Moments Together
5.
"What on earth?" Minerva's voice woke Albus from a sound sleep. He watched, still trying to wake up, as Minerva pulled on her tartan dressing gown, and then her hair net. That was when he finally noticed that someone was pounding on the bedroom door. The only ones with the passwords to his and Minerva's sitting rooms were Poppy, Apollyon, Quentin, and Molly. Since Albus was the Headmaster and Minerva was his deputy, the requirement that the Head and Deputy know the passwords to the rooms was already taken care of.
Wondering which of the other four was visiting, Albus watched from the bed as Minerva flung open the bedroom door. "It's about time, Mother!"
"Molly Guinevere McGonagall, what are you doing out of bed at two o' clock in the morning?" Albus smiled to himself as he watched his wife and daughter. He knew exactly where Molly's temper came from.
The sixteen-year-old drew herself up to her full height. "I demand justice, Mother!"
"Justice?" Minerva repeated the word, incredulous. "Why can this not wait until morning?"
Albus sat up in bed, wondering the exact same thing. Molly turned to him. "Father! It's Uncle Appo!"
"Mr. Pringle?" Minerva asked. She didn't mind Molly's fondness for the caretaker, but she preferred that the girl show some respect for the poor man, especially now that he had an apprentice, Argus Filch.
Molly rolled her eyes. "Yes, Mother, Mr. Pringle."
"What has he done, Molly?" Albus asked, patting the bed in silent invitation.
As she bounded over to sit down beside him, Albus noted that she was still wearing her uniform. "He's punished Arthur, Father! Without consulting you or Mother!"
"Calm down, Molly." Albus eased his daughter into the crook of his shoulder and stroked her hair. "Now, why was Mr. Pringle punishing Arthur in the middle of the night?"
When she didn't answer promptly, Albus looked down at his daughter to see her head bowed, her red hair curtaining her face. Minerva's voice had a dangerous note to it as she asked, "Molly?"
"He took me out for a moonlit stroll." Molly's voice was barely audible and she promptly buried her face in Albus' beard.
Minerva drew herself up to her full height, her cheeks turning bright pink and her eyes flashing dangerously. "What did he do?"
"That explains why you're still wearing your uniform," Albus mused, fingering the edge of Molly's Hogwarts robe.
He blinked when Molly sat up and stared at him. Minerva, who'd begun to pace, stopped in her tracks and did the same. "Albus, there are times when I worry about you."
"My dear, I do not see the point in getting worked up," Albus replied, gently pulling Molly to sit down beside him once more.
Minerva stared at him. "Worked up? Worked up! Our daughter was out in the middle of night with some boy and you tell me not to get worked up!"
"He's not 'some boy', Mother! He's Arthur Weasley!" Molly shot back, sitting straight up on the bed.
That was the wrong thing to do. Minerva seemed to swell. "You are in big trouble, young lady! What were you thinking, going out on the grounds in the middle of the night?! You could have been taken or worse!"
"I was with Arthur, Mother! He would have protected me!" Molly objected, kneeling on the bed in order to face her mother more fully.
Minerva would not be calmed, at least by her daughter. "The curfew is in place for a reason. You broke that curfew!"
"Ladies, please!" Albus inserted, getting to his feet in an attempt to bring peace to the room. "Shouting at each other won't accomplish anything."
Minerva spun to face him, her eyes still flashing. "Our daughter deliberately broke the rules so she could go cavorting around the grounds with--"
"Don't say he's 'some boy', Mother!" Molly cried.
Minerva glowered at Molly and opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came out. Her eyes flashing, she turned on her husband. He calmly tucked his wand back into the pocket, looking over at his daughter. No sound came from her mouth, either. "Now that I have both your attention, I believe I can figure out what Molly was trying to tell us earlier." Minerva folded her arms across her chest and glared at her husband. "She and Mr. Weasley went for a walk around the grounds." He quickly captured her hands when she started gesticulating wildly. "Yes, I know, they were out after curfew, but we will come back to that." Minerva glared at him, folding her arms across her chest once more. "Apparently, when they returned from their walk, they ran across Mr. Pringle, who decided to punish Mr. Weasley without consulting either you or I." Turning to his daughter, Albus asked, "Is that correct?" Sullen, Molly nodded. "Very well, I am going to remove the charm and I do not want either of you to yell or shout, is that clear?" He waited until both had nodded before ending the spell.
"Mother, Father, I know I'm in trouble, but you can't let Uncle Appo punish Arthur without consulting either of you," Molly pleaded, looking from one to the other.
Minerva opened her mouth to reply, but Albus stopped her. "I will speak with Mr. Pringle in the morning, Molly. I do not want to hear another word about it until I do, understood?"
"Yes, Father," Molly replied, looking deflated.
Minerva looked at Albus, who nodded. "You, young lady, are still in trouble. For now, I want you to go straight back to your dorm room and stay there. We will talk about your punishment after Albus has spoken to Mr. Pringle. Are we clear?"
"Yes, Mother," Molly sighed.
Albus leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "Go on, Molly. I'll make sure Mr. Pringle doesn't do something like this again."
"Thank you, Father." Molly smiled and hugged him tightly. He hugged her back for a moment before letting her go over to Minerva. "I'm sorry, Mother."
Minerva gazed sternly at her daughter for a few moments before smiling and pulling her into a hug. "I would have done the same if it had been your father and I."
"I know, Mother." Molly smiled and left the room.
Minerva waited until the door to the sitting room closed before turning to Albus. "That was a rotten trick."
"Nothing else was working, my dear," Albus replied as he drew Minerva into his arms.
Minerva laughed softly, resting her head on his shoulder. "She's so stubborn."
"She gets it from her mother," Albus commented with a smile, his eyes twinkling.
Minerva pulled away, glaring at him. "She does not!"
"Oh, yes, she does," Albus sat down and grabbed her hand, gently tugging until she sat down on the bed beside him.
Minerva smiled. "And you wouldn't have me any other way, would you?"
"No, I wouldn't," he agreed, tilting her face up to kiss her. She smiled as she kissed him back.
While all of this business of Molly and her boyfriend was going on, Quentin couldn't help feeling more than a little left out. He knew that his parents loved him just as much as they loved Molly, but it seemed that Molly got far more attention than he did. Since his first years at Hogwarts, Quentin had discovered that he had a propensity for performing feats of illusionary trickery. In other words, he was a world-class practical jokester. For him, all the world was a playground; all he needed were the materials to make it happen and presto: sweet chaos. With the help of Peeves, he once tipped all of the bowl-shaped lanterns in the Great Hall at the same time. He and Peeves both watched gleefully as the floor was quickly covered with Greek fire. The floor burned for days and Peeves was more than happy to take the blame for anything that young Mister McGonagall had in mind. For Peeves, it was more than enough compensation to participate and have a brilliant trick come off right.
Albus and Minerva tried desperately to convince their son that his tricks were more than harmless fun. They were destructive to school property. Though Quentin often promised his parents that he would stop his antics, there were more times than not, two fingers crossed behind his back. Pranks were his life. There was no turning back.
From then until graduation, Quentin Lancelot McGonagall would be remembered at Hogwarts as the record-holder for the most practical jokes performed in one school year. He wouldn't find out until year later, after graduation, but the only one in Hogwarts history who had performed more was his own mother.
Years passed. Quentin grew out of his stubborn need to play tricks, Molly grew out of her dramatic temper tantrums, and Albus and Minerva sat tearfully by as their only children graduated from Hogwarts. As if they were predestined by faith, Molly married the boy she was caught with so many years ago.
Molly and her new husband were soon parents themselves, for Molly gave birth to her first-born son, Bill a year after graduation. Quentin was decidedly ready to continue his education, and soon enrolled in auror training school. Albus rolled his eyes at this while Minerva shook her head and covered her eyes with one hand. Those poor instructors of that school. They weren't going to know what hit them when Quentin McGonagall got done with them.