Chapter 10
In which groundwork is laid
In the swirling sea of chaos that engulfed Hogwarts in the aftermath of the Triwizards Tournament, Maggie was an island of calm. She went about her days as if nothing had happened. While others gossiped like magpies, she remained quiet. She deflected questions about Henry with polite, vague replies that revealed nothing. Most respected her reticence but after some of her nosier classmates became more persistent, Hufflepuff closed ranks. Led by Cedric Diggory, a discrete phalanx of bodyguards escorted her everywhere. A few well-aimed hexes effectively got the message across to the other three houses; bother Maggie McGonagall and you were badger food.
The students knew that Maggie was Henry's girlfriend but that tidbit of information eluded the outsiders that swarmed over Hogwarts. The significance of her part in the second task never registered with them. No reporter from the Daily Prophet or the WWN thought to question the tiny girl beyond asking how she was holding up during her mother's recovery. None of the ministry bureaucrats that were poking their beaks into every corner even asked her that much.
"Thank you," Maggie sincerely said accepting a small valise from Cedric when they arrived at her mother's apartment. "For everything. I hope that you have a great summer."
Cedric gave into an impulse. He bent down and kissed her on the forehead. "You're welcome, Maggie," he replied. "When you talk to Henry next, give him my best but also tell him I'm disappointed that he conceded the last task. I'd really like to know if I could have beaten him fairly."
Maggie smiled. "He always said that you were the true Hogwarts champion. He was certain that you would win the tournament."
Cedric beamed. "Keep your chin up." He said giving her a jaunty salute before spinning away, skipping down the stairwell. A bemused Maggie watched him for a moment before opening the door.
"Ah, Maggie, there you are," Professor McGonagall said from where she was sitting on one of her sofas. "Is that the last of your things?"
"Yes, mum," she replied. Maggie looked carefully at her mother. Her colour was returning but her voice still was weak. Even two weeks after the attack, she tired easily but Madame Pomfrey assured Maggie that with rest, she would make a full recovery before the end of summer. Barbara had seconded that opinion.
"Please sit down, my dearest one," Professor McGonagall said, gesturing to a chair near her.
"What is it, Mum?" she asked taking the indicated chair.
"Changes," Professor McGonagall said in a deep sigh. "Some good, others…time will tell."
Maggie nodded but waited mutely for her mother to continue.
"Let us begin with the bad," said Professor McGonagall after a pause. "We will have to move. No one in an official capacity has yet made it public but Professor Dumbledore will be removed as Headmaster and many of the staff including myself undoubtedly will be given the sack as well."
"I'm very sorry, Mum," Maggie sadly replied. "I know how much being a teacher means to you."
"Thank you but what about you?" her mother asked. "This is the only home that you have ever known."
"Home is where the people you love are," Maggie replied simply although sorrow drifted across her face.
Minerva McGonagall gazed at her daughter. Thousands of students matured under her tutelage yet Maggie's transformation into a young woman was unsettling. She knew that it was the natural order but she hated losing her little girl. She shook her head. The years were so short but they were good years. Rejoice in that she thought.
"Where we'll be is not yet decided," Professor McGonagall finally said. "But it will include the Headmaster. Albus has asked me to marry him and I have accepted."
Gloom disappeared in an instant. Maggie squealed in delight launching herself at her mother, wrapping her into a powerful hug.
Minerva returned the hug laughing along with her daughter. The two of them rocked back and forth sharing the joy. It was several moments before they broke apart. When they did, Maggie sat beside her mother, still clinging to her hand.
Professor McGonagall swiped at a tear with her free hand before clearing her throat hesitantly. "I gather that you approve, then?"
"Aye, Mum, with all of my heart," Maggie replied. "Of course, I would have approved even more if he had asked you years ago instead of waiting for you to nearly get killed."
"I wasn't nearly killed," Professor McGonagall corrected.
"Barty Crouch, Jr. didn't do you any kindness with his attack even if thankfully he didn't use a killing curse," Maggie countered.
Her mother waved a dismissive hand. "But I lived. Let us not dwell upon things that might have happened. There is another matter."
"Oh?"
"Albus was curious if you would allow him to officially adopt you after the wedding," said Professor McGonagall.
Maggie arched an eyebrow in surprise. "That's unexpected."
"Is it?" Minerva asked.
"He's the nearest thing to a father that I've ever known," Maggie began. "Not saying anything against you," she added quickly. "It's just…I've always loved him but while he's been kind and thoughtful to me, I didn't think that he liked me anymore then any other student."
Minerva looked deep into her daughter's blue eyes. "Albus has difficulty showing his deeper emotions but trust me when I say that he loves you very, very much."
"Truly?"
"Aye, my dearest one, truly."
Maggie pursed her brow in thought. For years, she expected the Headmaster to become her mother's husband but oddly, she had not equated that with becoming his daughter. "Maggie Dumbledore, I could live with that," she mused. "You can tell the Headmaster, father, that I love him, too and I'd be happy to be adopted by him."
Minerva smiled in relief. "You should tell Albus that you love him yourself, force the old fossil to admit that he loves you."
Maggie nodded in agreement. "That'll be nice. What else?"
"Henry got a letter to the Headmaster through the Weasleys," Professor McGonagall said.
"What did he say?" Maggie asked trying to sound curious and apprehensive.
"He was very apologetic," Professor McGonagall replied. "He realizes that he made an incredibly stupid mistake leaving like he did."
"It wasn't incredibly stupid," Maggie said rising to Henry's defense.
"Yes, it was," Minerva replied evenly. "It cemented the Minister's belief that Hogwarts was a hotbed of Anti-Ministry conspiracies and exposed Henry as an unregistered animagus."
"That's not fair," Maggie snapped leaping to her feet. "Henry has done everything that you, the Headmaster, and everyone else have asked him to do and he did it without complaint. Now you're going to turn on him."
"Calm down, Maggie," her mother said. "Henry, by his own admission, made an error in judgment but no one is turning on him. He is still the best hope for a world without the menace of the Dark Lord. Mad-Eye is very proud of him at the moment."
"Proud?" asked Maggie suspiciously. "Why?"
Professor McGonagall chuckled. "The Ministry has unleashed every hound at its disposal and likely so has Voldemort yet they haven't picked up the slightest scent of him yet. He learned his lessons even better then we thought."
"He is good," Maggie said sitting back down.
"Yes, he is," her mother agreed. "But we must still deal with the repercussions. We're leaving Hogwarts tomorrow. We won't be back."
"Ever?"
"Forever is a long time," Minerva said lightly. "But for the foreseeable future, no."
Maggie slowing nodded absorbing the situation. As her mother had said, Hogwarts Castle was then only home that she ever knew. Leaving it would be painful, even in that company of her loved ones.
"Where are we going?" she asked at length.
"London, first," Minerva replied. "Sirius Black has offered to host our wedding at his home."
"Then?"
Professor McGonagall wagged her hands. "Until we know what the Ministry plans to do, we cannot do much. The Order does not have the resources to be proactive. Then there is also the difficulty in contacting Henry. He was in and out of the Weasleys house in the blink of an eye according to Molly. He didn't say a word about where he was hiding. He is the key to anything we do and we don't know where he is anymore then the Ministry."
Maggie stared at her mother for several long seconds. She made a face as she ultimately stood. Minerva watched in curiosity as she closed all of the parlour windows and drew together the drapes.
"Are all the security charms in place?" Maggie finally asked.
"Of course," Professor McGonagall replied. "I checked them just this morning. Why?"
Sighing, Maggie sat down across from her. "You're going to kill me."
"I have managed not to kill a teenager in forty years of teaching," she pointed out. "That speaks volumes about my restraint."
With slightly trembling hands, Maggie undid her top buttons. Steeling herself, she opened her blouse exposing the small marble obelisk that rested against her chest. Leaning forward, her mother stared at the pendant for several long seconds before reaching out with two fingers easing it a few millimeters from her daughter's breast. She gently rubbed the rose-coloured obelisk with her thumb feeling the onyx letters embedded in it. After a moment, she released it and leaned back into her sofa.
"Say something," Maggie demanded anxiously when the silence lengthened uncomfortably.
"I was your age when I fell in love with Albus," Professor McGonagall said quietly.
Maggie blinked in complete surprise. Not one of her imagined scenarios had her mother reacting calmly. "You're…you're not angry?"
Minerva rubbed her forehead. "Margaret Rhoswen," she began slowly. She started to say more but sighed instead.
"I'm not sorry," Maggie defiantly stated.
"No, no," Professor McGonagall agreed. "I'm certain that you are not but I'm also certain that you cannot comprehend how much danger that you would be in if this becomes known to Voldemort. Who have you and Henry told?"
"We didn't tell anyone," Maggie replied. "But Hermione knows. She saw Henry's pendant and recognized it for what it was or, at least, she did after some research."
"She's an amazing intelligent young woman," Professor McGonagall said.
"Yes," Maggie concurred. "And a true friend. She's kept our secret."
"So many secrets these days," Minerva said vaguely. She shook her head then continued briskly. "For all of the peripheral ramifications, this does solve the major problem of communicating with Henry."
"And"
"And?"
"Are you simply going to ignore what the pendants mean to Henry and me, for Henry and Me?" Maggie asked.
Professor McGonagall took her daughter's hands into hers. "I am beginning to think that I have disappointed you by not ranting and raving like a mad woman," she said with a smile. "Some things are simply fated. You and Henry seemed to be one of those. To shatter your illusions further, despite your youth, I believe that you and Henry will be very happy together."
"We will be."
"We just have to ensure that the two of you stay alive to be so," Professor McGonagall added darkly.
"You are a ray of sunshine, mother," Maggie replied ironically.
"Until you see Voldemort in his grave with his throat cut and a stake driven through his heart, paranoia, vigilance, and fear best be your closest companions," stated Minerva empathically. "He and his followers have no mercy, no compassion, and no shame. They would obliterate your mind and destroy your body to get what they wanted from you without a second thought as to your age or your sex."
Maggie shuddered, thinking about the atrocities that the Death Eaters committed over the years. "I'll keep that in mind."
Professor McGonagall nodded soberly. "You do that, dearest one. I could not bear to lose you."
"I'll do what I can to spare you that," Maggie replied attempting some levity.
"That's a darlin' lass," Professor McGonagall responded in kind. "Can you contact Henry, not at this moment mind you but anytime you wish?"
"Yes."
"Do you know where he is at any given time?" she asked. "Or do the texts exaggerate?"
"No, they don't," Maggie told her. "I can sense him much the length of Britain, now. Right at this moment, Henry's-"
Professor McGonagall stopped her with a raised hand. "For the time being, keep that to yourself, just to be safe."
"Yes, mother."
"Good," Professor McGonagall heartily said as she rose from her sofa. "Let's go to Albus and see if the Ministry Lilliputians still have him tied down."
A careworn Albus Dumbledore was alone busily packing books and papers into a trunk when the McGonagalls walked up into his office. The many portraits of past Headmasters and Headmistresses still covered the walls but otherwise the chamber was as barren as an unused classroom. The many machines and devices were gone as was most of his personal library and Fawkes the phoenix.
"How are you feeling?" Albus asked in concern and he quickly strode to his fiancée's side.
"I'm fine, Albus," she replied accepting the light kiss he bestowed on her cheek. "You and Poppy don't need to treat me like I was made of eggshell."
He started to speak but Minerva continued forcefully. "And don't you dare apologize again. It wasn't your fault."
"Yes, it was," he gloomily replied before glancing at Maggie. "Have you…uh?"
"Aye, she has, Father," Maggie said. "You should have asked her years ago but that's beside the point. We're going to be a family and that's all that matters."
"Father," Dumbledore echoed slowly. He looked at the tiny girl for several moments before he knelt taking her hands into his own. "I once had a family. I had a wife and two little daughters but I made a dog's breakfast of it. I will not allow that to happen again. I swear on my life and my honour that I will be a proper husband to your mother and as good a father as I possible can be to you."
Maggie pulled her hands free and wrapped her arms around him. "I know you will," she said happily.
Minerva dabbed at a suddenly misty eye as the two people she loved most embraced.
"Don't you cry, love or I'll fall apart myself," Albus chided merrily before sweeping Maggie off her feet and swinging her about. Laughing joyfully, he planted an ardent kiss on Minerva's mouth.
"It's time for elevens, Albus," Minerva said. "Come down to our apartment for some tea."
Albus sat Maggie back onto the floor. He sighed looking about his nearly bare office. "I'm almost done."
"Albus, come to tea," Minerva repeated. "There is nothing here that cannot wait a few more minutes."
The Headmaster frowned. He caught the slight added emphasis that she placed on her request. Something was afoot.
"Of course, my dove," he said.
Albus took a hand from mother and daughter. Silently they walked through the corridors. They met no one save the Bloody Baron who saluted the Headmaster gravely. Dumbledore nodded in return.
Professor McGonagall did a quick recheck of the security charms as soon as she shut the apartment door. Satisfied with their strength, she pointed to a sofa.
"Please be sitting, Albus," she said.
"You're up to something," Professor Dumbledore replied as he sat.
"Not me but our lovesick daughter," she replied. "Maggie, if you would."
For the second time that morning, Maggie revealed the pendant.
When the Headmaster realized what it was, he leaped to his feet, whooping with joy. "Yes, yes, yes!"
"This puts her in much danger," Professor McGonagall pointed out.
"Yes, yes it does," Professor Dumbledore soberly agreed. "The Order will have to protect her as it would Henry himself but it does solve our biggest problem."
The Headmaster sat back down, his mind racing. The pendant did solve the major issue of communicating with the hiding Henry. A host of other problems yet remained. The Minister for Magic considered Dumbledore to be a greater threat then the Dark Lord. Albus did not wish to fight the Ministry despite their treatment of him. Ultimately, they were battling the same foe. Whatever actions they took, they needed to be careful of not arousing the curiosity or animosity of the Ministry,
As for Voldemort, until they could get a true measure of his strength, it would be folly to confront him directly. Professor Dumbledore thought that he was still relatively weak himself but it could be just a ruse to lure the Order into annihilation fighting a battle they were not prepared to fight.
"Let's leave tomorrow's problems for tomorrow," he finally said aloud.
"And today?" Minerva asked.
"I seemed to remember being offered some tea," Albus replied with a smile.