Another Shade of Black

Chapter Two - Arriving

Unlike New York, the city of London is neither heaven nor hell in the summer. It's just rain. And rain. And rain.

No, that was unfair. Last summer, the sun actually did shine. According to several rumours, it happened on a Thursday.

In the part of the city which is referred to as Camden Town, a small, furnished apartment had stood empty for some twelve years.

Suddenly, the silence was pierced by a loud, sharp sound, and a young woman appeared out of thin air. Castor, for it was her, took in the familiar surroundings and noticed that though her apartment had long been inhabited, the expected layer of dust on the furniture was conspicuously absent.

Remus, she thought and smiled fondly. Bless him a thousand times more than both air-condition or ice-tea.

Remus Lupin. One of her best friends by far. Actually, her best friend amongst the living. Sirius, James, Lily and Peter had, though she was two years younger than them, each been her friend too. The latter three were dead and it had been long since the other had even deserved to be as much as a casual acquaintance. Castor felt a sting of guilt and sorrow when she remembered that she hadn't even said goodbye to Remus when she left England.

Suddenly her eyes fell upon an envelope that lay on the mantelpiece. Normally, small apartments in Camden Town aren't equipped with a mantelpiece, let alone a fireplace. This one was, though. She had once been a witch, after all.

Castor unfolded the envelope and read, on the small note inside of it;

Castor,

I hope you have arrived by now. Please be so kind as to meet me at the Leaky Cauldron, Diagon Alley in less than two hours.

Albus Dumbledore

Once returning to an old life, it is surprisingly easy to fully resume it again, and without thinking much about it, Castor apparated for the second time in less than half an hour.

She found herself at the end of Diagon Alley, a wizard street in the very centre of London, unable to spot for the muggle eye. The street was bustling with life, mostly students from Hogwarts, the wizard school of Britain, needing rather than wanting to buy their new school supplies. She strolled past the old, very picturesque, shops she knew so well, noticing that they hadn't changed much the last twelve years. Outside Flourish and Blotts, she heard a roar from inside of the bookshop, and the manager whining rather loudly; "Not one of those darn books again!" When she passed Quality Quidditch Supplies, she spotted a large crowd gazing dreamily at a truly magnificent broomstick mounted on a podium. At the Leaky Cauldron, a cosy though rather shabby pub, she finally stopped, and stepped inside.

The pub was crowded with witches and wizards, each very much different from the other. There were short, plump witches with rosy cheeks and huge handbags; intellectual looking wizards in high hats and thin moustaches; teenage wizards in multi-coloured robes and many, many more. Castor made her way through the busy room, up to the bar, behind which the old, bald barman was pouring up sherry in tiny glasses.

"Excuse me", she said to him. "I'm here to see Albus Dumbledore, do you know where..."

"In here", he answered immediately and pointed a long, gnarled finger towards a passage that led from the bar. Castor nodded her head as a "thank you", and walked in the direction of his finger, ending up in a small parlour. In the small grate placed in the corner of the room, a fire was burning, spreading nice and friendly warmth. And in an armchair by the fire, an old man was sitting. He wore purple robes, and had a beard that would have, had he been standing up, reached almost below his knees. He wore half-moon glasses, and behind them, a couple of bright eyes were sparkling keenly.

"Castor," he said, with a friendly smile, and got up to shake her hand. "Long time, no see!"

A bit childishly, Castor ignored his outstretched hand. "If you're planning on making me feel guilty for leaving, I'm out of here right now, Dumbledore."

Dumbledore smiled sadly. "There is no need to be hostile, Castor." He beckoned for her to sit down in an armchair opposite his.

A tired shadow suddenly swept past the witch's face. "I'm sorry", she muttered. She sat down. "I only got your first letter an hour ago and... it's a lot for me to handle, I..." She looked down at her hands.

"Quite understandable", said Dumbledore. "Do not apologise."

"So..." Castor sighed. "Is it really true? Has he escaped?" she asked her hands.

Dumbledore nodded slowly. "I am afraid so. Sirius Black has indeed escaped."

Castor gave an odd little sound that sounded like a sob, but wasn't really. Just when you think it's over, fate comes back to bite you in the arse, she thought sardonically. "How?" she asked.

A tiny frown rested for a brief while between Dumbledore's eyebrows, disappeared, and then came back to rest there a while longer. He shook his head. "I am sorry to say that I cannot give you a sufficient answer to that question. Not because I do not want to, but because I simply do not know."

The question which really was tugging on her mind slipped out of her mouth. "Why?"

Dumbledore sighed in a way which suggested he was stalling for time to think about how he would phrase his answer.

"It would seem", he said, "that he believes it would bring Voldemort back to power if the Boy Who Lived was to be killed."

" 'The Boy Who Lived' being Harry. Lily and James's son", Castor stated bitterly. "He should be about 13 now, shouldn't he?"

Dumbledore nodded.

"And attending Hogwarts?"

He nodded again.

"You believe that Sirius wishes to murder Harry. And that's why you wanted to speak with me", analysed Castor. "You think that if I were to stay at Hogwarts, I would be able to protect him from Sirius? Isn't the school already well protected? Protected by ancient magic, magic so powerful it ought to prevent anyone to enter the castle without leave?"

"The Minister of Magic has seen fit to put Dementors to guard the grounds of the castle as long as Sirius Black is at large."

Castor nodded understandingly. "Dementors..." she mused. "The guards of Azkaban. Ah, I see... you don't trust them, do you?"

"No", was Dumbledore's single reply.

"But you trust that I can protect Hogwarts?" said Castor with her eyebrows raised. She laughed. "You're awfully optimistic!"

Dumbledore hesitated. "No. But if he tries to break into the castle, we stand better protected with someone inside of it who knows him."

"I wouldn't use the verb 'know' in present tense", she said dryly. "And just because I once knew Sirius doesn't mean I know the way his mind works. I barely understood the way his mind worked back in--" she made quotation marks with her fingers "--'the good old days'. What makes you think I..."

"Castor," Dumbledore interrupted her suddenly. Dumbledore seldom interrupted anyone, so Castor found it best to stop speaking, instead of continuing the rant she had in mind.
The Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry leant forward in his chair and focused his eyes on hers, with a serious look upon his face.

"Castor, I am asking you a favour. I want you positioned at Hogwarts, at least until Sirius Black is recaptured. The teacher in Muggle Studies, Professor McMillians, is retiring next year, so she is cutting back on her work hours. She is therefore only to handle the OWL- and NEWT classes this year, and I would like for you to teach the others. This will also make you available as a supply teacher in Defense against the Dark Arts, as the professor of this year will be absent from certain lessons." He made a pause. "I wish to make it clear that I am simply asking you for this favour, Castor. I am fully aware of the extent of it, but, if I may be so bold as to tell you - it is time for you to stop hiding from the wizarding world."

"I really wish I had thrown your letter away before reading it", remarked Castor. "You ask for favours in a way that makes it impossible to say no." She shifted in her chair, uncomfortable, but yet slightly more confident. "I could have thrown it away after I read it, but when I did decide to come here, you already knew what my answer would be." Grey eyes stared intently at the older man. "I want everyone, except for those who already know me, to know me by the name of Cassie Terrence. That is the name I went by in the States, and that is the name I intend to continue to go by. I agree to teach at Hogwarts, so you may consider your wish fulfilled. I'm dubious to whether it'll be of any good, but, like I said; you ask for favours in a way that makes it impossible to say no."

Albus Dumbledore smiled. "Very well." He rose from his chair. "There are a few of the staff whom you have met before, but to everyone else you shall be known as Cassie Terrence, professor of Muggle Studies and Defence against the Dark Arts." He extended his hand.

This time, she shook it.