Early Morning

Her belongings, save some of her clothing, remained unpacked up in her very red room in the house she was now sharing with Fauna, Brett, and the Fayette twins. She was still dragging her feet a bit in regards to moving her life forward, but she knew that she had to do something to keep herself from being consumed by the depths of despair.

Thus, the Gryffindor alumna was up early the Monday following her move in and she was dressed in her professional attire, ready to head out into the Wizarding World in search of a job. She had half heartedly attended the Ministry Mixer the same evening she had gone to see Bombay, but it had mostly been out of what she thought she ought to do, given the circumstances. She had made a few contacts and they were very sympathetic about what had happened to her and agreed to help where they could. Often this meant putting an offer on the table for a job interview.

Admittedly, Grace was grateful for the distraction and would be pleased with doing just about anything at this point.

No, that's not exactly true, she grumbled inwardly. "But it'll have to do," she quietly said to what she thougth was an empty kitchen.

She was making breakfast, even though she probably didn't have to because they had house elves. But again, it gave her something to do to stave off the nerves of her upcoming day and to keep her from thinking too much about other things going on in her life.

To top it all off, she was feeling homesick at the moment too and nothing helped to comfort her more than making breakfast like her mother used to make.

Fauna woke up early to the enticing smell of eggs and bacon. Her eyes popped open, and she sat up in bed, glancing around her for a moment before she realized that she was in her new room, in their new house! Her first clue was the distinct lack of smoke and burning, which would have happened if her grandmother had taken over the stove before any of the Blake women could have stopped her.

She padded downstairs in her cupcake slippers, wrapped in her fluffy flannel robe, though it was the end of June.

"Hey," Fauna greeted Grace with some surprise. She'd half-expected to see the house elf instead, but the poor thing was probably trying to clean up all of their boxes.

"You look pretty," she commented with a sleepy smile, moving around her to open one cabinet, then another until she found the mugs. Her brain slowly processed why Grace might be awake, cooking, and dressed nicely on a Monday. They'd gone to the Minister mixer together, and she knew Grace had visited Bombay, likely to get advice on her Herbology NEWT.

She felt terrible for her. A few friends had lost their mothers this year, and it wasn't something you could ever get used to, or prepare for, or expect. Though Fauna felt like she did more bumbling than helping, she was trying to be there for her, and was relieved that Grace had still decided to live with them after graduation.

"Did you get an interview this morning?" Fauna asked with an uncertain expression, about to feel extra guilty if she'd forgotten about it, considering everything Grace had been through lately.

Grace looked up to see Fauna amble into the kitchen and couldn’t help the amused smirk as she saw the cupcake slippers. It was on her tongue to ask where her housemate had gotten them. Grace flashed Fauna a grateful smile at the compliment and murmured a “thank you” before she asked more enthusiastically, “Hungry?”

Grace had made more than enough breakfast for everyone in the house. Who knew cooking was such a comfort in times of grief? But she had not planned on anyone being awake for a while yet, or at least not until after she had left. Still, she reached for a plate to fill up with the eggs, bacon and potatoes that she had made. She set it down in front of Fauna and then used her wand to summon another plate from the cupboard. She filled it too and carried it to the table to join her.

“An interview? Um...not exactly,” Grace hedged. “Admittedly, I was a bit...preoccupied at the mixer. Nothing was set in stone. But a few people were nice enough to tell me I should just come in whenever to talk with them about my ‘prospects’.” Grace used her fingers as if she were making quotes. Then she shrugged. “It’s better than nothing, yanno?”

Fauna's stomach rumbled in response, and her eyes brightened. "Sure!" Food. Good food. It was hard to resist, especially since there was a lot of it. She wondered if Grace cooked when she was stressed, like Akiva did.

As she sat at the table, she thanked her for breakfast, and made a mental note to snag the dishes and wash them before Grace could.

She shoveled a large bite of eggs into her mouth and nodded at Grace's explanation, her face turning pensive.

Fauna swallowed her food, a little line appearing between her brows, despite her best efforts to look unperturbed. "Well... hmm... I guess it's hard to tell what you're up against until you get your NEWT results," she said, giving her a sympathetic look. Hogwarts and the Ministry worked in very strange ways, sometimes. Grace might not be able to retake any exams until December or later, so she'd have to rely on her employers' mercy to get a job. It seemed a little draconian to Fauna, considering Grace's circumstances.

"You're going to do great, talking to people today," she told her hopefully. "'Cause I mean, you've got a lot that you've accomplished over the years. Being a prefect, playing Quidditch, taking all of those classes. You know?"

She paused, then went on in a painfully earnest voice. "Once you're hired, there'll be no question about, well, how hard working you are. Smart, too. And a good cook!"

The crispy bacon was proof of that. Fauna smiled a little, trying very hard (probably too hard) to reassure her that it would be fine.

Grace’s eyes went wide when Fauna’s stomach seemed to do the talking for her. Then she let out a laugh before she ducked her head, attempting to hide her expression. She hadn’t laughed much since her mother’s death and somehow, Grace felt guilty for doing it so soon afterwards. But it did feel good. Being with Fauna now, even in the new house, made her remember why Hogwarts had become such a safe haven for her: there were people she knew and loved. She had missed Fauna; she had missed her supportive shoulder and how close they had become in what seemed to be such a short period of time.

Grace settled down to eat and after nibbling at a few forkfuls, she could feel her stomach begin to settle down. She was expecting some nerves for the day ahead, but didn’t realize they’d be this active.

The redhead looked up when Fauna spoke of their NEWTS and Grace scrunched up her face just thinking about the one she missed. “Well, I don’t expect my results to be horrible at all....except for the one I need.” She sighed and splayed out her hand on the table. “Unless I completely bombed something--for my standards anyway--I should have five or so NEWTS with an E. But I’m missing the one I would need to become a healer.”

Grace sighed and let her shoulders slump. “I didn’t really have a backup plan but I guess a lot of people don’t really have any plan, do they?” She shrugged. “So I’m just going to go and see what’s out there....there has to be something I can do that I’d be interested in and I’m qualified for, even without Herbololgy.”

She flashed her housemate a grateful smile. “Thanks, Fauna. You must know I need the confidence boost right now.” After some more nibbles on her food, she asked, “And what’s on your agenda for the day?”

Fauna nodded as Grace told her that Herobology, the one class she needed, was of course the one that she had probably bombed. She noticed the slump of her shoulders and the sigh, and tried to think of what else she could do to make her feel better.

"Unpacking," she answered after a pause. "I'd feel like an arse letting the house elf run around all day, you know? I mean, it's ok at school, somehow, but... and I talk like I'm going to be back at Hogwarts in the fall," Fauna smiled slightly and shook her head.

"Other than that, waiting to hear back from SAWS members about the meeting with Zephyr." She glanced at the window as she bit into another piece of bacon. Fauna had been trying not to ramble too much about Zephyr's letter over the past few days, but she was extremely excited to meet her.

Her eyebrows raised and she set down her food when she thought of something. "Grace, did you want me to come with you? I could wait in the atrium or somewhere during your - well, when you talk to them..." she trailed off, realizing it might be considered odd for a friend to accompany someone on a day of job hunting at the Ministry. Still, she'd happily do it. Fauna was lucky in that her other housemates were jumping into Auror training together, so they didn't have to do much alone.

With that, and idea began to form!

"Yeah, getting used to having a house elf do things for me is going to be odd," Grace echoed. "Cooking breakfast at Hogwart's is one thing, but I'd kind of like to feel like I'm adult." Then she sheepishly smiled. "But I guess it would help to have a job to be classified like that, huh?"

Grace listened to Fauna talk about meeting with Zephyr and she found herself becoming excited for her. Fauna was really going to make a difference--both as a werewolf advocate and as an auror. It was nice to see one of her classmates really going after what she wanted, and in terms of the latter, having great strength and confidence in doing so.

"Come with me," Grace echoed dumbly. She was surprised by Fauna's question even though she shouldn't have been surprised by such a gesture from the girl. "Well, you don't have to come...I mean, you've got unpacking to do....and I don't want to keep you from that." She shrugged. "But, you could always meet me for lunch? I can tell you how things go and you can give me a pep talk for any more interviews in the afternoon."

"Sure," she smiled, liking the lunch idea, and glad that she could help (or feel like she was helping).
 
"Owl me whenever you're ready to eat, and I'll floo on over."
 
Fauna took another bite of eggs, her plan taking root in her mind now. She glanced at Grace, looking both sheepish and hesitant, like she wanted to say something but didn't know where to start. Glancing away, she took a sip of water, and set the glass down.
 
"So... I was thinking, your uncle might be able to help out, too." Yup, put the reponsibility on Trevelyan, she could do that.
 
"'Cause remember when we were, er, joking around a bit about you joining the Aurors with us? Well," she shrugged, and smiled shyly. "You have the marks for that, right? I don't know if that's something you'd want, even temporarily," she paused, looking thoughtful. Fauna wasn't sure the MLE would want to train someone who might switch careers after half a year or a year, either.
 
"But.. it might be worth talking to him about," Fauna offered. Of course, she wasn't biased at all, or projecting, or anything like that. Of course not.
 

"Thanks, Fauna." Grace actually felt a bit of relief to know that she had someone like Fauna to support her while she was struggling to figure things out. She had her father and her brother and even her uncle to vent to if needed, but there was just something about sharing her insecurities with someone her own age that was slightly more comforting. [/i]Misery loves company in a way[/i], she thought. But more in the sense that most of her classmates were going through similar feelings right now.

With a small sigh, Grace honed in on that line of thinking. At least she did have options, even if they weren't what she had been planning all along. Sure, it was disappointing to not be able to get wher eyou wanted to go, but at least she could get [/i]somewhere[/i]. The NEWT grades she had were excellent ones and Grace's resume outside of the classroom was top notch. She had options; she just needed to clear away the fuzziness and figure them out.

Grace had gotten so lost in her own thoughts that when Fauna spoke next, she looked at her somewhat stupidly at first as the words sunk in. "The marks to be an auror?" Grace furrowed her brow as she thought back to conversations with the old Head of Gryffindor shortly after the start of her sixth year. Her options had been laid out then based on her OWL scores and projecting that she would perform similarly on the more advanced testing. Auror training had been noted then but Grace, having her sights set on healing, had dismissed it rather quickly, along with most of the other choices. But now, at Fauna's mention of it, Grace seemed to clearly recall that being an Auror required at least five NEWTS and Herbology was not on the list.

"Uh...yeah, I guess I'd have the marks for that," she responded, still a little dazed at that realization. "I mean, at that meeting with the aurors, I wasn't exactly serious about joining up. I always thought I would get what I wanted." Grace looked down at her eggs and started poking at the one unbroken yoke. "But I guess we don't always get what we want, huh?" That was more of a rhetorical question, but when Grace looked over at Fauna again, she added, "But what is that saying again? You can't cry over spilt milk?"

She sighed. "I have to do something, right? And it might as well be something I'm interested in and I might be good at." She smiled. "You're right. I should talk to Uncle Jonas about it."

"Yeah," Fauna smiled, looking happily surprised when Grace agreed to talk to Auror Trevelyan, and hoping that it worked out for her. Then she paused, biting her lip. Maybe she was pushing to keep all of the roommates together a little too much. Not many Hogwarts graduates still cared about student clubs, or convinced their friends to jump into arduous Ministry training programs just because she didn't want to be alone.

"You can still be a Healer," she said awkwardly, putting her fork down. "I mean, 'cause it's just a matter of retaking the test when they let you. Which I know you can do."

Fauna frowned, "And you can be an Auror too. I mean, not both, but - you know what I mean. This is just about... figuring out options and stuff."

She understood what it was like to worry over marks, and in some ways, NEWTs were everything. But she didn't want Grace to feel like she couldn't 'get what she wanted', not when they were fresh out of Hogwarts.

Grace smirked after a moment of thought at the mention of her uncle. She thought back to the lunch at the Career Fair when she had put him on the spot about having his support if she had wanted to join the Corps. She wondered if his sentiments would still hold true now. "I should just make sure that when I talk to him that he's not eating or drinking anything," Grace joked.

As far as still becoming a healer, Grace did know that that path was still available to her. But as an action oriented person, she knew the added wait would be hard for her. And after the year she had had, she was dreading the added work ahead.

"Lots of options," Grace mused. "I know there are people who have been both a healer and an auror at one point in there lives....so that is is a possibility. And there is that option to be the Auror Medic too. But when we asked about it at the lunch, no one seemed very keen on it." She grinned again. "But then, all the aurors seemed intent on keeping you guys from wanting to join."

Grace knew that the Aurors were just doing their job of presenting the whole picture of Auror life and they had wanted to make sure that the prospects were going into it for the right reasons and with the right mindset.

Grace nibbled on some more of her breakfast before absently asking, "Hey Fauna....why did you want to become an Auror?"

Fauna grinned and shook her head, "I know. It was more like... Dire Warning Day, not career recruitment day." The Aurors she had met seemed nice and had entertained the students' questions though, so she hadn't felt too discouraged.
 
She felt better now that Grace reassured her she was just looking at options and hadn't given up on being a Healer, and she lifted another forkful of scrambled eggs to her mouth at the exact moment her friend asked why she wanted to become an Auror.
 
"Er..." she replied eloquently, then set her fork of food down. "Well," Fauna shrugged, suddenly nervous. She really needed to get used to this question.
 
"I'm doing it because I want to help people."
 
She paused. That sounded as cookie-cutter typical as someone could get. "'Cause I've met a few of the Aurors, over the school year, and it's just, well, I guess I'm inspired by them." Tulo, Radley, and Raynor especially.
 
"It was between that, and the RCMC," Fauna admitted, then tried to think of a way to explain it without making it sound like she wasn't as invested in helping werewolves.
 

Grace returned Fauna's grin as they talked about the career day luncheon. Luckily none of her housemates had been discouraged by tales the Aurors had shared.

Grace hadn't meant to put her friend on the spot with her question, but she was genuinely interested in Fauna's motives and she wasn't sure she had really asked before. Grace no more needed to question Fauna's desires to be an Auror as her own desires to become a Healer.

As the reasons came, Grace nodded. All of Faunas reasons were good ones. And Grace was sure that when she asked Jonas that question too, his reasoning would be just as altruistic.

Grace wasn't sure why she was so dismissive of the job before but it was clear that it was worth more serious consideration. Afterall, helping people was the same reason she wanted to be a healer.

When Fauna brought up the RCMC, Grace wondered if Fauna had experienced a similar bout of inner questioning for her own career. Grace leaned forward and queried, "So why didn't you pick that?"

"Well..." Though she knew Grace was asking out of curiosity and that this shouldn't be a difficult question, Fauna felt nervous. She'd never put it into words before, and had the irrational worry that her friend would judge her.
 
"I guess I just don't... feel as good about that department. It's barmy, I know," she said quickly, subconsciously piling eggs on top of bacon with her fork.
 
"With Gertrudis gone, and..." Fauna trailed off. And Ramona Flickwick killed, she'd been about to say, but hesitated to bring up another dead mother.
 
"I like Griffin Manley, it's just... different. Going through that whole LRE thing, getting attacked there in March, and then having to come back, it was hard. It's not their fault, but you know."
 
Fauna paused again, shrugging. Bagnold had saved her life, and had even tried to do something nice for her when she'd been required to return for testing in April, yet she couldn't shake the bad feeling about the place. After a year of up and down involvement in SAWS, a year of werewolf related drama, she didn't trust herself or feel confident enough to make a career out of helping werewolves.
 
So she'd try her best to continue the club, and dive into the MLE instead. Level Two, she was sure, was just as taxing, stressful, and discouraging as Level Four, if not more so. But she looked up to and liked the Aurors she had met, saw good in what they were doing, and felt that she could make a difference there.

Grace listened to Fauna speak of her reasons for joining the Corps versus the RMC and a a myriad of feelings washed over her. What she was describing was, at one point, exactly how she felt about becoming a Healer. She felt at home with the idea. It was safe but it was also exactly what she loved and knew she would be passionate about. Somewhere in there she knew that it would be work, but she was fine with that because it was her calling.

Sadly, Fauna's reasons for not feeling comfortable working in the werewolf division for a living also hit close to home. Healing was going to be even more difficult now with her mother's death. She felt guilt for admitting it, but the event had taken some serious wind out of her sails, and not just because of her missed herbology exam. Would doing the job be too close for comfort for her? It was still early, but part of Grace felt a little emptier now and maybe even relieved to have a reprieve from the profession she had wanted to do for so long.

Grace set her plate to the side and clasped her hands on the table. She cast her dark eyes downward and sighed. "Yeah, I know what you mean, Faun. I guess a year can change everyone's perspective on life, huh?" Grace leaned forward a little and looked over at her housemate. It was clear she was deep in thought for a moment. Then, with a slow smile, she quietly said, "But I am real glad we've become better friends. Honestly, I never would have thought that at the beginning of the school year." Grace knew that time brought changed to friendships and some of the people she had been close with most of her time at school had been moving in different directions from her for a while. At times, it was a hard reality to swallow, especially when one wanted to hold onto such things so tightly, or in her case, wanted to turn to them during a very trying time. Instead, Grace had found a new set of friends who were just as reliable in crucial situations. "Thank you for being around when all of this has happened, Fauna. And for always being willing to listen. I really appreciate it."