He was beyond ready for a break, and the term was only two weeks in! What a day. What a week! There wasn't an hour that passed he didn't pine for his office, the desire for his bed heavy and he knew it was the depression sinking back in, but he wasn't ready to face Maiko's doors just yet. He could do this, just needed some friends...and as he sank down on one of his couches he sighed...that window needed fixed too.

Afternoon tea with his darling newest best friend gave Gale something to hope for each day. Althea, after the Yule Ball had quickly won favor to his heart. Her big bright smile and warm personality moved him like none other, and he thought she was perfect for Head of Hufflepuff--something he himself had wanted rather badly. However, at the time of the applications he'd thought....no, let's not go there.

Gale's chest tightened around his heart as if trying to hold it together, and in an attempt to distract it he took out his wand to start the tea over the fire.

Althea walked into the room, her curls bouncing each step. In her arms were stacks of papers awaiting grades. Gale and her were close, and it was nice. She had had some trouble getting close to other faculty members. They didn't particularly not like her, however, few had tried to reach out to her, Gale being one of them. She enjoyed his company, and with the coming trip, she needed someone to talk to when things got stressful. Lately, many things got stressful.

Althea was also very envious that Gale had an office. She was head of Hufflepuff and still didn't have an office. And, as much as she liked her classroom, it seemed too big sometimes. That was why she created quite the habit of hanging out in Gale's office. Today, it was to talk about the trip, and to try to do some grading.

"Afternoon Gale!" She said cheerfully, bouncing into his office and taking a seat. "How are you doing on this fine day?"

The moment Althea walked in the air warmed, the electricity of it lifted, and his spirit swelled. He loved her. He loved everything about her. He loved her dark hair, her olive skin, and how sparkly her eyes were even with how dark they were. She always wore things he could appreciate and today wasn't any different. Her long skirt made him smile, and her shoes...he loved those shoes.

"Hi, Beautiful," He answered her warmly, stood to seat her like every gentleman should, and kissed her cheek gently, "I'm...well I'm ok." He wasn't ready to go through his troubles with his boyfriend just now. He didn't want think about it, not yet. He was more excited for Althea right now, and was excited for her trip.

"I'm very excited to take the children to London," He smiled settling back into his chair, and pouring their tea.

"Is everything falling into place for that?"

She smiled as he welcomed her in. She could always count on him for a smile or a mood-boost. She had found a great liking towards Gale. She liked to sometimes sit back and try to remember the days in Hogwarts. She had definitely seen him when they were in school together, but after her fourth year, the other students kind of became a blur. She was tired of being made fun of for her ecentric-ness, and it was just easier to focus all of her attention on to her new favorite subject; muggles.

"I'm...well I'm ok."

She didn't like the sound of that answer. He had hesitated. Was something wrong? Maybe with his significant other? She didn't know, but she didn't like it.

"I'm very excited to take the children to London,"..."Is everything falling into place for that?"

"Oh, well, yes, I guess. I have a lot more to coordinate. It will definitely help by you being there." She added.

They were a stark contrast, the pair of them, she with her dark eyes and dark hair, and he nearly void of any color. She was always so bright and cheerful, and there were days Gale didn't want to get out of the bed. But over all he was doing much better, and enough so that he didn't have to see his out of castle counselor. His treatment was finished, and now he mostly saw Maiko when he needed some advise. However, Althea was quick to become a dear friend to go to when things were getting rough.

"You know I'll help you with everything. I have a lot of free time anymore, or so it feels like. I've not been cooking as much either." Gale pulled his shrug back around his shoulders and settled into the sofa.

"Where shall we start?" He had told her he wanted to help her today, and yes that was partly the reason. However, he had other objections in mind, and looking at his broken window he had to smirk. Dallas should be here any minute.

He hoped.

The day was fair, perfect for repairing windows. He'd just finished Professor Storm's in his classroom and Gale had asked that he fix the sill of a window in his office. His tool belt was equipped with grout, and scrapers, and a very dusty toothbrush. He knocked on the door at the time Gale requested him, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows and his cowboy hat tipped back on the back of his head.

His worn blue jeans were covered in grout and his belt was feeling heavier as he became more tired, ready for lunch and a cup of tea. He opened the door and his belt clanked and jingled. Kesali was sitting with Professor Santucci; the one whom Gale was talking about just a few days before on the confines of a small pub.

Dal blushed, "Good afternoon Kesali, good afternoon Professor Santucci." He cleared his throat, standing like a man of stone. "Uhh, which window did you needed fixed Gale?" Locksley pulled the toothbrush from his belt, then eralized what he'd removed from his belt, and quickly tucked it back into his belt, folding his hands behind his back as his cheeks turned even redder.

Damn these Scottish cheeks.

"Where shall we start?"

"Well, I guess I've got to start with the-" She started, however, then Dallas, the keeper of the keys, joined them. She didn't get to sit down and have a conversation with him. She really didn't know him well; she hadn't broken anything in her classroom, and she hadn't been wandering through the Forbidden Forest. They really didn't have a chance to speak.

He stood rather awkwardly, just standing there. She stood up, straightening her skirt, and fixing her sweater. Althea didn't tend to do well in situations like this. It wasn't a casual meeting, it was a business meeting; he was here to fix something. "How are you today?" She asked.

And he was blushing. Well. When that man blushed, it was like no other blush. It was an adorable blush, and it made Althea look to her feet, to not look at his cheeks, or his dreamy eyes.

He tried to hide his grin behind his delicate little fingers, and did his best to pull on the mask as he watched the two turn red at one another. They both were so awkward it was rather cute, but he didn't miss that look on Althea's eyes.

Perfect.

"Althea, have you had a chance to meet Mr. Locksley? Dallas, this is Althea. Althea this is Dallas Locksley." Gale took the time to sit back and just watch it unfold. Apparently, he wouldn't have to work as hard on this as he thought,

"The window is there, Dallas, but why don't you sit and have a cup of tea with us and a sandwich? You look tired and hungry."

"Uhhh, hi." Dallas managed without fainting. He'd seen Althea from afar and through the window of her classroom, but he'd never been in the same room with her. He stuck out his hand for a business like handshake, they were, after all, colleagues. He was slightly embarrassed about his dusty hands that were now becoming increasingly sweaty. Althea Santucci was a very pretty woman, and he wondered how he'd never really noticed her during their time at Hogwarts.

"I think we went to school together, I used to play quidditch for the Gryffindor team until I broke my arm?" He pointed at his forearm. He shook his head as he turned back to Gale. "That window? Alright, I'll have it done in a jif." With that, Dal shook his belt and headed to the window, looking at the one loose grey stone.

"Shouldn't be too hard to fix." He quickly pulled from his leather toolbelt a scraper and a tub of grout. He spread the grout and replaced the brick in no time, finishing it off with the toothbrush, a very handy tool. He then sat down next to Gale across from Althea at the small table.

He put a small sandwich on a white dish and poured himself a small cup of tea, not wanting to seem greedy because once he had the food on his plate, he ate like a dog until there was nothing but crumbs.

Althea saw Dallas fight with words, and she couldn't help but let a little smile appear. "Hello." She said. Althea let a warm smile appear on her face. Truth be told, she hadn't met him yet, but was mesmerized by the man's eyes. She was a grown woman. Grown women didn't have crushes. They were mature. But what about just developing feelings? Little feelings? a flutter of the heart? That was perfectly fine, right?

"I think we went to school together, I used to play quidditch for the Gryffindor team until I broke my arm?...That window? Alright, I'll have it done in a jif."

She would have loved to say she remembered him, but sadly didn't. Anything after third year was a blur of muggle studies and a strange obsession of muggle cooking strategies. She didn't pay much attention to Quidditch. Ever. She still didn't. The only exception was the Hufflepuff team this year. They were her baby badgers. They were going to succeed, or they were going to work really hard. That's all that mattered.

When Dallas had his back turned, Althea nodded her chin towards him, looking Gale, with a nod of approval. He wasn't half bad. He rejoined them, and wolfed down a sandwich, as Althea sat there, silently and awkwardly, not knowing what to reply with. She wasn't hungry herself, and did have papers to correct. But papers could wait until Mr.Dreamy-eyes left.

This was going to be harder than what he thought! The both of them were so shy! And rather adorable. Though he and his lover were not on the best of terms, it was sweet to see the little bits of fireworks going off in the room, and Gale sat back to enjoy the show. He was glad to see her approval, because he fired right into a launch of opportunities to speak to one another.


"Althea, Dallas spent a good deal of time in America, on a ranch. He helped me pick out the some horses for my date with Dolly St. James, and was very good at it. You know, might not be a bad idea to have him come speak to one of your classes this term? Tell them about what it's like in Muggle America." Stretching his feet out on the couch, the bells around his ankles twinkled with a mirth of laughter where his lips could not at how precious this whole thing was,

"And Dallas, maybe you should come help us take the children into London, it's going to be one heck of a ride. And considering how well you stay on bucking horses, maybe you would be better suited than I would."

There, that was two chances to start talking to one another.

Dallas resisted the urge to punch Gale's arm and run out of the room when Kesali mentioned his horse riding the other day. As soon as Gale spoke about Dal's time in Texas, he knew he'd been set up, but he didn't want to come off rude to Althea, or Kesali, for that matter. Darrel's face was getting hotter and he could see crimson cluding his vision. "Yes, I took a gap year between Hogwarts and working on my father's fishing boat back in Scotland and sort of hitchhiked around the states for a year."

The redness slowly blended away and his face was almost back to normal color as he talked about his favorite place. "I found myself in a small town in Texas on a cattle ranch, but we sold horses and sheep and other critters of the sort. But, I managed to go twelve whole months without using magic, it wasn't all that difficult actually, I just locked up me wand at home and headed out with a backpack of clean laundry, a bag of beef jerky, and my life's savings, which apparently was twice as much in the U.S."

"That's where I got the nickname 'Dallas', actually, the other ranch hands though my scottish accent was rather funny and they were confused when I first introduced myself, so all they knew was that it started with a 'D' and had an 'L' in it, and once they saw me roping calves and hauling hay bales, they just started callin' me Dallas, I liked it so much, I asked people to start calling me that."

Dal held his black hat he'd had for almost 15 years, rubbing the brim and running his fingers over the cool rivets in the leather. It smelled like American dust and the Scottish Sea. "I've always told myself that I'd go back someday, but I've been at sea for so long, I forgot what it was like to strap on a pair of chaps and ride through the mountains, but I'll go back, someday." Dallas concluded.

"Uhh, and.." the Scottish cowboy added, "I'd love to help you out with the kids in London." He wasn't sure how he felt about talking to her class just yet, but he'd figure it out eventually. He knew for one thing, Althea Santucci couldn't stop staring at him, and he couldn't stop staring at her.

Althea sat there, as Dallas told his Texas stories, smiling and nodding. She wasn't that interested in Dallas's stories about Texas, as much as he seemed to love to tell her. "I've always envisioned America as cool. The rich history. The different civilization levels, with the natives in some areas and flush new technologies ruling the next. Interesting." She attempted at a connection. It was true. She did like America. There was a lot of differences between America and England, and differences were always cool.

She listened as he told her all about his town in Texas, and how he loved to take care of the animals. That was fun. And it made sense why he would sneak into a Care for Magical Creatures position. Then he just kept talking. And telling them all about his nickname, and about his dreams for the future. She was trying to relate. She was trying to relate so hard, but it just wasn't working. He spoke when he was nervous, that much was clear. Althea could work with that.

"Uhh, and.." the Scottish cowboy added, "I'd love to help you out with the kids in London."

Althea smiled. "That would be excellent, thank you. It would be, I believe, we're going Febuary 18, so a little under a month. I guess I'm nervous to start this all up. I just want it to run smoothly. You know?"

Gale watched the whole thing with so much amusement that his eye twinkled, and he rest his chin on his hand. Oh, this was working out rather well.

"February 18, that's not far at all. Perhaps during Hogsmead weekend you guys should go ahead and scout out the locations? Dallas, you can show her that pub I took you to, she would like it." Gale stretched a little to hide his smirk and put his feet up. "It will go smooth, Honey, Dallas here can fix anything if it's broke, and I'll be there. I can ask Chaz to help if we need. He can organize things on the other side of it all." His beloved boy, with his own bright blue eyes and big wide grin.

The lack of interest in Althea's eyes of Dallas' stories did concern him, and suddenly Gale was having his doubts. It was hard to be with someone that you didn't have interest in. And his stories of Texas were clearly a very big part of his life, and part of his growing up. The story Dallas had told him during their day out was of a boy who went to America and came back a man.

"I'd like to see America again, go to that Disney World I always see advertised on Muggle TV."

Dallas laughed nervously and pulled out his notebook, scribbling down the date of the field trip and tucking it smoothly into his pocket again.

"February 18, that's not far at all. Perhaps during Hogsmeade weekend you guys should go ahead and scout out the locations? Dallas, you can show her that pub I took you to, she would like it."

Dallas shot Kesali a glare, the muscle just under his eye twitching rather uncomfortably. It was really a shame Gale was such a nice guy, and Althea was in the room, he would've pulled Gale's hair and ran out of the room like a teenage girl.

"...It will go smooth, Honey, Dallas here can fix anything if it's broke..."

Dal cut in, "Anything from splintered wood to broken bones" He said quietly, shifting his eyes to Gale, if he'd had a little more courage, he'd say something sharp-tongued and witty and leave, but unfortunately, Dallas was not as courageous socially as he was when he was wrestling beasts twice his size.