I ended up spending half a week in the hospital wing, though I was never lonely. While Sam was discharged that first morning, Little Buchanan as I kept calling him, stayed with me longer, and we became chatting buddies over the stupidest things. Like saying cheers together before downing the most disgusting potion concoctions Madam Pomphrey prescribed.

My friends came to visit any chance they could. Ginny though, beat them to it, arriving first thing in the morning just as Sam was being discharged.

"I see you two have made up," she said, eyeing the two of us suspiciously.

"Oh don't get all emotional on us, Ginny," Sam joked at Ginny's less than emotional expression. She faulted into a grin that transferred onto Sam and my expression almost instantly.

"Come to whisk me out of here?" Sam asked, as Ginny came to stand between my bed and Sam's. She held a copy of the daily prophet in one arm and her book bag in the other.

"Yeah, actually. I heard through Dom that you got yourself sick overnight. He sent me over here to drag you to our essay workshop." Sam let out a groan that sent Madam Pomphry rushing, her pitter-patter feet racing.

"I'm alright!" Sam reassured the worried nurse, before getting called out for wasting Pomphrey's time.

Ginny took this time to sit on my bed and look down at me.

"How are you doing?" I managed a weak shrug from my pillows. "I heard down the grape vine that you and Jasper didn't end well."

"Is that all you heard?" I asked, watching Ginny to see if she knew what I meant.

"Well if you're talking about that massive hit to Malfoy's face earlier, then yes, I was there for that. Didn't need to hear about that from anyone." I grimaced but Ginny, similar to Sam, didn't seem that concerned.

"Was it as spectacular as Ava let on?" Sam asked curiously from her bed. She was sitting up, tying her sneakers in a fresh new pair of clothes Pomphrey had handed her. Ginny nodded readily.

"It made my night for sure."

"Really?" I asked, hoping to shift the subject off me. "I was pretty sure you speaking to that dark haired Ravenclaw made your night a little special." Ginny shot me a look while Sam pipped up at the comment.

"Michael!"

"You know about Michael?" I asked, feeling rather deflated. Sam gave me a stark look.

"Of course I know about him. He's dating one of the Clearwater girls. You know, the one that won't shut up in class?"

"I have no idea who you're talking about," I answered honestly, while Ginny was shaking her head at the entire conversation.

"That's enough the pair of you," she remarked, making us stop to look at her. She waved the newspaper in her hand like a paper boy. "I have something for the pair of you. The Slytherins have been raving about it over breakfast. Malfoy in the lead."

"I'd hate to look," I muttered, but Sam seemed more than willing. The front cover was of Hagrid and the article that followed did little to startle me. It was about Hagrid supposedly being a half giant, with his mother being a possible lethal killer until she disappeared.

"Lord, do you think Dumbledore's going to restrict Hagrid from classes?" Sam asked, wide eyed to Ginny. I watched Ginny's face go red, unhappy at Sam's reaction.

"You can't honestly believe this, can you? Hagrid is nothing but kind to everyone he meets!"

"I don't know him that well to care, if I'm being honest," Sam defended before turning to me. "What about you?"

"He helped me once after Malfoy broke my wrist," I remembered. "Hagrid's nice. And truthfully, I don't see how him being a half giant changes anything-"

"Exactly!" Ginny began. "Which is why-"

"Nope. That's enough," Sam said, standing up to cut the conversation short. "I'd much rather deal with Dom and Jasper's awkward conversations over workshop than you pester on about Hagrid."

"What makes you think Dom is going to be awkward?" Ginny asked curiously.

"He asked you to come here instead of showing up himself. If I didn't know any better, I'd say it was to avoid this one," she said, pointing my way.

"He's going to have a fun time once he hears you and I are friends again," I mentioned from my bed. Sam turned and winked my way.

"I can't wait to tell them." Ginny huffed a sigh before smiling along with us.

After those two left, my French friends showed up with Mila and Ana taking the first opportunity to explain the scene I had made at the end of the Yule Ball while the others looked on, to see if I would verify the truth.

"And I thought you hated him!" Rosalie exclaimed in distress as she sat by my feet. I had moved up onto a mound of pillows to sit up straight, a new potion in my hands to enjoy.

"I do. I don't know what came over me that night," I confided in a hushed tone, my eyes glancing at the bits of red hair peeking out of Little Buchanan's covers. Gisele, who had watched where my eyes landed, seemed to get the drift and changed subjects, further comforting me.

"I'm just glad Jacqueline was able to get you here before you got any worse," Marie said as an afterthought. Jacqueline looked rather coolly composed throughout the meeting, and did not say anything to verify or deject from that late-night meeting.

My brother arrived with a letter from Damion later in the afternoon when Pomphry had just woken me for lunch. Theo seemed rather pleased with his Yule ball experience, and told me so briefly while I nibbled on my tomato soup.

"Pucey couldn't dance for the life of him. And Mia kept getting her feet stepped on."

"Did you see the Weasley twins?" I asked curiously. My brother had supposedly gotten closer to the twins since I left, explaining a similar bound the lot of them shared for mischief in the midst of school boredom. "Supposedly they each brought dates."

"So?" Theo responded. "I brought four dates. Win win."

Careless to my brother dodging the question, I nodded to the letter laying half open on my bed and questioned him on it.

"Damion got a promotion at work, something Dad's over the moon about of course," he said ironically, "though Damion suspects Mamen isn't. He bets she's under the impression he's going to elope with Katie now that he has a pay raise."

"Katie?" I repeated. Theo waved his hand to the letter lazily while filling me in that the girl Damion was currently dating was a Katie Smith.

"As in the high society family Smith's? The no-maj Smith's?" I asked curiously. My brother gave me a look. "What?" I quipped back.

"You sound like Mamen. Which by the way, is probably why Damion hasn't been writing to you on this."

"He hasn't been writing to me because I am the baby of the family. You two have a nicer age gap than him and I," I explained logically, though I sensed Theo had spoken truth. Theo merely rolled his eyes before redirecting to the letter.

"Well, to answer your question, Katie Smith is from the high ranked no-maj Smith's from New York. The one involved with the Vanderbilts I think." I nodded along readily. "She just happens to be the first of their family to show magical inclination."

"So you think Mamen doesn't like her because of her blood status?" I asked, picking up on the elephant in the room. Theo grimaced at the thought before shrugging.

"I really hope not. I'd think she would be happy with the high rank in society Katie supposedly has though why it would matter is beyond me. I'd think our family's position is high enough as it is."

"Listen to you, talking about high society as if it was important to you or something," I picked with a smile as my brother gave me a disgusted look and scoffed.

"Me? Never. I plan to high tail it out of that Newport pit the moment I get my degree. Travel the world is more up my ally."

"You? Travel the world? With what money?"

"Our parents' money. It's not like they have anything better to use it on." We both knew that wasn't going to fly but I let the conversation stand on that idea while I finished my soup.

Before Theo stood to go, I couldn't help but ask the question that had been nagging on my brain since late last night.

"When you found me, was there someone else with me, by chance?" I asked, turning to French out of habit. Theo's brow furred at the language switch but he complied and turned to French.

"If you're talking about Malfoy, then yes, he was there. We saw you drop from a distance and raced over. For a tool, Malfoy seemed surprisingly willing to help get you to the Pomphrey."

"But he didn't come with you," I stated. Theo looked as if there was no other option.

"'Course not. I told him to fuck off. Which he did. Thank Merlin or else I would have had to listen to his excuses."

"Excuses?"

"About why he was there in the first place. As if I didn't already know."

"You're one to talk," I talked back, as he gave me a knowing look that sent my stomach into a knot. "What were you up to with Jacqueline?" Theo's expression went neutral, and played dumb.

"Being a proper gentlemen and walking her back to your carriage. And yourself? What were you doing with that tool, Malfoy?"

"Being escorted back to my carriage," I replied back stubbornly. "Though I was picking a fight like usual and refusing to do what he said," I added quickly. Theo sensed the lie but let it slide as I did his. He left promising to visit again tomorrow, which he did and kept on returning until I was discharged.

On one of said visits, I told him about Sam and how everything was water under the bridge. He took to the news with little care, though I sensed he was relieved to hear it. My French friends on the other hand, weren't so easy.

"You're just going to forgive her? Just like that. After all the crappy things she's done to you?" Ana asked outraged on our way out of Charms. It was my first week back from the hospital wing and I had my nose stuck in catch up work. The other girls, minus Jacqueline and Gisele, whom were in their fourth year Herbology class, flocked after me like a line of ducklings. Marie, who had remained suspiciously quiet through this conversation appeared by Ana's arm.

"Where have you been? Ava's been hashing out a plan for a while to get back into Sam's good graces." Marie glanced up at me. "And I assume the chocolate frogs worked." I smiled at the thought of Sam responding in a hard negative about being bought by chocolate frogs, and nodded.

Ana looked around at the others perplexed.

"I'm sorry, am I the only one who didn't know about this?"

"I am just as confused as you are," Mila inclined, joining arms with her blonde friend readily. Since the Yule ball, those two had made quick work of forgetting about the past two weeks and had if it was possible, become even closer friends than before.

"I guess I just never thought you would bend so easily to an apology after all that drama she caused," Mila explained to me. The group of us turned toward the stairs leading to the grand floor of the castle, dodging a group of first year Gryffindors on their way to Charms as we went.

"I'm sure you two out of all of us can understand the importance of forgetting past fights and letting an apology be a new beginning," I said, glancing at the two girls locked arm in arm. Mila gave me a suspicious glance while Ana looked down, her smile returning. Rosalie, who was silently enjoying this conversation, playfully nudged Marie in the side.

"Looks like you're going to meet the British version of yourself after all."

"I still have to figure out how to introduce you all to her," I confided, as we stopped at the bottom of the stairs. The lot of us were splitting up with me heading to Ghoul studies in the dungeon while the others went off to their seamstress class in the carriage.

"What's there to worry about?" Mila asked ironically. Marie gawked at her, causing Rosalie to giggle uncontrollably.

"Hmm, let's think," Marie replied, causing Mila to smile to the ground in defeat. Marie than turned to me, her thinking cap on.

"Why don't you bring her to the court yard after classes today. We will all be there, and it's her turf so she shouldn't feel like a fish out of water. And you two," she added turning to Mila and Ana, "will be nice. Yes?" The two nodded, though Ana looked unconvinced. Marie turned back to me waiting an answer.

I gave it a thought before agreeing to the plan. I left them feeling much better, my thoughts now registering how best to tell Sam the news.

After Ghoul studies ended, my mind was made up that I would send Sam an owl before my next class. I just had to rush to the owlery before class began. Thankfully, said class was in the carriage, only a short walk back to the owlery.

My plan however, went to pieces the moment I caught sight of Malfoy, waiting by the stairwell, expecting me. The moment he saw me exit the classroom, he walked my way, blocking my escape.

Damn it. Why here?

Students continued to flood out of the classroom as he stopped in front of me. Like me, Malfoy kept his usual cool expression, as if he was here to annoy me per usual.

"You don't look pleased to see me," he commented, sounding amused as I continued to glare his way.

"Hmm, I wonder what gave you that impression," I snapped back. "Maybe it's my expression, or better yet, my tone of voice."

"Easy, Fountaine. I just wanted to talk."

"Well I don't want to talk to you. Or see you for that matter," I replied back hastily. I could feel my hands getting clammy and my stomach added another knot to the lineup. What next? My breath hitching? Malfoy's amusing glint in his expression remained as he lowered his voice.

"So we're not going to talk about the Yule Ball?"

"No. Unless you want me to relive that wonderful slap I demonstrated at midnight, I'd drop the topic if I were you." Malfoy backed up out of habit, his hands raised comically. It almost felt like a compliment.

"Suit yourself. I just thought I'd come here to see if you had a plan as to what you're going to tell your parents once news spread."

"What are you talking about?" I asked, startled. My parents were furthest from my mind. Malfoy shrugged, enjoying my tension.

"Remember what I said about Bagman? And how he liked to talk up to my father about what he would see of me and-"

"Oh Merlin," I muttered, horrified at the reminder. It was one thing to have my friends find out about me kissing Malfoy. But my parents? My mother... Oh no that was going to be a shit show if I ever saw it.

Malfoy looked rather pleased on the subject.

"So what about it? You want to come up with a plan?" I glared at his happy method of discussing this situation. How was he not?

"Here's an idea. You leave me alone, and if your parents bring it up, tell them Bagman was mistaken. Are we clear?"

"You can't honestly call that a plan..."

"Leave me alone," I warned, taking a step back as he came closer. He paused.

"Your parents might be thick enough to believe such a story but my parents-"

"Ava, are you ready?" a lyrical voice asked from behind me. I turned toward my class doorway to find Fleur with a few of her friends peering out behind her. She was looking between Malfoy and I with careful calculation.

"We're leaving now. Thanks for waiting for us," she added, linking a thin arm around my own.

"Of course," I replied simply, as I glanced at Malfoy's confused expression. Fleur nodded and walked on, with me on her arm in tow with her friends right past a stumped Malfoy.

The moment we made it up the stairs, Fleur turned my way, her light eyes giving me a once over while her friends glanced amongst themselves. They two seemed at odds over what Fleur had done.

"Maxime wouldn't be happy if she heard we left you down there alone. You don't have friends in the class, correct?" I shook my head slowly.

"Good. You will join us out of the class from now on, or at least until that boy leaves you alone. Yes?" Her friends listened to this with agreement and watched as I sheepishly nodded along.

"Thank you Fleur. I appreciate it." She smiled confidently at me, tapping my arm sweetly before letting go and turning to her friends.

"I forgot, what class is next?"

"Dance, I think," one of her friends in red curls replied, glancing at her schedule she withdrew from her bag.

"I've got to get to the carriage. I'll see you tomorrow then." Fleur nodded, before turning to her friends as if the last five minutes had not just happened.

I spent the next class going over the ordeal with Fleur as if it were a dream rather than reality. What made her think to help me like that? Was it something in my body language? Or did she hear Malfoy blackmailing me?

Who knew she had a brain under that pretty face of hers.