Moonlit Thoughts (Augustus)

[Desdemona Neilson]

I stood here once before
With my head in my hands

For all that I had known of this place
I could never understand

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Herbology! Why did it have to be Herbology?!

Des supposed it could have been worse. She had at least done well in the class during her own school days. But still, she would have much preferred Defense Against the Dark Arts. Hell, she was an auror for 14 years and was still alive to tell the tale so she clearly was doing something right. Transfiguration would have been a good match or even potions for that matter. After all, she had tutored her friends to get them ready for their potions exams! So why did it have to be Herbology?!

It was her first day of lessons and it didn't go well. While nothing went horribly wrong, per se, it just seemed like this whole teaching bit was a lot harder than it looked. She felt like a fish that was suddenly taken from its home in the water and told that it must dance a jig in order to stay alive. Of course, the fish wouldn't actually be able to dance a jig without legs, but that was beside the point. She felt like she couldn't breathe. It was one of the most frightening experiences of her life. Part of her wanted to go find some dark wizard just so she could have someone to fling curses at and vent some of the frustration she felt right now.

She supposed it could have been worse. It could have been Divination! That had to have been one of the worst classes she'd ever taken. She signed up for it her 3rd year and she could barely make it through the year. It was without a doubt the most illogical and unscientific course of study in the world. She was not an art buff like her daughter was, but Des had a feeling that she'd like the art history classes her daughter had taken a lot better than Divination.

And then there was Flying! There was nothing worse than flying. She'd rather face a herd of Hungarian Horntails... Was herd the right word? Did dragons live in herds? Perhaps they were clans? She shook her head as she walked across the grounds in the moonlight. It had been too long since she'd really thought much about this sort of thing. She liked magical creatures, but her job hadn't included needing to know what the proper title of a dragon's nesting group was! Horde....that was a good word. Yes, she'd much rather face a horde of Hungarian Horntails than have to teach Flying. There was just no chance that anyone was going to get her up on a broom! She hated them and hated flying. The last time she'd been on one was back when she was 12 and was finishing her own flying class.

Des had at least not been one of the students that slept through Herbology. But knowing about plants didn't make her a professor. She didn't know how to teach this stuff. She didn't know how to make this stuff fun and interesting! She frowned as she kicked a stone in her path. Unfortunately, her clumsiness set in and she missed the stone. The force of her kick brought her leg up high in front of her and she landed flat on her back. "Great! Just great!" She said as she closed her eyes and let her head rest against the hard ground. She whined in frustration as she wondered what else could go wrong.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sparks fly as the fires burn at midnight
Stars are out and magic is here...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CHILLIN WITH?!? Open
WORDS?!? 613
LYRICS?!? Blackmore's Night
CREDIT?!? Krys
OTHER?!? Nope!

[Augustus Vermillion]

HE’S A REAL NOWHERE MAN
SITTING IN HIS NOWHERE LAND
MAKING ALL HIS NOWHERE PLANS FOR NOBODY

Teaching at Hogwarts was a wholly new experience for Augustus Vermillion; he had been a scientist, a theorist, a philosopher even, for years and years. Working silently from the Muggle community and outspokenly from within the Wizard one, Augustus strove to make a name for himself and produce change.

It was no secret that he was different from the other teachers. It could have been his background, or it could have been his roots, or it could have even been his studies-- but there was just something different about Augustus, nothing he could place exactly. It bothered him. It bothered him a lot. He had asked other teachers but nobody had seen it the way he had (and, thinking back on it, he was probably just paranoid). Regardless, Augustus felt uneasy, as he did with most new places he found himself in. Especially with magical folk.

He came out onto the Lawns to write. There was something about crisp breezes and pleasant grassy smells that just made him feel like everything was alright. It was daytime, and that pleased him even more. Everything was worse at night, and Augustus disliked the whole atmosphere it created. So he sat, leg tucked over another, leather-bound journal balanced on his thighs as he scribbled notes about his first days of classes. This would be a matter of importance, the data he gathered here. It would bring a new dimension to his thesis, his studies.

Augustus taught in the mornings and late afternoons, giving himself some well-deserved time in the middle to backtrack and plan. Oh, he loved teaching Muggle Studies. He was a more mathematics person than history, but who it hurt if he slipped a little physics and geometry into the advanced classes for them to chew on. If he had his way, they'd have to hear it all the time. But, he is not such a personable man. He found himself musing all of this absently, pen to his mouth, arms rested on the pages of his fresh-inked journal pages. It was then, when he pulled himself out of his own mind as he did many times during the day, that he noticed another teacher (a new teacher, new like he was new and that made her just a little bit more approachable, even if they were as different as many of the others he'd come to meet on the wrong circumstances and in the wrong lifetime). He watched her closely, looking at her quirks and movements like he did anyone he was going to talk to. Perhaps that intense focus and study is what turned people off of him. Who knows (certainly not Augustus). She was angry, he could tell that.

Maybe he would just sit here, keep writing, talk to her later.

But then she fell, and Augustus hoped that whosoever saw him would forgive him for the sharp silent chuckle that was his reaction. But a cruel man he was not. So he set his journal aside, latching and shoving it inside his own book bag, and stood up carefully to go help. He brushed grass off of his pant legs, because really he must look presentable, and walked briskly to where the woman was laying in the grass. He leaned over, smiling at her from his high and mighty place of upright standing.
"Would you need a hand?" He asked, offering her his own to help her up. He was sure she could get up on her own. But he felt a little guilty for snickering when she fell, even if she didn't know that had happened, and felt like this was surely a good enough repayment. But then, as he was with all people he talked to, Augustus Vermillion took everything a little too far. "Are you new here? I'm new. I teach Muggle Studies. What do you teach? I assume you're a professor. Am I right?"

[/color] He was going to go on, but stopped, and laughed a little bit to himself, the hand not outstretched to her rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. He didn't quite know how to handle himself with people, especially not magical people, especially not his fellow professors, especially not when he started the conversation.




words706
lyrics nowhere man by THE BEATLES
credits this was made by PARTY POISON [/size][/center][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Desdemona Neilson]

I stood here once before
With my head in my hands

For all that I had known of this place
I could never understand

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Des had been lost in her own thoughts for a moment, but her well trained ears were always listening for something...anything that might be the slightest bit off, like the footsteps in the grass that were coming toward her. Her auror instincts kicked in as her eyes snapped open. In one fluid movement she had her wand out and she rolled her upper body to the left as she used her left elbow to prop her up enough to face whoever it was that surprised her. Her wand was pointed at the man, ready to start flinging curses if necessary. However, instead of a threat, what she saw was the man offering her a hand to help her up.

"Thanks." She said. She was slightly embarrassed. It was quite obvious by her behavior that she was not used to nice people sneaking up on her. She lowered her wand, though she did not put it away just yet. She pushed herself up into a sitting position before reaching up to grasp the man's hand. She had to admit that she was grateful for his help. Before he could get her back up on her feet, Des found herself on the receiving end of a string of questions. She narrowed her eyes at him for a moment as she scrutinized him. He laughed and looked embarrassed as he rubbed the back of his neck. She guess this probably mean he was a bit socially awkward and therefore posed no immediate threat to her.

Once she was on her feet again she tucked her wand back into her robes and then focused herself on answering his questions. "Yes, I'm new. I'm Des Neilson, I teach Herbology." She said as she extended her hand for a handshake. "Or at least that's what I did today." She gave a small shrug as an expression of grief crossed her face. She looked at the man and couldn't help feeling that she owed him at least some sort of explanation for her cryptic remarks. With a small sigh she opened her mouth and continued. "Sorry, it's just I don't really know why I'm here. I'm not a teacher. "

"I needed a change in my life. You know how sometimes you just need a change of scenery for a while?" She did her best to keep her voice steady even though her words were a lie. There was some truth. She had needed to change her life, but she couldn't tell anyone why. She refused to put anyone here in any danger than they were already in just by knowing her. "My daughter convinced me to come here, that this is what I need, but I'm not so sure right now. Anyway, that's my sad little story. How about you? What brings you here?" She changed the subject. Perhaps he wouldn't ask any questions about her past if she got him talking about himself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sparks fly as the fires burn at midnight
Stars are out and magic is here...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CHILLIN WITH?!? Augustus
WORDS?!? 519
LYRICS?!? Blackmore's Night
CREDIT?!? Krys
OTHER?!? Nope!

[Augustus Vermillion]

[ ]HE’S A REAL NOWHERE MAN
SITTING IN HIS NOWHERE LAND
MAKING ALL HIS NOWHERE PLANS FOR NOBODY

Augustus' eyebrows shot up a little, his lip curling into a half-smile. Was every witch and wizard so paranoid all the time? Or was this new? He couldn't remember, honestly. He smiled, still, when she put the wand down and took his hand instead. Helping her up, he tutted a little as she put her wand away but kept the stiff air of suspicion. Augustus didn't mind. He was used to it by now. Instead, he just shook her hand with the same energy he took to everything, trying to be charming instead of over-exuberant. He didn't know the difference, couldn't tell most of the time if what he thought was charismatic was actually just off-putting to the average person.
"Herbology, you don't say. I haven't used herbology since I went to school here, but I'm sure it's all very interesting. I teach Muggle Studies. It's great. I worked as a physicist in London for some time before I came back here."

He gestured to things that were more ethereal than actually in present company, stuttering a little. He was never very good at talking about himself. He'd even forgotten his name, damn it all.

"I'm Augustus,"

[/color]he said with a little embarrassment in his voice, a little bit of an apology. He put his hands in his suit jacket pockets, smiling his own tight-lipped smile that acquaintances were so happy to throw at each other.

"You have a daughter that goes here?" [/color]Augustus loved the students here. They were probably his favourite part. Every one of them was involved in their studies, which is more than he could say of public school in London. Attentive, interested students were his dream come true. Unlike Des, he loved his job. This is exactly where he wanted to be. He wasn't a battle-hardened Auror, he didn't have a mysterious past, and he was okay with that. He always had his books, he supposed, to point to when people asked him what he did before Hogwarts.
"Sometimes a change of pace is needed. I understand. But if you're not a teacher, what would you rather be doing? Or would you rather just be teaching something else?" He understood that. He was a mathematician, really. All numbers. Teaching history and sociology was alright, he could do it, but it wasn't his niche.

"I usually just sit here and write after classes," he admitted, making a sweeping gesture to the Lawns, "because I can get a little anxious after class, even though I am a teacher. Maybe you just need to find a place to call your own. Do you know what I mean?"

He shrugged lightly; sometimes the questions were more to himself than anything else. He looked off into the distance, as if he was just rememebering something important and needed to categorize it properly in his mind.
"What's your daughter like? Is she anything like you? Do you two get along? Because me and my father, we're quite close. I think family is important." He trailed off a little at the end, eyes drifting downward to his shoes, which were scuffed a little even though he'd just polished them yesterday. He never claimed to be organized though. He wasn't sure if he was being a nuisance or not with this woman, Des. He could never really tell. She seemed kind, though, in a tolerating way, and that's really the most familiar kind of nicety that Augustus knew.

tagging Des
words 574
lyrics nowhere man by THE BEATLES
credits this was made by PARTY POISON

[/size][/blockquote][/blockquote][/center]

[Desdemona Neilson]

I stood here once before
With my head in my hands

For all that I had known of this place
I could never understand

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“No, my daughter doesn’t go here. She’s a muggle. Besides, she’s twenty-six and married with three kids of her own.” Des couldn’t help smiling as she thought about them. “They are about the sweetest little grandchildren a woman like me could ask for. Actually, my son does go here, he’s a 6th year and I’ve got two nephews here as well.” Her smile disappeared when he turned the topic of conversation back to her past. She opened her mouth to speak and then closed it right away. Part of her wanted to tell him, even if it was only so that she'd have someone to talk to about everything she was feeling right now, but she couldn't do that. She wouldn't do that. How could she know that she could truly trust him? Besides, her family was already in danger because of her. She couldn't handle the guilt of putting anyone else in danger.

"What does it matter? I can't go back..." She said. She looked away from Augustus for a moment. She needed to change the subject again. Perhaps if she kept changing the subject he'd eventually either take a hint or get bored since she wasn't going to tell him anything. "So you said you were a physicist? Did you have a specialty? I read an article once. It was written by a professor at a muggle university in America. He was working on research with storing energy in diamonds. Supposedly, diamonds can store as much energy as about a hundred batteries." Her hand came up and brushed a stray piece of hair out of her eyes.

"I guess you could say that's my thing. I read. I suppose I'm just a bit too restless at the moment to read." Her voice was soft. "I like books, most times more than people. Books are predictable. No matter what happens you can always pick one up and get lost in another world. Then later when you put them down they don't hate you. They're not even the slightest bit angry. They wait patiently for if and when you decide to pick them up again. But humans are not like that. Adolescents are especially unpredictable. How do you do it? How do you relate to them and connect to them as an educator?" She asked.

"Oh, my daughter and I are polar opposites." Des couldn't help but laugh. "She is so friendly and trusts everyone she meets the instant she first sees them. She's the type that wears her heart on her sleeve and always looks for the best in every situation. And you're right. Family is important. To me, family is the most important thing in the world. What is your family like?" Family was all she had left. Of course it was important. She'd already lost enough family, her mother, her father, her aunt, her uncle and also her husband. Des would do anything to protect them. She'd die to protect them and for all intents and purposes, she already had. Though, even though she couldn't tell anyone this, she did have to admit that she was thankful to have someone to talk to, someone that was a bit odd and didn't quite fit in with the rest of the teaching staff...someone like herself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sparks fly as the fires burn at midnight
Stars are out and magic is here...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CHILLIN WITH?!? Augustus
WORDS?!? 594
LYRICS?!? Blackmore's Night
CREDIT?!? Krys
OTHER?!? Nope!