10 November 1995 – Hedwig
"Come in."
Katie opened the door of Professor Grubbly-Plank's tiny office nervously, biting her lip.
"Miss Bell, did you need something?" Professor Grubbly-Plank asked from the desk, looking over her spectacles.
"I wanted to ask about my essay, Professor," she said anxiously.
"Ah," said Professor Grubbly-Plank sternly, setting down the parchment she held. "Not your best work."
"Not exactly," Katie said.
"Well, you didn't get into N.E.W.T.-level Care of Magical Creatures without good reason," Professor Grubbly-Plank told her. "Come in my little broom cupboard. We'll have a chat."
Entering the office, Katie caught sight of a large cage, which held two snowy owls, sleeping soundly.
"Professor," Katie said slowly, coming close and frowning at the smaller one. "Isn't that—?"
"Potter's owl," Professor Grubbly-Plank said, nodding to the cage. "She was injured during a flight, I've been looking after her."
"Oh, poor Hedwig," Katie cooed softly.
Professor Grubbly-Plank smiled. "She'll be all right. She's been getting to know my old friend Galileo. He's an elderly little fellow, but they like each other. Come sit, Bell."
"Right, sorry," Katie said hurriedly, sitting down in the chair across from the desk, reaching into her bag for her latest Care of Magical Creatures essay. "I can't say I disagree with the Dreadful, but I wanted to talk about it. See if I can…make it up, maybe."
"Absolutely." Professor Grubbly-Plank took the essay and peered closely at it through her spectacles. Silence fell for several minutes, punctuated here and there by the occasional nod or grunt from Professor Grubbly-Plank. She picked up a quill and made an additional mark before finally laying down the parchment and looking seriously at Katie.
"Miss Bell, I have to ask you something," she said. Katie nodded anxiously. "Are you frightened of unicorns?"
Katie blanched.
"Because," continued Professor Grubbly-Plank, brandishing the parchment, "the main problem with this essay is a severe lack of detail and information. The general facts are correct."
"Er," Katie said slowly, looking away from her. "They…they sort of…okay, yes," she said desperately. "I'm terrified of their horns! I know they're supposed to be gentle, but they scare me to death!"
Professor Grubbly-Plank nodded, but thankfully did not laugh. She rolled up Katie's essay and returned it. "Unfortunately, I can't do anything about this paper for you. However," she said, when Katie's face fell, "It's only the second of the term. Since we'll be covering unicorns for a while yet, I recommend you get some assistance—your friend Leanne is very good with the creatures."
Katie nodded, putting away her essay dejectedly, and got up to leave.
"Oh, Miss Bell," Professor Grubbly-Plank said, and Katie turned, her hand on the door. "You might try Seamus Finnigan. I'll never understand why, but he has something of a gift with unicorns, too."
"Oh," Katie said, biting the inside of her cheek hard and fighting furiously to keep a straight face. "Thank you, Professor. I'll ask him about that." She barely escaped the office before collapsing into helpless laughter.
Part VII and VIII go together XD (same day)...at least, that's my excuse...
