Chapter Two: Colleagues

As Cassandra trudged back to her hotel, her thoughts turned to her new job, perhaps her new career if things turned out well. She wasn't a social person in any way, but she felt she could connect better with children who haven't had to experience the pains of life yet, what it truly meant to be an adult. They had young minds that could be shaped like clay, they were not hardened with the burdens of life yet. When she had first seen the ad in the paper, she had hesitated, for she knew it would be a spotlight type job, but now she was warming to the idea of being among youth, something she had never had.

She was surprised when she found herself at the door of the tavern in Hogmeade so quickly. She removed her pale hand from underneath her cloak and opened the door with the wrought iron handle. She immediately heard the rumble of a crowded bar; a mingle of low whispers and laughing voices. She was about to head up the steps to her room when she heard a voice call to her.

"So how did it go?" said a pleasant voice, crisp and cool, yet warm in manner. She whirled around to see the Harper man again.

"I got the job, and I've been informed that you got your job as well, congratulations," she said, trying to be friendly. She figured having at least one person on her side couldn't hurt, she already had one enemy.

"Thanks, I've been looking for a job for awhile. Um, do you want to sit down and chat for a bit, just so we get to know each other? I feel like the underdog what with being a new teacher and all, do you feel like that?" he asked, his cool blue eyes staring straight into her swirling lavender-blue eyes.

"Alright, I'll chat for a bit. I know what you mean, I've already met one of the teachers, I'm afraid he's not fond of me," she said, sounding a slight bit cold at her mention of Snape.

They moved over to a table near the stairs, but still in the corner, and sat opposite each other. She swept her hood off, allowing her long black hair to tumble down to her waist, a stark contrast against her pale white skin. She looked him over with a judging eye; he was a tall man with blue eyes and dark brown hair, a fairly handsome man, around her age. He had a smiling mouth and a kind look about him.

"Oh, yes, that man in black that seems to swoop around like a hawk?" he asked, making her smile at his comparison. She nodded in response. "Yeah, he's a bit unnerving, like he suspects you of trying to blow up the school."

"Yes, it's a bit creepy. Oh, I've forgotten myself, my name is Cassandra Talin, but a few people call me Cassi. You can call me whichever," she said, offering her hand in a handshake.

He grasped her hand and shook it softly. "I'm Harper, Simon Harper. A few people call me Simon, but you can call me Simon," he said grinning broadly. Cassi normally didn't take to jokesters or comedy men, but this man was refreshingly nice and funny, and she enjoyed his joke, allowing herself to smile back. The two chatted for half an hour about the school and what they knew about it, trying to educate themselves as fast as possible on the history of the school. Finally, Cassandra stated that she needed to go pack her things, and Simon agreed, so both walked up the stairs to their rooms.

After dinner that night, Cassi went straight up to her room to go to sleep, not wanting to be tired for the next day, she would need her wits about her with people like Snape stalking her.

Cassi drifted off into her dreams that night, once again finding herself not able to sleep through the entire night without having a nightmare. She only had a few nightmares, but each would present themselves to her in the same light: screaming from a place unknown, a shout to her, and then she would usually be smothered in darkness and die in her nightmares. Then she would sit bolt upright and stare out the window, looking for the moon to ease her fears. Somehow it's watery beams always calmed her from her sweat-soaked state, then she would drift back into her dreamless sleep, never indulging in sweet dreams, only nightmares.

The next day, Cassi checked out of the hotel before the sun rose, carrying her small suitcase, filled with everything she owned in the world, which was not much; a few robes, two books, a hairbrush, a few flasks of potions, and some other random items. She walked out of the hotel door and down the road, traveling cloak fluttering in the light summer breeze, still a bit damp from yesterday's excursion out in the rain. She set off silently, having not eaten breakfast, but scarcely noticed her hunger as she walked down the dirt road. A few puffy clouds had been left from the rains, but otherwise it promised to be sunny, something that didn't thrill Cassandra in the slightest.

Finally she arrived at the castle after about twenty minutes of walking, the sun now half-risen. She opened the castle door with less hesitance today, and once again walked into the intimidating Entrance Hall. She walked up the steps of the castle, not paying attention to the paintings, but as she reached the last step, she saw Dumbledore coming towards her.

"Ah yes, good morning, professor," he said when he reached her. She smiled slightly at him. "Well, I suppose you will need to know where your classroom is, eh?"

"I believe that would help," she said, still smiling vaguely. He motioned for her to follow him, and they crossed to the left end of the corridor and wove their way around a bit while Cassandra tried to remember all of the turns they took. Finally they reached a thick wooden door and Dumbledore opened it with a key from his belt.

The classroom looked very dusty and in a slight disarray. Desks and chairs were flipped over or scattered about, and the bookcase in the back had shelves pulled off of it. Cassi blinked at the mess, then shrugged.

"It's not exactly in the best of states, but the teacher last year wasn't very…efficient. Right, well, your living quarters are in a branch off of your office," he said, waving a hand at a door in the corner of the room. She looked over there, completely nonplussed, but then turned to the headmaster.

"Thank you Dumbledore," she said, trying to sound a bit cheery, or at least hide her disgust of the room. He nodded and backed out of the room, leaving her in the middle of her gray room. She sighed and set off to work.

The first thing she did was to light the torches on the wall, then she straightened the rows of tables and put the chairs with them. When that was accomplished, she went through the books on the shelf, picking out ones that might be useful for her first few lessons. She then located her desk in her office and cleaned it with a Cleansing Charm, setting her new books on the desk. She looked over her room, closing her eyes at the amount of dust that was still left in it. She looked down at her black robes, now smudged with dust, and tried to pat it off, but to no avail. A sigh fell from her lips and she decided she needed a small change in scenery, so she opened the door in her office, and after a short walk down a dark corridor, came to a room with an old bed and wooden nightstand, with another door leading to her bathroom. The room was as drab as her classroom, but this didn't bother her in the slightest. In fact, she preferred it this way; if it had been bright and cheery, she would have changed the color scheme immediately to something more fitting, more gloomy.

Cassandra set her small bag on the bed and opened it with a click. She scooped out her bottles of potions, some purple and others green, and set them on her nightstand. Then she put her robes in a chest at the end of her bed, finally placing everything else (minus the books) in her bathroom. She was pleased that she only carried a few items, and that her packing was done. She picked up the books and took them back to her office, setting them on the desk with her other set of books. A clock on the wall chimed once, and she was shocked that it was already the afternoon. There was a slight problem; she had absolutely no idea of the eating arrangements of this school. She knew there was a Great Hall (she had read about it in Hogwarts, A History) but she had no idea where it was. Not usually being the adventurous sort, but with no other options, Cassi set off to find the Hall, assuming it was on the ground floor.

It quickly became evident that she was right; it was just a stone's throw away from the Entrance Hall, and there were already a few teachers at an elevated table at the end of this magnificent room. Cassi walked in shyly, keeping her eyes on the ground until she reached the table, not exactly sure of the seating arrangement.

"Here, my dear, the Defense teachers sit here," said a voice kindly from the table. Cassandra looked up at an older lady gesturing at a table fourth from the elegant gold one in the middle (one she had immediately assumed was Dumbledore's). "I'm Minerva McGonagall, Professor of Transfigurations. You must be Cassandra Talin. Dumbledore told me, I'm assistant deputy of the school." The lady seemed stiff and proper, but a kind look beheld her eyes. Cassandra instantly liked her.

"Thank you, Professor McGonagall," said Cassandra, trying to sound as nice as possible to make up for her mysterious manner.

"Are you Russian?" McGonagall asked curiously as they sat down, Minerva being only two seats from her, and the seat between them was empty.

Cassi faltered. Her past was something she hated to discuss, something that she would rather not think about. She touched a lock of her black hair and said in a small but firm voice, "Yes, I was born in St. Petersburg, but I moved here when I was young." There, she had said it, and McGonagall seemed content with that answer, obviously not the prying type like…

"Professor Talin, we meet again," sneered a deep voice from behind her, making her jump in her chair slightly. She glanced at him sideways as he sat down next to her, in the same seat he had always sat in since he became a teacher.

"Yes," she answered vaguely. Obviously, it's bound to happen when you live under the same roof, you slimy man, she thought sarcastically. She picked up her fork and ate her food in silence, trying to ignore the quick sideways glances she was getting from Snape.

He was actually trying to study her, guessing her to be three or four years younger than himself. There was more to her than the two-tone eyes and deep pink lips; no, there was something in her eyes that seemed familiar, something along the lines of hidden pain and mystery. A look he had seen in the mirror for so many years. But he did not feel sympathy for this creature, for Severus Snape feels no sympathy, instead, he began to mistrust her. He could tell from the get-go that there was something odd about her, something he couldn't quite place. A past something. Another stolen glance and an odd thought floated across his mind uncontrolled: She was beautiful. Severus nearly choked when he realized what he had just thought. Beautiful wasn't a word he bandied about with women, and as looks meant absolutely nothing to him, it wasn't something he often thought about. But, as he turned this radical thought over in his head, it was perfectly logical to think it, as it wasn't far from the truth. If it wasn't the perfect lips, then it was the long lashed, large and odd colored eyes. The way her straight raven black hair set off her pale white skin, the way it cascaded over her shoulders and down her back.

Severus rolled his eyes; now he was just being silly. He did compliment himself on his ability to look down upon her beauty; what did beauty matter, where did it get you in life? Absolutely nowhere. Looks would only get you a second glance from a passing stranger and nothing more. No, this pretty little thing that dined next to him was something dangerous, he was almost certain, and he vowed then and there to keep his eye on her. He scowled unmercifully at his food.

Cassi was grateful when Simon walked in, easy as you please, and sat down next to her, obviously a bit more familiar with this place, or maybe he had asked questions, who knew? All Cassandra knew was that he was her saving grace from Snape's spiteful stares.

"Hi there, Cassi," Simon said casually. Snape listened without looking like he cared, eyes focused on his food. Cassi, he thought, he called her Cassi. So they know each other…from where? He poked his food and continued to listen.

"Hi Simon. Have you been to your classroom?" asked Cassi, sounding sweet as can be, just to mock Snape. She would show him that she could be a caring person.

"Yeah, it's all done and organized; there wasn't much for me to do," he said. Cassi looked mildly surprised. The two chatted on and Snape listened, becoming bored almost instantly. He was about to go when he noticed something.

"You don't eat meat," Snape said, puzzled. Cassi blinked at him.

"I'm a vegetarian, I don't like meat," she said plainly, something odd flickering in her eyes. He had struck something obviously, even Simon noticed.

"Well, there's nothing wrong with that," recovered Simon. "So she doesn't eat meat, big deal. Ok, well, I'm off to work on my lesson plan, I'll see you around Cassi." He smiled at her encouragingly and then strode off. Cassi quickly followed without a word to Snape. He sat for a moment, thinking hard, then stood up and left the room.

Cassi walked into her room, recovering from lunch. Two lies were enough from her, she was going to have a tough time keeping up with everything if people were this interested in her past. She sighed slightly while conjuring a rag and pail of water, then began to enchant the rag to wash the tables. She hurried off to grab up her lesson book and work on it while the rag cleaned.

By the time the sun set, her classroom was clean and her plans written weeks in advance. She begrudgingly locked up her room with a key Dumbledore had dropped by with, and set off for dinner, already prepared for the first day of school, in exactly one week.

During that one week, Cassandra had to put up with Snape. He wasn't really doing anything to her, but somehow, his mere presence was an annoyance to her. She knew he suspected her of something, and it was deeply bothering her that he would just sit there and brew upon it, observing her as she ate or when she passed down the corridor. He had found a button of hers, she hated to be watched, and he was pressing that button with glee. She came to despise him for it, and vowed to find a way to torment him during the year. She was not one to be pushed around, especially by hooked nosed, sallow skinned men like Snape.

One day, while she was reading through one of her books in her classroom, she heard a hard knock at the door. Puzzled, she called for the person to come in. To her complete horror, it was Snape, looking just as unhappy as she felt.

"I'm supposed to come here and check on you," said Severus roughly.

"Said who?" she asked, keeping the sarcasm in her voice to a bare minimum.

"Dumbledore. I'm also supposed to 'socialize', though that's where I draw the line," he said, and Cassi could see him cursing Dumbledore's orders under his breath. She smiled a bit, she would figure out his buttons right now, it was the perfect opportunity.

"Yes, you are far too good to socialize with the likes of me," she said, openly sarcastic now. She returned to her book.

"Or perhaps it's the other way around," sneered Snape. Cassi shut her book with a loud thump and set it down on her desk.

"Well, if you're so high and mighty, talk away. You know I value everything you have to say," she said sarcastically. Snape was caught off guard; he had never met a person that could dish it back out. He smirked at her, something she really didn't like.

"No thanks, I'd rather not, unless, of course, you have something to say. A girl who magically appears out of no where with much to hide, such as yourself, probably has much to chatter on about," he said, his tone mocking her.

Cassi blinked at him, then returned the smirk. "I'm not hiding anything. Well, as you know so much about this school, I was wondering if you could tell me what the students are like?" She had hit the nail on the head. She had completely guessed that he was as nasty to the students as he was to her, and his thin face was twisted with malice.

"They are inattentive fools, who can not and do not appreciate their education. Except for Miss Hermione Granger, who cannot hold her tongue, the know-it-all. And she keeps company with the most menacing group Hogwarts has seen in years…Harry Potter and his little followers," Snape said, the biting hatred in his voice clearly evident. Here we go, she thought.

"Harry? Potter? He goes to this school? I've read all about him," she said quietly, slightly intimidated of teaching the Boy Who Lived. Snape shot her a look of disgust.

"Come now, Talin. Don't tell me you are one of his little worshippers too. You and the rest of the wizarding world." Snape looked positively infuriated. "He causes more trouble than one could imagine, and he pokes his nose everywhere. Him and his band of merry men are regarded as the tragic little heroes of the school, but I know what they really are, meddling children." Snape folded his arms and stared hard at the floor. Bingo, Cassi thought, the major source of his annoyance, Potter. I will be taking advantage of this as soon as possible.

"Alright, that's quite enough chatting for me, I'm not some twittering gossip fairy, if you want to know things like that ask McGonagall or Flitwick. Or perhaps your new friend Harper, he seems to think he knows a lot," spat Snape, and he shot a glare at her and left the room. Cassi smiled to herself.

"Perfect," she said, smiling like a hunter who had finished setting their trap. All there was left to do was to wait a few more days, then sweet revenge, inflicted in small amounts; her favorite kind.

A few days later, the teachers bustled around the castle making sure everything was in its place, as in a few hours the scarlet Hogwarts Express would pull into the station. Snape was mercifully busy due to his position as Head of Slytherin, leaving Talin to her own devices. Her classroom was perfect, the lessons in perfect order, everything was exactly as it should be. Cassi sighed as she looked around her classroom and then trudged up to her bedroom, picking out one of her black robes (they were all black) and putting it on. She then braided her hair into two French braids, her plaits trailing down her back, giving her a look of innocence, something that completely shocked her when she looked in the small mirror on the wall. She stared at herself, stared at the pale thin person looking intently back at her. Then she walked over to her nightstand where her potions lay; she picked up a small vial of green potion and drank a small sip from it, shuddering at the bittersweet taste.

With a deep breath, she left her room and started down to the Great Hall, where the teachers were to assemble precisely half an hour before the students arrived. Most of the teachers were already there, waiting at the Staff table eagerly. Cassi rolled her eyes and forcibly marched up to her spot next to Snape, sincerely hoping that he might somehow drown in his goblet of wine. She huffily sat down next to him, staring straight ahead of her to avoid his eyes.

"Good day to you too," he said sarcastically, and continued to watch the doors through which the little children which cursed his life would come. He was about to make a snide remark when Dumbledore walked into the room. Severus stiffened and became silent. Cassi smirked and stared hard at the door. Albus walked up the to table cheerily after he deposited a tattered hat onto a stool in front of them, watching McGonagall walk out of the room in order to greet the first years.

"Good evening, Severus," said Albus with a small twinkle in his eyes. "How are you fairing?"

"I'm fine Dumbledore," he said in a monotone voice so as not to attract attention to himself. Dumbledore nodded slightly and then looked past him at Cassandra.

"And you Professor Talin?" he asked.

"Wonderful, Headmaster," she said with enthusiasm.

"So glad you like it here," Albus said, grinning. Cassi shot Snape a look of superiority, and he glared at her. Fortunately, a loud roar could be heard echoing in the front corridor, and Cassandra watched the students pour in and walk to one of the four tables set out before them. Some stood on their tip-toes to find their friends, and others had already formed circles, talking excitedly. Eventually they all sat down at a wooden chair at their table, some noticing their new teachers with indifference and shrugs. Only one group of keenly watched them: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley.

~

Harry Potter looked up from the Gryffindor table to the Staff table, his eyes lingering on a black haired woman. Ron seemed to be looking at her too, though looking may not be the correct term, Harry thought and he laughed.

"So Ron, do you reckon she's the new Defense teacher?" asked Harry. Ron just continued to stare until Harry waved an energetic hand in his face, causing him to shake his head violently.

"Oh, uh yeah I guess so," Ron stuttered, and Hermione rolled her eyes. "Don't roll your eyes at me Hermione, it's not my fault she's…pretty…"

"And twice your age? And your teacher? And not interested in what students seem to think?" ventured Hermione, and Ron scowled and folded his arms. "Ron, I daresay the correct term for you now is girl crazy; earlier it was that Ravenclaw, then the Hufflpuff and now a teacher? And anyway, you don't see me going bonkers over the teacher sitting next to her, do you?"

"What, Snape?" Harry asked, pulling a face.

"Oh God no. No no no, the new one, other side. Wonder what he teaches…" she said, looking faintly sick at the thought of staring at Snape like that. Ron shuddered.

"Ugh, Harry, Snape? Sick!" exclaimed Ron, and Harry punched him in the arm.

"Yeah, well, this new teacher which Ron seems fond of can't be too bad, look at Snape," said Harry to Hermione, and she looked up to see the mystery teacher shooting death glares at Snape, and Snape returning them.

They quickly stopped talking as they saw McGonagall lead in a group of terrified first years. A moment later, the hat sang its new song, Cassi being shocked at the prospect of a singing hat. Very soon it was over, and everyone seated clapped politely. Then McGonagall unrolled a scroll and read out the names of the first years, who each nervously placed the hat on their heads, and after some consideration, the hat would scream out a name: Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, or Slytherin. Cassandra noticed that Snape would faintly smile every time a child was Sorted into his House, giving her the impression that he favored his students of his House perhaps more than others. All this she took into account for the war she waged against the Potion's master, because no one sneaks around and spies on Cassandra Talin and gets away with it.

The rest of dinner went smoothly, minus Snape's vegetarian comments, which Cassi dismissed. She was too busy talking with Simon, who was showing her great kindness. However, she did not want to get too close to him, for fear of awkward questions. Instead, she listened.

The sun was well up over the treetops of the Forbidden Forest by the time classes started the next day. Her first class, Gryffindor sixth years, were already in their seats when the bell rang. Their teacher was sitting on a stool in front of the class, watching them wordlessly, and as the high pitched bell rang, she continued to watch them, causing a nervous silence and some fidgeting.

"Good morning," she said in a quiet voice, her slight accent shocking a few. One did not generally find many Russians in this part of the world, especially in these times. The students watched her closely.

She stood and looked at each of them carefully, her lavender-blue eyes pinning each one with a fixed look. "Tell me, what have you covered?" It was a simple question, but no one really felt like answering, that is, except Hermione Granger. Cassi nodded in her direction, indicating for her to speak.

"Well," started Hermione, her voice rather shaky. "We've covered the Dark Arts of Asia, cornish pixies, a vast number of magical creatures, the Unforgivable Curses, and last year we learned…well, about two hexes." She finished with that, and some of her classmates nodded with agreement.

"Does the word declino mean anything to you? How about subsisto? Contego?" she looked at them, some shaking their heads, others just plainly watching her. "Well, we have a lot more work to do than I thought."

"This is Defense Against the Dark Arts, so shall be teaching you shields, how to stop or freeze your attacker. We'll do counter-attacks, perhaps even a few hexes. I'll have to see how you do on your shields."

"As far as my teaching goes, I will let you know up front that I am strict. I do not tolerate horseplay and disobedience, I ask for your undivided attention. If there is any sort of infraction of these simple rules, I have no problem with subtracting House points, assigning detentions, or dealing with it myself." At this point she flashed a smile, not an entirely friendly one, but a smile at that. "There won't be much note taking, I don't think a Death Eater is going to pause and patiently wait for you to pull out your notes and leaf through them gingerly whilst you look up a shield. No, this is more practical, more hands on."

She sat on her stool, placing her feet on the lowest rung, which hid them under the hem of her robes. She lifted her hand and snapped her fingers, causing her attendance book to fly from her desk into her palm with intense speed, though she caught it deftly. As she was turning through the neat sections to her Gryffindor pages, she spoke again in a firmer voice. "We live in dark times, I'm afraid. Dark times. Therefore, I have decided that during the last few weeks of the year, we shall have a type of history lesson on the rise, curses, and attacks of Voldemort."

At her last word, half the class gasped, while the other half looked quite pale, glancing around fearfully at each other. This reaction caused Cassandra to look up from her role, slightly amused.

"What was that about?" she asked, half laughing, half staring at them with questioning eyes. "Yes, it's awful isn't it? I say the 'V' word! Ladies and gentlemen, Lord Voldemort is not going to swoop down upon those who speak his name, and personally, I don't see why people don't call him by his proper name. I'm not asking you to go out into the world rebelliously and hunt him down, I'm asking you to call him Voldemort, his name, just like I call you by your name. Fear of a word is not a wise fear. Fear of the thing itself is totally different than fearing its name." And with that speech over with, she called out each of their names, pausing ever so slightly when 'Harry Potter' said 'here'. Finally the role was called, and she began her class, starting with teaching them their first shield, the Tutela shield. After a short bit, people wands began to spark, and she broke them into groups to practice their first shield. When they were in groups, she gave them a bit of a dummy curse to use on each other, leaving the victim with a slightly eerie tingly feeling to let them know their shield didn't work. Eventually most got the hang of it, and she promised them that they would have more practice next time as the bell rung. Before they could all file out of her class, she called Harry up to her desk in the corner.

"Harry, I noticed you had no difficulty with that spell, have you used similar?" she asked, innocent eyes boring into his.

Harry thought back to last year when he used the Impedimenta spell to freeze attackers. "I've used something close to it before," he said lightly.

She smiled at him. "Well, good job with it, five points to Gryffindor. Oh, and what is your next class?"

"Potions," answered Harry, with a hint of disgust in his voice.

"So I see, well, I send my condolences. I will see you then, Harry," she answered, and Harry perked up and walked out of the room, thinking hard on her last statement. Condolences? In that case, she must be about as big a Snape fan as I am, not one at all, he thought to himself smugly, and he rushed off to tell Hermione and Ron what their new teacher just said.

~

Fairly shortly, it became quite apparent to Harry's group of the depth of the two teachers despise for each other. The looks they shot at each other in the hallways was nothing short of hatred, and both seemed to be testing the other, trying to see how far they could push each other.

And for some reason, Harry was stuck in the middle of their little game. After about a week, Snape figured out that Cassi had a favorite, and that favorite was the very son of Severus' archenemy, James Potter. This annoyed Snape to no end, causing Cassi great delight.

On the Monday two weeks after the start of term, Snape was on the prowl, watching and waiting for Professor Talin to walk to lunch so he could berate her, when suddenly a short figure collided with him and was sprawled to the floor.

"I'm sorry Professor," stammered Harry Potter as he stood up. He had been trying to avoid Draco's group in the hallway, and hadn't seen Snape lurking around the corner.

"Watch where your running, Potter. Ten points from Gryffindor for physical abuse to a teacher, and be glad it isn't more," sneered Snape, looking over his head for Talin. Harry noticed his distraction and walked off, surprised he had only gotten ten points from Gryffindor.

Cassi rounded the corner at about that time, and watched Harry rush away from Snape.

"What did you say to him?" she asked, instantly furious.

"He ran into me!" he said, a smile of menace spreading on his face. "So I did what was appropriate, do you have a problem with that, your majesty?"

"Don't call me that, unless writhing in pain is something you like to do," she said lightly, and continued walking.

"I'm not done talking to you," he growled and fell into step beside her.

"Well, I am," she said.

"Where were you yesterday afternoon?" he said, totally ignoring her last comment. Cassi hadn't been in the castle when he had tried to hunt her down yesterday.

"What, are you my official stalker? I was on the grounds, Snape, trying to get some peace of mind away from you, happy?" she said roughly, though her last words were sourly true, striking him hard.

"As much as you'd like to think I'm stalking you, I'm not," he said, quickening his pace to match hers.

"Well you're doing a damn good impression of it, and if you wouldn't mind, please keep your big nose out of my business," she said. She walked quickly into the Hall and took up her seat among the other teachers, a safe haven from Snape. Simon quickly engaged her in conversation, and she forgot about Snape for awhile. That night however, she downed her potions with vigor and slept soundly, dreamlessly.

The next day in Potions, Snape was still sore at her. Harry shuffled in nervously after her class, dreading what could happen. Snape had let him off easy yesterday, and he felt quite unprotected without Professor Talin around.

Harry set up his cauldron between Ron and Hermione, and began to follow the instructions on the board. He was just starting the grate the dried toad liver when he felt a slight rush of air behind him, and that feeling one gets when someone is watching you.

"So, Mr. Potter, have I missed anymore of your celebrity updates? You know I love to keep up with the young star's fascinating life," said Snape silkily. Picking fights was a specialty of his, and a lovely reason to deduct points from Gryffindor.

Harry remained silent, while Ron and Hermione watched Snape with open-mouths. They could scarcely believe that Snape was blatantly provoking Harry, and talking to Dumbledore about it seemed to be on their minds.

"No? That's good, I don't want to miss any press cuttings. I also haven't had the chance to tell you an important message," said Snape softly, and he leaned closer to Harry and whispered. "I will not be tolerating any more of your little night excursions, robbings of my Potions' store, or flippant disobedience of the rules Dumbledore has set before you. One of these days your pride is going to get you in trouble, and I will make sure I'm there when it does." And with that last threatening note, he walked off with the swish of his cloak. He could soon be heard terrorizing Neville, who had grated the wrong ingredient.

"Oooh, he's tense," whispered Hermione. "You don't think it has anything to do with Talin, does it? They don't….seem to get along."

"Yeah, that's it. They were arguing about me yesterday, I heard them. I don't blame her, she's the only one who has stood up to him as far as I can remember," said Harry in a low voice, and Ron nodded

"I dunno, maybe she'll finish him off for us, sounds really good to me," he said in a mutter. He chopped his bat wings a little harder than most, but Snape had that effect on people.

~

The next few weeks carried on like that, each snipping at each other, making as many cutting remarks as they could while walking past each other. Actually, very very deep inside of himself, Snape enjoyed being able to cut at someone who could throw it back, someone to match wits with. Cassi was just pure annoyed.

Her classes were going well, the students were not as stupid as Snape let on. They were actually fairly eager to learn, thinking that they were bettering themselves from He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named with their feeble shields. Cassi got along well with every House (though Hufflepuffs were a little afraid of her), especially Slytherin and Gryffindor. This angered Snape endlessly, his own House and their rivals! It was a scandal, he didn't even think she was that good of a teacher, certainly he could do so much better. She was an improvement, but a small one.

Improvement or not, she acted so strangely. She would take her breaks outside, as if staying in the safe walls of Hogwarts would kill her. She walked alone, talked (and Snape knew she wasn't really talking with Simon, he was the one chattering) with no one, in fact, she was a rogue. A solitary soul. And something in her bright eyes was off, something wasn't quite right, causing even more suspicion in Snape. He had entertained the idea that she could work for Voldemort, she very well could. He decided he would follow her on one of her little outings one of these days.

~

On a Friday night at the end of September, Cassi trudged up to the Staff table for dinner, feeling particularly tired after her lessons. To her unenthusiastic surprise, Snape was already seated at the near empty table, while Simon was no where to be seen, leaving her quite alone. She sighed and stamped her foot slightly, then forced herself into her chair. They exchanged no words; Severus was preoccupied with talking to Dumbledore. Cassi breathed with relief and then began to eat her meal in peace.

It was about half way through her meal when it happened. Cassi had just set down her fork, when a sharp, burning pain scalded her arm so intensely that she gasped and clutched her arm without knowing she was doing so. And Snape, sitting beside her, noticed, for he had just felt a burn on his arm. His eyes stared at her accusingly, but were shocked to see something in hers he hadn't expected: fear. In a flash she had left the table and was walking out of the Hall very quickly. As soon as she hit the doors she was running. Snape was after her just as quickly.

Cassi wove through the halls trying to hide but it was useless, Snape knew these halls better than she ever could. He was surprisingly fast and soon caught her by the wrist and pinned her against the wall, both breathing hard.

"Death Eater," he hissed at her. She tried to break free of his grasp, but that too was useless. She was held fast to the stone wall behind her, staring into his hatefully dark eyes. And now I have to tell him, she thought.