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Along one of the endless corridors in the dungeons of Hogwarts Castle, Professor Chad Monaghan’s personal office can be found behind a labelled wooden door. Although the door is usually kept open, to welcome students, the contents of the office can still be viewed through a clear glass panel in the upper half of the door.

Encasing the room are four stone walls which give it a dank and dark atmosphere. The office’s subterranean location gives no natural light.

Centered just in front of the back wall, there sits a large, heavy desk with a golden-yellow-upholstered chair behind it. In front of the desk, there sit two chairs. Upon the desk, there is much in the way of papers, parchments and writing utensils, however each article seems to have its place. Behind the large wooden desk, there is a proportionally large, simple, bookshelf that holds multiple volumes of potion books and reference works alike.

To the left of the desk, on one side of the room, a large, black, cauldron sits upon a fire, brewing away. Behind the personal potion-brewing station, another labelled door shows the way to the Professor’s own private storeroom, which contains shelves upon shelves of rare and exotic ingredients for advanced potions. This door is kept locked at all times.

In the right corner nearest the door, there is a small wood-burning stove, which functionally heats the room.

To the right of the desk, on the back wall, there is another door. This one, unmarked, opens into a larger, more lavish looking room, which comprises the Professor’s personal quarters. The second chamber is, like the first, completely surrounded by stone walls and has no natural light source, but surprisingly, the decorum does well in the way of brightening up the room. The basic colour scheme is golden yellow (reminiscent of the Professor's past house, Hufflepuff), which gives the room a warm, cozy look. Throughout the room, black accents are used to allude to a softer, masculine feel.

Against the left wall, there is a large king-sized four-poster canopy bed that juts out horizontally. The fabric that drapes over the canopy is a heavier golden-yellow tuile. The bed is neatly made with a thick down comforter and plump pillows, all matching the canopy in colour and texture. At the foot of the bed, there is a leather trunk, with heavy straps that contain many of the Professor’s most prized possessions.

Opposite the bed, on the right wall, there is a large, ornate fireplace with a thick mantel. Inside, a large fire is found crackling, warming and brightening the cold and dark room. Atop the mantel, there is a simple, heavy, antique clock.

Hogwarts Castle during the winter is depicted in a large framed painting above the fireplace. It’s palette of colours does more in warming the room, than cooling it. The golden sun glistening on the snow, which blankets the grounds, comes to remind the Professor of his most favourite time of year as a student and now, a teacher at Hogwarts.

On either side of the fireplace sit two overstuffed chairs facing inwards, making an intimate setting. On the stony floor, between the two chairs, lies a thick, golden rug, which matches the rest of the room. In the far corner, there is a small writing desk, which sits beside another non-descript door leading to the Professor’s private bathroom.

Entering the room, one looks back towards the door to see a large, heavy, carved wardrobe against the entrance wall. This piece rounds out the simple, but rich and warm décor of the room and provides storage for the Professor’s garments.

After bringing the unconscious Rain to her office on the second floor, Chad returned to his own office. Having descended into the dark dungeons, he entered his bright little office to find a large package awaiting him. Placed upon his desk, the box was wrapped in non-descript, brown wrapping paper. Reading the writing on the box, he found that it was addressed to him. As he went to unwrap it, the box suddenly began to move. Anxiously, Chad tore open the package to find that a small, sandy creature was stuffed inside. It was a creature Chad was very familiar with; dressed in an old, torn pillowcase was Dainty the house-elf. Shocked to find the little elf cramped into the package, he immediately grabbed her and set her down.

"Dainty, what are you doing here? Why are you stuffed in this box?" Chad asked concerned.
"Dainty's previous master has sent her to live with Master Chad at Hogwarts. Dainty's previous master has sent this letter," replied the little elf, offering a parchment held in her small, worn hands. Chad took the parchment and read it quickly.

Chad,
We have no use for Dainty anymore and she has voiced her request to come live with you (we wanted to give her a strong potion to knock her out, but we thought it a waste; she still can do some mediocre cleaning). It seems she has developed a... liking towards you. If you are reading this, you've probably already opened the package. Enjoy!
Mum.

PS: If you don’t want her, you may rid yourself of her; I'm sure you have the resources to arrange for her disposal.


Chad gaped in horror as he realised what had happened. "Dainty, how long have you been in that box?"
"Dainty has been in her box for three days," replied the elf weakly.
"Had you anything to eat?"
"Dainty's previous master did not pack anything for Dainty's trip."
"This won't do. You look incredibly ill."
The house-elf's large, protruding ears dropped immediately, her round, grey eyes becoming sad. "Dainty apologizes for her appearance. Dainty shall punish herself later."
"No, no, don't do that!" yelled Chad. "Here, have some food." He conjured a basket of steaming buns and a roast chicken. "You're going to need a good revitalization potion to regain your health." He retrieved a small bottle from his drawer and gave it to the house-elf. "Now you eat up. I'm writing a letter to my mother." He angrily withdrew a quill and loudly voiced his concerns about Dainty's cruel treatment on a piece of parchment.

Dainty was a middle-aged house-elf who Chad had grown up with. Dainty did all the household chores in the Monaghan house and was subject to mildly appalling conditions. Chad always disapproved of his family's ownership of the house-elf, but she always remained in service. Often, Chad would sneak the elf "luxuries" such as fresh food from the table and occasional gave her breaks by doing some of her work for her. He always liked her; as almost a friend, but Dainty's place as a house-elf, owned and meant to serve her master, seemed to make her more like a talking pet. However, Dainty never seemed to forget Chad's kindness and it was this that compelled her to request to be inherited unto him. Ending his letter with a half-hearted salutation, Chad signed the letter with an aggressive swish of his quill to find it immediately taken out of his possession. Dainty had snatched the letter out of his hands.

"Dainty shall post this for Master."
"No, Dainty, I'll post it. You're in no shape to be working." Chad took the letter from her and patted her head. Taking out his wand, he flicked it. "I've got a bed for you in my room. After you've eaten, have a rest. Then, I'd like you to explore the castle. Go to the kitchens and meet some other house-elves and try to make friends. I'll call you if I need you." As soon as Chad exited the office, the sounds of Dainty, ravenously devouring her meal, could be heard.

Nicole walked down the dungeon corridor, nervous, yet at the same time happy that she was going to see her most favourite teacher ever. She had butterflies in her stomach as she neared the door to Professor Monaghan's office. Her potions books were stuck under her right arm, and she held them tightly. These were her ticket to go see him. She turned the corner and with one last deep breath walked in, as confidently as she could. She knocked lightly on the open door, and looked around. She spotted the professor seated at his desk, looking at what Nicole guessed were the tests her class had recently written. Nicole was pretty sure she had failed that. "Uh, Professor?" she asked quietly, then when he didn't hear her she cleared her throat and knocked again, a little louder this time. "Professor?" Her timid voice echoed on the walls. Damn, she thought. I'm outgoing enough to other people. Why the heck can't I simply talk to him, too?

"Uh…" Nicole stammered. "I… uh… Well…" Nicole could not think with his handsome, penetrating eyes distracting her. She tried to think of why she had, in fact, turned up at his office on a Sunday afternoon. She looked down at her feet and said, "I… I guess I needed extra help." She winced. "I guess"?? Why would you guess? You should know, you idiot!" she chastised herself. "I mean, I do need extra help, Professor." Nicole looked back up as she said this and almost lost her train of thought as she looked into his deep blue eyes. Luckily, she caught herself and managed to focus her gaze on his face, yet avoided looking directly into his eyes, as if she would be blinded by them. "See, I don't really understand at all what we've been doing in class. I actually thought I had failed that test. I guessed at everything," she said. She still had not moved an inch from her position beside the door. This was fine with her. She could get closer later.

"Er, I think I am lost," Nicole replied as she slowly stepped forward and sat down uncomfortably in one of the chairs in front of his desk. "I even tried doing extra reading in the textbook, but I actually have no idea what I'm doing." She opened her textbook, which until now had been held to her side so tightly that she imagined if she let go it would probably stick there. She laid the book on the desk in front of him beside the tests, and pointed at the pages. "These are the ones I read to understand that last lesson you taught us. But the wording is so confusing, I don't even know where to start to make this potion." She looked up at him again and took in those mysterious eyes, and that perfectly shaped face, the goatee simply adding to the attractiveness. "I read it three times and I still don't get it."

Nicole froze. Damn. He knows I don’t pay attention to what he’s saying. Hopefully he hasn’t figured out that what I do pay attention to is his wonderful face… Nicole tried to play it cool. After all, he was smiling that awesome smile he had, as if he knew something you didn’t know. “Uh… Well, I must not have heard you quite right… I thought you said that that was optional, and that the book was easier.” Nicole winced at her own words. What the hell was that? He would never say that! Nevertheless, she tried to smile too, as if she was simply trying to be funny.

Nicole stared as blankly as she could into his handsome eyes, though she really understood. But she’d much rather prolong this meeting than leave so quickly. She had to continue looking stupid. “... I'm not sure I understand. Why would we leave any ingredients out? Wouldn’t it completely change the potion?” she asked. “And I don’t get what changes just by crushing the Mandrake roots…”

Hmm... Trust him, eh? Nicole thought to herself as she listened to his wonderful voice. That might be fun... This spawned certain fantasies in her mind for a moment, quite enjoyable fantasies, most of which she cringed at for the simple reason that she was speaking with the very person she was fantasizing about. She was always quite afraid that he could read her mind, especially when those piercing blue eyes looked right into hers. It seemed like he could see everything she was thinking at times. But of course, if he could read Nicole's mind, well, he would be so thoroughly disgusted that he would not be able to look at her anymore. Unless he had incredible self-control. But Nicole would much rather he simply not read her mind. Nicole suddenly came out of her reverie and noticed he was staring at her, waiting for an answer to the statement he had seemingly made while Nicole had been daydreaming. "Uh... Um, well, that's very interesting..." Nicole trailed off as she fumbled for something to say that sounded generic enough that it wouldn't arouse suspicion. But she could think of nothing else, so she simply left it at that, hoping that he would not realise what she had been thinking about while he was talking.