Back Home Again

[Dominik Milne]

After spending months in Romania for his work as a Dragonologist, Dominik returned home to spend the next couple of weeks off from studying the dangerous beasts. Once the boy had dropped off his stuffs at his parents, he decided that it was time to go see his girlfriend next. Thanks to Grace's letters he knew that she was training with her team at the moment so stopped by the local Quidditch Pitch to surprise her with his return. He was happy that she was doing something she loved doing rather than sitting behind a desk all day. Dominik watched the Quafflepunchers from the stands and smiled widely every time Grace scored a goal. It was nice to see her again after such a long time of only having been able to talk to her through the letters they sent each other. His life had been rather exciting the moment he left his home country to work at the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary together with some of the other Dragonologists he had met back in Scotland. He enjoyed his time studying the many breeds of dragons the reserve kept, though now that Dominik saw her again, was glad that he would be home for some time. Although he had done as promised and hadn't gotten himself into any real dangerous situations, he did receive some minor burns, which he chose not to tell her about in case she would worry too much about his health while he was working at the reserve. He leaned against the wooden railing of the Pitch once the training session was over and called out Grace's name to let her know that he was here.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace Holland had a busy life at the moment. Being a chaser for the Quafflepunchers was hard work, a lot harder than she could have anticipated. She did love it, but didn’t enjoy much how tired she was afterwards. Not to mention how busy her aunt’s campaign had kept her lately. She had been happy to sign on to help her, but once again hadn’t anticipated the strain it would put her under. Traveling from New Zealand to France and back on a weekly basis was taking its toll, especially the constant shift in seasons and weather her body was experiencing. Ever since she had taken on these two roles at once, Grace felt like she constantly had a cold. While playing Quidditch professionally had been a dream of hers, she was quickly realizing reality was a lot harsher than what she had imagined. It was because of this that she had applied for a job in New Zealand, though it was a long shot. So much so, that she hadn’t told anyone about it yet. She didn’t want to get anyone’s hopes up, including her own.

After a training session, the only thing Grace wanted was to head home and shower. Maybe eat something if she could find the energy. It made her sad to remember how energized she had always felt after training with the Beauxbatons quidditch team, especially in her later years as captain. Maybe it was just that she had to get into it more, to get used to the stricter regime. It wasn’t like Grace to give up, especially not after she had fought her parents for this chance, but a part of her had high hopes for that other job. She was so busy thinking this all over that it took her a moment to realize someone was calling her name. When she snapped out of her thoughts, she looked around for the source of the voice and her eyes widened when she spotted who was waiting for her. She had known Dominik would return to France soon, but hadn’t known he was here yet. “Dom!” She yelled as she ran over to him. Jumping up to hug him, she laughed as she wrapped her arms around his neck. “You didn’t tell me you would be back yet! You know I hate it when you don’t tell me your schedule!” She said, but she really didn’t care. This was a surprise that made her whole day better. Pulling back from the hug, she kissed him. “How long are you here for?” She asked him, always focused on the more practical information first and foremost.

 

[Dominik Milne]

He smiled widely at Grace when she wrapped her arms around his neck and said, ''Well, it wouldn't be much of a surprise if I'd tell you about it.'' It had been such a long time ago since he last saw Grace that he had forgotten the way she smelled after a training session, which weirdly enough made him even more attracted to the girl. Dominik returned the kiss when she pulled back from the hug, unable to stop himself from smiling. He grinned when she asked how long he would be staying in France. ''Two weeks then I have to return to the reserve again.'' It was only a couple of weeks but he was going to try to spend most of this free time with his girlfriend as she was probably the one he had missed the most during his time away. Whilst Dominik knew that he would enjoy his time in France, he couldn't wait until he was back again because he had been asked to study the Ukrainian Ironbelly before his leave. It was the largest dragon breed at the moment which was why he was pretty excited to spend the next month or two studying it. ''How've you been?'' he asked.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace laughed at Dominik’s words, leaning up to kiss him again. “Touché.” She said, grinning at him without any of her usual reserve. This was just what she needed, and she was actually very grateful to the surprise. Knowing herself, she would have planned every second of their time together if she had known he would come, but now she really just wanted to spend time with him without feeling like they really had to do anything specific. As she gazed at his face, she realized she had really missed talking to him. They were both busy, and they both liked it that way, but some time together was long overdue. “Two weeks?” She asked, almost finding it hard to believe. “That’s amazing! I have so much to tell you about. I bet you have a ton of interesting stories too.” She stepped back, breaking the hug. Immediately, she reached for his hand. “I’ve been okay. Busy, a bit conflicted about something.” Briefly, she chewed her lip. “I’ll tell you about it later. Let’s find somewhere to have a drink or something. Somewhere we can talk in peace.” Grace didn’t mind being here with Dominik, but she also didn’t want the others on the team to start gossiping. Besides, it would be a lot nicer to sit down and talk. “A date. It’s long overdue.” She said, grinning.

 

[Dominik Milne]

Dominik was relieved that Grace didn't seem to mind the surprise of him visiting the pitch unannounced. It had been nice seeing Grace airborne again, it was where she belonged and he couldn't be more happier that she'd eventually chosen to participate in the team's try-outs. He nodded his head and grinned at her. ''Two weeks.'' He found it just as hard to believe as Grace. At first, he didn't think that his team leader would approve his request to leave the reserve to spend a couple of weeks home, but after promising the old wizard that he would do all the nasty chores besides his regular chores, his request was approved. Dominik smiled when she told him that she had a lot to tell him about and nodded again. ''I have tons of interesting stories to tell.'' In his head he was still debating whether or not telling Grace about his injuries would be a smart idea, as he could hear her telling him how dangerous and stupid it was to be this close to dragons. He frowned at her next words as their fingers intertwined and looked at her curiously, wondering what it could be. ''Good idea.'' While Dominik did not mind being around other people, it was probably better to be somewhere they could talk without being interrupted. He smiled when she called it a date, and followed the girl eagerly as they walked to the nearest café.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace was very happy Dominik was here by her side now. Especially because she had a lot to share with him. But it made her feel a bit nervous too. Dominik had been her biggest supporter when she had wanted to try out for a professional team, only a year ago. What would he think if she told him she was already considering changing careers again? But there was no doubt that she would tell him about it. Dominik was the one person she trusted with everything. His opinion meant a lot to her. "I'll be happy to hear all the interesting stories, in detail." She said as they walked together. "Assuming you can fit them all into this two week visit." She added with a slight smile. As they headed to the nearest café, she reached for his hand and laced her fingers through his. They headed inside and settled into seats. Grace grabbed a menu, looking over it for a moment before glancing at Dominik. "So... you're fine, right? No hidden injuries anywhere?" She didn't want to be overbearing, but Dominik's job did require him to work with dangerous creatures. It wasn't strange for her to be concerned. At least, Grace didn't think so.

 

[Dominik Milne]

Dominik grinned at Grace's comment about assuming he'd be able to fit his stories into his two-week visit and said, ''Definitely not.'' He had a lot to tell her and since he was sure that she also had a lot tell him, was going to buy himself a new piece of parchment so he could write all of his stories down for her to read them in case he would forget to tell any. He followed her into the café and sat down across from her, smiling at her while she was looking at the menu. Hopefully, he would be able to come visit a lot more often in the future. He rubbed his arm when she asked if he had any hidden injuries. ''I'm as healthy as the healthiest person alive,'' the Dragonologist lied. Whilst working with baby dragons was a lot of fun, even their fire left some burnt spots on his arms. ''What about you?'' Dominik asked in return in the hope that she wouldn't question him any further about injuries. ''No bludgers to the face or anything?''

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Even though Dominik was probably joking about not being able to fit all the stories within the two weeks, it made Grace a little sad. It highlighted how little time that really was. Grace closed the menu, deciding to just take a simple coffee. She never felt like anything heavy after training. She raised her eyebrows slightly at Dominik's insistence that he was fine. She was sure he would have gotten some minor burns working with dragons, but she supposed they knew how to treat burns pretty well. "That's good to know." She said with a small smile, "I'm fine as well. No bludgers to the face, thankfully." They had hit her in a few other spots, but that was simply part of the job. "Do you know what you want to order?" She asked him, though she knew she was simply stalling with her news. Deciding to forge ahead, she then blurted out, "I might stop playing for the Quafflepunchers."

 

[Dominik Milne]

He was happy that she didn't question him any further on injuries and smiled when she told him that she was fine as well. ''Yeah, that would be bad, wouldn't it?'' Dominik said, grinning slightly. ''How are your parents doing? Still persuading you to work for the Ministry of Magic instead?'' he asked, genuinely curious to know whether or not they had come around after all this time. He shook his head at the question. He had been distracted until she asked him about it so scanned the menu for something to drink. ''I think I'll have some tea.'' Dominik closed the menu and placed it back into the menu holder. He looked back up at Grace with a questioning look and said, ''That's a bit quick. Not having much fun?'' He thought that it was odd of her to think of quitting the team, especially after all she went through to allow herself to try-out for a position on the team.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

The mental image of being hit in the face with a bludger at full force made Grace grimace, and she nodded. "Pretty bad." She said. At the mention of her parents, her shoulders tensed slightly. "Sort of." She said with a sigh. "They're not very direct about it, but I can tell from their comments that they would prefer it." She said, shrugging her shoulders. She watched the motion of Dominik putting the menu away rather than looking at his face after her pronouncement. It felt shameful, like she was admitting defeat. His words didn't help that feeling, and Grace twisted her fingers together and fixed her gaze on the table. She felt like she was letting Dominik down. He had helped and supported her so much when she wanted to play professionally, and here she was, wasting all that. "It's tough, but that's not why." She said, a little defensive because she didn't want him to think she was weak or a quitter. "It's that I've applied for another job that opened up. Something that might suit me more, though it's not in France." She hoped this wouldn't upset him, but it shouldn't. He was also working in another country, and travel wasn't very difficult. "I applied to be the new flying teacher at Hogwarts in New Zealand. I have no idea if I'll even be considered, I know I'm very young. If I don't get it, I'll stick to playing." She gave him a small smile. "I'm not giving in to my parents." Though in truth, she had a feeling her parents would be more accepting of a teaching job.

 

[Dominik Milne]

He chuckled at Grace's answer about her parents and wondered if they would ever accept the fact that she didn't want to work for the Ministry. He furrowed his brows at the sudden change of his girlfriend's body language and waited patiently for her to tell him why she had been thinking of quitting the team. He really hoped that it wasn't because she had become bored of Quidditch, or that her parents had somehow still convinced her to take a job at the Ministry of Magic. Dominik listened attentively as she went on to explain the reason why she had been thinking to stop playing for the Quafflepunchers, and a wide smile spread over his face at hearing why. ''That's awesome,'' the Dragonologist told her happily, though somewhat relieved that it wasn't because did not have fun playing professional anymore. ''Of course they'll hire you as their new flying Professor.'' Immediately behind the idea of Grace teaching a bunch of first years how to ride a broomstick properly. A teaching job would suit her well, especially after having seen her coach the Beauxbatons Quidditch team - If anyone was up for the job it was definitely the girl sitting across from him. ''That's the spirit,'' Dominik said, smiling brightly at his girlfriend.