Against all expectations, Callidus ended up spending most of the rest of his month with Caiside. He wouldn't go so far as to say that they were friends. No, they were just two bored people who had gravitated together due to the bonding forces of mutual boredom, and an ability to tolerate each other's presence. Or something like that. They didn't always go out to explore town. Sometimes, they just hung out in each other's rooms, engaging in their contest of snideness-one-upmanship. It was like a battle of wits. Except instead of wits, it involved a lot of drawled words, and mockery.
They also spent a great deal of time in Caiside's garden. Once Caiside had allowed Callidus to harvest parts of her plants (in a display of farcical and exaggerated generosity: "why yes, good sir, you may partake of the plucking of these gently quivering leaves") Callidus found that he had developed a great appreciation of the garden, even if he was still convinced that it was out to kill him. But he was willing to take a bit of a risk for quality potions ingredients.
Madam Filodoxos seemed inordinately pleased by this development. She treated Callidus in the same, overbearing manner as ever, but her criticism towards her daughter had decreased. For the most part, Caiside just tried to pretend that it wasn't happening. Neither Callidus nor Caiside wanted to imagine the matchmaking that might be going on in Madam Filodoxos' mind. That would have been a bit too unsettling. It didn't help that Segnis was going around the house, singing some sort of love ballad that he happened to be composing, while a piece of parchment and quill followed him around, scribbling out musical notation.
One day in late July, Madam Filodoxos knocked on Callidus's open door, wearing a hesitant expression on her face. The expression immediately put Callidus on guard. Madam Filodoxos was the sort of woman who personified the phrase 'no-nonsense.' She was about as subtle as a using a hatchet as a paper cutter. Callidus didn't even realize that hesitance was a part of Madam Filodoxo's emotional repertoire. Thus, the look on her face understandably had him on edge. Even Caiside, who had been lounging in his desk chair, gave him a concerned look.
"Callidus, dear," Madam Filodoxos began, sounding unusually uncertain. "May I have a word with you?" Callidus and Caiside shared a worried look that silently said 'Please, Merlin, don't let this conversation have anything to do with betrothals.'
"All right," Callidus agreed reluctantly, trying not to look as though he were dragging his feet. After all, the Filodoxos' had been very generous by allowing him into their home. He followed Madam Filodoxos down the corridor and into the study, sitting down in a chair across from her. It took a great deal of effort to keep his expression blank. The portrait hanging on the study wall smiled down on him indulgently, and murmured something about how he was of 'good stock.' He tried to do his best to ignore the decorative ceramic shepherdess on the desk that kept blowing kisses in his direction. And why was the shepherdess trying to adjust the collar of her blouse lower? He couldn't understand how anyone would want such unnerving little figurines in their house.
"Callidus," Madam Filodoxos began. "How much do you know about your family history? About the Princes?"
Callidus blinked. This line of conversation was not making him feel optimistic. He desperately hoped that Madam Filodoxos wouldn't start talking about anything as horrifying as continuing family bloodlines. "I know a bit," Callidus admitted. "I know that most of the Prince family have been Slytherins. I know that the family can be traced back to the 1500s. I know that the Prince's have traditionally been a Dark aligned family."
"You know about all that?" Madam Filodoxos suddenly looked relieved, but managed to maintain her stern composure. "What are your thoughts on the Dark Arts?"
"I -" Callidus wondered how he should answer. Dark or Light magic could be such a sensitive topic. "I am open to learning all forms of magic. To me, it's knowledge, and the power that it affords that's important."
Madam Filodoxos' expression was appraising. "Yes, it's wise if you to be open to all forms of knowledge. You have a lot of sense for one so young. You're a good influence on my daughter." Callidus forced himself to stay still and not squirm awkwardly in the face of the praise. The portrait on the wall declared: 'here, here!'
"I know that Hogwart's current headmaster has a strong bias against the Dark Arts. Witches and Wizards have not been able to freely practice the Dark Arts for centuries in Britain. So I understand that access to such knowledge can be exceedingly difficult."
"Yes," Callidus agreed, wondering where Madam Filodoxos was going.
"There's something I want to give to you, but you must keep it secret. You may show Caiside, of course. But you mustn't show it to any others." Madam Filodoxos picked up a book that had been sitting at the desk and handed it to him. Callidus peered down at the title. It was a spell book - one on Old Magics, and most of them Dark. Curiously, none of the spells were offencive spells.
"This is for me?"
Madam Filodoxos nodded. "Yes. The book is a copy. I believe it would benefit you to learn some of these spells."
Something about this situation seemed strange to Callidus, but he couldn't pinpoint what it was. "Thank you. I appreciate it very much," he answered politely.
Madam Filodoxos smiled warmly. "You're such an upstanding young man. You do the Prince name proud."
"Thank you," Callidus repeated, pasting a rather wooden smile on his face.
"There's something else I wanted to show you. It is, however, a secret, and before I do, I must have you swear an unbreakable vow not to reveal it. You know what an unbreakable vow is, do you not?"
Callidus felt a chill ripple down his spine. "Yes, breaking an unbreakable vow results in death."
"You do not have to agree to this, of course. If you're not comfortable with learning the secret, I will not make you swear the vow, and we can forget this part of the conversation. I understand that it can be a heavy burden to bear. But you are very mature for your age."
Callidus felt conflicted. He was filled with a burning curiosity to know this secret. However, he was unsure if he wanted to have to swear an unbreakable vow. A look of amusement flickered in Madam Filodoxos' eyes before it quickly vanished, but that was what decided the issue for Callidus. It couldn't be that bad, if Madam Filodoxos was amused about it, right?
"All right. I'll make the vow." Callidus could hear the portrait exclaim: 'Good lad!'
Madam Filodoxos smiled, lines crinkling across her broad face, and she pulled out her wand, gesturing for Callidus to do the same. As she said the words of the vow, Callidus was curious to note that not only did he have to keep the secret from outsiders of the Filodoxos family, but he also had to keep the location of the secret a secret. Was the secret some sort of place? As the final streams of fiery light wove around their hands, Madam Filodoxos gave him an approving smile and stood up.
"Come with me." She led him down the stairs, and into one of the corridors. At a blank stretch of wall, she paused. Using her wand, she tapped the wood panelling and said a word that Callidus did not recognize. Nothing appeared to happen.
"This way," Madam Filodoxos intoned. She walked forward, passing through the solid looking wall, and Callidus blinked in surprise. He supposed it shouldn't be that shocking. It was very similar to the barrier at King's Cross Station. Trusting Madam Filodoxos, he stepped towards the wall, and almost fell down the other side. It was only because he had luckily managed to cling onto the bannister that he didn't tumble headlong down the stairs.
"Oh! I apologize, Callidus!" Madam Filodoxos exclaimed, looking worried. "I should have mentioned that there would be stairs here. Are you quite all right?"
Callidus nodded. "I - yes, I'm fine. What is this place?"
The question brought a satisfied smile to Madam Filodoxos face. "Come down and see."
As the pair of them walked down the steps, Callidus gasped to see an immense potions lab. One wall was nothing but shelving, displaying rows and rows of potions ingredients - more than he had ever seen in any private lab - even his adult-self's lab in Hogwarts.
"This is incredible!" Callidus could barely keep his jaw shut. "I've never seen such an impressive lab."
Madam Filodoxos looked pleased. "It's all thanks to my employer. I still can't reveal who that is, of course. But they supply all the tools and ingredients. I do not use this lab too often, since the labs at the head office are even better. As a budding potions disciple, I thought you would appreciate it. Since you've been here, I've been starting to think of you as the son I never had. Feel free to make use of the lab and the ingredients while you are living here - though I must request that you ask permission if you need ingredients from any of the gold-labelled jars. Those ingredients are the rarest of all and my employer won't replace those without a great deal of questions."
Callidus felt both embarrassed, awkward, but also pleased. He didn't exactly feel the need for a new mother figure - his own mother Eileen might not have been perfect, but she had still cared about him. Nonetheless, having access to a lab like this was like receiving his birthdays presents, Christmas presents, and a top-student award from Hogwarts all at once.
"Thank you." Callidus didn't think the words sounded adequate, but he did not know what else to say. "This is truly amazing."
"You're family," Madam Filodoxos replied. "I want you to feel welcome and happy here." This only served to increase Callidus's embarrassment, so he just nodded, his cheeks flushed.
In the following days, Callidus spent most of his time in the private lab. He was so pleased to have access to such an incredible lab that he quickly forgot about Madam Filodoxos' odd behaviour when she gave him the Old Magics book. Caiside, who was aware of the lab and could come and go as she pleased, sometimes deigned to spend the day down there with him, bringing a book to entertain herself. But more often than not, she prefered the openness of her aggressive and dangerous garden.
Having access to the lab provided Callidus the chance to finally create something for Harry's birthday, which was at the end of the month. Knowing how much Harry had appreciated the Camouflage Potion, he had brewed a fresh batch. On top of that, he also brewed another potion which, when applied to the bottom of one's feet or shoes, could silence the sound of one's footsteps. It was the perfect gift for the budding prankster.
Callidus also decided he would brew a potion for Caiside. He wasn't entirely sure why he felt compelled to do it. Perhaps it was a way of saying: 'Thanks for being my boredom buddy' (without having to actually vocalize such horrifyingly saccharine words.)
The end of July arrived quickly. Callidus was set to depart on the 31st, the exact day of Harry's birthday, and he would be meeting his friends at Malfoy manor. While the plan had been to stay at the Filodoxos for a month, and then Hogwarts for the rest of the summer, Harry, Draco and Callidus had, at some point, come to the agreement that the would all spend a week at Malfoy manor together.
When Madam Filodoxos found out where Callidus would be going, she almost had a fit of the vapours. "Oh gracious! Oh Callidus, why didn't you tell me, my dear? The Malfoys? You're friends with the Malfoys? Oh gracious! Such an upstanding family! A paragon a pureblood values!"
Caiside looked like she was going to roll her eyes right out of her head.
Standing before the fireplace, with his bags packed (since Callidus was going to floo to Malfoy manor,) Callidus stood before his foster family, wondering how to make his exit with the least possible awkwardness. The way Madam Filodoxos was saying: 'Oh gracious!' had probably ruined his chance for a graceful exit.
"It was nice to - er - know you," Callidus muttered to Caiside.
Caiside smirked. "It was nice to know you too. Maybe we'll see each other at Hogwarts."
"Yeah. Maybe." Callidus internally cringed. This exit was already hopelessly uncomfortable.
"Here, I made this for you." Callidus thrust out his hand, handing Caiside a potion phial.
She looked at the phial, bemused. "What is it?"
"It's a potion that will allow you to graft almost any two or more plants together. Not that I think it's a good idea to increase the deadliness of your garden but -" Callidus shrugged, mildly embarrassed.
Caiside looked at the phial with newfound appreciation. "Really? Wow. Thank you, Callidus! For such a morose, sun-phobic wizard, you're all right."
Callidus felt the corners of his lips quirking upwards. "Yeah, well for an infantile, eye-rolling, gardener of torture and death, you're all right yourself."
"Hey!" Caiside added brightly. "I have something for you as well."
Callidus raised his black eyebrows. "Oh?"
Caiside grinned mischievously. She handed him a bag. When he pulled open the ties to look inside, he saw a bunch of oblong pods. They were the seed pods that he had described as being 'plant shrapnel bombs.' A wide grin broke across Callidus's face.
"Thanks!" he exclaimed. He knew it was unlikely that he'd ever need to use the seed pods. On the other hand, one could never be too sure. It was a pretty good idea to be able to defend oneself without the use of a wand.
By the time Callidus had thanked the elder Filodoxos' for their hospitality, their eyes were misty. Even Segnis, who was usually in his own world of music looked a bit sad.
"I should write a song to capture this," Segnis mused. "The soulful ache of goodbye. I don't usually like sad songs, but this - ah, this is a lovely sort of bittersweetness, isn't it? The parting of loved ones"
Callidus shifted uneasily Loved ones? What in the world was Segnis going on about? He didn't even think he had a real conversation with Segnis this entire month. "Indeed."
"Please don't hesitate to floo or owl us if ever you need anything," Madam Filodoxos insisted.
"All right. Thank you again." He gave the Filodoxos a crooked smile. Picking up a handful of floo powder, he threw it in the fireplace and when the flames burst into vivid green, he called out: "Malfoy manor!"
A/N: Thanks for the Reviews/Favs/Follows!
I don't think this story will end up as long as Year 1. I think I'm finally learning how to sort out extraneous details. I feel like my earlier story efforts are filled with a lot of - well - filler -_- (not intentionally - but I got carried away with needless details)