"Albus, we are so glad you are here!" greeted a tall, dark blue-clad wizard, widely opening his arms to greet the Transfigurations teacher, who obviously was an old acquaintance of his. Minerva immediately recognized him- well, of course she did. Though he had obviously lost weight, and though he had apparently aged a great deal over the past months, he still very certainly was Ethain Goodall, the Minister of Magic since six years. When he had been appointed, in 1939, he had not at all realized it would be his task to guide the Wizarding world through what probably would be the darkest period of its existence.
At the sight of his good friend, Albus smiled, though he felt very tired and though even the muscles in his face hurt as he moved them. He and his pupil had been flying all day- the situation grew more urgent everyday and they really couldn't lose more time than necessary- and once more, Albus Dumbledore had to admit that, though he was not at all an old man yet, he was not a teenage boy anymore either…
"Ethain! How are things over here?" he greeted. It was a standard question to ask, and too late did Albus realize it was a somewhat silly question in the present circumstances. Because how were things "over here"? The Minister did answer his question, though.
"Not well, my friend, not at all well, and… "
But Albus his eyes trail off to someone he hadn't noticed earlier, and the Minister quickly interrupted his useless sentence.
"…but who," Ethain trailed off. "is this lovely lady you've brought with you?"
Ever the gentleman, despite his worried and obviously tired state, the Minister lightly bowed above Minerva's gloved hand.
Minerva smiled and nodded. She could, in fact, hardly oppress a relieved sigh. The Minister didn't know who she was… Headmaster Dippet had not taken the risk to reveal the whereabouts of the Minister and his Aurors because of her… The Minister did not know about her pursuit of Albus…She knew, of course, that her Professor would tell him immediately, but still- she was happy the Minister had at least not immediately started to reproach her for her so-called "rash" act. In fact, he didn't even seem to realize she was a student, but actually, that was no surprise. Minerva Katherine McGonagall always looked a tad older than she was- the air of determinedness and confidence around her had misled many people before Ethain Goodall. And it was true- Minerva McGonagall had indeed grown up unnaturally quick between her thirteenth and fourteenth year. It was one of the many results of her father's early death..
But of course, yes, of course, Albus Dumbledore would report him everything about her case…
Trying to appropriately lower her eyes, Minerva lightly sighed once more, preparing for the reprimands that would surely follow… But hadn't she deserved them? No, perhaps she hadn't, but at least she could have thought about this before leaving Hogwarts the way she had.
But then, the surprise came. Albus smiled again, but another smile, a real smile, the kind of smile that, she had noticed over the last week, made his eyes twinkle and his face light up…
"This," Albus took her hand and lightly squeezed it, as if to comfort her.
"This, Ethain, is Miss Minerva McGonagall. If that is not a problem to you, I'd want her to be my personal assistant in the days and weeks to come. Two know more than one, obviously, and this young woman is one of the most intelligent and promising witches I have ever met."
He turned his gaze towards her, and Minerva knew that hundreds, no, thousands of emotions were readable in her eyes at the same time. Relief, obviously, and gratefulness, but also… also pure joy, pure happiness and… and something else, too. Minerva felt something else, and as he spoke his next words, his cerulean, sparkling eyes looking straight into her green ones, she knew what it was.
"Minerva has just become an Animagus, she still needs to register. Yes, I do believe she will be of great help to me. Though we have had our difficulties in the past, I now consider her nothing less than a good friend of mine. A very intelligent, skilled friend of mine."
Oh yes, Minerva McGonagall knew exactly what emotion had stirred her heart.
Because his words were nothing short of a miracle.
She would not be regarded as the young idiot.
She would not be labelled the unqualified outcast.
She would be the personal assistant of the greatest wizard alive instead…
Minerva tightened her fingers around her mentor's hand in a gesture of utter gratefulness, then, this time nothing less than gracefully, smiled as the Minister again politely bowed for her.
"Delighted to meet you, Miss McGonagall. Now, I believe you perhaps would want to change and, perhaps, rest a bit?"
Minerva indeed had to admit she most probably looked like a sheer madwoman after a full night and day of non-stop flying, and though her outside appearance had never been a real issue to her, she had to admit the idea of having a bit of sleep was not at all unappealing to her. She gratefully nodded.
"Indeed, if that were possible…"
But the Minister immediately smiled and nodded. He then made a quick gesture towards a passing, man with a slightly scarred face and dark green, camouflage robes. An Auror, obviously.
"Alastor, would you be so kind as to take this lady to one of the spare tents? She's just arrived today."
The scarred man, who was obviously younger than Minerva had thought him to be at first sight, nodded and beckoned her.
"Follow me." he muttered in an unusually hoarse, deep voice.
Minerva did follow, but her sharp ears- already benefiting from her Animagus counterpart- still heard the very first sentence the Minister spoke to Dumbledore- and grew slightly pink in answer to it.
"Albus, you old fellow- you have of course totally unintentionally chosen one of the most charming young ladies I have ever seen as your personal assistant, now haven't you?
It was the very first time Minerva almost heard her Transfigurations teacher blush… and she almost grinned. In fact, he had. Well, in fact, she had actually chosen him instead of he her!
Yet, though the look of a totally red Albus Dumbledore trying to explain his nothing but good intentions quite amused her, Minerva managed to concentrate on the wizard before her. She half expected him to say anything, but he remained silent. So she, carefully dragging her quickly summoned broom behind her, just followed, until the young man stood still before a quite large and, to her tired eyes, extremely welcomingly looking tent. There, he turned around and looked straight into her eyes for the very first time. His eyes were a kind of blue- but not soft, lake-like Albus blue, more a kind of dark, electric blue. The one- the left eye- even more than the other… There was a kind of bitterness in his eyes, especially that left one, that she could not really understand. One thing she did understand, though. The battle this man was fighting was not an easy one.
Pulling aside the canvas, allowing her to enter, the man did speak one sentence, though.
"Why have you come here?" he said.
"You're hardly more than a girl."
With this, he turned around briskly and walked away, leaving a dumbfounded Minerva behind. Insinuations she had perhaps expected, little, hidden allusions on her age or gender, but not this. Not such a- bold remark, a warning almost. As Minerva McGonagall gratefully fell down on the small but comfortable-looking camp-bed, she realized this man, this strange being with his wondrous eye, had seen straight through her outside appearance of looking older than she was.
But it was not that what bothered her the most.
A girl, she was, and even if she could be called a woman, she knew that here, in many people's eyes, she would always be considered "just a woman".
And Minerva McGonagall realized that there were many barriers left to conquer.
At the sight of his good friend, Albus smiled, though he felt very tired and though even the muscles in his face hurt as he moved them. He and his pupil had been flying all day- the situation grew more urgent everyday and they really couldn't lose more time than necessary- and once more, Albus Dumbledore had to admit that, though he was not at all an old man yet, he was not a teenage boy anymore either…
"Ethain! How are things over here?" he greeted. It was a standard question to ask, and too late did Albus realize it was a somewhat silly question in the present circumstances. Because how were things "over here"? The Minister did answer his question, though.
"Not well, my friend, not at all well, and… "
But Albus his eyes trail off to someone he hadn't noticed earlier, and the Minister quickly interrupted his useless sentence.
"…but who," Ethain trailed off. "is this lovely lady you've brought with you?"
Ever the gentleman, despite his worried and obviously tired state, the Minister lightly bowed above Minerva's gloved hand.
Minerva smiled and nodded. She could, in fact, hardly oppress a relieved sigh. The Minister didn't know who she was… Headmaster Dippet had not taken the risk to reveal the whereabouts of the Minister and his Aurors because of her… The Minister did not know about her pursuit of Albus…She knew, of course, that her Professor would tell him immediately, but still- she was happy the Minister had at least not immediately started to reproach her for her so-called "rash" act. In fact, he didn't even seem to realize she was a student, but actually, that was no surprise. Minerva Katherine McGonagall always looked a tad older than she was- the air of determinedness and confidence around her had misled many people before Ethain Goodall. And it was true- Minerva McGonagall had indeed grown up unnaturally quick between her thirteenth and fourteenth year. It was one of the many results of her father's early death..
But of course, yes, of course, Albus Dumbledore would report him everything about her case…
Trying to appropriately lower her eyes, Minerva lightly sighed once more, preparing for the reprimands that would surely follow… But hadn't she deserved them? No, perhaps she hadn't, but at least she could have thought about this before leaving Hogwarts the way she had.
But then, the surprise came. Albus smiled again, but another smile, a real smile, the kind of smile that, she had noticed over the last week, made his eyes twinkle and his face light up…
"This," Albus took her hand and lightly squeezed it, as if to comfort her.
"This, Ethain, is Miss Minerva McGonagall. If that is not a problem to you, I'd want her to be my personal assistant in the days and weeks to come. Two know more than one, obviously, and this young woman is one of the most intelligent and promising witches I have ever met."
He turned his gaze towards her, and Minerva knew that hundreds, no, thousands of emotions were readable in her eyes at the same time. Relief, obviously, and gratefulness, but also… also pure joy, pure happiness and… and something else, too. Minerva felt something else, and as he spoke his next words, his cerulean, sparkling eyes looking straight into her green ones, she knew what it was.
"Minerva has just become an Animagus, she still needs to register. Yes, I do believe she will be of great help to me. Though we have had our difficulties in the past, I now consider her nothing less than a good friend of mine. A very intelligent, skilled friend of mine."
Oh yes, Minerva McGonagall knew exactly what emotion had stirred her heart.
Because his words were nothing short of a miracle.
She would not be regarded as the young idiot.
She would not be labelled the unqualified outcast.
She would be the personal assistant of the greatest wizard alive instead…
Minerva tightened her fingers around her mentor's hand in a gesture of utter gratefulness, then, this time nothing less than gracefully, smiled as the Minister again politely bowed for her.
"Delighted to meet you, Miss McGonagall. Now, I believe you perhaps would want to change and, perhaps, rest a bit?"
Minerva indeed had to admit she most probably looked like a sheer madwoman after a full night and day of non-stop flying, and though her outside appearance had never been a real issue to her, she had to admit the idea of having a bit of sleep was not at all unappealing to her. She gratefully nodded.
"Indeed, if that were possible…"
But the Minister immediately smiled and nodded. He then made a quick gesture towards a passing, man with a slightly scarred face and dark green, camouflage robes. An Auror, obviously.
"Alastor, would you be so kind as to take this lady to one of the spare tents? She's just arrived today."
The scarred man, who was obviously younger than Minerva had thought him to be at first sight, nodded and beckoned her.
"Follow me." he muttered in an unusually hoarse, deep voice.
Minerva did follow, but her sharp ears- already benefiting from her Animagus counterpart- still heard the very first sentence the Minister spoke to Dumbledore- and grew slightly pink in answer to it.
"Albus, you old fellow- you have of course totally unintentionally chosen one of the most charming young ladies I have ever seen as your personal assistant, now haven't you?
It was the very first time Minerva almost heard her Transfigurations teacher blush… and she almost grinned. In fact, he had. Well, in fact, she had actually chosen him instead of he her!
Yet, though the look of a totally red Albus Dumbledore trying to explain his nothing but good intentions quite amused her, Minerva managed to concentrate on the wizard before her. She half expected him to say anything, but he remained silent. So she, carefully dragging her quickly summoned broom behind her, just followed, until the young man stood still before a quite large and, to her tired eyes, extremely welcomingly looking tent. There, he turned around and looked straight into her eyes for the very first time. His eyes were a kind of blue- but not soft, lake-like Albus blue, more a kind of dark, electric blue. The one- the left eye- even more than the other… There was a kind of bitterness in his eyes, especially that left one, that she could not really understand. One thing she did understand, though. The battle this man was fighting was not an easy one.
Pulling aside the canvas, allowing her to enter, the man did speak one sentence, though.
"Why have you come here?" he said.
"You're hardly more than a girl."
With this, he turned around briskly and walked away, leaving a dumbfounded Minerva behind. Insinuations she had perhaps expected, little, hidden allusions on her age or gender, but not this. Not such a- bold remark, a warning almost. As Minerva McGonagall gratefully fell down on the small but comfortable-looking camp-bed, she realized this man, this strange being with his wondrous eye, had seen straight through her outside appearance of looking older than she was.
But it was not that what bothered her the most.
A girl, she was, and even if she could be called a woman, she knew that here, in many people's eyes, she would always be considered "just a woman".
And Minerva McGonagall realized that there were many barriers left to conquer.