Chapter 2 : A hat sorts the students?

Words : 1731


The meeting seemed to stretch on for ages. It was just the usual things - duties, patrolling, detention records, assignment correcting, class distribution. Nothing new that merited a three hour meeting.

"Now I would like to introduce our two new teachers, professor Cynthia Charming and Professor Gilderoy Lockhart," Headmaster announced like an anchor introducing a celebrity, "and their new subjects, Art of Duelling and Theory of Defense."

Lockhart flashed a big smile and blew a kiss at the teachers in general and lady teachers in particular or rather Miss Charming in particular.

Ms Charming who was smiling softly lost that smile and glared.

"Careful prof Lockhart," she said smoothly, "your smile won't look all that nice with teeth missing."

Severus almost smiled. You go girl!

Now there was someone who is not afraid of speaking their mind.

Lockhart's smile dipped, then brightened and said, "Now, now Ms Charming, I understand you are getting a little jealous of my fame, but this is not the way to go about getting it."

He continued prattling on, but Severus was observing the newest lady teacher.

Her hands were clenched into a fist which she opened and closed with relatively deeper breaths. But when he refused to shut up and continued saying, how he had smiled at a vampire and made him flee, she had enough.

Ah! Finally.

Her hands shot up and curled around his robes and Ms Charming pulled him to her eye level.

Pin drop silence filled the room as every single person looked at the ongoing drama. Even Dumbledore didn't try to stop her. In fact he was twinkling madly.

"Listen here, Mr Lockhart," she ground out, her Indian accent suddenly more evident, "Mujhe isse koi matlab nahi, ki what all crazy things you may or may not have done. And unlike you, I don't give two hoots about what public might think about me."

She released Lockhart, who had gone an interesting shade of white and stretched as she stood up from her chair.

"I will give you advice for your PR management, " she told him, leaned closer and whispered, though loud enough that everyone could still hear, "Yesterday's villain is today's hero. And today's hero is tomorrow's villain. Understand?"

With that she moved aside, brushed off invisible lint from her clothes and sat down with a smile.

"Thank you for giving me the opportunity to teach here, professor Dumbledore. It is my pleasure."

The 180 turn of her behavior gave Severus a whiplash.

Dumbledore as always took things in its stride.

"Of course. It is pure pleasure to work with you too Professor Charming." He said with a smile. "However if you would not go around pulling teachers by their collars.."

She gave him a very sheepish smile.

"I...I have been told I have a wicked temper." She said rubbing her neck, "But if you ask my friends they will tell you that I have improved a lot. I am still working on it, I assure you."

Dumbledore laughed, "Indeed. Sometimes our temper gets out of hand, doesn't it?"

She merely gave another sheepish smile and nodded.

"Apologies," she told Lockhart with aplomb.

Lockhart nodded, still looking a little pale.

"Severus," Dumbledore called him.

Severus stiffened. He knew that tone.

"Headmaster," he acknowledged.

"Can you please show Ms Charming her quarters?"

Severus gritted his teeth. As if he wanted to give a tour of the castle.

"Sure." He tilted his head, "This way Miss Charming."

She smiled and nodded to everyone in the room. Then with a gallant gesture told him to lead the way. The way men often said, Ladies first!

Infuriating woman!


The next five days of Severus' life was spent alternating between making potions, glaring at and stalking Lockhart and being increasingly flummoxed by Ms Charming. Almost all his attempts to spy on her were thwarted because she always found him out. But she didn't seem to mind, funnily enough. He knew she found him out. But she would pretend as if she was surprised.

He was sure she had been a spy once. There is no other reason for her to be so alert, all the time.

"Evening, professors," came the cheerful voice as she took her place between him and Sprout.

Smell of mint and lavender assaulted his sensitive nose. It was not unpleasant but he never understood a reason to indulge in such vanities either.

Severus felt his mood taking an even further fall.As if it wasn't bad enough that his potions experiment failed and he couldn't try it again anytime soon, other people have to been nauseatingly cheerful too.

How can anyone be happy the day a bunch of brats are going to come back?

Great Hall was decked in all its glory waiting for the arrival of the children. And they had arrived, streaming in and making a racket like a bunch of rowdies. Many people glanced at the table, at their two new teachers.

New professors reminds him, where on Earth is Black? Nobody said anything about his resigning.

"Good evening, Cynthia," said Pomona.

Minerva nodded and Albus smiled his grandfatherly smile. Lockhart grinned as if he was trying to disarm her, (here her smile slipped to a smirk) Severus glowered at her.

"Don't mind him," Pomona said.

"Oh, I don't. Don't worry, Pomona ji." Her eyes met his and she smirked. "I have been dealing with grouchy old men and women all my life."

Severus sneered, "What job was it that leads to dealing with grouchy old men?"

Charming's smirk just deepened, "You wouldn't believe the number of people who come complaining about their life, children, property, illness to a Subedar."

Severus scowled.

Charming laughed. "Oh loosed up. Greet the kids with a smile, will you? Put them at ease?"

Severus was ashamed to say his glare didn't seem to faze her at all.

It just made him glare more.

She grinned impishly.

"So professor," she said, another thing that was annoying about her. She insisted on calling everyone professor or add a ji in the end. Apparently calling an elder by their name was plain disrespectful. He didn't understand what was so disrespectful about it. It was their name after all.

"What?" He barked.

"I heard you have been attempting to get the DADA class," she said, a picture of nonchalance, gazing at the students, seemingly unbothered by the ruckus.

Severus' brow furrowed in thought.

What was she playing at?

"So?" He snipped, "I didn't consider you among the gossiping type."

She turned to him and smiled slyly.

"Oh, do tell. What type did you consider me as?"

He grimaced internally. He had walked right into that.

Stupid, irritating woman.

"A nosy, woman with a lot of cheek." He snarled.

Charming merely touched the tip of her nose.

"Nah!" She declared. "No more than you are."

He bristled. The audacity! Wretched creature.

"Well, anyways. Is it true?" She asked, looking around at the hall, as if she were seeing it for the first time. Again.

"If it is?" He asked with raised eyebrows.

"Then, I have a proposition."

Curiosity piqued, he looked at her. Other than that, though showed no expression.

She smirked.

Her gaze flicked to Lockhart.

"I don't like him," she admitted. "I refuse to work with him. And if he keeps looking at me the way he has been or once more tries to oh-so-casually place his hand on my shoulders, arms or anywhere, I might thrash him up," her voice was solemn and serious as she confided these things.

After seeing the display a week ago, he believed her.

Seems Lockhart doesn't have self preservation either.

How typical!

"So, I want to make sure he stays away from me. If you can manage to do that, we can exchange our classes once in a while. I was a potions teacher until last year. I know what I am doing. So, don't worry about coming back to a destroyed lab." Her black eyes met his equally black ones and she raised her eyebrows, "what do you say?"

Wow! That was what he had to say. This is what she wanted? Keep Lockhart away from her in exchange for teaching Defense and reprieve from teaching potions to dunderhead for a day or two? There must be a catch, he decided.

"What is the catch?" He asked.

Charming's eyebrows rose higher and the smirk returned.

"Why Professor Snape, such suspicion. No catch of course. It is a win-win situation. I get new perspective on how to teach and stay away from that complete dumbbell."

A sheepish smile came on her face and she said, "Er...fool would be more polite, no?"

Severus almost laughed.

Almost.

Instead he smirked and said, "I would say pompous airhead is more suitable."

Charming bust out laughing and Severus preened.

It had been ages since he last made someone laugh.

That was when he noticed that while they both were busy talking, they had gained quite a lot of stares. Now it looked downright disbelieving as they gaped at Ms Charming. As if shocked someone laughed at something he said.

Humph! As if they knew anything about him.

He scowled fiercely at all of those dunderheads.

But Charming on the other hand seemed unbothered by the stares. With a grin she waved her hand and winked.

At that moment, the line of tiny first years came. Severus hadn't even seen Mcgonagall leave the hall.

"Goodness! They are tiny," said Charming. "Was I so tiny too?"

Pomona chuckled. "It does seem so far fetched, doesn't it?"

She smiled and nodded.

"You don't have eleven year olds in your school?" Severus asked.

"Actually we do. But, "she shrugged, "I have never felt it so strongly."

Pomona nodded. "We are sitting far above them, so that makes it feel more small."

Charming hummed in assent.

When the sorting hat was brought forth, a frown came on her face.

"What is it?" He asked, with a small dose of exasperation injected in it.

"Is that hat going to decide which house a student is going to be in?" She asked.

Her voice was void of derision, but Snape was sure that she didn't approve.

Well, not like they needed her approval. It was a tradition that has been going on since the founders time!

"Yes. It is a tradition. Gordic Gryffindor, one of the four founders of Hogwarts, made the sorting hat. It puts the students into one of each house based on their personality." He answered glaring at one of the Ravenclaws.

Charming poked him on his arms with one finger. But Merlin! It hurt. How she managed to do that, Severus wasn't sure.

"Stop glaring at them like they have murdered someone," she scolded.

He rubbed his arm and turned that glare at her, "What did you do?" He hissed.

She glanced at him, but startled and looked back at the sorting hat that had started singing now.

"Ravenclaw - wise, witty, Hufflepuff - loyal, hardworking, Gryffindor - brave, gallant, Slytherin - cunning, clever " Severus heard her mumble to herself.

And then, Mcgonagall called, "Andersson, Gayle "

With the way Charming leaned forward and her eyes glinted in what was undoubtedly mischief, Severus still feeling the slight throb on his arm, he just knew, that a hurricane has been unleashed into Hogwarts.


There! Do leave some reviews.


Ray : Thank you so much for your review. I had nearly forgotten about this story. Your review made me feel like someone is reading the story and so I have to post the next part.

So this chapter is dedicated to you.

"I've already begun to warm upto the character(unless of course she turns out to be a death eater in the end)."

Lol! I sure hope not. Yeah, Ms Charming is indeed charming ;) but she has her own demons and reasons for coming to Hogwarts. Snape will find it slowly and unless I end up changing POV somewhere, you will also find out with him.

Love,

Anika.