The students ran for cover as the giant ball of light appeared on the stone pavement. Statues came to life and paintings hid behind their frames. The man that emerged from the smoke coughed and dusted himself off. Hogwarts was supposed to be Apparate-proof, so the appearance of someone using magic was a shocking sight. Minerva McGonagall was (as usual) first on the scene, wand in hand and her usual stern look ready to admonish the stray traveler.

"You!" she pointed her wand at the clearing dust cloud, "Who are you and what are you doing here? Answer or I will Transfigure you into the sole of my shoe!"

"Whoa, whoa, Minerva! Easy, easy there!" the man walked out of the dust cloud with his hands up. The students peeked out from behind the various rocks and trees they were hiding behind.

"Well, I'll be! Cadmus Falkama Pendragon! I haven't seen you in what, a decade?" the Gryffindor House head's glare turned into a warm smile.

"Sorry about that," he threw his arms around the older woman, "that was a bit of experimenting gone wrong. My luggage won't arrive here until next week!"

"I see… well, we have to tell Albus you've arrived. Come on, children, we have work to do!" she clapped her hand twice and all the students scattered.

"That boy," Cadmus looked towards a trio of students who quickly boarded broomsticks and went over the nearest wall.

"Harry Potter," McGonagall scurried into the building. Cadmus narrowed his eyes and followed her in.

"Who was that, Harry? Our new DADA teacher?" Ronald Weasley looked over his shoulder as their three sticks landed on the balcony of the Gryffindor common room.

"Let's hope not, Ron," Hermione Granger ushered her two friends inside.

The hallways of Hogwarts were just as he remembered it, albeit with more paintings and ghosts flying through the walls and the kids seeming to be younger and younger each day. First years scurried past his waist, headed to their Herbology classes or Quidditch lessons. He passed a group of dazed second years, with the telltale hunched shoulders students coming from the infamous Potions class. Cadmus looked up as the giant doors to the Headmaster's office opened with a whispered password from Minerva, sweeping open with a groan. The office, like many rooms in Hogwarts was larger than it seemed from the outside, seeming more like a cavern than a stately room. The room was littered with various items from Dumbledore's long tenure as Headmaster, as well as some from his predecessors. The Penseive of his office glowed in the corner alongside paintings of the previous headmasters and mistresses. The main feature of the room was a large sword that was hung over a large mantelpiece, where an orange fire burned gently under obsidian coals.

"Headmaster, our new member of staff is here," Minerva stepped aside as Albus Dumbledore looked up from his desk, "a tad early, I say…"

"Ah, Cadmus!" the broad-shouldered old man got up and stuck his hand out for Cadmus to shake. The grip was as hard as it used to be, signs that the aged headmaster was more than he appeared to be. A Phoenix looked over his shoulder, a very unusual pet for a human. Cadmus felt the mystical bird's eyes peer into his soul, a fire coursing through his blood. The bird recoiled slightly once it met Cadmus' inner self but regained its majestic pose in an instant.

"Fawkes likes you," Dumbledore nodded and laughed. Please, sit. Thank you, Minerva."

"Headmaster," she bowed and closed the doors behind her as she exited.

"Well, there haven't been many pleasant surprises around here. How have you been, young man? I take it the Auror's Office finally got tired of you?"

Cadmus laughed and eased himself into his seat, a chair obviously meant for a race larger than humans. "A friend asked me to come to work here. A very good friend. I was only too happy to come here and answer your advertisement for wandless and nonverbal spell casting teachers."

"You didn't apply for the Defense Against the Dark Arts post?"

"After what happened to Mad-Eye, I would rather pass…" he leaned closer to Dumbledore, his black cloak hanging from his slender frame, "I heard the job was cursed by You-Know-What."

"That's what I have heard," the old man sighed, "the children need support more than ever, as you probably know he has returned. I'm rather glad you didn't take the post, as he seems to have a grip on it."

"The children will have to learn what they can from other classes, including the N.E.W.T level class I'm planning to teach."

Dumbledore had Fawkes fetch him a file, looking it over while grumbling to himself and nodding. "Elemental magic is not something we've taught here at Hogwarts… do you think the students can cope with that?"

"It's an N.E.W.T level subject; I will only choose those who are Outstanding. Maybe four, one from each House…it is very dangerous, headmaster. I will understand if you won't open the class. We had it at Durmstrang; it was very popular with our high potentials when I taught there."

"I will consider it, as I do with all new classes, Mr. Pendragon. You yourself are allowed to practice it in the meantime, of course. Be gentle with it, we have some enthusiastic students here who wish to learn things a little too quickly, if you know what I mean."

"Like the son of James Potter?" Cadmus crossed his arms and scowled.

"Yes, young Harry is in his sixth year here. I assure you, he is one of our best and brightest. I will not have anyone harm that boy," Dumbledore seemed to grow large and menacing despite his rather docile appearance.

"His father is dead. I have nothing against the boy himself, I assure you," Cadmus sat up. "The past is a long time ago, someone once told me," he grinned.

"I still hold up to that belief, young Cadmus," Dumbledore stood to his feet. "Yet it is the past that seeks to hurt us now. I hope you will help us despite your history with Harry's father. Severus rarely recommends anyone for work here; you may go to the Slytherin common room or his Potions class if you want to find him. You are still a Slytherin, aren't you?" he raised an eyebrow.

"Always will be," Cadmus held up his ring, three snakes coiled together with a cobra staring forward between a python and a basilisk. It was a parting gift from the then House Head when he moved to Durmstrang in his third year and it had never left his hand since.

"Very well, you will relieve Severus of his duties teaching wandless magic as soon as your things arrive. We have already kept a room tidy for you. And Cadmus…"

"Yes, Head?"

"Please limit your Ball Lightning Teleport experiments to pre-planned sessions and inform the staff well in advance. The children haven't seen Elemental Magic before and you will give some ideas and give others the chills. I would like neither. I also know you know Dark Arts and various Curses from your time in the North- DO NOT PRACTICE THEM IN FRONT OF THE STUDENTS!"

"Yes, headmaster," Cadmus bowed and stepped backwards and disappeared behind a statue that cheekily peeked round the corner.

Dumbledore let his long-held breath out and turned into his office as Fawkes sat on his shoulder. It was indeed unusual for Snape to recommend anyone other than himself for a post, but perhaps the Potions master was getting softer in his middle age. They had been best friends in the early years at Hogwarts; Cadmus was always standing up for his friend, being taller and tougher. The Gryffindors always wondered why he wasn't sorted into their house, as Cadmus proved himself to be brave and worthy of praise on many occasions, including an angry protest from the trees in the Forbidden Forest. He did, however have habits such as tinkering with magical artifacts and abstract magic, leading to an entire tower being blown up at one point. Luckily the idea was to temporarily explode the tower, as it reassembled immediately with the help of massive runes. The students caught literally with their pants down and singing in the shower however were still not pleased at their walls and ceilings ripped off from their residential tower.

As he seemed to gallop down the hallways Cadmus drew stares from the kids who wondered who this oddball was in their school, not really knowing that behind Alistair Moody he was the most powerful Auror in the Magical world. He seemed to grab a passing student at random and stared at him closely with his dark green eyes before opening his mouth.

"Your name, sir," Cadmus' eyes seemed to scan the boy from head to toe.

"Ron…Ron Weasley!" the redheaded boy was practically lifted off his feet by the taller professor, prompting laughter from some Slytherin boys in the corner. The girl he was walking with immediately started yelling for him to put Ron down while their companion seemed to hide behind her.

"Easy there, no harm done Mr. Weasley," he put the student down and shot the Slytherin boys a cold stare. "I knew your father Arthur at the Ministry of Magic! Strange fellow, but with an honest heart. I knew you were one of his the moment I saw you. Good kids, all of you."

"Are you a new teacher?" Hermione helped Ron dust off his cloak, "I've never seen you before."

"Yes I am, young lady. The name's Cadmus Pendragon, no relation to any evil or wicked Cadmuses you've ever heard of. At least I hope so." Hermione looked strangely up at him, piqued by the manner of his voice and for some reason making Ron wince.

"And this must be young Harry James Potter, delivered by Dumbledore himself," he put his hand on Harry's head. Immediately Harry felt like he had stuck his tongue into a Muggle socket-plug, shivering but tingling at the same time. "You're quite famous outside, you and that scar of yours. I hear you will not be attending my nonverbal or wandless classes…what a shame, Potter."

Harry felt coldness in his voice, especially when he said the name Potter, not too dissimilar to how a certain Potions professor spoke his name, with a mixture of disgust and apathy. "I'm sorry sir," he found himself mumbling, "I have preferences for Charms and Herbology this year…"

"Never mind, we will meet each other again, no doubt," he slapped Harry gently on the cheek. He turned to the Slytherin boys and with a wave of his hand knocked all their heads together using a telekinetic spell, wagging his finger at them as he passed them by. He shot the Gryffindor trio a smile and continued his journey to the cellars, which were much further down.

"You're in nonverbal and wandless this year," Ron was still rubbing his shoulder as he turned to Hermione.

"I kept on urging you two to take it up; it would help a great deal against You Know Who. But no, the brave heroes have to be tottering about with magic plants and arm itch potions…" she sighed, "what if your wand breaks again, Ron?"

"It won't break this time," Ron held out his wand, bought from Ollivander himself with a unicorn hair in the core, " I've read odd things about wandless magic, some people said it was useless in a fight, some said it was the best thing to have. I'd have my wand close by, especially these days though."

"I also prefer the wand, since it helps focus," Harry followed the other two down the stairs and towards the portrait hole that led to the Gryffindor common room.