Author's Notes: Hi! No, I'm not dead yet and I'm not done yet either. By some miracle, I have finished Chapter Seven and I have no idea what it has to do with anything… I think I've been in the hospital too long…… Never mind… I certainly hope you like it and stuff… Whatever… REVIEW!!! Everyone who reviews gets a cookie. *holds out plate of cookie* :D Later! ~Lanyara~

The Problem with Teenagers

~Chapter Seven~ Let the Lessons Begin!

         'Calli!' shouted a voice.

         'God! May head feels like it's been split into two by using a fork.'

         'Calli! Wake up girl!' said another.

         'Calli? Is that my name?'

~*~*~

         'What's wrong with her, Mistress Aesculapius?' sobbed Lily.

         A week after the Start of Term Banquet, found Calliope one evening collapsed on the corridor floor near the Moving Staircases. No one had any idea what occurred to cause her to collapse but all they knew was Calliope may not make it…

         'Stand away,' she said as she motioned for them to step away from the bed.

         They obligingly stepped back.

         'One of you get the headmaster, Professor Nightingale, Professor Kintel and erm… Professor Pyrolon if he can spare us some time,' said Mistress Aesculapius as she started checking Calliope's condition.

         'Professor Pyrolon?' said Sirius puzzled.

         'Just go get them, one of you please,' said Mistress Aesculapius as she continued her work.

         Remus and James scampered off to find the professors as Lily, Phoenix, Adrienne, Charmaine, Rachel, Deborah, Sirius and Peter were shooed out of the room.

         'I'm worried, Phoenix,' Lily said softly.

         'I know, Lily,' said Phoenix comfortingly.

         'But what I want to know is what happened to her,' said Adrienne bitterly.

         'Don't we all,' muttered Charmaine.

         'I'm sure Cal will be fine. She's pulled out of tough spots lots of times before,' said Deborah.

         'I sure hope you're right, Deb,' said Lily sullenly.

         'Don't feel so bad, Li,' said Rachel soothingly. 'Everything will be all right. We've got the best mediwitch in the nation taking care of Cal, she'll be fine.'

         Peter just remained silent sitting on a chair while Sirius leaned against the wall indifferent.

         'There's no need to look so sad, Miss Evans. I'm pretty sure Miss Silver will recover,' said a calming voice from the doorway.

         The eight fifteen-year-olds turned to look and saw James and Remus walking in with Professor Dumbledore, Professor Pyrolon and Professor Nightingale behind them. Professor Kintel was behind them with none other than Falcon Silver.

         'How's Cal?' he asked worriedly.

         'We don't know,' said Phoenix softly.

         Falcon's face fell and tears escaped his silvery-blue eyes.

         'There, there Mister Silver. I'm sure your sister will be fine,' Professor Kintel said reassuringly.

         'Headmaster?' said Mistress Aesculapius, poking her head out the door of Calliope's room.

         'Yes, yes Tilaia. I'm coming. Come now, Thomas,' beckoned the Headmaster to the Divination master.

         'Of course, Headmaster,' replied Professor Pyrolon as he and Professor Dumbledore entered the room.

         'Professor?' Rachel said, looking up to Professor Nightingale.

         'Yes, Miss Byrne?' she said.

         'What'll Professor Pyrolon and Professor Dumbledore do in Calliope's room?' Rachel asked.

         'To be honest Miss Byrne, I myself do not know,' she replied.

         'I should have been watching out for her,' Falcon muttered softly, tears streaming down his handsome face.

         'It's not your fault, Falcon,' Remus said to him. 'You didn't know this would happen.'

         'I made a promise. Christopher had mum look out for him, Florence had Christopher, and I had Florence. I'm supposed to look out for Calliope. I promised her I would and I didn't,' Falcon said, crying.

         'Don't blame yourself, Falcon. Everything will turn out fine. I'm sure of it. Calliope's strong, she'll pull through just when everyone gives up,' said James encouragingly.

         'I seriously hope you're instincts are right, James,' said Falcon sadly.

~*~*~

         'It's cold here.'

         'You won't feel much. It's just for a short while.'

         'I can hear something.'

         'Must be your imagination. There is no sound here.'

         'Where am I anyway?'

         'You shall find out soon but first you must let go.'

         'Let go?'

         'Yes, let go.'

         'Let go of what?'

         'Everything.'

         'Everything?'

         'Yes, everything.'

         'But what about my friends? My brothers? My sister? My family?'

         'They do not matter anymore. Here, there is no one. None to hurt you. None to harm you. You are protected here.'

         'Protected? Safe?'

         'Yes, very safe indeed. Nothing here but peace…'

         '…peace…'

         '…,silence…'

         '…silence…'

         '…and darkness.'

         '…darkness…'

         'I fear the darkness… the silence… protection…'

         'Why do you fear them? Darkness provides comfort. Silence leaves concentration for thought. Protection keeps you safe from harm.'

         'Darkness leaves no light to see. Silence has no sound to hear and remember. Protection can also means confinement…confinement… the fear of confinement… to be without freedom… to not live…'

~*~*~

         'What are they doing in there?' grumbled Adrienne.

         'Who knows?' replied Rachel.

         'Mistress Aesculapius,' said Charmaine, flipping the page of the book she was reading.

         'Huh?' was the reply she got from Adrienne and Rachel.

         'You asked who knows so I answered that Mistress Aesculapius would know,' Charmaine answered nonchalantly as she continued to flip through the book.

         Rachel reached out to grab her book and proceeded to whack her head with the book.

         'Ouch! That hurt!' Charmaine said as she took back her book and stalked off to the other side of the waiting lounge.

         'Serves you right,' said Adrienne.

         Charmaine stuck out her tongue and continued reading. Remus sat by the window staring into the sky. James and Sirius were playing wizard chess while Falcon sat brooding by Calliope's room door with Deborah, Phoenix and Lily. Professors Nightingale and Kintel were talking softly to each other as the tension mounted in the room. Peter had gone back to the common room ten minutes before and his absence was not missed. You'd imagine they're in their common room or something.

         Minute after agonizing minute passed when finally the door opened and out came Mistress Aesculapius, Professor Dumbledore and Professor Pyrolon, looking slightly paler than usual. Every person in the waiting room turned toward them awaiting an answer. Remus got up and strode towards Falcon as he broke the silence.

         'How's Calliope?' Falcon choked out.

         'You may see her if you wish but I must warn you, she is severely weak and this may come to a shock to you all,' said Mistress Aesculapius gently as she opened it wider to admit in Falcon and Remus, the others behind them.

         Remus breathed in sharply and Falcon gave a soft whimper as they took in the sight before them.

         On the bed, there lay Calliope, pale and unconscious, with all kinds of tubes and machinery humming softly by the right and left side of her bed. She had an oxygen mask covering her nose and mouth and seemed to be breathing shallowly.

         Remus nearly broke to tears as he walked towards the bed. Lily gasped softly and started sobbing. Remus, Falcon and Lily all sat on the chairs while the others came in with various reactions. Sirius still looked sceptical.

         'How can Muggle machinery work here?' asked Charmaine, looking at the cardiac monitor.

         'Magical sustenance. Instead of using electricity, we use raw magic source to operate the machines,' answered back the soft-spoken Divination Master.

         'Oh,' was Charmaine's blur reply.

         'Will she be alright, professor?' Lily asked the Headmaster, teary-eyed.

         Dumbledore gave her a small smile but it didn't reach his eyes.

         'Probably yes, Miss Evans, she may recover. But I can't say for sure. It's now really up to her. We've no idea what goes through her mind and if we don't know, we should not tamper with,' Professor Dumbledore replied lightly.

         'Oh,' Lily replied downcast.

         Remus said something in a whisper.

         'What was that, Remus?' asked Deborah.

         'She's fighting with herself,' he whispered.

         'What?' Professor Nightingale got up startled.

         'How do you know?' asked Professor Kintel quickly.

         'Huh?' Remus jumped surprised. 'I-I don't know. I-I just f-felt it.'

         'Felt it?' said Professor Dumbledore thoughtfully.

         'Uh yeah,' replied Remus.

         'How?' Mistress Aesculapius asked Professor Dumbledore.

         Professor Pyrolon stood quietly by the doorway in deep thought.

         'Uh, what's going on here?' asked Sirius. 'Did I miss something or something?'

         'Children out,' the matron said sternly, gesturing for the students to leave the room.

         They all got up but Dumbledore told Remus and Falcon to stay.

         'What'd you think that was about?' asked Rachel as Lily closed the door behind her.

         'I don't know but something weird is going on,' said Phoenix.

         'Come on. We'd better get back to the common room,' said Deborah as the troop of Gryffindors filed out of the infirmary.

~*~*~

         'Alexander, a moment please,' said Professor Nightingale from the doorway of the greenhouse.

         Professor Belladonna looked up from the bloodroot plant he was uprooting. Nodding, he placed the plant back into the pot and got up.

         'Continue to repot the plants, I'll be right back,' he said to his class of Gryffindor and Hufflepuff fifth-years then proceeded out the greenhouse.

         'His first name is Alexander?' whispered Rachel.

         'Alexander Belladonna. Weird name,' commented Phoenix as she stuffed the bloodroot into a bigger pot.

         'Fitting for a weird person,' said Charmaine, looking critically at the plant.

         Professor Belladonna re-entered the class and called for their attention.

         'Class, today I'll dismiss you early so finish up your repotting and you all may clean up and go back to the castle. Thank you,' he said then left.

         'Wonder what mum wanted,' said Phoenix as she washed her hands.

         'I don't know and I don't care. I hate Herbology,' muttered Lily.

         'You hate anything that has to do with gardening, Li,' said Rachel.

         'Yeah Li. Chill out,' said Charmaine.

         'Okay, is it just me or does it seem like my name will be L one fine day?' said Lily.

         'Huh?' Adrienne said puzzled.

         'Short recap just for you Eddie,' said Deborah. 'Name is Lily. Called Lil. Just called Li. Lily, minus Y, minus L, one fine day minus I, what do you get?'

         Adrienne thought for a while.

         'Oh,' she finally said.

         'If she gets any more blur than she already is, she'll be going backwards,' said Charmaine.

         'Hey!' protested Adrienne.

         'Before this catfight goes on, may we proceed back to the castle? I'm starving,' said Phoenix.

         'You're always starving,' said Rachel, walking ahead of her.

         'Am not,' retorted Phoenix.

         'Are to,' shot back Rachel.

         'Here we go again,' both Lily and Deborah sighed as Phoenix and Rachel argued and Charmaine and Adrienne stared and glared daggers at each other all the way up to the Great Hall.

~*~*~

         'I HATE bloodroot,' muttered Sirius.

         'Yes, Sirius. You said that for the past half hour,' said James pointedly, not looking up from his work on the table in the common room.

         'Sorry but it just makes me feel so… so...' trailed off Sirius, snapping his fingers trying to find the right word.

         'Nauseous?' said Remus nonchalantly, turning the page of the book he was reading.

         'Yes! Nauseous!' exclaimed Sirius brightly.

         'Sirius,' said Remus, as he closed his book and walked to his friend.

         He grabbed Sirius by his collar and abruptly shook him.

         'It is BLOODROOT! It's supposed to do that!'

         Sirius blinked at him.

         'Do what?'

         Remus sighed exasperatedly while James slapped his forehead. Peter looked at Remus expectantly.

         'Well, what does it do?' he asked.

         James stared at Peter then Sirius and promptly threw up his hands with an expression that clearly screamed "WHY ME?"

         Remus grabbed his Herbology book and picked out a page from which he read out a passage.

         'Bloodroot. A Perennial woodland native of North America having a red root and red sap and bearing a solitary lobed leave and white flower in early spring and having acrid emetic properties; rootstock used as a stimulant and expectorant.'

         He then looked at Sirius who looked back at him.

         After moment of silence, Remus said, 'You have no idea what I just said, did you?'

         'Not a clue,' said Sirius.

         'Huh?' was Peter's reply.

         'I'm going to bed. These simpleminded changelings do not have the capacity in their cranium to hold the information given to them. Good day to you,' Remus said curtly and went to the dormitory.

         After a minute…

         'Hey! I don't know what Moony said but it isn't nice,' pouted Sirius. 'James, what did he say?'

         'Find a dictionary,' said James who had returned to doing his work.

         'Good idea,' said Sirius as he bounded off in search of a dictionary.

         'I still don't know what bloodroot does,' moaned Peter.

~*~*~

         Calliope shifted uncomfortably in her bed and slowly opened her eyes.

         "God, my head hurts."

         She surveyed the room she was in.

         'Good God!'

         She turned towards the doorway and saw it open with the matron turning to call someone. Others came and sat around her.

         Falcon rushed to her side as Mistress Aesculapius went to check the instruments in the room.

         'Thank God you're all right. We were so worried. You were out for two weeks,' said Falcon, nearing to tears.

         'Indeed, you gave us all a bit of a fright,' said the kindly headmaster.

         After all the "Thank God you're okay"s and "We were afraid you weren't going to make it"s were done, Calliope said the first words she spoke in two weeks and they weren't expecting it.

         'Who are you people?'

Author's Notes: Hey, did any of that make any sense? Whatever! Heheh… What happens to Calliope? Who knows? ……never mind, stupid question…… Anyways, REVIEW!!! Please? Onegai? *puppy dog eyes*

Disclaimer: I only own the plot, Calliope and Falcon Silver, their siblings Christopher and Florence Silver, Phoenix and Florence Nightingale, Mistress Aesculapius, Professors Kintel, Pyrolon and Belladonna. Charmaine, Rachel, Deborah and Adrienne belong to themselves… Nothing else is mine! So, don't come after me or I'll set me dragon on you! :P