Time to say goodbye

[Professor James Cade]

It was the last time Jame would be inside the school as a student and he felt very somber about the whole experience. For years James had looked forward to being out of the school and being able to focus on his life but so much had changed in that time, now James couldn't imagine himself anywhere else and that was in no small part down to the people he was leaving behind. After the graduation ceremony was over he left Maddie with her parents so he could go off to find one of said people he'd be leaving behind, Professor Pendleton. James managed to spot the man away from the crowd and made his way over to him. "Professor," James smiled at him. "Can you believe I actually did it?" He asked with a laugh.

 

[Monty Pendleton]

Monty felt completely torn between wanting to bid the graduates farewell and wanting to curl up in his quarters until the day was over. He'd never been good at goodbyes, and while he refused to acknowledge having favourite students, the seventh years certainly held a dear place in his heart. They had arrived at Hogwarts in the same year as he, grown with him, and made him indescribably proud. To watch them prepare for the next chapter of their lives felt like somebody tearing his heart out of his chest.

Monty had just finished talking to a Hufflepuff when James approached. The professor felt a familiar twinge of pain. He laughed, and then pinched his arm, making a face as if waiting to see if he'd wake up. "Nope," he concluded, dropping his arm. "I believe you really did." He rolled his eyes. James truly was the limit. "Of course you did, you nincompoop. What else did you expect?" His smile turned sad and misty, but remained full of admiration. "You'd best be as proud of yourself as I am."

 

[Professor James Cade]

James laughed as Monty called him a nincompoop and wondered how long the Professor had been waiting to call him that. "Its an expression Monty," James laughed, testing the waters using the man's name. James had never done it while he was a student out of respect for the man but not he had graduated it was no longer a sign of disrespect, though he wasn't quite sure how he felt about calling him by his name. James didn't want to meet the man's eye when he told him he was proud. It was a strange moment for him, his father wasn't there and even if he was alive, over the last few years they had been distant and in his own way Professor Pendleton had filled that void even if he didn't realise it. "I dunno, being proud of myself seems pretty arrogant, that's not me at all," James said struggling to keep a straight face. "But thanks,"

 

[Monty Pendleton]

Monty was more startled to hear his name than anything else. He might have frowned upon it had James been a year younger, but he could hardly tell him off now. He wondered how long James had been itching to address him this way. The Gryffindor's next comment made Monty raise an eyebrow, his lips twisting in an attempt to contain what he really wanted to say. "Of course. Silly me," he said instead, through narrowed eyes. "Have you any plans, then, now that you are to be launched mercilessly into the world of adulthood? You are still interested in pursuing a career as an Auror, I presume?" Monty expected nothing less heroic; James was about as Gryffindor as they came, and no doubt always would be.

 

[Professor James Cade]

James wondered what Monty really wanted to say in response to his sarcastic remark about his own arrogance. James was famously arrogant, he always maintained he was just the right amount of arrogant and in his humble opinion he had a lot of reason to be arrogant. "I have many plans, I do still want to be an auror but I think I'm going to keep playing Quidditch for a couple of years, I'm not quite ready to give it up and then I'll go do heroic things for the ministry," James grinned. Putting off his auror plans to play quidditch was a recent development in his career plans but he wanted to test himself at the next level before he moved on from the sport for good. "There's something else too," He mumbled and leaned forward slightly to whisper something to Monty about what he planned for later that day. "But don't tell anyone,"