Open New horizons to pursue

[Mary Lou Layton]

Transfiguration was one of the classes that Mary Lou had not done so well in last semester and she knew she needed to apologise for not taking it as seriously as she should have, as well as patting him that first day. She still felt extremely humiliated by that and had made a few dozen chocolate chip and banana mint cookies in apology. She'd headed up to the fifth floor apprehensively. She didn't really know what any of the Professor's were like outside of their teaching environment and really it as the same as any other time she'd sought help, which she was not unaccustomed to, but this was different. She couldn't tell her parents if something bad happened. As far as she knew, her Mama and Daddy no longer acknowledged her existence, they were hardly about to hop onto a plane and fly over here just to yell at a Professor who'd upset her, so she had to deal with this herself. She held the box of cooking under one arm as she softly knocked on the door and waited.​

 

[Aeon Summers]

Aeon had been amidst changing his office when a knock came at his office door. With Summer over, he'd been busying himself transfiguring furniture and adding details to match the Autumn vibe, with plants of red, orange, and gold hanging from the ceilings or spilling across tables, and plush couches to match the colour swatch. He paused, leaving a bookcase magically contorted halfway between designs, and stepped over to the door to open it. The first thing his senses took in was the pleasant aroma of freshly baked goods, and he looked down at the student who'd brought them along. "Afternoon! What can I do for you?" He asked, stepping aside to let her in.​

 

[Mary Lou Layton]

Mary Lou looked up from where she had been staring down at her small box of cookies as she was invited inside. She stepped further into the room and felt she could immediately sense a better idea of the type of person Professor Aeon was. He certainly didn't seem to be the cruel type, even if she was having a little bit of trouble really maintaining eye contact with him. She was still awfully embarrassed about the dog thing in first lessons. What had he been called... an animas? Something odd like that. "Professor Aeon, I... brought you a bit of a bribe," she told him, not really seeing any point in glossing over the fact. "It is for asking for your help and... to apologise for my very first lesson last semester... you see I was the one who pet you," she said, wondering if he would remember, and kind of hoping that maybe it was a regular occurrence. She'd been very careful with animals since then, unsure if her roommates owl was really an owl or not. She didn't know there'd been other options, so this had freaked her out some. "I am sorry!"​

 

[Aeon Summers]

Aeon stepped away from the door and took a seat on the edge of an armchair, raising his brows at the suggestion of a bribe. For what, exactly? He didn't have to open his mouth and ask as the girl further explained, and simply smiled in understanding. It was quite the apology. "I take it those cookies are for me, then?" He laughed. "Don't stress about it. There's always someone who does, but you should always ask, or be more cautious when petting animals you don't know." Lesson learned, he imagined. He found that the demonstration made the subject more engaging right off the bat, while also serving as a teaching moment in other ways. "I'm always happy to help a student in need, no bribes necessary. However." He pointed a finger at the basket. "I will definitely be eating those." Was that a hint of banana he detected? They smelled amazing, even without the added benefit of heightened canine senses. "Is it the subject you need assistance with?" He asked curiously. If memory served, she hadn't been a bad student. Room for improvement, certainly, but far from bad.​

 

[Mary Lou Layton]

Mary Lou had certainly learned something from petting a strange dog alone in the classroom, that was for sure. She listened as he mentioned she should be more cautious and she definitely would be. She was a lot more cautious now. She was currently convinced the rat she'd seen on the grounds the other day was one of the groundskeepers, it had stared at her for a full minute longer than she thought a real rat ought to stare. She hadn't a chance to ask it yet though. Did animagus people have the ability to talk? That would be absolutely terrifying. She was also half convinced that Professor Robert was the wandering cat from the sixth floor. Mary Lou had no animals with her, and she wasn't sure if she ever would. Selma was of course still in Daphne with her parents. She missed her, but she was sure that Cindy and Cordelia were looking after her properly. She nodded when he said that she didn't need to bring a bribe, but wasn't surprised that he had accepted it anyway. They always did. "I didn't do terribly badly in class... but I do think I need to maybe go over the basics again. It all made sense in theory, but in practice, I can't quite seem to get it," she said, frowning a little. It was very upsetting, seeing her classmates succeed one after another whilst she floundered.​