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Post by peanut on Jun 12, 2010 14:11:00 GMT -5
Bridget didn't know why she disliked this man, but she did. So, she observed the male teacher as she sat down in a chair on the side of the office. She noticed he waved. She just sort of looked at him and bit her lip. Then she looked around the office, expecting him to talk to Kaileena about whatever it was he needed. And finally, he spoke. But he spoke to Bridget.
"Say, Bridget....why did the cactus cross the road?" She looked at him, biting her lip. Not knowing what to say, she was quiet. "'Cause it was stuck to the chicken."
She just sort of looked at him oddly, then looked away at the floor. She was still shy, after all. Plus, if that didn't give away what he was teaching, she didn't know what else would. She also figured that there was no way a chicken could be stuck to a whole cactus. It was just... unlikely. It also sounded a bit absurd. She continued looking around the office. Please just go, she whined in her head.
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Post by Kaileena Lovegood on Jun 12, 2010 17:12:40 GMT -5
Leena held out her candy bar and blinked. She needed to find some way to get rid of either one at this point. That sounded so rude and cold-hearted to think, but it was true. On one hand, she needed to comfort Bridget. The girl was only 11 for crying out loud, and already needing help on boy troubles. But on the other hand, Damien and she needed to discuss matters on the Order... And on a completely different scale, she wanted to be alone. She didn't want to have to pretend that she was OK, and that everything was fine. She needed to go, make plans to leave for a few days and attend the funeral. She needed to go support both her mother and father. She just--she needed not to cry. Biting her tongue, she willed herself to keep calm and smiled.
"Say, Bridget....why did the cactus cross the road? Cause it was stuck to the chicken."
Leena blinked, not quite getting the joke at first. Then she snickered. The chocolate bar in her hand shook and dropped on her desk. She burst out into hysterical laughter, her misery taking the form of comical hysteria. "It was stuck to the chicken--Get it? It's not possible--cacti are huge!" She managed to wheeze this out before snorting. She blushed in embarrassment, but of course, this made her laugh harder, which led to more snorting. "Oh--oh goodness--s-s-sorry," she exclaimed between giggles and laughter. Wiping tears from her eyes, she tried to get herself to calm down. Sighing wholeheartedly, she smiled at the two of them. "Hoo! Ooh that was a doozy. Um...I'm sorry...if you two don't mind, I need a moment to myself. There's something terribly important I have to do."
She walked over to Bridget and took one of her hands, squeezing it and smiling earnestly. "Thank you for saving me from blacking out and repairing my head. 30 points to Ravenclaw for aiding a professor in a crisis." Her smile warmed and she hugged her quickly, dropping her voice to a whisper. "I'll owl you tonight so we can hang out again, ok?" She then stood up straight and glanced at Damien. She gave him a quick look that informed him he needed to wait till she was gone so that they could talk properly. "Damien, I am so sorry if I have wasted any of your time today. Perhaps come back tomorrow so we could discuss lesson plans?" She flashed him a smile and clasped her hands together, looking back and forth between the two of them.
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Post by peanut on Jun 12, 2010 17:51:42 GMT -5
Bridget jumped at Kaileena's sudden outburst. The joke wasn't even funny, after all. She was worried about her. Was this because of her brother? Bridget frowned at the thought. Then the Professor said she needed a moment to herself. Bridget understood, but wanted to be there for her.
Regardless, she respected the teacher's wishes, smiled at the house points, and got up to leave, nodding at the owl invitation. Then Bridget ran up and gave Kaileena a big hug and left, not acknowledging the male teacher.
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Post by Damien Hampton on Jun 13, 2010 0:09:49 GMT -5
Damien watched Bridget hug Kaileena then go. As she passed, he smiled awkwardly at her, feeling stupid. He should've known not to use one of his stupid jokes. At least Kaileena had laughed, which made it at least a little less horrifying. That was exactly why he tended to keep his mouth shut.
"Ah, anyway," he said, once they were alone, "Professor Lovegood, I have some troubling news...there are rumors of movement in Little Hangleton. A mysterious man has moved into Riddle Manor, and Dumbledore believes it may have something to do with the stirring of the Dark. He requests that we have a meeting soon to discuss these things."
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Post by Kaileena Lovegood on Jun 13, 2010 0:43:30 GMT -5
Leena sat down, sighing softly. She rubbed her temples with her fingers, trying to fight off the migraine that was returning. Regadless, she smiled and shook her head. "Please. Call me Leena." Glancing at him, she nodded. Switching over to her more business-like side, she took a deep breath and pulled out her calender, checking dates. "All right. I'm ready to go whenever he needs us to meet. "She gave him a weary smile and closed her eyes. When she opened them again, they were red. "Huh...Sorry that you had to see my office in such a crazy state today. Normally, it's not like this, promise." She didn't know how true that was, but she for some reason didn't want him to think she was a nutty airhead, especially with all that had happened in such a short time.
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Post by Damien Hampton on Jun 13, 2010 1:26:33 GMT -5
Damien wished he hadn't had to be the one to break the news about the stirring in the Manor just yet. Life was hard enough for Professor Lovegood as it is, and he could tell by the redness of her eyes. He, like many others within the Order, had heard about her brother's death, though he didn't know any specifics.
"I...I'm really sorry, Kaileena. I...uh...heard...about your brother. And I just want you to know that I find you incredibly brave, doing what you're doing. I will let you know when the next Order meeting will be; Dumbledore hasn't quite pinned the date yet. Good day, Professor."
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Post by Kaileena Lovegood on Jun 13, 2010 20:13:25 GMT -5
Leena nodded and smiled wearily. Thank God Damien wasn't a pushy man who wanted things to be done right this second. She sighed softly and smiled. "Thanks, I--" However, what he said finally registered. She blinked and grabbed Damien's arm reflexively. "Wait, that means a--" She let go, clearing her throat and looking down. Her voice dropped to a whisper. "How did you know? I just barely found out myself." Her tone indicated that she wasn't accusing him, just wanting find out. She looked up at him again, her large eyes studying his expression. "It's OK...I'll be fine. I just wanted to know how you knew."
Pleeeeeeease, oh please, don't let him be a stalker.
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Post by Damien Hampton on Jun 13, 2010 22:34:52 GMT -5
"Professor Lovegood...Kaileena, I mean. Dumbledore knows a lot of things. He has his ways and all that. He found out about what happened to your brother through a friend of his in the train companies. And...and he suspects it might not have been an accident. He would have told you himself, but he...he felt it would somehow be easier coming from me. Whatever that means. I stumble over the simplest of words and I've only barely met you..." Damien blushed, feeling like an idiot all over again. And an insensitive one at that, worrying over something stupid like his social skills when this lovely lady's dear brother had just died.
"I really am sorry, Kai. He wants to go over specific reasons why he thinks that when we get together at the next meeting. I was told to tell you about it, and about his suspicions, but I am really not good at these things..."
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Post by Kaileena Lovegood on Jun 13, 2010 22:53:12 GMT -5
Leena listened to Damien speak and she frowned, her eyes widening in shock. What? She held up a finger to pause the conversation as she ran over his information in her head one more time. She frowned. It was odd that he had suddenly died in a train wreck. She hadn't heard anything of the sort. Could it be a set-up, really? Anger began welling up inside her. It couldn't be true. Harrison wouldn't stoop that low. "All right, I'll need to find a stand-in for my class, but we can meet with Dumbledore somewhere soon." She stood up with a serious expression on her face and smiled softly. "I don't know how Dumbledore works. Maybe he thought that we would be good friends or something." She shrugged and smiled cheerfully. "I guess time will tell, right?"
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Post by Damien Hampton on Jun 13, 2010 23:43:45 GMT -5
Damien tried on a smile and stood up as well. Kaileena was definitely a stronger woman than most would give her credit for. Most people would probably look at her and see a happy-go-lucky, ditzy young woman, but when Damien saw her, he couldn't help but think of her as nothing but the most superb kind of woman. Now, if only he weren't such a social screw-up...
"Ah--uh. Right. Right. Sorry," he said, realizing that she had been speaking, "But yes, time will tell. Thank you for your time, Professor Lovegood. I look forward to seeing you again, maybe better circumstances will arise. I will definitely send you an owl when I know the right time for the meeting."
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Post by Kaileena Lovegood on Jun 13, 2010 23:59:16 GMT -5
Leena smiled, trying to keep her spirits lifted. She watched him leave and looked down at her desk. Oh. The candy bar. She had forgotten to give it to him. Hm...Oh, well. She picked it up and put it back in her drawer for the next person that would come in to see her. Hopefully Bridget. She sighed and rubbed her temples once again, beginning to feel the depression hit her once more. This latest news had really disturbed her. She hoped to God that Harrison's death had been an accident and that Dumbledore's suspicions were wrong.
But her heart and stomach both sunk. Dumbledore was usually never wrong.
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