69. Dare to Dance

"The Daily Prophet asked if they can send a photographer up to the castle for the Yule Ball. I took the liberty of telling them 'no, thank you.' I figured you wouldn't mind if I made that decision for you."

"You figured correctly."

"Good. Hagrid says he needs to buy three more barrels of whisky for those giant Beauxbatons horses. Apparently, they only drink the most expensive type of whisky ever made. Our budget is already stretched thin with all the extra food this year..."

"Madame Maxime and her students are our esteemed guests and that carriage is their preferred way to return home safely at the end of the year. I'd say that makes the whisky a good investment."

"Fine. I'm sure Hagrid would agree with you. He might just be in love with that woman."

"Really? How delightful."

"If you say so. Now, Charity keeps asking when you have time to discuss that Muggle Numerology workshop she wants to do, even though it'll upset Septima and Sybill because they both feel that it's too close to their 'areas of expertise.' If there even is such a thing when it comes to predicting the future."

"Oh dear, if you could run interference for me on that just a little longer, I'd be most grateful. Why couldn't it have been a Muggle knitting workshop? I might have signed up for that myself."

"Er... yes, I think that's it for today if I didn't forget anything."

Albus smiled at Minerva, who was looking down at her notes. "I think you did."

She lifted her head and met his gaze with a curious frown. "What?"

He leaned forward across his desk and beckoned her closer so he could steal a quick kiss. "To start with good morning."

Before Minerva could respond, there was a loud crack and they both turned around in their chairs in surprise. Two house-elves had suddenly appeared in the middle of his office, but they were not Hogwarts house-elves. Albus was ashamed to admit that he didn't know all of them, but he did recognise one of these two elves. Actually, it was impossible not to recognise him. He was wearing a tea cosy for a hat, a colourful tie and shorts as well as two mismatched socks.

"Hello, Dobby," Albus greeted him cheerfully. "How are you this morning? I must say I do love your hat."

The house-elf bowed so low that his pencil-like nose touched the floor. "Thank you, Professor Dumbledore, sir! Dobby apologises for dropping in like this, but Dobby needs to speak with Professor Dumbledore urgently and he didn't know how else to do it."

"Don't worry about it, Dobby," Albus replied kindly. "Although, in the future, a little knock before you come in will be just fine. Or, if you wish to make an official appointment with me, you can always talk to Minerva first. I don't believe you've met, have you? Dobby, this is Professor Minerva McGonagall, Head of our Transfiguration Department and Gryffindor House, as well as Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts Castle and my invaluable right hand." Not to mention the better half of my heart, he added, but he kept that part to himself.

Minerva seemed to hear him, though. She gave him a little eye-roll before she smiled at Dobby, who made another deep bow. "Nice to meet you, Dobby. And who is this?" she asked, her eyes shifting to the sad-looking female elf next to Dobby.

Her clothes were a lot less eccentric, but unlike Dobby's they were dirty and clearly not appreciated. When she noticed that everyone was looking at her, she whimpered pitifully, eyes downcast, and did not curtsy or acknowledge the witch and wizard in the room. Albus had never seen her before, but he had a pretty good idea who she must be.

"This is Winky," Dobby introduced her, sounding sad and worried. "She means no disrespect, but she doesn't like being free. Dobby has been trying to convince her otherwise, but she won't listen."

As if on cue, Winky wailed, "Master needs his Winky and Winky needs her master!"

Appalled, Minerva glanced at Albus. "Who was her master?"

"I believe she was working for Barty until he set her free after she was accused of having stolen Harry's wand at the Quidditch World Cup to conjure the Dark Mark with it," Albus told her quietly. Winky was crying too much to answer and Dobby was busy trying to shush her.

"What?" Minerva stared at the two house-elves. "Barty Crouch's house-elf conjuring the Dark Mark? That's a ridiculous accusation!"

"I agree. And I very much doubt it's the real reason why Barty dismissed Winky."

"Did you ask him about it?"

Albus sighed. "I've asked him about a lot of things, but he doesn't seem to trust me enough to answer."

Minerva's brow furrowed, but they would have to continue this conversation later because Dobby had given up on soothing Winky and focused on them again. "Dobby is here to ask Professor Dumbledore for his help, sir, if he might be so bold."

"Oh, certainly. What do you need?" Albus asked, honestly curious.

"Dobby and Winky need jobs, sir," he explained in his squeaky voice. "Dobby has been looking for work ever since Harry Potter set him free, but he hasn't found any. But then he remembered that there is work at Hogwarts and that Professor Dumbledore is the greatest, kindest and oldest wizard there is..."

"Why haven't you been able to find a new job, Dobby?" Albus doubted it had anything to do with his ability to speak in superlatives.

"Because..." He hesitated briefly before he lifted his chin and said determinedly, "because Dobby wants to be paid for his work."

Albus' brows shot up to his hairline. "Do you now?"

Dobby's eyes were round and huge. "Yes, Professor Dumbledore, sir. Dobby knows it's unusual, sir. But Dobby is a free elf now. He's willing to work, sir, he is. Dobby is a hard worker and he'll do whatever Professor Dumbledore asks of him, but... but he won't do it for free. No, he won't. He wants paying just like... like a wizard."

Winky yelped in shock, edged away from Dobby as though he might be contagious and continued to weep.

Her behaviour made Dobby a little anxious as well. He took a tiny step back and bowed again. "Dobby didn't mean to offend Professor Dumbledore, sir. He knows that he is nowhere near as good and powerful as Albus Dumbledore..."

Albus held up a hand and the house-elf fell silent immediately. "Dobby, please, you didn't offend me at all and I'm not worth more than anyone else in this room. However, I'm not sure I have a job for you here at Hogwarts."

Dobby's bat-like ears drooped. "Dobby understands, sir..."

"I don't think you do," Albus contradicted him. "I can't just give you a job because I'm not sure you would like it. You see, it would mostly entail working in the kitchens, helping to prepare the meals three times a day, including the feasts, of which we have quite a few this year, and also tending to the common rooms and dormitories in the evenings. I could arrange for you to have a look at the kitchens and talk to the other house-elves before you decide. I would understand perfectly if you don't think this is the kind of work that fits your qualifications."

"But Dobby is very good at working in a kitchen, sir," the house-elf assured him, having misunderstood the meaning of Albus' words. "He prepared all the meals for the Malfoy family for years all by himself and he only burned them when he was worried about Harry Potter dying. And he also cleaned up after young Mr Malfoy, even when he kicked Dobby around the room."

"He did what?" Minerva snapped.

Dobby turned towards her, bemused by her anger. "House-elves are being kicked all the time. We are used to it."

"Well, you shouldn't be! No one is kicking anyone here at Hogwarts."

"That is why Dobby wants to work here," the house-elf insisted. "Because he knows that Professor Dumbledore would never do a cruel thing like that. If Dobby burns any of the food, Professor Dumbledore won't punish him for it. Dobby will do it himself."

"No, you won't," Albus chimed in quickly. "If you really want to work at Hogwarts, there will be no physical punishment of any kind."

"Is that an order, Professor Dumbledore, sir?" Dobby asked, his voice hopeful.

"It's a request," Albus corrected him. "I have no right to give you orders, especially not since we haven't agreed on the terms of your employment yet, have we? Let's see..." He paused for a moment, pondering. "How about ten Galleons a week and weekends off?"

The only sounds in the room were Winky's strangled sobs. Minerva and Dobby both gaped at him.

"Professor Dumbledore is being too kind to Dobby." He shook his head in amazement. "He wants paying, but... but he can't accept that much."

"What did you have in mind then?"

Now it was Dobby's turn to think. "One Galleon a week and one day a month off," he said proudly as though he was driving a hard bargain when in fact he had literally just done the opposite.

Albus suppressed a laugh. "That sounds acceptable to me. How about you, Winky?"

The female house-elf let out a piercing scream. "House-elves do not get paid. No, no, no! It isn't right. Winky doesn't want to get paid. Oh, the shame, the shame!" She burst into fresh tears.

"I apologise," Albus said loud enough to be heard over her despair. "That was very rude of me. We won't pay you then. But do you wish to work at Hogwarts, Winky?"

When she didn't say anything, Dobby did it for her. "She does, Professor Dumbledore, sir!"

"I'm afraid I need her to tell me that herself," Albus explained.

Dobby poked and prodded Winky for so long until she agreed. That was probably the textbook definition of acting under duress. But the fact remained that she didn't have any other place to stay and no more purpose in life. Allowing her to work at Hogwarts seemed like the only alternative.

"Very well then. I hereby accept your services to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

This time both house-elves bowed and curtsied. Technically, they were free elves, but as their employer Albus was now also their new master and it was in their nature to prostrate themselves before him. Since Dobby was a bit of a free spirit, Albus might be able to change that.

"I have a few rules," he said and Dobby nodded eagerly. "First of all, if anyone treats you unkindly or unjustly, you will not accept it as par for the course. You will come to me and tell me about it. In general, I encourage everyone who works for me to speak their mind. I appreciate loyalty and some... discretion." His gaze darted to Minerva. He wasn't sure if Dobby and Winky had seen them kiss earlier. "But only if it is freely given. I do not expect or demand it if you don't feel I deserve it. If you happen to think that I'm a barmy, old codger, you can go ahead and say so any time."

"Oh no, Dobby would never say such a thing about his master. Not a master he likes. And he does like Professor Dumbledore very much, sir!"

"Then I hope you'll both be happy here. If you want, I could show you to the kitchen..."

"We'll find it, Professor Dumbledore, sir. We'll get to work right away," Dobby interrupted him, almost as though he didn't want Albus to treat him with any more human decency.

He and Winky disappeared as abruptly as they had appeared.

Albus leaned back in his chair and beamed at Minerva. "Now that was truly extraordinary." When she didn't answer, he quirked a brow. "You don't think so?"

"I... do," she agreed hesitantly. "It's just... what if he decides to take you up on your original offer and then persuades the other house-elves to ask for the same thing? Ten Galleons a week? Hogwarts doesn't have that kind of money right now. And weekends off? Sure, we could work out some kind of rotation, but what if they all want the same weekend off? Who's going to prepare the meals for the students?"

"Perhaps you could learn to cook. I hear it's never too late to start," he said, tongue very much in cheek. "No, I'm sorry. That was sexist, wasn't it? Perhaps you could read the recipe while Severus does the cooking. At the very least he should know how to chop some vegetables."

Minerva huffed. "Make fun all you want. You know I'd love for them to have fair working conditions, too, but somebody needs to be practical about this."

"Well, as long as we're being practical, we might just as well be realistic." Albus' amusement faded. "You saw Winky with your own eyes. It is highly unlikely that any of the other house-elves will listen to Dobby any more than she did. He is, quite simply, one of a kind."

Shooting him a meaningful look, Minerva said, "Sometimes a person like that is all that's needed to lead others to see the light."

Whoever had originally decided that the Yule Ball should be a traditional part of the Triwizard Tournament could not have been a teacher. In the days leading up to the ball teaching was virtually impossible. Girls kept bursting into giggles as soon as a boy so much as looked in their direction and boys kept walking around with increasingly panicked expressions on their faces while they silently mouthed the words they would need to ask someone to the ball. Naturally, the only one who wasn't excited about the ball was the one student Minerva had to strong-arm into finding a partner. Potter could argue with her about it all he wanted, neither one of them was getting out of this thing.

"It'll be good for him, I think, to worry about such normal things like finding a dance partner," Albus mused when she told him about her discussion with Potter. "Perhaps he'll get into the spirit of things once he's actually at the ball. After all, I just booked a phenomenal band for the evening. Or so I'm told."

"You're actually looking forward to this ball," Minerva realised when Albus' eyes twinkled brighter than the everlasting icicles Filius had attached to the bannisters.

Albus smiled at her in confirmation. "This is the only part of the Triwizard Tournament that does not involve danger to life and limb, unless someone should prove to be a spectacularly bad dancer. So yes, I'm rather partial to it." He chuckled. "I thought you felt the same way. You and Filius outdid yourselves with the decorations. I'm particularly enjoying the suits of armour that sing Christmas carols. I walked back and forth in front of one so often the other day that people started to look at me funny."

"That's different. We did that to make a good impression on our guests," Minerva said, though her lips twitched at the mental image of Albus stalking suits of armour all day long.

"To show off, you mean."

"That too."

"Excellent," he said merrily. "Then we can all show off our dancing skills next. I might be a little rusty, but I shall endeavour not to tread on your toes too often."

"That won't be a problem since you and I won't be dancing together," Minerva told him.

Albus' face fell. "Why ever not? I realise I'm the one who usually wants us to be discreet, but this is a ball. People are supposed to dance. I believe that's what one might call hiding in plain sight."

It was a clever argument, but it actually made Minerva's point for her. "I don't want to hide at all. If I get the chance to dance with you, I actually want to dance. What I don't want is to worry if you're holding me too close, if your hand is somewhere it shouldn't be or if I I'm looking at you with too much love in my eyes."

A smile had returned to Albus' face and it had widened with every word. "I hear you, but everything you just said only makes me want to dance with you more."

"Then you shouldn't have become such a famous wizard," Minerva challenged.

"If I could hand in my fame in exchange for a dance with you, I would do it in a heartbeat," Albus vowed. "Alas, I can't. And I also can't resist asking you to dance when you'll be right there next to me."

"Good thing I won't be then. You'll be sitting with the other judges and champions," Minerva pointed out. "You can keep Potter company. He might just be the only Triwizard champion ever who failed to find a partner for the ball," she said, shaking her head as she walked away.

Potter proved her wrong. He did find a partner, he simply looked as though he wished he hadn't. Especially once the dancing started – or something that vaguely resembled dancing in Potter's case. Albus opened the ball with Madame Maxime. Minerva would have been perfectly fine watching them and laughing inside because the height difference between the two of them was simply too big to be allowed. But after the first song had ended, Ludo Bagman came over to ask her to dance and Minerva couldn't think of a good reason to say no fast enough. She made it through one dance with him and then she excused herself to sit back down. Albus did not. He moved on to dance with Pomona. Followed by Aurora and then Rolanda. Minerva had never seen the flying instructor so enthusiastic about anything other than Quidditch. She was currently leading Albus across the dance floor, not the other way around, which he seemed to accept with mild amusement.

When they twirled past where Minerva was sitting, Albus lifted a brow in a 'Do you realise now that it's more suspicious if I don't dance with you?' sort of way.

She glared back at him, suggesting that he should stop asking other women to dance then.

He gave her a 'But I happen to be very good at it' laugh before Rolanda steered him away.

Minerva crossed her legs and bounced her foot in annoyance.

"Trouble in paradise?"

She jumped in surprise but relaxed quickly as Poppy dropped into the chair next to her. "What are you talking about?"

"You," her friend said succinctly, "sitting here, looking decidedly unhappy while Albus is dancing with every female member of staff he can find. He asked me, too, but I declined. Just so you know." She grinned cheekily.

Minerva blew out a frustrated breath. "You can dance with whomever you want to. Just like everybody else."

"Except for you?"

"Somebody needs to keep an eye on things," she hedged.

"You deserve to have some fun, too. Looks like Bathsheda can show you how." Poppy had shifted her attention back to the dance floor. The Weird Sisters had just started playing a new, slow song. "Goodness gracious, she's holding on to Albus awfully tight."

Minerva stood rather abruptly. "I need some air."

She strode off towards the open doors of the Great Hall. But she never made it to the exit because someone suddenly grabbed her arm and yanked her behind one of the large Christmas trees.

"What in the world…?" she exclaimed when she found herself face to face with Severus.

"You were about to be waltzed over by… that," he explained and pointed at Hagrid and Madame Maxime, who were a much better match than Maxime and Albus. They were also not looking where – or on whom – they were stepping.

Minerva couldn't help a thin smile at the sight of them dancing. They actually looked cute together, in the not so small meaning of the word. "Thank you," she added towards Severus.

"Drink?" was his only response.

She eyed the glass he was holding out to her. "Have you been hiding back here all this time?"

"If you must know, I was waiting for an opportune moment to talk to Karkaroff and this seemed like the least repulsive place to do that."

Minerva accepted the drink and noticed that Severus was not wearing dress robes. Or if he was, they looked exactly like his usual black ones. "And here I thought you fled into this corner to get away from all the fun you were having."

"Obviously, since I'm well known for always being the life of the party," he replied in such a deadpan voice that Minerva snorted into her glass. "What are you hiding from then?" he asked.

She didn't know what made her be honest. "My own stupidity."

Severus smirked. "I don't think this corner is big enough for that."

Strangely, it was the first thing today that made her laugh out loud. "Takes one to know one," she retorted.

"Which is why I shall leave you to it." Severus made his own glass vanish and walked away. Minerva scanned the hall and saw that Karkaroff was also on the move.

She finished her drink and this time she was careful to watch where she was going when she decided to return to her seat. But Hagrid and Maxime must have taken their budding romance outside. They weren't on the dance floor anymore. Unlike Albus, who was dancing with Poppy after all. Minerva ignored them and focused on watching the students. Miss Granger looked like she was having a good time with Viktor Krum. The two of them had come as a surprise to a lot of people – Minerva included. She knew what Albus would have to say about it.

The heart wants what the heart wants.

She sighed. It did indeed.

At midnight Minerva began to herd all remaining students back to their dormitories. Their protests and pleas fell on deaf ears. The Weird Sisters had long since left the stage and the ball had officially ended. More importantly, Minerva wanted to go to bed now. It took some time until she and the other Heads of House had rounded everyone up, including the students who had been hiding in the bushes outside, though Severus had done a pretty good job of scaring them off already.

Once she had finally returned to her bedroom, Minerva was just about to slip out of her red tartan dress robes when Albus entered behind her and reached for her hand to stop her. Without saying a word he took off her hat and pulled the pins out of her hair so that it fell all the way to her back. Minerva wasn't exactly sure what he was doing, but she was about to tell him that she was too tired and not in the mood. Albus never gave her the chance. He laced their fingers together and led her out of the bedroom.

It confused her so much that she forgot to argue. She followed him all the way back to the Great Hall. It was dark and deserted now, but the fairy lights on the Christmas trees twinkled just enough to fill the hall with little silver sparks. Not to be outdone, the stars in the enchanted night sky above their heads burned a little brighter when they entered.

Albus pointed his wand at the doors. They closed with a quiet thud and locked themselves. He directed his wand at the stage next, where the Weird Sisters had left behind their instruments. A little flick of his hand and they began to play all on their own.

Satisfied, Albus dropped his wand into the pockets of his midnight blue dress robes. He then took a step back and hinted at a bow. "May I have the honour of this dance?"

The trace of a smile played across his lips when Minerva stared at him without answering.

"If you need me to beg, I will, because I've been waiting for this all night."

She pondered a couple of snarky replies like asking him if he wasn't thoroughly exhausted after dancing with the entire school. But then she saw the soft silver light of the Great Hall reflected in his eyes behind those half-moon spectacles. They glowed with nothing but warmth and affection for her. And she realised that he could dance with all of Britain for all she cared, as long as that look, that piece of his soul, belonged to her alone.

Minerva took his proffered hand and with a winning smile Albus pulled her towards him. He began to lead her in a waltz and despite his warnings he never stepped on her toes once. She had never really expected him to because she knew from personal experience that Albus could dance.

"This is going better than I hoped," he said after a while. "You didn't even try to lead."

"That is the proper way to dance, is it not?"

He chortled. "Oh, you'd be surprised."

He was referring to his escapades from earlier tonight, but Minerva was thinking of something else entirely. "Yes, dancing is always good for a surprise."

"Anything specific you have in mind?" Albus asked gently, reading her mood with as much ease as he was steering them around the room.

"I just remembered that the first time we danced, I finally knew for a fact," she paused as Albus spun her out and then pulled her back in, "that I was hopelessly in love with you."

Albus' hold on her tightened. "Your brother's wedding."

It was a bittersweet memory, considering she had also been attacked by a dark wizard that day and she would never stop missing Robert. But dancing with Albus and realising that her heart was still very much alive shone like a bright light in the middle of all that.

"If only I had known that when I was younger. I wouldn't have argued so strongly with my mother when she insisted that it was only proper for me to learn how to dance," Albus reminisced, making sure that Minerva had no time to dwell on the sadder aspects of her own memory. "She never mentioned that being a good dancer would bring me love."

"Thankfully not with every woman you dance with or we'd be in a pretty pickle right now," Minerva quipped. "Especially since Hagrid might be willing to fight you for Madame Maxime."

"Oh no, Olympe is a very charming woman, but I wouldn't want to stand in the way of their happiness," Albus said, joking at first and then realising that he meant it. "I really would be happy for them."

"You would be happy for everyone who found love."

"How could I not be?" Albus smiled at her so openly that his true feelings wouldn't have been a mystery to anyone. "With you looking so…"

"Don't say it," she cut him off, rolling her eyes. "It's horribly cliché."

Albus' steps never faltered, though he pretended to be baffled. "First I can't dance with you and now I can't be romantic? I may have to write down all these new rules."

"It's not romantic if it's downright ridiculous. I've never been the beautiful woman in the room." She had long since made her peace with that. For the most part.

The expression on Albus' face told her that he would never let that stand. "You have always been that woman to me. After all, what could be more beautiful than the person who completes me with her laughter, her wit and her heart? I don't have the faintest idea why one should care about a kind of beauty that supposedly is only visible to the naked eye."

"That sounds like something you should have put in your speech earlier." Minerva's tone was teasing, but she was smiling, too. He simply made it impossible for her not to. "You probably could have saved a lot of hearts from being broken tonight."

"Luckily, the students have more than enough time to find the right someone to tell them this." Albus' smile mirrored her own. "Not all romances can start and end at Hogwarts."

"No," she agreed softly, "only the best ones do."

Even while laughing, Albus didn't miss a step. "Now who's being romantic?"

"In my defence, you really are a good dancer," Minerva admitted.

"And not the kind of man who would use this opportunity for an 'I told you so,'" he grinned.

Minerva gave him – and the complete lack of an appropriate distance between them – a meaningful look. "You better not. Because my point still stands. We couldn't have done this surrounded by the whole school. You must understand that now."

"I always understood," Albus told her seriously. "I just refused to accept that we couldn't have it both ways."

"I've always loved our way more," Minerva said truthfully. She knew he heard everything she didn't say. He always did. That she was a little sorry for her stubbornness today but also not at all because it had led to this. To this moment.

Because he loved her enough to love all the not so lovable parts of her as well, and she did the same for him.

The music slowed and so did their movements. Albus' hands slid down to the small of her back so he could hold her more firmly against him and Minerva wrapped her arms around his neck.

Albus brought his mouth to her ear. "Should we have more balls at Hogwarts then?"

"As long as they're just for the two of us," she laughed against his shoulder.

She didn't want to share this with anyone else. She didn't even want to think about tomorrow or the day after or whether there would be another ball in their future or not. She just wanted to sway in time with the music, dance to the rhythm of their heartbeat and stay in each other's arms for as long as they still could.

And so they did.

And the whole world dropped away.

A/N: I know they're dancing publicly in the film, which is the one thing they changed that was actually a sweet surprise. But I'm sticking to what's in the books - as a general rule and also because one of my earliest memories of shipping Albus and Minerva as a young girl has to do with them not dancing at the Yule Ball (at least not while Harry is watching). My best friend and I met before school and we discussed (very seriously) that a headmaster should really be obligated to dance with his deputy headmistress and we were really disappointed and wondered why he didn't. Well, now I have my answer. But enough about me. I hope you enjoyed it. Leave me a review if you like. :)