Chapter One

After the sorting Dumbledore began another long speech about the do's and don'ts around the school, like every year. "…And finally, I know everyone is wondering who this years Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor will be. Unfortunately Professor Lupin has decided not to return this year on account of some personal issues, for those who do not know I'm sure he will be happy to discuss it at his own discretion when he returns. No this year we welcome home another member of the Hogwarts Alumni, Miss Roxanne Summers." the side door came open and in walked a beautiful woman, with long strawberry blonde hair in a braid down her back. She wore black slacks covered by knee-high black boots and a long-sleeved black silk blouse.

"Thank you Headmaster, it is great to be back. It has been a long time, and what an honor to be teaching the next generation of young witches and wizards." she spoke with a smile and turned to the other professors, "And an even greater honor to be working with friends and associates from my days here as a student."

Once all the excitement had passed Roxanne was sitting next to Severus, reached for his hand under the table. "I missed you." she whispered, he squeezed her hand without responding.

"So Roxanne, how are Maggie and Gabriel?" Prof. Sprout asked.

"They're both so excited, we had to make a muggle airplane to London. They slept nearly the entire flight." she took out a little wallet, "They're getting so big." she passed it across the table for her to see.

"They are too cute, I can't believe you found them in the street." Prof. McGonagall smiled.

"I was hoping Remy would be back before we got here. All I heard the entire trip is 'when are we gonna see Sevy? When are we gonna see uncle Remy?' for three days."

"How old are they now?"

"Maggie will be six next week and Gabriel is ten."

"Two more years and he'll be sitting among one of these tables." Severus spoke up.

"Where do you think he'll be?" Prof. Sprout inquired.

"Slytherin." the pair spoke in unison.

"That's a powerful affirmation, how are you both so certain?"

"He takes after us." Roxanne smiled.

"Why did you not bring them to dinner?"

"They ate before we got here. It was too cute, they kept trying to force themselves to stay awake." she giggled.

--At the Gryffindor Table--

"I've heard of her," Ron leaned in, "Charlie talks about her whenever she comes to visit him. He says the dragons aren't hostile toward her, that she has conversations with them like they talk to her."

"The lack of hostility, though odd, does happen but dragons don't talk to people. They aren't social creatures at all." Hermione shrugged.

" 'You think she'll last more than a year?" Harry asked.

"Who knows, we'll see I guess."

I think their cute, who cares if she continues teaching." a brunette girl with red streaks watched the Potions master and the new DA professor.

"I think it's disgusting, what's a gorgeous woman like that see in Snape?" Ron turned his head and feigned a gag.

"A fool like you will never know papa, or women. Which is why you can't obtain, let alone keep, a woman of your own." she gave a soft growl.

"Whatever Kat, I don't know how you lived with him all these years and no one knowing about it."

--Slytherin table--

"So she's the one who's got Severus' knickers in a twist." Draco smirked watching the pair together.

"He deserves someone special after all the shit he's been put through." Kat's twin smirked.

"I still can not wrap my head around the idea of you and yours sister, who is the only other Gryffindor I'll put up with, for so long."

"Father felt it would be better for everyone if we weren't known about. The headmaster only found out recently, if other people knew about Kat and me he wouldn't be safe."

"He's a double agent, Amarlie, there's not much more that can put him in danger." Draco bent closer so they wouldn't be heard.

"It's complicated, just trust me when I say if people knew about us it would put him in more danger."

--Next day in DA class--

"Well, I'm sure there's no speech I can give that you haven't heard. I am aware of everything that has been covered and apparently none of it has been thoroughly covered. I'll have to fix that matter altogether." Roxanne walked into the classroom, placing her teaching robe over the chair, showing she wore black slacks with the same boots as before and a royal purple silk shirt. "I won't bore you with a magnanimous speech like I know Professor Snape does with all of his first years, I'll save that for them." she faced the classroom and sat on her desk.

These small things alone baffled many students, none of the other professors were so casual. She knew most of the teachers from her school days and was looking to see how well she could shake up these seventh years. After a few moments of looking about, watching reactions, she continued her rhetoric. " Obviously you can tell I'm not fond of the uniform, I don't require you to where the robe, I don't care when it gets hot if you loosen the tie so long as it doesn't go overboard. I don't care for the robe because in my nearly forty years of experience I've come to learn that it is only good for cooler months and as a fire hazard." she watched as a few students slipped from theirs and saw a hand go up toward her left.

"Miss Granger." she guessed.

"There was no book posted for the class, it just said TBA." Hermione looked confused.

"Right, well there is no one book that has everything you will need to learn nor will you require one all the time. I'm not fond of having my students simply read from a book, write a paper and take a test. In this manner, unless you have an eidetic memory and I've yet to be informed that any of you do, you retain nothing. I have learned that it is only by interaction that you maintain what you learn here, if I make you think you're more apt to keep my lessons in mind. I have class sets that you will use as they are needed and each year will be doing something different so there will be enough." Roxanne waved her hand and the cabinet to her right nearest to her desk opened, "And as for knowing your name, I hear many things about most if not all of you."

Another hand went up, it was a Slytherin girl toward her right. "Miss Pierce." Roxanne pointed.

"What exactly do you mean by interaction?"

"Well, when learning spells you will do them and not on each other. I have means of assuring that will not have to happen. When we discuss certain dark creatures I will bring them" she looked around at worried faces, "Do not fret I did hear of Lockhart and his foolishness, I will not set anything dangerous loose without proper safety measures. As for objects and anything overly dangerous it will be mostly discussions or debates. And in such circumstances I do not tolerate hateful slurs whether they be between houses of questions of purity. I am normally rather easy to work with but that is one thing of the few things that will land you in my detention and no professor in this school will argue with me."

She flicked her wrist and a chart appeared on the board behind her, "As you can see I can do wandless and wordless magic and usually I don't even have to move my hand. It is simply and indication that I am doing magic for your benefit. Behind me the chart you see is a group chart, there are two group projects you will have to do for this class. The first is do before Christmas holiday and the second before spring finals. By the end of next week I want to see every name in this classroom on that chart in a group of no more than four. After such time I will place you in a group irregardless of what house or what feeling you have toward your fellow group members. Once everyone is in a group I will pass out the group projects and they will all be different. Yes Mr. Potter?"

"What sort of projects?"

"The sort that test your knowledge of the Dark Arts Mr. Potter." she smiled, "Yes that was a very crazy way of saying "it's a surprise". But on to today's lesson: animation." she took a pair of dolls from the corner of her desk.

--Later that evening--

"So aren't you going to ask me how my first day went?" Roxanne came from the children's bedroom and sat next to Severus.

"I assumed you would tell me once Maggie and Gabriel were tucked in for the night." he handed her a cup of tea.

"It was interesting, not a single question about us though." she took the mug taking a drink.

"We're are masters of going unnoticed when we wish. I doubt many of them noticed. I do expect Draco will ask questions eventually." he toyed with her hair as she laid her head on his shoulder, "So how were your lessons today?"

"I let them off easy, no essays yet. I showed them Lucy and Leuweller today, they're learning to make practice dolls."

"Why?"

"For the same reason they learn antidotes first except in my case I'm too lazy to write of accident reports so its best to avoid them all together."