Eva climbed the stairs quickly with excitement.  Her flannel shirt hung open on her thin shoulders and fluttered with every step.  A simple grey tank top with jeans and boots completed her ensemble.  She'd been outside with the Care of Magical Creatures animals after her classes ended for the day.  But now after dinner she might be able to catch him in his office.  She stopped some distance before the landing and retucked her  scarf around her neck in one of her only concessions to her appearance.  She missed having Poppi wrapped around her neck as he was wont to do but she'd have to make the best of it.

She crept up the last of the steps quietly and peeked in the open door.  Yep, he was here.  Eva's face split with a grin.  "Hey there, brother," she greeted playfully with a wide grin.  She was so tickled that Chaz was serious about someone but when he'd finally told her who it was... well she'd barely been able to contain herself!

Eva stepped in shut the door to his office just in case another student came by and heard.  "I hope you don't mind, I just had to come and talk to you once Chaz told me who he was seeing.  I knew there had to be someone, he was so ridiculously happy. I could hardly stand it."  Eva perched on the edge of the chair facing Professor Kesali's desk and just grinned at him knowingly.

Nightingale was tired, more so than he ever thought he could be, but wasn't ready to climb those stairs to his bed just yet. It would be very early for bed, and perhaps in the past he would have forced himself awake. But now the after dinner excitement of social hour dwindled. He didn't have many friends here in the castle, and was weary about even speaking to any of them as he was tired of rushing off rumors. Gale found himself more often than not alone in his office to read the letters from his lover over and over again, and fight away the deep depression of wanting to be home.

Next year, he wouldn't put himself through this, but he also wasn't sure he was cut out for this job to begin with. Ever since his holiday and especially after what happened with Gunderson, Gale was doubting his impact here. He was doubting himself, and most of all worried he wasn't doing a good job at all.

"I love you too," He whispered touching the lips of the picture there in his hand and holding the letter that came with it. Friday seemed so far away. Maybe he would surprise Chester and come home a few nights, but Gale worried every time he did that he wouldn't come back. And even though he had a good deal of savings, he couldn't let Chaz down with losing his job--

Hey there, brother--

A voice broke through his thoughts and caused him to jump a little as he quickly shut the top drawer of his desk after stuffing the letter inside it.

"Oh. Hello." He didn't recognize her at first, having only ever seen younger pictures and hearing about her through her brother he couldn't have picked her from a crowd as being a relation to Chaz; that was...until she smiled.

"Miss Lawrence, what a pleasant surprise."

I hope you don't mind, I just had to come and talk to you once Chaz told me who he was seeing.  I knew there had to be someone, he was so ridiculously happy. I could hardly stand it.

He weathered through those remarks rather well, for someone who was almost dead on the inside from embarrassment. Only a little color chased away the pale nature of his skin, and he bit hi bottom lip to try and hide a grin.

"I beg your pardon, Eva, but I don't think this is proper conversation for a professor to have with a student." He did his best to channel his inner Ignan, but frankly he'd just never be that cold. Especially not when the topic was on his darling boy, and his happiness. Gale liked to think he made Chaz happy, but hearing it from someone else made it all the more special.

"Is there something I can help you with? Are you having trouble in any of your classes?" He wouldn't be able to keep this up for long, Gale was far too full of the desire to burst the truth from the seams and chat with Eva about Chaz.

"I know, Professor, I didn't mean to be rude."  Eva ducked her head to indicate her remorse but she peeked up with a grin.  "I just couldn't help myself.  If you don't want to talk about it, I completely understand but I am seventeen and it's not like I'm one of your students." 

She was wheedling.  She knew it but she tried her best to be polite about it.  It would really be a shame if Gale didn't want to talk to her.  She wanted to know more about the man her brother was dating so seriously.  Ever since Malcolm, Eva felt she ought to be a little wary of his lovers.  This was the first one he'd even mentioned though, and he was right in her own backyard, so to speak.  From what she knew, he was a pleasant enough bloke who treated his students well and genuinely seemed to care.  That was a good sign.

"I'm doing well in all my classes, sir," she said matter-of-factly.  "It's mostly just feeding the animals and watering the plants anyway."  She shrugged off her own experience in her field of study but stood up and wandered over to the window box with flowers in it.  She touched a few leaves and put her fingers in the dirt experimentally.  "How often do you fertilize them?  I have a low-impact mixture I could give you.  It'll probably help 'em perk up a bit.  Plant's should smile too, you know?"  She grinned over her shoulder at the Professor and then turned away from the window box. 

Gale watched her flit about the room, like a little pixie and grinned as she inspected his window boxes. She certainly was full of life, happy and well taken care of. A much different person than her brother, who was happy (or so he hoped) but he didn't show it like this. His interests were often kept quiet, more reserved, but Gale would break that from him soon enough.

"I've been neglecting them I know," He admitted with a quiet smile, and engaged her topic of choice, "I would like that, maybe even ask you to help keep them alive. I'm normally very good at gardening, but you see...I've been going to London a great deal more." He caved, unable to resist her, and he wanted to talk to someone about it.

"Your brother is very dear to me, Eva. Do know this."

"Oh," Eva replied with a blink of surprise.  "Of course I'd take care of them.  I'll need to write down kinds and then I can work up a schedule for them."  She was perfectly willing to come up here on occasion an look after his plants.  He seemed like a sweet guy and it wouldn't really be much time out of her schedule.

It was truly interesting to hear this man say so about Chaz.  Malcolm had never seemed like he was good enough for Chaz, although she'd never met him.  Chaz had certainly talked about him though.  She'd been the only member of the family without a grudge so when Chaz wanted to talk, he'd talked to her.  Chaz had a tendency to fall hard, she knew, and she wanted to make sure this man would return the affections.

She leveled an appraising gaze on him when he confessed to care for Chaz.  She was looking for any hint or trace of deception but found none in his honest expression.  "I believe you," she finally relented.  "But I'd love to hear more.  How'd the two of you meet?"

She knew Chaz's version, of course, but it been through a written letter and she was dying to hear it out loud with all those personal little smiles and blushes.  She sat down again in a chair and tucked her feet under her, waiting patiently.

"I believe you," she finally relented.  "But I'd love to hear more.  How'd the two of you meet?"


Gale waited a moment as he fought off the little blush that filled his pale cheeks, and he looked away a moment in attempt to mask the smile that tugged on his lips. His eyes found the floor as he gathered himself together and finally answered in a quiet voice, "I..um. I actually spilt my drink on him at a social event. Someone bumped me, the issue with being so short," He tucked a strand of his hair behind his ear, and bit his lips to suppress another grin, "And he caught me." Technically it was his lap, but Gale wouldn't mention that.

"Caught my drink at the same time, but he didn't seem to mine," Nightingale tucked his feet beneath him as he curled up in the corner of the couch. He went silent a moment, wondering if he should just send her on his way, but he couldn't help the curiosity,

"Tell me what he was like when the both of you were younger?"

"We talked all the time," Eva shared happily, enjoying the happy blush on the man's face.  "I was the youngest, you see.  My mother wanted me to be a perfect little lady.  She wanted to introduce me into society."  Eva rolled her eyes at the mere memory of all those afternoon teas sitting up ramrod straight with other society girls.  It had never really been her thing.  She'd done it and done it fairly well to please her mother.

"Chaz coming home was always the best because mum would fawn all over him for a bit and then we got to go outside.  She trusted him to be a good influence on me.  At least... until he met Malcolm and decided to go rogue.  We kept in touch through it all though.  He normally tells me everything so when he didn't tell me who had made him so happy, I figured he must have been serious about it."

"How's it feel being out, now?  People haven't given you a hard time, have they?"

Gale leaned on his hand to listen to her, resting his chin in his palm as he watched her. He could still see some of her mother's lessons, in the proper way she sat, the very proper accent she possessed without even trying. Chaz had it too. He was always a sharp dressed man, and he knew that came from his upbringing.

"I take it she was the same with your brother?" He smiled leaning back again, "I've made a vow a long time ago to raise my children the same way I was. Without all of that proper nonsense."

"Chaz coming home was always the best because mum would fawn all over him for a bit and then we got to go outside.  She trusted him to be a good influence on me.  At least... until he met Malcolm and decided to go rogue." 

And then came the 'M' word, the dreaded word that pulled Gale back into his shell. He ran a hand back through his hair, and tried to show it didn't bother him, "That Malcolm brought him out of his shell huh?" When asked about how people were handling it Gale smiled, that Professory sort of face that might have been a little fake,

"They are taking it well. My friends are very supportive, and no body seems to bothered by it at all." He wasn't telling the whole truth, but it was close enough, "I have a feeling that you wouldn't allow them huh?"

Eva had spoken of Malcolm rather carelessly.  It was bad form to talk about an ex-boyfriend with the current boyfriend.  It wasn't even her place to talk about.  She saw the uncomfortable way the Professor touched his hair as he tried to pretend it didn't affect him.  She shifted and leaned forward in an attempt to make it better.  "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything.  He encouraged Chaz's interest in men, of course, and even his design style but it was for incredibly selfish reasons.  I don't think anyone looks back on him with any fondness but, hey, if he hadn't gone through that then he wouldn't be here now, right?"

Aware of her unfortunate rambling, Eva rubbed the back of her neck nervously.  "I'm sorry, I've probably said too much again."

She wasn't fooled by the brave but shaky smile Gale offered her.  She could do little but offer a sympathetic smile.  "I can't stand prejudice," she admitted, hugging her arms around her knee comfortably.  "Especially not against my brother and now that you're so close, if they give you a hard time, they might as well be giving him a hard time too."

"Truly, no one has been giving me a hard time about it. I don't think Headmistress would stand for it. Please believe me when I say this. I get a world of trouble on my own, where me loving your brother hardly matters." It felt so wrong to be talking to a student about this, but she was family now; at least he thought so.

"And don't worry about talking about the ex. I rather like to think him simply a stepping stone to me. I just..." Gale twisted his mouth a little, "Don't rather like hearing about him, because despite how much he built Chaz up; he knocked it all down too. But we're working on that." Eva had the same nervous habits that Chester did, and it was rather endearing to watch. It also made his heart ache a little, and he wondered if he could get home this late.

"Perhaps on your weekend out next month we could authorize you to come to dinner with us? I'm sure Chester would love to see you?"

Eva's face brightened immeasurably as a delighted smile consumed her features.  "That would be wonderful!" she exclaimed, putting her foot down and placing her hands in her lap.  Her eyes were squinted shut from the size of her smile but the twinkle of light could still be seen.  "I would love to see him and give him a hard time for keeping this all from me in person."

She paused and her smile faltered.  There had been issues, concerns, related to the treatment of a professor like family.  Special treatment and all that.  She didn't want to be unfair.  There were plenty of students who didn't get to go home for a visit and it wouldn't be right for her to be able to do so just because her brother was dating the Charms professor. 

She looked at him somewhat anxiously and said, "I'm sorry, Professor, I'd love to go see my brother but I don't want special treatment.  I don't expect anything like that from you.  I honestly just wanted to get to know you better.  I didn't think it would be too much of a problem given I'm not a Hogwarts student and... I don't even take Charms.  I'm alright with just going down to Hogsmeade, I can see Chaz in the summer.  I was going to spend time in London anyway."

When Eva went on about not wanting special treatment she saw more of her brother in her than perhaps she would have realized. It was precious, and he understood. It must have been a family thing to be excited about something one minute and doubt it for the right reasons the next.

"A very mature decision, though I do not see any harm in it. But we will have the whole summer as well. I don't think I'll be going anywhere anytime soon, and I had only planned to surprise your brother with a trip to Paris over summer break. I would also like to take him to the ocean as well, and perhaps you can come along with that one?" That trip might have been more for Lucas than he, but he wondered if the Trumble family ever took vacations. He would like to get them out of town and somewhere warm and sunny for a week at a time, maybe even to one of those muggle amusement parks.

"Perhaps on our way we will stop and see your parents as well?" Probably not the best topic to bring up, but Gale was testing the waters. He wanted to know what they thought of Chaz now.

Eva smiled at the invitation.  It really would be nice to spend some time with her older brother before she had to settle down and act like an adult, find a job and so on.  Of course, Chaz was technically supposed to be an adult already but she wasn't super worried about being able to convince him to have fun with her.  It had been his specialty as they were growing up, doing that for her, and so the least she could do was return the favor now that he was getting old.

At the mention of going to visit the family, however, her grin faded into sheepish discomfort.  "That might not be the best idea," Eva admitted carefully.  "They're not exactly fond of Chaz since he told them he was shacking up with a man.  They put up with it, of course; he's still family, but for the most part they prefer to ignore it.  I'm not sure what they'd do if he brought you to dinner." 

Eva shrugged as though she was apologizing for her close-minded parents.  Chaz was as close to being disinherited as it was possible to be without having your name scorched off the family tree so it wouldn't be a super comfortable get together with just Chaz there.  "Maybe we should start with your family..." she suggested.

"They're not exactly fond of Chaz since he told them he was shacking up with a man.  They put up with it, of course; he's still family, but for the most part they prefer to ignore it.  I'm not sure what they'd do if he brought you to dinner." 

"But that would be part of the fun. I know they are your parents Eva, but when it comes to your brother he's mine. You are too. I won't let them make him feel any less than what he is. You the same. You should be able to love who you want or be what you want." Gale sat forward on his desk, leaning into his hands,

"Don't make excuses for them. They are adults who know exactly what they are doing. But we can totally start with mine. They would welcome you and your brother with open arms. Even if you had two heads four eyes and a beard." He grinned at the thought of his father's side of the family. He didn't know his mother, not as well as he did his da, but Jean-Luc would never let them feel any less than what they are. He would probably enjoy Eva far more than Gale would have liked really.

"He's pretty special to me, your brother. I love him with all of my heart." Gale smiled thinking of his blue eyed boy, his gentle hands and ever lasting grin. He wished they were together now, but if he couldn't have Chester at least he had Eva.

"Tell me about yourself? Besides school, what are you interested in?"

Eva's heart melted to hear Professor Kesali talk about her brother like that.  It was wretchedly adorable the way they loved one another.  Their eyes lit up when they thought of one another.  Their smiles got all dopey.  It  was mildly sickening but she cared for her brother deeply so mostly is just made her happy and content.

Smoothing her skirt absently, Eva's head tilted to the side as she thought.  "Animals," she answered without hesitation.  "They're so open, you know?  They just... are who they are without any apologies.  I like that."

She blushed.  "I do study them in school, though, so I suppose that doesn't really answer your question, does it?"