We met in the mists of morning
And parted deep in the night.
Broken sword, and shield,
And tears that never fall
But run through the heart,
Washed away by the darkest waters
The world is peaceful and still.

"Broken Mirror"
(Taken from Xenogears OST.)

When the end of the train ride drew near, Remus said, "Now, there are probably a few things…students, actually, that you should know about before your classes begin. Of course, the Slytherins are always trouble, as I'm sure you'll remember. There are a few Gryffindor seventh years, however, who seem to idolize the Marauders. They actually had the Map for a couple of years before passing it on. I don't believe they know the true identities of Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs, so that's a good thing. Fred and George Weasley, identical twins, and their friend Lee Jordan are the budding terrorists. Just like James, Sirius, and I were, so you'll need to keep an especially close eye on them…" He trailed off when he noticed that Laurel had stopped listening, and was staring at the passing countryside, tears slowly rolling down her cheeks.

Guessing what was going through her mind, Remus said, "Yes, I know. I wish it could all be the same. That it had never happened. Who knows what great things might have occurred?"

Laurel grinned reflectively. "We all thought we were invincible, didn't we? We were young, and therefore no one could touch us. No matter that Voldemort was striking down people in our generation left and right, nothing and no one could shatter our perfect world." She turned back to Remus, a sorrowful expression on her face. "But we were wrong."

Remus nodded, not trusting himself to speak. Trying to calm his own nerves, he reached out to Laurel and pulled her into a loose hug. She wept softly on his shoulder, and he kissed her lightly on the top of the head.

Suddenly there was a knock at their compartment door, and Hermione stepped in with two boys about her age, one with fiery red hair and a bewildered expression, and the other with messy black hair and glasses. Laurel and Remus jerked back in shock. "Um…if we've come at a bad time, Professors…" said Hermione slowly.

Remus shook his head as Laurel wiped away her tears. "No, it's fine, Hermione. Come, sit down. Harry, Ron, you too." He gestured to the compartment's bench seats.

At the mention of the names, Laurel looked strangely at Harry. So that's Harry Potter at age fifteen. My godson. Of course, Lily and James only named me godmother because Sirius was his godfather. Everyone thought that we…we would be married soon. But we never got the chance... My word, he looks so much like James at that age, but his eyes are unmistakably Lily. I really shouldn't have expected anything different, but it's still rather spooky. When she shook herself out of her reverie, she saw that Harry had noticed her attention, and was returning her strange look inconspicuously. Laurel supposed that he must be used to the public eye by now.

Hermione, however, missed the exchange altogether. "Harry, Ron, this is Professor Raegan, our new DADA teacher. Professor Raegan, these are my friends Ron Weasley and Harry Potter. They're in Gryffindor also."

Laurel decided not to call any more attention to Harry than necessary, and instead turned to Ron. "Weasley? As in Fred and George?"

Ron looked like the cat that caught the canary. "Um…yes. They're my older brothers. Heard of them, have you? They'll be thrilled that their reputation now spans past the school."

Laurel smiled. "Yes, I've been duly warned about them. Though I think I may rather enjoy teaching them."

Everyone but Remus looked surprised at her statement. He knew exactly what she meant. The tables had been turned, and now they would have to watch out for practical jokes. Goodness knows how many they and their friends had pulled during their own glory days.

Harry continued to glance at Laurel out of the corner of his eye, a strange feeling in his stomach. Not a bad one, but a strange one, all the same. She however, glanced out the window, recognizing the scenery. "It looks as if we'll be entering Hogsmeade in a moment, so I hope you have all your things together."

Almost as soon as she had spoken, the pull of the brakes was felt as the train began slowing down. Any further conversation was lost in the commotion as students scrambled to gather their belongings. Remus calmly took down his tattered briefcase and Laurel repacked her book inside her rucksack as the train reached a screeching halt.

Stepping off the crimson train, Laurel found to her delight that Hogsmeade Station also remained pretty much the same. Remus led Laurel over to the line of waiting carriages, and helped her in. The magic-powered carriages were the traditional way to bring second years and above to the gargantuan castle.

Once inside the black carriage, Laurel turned to Remus. "You never said why you were riding the Hogwarts Express. It's been my understanding that teachers usually arrive beforehand."

Remus looked slightly uncomfortable. "They do. I'm assuming that you no longer keep up with the lunar calendar, but the full moon was three days ago. Normally, I'm fully recovered by that time, but I had run out of the Wolfsbane Potion with no way of getting any more, so… May I ask why you rode the train?"

Laurel sighed. "Procrastination, I suppose. Putting off my return to the real world as long as possible. Hiding from possible pain, like usual."

"You really need to stop putting yourself down like that, you know. All that is in the past now. Sirius is innocent, you're alive, and you're a teacher. You can't let these kids down, not now of all times. There's too much at stake to risk for an inexcusable lack of self-confidence," said Remus, frowning.

Laurel was slightly surprised to hear such a lecture from Remus, but she realized that he was right. She had to completely put her past behind her now that she had returned.

She glanced out the window as the looming castle came ever closer. "It seems so strange to return after all these years. I never dreamed I would be asked to teach. Did you?" asked Laurel, turning back to Remus.

He shook his head remorsefully. "To tell the truth, I wasn't expecting to be ever offered a job, much less one that involves leading the next generation." It was now Remus' turn to stare sadly out the window.

Laurel bit her lip, realizing she'd come dangerously close to a very touchy subject. She'd forgotten the nuances of talking to Remus in public, so she'd have to remember to keep a hold on her tongue from now on.

Presently, they arrived at the entrance to the Great Hall. When their carriage stopped at the front steps, Remus helped Laurel out of the car and the two professors walked in among their students.

A few of the students called greetings to Remus, who responded warmly. It made Laurel glad to see that at least here, Remus wasn't viewed as a beast. He'd worked so hard to overcome that in his lifetime.

The two went around a side hallway to enter the Great Hall from the front by the teacher's table. Dumbledore was waiting on them.

He greeted Remus warmly and then turned to Laurel. "I'm so glad you decided to come, my dear. Now, let's have the introductions all around. There should be a few professors that you recognize, but others that you may not. Come, join us." Dumbledore gestured for Remus and Laurel to follow him to the Head Table.

She scanned the length of the table, searching for familiar faces as she was introduced to each. There was McGonagall, Trelawney, Flitwick, Sinistra, Snape…

Suddenly Snape turned her way, and there could be no mistake. The look in his eyes when he saw her was priceless. Taking the free seat beside him, she grinned. "Why, hello, Severus. Long time, no see, eh? I never expected to see you back here."

Snape forced a pleasant smile. "Laurel Raegan. I was…overjoyed…when Dumbledore informed us that you had accepted the post. So nice to see you again."

"Charmed, I'm sure." Laurel had found early on in her schooling that the quickest way to irritate Snape was to be amazingly nice to him, so she did her best to be civil. A glance to the back of the room told her that the Sorting was about to begin.

She smiled, for the first time remembering her past without being troubled. Her own Sorting seemed so long ago.

~~~
The mass of eleven-year-olds had slowly grown smaller as each was Sorted into their proper House. Laurel watched anxiously as first Sirius, then Peter, and then James were Sorted. Sirius and James became new Gryffindors, while Peter, with a longing look to the Gryffindor table, took his place with the Ravenclaws.

Laurel faintly heard the Hat shout the last word to the silent room, and the Gryffindor table burst into raucous applause. Grinning widely, she ran over to take the seat between James and a girl she did not know. The tall black-haired boy across from her congratulated her briefly, but their attention was soon turned to the next girl after Laurel, a rather irritating blonde by the name of Hannah Rosier.
~~~

"SLYTHERIN!"

A small boy grinned slyly and ran to join his Housemates, who were cheering wildly. Both Laurel and Snape applauded as well, though she more out of duty. Glancing down the table to where Remus sat, between Hagrid and a short professor with flyaway hair, she caught his eye. They exchanged a look that clearly said they could do without another Slytherin.

After the last first-year had been sorted into Ravenclaw, Dumbledore stood for his start of term speech. As always, he reminded the students about the Forbidden Forest and other boundaries. He gave the items the caretaker, Argus Filch, had added to the list of forbidden objects, and then it was time to introduce the new teachers.

"This year, we have added a new class, Dueling, to our schedule. It is a mandatory class, and I am sure you will benefit greatly from taking it. Those of you who are Third Year or older will remember Professor Lupin, who has kindly consented to fill this experimental post.

"As some of you learned two years ago, Professor Lupin is a lycanthrope, and he has asked that you all be made aware of this fact. This in no way means that he is to be disrespected. He is not a danger to you during the month, nor will he be on the full moon, thanks to the Wolfsbane Potion. He may have to miss a class or two on occasion, but he is overall an excellent teacher. I hope you will all welcome him back."

There was a smattering of timid applause. Laurel saw that only a portion of the Gryffindor table truly cheered. She supposed that the rest were slightly intimidated by his condition.

Dumbledore then gestured to Laurel. "I would also like to welcome our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Raegan. She has traveled all the way from the deserts of Egypt at my request, so I hope you will all make her lengthy trip worthwhile and rewarding. She is an expert in this field, having been part of a secret team supplementing the Aurors during the Dark Lord's reign of terror, as well as an amateur explorer these past few years. Hopefully in the trying times to come, you will be able to provide strong resistance with her guidance.

"Now, I believe we are all sufficiently hungry, so let the feast begin!" Dumbledore clapped his hands once and food filled all the platters and serving bowls set out on the tables. A low roar of conversation filled the Great Hall as students began their meals.

Laurel sighed softly. She had made it to Hogwarts and through the start of term feast. The next challenge would come the next morning, with her first class.