Chapter 10
On Friday, Christine walked to Professor Slughorn's office for the Slug Club. She walked down the corridors and slid into the room while everyone was still arriving.
Christine was the first to come in. She saw Professor Slughorn looking at some pictures. He heard her come in and turned around. "Oh, Ms. Weasley," he said greeting her. "How are you?"
"Very well, Professor Slughorn," she replied. She went over to where he was and looked at the pictures too. "Who are they?" she asked.
"They are my most prized students," he responded. "Each and every one of them is important to me."
Christine looked at all of them, and one seemed hauntingly familiar. Then it dawned on her. "Is that Tom Riddle?" she asked.
"Yes," Slughorn replied. "He was very good at school, but he had his problems."
Christine nodded. "I know," she replied. "Was he nice to you?"
"Very," Slughorn said. "I was the only teacher he truly respected."
"Why?" Christine asked.
"Why so interested?" he asked her instead of answering.
Christine shrugged. "Just wanted to know what he was like," she told him.
There conversation got interrupted when the Gryffindors came in: Hermione, Harry, Neville, and Cormac. Following up the rear was Marcus Belby from Ravenclaw and the Carrow twins, Flora and Hestia, and Blaise Zabini from Slytherin.
They all sat down and began to eat.
* * *
"A toast!" Slughorn announced as they ate their dessert. "To Hogwart's best and brightest!"
The ten of them raised their goblets and clinked them with the people next to them. They then drank the liquid inside. "What is this?" Hermione asked.
"It's my 'Secret' Juice," Slughorn replied. "I mix it up with the left overs from class today."
Hermione then quickly put her goblet down and began to eat the dessert. Every single seat was filled but one, they all wondered who it was for but no one dared to ask.
Christine was sitting next to Harry and Neville. Neville looked down at his cutlery. He seemed confused. "Which one do I use for the soup?" he asked.
Christine then politely showed him which spoon to use. She really wasn't sure herself, but she guessed.
"Marcus, is your uncle working on anything?" Slughorn asked Marcus Belby. Belby's uncle was the one who invented Wolfsbane Potion.
Marcus shook his head as he scarfed down his dessert. "Miss Granger, what do your parents do?" Slughorn asked.
"My parents are dentists," she replied. Everyone in the room looked at her like a crazy person. "They work on people's teeth," she explained sensing their blankness.
The door then creaked open and Ginny came striding into the room to sit down next to Hermione and Belby. "Good evening, 2nd Ms. Weasley," Slughorn greeted her.
Ginny nodded once and sat down. "Did you know that Dean and Ginny fight all the time?" Christine whispered to Harry. She could see that Harry liked Ginny. "She's not sure if she should stay with him any longer."
Neville looked at her. Christine felt his eyes on her head and turned to see him. "Have you broken up with Seamus yet?" he asked.
Christine shook her head. "I don't think I'm going to," she told him.
"I think you should," Neville told her.
Christine sat back in her seat and sighed.
* * *
After dinner, Slughorn was waving goodbye to everyone as they left. Christine and Harry were the last ones to the door. "Wait," Slughorn halted them. "You two, come here."
Christine and Harry turned around and followed Slughorn back to his shelf of people. He sighed and smiled. "Anyone who aspires to be anyone wants to end up here," he told them. He then looked at the two of them. "And I think that the two of you would make lovely additions to the shelf."
"Am I really that good?" Christine asked.
Slughorn nodded. "Extraordinarily good," he added. "You just have that spark, if I must say."
Christine smiled awkwardly. Slughorn then looked at Harry. "And I think you have a spark too," he told Harry.
Harry smiled awkwardly as well. "Your mom was an absolute gem," he commented. "Can't say the same about your father though."
Slughorn looked down for a minute or two then looked up. "Well, goodnight," he told them as he made his way to his room.
Christine and Harry then stepped out and went to the Gryffindor common room in silence.