The Reaction

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story. Anything that doesn't belong to JKR belongs to me.

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The Reaction

Jessie stood silently, watching the yellow and orange flames from the fireplace with little interest, as Draco devolved the night's unexpected discovery to their friends. Being so close to curfew, Draco had invited everyone to his room to have this discussion, and if Jessie had been in a better state she would have appreciated it more. Draco had adopted a casual stance, reclining only just against his desk across from her, while Blaise and Rebecca took the couch in the middle of his sitting room.

The silence was deafening as Draco finished, and Jessie had to turn around just to make sure that everyone was still there.

Had it been in any situation other than this, the gob-smacked expressions on their friend's faces would've had Jessie laughing until she cried. As it were, their astoundment was genuine and she found a sense of comfort in that knowledge.

Jessie moved her eyes to Draco and suddenly forgot how to breathe. She had seen his head slightly hunched in her peripheral vision, making her automatically think that his attention was held somewhere below him. Instead, she found herself taking in the most enticing image she had ever seen. Arms crossed in a relaxed, yet controlled, pose and his gray eyes piercing her own from beneath his lashes--didn't he know what that look did to someone?

Draco raised his head a fraction. 'Are you okay?' he silently mouthed to Jessie.

Tearing her eyes from Draco's lips, she nodded shyly. 'Yes, thank you,' she mouthed back.

Finally, one of the occupants from the couch moved, drawing everyone's attention. Rebecca opened and closed her mouth several times in an attempt to find words while looking from Draco to Jessie.

"So, let me get this straight," Rebecca stated. "You're telling me that you guys found Mark and Pansy... together, even though Mark had-" Rebecca gestured wildly at Jessie, "you and Pansy had-" Draco received even more manic gesturing, "you... to begin with?!"

"Yes, I believe you've got it in one, my pet," Blaise answered her while his face never softened from its original shock. "I don't think I quite understand it myself."

"Gross." Rebecca shivered. "No offense to either of you, but Pansy and Mark is... just wrong on so many levels!" Rebecca said. "Gods, Jessie! You knew I didn't care that much for Mark, but I never expected him to do anything even remotely like this. I'm so sorry, lovely. You never deserved that kind of treatment. At least now we know the reason behind it all," she growled and turned to Blaise. "And why in the seven hells are we not hexing them into a new species yet?!"

"Whoa there, darling! All in good time," Blaise cooed, giving a significant look to Draco. "I do believe that revenge is the next item on the agenda."

"Is it?" Rebecca asked, turning her attention to Draco. "I had wondered why you didn't hex them on site. You Slytherins have a specific protocol for this sort of thing?"

Draco's eyes widened a hair and would've gone unnoticed if you didn't look for it. Blaise gazed knowingly at his friend with a smug smile on his face which had caused both girls to raise an eyebrow.

"I told you," was all Blaise said, and Draco nodded in return.

Rebecca looked between the two and shared a questionable look with Jessie. "Blaise, sweetie?"

That got Blaise's immediate attention. "Yes, darling? I am at your command."

As Jessie rolled her eyes with a small smile, she caught Draco doing the same and they shook their heads together in amusement.

"What did you tell Malfoy," Rebecca voiced in a way that was far from asking.

"Oh, I've just been telling Draco and the rest of my house about some of the wonderful qualities you Ravenclaws possess. You hinting upon a Slytherin procedure of revenge with the intent to know more about it just proves my point. Ravenclaws and Slytherins are a great combination," Blaise said with a wink.

Jessie made a disbelieving noise out loud and looked down. As if Mark and herself wasn't proof enough to discredit that assumption.

"Everything that made your relationship turn out the way it has is because of Mark, Jessie, not you," Rebecca said firmly.

"That's right," Blaise agreed. "What he did to you and to Draco is completely unacceptable in the house of Slytherin."

"Which brings us back to revenge. Why is that a Slytherin rule, and why would it be important that we cared to know more as opposed to any other house?" Rebecca asked.

"Well think about it. I don't see a Gryffindor or a Hufflepuff agreeing to exact revenge on somebody like this, especially one of their own. You Ravenclaws will at least hear all the facts before making a decision," Blaise answered.

"Okay, I understand that, and the rule for revenge?"

"Is because that's the only way to effectively get your point across to a Slytherin."

"Really?" Jessie asked. "So if Mark or Pansy were in another house you would do something different?"

"Oh, yes," Draco confirmed. "Hexing would've been a sure thing if that were the case. This, however, involves two Slytherins disgracing their house and one of their own. They need to be dealt with properly."

Blaise shook his head. "Sloppy. No self preservation whatsoever. They're going to be exiled as soon as word gets out about this."

Both girls gasped. "Exiled? From Slytherin?" Rebecca breathed. "For sleeping with another man's girlfriend?"

"Partly." Blaise winced. "The reason I called them sloppy is because they didn't cover their tracks like you would expect them to. Using Slytherin ambition to get what you want is all well and good but to leave so many things behind that could come back to bite you in the arse? Very un-Slytherin.

"That pales in comparison to what Pansy has done though. And Copeland." Blaise stopped to shake his head. "If he slept with her knowing that Pansy had accepted a Pureblood Adiuro with Draco-"

Rebecca's sharp intake of air cut through the room, and she graced Draco with a look that screamed outrage. "Oh, gods," she whispered as her lip started to curl. "That... that bitch!"

Jessie gasped slightly at her friend and wrinkled her forehead in confusion. Pansy accepted a what? she thought to herself.

Reaching into the front of her shirt, Rebecca pulled out the gold chain that hung around her neck. "The Malfoy Crest?" she asked Draco. "A ring?"

"A necklace," Draco affirmed. "A year and a half ago."

"Merlin," Jessie exhaled.

She had never known the technical name, but Jessie knew exactly what they were referring to once Rebecca took out the crested jewelry that never left her friend's person.

Generations ago, almost every Pureblood male received a heavily warded token of value that bared his family's coat of arms when they reached the age of puberty. To ensure the bloodline, any Pureblood heir was forbidden to become sexually intimate with anyone until their Pureblood Adiuro had been made and accepted. As the heirs, the Pureblood women were also taught in kind. Agreeing to wear the crest of an heir was an oath of fidelity. Thanks to the many spells upon the crest, it ensured that any future pregnancies could only be accomplished within that promised union because, once given, the token could only be removed by the one who bestowed it.

Even today, with the exception of most of the original spells, some older families still practiced the Pureblood Adiuro. It had become widely respected in the wizarding world, and many daughters of those bloodlines, as well as some new, have adopted the tradition themselves. Only two major rules remained unchanged since it had originally begun. Those rules were not only broken tonight; they were witnessed by both Jessie and Draco.

By all indications, Pansy broke her Pureblood promise and Mark had been a knowing accomplice.

"Wait," Jessie voiced quietly as she replayed what she had seen in her mind. She had remembered seeing Pansy, but something was missing. "Pansy wasn't wearing anything."

Glancing around the room, she mentally rolled her eyes at the baffled looks that she got from her statement. "As in, not even a necklace..." she urged.

Blaise was the first to blink. "Glamour?"

"A bloody good one if it can mask weight as well as touch," Rebecca sighed.

"Draco?"

The occupants of the couch shifted their attention to the blond man as soon as they heard Jessie's worried tone.

The table in the middle of the room would've been nothing but ash had Draco been able to release the fury that had all but consumed his gaze.

Jessie's heart began to ache as she looked at him. He didn't deserve this. As if Pansy breaking the promise wasn't enough to hurt Draco, he had to find out that she had been hiding it. That just begged the question of how long had she been doing this? Worse yet, with Mark's blond hair and Pansy's darker eyes, Draco would have been none the wiser had she become pregnant and claimed that it was his.

"Malfoy?" Rebecca cautiously spoke to get Draco's attention. "I just wanted to say that you have my complete support, and I would gladly beat the Slytherin shite out of Parkinson for you wherever and as often as you desire."

Blaise let out a bark of laughter and was soon joined by the rest of the room.

"She does deserve it," Blaise said. "What about Copeland? We'll probably never know what his true intentions were, but I am glad that Mark didn't pull you in that far before you had discovered all of this, Bloom."

"He almost did though. Lucky for me, his spark was never that strong to begin with," Jessie softly said. Biting lightly on her bottom lip, she looked over to Draco and gave him a shy smile. She saw that he had understood her reference and fought to keep her blush at bay when his appreciation all but showed in the genuine smile that he gave her.

In doing so, both Draco and Jessie missed the conspiring look that their friends had exchanged and the devilish grins that followed it.

Waving his wand, Blaise saw that it was just before midnight. "I think it's about time to take our ladies back to their dorm, Draco. We'll have to pick this back up tomorrow- oh no!" Blaise exclaimed as he stood up. "We have that test in Ancient Ruins to study for tomorrow night, love!"

"That's right. I'm glad you remembered," Rebecca said a little less dramatically than her counterpart. She walked over to Jessie and linked their arms as they headed for the door.

As the boys followed the girls out, Blaise swung his arm around Draco's shoulders. "So you and Jessie will just have to meet without us to discuss revenge ideas I guess," he said and smiled as Draco visibly tensed. "You're free after nine on Mondays, right, Draco? Your room would be the best place to meet again I reckon. Is that alright with you, ladies?" Blaise smirked.

Rebecca turned her head around without missing a beat. "That sounds just fine. Jessie will meet Draco at nine tomorrow, and then we'll all get together on Tuesday to see what we've come up with."

Jessie had her best friend's arm in a vice grip, and Rebecca was in serious danger of losing that arm if she wasn't careful. She couldn't believe that both Rebecca and Blaise had just blatantly arranged for her and Draco to spend a night in his room together without even regarding them in the process! Tomorrow... Oh gods! Jessie suddenly thought to herself.

"Potions, Rebecca," Jessie rambled frantically. "I can't do this while I'm paired with him in Potions! He'll start asking me questions and I don't even know how I'm going to react yet!"

"Shh, Jess. Don't worry. We'll figure something out," Rebecca shushed as they finally arrived and stopped a few feet away from the Ravenclaw portrait.

When the girls turned around, Blaise took Rebecca's hand and walked about half the distance left, leaving Jessie and Draco together.

Breathing a shaky breath, Jessie steeled herself because she wanted and needed to say something to Draco and now was as good a time as any.

"I'm sorry."

The seconds seemed like hours as she stood with her head bowed. Jessie wasn't really sure what she was waiting for. Should I tell him all the reasons why I'm sorry? she asked herself. As her heart pounded in her chest, she cursed her shy nature for making her feel this way. Just when she thought about apologizing about the apology, strong fingers slipped under her chin and gently brought her eyes to his.

"Why are you sorry, Jessie?" Draco asked, giving her skin the smallest of caresses.

"I... I-" Jessie's voice broke and she struggled to keep her nervousness in check. She swallowed hard and pushed on. "I'm sorry about everything. That they hurt you."

Draco shook his head and moved his hand to squeeze Jessie's shoulder. "There's no need for you to say you're sorry because they hurt you as well. We're not the ones at fault here. They'll get what they deserve, and we'll never have to worry about either of them again."

"But we all have Potions together tomorrow-"

Draco bent swiftly and whispered into her ear, "-and I will take care of you. Trust me."

Jessie's breath hitched as he pulled back. "Okay," she said with wide eyes.

"No worries?"

"No worries."

Blaise and Rebecca chose that moment to reappear. After a short goodbye, Jessie found herself marching straight to her room. The stress from the day seemed to overwhelm her tired body all at once, and she silently thanked the stars for giving her a friend like Rebecca when she felt herself being tucked into her soft, warm bed.

No worries, Draco. I trust you, Jessie thought as she finally fell asleep with a small smile on her face.

TBC...