Author Notes: I have plans to add all of my stories to my AO3 account in the near future… again, the link can be found on my profile page. I just wanted to let you guys know that when I do, I will be merging all of my "Phoenix Rising" stories together into one, with the exception of "Extras," for obvious reasons. This should make it easier for those of you who wish to download my stories.

Please note that this does not mean I won't be updating them here. I plan to keep all of my work in both places with the exception of a few stories that, because of their content, will be posted to AO3 exclusively.

Also: The flashback contained in this chapter comes from "Phoenix Rising - Extras" Chapter 4 – "A New Friend."

Chapter 4 – Professor Whitlock

Hera studiously avoided looking at the teachers' table once discovering that her brother was sitting there. She was beyond furious that Edward would do this to her, and she had no doubts that it was her mate that put Jas up to this. Luna's eyes had widened considerably when she confirmed that her best friend wasn't just imagining things and she kept glancing between the vampire with the honey blonde curls and the angry phoenix.

Suddenly everyone got quiet once Professor McGonagall led the first year humans up to the front of the hall where a rickety old stool and an ancient-looking hat had been placed. Hera was impressed with complexity of the magic woven through the artifact. Until seeing it with her own eyes, the phoenix didn't even know mind magics could be applied to an object, inanimate or otherwise, in such a way.

Once all of the students were in place, the magical hat began to belt out a song that was both funny and strange to Hera. It seems all of the human children were placed in one of four houses named after the founders of Hogwarts. The brunette's feathers ruffled in indignation. The act of separating students into competing houses would only serve to fuel rivalries. It was human nature to show fear and hatred to those who were different, and highlighting differences between the brave, studious, shrewd, and industrious students was just asking for fights to erupt between them.

Hera's wings suddenly drooped when a thought hit her. She looked down the table at the melting pot of magical races that made up her own beloved school. Perhaps instead of fighting amongst each other, the humans would instead band together to attack her brethren. They truly were the outsiders in this situation. Suddenly Jasper's presence wasn't so unwanted after all.

"Neville Longbottom!" Hera jerked her head up as her friend's name was called. She realized she had become lost in thought and subsequently missed the beginning of the sorting. Neville sat down with a nervous smile as McGonagall lowered the black hat onto his head. The cloth had barely touched his head when it screamed out "Gryffindor," causing the children sitting underneath the red and gold banner to break out in hearty applause. Hera added her own to the cacophony.

When Draco Malfoy was placed into Slytherin, Hera frowned in confusion. She certainly hadn't seen any evidence of a cunning mind in either the encounter at Gringotts or the incident in the entryway. Of course she also didn't consider him brave, smart, or hard working, so maybe the hat was forced to just pick one. Hera and Luna shared a gleeful look when the large hourglass representing Slytherin's tally of house points had moved from zero to negative ten as soon as the hat was removed from his head. Draco scowled all the way to his table.

Hera also clapped when Charlus was sorted into Gryffindor. She tuned out the rest of the proceedings since she didn't know anyone else well enough to form an opinion on where they were placed. As soon as Blaise Zabini took a seat at the Slytherin table with his peers, the hat and stool were carried off. Headmaster Dumbledore stepped up to a podium to address the crowd, a genial smile of welcome etched on his weathered face.

"My dear students, welcome to what will likely be our most monumental year ever here at Hogwarts! It gives me great pleasure to greet not only our own new crop of first years to this sacred institution, but also those joining us from Ardaigh Institute of Magic." Dumbledore's eyes met Hera's for a second before he quickly moved his attention elsewhere.

"I would like all of you to remember that neither I nor my staff will tolerate bigotry of any kind on this campus. Those of you who are unable to comply with this may find yourselves in search of a new school."

Suddenly smiling once more after having delivered that not so subtle threat, the old man clapped his hands together once. "Now, I have a few new faces among the staff to introduce to you… once I call your name, please stand."

Hera halfheartedly listened to the introduction of new teachers, with a few exceptions. Once Jasper Whitlock stood as the new History of Magic professor, she probably surprised her brother by cheering for him. She was still mortified by his presence, but he was her brother. The blonde vampire sat down with a shake of his head and a smirk. The next name called caused every ounce of happiness to quickly slip away. Deloris Umbridge… Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. Hera never noticed her brother look at her in alarm, too busy exchanging a worried glance with Luna.

~Flashback~

The one called McNair growled. "How should I know where we are? And the toad wouldn't dare screw with me. Besides, she hates filthy half breeds as much as we do. I'm telling you Hera Cullen has to be around here. Umbridge said she placed the ministry-grade tracking charm on the girl's bag the last time she went to visit those disgusting goblin vermin."

~End Flashback~

Even though the two girls had never heard the Death Eaters mention a first name, they couldn't help but think that the squat woman was the Umbridge lady the goons had been referencing. Both girls' fears for what the school year would hold had just gone up a notch.

"Welcome to History of Magic… my name is Jasper Whitlock. You may refer to me as either 'Professor Whitlock' or 'Mr. Whitlock.' Any references to me being a 'bloodsucking leech' or 'filthy half breed' may result in you getting eaten." He smiled deviously as the students' levels of anxiety rose greatly. "In fairness to you, I should also point out that vampires have exceptional hearing."

He nodded as a Gryffindor first year girl thrust her hand into the air as if her life depended on getting his attention. "Yes, Ms. Granger?"

"Professor, I've read that if a vampire's eyes are amber it means they feed on animal blood. Doesn't that mean you don't eat people?"

Jasper wanted to roll his eyes in a human manner. Instead he answered the inquisitive girl. "Amber eyes only means a vampire hasn't fed from humans in recent history, and it certainly doesn't mean they are incapable of doing so."

"Now," he said just as the girl had opened her mouth to perhaps debate the dietary habits of his race, "I want you all to open your books to page 27." Jasper turned to write a name on the board. "We are going to be learning about perhaps the most influential figure in magical history… Myrddin Emrys, more commonly known as Merlin Ambrosius."

Hera listened and took careful notes as her brother passionately painted a verbal picture of the life of Merlin. Any anger remaining toward the blonde had disappeared when she saw how his amber eyes sparkled with purpose. It had never occurred to her how tedious playing non-magical humans could become after decades. It couldn't be easy to live an immortal life ostracized from the magical communities, always worried about being exposed and having to move.

She felt a bit guilty for giving him the cold shoulder during the opening feast. Hera had disappeared with her peers as soon as they were dismissed to go to their dorms even after she saw her brother trying to catch her attention. And now, after seeing him enthusiastically sharing his passion with a captive audience, she felt like such a heel.

Jasper paused for a second and glanced at her when he no doubt caught her sudden dip in emotions. He continued on with the lecture, but sent her happy feelings while doing so.

Hera felt so blessed to have him as brother.

"Wow," said a sandy-haired Gryffindor boy as Professor Whitlock called their first history lesson to an end. "I can't believe Merlin was responsible for constructing Stonehenge with the help of a giant!"

His black friend nodded. "And it was done as a burial place for that war hero… the muggles haven't even come close to the truth."

"Miss Cullen," Jasper said without looking up from the papers he was perusing, "Can I have a word with you for a moment?"

Hera nodded and told Luna to go on without her. Once the door was closed, the green-eyed little girl pounced on her brother. Jasper chuckled as the little arms wound around his neck. She clutched him so tightly that he wouldn't have been able to breathe had he been human. "I thought you were mad at me," he said with a light southern drawl.

"I was," she replied, her words slightly muffled as her face was resting in the crook of his neck, "but I got over it."

Jasper laughed outright and pulled away. "Good." He looked her in the eye with a suddenly serious demeanor. "Listen to me, Hera. I want you to stay away from that Umbridge woman. The negative emotions she emits are some of the worst I've ever encountered, and they spike every time she glances at the non-humans."

Hera nodded. "I already know to be careful. Luna and I think she's the one who sent the Death Eaters after me last year… one of them mentioned a toad woman named Umbridge." She grimaced. "I can't imagine there would be a lot of people fitting that description."

The vampire scowled with the memory. "When do you have Defense Against the Dark Arts with her?"

"Right after lunch."

Her brother steered Hera out of the room. "Okay. Come on… I'll walk you to your next class since I have a free period at the moment. I want a copy of your schedule for emergencies, okay Darlin'?"

Though the phoenix would normally have seen this as an intrusion, she was smart enough to know that Jasper didn't have a history of being overprotective. If he wanted to know where she was supposed to be at all times, you could bet he had a good reason for it. With that in mind she immediately pulled out her class schedule and magically copied it for her brother as they walked toward her first Potions lesson.

"So," Jasper asked as they waited for the staircase to move in place, "how'd I do?"

Hera beamed. "You were fantastic, Professor Whitlock!"

Despite being held behind by her brother, Hera was in her seat just before the professor entered the room in a frenzy. She knew two items of import from the first sight of the dour man. Firstly, this professor was not someone you wanted as an enemy. Secondly, he was in some serious pain. Hera's phoenix was screaming at her to heal the man's left arm.

If Emmett were here he'd say something funny like, "Your birdy sense is tingling." She smiled softly at the thought.

After a short introduction speech, Professor Snape began calling on students to answer questions based on the first chapter in their textbooks. Thanks to Edward teaching her good study habits, she was well prepared.

"Weasley! What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?" Snape focused his attention on a wide-eyed red-headed boy sitting beside Charlus.

The freckled kid's face reddened as the same girl who questioned Jasper at the beginning of History thrust her hand in the air and began waving it around. He scowled. "How am I supposed to know?"

His disrespectful answer cost his house five points.

"Cullen! Same question."

Hera ignored the Granger girl who was now kneeling on the seat of her desk in a bid to get her hand even higher in the air, as if she thought the professor were too dimwitted to notice her eagerness to answer. "The Draught of Living Death, sir."

He nodded once. "Five points to Ardaigh." Finally focusing his attention on the bushy-haired girl, the teacher snapped out, "Five more points from Gryffindor for Miss Granger's complete lack of social decorum! If I wish for you to answer a question, I will call your name. I assure you that at no point in this class will I ever expect you to start bouncing around like an untrained simian!"

The phoenix felt a little sorry for the Granger girl, but she had sort of brought it on herself by acting a fool.

Thankfully, the rest of the class went a lot smoother and soon Hera had finished her first potion. The professor dismissed them after everyone had cleaned their workstations to his satisfaction. As the students began filing out, placing their completed potion samples on the teacher's desk on the way, Hera started feeling the urge to heal the stern professor rising up once more. The closer she came to him, the stronger the sensation became.

By the time she placed the vial down on the wooden surface, Hera was mortified to find herself moving around the desk. She closed her eyes as her hand reached out to grab Professor Snape's left arm against her will.

Hera could only pray she wouldn't get expelled over this.

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