The sun was shining in through the window of Sakura's private dormitory in the most annoying way. Just a small, sliver of a bright sunbeam fell across her left eye and she groaned up at the curtains that she thought she had pulled tight the night before. It was too early to be dealing with anything other than dreams and she rolled onto her side and pulled the covers up over her head.
With a sigh, Sakura closed her eyes and settled deeper into her pillows. Not a second later, her alarm was ringing from her nightstand. Her eyes snapped back open and for just a few extra seconds, she wondered if she could just sleep through it.
Surely it would stop ringing eventually.
But beyond the shrill alarm, she could hear the other students waking up and moving into the common room below. She may have her own, private quarters this year, but they weren't far enough away from the others in her opinion.
Sakura sat up with a groan and dropped a hand to the alarm, switching off the annoying sound. The silence that followed behind wasn't much better. It grated on her nerves until she had enough and noisily begun to get ready for the day.
The Head Girls and Boys of each house were expected to meet with both the Headmistress and Co-Headmistress as per usual. Every year, they would get a brief refresher course on what is expected, what duties they will have, and on what behavior they should always act. Sakura knew the spoiler to that one; their absolute best behavior. Madame Shizune made sure to drill that into their heads, inside her class and out.
Sakura slipped her grey, pleated skirt up around her hips and secured it in the back. She frowned down at the length, wondering if she had hit a growth spurt over the summer. The hem of the skirt fell just a bit short of where it had last year but she didn't have the time to adjust it at the moment. Her stockings came next and finally her shoes before she stepped to the long, rectangular mirror hanging on the back of her door. It was left by one of the previous Head Girls with notes of encouragement written across the top portion of the glass.
Apparently, they were magically charmed to change each day and today, Sakura scoffed at the words. 'A positive attitude will lead to positive outcomes' was written in scrawling, loopy script and they shimmered like iridescent scales each time the light hit them. Sakura tried to erase the words, even with a charm of her own, but it only resulted in the quote changing to a new one.
There was only so many motivational quotes she could take before she felt nauseous. The only solution was to ignore them. Sakura rolled her eyes at the quote and turned to make sure her uniform was neat and proper before she grabbed her robe, book bag, and wand.
The Ravenclaw common room was already bustling despite classes not starting for another two hours. But it wouldn't be characteristically Ravenclaw without the excitement of learning all that Hogwarts had to offer. Most of the students were first years, already breaking out into cliques of friends as they discussed possible classes, careers, and lore about the castle.
"I heard the Slytherin common room is beneath the lake!" One of the first-year boys said. "I wonder if they ever see the monster."
"What monster?" A short, round boy asked with eyes as wide as saucers. He was more than likely muggle born. Sakura recognized the same kind of amazement in him that she felt in her first days of Hogwarts, hearing about the strange tales about this other world.
It almost put a smile on her face.
But not quite.
She crossed the common room to the hallway that led to the Head Boy dormitory. Though the magical charm wouldn't allow her to go inside, it didn't stop her from reaching the door. She raised a fist and beat it rapidly against the wood. Behind her, the common room fell into a quick silence and she ignored the feel of the stares from the First Years. "Get up, Shikamaru! We have a meeting in less than twenty minutes."
From inside the dorm, she could hear a muffled groan followed by the creaking of bed springs. For good measure, she gave another round of beatings to the door.
"Alright! For Merlin's sake just stop!" Shikamaru cried from inside the room. This time, Sakura smiled and leaned back against the archway outside his dorm. She listened to the Head Boy move around the room as she continued to ignore the group of kids in the common room.
Most had started whispering, more than likely about her, but in that moment, Sakura didn't care. She had been whispered about before and it definitely wasn't going to stop this year. At least the younger ones didn't know about her and Sasuke, which was a small relief.
She turned to scowl at the door to her right, wondering if she needed to beat on it again to make Shikamaru move his ass into gear. Thankfully, he emerged half a second later with a scowl that made her smile stretch into a grin.
"Morning sunshine."
He pushed past her, gathering the lengths of his dark hair into his hands as he did so. "Don't give me that bullshit, Sakura. It's too early for it."
She chuckled to herself, following him through the expanse of the common room. Everyone knew Shikamaru was not a morning person. And most knew to stay away from him in the morning but a little bit of Ino had rubbed off on Sakura through the years and she couldn't help pestering him in his foul state. She joined up with him as he slipped through the door and stepped out into the main halls of the castle's 5th floor.
He secured his hair at the back of his head and turned to scowl down at her. "Why did I agree to do this?"
He was referring to being Head Boy and Sakura rolled her eyes at his dramatics. No one she knew put so much effort into being lazy quite like Shikamaru Nara. She brushed her hair over her shoulder and stepped in front of him to lead the way to the Headmistress' office.
"Because," Sakura started, glancing at him from over her shoulder. "It looks good on a resume and despite your lazy attitude, I know you actually care about your future."
He waved her off but didn't argue. They walked the rest of the way in silence, meeting up with the Gryffindor Head Boy and Girl on the staircase. And, judging by the beaming grin on the Head Boy's face as he spotted Sakura, she could only guess that he had definitely heard the rumors about the ending of her relationship with Sasuke.
"Hello Sakura!" Lee bounced toward her, nearly knocking Shikamaru and Tenten over with his enthusiasm along the way. Inwardly, Sakura grimaced and thought up any excuse to turn down the date invitation she knew was coming. "I hope you had a good summer."
"Not exactly," she mumbled, turning to pick up her pace. Unfortunately, Lee fell in step beside her and shook the dark hair from his eyes. It seemed that Sakura wasn't the only one to hit a growth spurt either. She had to look up at Lee as he cleared his throat where just last year, they had nearly been the same height.
"I am sorry to hear that. Hopefully this year, you will have all the happiness you deserve."
Shikamaru muttered something under his breath, too low for Sakura to hear, before stepping around them to the arch in the wall where a stone gargoyle sat, guarding the stairway to the Headmistress' office. Forcing a polite smile, Sakura nodded to Lee.
"Thank you, that's very sweet."
She turned away from him before he could say anything else and stepped up to the statue. Shikamaru hid a yawn behind his hand and Sakura sighed, leaning forward to whisper the password.
"Zinfandel."
With a grind of stone against stone, the gargoyle slowly spun to reveal a staircase spiraling upward. Though she had never been to the Headmistress' office on a bad note, it never failed to make her nervous to see the stairs. She took a deep breath and stepped forward. Before she could even put her foot onto the first step, a voice called from the hallway behind them.
"Wait for us!"
Sakura glanced back to see a tall, muscular boy dressed haphazardly in Hufflepuff colors barreling toward him. His hand was clasped around the Hufflepuff Head Girl's and Sakura felt a bit sick at the sight. Choji and Karui's relationship had become official right around the time she and Sasuke had become an item. It hurt to see that while their relationship had ended abruptly and without much of a valid reason, Choji and Karui's had not.
Not that Sakura wasn't happy for them. She was. It was just hard to see.
"Maybe if you two hadn't been trying to find a dark corner to snog, you wouldn't be late," Shikamaru chuckled, though it was clear by the look on Karui's face that she didn't find it that funny. She pulled her hand free from Choji's and brushed her hair away from her face.
"We stopped to help out some wandering first years, thank you very much," Karui said with a sniff. It might have been a convincing argument had her lipstick not been just a bit smeared on her lips as well as on Choji's. Sakura let the girl pass, covering her giggle behind her palm. Together, three out of the four houses made their way up to the Headmistress' office.
Inside the circular room, the sun was shining in through the stained-glass windows, making the whole place feel warm and inviting. Sakura's shoes sank into the plush, oriental rug beneath her feet and she quickly found one of the eight chairs to drop into. They were arranged in a half circle in front of the columns that separated the main office from Madame Tsunade's desk. Behind it, and a bit to the right, was a narrow door that Sakura knew lead to the woman's private quarters, though she had never seen them herself.
Mostly, she had seen Tsunade stumble through the door in the morning before their meetings last year, quickly smoothing her clothes and hair before stepping out to greet her.
Sakura turned to watch the rest of them file into the room. Before Shikamaru or Tenten could drop into the seat next to her, Lee made a beeline to it and dropped into the chair with a grin. He opened his mouth and Sakura quickly grabbed her bookbag, rifling through it to make it seem like she had something far more important to do than listen to whatever he had to say. Thankfully, he clamped his mouth shut and settled for watching her fake search through her things.
"Good morning everyone," Shizune called as she strolled in behind them, her dark robes billowing behind her. She turned to face them, clasping her hands in front of her. "And welcome to another year at Hogwarts."
"So sorry we're late," a girl said breathlessly as she collapsed into one of the last two chairs available. She flipped her long, red hair over her shoulder and Sakura forced herself to look away. The muscles along her jaw clenched tight and her ears burned hot at the sound of the girl's voice. "I just couldn't get started this morning. It's so nice to be back!"
Sakura's hands clenched in her lap, begging to strangle that sugary, sweet voice right out of Karin's throat. The girl leaned forward and said hello to them all while Neji Hyuga grumbled in annoyance as he took a seat beside her. He didn't offer any sort of greeting to anyone else, but that wasn't very surprising. He was always quiet...intimidating, but quiet. A perfect example of Slytherin characteristics.
"No need to apologize, Miss Uzumaki. You're all early." Shizune beamed proudly at them as the door behind Tsunade's desk opened quietly. The Headmistress emerged, her face stoic but soft as she turned to face them. "Madame Tsunade and I are very proud of this group sitting here. You've all worked hard to get where you are and I'm confident that every one of you will continue to make not only your houses proud, but Hogwarts as well." With a small smattering of applause from the group of students, Shizune stepped to the side and let Tsunade take her place on the small platform in front of her desk.
Sakura tried to pay attention. She really did. But, the longer she sat there with the sun beaming down on her back, making sweat start to bubble right where the clasp of her skirt sat against her skin, she couldn't help glancing over to where Karin sat. Her legs were crossed at the knee, her skirt just a bit shorter than what was accepted, and Sakura glowered at the sight. Wasn't anyone going to say something to her?
"I know it probably hasn't sunk in yet that this is your final year at Hogwarts, and while it is a time to feel a bit sad about your days here are coming to an end, I want you all to think about what lies before you." Tsunade looked at each of them as if she were a general, giving a last speech of encouragement to the troops on the battlefield. And what she was saying was probably important, words that Sakura would remember for the rest of her life if it weren't for the annoying, red headed twat sitting six chairs away from her at the moment.
Sakura bounced her foot and forced herself to look up at the Headmistress. Thankfully, the woman hadn't noticed how Sakura's gaze kept sliding to the Slytherin across the room. But honestly, how was she supposed to pay attention when there were so many uniform violations on one student. A Head Girl at that! Her tie was loose, the top button of her shirt open, and though she couldn't be too sure, Sakura was almost certain the hoop earrings she was wearing weren't allowed either.
"...your duty to guide the younger students. They will be looking up to you this year. Be sure to show them the same respect, kindness and camaraderie that the previous Heads showed you. Now, if there are no questions," Tsunade pauses for a moment, but no questions were asked. "I'll let Shizune hand out your schedules and you can officially begin your last year at Hogwarts."
Shizune started at the far end of the room, handing off Neji's schedule to him before making her way around the half circle of chairs. Lee got his and stood to his feet, thanking both the Headmistress and Co-headmistress with a short bow. He turned to smile down at Sakura, once again opening his mouth to say something and once again, being stopped short.
"Miss Haruno? Would you mind staying behind for a quick word, please?" Tsunade asked, peering around Shizune from her desk.
While she was thankful that she had managed to avoid Lee yet again, she was already dreading the words from the woman. Perhaps she hadnoticed Sakura's preoccupation with Karin Uzumaki after all. With a nod, she slipped her schedule into her bookbag and stood to her feet, following Shizune up to the wide, cluttered desk. Though it did seem like there was some sort of method to the madness of papers and books, Sakura always wondered how she kept things organized.
Shizune pulled a stack of books from the desk to make room and set them on a shelf to the side, arranging them neatly. As she stepped away to charm the chairs back into a stack in the corner of the room, Tsunade folded her hands in front of her. She didn't look upset, but she definitely didn't look happy either. Sakura shifted nervously in her chair.
"I won't pretend I don't know what happened with you and Mr. Uchiha, Sakura. You're an adult now and I'm going to continue treating you like the mature young woman that I know you are." She reached for a cup and took a quick sip from it, smacking her lips once to savor the taste. A sick feeling settled low in Sakura's stomach and she resisted the urge to rub her hand across her tummy. "Now, that being said, I don't want this to interfere with your studies. I remember what it's like as a teenager. I remember the hormones and the crushes and the breakups."
"Madame Tsunade, I'm not sure-"
"I'm just saying, boys will come and go. Don't lose yourself over someone who doesn't see your worth. You're in quite a few Advanced classes but if anyone can accomplish this, it's you. Have you given any more thought to what we talked about last year?"
Sakura didn't know how to tell her that no, she hadn't thought about anything aside from how hurt she was the last few months. Swallowing, she shifted in her chair once more and ducked her head. "I'm still a bit undecided. I enjoy healing and I know I'm good at it, not to mention my parents would be much happier if I pick something safe."
For a moment, Tsunade was quiet. She stared at Sakura, the look on her face a strange mix of disappointment and mild annoyance. Though it wasn't directed at her necessarily. With a sigh, the woman rubbed her fingers across her forehead. "I know your parents mean a lot to you and I know they don't have the best understanding of our world. But this is not their future we are discussing. I'm going to ask you the same thing I asked you last year, Sakura."
From behind Sakura's chair, Shizune stepped to the desk and stood behind the Headmistress. Her hands were clasped in front of her and she gave a small, reassuring smile. Sakura took a deep breath, anticipating the words that she could still recall Tsunade asking her back in April.
"What do you want?"
She wanted to know that answer, wanted to be sure of it. She wanted the confidence to hold her head up and say exactly what she wanted. But her confidence had been shattered and all that was left was doubt and an uncertainty that made Sakura feel sick to her stomach. She hated this feeling, hated that she let herself come to this all because of a stupid boy who she couldn't get out of her head no matter how badly she tried.
"I don't know," she finally admitted, her voice barely a whisper. For some reason, the thought of disappointing Tsunade was worse than disappointing her parents. But she couldn't lie to her. She truly didn't know what she wanted.
That's a lie, a voice in the back of her mind whispered. You're just afraid of what you want.
The sigh from Tsunade lifted Sakura's head and she frowned up at the two women. "Well, if you decide you want to be a healer, both Shizune and Hana Inuzuka are extremely knowledgeable in that field. Either one of them would be suitable for you to shadow."
To emphasize the Headmistress' point, Shizune nodded and took a step forward. "You know I would be more than happy to give you extra lessons that would secure you a career as a healer. We want you to succeed."
Sakura nodded, looking down at her hands folded across her lap. She had been nervously twisting the hem of her skirt around her finger and now the material was wrinkled. Sighing, she smoothed her skirt out around her legs and reached for her backpack. "I appreciate your help, I really do. I just need to think about it a bit more."
Before she could stand, Tsunade sat back in her chair and spoke. "However, if you think you want to pursue a career as an auror, we both think you would be an asset for the Ministry. Your skills are extraordinary, Sakura and I think with a bit of help, you would have what it takes." She shifted through some loose parchment on her desk until she found a folded pamphlet. The Ministry's seal was printed in gold lettering on the front as well as a short, block of text. Tsunade slid it across the desk and put her fingers over to top of it. "Are you aware of our new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor?"
Sakura could recall the dark glance he had given her the night before with vivid details. A shiver ran across her spine at the thought of it and she swallowed back the urge to shudder. With a shake of her head, she reached up to take the pamphlet from her. The text across the top read Career Opportunities at The Ministry of Magic and the seal shimmered beneath the lights. Distracted by the folded parchment in her hands, Sakura shook her head. "No, I'm not."
"Professor Hatake attended Hogwarts not too many years before you. He was one of the youngest graduates and one of the youngest Aurors for the Ministry. He is an exceptionally powerful wizard and a skilled Occlumens."
At this, Sakura lifted her head and frowned. She had heard that word before, mostly in her studies but also from Ino. The Yamanaka family were naturally prone to Legillimens and it was something Ino was quite good at. The Ministry was already interested in recruiting her to be an Auror, just like her father. Occlumency was the opposite side of the coin that both it and Legillimency existed on.
But Sakura wasn't from a long line of pure blood families tracing back for centuries. She didn't have an innate ability to read minds or stop someone from reading her own. She shook her head and glanced between the two women standing behind the desk. "I don't understand."
"I, along with a few other professors, have noticed your potential, Sakura." Shizune's voice was soft as she leaned forward, putting a hand down on the desktop. "We think with a little guidance, you could learn to master Occlumency. You and Miss Yamanaka would be top choice for the Ministry."
Sakura blinked down at the pamphlet in her hands, her heart racing. For the first time in months, it was racing because of excitement and not from pain. She felt herself nod, though she was still a bit dazed by what they were telling her. Being an Auror, working with Ino for the Ministry, and feeling like she was making a difference in the world she struggled to fit into was exactly what she wanted. It was what she was afraid to admit, afraid she would be laughed at for wanting.
"Think about it for a few days and I will speak to both Miss Inuzuka and Professor Hatake for whichever you decide."
Kakashi stood at the front of his classroom, watching the last of the sixth years hurry out the door. Once he was alone once again, he let his head fall until his chin touched his chest and blew out a heavy sigh. It was bizarre to him, that he could chase down wizards through the countryside, pursue suspects for 18 hours straight and yet, he had never felt this exhausted before dinner.
He didn't know what was worse; chasing after criminals or dealing with teenagers all day. Even the younger ones were smart mouthed and insufferable. He was beginning to understand what Tsunade meant about drinking to get through the day.
Glancing back at the office door above him, Kakashi wondered if he should dip into his private stash of firewhisky to help him get through the next class. Deciding against it, he grabbed the class roster and looked at the list of classes under Monday. He only had fifteen minutes before the next group came in, but thankfully, they were all seventh years and it was an Advanced course. Hopefully they would be ready to learn and advanced enough that he wouldn't have to hold anyone's hand along the way.
After the group of second and third years, he didn't want to come into close proximity to any students. Maybe the Ministry should introduce a course on proper hygiene. Or at least how to use a stick of deodorant every morning.
With a sigh, he rubbed his hand across his face, pulling his mask down to his chin. He scratched along his jawline and pointed the tip of his wand to the blackboard. The eraser quickly swiped across the notes he had charmed across the surface and once the slate was clean, it settled back down on the ledge beneath the board. He hoped the lesson he had planned for the next class wasn't too advanced for them. There wasn't much in the way of guidance for him to plan his lessons out.
Both the Ministry and Tsunade had given him freedom to plan them all on his own. Which, he knew he should be grateful for. He just hoped he was properly preparing them for what was to come if they did succeed and become Aurors. The job wasn't pretty, but it wasn't always excitement and danger. Half of the time he was doing paperwork at a desk or arguing with the lawmakers to get them to turn a blind eye just once so they could have the upper hand against the criminals. It never worked, but it didn't stop Kakashi or any of his fellow Aurors from trying. There was always a proper way to do things when it came to Bureaucracy, and it usually meant a stack of paperwork.
He grabbed the chalk from the tray and began writing a few things before the next set of students came bustling in. He could hear a few come into the room, their banter immediately turning to hushed whispers. It had been happening all day. Whispered rumors about his exploits and triumphs spread like wildfire and though only a small portion of them had any truth. But he understood how intimidating a new professor could be. Especially one teaching subjects as intense as Defense Against the Dark Arts. He knew they'd be wary of him for weeks, possibly months if they believed the rumors and that was fine.
It wasn't like he was here to make friends with any of them anyway.
Once the tardy bell rang and the last student slipped into the classroom, Kakashi finished his notes, dropped the chalk back into the tray and turned to face them as he dusted his hands. They all stared at him with wide eyes, though a few Slytherins put on the infamous 'I'm too wealthy to care' facade. He recognized one Slytherin almost immediately as the youngest member of the Uchiha clan. It would seem that this one had mastered the cold, standoffish attitude already.
Kakashi scanned the rest of the class, taking a quick headcount to make sure he had exactly twenty students that his roster said he would have. In the front row, his eyes met another familiar face. Dark eyes and hair pulled up on top of his head. The boy was a spitting image of his father, Shikaku Nara. For a second, Kakashi almost let himself smile but knew it was better to intimidate them now and lighten up later on. No use trying to be friendly, even to the ones he was familiar with.
"Welcome to Defense Against the Dark Arts. I'm sure most of you have heard something about me by now and I'd like to address those rumors. Don't believe any of them. As of this moment, I'm not an Auror, I'm not the youngest student to ever graduate from Hogwarts and from this point up until May, I'm only Professor Hatake." He paused to cross his arms over his chest, leaning a hip against the desk behind him. "I spent the last fifteen years working for the Ministry and now, I'm here to prepare you for a possible career defending other witches and wizards from those who want to do harm. How many of you are interested in being an Auror?"
The students surprised him by instantly raising their hands into the air. His eyebrows lifted and he scanned the students he could see. While most of them held their hands high in confidence, one in particular hesitantly lifted hers from the desk in front of her. Her eyes darted around to her peers before she raised her hand a bit higher in the air. Kakashi nodded, glancing quickly to her face surrounded by strands of pink that were falling from her ponytail. He recognized her as the girl from Ravenclaw who had looked a bit miserable at dinner the night before. She didn't look to be in much of a better mood today and he had to resist the urge to roll his eyes.
Ignoring the moody teenager, he gestured for them to lower their hands as he circled back behind his desk. He pulled the textbook out of the drawer and dropped it onto the table top with a soft thunk. "One of the most important skills an Auror can know is non-verbal magic. I know last year your professor had briefly touched on it. This year, it will be all we will use."
Another round of whispering fluttered through the classroom and with a quick clear of his throat, the fell silent again. "For the remainder of the year," Kakashi continued. "I don't want to hear a single incantation. If you're facing a dark wizard, you won't be announcing what spells you'll be using. You want to act quickly and forcefully. Throughout the year, you'll learn how to master this ability and soon, you'll be able to conjure multiple spells in rapid succession. Until then, however, let's start simply."
His eye drifted back to the left where the Ravenclaw girl was sitting. Her frown had turned into something that resembled nervous worry and she opened her textbook to scan the first few lessons, which Kakashi was skipping altogether. He wondered if she had read the first few chapters already and he fought the urge to smirk. "Although I will not follow your textbook exactly," he paused to eye the girl. She looked up at him and realized he was directing his words to her, sending a blush creeping up her face. "I do expect you to read through it on your own and complete the questions at the end of each chapter. I'll collect them every other Friday which gives you plenty of time to finish them."
The girl slowly closed the front cover of her textbook and slid it off her desk, glancing back at the rest of the class. Kakashi stopped himself from sighing and turned to a basket sitting beside his desk. He set it down on the surface and flicked the tip of his wand toward the wire rim. A bundle of sleek, black raven feathers all lifted from the basket and made their way to the students until everyone had a single feather in front of them. "I'm sure everyone remembers the lessons from your first year of Charms. Wingardium Leviosa. It's easy to master with nonverbal magic and I want you all to spend the rest of the hour making your feather float. If you find that to be a bit boring, move onto something heavier or help your neighbor."
Unsurprisingly, Shikaku Nara's son had no trouble and was sending his feather to circle the ceiling in less than five minutes. Satisfied that he had mastered the lesson, the Ravenclaw sat back in his chair and crossed his hands behind his head. Kakashi paused by his desk. "Good job, Mr. Nara. Now, you can help your neighbor do the same."
The kid sighed and turned to face the boy sitting next to him as Kakashi moved on down the center aisle between the rows of desks. Every few seconds, he would stop and give guidance or comment on a job well done. He was pleased to see most of them getting the hang of it relatively easily. That is, until he turned to make his way back up the length of desks and caught sight of a head of pink drop down onto the desk in frustration.
Kakashi frowned and stood back, watching the girl's partner lean over to help.
"Stop worrying so much, Sakura," the blonde one said, rubbing a reassuring hand across her shoulders. "Sit up and try again."
Taking a few more steps, Kakashi came up behind their shared table and watched the Ravenclaw point her wand to the feather. The tip of it fluttered off the desk and back down. He stood up straight and turned to face the class. "If you're having trouble getting the hang of it, remember to speak the incantation clearly in your mind."
The girl, apparently her name was Sakura, gave a small groan and glanced back at the others to see their progress. Kakashi watched as her eyes fell on the group of Slytherins in the back of the room, and on one Slytherin in particular. Mr. Uchiha was currently sending a group of feathers up to the ceiling to the delight of the girls around him and Kakashi sighed.
He had hoped that in such an advanced level class, he wouldn't have to deal with hormones and teenage drama. But it would seem that teenage girls were the same no matter how advanced they were. He stepped around the desk and glanced down to the Ravenclaw girl, snatching her attention away from the boy she was staring so intensely at. "Focus, Miss…" He trailed off, waiting for her to offer her name.
"Haruno," she mumbled, the tops of her ears and cheeks burning bright with embarrassment.
"Don't pay attention to what the boys are doing, Miss Haruno. Focus on your task." The look of shock on her face made him almost regret being so harsh with her, but it wasn't his job to coax her into doing her lessons. If she wanted to pay more attention to boys, she could move into one of the lower level classes. He turned away from her and moved back to the front of the room, checking the watch around his wrist.
"Alright, it looks like mostly everyone has gotten the hang of it. Good job," He snatched the basket off the desk behind him and used his wand to collect the stash of feathers, catching them all. "If you have any questions, feel free to stay behind after class. Other than that, you can have the rest of the period to work in the library on your first chapter questions."
He dropped the basket of feathers back onto the floor and listened to the commotion of the students gathering their things to leave. A small part of him felt guilty for hoping that no one had questions. It wasn't like he didn't want to help…it was more due to the fact that he was tired of dealing with them for the day. Too much, too soon. He wanted to sit down in his office before dinner, maybe read a bit and—
"Professor Hatake?" A small voice said behind him, making him turn to see the Ravenclaw girl with pink hair. She held her text book to her chest and over her shoulder, Kakashi could see the blonde waiting for her at the door.
"Yes?"
"I just…I wanted to tell you that I wasn't distracted by a boy during the lesson." Kakashi's eyebrow slowly arched as he blinked down at her. "I wastrying focus. It's just distracting when there are so many people talking loudly. It's not very efficient to have a lesson dependent on concentration when everyone is loud and laughing."
He didn't know what to say. It was rare that someone left him speechless, and to be called out like this by a student…it almost made him laugh. Almost. He cleared his throat, crossed his arms over his chest and forced himself not to react too harshly to her. "No one else seemed to have an issue with the lesson, Miss Haruno."
She held her chin a bit higher in the air and pursed her lips, obviously annoyed by him. Which was fitting, seeing as how he was annoyed by her as well. "I wasn't speaking for anyone else but myself. I suppose I'll just try harder next time." With a forced, tight smile, the girl spun on her heel and stomped down the aisle between the desks.
At the door, her friend stared at her with wide eyes and despite her voice lowering into a whisper, Kakashi could hear what she said.
"I told you not to open your big mouth! You're going to get on his bad side." The blonde looked over the top of Miss Haruno's pink ponytail, spotted Kakashi staring at them and pulled the girl the rest of the way out the door. For several seconds, he didn't know what to do, and so he stood rooted to the spot and stared at the space they had just occupied.
As annoying as Sakura Haruno seemed to be, it took some guts to stand up to a professor. And despite being annoyed by her, Kakashi couldn't help the tug of a smile at the corner of his lips.