Lydia was just passing by Professor Marchand's office when, with a spur of the moment decision, she decided to see if he was actually in his office and available to talk. Maybe speaking with a teacher would make her feel better after the horrible start to this new term.

She spied some magazines next to the black leather sofas. There was also a cabinet where she knew the professor kept coffee and tea supplies for thirsty students. Lydia took out the kettle of water, a delicate china cup, saucer, and a teabag. A cup of tea would do wonders to soothe her frazzled nerves.

Arranging herself on one of the sofas, she sipped daintily at the tea and brooded.

Daisy had been witness to a majority of Professor Marchand's troubles the previous term. She knew that he was both physically and emotionally scarred and so she wanted to pay him a visit. Daisy had to admit to herself that she did vacillate for quite some time before making her final decision.

She gently knocked on Professor Marchand's door and then sat down. She was too wrought with distress to serve herself any beverages.

Gaston was feeling unusually listless.
The stress of the change in school leadership combined with the problems he was already facing in his home life had drained him of all energy. Even picking up his quill was a struggle! He stared at the stack of papers piled on the desk in front of him with a sigh. He'd have to force himself to start marking those assignments eventually... better get it over with so he could get back to more important things.

He was almost done when a knock at the door caused his head to jerk up. For one wild moment, he thought he might find Headmaster Scrimgeour on the other side, and panic gripped him. He had no idea what the old man would want with him - he hadn't done anything wrong! Though knowing him, he'd find fault one way or another...

He reluctantly turned the door knob, and his face brightened slightly as he saw Lydia waiting. Whew! He preferred her company (or any student's, come to think of it) to the metal-armed maniac's any day! "Hello, Lydia," he greeted."Enjoying the tea?" He opened the door a bit wider as he invited her inside. "Please come in."

OOC: Sorry about the wait! You may post in the OFFICE any time.



Some time later, Gaston had finally finished grading the day's assignments. Now he had time for that letter he'd been meaning to write to his two favorite girls. He missed Rose and Desiree so much! Every day that passed without seeing them added to his sadness, but he couldn't go home to them... not under the watchful eye of the headmaster.

He gently laid his quill down as he finished pouring his heart onto the page, and his eyes fell to one of the photographs on the desk. He picked it up, gazing longingly at the smiling faces, at the little dark-haired girl nestled contentedly in his arms... but those days were behind him now. She doesn't love you anymore, he thought bitterly.

A sudden knock at the door startled him. He quickly wiped away the tears that formed in his eyes, secretly grateful for the distraction. As he opened the door and saw Daisy, he instinctively dropped his gaze, hoping to hide his sad, red-rimmed eyes. "Hello, Daisy," He said, trying in vain to manage a smile. "Come in, come in. What can I do for you today?"

OOC: Sorry for the delay! You may post in the OFFICE whenever you're ready.

Standing outside of Professor Marchand's office with tears in her eyes she was so upset she was shaking. Hopefully he wouldn't be mad that she lost Gryffindor points but honestly she didn't mean too. She was just a first year and she lost Gryffindor points! She was just being nice and kind saying hello to the Headmaster which lead her to doing push ups and losing points!

Walking up up towards the door she knocked on the door as she hiccuped shaking like a leaf. Seeing some hot chocolate she grabbes herself a cup and poured the hot water into it before adding the hot coca mix into it stirring it feeling the hot cup in her cold hands. Seeing some cookies she took sone before taking a bite of one.

Taking a seat she waited for Professor Marchand her head of house wrapping her Gryffindor scarf around her neck as she sniffled.

Gaston sat at his desk, his head bent over the piece of paper in front of him. He was halfway through filling out an order form for a toy shop in France when he paused for a moment. Desiree's birthday was just around the corner, and he was going to make sure it was a happy one, even if he couldn't be there to see it. It was hard to believe she was going to be two already! It seemed like only yesterday that he held her for the first time.

The memory got a bittersweet smile from him, but a sudden knock at the door jerked him out of his thoughts of his beloved daughter. He opened the door a tiny crack and peered outside. what he saw made his heart ache. There was poor little Stella hiccuping and shaking! "Stella?" he whispered, approaching cautiously so as not to frighten her. He bent to look into her eyes and immediately noticed the tears. Poor girl! "Here," he said in his comforting dad!professor voice, "come inside, and you can tell me what's bothering you."

OOC: Sorry for the wait! You may post in Gaston's office now.

The little podgy owl flew through the corridors looking for the recipient of the letter in his beak. His pudginess hadn’t stopped him from delivering a letter or package yet. Even with this wonky little wings. He was always pleased to get the job done. Mostly because of the possibility of getting a treat for a job well done.

When the owl found the professor who the letter was for. The little owl hooted happyily as he seen the professor. Even it he had opened his door just a crack he had seen the man. Now all he had to do was get his attention. Flapping his wings hard he swooped down beside the man's door. Dropping the letter in front of him.

HOOT!

He hooted up at the man, as if saying that it was for you. He made himself at home in front of the corridor. He groomed himself as best as he could, clearly waiting for a treat.

Gaston started to follow Stella back into his office when an unexpected sound startled him. His head whipped around, spilling his graying black hair into his eyes. As he tucked the stray locks behind his ear, he saw a chubby little owl drop a letter in front of him. "Well, hello there," he said, as though the owl could understand what he was saying. "What have we here?"

He couldn't help but smile at the creature. It reminded him a lot of that fat school owl that had been present in the owlery that day when Rosalyn agreed to date him. And look where they were now! He picked up the envelope, and his smile grew wider upon reading the return address. It had been a while since he heard from Vi; he hoped things were going well for her! He placed the letter in his inside jacket pocket. There would be plenty of time to read it later; now he had a distraught student to comfort!

"Thank you," he said to the owl. It was only then that he realized he didn't have any treats on him... well, none for owls anyway. No matter... he could always summon some from the owlery. He waved his wand, casting a nonverbal Accio, and moments later, a pack of owl treats came flying into his waiting hand. "Here you are... a reward for a job well done!" he said,
scattering a few treats on the ground in front of him.

After the conclusion of his last class of the afternoon and some time before the dinner hour, Derf eagerly made his way back to the Charms classroom and over to Professor Marchand's office door...which he gave more than was necessary number of knocks, but the sixth year had gotten a bit carried away with himself in his excitement. This was likely to be the highlight of his day and something other than quidditch - which honestly had him on edge more than as a proper outlet recently as he had a sinking fear that they were going to take it away because it was an academic distraction always playing in the back of his mind - to pour his energy into.

On the other side of the heavily charmed door, Gaston sat at his desk, staring at the little black book open on the desk in front of him. The room was quiet... too quiet. Without his enchanted ipod blasting angry rock music into his ears, the only sound he had to keep him occupied was the sound of his own dark thoughts. He didn't know how much longer he would survive this! Every day, the pent-up emotions built, eating away at him from the inside out. It was only a matter of time before he collapsed under the strain of the facade he was forced to don to keep his job!

He'd stifled himself for so long, he couldn't even pour his heart out into a new song! He fidgeted with his pen, waiting for the words to come, when a sudden knock (or several of them) startled him. His head jerked up, spilling his graying black hair into his eyes. He glanced at his watch; it was almost dinnertime. That must be Derf... or at least he hoped that what who it was. The visitor hadn't used the intercom to identify himself.

He cautiously approached the door and began to remove the complicated sequence of security charms. The door opened the tiniest crack, and his good eye peered into the waiting area. The Frenchman breathed an audible sigh of relief when he saw the Hufflepuff prefect. Thank Merlin! For a moment, he thought it might be Scrimgeour or one of his minions. "Good afternoon, Derfael," he greeted, opening the door a lot wider. "Please come in. I have your dummy ready for you."

OOC: You may post in Gaston's office whenever you're ready.

The tawny owl was on a mission to deliver an important package. With expert precision, the male owl soared over Hogwarts as it searched for the right window. It was not a long time later that it was found and the owl gracefully glided through the window. Its talons were neatly curved around a carefully wrapped package and envelope. The latter made soft, chinking noises when moved.

The Deputy Headmaster was in his office. Tawny flew over the seating area and the package as well as envelope were expertly deposited on a sofa. The owl flew off with a whoosh of wings. When the Headmaster looked closer, he would discover the parchment within the envelope was actually an invoice with the following message:

Should Marchand upend the envelope, he would discover what was making that soft chinking noise. There were golden coins and they gleamed brightly.

Gaston glanced at his watch with a sigh. It was almost time for his daily inspection of the Gryffindor common room. which meant he would have to leave the sanctity of his office. Here we go again... he just wanted to get his work done and get back before he encountered the fiendish five! Mumbling a few words under his breath, he got up, leaning into his cane for support and began to undo the complicated sequence of security charms on the door.

He peeked into the seating area just in time to see a tawny owl drop off a package for him. He already had a pretty good idea what was inside. Wasting no time, he picked up the package and set it on his desk. Inside, just as expected, were the items from his order, but there was something else too, an envelope. As he opened it, he quickly noticed a chinking sound. Weird...

Gaston's bright blue eyes scanned the invoice, his mind connecting the dots. A small smile spread across his face as he saw the golden coins, four in all, inside the envelope. Tucking the envelope safely into his inside jacket pocket, he turned on his heel and closed the door behind him, taking extra care to replace the security charms before he left. There were three people he needed to see, and there wasn't a moment to lose!