[September 12, 2016: Monday, Week 2] [Luke's second Transfiguration class of the year is wrapping up, and this time, with some practice behind him, he managed to get his straw looking a little more needle-like, though it's still not a complete transfiguration. His Hufflepuff friends are in much the same boat, having managed various degrees of partial transformation. (All of them practiced together over the course of the week.)] [Now straws and strawneedles are being swept from desks and other supplies are being packed away. Luke, unfortunately, was bending over to pick up a dropped strawneedle and wound up spilling the contents of his backpack. His friends exclaim in dismay and start to reach down to help, but Luke waves them off with an embarrassed grin.] [Begin!] 06* Luke flushes a bit and tries to ignore it. "No, no, go on, I'll catch up with you soon." It takes a bit of insisting, but the other Hufflepuffs head out as the classroom empties. 06* Luke retrieves and rolls up a bit of escaped parchment and tucks it away. Fortunately, his inkwell had already been tightly stoppered up. He looks around for his quill. 06* Sykes sweeps as they leave, and before terribly long it's just him and his student. He leans the broom against the wall and goes to help Luke gather the last of his possessions. "You need to make sure you close the top of that bag," is the Head of Hufflepuff's advice as he picks up Luke's quill. 06* Luke blushes harder. "I know, I just, um - " He stammers to a halt as he takes the quill from his teacher. 06* Sykes smiles as he hands Luke his quill. "It's fine," he says, because it is. 06* Luke manages to blush EVEN MORE, but somehow looks cheered at the same time. "Okay," he says, and he makes sure to close his backpack up securely after he slips the quill into its proper place. 06* Sykes turns the smile into a grin at seeing Luke cheer up, and he looks for anything else the kid might have lost. "How've you found your first week at Hogwarts?" 06* Luke blinks, not expecting the question, and then takes another moment to think about it. "Good. I met a bunch of really nice people, and all my classes are interesting." He grins a bit. "I like history, too, even if people think it's boring." 06* Luke realizes belatedly that this could come across as a backhanded slight to his head of house, and he adds hastily, "Transfiguration is neat, too! Just, um, hard" - more blushing - "but I kind of like that, too." 06* Luke smiles tentatively at his teacher. 06* Sykes nods encouragingly. "I'm glad." And then he grins again. "And liking another class more than mine is fine, Luke. The world takes all sorts, and not everyone has to like my classes as much as I do." 06* Luke smiles more, eyes brightening. "Yeah, that's true. But I still like yours, too." 01 I'm glad! I know transfiguration can be boring sometimes. 06* Luke shakes his head vigorously. "It's not! It's just hard. I guess I can understand why people might get frustrated with it sometimes." 06* Sykes nods, leaning against one of the desks. "I saw that you've almost turned your straw into a needle." 06* Luke nods and smiles cheerfully. "Yeah, me and Barry and Zan and Indra were all practicing together." 01 Glad to hear it! Those are your roommates, right? It sounds like you're all getting along. 06* Luke nods again. "Yup! They're nice." 01 You've been making other friends too, right? I remember you stopping by to talk to Eliana yesterday. 06* Luke 's eyes widen a bit, but he answers, "Uh-huh. I met her in Ollivander's." 06* Sykes looks interested. "You were getting your wands at the same time?" 06* Luke nods, a bit less uncertainly. "Uh-huh." 01 That had to be fun. When I got my wand, there was another boy there - he got sorted into Ravenclaw, and we ended up being pretty good friends. 06* Luke tilts his head, interested. "Really?" 01 Mmm hmm. Rufus Dinklage. 06* Sykes smiles at the memory. "He was really bright - well, Ravenclaws, they tend to be. Went on to work in the Department of Magical Transportation, doing research on PortKeys. I still see him from time to time." 06* Luke smiles. "That's neat!" 06* Sykes grins. "Yeah." 01 So you became friends with Eliana at Ollivander's? 06* Luke hops up to sit on a desk across from Professor Sykes'. He frowns down at his toes, thinking. "Not quite. Um...I saw her on the train, again, and she was sitting all by herself so I went to sit with her." 06* Luke says more slowly, "I told Mark...she seemed like she'd be interesting to talk to." 06* Sykes frowns sympathetically. "That's too bad - sitting by herself, I mean. Going to a new place can be difficult. Is she muggleborn?" 06* Luke nods, still looking thoughtful. 06* Sykes lets Luke think as he sits on the desk he was leaning against himself. "She is interesting," he supplies, maybe filling in some of Luke's thoughts. "She was actually really easy to work with during detention." He grins. "Most students aren't." 06* Luke looks back up at his head of house, blinking in surprise. He didn't expect to hear that from a teacher. 06* Sykes blinks back. "Well, it's not as though many people *want* to be there." 06* Luke tries to gather his thoughts. "Um, no, I guess not - " 06* Sykes lets Luke gather. 06* Luke is apparently not very successful, because when he looks back up at Professor Sykes he still looks uncertain. He seems like he wants to ask something, but can't manage to figure out what. 06* Sykes prompts: "What's on your mind? I won't be angry." 06* Luke frowns down at his toes again, struggling. "Most people - seem to think she's bad now, or - or something - " 06* Luke looks back up at his teacher for help. 06* Sykes frowns again. 01 Because of the fight between her and James? 06* Luke nods wordlessly. 06* Sykes shakes his head. "That's a shame." 06* Luke 's expression turns faintly hopeful before he looks down again. "...yeah..." 01 For what it's worth, I don't think Eliana's a bad person. Just a headstrong one. I do think she needs to learn some self control, but that's part of growing up. 06* Luke is uncertain again. After another short silence, he mumbles, "...she shouldn't've hit him, but...that doesn't mean she's a bad person..." 06* Sykes blinks. He shifts, sliding off his desk, then gets back on the desk next to Luke's and gives him a one-armed, Head-of-House half hug. 06* Luke startles at first, but then he leans on his head of house. "People are just being mean. And dumb. And - and - she was *already* lonely - " 06* Luke 's voice gets thick as he goes on and he swallows. 06* Sykes nods. "And you want to help," he supplies. "And get them to see what you can." 06* Luke nods. "But I *can't*. No one will listen..." 06* Luke tightens up, hunching his shoulders. 06* Sykes hugs Luke more tightly in response. "It's okay." 06* Luke shakes his head vehemently but can't seem to form a response. 01 Sometimes people believe stupid things, and sometimes they take a long time to come around, no matter how hard we try. But Eliana's not alone, is she? She at least has you. 06* Luke looks up at his teacher. He doesn't seem completely convinced, but at least the incipient tears are retreating. "That's...better than *nothing*, I guess, but..." 01 It's still not very fair. 06* Luke nods. 06* Sykes nods as well, relaxing his hug but not letting go until Luke indicates that's what he wants. "Life..." He pauses, collecting his words, then continues: "often isn't fair. That doesn't mean it shouldn't be, but it isn't. Usually, the best we can do is try to be fair despite this fact and help others do the same." 06* Luke sits up on his own a little, thinking about this. He draws one knee up to his chest and rests his chin on it. "I guess..." He frowns unhappily. "I wish...it wasn't so hard, though." He looks up at Professor Sykes. "That's...dumb, isn't it." It's not quite a question, and he turns away to wrap his arms around his leg and rest his chin on his knee again. 06* Sykes drops the hug, folding his hands on his lap as he looks at the eleven year old. "I don't think that's dumb at all." 01 Wishing things were easier or more fair is perfectly understandable. But that doesn't change that we often need to work hard to make things happen just the same. 06* Luke 's frown deepens as he struggles to articulate what he wants to say. "But - if you just wish - it won't get better." 06* Sykes nods, giving Luke the time he needs to continue. 06* Luke has apparently gotten out all he can manage at the moment, because he falls silent again, still frowning. 01 How do you think you can help make things better? 06* Luke 's face twists up. "I don't *know*. I told people - James called her a cheater first - and she *still* shouldn't've hit him but she didn't really do it for no reason like people are saying and - but - she's - " 06* Luke buries his face in his leg. 06* Sykes waits a bit before prompting, "But she's...?" It's hard for him to help if he doesn't know what's going on. 06* Luke swipes at his eyes. "She's - just - she's *not* very nice sometimes," he says miserably, "but - she's just so used to people being *mean* to her and - " 06* Luke finishes in a quiet voice, "So she's just...not nice." 06* Sykes nods thoughtfully. "It sounds like a vicious cycle. People are mean to her, so she retaliates, and they feel justified. So they keep being mean to her, and it goes on." 01 But she isn't mean to you, right? 06* Luke shakes his head. 06* Sykes smiles at Luke. "You know what that means, don't you?" 06* Luke blinks up at his head of house and shakes his head again. 01 It means you're breaking the cycle. 01 With things like this, it doesn't matter who's wrong anymore. Or who started it. 01 What matters is ending it. 06* Luke digests this for a little while, then nods slowly. 01 What you're talking about... it sounds like this has been happening to Eliana before she ever came to Hogwarts. She was probably *expecting* something like this to happen when she came to her new school, because that's what she's used to. 06* Luke nods an unhappy agreement. 01 But that doesn't mean things have to keep being what she's used to. That's already changing. You're her friend, right? And she might be making some other friends, too, in Slytherin. 06* Luke does not look completely convinced of this - he knows some things his professor doesn't - but he still nods slowly. 06* Sykes notices Luke's look, but at the lack of comment, he smiles encouragingly. "You can't force someone to be something they're not - nobody can *make* Eliana be nicer to others, nor should they. And you can't force others to understand that she really isn't as bad as she looks. But you can be her friend, which shows her that things aren't as bad as she thinks they are, and maybe you can help her make some new friends... introduce her to your roommates, maybe, if you think they'd get along." 06* Luke nods again and says in a quiet voice, "I said I would...she said she wasn't sure they'd like her, but...I still want to try." 01 Then you should! The worst that could happen is they don't like her as much as you hoped, but it still probably wouldn't be as bad as Eliana expects. 06* Luke nods, eyes widening as he thinks about it. He looks back up at his professor, then impulsively throws his arms around him and gives him a tight hug. "Thanks, Professor Sykes." 06* Sykes oofs in surprise, but he hugs tightly back. "You're welcome." 06* Luke pulls back and wipes his face with the sleeves of his robe - he's still a bit teary - but then he takes a deep breath. A look of sudden realization blooms on his face. "Oh! I should get to lunch, everyone's probably wondering where I am - " 06* Sykes smiles at Luke. "You'd better get going, then." 06* Luke nods vigorously and smiles back. He grabs up his backpack and waves as he speeds out of the classroom. "Bye, Professor!" 01 Bye! Walk, don't run! 06* Luke slows down at the admonition, but he's still going just as fast as his short legs can carry him without running in the halls as he heads towards lunch. 01 [End!]