Chapter 9
It was now just past 5:30 on Christmas. Catherine had spent the day at Grimmauld Place talking with Charlie. After finding out that her mother had been killed, she needed someone who would understand to talk to. Throughout the day, Charlie and herself talked a lot, exposing everything about themselves, all the pain they had gone through, and past experiences. The pair hugged tightly before Cate left for Hogwarts.
The young woman entered the Great Hall a little late for dinner. Everyone had already begun eating, they looked up as she entered.
"Catherine, I didn't expect to se you tonight." Dumbledore looked rather surprised, maybe he had expected her to stay at Grimmauld Place.
"It's Christmas." She responded weakly, siting down. "I couldn't afford to miss it." She smiled lightly, then served herself a small portion of food.
The meal was going rather good, and it was rather quiet. Cate felt Snape's eyes on her every so often. SHe knew he must be in some pain, the question was, how much? A sudden burst of pain on her left arm broke her out of her thoughts. Dropping her fork with a clatter, she grabbed onto her arm, slightly wincing in pain. Professor McGonagall looked from Cate to Snape, whose hand was also twitching slightly in pain, resisting the temptation to grab his arm.
Minerva looked over at the young woman sitting across from her.
"Catherine, are you all right?" The burning then went away, she withdrew her hand.
"Yes, I'm fine."
"Better than this morning I presume?"
"A bit." Hermione turned to look at Cate.
"If you don't mind me asking, why were you so upset over your dog dying?" She asked. Tears blurred up her deep brown eyes as she turned back to the teen.