This chapter may be icky. It invloves two characters that you may prefer not to see in an initimate relationship. One of these characters happens to also be very underage. Please bail out immediately you become nauseous. Also, I am not much good at dialect, so excuse any inaccuracies in my clumsy rendition of Hagrid's speech.
Disclaimers as for previous chapter.
Chapter Two - A Memory Resurfaces.
McGonagall sat shakily in Hagrid's hut, watching him make a cup of tea. When he sat down opposite her, she drew in a deep breath and tried to gather her courage.
"Hagrid, there is something I have to tell you."
"If it's about them Spotted Garden Quallbiters...." he began, but McGonagall raised a hand to silence him.
"No, no, it's not about school now, Rubeus, my old friend." She stopped, and looked at her hands in her lap. "Do you remember when we met each other at school? You were always in trouble for sneaking in creatures...."
"An' yeh was always top o' the class, an' nivver noticed me." finished Hagrid.
"Yes, well, Rubeus, it is that which I want to speak to you about. About the time I did notice you. You can't remember it, of course, because I put a memory charm on you." Hagrid began to look alarmed, as McGonagall continued, "But now, circumstances have changed, and, at last, I have to remove it." She raised her wand, and there was a bang as Hagrid fell out of his chair. Fang the boarhound raced to his side, howling, but Hagrid could not hear him. He was floating in a memory more than fifty years old, to a spring day in his second year, when Minerva had been in her seventh.
"Staying for the holidays are you, Hagrid?" drawled Tom Riddle. "Sneaking off to wrestle trolls in the Forbidden Forest after you've finished stuffing your face with cakes?" He made a contemptuous gesture to the nearly empty plate in front of Hagrid, and Hagris flushed red and mumbled something. Though only half grown, he was still a big and clumsy boy, over six foot tall already. Riddle smiled mockingly.
"I'd watch out in the forest, Hagrid. I just saw Minerva McGonagall running down there, upset about something." He watched the boy's face with cool, malicious amusement. "One could almost say, in fact, that it is your duty, as a Gryffindor, to rescue her, could one not?" he finished smoothly, smile stretching into a smirk as Hagrid flushed even deeper. "She would be guaranteed to notice you then, wouldn't she? She'd be grateful, in fact. You'd be her hero."
Hagrid muttered something inaudible, pushed back his chair, and raced out of the castle toward the forest, followed by sneering laughter. He did not care, he was intent on finding Minerva McGonagall.
She was crouched under a tree with her eyes closed, her fisted hands pushing into them, but she looked up at his approach. As he came to an embarassed halt she gazed at him with a very strange expression on her face. Hagrid gazed fixedly at his feet.
"I jus' thought I'd check yeh're ok." he mumbled to his toes. "Silly thought, 'course yeh're fine, yeh a top student..." his voice died and he turned to shuffle away.
"Wait." commanded McGonagall, softly. She rose to her feet and gently touched Hagrid's arm just above the elbow. "It's Hagrid, isn't it? Rubeus Hagrid?"
"Yes." he admitted nervously, wondering what was coming next. He was astounded, but thrilled, excited, and amazed at his good fortune, when she reached up on tip toes to press her lips to his.
"Don't go." she whispered, pulling him down under the tree with her. "Stay right here with me." She sat on his lap and kissed him again. Hagrid was nearly delirious with joy at having his secret dream come true - Minerva McGonagall, a young woman with beauty, poise, and a powerful mind, had noticed him. Liked him. Wanted him. He returned her kiss clumsily but with enthusiasm, and soon was a master of the art. He put his new skill into use by kissing her neck, while she unbuttoned their robes. They had made love beneath the tree, then had wandered through the forest in a blissful haze for three long, springtime days, dodging both the less pleasant inhabitants of the forest and the search parties sent out by the school. Hagrid had shown her the beauty of the forest, and she had shown him the beauty of their bodies together.
He lay beneath another tree, watching Minerva sleep pressed against him, light dappling over her body. The play of sun and shade was frivolous and ephemeral, not like Minerva. She was intense, laughing and working with equal fervour; curious, disciplined, steadfast. Hagrid loved her, with all the adoration of a young boy, but more than that. He was also tenacious, like the earth itself. She stirred in her dream, and Rubeus ran his hand over her back, gently tracing the shifting shadows. She stretched slowly, and he kissed her as her eyes fluttered open.
Then it happened. Hagrid went cold as Minerva dragged herself away from him, hunched over as if in pain, rocking back and forth on her heels.
"Oh, what have I done?" she moaned softly, as her suddenly shadowed eyes took in the scene. Hagrid started to talk, his eyes concerned, his hand reaching out for her, jerking back as if scalded when she flinched back. She grabbed her wand from the pile of clothes nearby.
"I'm so sorry, Rubeus, I'm so sorry. But this is all I can think of to do." There was a bang, and the three halycon days had been out of waking memory for Rubeus Hagrid. Until now.
He opened his eyes to find Fang whimpering and licking his face. He rose shakily to his feet and collapsed onto a chair. McGonagall, very pale, pushed a glass of homebrew into his hand, and took a steadying gulp from her own. Hagrid swallowed down the brew like a life preserver.
"W - why?" he stammered, unable to articulate more.
"Why did I seduce you and then wipe your memory?" she asked. "Tom Riddle. The mastermind of so many devious plans - including this one. He put a love charm on me, that I would love for three days the next person I saw. I heard him clearly, however, and took care to keep my hands over my eyes. Someone led me to the Forest, to wait there until it wore off. Then I saw you. You know the rest."
"Then why...?"
"Tell you now?" she asked. "Because you don't know the whole story." She gestured at his glass. "Drink some more, then I'll finish the story." She poured more homebrew into their glasses, and Hagrid drank it as if it was water. He stared at Minerva, tears starting in his eyes.
"I bin in love with yeh most o' me life, an' now I know why." he sobbed. "Dreamin' about yeh..."
"Rubeus..."
"Nivver thought yeh'd look at me." he continued.
"Rubeus, I haven't told you everything." Hagrid stopped crying, and sniffed dolefully, gazing at her tired face.
"After the Memory Charm you were unconscious. I got you dressed, went back to the school and told Dumbledore the entire thing. He made an excuse for our absence; that you had been injured in the forest and that I had nursed you for three days before being able to seek help. That's the story you've always believed, right?" Hagrid nodded.
"Well," she continued, "just when I thought everything would be fine, everyone accepted the story, Riddle had stopped sneering, and you and I were friends, I found out." She shuddered, and Hagrid's hand closed over hers. "I found out I was pregnant."
Hagrid went, if possible, even paler under his beard. He swayed on his chair and McGonagall virtually forced more homebrew down his throat.
"Why didn't yeh tell me?" he demanded hoarsely.
"How could I, Rubeus? I'd charmed away your memory, saved you the embarassment, the bitterness, the shame, how could I take that back? And how would the school have reacted? I thought it was for the best, you were little more than a child yourself. No, I went back to Dumbledore. It was easily concealed since the term was nearly over. We checked, and found that the baby would be a Muggle, so she was adopted out. Because she's a Muggle, your giant blood never came out in her. But her daughter: her daughter is a witch, and she is growing." McGonagall paused to sip some more homebrew. "This will be hard for you, Rubeus." she said gently. "I'm so sorry. It's Hermione."
Hagrid broke down in noisy tears, so did McGonagall, their hands still clenched together over the table. At last Fang, perhaps fearing a flood, began to howl noisily with their sobs, and Minerva smiled shakily at Rubeus, who mopped his face with a hankerchief and tried to soothe Fang.
"Rubeus, when you were expelled I felt so guilty." admitted Minerva later, as they talked quietly over the table, hands still clutched together. "If I hadn't said you'd been sneaking around in the forest, Riddle might not have got away with blaming you. I might have told the whole story then, but I didn't find out about it for a few months, and then it was too late."
"Don' blame yehself, Minerva." said Hagrid. "That Riddle was nothin' but trouble. He just would'ave framed someone else."
"It's funny to think that he is responsible for the birth of Hermione Granger." said Minerva, thoughtfully. "I wonder what sort of magickal bond that gives them."
"I dunno that I wan' teh find out, and I bet 'Ermione don't neither."
They talked until dawn streaked the sky, and Hagrid yawned hugely and swayed on his seat. McGonagall helped him to his bed, where he fell asleep immediately. McGonagall also yawned, and curled up right where she was next to him.
----
Breathe deep, we're through the seriously weird stuff, though the next chapter has it's surprises too.
Oh, yeah, and do the maths before you complain about my chronology. So far as I and my trusty assistant can make it, Minerva McGonagall is 70. Hagrid was 13 when the Chamber of Secrets was opened the first time, and 63 when it was opened the second time, making him 65 now. Thus, McGonagall must have been in her seventh year when Hagrid was in his second, and they must both have been contemporaries of Tom Riddle. If McGonagall had Hermione's mum when she was 18, that makes her 52 now. Hermione is 15, so her mother (Beth Granger) must have been 37 when she had Hermione. A little unusual, sure, but she and her husband are both dentists, so it is possible she was a pioneering career woman. So, there you go. It all fits.
Disclaimers as for previous chapter.
Chapter Two - A Memory Resurfaces.
McGonagall sat shakily in Hagrid's hut, watching him make a cup of tea. When he sat down opposite her, she drew in a deep breath and tried to gather her courage.
"Hagrid, there is something I have to tell you."
"If it's about them Spotted Garden Quallbiters...." he began, but McGonagall raised a hand to silence him.
"No, no, it's not about school now, Rubeus, my old friend." She stopped, and looked at her hands in her lap. "Do you remember when we met each other at school? You were always in trouble for sneaking in creatures...."
"An' yeh was always top o' the class, an' nivver noticed me." finished Hagrid.
"Yes, well, Rubeus, it is that which I want to speak to you about. About the time I did notice you. You can't remember it, of course, because I put a memory charm on you." Hagrid began to look alarmed, as McGonagall continued, "But now, circumstances have changed, and, at last, I have to remove it." She raised her wand, and there was a bang as Hagrid fell out of his chair. Fang the boarhound raced to his side, howling, but Hagrid could not hear him. He was floating in a memory more than fifty years old, to a spring day in his second year, when Minerva had been in her seventh.
"Staying for the holidays are you, Hagrid?" drawled Tom Riddle. "Sneaking off to wrestle trolls in the Forbidden Forest after you've finished stuffing your face with cakes?" He made a contemptuous gesture to the nearly empty plate in front of Hagrid, and Hagris flushed red and mumbled something. Though only half grown, he was still a big and clumsy boy, over six foot tall already. Riddle smiled mockingly.
"I'd watch out in the forest, Hagrid. I just saw Minerva McGonagall running down there, upset about something." He watched the boy's face with cool, malicious amusement. "One could almost say, in fact, that it is your duty, as a Gryffindor, to rescue her, could one not?" he finished smoothly, smile stretching into a smirk as Hagrid flushed even deeper. "She would be guaranteed to notice you then, wouldn't she? She'd be grateful, in fact. You'd be her hero."
Hagrid muttered something inaudible, pushed back his chair, and raced out of the castle toward the forest, followed by sneering laughter. He did not care, he was intent on finding Minerva McGonagall.
She was crouched under a tree with her eyes closed, her fisted hands pushing into them, but she looked up at his approach. As he came to an embarassed halt she gazed at him with a very strange expression on her face. Hagrid gazed fixedly at his feet.
"I jus' thought I'd check yeh're ok." he mumbled to his toes. "Silly thought, 'course yeh're fine, yeh a top student..." his voice died and he turned to shuffle away.
"Wait." commanded McGonagall, softly. She rose to her feet and gently touched Hagrid's arm just above the elbow. "It's Hagrid, isn't it? Rubeus Hagrid?"
"Yes." he admitted nervously, wondering what was coming next. He was astounded, but thrilled, excited, and amazed at his good fortune, when she reached up on tip toes to press her lips to his.
"Don't go." she whispered, pulling him down under the tree with her. "Stay right here with me." She sat on his lap and kissed him again. Hagrid was nearly delirious with joy at having his secret dream come true - Minerva McGonagall, a young woman with beauty, poise, and a powerful mind, had noticed him. Liked him. Wanted him. He returned her kiss clumsily but with enthusiasm, and soon was a master of the art. He put his new skill into use by kissing her neck, while she unbuttoned their robes. They had made love beneath the tree, then had wandered through the forest in a blissful haze for three long, springtime days, dodging both the less pleasant inhabitants of the forest and the search parties sent out by the school. Hagrid had shown her the beauty of the forest, and she had shown him the beauty of their bodies together.
He lay beneath another tree, watching Minerva sleep pressed against him, light dappling over her body. The play of sun and shade was frivolous and ephemeral, not like Minerva. She was intense, laughing and working with equal fervour; curious, disciplined, steadfast. Hagrid loved her, with all the adoration of a young boy, but more than that. He was also tenacious, like the earth itself. She stirred in her dream, and Rubeus ran his hand over her back, gently tracing the shifting shadows. She stretched slowly, and he kissed her as her eyes fluttered open.
Then it happened. Hagrid went cold as Minerva dragged herself away from him, hunched over as if in pain, rocking back and forth on her heels.
"Oh, what have I done?" she moaned softly, as her suddenly shadowed eyes took in the scene. Hagrid started to talk, his eyes concerned, his hand reaching out for her, jerking back as if scalded when she flinched back. She grabbed her wand from the pile of clothes nearby.
"I'm so sorry, Rubeus, I'm so sorry. But this is all I can think of to do." There was a bang, and the three halycon days had been out of waking memory for Rubeus Hagrid. Until now.
He opened his eyes to find Fang whimpering and licking his face. He rose shakily to his feet and collapsed onto a chair. McGonagall, very pale, pushed a glass of homebrew into his hand, and took a steadying gulp from her own. Hagrid swallowed down the brew like a life preserver.
"W - why?" he stammered, unable to articulate more.
"Why did I seduce you and then wipe your memory?" she asked. "Tom Riddle. The mastermind of so many devious plans - including this one. He put a love charm on me, that I would love for three days the next person I saw. I heard him clearly, however, and took care to keep my hands over my eyes. Someone led me to the Forest, to wait there until it wore off. Then I saw you. You know the rest."
"Then why...?"
"Tell you now?" she asked. "Because you don't know the whole story." She gestured at his glass. "Drink some more, then I'll finish the story." She poured more homebrew into their glasses, and Hagrid drank it as if it was water. He stared at Minerva, tears starting in his eyes.
"I bin in love with yeh most o' me life, an' now I know why." he sobbed. "Dreamin' about yeh..."
"Rubeus..."
"Nivver thought yeh'd look at me." he continued.
"Rubeus, I haven't told you everything." Hagrid stopped crying, and sniffed dolefully, gazing at her tired face.
"After the Memory Charm you were unconscious. I got you dressed, went back to the school and told Dumbledore the entire thing. He made an excuse for our absence; that you had been injured in the forest and that I had nursed you for three days before being able to seek help. That's the story you've always believed, right?" Hagrid nodded.
"Well," she continued, "just when I thought everything would be fine, everyone accepted the story, Riddle had stopped sneering, and you and I were friends, I found out." She shuddered, and Hagrid's hand closed over hers. "I found out I was pregnant."
Hagrid went, if possible, even paler under his beard. He swayed on his chair and McGonagall virtually forced more homebrew down his throat.
"Why didn't yeh tell me?" he demanded hoarsely.
"How could I, Rubeus? I'd charmed away your memory, saved you the embarassment, the bitterness, the shame, how could I take that back? And how would the school have reacted? I thought it was for the best, you were little more than a child yourself. No, I went back to Dumbledore. It was easily concealed since the term was nearly over. We checked, and found that the baby would be a Muggle, so she was adopted out. Because she's a Muggle, your giant blood never came out in her. But her daughter: her daughter is a witch, and she is growing." McGonagall paused to sip some more homebrew. "This will be hard for you, Rubeus." she said gently. "I'm so sorry. It's Hermione."
Hagrid broke down in noisy tears, so did McGonagall, their hands still clenched together over the table. At last Fang, perhaps fearing a flood, began to howl noisily with their sobs, and Minerva smiled shakily at Rubeus, who mopped his face with a hankerchief and tried to soothe Fang.
"Rubeus, when you were expelled I felt so guilty." admitted Minerva later, as they talked quietly over the table, hands still clutched together. "If I hadn't said you'd been sneaking around in the forest, Riddle might not have got away with blaming you. I might have told the whole story then, but I didn't find out about it for a few months, and then it was too late."
"Don' blame yehself, Minerva." said Hagrid. "That Riddle was nothin' but trouble. He just would'ave framed someone else."
"It's funny to think that he is responsible for the birth of Hermione Granger." said Minerva, thoughtfully. "I wonder what sort of magickal bond that gives them."
"I dunno that I wan' teh find out, and I bet 'Ermione don't neither."
They talked until dawn streaked the sky, and Hagrid yawned hugely and swayed on his seat. McGonagall helped him to his bed, where he fell asleep immediately. McGonagall also yawned, and curled up right where she was next to him.
----
Breathe deep, we're through the seriously weird stuff, though the next chapter has it's surprises too.
Oh, yeah, and do the maths before you complain about my chronology. So far as I and my trusty assistant can make it, Minerva McGonagall is 70. Hagrid was 13 when the Chamber of Secrets was opened the first time, and 63 when it was opened the second time, making him 65 now. Thus, McGonagall must have been in her seventh year when Hagrid was in his second, and they must both have been contemporaries of Tom Riddle. If McGonagall had Hermione's mum when she was 18, that makes her 52 now. Hermione is 15, so her mother (Beth Granger) must have been 37 when she had Hermione. A little unusual, sure, but she and her husband are both dentists, so it is possible she was a pioneering career woman. So, there you go. It all fits.
