.................Lessons and Loves

Marvolo Awoke Earlier Than Most, He Found However, That He Was Beaten By Josephine, Who Apparently Had Been Awake For A While Now. "Not One To Sleep In Either I See." Says Marvolo, Trying To Keep A Level Voice. "I'd Been Hoping To Speak With You, Do You Have A Minute?" Says Josephine. "Of Course." Says Marvolo, Trying and Failing Not To Sound Too Eager. "This Isn't Easy For Me To Say, But Would You Be Interested In Being My....Friend? I Don't Really Know Anyone Here, and Professor Sprout Made It Sound Like We Should Know Each Other." Says Josephine. "She's Not Too Far From The Truth, We're Related." Says Marvolo, and Josephine's Feature's Seem Heartbroken and Saddened, But Only For A Mere Moment. "What Do You Mean?" Asks Josephine. "Being A Descendant Of Isolt Sayre, You Must Have Heard Of Her British Origins. Well, Her Maternal Aunt, Gormlaith, Was Born Gormlaith Gaunt." Says Marvolo, Which Catches Josephine's Attention. "One Of Your Ancestors?" Asks Josephine. "Not Quite, Gormlaith Was The Last To Wield Salazar Slytherin's Wand, But She Is Not Explicitly Connected To My Paternal Bloodline, She Is Part Of The Family Tree, But Not Close Enough To Be Anything More Than An Ancestors Sibling At Best, At Least To My Knowledge." Says Marvolo, and He Doesn't Fail To Notice The Change In Josephine's Forlorn Expression, Her Face Brightens A Bit, Even Blushes. "But As To Your Original Question, I'll Not Refuse Such A Beautiful Witch." Says Marvolo, and Josephine Is Now Full On Scarlet At The Compliment.

After Paying Josephine The Compliment, The Two Sat Down Together, Talked About The Things They Liked, The People They Missed, and The Things They Wished To See Again. It Wasn't Long Before Other Students Arrived, and The Two Decided To Head To The Great Hall. Taking Their Seat At The Hufflepuff Table, Marvolo and Josephine Waited For The House Elves To Deliver Them Breakfast. Marvolo Did His Best Not To Drool Over Josephine, Or Stare At Her Too Often. He Had To Catch Himself A Few Times, But Hoped She Paid No Notice To His Attentions. It Didn't Take Long, But By The Time That The House Elves Brought Their Food, Most Of The Great Hall Had Filled Up. Josephine Had Gone and Asked Professor McGonagall For A List Of Their Classes, Since She Was The Deputy Headmistress, and Professor Sprout Was Somewhere Else.

Going Over The List, They Learned That They Had Charms After Breakfast, Followed By Herbology With Their Head Of House, and Flying Class Later On Before Supper. Both Of Them Were Eager To Begin, and The Half-Sized Professor Flitwick Was Well-Known For Being An Unbiased and Fair Professor, So They Could Knock Slytherin Of It's Pedestal If They Got An Early Lead On Points. Marvolo Knew Professor Flitwick, Though Only By Reputation. A Half-Goblin Wizard, Professor Flitwick Was A Highly-Skilled and Accomplished Duelling Champion Prior To Becoming The Charms Professor and Ravenclaw's Head Of House.

Marvolo Felt A Deep Affection For Josephine, Something That Seemed Impossible For One So Young, and For How Long They've Known Each Other. But Liking, Even Loving Josephine, It Just Seemed and Felt Right. Like It Was Meant To Happen. Marvolo Didn't Know If She Felt The Same Way, He Hoped She Did, But Only Time and Effort Would Be The Judge...................................