October 28th, 1894 — Library

He struggled to sit still as he attempted to read the book he knew he needed to read before the next defense against the dark arts class. His mind naturally was more excited for the practical part of the class that involved actually casting spells. However, it was the book parts that truly mannered from a grades perspective and he was determined to succeed. So he forced most his movements to just be his legs that swayed underneath the chair he was sitting on - though naturally not much ahead as he’d hate to accidentally kick Charles who was at the table.

His eyes blinked unable to take any more of the letters that were quickly forming a chorus of dull tones inside his head that weren’t leading to any excitement. It didn’t help the book he was reading was about defensive shields not the exciting hexes and duels that made the subject have small crescendos of excitement.

He leaned back as he turned another page and asked quietly “ Don’t you find it curious that to be a healer you need high grades in Defense Against the Dark Arts? I just don’t see that many people lacking proper sense and casting hexes about for it to be a practical need. “

Charles Whymper

  

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Charles was trying very hard not complain about all the fidgeting Mr. Smellie was doing at the moment. It was very distracting, but he'd already committed to sitting there, and it was becoming a personal struggle of will. A personal struggle that he was about to lose when the younger boy spoke up.

Looking up from the parchment he was taking notes down on, Charles said, "You'd be surprised how rare common sense actually is," he said. "But aside from that, if a dark wizard decided they wanted to curse you, wouldn't you want a healer who knew about curses?"

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He never imagined common sense could be so lacking that people would be dueling with spells enough for it to be a basic need.

He said “You’re right. I’d want a healer who knew about curses.”

Then he paused before he continued “I’d of expected it to be like the need for Care of Magical Creatures grades for healers that work in the Creature-Induced Injury ward. Considering some of the animals I’ve saw running about Hogsmeade when I got lost as a younger year I figure that would be more common.”

Then out of habit of knowing one was supposed to turn pages so often he turned to the next page even if he hadn’t finished reading the one he was on.

  

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Quincy throwback signature image by MJ

"For what it's worth," Charles said, "from what I can tell, every ward seems pretty busy most of the time?" He shrugged. "Whether it's from people having accidents or getting attacked or whatever. Maybe when there are enough magical people around, that's just how it goes?" That was the best explanation Charles could come up with, anyway. He wondered if it had been worse when there had only been St. Mungo's in London. At least now there were two magic hospitals--and the infirmary in Irvingly, he supposed, which was both magical and not? "My mother's a healer, and she's always pretty busy, and from the way she talks about it, it sounds like that's normal."

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He blinked. He couldn’t imagine a hospital being always full with how few wizards he saw. Then again they could just apparate about so there were probably more wizards than he imagined.

He said “ I’d of expected the opposite seeing how scrapes can be healed with a wave of a wand. “

Flipping the page of his book again having not even finished that page he continued “ though I guess there are a lot more risks than scraped knees with wizards about. “

When Charles mentioned his mother being a healer he asked “ Does she speak positively of being a healer? “

  

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Charles thought basic healing spells probably counted as standard household fare. Otherwise the hospitals would probably be overrun with people suffering minor aches and pains. Imagine. "She seems to like it," Charles said. He'd never explicitly asked, but she'd chosen it, and if she ever did complain about it, she didn't complain about it to him. "It seems to be rewarding."

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He nodded and was happy to hear that being a healer was a rewarding career. He moved his finger over a passage in the page in front of him so he didn’t loose track of it as he looked up towards Charles needing a break from reading. As his eyes needed a rest after so much reading.

He said “ My older brother is a surgeon and he really likes being able to help people by stitching them back together. He finds it rewarding saving people too, which is why I want to be a healer. “

  

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Quincy throwback signature image by MJ

"I don't think I know much about surgery," Charles said. "Or muggle medicine in general. Is it as hard to get into as healing?" He assumed it must be, if in different ways, probably. The general idea was similar, at any rate. Even if Charles had no idea what the muggle versions of the things he was studying were.

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