17. Flowers and Chocolates
The Great Hall was decorated in pink and red for Valentine's Day, and little cupids flew above their heads shooting arrows as they settled in for breakfast.
"Ow!" Pansy shrieked, as an arrow the size of a needle hit her arm. What with her blouse and her robes, it couldn't possibly have hurt. "Little bugger!" she said under her breath.
"Mail's here," Daphne noted. And they leaned back to make room for the dozens of owls that flew across the table.
"Ooh!" Pansy said with excitement, spotting an owl that carried a bouquet of roses in it's beak. Clearly she expected them to be for her, but the owl passed her up and dropped them right in front of Callie.
"What the-?" Callie began, then checked the attached card to make sure it wasn't a mistake.
"Probably from Longbottom," Daphne said, grinning. Pansy, on the other hand, didn't look quite so amused. Daphne went on, "Rumor has it they were seen snogging in Greenhouse 3."
That wasn't true, but Callie's heart leapt at the idea that the roses could be from her Gryffindor friend.
Unfortunately, she didn't recognize the handwriting as his.
From your secret admirer.
Something as lovely as yourself.
Happy Valentine's Day!
Glancing across the room to the Hufflepuff table, she wondered if it had been Ernie or Justin. Has to be one of the two, she thought.
"Longbottom, eh?" Pansy shot disdainfully across from her. "Hope he spelled everything correctly, at least."
Ignoring the comment, Callie replied, "They're not from him. And we've never kissed."
"That's a relief," Pansy replied. "I don't know who I'd feel sorrier for, you or him."
Callie flipped her the middle finger.
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Later on in the library, Callie showed Hermione the card. "Doesn't look like Fred's handwriting," she said. "Or Seamus or Dean."
"Any other suspects?" Callie asked. "Anyone been... leering lately?"
"Oh, lots of people," Hermione replied," But I can't tell you what all their handwriting looks like."
Callie looked around assessing all the boys present. No one seemed to be paying attention to her, but over at the circulation desk, Cedric Diggory caught her eye and smiled.
Hermione saw her wave to the sixth-year and said, "Maybe?"
Shaking her head, Callie said. "No. I'm not that lucky."
"Right. I know you have a thing for older men."
Callie gave her a playful kick under the table. "Maybe my dad sent them," she said. "He always used to bring me flowers on Valentine's Day. Pink roses, though, not red. Mum got red."
"Wouldn't you recognize the handwriting, though?" Hermione asked.
Callie shrugged. "Maybe he skewed it," she said. "Maybe he thought it'd be cute to make me think I had a secret admirer."
"Well he didn't have to do all that. Doesn't he know you've got several?"
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Callie wrote her father that night to inquire about the roses. She got his reply a few days later.
"Wasn't my dad," she informed her friends at the Gryffindor table that night. Leaning closer to Neville to whisper in his ear, she said, "This is killing me. Tell me the truth, was it you?"
He bowed his head, looking shame-faced, but replied, "No."
"Then it had to be Ernie or Justin," she concluded. "No one else has been so forward as them."
"Yes, but this wasn't forward," Hermione argued. "Wouldn't they have been more upfront about it?"
She had a point. Callie looked around the table, to Fred Weasley, Seamus, Dean - all the Gryffindor boys. This was so frustrating.
"All right," she said, "somebody confess. If anybody here sent the flowers, just tell me."
Nobody spoke, though they all looked around at each other, waiting for someone to speak up.
"Ya know..." Callie went on, "if I don't know who it is, I can't thank them." She hadn't meant for that to sound quite so... seductive.
Suddenly Fred Weasley stood up and said, "I sent the roses."
"No you didn't, ya git!" George said beside him.
"Honestly," Hermione exclaimed, rolling her eyes.
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One day in March, Callie was gifted another surprise - a box of Chocoballs. This one came with a note too, but all it said was, Enjoy.
"It's been a month," Callie said as she and Neville worked together in the dungeons. "Neither of them have said one word to me since I turned them down."
"Maybe it isn't them, then," Neville said.
"Yeah, but I don't know who else it could be. Someone who knows I like Chocoballs, apparently." Suddenly it dawned on her. "Oh, my God, it's Parkinson!"
Neville eyed her. "Pansy Parkinson?" he said.
"Yes, it's a prank," Callie said. "Ugh! It has to be her, I just know it!"
However, when she confronted Pansy later that night, the girl responded in a bored tone, "I wouldn't even send flowers to your funeral, Warbeck. Piss off."
Oh, to hell with it, I give up, Callie decided. After all, she had more important things to worry about than some random admirer who wouldn't reveal himself. Lately she'd been thinking about the Boggart lesson from the beginning of the year. The fact that she hadn't been able to try the Riddikulus charm bothered her. Not being able to do something didn't sit well with her, and what if she really encountered a Boggart one day?
"How do you banish something you can't even see?" she asked Lupin one day after class. "I don't even know where it is, I can't make it funny."
"I have to admit," Lupin said, "it is an unusual manifestation. Perhaps if we studied it more, we could figure it out. Would you be willing to face it again?" he asked. "Privately, just you and me? Not with the goal of banishing it. I'd like to observe it a bit."
"Sure," Callie said. "It's not scary, just... mystifying."
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Invisible Boggarts and secret admirers notwithstanding, Callie was feeling quite well on the day she was to have her private lesson with Lupin. She was going to meet him right after Herbology, which Slytherin and Ravenclaw had together. That afternoon's lesson had been rather successful. Professor Sprout had had them defanging geraniums, and Callie had only been bitten once.
"Professor," she said on the way out, holding up her jar of plucked teeth, "may I have one?"
Lisa Turpin and Mandy Brocklehurst, two Ravenclaw girls, shot her a look as they passed by.
"You're a bit of an oddball, Warbeck," Sprout said. "But you're in good company." She winked. "Go on then, have at 'em."
Callie brought her jar to the supply chart, opening it up to grab a fang and place it in a little pouch. By the time it was packed away, only Michael Corner remained in the greenhouse.
"I always enjoy it when we work with the toothy ones," he commented, then grinned. "The things that come out of your mouth when you get bitten... It's quite entertaining."
"Thank God for Sprout," Callie said. "She doesn't seem to mind."
"Yeah, she's cool," he agreed. "What's with the fang?"
Callie shrugged. "I don't know. Just thought it was kind of neat. We don't get a lot of fanged plants in muggle town."
"You're muggle-born?" he asked, surprised.
"Half-blood. But I grew up in a non-magic community."
"Ah," he said, nodding.
She bid him goodbye and began to walk out.
"Callie?" he called out, stopping her. She turned back to face him, noting his slight nervousness and the way he avoided her gaze.
"I..." he stammered. "I sent those roses on Valentine's Day."
Callie was speechless. Michael Corner had barely said two words to her in three years, and he was the secret admirer?
"R- Really?" she asked.
He rubbed the back of his head, looking self-conscious. "Yeah," he said. "Yeah, I... I like you. Don't even know if you notice me ever, but..." He trailed off.
She bit her lip, her heart heavy from the fact that she didn't feel the same way about him as he felt about her. Approaching him, she said, "I notice you. But..."
"But," he echoed, hanging his head.
"I'm not allowed to date," she lied. "Not 'til I'm... fifteen."
He met her eye. "Oh," he said. "That's... huh."
"I'm sorry, Michael. Those flowers were beautiful. Made me feel really special too."
"You are special," he said.
God, stop being nice to me, I don't deserve it. "Thanks," she replied.
"So," Michael said, "if you were allowed to date, and I asked you out..."
No sense hurting the boy further. "Yes," she said. "I'd say yes."
He smiled at the thought, looking hopeful. Bloody hell, he'd better fancy someone else in two years.
She took a step towards him and kissed his cheek. "Thanks for the roses," she said.
"You're welcome."
"And the chocolates."
He furrowed his brow. "What chocolates?" he asked.
Callie gave him a quizzical look. "Didn't you send me the box of Chocoballs?"
"No?"
What the hell? "Well, I got them last week," she said. "That wasn't you, too?"
"No."
Callie gaped at him. "Oh," she breathed. "Never mind then."
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Neville. He knew she liked Chocoballs. Maybe he didn't send the flowers, but he could've sent the candy. She never did ask if he sent the candy.
It was a testament to Lupin's character that she felt comfortable enough to share the story with him. "Haven't even eaten them yet," she said. "Not until I'm sure it isn't one of my housemates playing a joke. I should have Pansy Parkinson eat one to make sure it isn't poisoned or something."
Lupin smirked. "I'm sure they're fine. The packaging hasn't been tampered with, has it?"
"No."
"Rest assured then. Nobody's trying to poison you, I promise." He smiled kindly at her, and her heart skipped a beat.
Looking away in an attempt to hide her blush, Callie said, "Anyway... ought to get started on that Boggart."
"Yes, lets." He got to his feet and pulled the wardrobe to the center of the room. "Remember, we're not trying to banish it, only observe it." Coming to stand behind her, he added, "It can't hurt you. It's only defense is to frighten, not harm."
Callie took a breath and prepared herself. Really, there was nothing at all scary about her particular Boggart, though it was weird to have somebody standing right beside you, and not being able to see them.
"Professor Lupin?" she said.
"Yes, Callie?"
Hesitantly, she asked, "Could you put your hand on my shoulder or something, so I know where you are?"
"Certainly." He did so. "Are you ready?"
Nodding, she said, "Yes."
Lupin pointed his wand, and the door to the wardrobe flew open. Callie hadn't expected to see anything, so it took her a second to process what came out.
Two bloody, broken bodies, a man and a woman, their eyes open and locked in place, staring into nothingness. Dead.
Her mother and father.
"Oh, my God!" Callie screamed.
Lupin, now able to see what she saw, threw himself in front of her to make the Boggart change into his glowing orb. "Riddikulus!" he shouted, banishing the creature back to the wardrobe.
Callie was almost in tears, holding her hand to her chest.
"That wasn't real," Lupin said. "It was the Boggart."
"I know. But still..."
"Who were they? Your parents?"
"Yeah."
"I'm sorry," he said with a sympathetic look. "That must've been awful for you."
They were both quiet a moment while Callie collected herself. "Why was it... that?" she asked. "What happened to the other one?"
"Our biggest fears can change," he explained. "With time, some things don't seem as scary as they once did."
That made sense, but even so...
"I never even think about..." Callie began. "Never imagined..."
Lupin understood. "Sometimes our fears are subconscious," he explained quietly. "Especially those we don't want to acknowledge. We bury them down and try not to think about them, but they still exist."
"Please don't test us on this," Callie said. "I don't know how to make something like that funny."
As he went to replace the wardrobe, Lupin said, "The good news is, I've seen this kind of Boggart before. The Death Boggart - corpses, usually loved ones. Sometimes it helps to imagine them joking and laughing. Try to remember a time when they actually were funny." He paused, and then said, "And remember - it's not real."
Not real. Joking and laughing. Though she never wanted to see her mum and dad that way again, she was happy to have a defeatable Boggart, at least.
"Thank you, Professor," she said.
"You're quite welcome."
"I don't want to try again today, but maybe some other time, before finals?"
"Certainly." He squeezed her shoulder. "Any time you like, just let me know."
She took one more look at the wardrobe, deciding to sit down and write her parents the minute she got back to the common room. Suddenly she wanted nothing more than to see them and hug them.
"Don't fret, love," Lupin said. "Go and have some of those chocolates you told me about."
Callie considered it, and said, "All right. But you better be ready with antidote."
"That won't be necessary," he said. "I don't make it a habit of poisoning my students."
Callie paused, struggling to process that. "Wh- What?" she stammered.
Lupin smiled softly. "Hope you're not terribly disappointed," he said, "that they didn't come from someone... younger and more dashing."
She stared at him, wide-eyed and mouth hanging open.
He went on, "I wanted to thank you for leaving those candies on my desk in November. I recognized your handwriting."
Callie was red-faced enough to rival Neville. God, what a fool she had been, leaving a note.
"Professor, I..." she began, no idea where was going with that. "I didn't- I..."
He held up a hand to stop her. "Please, it's all right. Felt rather nice knowing someone appreciates me."
Covering her face with her hand, she said, "God, I'm mortified."
"Don't be. When I was thirteen, I'd have killed for a girl like you to look my way. But alas, timing is everything."
Smiling at him, she held out her hand and said, "Thanks for the Chocoballs."
"Likewise," he said. She had meant for him to shake her hand, but instead he brought it to his mouth and met it with a quick kiss.
Ugh, he's so God damn charming! she thought.
"What the hell is going on in here?" a stone cold voice called from behind her. Snape was standing in the doorway with a goblet in his hand, looking absolutely livid.
"Severus," Lupin greeted calmly, nodding to him. The potions master approached the man as though he were ready to hex him - or deck him.
"Tell me you haven't developed a penchant for teenage girls, you sorry sack of filth," Snape spat.
"Oh, for God's sake," Callie said, "that was nothing!"
"Quiet!"
"Severus," Lupin said, "I think you can look in my eyes and know that I'd never lay a hand on a child that way."
"Oh, there's no telling what a man like you might do when he's driven out of his right mind," Snape said.
"Severus..."
Snape lifted the goblet he was holding and threw its contents in the other man's face. "That oughta help you to show some restraint," he said.
Lupin kept his hands behind his back, his expression composed, but Callie was outraged.
"God damn, you, Snape!" she exclaimed.
"Callie, please," Lupin said, at the same time that Snape yelled, "Shut up!"
Lupin conjured a towel and wiped himself off. "What a waste of a perfectly good potion, Severus," he said. "All because of an innocent gesture of kindness."
"Good luck tomorrow night," Snape said with a malicious glint in his eye. "Unfortunately that was my last batch of... you know."
Lupin's expression turned anxious. "Severus..." he said.
"Perhaps I could offer a silencing draught?" Snape suggested. "That would at least keep you quiet. Wouldn't want any of the students discovering your dirty little secret, now would we?"
"Severus, be quiet!" Lupin snapped, glancing in Callie's direction.
"Why? Don't you think they have a right to know who's teaching them? Or what's teaching them?"
The two simply stared at each other a moment, and then Callie cut in, "I know he's a werewolf, so don't bother talking in code."
They both turned to her, Lupin with surprise on his face, Snape with his usual expressionlessness.
"Hmph," scoffed the latter, "I was wondering how long it'd take you to figure it out."
"What gave it away?" Lupin asked, a sad, sort of shameful look on his face.
Callie replied, "Every time a full moon occurs, you disappear." Then she turned to Snape and said, "And you? You gave us that essay to try and out him!"
"Clever girl," he said with a smirk.
"Who else knows?" Lupin asked.
"No one, as far as I know," Callie said. "No one's let on if they do."
He came up to her, desperation in his eyes. "Callie, please," he begged. "Please, I don't want this to get out. Everything's under control. Professor Dumbledore knows, and the rest of the staff do as well. I'm no danger to anyone in this castle, but I don't want to cause a stir. Please, don't tell anyone. Please."
Callie smiled reassuringly. "It isn't my secret to tell, Professor," she said. "I wouldn't do that."
Behind them, Snape scoffed.
Lupin ignored him and whispered, "Thank you."
She turned her attention to Snape and said, "That was Wolfsbane, wasn't it?" When he simply ignored her, she asked, "Was it really the last?"
But Lupin assured her, "I'll take care of it. Don't worry."
"Are you going to be all right?" she asked him.
"Yes, I promise." Nodding toward the door, he said, "Go on. Enjoy those chocolates."
Snape turned to them. "You gave her chocolates?" he asked in disbelief.
Before Lupin could answer, Callie said, "I asked him to get me a box. Since you wouldn't let me go to Hogsmeade last month." To top off the lie, she grabbed five galleons from her pocket and dropped them in Lupin's hand. "Thank you, sir," she said. "See you next Friday."
She grabbed her bookbag and headed out. If looks could kill, Snape would've been a dead man when she passed him.