reunited | esther & alfie

[alfie edward o'callaghan]

FIRST WEEK OF SEPT 2024 :: HOGWARTS HOSPITAL WING

Today's lesson was Mandrakes. Alfie expected there to be a few hiccups through out the day. When students didn't listen, things would get dangerous. Alfie would remind students to secure their earmuffs until his face went blue and people would still be dropping to the floor like flies. It was irritating. This was the third student this week and it didn't make him look good. A small part of him felt guilty when students got hurt under his supervision, it stressed him out, but he couldn't stop teenagers from being negligent. 

After escorting the student to the hospital wing to get checked out after hitting the floor of the greenhouse, he was starting to make his way out of the hospital wing when he saw a blonde. Her body from behind got his attention at first, causing a double take, but after a moment he realized this woman was familiar. Esther Garnet. They attended Ilvermorny together and were friends through his girlfriend at the time. Alfie hadn't seen her in over 12 years. 

His body froze, eyes processing the blonde in front of him. His head cocked to the side, "Esther?" he asked in disbelief, a laugh slipping from his lips.

@esther

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[Deleted]

One week in, and thankfully there hadn’t been any major catastrophes to highlight the new school year with so far. With an influx of American students transferred from Ilvermorny, the hallways had an energetic buzz about them, that was for sure. Esther kept herself busy with minor ailments; things like scraped knees, headaches, upset stomachs from overeating stockpiled candies, a broken leg thanks to a flying accident and oddly, a few more than normal Mandrake related cases…

Speaking of which, as the third student this week to have suffered such an affliction was ushered in, hands clasped over both ears, face grimacing, she gestured casually for them to sit on the side of one of the hospital beds. It wasn’t until her name was spoken - and in a familiar accent - that she actually turned to face the entrance to the hospital wing and the direction in which the person had spoke.

Brows furrowed, looking vaguely amused as she took him in, it did take her a few moments to piece this puzzle together. She crossed her arms in front of her. She was surprised he had even recognised her in this attire - the uniform consisted of an unflattering smock with an apron and a lame bonnet that covered her otherwise perfectly set hair. “Alfie…” her lips curled into a grin and she pressed them together to stop herself from laughing audibly, but she laughed by exhaling through her nose instead. Alfie was here, at Hogwarts… There was a new Herbology teacher… Ilvermorny was closed… It was all making sense now. “Don’t tell me…”

[alfie edward o'callaghan]

FIRST WEEK OF SEPT 2024 :: HOGWARTS HOSPITAL WING

It was Esther! Hearing her say his name was surreal. He hadn't talked to her in years but her voice reminded him of home. Well, Ilvermorny home, not beautiful Colorado. His hazel eyes narrowed slightly when she said 'Don't tell me', without a beat, "Wooow, you work here too? No way!" he exclaimed, his smile brightening as he stepped over to her to give her a quick hug. Seeing someone he knew so far away from home was comforting. Esther would have been the last person he would have expected to see but he was cool with it, she looked like she was doing great.

Alfie resisted a chuckle as he gestured to her outdated bonnet with jazzy fingers around his own head, "Nice little, uh, bonnet thang." he teased lightly, unable to resist. Alfie offered her a friendly smile, "You got some time to catch up?" he asked her hopefully. Another nurse was already attending to the student he had escorted from the greenhouses so he didn't feel bad for asking.

Esther Garnet

[Deleted]

Her expression continued to dance between merriment and disbelief as Alfie leaned in to hug her. Her open palms patted softly and awkwardly on his back but only because she was in a state of shock, not out of any lack of affection. She had a split second feeling of her youth re-lived wash over her in that moment and the familiarity of him brought memories flooding back to America and their high-school days and the few years that followed them. They had been pretty close friends for a while there. They did everything together, especially after Rose essentially abandoned them both.

“Yep!” she confirmed his question shrugging as she pulled back, not that it wasn’t obvious she worked here given her uniform and the context. Placing her hands loosely on her hips she gave a nod with purpose, grinning at his comment at her bonnet. She smirked and fluttered her eyelids dramatically, her gaze lifting up towards the ceiling as if to take the compliment seriously when they both knew it was anything but.

"You got some time to catch up?"

She briefly glanced over her shoulder at the kid who was now being attended to before turning back to her old friend and breathing in deeply as if considering his question. “It depends. Are you done beating up the students?”. Truth was that Esther was free to finish up over an hour ago, she’d just got caught up chin wagging with another one of her colleagues so she was good to go, really.

[alfie edward o'callaghan]

FIRST WEEK OF SEPT 2024 :: HOGWARTS HOSPITAL WING

This was so surreal. Alfie was happy to have a friend here from his Ilvermorny school days. Suddenly he had a stupid smile stuck on his face. Probably because Esther was way hot now, and that apron and smock combo was completely ridiculous. Alfie chuckled when she teased him about the amount of students that have been sent to the hospital wing due to Herbology within the span of the past couple of days. His face faltered only for a brief second, "I think we narrowed down the weak ones so we should be good...for now." he joked, his tone at more of a whisper because he didn't want the student he just delivered to the hospital wing to hear him. His features softened ever so slightly,  "Sorry for keeping you busy this week. " Alfie apologized to her as he ruffled his hands through his hair. He meant the apology sincerely, it was just slightly embarrassing because he felt like he was failing each time someone got hurt. "How long have you been working here?" he asked her curiously, trying to lead her toward the door of the hospital wing to take her away. 


@esther

[Deleted]

Esther nodded feigning earnestness while Alfie joked about weeding out all of the weak kids. “They don’t make ‘em like they do in Massachusetts around here,” she said, giving a wink. This time it was her who lowered her voice but more for comedic effect since most of her colleagues had gotten used to her sense of humour by now and it wouldn’t surprise or offend them in the least to hear her ‘taking the piss’, but it was all in good fun.

When Alfie apologised, she just gave him a reassuring smile. It was hard to be in a new place starting a new job, feeling like an imposter or something - she knew the feeling well. She followed him towards the door and paused briefly to remove the bonnet, revealing a neat pinned back bun underneath. Then she untied her apron from the back and pulled it over her neck and hung them up on hooks by the doorway, signalling she was ready to follow him out into the hall.

“A few years now.” She told him “They treat the staff well here, I’m sure you’ll settle in just fine… I still can’t believe it.” She added, covering her mouth for a split second and giving him another look as if to question whether he was really standing in front of her or if she was actually losing her marbles? "What do you want to do?"

[alfie edward o'callaghan]

FIRST WEEK OF SEPT 2024 :: HOGWARTS HOSPITAL WING

Esther joked that they didn't make students like they did back home and he couldn't surpass the chuckle. "You're tellin' me!" he responded quickly, already enjoying how back and forth their banter was. Esther had always been one of Rosie's favorite friends in school because of her smart mouth. She was just as easy to talk to now - and he couldn't get over how gorgeous she was!

Alfie was happy to hear that Hogwarts treated their faculty well. After how well Ilvermorny treated their staff, he was worried about the transition. It was reassuring to hear his friend say it now. She also shared that she had been there for a few years which was also a small relief, "Wow, cool. So you can show me the ropes around this place..." he told her, sending her a funny look and a pair of hand guns when she looked at him again to make sure he was real, "It is I, Alfie O'Callaghan, living and breathing." he confirmed dramatically with a dashing smile as they exited the hospital wing.

As the blonde asked him what he wanted to do he shrugged his shoulders upwards lazily, "What do people over the age of 20 do here?" he asked her, a hint of innocence to his voice. Alfie was a big partier back in his days but since hitting his 30s and getting a career he had slowed down quite a bit,  "Is there a pub where you like to go? I haven't gone anywhere but Hogwarts yet." he shared with her lamely, he had been working too hard since getting to the school but he was afraid of falling behind.

@esther

[Deleted]

Esther gave Alfie a little nudge with her elbow to acknowledge that she could indeed show him the ropes and she had his back there. What that probably really meant to her was showing him around, letting him in on some insider knowledge, introducing him to some of the cooler professors and playfully instructing them to be super nice to him, because she always remembered the wizard being a more sensitive type growing up and she could already tell that he hadn’t quite found his feet yet in this new place.

She also remembered him a lot younger - of course because that was so long ago. Now he’d really grown into that baby face and he suited the five-o-clock shadow. He wore it really well, she thought to herself.

“Yeah… There’s a couple of pubs,” she replied. She instantly got the feeling like they could get up to no good if left to their own devices. “I could take you to the Hog’s Head.” She suggested with a slight shrug before adding, “It’s a rather charming establishment.” Esther had a tendency to deliver her sarcasm in a rather deadpan way which Alfie might or might not remember. It tended to confuse people sometimes, but that was just part of her nature. Regardless, Hogsmeade wasn’t too far away and it seemed like the most obvious place to take Alfie on his first outing!

[alfie edward o'callaghan]

FIRST WEEK OF SEPT 2024 :: HOGWARTS HOSPITAL WING

"Hogs Head?" he mused after her. That was quite the time for an establishment that sells refreshments and food. Alfie offered the blonde a crooked smile at her deadpanned explanation of the place. "With a 'charming' name like that, I'm really for it after the week I've had." he told her, already agreeing to this mysterious place. The professor chuckled, tapping at his wrist watch, "Well, what're we waiting for? It's 5:05 which means the pubs have been opened for 5 minutes now.." he informed her as they easily made their way toward the entrance of the castle and down the path leading to Hogsmeade.

They carried an easy conversation of banter and talking about their surroundings before they reached the wizarding village. Alfie hadn't spent much time there but he was planning on checking it out more when he was settled in, so he was really glad he got to check it out with Esther. As they reached the Hogs Head, Alfied head cocked upwards to look at the sign which was the picture of a butchered Hogs Head. Fitting. Alfie made a face, pointing up at the sign like a tourist, "Very classy, Esther. Is this where you get into your weekly bar fights?" he jested, opening the door so that she could step inside first. 


@esther

[Deleted]

There was so much to catch up on, yet it seemed like no time had passed at all. That was the advantage that real true friendships had over less substantial ones - it was friendships like theirs that allowed them to pick up from where they’d left off as if they hadn’t a care in the world. Like all of these years worth of life gone by didn’t matter.

As they rolled up to the pub, she grinned at Alfie’s reaction to the rather morbid sign that hung outside its entrance. “Beautiful, isn’t it?” She chirped, closing her eyes and drawing in a deep breath delightfully, doing a mock impersonation of a person who was walking on sunshine or floating in heaven or something. She exhaled, letting her shoulders fall and walked on in, making her way into the joint with the Herbology professor in tow.

You’d think that the unflattering uniform that she was wearing, that slightly resembled something out of the Handmaids Tale or something would discourage the attention of some of the male patrons at the bar, but somehow they still gawked and stared as they walked through just like they normally did. Esther ignored them and took a seat right at the bar and patted the empty stool next to her beckoning Alfie to sit. “So, tell me everything. Oh! Have you heard from Rose at all? Did she come crawling back at any point?”

[alfie edward o'callaghan]

FIRST WEEK OF SEPT 2024 :: HOGWARTS HOSPITAL WING

Alfie beamed when Esther asked if the establishment was beautiful. His head cocked to the side, waiting to answer the question for a beat as he got a second glance of the morbid sign. That wasn't something you saw in America... "Y'know what, it's what's inside that counts.." he said slowly, the severity of his voice indicating that he was joking around. As long as their was alcohol, they were set. It was easy hanging out with Esther, the walk was a breeze and they were about to have some nice cold drinks in their hands so things were looking up since the last kid hit the greenhouse floor. 

Esther guided them to the bar and she sat down, patting on the seat next to her. Alfie sat down easily, ordering a beer and whatever she wanted, tossing the galleons onto the counter when Esther asked him to tell her everything. Following with asking about Rose. He hadn't heard that name in over ten years but it still left a pain in his gut. Something he'd never admit out loud to a soul, but it was surely present. Alfie shrugged, "Where to start?" he asked, shaking his head. These past couple of years had gone so fast he couldn't believe he was thirty four. Alfie took a sip of the beer to gain him a second to think of where to start. Well, maybe with Rose. "No, I haven't heard from Rose." he said simply, assuming the same for her. "Been here for about a week now. I was living in Colorado and working at the Denver Apothecary for like five years before getting the job at Ilvermorny three years ago. Oh, and last year I got my Masters in Herbology." he shared proudly, but still feeling incredibly boring. Alfie didn't think that Esther would really care about his were side, but he wanted to share it with her because it was a huge part of hs life whether he liked it not. Alfie took another sip of his beer, to earn him more time. "I'm, uh, I'm also a werewolf now." he shared with a shrug, trying to play it off like it wasn't a big deal. Alfie never liked talking about himself for long so his flipped it back to her, "What about you?"

@esther

[Deleted]

“Where to start?”

Obviously it was a super open ended question that she didn’t expect him to answer it all in the space of a short exchange. So many years had gone by that they hadn’t spoken or caught up. She’d heard bits and pieces here and there about him working at Ilvermorny actually - the odd Owl from an old friend back home skimming over various ex-schoolmate’s life highlight reels as if Esther cared what half of those people were doing these days. But she did recall feeling happy for Alfie that he was putting his skills and knowledge to good use. She did miss Alfie sometimes, when she thought back to that time and place.

She clenched her teeth together and flashed them at him awkwardly as he mentioned no word from Rose. And yes it was the same for her, Rose had practically vanished which was disappointing but unsurprising. She listened intently to his little overview of milestone events from the past few years and smiled at him almost like a proud parent, raising her glass to him when he told her of his degree.

Her expression quickly sunk though when he attempted to casually drop the whole werewolf thing into the conversation. She froze up a little and for once was lost for words. She looked carefully over her shoulder for anyone who might possibly be close enough to hear their conversation. It seemed like something you didn’t just go shouting from the hilltops kinda thing. Turning back to Alfie she pressed her lips together into an expression that tried to show her being semi-amused and not quite convinced that he wasn’t playing with her. “Excuse me, what?” She would have assumed he was joking if he didn’t look so genuinely nervous.

[alfie edward o'callaghan]

FIRST WEEK OF SEPT 2024 :: HOGWARTS HOSPITAL WING

Alfie noticed Esther's face change. He froze, the awkward smile growing as he let out a slightly nervous laugh. He was actually pretty calm though, hanging with Esther was easy, it was great to talk with someone his age. The look on her face was amused, maybe slightly confused. The professor attempted to keep a more nonchalant composure, all while keeping his voice at a lower level. He didn't feel like anyone was close enough to listen to their conversation but you could never be too safe. 

Raising the iced glass to his lips again, he surpassed a laugh at Esther's tone. "Uhh. Full moon? Creature of the night?" he asked her in a smart ass tone, seeing if it rang a bell. Alfie knew that Esther knew what a werewolf was, she was a nurse for crying out loud, she probably just wasn't expecting him to share such news with her. Alfie smiled, more to show her it wasn't a big deal, "I got bitten when I was 20." he shared. Alfie ruffled a hand through his hair, "Enough about me, tell me about what you've been up to.." he told her in a more friendly and casual tone, "What brought your across the pond?"


@esther

[Deleted]

Esther stayed quiet encouraging Alfie to elaborate if he could, of course this news came as a bit of a shock and it really didn’t seem as if he was pulling her arm. “Yeah… I know…” she told him, giving him a quick nudge to the arm with her fist as he explained to her what a werewolf was. “Well, shit.” She shrugged and sucked in a whole heap of air, exhaling it loudly before picking up her glass and taking a big gulp.

While her initial reaction was shock, the secondary feeling was guilt. If he was bitten when he was 20, it must have been around the same time she moved away and they lost touch. She really felt bad about that, considering Alfie was there after her mother passed away. He wasn’t exactly one to give her a whole bunch of advice or really get too involved on a really deep level but he always made her laugh and treated her like a normal person which she always really appreciated. Yeah, she felt terrible that she wasn’t there to do the same when Alfie was going through that.

“Are you gonna show me then?” She asked him, referring to his scar from the bite mark. She changed her expression back to normal to soften the mood a little and show him that she was cool with everything, and even capable of a joke. She was glad he had told her, even though he seemed to be changing the subject. Esther decided to humour him on that… “Well, St Mungo's had a paid traineeship on offer and I figured an overseas adventure wouldn’t hurt. I was there for a few years, got qualified as a Healer, and then I guess the Hogwarts job came up at just the right time,” She shrugged and took another sip. “I didn’t really see myself staying here for that long to be honest. Now I can’t really imagine going home...” Esther might have used the St Mungo's traineeship as an excuse to run away from some things back in America at the time, but she never fully acknowledged that. The truth was that regardless, she did like it at Hogwarts and it felt like her home now.

[alfie edward o'callaghan]

FIRST WEEK OF SEPT 2024 :: HOGWARTS HOSPITAL WING

Alfie was used to that tone when people found out he was a werewolf. It was slightly awkward but sympathetic, Alfie just didn't want people to pity him. The Professor smiled and waved a hand to show her it wasn't a big deal when she said 'oh shit'. Alfie took a sip with her. As she asked if he was gonna show her he knew exactly what she was referring to...she was a nurse to she probably got a kick out of that kind of stuff. Alfie held a straight face, "Esther, if you wanted tickets to the gun show, all you had to do was ask.." he told her with a slow smile, his tone friendly but laced with flirtatious intent. Alfie pretended to flex for a brief second, pulled the collar of his shirt down slightly and leaned toward her so she could scope it out, "It's basically healed now but over the years I've tried to fade it with spells and herbs." he informed her lightly.

As Esther explained her endeavors he listened intently, proud of his friend of her achievements and adventures. She explained finding the UK home now, which was really reassuring to him. He hoped that he could feel that adjusted soon on foreign soil, he felt like he was out of his element all the time. Alfie smiled, "That's awesome. I can't believe we circled back at Hogwarts of all places. Did you always know you wanted to be a Healer?" he asked her curiously. Throughout the school years Alfie couldn't really think of what he had expected her to pursue as a career. It kind of made sense. She had a sick enough sense of humor to be in the medical field.  

@esther