I am SO SORRY that I am late! FanFiction was down on Friday, so I couldn't update as soon as I got home like I am usually able to, and THEN on Saturday I was BOOKED the actual entire day. It was hellacious. BUT I'm here now with a new chapter, which you all deserve for being so fabulous in your reviews.
Leading on from that, I just want to say thank you to you all again. You have made this story what it is today with your constant reviews, and I really cannot thank all of you enough. Your reviews brighten my day. They really do.
And SPEAKING of your reviews...
AL3110: Yep, Jenna ;) who knows? Maybe he's keeping a close eye on her... and Rita most definitely is a bitch. That's why we love her though :)
hufflepuffhaleb: SO HOT, right? And yes, Rita did, but does she care? My guess is no. Thanks for the review!
Ava B: Brownie point to you for picking up on that! Haha, the opportunity was just RIGHT THERE, I had to take it.
Sarah: Hahahahah YES! It was an opportunity I could not pass up ;) and yes, I simply must. And let's see, until Paige? Several chapters, so you've got some time. And Paige is always wearing a les-tastic belt, so that is certainly implied. YAY! Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for the review as always!
Forever Courage: Toby loves Spencer, of COURSE he's gonna be protective of her! Thanks for your review! :)
Titanium Wolf: Thanks!
TotalCowGirl: Actually, I was unaware of Rita's bitchiness ;) thanks for the review!
foreverawildandbeautifulmess: Your Spoby babies are alive and well, calm down haha. And Rita will do that, but hey, at least with the smoke coming out of your ears you can join Aria! ;)
AvrilRP212: Rita really is something, that's for sure. Next chapter you're actually gonna see her in the flesh again! :D Thanks for your reviews :)
PrettyWitchyVamp: Can we just talk about how your intro is like 10x longer than your actual review? I love it. Speaking of which, STORY TIME! Your reviews usually arrive in my email with a note at the bottom saying "This message has been truncated due to length. To view in full, please visit site." So that happened this time since it stopped at the intro, so I went to the site, AND IT WASN'T THERE! Stupid FanFiction and their glitches. But then the next morning I found it, so I was quite pleased. BUT I WAS SO SCARED! The suspense was killing me. ANYWAY, I agree with that Ezria rant. The writers legitimately hate us. It is far from okay. Your theory is also valid. As for your review, don't be ridiculous! I LOVE my readers! XD Would you prefer boring fluff over an emotional roller coaster ride? No. Not in a crossover with Harry Potter. That simply cannot happen.
Bagilia: Well, we Slytherins are VERY relatable, so of course she gets you XD and haha you have said nicer things, I'll give you that. And there might be a Haleb moment ;) he talks about her, I'll say that. And that wasn't supposed to be a Spanna moment, it was a shoutout to AfterEllen, but whatever floats your boat. And wow... you legitimately remembered the theme song... I'm impressed/a little creeped out haha. ANYWAY, thanks for the fabulous review!
Sgdp1261: A sneaky forktongued snake. Couldn't have said it better myself haha. And you caught that reference! It's one of my favorite jokes, but of course now that he's A I don't think it's gonna be a thing anymore :( RIP Ezbian.
S. S. Ezria : Wow, thank you so much! Well talk about creative: I LOVE your username! Very appropriate hahaha. And as for Spencer's dream, you'll find out later on. It reveals something big :)
And now for the chapter you all have been waiting patiently for. Hold onto your hobo sacks and dishwater-soaked beanies, because heeerrreeeee comes Caleb!
"So if you'll open your textbook to page 394," Professor Longbottom said, over at the front of the greenhouse, "you'll find instructions to care for the Fanged Geranium, and in a week you'll bring the plant back for inspection. Read carefully, because you never know... it could kill you."
Several students laughed, but the way Longbottom's brow was furrowed as he got to work distributing the plants indicated to Caleb that he was very much serious. Caleb sighed as he wrote down his homework assignment. He liked Herbology. If he didn't, he wouldn't have taken the class at a N.E.W.T. level. But he'd been way too scatterbrained lately to take care of a plant. He hadn't told any of the girls this (mainly because he was avoiding any type of contact with either of them; they were so tightly knit that he was surprised none of them had come up and slapped him for breaking up with Hanna), but he had gone on his own search for answers. Granted, he hadn't been very successful given what little he knew, but he would work with what he had if it meant protecting Hanna. Just because they were broken up didn't mean they weren't very much together; it just meant they could only be together in his heart.
Once class ended, and mostly everyone had exited the greenhouse, Caleb decided it was time to make his move. Once he had put all of his things away, and had secured his Geranium plant in his arms so that he didn't drop it, he walked up to the front of the greenhouse, where Professor Longbottom was staring intently at a mushroom. Confused, but altogether assuming it wasn't that important, Caleb went up to him. "Professor?"
Longbottom looked up, and then smiled warmly. "Mr. Rivers! Question about the homework?"
"Actually, no," Caleb said. "It's about something else."
"Oh?"
"Professor..." Caleb licked his lips, wondering how to word this without striking a nerve. No one had ever seen Professor Longbottom angry, yet no one really wanted to find out what that looked like either. "I wanted to ask you about the Chamber of Secrets."
Professor Longbottom's face hardened, contorting into an emotion Caleb couldn't pinpoint. But he didn't say anything, so Caleb kept going. "I'm just a little concerned. People keep dropping, and no one can really do anything about it. But I heard that you were around for the last time the Chamber was opened, and - "
"Are you asking me if I know who did it, Mr. Rivers?" Longbottom asked harshly. "Because I don't."
"No, I wasn't asking that at all, Professor," Caleb reassured. "But... if you had a guess - "
"None of my guesses would make sense," Longbottom said, his tone softening, but still containing a hint of hostility. "They all have to do with the Basilisk, and that thing is gone."
He then slammed his briefcase in front of him closed, then yelped when he realized he had accidentally closed it on his thumb. As Longbottom whimpered, sucking on his thumb to reduce the pain, Caleb kept talking. "But do you know what other... beast could be the cause of this? Is there any other animal that could have - "
"I'm an Herbology professor, Mr. Rivers," Longbottom stated, taking his thumb out of his mouth. "If you have questions on magical beasts, I suggest to you talk to Hagrid. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get my plants for the next class from the greenhouse next door."
"But Professor - "
"Caleb," Longbottom said finally, and Caleb found himself wincing. Professors rarely ever called their students by their first names. Realizing his mistake, Longbottom's eyes widened, but then his posture straightened and his face contorted to one of composure. "Enough is enough. Enjoy the rest of your day."
With that, Longbottom paced out of the classroom, nearly knocking over a startled Aria as he darted through the door. Aria stepped to the side, greatly shocked. But that was nothing compared to the shock on her face when she saw Caleb in the center of the greenhouse.
The two might have shared a common room, but they had avoided each other's company ever since Halloween. But it didn't look like they could avoid each other now. Aria sighed, deciding she would have to be the one to initiate the conversation. "What are you doing here?"
"Just had this class," he said with a small shrug. "Why? Looking for an escape so you don't have to punch me?"
Aria just rolled her eyes. "I'm a little more mature than that," she said dryly.
"Yeah you're right, what was I thinking being afraid of you?"
"Hey, you should be very afraid of me!" she snapped, suddenly offended. "I can be scary!"
"Please!" he teased. "I'll be afraid of Spencer before I'm afraid of you!"
Aria opened her mouth to object, but then closed it, thinking about this. "I'd take offense, but Spencer is freakishly strong."
Caleb laughed at this, but then there was silence, and it was far from comfortable. Caleb sighed and bowed his head. "How is she?"
"Spencer?"
"No." Caleb rolled his eyes. "Hanna."
"She's fine," Aria said vaguely, pulling the strap of her backpack further up her shoulder. "Heartbroken, but fine."
Caleb just sighed again. "Look, I never meant to hurt her - "
"Well you did," Aria spat.
"It's for the best, okay?" Caleb said desperately. "I want to be with her, but right now's not a good time. I still love her."
"Look, if you still love her, I don't understand why - "
But then she stopped talking, the cogs in her head working overtime to process what Caleb had just said. Caleb stared at her warily, wondering what he could have said to confuse her.
"Wait... what do you mean it's not a good time?" she said warily. Caleb clamped his mouth closed; it looked like he had said too much.
Aria paused, taking time to think about this, until she shot her eyes back up at Caleb. "Are you sleuthing?"
"Wow, you caught me," he said in mock defeat, throwing his hands up in surrender.
Aria just stared at him. "Do you realize what you're getting into?"
"Do you?" he pointed out, raising his index finger and poking it straight into her shoulder. "You four can barely tie your own shoelaces - "
"Well aren't you off to a great start," Aria said haughtily, smacking his finger away, but Caleb ran right over her.
"And as long as Hanna and I aren't together, and you don't tell her what I'm doing, I can keep her safe."
"But what about that picture of her and Lucas?" Aria asked, still processing. "I thought that was the reason you broke up with her."
"Well, it was in a way," he admitted. "But when I got it, I just kept getting angrier and angrier, and I kept thinking about all these things happening around us that are pushing her to do something like that - "
"Who gave that picture to you, though?" Aria interrupted.
Caleb placed a hand on the nearest table, scratching the top of his head. "I forget," he finally said. "Someone just slipped it into my hand when I wasn't paying attention, and then got away before I could get a good look."
Aria snapped her fingers in frustration. So close. Caleb watched her closely, wondering what could be going on that was causing the girls to stress so much. Had they received more fangs?
"I'm trying to pry information out of Longbottom," Caleb said, lowering his voice now as he saw more students enter the classroom, "but he's pretty hushed up about it."
"Do you think he knows something?" Aria asked curiously.
"I'll let you know when I figure out the difference between knowing something and just generally being on edge," he said with a shrug. "Anyway, I have to get going."
As he walked past her, Aria called out to him. "Do you want me to tell Hanna you say hi?"
Caleb chewed on his lip, wondering what the best response to that should be. "No," he finally said, surprising Aria and himself, before walking out of the greenhouse and back into the castle.
Side Note: Y'all better catch that Harry Potter reference like your life depends on it. Also, I threw in a FRIENDS reference, so see if you can find it! And it looks like our favorite hobo is on a search for answers. How touching. He fits in pretty well into the Scooby Gang, I'd say. He's probably the Velma that they're all missing since shit actually gets DONE when he's in the mix. But then again, the role of Velma might be fully reserved for Vanderjesus, ESPECIALLY in 4x08... my GOD was she fabulous in 4x08. Ugh, I'm obsessed with that girl, I just cannot. ANYWAY, if you liked that chapter, follow/favorite/sound off in the reviews. See y'all on the other side!
