Chapter 1
¤Arriving¤
Soft white swirls of clouds tickled the gorgeous blue sky, as a young woman, in her mid twenties, stepped carefully and cautiously out of a dark black carriage, its dark blue curtains of satin were drawn back to reveal the cheeriness of the bright yellow sun. The woman inside was Lila, a new teacher of Hogwarts.
Her dark black hair was drawn loosely back onto her black robes; her dark brown eyes were often darting anxiously around the room, looking for a way out. Her neck was long, and it had often been hidden by her dark hair, which fell to her waist, when she was younger.
Her face was pale, but loving, with a sharp nose, and eyes that seemed to know what you were thinking. Her smile was crooked, but loving, and she had often stared into a mirror, flashing her smile, wishing for a pretty face, a face that she much desired.
She was small, and dainty, and when she was younger, everyone commonly underestimated her ability. She had often been told she would make a terrible flier, only to prove to be one of the best Chasers in the history of her school, in Britain, only a few hundred miles north of Hogwarts.
Having been muggle-born, when she was younger, she had often outrun everyone, and proved to be very strong. This was not something that had proved useful for her yet, but it seemed like something that she might one day need.
She began to walk carefully up to the large stone castle, as she had always done since it happened.
She was amazed by the castles grandeur and how it proudly stood, it stone walls a protective and hard to pass barrier, yet it still looked homey. It was, after all, her new home. Its stone walls seemed grow larger, and more terrifying as she walked up closer, her trunk clunking heavily behind her.
Grasping for air, she reached its giant steps, the grand doors in front of her a welcoming sign. Wondering how she would ever open them, she began to heave her carriage up the grand steps, and as the castle grew even nearer, her view of it decreased. She felt somewhat safe from its intimidating walls, and yet, she felt a longing to view it once more.
Reminding herself this was her new home; she knew that she would know have plenty of times to view its beauty and grace. Now, she had to worry about getting in. Slumping down, and taking a seat on her trunk she hardly had time to think before it slid down.
The trunk was imbalanced because of her new found weight on top of it, and it had come crashing down the large stone steps, leaving her in a giant clumsy heap at the bottom. Her long legs were sprawled all around her, her robes lifted up all the way to her waist, revealing more than she would have liked. Her long arms were waving frantically as she fell, trying to stay frontward. Instead she landed on her back with a large crash, the force knocking the breath out of her. Grimacing, she tried to push herself up, only to fall back down again.
Praying that no one would come out of those large wooden doors, she carefully and painfully pushed herself up, while pain shot throughout her body. She modestly pushed down the hems of her black robes, and thankfully saw that no one was standing in front of her.
Planting her foot into the hard gravel path, she used her legs to push herself up. As she rose waist up, she used her hands to push herself the rest of the way up.
Her hands stung and she looked down on them and saw a large red bleeding mess. No chance of making a clean appearance now. Wiping the red blood on her robes, she lifted up her trunk, and slowly brought it up the large steps again, looking up at the large stone walls.
What would they hold for her? A future? Or another chance to fail, as she had always done previously?
Lila Cassock had always been somewhat of a failure at keeping jobs. It was impossible for her, because she had often found herself running into many different accidents of sorts, and they had always gotten her into trouble.
At her previous job, a muggle saleswoman, she had found herself telling a little girl about the wizarding world, as make believe of course. The small girls mother came storming back only minutes later to complain to the manager how Lila had filled her daughters mind with nonsense, and how it would not help her at any way. Anyways, how dare a saleswoman talk to her daughter!
That had cost Lila a job, and her last straw. She needed to find a job in her old world, her wizarding world. Her childhood land had only brought her troubles, so now she turned to her teenage years.
She had found the job opening only by chance, having run into a tired, stressful older man, named Albus Dumbledore. She had met him in the Leaky Cauldron, and after meeting her, she was soon employed yet again. She hoped that this time, it would be permanent.
The job was to teach one of her favorite subjects, Defense Against the Dark Arts. She had often enjoyed learning how to defend herself, as she had done physically in the muggle world. As Dumbledore had said, they had often had trouble keeping a teacher in that certain position.
Carefully stepping cautiously away from the trunk, she stood and stared at the large doors, wondering if she should knock. The doors then swung open, and there stood the headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore.
"Ah. Welcome Lila, I'm glad you could make it. I'll take your trunk," he said, while waving his wand to lift it up into the air, and carry it throughout the building.
Realizing that she should have done that, Lila felt foolish. Of course she could have used magic. After all, now she was in the wizarding world. Following the old knowledgeable man, she wondered if she was early, or late, or on time.
As if reading her mind, the man answered her question. "You came a bit later than I suspected, but it will be all right."
She had always done everything a bit wrong. But as it had already happened, she sighed, and continued to follow the old man, as he led her through twisting staircases.
"I would mind these old things," he sighed, waving his wrinkled hand all around the staircases. "They like to change."
That was new. At her old school, unlike Hogwarts, it had not been placed in castle, but a small little village, each class taking place in its own cabin. It had been a nice homey feeling, as she knew Hogwarts would soon come to be.
"The students will arrive in about 3 hours. I would be dressed soon, and down in the Great Hall in about two," the man said wearily, slowing down at a large door, and gently opening it's large doors with a shove. "This is your new room, and you may decorate it how you like. I would advise that you be down for supper in two hours, so we may tell you just a bit more that you need to know," he finished, nodding, and slowly exiting the area.
Standing in the dark, cold walls of the cold castle, Lila began to feel much like a kid again. Oddly enough, within the cold, unknown walls of the castle, she began to feel as if she were a teenager again, stuck within the poisonous walls of school. The only difference was that this time, she was looking forward to it. Running into her room, her trunk had already floated in, she ran inside to get a good look at her new room.
The site that greeted her was a magnificent one. A large bed, with a golden bedspread was set among it, proudly standing. There were many portraits along the stone walls, one of her favorites depicting a large green forest, and in it were many different muggle animals of sorts. A monkey could have been seen hanging from a tree, and a parrot could be heard, if you listened as hard as you could.
Lila rushed over to the bed, and sat down, the mattress easily supporting her light weight. She wondered if she should un pack, but decided against it. She decided that she wanted to explore the large castle, and discover what surprises it had for her to discover. She also decided to take a broom, since, in the end; she wished to practice a little flying.
She carefully opened her trunk, and lifted her new broom, something she had just bought in Diagon Alley. It was a Nimbus 2000, and it had been overlooked greatly since the new Firebolt had come out. She had not had a chance to try it out, but she wished to do so now.
She left her room, her long black hair trailing over her back. She walked down a large staircase, down to the first floor, where she had entered. There, to her left, stood a large pair of doors, which most likely led to the dining area.
She decided to venture back to the outside of the castle more quickly then she had planned, to get a better look at the outside, for she was an outdoorsy type of girl, and also wished to see what the Quidditch field was like.
She hurried towards the large oak wood doors for a second time, and they opened easily for her, as if magic. Of course it was magic, she thought, having to remind herself. She was, after all, at a wizarding school. Soon she would be starting perhaps her best job to have ever catch hold on her.
She ran out onto the sunny September grass, the afternoon's sun beating down on her neck. She quickly sprinted towards the back of the castle, where she suspected the field would be. Sure enough, there stood six proud and tall rings, rings she had gotten used to scoring through, although not these same ones.
She ran over to the field, and picked up her broom, and let it go, as it stood at her own height, ready for her to mount it. She slowly ran her hand across it's smooth and polished wood, and it gave her no splinters.
The broom seemed to bounce up and down, ever so slightly, as if urging her to mount it. She swung her long leg over, and felt the broom began to fly up. She tilted it down ever so slightly, so her feet softly touched the ground. In order to really soar, and fly well, you need to get a nice, firm kick off.
She felt her strong legs kick the soft ground, and this time, when she rose into the air, she meant it. The feeling of the wind blowing her dark black hair all about in the air almost felt foreign, since she had not been flying through the air on a broom stick for about 6 years, when she had been 17.
She flew around the Quidditch pitch, the wind whizzing in her ears, and it felt very refreshing, and she almost felt like a student.
She was rounding her 3rd lap around the pitch, when she spotted someone on the ground, looking at her from above. The woman standing there was obviously a teacher, but from where Lila was, she could not tell what this woman looked like, at all.
Lila slowed down, and tilted her broom forward, and she began to dive down towards the staring woman. Her hair flapped joyously around her face, and Lila suspected, that she did not look the least bit presentable.
Oh well.