Well, first of all, to all of you Americans, happy (early) Fourth of July! ) Let the fireworks fly!
ok…next…this is a very long chapter…18 pages…sorry about that, I just couldn't get my wee brain to stop telling my fingers to type.
third…no notes this round. I'm lacking time and the energy. Instead I'll just give out a big thank you to the following people for reviewing: Questionablelight, Leta McGotor, Girl from Iceland, Quill of Minerva, DumbledoresKitten, Alesia G, Silver Sorceress, Siriuslives5, Rebecca, Kidarock, Emutet, Hogwarts Duo, melissa, esb, bogus7
you guys are all awesome! You make me smile, frown, glare, laugh, etc. you guys even make me realize my mistakes! Of course…you inspire me on the other hand…newho, I have something of interest written at the very bottom of this chap. written directly from me to you. :)
Chapter Twelve: To Have and to Let Go
Minerva watched the bathwater fill the tub slowly. Drip, drip, drip millions of drops fell to another pile of liquid to create a giant pool of forgiving heat. The smooth water rippled, even cascaded its warmth in that tiny circle of a container.
She looked up from where she was sitting, towards the threshold. The woman had felt the vibration of footsteps, not heard her daughter approach. Maddy came in somewhat reluctantly; after all, the bath was clearly meant for her. Madelyn had needed it for some time; her face had gone from white to brown over the course of a few days and Minerva didn't dare look at the girl's hands—they could scare the woman off. But of course the child didn't care; it was apparent that she felt that there was nothing wrong with being dirty, just like any other child on the face of the planet.
Minerva opened her two arms and beckoned the child over. Maddy walked over to the woman, stood between her limbs, and stared. In a way she was pouting, angry that her mother was making her become clean once again. Yet, in the other way, she was forcing Minerva to stare upon her with a new eye so to speak. Look, the woman did. Her eyes were large and knowing; perhaps too much so.
Minerva blinked, but didn't say a word. The woman smiled at her daughter, turned off the water, and gave the nod to her. She left the spotless room for a few moments and immediately walked towards the record player where the music was put to a start. It was a bouncy song, something that made her feel much more at ease than the tune heard earlier in the day. The sound radiated through the entirety of her living quarters.
She went back to the bathroom where her daughter was already in the tub, playing with a floating, hand-sized ball. The child was practicing levitation—a gift she'd seemed to have since she was little. It wasn't in any doubt to Minerva where she got her ability to make things fly without a wand, though she did owe some credit to Madelyn. It was true she had been blessed with a great amount of magic, but it was only her who was able to harness it in such a controlled manner.
Minerva sighed. She did need to talk with the little one. Not only was she beginning to feel guilty at the lack of details that she was giving to Madelyn, but she knew it was only a matter of time before she found them out anyway. Maddy realized what was happening; she'd made it utterly apparent earlier in the day when she spoke with Albus. Madelyn had asked him how much older Albus was than her mother—a question that she knew was very much off limits. The child was curious, yes, but she would never have asked that question in front of her mum unless there was a special circumstance; in this case, it would be the union of the two adults. Oh yes, Maddy knew at least that they had begun to care for each other. The girl knew that her hopes of having Albus be her father could very well come true.
The woman took a seat next to the tub and leaned against it with her back so that she wouldn't be looking her daughter in the eye. It was not that she was afraid of the look at Madelyn; she just knew the fragile state she was in. If the wrong—or right—words were passed between them, the woman knew she could turn into a blubbering idiot.
There was silence for a very long time. Not even Madelyn spoke to herself the way she had a tendency to do. No, there was only air being breathed; it was the single sound of the room. And then the child did something that mildly surprised her. Maddy pulled the pins away from her mother's hair. It fell down; a majority of it went into bath water.
The woman smiled. "What do you think you're doing?"
"Relaxing you," her childlike voice whispered to the room. It was as if she knew what was going through her mother's head, which was quite miraculous to the woman. Her daughter knew there was tension in her heart and mind without even asking. What a wonderful connection they shared; Minerva was very thankful for it at that particular moment. It made her job ever so slightly easier. The fear inside of her was drifting out slowly.
"Thank Merlin for you, dear," she sighed happily. "When was the last time I said that I loved you?"
There was silence as the child thought to herself. "When you left after lunch today."
She nodded her head slowly. Apparently she was still capable of being a good lover in one sense. Her daughter knew she loved her. There wouldn't ever be any question to that, never ever. In the years that came, her crazy teenage years, Maddy would always know that Minerva was in love with her little girl. "Well then I love you more now than I did this afternoon, alright?" she whispered with a stupid smile on her face.
"Okay," she said back.
Minerva closed her eyes, finding the sound of the water and the dim light of the room most relaxing. Of course, one must not forget that she had not gotten hardly any sleep the evening before. The woman hadn't realized how tired she was until her eyes closed, though she had the distinct feeling that (as always) it would be a great many hours before she truly did fall to slumber.
"You said you couldn't fall in love with him, but you are."
Those words really ought to have sent up a red flag in her mind, one that bleeped over and over again 'do not pass go', but alas, between her slowly malfunctioning brain and somnolent room, no such thing occurred. She responded quite legitimately. "I know," she whispered softly, "I couldn't get anything past you, could I?"
"Not me," she replied. The child reached out and pulled some strands of Minerva's hair apart and began braiding it gently. Minerva leaned back closer to the tub, enjoying the contact between mother and daughter. There wouldn't be too many of those moments left, she knew. It would only be two years before Maddy was a student at Hogwarts. Her mother wouldn't be seeing her at all then, except when teaching.
"Why are you, mum?"
"Why am I what?"
"Falling in love with him."
The woman sighed and stared with blurry vision straight ahead of her. She had asked herself that question many times already and honestly had yet to give herself an answer. How could she possibly know why she was falling in love? It was a great marvel that had yet to be figured out. "I don't know. Why do you ask? I thought you liked Albus."
"I do!" she peeped in quickly. "It's just that you said you couldn't fall in love with him and you are."
What could she say to that? Maddy, as rudimentary as her knowledge was, knew things about love that only children could know. She understood the simple part of it: hugs, kisses, saying 'I love you'. The child had realized that her mother was vastly in love with a wonderful man, probably just from a few looks. How could she explain what she felt in a way that the girl could comprehend?
"Think of it like this, Madelyn," she whispered, "if I had told you that you couldn't love me after all of these years, would you do it?"
A quick silence came and went. Maddy replied with the obvious answer. "No."
She nodded her head. "Good answer. It's like that for me and Albus. I shouldn't love him, but I do."
"So you've been in love with him before?"
This time, the red flag came up entirely too quickly. It was her own fault, she supposed, for using the example she had. She'd implied it without meaning to. Of course she had loved him before, but Madelyn couldn't know that…she just couldn't. Minerva turned to look at her daughter. A mass of soaking hair fell almost to the floor and got the woman all wet.
She had meant to deny it, to tell Madelyn that Albus and she were never involved. But it seemed to be in Minerva's nature to cave in at the exact wrong second, to succumb to fear. At the sight of her daughter's complexion, she was reminded of him. Minerva sighed. "Wash up, get out, and I'll tell you about him and me," she said with a newfound motherly tone. Then she left the room to deal with her many thoughts.
Once she was out of the room, she whispered to herself with uneasy reassurance, "It's probably best, anyway."
Minerva contemplated over and over again the magnitude of what she was about to tell her daughter as the girl got ready for sleep. She'd decided that there was no possible way for her to tell Maddy that Albus and she were together and not involve the creation of the child. The girl was about to be told who her father was. For years Minerva tried to hide Madelyn's father's identity by throwing away newspapers that held hid face, not giving too many clues, and not ever saying his name when she was around. And now, after nine years, it would be revealed in such a way that she could never forgive herself for waiting.
The woman stared at the slowly burning fire from the settee, berating herself for her stupid bad judgment. Her daughter couldn't possibly take well to knowing who her father was all along, especially when he had become so incredibly close.
Maddy came out in her pink nightgown, with big green eyes. She looked at her mother and sat next to her, knowing full well that there was no point in asking for the story that had already been promised. She waited patiently, not saying a word. Minerva reached out her arms and pulled the child towards her. The little one put her head on her mother's shoulder.
And then the woman began, not necessarily by choice, but simply by the feeling that it was time. She felt the pressure of the minutes upon her; the secret had to be told. "Well Maddy, let's start when I was a student," she sighed. "Mr. Albus was my teacher. He—he was brilliant and handsome, everything that I wanted in a man. I don't expect you to understand this part quite yet; you're still fairly young to be seriously thinking about boys, Merlin forbid. But anyhow…I fell in love with him and by some miracle he fell in love with me. We fell in love together."
"Then what? Did you fall out of love?"
Minerva blinked. She didn't know exactly where to start with that question. In truth, she never had fallen out of love with Albus, but she certainly was not with him in those years; instead she was with Madelyn—their child. "I don't believe we did, dear." She sighed loudly and then glanced at Maddy who was looking up at her with confusion on her face. Despite herself, a smile crossed her face; her daughter looked almost too utterly interested for what was meant to be such a simple subject.
"But things happened that made us…separate," she continued. "You see, I graduated and he went on to bigger, better things. But we never really stopped loving each other. I still thought of him all of the time and he, I suppose, thought of me every now and then."
"Why didn't you go back and tell him, then? You told me that you're supposed to tell someone that you love them."
The woman looked at Maddy with her big green eyes and face which was inherited from her father. What Minerva had always told her daughter was true, but it was a lesson that she, herself, learned far too late in life. When she was a teenager, she was headstrong and independent if she needed to be—by the time she reached twenty or so, it was too late to tell Albus that she loved him…not that she would have, anyhow. As memory served, she had been hurt far too much by the man's lack in sending letters to feel anything but disdain.
"Well, I thought he had hurt me," she whispered. "I thought that it was best if I were to just keep the memories to myself and ignore the fact that I was away from him."
"Oh." Maddy said gently and then her voice grew ever so slightly more curious than it had been previously. "Did you dance together? And kiss?"
The woman looked down at her daughter with dilated eyes. Had she guessed that? Did the music give it away? No, Maddy knew. The child was not presuming that they danced or kissed—though she had to admit kissing was a given in a relationship—somehow, Madelyn was very much aware of their past together. "Did Albus tell you that we did?"
"No," she shook her head slowly, "he didn't tell me anything."
Suspiciously, she stared at Maddy. If Albus had said nothing, then there was no one else who could have. Where was it that she could possibly be getting her facts? Could Poppy maybe have said something? No, Poppy was a blabber, but she certainly was able to watch what words fell out of her incredibly large mouth. "Then who did?" she asked quietly.
"No one. I found a letter…in your drawer. I read it and it was from Mr. Albus."
She went completely blank at that point, quite possibly from shock, maybe more of horror. Madelyn had read the letter…her daughter read that heartbreaking letter. That poor little girl probably knew everything there was to know and hadn't realized it—or maybe she had. Minerva blinked and had to turn away from her daughter who up until that point had seemed completely innocent.
Her questions of the past few days had come across as curiosity, interest. But now that personality trait had been denied. No, Maddy had simply been prodding further into what she so obviously knew. She'd asked only a few hours before how much older Albus was than Minerva. Her mother had found it out of line, certainly, but not a question that mattered in the eyes of the child. Now she realized that Madelyn had simply been asking for her own benefit; she wanted to know how much older Minerva's love was than her.
She looked back down at her daughter with disappointment. It had to have been the first time that she had ever felt dissatisfaction with Madelyn, but it was present in a newfound abundance. Maddy had known. The little girl knew that Minerva was in love with the Headmaster before even she was able to admit it. That wasn't the worst part of though, her knowing. The most putrid bit had been that Madelyn took—and read—her mother's personal things. That sweet little girl had stolen and used it to her advantage. Quite possibly she already knew what Minerva had been meaning to tell her all along.
The woman blinked. "And where was I when you found this letter?" She was curious. Had she done it while Minerva was there, at work, or with Albus? It was a question worth asking.
"Asleep, napping," she said softer this time. Madelyn could realize that tweak in the woman's voice. She knew quite well that she was in trouble for reading the letter, but then again she had known that there would be consequences one day or another.
"Ah," she nodded her head slowly, feeling a numbing pain penetrate her body. "Tell me, Madelyn Annette McGonagall, why did you read it? You know, Albus only gave it to me a week ago." She was sinking deeper and deeper into a pool of disappointment the more she thought about it. People always interfered with her things; it's what had ruined her life in the first place. They just took her possessions without asking and disappointed her in the end. Minerva had never dreamed that her own daughter could make her feel as sad and lifeless as she had begun to feel, never.
"I don't know."
Minerva stared at Maddy closely, feeling her patience as well as trust slip away with every second. She couldn't go any further without some space apart from her daughter. The woman took in a deep breath and stepped away from Madelyn. There were tears in her eyes; a rare find for her by then. She hadn't visibly cried for years. But Minerva would not be drawn back in by those tears. The woman shook her head slowly as she stared unto her daughter. "Maddy," she said slowly, "Go to your room for the rest of the night. I'll be in later to tuck you in."
Her face had gone red now, bright red. Tears were leaking everywhere. With a great sniff, she sat up from the settee and ran to her room, making sure to slam the door behind her.
Minerva felt no guilt for what she had done, even as the vibration of Maddy's walls being hit was heard; she liked to throw things when she was angry. The girl was one of action, but so was her mother. The woman herself left the room then and went into her own bedroom. She felt like throwing things too, but didn't. Minerva just fell on her bed and stared at the blank ceiling as a tear or two fell from her eyes.
She knew it was silly to be angry at her daughter for such a small thing. But Maddy didn't realize what privacy meant to her mother. There were very few people out there anyway he knew what privacy could possibly mean to Minerva. As a child she had been around far too many people who were of the wrong sort—she never seemed to have a moment alone. Then there was that simple, original ordeal with the letter. Her notes had been held captive from her, never to her knowledge. It had been her hope that she was away from that sort of secrecy.
A hard, long breath was drawn from the woman and then her eyes closed out of frustration. She didn't want to look at the world anymore; it was very much unfair. It angered her that it could possibly allow her daughter to disappoint her so. It made her feel complete devastation when it kept her from telling Albus the truth. She hated the world; it brought nothing but pain.
But that, perhaps, is slightly insignificant. Despite her emotional wave, sleep was immediately brought upon her. Minerva didn't open her eyes for some hours later.
Albus was just putting on his nightwear when a knock came on the door. He wasn't very perplexed at this, though he should have been. It was nearly eleven o'clock at night. All of his staff had a right to be in bed and there certainly couldn't be any student problems so early in the year. But none of this occurred to him as he went to the door.
He had expected a grow-up to be looking at. Instead he looked down at a familiar red headed girl who seemed quite motherless at the time and extremely distraught. The little one's eyes were red and puffy, obviously she had been crying. He opened up the door very wide and allowed the girl to come in; she walked right up to him and wrapped her arms around him.
To be frank, he didn't know what to do right away. There was no experience with him as far as a nine year-old went. His main business had been with teenagers for the past thirty plus years. Going on a reaction, he picked up the child from the waist and brought her head up to his. She threw her arms around him as well as her legs. He walked to his bed and sat with the child in his arms.
She started crying again while she was in his grasp. The tears just streamed out and he could certainly hear her bawling. The man wanted to ask her what was wrong, but knew it would be futile, at least for the time being. All he could assume was that it obviously had something to do with her mother; Maddy would not have come to him otherwise.
It felt oddly comforting to be holding the teary eyed child. He felt as if he had been doing it for years, which was partially true. With him only growing older, there had been evenings where he dreamed that he had a child to hold and comfort. Many times in his sleep he had held a weeping child, this was only his first real experience.
When the bawling finally subsided, the little girl looked at him with the saddest expression. Her wistful eyes had grown to their full potential and a look of complete guilt had found its way onto her lips. She looked as if she still wanted to cry, but had no more energy to do so.
Albus smiled sadly at her. "Can you tell me what's wrong?"
She shook her head slowly.
He couldn't blame her, really. He was the new man in her life and didn't know her as well as many others. There would be many things that she would want to keep from him in the years to come. Albus nodded his head. "Well then how about we take you back home?"
Madelyn shook her head violently and buried her head into his neck. "Don't make me go home, please. Mum is mad at me."
So that was it. Miss Minerva's temper had gotten to her. He wouldn't say that it was without warrant because he did not yet know what the reason was, but he did certainly remember the furry that she could protrude. Any child could be scared of Minerva's anger if it was at its best. "Okay, I won't," he said gently. "Would you like a hot chocolate, then?"
He could feel her nod and a smile came across his face. What child disliked hot cocoa?
Minerva's eyes opened slowly with a grudge. She didn't want to get up, look around, or even stare up at the ceiling again. All the woman wanted was sleep; she at least deserved that, did she not? With a loud moan of annoyance, she turned to the clock which currently read two o'clock. Her head began to throb at that moment; it was as if there was an earthquake breaking the grounds inside of her brain. She had no business being up at two in the morning. Her tired body was against it. The woman's limbs didn't want to move nor did her neck or even her eyes. Minerva wanted sleep; a peaceful, lasting, silent slumber for once in her life.
But then a thought came to her besides sleep; it was Madelyn. Minerva had sent her daughter to her room and then promised to later tuck her in. Surely it was past tuck in time; Maddy had to be sound asleep in her bed by the hour that it was. Nevertheless, it was not in the woman's nature to not do what she said.
She slowly crept out of bed and made her way across the little corridor to Madelyn's room.
While she was not prone to bad situations, it certainly seemed that one had risen—again—in the midst of her short slumber. There was no little girl in that bed; only a sheet and pillow. The woman's heart seemed to fall from her chest and land with a thud on the floor. It didn't even bounce when it hit, just laid there to collect the dirt of the room.
Frantically, she ran her hands all over the course of the mattress and then dashed around the empty room. On the bookshelf, under the bed, inside the closet she looked; certainly her daughter had gone. The little red headed girl was nowhere to be seen, absolutely nowhere. She'd gone missing.
Minerva tried to swallow through a newly clogged throat. Her attempt was futile, as only one could imagine. Tears began filling her eyes in those few moments as realization came across her face. She'd sent Maddy away; hurt her feelings a bit too much, perhaps. The child had left for some place else.
She sat and stared at the empty room as some leaky drops fell from her eyes, trying her best to think reasonably. Madelyn couldn't have gone far—there was no place to go. They were in a castle that was very nearly impossible to escape from. After all, if muggles couldn't find their way in, then how was it that witches could find their way out? Maddy had to have gone some place familiar, to someone familiar.
The woman blinked. There was only one real answer to where she could have gone. If Madelyn was not with Albus, then she couldn't possibly be anywhere else.
Quickly, Minerva left the child's room and made her way to the door. She didn't bother to put anything over the nightgown she was wearing; the last thing on her mind was her appearance. The woman raced as quickly as she could down the flights of stairs in order to get to Albus's room.
Albus had long since taken to a blanket on the floor for sleep. Only half an hour after the child arrived did she seem to fall back to slumber in his bed. He donated the mattress and blankets for the girl; after all, it was only customary to let the lady get the best in the room.
So the man had resorted to a pillow and blanket on the floor by the door. He thought it would be best anyhow seeing as how Minerva was more than likely to show up sooner or later. The consensus was that Maddy was distraught; certainly her mother would be too when she arrived. Minerva had to be worried. The child had obviously left without permission in the middle of the night; what a horror that must be.
Where else would she look other than his quarters for the child? Both of them knew that Maddy had taken a liking to him.
He fell asleep for about two hours before there was any sign at all of life outside his room. The only reason he even woke up was because he had taken to a spot so very close to the door for sleep. Otherwise he was sure that the deep snooze he was having could not have possibly been disturbed. The man walked slowly towards the door and opened it quite wide to see a red faced Minerva.
"Is she here?" she asked with a wee bit of a crack in her voice.
Albus nodded his head gently and motioned the woman inside. He didn't shut the door until he lit a candle or two inside of his quarters. Minerva's eyes fell directly on the bed where her daughter was sleeping peacefully. Then she turned to Albus.
"When…when did she come here?"
"Almost three hours ago," he replied. "She was awfully teary, Min; didn't want me to take her back home."
The woman nodded her head slowly and looked at him with tears in her own eyes. "I see," she whispered. "Did she tell you why she came?"
He shook his head no. He didn't have the faintest idea, not really. There were a great many things that could have sent Minerva over the edge; it did no good to guess. "Would you care to fill me in?" he raised an eyebrow.
The man could see her swallow slowly. But then she bobbed her head. "She read that letter that you gave me…the important one."
Albus glanced over curiously at Madelyn who was sleeping soundly still. Then he looked back at Minerva who was perturbed to the fullest potential. That was a change in events he had not counted on, not at all. In all of the things that he could have guessed was wrong, that letter being read would be at the lowest spot on the list. "She read the letter?" he repeated slowly.
It suddenly made complete sense to him. Madelyn did know about the two of them. She comprehended the fact that they were together romantically once upon a time and were obviously together again. That explained her curiosity to the fullest. All those questions she had asked—all the insinuations—were brought on from interest regarding that letter.
"Yes," Minerva said almost absentmindedly. She was looking around the room this time, not straight at her daughter anymore.
The man reached out his finger and brought it under her chin so she would look right at him. Her large eyes were still reflecting the candle light quite well. The orange beams hit her face, bringing out every characteristic. He was very suddenly reminded of the last time they were together in that room. She hadn't been in there for ten years.
He blinked away the thought and continued to look at her. "What happened, Minerva? She said you were mad at her."
She nodded her head slowly. "I—I was telling her about us when I was a student. Then she asked me if we had danced and kissed and such," she swallowed, "I asked her where she got the idea that we did any of it, if you had told her that. She said no, but she had read the letter. And I got angry, Albus."
He looked at her curiously. Woman was the one concept he would never be able to understand, as hard as he tried; particularly the woman infront of him. The man shrugged. "I fail to see why you could have gotten angry."
"I know it's silly to you," she said gently, too gently as a matter of fact. Something told him that she only did it to hide a crack in her voice. "But she took something very dear to me, looked at it, and used it to her knowledge. She had no right, none at all."
She was right; it was silly to him. He understood where Minerva was coming from, he truly did. But what he couldn't see was why it upset her so. Her daughter read a letter that by no means had the seal 'off limits' written on it. She was only a child, after all. There was no reason to punish her for acting the way children so often do.
"I suppose not," he said gently. "Do you really think that's important enough though, to cause her to run away?"
Minerva raised an eyebrow. "Do you think I haven't thought that myself? No, it's not important enough and I can admit to that. But the point is that she went through my things without asking and of course I'm going to reprimand her. She just took it too harsh."
He nodded his head. "I see. Would you mind my asking why you were telling her about us? I find it rather interesting, considering the fact that you didn't allow me to hold your hand earlier."
The woman looked down at the floor. Albus put his finger back under her chin and lifted her head to stare back at him. He didn't ask to make her feel bad, which was what obviously was happening. The man had asked only out of his own curiosity. After all, Minerva had wanted to keep things a secret. It didn't make sense to him at all that she would be telling her daughter about their relationship years before.
"Slip of the tongue," she shrugged, "I gave it away."
Again, Albus bobbed his head slowly. Then he glanced at the sleeping child. Her red hair was completely sprawled out on a pillow and hands on one side of her body. She was sleeping soundly enough for having such a traumatic evening. Infact she seemed to be resting very deeply; he couldn't imagine what could wake that child who looked so peaceful.
He looked back at Minerva. She hadn't taken her eyes off of him, he could tell. The woman had been staring at him from the moment he'd lifted her chin to look at him. It could have unnerved him some other day in some other situation, but it seemed…right to be looked at in such a way. He loved that emotion in her eyes that came out every so often and the way the light flickered off of it.
It was fortunate that Maddy chose his quarters to run to, he thought. Albus was the only one Minerva would ever look at in such a way with the emotion running down her cheeks. She was strong for everyone else, but not for those she loved. When she was near her beloved, all of her feelings came loose. Minerva loved her daughter very much; obviously she had been worried about the girl, it was as plain as the tear crawling down her cheek.
Albus sighed. "What do you want to do about her? She's sleeping, you know. I gave her some hot chocolate; it always did help me to sleep."
Minerva looked at the girl for a few seconds and then back at Albus. "I would like to take her back…but I don't want to wake her."
He nodded. That was understandable. Minerva was not in her home, or even a familiar place for that matter. She had only stepped foot in the room one other time and that had quite possibly left an implant inside her mind; he could only wonder if it was a good or bad one.
But he very much wished to keep the child happy, just as Minerva seemed to. So he suggested the most logical arrangement. "You can both stay here. I'll take a spot on the floor."
"No," she shook her head. "I can't ask that of you. This is your room. I'll just take her home and make up with her there."
Albus put his hands on her shoulders and looked at her with the most sincere face he could muster. "Minerva, please. I would like you both to stay. You're ready for sleep and so is Madelyn. You don't need to be lugging children around the school at this time of night. Just stay here; I won't be in your way."
"Albus," she whispered really quite too softly. He waited for her to finish whatever thought was running through her head, but nothing came. All she said was his name and a tear began to fall again.
She had meant to say something more, to expand on her thought. But she soon realized that there was nothing more that could possibly come from her mouth which may make sense. She pleaded with him without words. God, Minerva wanted to stay for Maddy's sake, but she knew it could be quite fatal to herself. She would be staying with Albus Dumbledore over night for the second time; the last encounter had left her with only a sweet memory.
The woman closed her eyes, willing herself to imagine the way she felt that one evening so long before. He had made her so happy, so incredibly happy. Albus had promised over and over again that he would love her for forever. Minerva knew that she would never stop loving him either, even then.
They walked after the graduation ceremony which took place the evening before the Hogwarts Train was to leave with the entirety of the school. Together they strolled around the grounds laughing and saying things that were not meant for anyone else's ears. They confessed their hopes and dreams, likes and dislikes, future and past. The both of them did their best to bring their relationship to a close.
The unfortunate thing was that neither of them really wanted the end to come. They held it off for as long as they could by a continuous walk, soft kisses, and gentle laughter. It was stalling at its best. But then the evening reached its high point, the one that made it clear that there would in fact be an end.
Albus led her to his quarters and looked at her sadly. Never had she seen that look in his eyes. He had always been a happy person whose twinkling eyes never seemed to fade. It made her heart break, just looking at him with that almost regretful expression.
Minerva tried to smile back towards the man that she loved, though it was quite difficult. She wrapped her arms around him for what was intentionally the last time. It became obvious rather quickly, however, that she simply did not know how to leave him. He was the best thing that had ever happened to her…how could she possibly say goodbye to that wonderful man? So she said nothing. The girl just pressed her head to his chest, feeling tears come to her eyes.
He put his arms around her and pulled her close to him, rocking his own body from side to side gently. It was as if music were playing around them, taking the two from reality into a dream world. The man started whispering softly to her. "What are you doing with me, Minerva?" he asked gently. "You're young and beautiful; you have no business being with someone as old as me."
She smiled to herself. They'd covered this subject so many times that she had lost count. The woman took in a slow breath, knowing exactly how she ought to reply. "I'm with you because you love me. Why is it that you are with me?" she whispered into his chest. "There must be others out there who are better for you than I am."
"You know the answer to that," he chuckled. "But if you must get one, I'll just say that it's because you're everything that I could possibly want in a woman."
Then there was silence; a very long, drawn out statement of quiet where the both of them were lost in thought. Minerva clung to the memory of him holding her tightly before they said goodbye. Albus, perhaps, was thinking of the woman in his arms who fulfilled his every desire. But she would never really know what was going through his mind in those moments; she could only speculate as long as she lived.
Minerva lifted her head from his chest and looked up at him into his brilliantly blue eyes. She really wanted to cry for the way he was staring at her. Even then she knew that look would be implanted for forever. He loved her.
"Why does this have to end?" she asked softly. The woman knew the answer deep down. Their relationship had always had an end in sight, drawing closer as they did with the passing of weeks. Minerva had never truly predicted falling as desperately in love as she had; she never guessed that the termination of their relationship for the school year could possibly tear her apart so much.
"I don't suppose it does," he said gently. "You've graduated, yes, but I can still write you, we can still keep in touch. It's just ended here, at Hogwarts."
She nodded her head slowly. He was right, but there was something to that statement that made her slightly unnerved. It wasn't that he was saying he would write,—it could never be that—it was because it did not fit either of their needs. Albus was busy in the summer and would have very little free time to write her. And Minerva…writing was not fitted for her simply because she was meant to travel that summer. But she ignored these facts with his words; if he said he would write, there would be some way for her to receive the letters he sent.
"You know Minerva," he whispered with the kindest voice she had ever known, "I can't imagine what it will be like without you this summer. I'll miss you very much."
"I'll miss you too," she admitted. Merlin, she would miss him. Everything about him she would hate to leave. From his hair to toes, laugh to cry, and quips to lunacy, the woman would miss.
"I love you," he said. Then he lifted up her chin and met his lips with her for potentially the last time. He was gentle when he kissed her, perhaps savoring the feeling as she was. The taste of his love had to be remembered well; it could be a long while before he would be able to taste her again. So the man prodded gently, not as forcefully as he had done in the past to get to her.
One of his hands cradled her neck while the other ran up and down her back, sending pleasurable shivers all along her body. The woman melted in his arms, losing all the structure that she had ever had. As such, he pulled her closer; almost close enough to mold her to him. Then he pressed the woman between the corridor wall and himself, seeking further for any reason to keep holding her.
He found it, too when his lips finally came away from hers. Maybe it was the moment, maybe it was simply her will to stay with him, but she found words that she had never uttered before fall from her lips. "Make love to me," she whispered. It wasn't a question; she wanted the man she loved to make love to her.
Albus didn't seem to think twice once she said those words. He nodded slowly and opened the door to his quarters. Minerva looked around the room for a few seconds once she was inside, taking into account the odd gadgets that he had collected. Then after a little while, she stared at the man who had taken to lighting a candle. A knowing smile was playing at his lips and his red hair was falling over the beautiful blue eyes that only he could possess.
The man then walked over to Minerva and kissed her on the mouth. His hot lips fused with hers, blending to make one. Her only working sense at that time was touch. It almost possessed her mind, the thought of being felt. All she wanted from him was his hands all across her…his lips skimming over her skin…simply his body heat edging her towards the ultimate sin.
Then he started kissing her neck while his hands very gently removed the outer most part of her robes, leaving an almost gown-like garment. His lips sucked softly on her firm skin, not even hard enough to leave a mark. He whispered into her ear then, "Are you scared?"
"No," she whispered back. It was the truth. Minerva was not afraid to give herself to him. He was the person she wanted to love for the rest of her life; the man she planned on losing her innocence to.
He pecked her on the mouth, only for a second and looked into her eyes. He didn't need to say anything more; the both of them knew that without saying a word. All the man had to do was kiss her again and she would go to him. So that is exactly what he did; Albus kissed her again.
They made love three different times that night…that last night. And Minerva was staring at the scene of the crime for the first time since then. The child that they created in those hours in the dark was sleeping in it unknowingly. The man who she made love to looked at the girl, unknowing that she was infact his daughter. And Minerva was taking her turn looking at each of them, knowing the entire truth.
Albus turned towards her with a familiar look in his eyes. "Minerva," he said gently, "it's two o'clock in the morning. Please just stay."
She swallowed slowly. There had always been a problem with her when it came to that man. His blue eyes just seemed to make her melt every time they came into contact of her. Her strength was simply drained by him, only to return hours after she'd left the man.
Minerva nodded her head slowly. "Only because it's so late," she whispered. She didn't want to stay, not really. There were wonderful memories in that room, but over the years she had learned to curse them. She had hated to remember how he kissed her, touched her, and above all, moved her. He was the man who left her with a feeling of hunger; she wanted nothing more than to be on that spiritual level with him again.
The man let out a smile. "Then go and get into bed. I'll take the floor."
A twisted smile crept on her face. Maybe she was too reminiscent, but those words didn't have the exact effect that they were meant to. An image flashed through her mind much too quick to really recall it, but to make it quite short and to the point, there were two people tangled in a sheet on the ground by a fire. "You enjoy ordering me around, don't you Albus?" she whispered playfully.
He shrugged. "It's my only joy in life."
Small as it was, a giggle escaped the woman. He had always been able to make her smile, no matter the situation. His humor had been her way out of life some days; it just brought her mind to a higher level that went away from daily problems.
The man grasped the woman's hand, led her over to the bed, and made her sit down. He did stare at her for a few moments, maybe recalling some of the images that she was. After all, he had once looked at her the same way he was looking at her in the exact same hours of night. Then he smiled. "Now go to sleep."
She blinked. It was a nice suggestion, but it did no good for the woman. She'd spent the last bit of the evening running about the school in search of her daughter and then looking at the sweet memories of her past; she was far too awake to be slumbering again. "I'm not sleepy," Minerva said gently.
Albus raised an eyebrow. Why he did such a thing, the woman could never guess. It was not as if she was making up what she said. In any case, she wasn't the sort to promote anything that ought not to be occurring—especially with Madelyn in the room. But truth be told, thoughts did race through her head. While he was standing so close to her, she did feel like she could kiss him for quite a long time…a very long time.
"Alright then," he said carefully, "would you like to talk?"
The woman nodded her head slowly. Talking was a wonderful idea, quite capital indeed. She could certainly stand to have words with him, the man who she had once made love to. It never did hurt to have a heart-to-heart with someone that she felt that strongly about.
He pulled her up from the bed and led her to the corner of the room where a rather comfy burgundy chair stood. The man motioned for her to sit, but she shook her head; she was keeping him up, he ought to have right to something as silly as a chair. Albus shrugged, sat down, and raised an eyebrow at the woman. Then he opened his arms. Minerva stared at him questionably long before she walked over and allowed him to wrap his limbs around her. She nearly was sitting on him, but he made room. The woman's legs were placed comfortably across the edge of the chair while her head and back were being held by Albus. A content smile fell on Minerva's face.
"So tell me," he said gently into her ear, "Do you still have trouble sleeping or are you staying up for me?"
The woman sighed. "Both," she confessed. It was absolutely true; she'd always had sleeping problems. Maybe there were just too many things on her brain, or perhaps she had a phobia of sleep in itself; in any case, sleep hadn't come very well over the course of her life. Besides that, she did really like to spend time with Albus. There was nothing really out there to stop her from being with the man, even at such ungodly hours.
"You really ought to be taking a potion for that, it isn't healthy to be up all night."
She nodded. Albus was right, she knew, but she also knew that his advice wouldn't be followed. "I don't take potions, Albus. They do nothing but mess with your mind."
"They can also help you sleep," he persisted. "I do not see how that idea could not appeal to you. Don't you like to feel fully rested in the morning?"
Minerva didn't answer straight away, quite the contrary infact; she took seconds upon minutes to reply. The woman had years to catch up on in sleep. For nine years she'd been working the most unholy of hours for the benefit of her child. She hadn't woken up feeling rested in what seemed like eons. "I don't believe I've felt fully rested in the entirety of my life," she whispered.
For some odd reason, the man's free hand grasped Minerva's. He spoke back gently, "And why might that be?"
"I don't know," she whispered. While it was true that she had a partial idea, the whole had yet to be discovered. There was no obvious reason for her hardship in entering dream world. But then she thought of earlier in the day, after her fight with Madelyn. She'd fallen straight to slumber after she sent her to her room. Where had her insomnia been then? She blinked and let her head fall on the man's chest. "But," she continued, "if you want, I have some news regarding that."
"Oh? Do tell." He thought this would be interesting, a good joke perhaps. Minerva was not in the mood to joke, no, she wanted to talk about her earlier misfortune.
"I fell asleep earlier after I sent Madelyn to her room. When I woke up, she was gone."
There was silence. Albus squeezed on the woman's hand tightly. "That's odd—and quite unlucky, if I might say, Min. Maybe you were just so exhausted that you couldn't hold on anymore. I'd imagine that ordeal with her could have caused you to use of a lot of energy."
She nodded her head slowly. That would be a reasonable—and logical—explanation of what had happened to the woman. She'd been exerting herself the entirety of the past week, fighting and engaging with both Albus and her daughter. It could only make sense that she would have something of a break down. Still, as much as she wanted to believe the man, she couldn't quite make herself do it.
It hadn't been her intention to fall asleep for the evening, either. She knew that to be true. If ever she did fall asleep, it didn't last long. When she was given the opportunity, the woman might take a nap, but those were just as productive as when she slept in the night. So that was her reasoning in why she had slept for only a few hours. Of course it was natural that she woke up to havoc.
"You like Madelyn, don't you?" she asked softly. It was more a reflection than a question, really. Of course he liked Madelyn, she certainly approved of him. But the woman had realized how deeply committed to each other they already were with the evening's events. After all, the child ran away to him.
"I love Madelyn," he replied. Something in his voice told the woman that he didn't mean it in that generic way that people spoke about others. He didn't mean that he loved to talk to her or that she was an enchanting person. No, Albus meant that he truly loved the child. "She's really quite the little girl, you know; I don't think I've ever met someone quite as curious as she is."
"Besides that atrocity earlier with your age," she smiled, "what other sorts of curious questions has she asked you?"
"She asks a lot about you and me. Earlier today—and I wasn't going to tell you this—she asked me if we had danced to that song before."
An eyebrow raised on the woman's face. So Maddy hadn't been just inquisitive with her mother. She knew quite a bit more than Minerva could ever have predicted. "And what did you tell her?"
"Nothing—you showed up with her sandwich. And by the way, I had no idea she had a tomato allergy…I found that quite interesting."
Her eyes were starting to get heavy as his voice rang through the otherwise empty air, which was a very big surprise to her. Usually it took hours upon hours before she felt any feeling of drowsiness. Perhaps it was because she was in his arms this time that it started to settle in upon her. "Why is that?" she asked, half-awake.
"Because I have one too. Funny world, isn't it?"
She blinked, trying to keep her eyes open. It was no use though. Even if she had stayed wide eyed, the words would never have processed through her mind. The woman whispered gently, "Ah-m."
With ease, she fell into sleep. Albus had his hands around her for the rest of her slumber.
Minerva's eyes opened slowly, unwillingly. The woman looked straight infront of her at first, towards the window and then the still dark sky. She remembered well where she was; Albus's room. She turned slowly only to see a sleeping Albus whose arms were still very much around her.
The woman let out a gentle sigh. He'd been good to her and held her throughout the time she slept. Perhaps that was why she loved him so; he always comforted her when she needed it. Maybe that was what had made him such a wonderful lover once upon a time. Albus was always there when she needed him. That wonderful man knew and accepted the fact that she was desperate for support in the evenings when her symptoms arose, seemingly unbeatable.
A mild sleeping disorder, that's what they called it. It was its own kind of disorder though, not entirely related to sleeping, she had been told. It was based more on intellectual insecurity as well as malfunctions. When she was stressed, she had a tendency to be up for the majority of the evening, but there was a unique rule to that. If she became too stressed—near the point of a breakdown—her body liked to respond by sleep. It hadn't been too often that she reached the point to where slumber was the only answer, but it seemed to come in large doses when it did.
She reflected for a few moments on the past months. When she first saw Albus again, she'd cried in agony. What had the result been? She slept an extra hour which made her late to work and eventually led to her quitting. Then what after that? Her and Albus talked, confronted each other. Yes, she had been up much of the time those days, contemplating the man and a possible relationship. And now the school term had started, she was hopelessly caught up in a game of truth or lies and had a daughter to take care of on top of it. Certainly she could see where her little moments had come into play—her large doses of sleep.
She continued to look out the window and decided that she'd gotten all the sleep she was going to get that evening, although the sky had not yet begun changing color. There was no reason for her to stay anymore, even if it did feel quite nice to be held by Albus again. Besides that, there were reasons stacked against her for why she ought to leave which included the fact that she could very well be seen leaving his room if she waited and of course there was Madelyn. Minerva needed to get her daughter home.
She looked at herself and the current situation. Minerva was quite clearly in the man's hold with no way to get out without waking him. If she moved one way, she would surely hit him; if she went another then she would quite possibly fall and make a loud noise which also would wake up the man. She rolled her eyes out of frustration. It wasn't her intention to wake up Albus again, but she did need to get back to her quarters with her daughter.
Minerva blinked and thought to herself for a manner of minutes before she thought of a very intelligent solution. She almost chuckled at her short term stupidity. A cat! Minerva would change into a small cat and slip out of the man's grasp. What a brilliant—and obvious—idea!
The woman changed very quickly, glancing at Albus to make sure that the transformation hadn't woken him up. Of course it hadn't done any such thing. Very carefully, she walked to the edge of the chair and hopped down. The animal took her time in making her way to the other side of the room where Maddy was and then transforming back into a woman.
Again, she glanced at Albus who was still sleeping soundly. Unlike her, he had always had no problem sleeping; quite the contrary, infact. Albus could fall asleep any minute of any day at anytime if he wished. He was a man who had also been cut short on sleep supply in his time, but he lacked the disorder that Minerva seemed to have. Yes, that man could sleep through anything.
With a sigh, Minerva leaned over to her daughter who was an invariably light sleeper and touched her hand. Immediately the child's eyes opened and she stared at her mother with a puzzled look on her face. "Mum?"
She nodded slowly. "Morning," she whispered, "I'm sorry about last night."
Madelyn nodded her head slowly, almost as if she hadn't a clue what the woman meant. She was still in dream world, not yet functioning at her normal state. It was quite possible that she didn't know what her mother was talking about.
The woman smiled down at her daughter and planted a small kiss on her forehead. "It's time to go," she said softly, "I'll carry you back to the room."
The child nodded her head again and kicked the sheets away from her body. Minerva grasped the girl under the armpits, picked her up, and made sure that the girl was securely holding on. Maddy's arms were wrapped around the woman's neck and her legs wrapped around the waist. The woman very slowly walked towards the door, but before turning the knob, she looked back at Albus who was still sleeping. An almost sad smile crossed her face.
There would be hell to pay at breakfast for her leaving, but he would understand eventually. She had a little girl who needed to be brought home, a fear of being spotted, and above all, a memory.
She'd been held by him for the hours that she slept—those few, glorious hours. That was plenty enough to keep a smile on her face. She would always remember the way he held her with his warm arms wrapped around her back and holding her shoulder close to him. It was as if he were protecting her. The only question that remained was exactly what did she have to be protected from? He didn't know it, but she did. Her fear; he was protecting her from her own fear. By Albus having his hands wrapped around her, not saying a word, he told her that he loved her no matter what. This set Minerva at ease…because that meant he would one day forgive her for not saying exactly who the little girl was that slept in his bed.
Albus woke up with the worst backache he'd ever had in his life. It hurt from the bottom to the middle to the top to the edges of his waist. With even the slightest movement a metallic pain would rush to his brain, giving him the urge to cry out. He blinked. That's what he got for sleeping in a chair.
He didn't bother to move—there would be a time for him to do that. The man just sat precisely still and pondered to himself the quick events of the evening which had seemed to blend into a blur. First Madelyn had shown up, distraught and tearful. Then he went to sleep. Next Minerva came, also distraught at the fact that her daughter had left over the course of the evening. Shortly following that, he had asked her to stay over—which she did. But the woman wouldn't fall asleep right then, no. She talked with him for all of five minutes on the chair and then let herself drift off to a quiet slumber. Albus hadn't had the heart to risk waking her and moving the woman to the bed with Maddy—her sleeping patterns had never been well. And so he woke up in the chair the next morning with an excruciating backache. The only problem—besides his pain—was that there was neither girl in his quarters.
Albus sighed. He hadn't given thought at all to the fact that he would wake up without Minerva's face to look into, but perhaps that was sheer stupidity; it was only predictable that she would leave early. The woman hadn't seemed too keen on spending the night over, but she had given in only because of her daughter. Naturally, she left the room at the first chance she got in the morning.
He had never liked to hold women before, not like he did Minerva. He would do it over the course of the evening, yes, but he had never felt at peace like he felt with the woman. She gave him a sensation of complete serenity what with her soft breathing and sweet expression. It had been his intention to hold the woman the entire evening; she obviously had other plans. Albus blinked. Why did she leave?
He would have moved better, he thought, if there was a cane for him to use. His back was screwed every way it could be; most of his spinal cord seemed to be out of alignment. But Albus was too proud to use such a thing. He was the new high and mighty headmaster…he certainly didn't need a cane!
Still, he entered the Great Hall clutching his back, trying to keep it straight. His eyes were on Minerva—who was also looking at him—the entire time. Even from far away he could see the guilty look on her face. The woman could tell that he was in pain and she knew it could only be blamed on herself. She'd fallen asleep on his lap for Merlin's sake! There should be no question in her mind for why he was walking the way that he was.
Albus took a rather irregular root to his seat at the table which included passing Poppy who did infact stop him before he proceeded. "What on Earth is wrong with you?" she asked with bent brows.
He cleared his throat. "Backache."
"Well I can see that," she bobbed her head, "but how and why do you have a backache—and so early in the year too!"
The man glanced at Minerva (who was still looking at him) and then he looked back at the school nurse. Poppy had the most ludicrous expression her face, as if she had found a remedy for the killing curse. A smile played at her lips. "Wouldn't have anything to do with Minerva, would it?"
Albus squinted, slightly surprised at the woman. How on Earth did she know? Well, he supposed that answer should be obvious. Poppy and Minerva were well on their way to being friends…surely Min had said something or other about their relationship. He shrugged at the woman, not finding it necessary to give an explanation. "Maybe something to do with her."
Poppy nodded with a smile on her lips. "Come by after breakfast, I'll give you a potion for your backache."
He nodded appreciatively and continued on his way to Minerva. He put a hand on her shoulder. Immediately she turned to look at him. "Good morning Albus," she said gently.
"Morning Min." He sat down beside the woman. "So tell me," he grabbed a knife, butter, and toast, "why weren't you there this morning? I was in the hopes of kissing you goodbye."
"I had to get Maddy to her room." That was her simple reply. There was no more to add on, just those few words by themselves. He was ever so slightly surprised that she didn't elaborate, but then again, he knew the subject would need a little bit of prodding.
"That may very well be," he took a bite of his toast, "but you left me in agony this morning." Albus swallowed. "It would set my mind at ease if you told me something else—that you didn't leave me to pain on purpose."
She looked at him for a few seconds with regret written on her face. "Don't speak with your mouth full," she whispered, a gentle smile crawling on her lips, but then it left quickly. Albus was not in the mood to joke. He wanted to know why she left. "I didn't mean to leave you hurt," she said gently. "I would never mean to hurt you—you know that. What hurts? I saw you walking up here…you don't have much of a stride today."
He blinked. "I stride?"
Minerva nodded her head with the slightest upward curve on her full lips.
"Oh. Well," he cleared his throat, "my back hurts. You know you fell asleep on me last night while I was in the chair. I couldn't bring myself to move you."
The woman nodded slowly. Her eyes were rather large as it would seem—despite everything, Albus could see the unhappiness, flooding like a dam. Minerva hadn't meant to hurt him and he knew it. "I suppose I need to thank you for your not moving. I slept for an entire two hours after that. You calmed my nerves, Albus." She bent her head lower, closer into his. "I'm sorry for leaving you this morning. It wasn't my intention to hurt your back or ego."
"Excuse me?" he raised an eyebrow. "Ego? Are you calling me egotistical?"
A small but amused laugh escaped the woman. She shook her head one second and nodded it the next.
Albus folded his arms. "Explain to me, my dear, how am I egotistical? I happen to think that I'm rather selfless most of the time."
"Exactly," she smiled. "You think you're selfless because your ego makes it that way."
A smile crossed his mouth. Finally, the banter! Merlin, he had missed it. He snapped back quickly. "And what about you, Miss McGonagall? You've got the biggest ego I think I have ever met. Let's take into account that display that you put on last night," he said in the best girlish tone he had. "'I'm not tired, Albus. Talk with me, Albus.' you knew quite well what you were doing, didn't you Min?"
"I hadn't planned to fall asleep like that," she shook her head, "I'm not that devious. I just didn't feel tired, simple as that."
He leaned in closer to her and stared into her eyes with a raised eyebrow. Albus whispered softly to her, "And yet you fell asleep five minutes later? A likely story, my dear—couldn't help yourself, could you? You knew where you were; you just had to relive some of it, didn't you?"
She blinked in thought—not the reaction he had anticipated—and then she spoke in a harsh whisper, as if she were defending herself, though he could not think of anything that she would need to defend. "I didn't want to stay the night over; I only did it because of my daughter. She chose your quarters, not me." Then she turned her head away from his gaze and looked forward at the students.
Albus scratched his head, wondering to himself how in the hell the conversation ended with her snapping at him. If anything he should have been angry with Minerva, not the other way around. What had he done wrong? Surely she couldn't really be angry at him for playfully bringing up the fact that they had been together in his quarters once before…that would just be mad! It was the truth after all…they'd made love in that room a long time ago. Why should it ruffle her fur so to bring that up?
The man reached over and took Minerva's hand. She looked at him with a blank expression on her face. "Is there something bothering you?"
"Everything. is. just. fine," she said slowly.
Of course he could tell that everything was not fine. Minerva rarely took a tone like that with him. Besides that, he knew she wasn't simply cranky—he'd slept with her the evening before. There had to be something wrong…something. "Tell me Min. I'll help you with whatever it is."
She sighed and looked at him apologetically. Her guilty face had suddenly returned. "I'm sorry. I'm just angry at myself, that's all. This past week has been," she looked around, searching for the right word, "insane. I mean, well, between you and Madelyn I'm going crazy—do you know what she said to me a few days ago?"
Albus shrugged. He didn't have the foggiest. The man did know, however, that it was bound to be a brilliant question for Minerva to bring it up. She talked about Maddy often, but not much in regards to him.
"She asked me if you could be her father," she half smiled, "before you came in after the rain, that's when she asked it. I think I could have fainted."
The man chuckled delightedly. He knew Maddy liked him. It was amazing to him that she would suggest such an obscure—though relevant—question so early in their relationship. Actually in truth, they weren't even together back then; mind you it was only a few days before. "I daresay you should have," he smiled, "it would have added an extra effect when I came."
"How droll you are," she smirked. Then that was it—the bell rang all through the castle. It was time for classes to start. Minerva looked at him and then asked him a question. "I'm going to surprise Maddy and take her to see some of her friends this weekend. Would you like to come?"
Albus nodded immediately. "I'd be delighted."
"Good," she smiled, "it will be a pleasure to have you for company."
"The pleasure will be all mine," he grinned, "now if you'll excuse me, I have a meeting with the school nurse so I can get my back problem fixed."
The man walked towards Poppy who had yet to leave the table. She smiled at Albus and then nodded. They walked together to the hospital wing which was not very far at all. They didn't say anything on the way there, which was normal. The nurse usually waited until no one else was around to open her trap of a mouth.
"Pick a bed, any bed, Headmaster," she said cheerfully as the woman went to a cabinet or other for a potion bottle. Albus sat down on the bed closest to the window so he could look out and watch the flying lessons conducted.
Poppy came towards him after only a minute or two and looked at him with a bottle in her hand. "Here it is. Do you mind telling me just how you hurt yourself or is that strictly between you and Minerva? I won't prod if it's personal, you know. I'm not like that, Headmaster, I keep to the business that I should know and only that."
Albus raised an eyebrow. For some odd reason, he didn't quite believe what Poppy was saying; she was as nosy as a person could get, but she was free to think what she wanted of herself. It didn't really matter to him anyway—her inquiries weren't important. He did, however, have to question the way Poppy referred to Minerva. What could she possibly think happened?
"You may ask whatever you want—"
"That's good. You know, I was just absolutely ecstatic when I found out that you two are together. It's so wonderful," she clutched her hands to her chest and looked about starry eyed, "you two being sweethearts so many years ago, you know. It's like you've raised your relationship back from the dead or something. But you know," she looked back down at Albus, "if you're going to be active with her, you ought to make sure you're plenty stretched—one hundred is about the age that things start getting a little bit stiffer—and I don't mean that in a crude sense, sir. I just mean that your muscles…" she continued babbling, Albus grew blank.
She thought he'd slept with Minerva. Poppy honest to Merlin believed that he had slept with the woman and hurt his back in the process. God, the irony! Truth be told, he had slept with Minerva, but he hadn't…well, there wasn't any touching involved. They hadn't been together like lovers, just as two people who were tired. The man chuckled to himself.
"Poppy." he said gently as she continued babbling about who knows what, "Minerva and I haven't slept together—not in the figurative way, anyhow. Madelyn came last night about eleven and fell asleep. Minerva came about two to find Maddy and I didn't want her to leave…so she slept. Only problem was that she slept on me in a chair. That is what happened."
"Oh," Poppy's eyes grew wide and a blush crept on her cheeks, "Sorry, Headmaster…I just assumed that—well, you know."
Albus nodded. It was understandable, perfectly understandable. He probably had been looking at Minerva rather strangely earlier in the day; it was only natural that Poppy find reason for that look to be one a lover gave—hell, it probably was. He did love Minerva. "It's alright," he said gently, "but yes, we are a couple."
The woman nodded slowly. "I'm happy about that, sir. You weren't angry when she told you?"
He blinked. "Told me what?"
Poppy stared at him for a few seconds with bent brows and then shrugged. "About you being Madelyn's father."
Albus blinked. Obviously Poppy and Minerva had become quite the pair of friends. He was under the impression that Maddy had asked if he could be the child's father only a few days before then. He hadn't thought that the two women were together at all between that time. Oh well, it didn't matter. He smiled and shrugged. "I find it rather cute that Maddy wants me to be her father…Minerva seems to, also. I don't see how I could get angry."
The woman stared at him for a few seconds, almost bewildered, but then that usual chipper smile fell on her lips. "Well then, we'd better be getting to treating that back of yours."
"And so it is not one, but two eggs that this spell can make. Imagine what the world would be like if there were a spell like this for everything. There'd be no such thing as hunger!" she smiled.
Her class gave a small chuckle as well. Things were going wonderfully for her second day. She loved it! Minerva had been right to want to be a teacher when she was younger. There was just so much excitement and words to be said about the profession.
She grabbed a piece of chalk and began writing down the assignment for the evening. When she turned around there was a familiar (though uninvited) person standing in the back. Minerva smiled at her and nodded. She blinked. What on Earth could Poppy want to say to her?
"This is your assignment for the night," she pointed at the board, "you're dismissed once you've written it down." Minerva knew the bell had not yet rung, but what were a few minutes, after all? They would just be off to either socialize or to their next class. If nothing else they would be early, which was not usually a bad thing. It wasn't long at all before her class was empty except for Poppy who approached her with a daring expression on her face.
Minerva sat on the top of her desk. "What's happening?"
Poppy cleared her throat and said quite calmly; almost too calmly. "I really ought to be asking you that question. You haven't told him, have you?"
"Excuse me?" she frowned.
"About Madelyn and him;" her voice began to grow higher and more strained as the seconds ticked by, "you haven't told him the connection yet, have you? I usually reserve this question for men, but I think it'll work in this situation: What the bloody hell is wrong with you?"
It was Minerva's turn to clear her throat. Her heart began beating quickly. She'd done something wrong again—or still. "I meant to, I really did," she shrugged. "He just seems to cut me off at the worst of times. I've tried to tell him, but then I just—"
"Get scared?" Poppy raised an eyebrow.
She nodded slowly, not really wanting to admit it. Yes, she did get scared; the words just couldn't fall out of her mouth. "I tried yesterday," she said weakly, "I told him that I didn't want to hurt him and I was going to say more, but then he cut me off…he said that I couldn't ever hurt him. I couldn't go on after that."
"Even so, you're waiting entirely too long. You know, the longer you wait the more it will strain the relationship—which by the way, I hear is scooting right along."
Minerva bobbed her head again. That was nothing new to her. She knew quite well that the longer she waited the more it would hurt the both of them. But the woman couldn't for the life of her get the words to go out of her mouth. They simply wouldn't go! "I'll tell him," she said quite fiercely aloud.
"Please do—you'd set everyone's conscience on a better note."
"Okay," she repeated firmly, "I'll tell him this weekend. We're going away from here…maybe it will be different in a different environment."
Poppy nodded. "Hopefully it will." And then a tidbit of a smile crossed her face, a humorous nurse returning. "I hear you slept on him last night—nice way to injure a man. He doesn't seem to feel any remorse."
Despite herself, a smile crossed the woman's face. "He wouldn't."
k then…tehe…the end is drawing near. Finally…DUN DUN DUN DUN! I have a legit idea of how many chapters are left…and the answer is 6. Haha…that's what…about 2-3 months:)
cu in two weeks!
—minni