Making her way inside, Kurumi wished that her first visit to see Professor Bentley was a more pleasant one and not one ridden with...with what she had to talk about. The sixth year had somehow managed to find some peace on the subject, a large part of that in gratitude to Lewis, but it was still something that fogged her thoughts often and was still effecting her in many ways.

Bowing as she entered, and giving a small nod to the slightly frightening plant, Kurumi approached one of the comfy chairs but did not sit down just yet. She always waited for the invitation to do so. "Thank you for seeing me, professor," she said with a faint smile, her brown eyes darting around the office nervously and eventually stopping on Caltex. "Nice to see you again too, Caltex."

Jezzabelle beamed, "Thank you Professor." She walked into the office and dogged the Fanged Geraniums that had reached out towards her slightly when she walked through the door. "Silly plants." She smiled and took a seat on one of the stools and placed the potted plant on her lap. "How did the summer treat you?"

Alyssa smiled as she entered the Professor's office. "Hello Professor. It is good to be back here again. I hope that your holiday/work in Europe was a productive one. I brought you something that my brother brought back from Thailand. I hope you like it. He told me that they call it the Plumeria Metallica Thai plant." Alyssa told the Professor as she handed the potted plant to her. "I'm not sure whether it is true or not but they say that is a rare species." Alyssa hoped that the Professor didn't notice that she had chose not to mention how her Summer had been. The Professor did not need to hear all the sad details. Despite herself, Alyssa started to tear up and she had to blink a couple of times to stop herself from crying.

She took a deep breath to compose herself before speaking again."Anyway, I'm here again to ask your permission that I be allowed to help clean up the greenhouses and take care of the plants. I checked on them before I came here and they all look great, even the Fireseed Bushes. I did see the sign up board and signed myself up for the activities "

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hera

Almost instinctively now, Seren dropped her quill and strode to the door, pulling it back on its hinges.
"Gideon, please do come in," she greeted, seeing her new Prefect sitting by her door.

It had been sad to hear that Adam wouldn't be returning to Hogwarts this year, but these things couldn't be helped sometimes, and there was no doubt in her mind that Gideon was capable of being a good honest, responsible and mature prefect.

Gideon looked up as he thought he heard the door open, greeted by Professor Bentley standing in the doorway, beckoning him inside. He nodded and stood, moving to enter the office past the woman as she stood by the door. Now all there was to think on was the matter of who spoke first and after a moment's pause, the sixth year opted on a simple greeting. "Good afternoon Professor."

Sophie's smile widened as professor Bentley opened the door and let them in. "Thank you, professor Bentley!" She said stepping in. "How are you?"

She had been in there before, but she looked around interested. "That's a beautiful Geraniums, professor!" She said happily, looking at it from a distance.

O_O A creature! It looked like a doggy, but Sophie wasn't sure. "Um, is that a regular dog?" Or was it like, magical or something?

Ella greeted Professor Bentley as she opened the door to allow her and Sophie to enter. "Hi Professor! Hope you're doing well." She said cheerfully as she stepped into the office behind Sophie. She walked over to one of the comfy stools and took a seat, following Sophie's gaze to the little creature that looked quite like a puppy. "Aw, he's so cute." She said, smiling at the creature fondly.

Now it was time to ask Professor Bentley what they had wanted to, yeah? Eyeing the professor with a small smile, Ella began to speak. "Professor Bentley, we were just wondering if-well if it would be okay for us to continue to care for the plants that we helped plant last term. We grew pretty attached to them." Yup, the little fireseed bushes and the Norandola were her little babies and with any luck, she could check up on them and help keep them healthy. She looked back at Sophie and then at the Professor again.

"Oh you're always more than welcome," she replied after closing the door. In a few long strides she crossed her office and took a seat behind her desk. Seren could see that Kurumi looked distracted, and it was a shame she couldn't read minds. "What's on your my mind?" she asked, eyebrows raised.

Seren grinned. Yes, her geraniums were rather silly at times. More like poorly behaved children than anything else.
"Oh the summer was fantastic, couldn't have been better," she replied, memories of Spain tiptoeing back into her thoughts. "And how was yours? I hope you're all refreshed and ready for the new term."

Following Alyssa to her desk, Seren plopped herself down on her seat. What did the young badger have with her today?
"Yes... I had a lovely time abroad, thank you for asking," she replied with a nod, though she barely got her words in because Alyssa continued talking. Something about Thailand, and her brother... and the plant that she was carrying. Of course recognising the beauty of the tropics, she just nodded while the girl spoke.
"Rare? Oh heavens no, they're very common in the tropics, but lovely nonetheless." She tilted her head, admiring the colours for a moment. "Thank you." ... though it was still very strange and highly uncomfortable accepting gifts from students.

A short moment passed before Alyssa revealed the topic of her visit. "Alyssa, you do not need to ask me permission to work in the greenhouses each term," she said smiling. "It is always open... with the exception of the restricted sections... so permission is not necessary."

"Please take a seat, what can I do for you Gideon?" she asked. Moving gracefully down the length of her office, she sat behind her desk, placing a few sheets of parchment off to the side in a neat pile, then turned her attention back to Gideon.

It had been some time since she had a dual visit, but it was a pleasant change and one that raised her curiosity. "I've been very well thank you, had a lovely holiday .. and how were your summers? I hope you're both refreshed and prepared for the new year."
Her eyes trailed to Caltex as she spoke... he had a way of stealing the time light, but who could resist such a face. "No, he's just your average white pomeranian," she replied, giving Caltex a loving smile. Even with all his tantrums and attention seeking behaviour, he was like a child to her.

Turning her attention back to Sophie and Ella, she listened as Ella asked her their question. Seren giggled a little. "Of course you may."

"Both the garden and the greenhouses are available for you to use, so of course, you're more than welcome to continue caring for your plants." Because really, the plants were more or less theirs. They put in the hard work... even if it belonged to the school. "In fact, I encourage this... you can never get too much practice."

Jezzabelle smiled. "That's great." She would never admit it but she worried about the Professor's sometimes. Having all of these students to deal with couldn't really be all that healthy and had to be rather stressful right?

Her smiled faltered a bit and she chewed on her lip. "My summer was..." a disaster to the end. "I'm just glad to be back." She could tell Professor Bentley right? She was the Head of Gryffindor after all and one of her favorite Professor's. "I struggled with a new family situation,"She said before she could stop herself. She looked down at the plotted plant a little embarrassed by her out burst, "Oh! Before I forget. This is for you." She handed the plant over. "It was one of my many projects during the summer."

"Oh my summer was nice. I spent lots of time with family and got my first broom which is just...well I'm excited!" The second year said, bouncing a bit in her seat. As for being ready for a new year, "I'm more than ready for this term! I can't wait to learn more about-well, everything!" True story. Ella loved learning new things.

Ella was pleased when Professor Bentley agreed to let them tend to their plants. She clapped her hands together joyfully and smiled. "You mean it? That's great." She looked over at Sophie and wondered if she was as happy as Ella was at the moment. "Thanks so much Professor, I'm happy to practice. I want to impress Gram with my gardening skills when I go home at the end of term." Though Gram wouldn't have any Norandolas lying around or anything. "Is there anything special we need to do to care for our Norandola plants?" Ella didn't want to mess hers up!

Sophie smiled and nodded at the professor's questions. "Sumemr was awesome, professor, but I'm glad to be back! Hogwarts is BRILLIANT!" Totally brilliant! That answered her question about being ready for the new year too, right?

White pomeranian. Sophie mouthed the words after professor Bentley told them about her dog. That was a funny name. Pomeranian! She looked back at the doggy and smiled. "He's really cute!"

Theeeeen she answered what Sophei wanted to hear! YAAAAAAAAY!! They would be able to take care of their fireseeds aaaand Norandola seeds!! How cool was THAT?? "Thank you so much, professor!" She beamed clapping her hands together. "We promisse we won't mess up!" Hopefully!

Ella asked for tips on how to take care of them. "Good call, Ella!" Sophie thought smiling at her friend. Sophie was extremely excited to start working with the plants now! She wondered how tall her Fireseed bushlings were now and how her Norandola plant looked like. "Did someone take care of them while we were away?" That would kind of mess up their Norandola's apperance, no? But well, at least the little plant would have been taken care of...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hera

"Please take a seat, what can I do for you Gideon?" she asked. Moving gracefully down the length of her office, she sat behind her desk, placing a few sheets of parchment off to the side in a neat pile, then turned her attention back to Gideon.

Gideon followed Bentley further into her office, obediantly taking a seat in front of her desk as she sat behind it awaiting his reasoning for visiting her. "Well...I wanted to thank ye...in person...for chosing me as prefect," he answered first and foremost. "I was quite surprised by the letter, but honored to accept." Surprised had been an understatement but he need not go into too much detail.

Kurumi bowed her head again, not really knowing what to say just yet. There was...a lot she had to get out right now, and Kurumi really wasn't sure how much Professor Bentley already knew or didn't. Either way, there was a lot to say and Kurumi didn't even know where to begin.

"A-A lot of things, professor," she admitted, her eerie brown eyes looking up now and meeting Professor Bentley's. The Herbologist probably already noticed this change in her, seeing as she was her Head of House and one of those professors Kurumi went to often for advice and extra practice sessions, so there was no need to point out the obvious, right. "Professor...I-I want to apologize for losing house points last term, I know it was not a lot and nothing to worry about...but I had been, still am, distracted....my..." Kurumi found it hard to finish the thought. It was still hard saying it out loud. The word was so final. So unforgiving. "...my mother passed away....this summer..."

Her hands gripped the hem of her uniform's skirt and she averted her eyes again.

It concerned her that Jezzabelle's facial expressions faltered when she asked her how her holidays were. However it did please her to know she was glad to be back. Hogwarts was a remarkable place, and it had a gifted way of easing peoples woes. "Family situations can be tough, and I hope everything works out for you."

Her eyes darted to the potted plant Jezzabelle had on her lap. Of course she had noticed it the minute she opened the door, and she was beginning to get used to accepting gifts, even if it was still a little weird... and plants were always appreciated.
"It's lovely, please do tell me about these projects of yours," she replied whilst taking the pot and admiring the plant.

__________________________________________________ _______________
Ella and Sophie were both just so cheerful and vibrant that she couldn't help but enjoy the meeting. "A broom, not that is exciting! Will you be trying out for Quidditch?" she asked Ella. Gosh she could hardly wait to get back in the stands.

Turning her attention to Sophie she nodded, "Oh yes, absolutely, the greenhouses and gardens are never left without any care." That would be absurd really.
Again, she shifted her gaze between the two girls. "Nothing out of the ordinary. Just make sure they're watered, that they get enough sunlight during the day and fertilise them about once a month."
Simple simple yes?
"Oh... if they start out growing their pots, you could either plant them in the student garden or you could grab them a bigger pot. There should be plenty of spares in the stores cupboard."

__________________________________________________ _______________
A thank you, that was very polite of him. "You're very welcome Gideon, and I'm sure you'll do Gryffindor proud." A good leadership team was essential to motivation and success, and luckily for them, they had an amazing team this year.

From the instant Kurumi had entered her office, Seren knew something wasn't right. Something was indeed very wrong. She was concerned...
As Kurumi started to speak all she wanted to do was to shush her about losing points. Sure it was uncharacteristic for her, but everyone did it at one point or another, and really in the grand scheme of things, points loss is no big deal... so long as it's not excessive. However as Kurumi continued to speak, she found herself crumbling. She was crumbling. No wonder the girl wasn't herself.

It was obvious that she wasn't good in situations such as this. Seren wasn't very good at consoling people, more because she didn't really know how to act or what to say or what would be best for the individual. So in this instance, she found that words failed her. What could she really say to that? So she did the only thing she knew how to do. Removing herself from her seat, she moved to sit on a stool beside Kurumi ... and went to give her a hug. "I'm so sorry," she managed to whisper.

"I honestly don't know if anything will work out anymore," Jezzabelle said softly. She really didn't believe they would. They only time things seemed better was when she was in her greenhouse or actually here at the school.

She gave a small smile, "Well I had to expand my greenhouse because I had gotten a few new plants. One of them was my precious Curcuma." She loved that plant. "My love blossom has yet to bloom but I'm still working on it. I spent a lot of time perfecting my flowing arranging and occasionally I fell asleep in my greenhouse." She'd wake up and leave in the middle of night to the house but then could not get back to sleep and end up back there.

She tried to think about everything else that had happened and see if she had forgotten anything but she hadn't. "That's about it. Spent my elbows up to dirt and dung all break." Yep, she enjoyed every peaceful minute of it too.

Alyssa blushed when she heard that the plant that she had given to the Professor was actually a common plant and not rare after all. 'Great!! The Professor must think I'm really dumb for giving her a common plant.' Alyssa thought berating herself silently.

Now totally embarrassed, she stood up and decided that she should just leave the Professor's office before she embarrased herself any further. "Uh Thank you, Professor for taking the time to speak with me."

"I know that you must be busy, so I'll leave now." Alyssa would usually have stopped to pet Caltex like she did the last two terms, but right now, all she wanted to do was get out of the Professor's office as fast as she could. She was almost close to tears and it was taking great effort to hold it in. She would not cry in front of the Professor....she would not do it.

Oh, so Professor Bentley thought brooms were exciting too? Cool! The second year nodded her head enthusiastically. "Yes, I'm trying out this term for chaser. I hope I do okay, I'd really like to be on the team. Did you play when you were a student?" Because she was curious and eager to hear advice from former players. She looked up at Professor Bentley and gave her a shy smile before turning her attention to Soph as Bentley was now speaking to her.

The instructions that Professor Bentley was giving them about the plants were actually not new. This was the same way Ella had helped her Gram care for plants over the summer so she felt confident she could do a good job her too. When the professor had finished, Ella smiled and looked at Sophie. "I think we can handle that, Professor. Thanks!" And her gaze returned to the woman sitting in front of them. "Well, I think that's all in case Sophie has any other questions."

He nodded at Bentley's response before looking back up at her. "Aye...I certainly hope to," Gideon remarked sincerly. And he would certainly be pushing himself to do the best he could, his openness at the Opening Feast was one example even if he was back being a little more reserved. The sixth year couldn't quite seem to manage for too long outside his comfort zone so he settled for an area halfway in the middle.

"How are ye, Professor?" Gideon questioned trying to politely not have the conversation be all about him. "Did ye have a good break?"

Kurumi's senses all just turned off after the words had left her mouth. For the first time since arriving at Hogwarts, she had admitted to losing her mother. It was something she hadn't done since meeting...them in Diagon Alley. But they had already known, They had known that Kurumi was already losing her mother and all it took was them looking at her to know that it had happened. So, now here she was, admitting to someone who had had no idea that any of this was going on until she had uttered the words.

It still hurt. A lot. Not that she expected for it to not. The wound was still fresh and the longing to see her mother again was still strong. It always would be.

Kurumi's senses suddenly turned back on when....Professor Bentley hugged her? Kurumi's body went rigid for a moment out of sheer surprise. She had never been hugged by a professor before, so this was something entirely new. Only...right now Professor Bentley didn't feel like she was hugging her as a professor, or as a Head of House. It was a different sort of hug and that is what surprised her.

Kurumi simply whimpered at the professor's next words - words that she still hated hearing, but there was no point in commenting on it. It wasn't going to make things any better. Slowly, Kurumi reached up and, with trembling hands, weakly hugged the arms Professor Bentley had put around her. "She.....isn't suffering now...." That was what she kept telling herself at least.

Kurumi took another deep breath. There was one more secret she had to get out now before she completely shut down. "P-P-Professor..." Kurumi said, trailing off and meeting her gaze with her brown eyes. Eyes that were still foreign looking back at her in the mirror everyday. "I'm....I'm....a metamorphagus..."

And Kurumi was just going to pretend that somehow these two thoughts somehow had a connection. They did, in that her mother's death had caused her powers to turn off, but Kurumi hadn't made that connection for Professor Bentley.

Sophie smiled as Ella went on talking about her new broom and Quidditch tryouts. She was happy for her friend! A broom was indeed a very cool thing. Though Sophie would probably never have one, since they needed so much... work. Meh. Not worth it.

Oh, so their plant were taken care of! Good! But... "Professor, since the Norandola takes the appearance of people that take care of it, they're going to be kind of mixed now, won't they?" Sophie didn't really like that thought... but oh well, what could she do? Surely she wouldn't be able to cary her plant back and forth from her house every summer!

Why, that sounded simple enough! Sophie beamed at Ella after professor Bentley explained how they could take care of their plants. She nodded at her friend's words. They could handle that, yep yep! "So are our Fireseeds and Norandola planties in the Greenhouses still or are they in the gardens?"

Seren nodded... life wasn't always sunshine and roses, something it was frosty and rough. "Keep your chin up eh," she said, trying to inspire some hope, "... you might just be surprised."

Despite Jezzabelle's hardships at home, it was nice to hear that she'd connected with her greenhouse and made the most of the holidays, practice and experience works wonders not only on grades but on resilience too.
"You know... being elbows deep in dung and dirt is one of my favourite ways to spend any day."
That coming from a herbologist of course.

It was strange seeing the Hufflepuffs reaction to what she had just said. What did she do wrong? Did she say something? Was she a troll? A gnarly troll?

....

Why did Alyssa look as if she wanted to cry? ... she would have asked so, but the girl seemed to be in a bit of a hurry.

"... Bye," she said meekly, still wondering what on earth she had done to make the girl react that way.

It must be a Hufflepuff thing...

__________________________________________________ _______________

Aaaahhh quidditch. The memories. "Well good luck, I'd love to see you play.." just so long as they didn't beat her precious Lions of course. But they were more than welcome the give the Snakes a thrashing.
"I did indeed, I played as chaser... I lived for the game while I was a student, considered playing professionally too, though... things didn't work out that way." Not that she minded, she loved the way her life turned out.

Uh oh... Sophie wasn't paying full attention in class it seemed.
"Oh no no no dear," she said shaking her head, "... the appearance of the Norandola is a result of the person who touched the bean the most. Not the one who cares for the plant the most. Once they take on a form, they do not change it. They only change beneath the moonlight to their true form." Perhaps she ought to reflect on her notes from last term, or open a book?
"The Norandolas will be in the student garden now, the Fireseeds are still in greenhouse two."

__________________________________________________ _______________
"Good good," she mused, observing the boys expression. "I had a pleasant summer, a part of me didn't want to return... but alas, I am here." In all her floral glory. Honestly, what would the school do without her?
"I trust you enjoyed your break?"

Her heart was breaking, and she didn't know what to do. Nobody had trained her for this... how were you supposed to console a student? a child? a young woman? ...
"No... she's not," she replied in a low voice, still unsure of what she was doing. Plants were so much easier than humans. At any rate, she could understand Kurumi's thought process on that. There was no point in watching the ones you loved suffer, even if it were to satisfy your selfish need of having them near.

It felt awkward, but necessary, and there was something in her fiber of being that kept her from removing her arms from the girls shoulders. When Kurumi returned the hug, she relaxed a little. She had done the right thing... she hoped.

Kurumi's next words surprised her, though only mildly. Perhaps it was seeing her like this that subconsciously told her what to expect. A metamorphmagus. Kurumi Hollingberry really was special... though more special for her cookies of love. "That's a rare gift you've got," she said with a weak smile, having withdrawn her arms from around the girl, she bowed her head lower to look in her face.
"How have you been managing it... recently?..."
She knew Kurumi's emotions must be all over the place, a taxing force on her body.

Kurumi didn't say anything more, regarding her mother that is. What was there to say? Her tears conveyed unspoken words. How painful this was. How much she missed her. How insecure she was. How unfair life was. Words could not express how empty the Gryffindor still felt inside about all this and how empty she would continue to feel for a long time. The only consolation was the journal her mother had left her where she documented the last year of her life. Kurumi still had yet to read all the entries, but she would.

When she felt ready.

Kurumi's body relaxed just a little, her shoulders slouching slightly as Professor Bentley asked her about her abilities softly. How was she managing them? She wasn't...at all. "Actually...professor...they...they haven't been manifesting at all, since..." But there was no need to finish that sentence. Professor Bentley knew what came after that. "As a prefect, I know I am supposed to exude confidence and guide others...but it is hard to keep up that front when you look in the mirror every day and see someone that isn't exactly you looking back." Kurumi wasn't entirely sure where the calmness in her voice was coming from right now, but it was certainly welcoming. Maybe it was the feeling of finally admitting all this to someone other than Selina. Someone who knew a lot more about the magical world that her sixteen year old self or her best friend did.

"Professor, all my life I have wanted to look normal. Not have violet eyes or be different. I've hated my abilities. Despised them really. But, now that they are gone...I don't feel like I am me anymore."

Which was really...ridiculous, especially after all the conversations her and Selina had had about their abilities not defining who they were as people.

Ella smiled when Professor Bentley wished her good luck. She really did appreciate it. "Thanks Professor! I'd love to see me play too!" The second year said sheepishly, turning a slight pinkish color when those words left her mouth. "Though there is a lot of talent going out for the team...No matter, I'll try my best." Shrug. AND Professor Bentley had played too? COOL! Ella leaned forward in her seat, quite interested now. "You were a chaser? That's what I tried out for. I bet you were good." Not that Ella had any basis for that, Professor Bentley just seemed like she would be good at sports. She was kind of feisty and all that. At the mention of playing Professionally, Ella's eyes grew wide and then a small smile appeared on her face. "Well I'm glad you didn't play, Professor...cause then we wouldn't have you as a teacher!" And she meant that. Herbology was one of Ella's favorite classes...even if they did work with flesh-eating plants! Yuck.

When Professor Bentley told Sophie where the plants were now located, Ella made a mental note of the locations. Norandolas were in the gardens, fireseeds in the greenhouse! That made sense though, since the little fireseed plants needed shade. She smiled and nodded that she had got the information and then shifted in her seat. "Well thanks Professor, for letting us work with them and everything. I think it'll be a lot of fun." The second year smiled and then looked at Soph, nodding her head towards the door, a questioning look on her face. Ella wanted to go to see her Norandola as soon as possible and now that they knew where they were, they could go! How cool!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hera

"Good good," she mused, observing the boys expression. "I had a pleasant summer, a part of me didn't want to return... but alas, I am here." In all her floral glory. Honestly, what would the school do without her?
"I trust you enjoyed your break?"

Gideon nodded understanding the feeling of being caught between returning and not. The situation surrounding his cousin Kenzie's schooling certainly provided an example of what it would be like to learn outside Hogwart's walls. "Aye I suppose it could be tempting...of course." The stories told over the summer had been quite interesting. But he himself would miss several things...including near the top if not the top, the case of one Selina Skylar.

"Aye...I did," he answered with a soft smile. "Always enjoyable to visit family ye dont see that often."

Jezzabelle gave a soft smile, "I intend to." She wasn't going to go down without a proper fight, even if it was against herself. As for surprises, she wasn't really fond of them.

She laughed, "It was amazing to be constantly covered in the stuff but my father did find it difficult to be around constantly." She was always there and had about three showers a day. "I still hope to become a herbologist one day." It would take some work but it'd be worth it. "But, I still have a few years ahead of me."