Chapter 18: Encounter in the Forbidden Area (Part 1)

At eleven o'clock that night, Jane set out with a package of steaks and some shower gel.

She intended to give that dog a proper bath - it desperately needed one!

As she crept down the stairs from the girls' dormitory, she found Draco sitting alone in the common room, absorbed in reading "Quidditch Through the Ages."

This surprised her, given his scheduled duel with Harry from dinner.

But it wasn't her concern - she had her own agenda.

"Stop right there."

The sharp sound of Draco snapping his book shut cut through the silence.

"Well, well. Caught the little informant red-handed," he drawled with a self-satisfied smirk.

What was he on about?

Jane was baffled - why did Slytherins always speak in riddles?

Lost in thought, her face remained blank, displaying only confusion.

Draco interpreted her expressionless face as shock at being caught. Feeling triumphant, his smirk widened as he drawled:

"Surely you didn't think I'd actually show up?"

"Your precious Potter is probably already in McGonagall's office, courtesy of Filch!"

He stepped closer, towering over her, trying to catch a glimpse of panic in her expression.

But he failed - Jane's face remained impassive. All he caught was the aroma of meat.

"Merlin's beard, what's that smell?" he asked, nose wrinkling in distaste.

Trapped in the common room by Draco, Jane had already lost too much time and was growing impatient.

"If you'll excuse me—" she said icily.

Her cold demeanor only irritated Draco further. He leaned in close, dropping his voice to a harsh whisper:

"Damn it, still running off to help Potter?"

"Want to get caught on the fourth floor and expelled? Filch's office is full of chains and shackles!"

After weeks of English immersion, Jane's comprehension had improved significantly.

Though Draco used some unfamiliar vocabulary, she gathered the key points - going to the fourth floor meant risking capture by Filch and expulsion.

The word "expulsion" triggered her deeply ingrained desire to leave Hogwarts.

She pushed past Draco, heading straight for the door.

But he blocked her path again.

"I'll be watching you—" he announced with an exaggerated drawl, "to prevent our house from harboring a traitor."

Jane's expressionless face didn't change as she drew her wand, preparing to cast Petrificus Totalus.

But Draco seemed to anticipate this, quickly threatening:

"Cast a spell on me and I'll wake everyone up - tell them all about your nighttime wandering!"

Normally, Jane would welcome this - having her rule-breaking exposed and getting expelled would suit her perfectly.

But tonight was different. She had to complete her promise to feed the dog.

This pampered young heir was becoming quite irritating!

Jane despised being threatened. She decided to teach him a lesson.

She offered a deceptively gentle smile: "Oh no, I'm just helping the Headmaster feed his dog."

This caught Draco's interest immediately.

"What dog? Dumbledore has a dog?"

"Yes, quite a large magical dog - very friendly and lovable," Jane replied.

She extended an invitation to Draco: "Would you like to come see it?"

She didn't realize that when her dark eyes focused earnestly on someone, few could resist her requests.

Draco stammered, clearly tempted but trying to maintain his facade:

"Well... what's in it for me if I come?"

Jane continued her enticement: "You can feed it steaks yourself - it will adore you."

"And if we're caught, I'll distract Filch. You won't get in trouble."

Draco couldn't resist such temptation. At Malfoy Manor, dogs were considered too common to keep as pets - only creatures like albino peacocks and Persian cats were acceptable. This piqued his curiosity.

Besides, this was a magical creature - according to Jane, both impressive and friendly - completely different from ordinary dogs!

So they left together, one after the other.

...

"Alohomora."

The door to the fourth-floor corridor swung open.

Two figures entered the narrow room.

"AHHH!"

A terrified scream echoed off the walls.

Draco had never been more horrified in his life. Before him lay a monstrous dog that filled the entire space from floor to ceiling. It had three heads, all drooling onto the floor where wolfsbane grew.

His scream had clearly disturbed the beast - its three pairs of eyes began rolling beneath their lids, and its noses twitched in their direction - it was waking up!

The floor trembled as the massive dog rose on all fours, shook itself, and upon discovering the intruders, let out thunderous barks that shook the room.

Draco's legs turned to jelly. He spun around to flee, only to find Jane had locked the door.

She stood casually in the corner, idly twirling her wand, watching him with a mischievous smile.

Why did I ever provoke this demon!

Draco was consumed with regret as he collapsed to the floor.

The middle head lunged forward, jaws wide. With nowhere to retreat, he squeezed his eyes shut.

Father, Mother, you'll never see me again—

But the expected pain never came. After a few seconds, he cracked one eye open to find Jane standing before him, her arm blocking the three-headed beast's mouth.

"No biting now."

Her voice was like heaven's music, nearly bringing him to tears.

The small figure in black and green robes standing between him and death suddenly seemed impossibly tall and powerful!

He had never properly looked at Jane before, but now she appeared as majestic as a mountain, utterly unreachable!

Unaware of Draco's thoughts, Jane was just glad he'd finally stopped talking.

She unwrapped the napkin and took out the steaks, using one hand to pet the dog's heads while feeding it with the other.

The three heads began nudging each other, competing for her attention.

Seeing the platinum-haired boy still frozen in the corner, she pulled him to his feet and pressed three steaks into his hands.

"What are you waiting for? Feed him!"

Feed what?

Was he about to become dog food himself?

Draco was so terrified he could barely think straight.

His reaction made Jane laugh.

The sound of her laughter brought Draco back to his senses, and he finally registered the steaks in his hands.

Huddling by the door as far from the dog as possible, he attempted a throw, tossing one steak toward the middle head.

The head snapped up, gulping down the meat in one bite.

Following Jane's instructions, he mechanically fed a steak to each mouth.

Then Jane produced three large bottles of shower gel and two brushes.

"Work up a good lather with the shower gel, then brush in the direction of the fur."

She directed Draco to squeeze out the shower gel while she used the brushes to evenly distribute the white foam through the dog's coat.

Still shaken, Draco obeyed her commands without protest, despite her treating him like a house-elf. This convinced her that the boy was indeed traumatized.

Pleased with her successful prank, she smiled wickedly.

Little did she know her combination of authority and protection had thoroughly won over the young Malfoy heir.

They worked in silence, quickly washing most of the dog's body.

After a while, Jane heard sniffling in the air.

Having recovered from his initial shock, Draco finally processed what had happened. He wanted to curse through his tears but remembered her mysterious power over the three-headed dog and held back, letting out a loud sob instead.

"Why are you crying?"

Jane was puzzled - while she understood the dog was rather large, Draco was completely unharmed and standing right there. What was there to cry about?

This heartless woman!

Draco glared at her angrily, but his words took a different turn:

"Potter... he made the Quidditch team."

The protagonist winning rewards in his struggle against the antagonist was perfectly normal, Jane thought.

But seeing Draco crying so pitifully, and worried he might hyperventilate, she forced herself to engage:

"Why don't you join too?"

Draco's anger made him momentarily forget the dangerous three-headed dog nearby:

"What? Why don't I join? Are you stupid? First years aren't allowed on the house teams!"

But he heard the girl diligently scrubbing the three-headed dog respond coldly:

"Then how did Potter get in? Are you worse at flying than him?"

Having his flying ability questioned made Draco feel as if his appearance, physique, social graces, virtues, personality - his very soul - had been attacked!

"Impossible!"

"Potter isn't even close to my level!"

He jumped up and down, protesting repeatedly, launching into a detailed account of his flying experience.

Jane nodded indifferently - she didn't care who was better, but teasing Draco satisfied her mischievous side. He was like a little bird, puffing up at the slightest prod.

But as Draco spoke, he began to notice something odd.

Yes! Why could Potter join while he couldn't?

Gryffindor had broken the rules first - why should Slytherin still follow them?

If McGonagall had made this move, would Snape really let himself be outdone?

Besides, his flying skills were certainly no worse than Potter's.

Realizing this, his gaze toward Jane changed instantly.

Earlier when she'd snatched the Remembrall from his hand and created that competition, she must have wanted him to showcase his superior flying skills in front of their classmates, to defeat Potter and earn everyone's admiration!

But he had failed to understand her good intentions... and even lost his confidence...

Now she was trying to help him regain that confidence, to join the team, acknowledging his excellent flying ability!

So Jane only appeared harsh - she actually had such a kind heart!

Father had always said to judge people by their actions, not their words.

Draco began to recall Jane's behavior since the term began.

During their last detention, knowing he couldn't go to the Great Hall for dinner, she had risked expulsion to cook him delicious snail meat in Snape's office and clean the shells.

When Snape discovered them, she bravely stood between them...

And now she had shared the secret of the three-headed dog on the fourth floor...

She had even put her arm in the dog's mouth to protect him from being bitten...

He must be the person Jane trusted most in their house!

...

Seeing Draco suddenly fall silent with a look of revelation, Jane was completely baffled.

"Hmph... even if you're trying to get on my good side... the best I can offer is letting you be my follower..."

Draco mumbled awkwardly, his face red, stammering.

What had this silly boy imagined now?

Had the dog scared him senseless?

"I'm not trying to—" her response was cut short by a noise at the door!