Disclaimers: Should have added this sooner oh well. These characters are J.K. Rowling's obviously...Cendre belongs to me as might a few others later on in subsequent sections..

She convinced herself anxiously that she looking forward to teaching at Hogwarts, but with the recent events unfolding, she felt she could honestly admit that she wasn't. She had never really seen herself coming back her and even sitting outside the headmaster's office, she was left with no true sense of the place.

She supposed one grew used to the feeling, the feeling of not belonging. Spending the last few years abroad in Japan studying the art of Eastern spells was a quiet a jump from returning to the place where she had spent a good portion of her childhood in corners of the library, nose shoved in a book.

Perhaps that counted for the paleness of her features. She pushed back some strands of her snow-blonde hair and glanced at her feet. The small bag was of little comfort. She had wanted to keep her tree at her feet, but that would have been unpractical or wise. She imagined she would have to plant it?. but she was afraid of the results of such an exercise. One of the difficulties of being part nymph she imagined.

"Ah, my dear," came the soft voice of the old headmaster of Hogwarts. "Have you been waiting long."

"Not terribly, sir," she managed in a voice without the quivering that she felt throughout her body. The jitters she imagined at the prospect of this job.

"Now Cendre, my dear, is there a need for such formality?" he said with a grandfatherly grin that put her more at ease as he showed her into his office. "Surely I have known you long enough for you to call me Albus?"

She shook her head managing a smile instantly at ease in his office. She recalled spending more time here pestering the kindly old man with questions even than in the library. She glanced over at the ashes sifting in the corner. Fawkes was going to rise again. If only she could do that same as the phoenix.

"It is an honor I do not yet deserve, sir."

He chuckled. "Ah? I would say you did, my dear. You were an excellent student here. I am sure you will do these old halls proud teaching in them again."

"If you say so," she avoided attempting to say his first name. It seemed wrong. She also had to resist the temptation to add an honorific to his name. If any teacher from her childhood had deserved them, it would have been Professor Dumbledore.

"I will do my best as the others have done prior to me."

"I'm sure you shall, Cendre. The students shouldn't give you much trouble I should think."

She smiled. "I hope to avoid trouble."

He nodded smiling in a wistfully sage manner. "As do we all, I suspect."

********

Upon finally taking her leave of Dumbledore, she felt more at ease. Though not any more inclined to address him as Albus.

Her spirits had lifted though. So long as she didn't fail Dumbledore, she thought she would do fine here. Now to go back to her quarters, water her tree and prepare for the days ahead and the arrival of the new and old students.

As intent as she was on returning to her quarters, she didn't notice the solitary figure standing gloomily in the hall until she collided into him.

"I dare say, you could at least have the decency of watching your step," came an irked voice---that despite the displeasure maintained a cultured purr---from in front of her.

She shook her head looking up recalling it as she had since the first time she met him. Perhaps it was permanently embedded in her mind.

"Sorry for disturbing you, Severus," she said pleasantly.

*******

Severus had been on his way to speak to Dumbledore and take a glance at this new Professor. He was certain he was the last in line for the position of course. Obviously it would only be after every single other candidate was dead that he would actually be able to teach Defending Against the Dark Arts.

Could be arranged, he thought with a morbid smile. A bit too much work for his liking but the idea held some merit.

The halls were empty. A short-lived work of art in his mind. He enjoyed the silence rather than the stomping of little hooves or feet, same difference. Especially that Potter boy and the upstart Weasley whelp. No small wonder the two young gits became friends. Birds of a feather and so forth.

He allowed himself a thin smile. So many fitting cliches for the pair of them. So little time was appropriate but hardly true. Severus had nothing but time at the moment. It was filling it that was becoming so very painfully tedious.

He sighed wishing despite his nature that something would happen. At the same time he hoped nothing did. He was starting to like the boredom as well.

*******

Snape raised an eyebrow briefly at her obvious pleasure at seeing a familiar face. "Ah, Cendre." He bowed slightly and demurely. So this was the new Professor.

He remembered her from attending school. The quiet pretty one in the corner who spoke seldomly and straight to the point. Nothing remarkable about her really save her beauty which even then could be unnoticed with the way that a person can ignore the beauty of a flower in full bloom and a grove of trees in the autumn. There was perhaps more to remember but memories of those days were not the precious picture perfect ones they had promised to be. Too much to think about in regards to himself for one.

"Returned again, I see."

Cendre nodded hesitantly some of the happiness upon seeing him faded away. "Yes. It is good to see you though, Severus."

He blinked at this?.hmmm?. "Is it?"

"Well of course it is. I haven't seen you for ages. I'm glad to see you're doing so well," she smiled in polite innocence.

Snape gnawed on a well-concealed scowl. Good? Glad? Pleasant? These were not words he was usually associated with himself. He shook it off.

"Ah yes. Well, I've been through worse."

She looked confused and did nothing to hid it biting her lip in the manner of an uncertain puppy anxious for approval of some sort.

"I always thought you would have made an excellent teacher. And this is Hogwarts. Not too bad, I'd say."

Her statements become more of weak questions due to his penetrating gaze.

"Indeed," he said focusing the jets-black voids he had for eyes on her pale blue ones.

She withdrew her gaze from his looking very nervous and not at all pleased anymore. Cendre seemed more sad and hurt than anything. He felt a tinge of well, guilt perhaps at overdoing it. He glanced around for Albus. That would be the perfect end to his day now wouldn't it?

*******

Out of all the reactions she had expected, this hadn't been any of them. It surprised how little her had changed and how little she had changed. She found herself surprised at the end of their exchange that he had remembered her name at all.

Surely anyone else's name would have been more pressing. Lily, James, Sirius, Reubus. Anyone but her.

She looked at the floor uncertainly wishing she could fall down the cracks in the worn hall floors or scurry back to Dumbledore's office and take up some sort of sanctuary in his tea pot.

There was a sigh from Severus.

She shielded herself from another barrage by staring at the cracks in the floor some more.

"I.It is not..unpleasant to see you, Cendre," he managed in an odd voice lacking the icy sleekness that it had held previously. "Unexpected perhaps, but not unpleasant."

She glanced up at him and beheld his strange grimace of confusion. She would have laughed but instead hid her smile behind her hand.

"Oh good," she managed shakily.

He nodded as though stalling for time to gain back some of his snake-like charm.

"Quite."

"Okay," she returned meekly.

He sighed again managing a sliver of a smile. "Perhaps I could talk to you later then? After you are finished settling in and preparing for classes?"

"Of course, Severus."

He raised an eyebrow and then sighed again. He nodded and made his departure.

Cendre glanced at the floor and went upstairs to water her tree as Serverus briskly made his way downstairs to his dungeon.

*******

Why exactly had he done that? He remained perplexed as he returned back to his rooms after pausing in the classroom, staring at the chalkboard and finding no fitting reason to remain there.

Severus imagined he could easily convince himself it was to be uncivil or perhaps cause her to retreat further into herself, but something else bothered him.

This whole feeling bad thing was bothering him. Sure she had been anxious, but he liked making people anxious. They asked less questions and left him alone. He couldn't imagine what threw him off so much?.

Right.

So he did know.

The bloody "glads" and "goods." Who did she think she was enjoying his company? What company?

He sighed sinking onto the chair in front of his desk. Truthfully, one would have kept better company with a wraith than with himself. A banshee blubbering in endless wails would have been a more suitable companion for a girl like that.

Not a girl, a fellow Professor no less. He sighed rubbing his temples. He could just see her first day of teaching. He couldn't imagine the tortures Draco Malfoy and his minions would come up with.

He chuckled. No. He easily could. He chuckled again and scolded himself for it. Hardly important what they would do.

The important thing was to not bloody well care. It was easy. Had he not been perfecting this art for 35 years or thereabouts?

Yes and it had served him well. You simply didn't and there you were. It was what had seen him through Her rejection (no need for names) among other unfortunate occurrences.

Mere child's play.

He sighed wishing for something else to focus on and suddenly wishing for the demonic little would-be witches and warlocks to hurry back to Hogwarts.


*******

End of Chapter 1

Author's Note: Cendre De L'Enfant means "Ash of the child." This wasn't meant to be a cryptic sort of hint at anything. It was originally due to a lack of sleep. Only time will tell what my reasons were.