Terry vaguely remembered the jokes Ernie had referred to, but only slightly. "Sort of, I guess. We were already studying for Owls that year, Stephen, Mandy, Sophia and I, with flashcards and charts Mandy made, so we missed some of that." He snickered, eyes bright. "I remember Professor Flitwick rolling his eyes as well, though for an entirely different reason."
He bit his lip as he remembered, missing Mandy and Sophia so fiercely in that moment he had to look away and blink back sudden tears. He got himself under control, and glanced back at Ernie. "Though I do remember many references to polishing one's wand."
Terry smiled shyly back, and said, "Studies have shown that the human race as a whole doesn't listen to its subconscious nearly enough. So I'm very glad you did."
Terry was slightly surprised to hear that Ernie had only been on two dates with a man. He couldn't help but wonder how many women Ernie had been with, and if it was too soon to be irrationally jealous of them. He decided that was probably true, and pushed the thought from his mind. "Well, we can explore this together then," he said, grinning. "Now, pool? When you're done of course."