A/N: I am SO, SO, SO, SO, (etc.) SORRY that I haven't updated in so long!!!
Forgive my impertinence, inconvenience, and incompetence, and please read
the next chapter to my story.
Plus, thank you to my reviewers on my very FIRST chapter of my second story; I will do the honors and thank my reviewers: Sweet n chilli, Dracoisahottie13, Ekleenex, Bride of Malfoy, NewSecretRose, Natyslacks, Riku's Heartless Angel, and... of course, Evil Gypsy.
Now... (Drum roll) Onto the show! Hermione's POV:
I got the impression that Harry and Ron seemed to be dragging themselves slower than usual beside me as we made our way to dinner. To avoid the announcement about Dumbledore's supposedly retirement?
Probably.
I was getting a little fed up with the whole walking-slower-than-my- grandfather-who-has-polio thing and finally grabbed their sleeves to drag them along at my own pace. "Christ, Ron, Harry, are you aware of the fact that you happen to be walking slower than I deemed possible!" Ron looked at me and stumbled for an excuse, "I happen to dislike any forms of confrontation, especially with Dumbledore."
"You won't even KNOW confrontation if you make me late for dinner." I grumbled as I practically pushed them towards the entrance to the Great Hall and into the Gryffindor dining table. Suddenly, just when we had seated ourselves and rested for a second, the loud chat of the students fell into a quiet murmur as I looked up.
I looked up to see Dumbledore standing up in his seat with his arms folded calmly, in the professors' raised dining area near the front of the hall. Now THAT'S what I called presence. "Thank you for your cooperation and silence. I have a greatly important announcement to make that will most definitely make an effect your daily life in a major way, so please pay attention." He announced in a somewhat dreary voice. From across me, Harry gave me an I-told-you-so look.
I almost kicked the bruise on his shin he got from tripping over Dobby.
There was a slight pause of anticipation just before he spoke. "I am retiring this month." He suddenly boomed across the Hall. A sudden hush fell across the students. And I mean a dead silent hush.
DEAD.
I seriously wasn't kidding. I would've been a bit scared if it weren't for me being just as shocked, despite Harry's previous proclamation. Shattering the silence in a more than obscene way, Lee Jordan shouted, "WHAT THE FUCK?" Quite loudly, may I add, and there were FIRST years in the room, for god sakes. But in my shocked state, I couldn't even turn around and give him a reprimanding look.
"Jordan, shut up." Snape growled from beside Dumbledore. The headmaster turned to give them both a look, which seemed to shut them up, gladly. "Now," He continued. "I don't see how you would all look at me with such astonishment! Honestly, I'm very nearing over my mid-nineties..." With that, he eyed us all with one clear blue eye. The only part of him that didn't seem to show any signs of aging. "I need to retire and enjoy my golden years sometime, my students!"
"Why can't you enjoy your retirement at Hogwarts?" Harry shouted out at him from his seat. McGonagall gave him a hard look, and said, "Now, don't be selfish Mr. Potter." Dumbledore, on the other hand, gave a light chuckle. "Mr. Potter, I'm afraid I have a lovely cottage in the West Hamptons, and would like to settle there with my wife, despite the amount of love and dedication I have for this school and it's students."
The thought of Dumbledore having a wife never occurred to me before, but you know what they say, you learn new things every day.
"Plus," He added. "Voldemort was successfully banished, so there will be no more need to protect my students, so I deem this a perfect time to retire." He smiled brightly as if he had to tell the most glorious news to tell us. Which was quite the contrary if you wanted my opinion. I was probably going to fall into some sort of cardiac arrest after this. My palms were sweating like mad with my paranoid thoughts. What if Voldemort came back? How would we get along? He was always the one who held up the school? I held my head in my hands in my headachy mess.
"Now, I want to introduce a very important person. I expect you to give her your most utmost attention and show your polished manners off." Dumbledore said, breaking me out of my reveries, "I introduce, Sylvia Chasse LaRue Cheng." A young, pretty Asian woman walked made a grand, dramatic entrance in her dashingly bold attire consisting of a bright yellow trenchcoat, with black jeans, and fish shaped earrings. Her tone was light and sharp, with a meaningful undertone, associated with slight Irish brogue as she gave her greeting. I think she made quite an impression on my superficial best friends and every other male in the room as she smiled brightly.
Draco's POV:
My God, that woman next to Dumbledore was HOT. And her accent was just as sexy. "Watch it Goyle!" I snapped as he leaned forward slightly to get a better look. He quickly shot back straight in his seat. "Hello, my name is Sylvia LaRue Cheng, but I prefer you call me Professor Rue. It's much easier, you think?" Dumbledore stepped forward to speak next. "Now, my students..." There was a slight, yet suffering pause. "THIS, will be your headmaster to be." There were collective gasps from the crowd. I, on the other hand with my Malfoy dignity and composition, only raised my eyebrows. It WAS quite surprising. She seemed young, TOO young, to uphold such an important position. And she was GIRL, for god sakes. Yes, I was a little on the sexist side.
"I expect you to respect her as you respect the other professors and I. She will be touring the school and visiting some classrooms and assisting in some lessons for the next few weeks, until I reach my retiring time. Please don't be bothered by the new visitor, if there should be the case. Now, Sylvia, why don't you tell the students about yourself?" She eagerly stepped forward and started speaking with her Irish tinted accent. "Well, my name is Sylvia, as you know, and I was born in the United States, and then moved to Scotland when I was four years old. I attended the Raux and Tres School of Magic, more popularly known as Rautress?" I nodded to myself along with some other murmurs. It was one of the oldest magic schools in Scotland, or Northern Europe for that matter. The school had a very long legacy and upheld one of the strictest histories known to Wizarding Education.
"Then, I graduated and went to study teaching at Mazeon's Academy." She continued, stopping for air, "And since then, I've been teaching Potions at Beauxbatons for about six years..." Snape gave her only a brief look after that statement. "But when I heard about the opening for Headmaster for Hogwarts, such a prestigious school, I knew I couldn't pass up the chance to apply. I thought that if at least if I didn't get the position, I would get a once in a lifetime chance to meet the legendary Albus Dumbledore, a man of such power and legacy." It's amazing how she said it like she truly meant it. If I had said it, I would be choking on laughter right now. There were some mumbles of appreciation from around me. Most of them coming from the Gryffindor Table.
Damned Goody-Two shoes.
"Why, Sylvia, I'm flattered!" The old man cried. "Well, anyways, I admired Sylvia's upbeat personality and intense knowledge of potions." Snape this time creased his eyebrows as he once again glanced at the brightly clad young woman. "And her leadership qualities are outrageous, along with all that volunteer work she has done. The next few weeks, I'll hope you notice how skilled she is at teaching, when she assists your professors in some of their classes. Does anyone have any questions?" I saw Ravenclaw, Robyn Delaine raise her hand first. The headmaster nodded towards him, "Yes Ms. Delaine?"
"How come you didn't choose Professor McGonagall to replace you, since she substituted for you when you were at meetings, in previous years?"
Dumbledore smiled fondly. "I'm afraid the Professor didn't want the job, when I asked her. She told me she could only fill in for me temporarily, but I recall that she also said that becoming Headmaster was much to pressuring and was content with her status right now. Any other questions?" McGonagall nodded in relevance to this.
Oddly enough, there were no more hands. My guess was that they were still much too shocked.
"Thank you, for your time, and..." He turned to our new headmaster-to-be, "Will you do the honors?" I could almost see her jump at the opportunity. Way to perky for my taste. She did an extravagant wave with her arms and bowls of gummy bears, lollipops, plates of brownies, and huge bowls of Jell- O appeared. "Happy eatin... oh, gods, I'm so sorry!" She smiled shyly and waved her arms once again, and the sweets disappeared, replaced with our regular plates of daily nutrition. I looked over and saw Goyle's reaction change from pure delight to trodden disappointment. Stupid pig.
What can I say after that? We dug in.
Sylvia's POV
I could feel the jealous eyes of the Potions Master boring into my back. Not to mention, his compressed smirk after my blooper with dinner, if that's what you want to call it. "How are you Professor Snape?" I asked politely holding out my hand, as I turned to the chair to my left. I could feel my eyes sparkling with laughter, for his serious, almost stone-faced expression. He could use a little loosening up, a hair washing... hmm... maybe a nice black sweater...
"Fine, and you?" His tone was dragging, almost monotone-like from memorizing this line over and over again.
Honestly, I had to take this man disco dancing one day.
"Delightful." And that seemed all the response he needed as he turned back to his dinner. I almost rolled my eyes in a very unprofessional way, but restrained myself and resolved to observe the students. There was this one, blonde-haired boy that stood out in the Slytherin table. For his cold, yet shockingly attractive features, possibly, but it's not like I would ever think about snogging the poor boy! I was only being open-minded. "Professor, who's that?" I asked Professor Snape again, since unfortunately, Dumbledore who was on my right seemed to be preoccupied with conversing with the Transfiguration Professor.
A slight smile flitted on his lips. "Draco Malfoy."
"Would you mind telling me a little about him?"
"Quidditch captain, prefect, top of his Potions class aside from Hermione Granger, son of Lucius Malfoy." He answered simply.
I nodded mostly to myself and glanced over to the Gryffindor table. "And I take it that's Hermione Granger?" I asked him. He nodded towards a pretty girl with deep brown ringlets. I noticed Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley sitting next to her. All you needed to do was read the Daily Prophet from time to time to know who they were.
"So, how is Hogwarts set up? I mean, like dinner ceremonies and classes and everything. Because it must be very different here than at Beauxbatons."
"I'm sorry, but I really wouldn't be able to explain very well. You should get the Headmaster to help you." He answered.
Oh Jesus Christ, just my luck to be seated next to some old fag who won't even make an effort to keep up his half of a conversation. Scratch the disco dancing, possibly some, maybe fifty, shots of tequilas and then MAYBE we would get some signs of life.
A/N: Once again, I'm so, so, so, so, so, so, (et cetera) sorry about how long it took me to update! Hands out cookies as a piece offering
Plus, thank you to my reviewers on my very FIRST chapter of my second story; I will do the honors and thank my reviewers: Sweet n chilli, Dracoisahottie13, Ekleenex, Bride of Malfoy, NewSecretRose, Natyslacks, Riku's Heartless Angel, and... of course, Evil Gypsy.
Now... (Drum roll) Onto the show! Hermione's POV:
I got the impression that Harry and Ron seemed to be dragging themselves slower than usual beside me as we made our way to dinner. To avoid the announcement about Dumbledore's supposedly retirement?
Probably.
I was getting a little fed up with the whole walking-slower-than-my- grandfather-who-has-polio thing and finally grabbed their sleeves to drag them along at my own pace. "Christ, Ron, Harry, are you aware of the fact that you happen to be walking slower than I deemed possible!" Ron looked at me and stumbled for an excuse, "I happen to dislike any forms of confrontation, especially with Dumbledore."
"You won't even KNOW confrontation if you make me late for dinner." I grumbled as I practically pushed them towards the entrance to the Great Hall and into the Gryffindor dining table. Suddenly, just when we had seated ourselves and rested for a second, the loud chat of the students fell into a quiet murmur as I looked up.
I looked up to see Dumbledore standing up in his seat with his arms folded calmly, in the professors' raised dining area near the front of the hall. Now THAT'S what I called presence. "Thank you for your cooperation and silence. I have a greatly important announcement to make that will most definitely make an effect your daily life in a major way, so please pay attention." He announced in a somewhat dreary voice. From across me, Harry gave me an I-told-you-so look.
I almost kicked the bruise on his shin he got from tripping over Dobby.
There was a slight pause of anticipation just before he spoke. "I am retiring this month." He suddenly boomed across the Hall. A sudden hush fell across the students. And I mean a dead silent hush.
DEAD.
I seriously wasn't kidding. I would've been a bit scared if it weren't for me being just as shocked, despite Harry's previous proclamation. Shattering the silence in a more than obscene way, Lee Jordan shouted, "WHAT THE FUCK?" Quite loudly, may I add, and there were FIRST years in the room, for god sakes. But in my shocked state, I couldn't even turn around and give him a reprimanding look.
"Jordan, shut up." Snape growled from beside Dumbledore. The headmaster turned to give them both a look, which seemed to shut them up, gladly. "Now," He continued. "I don't see how you would all look at me with such astonishment! Honestly, I'm very nearing over my mid-nineties..." With that, he eyed us all with one clear blue eye. The only part of him that didn't seem to show any signs of aging. "I need to retire and enjoy my golden years sometime, my students!"
"Why can't you enjoy your retirement at Hogwarts?" Harry shouted out at him from his seat. McGonagall gave him a hard look, and said, "Now, don't be selfish Mr. Potter." Dumbledore, on the other hand, gave a light chuckle. "Mr. Potter, I'm afraid I have a lovely cottage in the West Hamptons, and would like to settle there with my wife, despite the amount of love and dedication I have for this school and it's students."
The thought of Dumbledore having a wife never occurred to me before, but you know what they say, you learn new things every day.
"Plus," He added. "Voldemort was successfully banished, so there will be no more need to protect my students, so I deem this a perfect time to retire." He smiled brightly as if he had to tell the most glorious news to tell us. Which was quite the contrary if you wanted my opinion. I was probably going to fall into some sort of cardiac arrest after this. My palms were sweating like mad with my paranoid thoughts. What if Voldemort came back? How would we get along? He was always the one who held up the school? I held my head in my hands in my headachy mess.
"Now, I want to introduce a very important person. I expect you to give her your most utmost attention and show your polished manners off." Dumbledore said, breaking me out of my reveries, "I introduce, Sylvia Chasse LaRue Cheng." A young, pretty Asian woman walked made a grand, dramatic entrance in her dashingly bold attire consisting of a bright yellow trenchcoat, with black jeans, and fish shaped earrings. Her tone was light and sharp, with a meaningful undertone, associated with slight Irish brogue as she gave her greeting. I think she made quite an impression on my superficial best friends and every other male in the room as she smiled brightly.
Draco's POV:
My God, that woman next to Dumbledore was HOT. And her accent was just as sexy. "Watch it Goyle!" I snapped as he leaned forward slightly to get a better look. He quickly shot back straight in his seat. "Hello, my name is Sylvia LaRue Cheng, but I prefer you call me Professor Rue. It's much easier, you think?" Dumbledore stepped forward to speak next. "Now, my students..." There was a slight, yet suffering pause. "THIS, will be your headmaster to be." There were collective gasps from the crowd. I, on the other hand with my Malfoy dignity and composition, only raised my eyebrows. It WAS quite surprising. She seemed young, TOO young, to uphold such an important position. And she was GIRL, for god sakes. Yes, I was a little on the sexist side.
"I expect you to respect her as you respect the other professors and I. She will be touring the school and visiting some classrooms and assisting in some lessons for the next few weeks, until I reach my retiring time. Please don't be bothered by the new visitor, if there should be the case. Now, Sylvia, why don't you tell the students about yourself?" She eagerly stepped forward and started speaking with her Irish tinted accent. "Well, my name is Sylvia, as you know, and I was born in the United States, and then moved to Scotland when I was four years old. I attended the Raux and Tres School of Magic, more popularly known as Rautress?" I nodded to myself along with some other murmurs. It was one of the oldest magic schools in Scotland, or Northern Europe for that matter. The school had a very long legacy and upheld one of the strictest histories known to Wizarding Education.
"Then, I graduated and went to study teaching at Mazeon's Academy." She continued, stopping for air, "And since then, I've been teaching Potions at Beauxbatons for about six years..." Snape gave her only a brief look after that statement. "But when I heard about the opening for Headmaster for Hogwarts, such a prestigious school, I knew I couldn't pass up the chance to apply. I thought that if at least if I didn't get the position, I would get a once in a lifetime chance to meet the legendary Albus Dumbledore, a man of such power and legacy." It's amazing how she said it like she truly meant it. If I had said it, I would be choking on laughter right now. There were some mumbles of appreciation from around me. Most of them coming from the Gryffindor Table.
Damned Goody-Two shoes.
"Why, Sylvia, I'm flattered!" The old man cried. "Well, anyways, I admired Sylvia's upbeat personality and intense knowledge of potions." Snape this time creased his eyebrows as he once again glanced at the brightly clad young woman. "And her leadership qualities are outrageous, along with all that volunteer work she has done. The next few weeks, I'll hope you notice how skilled she is at teaching, when she assists your professors in some of their classes. Does anyone have any questions?" I saw Ravenclaw, Robyn Delaine raise her hand first. The headmaster nodded towards him, "Yes Ms. Delaine?"
"How come you didn't choose Professor McGonagall to replace you, since she substituted for you when you were at meetings, in previous years?"
Dumbledore smiled fondly. "I'm afraid the Professor didn't want the job, when I asked her. She told me she could only fill in for me temporarily, but I recall that she also said that becoming Headmaster was much to pressuring and was content with her status right now. Any other questions?" McGonagall nodded in relevance to this.
Oddly enough, there were no more hands. My guess was that they were still much too shocked.
"Thank you, for your time, and..." He turned to our new headmaster-to-be, "Will you do the honors?" I could almost see her jump at the opportunity. Way to perky for my taste. She did an extravagant wave with her arms and bowls of gummy bears, lollipops, plates of brownies, and huge bowls of Jell- O appeared. "Happy eatin... oh, gods, I'm so sorry!" She smiled shyly and waved her arms once again, and the sweets disappeared, replaced with our regular plates of daily nutrition. I looked over and saw Goyle's reaction change from pure delight to trodden disappointment. Stupid pig.
What can I say after that? We dug in.
Sylvia's POV
I could feel the jealous eyes of the Potions Master boring into my back. Not to mention, his compressed smirk after my blooper with dinner, if that's what you want to call it. "How are you Professor Snape?" I asked politely holding out my hand, as I turned to the chair to my left. I could feel my eyes sparkling with laughter, for his serious, almost stone-faced expression. He could use a little loosening up, a hair washing... hmm... maybe a nice black sweater...
"Fine, and you?" His tone was dragging, almost monotone-like from memorizing this line over and over again.
Honestly, I had to take this man disco dancing one day.
"Delightful." And that seemed all the response he needed as he turned back to his dinner. I almost rolled my eyes in a very unprofessional way, but restrained myself and resolved to observe the students. There was this one, blonde-haired boy that stood out in the Slytherin table. For his cold, yet shockingly attractive features, possibly, but it's not like I would ever think about snogging the poor boy! I was only being open-minded. "Professor, who's that?" I asked Professor Snape again, since unfortunately, Dumbledore who was on my right seemed to be preoccupied with conversing with the Transfiguration Professor.
A slight smile flitted on his lips. "Draco Malfoy."
"Would you mind telling me a little about him?"
"Quidditch captain, prefect, top of his Potions class aside from Hermione Granger, son of Lucius Malfoy." He answered simply.
I nodded mostly to myself and glanced over to the Gryffindor table. "And I take it that's Hermione Granger?" I asked him. He nodded towards a pretty girl with deep brown ringlets. I noticed Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley sitting next to her. All you needed to do was read the Daily Prophet from time to time to know who they were.
"So, how is Hogwarts set up? I mean, like dinner ceremonies and classes and everything. Because it must be very different here than at Beauxbatons."
"I'm sorry, but I really wouldn't be able to explain very well. You should get the Headmaster to help you." He answered.
Oh Jesus Christ, just my luck to be seated next to some old fag who won't even make an effort to keep up his half of a conversation. Scratch the disco dancing, possibly some, maybe fifty, shots of tequilas and then MAYBE we would get some signs of life.
A/N: Once again, I'm so, so, so, so, so, so, (et cetera) sorry about how long it took me to update! Hands out cookies as a piece offering