A Fine Welcome
Ariel followed a few paces after Dumbledore as he trooped slowly down the corridor towards the Great Hall. The stones whispered to her of the memories of this school, of students and their hopes and dreams... and fears...
"Miss Soliel?" Dumbledore asked, turning around to stare at the young woman before him.
She blinked her bright, topaz eyes and blushed prettily, "I'm sorry Headmaster. I got a bit lost in my thoughts. This place has so many memories!"
"Yes, I imagine it must be a bit overwhelming," Dumbledore's smile was full of understanding. "If there's anything I can do to make the transition any easier...?"
"No, Headmaster. I shall be quite alright after I've had a moment to... take it all in." She smiled warmly, trailing a hand over the stones. She knew them all so well already...
"As I was saying, the students will be arriving tomorrow. I wish we'd been able to give you a bit more time to get settled, but as things are..." Dumbledore looked distraught.
Ariel stepped forward and placed a hand on the Headmaster's shoulder comfortingly, "I understand perfectly, Headmaster. These are trying times for us all."
Dumbledore nodded gravely. "It will be very nice, I think, to have you on staff."
Ariel blushed once again. "You give me too much credit, I think."
"Still so humble, Ariel? I think there are a few here who might disagree with you."
"Oh?" Ariel looked surprised. What could the Headmaster possibly mean?
"Yes, your old friend Remus insisted on coming to the school to see you again," Dumbledore smiled. "I think it will do him good to see you again, the last few years have been hard on him."
Ariel's eyes clouded... how could she have been so insensitive? Of course Remus would be upset after he had lost his very dear friend... "I hope I can be of some comfort."
"I have no doubt, Ariel," Dumbledore smiled and resumed his trek into the Great Hall. "Everyone else is very much looking forward to meeting you as well. It's not often we have the priveledge to meet a witch of your lineage." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled.
"They know, do they?" Ariel frowned lightly, it wasn't something she liked to speak about. There was a stigma associated with being...
"Ariel, I think you will find that none of the faculty are in a position to question your heritage." Dumbledore smiled reassuringly.
"I hope you're right, Headmaster." Ariel smiled faintly before losing herself in the murmurs of the walls...
"So, she's half-faerie, is she?" Snape snorted, glancing coldly at Professors McGonagall and Flitwick, who sat across from him at the table. Professor Sprout sat on his right, and Professor Sinistra on his left, while Professor Trewlaney sat next to her, and then sat Hagrid. Professor Vector was next to Sprout on the other side, and Hooch next to him, while Madam Pomfrey accompanied the seat next to two empty chairs, presumably for Dumbledore and Ariel. "I wonder if she'll be bringing her pixie dust to teach us to fly." He snorted.
"That's a common misconception, Severus," Hooch began through a mouthful of mashed potatoes.
"I know, you nit. I was being ironic," Snape snarled before returning sulkily to his asparagus.
"I hear faeries can talk ter trees, d'you think tha's true?" Hagrid asked, glancing around the table with half a drumstick hanging from his beard.
"Well, if it is true, she'll have had loads of practice if she ever wants to speak to Severus," McGonagall smiled pleasantly from behind her corn-on-the-cob.
"Minerva!" Sprout chided, shaking her head before Snape glared icily at her. "You know as well as I do that most varieties of trees make for much better conversation than Severus."
"And they're no doubt a good deal more intelligent than the lot of you," Snape muttered, picking up his plate as the female professors giggled pleasantly at his snide little remark. Snape conjured a small table for himself in a far corner of the room and stalked over, glaring venomously at the rest of the staff as he went, so that he didn't notice the young woman in his path, and managed to plough right into her.
"You've ruined my supper!" Snape snapped as the girl picked string beans from her hair, looking somewhat amused. "Watch where you're going, why don't you!" Snape added and snatched up the string beans she was holding out to him before storming off to his table.
"He's a charming fellow," Ariel mused, watching Snape plop himself sulkily down into his table for one.
"That's Severus," Dumebledore said, "you'll get used to him."
"Indeed? I should hope not," Ariel said somewhat distastefully as she scooped a handful of mashed potatoes out of one of her pockets, "I'm not sure my wardrobe can afford it."
Dumbledore's eyes twinkled with amusement as he led her over to the single table set up in the middle of the Great Hall. The assembled professors slowly quieted down as they looked up expectantly at the petite woman before them. "Everyone, this is Miss Ariel Celandine Soliel, she's going to be taking over the Defense Against the Dark Arts post this coming year. I trust we'll all make her feel welcome."
"Yes, do come sit down dear," Professor Sprout smiled cheerfully, motioning to one of the empty chairs.
"Thank you very much, er..." She looked helplessly to Sprout.
"Ceres Sprout," Sprout said as Ariel took her seat. "I love your hair, dear, how do you get it so positively green?"
"That's a string-bean, actually," Ariel said with embarrassment, picking it out of her hair and casting a glance back at Snape, who was still sulking by himself. "A gift from Professor Snape."
"Warming up to you already, is he?" McGonagall asked, sounding amused as she slid the sweet potatoes over towards her.
"Oh yes, I daresay we shall be the best of friends in no time at all," Ariel allowed herself a grin as she helped herself to the sweet potatoes.
"I suppose you think you're quite clever?" Snape hissed as he caught up with Ariel when she exited the Great Hall after dinner.
"Yes, relieving you those string-beans was my master plot all along. I'm very nearly a diabolical genius." She glanced sideways at him as she spoke, her tone and expression uninterested.
"Very amusing. I'm sure the foliage finds you terribly witty." Snape drawled, shooting her a nasty look.
"I hope so. I would be most upset to learn that you're the best company in this place." Ariel smirked lightly, turning off towards the teachers' dormitories.
"Look Soliel, you obviously don't know how things work around here, so I'll fill you in," he sneered, stopping in his tracks to glare at her.
"This should be entertaining," she smiled pleasantly, which only served to enrage Snape further. A vein throbbed in his forehead.
"Well... er... since you seem to think yourself such a tremendous wit, I suppose I'll just leave you to yourself," Snape snorted, turning quickly back around, "if you have any problems, I trust you'll know not to burden me with them." With that he stormed off down the hallway to his room, leaving Ariel much amused in his wake.
"If that isn't a fine welcome, I'm not sure what is." Ariel smiled vaguely to herself as the walls snickered...