Disclaimer: I own nothing.
It was not until five minutes into the first lesson of the term before the students of Hogwarts saw their Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Harry was among these privileged few who would get to gloat about being the first class to discover the identity of their mysterious teacher. He sat in the middle of the room; not too close yet not too far away. He, like many of the other students, did not have high hopes for this teacher. (Although, anything was better than the cow Umbridge.) Chatter of skipping started when the minute hand reached five past the hour.
Suddenly the noise dropped into silence. Out of nowhere, as if he appeared from air, the professor stood at the front of the class. His stance was lax, and he wore a warm smile. His presence was inoffensive and his features common. Average nose, over an average mouth, situated on an average face above an average frame, completed with neatly cut averagely brown hair. The kind of person you would walk by on the street and never notice.
"Hello class. I am this year's Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Adolphus Nero. Forgive me for my tardiness. I do understand the impatience of youth. However, I ask that you rid your minds of teenage drivel and force yourselves to focus within these classroom walls. From what I understand, your previous teachers have been less than satisfactory. I hope that you have not lost sight of the importance in learning the Defense Against the Dark Arts. We live in a rather…precarious world. It would be a shame if your lives were to end because this class is nothing but a joke to you. There is little time to waste, so I will ask you all to open your text books to page 105. Skipping the rubbish the author has the gall to label as an introduction, we will begin with theory."
His voice flowed smoothly through the room with a slight lilt - the cause of smiles on a few girls' faces. The class obediently flipped to the requested page and intently listened to the man's lecture. The entire class seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Professor Nero seemed educated, experienced, and a step up from their previous instructor. It was more than anyone could have hoped for, and the professor's calm yet focused demeanor was contagious. That is to say for all but one student who sat in the middle of the room.
Harry should have been happy. No mention of his fame, embarrassing or hostile. Neither was the professor incompetent. And yet Harry could not help but sit completely still, feeling tense and distrustful, similar to a threatened animal unable to decide whether to run or strike. No one but Harry noticed the professor's eyes. With a sharp pang, he realized that he had seen those same eyes on his late godfather. They were of an inoffensive brown hue, but he saw the haunted and crazed look of a madman. Harry thought the orbs to look out of place on the man until he saw the telltale twitch - a muscle spasm in his right cheek. Behind the persona he put on display for the class, there was a wicked man that only Harry saw. A shiver ran down his spine as he listened to the lecture. That lilt was dangerous, he was sure.
Harry was beyond relieved when the class finally dismissed. They would be starting practice of the shielding charms of which the lecture had been about. Of course this should have been covered last year, but useful knowledge was not high on Umbridge's list. He slipped out, even before Ron who was notorious for being the first out of any classroom. He waited a second before Ron and Hermione joined him. Hermione started her annual assessment of the new teacher.
"Well, I am glad we finally have a respectable professor. I was extremely worried we were going to have to deal with another year of total…crap."
"Real eloquent there," Harry teased. Harry received a nudge from Hermione while Ron joined in.
"He was alright. Not at all exciting. I wonder if he would let us get away with coming in five minutes late every day? It would only be fair."
"Your ambition is astounding, Ron." Hermione dead toned. "Why I even bother with you is beyond me."
Harry simply smiled and let the two banter, not wanting to offer up his own opinion about the new professor. He did not wish to sound paranoid so early in the term. He would just be on the lookout for anything suspicious.