Before today, Kael had never imagined that Sirius would actually come to Hogwarts as a professor... and as the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, no less.
No wonder he became the first Gryffindor from the Black family—he's truly brave.
Let's just hope that by the end of term, he doesn't get thrown back into Azkaban for some ridiculous reason... Though honestly, if that happened, Kael wouldn't be surprised either.
Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, huh... That position is famous in the Magic Realm for its annual turnover. Nothing that happens would surprise anyone.
Professor Dumbledore gets rejected every year because of it, and his worsening reputation these past years can't be separated from the curse of this position.
Still, Kael quickly figured that Sirius had probably been on Dumbledore's list for a while now. Even if he didn't join this year, Dumbledore would ask him eventually... After all, it's nearly impossible to fill that job.
And with Sirius' personality, he'd hardly say no.
Once Sirius was introduced, the feast ended.
Snape was the first to stand, stalking out of the Auditorium with a sour look on his face.
But as he passed Sirius, he heard an unrestrained mocking laugh.
"Heh..."
Snape paused, turned, and glared at him coldly.
"Oh look, here's our hero..." Snape said, face blank. "I thought you'd be so guilt-ridden over those who died because of you, you'd be hiding at home weeping. Seems I was wrong. Perhaps you don't care about Potter as much as I thought."
"Shut up, you greasy git." Sirius' expression chilled instantly. "You know damn well who got James and Lily killed... If you hadn't run to your master..."
"Gentlemen."
Professor Dumbledore appeared just in time, cutting off their standoff.
He spoke, a bit wearily, "I don't think the Auditorium is the best place for a chat. Shall we have some tea together? I recently found a very nice black tea."
"No, thanks." Snape sneered. "I'd rather not have tea with a Dementor's lunch—the stench of decay would turn my stomach."
"Me too..." Sirius shot back without missing a beat. "I'd rather have tea with a Dementor than sit across from someone like you."
Dumbledore looked even more weary. He'd expected something like this would happen, he just hadn't thought the fireworks would start the very moment they met.
Fortunately, they kept their voices low, and with the din of the Auditorium, none of the students heard them...
Cedric, who was organizing the younger years into line, glanced toward the teachers' table and whispered, "Kael, Snape and Black don't seem to get along, do they?"
"Completely normal." Kael replied offhandedly, "He never gets along with any Defence Against the Dark Arts professor... Don't give me that look, Conna, it's true.
"Think about it. From Oren in first year, to Quirrell, Lockhart, Lupin... it's always the same story, isn't it?"
Conna hesitated for a while, then couldn't help but sigh in defeat.
Snape's relations with other professors might not be great, but they're nowhere near as bad as this—Defence Against the Dark Arts Professors are the grand exception. Even just mentioning them gets Snape going with the sarcasm—this is just fact, and not even she could argue.
Luckily, the topic didn't drag on. When the crowd in front finally cleared, the three of them led the younger students back to the common room.
The next day.
"I watched your match the other day."
In the entrance hall, Sirius stopped Kael on his way to breakfast. "You were amazing. That old turtle Karkaroff even docked you a point—if I could, I'd love to teach him a lesson."
"You're a professor now. You have to mind how it looks," Kael reminded him.
"True, I'm a professor now..." Sirius mused. "I never thought I'd end up back here, let alone as a professor... When Professor Dumbledore offered me the job, I honestly thought I was dreaming."
Dreaming? Maybe if it were any other subject. But Defence Against the Dark Arts... To be honest, Dumbledore would jump at anyone volunteering for that role.
Even one more person means a backup in case someone miraculously makes it through the year—maybe he wouldn't have to face rejection season all over again.
Kael sized up Sirius.
He was wearing brand-new robes, hair—usually an unruly mess—now tidily gathered behind him.
And after that stretch of rest, he looked better—no more sallow cheeks, but a healthy glow, with hints of the handsomeness he had as a young man...
"Aren't you worried?" Kael asked. "That post is always a one-year thing. No exceptions."
"I've thought about that," Sirius replied, all confidence. "I joined mid-year—Alastor Moody was here before me. Even if there's a curse, it's not my turn...
And most important, the old Defence Against the Dark Arts professors all had their own problems and got forced out of Hogwarts. Me? I don't. Same for Professor Moody...
Plus, the two of us can handle ourselves. If we run into any Death Eaters or whatever, we can deal with them."
Seeing how confident Sirius looked, Kael just let it go.
There's no convincing him otherwise... so be it.
"Seen Harry yet?" Kael asked.
"Yeah, I saw him," Sirius couldn't hold back a grin. "We talked for ages last night. He wanted to move into my office... Of course I'd be happy for that, but there's nothing in my office yet—I only just arrived, so I can't let him sleep on a bench, right?
"Speaking of which, how come I never noticed how old Hogwarts' furniture is? Some of those chairs look older than me."
"That's how it's always been." Kael shrugged.
That's just Hogwarts for you. Anything broken gets fixed with magic—it's not like there's a need for new stuff... And obviously, the school governors aren't going to shell out a fortune for a brand-new set of tables and chairs.
They headed off to the Auditorium together, chatting about the Triwizard Tournament along the way.
"How's the second clue going?" Sirius asked, "If you need anything, just come find me... But you'll have to sneak—professors aren't allowed to help Champions in the Triwizard Tournament."
"There's still three months, no rush... By the way, I never thanked you."
Kael said, "That Firebolt helped a ton. If I'd still been on my old Nimbus 2000, there's no way I could've dodged twenty-nine Bludgers, let alone outrun a Fire Dragon."
"Funny story about that," Sirius grinned. "I was going to get you a pure gold astrological ornament as a Champion's gift, but Professor Dumbledore said you'd probably prefer a broom... Plus, the folks at the Quidditch Shop said the Nimbus 2000 is really out-of-date by now."
"Professor Dumbledore?" Kael asked in surprise. "He actually suggested you get me a broom?"
"Ah... yeah." Sirius shrugged. "We ran into each other at the Ministry of Magic—I was there helping them look into Crouch's business.
"Good thing he said that. See? It came in handy, didn't it?"