"Oh?" was all Natasha could say to such a cryptic remark. She smiled at all the students gathered round her office. Her now rather crowded office. Perhaps they came for the tea...she would have to order more of the special brew before it ran out.

She ignored Leo's comment about her glasses, but couldn't help pushing them up the bridge of her nose slightly. They were quite trendy...at least, she liked to think so.

"So...it's getting rather late, don't you think?" she asked the room at large, glancing at the clock on her wall. It was now nearing six in the evening...almost time for the students' dinner.

Leo raised his brow when Professor Erikson told him to stay. Frowning a bit, he wondered why did the Professor said that.

This office was getting crowded, and it was getting on his nerves.

Hearing the Professor talk about dinner make him beam as an idea popped into his head. "ALRIGHT!" Leo called out to all of the students, "You guys need to get out of here and head down to dinner. By the time you get down it's maybe six thirty and you guys will miss the food!" Though he really doubted they will. Putting his hands on some students' shoulders he started to push them out of the room. "Off you go off you go!"

Seeing that all of the students were kicked out with his prefecting power, he turned back to both Professors, placing his hands on his hips. "This is much better, don't you think?"

Armand raised a slender brow, wondering at the boy's pushiness. Of course, that kind of command would be necessary to him, so it was best not to counter it. Of course, there was one thing he could do: "While in the school, you could be a little more polite about getting everyone out."

He sighed, looking to Tasha and pulling the locket Leo had given him out of his pocket. "I got some rather interesting news from Leo, actually..."

Cassandra looked at the Hufflepuff with utter disgust. Never would she have barged in like that, and talked to the professors in that way. This boy was sorely in some need of a lesson in manners. This was the second time she'd seen him do this in all her time at Hogwarts.

Cassandra nodded her head politely at Professor Erikson, a little saddenned she couldn't play with the baby and gave a small smile to Professor Blaylock. As Cassandra began to descend the staircase, she pulled out her wand and quietly whispering a charm, she untied the boy's shoes, leaving the laces loose for him to trip upon.

Natasha watched Leo clear her classroom with the speed of light and raised an eyebrow, "Really, Leo...some tact would have been nice."

She turned to Armand, holding Damian close as she watched him speak. He looked so serious and she wondered what in Merlin's beard he could have to tell her...that would involve Leo.

She took the locket with her free hand while she cast a wary glance over at Leo. The whole mafia thing had thrown her off...could Armand possibly be involved?

No.

"Some n-news, you say?" she asked.

"I got one term left, and I'm not being rude. They are going to be late for their dinner." Leo smiled, folding his arms.

His eyes widened a bit as Armand took out the locket he had given him. Leo wasn't going to explain this all over again, was he? He could do it again to any other person just not Natasha Blaylock-Erikson. She'd freak out on him.

And now she's starting with her stutter.


Great.

"Sure you want me here, Professor?" Leo asked the older man.

Armand nodded to Leo. Some part of him needed the boy here, to see how he'd begun to feel about this information. Though he hoped that Natasha's reaction wouldn't make it worse. "Thanks to Leo, I know who my parents were now. And how I wound up in that muggle orphanage."

He opened the locket in her hands. "My parents... and me. My birth name is Drago Carracio." He looked over to Leo. "I realized later... Do you know the name of my mother?"

Natasha looked down at the pictures in the locket and bit her lip. What was she supposed to say? Congratulations? I'm sorry you only found out now? So she did the next best thing.

She covered his hand with her own and smiled up at him, "Drago Carracio..." She tilted her head to the side to look at him carefully, "You're still Armand to me."

Leo took a deep breath, and rested his left hand on his temple. This was going to take long to explain. He smiled when Erikson showed Blaylock-Erikson the locket, it was a touching moment.

Folding his arms, he nodded his head. "Yup. I do know her. You want her maiden name too? Or would you be too shocked to know it?" Leo asked.

Armand looked over at Leo suspiciously. "If you tell me we're related, I'm hurting your typist." He smiled to Natasha, kissing her lightly. "Thank you, Tash. That means a lot to me."

Natasha patted his hand before turning back to the Hufflepuff, "After all the excitement of last term, I wouldn't be surprised if you do turn out to be related."

Nervously laughing, he shook his head. "Actually--even Ally doesn't know about this BUT! Your mother was a De Luca." Leo smiled, looking at the ground. "Maria De Luca. You know this kinda makes us distant relatives."

He quirked a brow at this new piece of information and looked down at the locket once more. "I thought there was something strangely familiar about the way she looked... I'm suddenly glad I never had any interest in Allegra." He looked over to Leo. "You seem to know her well. Should we let her in on this?"

Natasha's only reaction was a slackening of her jaw. She sat there holding Damian with one arm and clutching Armand's hand with the other while her eyes went back and forth between Armand and Leo.

This was...terrific! This meant that she was somehow related to Ally. Imagine that! It was as if her best friend had suddenly become her sister. Well, that was an exaggeration, but still...it was close.

Then Armand spoke and her eyes shot to his face, narrowing into a glare.

"Hmmph."

Leo laughed at his Professor. Him and Ally?! No way! That would be just too funny. "Oh god. I'm sorry. This is just hilarious." he managed to choke out.

"Oh Ally? I think she has too much in her hands, though she'd love to know." He said, still laughing a bit.

Leo turned to Professor Blaylock and cracked up. "Oh I am so sorry. But having the image of my cousin with Erikson--Err I mean Professor Erikson is just hilarious."

Armand flicked Leo in the forehead. "Down, boy." He kissed Natasha lightly on the cheek. "It was an expression, love. You know I haven't had eyes for anyone but you."

He turned back to Leo with a sigh. "So, I suppose we should at least inform Allegra. Though I'm not really sure how much this changes.

"Hey!" he exclaimed rubbing his forehead. "You know with you being a dad, you could be a little nicer to me." Leo said, glaring at his Professor. Leo snorted at the only eyes for you comment "Oh right. Like you never---never mind." He quickly said, noticing that he would get himself into trouble if he mentioned Armand flirting with Ophelia last term.

"Oh. This will change a LOT" Leo said, using hand gestures as he continued, "I mean she'll freak out that one of her colleagues is related to her, like she did when she found out she had a cousin among her students."

Natasha sighed and patted Damian's back, "Right...She'll freak out, as you say, but I doubt that this new information will suddenly make things different."

She watched her husband for a moment, "Armand will still be Armand, only with new knowledge of his past."

Popping in, Algamus gives Professor Two name's a nodsies.

"Ma'amsess, Professor Raisins tells me to givers you this." He said politely, passing on the parchment that had warned the Professors all about Raisin's and Boil's daughters.

and with a snap, he went on to the next Professorerses.

Natasha took the missive from Professor Raisin (? She paused and realized that the elf must have meant Cassandra) and scanned through it.

The parchment slid through her fingers and floated to the floor. She turned to Armand with worried eyes even as she gripped Damian a little bit tighter to herself, "The twins..." was all she could manage to say.

-*-*-*-*-

OOC: Due to confusion caused by our various clones, we'll just assume that this scene took place last week in RP time. Natasha is now not in her office...until my next post here.

Natasha returned to her office after her last lesson. The end of term feast was coming up, Damian was getting cranky during the nights and the Rae-Branxton bundle had yet to be found. She was tired, confused, angry and just a touch guilty.

She settled in her chair and conjured up a pot of tea and an extra teacup.

Phoebe followed Professor Blaylock up to her office, as she'd been told to do so. She knocked gently on the trapdoor before entering. Phoebe found the Divination teacher seated behind her desk and holding a pot of tea. She took a deep breath and said, "Erm...Professor Blaylock? I...I wanted to talk to you." Noticing that Professor Blaylock seemed a little upset, she added, "Um...have I come at a bad time? I can come back later, if that would work better..." She trailed off timidly, a hint of anxiety in her large, deep green eyes.

Natasha beckoned for the girl to come into her office, "Come in, child, and we'll have a quick chat. The end of term feast is due to begin in a few hours, and I wouldn't want to keep you."

Ryan knocked nervously on the door, but realised that the Professor was already with someone.
'Oh, sorry,' she apologised. 'I'll come back later'.

"No, no, come on in, dearling." Natasha called to the young Hufflepuff. It wouldn't do to have students waiting, not when they all needed to do their last minute packing and get ready for the end of term feast.