A fresh start

[Natalie Reyes]

Natalie Reyes left her office up in the tower with a smile on her beautiful face. Nat loved being back at school, even if it had been Hogwarts Scotland she had attended during her school years. The astronomy tower, where she was living, was similar to the Ravenclaw tower that had been her home for seven long years. A lot had changed since Natalie had lived up in the Ravenclaw tower eight whole years ago. She was a completely different person. Natalie was married to a wonderful man, Damien, and had two beautiful children with him. Natalie had only given birth to Adam six weeks ago. Layla, her three year old daughter, was a spitting image of Natalie herself. Of course, neither Nat or Layla looked anything like Natalie's mother, Evelyn. The brunette had long ago come to the conclusion that she had gotten most of her genetic traits from her father. It had been hard to leave her son and daughter but teaching was something she had always wanted to do. It had been impossible to refuse the Astronomy position. It was her best and favorite class when she attend school. Of course, Natalie had excelled in all of her classes at Hogwarts Scotland. They didn't make you Head Girl for just any old reason.

Natalie waved her wand at her door to secure it's protective enchantments before heading all the way down to the Great Hall. She was still extremely new to the school and the staff. In fact, Natalie had only met the Headmaster so far. The slender brunette was looking forward to meeting the rest of the staff and her students. Natalie had been deemed qualified to teach the more advanced students of Astronomy. Her students would be the fifth through seventh years. Her first lesson would be tomorrow morning. She intended to spend the rest of the day planning for her class, wanting them to have the best astronomy lesson. Natalie was excited and aglow with ideas. She tossed her dark brown hair over her shoulder as she strode into the Great Hall. Natalie held her head high, wanting to make sure would be respected by her students despite her young age.

Professor Natalie Reyes took a seat at the long wooden table with a smile on her face. She looked down at the hall, a buzz with excitement. It was their first week back from Christmas as well. Her honey brown eyes glanced at the other Professors, most of whom were in conversations with each other. So, Natalie helped herself to an English muffin and some orange juice.

 

[Professor Cyndi Kingsley]

Professor Kingsley had decided to sleep in a bit today, and she had actually managed to get a whole half hour extra of sleep. She'd taken her time slowly getting ready for the day, throwing a plain black robe on over her outfit and finally had made her way downstairs to grab a bite to eat. It had taken a while to get there because the professor had been stopped by several of her first year Gryffindor students, one of whom had lost his textbook. The professor had assured the student that it would turn up and then headed on her way.

Entering the Great Hall, Cyndi could see that many of the students were nearly done with breakfast and she hoped there was still plenty left. As she settled herself in to a seat, Professor Weasley greeted several of her colleagues before pulling a croissant towards herself and taking a bite. It was divine and she quickly took another bite. Pulling the juice pitcher towards herself, the professor didn't realize how empty it was until she lifted it and it went up much more easily than she thought it would. "Oh damn" she muttered as she looked down the table. Thankfully, there was another pitcher down the table.

Getting up and eating her croissant along with her, Cyndi made her way down the table. She'd left her wand in her room and she wouldn't trust her wandless magical ability to summon the pitcher without spilling juice all over. Arriving at the end of the table, Professor Kingsley smiled at the new professor seated there in front of it. "Do you mind if I take some juice?" she asked as she settled herself in the seat beside the woman who appeared to be the same age. "I'm Cyndi by the way" she added, taking another bite of her croissant.

 

[Natalie Reyes]

Natalie Reyes looked around when she heard a voice addressing her. The brunette woman looked up at another woman, around her age. Her honey eyes crinkled as she smiled at her fellow staff member who seated herself next to Natalie. The Professor was asking for the juice in front of the twenty five year old. She seemed like a polite enough woman, and she was certainly pretty. Her eyes were bright and intelligent. Natalie smiled at her colleague. "Sure. I'm just drinking water." she said in a friendly voice. Natalie scooted the pitcher around so that the other woman could pour herself a glass of the juice.

Natalie nodded her head as the other Professor introduced herself as Cyndi. A smile graced her light pink lips. It was nice to meet people in here in Hogwarts New Zealand, and it was even better to meet fellow Professors who were her age. "It's a pleasure to meet you Cyndi." she said. "I'm Natalie." the woman introduced herself by sticking out her hand for Cyndi to shake. "I'm the new Astronomy Professor, years 5-7." she said, though Cyndi probably already knew that.

 

[Professor Cyndi Kingsley]

Cyndi picked up the pitcher and poured it into a glass as she listened to the woman introduce herself. She knew that a couple of new professors had come into the school, but she hadn't yet had the opportunity to meet any of them. She'd stayed home with her husband, enjoying every bit of the vacation, and had not returned until the afternoon when lessons were set to begin. After taking a sip of the orange juice, Cyndi set the glass back down and took the woman's hand.

"Likewise" she smiled as she took up her glass again and took another sip. The orange juice was full of pulp, Cyndi's favorite kind of orange juice. "I teach Ancient Runes, so I'm only a few floors under you. How are you liking the school so far?" she asked as she picked up her croissant again. Natalie was a very pretty woman and seemed to be extremely friendly too, and Cyndi had the feeling that Astronomy would become a much more popular class with her as the professor.

 

[Natalie Reyes]

Natalie grinned at the Cyndi as she said she taught Ancient Runes. The young woman had found that class really interesting when she had been in school. It had been listed among her top favorite classes. Natalie took another bite of her English muffin right as Cyndi asked her a question. The brunette quickly chewed her bite then took a quick gulp of water before answering. "I haven't had my first lesson yet but so far I really enjoy it. I like being back up in the Towers." Natalie said with a grin. "I was a Ravenclaw at Hogwarts Scotland, and I must say, I forgot how fabulous that view is." she said with a laugh. The best view in the whole castle in Scotland was from the Ravenclaw common room. The astronomy tower was not quite as perfect but it was only slightly less than perfect.

Natalie smiled at her fellow Professor, wondering if she had a family. "I do miss my family though. I left my husband alone with out two children. Layla, she's three and Adam is only seven weeks old. I do worry about how well Damien is managing. Our daughter, well, it's not always easy to deal with her. Even at three years old, she is so outspoken." Nat said shaking her head with a small laugh. "She's practically fearless, always trying to jump from too tall heights and she has a toy broom that she always tries to make it fly higher." Natalie said shaking her head with good natured humor. "I don't know where she gets it from. I certainly wasn't like that. But listen to me, going on about myself. I'm sure you didn't need to hear all of that." she said apologetically. Natalie knew it was a bad habit to ramble about one's family, but she just missed them all so much.

 

[Professor Cyndi Kingsley]

Cyndi finished her croissant as she listened to Natalie speak. The woman had a very pleasant personality, and Cyndi couldn't help but immediately comfortable around the woman. She usually got along with most people, but there was something about Natalie that made her feel as if she'd known her for more than just a few minutes. Glad to see a plate of croissants on this end of the table as well, Cyndi reached for another and took a bite. It was still warm and tasted just as divine as the first one had. "I was a Gryffindor...here actually" she revealed after she'd heard Natalie say that she was a Ravenclaw. "I loved this place so much that I never really left" she quipped and rolled her eyes slightly. She was pretty fond of the school, and knew it as well as anyone or so she liked to think.

Hearing Natalie speak about her family put a smile on her face, and even as she lifted the glass to her mouth again, the grin stayed on her face. It was easy to see just how much Natalie loved her husband and her son and daughter. Cyndi didn't know what she would do when she and Cameron actually decided to have children. For now, they were content to enjoy each other, and Cyndi would easily admit that she was a bit selfish and was not ready to share Cameron just yet. "It's alright. I love hearing people talk about their families, and it's easy to hear how much you love yours" she said pleasantly. "I'm sure your husband is doing just fine with the kids" she assured the woman. "I know what you mean about missing them though. I miss my Cameron so much and I'm always worried that he must be so lonely when I'm here. He only has my cat for company when I'm here at the school and Midnight is not good company at all." Cyndi knew that Cameron was just fine, but with his job and how busy it kept him, she sent out nightly owls, reminding him to eat dinner and to sleep well.

 

[Natalie Reyes]

Natalie grinned at her new friend- only friend- here at Hogwarts New Zealand. The young mother laughed as Cyndi said she loved it so much she never left. Natalie could certainly understand that. If she had not moved down to South America to be with Damien after graduation, she would have tried to get a teaching position at Hogwarts in Scotland. "I have a feeling my Layla will be a Gryffindor, Merlin knows she didn't get that from me." she said, with a good natured laugh.

Natalie's honey brown eyes showed her kindness and gratitude at Cyndi's reassurance that her home would in fact still be standing the next time she saw it. She listened with interest as Cyndi talked about her own husband. She liked to learn about others, and especially others that she was starting to count as a friend. Natalie's delicate fingers smoothed a lock of brown hair out of her face, twisting it absent-mindedly around her finger. "It's much harder than I thought it would be, being apart. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who feels that way." she said smiling kindly at her colleague.

 

[Professor Cyndi Kingsley]

Cyndi chuckled good-naturedly as she listened to Natalie speak about her daughter. Using her own childhood as a point of reference, Cyndi assumed that her daughter, Layla, was rambunctious and fairly fearless. Cyndi's mother had always told her that it had not been easy to raise her or her siblings, all of whom had ended up in Gryffindor. Now that she was old enough to appreciate it, Cyndi was in awe of her mother's patience with her three children, especially when they'd been younger. The woman was a saint. "Are there any Gryffindors in your family?" she asked curiously. She knew that the sorting hat didn't necessarily care where your family was from when it put you into a house, but she knew that it was a factor. She was a great example of that.

Cyndi smiled sympathetically at the woman. She couldn't imagine how it felt to leave behind a newborn baby and a husband and another child. It had to be a difficult thing to do, and she nodded at the woman as she twisted a lock of hair. The act struck her as familiar, and she pushed a lock of her own brown hair behind her ear. "Is this the first time you're away from them for this long?" she asked.

 

[Natalie Reyes]

Natalie shook her head to Cyndi's question. As far as she knew, there were no Gryffindors in her family. "Um. No. I don't think so at least." the young woman said, a slight frown on her face. "My mother was a Slytherin at Hogwarts Scotland." Natalie told Cyndi, a smile and a shrug. She knew how many people felt about Slytherins. Natalie's family was the good sort for the most part. "I don't really know about my father though my mother says he was a muggle. He ran out on my mom with her best friend before he knew about me." Natalie said, shrugging her shoulders. The brunette had long ago made peace with the fact that she would never have a father. All she knew was his name. Nothing else. Of course, Natalie also got more of his looks that her mother's, who was a blonde with green eyes. "I don't know if he had other children or what houses they might have been in. They probably were of magical blood since my mother's best friend was also a witch, a Slytherin." Natalie confided to Cyndi, her honey brown eyes meeting Cyndi's brown eyes. Natalie was continent with her family, small and perfect as it was.

Natalie nodded her head to Cyndi's second question. "Yes, the only time I have been away from them for longer than a weekend. Layla always went with me to visit my family, even if Damien couldn't." she said, her face softening as she thought of her family. "I worried about leaving them, but Damien insisted that I should go. I've always wanted to be a Professor so when this position opened up. Well, it was hard to resist." Nat said, smiling.

 

[Professor Cyndi Kingsley]

A faint smile crossed her face as the woman said she didn't think there were Gryffindors in her family. It was the complete opposite of Cyndi's family which only seemed to consist of Gryffindor. Her expression didn't change when she heard that Natalie's mother was a Slytherin. Cyndi didn't really like to judge people by the house they belonged to, and now that she'd married a Durmstrang man, she did it even less. She knew what some people thought about people who went to Durmstrang, and she couldn't think of a person who fit those misconceptions less than Cameron did. "Ohmigosh! That's horrible" she said upon hearing the news of her father's betrayal. Her parents had been married for 26 years so she couldn't imagine growing up knowing something like that.

Cyndi nodded, completely understanding what she was saying. "He's a keeper then" she grinned. Any husband who loved his wife enough to let her do what made her happy was worth keeping around. "I bet he and Cam would get along well. We'll have to get our husbands together one of these days."

 

[Natalie Reyes]

Natalie smiled and shrugged her thin shoulders at Cyndi's exclaimation. Natalie was not the type of woman to let things get to her. She had been an annoyingly cheerful girl as her mother often teased. She didn't like to dwell on the negative things in life. Or the what if questions that could so easily come without knowing your father. "Yes, well it's really alright. My mother is wonderful. She made sure I never felt as if I was missing out." Natalie said with a smile. Of course, she had met Damien young in life, starting a family with him. Natalie was content with her lot in life.

Natalie laughed as Cyndi said Damien was a keeper. There was not a more true statement. "He most certainly is. We have been together since I was sixteen years old." she said, twisting her wedding rings on her finger. Natalie grinned at Cyndi's suggestion. It sounded perfect. Natalie and Damien were still fairly new to New Zealand with few friends. "Oh that sounds absolutely lovely!" Natalie exclaimed, her british accent coming out in her voice. "We would be delighted for you and Cameron to come over to the Reyes' house for dinner." she said, grinning at the other professor.

 

[Professor Cyndi Kingsley]

Cyndi liked Natalie's attitude. She hadn't let her life's circumstances dictate her own happiness. It said a lot about the kind of person that she was, and Cyndi certainly had respect for someone who lived their life in this manner. A grin claimed Cyndi's face as she listened to Natalie speak about her husband. She was a romantic at heart and the idea of meeting one's true love at such a sweet age was such a sweet story. "That is so adorable. I met Cameron a while ago...he's my best friend's older brother. We just knew each other and never really hung out or anything until he sort of rescued me one day." The young woman would always remember her husband's chivalry when he'd rescued her from that complete arse at the club that night.

"Great!" she exclaimed, pleased that Natalie liked the idea. Cyndi and Cam always had a nice time hanging out with Kiera and James, but with the two of them busier than ever in preparations for their newest addition, Cyndi hadn't seen much of them. Having another couple to do 'couple things' with would be fun. "It's a date" she announced, realizing that she should probably mention the idea to Cameron soon. Here she was, making plans without consulting him first again.