Disclaimer: I don't own them. If I did I wouldn't be writing fanfiction. I thought that was obvious.
A/N: My first HP piece. I've read a few where Hermione or other teachers go to see McGonagal, but as far as I know this is a new idea. I just think it's something that Harry should do. Thanks to GinnyGin for the fantasticly fast beta. Sorry I'm replacing this so many times, now that I have a beta it should get better.
A Student's Visit
Minerva McGonagall stood in the center of Dumbledore's office. Not Dumbledore's office, not any more, she reminded herself, with the pang that always accompanied his name. It had been a month since he had… left. People said that the grief should be lessening by now, that she should be able to accept the fact that she was now Headmistress of Hogwarts. No one thought that her eyes should still fill with tears whenever his name was mentioned. They had always seen her as being rather untouchable, at least emotionally, and so that was the face she forced them to see now. Yet she wondered how convincing it was, how many students saw through her disguise. She wondered if any of them took the time to look.
Without her realizing it, her thoughts strayed to Harry Potter. If any student had taken the time to really look at her, to try to see how she was doing, it had been Potter. He had attempted to talk to her before he had left school, but she had brushed him off. "I'm sorry Potter, but I have an urgent meeting with the minister of magic." She knew he had seen through that lie, and a part of her felt terrible for lying to him. But she could not bring herself to have a proper conversation with him. She knew that Harry had to be grieving for Albus as much as she was, and she felt almost responsible for helping him get through this, but she did not know how. Albus would have known, and that made her feel even more inept.
Her musings were interrupted by a knock on the office door. "Enter," she said, and immediately regretted her choice of words. It was how Albus had always called visitors into his office. She would have to come up with another word, she decided as she looked up.
In the doorway stood a boy with messy black hair and glasses perched on the bridge of his nose. "Professor, may I have a word?" His voice was calm and even, though his eyes betrayed the pain he was feeling.
"Come in Potter, and sit down. Ginger newt?"
"No, thank you Professor."
They sat in awkward silence for several minutes while Harry looked around the office. Minerva wondered what he was thinking; she had not changed much in this circular room. The silver instruments were still spinning on their little tables; the candy dishes were still full of chocolate frogs and sherbet lemons. The only noticeable differences were the empty perch by the door and the new portrait that had been added just above the desk.
"You wished to see me Mr. Potter," she said to break the silence.
"Yes, professor," he said and left it at that.
"Is there something I can do for you?"
"I wanted to ask, that is, I was wondering, if I could borrow Professor Dumbledore's pensive and a few of the memories he had stored." She thought that Potter looked about as uncomfortable as she had ever seen him look.
"May I ask why you want these particular items?"
"We were working on something before he," his voice faltered, "Before he was killed. I need to finish this project, and the memories might show me something that I missed the first time around."
"Does this have anything to do with the reason you were away the night of the attack?"
"Yes Professor, and I'm sorry but I still don't think I can tell you where we were. The fewer people who know the fewer people who are in danger."
"Very well Potter, you may have the items you requested." She was still not satisfied by his answer but she was too tired to argue with him any more. It probably wouldn't have done any good anyway she thought. What was it that the Profit had reported Harry saying, "Dumbledore's man through and through"? Doubtless Harry would be just as stubborn as Albus had been.
Minerva moved to the cabinet where the pensive was stored and lifted out the stone basin, placing it on the desk in front of Harry. She then reached into another cabinet and brought out a box of very familiar glass vials and placed them along side the pensive. Harry did not move.
"Something else I can do for you Mr. Potter?" She did not mean to sound rude, but judging by the look on Potter's face she must not have sounded very polite.
"No Professor, not really." The silence stretched between them once again. She noticed his eyes wander to the portrait of Albus Dumbledore then look away. "It's strange in here, without Fauks," Harry said after a few moments.
"Indeed, now if there's nothing else I really do have things to attend to."
"I was just wondering…" His voice trailed off and he looked down. "I was just wondering if you are all right," he said in a rush. His face turned as red as any Weasly hair and he began to pleat the sleeve of his robes.
For a moment Minerva sat perfectly still. She knew she could not lie to Potter. Student or not, she respected the young man who sat in front of her. To lie to him would be wrong somehow. Yet she was not sure she could tell the truth either. Finally she said, "Why do you ask, Harry?" She did not notice the flicker of amazement that crossed the man's face at the use of his first name.
"It's just that you seem, sort of withdrawn. You and Professor Dumbledore were good friends, and I guess I just…" His voice trailed off and he began to pleat his robes more rapidly.
She did not know why she said what she did next. She did not feel that she had a right to add more to Harry's list of worries, but perhaps she had been waiting fore someone to care enough to ask. "I miss him." Her voice hardly sounded like her own. "I will never be able to be half as good a head of Hogwarts as he was." And then Minerva McGonagal, strict transfiguration teacher and head of the house known for bravery, began to cry.
For a moment Harry just sat there, the oak desk separating himself and Professor McGonagal. Then he rose and moved around the desk until he was next to his former teacher. He knelt and awkwardly put his arms around the witch, allowing her to lean her head against his shoulder. They stayed like that for quite some time while Minerva cried and Harry tried to offer some type of comfort. He clenched his teeth to keep from crying himself. He might not have learned much about emotions from Hermione, but any dolt knew that crying when you were trying to be comforting was pretty contradictory.
After some indeterminable amount of time Minerva lifted her head from Harry's shoulder and tried to wipe her eyes on her robes. Silently Harry reached into his robes and offered her a handkerchief.
"I'm sorry Harry, I don't know what came over me."
"It's all right Professor," he said standing up and returning to his chair.
"I'll be back in a moment, I'm just going to clean up a bit," Minerva said as she stood and moved toward the door to her new quarters.
When she had gone Harry let his gaze return to Dumbledore's portrait.
"I thought you might be by to see Professor McGonagall," the portrait said serenely.
"I hope I didn't muck up too badly," Harry said almost to himself.
"You performed admirably as you always do, Harry. I am incredibly proud of you." Once again a blush stained Harry's cheeks.
"Thank you sir," the young man said as Minerva opened the door and returned to the office. All traces of tears were gone from her face, though her eyes were still slightly red.
"Thank you for coming, Harry," she said with the first genuine smile she had worn in weeks.
"Thank you for letting me borrow these," he replied waving his hand toward the pensive and vials. They zoomed into his outstretched hands and he stood to leave.
At the door he turned to face his teacher once again. "Professor," he said, "I don't think anyone is expecting you to be everything that Professor Dumbledore was. If they are they will be sorely disappointed. They will spend all their time criticizing you, pointing out all of the qualities that you supposedly lack, and they will miss out on seeing what a good headmistress you will be, and none of us have any doubt that you will be a great headmistress." He smiled and turned the doorknob, slipped from the office, then closed the door, once again leaving his teacher alone in her new office.
A/N: Please leave reviews. If you have ideas about how I could continue this let me know, or I guess let me know if I should continue. Review this and I'll try to review one of your stories, it's a win/win situation!
A/N2: Thank you to PhoenixPadfoot89, KaiserMonkey, okabacha, lovertomgirl, dracis tran, crypticwishes, The Dark Enchantress, gatermage, nightwing 509, elerrina, imissdumbledore, JE aka Yessina, SherbetKitty, and Kathryn Isabella for your kind words and constructive crit. I did spellcheck, guess that was actually part of the problem. Let me know what else I missed, please!