Author's Note: I have no claim over Buffy and Co., nor over Harry and crew. They belong to Joss Whedon and JK Rowling, respectively. Please read and review!
Buffy didn't sleep very much, despite Dumbledore's well wishes, and she was wide-awake when Professor McGonagall came to show her to breakfast.
"Unpacked already, I see. Good for you. I find that living out of trunks is more depressing than moving actually is. If you'll just come with me I'll show you to breakfast." They walked through the portrait, which reminded Buffy of something.
"Professor, am I crazy or are all the paintings moving?"
"No, you're not crazy. In the wizarding world paintings and photographs can move around. You'll see the paintings move from one frame to another. I'm told that muggle pictures don't do that."
"No, all my pictures stand still unfortunately." Buffy's bemusement turned into awe when they reached the great hall. She'd seen some impressive things in her life but this room was something else. Huge buttresses extended to a ceiling that didn't seem to be there. Instead diluted morning sunlight filled the hall. Dumbledore and several other teachers sat at the head table eating or reading the paper. Buffy tried a little bit of everything. She'd been living off cereal and Doublemeat for a long time.
"Well, Ms. Summers, are you ready to go?"
"Yes, but please call me Buffy. 'Ms. Summers' makes me feel like a substitute teacher or something," she said.
"Alright then, Buffy, lets start from the top and work our way down." Dumbledore showed her the astronomy tower as well as the owlery and then they moved on to the many classrooms and corridors on the floors below. Suits of armor creaked at them as they passed and the paintings greeted them courteously. They came across Peeves the poltergeist in the west corridor on the third floor. He was throwing eggs and blowing loud raspberries, but was trying to look innocent as Dumbledore walked through. As they walked, he told Buffy about the history of the school and the ways of the wizarding world. He also told her more about Harry Potter.
"Voldemort attacked Harry when he was just a baby. He killed his parents, James and Lily, but when he tried to curse Harry, it rebounded and almost destroyed him. I believe Voldemort is growing stronger and wants to pick up where he left off, starting with Harry."
"But why would he want to kill Harry in the first place, if he was only a baby?"
"His rise included many innocent deaths in the name of power. It was a dark and terrifying time for everyone. And here are the dungeons. This is where Professor Snape teaches potions. Ah, Severus, you're in! I was just giving Ms. Summers, that is Buffy, the ten-knut tour."
"Fascinating," Professor Snape said without a hint of interest. His eyes were glowing with animosity. "If you'll excuse me, headmaster, I have a lot of work to do," and he swept into his office.
"Boy, he's a regular ray of sunshine, isn't he? What's got him so worked up?" Buffy asked.
"Well, Professor Snape is, shall we say, less than fond of Harry Potter and in his mind your presence here is just another example of the special treatment he gets."
"And does he? Get special treatment, I mean."
"It's not that he gets special treatment, it's just that normal rules don't seem to apply to him. You've got to understand that Harry is famous for being the one who vanquished Voldemort with a failed curse. His father passed on his invisibility cloak to Harry, who enjoys the sense of freedom is gives him. Harry is a talented, resourceful wizard who does tend to ignore the rules when he feels the situation requires it. So yes, due to his unique position, Harry does get special treatment, but not in the way that Severus thinks. He's not without bias on the subject of Harry anyway. He went to school with Harry's father and the two of them rather despised each other. Some scars never fade." They moved to another dungeon. "I had this space converted into a training space for you. This dungeon wasn't being used and it's bigger than most of the other classrooms. Will this suit you?" The room was full of gymnastics equipment, punching bags and targets. Various weapons hung from the walls.
"Oh my god, this is perfect! Better than the Magic Box even," but she stopped, thinking of Giles. Buffy walked around the room, touching and weighing the weapons. She took down the crossbow, aimed the bolt and fired. "Bullseye. I think this will do just fine."
"Excellent. Well, this concludes our tour of the castle. I believe there's enough time before dinner to have a look-see around the grounds. What do you say?" Dumbledore took her to the Quidditch pitch ("A wizarding game played on brooms" he told her), Hagrid's cabin and through the Forbidden Forest.
"The Forbidden Forest is, well, forbidden to all students, not that the rule stops everyone. Harry has been out here any number of times. There are enough dangerous creatures out here to pose a threat to a wandering student, but fear is usually enough to keep most people away. I thought it would be a good idea to introduce you to some of the forest's more neutral inhabitants." Dumbledore led Buffy to a small clearing where they waited for a few minutes. This place had her spidey sense working double time. She could feel things all around her, so many she couldn't sort them out. The trees in front of them rustled and they were joined with one of the most amazing creatures Buffy had ever seen. It was a centaur.
"Good afternoon, Albus Dumbledore," he said in a dignified voice.
"Hello, Bane. I trust you are doing well?"
"As well as one can expect, I suppose. What brings you into the forest today?"
"I would like to introduce you to Ms. Buffy Summers, the slayer, who we've recruited to help protect Harry Potter. Buffy, this is Bane." Bane's penetrating eyes turned to her but Buffy was too stunned to react.
"You're amazing!" she said, but Bane didn't seem to receive this well.
"We centaurs are not some spectacle to be gawked at. We are not some fancy breed of pony!"
"Oh, of course not, that wasn't what I meant at all, please I didn't mean to offend you. I just meant you're amazing in that you're a non-human who's not bell-bent on my decapitation, defenestration or general destruction. Please, I'm sorry." Bane backed down but wasn't entirely pacified.
"Bane, I wanted to introduce you to Buffy because you might find her in the forest from time to time. It's not my wish that she should interfere with the normal creatures in the forest but I would like her to keep an eye open for anything unusual or dangerous. Too many unnatural things are afoot these days to take anything for granted," Dumbledore said. Bane nodded and turned back into the thicket. "Centaurs have a strong sense of honor and justice. They can be dangerous when provoked but they are not by nature aggressive or hostile. If you leave them alone they will most likely leave you alone." They headed out of the forest and back to the castle.
"Sir, when do the students get here?" Buffy asked.
"The Hogwarts Express arrives on September first. Then we hold the sorting ceremony, followed by the welcome feast. After the meal, I'll introduce you to Harry."
"What's the sorting ceremony?"
"A ritual that divides the students into one of four houses. Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, Gryffindor and Slytherin. Each house is like the students' family while they're at Hogwarts. They live together, eat together and have class together."
"How do you decide who goes into what house?"
"That, my dear, is the whole point of the sorting ceremony. The sorting hat can see inside your mind and choose the house based on your personal characteristics. Ravenclaw is for students who are more studious, Gryffindor is for those who are bravest. Those who are most loyal and hardworking go to Hufflepuff and Slytherin is for those who are cunning and ambitious. Every year each house competes for the House Cup, which is determined by earning and losing points throughout the year. Students can earn points with good deeds and lose them by breaking the rules."
"That makes sense," she said.
"Yes, the students will not be here for more than a week yet, but I thought you'd like some time to get settled in."
"What am I actually going to be doing once Harry gets here? Does he know you've planned all this?"
"Mostly, I just want you to escort him to and from his classes and to keep him out of the worst of the trouble. Harry's too clever and brave to avoid trouble all together, but you might be able to keep him from being completely rash. While Harry's in class I don't expect any danger and the teachers are more than capable but trouble seems to find Harry regardless. And no, he doesn't know about your presence yet and to be honest, I don't imagine he'll be too excited about the idea. Harry has wide streaks of pride and independence and he might feel that I don't think he's able. That's far from the truth, of course, but we can't be too careful." They rejoined the rest of the staff for dinner and then Buffy went back to her room where she rearranged everything she'd put out the night before. When she couldn't push things around anymore she decided to test out her new training dungeon.
She took three wrong staircases before she recognized where she was and found the room. "Geez, I need some fricking breadcrumbs or something. The space was magicked so no one could enter unless she was there, that way no one would be tempted to play with the weaponry. She started warming up with some simple stretches and had moved on to the quarterstaff when she felt someone watching her. It was Professor Snape.
"While I'm sure everyone is in awe of your pugilistic talents, I assure you that I don't know care in the slightest. I find your presence here insulting and will only tolerate you because the headmaster insists. And despite the fact that Dumbledore has also insisted on providing you this room, we are in no way neighbors and I expect that we shall have little interaction. Do I make myself clear?" he said with his customary sneer.
"Look, Professor dude, I got too many issues of my own to care about yours, ok? I'm sure you could curse me to next Sunday if you wanted to, but I could snap your wand before you said, 'boo.' How 'bout you leave me alone and I'll leave you alone, deal?" Snape appeared too outraged to speak and simply stormed off. She worked for a while longer but her heart wasn't in it so she returned to her room. But sleep didn't come any easier. She tossed and turned and dreamt about her mom and Dawn. When she woke up, her eyes felt heavy and scratchy. She may have changed her location but apparently it wasn't doing any good.
