The New Term
The Great Hall was as beautiful as always, especially to Harry Potter, who had just spent the summer with his tiresome relatives, wishing for even the smallest glimpse of Hogwarts. But the beginning of August found him sitting at the Gryffindor table with Ron and Hermione, his two best friends, talking animatedly about what had happened to all of them over the holiday.
Hermione, to no one's surprise, had been made a prefect and was wearing her shiny silver badge proudly on her robes. It looked to Harry like it had been shined about a hundred times since they had arrived, but he decided not to tell her that.
Ron, on the other hand, had spent the majority of his summer listening outside of doors and sending as many owls as possible to Harry to keep him abreast of news from the Ministry, gleaned from conversations between his mother and father.
"So, it's like I was saying," Hermione said, rubbing her sleeve against her badge surreptitiously to give it a nice shine, "I think our best bet is to just sit tight and see what happens. I certainly can't afford to get into trouble now that I've been made a prefect."
"Great, another Percy," Ron grumbled as searched the table for food. It was there in front of him, but since the Sorting was just being finished it was untouchable until after the announcements. "Just when I got away from the original."
"Isn't he ever going to move out of the house?" Hermione frowned a bit, and Ginny shook her head morosely.
"Not since he works at the Ministry with Dad. They commute together." A pea flew in her general direction from the area of the twins, Fred and George, and she turned to them with annoyance. "Stop it!"
"Mum's not here to save you now, Ginny," Fred said menacingly, loading up his spoon with tasty vegetables, and Harry laughed as he took cover under a napkin, not caring how they had managed to get a hold of some of the food. Hermione looked as if she were torn between amusement and exasperation, but was saved from taking a stand as Dumbledore stood up at the High Table.
"Welcome to another year, everyone. In light of last year's incidents, I would ask every one of you to take care this year. Do not be fooled into thinking that just because you are here at Hogwarts that no harm can come to you. That kind of thinking can be very dangerous indeed.
"And now, I would like to introduce you to our two new professors. First, we have our new Defense Against the Dark Arts master, Professor Gold. Hopefully he will work out better than some of our previous teachers." Dumbledore paused long enough for the students' polite applause to subside, then motioned to Jenova, who was seated peacefully beside Snape. "And this delightful young woman is Professor Verdana, your Ancient Runes master. She will be taking over for Professor Cipher." More polite clapping as she waved to the room in general, then a cheer as the food blossomed onto their plates. "Happy feasting, everyone."
"What is it now?" Snape looked over at Jenova, who was pushing her potatoes around the plate thoughtfully. Following their scene in Hogsmeade, they had come to a sort of tentative understanding. Not quite friends, but definitely not enemies.
"I really don't want to be here. Can't I go up to my room?"
"Sorry, but no. I never want to be here." Snape turned his attention to his own plate and started on the turkey. Blinking down at her own food, she sighed.
"Is the turkey any good?"
"Passable."
"Ah."
"Did you see that?" Ron tugged on Harry's arm as he hissed into his friend's ear. "That new teacher, she's talking to Snape up there!"
"So?" Hermione rolled her eyes at him and Ron gave her an exasperated look.
"But it's Snape!"
"Well, why shouldn't she talk to him? They're both teachers. And he is a human being, isn't he?" She looked at Harry and Ron, who seemed to be taking a long time to formulate an answer.
"Barely," Harry said, glancing at Ron.
"Jury's still out on that one," he agreed.
"Well, either way I'm glad I took Ancient Runes." Hermione ignored them pointedly. "She looks nice."
"Looks can be deceiving," Ginny said, looking over at Hermione for encouragement, and Ron rolled one eye.
"Great. Another Hermione."
Before long, the Feast was drawing to a close, and the prefects were leading the stuffed residents of their respective houses when Harry noticed Snape and Jenova walking together toward the faculty tower behind most of the other professors. Stepping away from the group, Harry stopped near the stairway where they had paused, trying to catch a snippet of their conversation.
"…just don't feel well, Severus."
"Well, you're going to have to snap out of it by tomorrow morning. You're going to have a full class schedule starting early and if they're anything like the idiots I am constantly saddled with, you're going to need all your energy." His arms were folded over his chest as he looked at Jenova, and Harry could tell she was doing her best to smile at him.
"It can't be as bad as all that."
"Say that again tomorrow evening."
"Good night, Severus." Shaking her head, Jenova started up the stairs to the faculty tower, and Harry expected Snape to follow her up. Unfortunately, it seemed like the man never did anything you expected of him. He chose exactly that moment to turn around, just as Harry was trying to make his way quietly to the Gryffindor tower.
"Potter...I would advise you to make this explanation phenomenally good."
* * *
"I would like to say that I can't believe you got a detention your first night back, but somehow I can," Hermione said with a sigh. "Harry, you know better than to follow him around in plain sight."
"Could you spare me the lecture, please?" With undisguised annoyance, Harry looked over her head at Ron. "Don't you have your Ancient Runes class now?"
"As a matter of fact I do." Turning into a classroom, Hermione watched the boys walk rapidly away from her. "But I'll see you again in Potions!" There was no answer and she went to her usual seat.
As always, Hermione was early to class, the first to put her books down and pick up her pencil to start writing her note taking chart. She didn't see Jenova walk in, carrying a little bird cage.
"Oh, hello. Are you my entire first lesson?" Jenova's voice startled Hermione out of her little world and the girl shook her head.
"No, ma'am. I just like to be punctual."
"That's probably why you're a prefect," Jenova said cheerily, setting the bird cage on her desk. "Now, let's see…you are…"
"Hermione Granger," Hermione said, standing up and going over to her desk. "Are those your birds?" She leaned toward the two little birds, who were obviously having a long discussion about their surroundings.
"Yes, as a matter of fact they are. Two precious little lovebirds." Smiling, Jenova pointed at the smaller one, who was a combination of blue and white with a pastel peach forehead. "That one is called Piama and that one," she said, pointing at a second bird with a deep blue body and a white collar with a black head. "Is Valtier. Of course, they have a larger cage in my room, but I think they like to travel with me." Still smiling, she moved the cage to the corner of her desk and opened the door. "They're both just babies still, so they're imprinting on me."
"I've never seen birds like that…are they Muggle birds?" Other students were starting to file into the classroom and Jenova picked up the one she had called Valtier.
"A Muggle breed, yes, but Wizard raised. Valtier is a blue Masked and Piama is a Dutch blue. They're not too uncommon." Valtier jumped up onto her shoulder and she smiled. "You'd better take your seat now, Miss Granger, class is about to begin."
"Yes, Professor."
Jenova waited for the rest of the classroom to sit down before putting Valtier in his cage and standing on the podium in front of them.
"Good morning, class." She folded her hands neatly in front of her waist. "I am Professor Jenova Verdana, and I am your new Ancient Runes master. Now, before I begin today's lesson, does anyone have any questions?" Immediately, several hands shot into the air, much to her surprise. "Well, I wasn't expecting that many…you there." She pointed to a girl in a Ravenclaw robe.
"Are you sure you're old enough to be a teacher?"
"Ahem. I also wasn't expecting personal questions. Next, please."
"Oh…I was going to ask where you graduated from, since I never saw you here at Hogwarts." The girl, a Hufflepuff, looked slightly disappointed and Jenova put her hands on her hips.
"I see where this is going. Very well. I will allot five minutes of class time for personal questions." Conjuring up an hourglass, she put it on her desk and turned it over. "Beginning now." Walking slowly down the rows of desks with her hands folded behind her back, she smiled. "To answer your previous questions, I am indeed old enough to be a teacher. It has been seven years since I graduated from Greymalkin Academy in Switzerland, and I'm sure all of you can do your basic math." Nodding to a girl in the corner, she cocked her head so that her braid slid off her shoulder. "Yes?"
"Was this your best class in school?"
"Actually, my best class was Potions." There was a unified grumble from around the room, and Jenova held back a laugh. "Now, now, what's wrong with Potions? True, it can be difficult, but that's what makes it fun, right?" The class sounded doubtful and Jenova glanced at her hourglass. "Moving along…we have time for one more question." Hermione raised her hand and Jenova nodded. "Yes, Miss Granger?"
"Do you speak any other languages?"
"As a matter of fact, I do. I speak, oh dear, what was it…65 different languages and can read over 100. Some are easier to understand than others, you see." The sand in the hourglass had run out and she smiled. "All right, that's that." Walking up to the board, she drew a rune that looked a lot like a pointy 'P.'
"Now, let's see, you ended before with wunjo, which literally translates to something akin to joy or pleasure. It is especially good in bind runes for ensuring victory. It can be related to Vindr, or "Wind." As such wynn, or vend, can be visualized as a wind-vane, which shows "which direction the wind is blowing." Wend, also means to change the direction of something, to turn or to run with or against the wind. To change one situation into another, is another use of wunjo both magically and in divination." She turned back around. "Now, please find me an example of the latter use in your textbooks." Leaving the students to their task, she sat on the edge of her desk and looked over at Valtier and Piama. This wasn't too bad. What was Snape talking about?
* * *
"I'm telling you, she was amazing…she sounded like she had been studying runes forever," Hermione said to Harry at the dinner table. "But you know what, she said her best class was Potions, can you believe that?"
"Maybe that's why they were talking," Ron said thoughtfully. "As much as I hate the guy, he knows what he's doing."
"Are you still on that, Ron?" Hermione shook her head as she reached for the pitcher of pumpkin juice. Something jarred her roughly from behind and she hit the pitcher with the heel of her hand, knocking it across the table. Startled squeaks abounded as plates were whisked off the table to keep from getting damp and Hermione's face turned bright pink.
"My God, Granger, you seem to have gotten even less coordinated over the summer holidays," came the cool voice of Draco Malfoy over Hermione's shoulder, and Harry was not surprised to see that he was, as usual, flanked by Crabbe and Goyle, his two enormous sidekicks.
"You did that on purpose, Malfoy!" Surprising even himself by standing up from the table, plate still in hand, Neville Longbottom turned his round face in Malfoy's direction, trying his best to look as angry as possible.
"Glad you figured that one out on your own," Malfoy said, his words dripping sarcasm like honey droplets. "If this is the state that pure blood is getting into, it's no wonder everyone thinks Mudbloods like Granger are so great." There was a flash of orange, and for a moment Harry thought maybe someone had thrown the sweet potatoes.
However, it was only the blurred color of Ron's hair as he leapt off the bench and onto Malfoy that Harry had seen, and at once he was running around the table to pull his friend off of the silvery-blonde haired head of Malfoy.
"Oh, for the love of…" Jenova's voice was the first one they heard, then the pattering of boots on marble as she ran toward the scene. "What is going on here?"
"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?" Snape's angry voice echoed Jenova's as he swooped up out of nowhere, hands on his hips. Reaching down, he picked up Malfoy by the collar and set him on his feet as Harry pulled Ron onto his feet. Both boys looked rumpled, but none the worse for wear.
"It was Malfoy," Harry began, looking at Jenova and taking a chance that she would be slightly fairer. "He pushed Hermione's…"
"I would advise you to remember that you already have one detention, Potter," Snape said dangerously, and Jenova frowned at him. "And it seems to me that judging from who is on top of the heap that Weasley will be joining him."
"It seems to me that I'd like to hear the whole story before we go handing out any detentions," Jenova said firmly. "Now, Miss Granger…you are the nearest prefect, so please enlighten me."
"W-well, Professor Verdana…I was…"
"Pardon my intrusion," Snape said in a voice that clearly stated that everyone in a five foot radius was on thin ice as far as he was concerned. "But seeing as how Miss Granger is the Gryffindor prefect, I don't feel she would be the most…objective person to describe the altercation between Mister Malfoy and…Weasley." It was obvious that he was choosing his words carefully, which did not go unnoticed by Jenova.
"Then I think the best solution would be to take ten points from both houses for fighting," Jenova said. "And as I was the first on the scene, as it were, that is my final answer." As soon as she spoke, the hourglasses containing the colored sand that marked each House's points decreased a little in both Slytherin and Gryffindor's tube. "Now get back to eating, all of you." She watched as the parties went their separate ways, and was about to take her place at the High Table when she felt a light touch on her arm.
"Could I have a word with you in the hallway, Jenova?"
"Of course, Severus." Following him out the doors into the hallway, Jenova folded her arms over her chest. "What seems to be the problem? It was more than obvious that both of those boys were involved. So why did it seem like you were trying your damnedest not to punish Mr. Malfoy?"
"Draco Malfoy happens to be one of my best students…"
"Oh, come off it, Severus. I know perfectly well that you're the Head of Slytherin House. You didn't want to punish that boy because you didn't want your House to lose points. I'm surprised the headmaster lets you get away with such obvious favoritism." At that moment she saw Snape's eyes turn dangerous, so she turned back to the door. She was stopped, however, as he grabbed her upper arm so roughly that his fingers dug into her muscle painfully. "Ouch! Severus!"
"You listen to me, Jenova," he said, leaning so close to her that a strand of his black hair brushed against her face, "Just because you have been a teacher here one day does not mean that you can propose to tell me how to run my own House. And I will thank you to remember who brought you here in the first place." Snape released her arm, pushing her backwards at the same time, and Jenova watched as he pushed open the doors to the Great Hall so forcefully that it seemed they were made of screen instead of heavy wood, rubbing her arm.
"Touchy," she grumbled, following him into the Great Hall. What the hell was his problem, anyway?