Daddy Dearest II

The Question

Scorpius decided to just jump right in. It was the beginning of November, and he had a feeling he'd need a few weeks to work on Jaden.

He had to admit she was attractive in her way. She was about five-nine, slender, with slightly curling raven black hair that fell to her waist. Her eyes were very dark brown, and her skin tone, very fair, just this side of pale, but she had no freckles. She had a rather aquiline nose, long, but attractive, it suited her face but often gave others the impression she was looking down it at them in scrutiny.

She was a rather sober witch, so whenever she smiled, it drew the eye. She had a lovely smile, although her teeth were slightly crooked. But basically, Jaden smirked when something amused her. She had a lot of female friends in Slytherin and was as social as it was possible to be with her father being Headmaster, but the males were very cautious around her. She was very smart and made good marks.

She was also fast as hell with a wand.

She didn't like silliness, or show-offs, but she did like courage and a bit of recklessness. She also liked a bit of individualism and ruggedness. Scorpius, even if he wasn't a pretty boy, wouldn't appeal to her because he was too tame, too . . . well good. Definitely on the softer side of Slytherin.

She much preferred James Potter. He was crazy, in a good way.

James Potter wasn't a pretty boy, which was a good thing for him as far as Jaden went, but he was a Gryffindor and as such, her rival.

James Potter was rather popular, but he always had a rumpled, careless air about him. His black hair was always messy, and his robes in a state of unkemptness that not even an ironing spell could smooth out for long. He didn't wear glasses. The Weasley genes kicked in from his mother Ginny, and he could see just fine. He was a beater on the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

James had his own style, and didn't care much about how others perceived him. He had a favorite pair of run-over trainers that he wore practically all the time, and wasn't the least bit ashamed of their ragged condition. In fact, Jaden had shredded them even worse on a couple of occasions when he tried to talk to her seriously. By the time she stalked away, his toes were showing through his socks. He just patched them up.

James and Jaden were both sixth years, and had a bit of a history. The moment James saw the witch his first year, standing among the others and waiting for the Sorting, he began picking on her and got a good punch in his stomach that doubled him over for his efforts.

He learned a short time later that her father was the Headmaster of Hogwarts, but he didn't care about that. All through school, he picked at Jaden, despite getting in trouble for it. His activities included pulling her long black hair, teasing her about her nose, hitting her with little annoying hexes . . . generally the things young wizards do to young witches that they like, but don't know how to show they like them.

So by the time they were old enough to consider dating, Jaden thought him a total prat, and so James Potter had to try and fix all the errors he'd committed in those early, carefree and totally clueless days.

He'd get so many detentions because of Jaden from her father, that he could have listed Detention as a class. He'd have almost perfect attendance.

Snape believed it was the Potter gene rearing its ugly head again, and initially believed that James had it in for his daughter, just as his grandfather and namesake had it in for him when they attended school together.

He changed his mind when one day he caught James looking at Jaden in the Great Hall. He knew that look, and it wasn't the look of a conniving Marauder-wanna-be.

That was . . . lust.

Oh no. It wasn't going to happen. This was his daughter, and no Potter was going to defile her.

Ever.

Jaden couldn't help but notice that James was seriously interested in her, when despite getting in trouble, he'd return to her again and again, pleading his case, begging her to go out with him. She gave him the hardest time, but she couldn't help being taken by how much trouble he was willing to get into just to speak to her. He even got jumped in the dungeons by several Slytherins and beaten up pretty badly, her father standing by and watching for several minutes before breaking it up, then giving James detention for inciting the brawl in the first place.

"You had no business being in the dungeons, Mr. Potter. You are well aware your presence would be less than welcome," Snape told him, taking a few points as well.

When Jaden heard what happened, she asked her father why he didn't punish the Slytherins too. He told her it was because they did what he couldn't. Kept James Potter away from her.

"Every Potter I've come in contact with has been pompous, shallow, irreverent of the rules, steeped in self-importance, incorrigible and lacking in character. Sometimes I feel the gods placed them on the earth specifically to test me, much in the manner of Job. James Potter has been harassing you for years, despite my best efforts at trying to put the fear of me in him. It is clear the boy fancies you. His continual stalking of your person only shows how dense and unsuitable he is. Any other wizard would have gotten the point by now. I've tried the usual means, now I am forced to utilize other ways to get my message across. He is entirely unsuitable to associate with you, and I don't want you encouraging him. You are only fifteen and should be focused on your studies. From this point on, James Potter is off limits!"

Jaden couldn't believe it. Up to this point, James had just been an interesting diversion, but she kind of liked his persistence and had been warming up to him just a little. But, it was still her right to choose who she talked or didn't talk to, and it was unfair her father was trying to control her social life.

Snape might as well have declared war. It was one thing for her to hold the amorous Gryffindor off because she wanted to, but to have her father actually ordering her to stay away from him . . . well that was a dragon of another scale. How dare he try to pick and choose who she associated with?

And after a year or so of her father doing sneaky things to spy on her and keep not only James, but any other interested young wizards away from her, Jaden threw it all to the winds . . . that's what led up to the kiss in the corridor. That and James never giving up, no matter how unpleasant her father made things for him.

As was said, Jaden admired courage and recklessness.

Scorpius cleared his throat, ran his hands over his blonde hair, then walked up to the Slytherin table where Jaden was sitting with her friends. They all looked up at him, smiling, with the exception of course, of Jaden, who let her eyes sweep over him and returned to talking.

Scorpius cleared his throat.

"Ah, Jaden . . . I'd like to ask you something," he said clearly.

Jaden looked up at him.

"What?" she asked him, frowning slightly.

"I'd like to ask you if you'd accompany me to the Christmas Ball," he replied.

Both of Jaden's eyebrows rose up in surprise as the witches around her began whispering frantically to each other. Scorpius was asking Jaden to the Ball?

He must have a death wish or something.

Looking at him curiously, Jaden slowly replied, "Thank you for asking me, Scorpius, but I've already got a date for the Ball. James Potter is taking me."

Scorpius' eyes widened at this, and he reflexively looked up at the Head table, where Snape was observing his progress with narrowed eyes. Jaden followed his gaze and saw her father watching, and instantly put two and two together. Her face went black as her dark eyes shifted back to Scorpius.

"My father put you up to this!" she hissed.

"What? No. No! He didn't," Scorpius said, trying to save himself.

"Well, tell my father this for me," she said rising.

A crack rang out as Jaden slapped Scorpius soundly, then stalked out of the Great Hall.

"I take it she said no," Snape said to himself as he watched his daughter push both doors open and exit. Tall as she was, she walked just like Hermione when she was pissed off.

Scorpius rubbed his cheek and sat down at the table, filling a glass with never-melting ice and holding it to his stinging face. He was fair-skinned, and he had a good, solid handprint on his face.

"Er . . . Scorpius . . . Jaden might have a date, but . . . we're all still available," several witches purred at him.

Great. Just Great.

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A/N Lol. Another scene. James doesn't give up, does he? Snape's going to blow a torch.