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MadMadamMalfoy · 11-05-2018, 08:19 AM

Text Cut: Stella

Quote:

Originally Posted by Granger Danger

Stella looked at him for a second and back at the candy jar in front of her with interest. " I love French chocolate, it's one of my favorite." Reaching her hand in she took a couple. "T..thank you." she said taking a bite savoring the goodness. Stella giggled at his comment. " Better stock up before Mr. Beady Eye Stone face takes it away!" she said sighing. She hated him, evil twisted snake he was!

Looking at him shaking she nodded meekly. " I..It's ok, I'm scared he's going to turn all the nice Professor's like him that don't get sacked, all the nice ones are almost gome." she said sighing. " W..we don't need anymore monsters like him, what we have is enough!" she soid shaking her head. Just the thought of all the good Professors being sacked and the school ran by cold lifeless monsters made her shiver and trembled. She wanted this year to be fun and full of adventures the only adventures she had was talking to Lucas on the wooden bridge.

Stella tilted her head at him " H..how can someone not learn to be kind to someone? I mean heck even a stuck up Purebloods that think they're better then everyone else isn't that bad!" she said honestly. "No reason at all to be mean big metal arm maniac!" she said darkly. Stella nodded. "B..But I'm just a first year I don't know what I'm capable of. " she said biting her lip. "The only thing to fear is fear itself I remind myself that alot." she said smiling weakly at him.

" T..these rules are so confusing you don't know what Professor wants what and then we get in trouble for speaking or not speaking!" she said angrily. " How is running every morning going to broaden ours mind? if nothing else it makes us more tired!" she said shaking her head. Stella laughed darkly. Yeah... that'll happen when pigs learn how to fly without magic!" she said now sighimg. Stella shook her head. " I..I don't want to get you and that kind lady into trouble, I'll feel horrible. " she said shaking her head.

Stella nodded. " A..all we can do is keep our heads up and hope for the best as my brother Phoenix tells me." Taking a drink of hot chocolate and a bite of her chocolate she started calming down. " I..I hope you don't go sir, sure will be lonely without a kind and nice adult figure to talk to." she said honestly. Stella nodded and smiled weakly at him. "R..really? I always wondered what it was like there. " sne said her eyes fill of wonder.

Stella looked down at the cat on her lap and giggled. " No thank you Phantom your a good comfort buddy!"she said still petting the cat. I love animals of all kinds magical or non magical!" she said happily but then stopped looking at Professor Marchand. He didn't look happy at all, he looked a bit scary looking. Did she say something wrong or did something wrong?

As the lights flickered off and on and parchment rustled on the desk and the candy jar broke she jumped and let out a small squeal. What was going on? she didn't know but she found herself a bit scared. Stella looked up at him her knees to her nose nodding meekly. " Y...yes sir you did." she said. " I..It's ok like accidental magic when you get angry right?" she asked him shaking.

Out of the corner of his eye, Gaston saw Stella eyeing the chocolates, and he managed a small smile as she took a couple and thanked him. "You're very welcome, Stella," he said. "I'm glad you like them" He couldn't help but chuckle a little at her nickname for Scrimgeour. "That's a good name for him!" A lot nicer than the nicknames he came up with. "I have a feeling that if I stock up, he'll just take my chocolate anyway and it'll all go to waste," he added darkly. His expression softened, becoming sad and sympathetic as he looked at Stella. The poor girl was still shaking like a leaf, and he hated himself for momentarily letting his anger get the better of him. He hoped she would calm down soon; it broke his heart to see her so nervous around him! "That won't happen," he assured her, placing a comforting hand on the arm of her chair. "I can't speak for the other professors, but I will never be like Headmaster Scrimgeour!" He would rather die than become a heartless monster! "i might have to put on an act while he's around so he doesn't fire me, but that's just pretend. It's not who I really am..." She knew that, right?

Gaston rubbed his chin, silently pondering Stella's question for a few moments. "Some people..." he began, his mind searching for the right words. How could he explain it without confusing or scaring her? "...don't grow up with loving families or friends to show them what kindness is. Without anyone to show them how, they just... never learn, so they become cold and hard inside and they treat people cruelly because it's all they know." Was that what happened to Scrimgeour? He had no idea, though it wouldn't surprise him at all at this point. In a weird way, he somewhat pitied the man, but that pity would never be strong enough to excuse his actions. He couldn't hold back a laugh at the girl's next words. "Exactly!" he said, nodding. "Whatever happened to Headmaster Scrimgeour in the past, it doesn't make it right to treat people this way."

He smiled. "That's alright; you have plenty of time to learn what you're capable of," he said. It took him a long time to figure that out for himself, and there were times that he still surprised himself. Just as quickly as his expression brightened, it fell again as Stella complained about the confusing rules. "I know. It's ... a lot to handle," he said. "Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if Headmaster Scrimgeour and his friends designed their rules to be as confusing as possible so they can hand out more punishments..." The thought made him sick to his stomach, but he wouldn't put it past them. They liked throwing their power around a little too much... Gaston watched Stella with concerned eyes as she shook her head. "Okay... maybe there's something else we could do," he said. I don't like the idea of letting you get sick doing S.O.R.E. What kind of Head of House would I be if I did that?" He thought for a moment; then an idea came to him. "What if I arranged to have a potion brought to your dorm for you? You'd have to go there anyway to change into your uniform before breakfast, so you could take it then. You wouldn't have to go to the hospital wing, and Headmaster Scrimgeour would never need to know."

He smiled a little as Stella mentioned her brother. "That's true," he said. Easier said than done, but still true. "Your brother sounds like a very smart young man." The chocolate appeared to be helping Stella calm down now, which Gaston was very relieved to see. He didn't like seeing his students upset and crying! He returned her smile with an equally weak one of his own as the thought of having to leave Hogwarts crossed his mind. "I can't promise Headmaster Scrimgeour won't fire me. I can't promise I'll be back next term if he's still here, but I'll always be there for you one way or another," he said, sighing sadly. "If I'm not here at Hogwarts, I'm just an owl away."

Gaston's eyes lit up as the subject turned to Beauxbatons. "Really," he said, nodding. "One of the professors there is a personal friend of mine. We... have a lot of history together." Well, that was one way to put it! His voice trailed off as his thoughts wandered to Professor Evremonde, the man who saved his life in more ways than one. "I worked with him for several year before I came here, and he was my Head of House when I was a student. One letter to him, and you'd be in!" Memories of his time there came rushing back, and he found himself rambling. "It's a beautiful school! The building used to be a palace, and there's a fountain and lots of gardens on the grounds. They have houses and a sorting ceremony, but other than that, it's not much like Hogwarts..." Well, definitely not like Hogwarts now! "Most of the professors there are very nice - not like Headmaster Scrimgeour and his friends. Well, there used to be an Astronomy teacher with a reputation for brutal punishments, but he was dismissed years ago." Was he talking too much? Probably. Gaston was quiet now to give Stella time to process the information he'd given her about Beauxbatons. The silence was broken as Phantom meowed suddenly, as if replying to the girl's thanks. "She is," he agreed, watching the pair with a small smile. "She's had lots of experience comforting people." He looked at the cat and added, "Right, Phantom?" The black and white Persian looked back at him with a meow.

Then... everything changed. In the fog of his all-consuming anger, Gaston didn't realize what was happening until Stella's squeal jerked him out of it. One minute he was talking to Phantom; the next, his candy dish was broken and poor Stella was shaking again. His heart sank as she confirmed what he already suspected. Now the question was how? He'd never lost control of his magic like that before... though he couldn't recall being that angry before either. Did that mean... Did he have more in common with the thing he almost became than he thought? And if so, how was he still alive? He was so distracted trying to make sense of it that to took him a moment to register Stella's question. "Y-yeah, something like that," he stammered absentmindedly. He leaned against his desk, still trembling violently... this time trembling with fear and sadness instead of anger. His eyes darted from Stella to the broken candy dish, and his heart dropped as he realized just how much worse it could've been. What if the next time he lost control of his anger, he did more than break a candy dish? Oh, good Godric Gryffindor! He could've really hurt Stella without even knowing it... and who's to say he didn't? Poor girl was probably terrified of him now! He suddenly had to bite his lip and pinch at the inner corners of his eyes to stop himself from crying. Eventually he regained enough composure to speak, "I-I don't know exactly what just happened to me, but I didn't mean to hurt or scare you. I would never do that on purpose." Would Stella believe him?

Text Cut: Derf

Quote:

Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie

The Hufflepuff instantly felt a bit more relaxed seeing Phantom, though there was a bit of a hollow feeling accompanying it as well. He still missed Scamander, yet another horror from that night in the pathways that was impossible to forget and he really struggled with keeping Picketta in the barn in light of everything...so it was difficult to see professors with their pets so freely. Though he knew it was a selfish difficult since students' creatures were meant to be restricted to their common rooms. It was yet another thing that brought about his unease with Jessa's kneazles.

He couldn't believe that those...and her lab...were still permitted, honestly. And he adored Jessa, knew she would never willingly hurt someone...but it was all still necromancy. A DARK art. And in light of last term...it was, well, shocking and made him incredibly uncomfortable.

"Hey," he smiled at the feline, half ignoring the offer to sit and instead laying down on the floor - half on his side to expose his stomach - and waited for Phantom to come to him again. Regrettably, he did not have any treats with him this time.

Glancing up as the Charms professor spoke, Derf shook his head. "A kneazle is fine, professor," he smiled. And yes, he could always transfigure it into something else should he wish. Work his way through smaller creatures before tackling the larger varieties. Though the thought of having a dragon-sized dummy in his dorm room and any of his dormmates walking in on him while he was practicing was amusing. Maybe a little bit of playful payback to Ian, even.

Placing his hand on the ground, palm up, his bright blues shifted once more from the kneazle back to the professor. "I don't reckon the headmaster or Professor Petrov would take well to outside communications with another magizoologist during the school term..." he assumed while swallowing a bit thickly. Considering how mail was monitored and changed...anything suggesting that he was not reaching his academic standards at Hogwarts was not in line with the image that this new reign was attempting to portray.

Gaston couldn't help but smile as Phantom made her appearance, and it took a lot to get him to smile these days. Bllink, blink. He was a little taken aback as he watched Derf lay on the floor, but he wasn't bothered by it. Phantom seemed to share his confusion, as she looked at the Hufflepuff prefect, tilting her head to one side with a questioning "meow?". After a minute or two, she walked up to him and flopped over on her back in front of him. "Meow!" she said insistently, which was Phantom speak for "Pet me, hooman!"

Gaston refocused his attention on the matter at hand as Derf spoke. "Good," he replied. He returned the prefect's smile for a moment before his expression turned serious. "I wouldn't be giving you this if I thought it was against the rules. It should be clear that this dummy is an educational tool, not a toy, however I wouldn't put it past Headmaster Scrimgeour and his friends to twist the rules. Keep this in your bag until you get back to your common room. If you like, I can disillusion it for you too, just in case."

He was silent for a few moments to give Derf time to ask any questions he might have. Then the subject turned to outside help from another magizoologist; Gaston nodded. "No, I don't suppose they would," he said with a sound that was something between a scoff and a sarcastic laugh. Of course these tyrants protecting their image would matter more than actually helping students reach their full potential. What sad, backwards logic! He had to take several deep breaths to calm his rising anger.

"Then it doesn't have to be during the school term," he said with a roguish gleam in his eye. He never said he would contact anyone from inside the school! "If you need more help than Professor Petrov can give, tell me, and I can try to arrange something over the summer." Scrimgeour had no authority over them outside the school, and besides, he wouldn't be coming back next term if that metal-armed monster was! "I can write from home or my parents' house in France. Headmaster Scrimgeour and Professor Petrov never have to know." His eyes shifted to the boy's face to gauge his reaction to the offer.

Text Cut: Daisy

Gaston returned Daisy's smile with a small, sad one of his own, but it didn't last long. He felt so small and useless, knowing there was so little he could do to help her. This was so wrong in so many ways! Rules were supposed to be put in place to keep students from harm, not be the thing that harms them! What kind of Deputy Headmaster can't protect his students? he inwardly berated himself. Daisy's words jerked him out of his dark thoughts, and his eyes widened slightly. He hadn't expected her to look at it that way!

"That's a nice way to look at the situation... very brave of you, Daisy," he said, beaming. He wished he could have even half her bravery and optimism right now, but his own past kept him from finding anything good about the current circumstances. He knew firsthand how damaging a school run by tyrants could be; he couldn't shake the fear that history was going to repeat itself.

He shook his head to make the bad thoughts die as Daisy spoke of her aunt. He nodded, relieved that his comments hadn't come across the wrong way. "I'm glad that didn't come out wrong. Your aunt seems like a wonderful person," he said. Her parting words got another nod from the professor as he stood, holding the door open. "I understand. Good luck in your studies. If you need help with anything else, you know where to find me."

11-05-2018, 08:19 AM	#17 (permalink)
MadMadamMalfoy Newbie Mod MO & DMLE Chizpurfle Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Hazbin Hotel Posts: 10,915 Hogwarts RPG Name: Norman A. Carton Graduated Hogwarts RPG Name: Sydney M. L. Masters Slytherin First Year Ministry RPG Name: Gaston A.L. Marchand Minister's Office Ministry RPG Name: Normandie A. Carton Law Enforcement	Stella's TL before the no food rule Rhibear ~ Madam Solo ~ Dark Brooding Girl ~ Accio Jedi ~ Gryffinclaw ~ Just a doll Text Cut: Stella Quote: Originally Posted by Granger Danger Stella looked at him for a second and back at the candy jar in front of her with interest. " I love French chocolate, it's one of my favorite." Reaching her hand in she took a couple. "T..thank you." she said taking a bite savoring the goodness. Stella giggled at his comment. " Better stock up before Mr. Beady Eye Stone face takes it away!" she said sighing. She hated him, evil twisted snake he was! Looking at him shaking she nodded meekly. " I..It's ok, I'm scared he's going to turn all the nice Professor's like him that don't get sacked, all the nice ones are almost gome." she said sighing. " W..we don't need anymore monsters like him, what we have is enough!" she soid shaking her head. Just the thought of all the good Professors being sacked and the school ran by cold lifeless monsters made her shiver and trembled. She wanted this year to be fun and full of adventures the only adventures she had was talking to Lucas on the wooden bridge. Stella tilted her head at him " H..how can someone not learn to be kind to someone? I mean heck even a stuck up Purebloods that think they're better then everyone else isn't that bad!" she said honestly. "No reason at all to be mean big metal arm maniac!" she said darkly. Stella nodded. "B..But I'm just a first year I don't know what I'm capable of. " she said biting her lip. "The only thing to fear is fear itself I remind myself that alot." she said smiling weakly at him. " T..these rules are so confusing you don't know what Professor wants what and then we get in trouble for speaking or not speaking!" she said angrily. " How is running every morning going to broaden ours mind? if nothing else it makes us more tired!" she said shaking her head. Stella laughed darkly. Yeah... that'll happen when pigs learn how to fly without magic!" she said now sighimg. Stella shook her head. " I..I don't want to get you and that kind lady into trouble, I'll feel horrible. " she said shaking her head. Stella nodded. " A..all we can do is keep our heads up and hope for the best as my brother Phoenix tells me." Taking a drink of hot chocolate and a bite of her chocolate she started calming down. " I..I hope you don't go sir, sure will be lonely without a kind and nice adult figure to talk to." she said honestly. Stella nodded and smiled weakly at him. "R..really? I always wondered what it was like there. " sne said her eyes fill of wonder. Stella looked down at the cat on her lap and giggled. " No thank you Phantom your a good comfort buddy!"she said still petting the cat. I love animals of all kinds magical or non magical!" she said happily but then stopped looking at Professor Marchand. He didn't look happy at all, he looked a bit scary looking. Did she say something wrong or did something wrong? As the lights flickered off and on and parchment rustled on the desk and the candy jar broke she jumped and let out a small squeal. What was going on? she didn't know but she found herself a bit scared. Stella looked up at him her knees to her nose nodding meekly. " Y...yes sir you did." she said. " I..It's ok like accidental magic when you get angry right?" she asked him shaking. Out of the corner of his eye, Gaston saw Stella eyeing the chocolates, and he managed a small smile as she took a couple and thanked him. "You're very welcome, Stella," he said. "I'm glad you like them" He couldn't help but chuckle a little at her nickname for Scrimgeour. "That's a good name for him!" A lot nicer than the nicknames he came up with. "I have a feeling that if I stock up, he'll just take my chocolate anyway and it'll all go to waste," he added darkly. His expression softened, becoming sad and sympathetic as he looked at Stella. The poor girl was still shaking like a leaf, and he hated himself for momentarily letting his anger get the better of him. He hoped she would calm down soon; it broke his heart to see her so nervous around him! "That won't happen," he assured her, placing a comforting hand on the arm of her chair. *"I can't speak for the other professors, but I will never* be like Headmaster Scrimgeour!" He would rather die than become a heartless monster! "i might have to put on an act while he's around so he doesn't fire me, but that's just pretend. It's not who I really am..." She knew that, right? Gaston rubbed his chin, silently pondering Stella's question for a few moments. "Some people..." he began, his mind searching for the right words. How could he explain it without confusing or scaring her? "...don't grow up with loving families or friends to show them what kindness is. Without anyone to show them how, they just... never learn, so they become cold and hard inside and they treat people cruelly because it's all they know." Was that what happened to Scrimgeour? He had no idea, though it wouldn't surprise him at all at this point. In a weird way, he somewhat pitied the man, but that pity would never be strong enough to excuse his actions. He couldn't hold back a laugh at the girl's next words. "Exactly!" he said, nodding. "Whatever happened to Headmaster Scrimgeour in the past, it doesn't make it right to treat people this way." He smiled. "That's alright; you have plenty of time to learn what you're capable of," he said. It took him a long time to figure that out for himself, and there were times that he still surprised himself. Just as quickly as his expression brightened, it fell again as Stella complained about the confusing rules. "I know. It's ... a lot to handle," he said. "Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if Headmaster Scrimgeour and his friends designed their rules to be as confusing as possible so they can hand out more punishments..." The thought made him sick to his stomach, but he wouldn't put it past them. They liked throwing their power around a little too much... Gaston watched Stella with concerned eyes as she shook her head. "Okay... maybe there's something else we could do," he said. I don't like the idea of letting you get sick doing S.O.R.E. What kind of Head of House would I be if I did that?" He thought for a moment; then an idea came to him. "What if I arranged to have a potion brought to your dorm for you? You'd have to go there anyway to change into your uniform before breakfast, so you could take it then. You wouldn't have to go to the hospital wing, and Headmaster Scrimgeour would never need to know." He smiled a little as Stella mentioned her brother. "That's true," he said. Easier said than done, but still true. "Your brother sounds like a very smart young man." The chocolate appeared to be helping Stella calm down now, which Gaston was very relieved to see. He didn't like seeing his students upset and crying! He returned her smile with an equally weak one of his own as the thought of having to leave Hogwarts crossed his mind. "I can't promise Headmaster Scrimgeour won't fire me. I can't promise I'll be back next term if he's still here, but I'll always be there for you one way or another," he said, sighing sadly. "If I'm not here at Hogwarts, I'm just an owl away." Gaston's eyes lit up as the subject turned to Beauxbatons. "Really," he said, nodding. "One of the professors there is a personal friend of mine. We... have a lot of history together." Well, that was one way to put it! His voice trailed off as his thoughts wandered to Professor Evremonde, the man who saved his life in more ways than one. "I worked with him for several year before I came here, and he was my Head of House when I was a student. One letter to him, and you'd be in!" Memories of his time there came rushing back, and he found himself rambling. "It's a beautiful school! The building used to be a palace, and there's a fountain and lots of gardens on the grounds. They have houses and a sorting ceremony, but other than that, it's not much like Hogwarts..." Well, definitely not like Hogwarts now! "Most of the professors there are very nice - not like Headmaster Scrimgeour and his friends. Well, there used to be an Astronomy teacher with a reputation for brutal punishments, but he was dismissed years ago." Was he talking too much? Probably. Gaston was quiet now to give Stella time to process the information he'd given her about Beauxbatons. The silence was broken as Phantom meowed suddenly, as if replying to the girl's thanks. "She is," he agreed, watching the pair with a small smile. "She's had lots of experience comforting people." He looked at the cat and added, "Right, Phantom?" The black and white Persian looked back at him with a meow. Then... everything changed. In the fog of his all-consuming anger, Gaston didn't realize what was happening until Stella's squeal jerked him out of it. One minute he was talking to Phantom; the next, his candy dish was broken and poor Stella was shaking again. His heart sank as she confirmed what he already suspected. Now the question was how? He'd never lost control of his magic like that before... though he couldn't recall being that angry before either. Did that mean... Did he have more in common with the thing he almost became than he thought? And if so, how was he still alive? He was so distracted trying to make sense of it that to took him a moment to register Stella's question. "Y-yeah, something like that," he stammered absentmindedly. He leaned against his desk, still trembling violently... this time trembling with fear and sadness instead of anger. His eyes darted from Stella to the broken candy dish, and his heart dropped as he realized just how much worse it could've been. What if the next time he lost control of his anger, he did more than break a candy dish? Oh, good Godric Gryffindor! He could've really hurt Stella without even knowing it... and who's to say he didn't? Poor girl was probably terrified of him now! He suddenly had to bite his lip and pinch at the inner corners of his eyes to stop himself from crying. Eventually he regained enough composure to speak, "I-I don't know exactly what just happened to me, but I didn't mean to hurt or scare you. I would never do that on purpose." Would Stella believe him? Text Cut*: Derf* Quote: Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie The Hufflepuff instantly felt a bit more relaxed seeing Phantom, though there was a bit of a hollow feeling accompanying it as well. He still missed Scamander, yet another horror from that night in the pathways that was impossible to forget and he really struggled with keeping Picketta in the barn in light of everything...so it was difficult to see professors with their pets so freely. Though he knew it was a selfish difficult since students' creatures were meant to be restricted to their common rooms. It was yet another thing that brought about his unease with Jessa's kneazles. He couldn't believe that those...and her lab...were still permitted, honestly. And he adored Jessa, knew she would never willingly hurt someone...but it was all still necromancy. A DARK art. And in light of last term...it was, well, shocking and made him incredibly uncomfortable. "Hey," he smiled at the feline, half ignoring the offer to sit and instead laying down on the floor - half on his side to expose his stomach - and waited for Phantom to come to him again. Regrettably, he did not have any treats with him this time. Glancing up as the Charms professor spoke, Derf shook his head. "A kneazle is fine, professor," he smiled. And yes, he could always transfigure it into something else should he wish. Work his way through smaller creatures before tackling the larger varieties. Though the thought of having a dragon-sized dummy in his dorm room and any of his dormmates walking in on him while he was practicing was amusing. Maybe a little bit of playful payback to Ian, even. Placing his hand on the ground, palm up, his bright blues shifted once more from the kneazle back to the professor. "I don't reckon the headmaster or Professor Petrov would take well to outside communications with another magizoologist during the school term..." he assumed while swallowing a bit thickly. Considering how mail was monitored and changed...anything suggesting that he was not reaching his academic standards at Hogwarts was not in line with the image that this new reign was attempting to portray. Gaston couldn't help but smile as Phantom made her appearance, and it took a lot to get him to smile these days. Bllink, blink. He was a little taken aback as he watched Derf lay on the floor, but he wasn't bothered by it. Phantom seemed to share his confusion, as she looked at the Hufflepuff prefect, tilting her head to one side with a questioning "meow?". After a minute or two, she walked up to him and flopped over on her back in front of him. "Meow!" she said insistently, which was Phantom speak for "Pet me, hooman!" Gaston refocused his attention on the matter at hand as Derf spoke. "Good," he replied. He returned the prefect's smile for a moment before his expression turned serious. "I wouldn't be giving you this if I thought it was against the rules. It should be clear that this dummy is an educational tool, not a toy, however I wouldn't put it past Headmaster Scrimgeour and his friends to twist the rules. Keep this in your bag until you get back to your common room. If you like, I can disillusion it for you too, just in case." He was silent for a few moments to give Derf time to ask any questions he might have. Then the subject turned to outside help from another magizoologist; Gaston nodded. "No, I don't suppose they would," he said with a sound that was something between a scoff and a sarcastic laugh. Of course these tyrants protecting their image would matter more than actually helping students reach their full potential. What sad, backwards logic! He had to take several deep breaths to calm his rising anger. "Then it doesn't have to be during the school term," he said with a roguish gleam in his eye. He never said he would contact anyone from inside the school! "If you need more help than Professor Petrov can give, tell me, and I can try to arrange something over the summer." Scrimgeour had no authority over them outside the school, and besides, he wouldn't be coming back next term if that metal-armed monster was! "I can write from home or my parents' house in France. Headmaster Scrimgeour and Professor Petrov never have to know." His eyes shifted to the boy's face to gauge his reaction to the offer. Text Cut: Daisy Quote: Originally Posted by Ginevra Daisy gave Professor Marchand a soft smile at his concern about her doing exercises with her leg the way it is. "I really appreciate your concern but I'm not going to let them win. I'll keep doing the exercises like instructed without a word to the Headmaster. Maybe I'll build up the strength in my leg. I can always have a good rest over the Summer break before next term." She noticed that after Professor Marchand commented on her aunt, that he had a certain expression on his face. "Don't worry, sir. I get what you mean and no offence has been taken." Daisy said whilst rising from her seat. "I have some study to do and I want to make sure I'm in my common room at the right time. Thanks for the talk, Professor." And with that, Daisy left wishing she could reveal much more of the verity of her feelings but knowing that it was best not to. Gaston returned Daisy's smile with a small, sad one of his own, but it didn't last long. He felt so small and useless, knowing there was so little he could do to help her. This was so wrong in so many ways! Rules were supposed to be put in place to keep students from harm, not be the thing that harms them! What kind of Deputy Headmaster can't protect his students? he inwardly berated himself. Daisy's words jerked him out of his dark thoughts, and his eyes widened slightly. He hadn't expected her to look at it that way! "That's a nice way to look at the situation... very brave of you, Daisy," he said, beaming. He wished he could have even half her bravery and optimism right now, but his own past kept him from finding anything good about the current circumstances. He knew firsthand how damaging a school run by tyrants could be; he couldn't shake the fear that history was going to repeat itself. He shook his head to make the bad thoughts die as Daisy spoke of her aunt. He nodded, relieved that his comments hadn't come across the wrong way. "I'm glad that didn't come out wrong. Your aunt seems like a wonderful person," he said. Her parting words got another nod from the professor as he stood, holding the door open. "I understand. Good luck in your studies. If you need help with anything else, you know where to find me." __________________ Old voices I had thought long since dead whisper of another life I might have led If I could take that second chance, If I could make my life anew, If only dreams came true...