The Slytherin Champion (The Four Maidens of Hogwarts #1)

Chapter Two

The Triwizard Tournament was all anyone talked about for the next week. Jade either heard classmates talking about possibly ageing themselves a couple of months so that they would be seventeen, or wondering how the champions would be chosen. All this talk about the Triwizard Tournament made Jade not want to think about it.

She had received her O.W.L. results that summer. Outstanding in all her O.W.L.s except two Exceeds Expectations in Herbology and Astronomy. Not that Exceeds Expectations was bad, but it certainly wasn't as good as if she had just gotten Outstanding in everything.

Jade was grateful of the results. If her grades had slipped, her parents would have blamed it on her being in Slytherin House. She gave a sigh. After all these years, she knew her parents still wished she had been sorted into Ravenclaw. They just stopped saying it after she proved to them she could still score well on tests.

"Gibbons," Jade suddenly heard Professor Snape call sharply in Potions class. She snapped her head up as he asked, "Tell me the ingredients to prepare the Draught of Living Death."

Jade gave a quick glance to the girl across the room. Caitlin Gibbons, or as everyone called her, Cait, nearly jumped out of her seat from Snape's outburst. Her quill fell out of her hands and dropped to the ground.

Cait gave a wince before starting. "Um, water, powdered root of asphodel, Infusion of Wormwood, Valerian root, and..." She trailed off, most likely blanking on the last two ingredients.

Snape gave a sneer. "Ten points from Hufflepuff. Doodling in my class won't get you anywhere in life, Miss Gibbons."

Cait hung her head, immediately turning to apologize to her House mates sitting next to her. From where Jade was sitting, the Hufflepuffs seemed very understanding.

"Lin." Snape turned his attention to her. "Perhaps you would like to fill Miss Gibbons in on the remaining ingredients."

It wasn't a request. Jade gave a small frown, knowing that Snape wanted to use her, someone from his House, to humiliate Cait even further. She didn't respond for a moment. Cait wasn't stupid, as she wouldn't be in Snape's N.E.W.T. level class if she hadn't passed the Potions O.W.L., but Jade presumed that Snape couldn't pass up the opportunity to make his own House appear more knowledgeable.

As she didn't respond immediately, the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws seemed to take this as she didn't know the answer to Snape's question. The Gryffindors started to smirk at her, while some Ravenclaws raised their hands to answer instead. The other Hufflepuffs just stayed silent, not wanting to deal with Snape after his attitude towards Cait.

Jade scoffed lightly to herself before answering, "The remaining ingredients to prepare the Draught of Living Death are a Sopophorous Bean and a Sloth brain."

Satisfaction welled inside her as the Ravenclaws slowly lowered their hands. It meant she was right. The Gryffindors seemed to notice the Ravenclaws silently admit defeat, because their stupid smirks were wiped off their faces.

Professor Snape briefly narrowed his eyes at Jade for her scoff, who stared back at him evenly.

He gave a small huff before turning away. "Ten points to Slytherin." Some of her Housemates grinned at her and gave her a thumbs up, but Jade merely shrugged.

Snape shortly sent them off to work in pairs, emphasizing that when he meant pairs he didn't mean a random group of three. Unfortunately for Jade, Adonis didn't take a Potions O.W.L. The other Slytherins also had their own best friend to pair up with.

Jade was about to say something, when she heard from the other side of the room. "Does anyone not have a partner?"

Jade turned to see who had spoken. It was Cait. Her dirty blonde hair was in a high ponytail, similarly to how Jade first saw her on their first day. Jade raised her hand. She noticed Cait flinch for a moment, but finally made her way over to join Jade.