Disclaimer: See chapter 1
Dedicated to: Our king and master *bows* *lol* and 150 little fairies and goblins on their holy quest for their shamrocks (yeah well, nooo you don't have to understand that *lol*)
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Enjoy the fourth chapter!
Minerva felt her legs giving way under her, so she quickly sat down. She kept staring at the photograph. How was she supposed to kill this innocent looking man? She couldn't kill someone, she just couldn't. What if she just didn't do it?
But she instantly remembered the warning two months ago. If she didn't obey, they would kill her daughter.
Minerva felt sick. Of course she wanted her daughter and her unborn child to live, but she wasn't God - it wasn't on her to take a life in order to save another.
This situation was too much for her to handle her, she felt the world spinning around her. Suddenly there was a knock on her door, bringing Minerva back to reality. She quickly thrust the letter into the back of a drawer.
There was another knock: "Come in, please." It was Albus, smiling at her: "Hey, I hope I didn't interrupt you?"
She got up: "No, not at all, shall we go to lunch?"
He saw the haunted look in her eyes, and held her back by her arm: "Are you alright?"
Minerva quickly removed her arm from his grasp: "Of course I am." Without looking into his eyes, she left the room.
***
Friday came sooner than Minerva wanted. Throughout the whole morning scared students left the Transfiguration classroom with fearful eyes, whispering to each other. Minerva was in such a bad mood that she had taken fifty-five points from her own house. She had caused two students to cry, and almost lost her temper completely with Draco Malfoy.
Even the Weasley twins didn't dare to step out of line in fear for their lives.
Minerva hated herself for behaving in such an irrational way, but couldn't help herself.
Albus found her in her study, when she didn't show up for lunch.
"Would you care to explain why all students who had Transfiguration this morning behave like they just survived a death eater attack?" He stood in front of her desk and studied her. She had dark shadows under her eyes, her face looked paler than usual, and her body was tense.
She leaned back in her chair and looked at him dismissively: "I had a bad night. And the students realized that they were better off not to try my patience today."
"Don't you think you overreacted a bit?" Minerva knew he was right.
She sighed deeply, before looking up into his eyes: "Yes Albus, you're right, I am sorry. I shouldn't lose my temper like that."
He rounded her desk, and gently put a hand on her shoulder: "It's not your behaviour towards the students I am worried about so much. If I were, I'd have to have this talk with Severus every day. It's you I am worried about. You are so different, so far away all the time."
She stood up quickly: "Albus I am fine, really, you don't need to worry." She pecked him on the cheek and took his hand: "Lets go and see whether we can still get something to eat."
He wasn't convinced at all that she was fine, but let it go, because he knew he wouldn't get far today.
***
Minerva hurried through the night in her animagus form. She hated lying to Albus more than anything, and yet she had done it so many times those last months. She had lied to him when she told him she was fine, and she had lied to him, when she told him that she was visiting an old friend all the time.
She reached the small private house at the end of Hogsmeade at exactly eight o'clock. She had planned everything carefully.
She would wait for the house elf to serve the drinks, then cause a distraction for the group inside. As soon as they had all left the living room she would pour a deadly poison into her victim's glass. Minerva had decided to use a muggle poison, which she had bought in muggle London. Apparently it was used to get rid of rats and other vermin.
She had thought about using a simple, but deadly potion, but she would have had to steal it from Severus.
When the aurors found out that the potion came from Hogwarts, because Severus was missing the exact ingredients, it would cause Albus a lot of trouble, and it was most likely that they would find out who the murderer was. She didn't even want to think about that.
She graciously jumped upon a tree and looked into the living room window. A small group was gathered there, they were all laughing and talking, and Minerva felt even sicker than she had before.
Her victim, a wizard called Peter Warden, stood in the centre of the group, smiling broadly. The small house elf entered the room next. She put the tablet with eight identically looking glasses on the table, and left again.
Minerva tried to find something that would help her find Warden's glass again. When he set it down again, she noticed with relief that the glass stood next to an elegant Chinese vase.
It was time for the distraction.
Minerva jumped from the tree, and changed into her human form. She walked past the house, onto a small field. She looked up at the cold moon, illuminating the field. All of a sudden though, it vanished when a large cloud passed by.
Minerva fully concentrated on the complicated spell. If she had been a death eater, the whole thing would have been a lot easier.
She took out her wand and pointed it at the sky, then she summoned all her strength and spoke the formula: Appare signum domini!
A green skull began to illuminate the night's sky. Its green sparks flew everywhere, and Minerva was momentarily taken aback by her own work.
She changed back into her animagus form, when she heard the first screams from of Hogsmeade. She fled back to her tree, and looked into the house.
Startled by the screams, the group had gone outside. While the men took out their wands, and hurried towards the field, the woman went over to some other villagers, whose husbands had already gathered on the field.
Minerva quickly jumped into the house through one of the open windows. She took another careful look around, before she changed into her real form and poured the poison into Warden's glass. She stirred it once, so that no trace of the poison was left. Then she changed back and with another elegant jump was out of the room again.
She observed the scene on the field with a shudder. The men were searching for the person who had conjured the Dark Mark or any death eaters, while the woman watched with fearful expressions.
Minerva felt more than just guilty at scaring innocent people like that, but she also noted that her distraction was perfect.
It had taken her quite some time to learn how to produce the Dark Mark, it wasn't as if that was written down somewhere.
She had been extremely careful asking Severus about it without arising his suspicion. Performing the spell was just as complicated as finding it. You had to put all your dark energy into it, which was rather easy with what Minerva was planning to do.
She tensed when she saw how everyone slowly returned to their homes, after the Dark Mark had faded from the sky, and they hadn't been able to find the source of it.
The mood had changed visibly. There was no laughter anymore, even though they all knew the danger had passed, the party guests could no longer enjoy themselves.
Minerva arranged her position on the tree, and kept watching the guests. When Peter Warden took up his glass again, Minerva leaned forward. He quickly drained the glass and set it back on the table. Minerva closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She had done it, she had poisoned a person.
The cat watched as the man began to show the first signs of being unwell, he had turned ghastly pale, and sweat had started to gather on his forehead.
Minerva fought hard with herself - she still had time, she was still able to stop this madness, she could still save an innocent life….. but at what cost?
When Warden staggered on his feet and then broke down, Minerva's eyes started to fill with tears. She heard the others scream for help, frantically trying to save their friend's life.
"I am sorry." She kept whispering this phrase as she heard the first pain stricken cries from inside the room.
She jumped from the tree and hurried into the night. She changed her form as soon as she reached the entrance to Hogwarts. The tears had subsided, her brain had gone numb. She didn't register her own pain and guilt, it would have driven her mad.
She slowly walked through the school corridors. Minerva was glad that she slept in her own rooms during the school year, that way she wasn't forced to see Albus tonight.
She quietly opened the door, and was startled to hear a fire crackling in her fireplace.
She entered the living room, and with a small cry jumped backwards at the sight that greeted her.
Albus Dumbledore sat in one of the arm chairs, fingertips touching in front of his face, staring hard at her. The room was illuminated only by the fire, the flames mirroring in his eyes, giving them a devilish touch.
After a long moment of silence, he spoke with a cold voice: "Sit down, Minerva, we have to talk!"
***
Muahaha, well you didn't expect that to happen, did you?
Now some replies to reviews:
Freelancer: Gasp, she did kill him! Surprising isn't it, but well she didn't have a choice really! And no, it's not Percy, to be quite honest… I forgot his owl's name was Hermes…. So, no it's not Percy. I am glad you like the story, thanx for the review!
Isabell3, HP Luva, Desiree: Thank you very much, I hope you'll continue reading!
Laura Kay, LinzE, petriebird18: Thank you very much for your reviews! This wasn't easy for both Minerva and me ;) I didn't want her to kill someone, but well, she had to, she was trying to protect her family. I hope you'll continue reading anyway!
Ok, please everyone, go on reviewing! Reviews are what keep me going, and I'd really like to know what you think of this chapter as it is different to what I usually write! Just press that lovely little button on the left side! Thank you!