A Friendly Encounter

[Professor Landon Carter]

With the new semester starting, Landon was more than ready to get back to work teaching his students. He rather enjoyed his job and loved being around children in a workplace that was kind to him, and being a professor at Hogwarts gave him the opportunity to do so. As the first day of classes came around, Landon happily made his way from his office into the Great Hall for a good breakfast. Hogwarts never failed to provide food that was able to fulfill Landon's needs, and with him being exceptionally hungry this morning, he knew just where to go. As he entered the hall, he made his way over to the staff table and smiled at the staff that was already there as he took a seat and began putting some food onto his plate. He started with toast and placed that onto his plate before reaching for the butter and spreading it with the knife. Landon always preferred doing things himself rather than using his wand, and he took his first bite of the toast when he was finished, glad to be back at work.

 

[Monty Pendleton]

Monty had never been so glad to return to the castle. That wasn't to say had wasn't sad to leave Saveli at home, or that he didn't wish he had a little more time to spend with his mother, but simply that for the first time since the school had employed him, he finally felt more comfortable there than anywhere else in the world. The anxiety which had once dictated his every turn in life had finally loosened its reins on him; he was free, and happier at forty-six than he'd been in his entire life. So when he greeted Landon's arrival at the staff table at breakfast, he did not bother to curb his affection. "Hello, Professor," he said, moving a jug of orange juice closer within the man's reach, just in case he wanted some. "You appear to be in excellent spirits this morning. Have you something exciting planned for the day?"

 

[Professor Landon Carter]

Landon beamed as his colleague Monty spoke and was happy to start a conversation with him. It made his day even better than it was before, and when Monty asked why he was so happy, Landon blushed slightly, hoping he wasn't embarrassing himself too much with his joyful demeanor. "I don't know." he replied once thanking him for the orange juice. He began to pour some into his glass. "I'm just happy to be back at work, you know?" He hoped his statement did not make him seem weird. After all, Landon didn't know many people who actually liked their job and so hopefully Monty wasn't one of them. Working with children was much better than spending his time alone and so he was grateful for the life he had at Hogwarts away from his personal worries.