A Shining Example

[Tristan Collins]

Even though the Minister of Magic had announced he wouldn't run for re-election during the next campagin, Tristan still felt like Jacob Kingsley was a good connection to make and keep. So when the boy asked him to tutor him in potions, he only hesitated for a moment before agreeing. Sure, he had dropped the subject in third year, but that didn't mean he couldn't help out Jacob with first-year level potions. He hadn't dropped it because he was bad at it, after all. He had dropped it because it didn't feel as important to him as some of the other subject. Making potions was a lot of work, and the effects were often something that could also be achieved with a wand, if more effective. Tristan didn't like how much time and effort went into making potions, the best part about being a wizard to him was how much more quickly everything went with magic, and potions often seemed to defeat the point to him.

But as far as he could remember, they didn't even actually brew any potions during the first year. The basic theory was definitely something he could help Jacob with. He had taken his old book and notes to the Student Lounge, waiting for the younger boy to arrive. He hoped he could help him out, or at least give him the feeling that he did.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob was only marginally more excited about these tutoring sessions. At least, if anyone realized he was being tutored, it wouldn't be by a professor. It would be by an upperclassmen. That had to be cooler, right? Jacob jogged down the student lounge. He'd forgotten his textbook the first time he'd left and had to run back. That showed his priorities here. Opening the door, Jacob spotted Tristan immediately and grinned. "I'm here!" he called out as he slid his book onto the table and sat beside Tristan.

Jacob didn't know Tristan all that well. They'd spoken a bit in the Brotherhood and he'd seen him in between classes walking through the halls, but they were in different years and kept different company. Jacob thought Tristan was cool. He dressed nicely, and whenever Jacob saw him, he always seemed to be with other people, and Jacob saw how some of the students looked at him. And that wasn't even counting that he was already dating. Jacob was super nervous about all of this, and he wanted Tristan to think he was cool too. "Thanks for doing this. My other tutor... We didn't get along well" he said, though he kept who the other tutor had been to himself.

 

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan was looking over his old notes and grimacing at his early attempts at writing with a quill, when he heard the voice of Jacob Kingsley. The kid sure seemed excited for something as boring as tutoring, but hopefully that meant he liked hanging out with Tristan. "Hey Jacob." He said as he rearranged some books so he had more space for his own things. "Or should I call you King Jay?" He teased gently. The nickname the other boy in the brotherhood had called him hadn't gone unnoticed. He smiled to show he wasn't serious, as he would not call him that even if he did say yes. "Hopefully we'll get along better. How are you doing?" He looked over at the boy. "Shall we get started right away?"

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob snickered when he heard Tristan say his nickname and then shook his head, a little embarrassed. But only just a little. The rest of him was pretty happy that someone like Tristan had not only noticed him but paid attention to him too. And remembered his nickname. He'd have much preferred to keep talking about anything but the tutoring that they were actually here for so he sighed inwardly as Tristan asked whether they should get started. "Yup, we probably should. So, do you actually like Potions?" he asked, pretty incredulous, figuring that only someone who liked the subject would want to be a tutor for it. That anyone loved the subject surprised him.

 

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan smiled at Jacob, glad the nickname hadn't embarrassed him too much. He straightened the notes, then glanced at Jacob at his question. He took a moment to decide if he should answer honestly, then did. "Not really." He said with a small, self-conscious smile. "Between you and me, I dropped it a couple of years ago." He quickly held up a hand. "That's not to say I can't help you, though. I took it past first year, and had all O's while I did. So don't worry." He hoped the boy wouldn't think him an unfit tutor now, as that had been the reason for keeping this information to himself. "To start off, do you have any questions for me? It can be about anything." He wanted to know what the problem was the boy was having, but asking him directly what he found difficult was unlikely to get much result. At least, he thought not. It was never easy to admit something was difficult, it wasn't even easy to figure out what the problem was when you were in it. He hoped he could figure it out for him, and help him on his way.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob grinned at Tristans words, glad he wasn't the only one who didn't like the subject. Everyone else made him feel like he was missing out on something great when he was certain he wasn't. "Ok" he said with a shrug. Really, Jacob would have accepted tutoring from anyone except Professor Pendleton or his mother. As Tristan asked Jacob if he had any questions for him, Jacob glanced up from his notebook where he'd been writing the date as the older boy spoke. He had plenty of questions, none of them related to the task at hand. But Tristan had said anything, which made Jacob wonder if he too would prefer to do anything but Potions work. "How long have you and Kauri dated?" he asked, his gaze back on his notebook as he slowly wrote the word 'Potions' and underlined it. He'd been thinking about them and relationships in general a lot since the Secret Santa Brotherhood event.

 

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan smiled, glad to see his lack of Potions experience over the past few years didn't put Jacob off the idea of being tutored by him. He waited for the boy to ask him a question related to the subject, so the one he did ask took Tristan by surprise. He raised his eyebrows slightly and paused, though in all fairness he had said anything. "Well, I wasn't expecting that question." He said, but quickly smiled to show the boy that it was okay. He wondered why Jacob cared about that, from what he could remember he hadn't cared too much about who the older kids had been dating. He noticed that Jacob wasn't looking at him and a suspicion formed in his mind. He wondered if Jacob would have shown the same interest in his dating life if he had been seeing a girl at the moment. Somehow, he thought perhaps not. Carefully, he schooled his features to be neutral. "Let's see... since I asked him to the yule ball, back in September." He said, thinking back to it. That was quite a while ago now, and truth be told, he had been starting to look for other options by now. Though, that wasn't something Jacob needed to know. "Why do you ask?" He asked carefully, wondering what the boy would say to that.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob let out a small laugh, his attention now back on Tristan, quite fixed on him actually as he waited for an answer. Tristan sounded a bit surprised, but he looked as cool as ever and Jacob couldn't help but wonder if he would one day get there. Listening to the answer, Jacob did his own calculations in his head. It had been a few months before their display of affection at the meeting, but not so long that everyone might have known. That made a difference to Jacob. His family knew how he identified. He hadn't ever thought to keep it a secret from his mother or his Aunt Kiera or anyone else in his family, but almost as soon as he'd arrived at school, Jacob had turtled up in that regard. It had taken him a while to figure out why, but talking to Tristan now, he realized he was a little scared. Being a first year was hard enough without being a gay first year, or at least Jacob thought to himself. And he knew he could ask his mom or Noah or Jemma for advice, but they wouldn't ever really get it. Not like Tristan might. Ignoring the question that Tristan asked, Jacob pushed on. "And no one bothers you guys?" he asked, a bit quieter than he had asked his previous question. His gaze had dropped again to his hands and he played with his quill, ruffling the feather and then making it smooth again.

 

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan vaguely wondered if they were ever going to get to the talk about potions, but he was happy to postpone it a little longer. He folded his hands in front of him as he looked at the younger boy. It felt strange to be answering questions like this, but not in a bad way. He had hoped to score some points int he eyes of the boy's mother and other teachers, but now he was starting to think he could perhaps really help him with something. He noticed Jacob ignored his question but didn't comment, instead he focused on answering the other question he asked. "Not so far." He said honestly, not discounting the possibility. "It could happen, but so far I haven't noticed anything like that." He watched as Jacob fidgeted with his quill, thinking of what else to say. "I actually like both boys and girls," he started off, realizing with a small jolt he had never really said it out loud like this. "So I can compare a little. I mostly found out people just seem to take notice more. Last year, when I went to the dance with a girl, I think fewer people paid attention. If that makes sense." He shrugged, he wasn't trying to scare the boy or anything. "Not that anyone said anything, negative or positive, I just think it stands out a bit more. But that's not a bad thing." He gave a small, wry smile. "I don't think most people really care, to be honest. You're the first to ask me about it." He had definitely had more negative interactions over being muggleborn than being bisexual. But he didn't want to say that out loud in case it would sound like he was looking for pity.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob listened, a lot relieved to hear that Tristan hadn't been bothered by anyone because of his relationship with Kauri. Not only would it have been sad because Tristan was a nice guy but also because it would have made Jacob think twice about moving in the direction of being more open about his own sexuality whenever it came up. So far, he had enough going on just making friends and finding his way to classes on time without worrying about dating. But, he was curious about it. Hearing Tristan disclose that he really liked boys and girls, Jacob gave him a small smile so he'd continue talking. Jacob was glad Tristan seemed willing to talk about this at all. He'd signed up for Potions tutoring, not this.
"Oh" he finally said, a little worried that Tristan thought he was being a bit nosy in asking all of this. He was, but he didn't have any malicious intent with his questions. He was genuinely curious. "Thanks for answering my questions." Jacob stood quiet for another minute, and then spoke again. "Umm...so potions, right?"

 

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan wondered briefly if he had been too open. Perhaps he had shared a bit more than was strictly necessary to answer the boy's question. But he saw that Jacob listened and did not look disinterested, which made him think he as on the right track. He found it a little disappointing that 'oh' was the boy's only response, but had to smile when he then thanked him. He had a feeling he had helped in some way, and that made him feel good. "No problem, if you have any other questions you can ask." He said with a small shrug. He knew there weren't many others as open as him, at least so far as he knew. The boy was quiet and Tristan half expected another question like the ones before, but instead Jacob finally seemed like he wanted to talk about potions. Tristan smiled, nodding. "Potions, yes." He held up his old notes. "Maybe we can look through these, assuming Professor Pendleton hasn't changed the curriculum dramatically over the past few years. Or do you have anything specific you want to cover first?" He paused, then couldn't help adding, "I do mean something related to potions, now." His tone was light and joking, and he hoped the boy wouldn't take it the wrong way. So far he had responded well to Tristan's jokes and gentle teasing, so Tristan decided to stick with it for now.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob stared at Tristan for a second, wondering if he was serious and then smiled, happy with the invitation for future help. He had a feeling Tristan might regret that specific offer of assistance. Truth be told, he might regret the offer to help with potions as well. "Doubt it" Jacob muttered when Tristan mentioned Professor Pendleton's curriculum. Only managing a small smirk at Tristan' s remark, Jacob launched into a complaint. "Wherever works. He only kept trying to get me to identify potions without seeing their names" he rolled his eyes. It still sounded as pointless to him now as it had then. "But I'm sure you won't make me do that" he brightened, letting Tristan know he expected more from him than he had from his other tutor. Not that it would take much for Jacob to enjoy these tutoring sessions.

 

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan noticed that Jacob didn't seem all that pleased with Professor Pendleton, and for the first time he realized Jacob had probably gotten private lessons from the man. He supposed that was a perk of having a professor for a parent at the school. For a moment, Tristan felt a small stab of jealousy. How easy it must be to be connected to powerful people in this world so firmly. After school, he was sure Jacob could find any sort of job he wanted without much trouble. Everyone knew his parents, after all. Tristan had no one to rely on in that way. His parents were there for him of course, but he could hardly count on them for anything in this world. He snapped out of those thoughts, trying to focus on what he was here for today. "I see. I think we should focus on the ingredients first." He said as he looked over his notes. "It's boring, but you need to be able to recognize them for the future years." He glanced at him. "How do you usually study for things? We could make flashcards or something, but you may know best what works for you." He had a few things he wanted to ask the boy that weren't potions-related. Mostly about his father. But he didn't know the best way to approach those questions in a subtle way.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob listened and nodded, proud of himself for keeping from sighing. He was back to studying ingredients. Jacob hoped that he could learn them once and for all and be done with this forever topic forever. As the topic moved slightly to Jacob's study habits, he gave the Hufflepuff a blank stare. Jacob didn't study much if he could help it. And when he was forced to, he simply read through his textbooks. His notes were usually of no help. Finally, he gave Tristan a shrug. "I don't know. I just read my textbook and try to remember everything " he admitted.

 

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan couldn't help a slight grimace as the boy told him about his study habits. That was definitely the source of the problem, and it was a small miracle he was only struggling with potions. "Well, that sounds rather boring." He said, turning his grimace into a smile. "I know studying isn't the most fun activity out there, but you can make it slightly better. Flashcards, like I mentioned, are a good idea. They are cards you make with a question on one side and a question on the other. Then you can test yourself with them until you know all the answers." He shrugged, hoping that the boy would take it to heart but also not really caring too much. "Another method you could use is with a friend, if studying on your own seems boring. Make a quiz for each other with the material you have to learn and then take them together. With both of these you're creating something with the information rather than just reading it, which will make it stick in your mind way more easily." He smiled easily. "You can do it however you like, I just want to give you some ideas. But I'm here to tutor you in potions, so maybe we should just go over the ingredients together. If you repeat their properties often enough, you can learn them."

---

After going through the potions ingredients a first-year needed to learn a few times with the boy, Tristan decided it was time for a break. He was trying to seem like he had endless patience, but he also needed a break if he was honest. "If you want, we can continue some other time too. There's not much point in studying if your brain won't take more information in. That's why you should space it out, give yourself time to process." He glanced at him. "I hope this was helpful in some way." He said then, letting his voice trail off uncertainly.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

The study tips and the studying that they did over the next little while really did seem to help Jacob. The Gryffindor found that, free from the pressure of Professor Pendleton and assuming he'd go to Jacob's mother if he didn't do well and free from the distraction of the Gryffindor common room, he was actually able to make some progress. It would still be some time before he'd get the hang of recognizing sneezewort but he didn't feel completely drained like he had during the few sessions with Professor Pendleton.

Jacob nodded his head. "Yea, that would be good" he quickly agreed. Tristan was a lot more patient with him than most people were. The Gryffindor knew he was a handful, especially when it came to learning anything because he was so easily distracted. "It was" he quickly nodded, a big smile on his face. For a second, Jacob grew really silent as if he was thinking about something, and then he cleared his throat. "Is it ok if I ask you about other stuff, you know, besides potions if I ever need to?" he asked quietly. Jacob wasn't sure why, but he trusted something about Tristan. He seemed like a good friend, and he'd helped him even when he didn't need to and didn't seem annoyed by him.

 

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan was pleased that Jacob seemed happy with the tutoring session. For the next year he could tutor him more if it was needed, but after that it would get tricky as he dropped potions in his third year. But he thought perhaps Jacob now looked up to him a little, which meant it wouldn't be hard to find other reasons to talk to him. The boy's question surprised him, especially as that had been what they had been doing for what felt like the first half of the tutoring session. But he nodded with a smile. "Of course. Anything you want." He said with a small shrug. "Perhaps I could ask you some things as well? I don't want to if you don't want to talk about it, but I'm curious about your dad's job." He had to be careful here. "But I can understand if you're sick of people just seeing you as his son and asking about it, so we don't have to discuss it at all. I'm happy to just hang out too." He said, trying to sound completely genuine. "I mean that." He gave him a small smile. "You're good company, King Jay."

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob was surprised to hear that Tristan wanted to ask him something, and his head cocked to the side as he wondered what it was. He didn't have to wait too long, his guard going up for just a second before he convinced himself he was being silly and forced himself to relax. Tristan was his friend, a fellow member of the Brotherhood, and he told him he didn't have to talk about it if he didn't want to. It was clear to Jacob that Tristan was looking out for him, and it made Jacob even more eager to want to help. And he'd called him King Jay. They were obviously on their way to being friends. The Gryffindor wanted Tristan to like him, so he nodded his head, a smile on his face even though he was a little nervous to talk about his dad's job. "What do you want to know?" he said quietly as he began to pack up his books. "I don't know too much. My dad doesn't like talking about work with us much." Jacob didn't want Tristan to think he was being unhelpful so he quickly added, " But I'll try to answer."

 

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan watched Jacob's reaction carefully. He knew his question had been risky, if the boy realized he was just trying to get information from him he could definitely turn against him. But he was pleased to see Jacob didn't seem suspicious. Though he could tell the boy was a little nervous. Tristan smiled reassuringly. "It's okay, I'm just curious." He said softly. "I'm thinking of going into the ministry myself when I graduate, but it's a little difficult for me to know what department to pick or anything. Obviously, I'll ask Professor Pratt for advice, you don't have to help me much. I'm just curious what your dad did before he became minister?" He sighed softly, averting his gaze. "I'm muggleborn," he admitted. "I've been working hard to catch up with wizarding knowledge over the past few years, but for a future job I feel like I need to know a bit more. If that makes sense." He hoped that showing this more vulnerable side would get Jacob's sympathy. Truthfully, it was something he resented a lot. Even though he had managed to fit in quite well by now, he still felt like there were things missing from his knowledge. Things everyone else seemed to know.