Once he reached the office with Tate, he did his best to put memories on the back burner and focus his mind on the business end of things. Or rather, whatever points of conversation may come up, given speaking with Tate had never been a matter of business.

All in all the office looked the same, except for one rather curious item. Frowning, he spared a glance back at the Headmaster before moving over to the foe glass, making sure his hands were stuck in his pockets so he wouldn't knock the thing over. "This is....what is this?" Not the opening line he had been intending to say, but hey, circumstance allowed for adjustment. There was also the strong desire to poke the glass when the faces disappeared. "It's...rather creepy."

"Foe glass," Tate circled the desk and took a seat in front of the windows. For one long silent moment, Tate settled into his seat and propped his feet up on his desk.

"It shows me those who are working against me, and the better I see them, the more I worry." He glanced at it once. "Not worried right now, though. Or... not about foes."

Frowning, Sabel peered more closely at the glass suddenly not liking the faces that floated by. He had thought maybe memories, lost colleagues, something a little more sentimental. Enemies just gave him the chills. "I wasn't aware you had many foes." Let's face it, there were a decent number of them in that glass.

His frown only deepened as he glanced over his shoulder at the Headmaster, considering him for a long moment. "The Ministry?" Also known as Mr. Steal-Your-Chair. Tate had acted differently around him, suppressed in his authority, and he didn't like it. What he didn't like even more was that there were so many faces gunning against Tate. Talk about an uneasy start to the conversation.

"It isn't that the world is against me, but that I'm against the world. I suppose the wider you cast your net in the interests of the greater good, the more enemies you find." Tate gestured for the boy to take a seat across from him.

"When I was just a lowly captain, the only faces I saw in that glass were the men I hunted and occasionally my own soldiers when I was being particularly ridiculous about how clean the barracks needed to be. And now I see those who are against the school, against the Ministry, and against me personally."

But he wasn't worried. He knew where to focus his worry, and apparently, Dakest did too. "Ah, yes. Do you read the papers?"

"If you're trying to be reassuring, you're really not." In fact it was only more worrying. His eyes flicked back to the glass, frowning at the faces. So it wasn't just mortal enemies, it was those that even had an inclining of dislike for the Headmaster. The clearer the face the more mortal the hate he supposed. That's what it sounded like anyways. Creepy, helpful little device.

Stepping away from it slowly, he moved over to the chair in front of the Headmaster's desk and lowered himself into it, shaking his head with a slight smile. "I've isolated myself in the wilderness for most of the summer. Jobs out in the mountains don't afford much news of the wizarding world, let alone their papers. I caught a headline at the Platform but I didn't have time to read it. Mr. Gevrik is the first of any of it I've really heard of, and he's cryptically unnerving."

Eying Tate, he tried to consider his next words carefully, but there was a part of him that was still his old, impulsive self and this time he let his words out based primarily on concern. "What is going on, Sir? That man looked like he was ready to eat the school for dessert. And you...were diplomatically compliant to him."

"I suppose it's in everyone's best interest to get along. Behaving like a spoiled child who has to share his toy isn't in the best interest of the school and doesn't show any of us in a good light. I'm afraid my behavior at dinner was... less than adult." Although he would have liked to tussle with that Ikena, just to show the big man that he wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty.

"I suggest you take the man at his word for now, but keep your eyes and mind wide open. I have suspicions about what is going on, but nothing concrete. I don't want to muddy the water with half-formed ideas."

Sabel didn't like this. Not one bit. When did Tate ever admit that he had been childish? It just wasn't...Tate. Something was bothering him, and the feeling of the faces in the foe glass behind him wasn't helping matters. It was also slightly irksome that Tate wouldn't fill in the gaps for him, but then again, that was nothing new. Need to know basis was the way it had always been.

"Sir, if I may. I realize you'll probably tell me to mind my tongue for what I'm about to say, but I can assure you it's meant in no disrespect." To certain people. "You are the Headmaster of this school. You and only you. Not Mr. Gevrik, not the Ministry. They may have hired you, but your position dictates that you hold Headmaster title and the protection of the school until you yourself chose to let that title go. Even if it means protecting the school against the Ministry." His brow furrowed a little, pointing his hand back to the foe glass. "You are one of a handful of good people left in this world and with the power to make a difference. You said so yourself that the greater the intention of good, the greater the threat of harm. How do you know that harm won't come from those that stand above you or put you here? Just...please remember that you are the only one this school will follow."

Tate was nervous about something and that made him downright scared, there was no denying that.

"The only thing to fear this term is division, Dakest. Not harm. In fact... with Gevrik here, you can rest assured that there have never been more people in this school interested in keeping you safe than there are right now," Tate offered. Dakest was a good lad, and his head was in the game, but he worried about things well above his station.

"I asked you here for a reason, actually. We need to talk about your plans after graduation."

He wanted to press more, to insist that Tate needed to maintain his authority no matter what the Ministry said. The man was based on following orders, and while that had never been a strong point for Sabel, he understood it's values. But sometimes there were consequences. His eyes flicked to the foe glass again as he worried his bottom lip, unable to help but think of the price at which the school would be made safe. If there was a price. Maybe he was worrying too much. Maybe the reason Tate kept the foe glass out in the open was not because he was worried about seeing his enemies all the time, but so that if his enemies ever came marching in they would know Tate was one step ahead of them. Maybe.

Sparing one last glance at the glass, Sabel slowly turned his eyes back to the Headmaster. He had to blink a few times to catch his mind up to speed and direction of the topic and when he did he blinked again. "I had, actually been hoping to ask you about that." Strange how Tate seemed to have beat him too it. He'd blame the foe glass, for now. "I was wondering about that reference you offered when the job fair came through Hogwarts."

"The offer is still good," Tate nodded. There weren't many who were serious about pursuing a career in law enforcement, and Tate had taken a personal interest in the boy from day one. Of anyone, he was more than happy to do all he could to ensure Sabel Dakest had options in the world.

"Where are you looking right now? ITF? Aurors?"

A slight smile touched the corners of his mouth, his head automatically bowing in deep respect. He never questioned the man's conviction or word, but such an offer of reference was not something that someone just assumed they had. The honor was too great.

Shifting his weight a little in the chair he let a shrug fall off one shoulder as he looked at the headmaster. "Both actually. I was hoping, if its not too much trouble, if you had any advice as to which is the better choice. Or, any advice from being involved with the ITF yourself."

"It depends on what you want," Tate tapped one heel against the top of his desk thoughtfully, but he didn't shift out of his seat otherwise. "The Auror office is local with local concerns. Good for someone who cares about his fellow countryman. There's limited opportunity to move up in the world, though. Only one man at the top. ITF takes years to move to the top, but there's more space there to grown. And if you want to travel, that's the one."

There were other considerations, ones that Sabel would have to figure out on his own. Tate was almost forty without a wife and home, and that wasn't because he didn't want either of those things.

"I don't...really care about advancements or promotions." Sabel responded quietly, his brow furrowed as he followed some randomly selected grain of wood across the side of the desk. "Just about protecting people."

He spared the man a slight smile and glance before turning his eyes down to his sleeve as he picked at it. ITF had been his choice since fourth year events, but now Tate's mention of traveling brought forth a new set of questions that were, while impractical to even consider, still bothering in their weight. It wasn't that he had anything tying him down in reality, only in his mind, but for him in his mind was enough. "Is there the chance, to return to a more...stable location after say, three or four years?" More than likely he would still be in training at that time, but maybe, just maybe he could return in time for the graduation of the fourth years.

"Stable," Tate shrugged. What did that mean? The same place? A place he wanted to stay forever? "Maybe the Aurors is better for you, then. For a while, you're at the mercy of your assignment, and I imagine you won't be settled anywhere after so little time."

And maybe... the boy needed 'the talk'. Yup. He needed it. "Very few relationships last beyond graduation. What you want as a sixteen or seventeen year old is a far cry different than what you need as an adult man. Perhaps you need to make decisions just for yourself and not worry about a little girl you won't even know in four years."

There were a number of things that nearly spilled out of his mouth and unceremoniously, and most likely rather rudely, onto the table in front of him. But a quick and rather painful bite of his tongue only had him looking up at Tate with a frown, rather than a run-off of the mouth. He was starting to learn that while he didn't like all advice, it was still that. Advice.

"She's...not little and I hope to high heaven I know her in four years given she's my best friend." Too much information? Maybe. Still, he couldn't restrain that small need to defend her and guard his feelings. This talk wasn't supposed to be about that though and he knew he should take Tate's advice at face value. Bouncing his knee a little, he picked at the edge of his sleeve as he sifted through the jumble of words to find the proper ones. "I understand that. I really, honestly do and I appreciate the..." Kick-in-the-jaw-awakening? "...reality check." If he wanted to be honest with himself, which he didn't really, his thoughts around that particular girl were based on hopes, not on knowing.

Hesitantly he spared a glance up at Tate, rather embarrassed at the line of conversation he was treading down. "Have you ever...looked at someone and thought that they were enough? That...you didn't need or want anything more than to see them happy?" Great gryphons the man was going to think he was hormonal! He could only hope his expression was honest enough to convey that he wasn't, for once, just being a foolish teenager. Not in his eyes anyways.

"All the more reason not to decide not to live your life out of some misguided attempt to stay close to someone," Tate sighed. He wasn't just talking out of his belief that relationships at this age were a waste of effort, but out of personal experience. It was advice he'd give his son, if his son ever listened to a word Tate said instead of sniffing around ridiculous Ravenclaw girls.

"If this thing you think you feel is mutual, she would be devastated to know she kept you from being the man you have the ability to be. She would love you for who you are and who you become, and your dreams would be her dreams. You have to figure out what the hell your dream is before you ask someone to climb on board with it."

And as for the rest of it? Well. Lovesick twaddle. "Be enough for yourself, Dakest. Women leave, and you don't want to be left with nothing of your own."

The thing with Tate was that although he was brutally honest, he gave damn good advice. All the time. Regardless of whether the receiver was willing to take it. It was the way it had always been, even though he was just starting to appreciate it. This time however, he had nothing to say in response, not right away. His eyes drifted from the loose string of his sleeve he had been fiddling with and back to the foe glass. Some part of him already knew what his choice was, he had known it for a long time, it was simply that the other part was rejecting it in favor of a hope.

"It's not mutual...not the foolish, romantic part anyways." Turning back around in the seat, he spared a slight smile and another shoulder-shrug. "One can always hope though, even if it is foolish." Between Tate and that certain someone he couldn't help but wonder just how foolish it really was. But those were his thoughts and reasons for holding onto those hopes, and there would be no appreciation or respect for the words being offered if he wallowed about it now.

Letting out a slow breath and a slight nod, he let his hands come to rest in his lap again. "What do I need to do to get into the ITF?"

"Well. Here's to hoping," he wished he had a drink to toast to the boy. Tate cursed himself quietly over dashing the boy's hopes to cruelly, especially in light of the things he'd been through in the past year. Maybe a little hope wasn't a bad thing in the face of the alternative.

"I'll write a letter and arrange an interview, and you'll need a fitness exam at some point. Other than that, and the application..." Well. A wing and a prayer, no?

At first there was a small smile to the toast that Tate offered him and then there was a great moment of gawking. He would prefer to not call it that, but honesty dictated that was what it was; wide eyed and muted without being able to find a proper word to say in return. That was gawking.

Stumbling over his thoughts he finally garnered enough sense to find the action to express the overwhelming gratitude he felt, and bowed his head deeply in respect. "That is....wow...thank you." He knew he wasn't in yet, but that Tate was willing to help him so much, he was honored. Looking up again, he couldn't help the excited smile from creeping onto his lips; there was still thoughts of what he would be leaving behind, but for the moment the possibilities of what could lie ahead were nearly overwhelming. "Thank you."

"It's nothing I wouldn't do for anyone who showed the initiative and ability that you have," Tate let his feet fall to the floor with a clatter as he leaned forward in his chair. No fussing, Mr. Dakest or we'll take it right back.

"How's your dueling?"

That was true. Still, it didn't decrease the amount of honor or gratitude he felt. He would have liked to say thank you again, but that would have been redundant and probably irritating, so he simply gave a nod of his head which paused halfway at Tate's question.

"My dueling? It's...alright?" Frowning he rubbed one palm on his knee. "I dueled one of Durmstang's students last year, Danika. I'm not wicked at it and could definitely use more practice, but I'm...okay?" He never quiet knew how to describe his abilities, saying he was good at something just seemed boastful and ignorant; there was always more to learn. There was the temptation to ask if there was a dueling test, but he decided being snarky wasn't a good option at this point, so he waited for Tate to explain.

"You'll want to be quick on your feet, if not because that's part of the testing procedure, but because it'll keep you alive." And not dying was rule number one, as always.

It would be best for the lad to hone his skills with peers, but Tate could assist. Somehow. "Let's try to get you some partners in the ring this term."

Nodding his head slowly, he made sure to listen carefully to each and every word Tate said. It was common sense, but still the man was helping him and he did not want to screw this up. And more practice would be very beneficial and helpful.

His eyes came up at the mention of dueling partners and before he could really think about his words, they were out on the table. "Could I duel you at some point, Sir?" He had to blink a little at the question, but there were a number of reasons that popped into mind if he was asked to defend the proposal.

Hmm. Tate had trouble dueling students. He wanted to be instructive and had not yet found the balance between overwhelming a student in duels and just straight up letting the kid win.

But perhaps this was a good term to learn a new skill. "Of course, lad. Now, if we don't have anything else, I suppose I should meet with young Master Upstead."