“What would you even teach?” He asked, as he turned the doll over in his hands. Then he shuddered, swearing that it smiled at him for a moment before its mouth morphed back; why his father decided to keep this was confusing because even Fig would have gone running for the hills if she was ever presented with it as a child. He tossed it into a box. “They’d make you sit through etiquette class all over again.” Although it was a fact that he'd be sitting right there beside him. Gus had been dodging the professor since he’d come aboard, although the old bag was retiring – now he was going to have to figure out the new hire’s schedule and dodge them while making it look like it wasn’t on purpose.

(He’d walked straight into a wall last time when he’d abruptly turned around to avoid making eye contact.)

“Oh, Dempsey! I swore I saw a chimera in the Forbidden Forest while I was overseeing detention one night. How cool would that to be find?” He laughed; if anyone would be willing to come face to face with a creature that might kill them, it would be Endymion. (It was probably a good thing they didn't work together anymore, mostly for their safety.) Spinning around, Gus watched just in time to watch his friend almost impale himself on a sword; well, having a good friend as a ghost would be pretty awesome and then he’d have to come to Hogwarts with him – it was either fate or karma trying to tell Endymion the same thing. He couldn’t help but laugh at the thought, loud and jovial as he moved on to the next box.

Lifting the cover, Gus nearly choked on all the dust that shot into his face, causing him to cover his mouth and wheeze. He patted his chest before he glanced back up at Endymion, nodding. “I have faith you’ll find someone perfect, and soon.” Even if it took a few more years, which Gus wouldn't count as soon, but he wasn't about tell his friend that. Of course Dym always been a romantic at heart, looking for someone Gus wasn’t even sure was real, but then again he had no room to talk – he was in love with someone who was unobtainable; still, he’d be happy to assist the man in his happily ever after because at least one of them deserved it. (Even if it appeared at the moment both their love lives were crashing and burning.)

Gus rooted through the box, his fingers wrapping around a smooth box that he brought close to his face and blew on it; the damn thing sent it straight back into his face, along with the dust that had collected on top of it causing him to cough. His fingers froze and he suddenly found all his attention on the box before he was forcing out a rather odd sounding laugh.

“Me? Oh god, no. I don’t even have a place to live yet, outside of Hogwarts. I did give a ring to a friend though –” Only because he’d conveniently had it in his pocket after buying it from another friend the day before. “But not as an engagement ring. More as a, you can say we’re together if you need to, ring.” His face contorted as he glanced back at Endymion. “I hope that doesn’t mean we are engaged, by some weird societal rule.” Winnie had been skeptical to receive it and understood what it meant – plus she knew about his preferences, and it certainly wasn’t her.

---