Disclaimer: Not mine, never will be. Unfair, isn't it? Everything belongs to JK except the plot. (It has a plot?)
A/N: Just had to write something to get all these words out of my head … Not particularly good, but I just needed to write!
Pairing: AD/MM
Rating: G
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What You Need, Want, Require
Minerva pulled her cloak further around her as she stormed down the corridor. Of all the places they had to organise a duel, it had to be in some disused classroom on the fourth floor. They had been given detention, had points deducted and were sent back to bed looking rather sorry for themselves, but Minerva was most irritated by the fact that she knew she wouldn't get back to sleep.
A crash behind her caused her to freeze, pull out her wand, and retrace her steps.
"Peeves, is that you?" she asked quietly but threateningly. Alone, unsure, but ever the Gryffindor, she kept to the shadows and scanned around. She saw no one but a shattered ornament on the floor, presumably stolen by Peeves and dropped there. She repaired it and, not knowing where it belonged, banished it to Filch's room for re-homing.
"All I want is some peace and a good night's sleep," she muttered under her breath, once again setting off for her quarters.
Another unexpected noise made her whip around, wand out, ready to either defend herself or yell.
"What the …"
A door - previously either unseen or not there - had creaked open, making an inviting amber light spill out into the dark corridor. Minerva slowly walked up to it and cautiously peered inside.
The room was not too small, not too large, but just nice and cosy. A flickering fire illuminated a sitting area with two large beckoning chairs and a small table. Soft lamps dotted around the walls glowed and revealed the many bookshelves that lined the walls, and – to Minerva's surprise – a large, extremely comfortable looking bed that just screamed out for her to curl up on it and drift off to sleep.
"Strange," she muttered and pushed the door fully open. "Hello? Whose room is this?" she thought aloud.
A few metres away, a piece of parchment fell out of nowhere and landed on the floor, just out of reach. Minerva glanced round to check she was alone and bent down to pick it up. She straightened and unfolded it and read:
"This is the Come and Go Room,
We cater for your desire,
Whatever you wish, whatever you want,
Whatever you require."
Minerva raised an eyebrow.
"And what exactly do I require?" she asked sceptically.
Behind her the door swung closed and she heard the mechanism lock, all of its own accord.
"Peace and a good night's sleep."
She glared at the loopy handwriting that appeared.
"This is not funny."
She inspected the door, expecting to find a lock, but there was none. Pulling out her wand she muttered every unlocking charm she knew, to no avail. She stood back and muttered a hex, but the only effect it had was to leave a large scorch mark on the door.
She narrowed her eyes at the door and reread the letter. At the bottom more writing had appeared:
"Please do not hurt the door. I've become rather attached to it over the years."
"Who are you?"
"The castle."
The castle, magically bound to the Headmaster. Albus.
"Albus!" she yelled. No response. "Okay, my desire … I desire to get out of here and go to bed. My bed." Nothing.
"When you have what you came here wanting, then you can go."
"So, you're going to hold me hostage. Great," she said sarcastically, throwing the piece of parchment down on a table before she ended up in an argument. With a piece of parchment.
She shrugged off her robes, deciding that if she was going to stay there, she might as well get comfortable. Curling up in one of the chairs by the fire, a bottle appeared on the table. She gave a wry grin a poured herself a glass of wine.
Trust Albus to create a crazy school. I knew that they are bound by magic, strengthening each other, but personality traits … How have we all survived this long?
She shifted in the chair, wondering what she could do to pass the time. In front of her materialised a table full of books. Spread all over were numerous volumes of varying size and genres.
One Hundred and One most Foul, Horrible, Probably Illegal but unexpected Chess Manoeuvres.
Too bad, she thought, that I know them all. I suppose it would have been an interesting read.
Magical Me ,by Gilderoy Lockhart
"Ooh, very funny," she muttered acidly.
How to Identify an Animagus in Ten Easy Steps
She eyed it for a moment before picking it up and flipped it open to the first page.
"Step One: The Suspected Person and the Suspected Animal are never seen together at the same time."
She snorted and threw it back down on the table. A strong gust of wind outside rattled the glass in their frames and Minerva crossed the room to peer out at the inky black sky. Stars twinkled down at her, and the moon cast silvery slivers of light over the grounds, reflecting off the turbulent lake and making the landscape seem fittingly magical.
She sighed as she rested her elbow on the window ledge and rested against the cool wall. A warm and comfortable room, good books and a good drink … but something was missing. She was … well, lonely. Surrounded by so many people, yet not complete. If only …
A loud pop behind her drew her out of her reverie with such a force she jumped and nearly dropped her drink.
"Albus! What are you doing here?"
Dumbledore looked up, raised his eyebrows and glanced around.
"Actually, my dear, I haven't got a clue." He pushed his glasses up his nose and inspected the room further, stopping but not commenting on the bed. "Where are we?"
"The Come and Go room. Or at least that's what it said."
Dumbledore's brows knitted in inquiry.
"What what said?"
She opened her mouth to explain, thought better of it, and handed him the parchment off the desk.
"I've been trapped in here. The door won't open until I've got what I require," she said, annoyed. "Is this one of your tricks, Albus?" she asked suspiciously.
"No, not this time, Minerva. Well," he said, reading the letter. "What do you desire, wish for, want and require?" Albus asked, failing to restrain his amusement.
Minerva began to reply but stopped as the lock clicked and the door swung open. She snapped her mouth closed and looked at the door thoughtfully.
"You, apparently."
She turned to face Dumbledore who looked slightly shocked. And that was an understatement.
"Really?" he asked eventually, eyebrows still up near his hairline.
"Well … It seems to be letting me go." She looked at the open door again and back to Albus. "Shall we?"
Dumbledore joined her at the door but Minerva was frozen to the spot. She locked her eyes with his and, never looking away, placed her hand in Albus'.
He did nothing at first, then squeezed her hand and gently pulled her closer. She smiled up at him and they left the Come and Go Room in a warm silence.
Minerva shook her head and glanced back into the darkness.
"Crazy castle …" she thought, as Dumbledore snaked his arm around her waist, keeping her close. "But sometimes crazy's good." She eyed Albus and smiled. "And sometimes it's very good."
Behind them, the door materialised back into solid, cool stone to wait for the next person who needed something to walk by.
It was obvious that Minerva needed the Room no longer; she had found that 'something'.
~ Fin
Thanks (maybe) to Sky who asked the question that encouraged the plot bunnies to start breeding. Dirty animals. :-D Mind you, this is the better (more sane one) that came out of our late night (for me) conversation… Mwa ha ha …
I – must – revise – Exams – start – tomorrow – Must – do – well – Must do – Oooohhh … Shiny …