Author's Note: The Document Editor wouldn't let me put in the solid lines like in previous chapters so excuse the X's. JKR's stuff is hers. Happy Reading!
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"Step up to me
I know that you've got something buried
I'll set you free
You set conditions, but I've had enough
I can't take it
This welcome is gone and
I've waited long enough to make it
And if you're so strong
You might as well just do it alone
And I'll watch you go"
"Can't Take It"-The All-American Rejects
Chapter Nine: Don't Always Take It
After I had finished unpacking I went to find Draco in the guest room. He was looking around the room at my mother's decorating.
"She paid for it all with my father's alimony. So are you ready to meet the evil parents?" I asked only half joking.
"As ready as any guy could be." He answered.
As we descended the stairs to the family room, my mind raced. I couldn't stop thinking about whether or not they were going to get upset over everything that happened. I wasn't going to tell them until after presents and dinner. I think not ruining as much of our Christmas as possible would be a smart plan.
"Hello Jordayna." My mother greeted me coldly. She bent and kissed a cheek. It was as if she was greeting an acquaintance.
"Hello Mother." I returned her icy tone. "Mother, John, Nicolette, this is Draco Malfoy."
"Oh, so you're one of them?" John asked in a condescending manner. I stole a glance at Draco who lowered his outstretched hand. He had a look on his face that told me he did not know how to deal with someone talking down to him. If the person causing the face wasn't my stepfather, then I would have laughed.
"Why don't we hand out presents?" Nicolette asked trying to break the awkward tension in the room.
"That's a wonderful idea." My mother seconded.
Draco sat next to me on one of the black leather couches. Nicolette sat with us. "I'm so glad to see you!" She cheerily said. She gave me a hug. I was glad to see my siblings for this reason. They accepted me even though our parents did not.
Daniel and Michael were handing out the presents. My pile was much smaller here. It mostly was comprised of gifts from my brothers and sister. They each had given Draco one gift as well. They knew it would piss off our parents. My siblings and I have a tendency to not care about what our parents think of us.
Nicolette had bought me a new pair of orange Converse. Draco snickered when I pulled them out of the box. Daniel had followed her lead and bought me green ones. He whispered to me, "Because I know your house colors at school have green." I smiled gratefully at him. Michael's gift was a small charm bracelet. I was so thankful for the three of them because they would make telling the parents the news a little more bearable.
My brothers had bought Draco a black zip-up hoodie with a dragon on it. They had called me ahead of time to ask what he liked. It was thoughtful of them. Nicolette had bought him the same Converse in black and green. Draco was courteous and thanked everyone.
"Now for dinner." My mother announced and ushered us to the dining room. We sat down. My stepfather was at the head of the table with my mother to his left and Daniel to his right. Michael was to Daniel's right, Draco to his, Nicolette to his, and finally me to her right.
"This is excellent ham. Thank you for dinner Mr. and Mrs. Watson." Draco thanked them. He was really trying hard even though I knew it was useless.
"You are welcome. Nicolette, how is your job?" My mother said almost completely ignoring him.
"Oh it's fine Lenni. We're working on a case with a serial robber. I'm supposed to be trying to figure out his next move."
"That's so interesting. Daniel how's school?" My mother asked him. Daniel attended a state university for medicine.
"It's going excellent."
"Michael, have you decided on a school?"
"No, Mom." Michael answered. He was sick of her pestering him about school. I knew this because he would call me or write about it. I had been secretly sending my siblings my owl for years.
"How's everything with you?" My mother asked as an after-thought.
"Well something terrible happened to me at school this term…" I started nervously. Draco nodded his head encouragingly. "Um, an ex-boyfriend kidnapped and raped me and I'm pregnant."
Mother gasped, John shook his head, and my siblings looked ready to kill.
"Well that's what you get for being a part of some school like that." John had said. I expected this from them. I could see Draco tense across the table. I wanted to tell him that it was okay. I was used to this.
"I knew you would be pregnant before you graduated. No matter what type of school you went to. You are a true waste of space." My mother said so nonchalantly you would think she was describing wall paper.
"How can you two talk to her like that?" Draco asked. I mentally told him to stop. It was going to make it worse. "She's a person. She's your family. You treat something that was not her fault at all as her own. She could not help what some depraved maniac did her."
"Draco, just stop, it's not going to help. They haven't been supportive of me for as long as I can remember."
"No he has a point." Nicolette began. "You two have been treating her like dirt for years. You have been damaging her and destroying her. No wonder she had to suffer what she did. The destruction of her self-confidence led her to believing she wasn't worth more than what she was dealt."
"Nicolette Cadence! How dare you speak to me that way!" John bellowed.
I just sat back because my world was starting to spin away from me. Slowly darkness was creeping up on me.
"Jordayna!" Daniel shouted before I lost consciousness.
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I was lying in my bed with Daddy's Healer at my left.
"You had a nasty spell there. Too much stress is not good for you when you're carrying." Healer Thompson explained as he looked at my siblings and Draco. "Please make sure she doesn't undergo anymore stress. If she does, she may miscarry."
"I'm so sorry." Nicolette muttered to me. I didn't really believe it was her fault. She was standing up for me like she always did. I knew it wouldn't matter to the parents, but it mattered a great deal to me.
"It's okay. I love you. Thanks for being the best big sister anyone can ask for." I whispered still trying to gain strength. I tried to sit up.
"I would not do that yet." Healer Thompson suggested.
"Don't waste your strength. I'll come to you." Nicolette said as she sat down on my bed with me.
"Where are Mother and John?" I asked. I don't know why I cared.
"They went up to bed. Draco sent for your, um, wizard doctor, and well they were very upset by it all." Michael explained from the chair in the corner of the room. "I'm just glad you are alright. I'm going to head up to bed. I apologize for Mom, but you know how she's always been with you. I love you big sis."
"I love you too." I said to him as he bent down for a kiss on the forehead.
"Yeah, love you too." Dan agreed as he gave me a hug.
The two of them left leaving Draco, Nicolette, and I.
"I tried so hard to get you two to stop. I knew it was going to lead to trouble." I told them.
"No, I'm glad he stood up for you. Someone other than me needs to take the role every once in a while."
"I'll gladly take it. Her father warned me about how her mother can be."
"Thank you Draco, but I'll warn you, it's a trying thing. The parents can be pretty relentless. I know you want to spend some more time with her, but she is my sister and she's only here for another nine days, six of which I won't be here because I have to go back to my place. Work to do and all. Can I ask you to let me take care of her alone for tonight?"
"Of course, I'll see you in the morning." He bent over and kissed me in front of her. Afterwards he left for his third floor guest room.
"Well he's good looking, he stands up for you, and I can tell he loves you. You're going to be okay after all this. So tell me all about this term and your tests."
Nicolette and I spent the rest of the evening gossiping about my life overseas. When I finally got to the part about Nott I broke down and cried with her. She was the best sister anyone could have because she just let me cry and told me that it wasn't my fault. I still thought it was occasionally. She told me all about how she was going to get the baby a little CPD outfit. She had these perks being a Civilian Psychological Consultant to the Chicago Police Department.
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The next morning all hell broke loose. I was sitting at breakfast with my stepfather and brothers in the dining room. Draco had slept in because of the jet lag.
"So were you really raped or did this guy knock you up and you're hiding it?" My stepfather started in on me. It was a new accusation and unexpected.
"No, I really was raped." I answered. I got up to leave the table and headed toward my basement room. I had reached the stairs when I noticed my stepfather was behind me. "What do you want?" I asked with venom in my voice.
"You do not leave my table without permission." He answered before hitting me. I stumbled back and fell down the stairs. A moment before, Draco had entered the hall behind John. He pushed him out of the way and rushed down the stairs to me.
"I think I'm okay." I said trying to reassure him and myself. I could not tell if the baby was okay. Healer Thompson said to keep me from stress or I could lose it, but I don't think he really understood the situation. "Really Draco, I think I'm okay." I managed to whisper before I watched his normally pale gray eyes flash to a metallic steel within seconds. He was up the stairs and ready to confront my already retreating stepfather before I could manage to speak again.
"Stop!" Draco yelled to him.
"Make me!" John screamed back. I groaned. That was the wrong thing to do: challenge Draco Malfoy. He pulled his wand from somewhere, pointed it at John, and shouted, "Petrificus Totalus!"
"Oh no." I mumbled to myself as I heard a chorus of awe upstairs from my brothers.
"Do that again!" Michael pleaded with Draco.
"Can't right now. I have some business here." Draco answered as my mother came down to see what all the noise was. She screamed upon seeing my stepfather in the body bind.
"Now that I have your attention, listen well. You will not raise your hand to her, you will not call her names, and you will not make fun of what and who she is. You should be proud of her. She is the second best in our class. I know that neither of you know who I am, but just know at one point I attempted murder. Ask your daughter, she was there. If you ever treat her wrong again, it will not be attempted."
I reminded myself not to piss him off before mentally trying to scold him. Nicolette was helping me up, walking me towards the bed in my room, and asking questions.
"Is he really an attempted murderer?" Nicolette asked excitedly when we made it to my bed. I knew her brain wanted to psychoanalyze him.
"Yes, but you'd have to be a part of the wizarding world to understand. He isn't really a bad guy. It's a long story. I'll tell you sometime."
"Actually, I already know."
"What?!"
"To make a long story short, my mother told Dad before she died that she was a witch and that one of or both me and Daniel could display magic eventually. She made him promise that if we did we would go to magic school. Although Daniel never did, I could do magic. I went to National Magic School. Dad never told anyone. Not even the boys."
"So your private prep school was really actually National?" I asked confused. I couldn't believe I hadn't known this.
"Yep. I'm actually a Psychological Healer who consults for a division of the CPD that has Aurors."
"Merlin, this is so exciting. Is that the reason you always stood up for me?"
"Only a small part. You're my sister, maybe not by blood, but you are my sister." She answered. I started to cry. I knew she and Daniel were really my stepsister and stepbrother, but it mattered so much that they didn't feel that way. I mean we all shared Michael. He was a half-brother to all of us.
By the time we had finished the conversation Draco had finished with my mother and stepfather. He had released him from the body bind before returning to me.
"How are you? Do you think something happened to the baby? I'm going to summon Healer Thompson again."
"I'm fine, but that's probably the best idea."
The Healer had come and gone. He had said everything was alright, but I should not stay in this environment since it was conducive to harming me.
"I'm taking you home."
"I can't leave Nicolette. This is the only time I get to spend with her."
"Well then can we stay with her, instead of here?"
Nicolette nodded. I could tell she agreed with him that I needed to get out of here. It was the only way the baby and I were going to survive. "If she hadn't told me herself that you are thee Draco Malfoy the Daily Wizarding Journal wrote about two years ago, I wouldn't believe you were him."
"Okay, what did I miss? How come all of a sudden she knows who I am?"
"Nicolette is a witch! She went to National! I didn't know this entire time because I guess it was a secret, but she is."
"Oh. Okay." Draco said plopping down exhausted on my bed.
"Get your stuff together. I'll drive us back to my place." Nicolette instructed.
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At Nicolette's apartment, Jordayna and Nicolette had spent hours talking about Nicolette's secret. I just sat back and watched the sisters interact. They were two different people, but yet, very much the same. I had bought Jordayna a Christmas gift that I was still nervous to give her. I just wanted Nicolette to go to bed before I became a complete coward and never gave it to her.
"Okay well you two can have the other bedroom at the end of the hall. There are blankets on the top shelf of the closet. Goodnight."
We ventured to the bedroom Nicolette gave us for the night. I watched her walk to the bed. She was limping a little from the fall earlier. I was angry watching her, but I already gave her mother and stepfather information about the consequences if that happened again.
"You are the prettiest Slytherin girl." I whispered to her. "Come over here." I held out my arms to her. She crawled into my lap and nestled up to my chin. "I have something for you. It's your Christmas gift. I didn't want to give it to you until we were alone." I held out the small green and black box.
"Draco, you're not…you know…proposing?"
"No, no, not right now. This is something to show you what you mean to me."
"You didn't have to. I mean I got you something, but I didn't need you to get me anything."
She took the box from me. She opened it and lifted the white gold chain out of the box. At the end there was a tiny white-gold snitch charm with emeralds at the end of the wings.
"Read it." I said opening the snitch.
"You are my golden snitch." She read aloud. I could see her beginning to cry.
"Okay, I didn't want you to cry."
"No, it's not bad crying. It's good crying. I never have been important to anyone but my Dad. Thank you so much." She said as she hugged me and then tried to put it on. I held my hand out for her to give it to me. She held her long strawberry-chocolate locks above her neck so that I could fasten it. She hugged me again and then held out an envelope. Inside was a small piece of parchment and in her beautiful scrawl she had written:
Dearest Draco,
I know that I am truly afraid of all forms of flight, but for Christmas I owe you one broom ride. However, you will have to be in control because I do not know how. To put it simply, your Christmas present is to know that I trust you, and that what's in the past no longer matters.
Love,
Jordayna
It was a big gesture for her so I was completely grateful. After everything she had been through, she still trusted me. She trusted Draco Malfoy. I was an attempted murderer, ex-Death Eater, arrogant prick, and so much more, but she was willing to look past it all and trust me. It was the first time in my life I had ever been truly happy.
"I hope you don't think it's too girly. I just didn't know what to really get you. I mean you're Draco Malfoy. There's not anything I could buy that you couldn't."
"I love it. It means a lot. Thank you."
"You're welcome." She said before beckoning me to lie down next to her.
It was three nights after Christmas when I, Draco Malfoy, fell asleep the happiest I have ever been.
