"The Letter"
Minerva McGonagall stood bathed in the early morning sunlight at the window in her tartan nightgown. She watched the tawny owl that had just delivered the letter until it became a dot in the sky. In her shaking hand, she held a letter from someone she hadn't heard from in quite some time. She had hoped. She adjusted her glasses as she walked away from the window, sat down on the corner of her bed, and began to read.
Aunt Minnie,
I know it has been too long.
For that, I am sorry. I understand that you were doing only what you
thought was best for me. It was wrong of me to be angry. These past
years, I have been (brace yourself) working a Muggle job, pretty much
living a Muggle life. Don't worry. I haven't given up magic all
together. It just saddened me. You understand. But there is a purpose
of this letter, and it wasn't to let you know that I have joined in
with the Muggles.
I'm heading home. It's time. He's my family.
P.
With apprehension, sorrow, excitement, and worry, Minerva McGonagall clutched the letter to her heart. Five seconds later, she was up and getting dressed, thinking of what she would tell Professor Dumbledore, and wondering how her arrival would affect her cousin (and the task that lay ahead of him). She was so consumed by the situation that she didn't even notice what mischief Peeves was up to as she made her way up the (main) staircase. Finally, the gargoyle that marked the entrance to Dumbledore's rooms stood motionless in front of her. It sprang to life when she uttered, "Chamber pot," moving out of the way.
Professor Albus Dumbledore sat at his desk, framed in sunlight from the high window behind him. The headmasters from Hogwarts past sat dozing in their portraits along the walls of the circular room. Professor McGonagall entered the headmaster's office from the spiral staircase.
"Good morning, Professor Dumbledore. Forgive my intrusion at this early hour, but there is something I need to discuss with you," she said to him, and waited.
"Good morning, professor. I am all ears. What seems to be the problem?" He looked at her though his half moon shaped glasses with concern in his blue eyes, waiting for her to answer. She handed him the letter. After a short moment, he spoke.
"I see," he said, placing the letter down on the desk, then folding his hands together under his chin.
"Professor, what am I going to do? Will this upset him? Will it make him happy?"
"There is no stopping her, Minerva. She is probably already here. I think the answer is yes." She looked as if she was going to question him, and he continued, "We will handle this carefully, for both their sakes."
"I want her here with me, in the castle of course. But she will need to keep some distance. Although I am worried what this could mean, I have wanted her here," she said as her eyes started to water. "I have missed her. I don't think this is what Patrick had in mind when he told me they wanted me to be her godmother."
Dumbledore sat still, he hands still folded together under his chin.