Talking

[Charlie Helkovaara]

Charlie and Kohaku were sitting out by the lake, watching the sunlight play on the still water. Whatever doubts Charlie had about being here, he couldn't deny that the school was beautiful. He had his parchments out, slowly working out a revision of his Quidditch article. He ran his fingers softly over Kohaku's feathers as he worked, the small bird nuzzled against his neck. He crossed out and rewrote several lines, humming softly as he worked.

 

[Professor Landon Carter]

When Landon started his job as a professor he made a promise to himself that he would always want the best for his students and try his best to get that for them. He devoted a lot of his time to his job, spent a lot of time at Hogwarts, and so he supposed his observational skills were at least pretty average. The man had kept an eye on one of his new first years over the semester. He had stood out from the crowd mostly because of how much he had kept his distance during Herbology lessons. The man noticed it during the second lesson when he refused to dig through the dirt with the tools, and then again in the fourth lesson when he also refused to participate. Landon wasn't sure how to teach someone who didn't want to participate and so he made a mental note to talk to Charlie when he had the chance.

Landon was walking through the lakefront back from the castle. He had a delicious breakfast and was now on his way to water some plants in the greenhouse. As the man spotted the Hufflepuff boy sitting by the lake with his owl, he quickly changed course and made his way over to him. He didn't want to seem too intrusive, especially since he seemed to be working on some class work, and so stood a few meters away from him, his arms folded across his chest as he looked out at the sparkling water. "A nice view, isn't it?" he said to Charlie, hoping this would spark conversation.

 

[Charlie Helkovaara]

Charlie was a little surprised to hear a voice, and looked up to see his Head of House. He looked back over the water, considering it. "It's pretty, in its way," he murmured. It was nice, he wouldn't deny it, but he did miss the city. A lot. He sighed softly, looking back down at his parchment. He felt sad now, longing to go home to his room and walk around New York again and eat his dads food. He didn't exactly hate the feasts here, but it was nothing like what his dad made for him at home.

 

[Professor Landon Carter]

Landon was happy that Charlie replied to him, despite how short he was. The boy appear to be a little bit down as he reverted his attention back to what he was doing. There was definitely something up here and Landon was determined to know what it was. It was best that he found out during the boy's first year and so the man didn't want to give up just yet. "Do you mind if I join you?" he asked. Before Charlie could even respond, Landon took a seat on the grass. He sighed as he continued looking out at the water which dazzled under the bright sun. He would water his plants later. After all, he sometimes spoilt them in a way, and they could definitely wait. "Are you doing some homework? How are you finding your classes?" Landon tried his best to seem as casual as possible as he didn't want to intimidate the boy.

 

[Charlie Helkovaara]

Charlie didn't bother answering at first, knowing the man was going to sit down no matter what he said. He looked at his article, thinking. "I'm writing an article for the Monthly," he replied, looking up to the man. He wasn't the smartest kid around, but he had an idea what this was about. "Classes are alright, I suppose." he looked back to the parchment.

 

[Professor Landon Carter]

Landon knew that the boy was going to be very hard to get information out of, which was very odd for Landon as most of his Hufflepuff students were usually quite open and talked a lot like himself. It would be hard, but Landon was determined. He nodded as the boy mentioned he was doing the article for the Hogwarts Monthly. "Being part of a club at school is always so interesting and spices things up a little, don't you think? Doing class work all of the time can get boring." Landon said conversationally. "I played quidditch at school, but quidditch isn't for everyone I suppose. Do you like writing?" Landon didn't seem so sure that Charlie liked school and hopefully being part of the Hogwarts Monthly was a good distraction for him.

 

[Charlie Helkovaara]

Charlie listened quietly as the Professor spoke, unsure why the man was talking to him at all. He thought about his answer a moment before replying, running his fingers lightly over Kohaku's feathers as he thought. "I do," he settled on, glancing out over the water. "I tend to journal a lot. I probably got it from my dad," he mused, smiling warmly at the thought of his father. "I'm afraid of flying," he admitted softly, glancing up to the man. "But I appreciate the sport. I appreciate most sports, really. My dad is a sports journalist, so we've watched all sorts of games together," Charlie looked away again, heart twisting a little. Merlin, he just missed his dad.

 

[Professor Landon Carter]

Landon smiled as the boy spoke some more. He seemed to really like his father and perhaps he even missed him when he was at Hogwarts. "That's okay, Quidditch isn't for everyone." Landon reassured him as he said he was afraid of flying. He knew a lot of others that were the same, but there were plenty of sports one could play on the ground too and perhaps the variety was a good thing to suit everyone's interests. "Do you play any sports with your dad?" he asked, figuring it would be better to stay on the topic of his father.

 

[Charlie Helkovaara]

Charlie shook his head as the man asked if he played sports with his dad. "I'm not good with sports. But we watch a lot," he offered. He sighed, running his fingers over Kohaku's feathers. "He always makes the best snacks. And we'll sit in the living room and drink sodas and watch television, or play cards and listen to the radio." His shoulders slumped a little. He felt horrid, his heart aching. He missed his dad. He missed the cup of tea before bed and he missed crawling into his dads bed every time he had a nightmare. He lowered his eyes, staring blankly at his article.

 

[Professor Landon Carter]

Landon couldn't help but smile as he listened to the boy talk about his father. He definitely seemed like a really good man and Landon hoped that one day his own daughter would speak about him like that. Charlie spoke about the television and the radio and Landon beamed. "Oh I used to love watching the television! We had one at my parent's house and I would spend almost all day in front of it. It's the little things like that that I miss about the muggle world. Do you feel the same?" Landon asked, wondering if perhaps Charlie's issue was that he wasn't in the muggle world and hated the idea of having magical powers. Landon admittedly felt the same way when he found out he was magical, even though his sister also had magical abilities. Being magical took him away from what he loved most, including the television, and so Landon really did have some sympathy for the boy.

 

[Charlie Helkovaara]

Charlie thought he had cried out all his tears in those first few weeks here. But to his embarrassment, the tears had returned, unbidden and unwanted but unable to be ignored. He sniffled, trying to swipe them away before the Professor could see. "I hate it," he admitted, his voice very small. "I hate being away, I've never been away for so long," he hiccupped, struggling to keep his composure. "I can't call and I can't go home for months at a time. I miss my bed, I miss seeing my dad every night, I miss his food, there isn't anything even close to what I eat at home here," he lamented, puling his knees up and trying to hide how vulnerable and upset he felt.

 

[Professor Landon Carter]

Landon frowned a little as the boy started to open up. He knew he was crying, and he gave him a moment before speaking again after he explained his feelings. Charlie was basically homesick, and a part of the man could definitely relate as becoming accustomed to the muggle world was also something he had to go through. Landon glanced down at the boy's owl. "What's this little guy's name? Does he send your father letters? If not I think it would be a really good idea. Even though he's a muggle, he can still receive them." Landon explained to him. He liked the fact owls that worked in the muggle world too. They were just very smart and it made Landon miss the small barn owl that he had back when he was at school. "But also, just because you are magical, it doesn't mean you have to stay in the wizarding world, however being at Hogwarts is very important for you. Learning about magic will help stop those random magical outbursts, which young kids your age would experience a lot. And you don't even have to go all of the way to your seventh year! Once you turn 17 and you feel comfortable, you can easily just drop out. School isn't for everyone, but it's definitely something that should be given a chance." Landon reassured him, hoping his words would somehow make sense to the boy and make him feel a little better.

 

[Charlie Helkovaara]

Charlie's brow furrowed. "Kohaku. He does, I write my dad a lot." Charlie shook his head, peeking at the Professor. "My dad isn't muggle. I'm used to muggle things because we live in an apartment in New York." He explained softly before sighing again. "It's too quiet here." He complained. He listened to the Professor talk for a bit, before sighing softly and shaking his head. "I know I can quit school early. But I can't." He sounded just a little frustrated. "I never wanted to leave New York at all. But... dad says that being here is important, and I don't want to disappoint him." Charlie bit his lip, his heart twisting in his chest. "My dad and me, we only have each other. We've only ever had each other," he curled in a little more on himself, hugging his knees tighter to his chest.