Chapter 2! Wow! So much excitement!
By five the next morning, I was out of bed, showered, and off to set up for the various classes. As an assistant professor, my primary duty was making sure that all of the actual professors had the proper materials for their lessons that day. I had a long list for the day, involving stops at Hagrid's hut, the greenhouses, the dungeons, and a handful of other classes. Thus the early start. Thankfully, one of the house elves had been kind enough to supply me with a very strong cup of coffee, which I clutched tightly as I made my way down to Hagrid's hut.
I grimaced as I checked the list. The Hippogriff wouldn't be too difficult to deal with, but I was certainly not looking forward to handling Bowtruckles. I'd spent a day or two getting acquainted with Hagrid's many pets, and Buckbeak was a personal favorite of mine. As I approached the dangerous creature, I set down my coffee and grabbed a rabbit from a bucket Hagrid left out. Buckbeak cocked his head and approached. I extended the rabbit, and he looked at me curiously. There was some recognition, and he took the rabbit slowly, allowing me to gently grab the small cord around his neck. I led him to the pen where Hagrid would keep him for the day, talking sweetly to him as we went. With that done, I turned toward the boxes where I knew Hagrid kept the Bowtruckles. Thankfully, all I had to do was count to ensure there would be enough for his class that day, but I still hated it. Bowtruckles weren't particularly dangerous, but they were certainly irritating. And creepy. They were far too insect-like for my tastes.
That being done, I turned back toward the castle, heading for the greenhouses. A glance at my list told me that all I had to do was place trowels and extra gloves in each greenhouse. Thank Merlin, I wasn't ready to go near any of the Snargaluff pods that I had heard Pomona talking about.
Trelawney's set up involved the placement of several tea cups and tea pots, as well as procuring bags of tea leaves from the house elves. Minerva had me collecting pocket watches and cages of doves for her classes, while Filius had merely asked me to find him a few steps for his podium.
By seven o'clock, I was heading to the dungeons, arms full with empty vials for Snape's classes. Unfortunately, he was there by the time I reached the classroom. He didn't look up as I entered, only instructed me to set the vials on a side table. I did so, and glanced at my list. I summoned the necessary materials and arranged them according to which classes would be using them, careful to avoid mixing in any dangerous ingredients with the first year's box of items.
"I'll be back to observe the sixth year class in the afternoon," I called as I left the room.
"Wonderful," I heard Snape drawl sarcastically. My, was I excited for that period. A quick look at my list told me that my last stop for the morning would be Lupin's classroom to help him wrangle a boggart. Great.
I knocked on the door of his class, waiting to enter until instructed to do so. I pushed the door open to see him staring down an enormous wardrobe, arms crossed. His robes were laid across his neat desk, leaving him in muggle attire, shirt sleeves pushed up to expose slightly toned forearms. I looked to the wardrobe, curious.
"Did you manage to move the boggart on your own?" I asked, not seeing anywhere else it could be. He chuckled.
"I was lucky enough that the boggart seemed to prefer the wardrobe from the staff lounge to its less spacious home in the tiny broom closet on the fourth floor. It's not quite what I'd hoped, seeing as it's going to be quite a pain to get rid of when I'm finished with it, but it will do nicely for now."
"Oh," I responded. I let out a breath and looked around. "Well. Is there anything else I can do for you R- Professor Lupin?"
"You can call me Remus," he replied, smiling. "We're colleagues. You aren't my student, Charlotte."
"Well, if I'm calling you Remus, you should call me Lottie." I crumpled up the parchment with my list on it and tossed it into the waste basket near his desk. I looked around at the classroom. He had opened the curtains to allow natural light into the room, and one of the windows was opened ever so slightly to let in a slight breeze. It was much nicer in here than it had ever been when I took DADA in school.
"Are you coming to any of my lessons today?" I turned to look at Remus, who had moved to lean slightly against his desk. I shook my head.
"Unfortunately, no. I've been doomed to aid with the sixth year potions lesson this afternoon rather than your class. However, I'll be with you on Tuesday mornings and Wednesday afternoons for the rest of the year," I explained. I mentally went over my weekly schedule one more time. "Actually, make that Wednesday for the entire middle of the day. I forgot that I'm slotted to be there for the fifth year class in the mornings."
"Wonderful," he replied sincerely. "I'm a bit out of practice when it comes to dealing with moody teenagers, and I could use all the help I can get."
We laughed, only to hear a bell begin to chime eight o'clock. I bid Remus a quick farewell and made my way to the Great Hall, stomach growling after three hours of running around on an empty stomach. In my hurry, I ran right into a student with the bushiest hair I'd ever seen. Stepping back, I took a look at her. She seemed remarkably distressed.
"Are you al-" I began, but she was running off again before I could finish. I shrugged and continued toward the staff table, eyes glued to the rather lovely looking fruit salad placed there. Before I could reach it, though, I was stopped by the Headmaster, himself.
"Good morning, Lottie," he greeted kindly, eyes sparkling. "How is your first day treating you?"
"Very well, Albus, thank you," I replied, eyes flickering to the fruit salad that Pomona was very quickly approaching. "I was actually just about to grab something to eat."
"Of course," he replied. "But I just wanted to let you know that we'll need you to fill in for Rolanda this afternoon. The Hufflepuff first years have a flying lesson scheduled, and Rolanda's come down with a bit of a cold. She should be up and running by tomorrow morning, but Poppy sent her for a day of rest."
"Oh," I replied, heart pounding. I wasn't terrible at flying, but there were so many things that could go wrong. And with a batch of Hufflepuffs? That was an injury waiting to happen. I smiled nervously. "I can do that."
"I know you can," Albus replied kindly. "That's why I hired you, Charlotte."
"Yes, well," I remarked ever so intelligently. Albus bid me farewell, leaving me with just enough time to scoop some fruit salad into a goblet and grab a warm muffin before I was off to Charity's class, where I would assist in her introduction to Muggle Studies. What a day today would be.
It wasn't until lunch that I had the time to sit for a moment, leaning back into the armchair I'd levitated from my small quarters into my office. Pulling my legs up beneath me, I inhaled deeply. One of the house elves had very kindly agreed to bring me a corned beef sandwich and some pumpkin juice from the Great Hall, and the smell was intoxicating. I began to lift the sandwich to my mouth, only to be interrupted by a knock on my door. I glanced from the door to the sandwich, then back to the door. I let out a sigh.
"Come in."
"Professor Fraser?" A familiar head of blonde hair peeked through the door, and I smiled.
"Hello, Luna. What can I do for you?" I asked, summoning a chair from the other side of the room and placing it opposite me. Luna came in slowly and sat down, the large chair dwarfing her small frame.
"I was wondering if you could tell me more about the thestrals. My father's taught me a lot about some of the lesser known creatures, but I've never heard of thestrals before." I took in a deep breath.
"Would you like some tea? Perhaps half of my sandwich? It's corned beef," I offered, summoning the teapot, a few cups, tea leaves, and some sugar. I muttered a spell to fill the pot with water, and quickly brought it to a boil. I put the leaves in the pot to steep, handing Luna a cup. She took it gratefully, and very delicately took hold of half my sandwich. "Now, when did you realize you could see thestrals?"
"I thought I saw horses as a first year," she replied, watching as her cup filled with a strong peppermint tea. "But I suppose I was wrong."
"Thestrals are very kind creatures, Luna, but as I've told you, most people are lucky enough not to see them. However, some of us can, and it's because we've seen someone pass away." Luna blinked, and looked down at her lap. "Would you like to tell me about it? You don't have to." She didn't reply, merely taking a bite of sandwich. "If you'd like, I can start, and then maybe you'll feel ready to tell me your story?"
"Maybe," she mumbled, mouth full. I pulled a hand over my face and took a deep breath.
"When I was your age, we were still in the Wizarding War. You-Know-Who and his Death Eaters were in full swing, terrorizing muggleborns and anyone who sympathized with them. My family and I lived in a muggle town just outside of Edinborough. While I was home for the Christmas holidays, there was an attack on the town; the Death Eaters were sending a message, telling the Ministry that they were getting more powerful. My older brother, Joey, was an Auror, and he got my parents and I to safety before running off. I was your typical Gryffindor, though, and I thought I'd help him. I snuck out of the safe house and ran out into the chaos, looking for my brother. I wasn't paying attention, and I was almost hit. An Auror I didn't recognize pushed me out of the way, and as a result, she died. I crawled behind a bush and watched as the Aurors fell. None of them made it, not even Joey. I watched seven people die that day, and I've been able to see the thestrals here ever since."
Luna and I were both quiet for what seemed like ages. We ate our sandwiches in silence, neither of us daring to look at eachother until Luna finally spoke.
"I saw my mum die," she murmured. I looked up to see her looking straight at me. "I was very young, and I don't remember much of anything, but I did see it."
"I'm sorry," I said softly, reaching to squeeze the girl's hand.
"I'm sorry about your brother," Luna replied. "Do you miss him?"
"Every day," I responded. "But he died trying to protect people, and he will always be my hero because of that."
"I have to get to my next class," Luna said, standing slowly. She smiled at me. "Thank you for the lunch and the talk, Professor Fraser."
"It was my pleasure. Remember that my door is always open if you need anything, Luna."
I watched as she left. Well, that's one way to spend your first day, I thought to myself. Telling a student about your problems. Still, I got the feeling that Luna was a little off, and she needed to know there was someone else who understood. I checked my watch and groaned. Flying lessons. Wonderful. Well, at least they got me out of Potions with Snape.