Riddle Me This

Chapter 68

Catherine's POV

The first week graduated from Hogwarts I spent filling out applications for the various different healer's programs across the United Kingdom, hoping at least one of them would accept me. That week was also spent trying to get properly settled in Spinner's End. I could get things more how I envisioned them. Johnathan tried, he did. But he didn't get everything quiet perfect, and so that's what the first month was focused on.

Draco came over a few times, and those were good days, spent cuddling on the new love seat and talking about how everything had been going so far. Draco apparently found someone willing to take him as an apprentice. And I was so proud of him.

As August rolled about, more than half of the programs I had applied for had denied my entrance, a few asking that I never contact them again. And damn did it hurt. It hurt so badly. But I didn't tell anyone. When Draco, or Hermione asked how the search was going, I'd lie and say I hadn't heard from anyone yet.

But by September, hearing that Pansy had gotten accepted into St. Mungo's healer program, I was pretty hopeless. I congratulated her, happy and proud that my friend had gotten the job she had been aiming for, but I couldn't help the small spark of jealousy. Some nights I'd sit in my room and cry, other's I'd try and think of something else I could possibly go into. I could go into bat breading or trying to help people understand snakes more with my parseltongue. I could brew potions like Draco. But the more I tried to think of a different occupation, the more I hoped for a letter of acceptance.

Draco came over one of his days off of apprenticeship the second week in October to see me.

"Have you sent letters to the programs you applied for?" Draco asked. I just nodded as I leaned back into the love seat. "This makes no sense. Pansy knew within two months. Surely you should have gotten your letter by now Kitty." Draco said, looking fairly upset.

"I know. It really sucks." I replied. At that moment, an owl came in with a letter. I went over, and saw it was one of the Ireland programs I had applied for. I took it and opened it, Draco looking over my shoulder. It was another rejection, with colorful wording on how I shouldn't have bothered applying there in the first place because they'd never accept someone like me.

"That's repulsive." Draco said heatedly. I just slumped to the floor. "Hey, Kitty. Don't let this one group of idiots get you down. You sent applications to multiple schools. I'm sure that since you got this letter, an acceptance letter will be-" And I broke into tears. "Kitty, I don't know what I did but I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you." He said quickly, kneeling next to me. I shook my head as I stood and headed over to my study. Draco followed closely behind me. I opened a drawer and pulled out all of my rejection letters, laying them out across the desk and sitting in my desk chair as Draco looked at them all.

"Catherine." He said softly once he was done looking over them all. I buried my face in my hands.

"That's all of them. I've been rejected by almost every program I applied too." I whimpered. Draco frowned.

"Kitty." Draco came over and gently put a hand on my shoulder. "This isn't right." It was quite before I felt Draco kiss my forehead. "I'll be right back." And he was gone. A few minutes later, I heard the floo, and then two sets of footsteps enter my study.

"Cat." It was Hermione, and she was quick to come over and pull me into her arms. I cried heavily. "Why didn't you tell us sooner?"

"I didn't want to make any of you worry." I sniffled. A third set of steps through me off, when I looked over to the door, it was Harry.

"What's going on?" He asked as he looked at he parchment spread all over my desk.

"Healer programs won't accept her because of who her father was." Draco growled out. "I have half a mind to go talk to a few of them." He handed Harry the latest of the rejections, and I could see Harry begin to turn red with Gryffindor rage. Hermione read it next. Hermione's Gryffindor rage was a lot scarier considering she actually started to curse under her breath.

"St. Mungos hasn't sent a letter." Hermione said as she looked over all of them. I nodded slowly.

"I'm sure that everyone who hasn't responded lost my applications and letters. I send one once a week to those who haven't responded, asking if they got my applications. I'm sending my next set out tomorrow, but if I don't get a reply." I hiccupped. "I don't know what I'll do."

"I'm helping." Harry said firmly. Everyone turned to him. "Pansy had come to me immediately when she started, asking if I could help her out because she figured that she'd be turned away immediately. I sent a letter to St. Mungo's requesting that they not turn away any applications due to prejudice on the individual's actions during the war. I did that with most places of employment in London." Harry explained.

"Hero complex." Draco murmured. Harry looked to him with a cocked eyebrow. "I already expressed my gratitude to you for helping me get my apprenticeship."

"If you already messaged St. Mungo's, then why haven't they responded to Catherine?" Hermione asked.

"Can't reject an application if you 'misplaced' it." Draco sneered. Harry clenched his jaw, before smirking.

"Won't reject it if I hand it to them in person." Harry said in a very Slytherin tone. The rest of us stared at him, causing Harry to cock his head to the side. "What?"

"That sounds very... Slytherin of you." Draco explained.

"I was supposed to be sorted into Slytherin. Told to Sorting Hat to put me in Gryffindor because Malfoy was sorted into it and Ron had just told me that anyone sorted into Slytherin went bad." Harry explained. "He wasn't right, obviously, but at the time, I was new to the wizarding world, and Malfoy had just insulted my first friend."

"Mature." Draco drawled.

"We were eleven! And it's not like you were much better." Harry defended. I sighed dejectedly, and Hermione crossed her arms and tapped her foot in a very 'unimpressed mother' sort of way.

"As lovely as this revelation was to find out, there are more important things to worry about then Harry's possible house sortings. Like Cat, and her current predicament caused by prejudice bigots." Hermione said firmly. Harry and Draco nodded, both apologizing to me under their breaths, before Hermione encouraged me to do another application for St. Mungos.

Once done, Harry took it, as well as a letter he had written himself.

"I'm going to go see Kingsley before heading to St. Mungo's. They can't ignore this one." Harry said firmly, before smiling to me softly. I smiled back.

"Thank you Harry." I replied, shaking slightly with fresh, grateful tears. Harry gave me a hug, as did Hermione, before they left through the floo, and Draco brought me back to the sitting room to cuddle on the loveseat.

Within the week, I had a letter from St. Mungo's. Not only did they apologize for 'losing' all of my applications and letters, but I had an acceptance letter as well. I was so happy that Draco barely had time to make it fully through the floo before I had my hands on him and had dragged him to my bedroom to celebrate properly.