The year passed on calmly in comparison to the books. Dad rejoiced when I came home for the holidays, but Harry had stayed behind this time to hang out with his friends since both of them were staying behind, but we arranged for Remus to take him to Hogsmeade on Christmas Eve so we could all spend it together, especially since Remus was also staying at Hogwarts.
I didn't care though, I was spending the whole break with Dad. I missed him as much as he missed me while I was gone. We decided to also take advantage of it being just the two of us and went skiing at a resort for a few days together in Switzerland, which was a hell of an experience. The last time I was in that country I had been racing against the clock to save the world from the League of Villain's. This time I just chased Dad, who was mysteriously good at skiing despite his claims of never having been before. Then again, so was I, but he's used to me being mysteriously good at everything by now.
We also went to see Nightmare Before Christmas in the theatres since it was newly released this year. Dad absolutely loved the movie, and it was about the one Halloween related thing I still liked, so we had an enjoyable daddy/daughter date. For Christmas, Dad got me a bunch of my comics I like, and I got him some owl-ordered German beers and some treats that he loves.
It was an incredibly relaxing holiday, and I didn't want to leave to go back to my OWLs, but eventually Dad reluctantly made me. We procrastinated so much together on going back that we missed the train back to school and we had to take the Floo network, which just gave us more time to procrastinate, just together in Hogsmeade this time before the train arrived and I actually had to go back to school.
"Hello Tom." I greet my captive airily one February day. I've been studying far too much for the OWLs, and my brain could use a break so I decided to check on the evil mini Dark Lord.
"Hello, Ms. Abigail." Tom says lightly, walking over to our usual spots in the treehouse. "What can I do for you today?"
"Honestly, you can be a distraction." I tell him truthfully and he tilts his head slightly in observation.
"From what?" He asks with little interest.
"OWLs studying." I say with a tired chuckle. He pauses mid-way through taking a sip of his tea to look at me with slightly raised eyebrows. "What?" I ask, noting his look of surprise.
"That's so... mundane." He admits with a smirk. "I have grown to expect far more gruesome topics with you, not school exams."
"Yes, the ever so mundane wizarding exams, with magic and fantastic beasts and poisons." I say sarcastically.
"Well, you are a witch, what other exams would you be taking at your age?" He says, a slightly predatory look in his eyes. I've not exactly been subtle that my life experiences don't match my 15 year old body. I simply smirk at him and don't answer, instead taking a sip of my tea and closing my eyes in relaxation. He sighs out lightly at not getting his answer. "What are your courses that are troubling you?"
I look at him curiously for his question. "I, unlike you, do not live in the past, so History is my least favorite topic. That and Astronomy, I just don't care about the stars." I admit to him. "However, all my other courses I'm the top, especially Care of Magical Creatures and Ancient Runes, though there are only 4 of us in the Runes class, we're all equally doing well."
"Our history is important, it shaped what our society is today." He lectures lightly. I just give him a raised, judgmental eyebrow and he sighs out again. "Is Kettleburn still the teacher for the Beasts course?"
"He was." I say in slight surprise that he was teaching even back in Tom's time. Then I got a wicked, devious thought and grinned evilly at the boy. "You won't believe who the new teacher at Hogwarts for it is though. I almost feel as if I shouldn't tell you, it might be too cruel." I laugh darkly at the irony of the situation.
"Who is the new teacher?" He asks cautiously, intrigued by my change in attitude.
"Rubeus Hagrid." I grin at him as his eyes darken in anger. "The one and only Hagrid you got framed for the Chamber of Secrets. He's now working as a teacher in Hogwarts, the one thing you wanted above all else. You can't write karma like that, Tom, but man that's funny!" I laugh out loudly as he broods angrily.
"That brainless oaf is allowed to be a teacher?" He says haughtily, and I narrow my eyes at him. "Dumbledore has let the school fall in his rule." He adds arrogantly, taking a sip of his tea. I quickly imagined the taste of blood, and changed his once herbal tea to thick, hot blood right as he drank from it. He spit it out everywhere, and looked at me in shock as blood dribbled down his chin. "What was that!?"
"That is for insulting my friend." I say coldly as he wipes the blood away. "I suggest not doing it again unless you want to taste more blood." I think towards his dropped broken tea cup and make it reform with tea in it again. He sets it down on the counter though, looking at me with distrust.
"Fiercely loyal, aren't you?" He asks, calming down from the blood.
"To a fault, yes." I admit. "Did you ever take your OWLs?" I ask, moving the topic away from the last one.
"Yes, before I made the diary I had just finished them. They were easy for me, I'm sure you shall do just fine." He says, genuine faith in his words.
"Thanks Tom, I know I will. All except for History, but I don't need that going forward." I tell him.
"What are your career goals then?" He asks casually. The surreal thought of discussing school exams and future career goals with Tom Riddle makes me giggle out loud. "What?" He asks in confusion to my change in mood again.
"Sorry, nothing." I wave dismissively, calming down from my internal thoughts. "Just having a civil conversation with you is strange. I'm uh, torn between a few options for careers. I like Runes, but I'm also a fighter, and don't know if I can give that up."
"I never took Runes, you know?" He admits to me quietly, and I grow interested. "I should have though, it is a useful form of magic."
"I'm actually surprised to hear you didn't. It's an ancient form of powerful magic, I figured you would have been the first one signing up for that course." I say truthfully.
"I was more focused on learning dark arts, and the teacher for Runes reportedly wouldn't teach us blood Runes, so I never took it." He tells me.
We actually chat for a bit about the course, even about how my three best friends are in it and how we all learn together in harmony, despite being from different courses.
"Well, I have to get back now." I say, standing up after I've been here for almost an hour. "This has been... odd." I admit. We just spent an hour discussion a neutral topic amicably without anger or hatred or taunting.
"It has been pleasant, for me." Tom replies truthfully. "You have not yet come here to not taunt me, so this has been... refreshing."
"Yeah, like I said, odd." I smirk at him. "Until next time, Tom." I bid him farewell, and leave the realm, locking him back in his diary.
I often forget Tom used to be a human and capable of actual conversation, even if he holds himself with a fake personality. He did drop it a few times when he was thinking back on his courses from his time in Hogwarts, he really did like learning while he was there.
Hagrid has been dealing with the whole Malfoy/Buckbeak incident this year, and the status currently is that Buckbeak is likely to be executed. I haven't seen Lucius on campus at all yet, but when I do, I'll have some plans ready. I hope Dobby will be with him though, otherwise my plans will be harder.
"Draco." I say plainly to the boy as he walks up to me in the hall one day. It's just after dinner, and I'm heading to the library to study a bit before my training, and the hallway is nearly empty.
"Cousin... Abigail." Draco says nervously. "Are you mad at me?" He blurts out, looking like he couldn't keep it in any more.
I sigh as I turn to face him fully, taking in his appearance. I've not really talked to him since he went ahead and told his father about the Buckbeak incident and got Hagrid into trouble, and that was nearly 6 months ago. He hasn't exactly approached me either, but I've been watching him. He did look ashamed those first few weeks, and he's been relatively calm all term since then.
"I was disappointed in you Draco, for running to your father and making someone's life miserable because of your own failure." I tell him honestly. "But I'm not mad at you. I just didn't particularly want to be around someone who can do something so rude and mean. Your actions caused us all to suffer since it broke the confidence in our teacher, and we all got stuck with non-dangerous creatures. Flubberworms are a far cry from a Hippogriff or a Chimaera."
"I... Didn't think it would escalate that much. I just thought Hagrid would be fired and we'd get a new teacher." He admits sheepishly. I sigh out to him, and pull him into an open classroom nearby.
"One, Dumbledore would never let one of his teachers get fired. He literally had Voldemort and a fraud both as teachers and yet didn't fire either. What made you think he would let his long term friend and Groundskeeper get fired on day one?" I ask with a knowing look, and he drops his head in shame. "And two, who would want to take over teaching knowing there's a student who is actively looking for ways to get them fired. Look how hard it is to fill the Defense position these days. My uncle only agreed for a year because of all the bad stuff that happened."
"I'm... sorry." He whispers out, looking away from me.
"It's not me who needs the apology. Why did you tell your father?" I ask him plainly, not putting any heat into my question. Poor Hagrid's been heartbroken since the first hearing at the Ministry, and Hermione and Ron have been helping him build a legal defense. He didn't like my solution of letting Buckbeak loose, said it was 'unethical to hide him away from the law.'
"I had to write home I was injured, and he wrote back and forced me to say why. I wasn't going to tell him at first, honest, but he was promising to get Hagrid fired. I was so focused on that, I didn't think about anything else." He says quietly.
"So you finally see the results of hiding behind your father's name?" I ask him sternly.
"This wasn't what I wanted. Class is awful and you haven't talked to me at all." He admits, getting frustrated. I tilt his chin up and look into his sad eyes, bringing his face to my level. He's tall for his age, almost matching my height already.
"Draco, I'm proud of you for admitting this." I tell him softly. "You still have to apologize to Hagrid. I think this problem has escalated beyond your control, but you can at least make it right with him. You don't need to do it with an audience, I understand your pride enough to know that won't happen with sincerity. Just go to his home and tell him you're sorry, we'll handle the fallout from there."
"I can do that." He says softly. I pull him into a hug then, which he returns this time, wrapping his long thin arms around me. He's gangly and going through a growth spurt, so he feels so tiny in my arms despite almost being my height. "Thank you." I barely hear him say, but squeeze him tighter when I do before releasing him. I then proceed to ruffle his hair, mussing it up and making him laugh genuinely.
"I think you missed that the most." I smirk at him and he doesn't deny it. "Go to Hagrid now, it'll help to get it off your conscience."
"Will you come with me?" He asks hopefully, and I beam at him.
"You got it!" I say happily, and we head down to Hagrid's hut, and I make him knock on the door.
"Abby? Malfoy?" Hagrid asks in confusion when he opens the door, Fang running out and greeting me happily.
"Hey Hagrid, do you have a moment? Draco wanted to chat with you." I say with a soft smile, and he looks hesitantly at my cousin before nodding and letting us in.
"Can I uh, get ya somethin'?" Hagrid asks uncertainly, obviously not comfortable having the boy in his home.
"No, thanks. I won't be long." Draco says quietly, not looking at the giant. He looks at me and I nod encouragingly to him, but don't otherwise help him. This may be the first real apology he's ever given, he needs to do it on his own. "Hag- Professor. I wanted to say I'm sorry, for what happened with the Hippogriff and for my father's reaction. I didn't mean for it to go like this, and I was... wrong." He goes quiet after this, and I beam at him as he drops his eyes to the ground. He held eye contact with Hagrid during the whole apology, and I'm proud of him.
Hagrid looks stunned at the apology, and doesn't answer for a moment. He looks to me for answers, and I just smile and nod to him too.
"Right... well, accidents can happen." Hagrid says gruffly after a moment of sputtering around for an answer. "Um, mind they don't in the future, try an' listen more and you'll be fine. Thanks fer coming down here today, it do mean a lot. I don't suppose you could stop yer dad's trial against Beaky?" He asks hopefully after his gruff acceptance if the apology.
"I don't think so, he's very determined. Nothing stops my father on a mission once he sets out to accomplish it." Draco says, returning back to his usual sneering speech, though this time it's directed at his father. He stands to leave then, looking again at Hagrid. "I am sorry." He adds genuinely before leaving, me bidding Hagrid goodbye before following the boy out the door.
The whole way back to the castle I congratulated him for being a good person and telling him I was proud, and give him another hug before parting ways.