoulder. "You were the youngest player out on the field, and you still did so well. You gotta have more confidence, Ro."
"I try," Rowan laughed.
"Maybe you should take a Firewhiskey shot before your next match," Jinx joked.
To her delight, Rowan giggled.
Before she drifted off to a content sleep nestled up against Rowan's shoulder and with the sound of Penny and Tonks chattering in the background, Jinx couldn't help but think about Jacob. From his room, she had learned that he really enjoyed attending Quidditch matches, although he never played. She wondered what, or more likely who, had made Jacob such an avid fan of Quidditch, and if he had ever drunk himself to sleep like she was sure Jerry Powell would tonight.
This would be one of the last happy thoughts of her brother Jinx would have for the rest of the school year, although she wouldn't know this, sleeping curled up with Rowan on Penny's bed. But the higher magical powers, and the Firewhiskey that Jerry had bestowed upon Rowan, would make sure that this happy thought of her brother cheering on a dear friend would stay with her for a long while.