This was not how Shreya expected her first term as a professor to go.
She had dreamed of scintillating class sessions, innovative research days in the lab, and trips to Hogsmeade to supervise the students. Bonding with the children in the courtyard, chuckling with her colleagues in the Great Hall over supper, and taking brisk walks around the Black Lake.
She never imagined war.
As the Potions professor moved quietly toward her chair at the table, limping slightly from the still-healing gash in her thigh, she couldn't help her eyes from sweeping to her right. They settled on the now-empty chair where Cassie used to sit. A pang of sadness nestled itself deep in her core as she took a seat. She nodded solemnly at the other professors, though she couldn't quite bring herself to speak. Shreya simply couldn't find the words.
There was too much loss. Too much sadness. And too much change. That much was clear from the weary looks on the students' faces. Would Hogwarts ever be the same again? |