Black and White

5

At dinner that night Draco goes on and on about how the hippogriff tried to kill him.

"Madam Pomfrey said another minute or two and I could've lost my arm," Draco prattles to Pansy. "I can't do homework for weeks."

"Don't you think you're exaggerating just a bit, Dra," I smirk. "Hagrid told me you called Buckbeak ugly. How stupid do you have to be to insult a hippogriff?"

"Lay off, Zuben," Draco snaps. "You weren't even there! Your class didn't even get to see the brute."

"Yeah, thanks for ruining it for us," I retort, sticking my tongue out at him.

"Leave him alone," Pansy tells me, shoving my shoulder. "He's in pain and all you're doing is making fun of him. Just like a Lestrange!"

"Shut it, Parkinson," I huff. "He may be your boy toy for this week, but he's my cousin. I've known him since I was born."

The following day is Halloween, and the third years and up get to go to Hogsmede, as long as their parents signed their permission forms. I sit in a window, reading, but I can't help but notice the glares and untrusting glances that keep being thrown my way.

I see a boy who I recognize as Neville Longbottom and know I have to talk to him. I walk up nervously, ready for him to reject me.

"Neville?" I ask. He turns towards me and seems shocked and somewhat afraid.

"Are you going to hex me?" he questions.

"Why would I..." I trail off when I realize he thinks I want to hurt him like my mother did his parents. "No, no. Um, I wanted to tell you that I'm sorry, for what my mother did to your mum and dad. And I want you to know that I'm not like her. I don't want to hurt people. So, again, I'm sorry."

Neville smiles a little. "You're not responsible for what your mum did," he tells me. "Besides, I think I should be apologizing to you for that howler my grandmother sent."

"Well," I chuckle, "if I'm not responsible for my mother, then you're not responsible for your grandmother. Deal?" I hold out my hand, and Neville shakes it.

"Can I ask you a question, though?" Neville asks. When I nod, he goes on, "I was wondering... If you were raised by the Lestrange's and the Malfoy's, how come you aren't like them?"

I blush a little. "Well," I say, "when I was younger I used to sneak into Aunt Narcissa's library. I'm not even sure she knew about it, but she had a book of muggle fairy tales. I used to read them all the time. Princesses who were kind to everyone, children who never grew up. I decided I didn't want to be like the bad characters, and that my family was a lot like them."

Neville grins. "That's really cool," he says. "I'd love to read some of those sometime."

I return to my perch in the window, and the glares have intensified. I try to ignore them. Finally, Blaise Zabini, who had elected to stay at Hogwarts today, comes up to me.

"Hey, if you want to avoid the looks, maybe you could read outside," he suggests. He points to a large tree across the property. "I find that's a good spot."

I look at him for a moment. He seems to be genuine, and I haven't heard him saying anything unkind about me or my family. I decide to trust him.

"Thanks," I smile.

"No problem," Blaise says. "You're really cute, by the way."

I blush before going to put on a warmer robe and heading out to the tree. I sit against the trunk and open my book. That is, until I notice the tree is moving. I spring to my feet and start to back away, when a large branch catches me on my left, sending me flying. As I crash into the ground, I know something must be broken.