A very intriguing visitor...

It was pretty surprising for him when his mentor, James Wilson, offered him all of the three choices he had planned out by himself. The trip they had already discussed about was supposed to be to Eastern and Southeastern Europe and Wilson benevolently declared he would leave his post for one year in order to accompany him. Wilson also offered him the post of Charms professor... as Deputy Headmaster he could have lobbied for him to get the position and finally, the third option was some form of specialization in a field of magic. Although anticipated, the way of the mentioned specialization was pretty surprising - Edgar Albert Doyle, an eccentric man, but also a friend of Wilson and McCoy, offered him a job in his store, the famous Slug & Jiggers'. Although he had no desire to work as a merchant, he was offered a laboratory and a place to practice and work with potions, a subject he hadn't had during his last year.

Although he did have some extra classes with Wilson, who was also very skilled at Potions, that knowledge and those classes just weren't enough. He had to gain a proper knowledge in Potions in order to become a great wizard and that he could only do with practice.

After receiving all three offers, he decided it would be best to work at the store to practice and gain a more precise knowledge about Potions. And so, he accepted and found himself in Diagon Alley selling, but also producing a variety of Potions that enabled him to gain more knowledge about the subject.

He was just inside the laboratory, having hexed the entrance bell to be loud enough so he could hear customers entering, working on Felix Felicis, a complex potion. Doyle had given him the assignment to make the Potion and test its effect when it is done - he was currently in the middle phase of the brewing process. Wearing a white lab coat, avoiding the gases and steam that came out... he decided to take some air.

He exited the laboratory and went to the crowded streets. He also liked to watch the people around Diagon Alley. It was nice, no one knew him, no one talked to him and he could just sit, watch and deduce about them and their activities - it was both peaceful and fun. But also, he had hoped he would see her... It was during one of Wilson's last DADA classes that he saw her... and then... she just disappeared... and until this day... he still hadn't see her and that was all he wanted.

After about 10 minutes, he returned inside, took a brief look at the inventory and went back to the laboratory. He took the flasks with the ingredients, but just as he was about to pour them he heard the bell. Someone entered the store. Having the flasks in his hands, he exited the laboratory and made his was to the counter. ''Good day, I do apologize for the scenery, I do have some tasks to do'', he said, approaching the entrance to the main lobby of the store. He did not now who it was that visited him, but once he was able to see her... he got petrified... How?

It was a blustery day outside, but that didn’t seem to have stopped the hordes of people from coming to Diagon Alley. Amelia herself had chosen today in the hopes that the weather would keep away the crowds, but she had not been lucky enough to avoid the traffic that usually populated the area in the first few weeks of school. There were always those who had forgotten something or other for lessons, first years who had thought more about the things they needed to decorate the dormitory than they did about the more practical things necessary for class. This hypothetical situation was only made more valid by the fact that as Amelia wound her way among the throngs of people, it was common for her to have to dart around a gaggle of people made up of confused-looking eleven-year-olds and their concerned parents that kept them on a short leash.

Amelia was in Diagon Alley today because she needed to pick up more potion ingredients already. Although she hadn’t been one of those who forgot her school supplies, she had not anticipated the potions lessons being taught by the headmaster himself. In the interest of not looking foolish if she ran out of something mid-semester, Amelia was here to buy a second potions kit, just as a backup. Perhaps a bit paranoid of her? Maybe more than a bit, but Amelia wanted to draw as little attention to herself in that classroom as she could for the rest of the year – especially considering what had happened on the first day – and if that meant never having to ask for more lacewing flies, that’s what she would ensure.

She was in a hurry, not wanting this errand to last any longer than strictly necessary, and so Amelia’s movements were jerky as she moved around slow-walking packs of people. Finally, she spotted the overhang sign of the Apothecary up ahead and made a beeline for the door, more grateful than she would have anticipated when her fingers finally closed around the handle of the door. She heard a bell tinkling loudly above her head as she walked in the door, and she turned to see the source of the noise, almost as though she couldn’t identify it without visual proof. Of course, she had known it to be a bell, but why it was so obnoxiously loud was beyond her.

A voice from behind her distracted her from the bell, though, and even before she turned to face him Amelia had a nagging feeling she had heard the voice before. Turning on the spot, Amelia’s eyes darted toward the source of the voice that stopped abruptly as its owners eyes met hers.

Arthur Severus Poe

Amelia had not seen the boy since she had been removed from Hogwarts last year, which seemed only natural since she knew he was set to graduate last year, and she had been confined to her house all through the summer, therefore leaving her very little interaction with the world as a whole. The redhead blinked several times to be sure of who she was seeing, but her eyes did not deceive her. He looked very much the same as he had last year, though the lab coat was a new development. He was holding two flasks in his hands and wearing a startled expression that Amelia did not mirror, not because she wasn’t surprised to see him, but because her emotions were never so visible on her features.

“I need to purchase a potions kit,” Amelia said after a few uncomfortable seconds, mentally – though not physically – shaking off any hesitance she had. She was here with a purpose, and the fact that Arthur was the one to fill her order should make no difference in the situation. Yes, things had been more than a little awkward between the two of them – due entirely to Arthur, if you asked Amelia – but they had not seen each other in more than seven months. Surely whatever had been causing Arthur to behave so strangely, to be so forward with her, would have dissipated. In this situation, she would be a customer, and he a man providing a service. There was no need to dally with small-talk; she and Arthur had never been particularly close, in fact, she had more or less despised him for most of their shared Hogwarts

Oh bloody hell! It really was her. Amelia Lyons. He had not seen her a long time ago and she he did miss her, he missed her a lot. Of course, their relationship was more than distanced, but still... while he was still in Hogwarts, he just yearned for a look at her, for one short glimpse of her and for one short sound that came out of her mouth. He admired her and he wanted to be near her just so he could admire her.

But of course, she did not like him. One could say that he annoyed her more than that she disliked him, but sill, their relationship wasn't as he wanted it to be. Well, you can't always get what you want. He was petrified. She hadn't changed, although she did seem a little different than then... more solemn... although... there was no exact expression to describe it. But still, she had that extraordinary effect on him, she made him feel strange, she made him feel weak and different... weird in one way. Although, after everything he had gone through with Julia, he never felt this way around anyone else. Weak, as if he wasn't his usual, confident and strong self. Why, oh why, did she have that effect on him? And yet, why did their relationship had to be like this? Why?

As he looked at her, petrified, with the two flasks in his hands, he remembered that he had a job to do here. He shook his head in order to get a grasp of reality and then looked at her once more. He put the flasks down on the table and approached it. His work on Felix Felicis was hard and took time, but still... this was one opportunity he had. He would try and make things better.

''I am sorry, what?'', he asked. He knew the question, but somehow, it evaporated temporarily. He then remembered. ''A potions kit? Well, you will, I am afraid, have to be more precise... a basic one or an advanced one? I suppose professor Doyle would want an advanced one, but you can never be sure with him'', he said with a smile, a forced smile, in the end. He wanted to smile, but he couldn't... which is why his last smile seemed artificial. ''Again, Amelia, do excuse the lab coat and the flask, I am brewing something as part of my studies in there so I have to wear this and carry the flasks around'', he said, apologetically. ''I am sorry for asking, but how are things going? You disappeared, I heard you got called away by your parents from professor Wilson... I got... concerned... How are you now? What is the situation in Hogwarts like?'', he asked, with his voice shaking. Now, why did he do that? He knew... but still...

It was more than a few uncomfortable seconds before Arthur fully processed her words, choosing instead to stand gaping at her, which made Amelia fidget under his gaze. She wanted to stand indifferently and hurry him along with her task so she could leave right away, but having left things the way they did last spring, Amelia wasn’t as confident as she wanted to be in this situation. Arthur had perplexed her to the point of her utterly avoiding him at any possible chance, and this was the first time they had seen each other since. She had evidently been very adept at avoidance – which seemed to be an obvious trait of a loner such as Amelia – at least until now.

Eventually, thought, Arthur seemed to come back to the moment and set his flasks down on the table in front of him, which separated the pair of them, along with several meters of distance. Amelia hadn’t moved much past the entryway of the shop, and Arthur was standing behind the counter, leaving ample space that would allow Amelia to make her point that she was here strictly for business, nothing else. She hadn’t even known he was going to be here, but now that she did, she was all that much more in a hurry.

Amelia was about to reply to Arthur’s misunderstanding of her question, but he came around too quickly and realized what she had been inquiring about before she could respond. He then proceeded to inquire about whether she needed an advanced or basic kit, which Amelia only then realized she should have specified in order to expedite this whole situation. Arthur’s knowledge of the headmaster was slightly surprising to Amelia, who knew that Doyle had arrived only after Arthur had graduated, but then again, Arthur had always been more perceptive than she gave him credit for.

He was not, however, as unreadable as she wished he was, and his half-smile was not missed on Amelia. Before she could answer his first question, Arthur launched himself into another description of his attire, which didn’t faze Amelia in the least (her father wore similar attire when he was developing new spells, though with far for protective equipment), but what did irk her slightly was Arthur’s interest in her life since they had last seen each other. If Amelia was honest, she had not thought about Arthur one iota since she had been plucked from Hogwarts last Spring, and she would have thought the same to be true of him. His barrage of questions and tone of voice, however, proved otherwise.

“I am fine, thank you,” Amelia said brusquely, skipping over completely Arthur’s hint at a question about what had caused her absence in the spring. Amelia was sure there had been gossip after her departure, because for all her efforts to remain invisible, Hogwarts was only so large and students were bound to notice her absence. She was not keen, however, to dispel or confirm any rumors that had been circulating about the details of her departure; people would think what they wanted to, regardless of what she said, and she didn’t really feel like saying anything about it in the first place.

“And Hogwarts is likely similar to how you remember it, though the political leanings of the staff have swayed somewhat,” Amelia answered his other question as succinctly as possible, though still maintaining what she thought to be an accurate summary of the current state of the school.

“And it will be the advanced kit,” Amelia said, returning quickly to business as she pushed a curtain of her long hair behind her ear, fidgeting under the scrutiny of Arthur, whom she had sort of assumed would disappear from her life after her graduated.

And this is why I don’t make assumptions… Amelia thought to herself, There is no pleasure in being wrong.

''An advanced kit? Typical Doyle... well, we shall see what we can locate around the place for you, Amelia'', he said, still looking rather confused. He then want back to his little office, wanting to get her the best kit they have. There were those standard advanced kits, which were for ordinary customers, and the ones specially made by Doyle, which were much better, especially for his classes. He located one and returned to Ameila.

''The political leanings? I do presume that the Dark Army isn't causing any trouble? I am somehow sure professor Wilson would have informed me if there had been any problems. I do hope you are having a pleasant last year'', he said, scanning through the kit he had given her to check if everything was there.

And he decided. At this moment he was sure he would tell her what he wanted to tell her after she had left. He had been a little invasive towards her, breaking the boundaries with a vast dose of disrespect for her and her persona. He, out of all people, should have respected her decisions and he, out of all people, should have been able to think of a better plan on how to repair the error between them.

He still had those feelings for her, but he was now rational enough to put his manners and her persona in front of his feelings and avoid his selfish feelings and wishes. Yes, he still trembled and he was pale, and he intentionally looked around the kit to avoid here, but he would always, every few seconds, look at her just to see here, there was no specific reason, just to see her. She made him feel weak, but still special and, although he was somewhat scared, he liked being around her. He closed the kit and raised his hand.

''Amelia... I know we haven't gotten along, but I would ask for permission to confess something'', he began. He then took a deep breath and collected his courage. ''Amelia, I am very sorry and I would like you to hear me out. While we were in Hogwarts, I put my selfish feelings and wishes in front of your decisions and I have disrespected you in every way I could. And I am truly sorry for that. I have taken things for granted, somewhat relying on the fact that you would be here... but when you left, I was sad and I had time to think about my behavior and it was improper in every possible aspect. I should not have been so invasive and I should have found another, less invasive and more proper way to communicate with you. I have failed miserably and I am honestly sorry for all of that. Now, that some time has passed and that we have met again, I would like to ask you, Amelia... can you forgive me? My only wish now, before you leave with your kit, is for you to forgive me if you could, somehow... it would mean a lot... So, Ameila, could you, and I am even prepared for this being our last meeting, if you wish so... I am not going to be that invasive... but, Ameila.... can you forgive me and can we start over... and maybe... in time... become friends?'', he asked, normally... but still, he was shivering and the paleness was more than visible. He said it...

Amelia was grateful as Arthur disappeared into the back room, guilty as she should have been for feeling that way. It was apparent that Arthur was pleased to see her, but she wasn’t sure that she felt the same way. Things had been so awkward between the two of them at the end of last year that seemed like everything would be much easier if they just didn’t have to see one another at all from here on out. But it also seemed as though that wasn’t going to be possible, seeing as he worked in a place where she would have to frequent to pick up supplies, and working in Diagon Alley meant he must still be living in the area, meaning it would be possible she would run into him in other locales than just his place of employment.

It wasn’t long before Arthur returned with a kit in his hands, still continuing his previous line of questioning about school, but his questions seemed more rhetorical than actual, and his eyes were not on hers, and for these reasons Amelia did not feel compelled to respond to his comments on the interworkings of Hogwarts. Instead, she watched him check over her kit, his fingers passing over the different ingredients with a confidence that suggested he had done this many times before. It took him a few minutes to finish his inspection, and Amelia was ready to step forward and take the kit from him when Arthur put his hand up, keeping her from taking that step forward and leaving her looking quizzically at him as he began to speak.

When he asked for permission to speak his mind, Amelia felt an immediate urge to tell him not to out of fear of what he would say, but before she could reply to his request, Arthur squared his shoulders and continued on, apparently taking her moment of silence as acceptance of his request.

Amelia found her emotions moving from confusion to bafflement to incredulity very quickly, though this progression of emotions was demonstrated on her face only in the thinning line of her lips as Arthur spoke. With each sentence, Amelia wanted to make a retort, to interrupt him from going further, but she could find no place in which to interject. Arthur pressed on and on as though if he did not say everything in one go, he might not be able to come back to it. He wasn’t altogether incorrect in this assumption, for if he had given Amelia an opportunity to cut him off, she likely would have taken it and left before he could finish, but as it was, Amelia was stuck rooted to the spot with no choice but to listen to the words that fell like heavy stones from Arthur’s lips, the weight of them not missed by the younger girl.

When he did finally finish, he looked as though he had run a marathon, and Amelia had to drop her eyes from him in order to even begin to process a plausible answer to his proposal. Of course, she had about five barbed remarks to make, ones that she would have made to just about anyone else without hesitation, but Arthur’s sincerity was throwing her off. Here was a boy that she had never treated with anything other than indifference or disdain, and yet he was apologizing to her. It was not out of the realm of appropriate apologies, at least to Amelia, who fully believed that Arthur’s invasive actions last year warranted apology, but it did seem slightly off balance considering what had come to pass between them. Amelia knew she had always been more unkind to Arthur than he had been to her, but she had never thought to make an apology to him. It had simply never occurred to her.

But now he presented her with an ultimatum and had put the decision in her hands. He was giving her the out she had wanted in the spring, the opportunity to push him completely out of her life and stop having to worry about whatever it was that he was doing or thinking about her. But now that she was presented with the opportunity, so ready to be taken in her hands, Amelia found herself hesitant to take it. After all she had put Arthur through, he was still trying, and the reason completely escaped Amelia’s understanding, but she knew enough to understand that what Arthur was doing was rare. With the amount of time and effort she spent pushing people away, it would be much easier for him, just like it was easier for everyone else, to walk away without a fight. But here he was, bearing it all to fight for something he had to know would be next to impossible with Amelia: friendship.

It was a difficult choice, and Amelia had to attempt several times to speak, opening and closing her mouth while nothing came out, before she was finally able to align her thoughts and weigh the pros and cons of the situation. She knew that by making this decision, she was committing to trying to work on something that she honestly didn’t believe was possible. But Arthur believed in it, and maybe that would be enough. Maybe belief in friendship was contagious, or maybe Arthur could just believe enough for the both of them.

“We…. We could try,” Amelia said, being careful not to commit too fully to actually becoming friends. That possibility was still dependent on a lot of things in Amelia’s eyes, mostly her own ability to get close to people and her history of dislike for Arthur. Although he seemed willing to put whatever feelings he had aside, Amelia was not so quick to discount her own intuitions, and she knew that attempting friendship with Arthur was going to be challenging at the very least. But for someone who had so few genuine offers of friendship, and no one she was really close to, perhaps it was time she gave something new a try.

The worst case scenario was that their attempt at friendship would fail, and she would end up exactly where she was now, perhaps a bit more worse for wear, but at this stage of recluse, there was only so much further she could recede within herself. With so little to lose, taking the risk was not as potentially costly, and that logical explanation was enough to allow Amelia to consent to an attempt at friendship with a boy that a year ago she would have been content never to see again.

This is going to be a long road… Amelia thought to herself, unable to think of anything else to say and instead awkwardly alternating between looking at Arthur and looking at the floor.

Let’s just hope there are several escape routes… Amelia’s mind quipped, still not convinced that this was a good idea. And Amelia wasn’t altogether sure her subconscious wasn’t right.

This silence was murder, sheer bloody murder. Of course, it was the anticipation that did the trick, but the silence was a part of it. He was shivering, pale as chalk, as he could see when he looked at his palms. He would shiver less if he was bare naked on the North Pole. He observed her, her cold expression, knowing that she was contemplating, but still struggling to deduce what about.

She had finally, after all this time, been presented with the opportunity to run. During their time in Hogwarts, he was the one imposing himself on her, forcing her, in his own morbid, but sill courteous, way to mingle with him, to spend time and to communicate with him, completely disregarding what she wanted. Yes, he understood why she was like that and that is why he was giving her this opportunity now. But, why was she hesitating?

Did she just trouble herself with the answer? Was she... mulling it over? He did, of course, hope that her dithering would give a satisfactory answer for him, but he was, from the beginning, ready for a negative reply from her. Not because he had a negative opinion... it was, rather, because he had done things he should not have and he was ready for a formal, negative reply from her, which would result in her paying him and him giving her the kit. But no!

What did she just say? They could? Did she just give an affirmative answer? Did she just say... yes? The paleness and the shivering became more intense, but on his face there appeared a smile, a sincere smile of childish happiness. There were only several occasions when he had smiled like this, and this one was one of them. This answer, so important and special to him, made him so happy that he would have started jumping like a baby if the situation had been any different. Amelia Lyons, THE Amelia Lyons, just said yes...

Still smiling, he took a deep breath, sighed and looked at her. ''Thank you, thank you very much'', he said softly. And he paused. ''And... how is this supposed to work? Sorry for the moronic question, but, as you, I haven't had much experience with this. I mean, should it stagnate on this or? I mean, if you'd like to take a short stroll around the alley, I could lock the store up? Or would you fancy another location and time for out meeting?'', he asked, stroking his neck as a sign of confusion. ''I am sorry for the stupid questions, but do understand that I do not know how this works in practice'', he said, smiling in the end.

At first, Amelia thought that Arthur was literally going to faint right in front of her eyes, which sent her into a moment of temporary panic that lasted until she saw the smile that spread across his face. No one smiled while they were fainting, right? Right? Amelia had never actually seen someone faint before, so she could not speak from experience, but from everything she had read on the subject of health, smiling was not a symptom that preceded fainting. A symptom of other things, sure – and some of these, she was not entirely certain Arthur didn’t have – but for the moment, Amelia allowed herself to breath a bit easier when Arthur was still on his feet a few seconds later, still grinning like a madman.

Amelia tried to return the smile, but it ended up looking more like a lopsided grimace. Although Arthur seemed to be completely gung-ho about this whole friendship idea, to the point of asking a series of question after which he did not wait for a response, Amelia was not quite as confident in its potential for success. She and Arthur were both relative recluses, and neither had a lot of experience when it came to interpersonal relationships. How were they going to manage to stumble in the right direction when both of them lacked the social grace to even hold a conversation for longer than a few minutes? True, Arthur was more conversationally gifted – or maybe he just talked more, which didn’t quite count as the same thing – but Amelia was pretty much dead in the water when it came to forging friendships.

“I don’t know that there is a right answer to any of those questions,” Amelia said hesitantly, more than a little intimidated by all the inquiries at once, and also by how much this friendship idea meant to Arthur. While she was still questioning whether or not she should even have agreed to it, Arthur was forging ahead, making plans.

“I don’t really do the whole… you know… friendship thing all that often, so maybe we could…” Amelia hesitated, rubbing her palm against the back of her neck awkwardly as she searched for some suitable friendship-like activity. Not having much experience, she didn’t really know what friends did together, and she especially didn’t know what one did when she wasn’t really sure they were friends yet. Saying you were going to take a stab at friendship didn’t make you friends, of that Amelia was fairly certain. There was some actual work involved, but the Ravenclaw girl didn’t know quite what.

“Maybe you could show me what you are working on?” Amelia asked, taking the safe route in asking Arthur about something academic. Both of them were knowledge-seekers, and Arthur had always taken a liking to talking about himself and his brilliance, so asking him to show her the potions he was studying could potentially give them some common ground to stand on, while simultaneously guaranteeing that perhaps Amelia wouldn’t have to talk much at all, which she really preferred.

And neither did he. All of his, so-called, activities were restricted to discussions with his parents and mentors, practice and reading. He never had a true friend, especially a female one, with which he could do those friend-like activities. Of course, it was an obscure field for him. But, then she gave that suggestion and it seemed perfectly natural for them to do just that, but still... how did it slip his mind? How?

''Yes... I could... of course I could. Please, do follow me'', Arthur said with a smile after grasping reality once more. He gave her a sign to follow him and disappeared behind the curtain. First, there was a small, narrow hall that lead to the laboratory. They had to pass through that hall, which had been pretty damp when he came. Doyle did not care about the hygiene of the store itself, but he kept the laboratory, literally, germ free. That fact told much about his personality.

As he passed the narrow hall, he entered into a large laboratory. It was full of a variety of things. Flasks, bottles, dead animals, laboratory equipment, trunks,... But, the most important thing was that it was clean as a hospital. All of the equipment was positioned on shelves that surrounded the laboratory, or on the white, granite floor. In the middle, there was a large table made of thick wood that contained all the material he had currently worked on. ''I am currently working on Felix Felicis, and I am in the middle phase. Professor Doyle gave me a brief lecture and told me to brew it as part of my studies here. I am currently in the middle phase, so we'll see how it comes out in the end'', he said.

He then took a spare lab coat and offered it to Amelia, helping her put it on (this was not meant as godmodding, I just had to write it... you comment on it however you want). ''You should wear one, in case something spills, it wouldn't like to see you get dirty because of me'', he said with a smile.

''As you can see, there is a lot stuff here, dozens of ingredients and dozens of instructions on how to make potions easier and faster. If you ever need anything from here, be sure to call'', he said. ''So, Ameila, what do you think?'', he asked.

Amelia was pleased with the lack of resistance she was met with from Arthur concerning her suggestion of something “friend-like” to do, because if he had rejected it, she wasn’t certain she could come up with something else. She hesitated only for a moment when Arthur gestured for her to follow him – this would literally be her last chance to flee through the door that was still only a few meters behind her – but after a moment of indecision she buried her flight response and pushed forward, only a few steps behind Arthur’s gangly form.

Passing through the hallway, Amelia was becoming a bit uncertain with her suggestion, and it had everything to do with the damp, slightly molded walls of the hallway they were passing through. When Arthur had said he worked in a lab, Amelia had been expecting something more akin to her father’s study at home, not so much a Frankenstein-esque workshop which belied a maintenance style similar to that of the 1600s. She walked more slowly as they passed through the narrow hallway, careful not to touch the walls and trying not to look down at what might be on the floor.

There was light at the end of the tunnel, though – literally – and Amelia was physically relieved when she stepped into the pristine atmosphere of a laboratory that much more matched the mental image she had conjured earlier. The room was filled with a multitude of objects, ranging from biological to mechanical, and Amelia took the time to take in her surroundings as Arthur described what he was working on. There were several bottles on a shelf high above her head, and Amelia was tempted to reach for one or two of them, but she knew better than to impinge on Arthur’s workspace any more than necessary. If this had been her lab, she would have insisted that everyone keep their hands to themselves, so she was conscious of that as she made her observations.

Intent on trying to identify a particularly cloudy-looking potion, Amelia hadn’t noticed Arthur coming up behind her, and when he nudged her shoulder with his hand she was startled out of her reverie. He was holding a lab coat as if to help her into it, and although her initial reaction had been to take it from him and do it herself, she decided against it and instead braced herself as he slipped the coat over her shoulders, making as little actual contact with him as possible. She supposed it was a friendly, polite thing to do, but she was still not overly comfortable with Arthur being that close to her, so she was quick to step away when the coat had settled itself on her arms and shoulders, and she pulled her long hair out from beneath it and let it fall around her shoulders.

I should have brought a hair tie… Amelia thought to herself, thinking of the impracticality of being in a lab and having her hair be a distraction.

Amelia nodded at Arthur’s description of the laboratory, having come to the same conclusion that he was now laying out for her. She was intrigued by the idea of making potions more efficiently, and instructions that would allow her to do so, but her inquisitive nature toward potions was not yet enough to allow her to overcome the slight awkwardness of the situation that was still hanging around, so she was still slow and methodical in responding, careful in choosing her words.

“I think you have done quite well for yourself,” Amelia said, gesturing broadly at the room around them, “You are fortunate to have Headmaster Doyle as a mentor. I understand him to be a man of some brilliance, in spite of what some might consider to be a somewhat calloused personality.”