Exile
Days passed, and there was still no sign of Juliet.
Daphne and Theo returned from their meeting with Dumbledore, looking just as confused as when they'd left. "He didn't say much," Daphne explained, her brow furrowed in frustration. "All he said was that Juliet had... left. That's it. No explanation, no timeline. Just that she left."
Theo crossed his arms, looking irritated. "It was almost like he didn't want to talk about it at all."
"Of course he doesn't," Blaise scoffed from where he sat by the fire. "Dumbledore never explains anything. And Snape was no better." He mimicked the professor's condescending smirk, which was etched in their memories. "He looked too pleased about the whole thing. Gave us some sarcastic remark about her finally 'facing the consequences of her lifestyle,' or something like that."
Pansy stood in the middle of the room, her arms crossed tightly against her chest. "And St. Mungo's finally got back to me," she said quietly. Her voice wavered slightly, but she swallowed the lump in her throat and continued. "They said Juliet checked herself into rehab. But the next day, she disappeared. She's just... gone."
"Gone?" Draco repeated, his voice cold, though there was a flicker of something behind his grey eyes. "How does someone just vanish from a rehabilitation center?"
"They didn't explain," Pansy said, shaking her head. "One day she was there, the next, nothing. No one saw her leave, and they haven't heard from her since."
Draco's jaw tightened. He had spoken to her parents — if you could call that speaking. They had been vague, unhelpful, and distracted. Almost as if Juliet's sudden disappearance wasn't the catastrophe it seemed. But none of the information was adding up. Juliet leaving St. Mungo's without anyone knowing? Dumbledore and Snape pleading the fifth? It was classic Juliet. Running away whenever things got hard and making everybody look for her.
"And her parents still haven't gotten back to us?" Theo asked, his frustration seeping into his tone.
"No," Draco said, his voice colder than before. "They're playing dumb. Acting like they don't know what's going on."
"That's because they don't care," Daphne muttered, bitterness coloring her words. "They never have."
Pansy's eyes glistened with worry. "None of this makes sense. Juliet wouldn't just disappear without telling anyone. Not me, not us. We're missing something."
Draco felt bad for Pansy. Here she was, being a good friend, defending Juliet like her life depended on it, when everyone — including her — knew the truth: Juliet wasn't in trouble, Juliet ran away from the trouble she caused. But it doesn't explain all the clues from sources they seeked out. Everything was too convenient.
A part of him wanted to believe that Juliet hadn't just ran away because things got too hard. He wanted to believe that there was something more to the story that they were all looking past or simply haven't found. But a reigning thought swallowed his mind. When it came to Juliet, there was never another puzzle piece. It was always how it seemed. Nothing more, nothing less.
Blaise raised an eyebrow. "Are we, though? Maybe she finally hit her breaking point. She's always been reckless. Maybe she just... snapped."
"We need more information," Draco finally said, his voice low. The part of him that wanted to believe in the better half of Juliet took over. "Something isn't adding up. If she's not at St. Mungo's and her parents are playing dumb, then there's only one option left."
Pansy looked up, her eyes filled with hope. "What is it?"
Draco locked eyes with her. "We need to find Juliet ourselves."
Suddenly, a rustling of wings interrupted the tense silence. Pansy's owl swooped through the window, landing gracefully on the arm of her chair before dropping a letter into her lap. The group stared at it for a moment before Pansy hesitantly picked it up.
"What is it?" Daphne asked, her voice laced with apprehension.
"I—I wrote to Juliet's parents," Pansy murmured, her hands trembling slightly as she opened the envelope. "They've always treated me like family. I thought maybe they'd tell me something they wouldn't tell Draco."
As her eyes scanned the letter, her face drained of all color. The group exchanged worried glances, but no one spoke. After a few moments of silent reading, Pansy stood up abruptly, her face twisted with disbelief and hurt.
"She's gone," Pansy whispered, her voice breaking. Without another word, she stormed out of the room, tears streaming down her face. The door slammed behind her, leaving the rest of them in stunned silence.
Daphne immediately reached for the letter Pansy had dropped on the floor. Blaise, Theo, and Draco crowded around her as she unfolded the crumpled parchment. The elegant handwriting of Juliet's mother filled the page, and Daphne read it aloud:
Oh dear, Juliet didn't tell you? She transferred to Beauxbatons. She wanted a fresh start, and we fully supported her decision. We assumed she would have told you by now. How unfortunate. Do visit us soon, Pansy dear.
— Elliana Van Der Hart
A heavy silence followed as they all processed the words.
"Beauxbatons?" Theo repeated, his voice incredulous. "That doesn't make any sense."
Draco's expression darkened, his jaw clenching in anger. "A fresh start?" he echoed bitterly. "So that's it? She's just running away from everything? From us?"
Daphne let out a frustrated sigh. "She didn't even bother telling us. Not a word."
Blaise shook his head, disbelief in his eyes. "After everything we've been through together, she just... leaves? Transfers without so much as a goodbye?"
Draco's hands curled into fists, the hurt simmering beneath the surface. Juliet had always been unpredictable, but this felt like betrayal.
Theo kicked at the floor in frustration. "This doesn't make sense. Juliet wouldn't just cut us off like this."
"Maybe..." Blaise started, his voice quieter than usual. "Maybe she really does want a fresh start."
Daphne's eyes darkened, and she shook her head slowly. "No," she said, more to herself than to the others. "This isn't her."
Draco remained silent, his jaw clenched tightly, before he spoke, "Wake up, Daphne. This is exactly like her."