Room to Grow

[Geovanna Adler-Cade]

Geo felt as though she had hit a milestone with the beginning of the new semester, and the new year. After doing her best for the last three years, she was even more determined than before to make sure that her future was set on the straight path, and nothing was going to stop her from sliding away from her goals. This year would be different though, she wanted to make a better balance of her friends and her activities, and while her grades would remain high, she had sworn to herself not to have a repeat of her last year.

With that in mind, Geo found herself in the library, but not because she was hard at work already in the first textbook of the year. As a first year she had found it difficult to settle into the new school, especially for those subjects that had been so alien to someone without a pure blood family. After spending the first couple of days of term spreading notes around the school, leaving posters in the Great Hall where everyone could see them, and with the inspiration and admiration she'd received from the help gathered from Flavio, Geo sat ready in the room full of books for anyone that wanted assistance with their new learning. She'd never tutored anyone in her life, but if there were any students that wanted a helping hand with either the introduction or magic, or on topics Geo had taken in the prior years, she wanted to let the other students know there was someone they could turn to. It was the library and it wasn't as though she could shout to gather a group, but it wasn't as though anyone could miss her most distinguishing trait either.
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[Patrick Vernier]

As the years went on, Patrick was beginning to become more stressed about school. He still felt as though he was in his first year but now he had to be taking more subjects which he had to choose for himself. At first he had no idea what to pick but settled upon Ancient Runes and Care of Magical Creatures as his sister could help him with Ancient Runes and Care of Magical Creatures didn't seem that hard. Even though he only added two subjects to his list, he did feel slightly overwhelmed by it and hoped that this wouldn't put any of his grades down as he was doing so well with all of them except for potions. It was hard to remember when to put ingredients in a cauldron and to be able to do it a certain way, but he wasn't thinking of dropping it just yet. After all, he was willing to give himself more chances.

Luckily, as Patrick walked around the castle during his first days back at school he noticed some posters around the Great Hall that offered help to younger students. Patrick was always willing to get help wherever he needed it, especially now that his sister wasn't with him, and so figured it would be the perfect opportunity. He tentatively walked inside the library and it didn't take long for him to find the girl in charge. It was the same girl who had put together the assassin game last year and it made Patrick feel a bit more comfortable knowing who it was. Shyly, the boy made his way over to where the older girl was seated and didn't say a word. He didn't know what to say and didn't want to embarrass himself. Instead, he slowly took a seat at the table, hoping he didn't have to say anything.

 

[Geovanna Adler-Cade]

Her hair was more vibrant than she usually wore it these days. In the last year or so it had become more of a pastel shade of pink, but as she waited for students to join her she'd upped the contrast as a beacon to those on the lookout. She wasn't even sure anyone would join her, perhaps others hadn't struggled the same way she had, although she didn't have to wait too long until someone took a seat at her table. She recognised the boy from Quidditch and Assassin, and as someone else in the best house in the school. "Hey Patrick," she gave the boy a smile, wondering if he needed assistance or the library had filled up more quickly than she'd been expecting. She knew he was younger than her, but not which year he was in. Not wanting to thrust the idea of school work on him immediately, she spoke as she glanced back at her textbook, "Did you have a good holiday?" she asked, knowing it was just as important to make sure that if she were to tutor anyone, that they could be friends too.
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[Patrick Vernier]

Patrick looked up when she spoke, smiling back at her. "Hey... Geo." he replied, remembering her name from assassin. He was glad that she was nice to him and hadn't told him to go away yet. Luckily, she was in the same house as him and usually Hufflepuffs were quite nice anyway. At her question, Patrick shrugged. "It was okay... I got to see my sister again." he told her, figuring that was the only good thing about his holidays. She had earned herself a job at the ministry and couldn't be more proud, and even if Geo didn't care much, he did. "What about you?" he asked, his eyes moving from the books on the table to her hair, and back to the books. He wondered if she liked her hair like that and how long it must have taken her. Patrick would personally prefer to blend himself in with the crowd, and secretly admired the fact that she didn't. After all, it emphasised her outgoing personality which was definitely not a bad thing.

 

[Geovanna Adler-Cade]

Geo had come to know a large number of people over the last few years, but that didn't mean she knew everyone, nor their relations. "Who's your sister?" she asked out of curiosity, wondering if it was one of the recent graduates. It was strange to think that loud characters such as James and Maddie were no longer around in the school, but she hoped she would be able to meet up with them on occasion while spending time with Jess and Leila. "I went to stay with Vil," she smiled, "She's one of the girls in my dorm. She lives in Denmark so it was interesting to visit somewhere new." Geo relished the time she got to spend with her friends outside of the school, and she appreciated everyone who let her stay with their families when she had no where else to go. It wasn't as though she could go back to England, she was no longer a member of the orphanage and if she couldn't stay with a friend she would be reliant on the Leaky Cauldron again. "Are you studying anything new this year?" she asked with a nod of her head towards the books, trying to recognise some of the titles in case they were part of the electives.
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[Patrick Vernier]

Patrick did not always remember that some people wouldn't know what he was talking about if he didn't include any context, and this was mainly because people never really asked. When Geo asked about his sister, he sat up in his seat, excited to talk about his sister to a friend. "Her name is Isabelle. She was a Ravenclaw at this school, but now she works in the Ministry... something to do with a Department of Education, and she's kind of in charge with practical exams and stuff." he told her, happy to be talking about something he liked. He listened as she spoke about her holidays and mentioned someone named Vil. "Who is Vil?" he asked, figuring it was polite to ask as she was generous enough to ask about him. "Yes, I am studying Ancient Runes and Care of Magical Creatures. I'm not so sure about Care of Magical Creatures though..." He trailed off, not confident that he could do well in it. He picked it only as other people had told him it was interesting, and he just hoped they were right.

 

[Geovanna Adler-Cade]

The fourth year listened as Patrick spoke about his sister, nodding where it felt appropriate. She didn't know who Isabelle was, but she was glad that she had found a job in the Ministry, especially if it was something she enjoyed doing. "Well I know who I need to befriend to get through exams then," she teased. She'd never cheat in anything that was supposed to test her knowledge, it didn't do anyone any good. "Vilhelmine Dahl. You might have seen her around, she's in Hufflepuff too." If Geo still had the photos from the holiday on her she could have shown him, but alas she had to go without for the time being. "Oh good choices. Ancient Runes is one of my favourite." she smiled, genuinely keen to find out what he was going to make of it. She loved the idea of harnessing the additional powers of the runes and even hoped one day she'd be able to wear one in some form or another. She frowned a little though when Patrick mentioned he wasn't sure about Care of Magical Creatures. "When I really young, I used have a fear of animals," she started, not feeling as though it would be wrong of her to tell him even though they'd only just started talking. "I was really nervous of starting that class last year but the content is really interesting, I'm looking forward to doing it again this year." she added, wondering if that was going to do anything to his doubt. "Don't you think you'll like it?" she asked, curious if he'd already formed his own opinion of it like she had at one stage.
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