Chapter Four: Moody Minerva
Disclaimer: Minerva and all the other delightful characters I have used in this story belong to J.K Rowling as do the places and inanimate objects and…etc. Its all hers and I take no responsibility.
Thanks to Featherwish for reviewing!
Minerva ended up sitting in a horseless cart with Dedalus Diggle and a boy who kept shooting suspicious glances her way. When they got to the castle, the two boys stayed next to her, one because he probably had one of those 'eleven-year-old-boy-crushes' and two because he wanted to keep an eye on her.
"That's a pretty scowl you've got there," the suspicious boy whispered in her ear. She turned around to glare at the suspicious boy.
"What's your name?" she asked him. He looked surprised that she was talking to him.
"I'm Alastor Moody the suspicious," he said with a smirk on his face. Clearly he didn't want to hide the fact that he was suspicious and took pleasure in watching her scowl.
"Well, I'm Minerva A. McGonagall the annoyed so maybe it's time you left me alone," Minerva snapped back. Moody seemed to be pleased with her answer.
"I'll be watching you Minerva," he said smugly before walking away. Minerva watched him for a while before turning around to listen to the teacher addressing them.
"Good evening students, I'm Professor Lawrence. In a few moments we will step through these doors and you will be sorted. You will sit with your house and after the feast the prefects will show you where to go. I think we're ready. Follow me," Professor Lawrence said in a bossy voice. The children started to shuffle slowly out of the small room they were in and into the great hall.
Minerva was near the door so she was one of the first to get a glimpse of the hall. There were hundreds of students, all looking at her. They weren't actually looking at her but they were looking in Minerva's general direction so in Minerva's opinion, they were looking at her. The ceiling was what fascinated her the most; it was charmed to look like the night sky. Tonight, the stars were all twinkling and the moon was half full.
On the stool was a shabby old hat. Minerva was glad to see that all you had to do to be sorted was put a hat on your head. Professor Lawrence had been calling out names for the last fifteen minutes. It was taking far too long in her opinion. Stupid Alphard Black. He had sat on the stool for ages. The hat had finally declared him a Slytherin and he had walked to the table with a scowl that rivalled one of Minerva's.
"McGonagall, Minerva," Lawrence called and she looked up with a scowl. She walked over to the stool and picked the hat off the floor where the idiot before her had carelessly thrown it on the floor.
No sooner had she put it on her head when she heard, "Minerva McGonagall, I assume. Now, I don't normally talk to students so you ought to feel special. What house do you want to be in?" It was the hat. If someone had told her a talking hat would determine her future a month ago she would have alerted the doctor. Now, she was pretty much willing to believe anything.
'Well Hat, I suppose I'd like to be in Slytherin,' she thought to the hat. It was true; she wanted to be a Slytherin more than anything. It seemed like the smartest house.
"Slytherin? That's certainly a surprise. Really, are you sure? I would say you are more of a Gryffindor," the hat said. Minerva wrinkled her nose in disgust.
'Gryffindor? From what Tom told me it's a horrid house full of exceedingly arrogant do-gooders,' the hat chuckled at Minerva's response. Gryffindors could be like that from time to time.
"Tom as in Tom Riddle? You met Tom Riddle? Well that explains a lot," the hat mused. "Minerva we have been sitting here for quite a while, I'm putting you in Gryffindor," the hat told her.
'No! I really don't want to be in…'
"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat yelled before she could protest any further. Minerva sat on the stool in disbelief. She looked down at the new Gryffindor crest on her robes in disgust. Gryffindor of all places! Tom would probably never talk to her again.
People were looking up at her expectantly and she realized she hadn't moved. She got up and walked down to the Gryffindor table, looking wistfully at the Slytherin table as she passed. She sat down in a large gap and waited for the sorting to finish.
"So, you're a Gryffindor? I can't deny the fact I'm surprised," Alastor Moody said cheekily from the previously empty seat next to Minerva. He was pointing a raw carrot at her in an accusatory way.
"Leave me alone! Although, you are right, I wanted to be in Slytherin," Minerva replied, ignoring the carrot near her left ear. She could feel Moody tense up next to her at the word Slytherin.
"Slytherin? Why on…Earth would…you want…" he spluttered. He had dropped the carrot and was now waving his hands around like a mad man.
"You're nuts Moody," Minerva stated calmly, "Yes, I wanted to be in Slytherin. Personally, I don't see why the hat wouldn't put me there; we argued for quite a while," Minerva said although towards the end she had forgotten Moody was there.
A hand appeared in front of her eyes and started waving around. "Err… Earth to Minerva! I asked you if you really argued with the hat," Moody said impatiently.
"Well that's what I said wasn't it? Why would I say something that wasn't true? Leave me alone, I want to eat," Minerva snapped at the boy. She wasn't used to being interrogated and he was really getting on her nerves. She turned around and proceeded to fill her plate up with various types of meat and vegetables. A raw carrot slid onto her plate.
"I thought I asked you to leave me alone!" she said, turning around to glare at Moody. He put his hand up as if to say 'I surrender!' and then said,
"They taste quite good, and you should try one." Minerva's response was to pick up the carrot and the hit him on the head.
"I don't want carrots! LEAVE ME ALONE ALASTOR MOODY!" she screeched. He left her alone. Well, for the rest of the evening at least.
A/N: I know I'm seriously screwing up the ages but I did it on purpose! Cheers, Diana.