when the summer dies | juniper

[octavian archimedes vector jr.]

stuck on a thousand ideas

and only one that works

January 10, 2028
juniper minerva mcgonagall

Archie grinned and waved at a couple of students walking past him as they greeted him excitedly. Jumping back into Cursebreaking type work had felt good. He still had Arithmancy, of course, but even he had to admit it was a little fun watching the trainees figure their way out of a charmed sand pit or detangle themselves out of cursed vines resembling a venomous tentacula. Fortunately for them, Archie was not going to subject them to a venomous plant.

The Central Building housed one of the staff lounges, and its proximity to the library and other buildings made it popular. Archie entered and only noted a few Professors. Only one lifted their head to give a quick wave. But even with his good mood, it didn’t mean Archie wasn’t exhausted. His schedule was grueling with the classes he taught. Thankfully Ivy returned, so he didn’t have Magical Theory on his plate anymore, but his current stress involved planning how to prepare and test this class of trainees.

Taking a seat at a random table, Archie retrieved his notebook as he stared at a poorly drawn calendar. Scribbling scheduling options seemed the most convenient until he had something concrete. But at this rate, he would start getting gray hair over this. Just that morning, Archie had sent a message to MYSTIC, MAGIC, and LIFE staff asking them to essentially recruit people they knew to help add to the available classes. There were already a few from the Ministry who assisted the Law Enforcement courses, so that was settled, but other areas were lacking. He just hoped responses would come in soon, so he’d feel better about the schedule.

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A curious message had come across Juniper's desk earlier in the week: assistance was needed in the Cursebreaking class. There weren't many LIFE students in the Cursebreaking and Auror trainee programs that were also her students, but there were a few in the more technical one. None of them were bad students by any means, simply distracted. She knew exactly what to expect from those going through cursebreaking. The grueling hours and programs to make sure they had all the tools necessary to keep themselves alive weren't anything to laugh at. She had seen firsthand how it turned out for those that were actually serious about it. Rhys had jumped headfirst into it, and often times she looked back and wondered if it was his fault in the end or hers for encouraging something she actively disliked but had no control over. Or maybe it was just immaturity. Over the last several months, she had started to wonder if a classroom setting would benefit them at all. They were all good enough kids though, so assisting in any way she could with Professor Vector's request was the least she could do. She still had a few contacts amongst the Cursebreakers that weren't already teaching.

It wasn't her intent to bring it up the next time she saw Archie Vector though, and bumping into him in the staff lounge was certainly faster than she had expected. Obviously she wasn't required to toss out names instantly upon seeing him, but it was also sort of difficult not to when she had so many that came to mind. Her own work could wait, and she wasn't required back to WitchTV until later in the afternoon for reviews of her current show. "Professor Vector," she cleared her throat and stated rather formerly as she took a seat across from him at the table. There were still times where she felt awkward referring to other professors as peers, only because she had been such a suck-up in school to her own. Vector was only a few years her senior but had also been teaching prior to this year. He deserved being treated with seniority because of that, right? "Are you still looking for cursebreakers that are in the field? I may know a few..." Now that she thought about it, hopefully they were still alive. Rhys definitely was as of a few years ago. She could confirm that personally.

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[octavian archimedes vector jr.]

stuck on a thousand ideas

and only one that works

January 10, 2028
juniper minerva mcgonagall

Archie crossed out several lines in his notes. His priority was the second-year trainees considering he needed to determine if they were ready for the real fieldwork. Fortunately, they had made it relatively easy this time around. The same wasn’t nearly as true for the first-year trainees. A few stood out as naturals, others Archie sensed needed to build their confidence. And naturally, each trainee class had their one or two individuals Archie suspected would switch programs by July. But he couldn’t test them all on his own. A few professors graciously offered their time to quiz the trainees in specific subjects or areas.

One of the more important areas was Charms and having help in that area had relieved some of his stress. Which let him focus on Arithmancy and specific topics such as Cryptography and Traps. It wasn’t a solid replacement for an experienced Cursebreaker. Just that morning he’d sent a letter off to a few old friends and colleagues. He doubted Cas would even dignify his request with a response, but if Archie didn’t ask then the answer was certainly ‘no’. But it was a busy time of year, while Archie was worried about the future Cursebreakers others focused on future Aurors, Hitwizards and Mediwitches and wizards. Not to mention the added pressure of this school’s brand-new approach to training than in years past.

But just as he felt about ready to call it a day and nap in his office, he heard his name and the sound of a chair moving. He almost thought it was a student by how she addressed him, but he confirmed it was not when he looked up. ”Archie, please.” Archie insisted, putting his quill down offering Juniper a friendly grin. He would have even accepted Octavian, but it felt odd for another Professor to address him as such. It certainly felt odd that a McGonagall was on staff and not teaching Transfiguration at MAGIC much like he taught Arithmancy as a Vector. Plus, whispers told him the advanced class was far better structured than the MAGIC level, but that was a pending conversation for the council that summer.

Juniper piqued his interest before he could ask how he could help her. ”Yes, yes I am.” Merlin, he’d only sent the message that morning but the quick turnaround made him feel optimistic. ”You do? Do you think they’d be interested in helping?” Archie was pretty good about not seeming so stressed, so he hoped that still applied. But he had to backtrack first. ”Can you tell me more about them?” As much as he needed the help, it wouldn’t benefit anyone to just get anybody.

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"Right. Sorry. Old habits, you know?" Though Juniper still thought that professors that were older than her and held more experience deserved the distinction. She was still going to call him professor if they were speaking in the corridors, out of fear that the students would start to get lenient with names as well. That absolutely wasn't going to be how her classes went. Even if she was friendly with her students (which she currently was), she believed there had to be a line drawn in the sand to distinguish between authority and not. Now obviously she had very little sway at Hogwarts outside of her surname and she didn't want to build that sort of reputation in her first year of teaching, but the students were there to learn and she had to do her job. So that was part of the reason why she still felt awkward being on friendlier terms with the other teachers. They understood this whole thing better than she did. Learning from their examples was probably the smartest thing she could do.

Thankfully she could put that behind her because it seemed like she had struck at the right time concerning Archie's needs for active Cursebreakers. "I'd definitely have to check with a few to make sure they're still working, but a couple come to mind," she explained. As for interested, it probably depended on whether or not Gringotts let them do something like this. They should, considering this would be for trainee classes, right? She'd heard enough of the goblins' stinginess over the years to know that getting them to pay a Cursebreaker or two for extra work that didn't net gold or jewels would be difficult. "There's one that I would recommend for sure. He used to do most of his work in the Americas when we spoke more frequently," Juniper began in on potentially offering up Rhys as her sacrificial lamb. "But he also sort of went everywhere. Anything to break away from Egypt would be good, right?"

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[octavian archimedes vector jr.]

stuck on a thousand ideas

and only one that works

January 10, 2028
juniper minerva mcgonagall

Archie didn’t fret about titles and all that very much. Although he did insist his students call him Professor, not that it was ever an issue. Juniper had not been one of his students, and really, he was only a few years older than her. She was older than Nova, he knew that much. And Archie was far younger than the other Heads of Houses but the opportunity had presented itself. Now he was swamped with work, it was enjoyable, but it was still a lot of work. But Archie didn’t complain, all this was new and simply needed time to settle.

He shouldn’t have been surprised that anyone knew several Cursebreakers. The magical community felt small at times. ”Oh—how long as he been working?” Over a decade ago Archie stepped away from this career, it didn’t make him any less capable. Currently employed Cursebreakers would be optimal, and the trainees would know some of them already. ”I see, not many venture out there.” Archie responded. Egypt was easy. The ancient areas of the Middle East and the Mediterranean were a challenge but far less complex than most areas on the American contents. ”Unlike Egypt, you have jungles, humidity, lots of poisonous plants, animals and magical beasts.” It was not somewhere Archie had volunteered to go after his training.

Not to mention the dragons in South America. But he didn’t want to go on a tangent. ”I can reach out to him if you give me his information—unless you want to pass the message along?” Archie was happy to ask and reach out but if he was a friend of Juniper’s maybe she’d have an easier time getting ahold of him. Cursebreakers were hard to reach at times. It felt good to have a lead, but then another thought came to mind. ”Oh—before I forget. If you have time, I’ll need your help transfiguring some rocks into various items—fake artifacts, things like that.” Sad to say that his colleague and fellow professor was busy. Not that such a task would take long, but it would give Cas something to work with.

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"We graduated in 2018...so ten years now," Juniper answered. The terror that fell over her when she realized she had been out of school for almost a decade was instant, and she now knew why her students looked at her like she had two-heads when talking about certain things. If the LIFE kids were like that, she could only imagine how it would be for MAGIC classes or younger. Archie was still talking about Egypt and Latin America while Juniper went through her inner monologue of panic over her age. The one thing that had stuck out to her about trips to Egypt that Rhys had made was that he always brought back sand. She didn't like sand. It was coarse and rough, and irritating, and it got everywhere. Finding it in the bed under the sheets was always fun too. And pocket sand? Absolutely devastating. Maybe the one good thing about the breakup was not having to deal with sand anymore. She could imagine how awful it would have been had Rhys specialized in Egypt and not elsewhere.

"It might be better if you do...but if you can't find him for some reason I can give it a shot," Juniper said as she pulled out a notebook and scribbled Rhys's name down on it. She didn't trust herself to do it, because she knew she'd get distracted and forget to ask until it was too late. It always turned out that way. At the same time, if Archie couldn't convince him, she knew she could get that done in a heartbeat.

As for the transfiguration assistance, that was easy. "I'm done for the day, so if you want I can do it right now." Transfiguring a rock into another inanimate object was child's play for her by this point. Somehow she still got a thrill out of it though. Turning herself into a cat lost its edge just a tad after years of doing it, and she could only convert so many mice into goblets before that boring too. But a rock into a fake ancient artifact? Absolutely.

octavian archimedes vector jr. ● 349 ● Song by Artist

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOX 2.0

[octavian archimedes vector jr.]

stuck on a thousand ideas

and only one that works

January  2028
juniper minerva mcgonagall

A few days later...

Archie never expected the emotional rollercoaster of this job. But it couldn’t be helped. Juniper had given Archie a name, and he hadn’t wasted any time writing a letter. And then following up with another letter. The response had been short and very blunt. Archie obviously didn’t know the guy. He recalled Juniper mentioning that they’d graduated in 2018, the same year he’d switched careers. Perhaps if he had stayed a year longer, Greyback wouldn’t have brushed him off so quickly. But he’d also asked around about him and heard mixed reviews regarding people skills but no complaints about his job performance.

He walked into the lounge, only a few professors scattered about. It was late in the day. The sun began its descent, and Archie knew he would be up late grading these papers among his other work. Although he let out a small sigh of relief—Juniper was here, so he didn’t have to chase her down. He tried not to seem so eager when he dropped into a chair at her table. ”I was just looking for you.” Merlin, this stress really was getting to him, wasn’t it? Maybe he’d take a break from grading that night.

”I apologize for the interruption, but I heard back from your friend.” Archie would have produced the letter if it wasn’t merely a few scribbled lines whose tone suggested that if Archie had written one more letter, perhaps he would have received a howler in return. ”He declined the opportunity.” He added, disappointment in his voice. ”I spoke to a couple of old colleagues. They spoke well about him—well, his knowledge and experience.” Archie still found it slightly amusing how personalities balanced with talent. ”Any chance you could speak to him?” Archie would certainly owe her one.

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Correcting quizzes was easily one of the most mundane and boring tasks of her teaching job. Already she was starting to think about changing her syllabus for the next year, removing the biweekly quiz entirely. There were better ways to find out if the students were retaining the lessons and she felt that her classes despised sitting down for the ten question exams more than asking questions during class. Plus it was extra work for her to do. Even if she had them self-grade and then collected everything at the end, she still had to add the grades in. It was kind of a waste of time. She agreed with the students on that. Learning as she went was sort of amazing, and each class brought new ways to do things into perspective. If this ended up being a full time position, she would definitely nail down a better way to go through the terms. According to other professors, the first year or so was always difficult.

Thankfully an interruption arrived, and blinking away the strain of staring at the quizzes, Juniper looked up to see that Archie had taken a seat across from her. Apparently the lead she provided on Rhys hadn't gone as planned. Honestly, she wasn't all too surprised. Even though she hadn't seen him in close to two years (or was it longer now?), she still had his number saved. And he probably still went to the same old haunts. Creature of habit and all that. "I can definitely try... Was this the point where she maybe needed to mention that he was an ex? Things certainly hadn't been awkward the last few times they had met up and she didn't have any regrets about that. Sending work his way seemed like the nicest thing she could do. "Did you mention that I was the one that had referred him? Not that it matters, but hopefully he didn't turn you down because of me." If that was the case, she could definitely get him to change his decision. There was always a way with Rhys...

octavian archimedes vector jr. ● 349 ● Song by Artist

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOX 2.0

[octavian archimedes vector jr.]

stuck on a thousand ideas

and only one that works

January  2028
juniper minerva mcgonagall

Juniper didn’t seem entirely shocked that Rhys had responded with a ‘no’. Archie also had heard that this Cursebreaker trained newer Cursebreakers as well. And with the trainees spending less time reading textbooks in a desert, he would have figured that left more time. But Archie was determined to recruit as many as he could. Another thought was that volunteers might be interested in teaching a class or two at LIFE. A full-time schedule was not required, and Archie liked the idea of different people bringing their unique experiences into the mix.

Plus, he only had so many stories from his time in the field and nothing near anyone still working. But he raised a curious eyebrow. ”No—I explained I formerly worked for the bank.” He wasn’t sure how the other approach would have gone. Everybody responded differently. In either case, there was likely overlap among their colleagues and friends. ”I apologize if I’m putting you in an awkward position.” That certainly wasn’t his intention. While he had a goal in mind it wasn’t worth rolling over people to achieve it. Archie knew what that looked like, his own father had considered it a gift. But he hoped that Juniper would not have given his name if that were the case.

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Juniper didn't have a problem if she was name dropped when it came to these sorts of things. If she hadn't wanted that, she wouldn't have offered up Rhys's name to begin with. But the worry that he'd turn something down because of her was certainly a real thing. She thought they were quite cordial with one another still, when they weren't reminiscing for old times sake. But with it being a while since then, she had no idea if her name would work anymore. Either that or he was just being grumpy again. That never changed.

"Its totally fine. We dated in school and for a few years after," she explained, trying to wave off any misconception that Archie might have. "He's the only one still in that I know how to reach, so I figured it could work." After their previous talk on this, she had tried looking up the others that she remembered. A few had been lost in the field, and even more injured into early retirement. Most of the latter didn't want to speak about cursebreaking anymore. Something about enjoying their time with whatever body parts they had left that weren't afflicted by incurable curses.

If only Saffron was still alive. She would have been the perfect cursebreaker to throw at the new recruits. Rhys, while able to convey all of the important stuff, was bound to be awkward in front of a class. Or gruff with them. Whatever the case, she wanted to sit in on that class if she could manage to swing this. Just to make him sweat. "Bribing him might work best," Juniper mused aloud as she started to generate a plan in her head. "When do you need him by? I think I could get him interested with enough time." Pushing herself into his orbit had worked every single time she wanted something from him. From the moment she became his Potions partner up until a few years prior. This wasn't going to be any different.

octavian archimedes vector jr. ● 339 ● Song by Artist

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOX 2.0

[octavian archimedes vector jr.]

stuck on a thousand ideas

and only one that works

January  2028
juniper minerva mcgonagall

Archie gave a slight nod of understanding. Immediately he thought of the stress. Many of his colleagues, including himself, seemed to jump from one failed relationship to another during their years working. He supposed that was something if it lasted years. The nomadic and dangerous lifestyle wasn’t everybody’s cup of tea. She continued explaining how he simply was the one she knew how to reach. That was the other thing. Many retired were not interested in returning to anything related to Cursebreaking. While he liked to keep his classes as places of genuine learning, he did his best to continually stress the seriousness of it all. It was a career that could easily drain one’s passion and leave you wandering the world like the victim of a Dementor.

”A bribe?” Archie asked, now amused. But on second thought, ”Wait—maybe I don’t want to know.” He shook his head. She seemed to know the man best. Maybe all he’d needed was a basket of his favorite sweets, a nice bottle of scotch, or something. ”The sooner, the better, if he’s available. I’d like them to begin preparing for their Exams.” The Certification process was not easy. Several tests and tasks encompassed all their learning over the past two years. And everything varied. What Archie did know was that they weren’t going to make a trainee take point on some new finding with very little documentation. But something with enough risk to make it feel real. And that’s where Archie and Rhys came in since the risk was real. ”He can bring coworkers to help him.” Archie offered, maybe that would persuade him. Plus, it would give some younger Cursebreakers an insight into training others.

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"Like a bottle of whiskey or something," Juniper clarified. There were other things she could bribe him with but she wasn't going to say that to a colleague. Merlin that would be a fast way to end up in front of the board of directors and staff supervisors. Not that she thought Archie would report her for a crass comment, but there were enough petty professors working at Hogwarts now that wouldn't bat an eye at inciting drama. All Juniper wanted to do was teach her two classes and work at the TV station. She didn't have time for nonsense like that anymore. Except when it came to actively wiggling her way back into Rhys's life. Right after things ended she hadn't wanted anything to do with him. But that had changed over the years. Doing this favor for Archie was just another attempt at testing the waters again. "Maybe two..."

As for the time frame Rhys was needed by, that really didn't matter too much. All she had to do was schmooze him a bit and he'd probably give in. That wasn't exactly difficult by any means. "That shouldn't be an issue. I can't believe the program doesn't already have someone assigned to come in and talk." Maybe that was the issue though. The bank probably didn't want some disgruntled ex-Cursebreaker coming in and scaring off all the potential new recruits. While Juniper had very little contact with those that ran Gringotts and the Cursebreaker organization, she had heard enough about it over the years. Enough to know that a lot of the practice was fairly slimy. Removal of artifacts from their home countries was one of the major issues, as was proper safety once their people were in tombs. "Maybe if he has someone that's fresh out of the training by a year or two...I imagine it would help for your class to see different stages of work?"

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[octavian archimedes vector jr.]

stuck on a thousand ideas

and only one that works

January  2028
juniper minerva mcgonagall

It amazed Archie how the personalities of the staff members varied. The Heads of Houses often spoke about their performance, although there were factions even within the four of them. Archie believed that the current Transfiguration professor retire. His mundane approach to teaching had him convinced that he might as well hire a ghost. And Merlin knew it was a pain to locate him at times despite only ever using one classroom and one office. A McGonagall at the helm seemed natural, although they currently did have rules for Professors teaching at both LIFE and MAGIC. Just another note to add to the list of possible staff changes over the summer. In the meantime, he just needed staff right now.

And if that was a simple enough bribe to enlist Rhys’ help, Archie would buy the bottles himself. In the back of his mind he wondered if sending the ex would somehow hold more weight than several letters from himself. But, he wasn’t going to pry on that topic. Archie knew far too much of people’s personal lives all while trying to keep a lid on his own. Although he was so easily distracted when a certain nurse walked by. ”I’ll include a third, if needed.” Archie offered. Whiskey was a Cursebreakers best friend, or for most of them. They needed to calm their nerves one way or another.

He gave a bit of a sheepish grin. ”Staffing has been a challenge.” Archie admitted. ”Only about half the staff returned to teach.” And with new subjects, plus trainee attendance the full time staff was stretched thin. Part time staff such as Juniper or Bianca Rivera were a lifesaver in that regard. ”Yes, that’s what I was thinking. Plus they could be a familiar face as well.” The Cursebreakers Archie knew were far too old to know most of these students.

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Bribing and building up Rhys's personal bar were apparently things that went hand in hand. That was payment enough for some. If she had been given the opportunity to teach a lesson prior to her current roll, she probably would have refused any sort of compensation, saying how 'seeing students learn was fulfilling enough'. She already got paid plenty for writing the shows for WitchTV anyways, and while she knew there was an audience viewing them, it was an invisible one. Literally nothing compared to teaching in person. Some of her colleagues said she'd get over that eventually, though the honeymoon period certainly hadn't waned yet.

"I'll see what I can do then." Maybe Rhys would actually like it. Decide teaching was something he could do because it involved watching children involuntarily almost killing themselves with magic on a daily basis, instead of him doing it to himself in every tomb or crypt he entered. That had been the main problem by the end of their relationship after all. Getting him to realize that Cursebreaking wasn't as great as everyone made it out to be had been the goal. She thought he would have realized that after the accident...

One week later...
A week and change had passed since the last conversation with Archie had been held, at least regarding a certain Cursebreaker and how to force him into teaching a lesson for new recruits. Juniper had posed it in her texts to him as an early look at what he had coming to him soon. Because ultimately a good chunk of these students would be learning from him at some point. Why not be a familiar face amidst the harder training? It seemed to have worked.

"Four," Juniper said to her coworker as she caught up to him in a corridor of one of the newer school buildings. "And he said he's got a younger Cursebreaker to bring along too." His sister, to be more specific, and that greatly worried her because the only sister she knew of was Max. Juniper only remembered her as a little kid, but the same could be said about how her siblings' friends viewed her too. Not that it was out of the ordinary for other Greybacks to just pop into existence every now and then, which seemed to happen with a frequency over the last several years. Most ended up not really being them though, convinced by adults that such a vicious werewolf attack had to be from the one and only. She really needed to stop reading the newspaper or eavesdropping in on conversations at Spellbucks. But avoiding the name Greyback was difficult. And now it was coming back to Hogwarts.

octavian archimedes vector jr. ● 447 ● Song by Artist

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOX 2.0

[octavian archimedes vector jr.]

stuck on a thousand ideas

and only one that works

January  2028
juniper minerva mcgonagall

The stress began to lift a little over the previous days. At least the planning of the festival in February was not on his plate. He had had enough. But slowly but surely, the fate of the future Cursebreakers felt more secure. A couple more names joined his list, although he still awaited any kind of confirmation from Juniper. That morning he’d spent some time reviewing the list of second-year trainees. Unfortunately, one hundred percent of the class never made it through. A few names he’d marked—those trainees were destined for desk jobs at Gringotts processing paperwork, or they’d jump into the legal department. Others were perfectly qualified for Law Enforcement, but mainly on paper.

With a few, Archie saw potential, but they were just not quite there yet. Maybe another year if they choose to stick with it. But often, they didn’t. And the rest were set to take their exams, prove they learned something, and then take their final field test before being let loose into the world. Fortunately, the planning of the exams was going well. Juniper had assisted with the simple transfiguration of items, and Archie had enlisted an old friend with a knack for magical items and artifacts, cursed or otherwise.

Archie walked and flipped through a notebook at the same time. His feet had long learned and memorized the layout of the school. ”Four what?” He blinked a few times, turning to see who had spoken. As he slowed down, the words began to register. ”Oh—excellent.” If Archie had known Juniper a little better, he might have hugged her out of gratitude. He stopped, closing his notebook. ”I’ll write to him and ask about his schedule.” There was time in case Greyback needed to finish anything. At least this way, he didn’t need to crawl on his hands and knees into Gringotts to request their help. ”I owe you for this—if you ever need anything.” He grinned, feeling a mixed sense of relief and triumph. Archie owed her one.

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