The Magical Mystery Tour, Chapter Two:
The Walrus and the Fields
Albus knocked on Minerva's door exactly half an hour before they had to leave Hogwarts. She opened the door and smiled at him.
"You're early," she said as he entered.
"You're smiling!" replied Albus. "Can I take that to mean that you are actually excited about this trip?"
"You can take that to mean that I am determined to enjoy this little vacation. Now, if you don't mind, I need to finish packing."
Albus followed Minerva to her bedchambers, though he remained by the entryway. Leaning against the doorjamb, he watched her toss various items into her tartan bag. An extra pair of shoes (shiny black boots with a two or three inch heel), a hairbrush, a pair of dark purple gloves, a box of ginger newts and a thick hard cover book.
Albus did not recognize the novel. "What's that?"
Minerva took it from the bag and handed it to him. She continued to her dresser, where another bag, about half-full, was hanging on the corner of a partially opened drawer.
"I Am The Walrus," read Albus amused.
"By Thimberton Jacobi Lakes," said Minerva, zipping the bag and returning to the bag on her bed. "Very interesting read, thus far."
"Do you plan to do much reading on this trip, Minerva?"
She shrugged. "Well, I need something to keep me occupied during any down time."
"I can think of something to keep you occupied," he replied, half to himself.
She looked up and met his eye. "What's that, Albus?"
He grinned. "Nothing, Professor. Are we ready to head out?" He handed her the book and she tossed it in her bag. He took the two bags from her as she closed her bedroom door and she thanked him.
"I think we are ready, yes."
The pair chatted about the week prior ad the week ahead as they made their way to the front doors. They took their time down each corridor, chatting away, until suddenly Dumbledore looked at his watch and exclaimed, "My goodness, Minerva! We've only got seven minutes to make it to Penny Hill! And we need to be at the outside the ground to apparate…"
"We'd best hurry then!" She finished his thought and the two picked up the pace. As they tore across the grounds Hagrid yelled a greeting to them, but there was no time to talk.
"Hello, goodbye, Hagrid! Big hurry!" called Albus as the rushed past him. Less than two minutes later the two reached the edge of the grounds. Albus took Minerva's hand, and the next thing either of them saw was none other than number 141 Penny Lane.
The trip from Penny Lane to the hill was not a long one. There were ten people besides Minerva and Albus, most were couples, but there was one mother with her eleven-year-old son and a pair of twenty-something year old sisters. While most pairs were from England, there was also a couple from India and one from America, and the sisters hailed from Paris, France.
The tour guide (who had met the dozen Magical Mystery Tourists at Penny Hill) told them it would be only "a minute or two" before the fool arrived.
"Who is this 'fool?'" Minerva asked Albus, but he did not know. Sure enough, a minute or so later, that question was answered.
The man appeared out of thin air, about three feet from the ground. He hovered for a moment before slowly descending to the ground. The witches and wizards in the crowd clapped, though Minerva suspected that only the little boy was impressed. The fool was dressed ridiculously, and one look at Minerva's face told Albus that she did not approve of his zany attire. The group had been given instructions to dress as muggles for the journey, and the fools' outfit was…well…almost muggle-like.
He wore shockingly bright purple pants with sparkling silver stars all over them, and a neon green jacket over a dark orange shirt. His bowtie reminded the professor's strongly of one of Peeves, glowing yellow material with red stripes under periwinkle polka dots. His top hat, tall and stiff, was salmon pink with one thick sea green band around the middle. It, in a word, was hideous. Minerva could see that the French girls were trying not to laugh, and even the little boy was mildly horrified by the ensemble.
"How do you think I would look in that hat, Minerva?" Albus whispered in her ear. Trying to ignore the sensation of his breath so close on her face, she turned to him and very slowly shook her head. "I assure you," she began," that were you to ever – ever – wear that, I would never be seen with you in public again, with or without it on."
Grinning, he opened his mouth to retort, but the fool cut him off.
"And now, I will lead you to out final destination… Salistorring's Strawberry Fields! As we walk, please join me in our theme song, Strawberry Fields Forever! The words will appear above my head as we walk, so follow me!"
Rolling her eyes, Minerva turned back to Albus. "Can't we return to Penny Lane?"
Albus laughed and offered her his arm. "Almost there, Minerva. Let's go. 'Strawberry Fields For-Ever! To Strawberries Fields we go! Strawberry Fields For-ever! And then on with the Magical Mystery Show!"
A/N
I was going to have this be a two-shot, but I've decided to make it a four-shot instead. I will use the next two songs in chapter three, and then, for the ending, try to use them all! Haha… Enjoy! And please review!
Oh, and in case you're confused, nope, I'm not JK! And I don't own the Beatles either... But maybe someday! (or not...)