Closed Walk with me

[Knox Cooper]

Knox had just finished having dinner in the Great Hall and was now on his trek back up to the Gryffindor common room. He wasn't tired but also wasn't particularly in the mood to do his homework, but he knew if he didn't attempt to start on it, it would pile up. With a resigned sigh, he decided at the very least do his homework somewhere else in the castle so he wouldn't feel cooped up in his dorm or the common room. With a renewed spirit, he finally reached the landing of the Gryffindor common room entrance, but was surprised by the presence of his Defense Against the Dark Arts professor there. He hadn't seen her exiting but based on proximity it was clear she had just left the Gryffindor common room. That was odd. "Hi Professor," he greeted her, trying not to come off awkward and smiled at her. "A-are you a Gryffindor?" he asked dumbly. It sounded ridiculous when stated out loud, but it was much nicer than his initial thought, 'What are you doing here?' Why else would she be exiting their common room?

 

[Professor Geovanna Adler-Cade]

Geo smiled at the man behind the portrait, "Thanks love," she removed her hand from the frame, stepping back to allow the door to close behind her. She'd never been in the Gryffindor common room, but at least now that she was in the school with James it was much easier to deliver a message to him. Stepping away from the doorway she'd been stood in, she turned to see a first year from her class. "Hi Knox." The blonde shot the boy a smile. She'd remembered the boy's name the moment she'd heard it. "No not me!" Things would be have incredibly different in Geo's life if she'd managed to get into the house she'd wanted when she was eleven, although she was glad of where she'd ended up. "I'm a Hufflepuff," she announced. Perhaps she wasn't technically a Hufflepuff anymore but it was still where her heart lay. She was incredibly proud when Bailey and Nox had made her house.

Professor Adler moved a little closer, wondering if she'd been in Knox's way. "I had to talk to James," she added, before making herself clearer, "Professor Cade. One of our youngest.. well, I needed to check something with Professor Cade." Geo wasn't quite sure how much Knox cared to hear about the troubles of their home life and sickly child. "Are you on your way in?" she asked, checking he hadn't been looking for her.

 

[Knox Cooper]

With all the students she taught, Knox hadn't expected Professor Adler to remember his name so he was pleasantly surprised when she greeted him by name. "Oh!" he said with a little huff of a laugh as she revealed she was a Hufflepuff. He didn't know why it was so amusing for him to realize she had been sorted into a House once, as if he had never considered a professor's life before or after a lesson. That's why it was so odd for him to see her here after hours in his mind, far away from her classroom. For a moment it seemed like she had been exiting from the Gryffindor common room which was silly, but now as she mentioned his Head of House it made more sense she had probably just been talking with the other DADA professor. But something about the way she cut herself off after she said something made him second guess that. Maybe they liked each other.

As she asked if he was going in, he completely forgot that he had been on his way to grab his book bag to do his homework and the reminder with her in front of him actually led him to another train of thought. "I was, but actually Professor I had a couple of questions about a lecture you gave a little while ago," he said, suddenly excited for the convenience her presence provided. "I was planning to visit your office soon but since you're here, well, I can ask you now! I was wondering if I could pick your brain about wizarding blood," he explained. "Are you busy, how would you fancy a walk with me so we can discuss it?" he asked boldly with a grin.

 

[Professor Geovanna Adler-Cade]

Geo was ready to move out of the Gryffindors way, but she was pleasantly surprised when Knox asked her a question instead. Or at least, indicated he had some questions for her. "Blood?" Her eyebrows rose a little, wondering if this would even be something she could help with. Geo had never known her own blood status, although she'd managed to narrow it down to two possibilities given her genetics. She'd never know for sure though, she was certain.

"Of course!" She was always more than happy for a student to join her, and if she could help even just a little she would do what she could for him. Perhaps it would be something she knew the answer for. For a moment she debated what she'd say if Knox told her he was a Metamorphmagus too. She'd only known one other and he was her friend during their school days, but that had been almost twenty years ago. She gestured down the corridor, sliding her hands into the pockets of her long jacket. "What's on your mind?" she said, a little pride behind her smile that her class had elicited a thoughtful discussion from one of her students.

 

[Knox Cooper]

Knox's smile grew wider as Professor Adler easily agreed to indulge him in an impromptu walk taking up some of her personal time. He gestured towards the hallway where he'd come from, away from the Gryffindor common room entrance, to indicate where he planned to walk and for her to fall into step beside him, feeling suddenly very grown up. "Well it's about wizarding blood," he began again, even though he had already mentioned it before. It seemed to be the detail he was stuck most on. "In your lecture about Dark Wizards, it seemed like almost all of these Wars and conflicts they started revolved around wizarding blood, how pure it was and whatnot," he prefaced. "It seems like a crucial detail to know about yourself... so if you don't know your lineage, how is one supposed to know if they're pureblood or come from Muggles?" he asked.

He glanced over at her before he continued, "You see, I'm an orphan, was dropped off pretty much at birth," he said casually, mostly recalling what the caretakers told him, "and I never gave too much thought into my birth parents—not more than most other orphans anyway—but now that I'm here at Hogwarts, I can't help but wonder if they were wizards too and what type of 'blood' I have so I know whether or not I'm going to be a target for any potential new Dark wizards," he explained bluntly, brow furrowing in concern. He knew the lectures on the Dark wizards were of the past, but clearly Defense Against the Dark Arts was still a requirement for them, just in case new Dark wizards rose to power. "Is there like a wizarding DNA test we can take to find out what type of blood we have?" he asked her, wide eyes and voice laced with too much hope to ignore.