Sing Me To Sleep, I'm So Tired [Closed // Autumn]

[Juliet Delia]

<sub>Juliet lay motionless in the on-call room in the maternity ward of St. Everdines, the thick covers of the bed pulled up around her neck, clenched in her fists as she slept. Being her first week as a Healer, Juliet had felt that it would be appropriate for her to pick up some shifts from people that needed time off. It was a relatively good way to meet people, and certainly an easy way to make friends. That had lead to her not having left the walls of the pristine medical building in just over three and a half days. It was exhausting, but it was worth the money, and it kept her mind off of things that she didn't want to think about. Life was so much easier when she was kept busy.

Juliet rolled in her sleep, a metal flask of a sleeping potion sliding off of the bed and clattering to the floor. She woke with a start, gasping sharply as her eyes darted around the room for the source of the noise. When they finally fell on the flask on the floor, she exhaled deeply, pushing her hair out of her eyes. Juliet reached down and picked up the small container, toying with it in her hands. The act of sleeping itself she found no difficulty in; it was falling asleep and keeping the dreams at bay that were the difficult parts. The potion in the flask was the first she had designed herself, for those purposes specifically. This accomplishment came soon after she left Austria, and had only fueled her desire to work more vigorously with potions. And that love had eventually lead her to Healing, although she was all too aware and educated that she had the ability to cause extreme suffering and death with only a few changes in ingredients.

The dreams had steadily become more horrific as she had spent more time away from Austria. She had no contact with anyone from home, and never heard any news about anything. Her mind was not so difficult to tame during the day, but at night, her imagination ran rampant. Images of things that she had seen and things her mind conjured ran through her mind without hopes of being controlled. People that it pained her to think about during the day haunted her at night. And so, in an effort to maintain her own sanity, she developed a potion. After a few tries, she got it right, and finally found she could rest at night. She was becoming less dependent on it now that she had returned home, but it was sometimes still necessary, especially when she was overtired.

The clock on the wall ticked steadily, hypnotically. Juliet gazed up at it and sighed. It was about time that she hauled her sorry butt back out onto the floor. She pulled back the thick covers, shivering as the cool hospital air made contact with her bare skin. She groped for her shirt as she slid her shoes back on, sighing; what she would not give for a back rub and a cuddle.

Her eyes were assaulted with the bright hospital lights as she opened the door to the on-call room. She rubbed her eyes gently, being careful to not smudge her mascara across her face. No one wanted to be treated by someone that looked as though they hadn't slept in eons. From the looks and sounds of things, at that moment, her presence was not demanded anywhere immediately. She wandered over to the Neo-Natal Unit's window, a smile creeping onto her lips as the tiny humans came into view.

Even in these uncertain times, people were still having babies. She would never be able to get over their sweet little faces, or the way their tiny hands gripped waiting fingers. The coos they made when you held them close could melt even the iciest of hearts. They were innocent. They knew nothing of hate or greed or pain. It was beautiful, and it saddened her that they would have to grow up, that they would have to learn about the hardships of life. But at least they had now. And Juliet was content with enjoying that, and soaking up the peace that they seemed to so readily exude.</sub>

[Autumn Stanton]

Autumn frequently found herself amazed with how life had been for her. After graduating from Galaxia three years ago, she had gotten an internship with St. Everdines. The internship lasted for only a few months before she was offered an open Healer position at the hospital. From the moment she said yes everything seemed to begin falling in place for her. She had saved enough money before a year went up for an apartment, saying goodbye to the Austrian orphanage she had called home for so long. The apartment wasn’t anything spectacular, but to Autumn it was perfect. She now had the freedom that she had yearned for so long. As she always had, Autumn didn’t forget the people and the building that had been so kind to her for so many years of her life. She still frequently visited the place to volunteer. Autumn knew exactly how the child there felt. Any contribution she could offer was well worth it.

Her job was fantastic. Any place of business had their ups and downs and moments where you wanted to pull your hair out, but Autumn loved every second. She got such satisfaction whenever she was able to help someone. It was rare to see anything major than an animal bite or accidental inhalation of potion fumes, but she didn’t care. She was one of those scarce individuals who genuinely enjoyed going to work and seeing what the day brought her. The hours were rough and usually underpaid but she somehow managed to find ways to pass the time when she was scheduled a twenty four hour shift. Of course the job did stress her out on occasion. Not too long ago a patient had been brought in after being on the receiving end of a particularly strong babbling curse. It took almost a month for her and a team of Healers to figure out a cure for the woman. Standing in a room for hours running tests on the woman caused a lot of unnecessary headaches especially when she rambled on about the lack of good healthcare in Austria.

Most importantly, the job had provided a pleasant distraction from any turmoil in her life. After rekindling their romance, she and Marlon had once again broken up a year ago. This time it had been for good. Fortunately, the break-up had been amicable. The relationship had simply run its course and the two had accepted that. Unlike the results from their last separation, the two still remained on good terms. It had been very hard for Autumn after Marlon had moved back home, but that had been during a particularly busy time at the hospital. She barely had any time to sit and reminisce or wonder what things could have been done differently. She had finally been able to start going on a few dates here or there on her nights off. They were friendly encounters, but would more than likely not go past the friend stage. That was fine with her. With the long hours she worked sometimes, it would probably be difficult to get retain a relationship now anyway. For now the only men in Autumn’s life were the ones that worked at the hospital.

The day was going just as every other day went. Autumn had her clipboard with her list of duties and check-ups for the shift. Already, she had set a child’s femur back in place after the poor thing had crashed on their broomstick, helped track down a patient being treated for supposed cruciatus hexing who had somehow managed to bring an invisibility cloak in with him and visited about a dozen patients simply to check in and see how they were doing. Her day was not even half done and by two o’clock ten more duties had magically appeared at the bottom of her list. Autumn looked at her watch and noticed the time. She had missed lunch. Deciding that now would be an opportune time to take it; she excused herself from a surgery viewing and followed the route to the Cafeteria.

The Maternity Ward was on her way to the Cafeteria. Autumn would almost always stop and admire the newborn witches and wizards en route to lunch. It was hard not to. If granted, she was sure that she could watch the babies for hours. The ones who already had signs of their magical blood were the cutest though. The ones whose blankets kept flying off with a certain cry or begin to levitate while sleeping were the most entertaining. The Healers on watch certainly had their hands full. She smiled to herself as the Maternity ward’s sign came into view. Just another corner and she would be there. She quickened her pace and found herself in the hallway only a few moments later. Autumn saw that she was not the only one with the idea as she entered. A petite brunette similar in size to herself was standing at one of the larger windows. She had the same dreamy expression that Autumn frequently had on her own face when watching the newborns.

“They are adorable, aren’t they?” she asked, approaching the woman. “Somehow I always manage to find myself stopping here for a few minutes no matter what it is I have to do. It’s a hard place to avoid.”

[Juliet Delia]

<sub>A smile spread over Juliet's lips as one of the newborns began to levitate, ever so slightly. It rubbed its eyes with its tiny hands, yawning. It's tiny tongue wet its lips as their thumb made it's way to its mouth. The tiny human suckled happily as it floated, drifting off into sleep. It amazed Juliet at how early babies could show magical promise, some in small ways, like levitation, others in bigger ways, like summoning a baby bottle from the cart across the room.

As if on cue, a full bottle of milk zipped across the room into the waiting hands of a baby near the window. Juliet chuckled as the child settled back into its bassinet, happily filling its belly. Babies were silly little creatures, so full of happiness and simplicity. Life was only a matter of needs and love. Oh, to be that innocent again.

Juliet looked sauntered over to the nurse's station, picking up her clipboard for rounds. There was nothing that seemed out of the ordinary. Most of the patients she was looking after today were not spectacular or out of the ordinary -- Skelegro progression, re-application of skin-healing potions, administration of anti-nausea potions... Definitely not a day in the ER, but considering the fact that she was wiped, she was more than happy to be working an easy shift.

Working at the hospital made her happy. It was certainly excellent pay, to say the very least. The Ministry had trashed her entire house in a search, and although her bank account wasn't completely shy of money, it was nice to have a little more coming into it that she was used to. It was a huge pain to figure out what needed replacing, and what didn't. Juliet also loved the excitement of the job. There was always something interesting to deal with, and nothing was so satisfying as being able to help someone. Though not everyone was savable -- she had lost two patients since she had started working -- the ones she could save made it worth it.

Juliet roamed the halls for a few minutes, peeking into rooms. She still had another twenty minutes before she had to officially start rounds, and her legs needed a stretch. Most of the rooms on the floor were filled with happy mothers and fathers, all smiling and chatting. Occasionally, the moan of a woman in labour could be heard, followed shortly by a string of vulgarities that made Juliet chuckle. Juliet intended to become a mother, someday, but the pain associated with the process was not something she was looking forward to. She made notes of the rooms that elicited these sounds so that she could administer anti-pain potions if they so requested during her rounds.

Finally, she made her way back to the neo-natal unit windows. Juliet smiled and waved to a nurse inside who was changing diapers. Another task that was not so amusing. The nurse, cheery as ever, smiled and waved back, flicking her wand in the other hand as dirty diapers shot into garbage cans. Bless her.

"They are adorable, aren’t they? Somehow I always manage to find myself stopping here for a few minutes no matter what it is I have to do. It’s a hard place to avoid." Juliet shook herself out of her dream-like stupor, turning to greet a young witch dressed in scrubs. She smiled, nodding her head towards the window. "I'd have to agree,", she laughed. "I've been in the ward all day, and they never get any less adorable or any less amusing."

Juliet tucked her clipboard under her arm and extended her hand. "I don't think we've met yet. I'm Juliet. I just started about two weeks ago."


][ Murrrrrr. Not my best post. :/ Studying is absolutely destroying my muse! ][</sub>

[Autumn Stanton]

Autumn chuckled lightly at the girl’s response to her arrival. She knew the feeling all too well. She herself had many times been roused out of her fantasies after getting distracted from baby-watching. She would frequently imagine a life with a husband and small children. It was something Autumn genuinely hoped for down the road. Given the circumstances she had been raised under Autumn refused to allow her own future family to go through. She would not allow herself to fall victim to a man who showed the same symptoms of her father who had been a very drunken, abusive and broken man. She would do whatever it took to thoroughly research the background of the individual who seemed a prime candidate for the position whenever the time came. Although aware that the time wouldn’t come until several years from now Autumn was always prepared with some sort of plan.

Looking into the room, she laughed as the on-call nurse attempted to set the levitating baby back into its small cradle. Every attempt was a failed one though as the child kept floating back up. “That little guy is going to be a troublemaker,” Autumn commented, “if he’s refusing to stay put now then I can only imagine what mommy and daddy are in for.” She was sympathetic for the woman given the look of frustration on her face. After a minute or two, she had finally stopped trying to make the child lay down and turned her attention to the other children in her care.

"I don't think we've met yet. I'm Juliet. I just started about two weeks ago." She recalled hearing about a new group of Healers who had started recently. Taking the girl’s hand with her own Autumn smiled at her. “It is so nice to meet you Juliet. I’m Autumn.” She released her grip after shaking her hand to adjust the clipboard that was falling from under her arm. “I’ve been here for almost three years now. Not much had changed, which has been nice. Unfortunately I am a creature of habit and this has been the most comfortable out of the jobs I’ve had even though it can be extremely hectic.” Since working at Everdines, Autumn had also broken out her shell more. Unable to do so before, she now had the ability to initiate a conversation and to keep it going if the other provided good company.

The sound of her stomach grumbling reminded her of her original mission. Glancing down at her watch Autumn realized she didn’t have too much time for her lunch. She was more surprised that she hadn’t missed it all together. “I’m sure you’re just as busy as I am, but would you like to head to the Cafeteria with me for a quick snack? I’m starving and if I’m going to make it through this day I need to get something on my stomach.”

[Juliet Delia]

<sub>“That little guy is going to be a troublemaker. If he’s refusing to stay put now then I can only imagine what mommy and daddy are in for." Juliet turned to face the window again and snorted. Every time the nurse would gently push the baby back down onto his mattress, the moment she turned her back, up he would go again. He never floated high enough that he could hurt himself, but just enough to drive whoever the unlucky nurse on duty was absolutely bonkers. "I would have to agree," giggled Juliet. The nurse had just put the baby back in the crib for the umpteenth time, and she was wagging her finger and talking to him in what Juliet imagined was a very stern voice. Humorous did not seem to adequately describe the scene in the nursery. "The little one knows how to push buttons, and he's not even a week old. That boy is gonna be trouble." She grinned as the nurse gave up and turned to tend the other babies.

Juliet turned back to the woman before her, a smile still on her face. “It is so nice to meet you Juliet. I’m Autumn.” Juliet shook Autumn's hand, careful not to shake the clipboard out from beneath her arm. "It's a pleasure, Autumn. I'm really, really pleased to be working here. The last few years have been..." Juliet searched for a word in her vocabulary that would be adequate to describe her time away, and was having a little trouble deciding on an appropriate descriptor. "...Unstable, I suppose. Um, but yeah, I'm really glad to hear that not much changes here. I think I kinda need that right now. It is a really nice change to be settled for a while."

She wouldn't really call the life she was currently leading "settled". She barely spent time at home, either spending most of her time at work, expanding her ever-growing stockpile of herbs, roots, stones venoms, and other various other liquids, both mentionable and unmentionable, or out and about keeping her ear to the ground for any suggestion of what was to come in Austria's near future. Something was afoot, certainly. There were too many hushed murmurs between friends on the streets, too much nasty gossip between women in the corners of their favourite boutiques. The real question was what. Juliet had absolutely not inkling of what was coming, but she was damn sure that she was not going to be caught unprepared for whatever it was.

“I’m sure you’re just as busy as I am, but would you like to head to the Cafeteria with me for a quick snack? I’m starving and if I’m going to make it through this day I need to get something on my stomach.” Juliet blinked for a moment, processing the request. She made a mental note of working on upping her social interactions again. Being a virtual hermit for three years had not done her any good on that front. She checked her watch, and as if in response, her stomach growled noisily. Juliet grinned sheepishly. "Food, yes, I think I remember that stuff. I don't start rounds for another twenty minutes or so anyways."

Juliet made her way to the cafeteria with Autumn. She picked up an apple and a coffee, chatting with the witch that ran the cash register before walking over to a table by the window. She sat down, suddenly grateful to be off her feet again. "So you said you've been here three years?" Juliet asked, taking a sip of her coffee. The hot liquid was like heaven to her tired body. "How has that treated you so far?"</sub>

[Autumn Stanton]

Autumn could relate to Juliet more than she knew. With all the craziness behind St. Everdines walls it had been the most stability Autumn had in almost all of her life. Her life had been somewhat stable at the orphanage. Besides the unannounced visits from her father when she was in the playground area, things hadn’t been too bad. It was when she had transferred to Austria and started at the new school that things had really begun to jolt all over the place. Months before they had started dating Marlon’s presence had been a thorn in her side. Every move she made was in effort to not see him, or to see him depending on her mood that day. She cried frequently over the boy. When their relationship had finally turned around things had been going well until the end of summer at the masquerade ball. Autumn had spent several weeks in St. Everdines from memory loss after getting hit with a powerful confundus charm. Her memory came back eventually, but she felt so terrible for Marlon having to put up with repetitive questions and her inability to even remember who he was at some points.

That had all changed now. “You will be pleasantly surprised at how routine your life will become. I know that some people hate doing the same thing day after day, but after you’ve come from troubled times stability will bring you back to reality. It won’t take you long to get situated.” Autumn squeezed Juliet’s shoulder lightly. Upon hearing that her invitation had been accepted she smiled and beckoned for the girl to follow her. “That’s the spirit. If you don’t force yourself to eat, sometimes you won’t remember period,” she confided as the two began the walk to the cafeteria, “I can’t recall how many times I’ve come home to realize that I hadn’t eaten anything at all. How are we supposed to keep people healthy if we can’t even do the same for ourselves?” Autumn enjoyed the conversation that followed. It took no time for the two to reach the large dining hall. Scooting in between two male Healers she grabbed two freshly baked cinnamon raisin bagels and a bottle of chocolate milk. The meal would keep her satiated for several hours.

She joined Juliet at her table once she had paid for her items. Laying the items out neatly in front of her Autumn grabbed the first bagel and began to cut It in half. ”So you said you’ve been here for three years?” She nodded. “I had interned here for almost a year before being offered a position.” Her internship had provoked the love she never knew she had for medicine and the treatment of witches and wizards who were unable to take care of themselves. ”How has that treated you so far?” Autumn took a bite from her bagel and chewed thoughtfully. “All in all, it’s been wonderful. I’ve learned so much in such a quick amount of time, but I know there are still things that’ll take more time to fully comprehend. I’m really looking forward to seeing what else is in store for me.” Her optimism was often poked fun at but Autumn never minded. She enjoyed looking forward to things.

Autumn opened the bottle of milk and took a sip from it. “What sparked your interest to get into this field?”

[Juliet Delia]

Juliet was mildly taken aback by Autumn. She seemed very much bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, especially considering the chaos that the Wizarding World had experienced in the last few years. Juliet was all too aware that the majority of the cases that walked (or in most cases, wheeled) into the ER were not broken bones from Quidditch accidents, nor a bad case of the flu. No, they were much worse, much darker than that. “You will be pleasantly surprised at how routine your life will become. I know that some people hate doing the same thing day after day, but after you’ve come from troubled times stability will bring you back to reality. It won’t take you long to get situated.” She wondered if it was that sense of stability that created Autumn's seemingly happy-go-lucky personality. It wouldn't surprise her, if it was. People deal with tragedy and war in different ways. The five Galleons in her scrub's pocket said that she was just as scared out of her wits as everyone else.

“I can’t recall how many times I’ve come home to realize that I hadn’t eaten anything at all. How are we supposed to keep people healthy if we can’t even do the same for ourselves?” Juliet laughed and nodded in agreement. "I was the same way even in school," she chuckled lightly. "I would start doing work one night, and before I knew, it it, it was three in the morning, and my friends were hurling chocolate frogs and grapes at my head in an attempt to remind me to eat. Juliet smiled at the memory. Being at school had honestly created the best years of her life so far. She would give almost anything to go back to it, even for just a few days. The fun. The mischief. All of it. Being an adult was so complicated, especially after her generation had been forced to grow up so quickly.

Autumn took a seat at the table with her, and began to tell Juliet about her time at the hospital so far. Juliet felt very lucky that she had received her Healer position without even a day of internship. It was a fact that not many of her peers had accepted readily or without a hint of bitterness. The stars had definitely aligned in her favour for this job, that was for sure. Juliet grinned in agreement when Autumn mentioned her love for medicine. She had to admit that there was very little else that made her smile like seeing someone come back from an otherwise hopeless situation.

“All in all, it’s been wonderful. I’ve learned so much in such a quick amount of time, but I know there are still things that’ll take more time to fully comprehend. I’m really looking forward to seeing what else is in store for me.” Autumn practically exuded optimism, and Juliet found it quite refreshing. It was not common in their day, anymore. She made a mental note to add "optimistic" to her description of Autumn in her head. Autumn definitely seemed like the kind of person that could cheer her up when she was having a bad day.

Juliet took another long sip of her coffee, enjoying the bitterness of the drink. She had gradually become more and more accustomed to the flavour of the drink without sugar or milk, and it was now rather enjoyable. The caffeine and the taste woke her up when she really needed it. “What sparked your interest to get into this field?” She swallowed the coffee in her mouth and pursed her lips thoughtfully. What had made her decide to get into the field?

"I guess it was probably after I got into potions," she said thoughtfully, leaning back in her chair. "I was about a year and a half into studying both sides of the discipline, and, let's be honest, if you want to make an honest living in Potions work, you either teach or you heal. Teaching would have been my first choice, to be honest, but with Galaxia having it's own problems..." Juliet's voice trailed off as she shrugged sadly at the thought of what her once-home had become. "What I mean to say is that I love to teach, and I wish I could do it now. But, because I can't, my next love was healing. It amazes me what potions can do to heal someone that is otherwise hopeless. I really, truly love healing, though." Juliet smiled wistfully. The job she had now was certainly wonderful. Like Autumn had said herself, Juliet was very interested in seeing what her future held.

[Autumn Stanton]

They had only been talking for a few minutes, but Autumn was thoroughly enjoying Juliet’s company. The girl was pleasant. The trait was such a rarity in these parts sometimes that she wondered if she’d slowly succumb to the grueling work hours with such disdain and moodiness as some of her co-workers. She didn’t speak for everyone, but so many of them made her working environment really unpleasant sometimes. Autumn was a firm believer in leaving your problems out of the work world. Other people didn’t want to hear your drama, so why force them to? She knew from first-hand experience that negative energy was not good for the soul. She had spent a bulk of her school years at both Beauxbatons and Galaxia with the depressing aura. Autumn exemplified that of the typical shy and depressed teenager. She didn’t spend all her time wallowing in pity for herself and her situation, but she certainly made it hard for anyone to get to know her. If she wasn’t seen doing homework in a corner of the library or common room by herself, then she was reading by herself. Any effort made to get to know her usually turned out to be unsuccessful. It wasn’t that Autumn didn’t like people as she was growing up, she just lacked the social skills to do so. It wasn’t until she had starting interning at St. Everdines that she slowly began to break out of the thick shell that had engulfed her for so long.

Autumn did her best not to regret her school years. All in all, she hadn’t had a miserable experience. The few friends that she did have made her time pass without too many problems. She wasn’t picked on because most of her fellow housemates had their noses in books themselves. She kept to herself so much that no one in other house’s even knew that she existed unless one of her friends tried to introduce her to someone outside of Ravenclaw. She wasn’t sure what the hospital had changed in her, but Autumn had accepted it with open arms. She had meant every word she had said to Juliet about her positive experience working there. It was like any other job with its ups and downs, but her journey was essentially ups. Smiling to herself, she picked up her bagel and continued eating at it. The raisins that had been used in the bagels were plump and full of such flavor. The cinnamon added the perfect accent to create a scrumptious meal. It may not have been the healthiest for her, but it was definitely the most pleasing.

She listened intently as Juliet began to answer her question. She nodded at the statement about Potions. It was so uncommon to find someone who practiced legitimate potion making. “You’re right. About three weeks ago, right before you came actually; there was an apothecary who was fired after being discovered making potions that were turning up on Drear Alley.” Autumn wasn’t one for gossip, but the story had been so significant that all of the Healers couldn’t help but to find themselves invested. It didn’t help either that every single one of them had been called in by the bigwigs for questioning regarding the woman and their own stance on illegal potion making. With the way Austria was today, everybody was suspicious of anyone the vicinity of someone caught doing illegal acts. Autumn understood the concern. After the disastrous birthday celebration of Minister Raghanll, everyone was weary of anything out of the ordinary, terrified that another secret attack wouldn’t be looming too far behind. The Masquerade itself brought solemn emotions to her. She had been caught in the midst of battling and had lost her memory for months afterwards. She never understood how sweet Marlon had been able to take care of her for so long when she could never remember who he was.

Her ears perked up when the girl mentioned her old alma mater. “Oh? Did you attend Hogwarts Galaxia? What house were you in? I was in Ravenclaw.” Autumn always enjoyed taking with an alumni. People tended to change so much after school that she preferred speaking with them now rather than earlier. The fact that Juliet was interested in teaching was also fascinating. The girl seemed to be one after her own heart. Autumn didn’t really see herself as a teacher, but could see herself on the staff of a wizarding school. Maybe a deputy headmistress or something along those lines. “I think it’s a wonderful profession. If you don’t mind my prying, why can you not teach now?” As soon as the question had been asked, she had answered it herself in her mind, or thought she had. She had last heard that Hogwarts Galaxia had been indefinitely closed due to the increased presence of DeathEater activity in the surrounding area of the school. It was a safety precaution taken to protect the innocent minds from being harmed or corrupted. “It’s closed, isn’t it?” Autumn asked, wondering if Juliet had heard differently. She was extremely interested in knowing what was going on with her old school.

[Juliet Delia]

“You’re right. About three weeks ago, right before you came actually; there was an apothecary who was fired after being discovered making potions that were turning up on Drear Alley.” Juliet shook her head and clucked her tongue. An appropriate reaction for someone who wasn't involved in Black Market tradings, she thought. Just because she was involved in such dealings at the moment didn't mean anyone had to know that she was. A girl has to to what a girl has to do. It wasn't like she was selling completely illegal potions like the bloke from the apothecary was; she was just buying ingredients that were necessary for her stockpiles. "I heard about him," she said somberly. "It's a shame that he turned to selling potions like that. Extremely lucrative, but dangerous if one isn't careful." Nothing she had done was illegal, so far. Frowned upon, of course. But what other people didn't know at this point, wouldn't hurt them. Sometimes it was necessary to get your hands a little dirty in order to maintain safety.

Juliet smiled as Autumn's eyes lit up at the mention of Galaxia. Autumn was definitely more of the innocent type, but Juliet liked that about her. It was refreshing. “Oh? Did you attend Hogwarts Galaxia? What house were you in? I was in Ravenclaw.” Juliet smiled widely, nodding her head. School had, for the majority of her life, been relatively uneventful, but the most fun she had ever had in her life. "Yes, I actually attended Hogwarts outside of London for a few years. Gryffindor there. My father got transferred to Austria, and so my parents had me transferred to Galaxia. Hufflepuff there."

Juliet had always found it relatively strange that she had been sorted into two different houses at the two different schools. It was only after a long chat with the Galaxia Sorting Hat that she discovered the reason why, the first being that the two Sorting Hats did not see eye to eye on many transfer students. The second reason was not that she was deemed any less brave or chivalrous, but that he felt that she would benefit from experiencing two houses while being educated.

“I think it’s a wonderful profession. If you don’t mind my prying, why can you not teach now?” Juliet watched Autumn wince as she processed her own question. “It’s closed, isn’t it?” Juliet nodded, sighing. "Yes, Galaxia is currently closed, otherwise I would be there in a heart beat. I've heard other schools are open, though, so I suppose if I really so desired it, I could seek out something there. That won't be for a while though, I think." She smiled gently at the girl across from her. Juliet hoped badly that this war would not be as vicious as the war that had occurred with Voldemort only years before had been. In her first year, Hogwarts still showed signs of the battle that had occurred there only a year before. The castle was still a happy place, but the scars that the castle still bore were a reminder of the death that had occurred there.

[Autumn Stanton]

Autumn agreed with everything Juliet said. It was refreshing to find someone who was able to hold a conversation about anything other than work. She got along well with her co-workers, but nearly all of them were years older than she was. Besides Juliet, Autumn was pretty sure that she was the youngest Healer at St. Everdines, which was a remarkable feat in itself. The hospital prided itself on hiring the most knowledgeable and experienced Healers around. She had been an intern for only a year before being offered a position at the prestigious hospital. She didn’t know what it was that had initiated the offer, but Autumn was thankful for whatever it was. She was also grateful for the girl sitting across the table from her. If she had to guess, she assumed that she and Juliet were of similar age, which set them apart from the rest of their co-workers. Autumn was curious though as how the girl had gotten the job. She hadn’t been an intern when she had been. Juliet had admitted that she good with potions so perhaps that had set her apart from any other applicants. Regardless, she was glad to have met the girl. Judging from their conversation so far, she felt like the two could potentially be friends due to their similar attitudes and views, such as the adorable babies in the maternity ward.

She was fascinated by Juliet telling her about her transfer. She had no idea that it was even possible to be placed in two separate houses. To her, the two Hogwarts schools were the same. They had the same founders, same houses, same colors, the works. Granted, she had never visited the London location before but it seemed like there would be no difference. “That’s so very interesting,” Autumn commented, taking another sip from her bottle of milk, “I never knew that was possible. I transferred from Beauxbatons when I was younger, but we never had houses. It was just like a regular muggle boarding school. Galaxia’s houses has such different characteristics, that it is very curious as to how one sees you one way and the other another.” She sincerely hoped Juliet wouldn’t find what she was saying to be offensive because she certainly did not mean it that way. Maybe it was because her nose was so often in a book, but Autumn was always interested in learning about new things. Whether it was catching up on the latest advancements in medicine or reading about the history of Asian wizardry, she loved expanding on her knowledge of the world. Both of the Hogwarts schools held many secrets and she had been determined to learn as many of them as she could.

She had sympathy for Juliet. Autumn had been in that sort of position. Knowing that you loved something and not being able to have it. Her circumstances had been different, involving a bulky blonde male, but it was discouraging nonetheless. “I’m sorry to hear about that, truthfully. Hogwarts Galaxia held some of the best memories of my life and it’s just tragic to hear that it’s been affected by all the murmuring going on. It’s just my opinion, but I would think that with the DeathEater activity going on that the school might be the safest place for children. They’ve always had all those enchantments and defense spells that prevented unwanted people from even stepping foot on the bridge leading from the grounds to the castle.” Autumn shrugged her shoulders lightly, picking up her bagel and chewing silently on it. “I wonder if Headmistress LeGrand is trying to get the school running, or if she’s even associated with the school anymore.” The woman had a good head on her shoulders. She had thought that she had done an excellent job running the school in her time there. Times were different now though and anyone could change at the drop of a hat.