*apparates into a park nearby and walks a few blocks to Penny's street--Roger's street? Their street, she decides, and shrugs it off* *she walks up the street, up the drive and onto the porch, hesitates, then rings the bell*

*she doesn't bother with the knocker; she lived here for 18 years before moving on to live most of the year at Hogwarts, and another two summers after that, and the locking charms haven't changed since she was a child* *she opens the door and slips inside after waving at the next-door neighbour*

*that simply, it's as though she's seven again* ( *the feel of this house, so strong she can nearly taste it--shattered dreams and bitter regret--hasn't changed either* )

Who: Professors Clearwater and Sinistra (XD)
When: Wednesday evening
What: a little catching-up


( You're going to have to teach me that eyebrow bit, I have to resort to full on Stare of Doom )

Who: Charlie and Cassie
Where: at the Jonas farm
When: Monday, early afternoon
What: Wand exercises.

( ...You point your wand at me until I stop--I stop trying to run away. )

*she's walking out of the library after dinner when she catches sight of Penny up the hall and smiles--then remembers there are students about, and that it wouldn't be quite the thing to go acting un-professorlike just now* *she catches the eyes of a few first years--it amazes her how they look younger every year--and raises an eyebrow, sending them scurrying into the library* *she has to bite her lip against a grin when she hears Madam Pince scold them for running, then heads down the hallway*

Professor Clearwater. *trying not to grin too obviously* Might I have a word?

*makes her way through the snow beside Charlie, glad she thought to wear her boots and glad she actually remembered to charm them waterproof* *it's a beautiful day out, and the sun on the snow's a bit dazzling till you get used to it, and she's glad to be out of the castle*

*she looks round as they make their way toward the pasture, and thinks it looks like a nice place to do anything, and a sight better for wand exercises than Charlie's flat which, though nice, might make him feel a bit trapped*

*she unbuttons the top button of her cloak--she'd thought it would be colder, but then it's a bit of work, walking through the snow--as they approach the fence* How's your family, then--I haven't seen any of them in a while?

*comes back to the table with their drinks, taking a long detour round a table full of warlocks busily gesturing with steins of ale, complaining about something to do with the Wizengamot and a house elf and a goat* *she makes her way round them, slides into the booth opposite Penny, and grins* So. How are things, Professor Clearwater? Have you had time to love it or hate it yet?

*is busily ignoring the enormous stack of essays on her desk, while she sneaks her third smoke of the week--though she's not really sure why she feels the need to 'sneak' them, really--and finishes painting her nails black*

*she's dried the last nail with her wand when she hears the knock on her door, and catches herself just as she's about to stub the cigarette out and banish it, and walks over to the door telling herself there's no point in feeling guilty about one cigarette, not when Slughorn drinks in front of students*

*she pulls the door open and, after a surprised moment, smiles at Adrian* Hi. Come on in. *steps aside so he can enter, or not, as he wishes*

*once she's alone in the corridor, she speaks the password and steps past the gargoyles as the door opens, then take the moving staircase up toward the Headmistress' office* *once at the top of the stairs, she walks over to the wooden door and knocks briskly* Minerva, it's Cas--er. Aurora. *makes a face at the name no one else uses but Minerva insists upon--but only because the door's still closed--and waits for a reply*

*pulls her coat on, then her scarf; it's got cold suddenly today* *she turns to wait for Parvati, then opens the door and lets Parvati go through first with the dog*

*it's crisp and clear and cold, and she likes this kind of weather, so going for a walk is, to her, a great idea all round* *she shuts the door behind them and locks it discreetly with her wand, then hurries to catch up with Parvati*

*falls into step beside her* Gorgeous night, isn't it? *enjoying the way her breath comes out in big silvery clouds*

*is sitting in a squashy purple armchair she conjured up on the top of the tower, enjoying the fact that it's hers again for a short time, since she hasn't any lessons for nearly two weeks, drinking wine* *she suspects Minerva's very well aware she's drinking and smoking up on the tower as Minerva, much like Albus, always seems to know, but she's never said anything about, and that's just fine by Cassie*

*she checks her watch and kicks her feet up on the little table she also conjured, being too lazy to move her own up here, and leans back, listening for Angie on the stairs* *her telescope's sitting over against the wall; she at least got something productive done so she doesn't feel too guilty lazing round on her night off*

*has been up at the top of her tower, the door open so she can hear if Remus knocks on the door to her rooms, since dinner* *she's finished grading all of her end-of-term essays--making it a new personal record--and rewarded herself with a cigarette on top of the tower as a sort of health-threatening reward*

*she's got distracted by the stars, again, and it's only when the cigarette's out and banished that she remembers to start keeping an ear open for Remus*

*she's up on the parapets when she sees Adrian walking up to the castle, and she walks back inside, feeling unaccountably nervous, when she wonders, again, what he wanted to 'talk' about* *it might just be her imagination, but something in the way that phrase had hit her ('Can we talk?' What an awful way to phrase a question!) made her feel a little nervous about the whole thing*

*after a mirror-check and a shorter wait than she'd expected, she hears his knock on the door, and she takes a deep breath, then goes to open it*

*casts her Cloaking spell and sets off down the path from the front door, pulling her cloak close against the chilly mist, her wand lighting the way* *she knows it might be an unnecessary precaution, but isn't about to go taking chances tonight* *for her, having visitors cleared through the gates is odd enough, though having Parvati visit once would have been explained away easily enough; a second time, and at midnight, would be an entirely different matter*

*had thought she'd be nervous, or apprehensive, or something, as she knows this is a serious step and she feels ever-so-slightly responsible for Parvati's joining the Order--despite the discussion she and Parvati had last week about responsibilities* *checks her watch as she reaches the gates, the silver planets and stars gleaming in the glow of her wand, and dims her wand as she waits*