Ashes to Ashes

Alexa looked from Henrick to the staff room door. She leaned in and kissed his cheek.

"Pause for a moment and I'll see who it is. I think I have a feeling to whom it might be." Alexa said as she leg go of Henrick's hands and she got up elegantly, flatening her robes as she got up. Her heels clicked on the stone floor as she went to the door and opened. A smile came onto her face as she looked at Ciar.

"Hello Ciar, I take it that you might be looking for me?" Alexa asked the girl.

"Come On in. You have permission to come in the staff room from me. Only the new Battle Strategies Professor is here. Or do you want to talk to me somewhere more private?" ALexa asked Ciar.

Ciar's mouth got dry when the Professor opened the door. It was really her first time actually approaching the woman for anything and she was halfway towards turning around and running. She wasn't comfortable with adults even though she worked with and among them on a daily basis. It was just an ingrained fear even if she had trusted the professor with her custody.

"I... umm...," Ciar hesitated glancing at the other professor in the room. The teen idlely wondered if she had interrupted something. Taking a calming breath she took a step forward, "I guess I'm just missing Zephan with him not being allowed in the castle. I was wondering if besides the dogs that I brought to your place if we could get him a pet since the dogs are technically mine." The Irish teen ran a hand through her hair, a nervous habit. "We can discuss it later though. I see you're busy."

Alexa looked at the girl and sighed.

"Ciar come on in. Don't worry about interupting anything. Of course I can get a pet for Zephan, but the question is do you need anything?" Alexa said to Ciar as she slowly brought the girl into the staff room. She smiled at Henrick.

"Let me introduce you to Ciar Whelan." Alexa said as she sat down on the other sofa and gestured for Ciar to sit next to her.

"So how are you really doing Ciar?" Alexa asked with concern. Alexa watched the girl like a hawk. She could see something was up.

As I began to tell Alexa about myself, I was interrupted by a knock. Shifting on the couch, pushing my back into it - I wondered, who knocked on a staff door? Teachers were allowed to come in freely, but why would one knock - unless it was a student. Yet students had no reason to knock on the door, they had no business in here - the room was for the teachers to have breaks. With a nod, I let Alexa walk off to to the door - and I could hear her conversation, bits and pieces at least. Honestly it didn't concern me so I tuned it out, only to be greeted by a second figure - when she returned. How was I supposed to react to being introduced to a random girl? As the girl's name was told to me, I smiled and introduced myself. "Nice to meet you Ciar, I am Professor Von Richter. It is a pleasure." As Alexa seemed to be preoccupied with the girl, I got up and went over to the counter and stared absent minded at the coffee maker. I watched as each drop poured into the little glass contraption, and ignored their conversation.

"I don't need anything," Ciar insisted following her guardian into the room. She hesitated before taking the seat next to the woman. She had grown fond of the woman it was true but it wasn't the close relationship Ciar both wanted and feared. Nodding at the other professor she greeted, "Lady Ciar Whelan, Hrabrost Prefect, and ward of Professor Thorpe. Pleased to make your acquaintance, sir."

She pulled a scrap of parchment from her pocket before pulling her knees up to her chest, dragon hide boots resting on the edge of the cushion. "Honestly, I'm doing fine," Ciar lied, keeping all emotion from her face and eyes as she methodically folded the parchment. Soon she was holding a paper airplane and she threw it, watching with veiled interest as it flew over by the new professor by the coffee pot.

Alexa watched the girl throw a paper airplane which went in Henrick's direction. Alexa sighed at Ciars covered up lie and Then she quickly wandlessly summond her Coffee, which she took a sip of. She put the mug down and put a piece of her hair back behind her ear and she turned her body to face Ciar.

"Ciar I am having a hard time believeing you. Please tell me. I am really worried about you. You need to rwally tell me how you are doing so I can help you." Alexa said with worry ans she slowly and lightly took the girls hand in hers.

Ciar gazed down at her hands as Thorpe took them into her own. What was so different about this woman? The Irish teen had a mother. A mother that hated her and made her life difficult ever since the moment she had been born. A mother that cared nothing for her children, why should anyone else be any different. Why did Thorpe seem to care? Legally she was now the professor's child, didn't that mean now the caring was supposed to go away and the hatred and discipline was supposed to start.

"Why would you worry about me," Ciar asked her eyes growing cold as she fought to maintain an emotional barrier. "Adults don't worry about children. They leave them to fend for themselves and the punish them even when it's not needed. Children are nothing in the eyes of adults. We trust blindly and then have that trust thrown back in our faces. That's why nothing is wrong. If it's wrong then it's all my fault anyways. I've managed to avoid punishment for the last five years. At least a lot of it. I don't want my master to have to punish me too, just because I had no where else to go and she felt sorry for me."

Alexa's eyes widened in shock. Who had told the girl this crap? Alexa was mortified at what the girl had said. Alexa felt quite sick actully. Alexa with a free hand softly put a hand to the girls cheek.

"Ciar I can't believe what you have just said. Every mother and father are meant to worry and care about their children. They should never be left to fend fot themselves. I Tell You this straight, I will never land a hand on you, even when its not needed. That's just disgusting. I will never punish you like that, ever. You should have never had trust thrown back in your face Ciar." Alexa said to Ciar with truth. Alexa softly put a straind of loose hair behind the girls ear.

"I care for you because I want too. I want to see you have the childhood you deserve Ciar. I want to be there for you when you need me. Like I said Ciar, there no need to ever call me Master. You can call me professor in the classroom and call Me Alexa in private. Ciar I want you to grow up being happy and doing whatever you want to after school. I will always be hear. No matter what." Alexa said to the girl.

Damn this woman. Damn her. Ciar could feel her emotions start to get the better of her and her grey eyes started to glisten with unshed tears. Why was it so hard for her to accept that someone might just truly care about her and not want anything back in the gesture. She felt the soothing touches and allowed a tear to escape and roll down her cheek.

She crawled into Thorpe's lap and buried her face in the woman's chest. "I don't want to be in pain anymore," she whispered quietly trying not to cry. "I just want someone that's going to look after Zephan and not hurt me just for protecting him." She bit her bottom lip and nibbled it. "I'm too old for childhood anymore, but I still want a mother." Her voice was barely there and you could only hear the last sentence if you were really listening.

Alexa tightly wrapped her arms around the girl when she crawled into her lap. Alexa softly put a hand on the girls hair and stroked it. Alexa lightly kissed the girls head in a motherly way and her hand lifted the girls head of her chest. Alexa's green eyes met Ciar's.

"You won't be in pain anymore my dear." Alexa said quietly as her throat started to clog with emotion. Alexa let her mask fall to show Ciar her emotions. Alexa softly stroked the girls cheek.

"I promised to protect you and your brother and I always will. I know your 16, but you can still have a bit of your childhood to live. You can trust with me with anything Ciar. I would gladly love to for fill the role if you wanted me too?" Alexa said to her.

The Irish teen gave a small nod before laying her head against the professor's shoulder and sitting sideways on her lap. She really was much to big to be sitting in people's laps but she was fairly thin especially after all her skipped meals. She kept in shape and retained her muscle tone but there wasn't an ounce of fat on her. The two of them were supposed to have had a talk but Ciar had avoided it by slipping away.

"What was wrong with your leg last lesson," Ciar asked playing with the neckline of her master's robe. "I know you told me to stay behind but... I... I had somewhere else to be." She screwed up her concentration and focused on her fingernail, morphing it into a wolf's claw.

Alexa raised a eyebrow at the teen. Alexa smiled at Ciar's practice become a Animagus.

"I see you have been practicing. Well done." Alexa said with a smile. Alexa brought her foot up onto her left leg and un rolled her leather pants to her knee. What could be seen was a 8 inch scar which was inflammed, but healed.

"I had business to attened to in Azkaban about my mother. Seemed she was pleased to see me after 10 years. Somehow she had contained a knife and when I turned around from her cell, she drove it down my calf." Alexa said to Ciar. She sadly smiled. Alexa made a move to get something out of her pocket. She got out a small box and opened it to Ciar.

"I didn't get the chance to give you a christmas present. So I got you this white gold chain with your name carved into it on the tag around the coloured small stones." Alexa said as she got it out and softly snapped it on around the girls rist.

"I would like you to wear it at all times if possible. It has certain charms to protect you from spells, it milds the effect of the cruciatus curse by 36% if you have been place under it. It protects you from the Imperius and it had a charm to tell me if you are in danger. Spells such as expeliarmus won't even touch you. I hope you like it." Alexa said to the girl.

Reaching out her hand towards the scar Ciar caught herself and reeled in her hand before it touched the angry skin. "A pox on her for hurting what is mine," the teen muttered under her breath in rapid Gaelic. Her forehead lightly touched against Thorpe's cheek before she lifted it again to look at the box.

"You got me something," she said in slight awe. Her grey eyes glistened slightly as she observed the bracelet now around her wrist. "Why? Neither Zephan or I got anything for you. It's so pretty." Ciar traced a finger delicately over her name. "I can understand getting Zephan something to tell you if he's in trouble but why me?"