━━━━━━༻❁༺━━━━━━

chapter fourteen | exams & escapades

━━━━━━༻❁༺━━━━━━

JUNE WAS SLOWLY APPROACHING, now, the days becoming cloudless and sultry, and all anybody felt like doing was strolling onto the grounds and flopping down on the grass with several pints of iced pumpkin juice, ready to soak up as much sun as they could.

Unfortunately, there was one thing in the way of this - and that was the burden that was the end of year exams. Everyone Maddie knew was stressing about it, and was cramming in as much revision as possible. Jake and even Jess were both busy revising, which meant that the only way Maddie would be able to spend any time with them was to open a book or two herself (however, a lot of the time, she and Jess kept getting distracted and would end up chatting or doing something stupid).

Here's the thing - Maddie doesn't do the minimum amount of revision possible because she thinks it's cool, or because she can't be bothered, or even because she knows she'll have plenty more exams before leaving Hogwarts - Maddie is one of the many unlucky people of the population that have a short attention span, and physically cannot stare at a book for longer than ten minutes. It's not that she doesn't want to, well, maybe it is a little bit, but she genuinely can't do it. It's like her brain shuts off, or flicks to something else, and all of a sudden, her plans for revising every Transfiguration technique or History of Magic date goes out the window.

So Maddie knew she wasn't going to do well in these exams. And she didn't want to sulk around about it, either, because she didn't want to spend the hot summer months (her favourite time of year) stressing and moping about some stupid tests. Life's too short - if you fail, you fail, and you can try again next time.

Jake had a much different outlook - he was more of a 'as long as you try your very best and do the most you can, then at least you'll be satisfied with yourself no matter the grade' type of person. The thing is, Jake's naturally very smart, academically. He can sit and read a book for more than ten minutes, if he wanted to. He has a long attention span.

Maddie doesn't - so she can't think that way.

If she puts in as much effort as possible, and still comes out of it with a shit grade, then she'll feel worse for it. At least she knows she didn't try when she gets a crappy grade, and therefore expects it. Maddie wasn't about to give herself false hope for trying, no way, because either way, this was the reality - she just can't do school. Or anything academic, for that matter.

So, as well as doing the tiniest bit of revision - she couldn't do nothing, could she? Maddie would spend her time hunched over a book on Hippogriffs, doing her best to catch herself out when she found her brain drifting away from it, and analysing all the best she could for Buckbeak's appeal.

Ron was thoroughly impressed (and grateful) with Maddie's efforts, and had sat with her a couple times in the common room going through it all. He actually found himself feeling glad she'd been so nosy and then proceeded to want to help - it was a great weight being lifted off his shoulders, only having half the work to do, especially since he also had revision on top of it.

"Maybe we do make an alright team, outside of Potions," Maddie had said one night, giving him a high-five.

In fact, Buckbeak's appeal had overall brought her closer to Harry, Ron and Hermione, something she'd never actually considered happening when agreeing to help out the Hippogriff - but then again, the best friendships are always unexpected. Plus, this brought Jake and Jess closer to the three, too - much to Jake's delight, for obvious reasons.

Not to mention, either Harry, Ron or Hermione must've told Hagrid about Maddie helping them, because she didn't fail to notice the fact that he was definitely being extra nice to her during their Care of Magical Creatures exam - she for sure knew he was being generous with her when giving out scores.

But, one afternoon, after finishing their Defence Against the Dark Arts exam, Maddie - alongside the golden trio - was met with something that immediately made her question her efforts put into the Hippogriff's appeal, and she suddenly wished she'd done more, if possible - Maddie wasn't sure if she'd ever put so much dedication into one thing that wasn't cooking or baking.

Cornelius Fudge, sweating slightly in his pinstriped cloak, was standing there staring out at the grounds. He started at the sight of Harry, who was standing on Maddie's right.

"Hello there, Harry!" he said. "Just had an exam, I expect? Nearly finished?"

Maddie found it awfully weird that he was on speaking terms with the Minister - then again, she had to remind herself, he was the Boy Who Lived.

"Yes," said Harry. Hermione and Ron, not being on speaking terms with the Minister of Magic, hovered awkwardly in the background along with the young Jordan.

"Lovely day," said Fudge, casting an eye over the lake. "Pity...pity..."

He sighed deeply and looked down at Harry.

"I'm here on an unpleasant mission, Harry. The Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures required a witness to the execution of a mad Hippogriff. As I needed to visit Hogwarts to check on the Black situation, I was asked to step in."

"Does that mean the appeal's already happened?" Maddie interrupted quickly, stepping forward and exchanging a frown with Ron.

"No, no, it's scheduled for this afternoon," said Fudge, giving the girl a curious look.

"Then you might not have to witness an execution at all!" said Ron stoutly. "The Hippogriff might get off!"

Before Fudge could answer, two wizards came through the castle doors behind him. One was so ancient he appeared to be withering before their very eyes, and the other was tall and strapping, with a thin black mustache. It was assumed that they were representatives of the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures, because the very old wizard squinted toward Hagrid's cabin and said in a feeble voice, "Dear, dear, I'm getting too old for this....Two o'clock, isn't it, Fudge?"

The black-mustached man was fiddling with something in his belt - Maddie tilted her head and saw that he was running one broad thumb along the blade of a shining axe. She felt her cheeks flush, angrily. They'd already got the axe ready! Before the appeal! Buckbeak was fucked, either way - this wasn't fair!

Ron opened his mouth to say something, clearly having the same idea, but Hermione nudged him hard in the ribs and jerked her head toward the entrance hall.

"Bastards!" Maddie spoke sharply, once the Minister was out of earshot.

"Why'd you stop me?" said Ron to Hermione angrily as they entered the Great Hall for lunch. Jess and Jake waved them over. "Did you see them? They've even got the axe ready! This isn't justice!"

"Ron, your dad works for the Ministry, you can't go saying things like that to his boss!" said Hermione, but she too looked very upset. "As long as Hagrid keeps his head this time, and argues his case properly, they can't possibly execute Buckbeak...."

Maddie wasn't convinced with what Hermione was saying - but, by the looks of it, neither was she.

"And well... it is the Minister of Magic, we can't exactly have a go at him, can we?"

"Nah, fuck him! I've poured my heart and soul into that bloody appeal, I'm seeing it through!" said Maddie. "I'll lie on top of it and guard it if I have to,"

Jess was wearing a broad grin on her face as the curly haired girl sat down beside her. She'd obviously been waiting eagerly for her, but for what, Maddie didn't know. She raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"You'll never guess!" Jess said happily, clasping her hands with excitement. "My cousins's pregnant! She's having a party to celebrate, first week of the summer holidays - oh my God, I'm so excited!" she squealed. Maddie put on a grin, trying her best to forget the Buckbeak situation for a moment so she could be happy for her best friend.

"Awe, Jess!" she said. "That's so exciting - boy or girl?"

"She doesn't know yet - oh, I can't wait for the end of the year! You know what adds, to it though - do you know what Jake said as well, which is like, super creepy?"

"What?" Maddie said, turning to the blonde boy who'd been finishing a sandwich and going over his Divination notes for the exam.

"Okay, so, remember our first Divination lesson, and Trelawney made us do all those predictions with tea leaves?"

"...Yeah?"

"Do you remember what Jess' was?"

Maddie paused for a second, in an attempt to remember, but shook her head. "No, we've done loads of predictions in Divination, I can't remember them all - apart from my gold, of course,"

"Well, I can remember a few," said Jake. "And Jess' very first one was a new addition to the family and a celebration. Two of those just came true,"

Maddie froze for a second, processing what Jake was on about, before her entire face lit up.

"Holy shit!" her mouth dropped open. "It was! I do remember, now, it was! Holy fuck, Jess!"

"I know," Jess said. "Crazy, isn't it?"

"So, if Jess' came true... and Lavender Brown's... then where's mine? I'm still waiting for my gold!"

Jake laughed. "I knew you were gonna say that. Remember, loser, it's unexpected. The key is in the word, it'll come when you least expect it - if it does come true, that is,"

"It better," Maddie said. "It can be my reward for putting up with Snape for three years,"

"Touché," Jess nodded.

As the day followed, Maddie seemed to become more and more distracted from her exams, and more focused on the events happening around her. Every now and then, she would nudge Ron for a glance of his watch to check the time, counting down until Buckbeak's appeal started.

And then, after the final exam, Maddie decided to wait with Ron and Hermione rather than join her best friends in celebrating the end of the harsh week - because something in her gut was telling her the dreaded news that she was about to receive... and that was the conformation that the first time she'd actually put some hard work into something, it hadn't been worth it anyway.

Because Buckbeak still lost.

Hagrid had sent Ron and Hermione a note that stated,

Lost appeal. They're going to execute at sunset. Nothing you can do. Don't come down. I don't want you to see it.

Hagrid

"We've got to go," Harry had said, at once, after arriving back in the common room (Maddie had noted he was in a bit of a panic about something - but, whatever it was, it had left his mind, for now). "He can't just sit there on his own, waiting for the executioner!"

"It is pretty cruel, letting him go through it all by himself, poor bloke," Maddie nodded in agreement. "I'd be devastated, if it were me,"

"Sunset, though," said Ron, who was staring out the window ill a glazed sort of way. "We'd never be allowed ...'specially you, Harry..."

"So what?" Maddie pulled a face. "I always go out after sunset, all the time. The only thing you really have to worry about is Filch and his ugly cat,"

"Madison Jordan, Hogwarts' very own bandit," Ron muttered sarcastically. She gave him a shove.

Harry sank his head into his hands, thinking.

"If we only had the Invisibility Cloak..."

Maddie pulled a face.

"Where is it?" said Hermione.

"Sorry - the what? Invisibility Cloak?"

Harry started explaining something to Hermione about leaving a cloak in the passageway under the one-eyed witch.

Maddie couldn't have been more confused. "An Invisibility Cloak?"

"... if Snape sees me anywhere near there again, I'm in serious trouble," Harry finished, still talking to Hermione.

"Am I fucking invisible or something? What the fuck is an Invisibility Cloak?!" Maddie said, raising her voice slightly out of frustration. The three hushed her, before exchanging uneasy glances.

"It's hard to explain..." Harry said. "And it's secret. A big secret... we wouldn't even mention it around you if you weren't already involved... you can't tell a soul, okay?"

"Tell a soul what? I don't even know what the shitting thing is!"

"Well, it's not hard to work out, is it?" said Ron. "The clues in the name. Invisibility Cloak."

"So... it's a cloak..."

"Yes,"

"...That makes you invisible?" Maddie said, her forehead still creased with confusion.

"Yes, Maddie,"

Maddie's eyes widened in awe.

"You can't mention it, at all, in front of anyone except us, okay?" Harry said, quickly and sternly. "Not even Jess or Jake, the less people that know, the better..."

"Jake can't do any harm..." Hermione muttered. Maddie smirked. "Or Jess..." she added quickly. "But I suppose to be on the safe side..."

"Exactly," Harry nodded, before turning back to Maddie. "In fact, after today, you can forget it even exists,"

"But that's insane! I want to have a go - where did you leave it Harry? I can probably distract Snape for you, if you want, he loves telling me off."

"...D'you think you could?" Harry asked slowly, suddenly appealed by the idea.

"Of course," the young Jordan said, as if it were obvious.

"How do you open the witches' hump, again?" Hermione asked Harry, also intrigued by Maddie's idea.

"You - you tap it and say, 'Dissendium,'" said Harry. "But-"

"Come on, Mads," Hermione said, not waiting for the rest of his sentence.

She strode across the room, stopping at the portrait to wait for the curly haired brunette. Maddie exchanged baffled glances with Harry and Ron before shrugging, and following after her.

The two girls disappeared, leaving Harry and Ron looking very confused.

"So, what did you have in mind for a distraction?" Hermione asked Maddie, who was pleasantly surprised by the girl's reaction, as they ventured down the hall.

"Many things," the young Jordan replied with a mischievous grin. "We need to make a stop, though, first,"

"Where?"

"Filch's office,"

Hermione glanced sideways at Maddie, raising an eyebrow. "And why's that?"

"I've got some stuff upstairs, but all the best things I have are confiscated. It's fine, though - they get confiscated all the time. I don't think Filch realises all I have to do is go to his office and get them back - he must think I buy new ones,"

"And you're experienced with breaking into his office, are you?" Hermione asked, as they speedily stepped down the stairs, their school shoes making a loud clicking noise against the stone.

"Oh yeah - it's not hard. Everyone gets so caught up in the idea that it's breaking in! But forget that it's only Filch. What's he gonna do, whack you with his broom? Plus, if you think about it, how many times do you see him roaming the hallways and his cat taking up all the others?"

"...All the time,"

"Which means he's pretty much never in his office. How do you think the twins and Lee get all their stuff back all the time?"

Hermione gave Maddie a grin, and the two girls walked as swiftly as their legs could carry them, making sure they were being as subtle as possible as they both conjured up a plan between mutters.

Maddie stopped outside Filch's office, and Hermione turned the corner next to and leaned up against the wall behind it, so as not to make it obvious she was waiting for anyone outside of it.

The curly haired girl effortlessly performed the Unlocking Charm, before quickly edging open the door and sliding inside - as expected, Filch was nowhere to be found. Maddie did not even need to bother snooping around in search for her things - the caretaker always kept them in the same place.

Despite usually lingering and snooping around Filch's things (she's a nosy girl, she can't help it, okay?), Maddie exited the office almost as soon as she arrived, eager to get back to Hermione and find whatever this 'Invisibility Cloak' was.

"That was quick?" Hermione had said with surprise, when Maddie had tapped her on the shoulder, a combination of Ever-Bashing Boomerangs in her arms. "Is that all Filch confiscated from you?"

Maddie shook her head. "I wouldn't be able to carry everything at once. I'll get the rest another time,"

Hermione let out a laugh. This was rather exciting.

The two Gryffindor girls began walking, again - Hermione looking out for the one-eyed witch, and Maddie taking in her surroundings to ensure neither Snape or Filch were near - they were the only two who could possibly mess up this plan. And Maddie was in no mood to experience two failures today (not counting the exams, of course).

They eventually came to a halt, where there would be two separate hallways to take - one being where the one-eyed witch sat, and the other pretty much empty, although Maddie immediately saw potential in the hallway that seemed almost too quiet.

Perhaps she'd spice it up a bit.