Life as I Knew It

Chapter 28--Pressing Matters

It was well into the afternoon when Hermione left Pansy alone in her room. They had spent the whole day in the library doing research, skipping lunch as well as breakfast. Pansy was starving, but she was also full of energy. She wanted to confront Daphne right then, and she spent several minutes sitting on her bed debating how much longer she could go without food.

Pansy wondered what confronting Daphne with her lies would actually accomplish. Did she expect Daphne to blurt out the whole truth just because she was faced with some facts? Then Pansy wondered if this new development really even meant that Daphne was a liar after all. She thought back on her conversation with Moonshyne.

Finally, Pansy got tired of sitting around. She did not want to wait any longer to find out what Daphne would say. Besides, she figured she could probably technically go several days without food and not die. So her stomach would ache a little longer. Seeing Daphne was important too.

The problem with that was Pansy wanted to have the book at her side for such a confrontation, so she slowly climbed the stairs to the Gryffindor common room. After a very short wait, she was let inside. There, Hermione was sitting at one of the tables, her eyes riveted to the book. Pansy walked straight over to her.

"I still need that book, Hermione. You can have it when I'm done."

Hermione paid her very little notice. She only murmured a response and went on with her reading.

Pansy sighed and sat down across from Hermione at the table. "Really, this is important. I need to show the book to Daphne and ask her some questions. And then I will bring it right back."

Hermione glanced up at her. "And why should I trust you, Parkinson? After all the nasty things you've done to me?

Pansy gaped at her. "Oh, now you remember. When it was finally convenient for me to be your friend."

Hermione narrowed her eyes. "What do you need the book for anyway? What are you and Daphne planning to do?"

Pansy thought out what she should say. It all hinged on one important question. "What do you remember?"

"I remember everything, Pansy. Every nasty comment you've made, every--"

"No. Not what you remember about me. What do you remember about everything else?"

Hermione closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She opened them again. "I told you. I remember everything. And if you're going to tell me that you did this, all I can say is that I really doubt you're smart enough to pull it off."

Pansy decided to let the insult slide, since she actually was not smart enough to pull it off. "I didn't do it. This is important though. Do you remember sixth year?"

"Of course, I remember," Hermione said through clenched teeth. "That's when everything went wrong."

Pansy sighed again. "I didn't do this, but that book will help me figure out who did."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I think that I could figure it out better than you ever could. Why not leave the book with me? And what does Daphne have to do with anything?"

"Oh, come on, Hermione, somebody did it. What do you think Daphne has to do with it?"

Hermione's eyes grew wide. "Daphne? How did she do it?"

"Give me the book, and I'll find out."

Hermione looked suspiciously at Pansy, but she handed over the book without a word. Pansy took it and walked out of the common room.

As she made the trek down to the dungeons Pansy wondered how the Gryffindors could get used to all the stairs. They had to come down seven flights of stairs every morning for breakfast and, even worse, climb seven flights of stairs every night after supper. Not only that, but the staircases moved around, too. Pansy's staircase came to rest at a place on the second floor with no way down. So she walked along the corridor to find another staircase.

Just as she was walking by the gargoyle guarding Dumbledore's office and hoping that she would not see the headmaster that night, the gargoyle jumped aside, startling her. A handsome man walked out of the new opening..

In the same way she had recognized Trampy despite her looking nothing like the Tracey Davis of the past, she knew that the stunning man standing before was Sirius Black despite the fact that he in no way resembled the photographs she had seen in the Daily Prophet. The man was flawless, just like almost everyone else in this crazy world, and his sudden appearance in the corridor momentarily distracted Pansy from her quest to confront Daphne. She cursed herself for this when Professor Dumbledore appeared in the hallway behind Black.

"Miss Parkinson." The headmaster's eyes twinkled. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Actually, I was just passing by. I'm on my way to supper." Pansy repeated the mantra Please let me go over and over in her head.

Dumbledore gave her a searching look for a few moments, then turned to his guest. "Oh, have you met Sirius Black? He has just agreed to become the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher for next year."

It had been a week since her last conversation with Dumbledore, although it felt like much longer. She remembered at the time she had planned to continue her visits and help him come back from the brink of senility. That was before Daphne had come to Pansy and told her maddening lies. Pansy did not have the patience for fake, useless Dumbledore anymore. She would have greeted Sirius Black and been on her way, if it were not for one thing. Something in his twinkling eyes told Pansy that the headmaster wanted her to challenge this appointment.

"Sir, I'm not quite sure how he could be qualified to teach anything, since he spent most of his adult life in prison." After a beat she added, "Although, I guess he's more qualified than the squib we have teaching it now."

Sirius Black stood like a statue, completely unaffected by Pansy criticism. He did not seem aware of his surroundings at all. Professor Dumbledore did not smile at her, but he did nod. He unfolded his hands from behind his back, and Pansy gasped when she saw that one of them had turned black.

"Miss Parkinson, I would like you to join me in my office, so that we may discuss this." He gestured toward his dead hand.