Growing up Pureblooded

My Hufflepuffs

"Well, Abraxas, I never thought I'd say this," Minerva McGonagall observed as she sat behind her desk, looking up at her old schoolmate, "but I have been quite pleased with your success at teaching Defense against the Dark Arts this year. I shall be very sorry to see you go." Abraxas chuckled. "One year of teaching is more than enough for an old man like me, Minerva," he said. "There's only so much of the children one can stand, though I shall miss my Hufflepuffs."

The Headmistress raised an eyebrow. "Your Hufflepuffs? I should never have guessed that they would be your favorites." "To be honest, that place belongs firmly to two bold young Gryffindors," the wizard replied, "but the Hufflepuffs are very easy to get along with." "And the Slytherins?" The headmistress asked with curiosity. Abraxas smirked. "There's only room for one at the top of the pyramid, Minerva."

McGonagall shook her head in exasperation. Some things never changed. "Now I have to find a replacement for next year," she said with a sigh. "I don't suppose you have any suggestions?" "Actually, I do, dear Headmistress," Abraxas replied, carefully removing a folded sheet of parchment from the inner pocket of his robe. "The candidate in question is currently on his honeymoon, but I'm sure you'll find him to be more than qualified." McGonagall stared at the resume in shock.

"Sirius Black?" she exclaimed. "A teacher? Good heavens, Abraxas, we can hardly have two Marauders teaching at Hogwarts. Professor Snape nearly went mad with just the one, and Professor Lupin is by far the more responsible of the two." Abraxas's lips twitched. "Then I suppose it's most fortunate that Professor Snape is no longer teaching at Hogwarts."

McGonagall groaned. "Thank you for the reminder, Abraxas. That's yet another position I must fill before the term begins." "Let's make a deal, Minerva," Abraxas offered. "You hire Sirius, and I will personally take on the responsibility of finding a qualified Potions master. You won't have to worry about it in the least." "And if you fail?" She said inclining her head. "Then I, myself, shall take Snape's place," Abraxas said amicably. "I am quite a talented potion-brewer, if I do say so myself, and I did manage to cover half of Snape's classes after he left. However, I don't think it will come to that. I may be able to persuade a certain qualified teacher to come out of retirement." "Professor Slughorn?" McGonagall was impressed despite herself. "And how exactly do you plan on doing that? The man won't even answer my owls." Abraxas smiled condescendingly. 'My dear girl, leave that to me.'

McGonagall looked back down at Sirius Black's resume. "The Board of Governors won't like it. I know that you and Professor Lupin believe him to be innocent, and, having spoken with him on a few occasions, I am inclined to agree with you, but he did spend ten years in Azkaban." "I have received...er...assurances that Cassiopeia Black has the Governors firmly in hand," Abraxas said pleasantly. "You'll receive no trouble from them." He said with a smirk. "So long as I keep you happy," McGonagall grumbled. "Minerva, my dear," Abraxas replied in a suave voice. "If you're happy, we're happy."

The Headmistress took a deep breath. Six months before, she would have checked with Albus before making her decision, but Minerva McGonagall had grown far more confident in her position over the previous year, and she had to admit that, as much as she was ideologically opposed to the Blacks and Malfoys, the quality of teaching at Hogwarts had risen markedly since they had begun their interference. Remus Lupin was a wonderful teacher and an excellent colleague, and Abraxas Malfoy had done a perfectly adequate job with Defense against the Dark Arts. He wasn't the best teacher – by his own admission he lacked the requisite patience – but his students certainly mastered the material, as shown by their solid O.W.L and N.E.W.T. results. She had her doubts about how well Sirius would perform, but at least the year would be interesting... "Very well, Abraxas," she said at last. "Inform Professor Black that I should like to see him when he returns from his honeymoon."