I can't go back to where I used to be

[Mary Lou Layton]

Mary Lou was used to seeking out help when she needed it. She'd had to do it a lot when she was still a non magical girl so the idea of coming to Professor Rob for help, was not entirely new to her. However, this was one of the classes she had struggled in last semester, she'd struggled in all of them, really, but Charms and a couple of the other classes were ones she needed help in. She'd ended up getting an O in the class by the end, but it was a real struggle and she still struggled to be able to was the spells. Herbology had not been as hard, since there was not as much work involved, but she was getting help with that from Professor Landon, so that was really helpful for her too. She figured, since she didn't have as much to worry about with flying for example, now was not a bad time to get an extra hand before she started things back up next year. She couldn't believe it wasn't that long until she had to go home again, she wasn't sure she wanted to, given her horrible Christmas break, but what choice did she have really? She lifted the small box of cinnamon blocks higher under her arm as she knocked on Professor Robert's door, and then stepped slightly away holding the box in front of her.​

 

[Robert Kain]

Even though Rob lived at the school during term time, he still felt like he had to put effort into his office to turn it into a real home. He loved what he did, but that didn't mean that he didn't want to feel as though he could break away from it from time to time. As a result he'd put a lot of time into the man cave he was building towards the back of his office. An entire section that he'd dedicated to whatever he wanted to do, separate from the area that was reserved for meeting the professors and students. Of course the man cave was all ready well used having spend a large amount of time in it with Mitch, but Rob was putting up a few finishing touches, the muggle touches letting him remember where he'd first come from. He heard a knock on his door, and turned down the radio that was blaring considerably loudly since there were no classes that day, but if it was a colleague he wanted to be able to hear them. "Come in!" he yelled, laying down his tools and wiping the sweat from the brow before moving up the steps towards to the door to see who had arrived. "Lady Prindeou!" he flashed his student a warm smile as he came through to the other side of the room, which was a much more formal arrangement. He perched on the front of the table in the centre of the room, watching the first year, "What can I do for you?" he asked, crossing his arms over his chest.​

 

[Mary Lou Layton]

At the call to enter, Mary Lou walked in, box of goodies in her hands as she took a sneaky look around the room. She was getting a bit of a feel for the person that he was outside of classes, a very happy person who liked to entertain, if the way his room was set out was anything to go by. She felt... almost at home in here, like there was some familiarity, though she couldn't pinpoint exactly why that was. He appeared to have given her a nickname, and though it was similar to a name she was once called by people she had thought to be her friends, it wasn't the same name, it was different and she could feel that this name, Lady Prindeou, was not out of malice, but of a general sense of her personality, at least, that was what she hoped it would be about. "Professor Robert," she said, smiling at him and holding the box of cinnamon blocks up. "I brought you a bribe," She wasn't shy about it, she was definitely about to bribe him for help.​

 

[Robert Kain]

As Mary Lou walked into the room, Professor Kain couldn't help but think she looked more at ease than she ever had in the classroom. He knew that sometimes it could be an overwhelming experience, especially for first years, and especially for those who had very little to no magical history before they were thrown into this new world, at least, he knew he had been. With both his older siblings as confirmed muggles he had had no one to show him the ropes before he'd joined. It felt like a lifetime away. "A bribe?" the professor chuckled, moving to take the package before glancing back to the girl, "and what exactly are you bribing me to do?" he asked, hesitant to open the package before she told him the catch of the arrangement. ​

 

[Mary Lou Layton]

Mary Lou liked Professor Robert. There was just something about him that reminded her of home, of her family, specifically of her father. Not her biological father who she never knew, though simply by being magical he had that in common, but of his general overall sense. Even the way he seemed hesitant to open the bribe, was exactly the kind of thing she would expect from her father, it was a nice feeling. Of course, professor Robert was not her father, and that in itself brought the mood down a little as she remembered just how far away she was from her family and the likelihood of her never being able to return. She didn't know what her mama had told him, but she couldn't imagine it to have been good. "It's noting so bold, I would only like to ask for your help," she said, smiling slightly though her general demeanour had clearly lowered since she'd first walked into the room moments ago. This entire room reminded her of her fathers office, now that she thought about it. Lord in heaven, give her the strength. "I passed my exams really well last semester, but I'm still not good with the practical side of things. I can read anything out of a book and I can answer questions, but actually making things happen is not something I am good with," she explained, hoping he'd understand some.​

 

[Robert Kain]

As Mary Lou explained that she was just looking for help, he thought the cinnamon blocks were a good enough bribe for that. "I see, well, I think this just about covers a few extra lessons of tuition if that's what you're looking for," he smiled. He liked receiving gifts from the students, not that he got that many, but because it showed him a little more of their own personalities and what they considered to be something important. "You know you're right. You can pass your exams very well, and that is what we as professors are here to do. But that's only part of becoming a good wizard. If you want to become the best wizard then you have to have the confidence behind what you're doing too, and Lady Prindeou, for that my door is always open." He didn't want students to think that they had to bring him something to be helped with any aspect of their time at school. Rob had chosen to be a professor for a reason and it would be his pleasure to see someone come into their own as they grew with magic. "Do you have any specific skills in mind that you're looking to practise, or is it casting spells in general?" he asked, laying the treats on the desk beside him, hoping she wouldn't be offended if he saved them for after their talk.​

 

[Mary Lou Layton]

Mary Lou was glad that Professor Robert seemed to be content to accept the gift she'd brought with her. It was customary where she was from to bring gifts or help in the form of payment for a service. Her father, the Minister of the church, had instigated it as something of a "barter" system. Or that was what he'd said. Because sometimes folks just could not pay with money. The barter system allowed them to trade things and her mama and herself used to lend their cooking to town fairs and other such places all around Daphne. It was a lot of fun usually. She missed it. She missed her family terribly. Could she ever go back? She definitely understood what he was saying, and she liked it. However, she couldn't in good conscience ask for a favour and supply nothing in return, even if it was his job, he had to give up his valuable extra time to teach her something she should have been able to grasp in the first place. She smiled at him and nodded. "Thank you, I just thought we could go back over the basics as I never quite got them... like the light one and the make things float one... uh, Lumos and Wingrdum Levosa?" There were more, but she felt like these two might have been more pertinent and she could see Professor Aeon later today about some Transfiguration too.​

 

[Robert Kain]

It was honestly a gift in itself to the professor who liked to help his students as much as he could. He’d never had children of his own but he’d often looked t for his nieces and nephews, and in just a few years all of them will have graduated too and be off with their own lives. It was like when he was at school he had a never ending amount of love to give out and watch grow to the students he could have an impact with. Even some of the most troublesome students had potentials they didn’t even realise and it was Robs job to figure out how to show them that. The man nodded as the little lady told him about which spells she wanted to learn more about. “Alright, we can certainly do that, but I would like to split these into only learning a few at a time. Once these are mastered you can move on to the next ones, that way we’re not bombarded with everything at once.” He agreed, turning to move across the room and pick up his wand from the cabinet at the side of the room. Some professors always had theirs on him, but considering he enjoyed the muggle aspect of his personal life and he was capable of was less magic, he didn’t seem it necessary to life with it, despite it being considered an extension of his arm by some other professors in the school. “If you’re ready, we can practise Lumos to begin with.” He said, moving still around the room to ensure that doors were closed and shutters were sealed across the windows, the room suddenly becoming darker so that she could concentrate. He welcomed her more into the centre of the room, where a huge red circular rug decorated the floor, although he had to ignore one section near the edge which had a little scolding mark on it from a previous first years mishaps. “Remember to relax and concentrate on what you’re trying to do as you say the incantation,” Rob moved a few feet away, letting the Hufflepuff take centre stage.​

 

[Mary Lou Layton]

Mary Lou was nervous. Spells were definitely not her strength, not at all and she was sure she was to become more destined for a life of academia than for a life of spellwork. Still, Wendall and Lucas had both come from normal families, and Mary Lou’s dad was a wizard her Grandmother had said, so surely that meant that, if this had to do with genes, then she should be able to do this? Of course Mary Lou’s knowledge of science ended at age nine when she’d been barreled up into a plane all by herself with her bags packed and dumped at one of the big airports. In that vain, she didn’t have a lot of experience at all and really all she even knew of her father was his name, Reece, that he attended Illvermorny and the fact that he was excellent at potions. Not a terribly big amount of information to go on there really. She agreed with Professor Robert’s terms and gripped her wand tightly in her pocket. She hadn’t necessarily expected to start right now, but she supposed it was true that there was no time but the present. She followed him more into the centre of the room, trying to block everything out. She looked down at her wand. She did like her wand and she knew she could cast at least one spell, she’d managed that much at least, but it had been something of a fluke and she never knew when she was going to get it or if she even was and she just couldn’t work with that kind of inconsistency. “Okay,” she said softly, listening as he told her that she had to relax and concentrate. He would say that, he’d been doing this for years now, so he probably didn’t remember what it was like to be eleven years old and learning all this new stuff for the first time. She closed her eyes, though the room was dark enough that it wasn’t really needed. Lumos, that was what she needed, Lumos. She breathed out and held her wand in front of her, praying that she would get this. Her little catholic cross sat heavily against her neck and she wondered if that was supposed to be a sign? “Lumos.” She felt that nothing happened, maybe a little bitty spark? Took another deep breath but this time kept her eyes focused on the wand and the steely determination she could see reflected back at her from one of the glass panels set into the sides of the cupboards. They weren’t that reflective really, but she could sort of imagine it, she had always had a very vivid imagination after all. “Lumos.” This time she knew she’d felt a spark or something, but it was so easy to get discourage when she knew literally every other eleven year old witch on the planet already knew this spell.​