One by one, the children filed into the room; all of them were there and they formed a line in front of their parents. It was clear from the moment they walked in that they had been briefed on how to introduce themselves. The eldest girl stepped forward, looked down her nose at Hermione and said, "My name is Sophie, I am fifteen years old," she said. She then took a step back, her curls bobbing as she moved
The next girl in the line stepped forward and announced, "My name is Flora, I am thirteen years old," she too stepped backwards.
The first boy stepped forward, "My name is Dominic, I am eleven."
"My name is Charissa, I am nine."
"My name is Davon, I am seven."
The last child in the line made a little shuffle forward, her black hair a complete contrast to those of her siblings; there was no doubt in her mind who had fathered the little girl and she smiled as she stepped forward, "My name is Inna, I am three," she said. She stepped back as she had clearly been instructed and her gaze returned to the floor. Hermione could only guess what would make such a small child stare at the floor and it had nothing to do with shyness.
"This lady is Miss Granger, she is going to be your Governess for the future," Mrs Snape said.
"You are to treat her with respect," Snape added. It was the first time her former professor had spoken since she had recognised him and she was glad it was in favour of her. She took a moment to look at him then. His hair brushed his shoulder as it always had and his nose was as large as it ever was but his eyes had lost a lot of their hardness, the lines on his face had softened and she realised that underneath all the memories, there was a rather handsome fellow there. She brushed the thought to the side, aware that he was already married to the woman before her and that thinking such was not appropriate.
The children all nodded but remained silent, clearly used to following orders issued by their parents. A sudden thought about what happened to the former governess struck her but she knew now was not the right time to ask such questions. Indeed, she felt as though the time for those sorts of questions were long gone.
"Hello everyone," she said when it became clear that they were waiting for her to say something. Mrs Snape stood up then and nodded.
"I will leave you to get to know the children," she said. Snape rose with her and Hermione found herself alone with the six children.
Silence filled the room. Six pairs of eyes fixed her where she was and she knew the smile on her face was only half formed. Blinking, she knew she had to say something, anything. She wiped her hands on her knees and nodded, "I don't know anything about you," she said.
"You know our names, what more do you need?" Sophie said.
"If I am to help you grow then a whole lot more than that." Sophie folded her arms over her chest and heaved out a sigh.
"I like building things," Davon said.
Hermione looked at the kids who were still stood up and smiled, "Why don't you all sit down and we can talk properly?" she suggested. There were a couple of exchanged glances before they did as they were told. Were the kids not supposed to sit on the sofas? If she was doing it wrong then so be it, they were children not china dolls made for show. It certainly seemed as if fun was something that was banned in the house; something that she was also going to change. Mrs Snape might be a starch-arsed woman but Hermione wasn't. If it got her fired then tough!
"So, Davon's a builder, what about the rest of you?" she asked.
"I like to paint but we're never allowed to," said Charissa. "Mother says it is a waste of time but I don't think so!"
Flora wrung her hands in her lap and looked at the clock, "I like maths," she said, "The courses at Hogwarts are pretty rudimentary but I want to look into arithmancy when I get a bit older," she explained, "There is a beauty in numbers that cannot be found anywhere else."
"I play the violin," Dominic said, "It's calming and Mr Snape really likes it too," he added.
"Is he not your father?" Hermione asked. Dominic and the others except for little Inna shook their heads.
"He married mother about four years ago," Sophie said. By the sound of it, she was not all that impressed by the event either. "You now know something about us, what about you?" she asked.
"That's fair. I love to read. I love all kinds of books and learning but my favourite would have to be Wuthering Heights," she explained. "It's a passionate story about people," she said, keeping it simple for the younger ones.
"I like books too," said Inna, her voice smaller than the others had been.
"Then we can be friends." Hermione nodded. She was about to open her mouth and say something else when there was a bell go off through the house. As one, the children stood up. "What is that?" she asked.
"That is the bell for dinner," Sophie said. Hermione was a little taken aback by that, surely it would be better to actually call for the children rather than ring a bell. They were not dogs after all, here to respond at the sound of a chime! She followed the children into the dining room and made sure they were all sat properly.
The room was a dark affair, badly in need of some light. Though it was not down to her, Hermione would have had the room redecorated to a pale cream rather than the dark red it currently was. Snape gestured for her to sit at the table beside Inna – likely to help her with cutting the food and dinner was served.