Rosie exited her Divination class in a complete flurry, running to the dorms to leave her bag and then down to the kitchens to get the dish she had left with the elves in stasis, that by the time she had reached Landis's door she had to lean against it and catch her breath for a couple of minutes. Her schedule was ridiculously crowded this year, but she'd never miss her monthly appointment with her dearest cousin. Never.

Especially since she had to make sure he was eating. He looked like a wraith sometimes, but she supposed part of that was owed to the Morgan cheekbones. Which she had not inherited. At least she got the jaw... She would've taken the cheekbones, thank you very much. When she finally felt like she could breathe without having to suck all the air out of a room, she pushed herself off the door and turned around to knock softly.

When her knock was acknowledged, she pressed the handle softly, sneaking first her head in, brightly strawberry blonde hair falling off her shoulder as she scanned the room for Landis. She smiled warmly, eyes almost twinkling as she spotted him sitting at his desk. The rest of her body followed inside and she closed the door silently behind her. "Good evening, Landis" she said almost beaming, dropping the covered dish on a corner of the desk, while she walked around it to place a polite, familiar kiss on her cousin's cheek.

"I think I'm a little late" she said with a little frown, hands fidgeting with the front of her skirt. "I had to run around the castle a little" she added apologetically, with a nervous little smile, walking to one of the free chairs facing the desk and took a seat, making sure to tuck her skirt under herself. Her mind was still brimming with Divination notions and she was still a little frazzled from all the running. Hogwarts was ridiculously large.

"How have you been?" she finally breathed, leaning back in her chair, crossing her legs gracefully. "I trust Professor Vaillancourt is well too?" she continued a little more polite and unsure. She'd still see the woman as her professor for years to come probably. It was a little weird, but she thought them an absolutely lovely pair. As much as she could imagine anybody being part of a couple... let alone a relative.

"Have you been eating well?" She frowned a little, lips pursing for a second, as her eyes moved slowly to the dish resting on the corner of the desk, then back at Landis, eyeing him intently. She had woken up at five in the morning to make sure she'd have enough time to prepare something. They were just classic tea snacks: scones, finger sandwiches  and little teacakes.

Landis patted her on the arm, the closest part to him while sitting, as she leaned in to drop a kiss on his glacial cheek. His expression was mild as he glanced sideways at her, watching her retake her seat and lean back, cheerful, conspiratorial, his pink-cheeked younger cousin. Like Hannah, Rosie was sweeter than anyone in their family should rightfully be. Unlike Hannah, Rosie wasn't a brat.

"It's fine," he said, referring to her timing; she was, after all, so genuinely apologetic about it. "I've been well. Juliette is likewise - she, ah. She just took a job at Libertine." To say Landis had been displeased when he'd first heard of the development was an understatement. Of course, Juliette was a grown woman who could work where she wanted... but he didn't trust Darian around her. "I'll let her know you asked after her."

It was a bit odd for him too, talking about Juliette with a family member - let alone one so young. All the family knew now, but he was still very aware that for his young cousins many of them had met her first as their professor.

"How are your classes?" Landis took a minor interest in his relatives' studies... the ones who deserved it, that was. Rosie was a good student. Intelligent. Sometimes her bright inventor's intellect reminded him too much of Darian, manic and chattery, liable to burst from her in obsessive scientific inquiry, but such outbursts were worth weathering. She generally had something worthwhile to say.

"Have you been eating well?"

The corner of Landis' mouth twitched. "Yes," he said blandly. "I have." He didn't give her anything more than that, but caught her pointed looks towards the dish on his desk with something approaching amusement. He knew what she was implying. She had implied it many times before.

Rosie thought Landis didn't sound very approving of Profesor Vaillancourt's new job, let alone excited , which she thought he should be. After all she was getting to work with their cousin - who happened to be Rosie's second favorite cousin - and Rosie always thought the woman was incredibly beautiful and stylish, the likes of Rhia. Rosie would never be like that. But she didn't particularity want to either. What she couldn't understand was how one went from the beautiful field of Potions, from academia and science to... Le Libertine?

Not that there was anything wrong with it, gracious, or with being a designer or even a shop clerk or whatever else one could be employed as at Darian's boutique, quite the contrary! Rosie thought it must be beautiful, a different sort of beautiful which she would never quite comprehend, but beautiful nonetheless. More respect to Professor Vaillancourt for being such a volatile person. Nevertheless, she smiled fondly and nodded her thanks at passing her greetings.

"As intriguing and fascinating as ever, if a little time consuming nowadays, thank you" she responded with an enthusiastic grin. She just happened to be one of those people that actually enjoyed studying. She'd take an encyclopedia over a chit chat any day. "Pity, it leaves me little time for my projects" she added with a little sigh, passing her fingers absently over the hem of her skirt. "I'm still working on Rhia's—errr, Skylar's" Rosie often forgot she was only allowed to still call her sister that becuase she was her baby sister, but, still, never in public. She smiled her little gaffe away and shrugged a little. "Ummm, birthday present. Which got me to attempting to grow my own shrivelfigs" she continued, getting back into her own little bubble of excitement as it usually happened, when talking about her experiments. "And—it's been quite complicated."

His response to her question on his eating habits was as no nonsense as ever, and she merely raised a skeptical eyebrow, nose twitching a bit, trying very hard not to blurt out that she didn't believe him for a second. No man that fed himself properly could look like that. She understood it maybe had a sort of charm to it, if anyone believed Bran Blackwell and his vocal... compliments. But she did not agree with it for a moment. "Sleeping well?" she inquired further with eyes narrowed and worry on her face. Perhaps when she went to get her own pet in the spring break, she could get Landis something as well. It should be fluffy and cuddly. Rosie thought not even Landis could say no to big eyes, a small wet nose and possibly purring. She wasn't a cat person, but her Morgan cousins would look right at home next to a feline. A fluffy one.

Landis' eyebrows rose in mild, mingled surprise and interest. "What are you making her?" he asked. And, when informed of the complications, "Tell me." It wasn't a command, though it was phrased like one; it was simply Landis' way of making conversation. Intellectual pursuits were one of the few ways Landis could relate to his younger cousin. Given that he didn't mind her so much as other members of his family, he did make an effort to do so. Spell creation wasn't his forte, but he had considerable experience in experimental potions as Rosie knew - and more experience that she didn't know of through his complex work for Vedir Prideaux.

She stared at him for a long beat, suspicion and skepticism writ large on her face, but Landis could keep a poker face with the best of them. He merely gazed back at her neutrally, projecting an aura of calm and implicit confidence in his ability to judge his own basic needs. It was as if he didn't have the slightest idea where she had gotten the idea that he didn't properly eat and sleep, or that she needed to be the one to feed him. The fact that she was always so genuinely concerned kept him from dismissing her impudence merely as irritating, unwelcome intervention; that she was so young rendered her harmless and a little endearing. Landis would have been unlikely to allow such behavior from a peer.

"Quite well," he said with a completely straight face. "Cheers." But after a moment a ghost of a smirk appeared on his mouth, the tell-tale signs of a sly and subtle humor aimed at Rosie's predicament.

"Err" she started, blushing a little, eyes darting to look anywhere but at her cousin, knowing her little project could be a seen as a little risky at this point. "You know Sky has always had something of a fascination for hippogriffs?" she asked in a tiny voice. She always went on and on about what majestic creatures they were and how everyone should take a lesson from them in terms of respect and social interactions. "Well, she—she's a busy person, so she can't properly care for one. I mean, the size, the temperament... But with her access in DRCMC, it wouldn't be hard to—uhmm, get a specimen. And I've been thinking, that if only they were a bit smaller and a bit more docile... So, I've been experimenting with shrinking solutions and working up to some calculations to deduce what genes stay and which go. Only... then I got distracted" she gesticulated wildly, face flushed from the amount of wild talking.

"I hit a bump with the shrinking solutions. I don't have the money to keep buying top quality Abyssinian shrivelfigs, so I'm currently attempting to grow my own, however I do not have access to an appropriate greenhouse, so I've been doing my best with what I do have: my wits and my wand. I recreated the climate and geographical conditions exactly and still ruined perfectly good seeds. Five times now!" her voice took a higher tone and her eyes grew big, before she gave a little exhale to calm herself, shaking her head slightly. "So I devised an arithmantic formula to extract the exact conditions, location and time that would be suitable for growing a successful lot on British soil with manufactured conditions. The closest I got was 2015, in Dymchurch at an exact set of coordinates, after a lunar eclipse and that is only if the seeds I procure have very specific properties" she slumped back into her armchair and sighed.

"There's only two months left, so I can't afford to spend anymore time on the shrivelfigs, but I'm—I'm this close" she leaned forward, showing the distance between her thumb and index finger "to finally creating a permanent potion, that with the help of some runes, will actually attach itself to the DNA code of the creature and alter it accordingly and ta-da: Pygmy Hippogriff" she grinned brightly at Landis. "And imagine what could be done with the potion, if I do manage a stabilized final product" she continued, still smiling dreamily, only to remember herself after a second, clear her throat and attempt less... manic enthusiasm. "I—I don't want to ask mother and father for the galleons" she finally managed, eyes downcast, fidgeting with the hem of her dress. She never asked them for anything. Anything, but their appreciation... And she was starting to think, that will never come.

"I'll manage somehow" she smiled a little sadly. Perhaps she could gather the courage and ask professor Strangely one day. She shrugged a little and shook the thoughts away, focusing instead on the well-being of his dear cousin. His response was, as per usual, cryptic and she narrowed her eyes, lips pursed a little. She wasn't going to push further, so she merely nodded with a warm smile. Rosie did worry a lot about those closest to her, but especially Landis. There weren't many in her family that accepted her quite as he did. "Do take care of yourself, tho" she couldn't help but add, biting her lip a little. "It's—ummm, the flu tends to circulate during this time around."

After a few moments of comfortable silence, she uncrossed her legs, leaning her elbows on her knees and looking intently at hr nails. "Mother says she expects me home on Easter holidays" she said a little more seriously, a little worried. "She hasn't said much else, she never does..." Rosie sighed a little, shaking hr head. "Hasn't said anything about whether we're expected in Wales or not. Do you—do you know if there'll be a family gathering?" she finally raised her eyes to him, eyebrows drawn in worry. Rhia had told her she would always be welcome at her flat, and she would've much preferred that than the company of her parents right now. She was confused and heart-broken over them...

Landis smiled a little as Rosie expounded, not in any way she might notice so wrapped up in her trials. He wasn't fond or proud of her - disgusting, disgusting words - in the same manner he wasn't fond or proud of his Slytherins either. Pygmy Hippogriffs were a ridiculous project to spend her time on, but at least she was approaching it with the proper determination, intelligence, and drive.

"You do potentially have access to a proper greenhouse," he corrected her. "As for the soil - it can be imported, and more cheaply than the figs. Why didn't you talk to Strangely at the beginning? She would know why a magical plant was reacting badly to manufactured circumstances." He didn't know the new staff member well, but he imagined she would not turn a student away. She seemed the soft sort.

"Don't get too focused on having the highest quality ingredients. It is a rare potion that can't handle the natural flaws inherent in grown ingredients. Midgrade would work fine. If you've already gone through five batches of seeds, time, and effort, it may be cheaper to buy Shrinking Solution already brewed and alter it yourself."

Hannah had brought back a pygmy camel from Egypt, and it had lived in Darian's shop for a while - doubtless Rosie had met it. Perhaps it had given her the idea. Clearly such a thing could be done, though those creatures undoubtedly had been bred rather than transformed. Even if Rosie managed to get a live Hippogriff - the idea of which had Landis raising a brow - "There's no way to turn the animal docile through potion alone unless you keep it partially drugged. You would be better off shrinking, then breeding them to hone the docile traits in the offspring." Rosie didn't have time for that now, and it was an unthinkable project for a schoolgirl. Breed them where, under her bed? She would be better off saving this gift for sometime in the future when she had the means and the financial support.

"Hasn't said anything about whether we're expected in Wales or not. Do you—do you know if there'll be a family gathering?"

"I don't know," he answered her. Coolly he shrugged it off, "I won't be going, regardless." Landis managed to get out of most family gatherings through a carefully crafted mix of claiming work-related business and simply ignoring any owls from his mother or aunts. Eventually, his relatives had caught on. The only one whom he hesitated to ignore was his Uncle Artur, the hard, unforgiving head of the family.

Landis was an adult, and not to be coerced into some asinine family gathering for the sake of people he disliked; he was a difficult person to reproach for his absences, too distant and cool to really seem anyone's child to scold. He was successful and ambitious and unlike Erin, clearly not rebelling simply to rebel. When he said he couldn't attend, he wasn't questioned anymore. Rosie didn't have that option, still underage and subject to her parent's whims.

He had been in that position once as well, so he might have summoned sympathy for her. But it was better for her to learn how to face demands and dismiss them if they came from inferior persons. The family would control her only if she allowed it.

"Darian would know better, if you want to owl him," Landis said at last. Like most of the cousins, Landis included, Darian's relationship with the older generation was terrible. Unlike Landis, Darian preferred to annoy all of them by attending every family gathering and acting as obnoxious as possible. He would know if they were expected in Wales for the holiday.

"Oh, I couldn't possibly bother Professor Strangely with such a thing" she said with big, worried eyes. "And—and I don't—I'm not very familiar with her. I couldn't..." she fidgeted with the hem of her skirt. It wasn't that she was uncomfortable with not knowing the professor very well, but that she didn't want to bother anyone else with what was a personal project.  Asking for help did not come easy to Rosie. It seemed to run in the family.

She bit into her lips nervously, listening to Landis talk about ingredient quality and she supposed he was right. But... she couldn't use anything but the best for Rhia. But she didn't have much choice now, did she? So she nodded tightly and smiled a little. "Actually that's what I tried initially, but i found that the variations have to happen at brewing level, otherwise I'd just have to cancel or neutralize some of the ingredients in a standard solution." She smiled awkwardly and scratched at her temple. "And—uhmm, I've been looking into some mind altering potions" Rosie said, not daring to look at Landis, because while most of them were innocuous such as Draught of peace, there were some that were only found in the restricted Section. "And—err—combined with a bit of wandwork and runes, they could theoretically alter the behavior of a specimen on a genetic molecular level. But—heh" she wheezed awkwardly, flushing a little "I don't know about that yet."

She wished she could have the option of not going, but that was out of the question. She turned a sad look to her cousin and nodded. At least Landis' presence would make the reunions more bearable, but he wasn't particularly fond of attending those. Rosie thought not many of her relatives actually were. And even Rhia made an appearance once at a few years, regardless if it was an hour into it and she treated everyone with thinly veiled disdain. It wasn't that she disliked meeting with the rest of her family, it was meeting her relatives while in the presence of her parents that made her uncomfortable. Having everyone see how invisible she was to her own parents was a little painful.

"Oh I wouldn't bother Darian with such a thing. Surely he's busy being a creative genius" she waved a hand casually, shrugging a little. She'd just have to wait and see if her parents had any inclination to disclose the information  at some point or another. But— "I'd very much like to stay at the castle" she said after a few moments, gazing absently at the wall. "I'd say I have a lot of studying to do, but—" Nobody would believe that. She was months ahead on the curriculum with extra reading, a two week break would be nothing. The sixth year sighed deeply, but it was mere moments after that a smile, warm smile was in place.

"I'd like to start animagi training this year" she announced, obvious excitement in her tone, eyes sparkling a little. "Now that I'm finally getting a familiar, I've been thinking it's something I'd like to do. It's just—the process, the magic involved... it's all so fascinating. And I'd like to study process in detail, see what exactly happens inside the body during the transformation. We wizards never really ask ourselves that question do we?" she found herself distracted yet again. She stopped mid word, and turned to smile sheepishly at Landis... she did tend to go offtrack quite often, but she hoped her cousin was used to it by now.

"You absolutely could," Landis countered. "She's paid to help students. It is her job. You would be remiss to ignore any possible advantage in this and future projects." He leaned back in his chair, the fingers of one hand smoothing over his desk's surface as he thought. "I could speak with her first if you were concerned of your welcome," he added a moment later, cool and perfectly casual. Rosie might have saved much had she consulted Strangely first before wasting time and materials on failed growing trials.

Mind-altering potions.

Landis' brow's rose. He was very impressed. Potions that could rewire a creature from the molecular level? That would be a remarkable find... and was a little scarily close to what he'd been researching for Prideaux.

"Keep me updated," he said, instilling his tone with unusually strong interest. "That would be simply... astounding." Rosie looked awkward as she divulged it, as well she might. To anyone else such would seem a horribly Dark endeavor. Hyppogriffs were classified as highly intelligent creatures. More than that, Landis doubted anyone with possession of such a potion could fail to see its use on other humans. That's what he would use it for if Rosie did advance in her project and share her findings with him, after all.

Rosie gave him terribly sad eyes when he said he wasn't going. Landis was unaffected. He had paid his time. His thin lips twisted at the notion of her bothering Darian, though; Rosie could barely bother a fly, and Merlin knew Darian deserved to be pestered. He spared a moment to puzzle with some annoyance over why Rosie felt comfortable talking to him but balked at contacting their more personable cousin. Although he was obnoxious, Darian was at least affectionate in his enthusiasm for his cousins.

"If you're open to the family knowing, why not say you want to stay at Hogwarts because your animagi studies are intensifying?" Landis did not plan to tell Rosie that he himself was an animagus, but he could certainly help her as he'd helped other deserving students - point her in the right direction when it came to helpful texts. Maybe hint at his own condition, enough to dispense suitable advice which seemed as though it'd come from a viable source. "At the break Hogwarts will be nearly deserted. It will be a better time to study or practice without distraction. You may say you are assisting me if necessary in some other task."