Happy Coincidences

[Kennedy Pratt]

Kennedy usually spent a lot of her free time in the castle so she could be readily available to her students if they needed her, but today she needed a day off to herself. Granted, she was still running a few errands for her students, but she didn't mind getting out of the castle. This year she had more students sign up for Divination than usual so she was pleased about that, but she noticed that not many of the students had been able to buy their textbooks. She didn't want them to get behind so she had taken it upon herself to buy a few extra copies of the books for them so they wouldn't fall behind. After buying a few extra supplies for the lessons too, Kennedy was walking around Brightstone for a bit of fresh air with her bags in tow.
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[Alaric Snyder]

Alaric hadn't been a Professor for long but during his time at Hogwarts he grew quite fond of Brightstone village so much so that even a couple of years after leaving he still returned to the village every so often. One place, in particular, he was fond of was the Three Broomsticks, it was the pub that brought Alaric back. He hadn't timed his visit very well as it wasn't a weekend when students could visit so he wasn't able to see Ulrich but he still caught up with a few of the other regulars that he often saw at the pub. A couple of drinks later Alaric left the pub in good spirits and began to make his way through the village. Suddenly he felt himself collide with someone. "I'm so sorry," He said a little embarrassed for not looking where he had been going. "Are you ok...Kennedy?" He asked though he would know her anywhere. Alaric hadn't seen his ex-fiance since he left the school. Last he knew she was dating the pompous little Astronomy professor, what she saw in him he didn't know but it was none of his business.

 

[Kennedy Pratt]

Kennedy was double checking that she had everything she needed in her bags and not paying attention to where she was going when she bumped into someone. She fell back slightly but caught her balance so she didn't fall or anything. "I'm sorry!" came Kennedy's reply at the same time as the other person's, not knowing who was at fault. But she recognized that voice right away and looked up to make sure who it was. Sure enough, Alaric was standing right there asking her if she was okay and she couldn't help but smile. If it wasn't for the fact that they had just collided into each other she might have thought she was hallucinating. "Yeah, I'm fine," she waved it off, since there were no injuries. "Are you okay?" she asked in reference to the collision, but didn't wait for a response when she added, "What are you doing here?" Her tone was pleasant and cheerful and not at all accusatory or caught off guard like the last time they had met in New Zealand.
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[Alaric Snyder]

Alaric was a little surprised by Kennedy's question about why he was in New Zealand. It wasn't the first time they had run into each other, they had done so when he had first moved out to the country and had spent some time as colleagues so his presence should no longer be that surprising to him. "If you mean in New Zealand, I live here now permanently, if you mean Brightstone specifically well I developed a soft spot for this place while I was teaching at the school so I like to come back every so often," He explained with a calm voice and a soft smile at his former fiance. "How have you been?" Alaric asked. They hadn't seen each other since he left his temporary position at the school and last he knew he had reason to believe that she was seeing the weird Astronomy professor, not that he'd ever understand what she saw in him.

 

[Kennedy Pratt]

Kennedy laughed when Alaric mentioned he lived in New Zealand permanently after his brief time as a professor here, and had even grown fond of Brightstone. "I know, there's just something about this little country isn't there?" she mused lightly. When she'd first moved to New Zealand it had just been a place for her to run away to, an escape, but now it had become her home and she couldn't help but feel some sort of happiness at the fact that Alaric seemed to think similarly as well. Kennedy ran her fingers through her hair and shrugged as she said, "I've been pretty good, I've settled in nicely here." She felt the urge to tell him she was no longer with Eduardo, but she didn't know how to bring it up, or if he even cared anymore, so she kept the information to herself for now. "What have you been since your brief stint as a professor?" she wondered, smiling. "Working in New Zealand or still traveling?"
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[Alaric Snyder]

Alaric nodded at Kennedy's comment, she was right about there being something about New Zealand. There was certainly something that drew him to remain in the country but he wasn't sure it was its picturesque views or the vibrant community. No, he was sure it was something else. Alaric watched as Kennedy ran her fingers through her hair, it was something she did that he'd always liked, he wasn't sure why there was just something about the action he found adorable. Alaric was glad to hear that Kennedy had settled in New Zealand, despite everything he was glad she found a new home he just hoped that the reason wasn't a certain Astronony professor. He still didn't know what she saw in him or what anyone would for that matter. "I went back into curse breaking so I'm not always in the country, I've just chosen to base myself here when I'm not working," Alaric had been a curse breaker since he left school with the exception of when he had served as Defence against the dark arts professor at Hogwarts New Zealand but lately Alaric found himself craving a new challenge, he just wasn't sure what. "What about you? How's work? Are you still seeing Professor whats his face?" He asked with a slight smirk, he knew the mans name and Kennedy knew he did too.

 

[Kennedy Pratt]

Kennedy smiled when Alaric said he went back into curse breaking, which she'd always known him to do, so it was a sense of familiarity that she found she liked, even if it meant he wasn't always safe in one place. Though she liked knowing that he could be found in New Zealand when he was not elsewhere. "That's good to hear," she said, hoping the fact that she was happy he would be here would suffice as enough of a hint to let him know she was single again. But apparently Alaric wasn't into subtlety as he flat out asked if she was still seeing Eduardo. Kennedy choked out a laugh and put a hand to her chest as she cleared her throat and chose to focus on his other questions first, before getting to what he seemed to really want to know. "Work is great, I've actually become the Hufflepuff Head of House since you left," she said proudly, "even though I wasn't a Hufflepuff in school," she added with a small chuckle. "It's been such a rewarding experience," she said happily. "And no, Eduardo and I are no longer seeing each other," she said with a nervous laugh, looking around as if someone could hear her. She and the Astronomy professor had spent so long of their time together making sure they weren't seen or have anyone catch on, and in the end she felt it had taken a toll on how she wanted their relationship to go, which was yet another reason why they had decided to call things off. "He's no longer working at the school either," she added lightly, in case Alaric was also curious about that as well.
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[Alaric Snyder]

Alaric couldn't help but smile when she said it was good to hear that he was based in the country, her reaction gave hope that things between them weren't truly over, despite everything that had happened since they broke up. Listening to Kennedy talk about how things were for her at the school, how she had become head of house, Alaric saw a sparkle in her eye that she had lost when they were together. Perhaps she had found what it was she needed in her life, the thing that had been missing when they had lived in France. "I'm happy to see you loving what you do, I know you haven't always had that," Alaric tried to fight it, but his lips folded into a smirk when she told him she and Eduardo were no longer seeing each other. "Thats a shame," He said, not entirely sincere. The fact the man was no longer working at the school just made the news that much sweeter. "What are you doing the rest of the day?"