23. Back to Square One

The following week should have been nice and relaxing, since the school was still technically on winter break. However, every single teacher, it seemed, had been piling on homework the last several weeks, insisting that now was the time to get serious if they wanted to be prepared for their O.W.L. exams at the end of fifth year. Of course, no professor was more insistent about this than Hermione was. She and Callie had spent almost every afternoon in the library studying.

"What's going on with you and Red?" Callie asked one day as she read over the girl's Astronomy notes. "Ever since the ball, you've seemed sort of... cold with each other."

"It's not important," the Gryffindor replied. "What is important is that you can tell Ursa Major from Orion before next month's test."

Callie thought the girl's change of subject was less about keeping their focus on work, and more about avoiding the topic of Red. But she didn't pry.

"What do you want to do after Hogwarts?" Callie asked instead. "For a career, I mean."

Hermione hesitated, as though she were thinking about it, then shrugged. "I don't know," she said. "Maybe something with the Ministry? I could take S.P.E.W. to the Magical Creatures department, perhaps."

"Still on that?" Callie asked, grinning.

"Yes, I'm still on that!" Hermione said. "Haven't seen any improvement in the house-elves' situation yet, have you?"

"No need to bite my head off," Callie said," I was just asking."

Looking apologetic, the girl replied, "Sorry. It just gets to me."

"I know."

After a pause, Hermione asked, "What do you want to do after Hogwarts?"

"Healer," Callie replied.

"Really?"

"Yep. Always loved hearing my mum's stories from the hospital, reading her books and medical journals." Callie smiled as a memory came to her, and she said, "One time she brought me to work with her. Think I was eight or nine. This man came in sweating, feverish. Looked about to pass out, he did. I was watching as my mum examined him, and I thought, 'This poor bloke. Wish there was some way I could help.' Next thing you know, the temperature in the room drops fifteen, maybe twenty degrees."

Hermione gaped at her. "Did you do that?" she asked.

Callie shrugged. "No other explanation for it," she said. "Don't know how I did, I just... sort of willed it to get cold."

"Did it help?"

"The man went from sweating to shivering," Callie replied. "My mum was amazed. She looked at me like-" a pause "-well, like I was a witch."

"Was she angry?"

"No. But dad said no more hospital visits. Didn't want anything like that happening again, people asking questions." Callie looked up to see Viktor Krum entering the library and coming their way. Smiling to herself, she said, "Your boyfriend is here."

Viktor joined them, taking a seat beside the Gryffindor. "Hello, Herminny."

"Harmony," Callie falsely corrected, smirking.

"Her-my-o-nee," the other girl said.

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On the first day of classes, Callie made her way out to Care of Magical Creatures with her housemates, and was surprised to see an older, grey-haired witch in place of Hagrid.

"Who is that?" she asked.

"Professor Grubbly-Plank," Daphne replied at her side. "She's talking over for Hagrid."

"Why?" Callie asked. "What happened to Hagrid?"

The girl didn't answer, but it wasn't long before everything was explained.

"He's just too ashamed to show his big, ugly face," Malfoy said, handing Harry a page torn from that morning's Daily Prophet. Callie, along with Neville, Red, Seamus, and Dean, stood behind Harry to read over his shoulder.

Rita Skeeter, a reporter for the Prophet, had visited the school a month prior and interviewed Hagrid and the students about his class. Callie had thought it was weird at the time, but forgotten all about it what with the ball and homework and everything else going on. Now it all made sense. In that day's article, she had outed the man as a half-giant, suggested that he was a danger, and reported that none of the students liked him or his class.

"Well, I think this should put an end to the oaf's teaching career," Malfoy said, smirking. "None of the mummies and daddies are going to like this at all. They'll be worried he'll eat their kids."

"Son of a bitch!" Callie exclaimed that night at the Gryffindor table. "It's another Lupin! Wouldn't be surprised if that bastard Snape told her that Hagrid's half and half."

"I don't think so," Harry, of all people, argued. "Snape's never had a problem with Hagrid."

"And Malfoy!" Callie continued. "'We all hate Hagrid.' What rubbish!"

Later that night in the common room, Malfoy asked, "What d'you care is he's sacked? Fancy him like you did Lupin?" Goyle and Crabbe found that absolutely hysterical.

"Mrs. Callie Hagrid," Pansy teased. "Does have a nice ring to it, eh?"

"Shut up, Pansy, you dog-faced slag!"

"Eh!" Malfoy was on his feet. "Don't you talk to her that way!"

"I'll talk to her any way I want!" Callie yelled. "What're you going to do about it, run and tell your precious head of house?"

"No, I'll just hex you myself!" he threatened, brandishing his wand.

Pulling out her own, Callie dared, "Go ahead and try it then!"

A whooshing sound shot through the air, but Callie deflected his attack. Then she swerved to avoid a second, hitting him with a Bat-Bogey Hex that caused a dozen of the winged creatures to fly out of his nose and bite at his face.

"Furnunculus!" Malfoy yelled, and Callie moved out of the way just in time to avoid getting hit in the face, taking it to the arm instead, where she could feel boils popping up on her skin.

The two went back and forth another minute or so as their housemates cowered behind furniture or ran to their dormitories to avoid getting hit.

"Oppungo!" Callie yelled, sending a stack of books flying at Malfoy, who shot back, "Levicorpus!" Callie was swept off her feet and flipped upside down in midair. Malfoy let her dangle there just for a couple of seconds, before sending her crashing back down to the floor.

"Ugh!" she groaned, as she felt her shoulder pop out of the socket. "Lapifors!"

Suddenly Malfoy was gone, and in his place was a little brown rabbit. Callie stomped over to it, picked it up by the back of the neck, and pointed her wand in its face.

"Put. Him. Down."

Callie turned to find Snape, absolutely livid, standing in the doorway to the common room. Pansy was behind him; at some point she must've run off to go fetch him.

Callie opened her hand, dropping the rabbit from about five feet in the air. Snape pointed his wand at the animal, transforming it back into Malfoy's human form.

"Both of you, my office," Snape ordered.

On the way out, Malfoy banged his shoulder into Callie, who gave him a hard shove in return. When they got to the office, Snape turned to face them, but his eyes were directed over Callie's shoulder. "I don't remember asking you to join us, Miss Parkinson."

Pansy was standing behind Callie and Malfoy. "I came to make sure you got the whole story, Professor," she said.

"I'm sure that Miss Warbeck and Mr. Malfoy can explain themselves," Snape replied coldly.

"Warbeck started it!" Pansy went on. "She called me a dog-faced slag, and then she hit him with a Bat-Bogey hex!"

"He shot first!" Callie argued.

"Quiet, both of you!" Snape yelled. "Parkinson, get out!" Reluctantly, she turned on her heel and left. Snape then focused his attention on Callie, staring daggers into her eyes. "You just never learn, do you?" he said. "What, did you enjoy being locked up in this office every week? Because I can arrange to have you back here every Saturday until the end of term, if that's what you want."

"This is bullshit!" Callie yelled.

"Watch you mouth!" Snape shot back.

"He hexed me first!"

"You told me to," Malfoy cut in. She ignored him.

"Think he dislocated my shoulder too, the rat!"

"Silence!"

"No! This wasn't even my fault, not this time. He tried to hex me, I defended myself!"

"I applaud the boy," Snape said. "It's about time somebody put you in your place."

"Oh, like the way you put Professor Hagrid in his place when you told Rita Skeeter he's half-giant? I know it was you, just like you told everyone about Lupin and drove him away!"

"Young lady, you'll be spending every evening in this office until you can learn to keep your mouth shut!"

"Good! At least I won't have to deal with this piece of-"

But before she could finish her sentence, Snape aimed his wand at her face, and suddenly her tongue became stuck to the roof of her mouth.

"Brilliant, sir," Malfoy said, smiling. "Wish I'd have thought of that!"

"Malfoy, get back to the common room," Snape ordered, grabbing Callie by her good arm and dragging her out of his office. To Callie, he said, "You're coming with me to the hospital wing, and once Madam Pomfrey sets your arm, I suggest you inquire about whether she's got a free bed for the night because you're not coming back to Slytherin Dungeon."

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He hadn't been bluffing about those nightly detentions. Two hours every evening after dinner, plus the usual six on Saturdays, and now Sundays too. If he didn't let her bring her homework, she wouldn't have had any time to get it done.

"You're the one that got your shoulder dislocated," Neville said, shaking his head in anger. "This is rubbish!"

"Well, at least Hagrid decided to stay," Callie said with a shrug. "Guess it was all for naught, fighting Malfoy."

Once again, she'd been forced to stay back while her friends all went off to Hogsmeade. She'd insisted that Neville go; after all, she'd be stuck in detention from nine a.m. to three p.m., so they wouldn't be able to hang out anyway. They met up in the Great Hall after Callie was freed, however, and made their way down to their dungeon.

"What the hell?" Callie said, walking into the usually bare, stone-walled room. The whole thing had been completely transformed. Snow-covered tress lined the perimeter, brightly-colored cobblestones replaced the grey cement floor, and the ceiling and walls had been bewitched to look like a clear blue sky. Even more remarkable, a view of the High Street in Hogsmeade, with all its shops and pubs, was visible where the back wall of the dungeon should've been. If she hadn't just come in from the corridor, Callie could've sworn she was outside, standing at the head of the village's commercial street.

"Careful," Neville warned. "Keep your hands out in front of you. Looks like it goes on forever, but the wall is still there."

Looking around in amazement, Callie asked, "How in the hell did you do all this?"

"I didn't," he replied. "Professor McGonagall helped me out." He paused. "Well... actually... it's kind of all her work."

"This is..." Callie began, awed by how real it all looked. But there wasn't a strong enough adjective to describe what she was seeing.

"Figured if you couldn't come to Hogsmeade, I could bring it to you," Neville said. Then he reached into his bag, adding, "Here, even brought a few butterbeers."

They settled down with their drinks and a box of Chocoballs, looking out onto the "view" of the High Street. "Bloody hell, this is weird!" Callie said. "Can't believe anyone could do all this. How did you get McGonagall to?"

"Well," Neville said, "I told her that Snape wouldn't let you go, and she said she couldn't override his decision. Then I told her how much you loved the village, and it wasn't fair you had to go all year without seeing it. Then she said, 'Maybe I can do something about that, without going against Professor Snape's punishment.'"

Callie made a mental note to remember to thank the woman at dinner that night. "God, how I wish she was my head of house," she said. "Think maybe this was her way of making up for the slap?"

Neville shrugged. "Could be," he said. "Or she felt bad that you have to spend every night shut up with Snape."

Both of them were quiet for a while, before Callie said, "This may be better than Hogsmeade itself. Not as cold, for one thing. Not nearly as crowded, for another."

"I'm glad you like it," Neville said, and then raised his butterbeer. "To McGonagall."

"To McGonagall," Callie repeated, and they clunk their bottles together.

Another silence passed, and then they both jumped as the dungeon door opened. "Woah!" Astoria Greengrass exclaimed, taking in the scenery before her. "What in the name of Merlin...?"

"Magic!" Callie explained. "Courtesy of Minerva McGonagall."

"Wow!" the girl breathed. "It looks so real!"

"Let us alone. Second-years aren't allowed to visit Hogsmeade," Callie said, jokingly.

"Snape sent me to find you," Astoria explained. "Wants you to meet him in the entrance hall."

Callie furrowed her brow. "Why?" she asked.

Astoria shrugged. "I don't know," she said. "He looks... odd, though."

Rising to her feet, she asked, "How can you tell? He always looks that way."

Beside her, Neville chuckled. "I'll come with," he said.

"No, stay here," Callie ordered. "If I'm not back in ten minutes, you can assume he's murdered me."

Callie made her way up to the ground floor, where she found Snape waiting for her in the entrance hall. He looked just as stoic as ever, and she wondered what kind of torture he was about to subject her to now. "Haven't I served my time for today, Professor?" she asked.

All he said was, "Come with me," turning and leading her up to the third floor and down the corridor. He came to a stop in front of the stone gargoyle that stood before the secret staircase to Dumbledore's office. "Peppermint stick," Snape called out, and the gargoyle moved aside, letting them through.

Silently, they rode the twirling staircase, then Callie followed Snape into the headmaster's office. Dumbledore was standing in front of his desk, and McGonagall stood at his side. Both of them looked just as stoic as Snape, who moved toward the headmaster's desk but stood a little ways away from the other two.

"Professor Dumbledore," Callie greeted, nodding to the man. "Professor McGonagall."

"Good evening, Callie," Dumbledore replied with a warm smile. "How's the shoulder?"

"Fine, sir, good as new."

"I assume Professor Snape has informed you that Mr. Malfoy has been given a proper punishment for his actions?"

She glanced at the potions master, who stared straight ahead, not meeting anyone's eye.

"No, sir," Callie replied. "He hadn't mentioned that."

"Well," Dumbledore said, "I thought it most fitting that your housemate have his Hogsmeade privileges stripped for the rest of the year. He'll also be spending the next several Saturdays scrubbing bedpans in the hospital wing."

Biting back a grin, Callie said, "That sounds fair, sir."

Dumbledore gave her a small smile, but then his face changed back to an expression almost of... sadness. "Have a seat, Miss Warbeck," he said, gesturing to a chair that stood before him.

Callie's heart beat strongly in her chest. Though the headmaster had always been kind to her, on the few occasions she'd interacted with him, the fact that McGonagall and Snape were also present made her feel rather anxious. What kind of line could she have crossed to get all three of them together? Bloody hell, was she about to be expelled?

"Callie," Dumbledore spoke, "I've just received word from a representative of Gringotts Bank." He paused. "Your father has passed."

The girl's pounding heart skipped at his words. Had she really heard that right? No. No, she couldn't have. Her father was a healthy wizard, forty-three years old - he had a good ninety, maybe a hundred years left. But the headmaster and McGonagall's expressions told her she had heard correctly. Snape, to the side, continued to stare into the distance, stone-faced.

Callie shot up to her feet and paced the room, holding her hand to her throat, which suddenly felt dry and tight. "How-" she croaked out after a long moment. Clearing her throat, she asked, "How did he...?"

Dumbledore explained, "He was in one of the vaults at Gringotts. There was a cave-in. Some kind of structural defect."

Callie sucked in a breath. Her father, buried under rubble in the depths of the Gringotts caverns...

"Did they..." Callie began, desperately trying to keep her voice steady. "Did they... get his body out?"

"Yes," Dumbledore replied. "He was taken to St. Mungo's Hospital."

"Does my mum know?"

"Yes. She's with him now."

Callie took a deep breath, blinking back the tears that threatened to fall. "I have to be with her," she said. "She's all by herself, she is."

"Of course," Dumbledore nodded. "I'm going to escort you to London. Would you like to return to your dormitory to retrieve anything?"

"No, I've got everything I need at home," she replied.

"Callie," McGonagall cut in, on the verge of tears herself. "I'm so sorry. Your father was one of my students. He was a good boy, intelligent, talented..."

"And he grew into a good man," Dumbledore said, stepping towards her. "Who raised an exceptional daughter." The man put a comforting hand on Callie's shoulder. "Come, child."

He led her over to the fireplace, and she grabbed up a handful of Floo powder before stepping in.

"St. Mungo's Hospital," Dumbledore instructed her.

"St. Mungo's Hospital," Callie repeated, dropping the powder. The last thing she saw before the green flames shot up around her were Snape's eyes finally meeting hers.