Open New to the Bunch

[Charles Abberline]

Charlie had yet to teach his first lesson of the new semester, but already had the feeling that he was forgetting something. What it was that he thought he was forgetting he didn't know though. It couldn't be that important then or otherwise he wouldn't have forgotten it. What he did not forget was where he could find the common room the professors usually went to after classes were done for the day. He had never been allowed to enter the staff room as a student so it felt weird stepping over the threshold, as if he was going to be trouble any time soon. He didn't think that he would ever see himself teaching a future generation of witches and wizards, albeit for a short time, but was excited about it and was actually rather looking forward to teaching Transfiguration. How hard could it be anyways, teaching a bunch of teenagers? He knew that it was quite the shift from his usual job but even teaching required discipline and structure. Making his way toward a table, Charlie sighed of relief. One of the things he hadn't missed about a school full of children was the noise those children could make on a daily basis. Had he been that noisy as well when he was a student here? He suddenly felt sorry for the professors and the things they had to put up with. He sat down on a rather comfortable looking chair and took his old Transfiguration textbook and study notes out of his old backpack, amazed that it was all still in such good condition. It had been about seven years since he last revised any of it and wanted to come at least somewhat prepared to his first lesson as a teacher. Reading over his notes from sixth year, he compared them to whatever he would be teaching in silence.

 

[Professor Yvonne Dubois]

Yvonne was convinced the holiday break was getting shorter and shorter. It felt like she hardly had any time to relax before the castle was overrun by students again. Traveling home to visit her family had cut into her time off but getting to see her parents and friends was worth it. She had never expected New Zealand to feel like home but she found herself thinking fondly of the drafty tower she spent most of her time. But she needed to take a trip down to the professor's common room to steal a few more sugar packets to keep in her office for the days she didn't want to brave those stairs unnecessarily. Yvonne stopped short when she was greeted by an unfamiliar face. It wasn't entirely surprising to see new faces since professors seemed to have a relatively high turn over rate here. He seemed rather young for a professor but she smiled kindly anyways. "Did someone leave those in your classroom?" she asked curiously when she noticed the papers in front of him looked like class notes.

 

[Charles Abberline]

Charlie couldn't shake the feeling that it felt wrong to sit in the professor's common room while he was looking over his notes. He knew that he was allowed in here as a professor but he still got the feeling as if he was sitting at the grown-up's table because he was allowed to sit there while he worked on something very quietly. Charlie glanced up from his notes when another professor walked into the staff room. He didn't recognise the woman from his own time here so figured that she must have been hired sometime after he had left. ''Oh, no, these are mine,'' he said with a soft chuckle. ''I was trying to get a sense of the similarities and differences between the current curriculum and the one that was taught to me when I was a student still.'' Even though he spent the last two years of his education at a different school of magic, he concluded that his notes weren't that contrasting with what he would be teaching his sixth-year class soon. Which was a good thing because it had been several years since he last used any of his more practical Transfiguration skills. At least he already knew the basic wandwavings and conjuring skills so he wouldn't have to go super deep in picking it all up again. ''Turns out that I might still remember how to conjure up water and do colour-changing spells after all,'' he added with a sigh of relief. He wouldn't be able to make a fool out of himself in front of a bunch of teenagers if he already knew what to do, thankfully.

 

[Professor Yvonne Dubois]

Yvonne glanced at the notes again and let out a small chuckle. “Oh I see.” she said with some surprise. She really shouldn’t have been though. He wasn’t the only fresh faced former student who decided to try their hand at teaching. She still sometimes mistook Noelle for a student if she wasn’t paying attention. Yvonne made her way to the teapot in the corner and poured herself a cup and glanced over her shoulder before adding two sugars. “And when was that?” she asked playfully. “Last year?” she teased and hoped he’d take it as she intended. She had started at Hogwarts with no teaching experience, so she felt she could relate to his slightly nervous energy. “I’m Yvonne by the way. I teach the upper level divination.” she said, introducing herself as she took a seat across from him.

 

[Charles Abberline]

Charlie grinned when the other Professor teased him about his notes. ''I would hope not, wouldn't be much of a Professor if I've already forgotten everything I'm about to teach,'' he said jokingly. He could already imagine the catastrophe it would be, standing in front of a bunch of teenagers and having them tell him what to teach. ''All jokes aside, I think that these are from seven or eight years ago?'' The fact that there weren't many differences between his notes and the ones left behind by Professor Styx did make him at least a little bit worried, though he could also see something positive about the many similarities. Both Hogwarts branches were roughly teaching the same things to their students, the only real difference being in the way how it was taught to students. Did this mean that both schools kept in contact on a regular basis to talk about their curriculums? Surely it must be. He started gathering some of the spread-out notes when she seated herself across from him, not wanting to take too much space now that someone else was sitting with him at the table. ''I'm Charles and I'm substituting for Jacqueline Styx, so upper level Transfiguration.'' While this was not been the first time that he had introduced himself as 'Charles' he could not help but find it weird still. Unfortunately, 'Charlie' sounded way too informal. Or maybe that was just because of the Ministry and it all being very formal. ''How long have you been teaching at Hogwarts for?'' he asked curiously, taking a sip from his now lukewarm drink. Perhaps she would have some advice for him.

 

[Professor Yvonne Dubois]

Yvonne blew on her tea to cool it down and laughed. “Well that’s good to know.” she said when he clarified it had been at least a few years since he was here as a student. “So what house were you in then?” she asked curiously. She was still getting used to the Hogwarts houses and was always eager to learn where they had been placed. It felt a lot like astrology at times which was probably why she liked it so much. “It’s nice to meet you.” she said warmly. She felt a little bad since she hadn’t even realized Jacqueline had taken a leave of absence. But she did tend to get caught up in her own little world in the tower. She should really get to know her colleagues better. She guessed this was a start. Yvonne let loud a small laugh when he asked how long she had been at the school. Had she really lost track already. Quickly she counted on her fingers. “I started during the second semester, so I just finished my fourth year.” she said, feeling rather proud. It was still a blink of an eye compared to some of the other professors but she had also outlasted what felt like just as many.

 

[Charles Abberline]

''I was sorted into Ravenclaw,'' Charlie replied proudly. And he was still representing his house, although no one could see it at the moment, by wearing his old and rather weathered blue and bronze socks. This was his favourite pair, and even though some wholes were starting to come in here and there, he just couldn't throw them away. ''What about you? Did you go to Hogwarts, too?'' He didn't know a whole lot of people that went to a different school, mostly because he was working with and was surrounded by a bunch of people that all went to Hogwarts as well, so it'd be interesting meeting people that went to different schools in the world. ''It's nice to meet you, too.'' So far the teachers he had talked to had all been very welcoming to him, which helped to make him feel more at ease. Charlie had seen a lot of professors come and go during his time at the school, so was actually a little impressed when she told him she had been teaching at Hogwarts for four years now. He didn't know why but it was definitely odd that some professors didn't last very long. Either their first impressions of teaching were very different or some of the subjects were cursed to only hold a professor for a certain amount of time. While he thought that the latter was without a doubt the more interesting one of the two, he hoped that it was just a case of people misjudging what it meant to be a teacher. He also hoped that he hadn't misjudged his own decision to go and teach the upper years, even if it was for a limited amount of time only. ''What's it like to teach the upper years? Any particular sixth-year I should keep an eye on?'' he asked, genuinely curious to hear what teaching the older students was like, as he was going to have a class of them himself in a couple of days. He could use all the tips and tricks he could get.

 

[Professor Yvonne Dubois]

Yvonne grinned when Charles said he had been in Ravenclaw. That was what she had silently guessed and she felt pleased about being right. “No.” she answered with a sigh. “I went to Ilvermonry. I’m from New Orleans.” she said and had figured her accent would have given her away. But kids came from all over so she guessed she wouldn’t have been the first American to go here if she had. “It’s in the south.” she added quickly, not sure how familiar he was with major American cities. She took another sip of her tea and had to think when he asked about sixth years to watch out for. Flynn crossed her mind but he had seemed disinterested rather than disruptive which is what she preferred if she was being honest. She could work with a bored student, it got harder when they made that boredom everyone else’s problem. thankfully she hadn't had to deal with that yet. "No, most of them seem to be fairly well behaved." she answered finally. "At least the ones I've had." she added with a dismissive gesture. She didn't want to be called a liar if any of the other ones decided to act up. "But with upper year's most of them actually act like people and usually by that point exams are involved and they take the class because they like it. Or at least need to take it."

 

[Charles Abberline]

Charlie smiled when Yvonne told him that she went to Ilvermorny. Of course he noticed her, and it would have told him immediately that she did not go to Hogwarts herself, but with so many people coming in from all over the world, he reckoned that he shouldn't assume anything until he was told otherwise. It made him wonder if his thick Lincolnshire accent was still noticeable or if his time in New Zealand had greatly diminished it. For his students' sake, he hoped that it was the latter otherwise they'd have a difficult time understanding what he said at times. ''Ilvermorny has got houses as well, don't they? What house were you in?'' Charlie knew the very basics of most wizarding schools, which was something he always told himself he'd change at some point but never actually did. So it was actually kind of cool that he was finally meeting someone that went to a school that wasn't either of the Hogwarts schools. He smiled again when she told him that most of the sixth years were well behaved. It did ease him a bit to know that he wasn't going to have to deal with any annoying students but he also wouldn't be surprised if they wanted to test out the new Professor a bit. ''Yeah, I guess that's true,'' he answered. Of course most of them would take their studies more seriously, it was only natural to do so this close to graduating. ''Still, I've got to say that it's a relief to hear that I don't really have to deal with any difficult students, if most of them are well behaved that is. Honestly, I'm just hoping that they won't give me a hard time because I'm inexperienced,'' Charlie admitted.

 

[Professor Yvonne Dubois]

“They do.” Yvonne answered simply at first. “I was in Horned Serpent.” she explained with a grin and made a snake motion with her free hand for added emphasis. “Which is probably closest to Ravenclaw if you wanted to make the comparison. Even though the name probably brings Slytherin to mind.” She had always thought houses were a bit silly and old fashioned and never really understood why they needed to be separated by personality in the first place. It was fun to belong to something, she could admit that, but it still felt a bit limiting in her opinion.

She noticed Charles' relief when she said most of the sixth years were well behaved. “Well I don’t like to speak in absolutes so I’d never say never.” Yvonne cautioned. She'd hate to have lulled him to a false sense of security on the off chance he did run into trouble. “But I’d say you're more than likely going to struggle to get them to participate.” she said with a shrug. She knew she had it tough when students came from Elevera's classroom. She was an easy favorite and it was hard to live up to that. But she tried to be engaging in her own way.

 

[Charles Abberline]

It truly fascinated Charlie to hear about one of the houses of another wizarding school. Perhaps it was indeed time to start reading more about the other schools in the wizarding world - it couldn't hurt to broaden his knowledge after all. He did think that Horned Serpent was the equivalent of Slytherin just by name but she cleared that up immediately. ''So Horned Serpent favours scholastic minds as well? Well at least I know that I'm in good company, then,'' he said with a soft chuckle.

He frowned when Yvonne told him that he'd have a hard time getting the students to participate. While he wouldn't be surprised if there were a handful of students that would want to test his limits, they didn't really have a choice when it came to participating in his class. Most of the things he was going to teach them required their participation. They'd likely fail their exam if they'd choose not to participate. Which could be interesting but not very educational. Perhaps he should start his first lesson with some basic ground rules, make sure that everybody would be on the same page before he could properly start teaching his class conjuration charms. It definitely gave him something to think about. ''They don't really have a choice I'm afraid, but I can always threaten them with taking house points away. Though that might make me seem like a ridiculously strict teacher... Huh, maybe I'm not as ready as I thought I was.''

 

[Professor Yvonne Dubois]

Yvonne laughed at his comment and sipped her tea. “Well that’s what the rumors say.” she said playfully. She never considered herself especially studious since school came rather easily for her. But she was always driven by her curiosity and general passion for divination. She had grown up immersed in it at her family’s shop, and she didn’t see any other way to be. “Well that’s probably for the best.” she said thoughtfully when Charles mentioned they didn’t have a choice but to participate. She had considered ways to make her class more hands on but it was hard when there was just so much to learn. They had to know the basics before they could apply them to readings and they only had so much time in the semester. It had taken her years to get to her level of familiarity with the methods they covered at school. She laughed again when he mentioned threatening to take house points away. “If you’re not going to be here for long you could always try that. I’d love to hear how it works out for you.” she teased. She noticed his nervousness and gave him a reassuring look. “I think you’ll do just fine. Just act like you know what you’re doing.” she said with a wave of her hand. “But remember they can smell fear.” she added with a jokingly menacing voice.

 

[Charles Abberline]

Charlie was aware that saying that he'd be in good company just because Yvonne would have a bright mind as well may have been a bit snobbish of him, but he didn't mean it in a bad way at all. Thankfully she didn't seem phased by his comment. He wondered what would happen if he would actually take house points away from those that didn't want to participate in his classes. He didn't think of himself as the stern and strict type of person, which was why he doubted that they would even take him seriously if he threatened them with deducting house points. He had heard of these courses that novice teachers could take in order to learn more about how to be more of an authoritative and responsible figure in the classroom; perhaps he should take one of those courses if he would eventually come to like teaching. It wouldn't hurt to possess a skill like that even as a Hit Wizard after all. ''Thank Merlin for me having enough sense to actually check and see if I still know the stuff I'm about to teach, then,'' Charlie said laughing. ''Now I'll only have to worry about the smell,'' he added with a grin.

 

[Professor Yvonne Dubois]

“Always good to brush up.” Yvonne agreed. While it hadn't been that long since he had been a student himself, he had to have been up to something in the mean time. She wondered what had caused him to make the career change. She knew her own reasons for leaving her last job were a bit dramatic for her taste, and the jump to professor it self had been on a whim. But she was grateful to her past self. Apparently she has been wiser than Yvonne had ever expected. "What were you doing before you decided to fill in?" she asked, her curiosity getting the best of her. She laughed when he joked about the smell. “Just light a few candles, that usually does the trick for me.” Yvonne said with another laugh and a lazy wave of her hand.

 

[Charles Abberline]

''I worked for the Magical Law Enforcement Squad before I decided to give teaching a chance - as a Hit Wizard to be more precise.'' Ever since he was little, it had been a dream of his to join the Squad and become a Hit Wizard just like his parents, but lately, things just weren't as fun and exciting as they used to be. Students these days were more interested in joining the Auror office than the Magical Law Enforcement Squad, which caused the Squad to get thinner and thinner because it wasn't attracting as many people as it used to do. While it bothered him that the Hit Wizard office was losing more and more people due to a lack of interest, it did make the remaining members of the squad grow closer to each other. Something he had taken for granted up until now. A smaller and closer circle of colleagues didn't make the work any more fun, though. ''I just reckoned that it might be good to switch things up every once in a while'' It was a pretty big switch, though he was excited about it. Charlie laughed at her comment about lighting candles. ''You know, I might just try that and see how it goes. I'll definitely keep you updated.''