This takes place after Albus Dumbledore's death, and Minerva McGonagal is younger than implied, around 40 or so, and Snape still works at HogWarts, and he wasn't the one that killed Dumbledore, it was Voldemort.
It was just like any other day, breakfast was served in the Great Hall and all students were happily eating, talking, and laughing having a good time. Professor Minerva McGonagal was the Headmistress of Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry. She sat in the tall backed chair in the middle of the staff table Surrounded by professors Flitwick, Hagrid, Firenze, Binns, Pomfrey, Snape, Slughorn, and Sprout. But something was different about McGonagal that morning, she seamed to be eating a lot more than she usually did, pancakes, toast, eggs, French toast, oatmeal, pumpkin juice. Anything she could get her hands on.
Everyone simply assumed that it was some sort of nervous reaction to the pressure of being a teacher of transfiguration and headmistress. And there was Dumbledore's death only a month before. Over the chatter of the early morning, a screech of a heavy chair sliding against a stone floor. The headmistress ran from the room in a flash of green of her emerald robes billowing behind her. All teachers stood worried looks casting across their faces.
She knelt by the toilet in the lady's restroom, gagging and retching. She wiped her mouth and closed her eyes. She felt cold and shaky all over. She took several deep breaths and rested where she sat. There was a gentle knock at the door. "Minerva?" asked the soft voice of Poppy Pomfrey, her best friend and the school's current healer. "Are you alright?" she asked. McGonagal sighed. There was no use pretending that she was fine when she indeed wasn't.
It was silent in the Great Hall, and then whispers broke out immediately. "Is she sick?" "Was she crying?" "What do you think is wrong?" Everyone at the Gryffindore was wondering. Harry, Ron, and Hermoine all whispered as well. "She has been acting differently lately." Ron said taking a bite of his eggs. "But the look on her face, she was as white as a sheet of paper." Hermoine said in a hushed tone. Harry stared at his plate. "Was it because of Dumbledore?" he wondered.
A few days before Harry had gotten his test scores back. He was a little concerned with his grade and wanted to speak with Professor McGonagal. The door was locked to her classroom. And through the small window on the door he could see that she was sitting her head down on he desk shoulders shaking. She was crying…sobbing…He quickly turned away and decided that he would ask her tomorrow and spare her the embarrassment.
In the Lady's restroom the two women sat on the floor, one crying on the others shoulder. "I-I just don't know if I can." The older of the women said wiping her eyes on her emerald sleeve. "I don't know if I can run the school without him." The woman said swallowing back more tears. "Things will be okay Minerva, your doing great." The younger one said patting her on the back. "Lets get you down to the hospital wing, it seems to me that you probably have the flue." Madame Pomfrey said helping her up. McGonagal nodded.
The students had been dismissed form the Great Hall and were heading towards their classes. Madame Pomfrey and professor McGonagal were walking steadily towards the hospital wing. The students stopped dead in their tracks several others crashing into them from behind. Hermoine, Harry, Neville, Luna, and Ron were in front of the group eyes wide and mouths agape. They're professor didn't look good, she never looked like that. She leaned on the shoulder of Madame Pomfrey and tried to his her red puffy face from her student's by bowing her head. She had a strict image to maintain. "Go on Get!" Poppy said shooing them towards different classrooms, "There's nothing to see here!" she said moving them along a bit faster in pace towards the hospital wing.
"Did you see her?" Luna asked. "She looked terrible." Neville added pretending to be reading his textbook. "I know, something must really be wrong." Hermione said biting her lip. "I hope she's okay." She added quickly in a very quite tone. They were all in history of magic that period, with professor Binns. He was a ghost professor and he wouldn't have noticed if you had stabbed a person to death and dragged them into his classroom to hide the body.
"Maybe we should visit her in the hospital wing?" Luna suggested in her dreamy voice. "I don't think we should." Harry said stepping in and speaking for the first time in their conversation. He proceeded to tell them what he had seen in her office a few days prior. "It makes sense though when you think about it, I think they were in love." Hermione said burying her head in her textbook. The conversation silently ended their minds full of the mystery presented before them.
Minerva sat patiently on the cot dosing gently. Poppy said she just needed to run a quick test or two. "Just for precaution." Was how she had phrased it. Minerva sighed. What she had said would be a quick test had taken a little over an hour. The healer returned a grave look upon her now pale sullen face. "What is it, what's wrong?" Minerva asked sitting up and looking rather alarmed. Poppy sat down beside her on the bedside. " I don't know how to tell you this so I'm going to just come right out and say it." Poppy said. "Minerva, your two moths pregnant." Her mouth formed an "O" and she fell back against the pillows. "Minerva?" Pomfrey asked. "The poor girl fainted." She thought smiling softly. "I guess it would be a big shock though." She thought standing up.
She awoke slowly realizing what had happened. She blinked adjusting to the light. Poppy sat by her side smiling gently at her. "What happened?" she asked propping herself up on her elbows. "You fainted." She said offering her a glass of water. She drank a sip and set it down on the bedside table. "Who's the father?" Poppy asked changing from Healer mode to best friend mode. "The father is dead." Minerva said coldly. Poppy looked at the ground and put a hand on her shoulder. "Do you want to talk about it?" Poppy asked. "No." Minerva said looking down at the floor "We should tell the other staff members, they seemed worried about you this morning when you ran out." Poppy said putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I guess your right." McGonagal said swinging her legs over the bed. "I'll get dressed and then we can go.".
She pulled the curtain around the cot and dressed pulling on her emerald robes. She buttoned them up and straightened her hair and washed her face. She sighed and let out a deep breath. The staff would find out eventually. She drew back the curtain once more. And stood tall. "Let us proceed Poppy." she said walking towards the staff lounge. It was break period and they would certainly all be there considering Poppy had contacted them earlier.
"You have all been called here on my behalf." Minerva said standing straight and tall arms folded behind her back. "I would like to make you all aware of my current health condition so there will be no misunderstandings." She said coolly. "I have found out recently of my pregnancy." She said her eyes focused dead ahead. For a moment all was silent. Then they surrounded her offering they're congratulations. She sighed in relief that went a lot better than she had expected.
The news had spread like wild fire throughout the castle. She had become much more popular with the female students. She seemed to be receiving a lot more smiles and hugs from people who dared. Hermoine was one of the select few who had dared to try. She had simply smiled at the young girl.
The months passed as her belly grew. At eight months along she no longer walked, but waddled. Many students were kind and held doors. Even the troublemakers seemed to yield. But a small group of slytherins seemed to want to make her life as difficult as possible. She had a good idea of who was vandalizing her things and writing rude messages. But she had no proof. The students seemed to know as well. The students refused to sit near the group and were giving them the silent treatment for being so mean to her.
This made McGonagal smile. Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy Parkinson would get theirs. Only the day before they had reported that their beds had been filled with dung bombs. She hid her beaming smile and simply shooed them away saying. "I am not the janitorial service, find Mr. Filch and tell him I sent you."
"The time has gone by so fast." Hermoine said to Luna. " I wonder when she'll have the baby." Luna said staring up at the Great halls ceiling. Everyone ate lunch happily eating and talking excitedly. There was a quidittch match today between Ravenclaw and Slytherin. It would decide who would face off against Gryffindore for the quidittch cup.
Harry, Hermione, and Ron, all took their seats in the stand waiting for the game to start. It was a chilly autumn day with a cool breeze rippling past. The players marched out onto the pitch brooms mounted on their shoulders. The two captains shook hands and Madame Hooch blew the whistle. They kicked hard off the ground. The balls were released and sent into the air. Lee Jordan covered the game his loud fast voice perfect for the job. "And Cho Chang of Ravenclaw dives avoiding the bludger!"Jordan said "Good One Cho!" "Oh what do we have here, has Malfoy seeker for Slytherin seen the snitch?" he said craning his neck slightly. "He has, But Cho dives ahead!" he shouted into the microphone.
McGonagal sat in the staff box. She didn't seem that interested in the game. She was deep in thought about something. Something she rarely did want to think about. "What if something should happen to me?" she wondered. She had chosen someone to be the godfather of her baby, but she was worried. This person had a very dangerous life. This person was Harry Potter. She would talk to him after the quidittch game.
There was a rumor going around that there was a tunnel leading from Hogwarts to the shrieking shack. It was true; Harry, Ron, and Hermione had been in it in their third year…Ron's pet Rat, or Peter Petigrew had run away and they had run after him. And a big black dog had dragged Ron down the hole. The big black dog was actually Sirius Black, Harry's now dead God Father. "AND CHO CATCHES THE SNITCH!" Lee Jordan yelled. He was so happy to see RavenClaw win. Gryfinndore hated Slytherin.
Harry, Ron, Hermione, Luna, and Neville all walked back towards the castle. Happily chatting about the game. "And did you see the way he dived?" Neville asked them all. Luna nodded. "And she stood up on her broom!" Luna said jumping up and down. "Mr. Potter?" Came McGonagal's stern yet soft voice. "A word?" she asked. He nodded "Sure Professor." He said turning away from his friends. The four others stood watching. "A word with Mr. Potter." She said implying that they should leave.
They walked side by side past Hagrid's cabin. "I would like to ask you a personal favor Mr. Potter. " she said turning to face him as they walked. He searched her dark brown eyes for what she might be thinking. "As you know I am expecting." She said her eyes focusing upon his blue ones. "And I think you should be it's God Father." She said putting a hand on his shoulder. "I um, don't know what to say." He said looking rather shocked. "I'll have to think about it." He said still looking rather surprised. Out of nowhere there was a soft crack. Then another. Harry looked down.
He realized this was the fake hill that sheltered the entrance of the tunnel that led to the shrieking shack, and that the earth was cracking beneath them. "PROFESSOR!" He shouted as the ground beneath them split apart. He braced her to him, his back facing the ground as they fell. The last thing he remembered was a loud "Crack!" and a shooting, splitting pain. The last thing she remembered was falling and hitting the ground. But it hadn't hurt; she had rolled and simply lost consciousness.
They awoke several minutes later. Harry wished he simply hadn't awoken. His head hurt and there was blood, a lot of blood. McGonagal kneeled beside him magically cleaning and healing the wounds. "Oh Harry, Thank Goodness!" she said sighing in relief. He had fractured his skull on a sharp rock. "Are you okay Professor?" Harry asked sitting straight up. "Thanks to you Mr. Potter, I am un-harmed." She said smiling softly. "But it seems as though were stuck." She said pointing. "It had been about a twenty foot fall, ad it is too steep to climb out." She said sitting with a heavy sigh.
McGonagal gasped loudly. "What's wrong Professor?" "It seems we have another problem than not being able to get out." She said putting a hand gently to her stomach. "What is it?" he asked taking out his wand and lit the cavern so he could see her better than just an outline. "My water just broke." At first Harry looked rather confused…than a look of sheer horror shone on his pale white face. "HELP somebody get us out of here!" he shouted climbing at the vertical edges of the wall desperately trying to climb out. "Somebody get us out of here!" he yelled again.
"Potter calm down!" she said sternly. "The baby won't be here for several more hours, we will be out of here by then!" she said loudly. He looked relieved. He let out a breath of relief. "Thank God." He thought. "We should probably send up a signal though." He said pointing his wand up in the air. A flash of red sparks shot from the tip and into the air.
"Where do you think she could be?" Madame Pomfrey asked the other staff members. "The last I saw she was in the staff box." Professor Flitwick said scratching his head. "I believe she said she was going to speak with Harry Potter." SlugHorn said tapping his chin thoughtfully. "We'll start searching immediately." Professor Sprout said taking out her wand.
Minerva held back a cry of pain and sucked in a quick breath of air. Potter was scared enough. The contractions were getting closer and closer each time. "You don't have to hold back." Harry said pacing back and forth. "Just try and relax." He said looking worriedly up at the hole in the cave. He shot up another round of sparks.
"Potter is gone." Snape said his long black cloak billowing around the ankles as he treaded down the steps form Gryfinndore Tower. "She's not in her study, her office, or the classroom." Professor Sprout said treading into the Great Hall. "Lets Split up." Poppy Pomfrey said. "Sprout, you come with me, we will alert everyone of her absence" she said sounding like a general. "Hagrid, Flitwick you two check the forbidden forest, it may seem un-likely, but it's a possibility." She said pointing towards the forest. "Snape you and Binns search the rest of the grounds. "Who you in charge?" Snape asked coolly. "The headmistress herself Severus, I am her deputy." She said putting her hands on her hips. "Go now." She said pointing a finger at his long hooked nose.
"All students to the Great Hall!" Professor Sprout said casting a voice amplification charm. "Now." She added quickly. All of the students of the four houses filled into the Great Hall. All whispering and chatting wondering why they were called there. "Attention all students, the Headmistress has gone missing along with Harry Potter." Madame Pomfrey said. "If any of you have any information of their whereabouts than remain in the Great Hall, if you don't than leave now, be on the look out for anything suspicious activities and alert us of it immediately." She said.
Harry knelt beside her. He offered her his hand. She let out a loud yelp digging her nails into his hand. "Oww!"He yelped. He tapped his wand over the bloody scratches and they vanished. Her breathing was ragged and rapid. "Give…me your hand." She choked reaching out. Harry reluctantly gave her his hand. He bit his lip as pain wracked his hand
Ron, Hermione, Luna, and Neville remained at the Gryffindore table. They rushed up to the staff table where Madame Pomfrey and Professor Sprout sat. "The last time we saw Harry and McGonagal was when she said she needed to talk to him about something. They were walking towards Hagrid's hut." Hermione said looking rather worried." Thank you all, I will contact the rest of the staff." Pomfrey said standing. She wrote out two letters and folded them into birds quickly. "Find Hagrid and Flitwick." She said before tapping it with her wand. "Find Snape and Binns." She said to the other one tapping it with her wand. They both flew out the windows and in different directions.
"Professor, Harry, are ya out here?!" Hagrid shouted. They tracked and trudged through the entire forest. "Hagrid, they're not here." Flitwick said resting his hands on his knees, bent over. He was exhausted; they had been searching for at least 3 hours. "Oh, your right." Hagrid said in defeat. "We should go back and search the grounds with Binns and Snape." He said picking the tiny Professor up and setting him gently on his shoulder. The note flew into Hagrid's other hand. He read it quickly. "Let's go, she said that they walked towards my cabin."
Minerva gasped and screamed. "Harry, this baby is going to be born here, I was wrong." she said squeezing his hand again. "I need you to look and see…help me deliver the baby." She said squinting her eyes shut. "HUH?" he asked looking positively terrified. "I need you to help me deliver this baby." She said opening her eyes again. "I know what to do Potter, I just need your help." She said propping herself up on her elbows. "But, baby's come out of…" his voice trailed off. "I know." She said pulling him close by the collar of his robes. She ground her teeth together in pain. "I…don't…care…." She said through clenched teeth. He nodded and she let him go. He knelt between her legs. "So what am I supposed to do?" he asked looking rather skittish and embarrassed.
Severus read the letter quickly and shoved it into his pocket. Hagrid and Flitwick emerged from the Forbidden Forest and walked towards them. "Any luck?" Hagrid asked. "No." Snape said coolly. "We have not yet surveyed the entire ground." Severus said. "We shall continue our search. " Snape said walking in the direction of Hagrid's cabin.
Minerva squeezed her eyes shut her breathing raged and labored. It wouldn't be long now. She screamed out her pain and frustration. "I hate you for this Albus Dumbledore!" she yelled tears beginning to flow. Harry bit his lip. He was really scared that he would do something wrong and hurt her or the baby. But she simply continued to curse and scream. Her heart was racing….
"Shut up." Severus said waving a hand at them. He thought he had heard something. He did, there it was again a soft muffled scream. He could barely tell where the sound was coming from. He listened closer. The others were silent listening as well. "That way!" Snape said pointing a long slender finger to the west. "It's coming from that way." He said running in that direction the others tailing behind him.
"I see the head." Harry said trying to calm his professor down. "Just a little bit farther." He encouraged. She let out a final scream and the baby slid from between her legs. He cut the cord with a cutting charm and he baby's cry could be heard wringing in the cavern. "It's a boy." He said taking off his jacket and wrapping the infant in it.
"Is anyone down there?" Hagrid had called before leaning over the edge just in case. "Yes!" Harry called. "It's Harry and McGonagal!" Harry yelled up to them. The four men gathered around the giant hole and peered down. McGonagal lay upon the ground apparently sleeping. Harry stood beside her holding a bundle in his arms…that bundle was a baby. Harry didn't even have to explain. Considering how his hands were still shaking it was easy to tell that he had delivered the baby.
Flitwick wrote another letter on the back of the one that was sent to him and Hagrid over an hour ago. He tapped it with his wand and told it to find Poppy. Poppy Pomfrey was there in a matter of minutes. "We can't get to them like that they're to far down." She said pacing. McGonagal was still sleeping and the baby was getting fussy. Hagrid smiled wide. "I know who can help!" he said running off towards his cabin. About ten minutes later he returned with Grawp, his full giant half brother.
Grawp looked down into the hole. He sat down his legs over the edge and stepped down. The top of his head was visible at the top of the hole. Hagrid stood at the top of it giving instructions. "Now pick the lady up very gently." He said sternly. Grawp did as such. Reaching down with both hands. He gently scooped her up into his palm and set her down on the grass above. Harry was next. He set the standing Harry a few feet from the Lady the baby still silent in his arms.
Snape did not wear his usual sneer but a calm frown. McGonagal awoke a few moments later looking slightly dazed. Harry, Severus, Hagrid, Poppy, Flitwick, and Binns surrounded her each looking concerned. "My baby?" she asked coming around more and holding out her arms. Harry set the sleeping infant in her arms and smiled softly. They remained like that for but a few minutes. Grawp walked back into the forbidden forest waving at Hagrid.
Hagrid picked up McGonagal and carried her towards the school. Snape, Harry, Flitwick, Poppy, and Binns in there wake. As they pulled open the large wooden doors. A large group of students were coming down the staircases towards the Great Hall for Sunday Dinner. They all got a pretty good look at all of them. Madame Pomfrey carrying the infant wrapped in Harry's jacket.
Hagrid smiled setting her down in a hospital bed. It was the same one she had rested in the day she found out she was pregnant. Harry though up and walking was put in the hospital wing as well. Considering his fractured skull Poppy wanted to keep him for a night. "Harry?" McGonagal asked a few beds down. "Yeah?" he asked sitting up to face her. "Thanks you, I wouldn't have been able to do it alone." She said giving him a soft smile. He smiled. "Your welcome." He said fiddling with his white bed sheets. "You saved me when the ground split, I probably owe you and my baby's life to you"
To be continued…please rate and review, this is my very first ever Harry Potter fanfic…please no flames.