Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I'm not making any money off this story

A/N: This is Book 2 (Year 2) of the Callidus Prince Series

Summer 1992

Callidus was unsure of what to make of his new foster family. The only wizarding family that he had known were the Malfoys, and considering that they were at the very apex of the social ladder, they could hardly be considered an appropriate measuring stick to compare other wizarding families against. Not everyone lived in lavish manors on extensive estates, served by a multitude of eager house elves, ready to cater to one's every whim. If that were the case, the wizarding world would be populated by far to many Draco-types, and one spoiled, self-absorbed Malfoy heir was enough for the world.

Callidus's new family, the Filodoxos, lived in the half-wizarding village of Wimbourne, in a modest Tudor style townhouse. Their home contained only two mild-mannered magical portraits, but it did have a nice (though small) colour changing stained-glass window, and talking mirrors that were much less critical than the ones at Malfoy manor. Their coat rack was a bit on the grabby-side, and for some reason, there were numerous decorative ceramic shepherdesses that would not stop batting their eyelashes and cooing at Callidus. The chinaware wasn't as ornate as the Malfoys, and there was one particular tea cup with a penchant for dancing little jigs, but it was an otherwise orderly household.

Of the family, there was Segnis Filodoxos, a man in his mid-thirties with a mop of tight curly blond hair that seemed fitting for his perennially sunny temperament; Quinta Filodoxos, a broad woman of the same age, with lanky brown hair that could rival his own, who was the undisputed matriarch, ruling the household like a fickle tyrant, benevolent one moment and ruthless the next, but who seemed to favour Callidus; and Caiside Filodoxos, their daughter who was a year younger than Callidus. Caiside, for reasons that Callidus hadn't entirely figured out yet (though he had his suspicions) appeared to dislike him, or at least mistrusted him. She had never really spoken to him in the time that he was there, but occasionally glared at him through the curtains of her curly, red-brown hair. Admittedly, he had only been at the Filodoxos residence for a week, but he wasn't too optimistic about his relationship with Caiside.

Caiside appeared to have a strained relationship with her parents. Callidus didn't know if the situation had always been so uncomfortable, or if his presence had anything to do with it, but as far as he could tell, he hasn't done anything to cause offence. Quinta Filodoxos usually spoke to Caiside by barking orders or making some sort of critical remark about all manner of little things, and in contrast, she was exceedingly accommodating to Callidus. That in and of itself was rather uncomfortable. As for Segnis Filodoxos, he was absorbed in his own inner universe of music, and often acted oblivious to the world around him.

Quinta Filodoxos worked at a potions lab for a private company, and Callidus noticed her secretive behaviours regarding her work. She rarely ever spoke of her current projects, but seemed to enjoy discussing potions theory. Having learned of Callidus's skills in potions on the day they met, Quinta Filodoxos (or Madam Filodoxos, as she preferred to be called) immediately felt a sort of kinship towards Callidus, herding him into the position of an 'adopted son,' whether Callidus wanted it or not. Segnis ("Mr. Filodoxos is my father - call me Seggi") was a musician, who played the harpsichord. Some of his songs were even played on the Wizarding Wireless Network, though admittedly, his music was more likely to appeal to older crowds - the sort that might wear robes with too many frills and ruffles, and were perfectly comfortable accessorizing with monocles. He was distantly friendly towards Callidus, not at all in the over-accommodating way that Madam Filodoxos was.

At the moment, the family was sitting at the breakfast table, being served by the sole house elf owned by the family. The elf managed enough of the household that the family did not usually have to worry about any of the major household duties, but it wasn't enough to provide a life of indolence. Unlike Draco, Callidus had to put on his own robes and clean his own teeth and brush his own hair. In theory, if Draco decided he never wanted to lift another finger again he could probably ask one of his family's house elves to hand feed him, manually move his jaw for him, and then massage his throat to swallow. Not that Draco would do such a thing (or so Callidus hoped.)

Madam Filodoxos was currently reading the Daily Prophet, her expression pleased by whatever article she was reading. Segnis was softly humming an upbeat melody, tapping one hand on the table while he scribbled down song lyrics with the other. He was munching on a piece of toast, which he absently levitated up to his mouth with each bite. As for Caiside, she was petulantly stabbing at a slice of fried tomato, as though the piece of produce had somehow personally offended her sensibilities and deserved a messy death by skewering. This activity was punctuated by resentful glares at Callidus, and he did not doubt that she imagined skewering him as well. Or at least feeding him to her garden of aggressive or poisonous magical plants, which was apparently some sort of hobby of hers.

"The Magical Child Protection Act is gaining supporters," Madam Filodoxos commented, rustling the pages of the newspaper. "It's about time. The notion of any magical child having to suffer the fate of living with muggles is horrifying. Frankly, they ought to take them away at birth and nip that problem in the bud."

This comment did not seem to be directed at anyone in particular, but Callidus had the feeling that Madam Filodoxos was speaking to him. Segnis was still tapping some melody on the table, his head bobbing to some internal beat and Caiside just made a noncommittal humming sound.

"My friend's father had a role in writing that bill," Callidus informed her. It wasn't that he particularly wished to be drawn into conversation, but it felt rude to leave the comment unanswered. Besides, he had an interest in the bill.

"Did he now?" Madam Filodoxos replied, with an intrigued look. "You must have made some excellent connections in your year at Hogwarts."

Caiside rolled her eyes, but did not contribute to the conversation. Callidus wasn't sure what to think. Was the eye roll directed at him or at her mother? She did tend to roll her eyes at her mother and father a lot. It struck Callidus as being a bit puerile, but to be fair, he couldn't imagine being a bundle of sunshine if someone was always either critiquing him or ignoring him. But since Caiside hadn't done that much to endear herself to him, Callidus only felt the smallest bit of sympathy. Perhaps enough sympathy to fill a bottle cap. Or less.

"Yes, it's a prestigious school." Callidus didn't exactly want to drop names. Draco may have been his brother/friend, but that didn't mean that Callidus felt the inclination to talk about the Malfoys if he didn't have to. Draco already did enough of that.

"Indeed. Hopefully our Caiside will be improved in her time there," Madam Filodoxos gave Caiside a rather put-upon look, as though having to be her mother was some immense burden. Somehow, Callidus managed not to squirm from the weight of the awkwardness of the situation. He was almost tempted to say something in Cassie's defence. But seeing as he knew nothing about her, there was really nothing to add.

"Considering you and father went there, I have my doubts," Caiside muttered under her breath. Callidus, who heard her since he was seated next to her, raised his eyebrow.

"Don't mumble, Caiside," Madam Filodoxos chided. "It's unladylike. How are going to fit in with the right sort if you can't even articulate your words?"

"Of course, mother," Caiside answered sarcastically. "Mustn't fall in with the wrong crowd must I? Only the inbred sort will do."

Callidus couldn't help a snort of amusement, but ended up covering it up with a cough.

Madam Filodoxos glared at her daughter, her colour rising. "Show some respect Caiside! You're speaking of the most important, most influential witches and wizards in the country."

Segnis suddenly stopped humming and tapping his tune, and Callidus wondered if the man would finally decide to mediate the rising conflict between mother and daughter. "What rhymes with 'happy?' Nappy? Sappy? Yappy?"

Caiside scoffed. "How about 'horribly crappy?'" Callidus snorted again, and Caiside gave him a mildly surprised look before scowling again.

Segnis furrowed his brow. "Hrm. Nice and bouncy, little songbird, but - hrm - no, no, I really think it won't do. Conflicts with the message of the whole song, you know." With that, he started to mumble a series of rhymes, tuning out his family once again.

"It's too bad the Magical Child Protection Act wasn't put in place years ago," Callidus remarked, trying to veer the topic back on track. "It was - unpleasant, to say the least, growing up with muggles."

Caiside's jaw dropped, and her near-black eyes widened in surprise. "You - what - I thought -" Caiside blinked rapidly. "You were raised by a muggles?"

Callidus's expression darkened as he recalled the past. "Yes, well, my father was a muggle."

Caiside gasped. "What? A muggle? Not even a - a muggleborn?"

Callidus shrugged in response. Did Caiside think less of him for not having pure, untainted blood? Was all her talk just for show?

"What's this talk about muggles?" Segnis muttered, looking bemused. "Brutish creatures. How did we get onto this topic. Did you know that they have a device that can make holes in a person? I believe it is called a muskey? Musker? Musket? No, no, Musker sounds right."

Caiside rolled her eyes at her father. "Thank you for that helpful contribution, dad" she said sarcastically before turning back to Callidus. "You - you're a Prince! One of those families. How can you be -" Caiside turned to look at her mother, her expression accusing. "Did you know this mum?"

Madam Filodoxos sniffed, irritated by the turn of the conversation. "This is hardly appropriate conversation for the breakfast table. Callidus is an upstanding young man, and a direct descendant of the Princes."

Caiside still appeared shocked. "I never would have thought I'd hear you defend a half-blood mum. Really. I ought to be marking this day down for posterity. 'Mum is less of a bigot so long as an old pure-blood name is involved.' Merlin, what a miracle." Her voice dripped irony.

Madam Filodoxos looked like she was ready to sputter an offended reply, but Caiside turned back to Callidus, cutting her mother off. "What was it like, growing up with muggles? All I ever hear about is how they plan to burn us all at the stake, or, dissect us in labs or - or fly their airplanes at us."

"What?" Callidus raised his eyebrow incredulously. "I don't think there has been a witch burning in centuries, and I'm fairly certain that airplanes are meant to transport passengers. I'm not sure about the labs though. But frankly, growing up with muggles was unpleasant. They can be very small minded, and even without magic, they're capable of a great deal of cruelty."

Caiside looked surprisingly disappointed by this answer. "Oh. I thought - well - nevermind what I thought."

"That said, I don't lump muggleborns in with muggles," Callidus continued. "Some of the brightest witches I've ever met are muggleborns."

Caiside brightened. She shot a smug look at her mother. "Really. That's interesting. You know, you're not what I expected, Callidus. You're not so bad."

"Thank you for the glowing praise," Callidus drawled.

"I don't think all muggleborns are bad," Madam Filodoxos interjected. "But there is no denying that they are ruining our culture with their ways, and every muggleborn represents a threat of our discovery. That's why I am in such strong support of the Magical Child Protection Act."

"Oh? Muggleborns aren't so bad, mum? So -" Caiside's expression became sly, "- if I met a nice muggleborn boy at Hogwarts and wanted to get married -"

Madam Filodoxos gasped. "I've had enough of this, Caiside Filodoxos! I know you're deliberately trying to provoke me, and front of dear Callidus, no less. Your implications are creating a terrible impression of the honourable Filodoxos name. I've tried and tried to instill a ladylike modesty and gentle manner in you, but yet, you continue to disobey me. Don't you know that I am just doing this for your sake? Go to your room, Now!"

Caiside shrugged indifferently. "Whatever, mum. Talk to you later, Callidus."

"Oh. Yes. Later - er - Caiside," Callidus replied awkwardly. That had to be the first time that Caiside had given him any sort of friendly acknowledgement. Caiside stood up, leaving her plate for the house-elf to clear away, and climbed up the stairs to her room.

"Well!" Madam Filodoxos huffed. "I apologize for her behaviour, Callidus. Caiside has always been a spirited girl. I believe she's going through a phase. You'll have to excuse her immaturity."

"Indeed," Callidus responded neutrally. That was a safe thing to say, right? How did he even end up in the middle of this family drama? And did the Filodoxos have a problem with him being a half-blood, or not?

"Besides," Madam Filodoxos continued, "I know that it is hardly your fault that your blood status is - well - what it is. I can tell that you are a young man with good values, and you are sure to make a great contribution to the wizarding world. Especially with your talent in potions."

Callidus breathed a small sigh of relief in the change of topic. Potions. That was safe and familiar. He could handle a conversation about that. Welcomed it, even. By the time he had finished his breakfast, his mood was relatively relaxed. Madam Filodoxos might be a bit uptight, and sometimes overbearing, but she was knowledgeable about potions, and out of all the Filodoxos, she was making the most effort to accept him. This might not be the ideal situation, but in all honesty, it wasn't too bad. As long as he didn't think too hard about the matter of blood status. And besides, he'd be back at Hogwarts soon.

Madam Filodoxos soon departed for work, and Segnis had holed himself away in his music room to work on his new composition. As Callidus climbed the stairs towards the guest room, he wondered what he would do with himself. He had just finished the last of his summer homework yesterday. Harry, Draco and Hermione had already written once, but none of them were doing anything particularly noteworthy. Draco mostly bragged about the excessively expensive birthday presents he had belated received (his birthday had been in early June, near the exam period.) Harry sounded thrilled to simply be permitted to be his own room, with no threat of chores, and all the time in the world to do his summer homework. It was the first time Callidus had ever heard Harry sound happy about homework. And as for Hermione, her letter had been about the homework itself, which, while intellectually interesting, didn't quite qualify as exciting. As Callidus turned the corner towards the corridor that led to his bedroom, he was greeted by the sight of Caiside, who was leaning against one of the walls with her arms crossed.

Caiside arched an eyebrow, one corner of her lip curled upwards in a crookedly mocking smile. "Finally finished cozying up to my mother?"

"If you're attempting a gibe, I'd try one with a little less underlying insecurity," Callidus drawled.

"I'm not insecure!" Caiside retorted. "It's not like I'd want more of my mum's attention." She scrunched up her face at the thought. "And there's no way I'll ever be her perfect little pureblood doll."

Callidus shrugged. "I can't say that particularly pleased to be target of her fulsome mothering. But I have a genuine interest in potions, and your mother has been telling me about some of her past projects."

Caiside bit the inside of her cheek as she considered his words. "Fair enough, I suppose. Hey, do you feel like going out today? You haven't seen much of Wimbourne yet, have you?"

The invitation surprised Callidus. Since when could Caiside be so - well - friendly? A part of him wondered whether he should suspect some sort of trick. "What's there to see in Wimbourne?"

"Honestly? Not much. The wizarding section of town is pretty small compared to, say Diagon Alley or Hogsmeade. And the muggle section isn't much better either, but no one ever goes there - I don't even own muggle clothes so I might look a bit funny to them. But there's a pastry shop that has the most amazing bread pudding."

"I can't say that I'm particularly tempted by sweets."

"You could always come and - erm - watch me eat?" Caiside raised her eyebrows hopefully.

Callidus smirked. "What a convincing argument. I've always wanted to witness this mysterious act whereby nutritionally empty carbohydrates are being masticated."

Caiside giggled, causing her curls to bounce. "Come on, Callidus. I'm sure we'll find something that you like."

With a shrug, Callidus decided to follow. It wasn't as though he had anything else to do anyway, and if Caiside had finally decided that she wanted to be nice, he wasn't going to complain (though he might mock her for the infantile behaviour she had displayed the previous week. It was only fair.)

It was a hot summer day, so Callidus and Caiside did not bother with coats, and once they had their shoes on, they were out the door. Caiside was much more relaxed than Callidus had ever seen her, but Callidus kept his hands tucked in his pockets, his eyes squinting at the brightness of the sun.

"When was the last time you ever saw the sun?" Caiside queried. "Your complexion would make a ghost proud."

"You know, for someone who ignored me all last week, you're awfully friendly now."

Caiside looked somewhat sheepish. She gave an embarrassed shrug. "Well, we're distant family. So. That makes us - what - erm - cousins?"

"I commend your ability to make inane observations. What a graceful way to cover up your discomfiture. And since many purebloods are, as you say, inbred, being cousins means very little, doesn't it?"

Caiside snorted. "It's more of a problem in the older families. Though I'm sure that it's something my parents aspire towards."

"What, being inbred?"

Caiside laughed bitterly. "Well, let's just say that I wouldn't be surprised if they tried to marry me off. To - well. You."

Callidus blanched. "What? They - You? No! And besides, I'm not a pureblood!"

"Yes, well, now you know how I feel. No offence. And I didn't realize you were a half-blood until today. I'm surprised my parents have been so welcoming so far. But as I said, Prince is an old name. I suppose the prestige matters more than blood purity. Our family doesn't have a seat on the Wizengamot, but I know the Prince's do. It hasn't been used in ages of course. Honestly, it's kind of a surprise when you just showed up. I think people thought the Prince line had died out, and yet, here you are."

Callidus hummed thoughtfully. Of all things, he wasn't expecting this kind of revelation. It made him wonder just how much the Filodoxos' actually knew about him. Callidus had been reticent when it came to his past. But had Dumbledore revealed anything to the Filodoxos? Such as his de-aging?

"I've just made things awkward, haven't I?" Caiside smiled crookedly.

Callidus shrugged. "I'd say this is about as awkward as being subjected to silent and resentful glares for a week."

Caiside flushed. "I wasn't giving you resentful glares."

"Ha. So you admit to glaring?"

"Well - fine. Yes. I misjudged you. I humbly beg your apology. Satisfied?"

Callidus gave her a wicked smile. "For now."

"What, do you plan to reduce me to some trembling, tearful pile of guilt and supplication?"

Callidus chuckled. "Well, if Wimbourne is as uninteresting as you've implied, it might be my only source of entertainment for the rest of the month." To that, Caiside only rolled her eyes.

It was a twenty minute walk to reach the main street of Wimbourne, which consisted of mostly Tudor-style buildings. There were several young families, and a few elderly couples out and about. As Caiside mentioned, there was a pastry shop, but there was also a tailor, a pub, a post office, a general goods store, and an apothecary. A few blocks over from the main street was the muggle portion of town.

"I need to stop by the post office to place an order for Cobra Lily seeds," Caiside informed him.

"Isn't your garden fatal enough? Half the time, I'm afraid to even look out the window into your backyard. I'm surprised that the neighbourhood animals are able to survive that death trap."

Caiside shot him a mock-offended look. "My garden is spectacular. It may very well be the only garden in Britain that's a hundred percent gnome-free. And I'll have you know that my mother once told me that tending to a garden is a perfectly ladylike past time."

"When was this? Years ago? I have a feeling she regrets those words."

Caiside looked smug. "Oh, she does," she purred with intense satisfaction. Callidus snorted with amusement. After Caiside placed her order at the post office, they headed to the pastry shop, where Caiside purchased some bread pudding, and Callidus decided on a small fruit tart. As they ate their treats at one of the small, outdoor tables, Caiside made snide comments about the passerby-ers. Callidus decided he didn't mind Caiside's company. She was kind of amusing.

Not wanting to return back to they house, they decided to near the border of the wizard-muggle portion of town. Caiside was gleefully describing some of the more horrific toxins from the plants that she was cultivating in her garden, when a pair of muggle girls swerved around a corner, nearly bowling them over. The girls were wide-eyed with confusion and fear, throwing scared looks over their shoulders. They barely even bothered to apologize to Callidus and Caiside.

"What was that?" Callidus looked towards the running girls, bemused.

Caiside's expression darkened. "Merlin," she muttered. "I hope it's not what I think it is."

"What!" Callidus demanded, but Caiside was already stalking off. She turned a corner and they came face to face with a group of three older boys. Callidus recognized two of their faces as older student at Hogwarts, but he didn't know their names.

"Milgrim!" Caiside spat out. "I should have known it was you. You know you're not supposed to bait muggles. It's illegal!"

"Hello to you too, Filodoxos," replied the stockiest boy that she called Milgrim. "What are you planning to do? Report me to the aurors? You can't prove anything! Besides, you read the papers don't you? Muggles are horrible. They abuse us every chance they get, so why shouldn't we get them back from time to time?"

"What did you do to them?" Caiside hissed.

The stocky boy just smiled nastily. "It was just a few stinging hexes. They didn't even see us. What's the big deal? No one trusts muggles these days." The other two boys made noises of assent.

"It's wrong!" Caiside exclaimed. "They didn't do anything to you."

The boy raised his eyebrows. "Careful, Filodoxos. People might start thinking you're a blood traitor if you go around saying things like that."

Caiside scowled. "Why should I care what a bunch of idiots think?"

The boy pulled out his wand, aiming it at Caiside. "You've always been such a brat. I bet that your mom would thank me if I taught you a little lesson. Did you know that every time she visits my mum for tea, she complains about how hopeless you are?"

A dark look crossed Caiside's face, but she stood firm. Callidus had no idea what he had just gotten himself caught up in, but he found himself reaching into his pocket and gripping his wand. He really, really didn't want to have to use it. The last thing he needed was a letter from the Ministry of Magic about the use of Underaged Magic. Something like this could potentially get him expelled.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Milgrim?" Caiside taunted. "Remember what happened last time?"

The stocky boy's expression wavered. His cheeks had become flushed, and his eyes promised revenge, but his wand hand had faltered. "Hexing whiny little girls is stupid anyway," he muttered, pocketing his wand. "Let's go." He and his friends turned to leave.

When they were gone, Caiside exhaled heavily. "Merlin, I can't stand him."

"What was that all about?"

Caiside gave Callidus a rueful smile. "He's some boy I've known since I was a kid. As he said, our mums like to visit, so we used to have play dates. We never got along though. Anyway, this isn't the first time I've caught him bullying others, but lately, he's been doing more and more muggle baiting. It - well, ever since that news story with Harry Potter, there's been a lot more anti-muggle sentiments. Most people are mature enough not to do things like Milgrim, but people have been talking, and stuff." Caiside shrugged and began to turn back toward the direction of her house, and Callidus walked alongside her.

"What were you referring to when you mentioned a 'last time?' What happened?"

The question brought a self-satisfied smile onto Caiside's face. From her pocket, she pulled out a couple of oblong-shaped pods.

Callidus leaned towards her, examining the speckled green pods. "What are those?"

"They're seed pods from one of my plants. With a hard enough impact, the pod bursts open, and the seeds disperse. What's interesting with these seeds is that they will latch and wriggle themselves into a growing surface. Whether that's on the soil, on pavement or -" she grinned maliciously, "- on skin, the seed will still latch and insert. It's not lethal - but it's wicked painful. Makes a bloody mess. I mean that literally."

Callidus cringed at the thought. "It's like a - plant shrapnel bomb - or something."

"I don't really know what a shrapnel bomb is," Caiside admitted. "A muggle thing?"

Callidus nodded. "Can I see one of those?"

"Sure." Caiside placed a pod in his palm. "Just don't squeeze it or anything."

As they walked back to the Filodoxos house, Caiside spoke more about the rising anti-muggle attitudes. It wasn't the sort of thing that was written about in papers like the Daily Prophet, so Callidus had been oblivious to the matter.

"Is this just Wimbourne, or are other towns feeling the same way? I imagine the negative perceptions must be fairly widespread, considering the Daily Prophet's readership.

Caiside shrugged. "Maybe. I don't know. I don't hate muggles."

"Why?" Callidus wondered. Caiside gave him an incredulous look. "I mean, considering how your parents act, I'm just - I admit, surprised that you're so open-minded towards muggles and blood status."

Caiside snorted. "My parents attitudes are exactly why I'm open-minded towards muggles and muggleborns. The last thing I want to do is be like my parents. Ugh."

Callidus raised his eyebrow. "So this is all just an act of rebellion? It has nothing to do with principles?"

"I - erm -" Caiside looked a bit abashed. "At first, it was all about being rebellious. But - I - I don't know. I mean, no one here associates with the muggles. And I don't know any muggleborns. But the thing is, I've met a lot of pure-bloods and half-bloods who aren't the greatest people. Milgrim, for one. I guess I just figured that muggles and muggleborns can't be worse, you know?"

"Logical assumption."

"Does it bother you?" Caiside queried.

Callidus shrugged. "I've had bad experiences with muggles. But as I said, some of the smartest people I've met are muggleborns."

"Hm. Just so we're - erm - clear - I wanted to say that your blood status doesn't bother me."

"I gathered," Callidus drawled.

Caiside gave him a weak smile. "It's just - well - I had fun today. Aside from stupid Milgrim. We should - I don't know - do this again?"

Callidus raised an eyebrow, but remained silent, and Caiside began to squirm uncomfortably. It was a little spiteful, but considering she had ignored him for a week, he thought she deserved a little punishment. Finally, his lips quirked upwards in a smile. "Sure. There's nothing better to do, anyway."

Caiside huffed with relief, but broke into a wide grin. "Well now that we're - erm - hanging out - I gotta give you a tour of my garden. Don't worry, I won't let you get hurt. Much."

"Lucky me."