A/N: Sorry it's been awhile. Life has been getting hectic. I just hope this was a good chapter. Please don't hate me for leaving it so long.
Also, if any of you are on Pottermore, add me SkullDragon15691. Trust me that was the best sounding one they had for me. I'm in Slytherin, which is strange, but anyway :) Hope you enjoy the chapter! Took me forever to get it out!
Chapter Four
.
...
.
Draco's dreams were filled worry and fear as he dreamed about how his first day of teaching was going to go. He woke up two hours ahead of schedule, drenched in sweat. He wished he could do something about this day. But all he could do was ask Hermione to help him. Hopefully she wouldn't laugh at him and refuse. She was a much nicer person, wasn't she? Draco could only hope and pray that she was like the girl she had been in school.
He breathed deeply before getting up to get himself ready. He stood for what felt like hours underneath the shower, letting the hot water work his tension out. But he knew he couldn't spend his life in the shower, so he removed himself and began getting dressed. He remembered that most teachers wore dress robes of some sort.
He found his blue ones. They weren't ridiculous or anything. They were close to royal blue without the extreme brightness and looked quite marvelous on him. Draco was eating his breakfast, when a knock on the door interrupted him midbite. He swallowed, unsure of who would be knocking on his door.
He creaked it open to find Hermione standing there, looking absolutely stunning in emerald green robes. They were nothing like Professor McGonagall's green robes during their school years, but instead made her look beautiful. Draco realized he was staring at her with some stupid expression on his face and closed his mouth.
"Hey, Nathair! Good morning! Okay, so this is your class schedule. Meaning which years you'll have and when, plus the houses. Be careful, any Gryffindor/Slytherin pairings might be hard classes to control. Also, here is a list of spells and enchantments they have already learned this year and what they should know by the end of the year. And a list of all your students organized by which class they're in. I know it's a bit overbearing for me to give you all this information, but I just thought you should be prepared." She looked up at his face and immediately started apologizing, thinking she had overstepped some boundary. "I'm so sorry, I should have asked before I prepared all this stuff for you, you probably already have it, and I was so stupid think-" But she was engulfed in a large hug, cutting her off midsentence.
"You have no idea how much this means to me. I had actually been thinking just last night after you left, how unprepared I was. I felt horrible. I was afraid I would distract you from your job and almost didn't ask you. I hope it didn't take you long to get these things together. You didn't stay up all night did you?" Draco asked, suddenly becoming quite frightened as she smiled weakly up at him.
"No, I slept don't worry." But although Draco wasn't entirely convinced, he wasn't about to start berating her on her sleep patterns.
"Well thank you, this means so much to me. Would you like to join me for breakfast?" Draco asked, holding his arm out for her. But she shook her head.
"I'm not hungry, plus I have some things to take care of before classes start. But I'll see you in between classes. And if you need any help, just send a patronus my way and I'll be over in a flash." She said smiling at him. He nodded once and watched her walk down the hallway and disappear from sight. Draco looked down at the papers in his hand, smiling brightly at what she had done for him. He was going to pay her back. Some how he would.
He walked down to breakfast by himself a few moments later. He had grabbed a briefcase where he had put the papers, and a few things he might need for class. He made sure he looked perfectly acceptable before leaving his apartment. As he sat down in a vacant chair at the teacher's table he dished out a little food before joining a conversation between Professor Sprout and the new Defense professor.
Draco found out all these interesting details. Like how the Hufflepuff's were dominating the Quidditch Pitch, and the Slytherins and Ravenclaws toe to toe in Academics. When Draco asked about the last house, Gryffindor, Proffesor Sprout scoffed.
"Ever since Harry Potter and his class left Hogwarts, Gryffindor hasn't done anything but be pompous fools. My how things have changed since that time. And it's only been a few years." Professor Sprout said with a distant look in her eye. She stayed that way for a few moments before jerking back to reality and realizing she had a plant that needed tending to. Draco turned back to his food, his eyes scanning over the students that sat laughing and talking before him.
As his gaze flew over the Slytherin table, dark brown eyes met with hazel. A young girl was just staring at him from the middle of the table. Her eyes narrowed as she noticed they were watching each other. She stared at him for a few moments longer, her eyes cold and uncaring, before she turned her back on him and left the Great Hall. As Draco watched her leave, he noticed the Great Hall had emptied and it was time for him to depart for his classroom as well.
... Charms Classroom
"Alright, so for our lesson, I'm going to see how you all do with the Levitation charm. I know it is a pretty basic charm, but I want to make sure you are all on the same page." Draco looked around at the class, trying to figure out the troublemakers or slower wizards. They were the Ravenclaw and Slytherin First years, and Draco knew that meant a nice quiet period. He instructed each row to take turns so that he could see how they all did.
Everyone seemed to be on the same page, which pleased Draco. He wasn't really sure how he was going to deal with those who couldn't do the spells. He would have to ask Hermione later on, to see how one would approach such a thing.
He returned to the front of the class, glad that everyone was doing well. So Professor Sprout was right, the Ravenclaws and Slytherins were best in Academics. He smiled slightly, proud of his former House. "Alright, now we'll move on to a new charm. The Fire Making Charm. Who can tell me the incantation for it?" He asked slyly. He didn't expect anyone to know it. It was generally taught later in the year.
But one girl raised her hand, and Draco had to physically try to keep the shock off his face. It was the girl who had stared at him so blatantly during breakfast. More like glared, really. Draco nodded to her and she spoke loudly, "Incendio." Draco nodded and smiled at her.
"Correct. Five points to Slytherin. The Incendio charm isn't meant to make a large blaze. But instead to spark up a flame for things like a small fire. The movement isn't complicated. I would like you all to practice one by one." One by one the students attempted to cast the charm. A good portion of the students succeeded in casting the Incendio charm, while a some merely managed to singe themselves a bit.
One particular student nearly blew himself and his tablemates up when he attempted it. Draco rushed forward and cast Aguamenti and a few healing Charms on the young boy. As Draco cleaned the boy's face, he looked absolutely miserable about failing.
"Look, don't get down about failing to do something right. There was a man who always blew up things during school. He even managed to make his feather explode when performing the Levitation spell. But you know what? That man's name was Seamus Finnigan. And as I'm sure you all know, he is a War Hero and a highly celebrated Pyrotechnician. Don't look at this as a failure but as a way of improving." Draco said looking the boy straight in the eye.
The boy smiled and nodded his head, all depression gone from his face.
As Draco dismissed the class and a few of his students waved goodbye, he felt as if he could actually succeed as a teacher. Maybe this was the right career path for him after all.
"Professor Black?" Draco started at the voice that appeared out of nowhere. He turned around to see the girl from before standing just inside the doorway.
"Yes?" He asked, and for the life of him he couldn't remember her name.
"I don't think we've been formally introduced. My name is Aria. Aria Moon." She said stepping forward boldly and holding out her hand. Draco was surprised for a moment at her boldness, but accepted it as propriety instead.
"Nathair. Nathair Black." He shook her hand, showing no fear.
"Can I ask you a personal question?" She asked, leaning back and crossing her arms of her chest. Draco nodded leaning against his desk.
"My sister says that you're a DeathEater. Are you?" She asked, her eyes narrowing at the horrid word. Draco for a moment stopped, then pulled up his left sleeve to show the tattoo on his arm. Spencer looked down at it, scrutinizing the tattoo. Seeming satisfied, she stepped back, crossing her arms over her chest again.
"So why would your sister think I'm a Death Eater?" Draco asked, curious as to who the sister was and why she would think such a thing. But he had to be cautious about it.
"Because of your last name. She heard it from Professor McGonagall a few nights ago, and told me and my sisters that you were dangerous. But she's always assumed the worst of people. She has a knack for it." Aria said shrugging and tossing her hair.
"Your sisters? How many do you have?"
"Just three. Me, Hannah, Emily, and Spencer. Spencer is a Sixth year and is in Gryffindor so she thinks she's always right. Hannah is fourth year and a Hufflepuff. Emily is in Ravenclaw and a year above me." She said looking around the classroom. Draco smiled. So, she was the youngest of four girls? He'd heard about girls like that. They never really turned out quite right in the head. Usually they were quite evil. He was still trying to figure this one out.
"Really? I never had any siblings. I wish I had though. What's it like?" Draco asked, sincerely curious.
"Annoying. Everyone is in your face, and people are always trying to use the bathroom at the same time. There are only so many people you can squeeze into a bathroom." She said glaring at no one in particular. Draco couldn't help but laugh.
"There are only four of you. That isn't hard to fit in a bathroom." Draco said.
"You only asked about my sisters. You didn't ask about my brothers. There are five of them." Draco's mouth dropped to the floor.
"We're Irish, what do you expect?" She said laughing a bit.
"Don't you have a class to get to Aria?" The disapproving voice came from Professor Granger.
"Yes, Ma'am." She said quickly before scurrying out the door. Granger looked at Draco, her eyes smiling.
"Aria Moon. Troublesome child. But she does have some promising talent." Hermione smiled at him.
"And apparently she has a large family." Hermione nodded and grinned. It was then that Draco realized just how skinny she was. Her cheeks were nearly hollow and she seemed less fiery than she had during school. And earlier she had seemed like happiness was so far away from her. Draco wanted to ask her what was different. But he knew that was something he couldn't do. He wasn't supposed to have known her during school. He was supposed to have just met her. He just hoped she hadn't changed too much.