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Convictions
She bit her lip, her raven hair gently swinging in her face as she swept the hospital wing. The room was silent, save for the gentle sweeping noise of the broom.
The door to the ward opened and she looked up, forcing a grin that looked more like a grimace. "Tom. How are you?"
"I thought you might need some company."
She sighed. "In truth, Tom, I really don't think that I deserve company," she muttered stiffly. He arched a dark eyebrow at her, and she bowed her head. "I should have been suspended for that. I'm glad that Dumbledore's so lenient, but I don't really think that I should be talking now. I'm here to pay penance."
"Yes," he said. "But I *did* help you plan the thing." He glanced at her broom. "Gods! Minerva! Is that your Cleansweep?"
She nodded grimly. "Yeah."
He grabbed it from her hands, crossing the ward and thrusting another broom into her hands. "Your self-inflicted punishment shouldn't extend to your broom, Min. You remind me of this house-elf"-
She snatched the Cleansweep from him. "You should leave. I could have broken his neck."
"This is MALFOY we're talking about. Even I hate him, and he's in my own house! Antillius Malfoy!"
"Still doesn't excuse what I did. You should leave, Tom. Before we're caught."
He took a step closer to her, and she stopped sweeping, looking apprehensive. To him, her homely thirteen-year-old face suddenly became beautiful. He leaned in to kiss her-
And she sent him off with a well-placed knee in his crotch. "That's out of order, Tom."
He nodded. "I'm sorry. It's just that, well, I. I could tell you were in love with someone, and Dung said"-
"Since when have you ever trusted what Dung had to say?" She peered into his face. "Tom. Is there something that you're not telling me?"
He shrugged. "Plenty. And none of it concerns you in the slightest."
She nodded. "I probably deserved that." She paused before continuing. "I- well. How do I put this. It's just that. Are you a legimens?"
His jaw dropped. "Min! Talk about paranoid! First it's me, then it's Dumbledore, then it's your dad, then your sister."
She laughed when she saw what he meant. "Yes. But you've got the order wrong."
"I see. But, perhaps someday, I *will* become a legimens and"- he paused. "Waaaiiit. You wouldn't have asked if I was a legimens if there hadn't been some truth to what I'd said. So, Minerva McGonagall is in love, or so she thinks. I can see it in your eyes, Min. It's written all over your face. See, you're blushing! Who is it? Mundungus Fletcher, perhaps? Or maybe that Hufflepuff, Harrison Potter. Or, perhaps, if you're out of your mind, me, or"-
"Professor Dumbledore!" The door to the ward had swung open, and Albus Dumbledore was striding down the aisle between the beds. She turned back to Tom. "I should get back to work. Then, maybe I'll have time to help you with the ani-inatimus conversion, and you can help me with shrinking solution, and then we can start learning summoning charms"- her voice trailed off. "Well, bye."
"Yes. Bye." He strode to the end of the ward and the door clicked behind him.
"Hello, Professor. I'm sorry about. Um. That." She studied the floor.
"It's quite alright. Actually, I'd been thinking that you'd like some help and company. I am aware that you know quite well now not to smear hand cream on the broomstick of an opposing player, though I was quite sure that such petty pranks were below you." She felt like vanishing through the floor under his gaze. "But you now know better. In fact"- he flicked his wand and the broomsticks were sent to the various places in which they belonged.
"Thank you, sir."
"Would you like to talk for a while?" He gestured to a bed. She sat on it, and he sat on the bed across the aisle.
"What about?"
"Anything you like."
"I don't mind. Whatever *you* like."
He chuckled. "We've known each other for thirteen years, yet a conversation is somehow beyond us."
She smiled at the irony and cast about for a topic. "How long have you known my family?"
He nodded. "That's a start." Studying the ceiling, he sighed and began to speak. "Your mother was born in 1910, and her father was my age. Your mother's father was one of my closest friends in school, but he was killed twelve years ago."
"I never met him."
"I didn't figure that you had. He and I were very close through school, and before; we were not unlike Ms. Patil and yourself. Your mother is closer to me than a sister. Our respective families go way back. Your paternal line and my line are not as close, but the McGonagalls have always been well known. I daresay, however, that you show little of your father, and much of your mother." She beamed.
"Thank you. I appreciate that."
He frowned. "Your father is not a bad man, Minerva."
She spoke, furrowing her brow. "Yes. He is. He's a Night Fiend; he supports Grindelwald. He's EVIL. I"-
He shook his head, looking more grave than ever. "He is not evil, Minerva. There is no such thing as evil." She gave him a puzzled look, and he continued. "You take Muggle Studies, yes?" She nodded. "The muggle who is trying to take over muggle Europe"-
"Adolf Hitler?"
"Yes, him. Why do you think that he is taking so many lives?"
She frowned. "He wants power."
"Yes. And why do you suppose he wants power? Do you suppose that he wants to kill just for the fun of it?"
"Yeah. That's what I think."
"Perhaps, in fact, that is a part of it. But there is a reason for it. He believes that he is serving the Greater Good."
She snorted. "He couldn't be further off the mark."
He shrugged. "You see, Minerva, our ideas of evil are so subjective; so personal- we cannot fathom what is happening in another person's mind. What one believes to be good, another believes to be evil. We see nothing in the same light. So we must learn to weigh it out, and know that we must believe in our convictions and be willing to fight for them. But we must always know that people do not dispute these convictions simply out of spite. They dispute these convictions because they are upholding their own."
Sputtering, she attempted to respond. "Bbuttt... I mean, look at Hitler! Look at Grindelwald!"
He nodded. "They are both destroying the world that we live in, yet they are doing so out of care for the very world that they are working to demolish. Do you see the irony, Minerva? But it is only irony in our eyes. Both Grindelwald and Hitler have thousands of supporters that share these same convictions. Supporters willing to die for these convictions."
"Only because they're terrified that they'll say something wrong and die in their sleep," she said.
He chuckled lightly. "Not all of them have that terror, Minerva. I do not deny that some of the followers of any form of darkness only follow their masters out of sheer terror, but a majority of the supporters believe what their masters believe."
"I still don't understand."
He smiled gently, standing. "Then, I shall paraphrase it for you."
"Huh?"
"Your mother, Athena, came up with a rather novel way of expressing what we have just discussed."
"What's that?" She also made to stand.
'"In this world, there is no good; no evil. There is only power and those who would misuse it, but misuse of power is in the eye of the beholder.'"
She blinked. "Wait. I've heard that before. No. I've read it somewhere."
He nodded and crossed the room to her, putting his hand on her shoulder. "It is written on the crest of Order headquarters, though it is written in Latin. It is the standard that the Order has lived by for as long as it has been in existence." He released his hold on her shoulder and left the room, leaving Minerva with her thoughts.
**************+++++++++++++++++++=======================********************
As anyone who has read practically any of my stuff can tell, I put my personal philosophy into everything. I also can't write without MMAD (though I only hinted at it here.). Please review, and while you're at it, tell me which of the following ships you would like to see: Hermione Granger/ Severus Snape Hermione Granger/ Remus Lupin Ginny Weasley/ Severus Snape Ginny Weasley/ Remus Lupin
Thanks!
And just so you know, this shares a universe with my other HP fics; Dolores Umbridge: Minerva's Thoughts and In the Eye of the Beholder. And I hate to stoop to this level, but would you PLEASE, PLEASE, read In the Eye of the Beholder (it's better than this, I promise!) and review it- even if it's only one word, I'd love to know whether people are reading or not.
Once again, Thanks!
Convictions
She bit her lip, her raven hair gently swinging in her face as she swept the hospital wing. The room was silent, save for the gentle sweeping noise of the broom.
The door to the ward opened and she looked up, forcing a grin that looked more like a grimace. "Tom. How are you?"
"I thought you might need some company."
She sighed. "In truth, Tom, I really don't think that I deserve company," she muttered stiffly. He arched a dark eyebrow at her, and she bowed her head. "I should have been suspended for that. I'm glad that Dumbledore's so lenient, but I don't really think that I should be talking now. I'm here to pay penance."
"Yes," he said. "But I *did* help you plan the thing." He glanced at her broom. "Gods! Minerva! Is that your Cleansweep?"
She nodded grimly. "Yeah."
He grabbed it from her hands, crossing the ward and thrusting another broom into her hands. "Your self-inflicted punishment shouldn't extend to your broom, Min. You remind me of this house-elf"-
She snatched the Cleansweep from him. "You should leave. I could have broken his neck."
"This is MALFOY we're talking about. Even I hate him, and he's in my own house! Antillius Malfoy!"
"Still doesn't excuse what I did. You should leave, Tom. Before we're caught."
He took a step closer to her, and she stopped sweeping, looking apprehensive. To him, her homely thirteen-year-old face suddenly became beautiful. He leaned in to kiss her-
And she sent him off with a well-placed knee in his crotch. "That's out of order, Tom."
He nodded. "I'm sorry. It's just that, well, I. I could tell you were in love with someone, and Dung said"-
"Since when have you ever trusted what Dung had to say?" She peered into his face. "Tom. Is there something that you're not telling me?"
He shrugged. "Plenty. And none of it concerns you in the slightest."
She nodded. "I probably deserved that." She paused before continuing. "I- well. How do I put this. It's just that. Are you a legimens?"
His jaw dropped. "Min! Talk about paranoid! First it's me, then it's Dumbledore, then it's your dad, then your sister."
She laughed when she saw what he meant. "Yes. But you've got the order wrong."
"I see. But, perhaps someday, I *will* become a legimens and"- he paused. "Waaaiiit. You wouldn't have asked if I was a legimens if there hadn't been some truth to what I'd said. So, Minerva McGonagall is in love, or so she thinks. I can see it in your eyes, Min. It's written all over your face. See, you're blushing! Who is it? Mundungus Fletcher, perhaps? Or maybe that Hufflepuff, Harrison Potter. Or, perhaps, if you're out of your mind, me, or"-
"Professor Dumbledore!" The door to the ward had swung open, and Albus Dumbledore was striding down the aisle between the beds. She turned back to Tom. "I should get back to work. Then, maybe I'll have time to help you with the ani-inatimus conversion, and you can help me with shrinking solution, and then we can start learning summoning charms"- her voice trailed off. "Well, bye."
"Yes. Bye." He strode to the end of the ward and the door clicked behind him.
"Hello, Professor. I'm sorry about. Um. That." She studied the floor.
"It's quite alright. Actually, I'd been thinking that you'd like some help and company. I am aware that you know quite well now not to smear hand cream on the broomstick of an opposing player, though I was quite sure that such petty pranks were below you." She felt like vanishing through the floor under his gaze. "But you now know better. In fact"- he flicked his wand and the broomsticks were sent to the various places in which they belonged.
"Thank you, sir."
"Would you like to talk for a while?" He gestured to a bed. She sat on it, and he sat on the bed across the aisle.
"What about?"
"Anything you like."
"I don't mind. Whatever *you* like."
He chuckled. "We've known each other for thirteen years, yet a conversation is somehow beyond us."
She smiled at the irony and cast about for a topic. "How long have you known my family?"
He nodded. "That's a start." Studying the ceiling, he sighed and began to speak. "Your mother was born in 1910, and her father was my age. Your mother's father was one of my closest friends in school, but he was killed twelve years ago."
"I never met him."
"I didn't figure that you had. He and I were very close through school, and before; we were not unlike Ms. Patil and yourself. Your mother is closer to me than a sister. Our respective families go way back. Your paternal line and my line are not as close, but the McGonagalls have always been well known. I daresay, however, that you show little of your father, and much of your mother." She beamed.
"Thank you. I appreciate that."
He frowned. "Your father is not a bad man, Minerva."
She spoke, furrowing her brow. "Yes. He is. He's a Night Fiend; he supports Grindelwald. He's EVIL. I"-
He shook his head, looking more grave than ever. "He is not evil, Minerva. There is no such thing as evil." She gave him a puzzled look, and he continued. "You take Muggle Studies, yes?" She nodded. "The muggle who is trying to take over muggle Europe"-
"Adolf Hitler?"
"Yes, him. Why do you think that he is taking so many lives?"
She frowned. "He wants power."
"Yes. And why do you suppose he wants power? Do you suppose that he wants to kill just for the fun of it?"
"Yeah. That's what I think."
"Perhaps, in fact, that is a part of it. But there is a reason for it. He believes that he is serving the Greater Good."
She snorted. "He couldn't be further off the mark."
He shrugged. "You see, Minerva, our ideas of evil are so subjective; so personal- we cannot fathom what is happening in another person's mind. What one believes to be good, another believes to be evil. We see nothing in the same light. So we must learn to weigh it out, and know that we must believe in our convictions and be willing to fight for them. But we must always know that people do not dispute these convictions simply out of spite. They dispute these convictions because they are upholding their own."
Sputtering, she attempted to respond. "Bbuttt... I mean, look at Hitler! Look at Grindelwald!"
He nodded. "They are both destroying the world that we live in, yet they are doing so out of care for the very world that they are working to demolish. Do you see the irony, Minerva? But it is only irony in our eyes. Both Grindelwald and Hitler have thousands of supporters that share these same convictions. Supporters willing to die for these convictions."
"Only because they're terrified that they'll say something wrong and die in their sleep," she said.
He chuckled lightly. "Not all of them have that terror, Minerva. I do not deny that some of the followers of any form of darkness only follow their masters out of sheer terror, but a majority of the supporters believe what their masters believe."
"I still don't understand."
He smiled gently, standing. "Then, I shall paraphrase it for you."
"Huh?"
"Your mother, Athena, came up with a rather novel way of expressing what we have just discussed."
"What's that?" She also made to stand.
'"In this world, there is no good; no evil. There is only power and those who would misuse it, but misuse of power is in the eye of the beholder.'"
She blinked. "Wait. I've heard that before. No. I've read it somewhere."
He nodded and crossed the room to her, putting his hand on her shoulder. "It is written on the crest of Order headquarters, though it is written in Latin. It is the standard that the Order has lived by for as long as it has been in existence." He released his hold on her shoulder and left the room, leaving Minerva with her thoughts.
**************+++++++++++++++++++=======================********************
As anyone who has read practically any of my stuff can tell, I put my personal philosophy into everything. I also can't write without MMAD (though I only hinted at it here.). Please review, and while you're at it, tell me which of the following ships you would like to see: Hermione Granger/ Severus Snape Hermione Granger/ Remus Lupin Ginny Weasley/ Severus Snape Ginny Weasley/ Remus Lupin
Thanks!
And just so you know, this shares a universe with my other HP fics; Dolores Umbridge: Minerva's Thoughts and In the Eye of the Beholder. And I hate to stoop to this level, but would you PLEASE, PLEASE, read In the Eye of the Beholder (it's better than this, I promise!) and review it- even if it's only one word, I'd love to know whether people are reading or not.
Once again, Thanks!