posting here quickly
 

Yes, a walk, Miss Potts! Paul led her from his meeting space to the pathways that connected his area to the creatures area. He often enjoyed long walks along these pathways with Zelda, his beautiful collie.

He breathed innnnnn the fresh air.

"AAhhhh! It's a pretty day." He smiled and looked over at the Hufflepuff. "What did you want to talk about?" He asked in a pleasant tone. It, thankfully, wasn't too cold yet. It would be soon. It was jacket weather, for sure. Leather weather, as Milton called it. Paul didn't wear leather, though. Milton wore faux leather.

What an open-ended question! The answers he could give...so vast! Paul gave her a look. Endearing look, but a bit exasperated. "Well. There are too many. We have to narrow it down a bit. With...well, what are you looking for? Which subject areas? What interests you? Do you prefer desk work, outside, hands on? Do you care about monetary value or not? You take your OWLs this year, right? That will also affect some things as well depending on what you want to do." Some jobs weren't as nitpicky with testing and test scores. Others, like being an auror, required it.

So there, Miss Potts.

Paul smiled. "Have I asked enough questions yet?" Hehe.

Something magical that makes a lot? Paul needed MORE, Lucy! "Yes but..which excites you? What are your favorite subjects? I hate to break it to you, but I can't decide what YOU do for a living. That'd be terrible , and you'd be miserable. You need to think on it some, you know." He had a few ...ideas about some careers that Lucy would certainly find interesting.

Recreational, too.

"Do you enjoy plants?" he asked suddenly.

Hmm. They kept walking. Paul put his hands into his pants' pockets. "Well...at your age?" he smiled. "I wanted to travel. I was dead set on it, actually. I knew I was interested in plants...my grandparents paid for my traveling...two years. Until I was 20." He grinned. "I was very fortunate."

"You'd possibly enjoy experimental Herbology. Somewhere abroad. There are internships I can recommend you for, for the summer," he said casually. "Whole greenhouses devoted to the creation and experimentation of magical and mundane plants...and the mixing of the two." He side-eyed her. "It'd be a great opportunity to see what you like. And many of the programs are quite lenient with their leisure activities," Again...casual tone.

Paul stopped for a second and hoped she would, too. "I thought you weren't a fan of subjects with lots of wand-work?" he asked. "And isn't Herbology your favorite subject?" Confused. Confizzled. Fuzzled. Puzzled. BamBOOZLED. "Um. Well. Experimental anything has a lot of wand-work. Charms has a lot. " Lucy, please. "Your time here is worth it...in everything that you do, and not just academically." He peered at her through his glasses. "Social interactions...the friends you make. Everything."

Hmph.

It was hard to recommend things when the student WOULDN'T TALK ABOUT HER INTERESTS THOUGH.

..."But what?' Paul asked softly. He wasn't blind; he could see the almost frown. "The fact that you don't find Herbology worth your time here...well, I'm sorry," he said the words gently, and he wasn't entirely sure she meant it in that way.

He began to walk once more. "I can't help you if you won't help me help you. Though, it isn't entirely serious, you know. You don't have to figure out what you're doing right this minute. It's okay to experiment," he sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "What do you find worth your time?"

Paul would have been heart-broken to hear any such thoughts. Herbology might not as riveting as Charms or something more practical, but he certainly didn't think people held it in low regard.

But her next statement? Paul could work with that, especially since he was in the music industry. "M'dear..." he said softly, "What is stopping you?" he asked. "If that is what you want...if that is what will make you happy, fulfill you....how can we make this happen? I'm your head of house. Of course I have to help you achieve your goals. And it's very doable. Granted, I don't think I've ever head you play, but I don't think that's much an issue we can't resolve shortly." He smiled kindly at her.

Lucy, you were given.

Paul thought this walk was taking rather long, but it was worth it. Lucy was...beginning to get somewhere with her career aspirations. "Lucy..." he said gently, and he gave his wand a wave. The thick, knotted roots of a nearby tree suddenly moved, trembling even, curling into a very artistic looking bench. He took a sat and gestured for Miss Potts to do the same. "Sit?"

"Lucy." He said her name again. "There is nothing wrong with pursuing a career in the arts, or music. If it's something you want to do..something you can see yourself doing, you must pursue it. If you want it, nothing else will ever make you happy until you've tried. You will regret it. I know you will regret it," he said gravely. "Please. Don't do something because other people want you to do it."

And, "I'd love to hear you play sometime. Absolutely. A harmonica is a nifty instrument to know how to play." He smiled warmly. "We need one in my band," he budged her elbow.

He heard the way those two words came out Lucy's mouth, and it drew Paul's eyes to her. Her moist eyes, the way her voice trembled. Paul carefully put an arm around her shoulders. "It's okay," he said gently. "Play me a tune," he added. They could talk, sure, but Paul thought she needed a moment. And he wanted to hear her play.

He also pulled a tissue from his pocket. "Here, m'dear. Cry as much as you need to. I don't mind the tears." Little kids, he couldn't handle the tears. But this stuff? he was fine with. A chilly breeze ruffled by, his hair fluffing about in a crazy manner.

Paul found himself smiling. And closing his eyes. Ah. It was lovely. She really did know how to play, and people thought it was easy; Paul knew it was not. He waited until the tune was over before he spoke again. He....sort of side-squished her, actually. A hug, if you will.

"I loved it, Lucy. Beautiful. I wasn't kidding about needing a harmonica player in my band," he winked. He spoke softly, gently, in order to keep her in a calm place. "Now I can only imagine you playing the guitar. I bet it's even more haunting. Can you play both at the same time?" HA! Now THAT was the question! She could be her own singing enigma! It would require mouth muscles doing their own thing from finger muscles; in sync, but not in sync, at the same time, almost.

Saz
 

Paul thought for a minute. "Well...I guess you'd need some sort of device, or something magical to help. I always forget you need fingers to play harmonica." He wiggled his own, wishing he had gloves suddenly. Merlin. It was getting colder. "I'm sure you could figure it out," he waved it off. "Would you like to head back inside? I completely forgot where we were headed to," he said softly.

Tristan's? Kalen's? Still couldn't get their names straight. "I could get us a niiiiiice treat."

Kimi was loving the cold air and had to get out of the castle he was bundled up and he also had the warming spell on hand if he got cold and he was glad that he was all caught up on his homework and he wasn't looking where he was going when he bumped into a ravenclaw girl and said "Sorry I was lost in my thoughts and wasn't paying attention to where I was walking"

She didn't even know what happened. One minute she was seeing--quite vividly--images of her hybrid, baby dragon and the next, there was something...rather, someone bumping right into her. Jessa spun to see whoever it might have been, realizing then that it was only Kimi. Oh.

"That's alright." She tried to assure him, going as far as offering him a smile. "I get lost in my own thoughts too, completely forget the world around me."

It was rather typical of her actually. Her eyes sparkled with a new found curiosity. "What were you thinking about?"