I am so sorry for the wait. I had finals and other real-life dramas, so happy, enjoyable stuff was put on an unfortunate hold. I hope you all stick with it, and thanks again to my wonderful reviewers! You brighten my day! Enjoy and review, as always :)

The Past and Other Bothers

'Really? Are you sure? I mean, it's very thoughtful of you, but –,' Trudy was surprised, and, truth be told, rather flattered.

'Of course,' Pomona encouraged the younger witch as she watered her plants in Greenhouse Three. 'We'd love to have you.'

Trudy was silent as she thought. When Pomona had invited her to a sort of gathering this evening, she'd felt almost happy at the inclusion, then rather shy.

'I don't know,' Trudy began hesitantly, but Pomona cut her off.

'Listen, it's going to be great fun,' she said. 'It'll just be me, Poppy, and Minerva. Oh, and Rolanda Hooch if she can come. Just the five of us having a bit of a witches' night, alright? Actually,' the Herbology teacher said, 'Minerva specifically told me to invite you.'

'Really?' Trudy said, taken aback.

'Oh, yes,' Pomona confirmed. 'Minerva wants you to come – in fact, she ordered me to get you to come in any way I could, even if it meant dragging up the Astronomy Tower stairs. I really don't want to have to do that, so just come and save me some trouble?'

'But – but Minerva doesn't even like me!' Trudy burst out, then immediately scolded herself for such a childish statement.

Professor Sprout looked surprised. 'Of course she does. Why would you think she doesn't?'

'It's just – the whole thing with Connor, you know, and she never talks to me or anything! She knows practically everything; she must think I'm clueless, or pathetic. I bet you she never even took Muggle Studies,' Trudy concluded pitifully.

Pomona regarded Trudy for a long moment, then set down her watering can and guided Trudy to a nearby bench, seating her on it firmly.

'Listen to me for a moment,' Pomona began gently. 'Minerva is the Deputy Headmistress. It is her responsibility to ensure that everything at Hogwarts runs smoothly. The Headmaster directs everything and sets the foundation, but it is Minerva who must carry it all out. She orchestrates everything, that is her job. The classes, discipline, Quidditch scheduling – everything.' Pomona took a breath and continued as Trudy squirmed guiltily in her seat. 'She must be ready to take charge at all times, particularly with Dumbledore as headmaster, as he can frequently be called away for emergencies. The school may be his priority, but it is Minerva's life. Everyone says that Dumbledore is the best headmaster this school has ever had, and it's true, but there are burdens to having the greatest wizard in the world as Headmaster.'

Trudy was looking at her hands as Pomona carried on.

'There are things no one ever thinks of. Minerva may be a powerful witch, but she is no Dumbledore – hell, no one is – and as such, she will always be in his shadow. Oh, she doesn't mind,' Pomona added at the look on Trudy's face. 'She always says she prefers it that way. She supports him when he's present, and she leads when he's not. It's a smooth system – but Trudy, it's exhausting. During the year, Minerva rarely has time for anything. This Christmas holiday is such a rarity, she doesn't really know what to do with her time. So please,' Pomona finished, 'stop torturing yourself. Minerva likes you quite a lot; she just doesn't always have time for everyone. Besides which,' she added, 'that Minerva is far too sensible to judge you for something your cousin did.'

Trudy nodded slowly as understanding unfurled.

'As a matter of fact,' Pomona said in light-hearted tone, 'Minerva did take Muggle Studies as a student. She wasn't going to, but she heard some older Slytherin student say that no self-respecting pure-blood would bother with such a class. Well,' Pomona chuckled, 'Minerva's family was a very well-respected, very wealthy pure-blooded clan. So, you can imagine, the first thing Minerva did was sign up for Muggle Studies.'

Trudy actually found herself laughing.

'She walked into breakfast the next day, right past the Slytherin table, and said loudly, 'I can't wait for Muggle Studies next year. It'll be so interesting to learn all about our non-magic brethren.' The Slytherin looked like she had slapped him; the look on his face was priceless.' Pomona laughed again at the memory.

'I didn't think you went to Hogwarts with Minerva,' Trudy said as they stood up, brushing her robes off.

'Oh, I didn't. I saw the memory in Dumbledore's Penseive. Minerva wasn't pleased.' Pomona chuckled again, before turning to Trudy. 'So, will you come tonight? Or will I be forced to take drastic measures?'

Trudy laughed, and nodded. 'I'll come.'

'Good,' Pomona said approvingly. 'Go on inside, now, I've got to finish watering the Venomous Tantacula. Oh,' she called as Trudy walked away, 'we're meeting on the Astronomy Tower at eight.' Nodding her understanding, Trudy headed towards the castle, feeling happier than she had in a while.

'Oh dear,' muttered Flitwick as he read the paper. Being rather small, the paper was somewhat awkward to handle, but he wasn't a Charms master for nothing. The Daily Prophet floated in front of him, pages turning with a flick of Flitwick's wrist.

'What is it?' asked Slughorn, who was reading a letter in a large armchair.

'There are problems with the giants,' the tiny Charms teacher replied, frowning slightly as he read the article. 'Brawls amongst themselves, drawing the attention of nearby muggle towns…the muggles think it's a series of earthquakes.'

'The ministry will have to intervene soon,' Slughorn replied, going back to his letter.

'I wonder if Dumbledore knows,' said Flitwick thoughtfully to no one in particular. He looked up as the staff room door opened. 'Morning, Pomona.'

'Morning, Filius,' the cheerful witch replied. 'Any news?'

'Trouble with the giants,' Flitwick squeaked. 'It'll spiral out of control very quickly unless the ministry helps.'

Sprout got herself a cup of pumpkin juice and seated herself next to Flitwick. 'I'm sure Shacklebolt is doing his best,' she said to Flitwick. 'Remember, he's rooting out all of the scum in the ministry right now, they're a little lower in numbers than usual.'

'De-corruption might be a more appropriate term,' said Slughorn from his corner. 'And I heard that Harry and his friend…oh, what's-his-name, Rupert something, were helping. I always did say Harry would go far.'

'Well, of course,' said Pomona. 'He was famous already, wasn't he?'

'That doesn't necessarily mean –,' began Slughorn.

'Good morning, Minerva!' Flitwick squeaked loudly as the witch entered the room, preventing Sprout and Slughorn from arguing further. Pomona looked up.

'Morning, Min,' she said, patting the couch next to her. 'Cup of tea?

'No, thank you,' Minerva replied, taking the seat Pomona indicated. 'Did you invite Trudy?'

'Oh, yes,' said Pomona. 'Took a bit of doing, but she agreed to come eventually.'

'Excellent,' Minerva said as she stood. 'Shall we go do a bit of a set-up before the party, then?'

'Good idea,' Pomona agreed, rising to her feet. Minerva joined her, and they were halfway to the door when Filius's called out.

'Minerva, have you seen the headmaster?' he asked.

'Yes,' Minerva answered. 'I saw him this – stop smirking, Pomona! – this morning. I believe he's in his office.'

'I want to show him this article,' Filius said, getting to his feet. 'Thank you, Minerva.'

'You're welcome,' Minerva answered, and then she and Pomona left for her office.

'So, you've seen Dumbledore already this morning, have you?' enquired Pomona with a smile, hurrying to keep up with Minerva's quick pace.

'I have, as a matter of fact,' Minerva replied briskly. 'He stopped by this morning for a chat.'

'About anything in particular?' Pomona asked, raising her eyebrows pointedly at Minerva's feet, who took the hint and slowed her pace.

'No, actually,' Minerva replied. Pomona shrugged and left the conversation there, talking of other things until they reached Minerva's sitting room.

It was ten to eight and Trudy was just getting ready to leave for Pomona's little 'witches' night', as she'd called it. She had intended to leave at quarter-to but at the last minute had decided to change her robes. She wasn't sure what everyone was wearing, but she had quickly forgone her usual, casual robes and changed into another set of comfy, light-blue ones. She brushed her teeth and combed her grey-speckled hair before setting off, slightly apprehensive.

The walk to the Astronomy tower took the ten minutes she'd anticipated, but the climb up the numerous stairs took an extra five, so she was slightly late and panting by the time she knocked on the door leading to balcony. Trudy suddenly wondered if she should have brought a cloak; it was, after all, December, and she didn't much fancy freezing her bum off for a party.

Pomona opened the door with a bright smile, her cheeks tinged pink and her flyaway hair ruffled under her witch hat. 'Tru!' she exclaimed, ushering the young(er) teacher inside. 'I'm so glad you came.'

'I didn't bring a cloak,' Trudy began as she crossed the threshold, but the sight that greeted her stopped whatever else she might have said.

The open balcony had a beautiful view of the Hogwarts' grounds, and the velvet night sky shone with stars. The moon shone almost brightly enough as to negate the use of lanterns, reflecting in the Black Lake. The Forbidden Forest was a dark mass of shadows, individual trees indistinguishable. The clear night was beautiful, and strangely magical.

Lowering her gaze, Trudy noticed several large, comfy pillows and blankets around a low table on the stone floor. The set of telescopes that usually occupied the space had been stored inside, and several lanterns floated by themselves in mid-air, giving the terrace a warm glow. Trudy saw three witches seated on the pillows, each holding a glass and laughing at something. Two of the witches, of course, were Minerva and Poppy; the third was Rolanda Hooch, the brash, strict Quidditch referee with the spiky hair and bronze eyes. Trudy didn't know her well at all, but she seemed friendly enough, if a bit bold.

'Evening, Trudy,' Poppy greeted her, rising to her feet as the others followed suit.

'E-evening,' Trudy stuttered after a moment, still processing the sight. Pomona laughed cheerfully.

'It's something, isn't it?' she agreed. 'Minerva did a bit of work – couple of warming charms, a few sheltering ones, and here we are! We're just lucky Dumbledore doesn't mind us using the Astronomy Tower when Aurora's away.'

'Luck had nothing to do with,' Madam Hooch said, eyes gleaming. 'All Minerva had to do was ask him, and we're as good as gold.' Poppy laughed as Minerva sputtered.

'Rolanda, you are ridiculous,' she informed the stern referee. 'Hello, Trudy,' she said with a smile.

'Evening, Minerva,' Trudy replied. 'Did you really do all of this? It's incredible.'

'Thank you,' Minerva answered. 'Come and sit down, won't you?' The five women were soon settled comfortably on the cushy pillows and gathered around a low table full of food and drink.

'Shame Aurora and Septima left for the holidays – can't blame them, I suppose,' Poppy said, sipping a gillywater. Trudy, though she nodded with the rest, secretly felt a little relieved that the Astronomy and Arithmancy teachers were absent, as she wasn't as close to them.

'So, did you have a good time with your cousin, Rolanda?' Minerva asked, biting into a biscuit Trudy recognized as a Ginger Newt. She helped herself to some of the Honeydukes chocolate.

'To an extent,' Madam Hooch replied, swallowing a mouthful of Firewhiskey. 'I think next this happens – if it ever does again – I'll stay at Hogwarts for Christmas. It's much nicer. Not to mention,' she added mischievously, 'that all of the exciting stuff happens while I'm away.' This was said with a pointed look in Minerva's direction.

While Trudy and the others laughed, Minerva shook her head. 'If this was all some elaborate plan to hear more about the night of the Gratitude Ball, I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you,' she said.

'Oh, go on, Min,' Poppy said. 'Rolanda hasn't heard any of the details yet, and neither has Trudy.'

Minerva sniffed as she took another sip of her gillywater. 'Well,' she said after a moment, 'I suppose I should tell you something – just so you don't go spreading rumours, you understand.'

'Absolutely,' Rolanda said with a straight face, deliberately not looking at the others. Minerva rolled her eyes and relayed the details about what had happened the night before at the Ball. When she had finished, Rolanda was shaking with laughter.

She wasn't alone. Trudy thought she might have cried from laughing so much.

'I cannot believe you said that to him!' Rolanda exclaimed in delight. 'Min, that was brilliant!'

'I didn't think so at the time, I can assure you,' Minerva responded.

'I don't pay court with egotistical wizards,' Rolanda said haughtily, imitating Minerva, and the others burst into laughter again.

'So, what happens now?' asked Pomona, munching on small sandwich. 'Is he courting you?'

Minerva shrugged. 'I'm not sure, to be honest. He dropped by this morning –,'

'Did he now?' Rolanda put in, grinning slyly.

'But he didn't say much,' Minerva continued over Rolanda, elbowing her in the side. 'It is only the day after the Ball, you know.'

'I know,' Poppy said, 'it's just so unlike you not to want to sort things out, make it official. Remember that time Darius Connelly asked you to Hogsmeade, and you wouldn't go out with him a second time until he told you what his intentions were?'

'Really?' Trudy asked, looking at Minerva in awe, who nodded.

'I always needed men to be very clear,' she said with a grin. 'Of course, that did tend to scare quite a few off…but it worked with Darius, didn't it?'

'That it did,' Poppy said. 'He was your first kiss, wasn't he?'

Minerva made a sound of confirmation as she finally abandoned her gillywater and poured herself a glass of whiskey.

'Do you ever think,' Trudy asked after a moment, surprised by her own daring and completely changing the subject, 'that being around teenagers every day sort of –,'

'Makes us act like them?' Pomona finished. 'Only when they're not around,' she said with a wink.

'Speak for yourself,' Minerva said as she set down her glass. 'While you, Pomona, have been know to exhibit, um, student-like tendencies –,'

'Student-like?' sputtered Pomona, but Minerva ignored her.

'The rest of us are usually quite capable of acting our age – or at least, maturely,' Minerva added as an afterthought.

'I'm not so sure,' Poppy said, with a wink to Minerva. 'Dear Rolanda seems to be rather childish at times.'

'I beg to differ,' began Rolanda, but Minerva waved away her protests.

'Beg somewhere else,' she said, flicking a finger at the referee.

Two hours later, Trudy found herself giggling inordinately at something Rolanda had said, inwardly marvelling at how much she was enjoying herself. Minerva, to Trudy's intense surprise, had allowed (well, didn't hex them for it) Poppy and Pomona to take down her hair, and that had to be her fourth or fifth glass of scotch. Madam Hooch wasn't faring much better, having moved on to her second bottle of Firewhiskey, her eyes were sparkling dangerously. Pomona was giggling along with Trudy while Minerva and Poppy tried in vain to regain their composure.

'How old are you, Rolanda?' Trudy asked, feeling comfortable enough to ask the question.

'Ancient,' answered Minerva for her friend, ducking as Rolanda flicked a biscuit at her.

'I am sixty-two,' Hooch answered with a grin. 'Do I look it?'

'Yes,' answered Poppy, Pomona, and Minerva together, grinning as Rolanda glared at them.

'If I may interject,' Rolanda said, 'Minerva and Poppy are both older than I am, thank you very much.'

Trudy nodded; she hadn't known, but it did make sense. The fit, muscular Quidditch referee looked only slightly younger than Trudy's senior colleagues.

'No need to bring up our past,' Poppy sniffed, her nose in the air.

'Yours, you mean,' Minerva said lazily, running a hand through her hair. 'Mine was marvellous, if I do say so myself.'

'Dumbledore's pet,' muttered Poppy sotto voce, but of course everyone heard.

'You're really funny, Poppy,' Minerva said dryly. 'I don't know what you're talking about.'

'Did you two go to school together?' asked Trudy, surprised, though on the whole, she probably shouldn't have been.

'Sadly,' answered Poppy and the same time Minerva muttered 'unfortunately'.

'Oh, come off it, you two were ridiculously close,' Pomona said, cuffing Poppy around the head.

'I was the smart one,' Poppy said, grinning at Minerva, who rolled her eyes.

'Poppy, darling,' Minerva said, 'let us not forget who got top honours in Transfiguration and Defence Against the Dark Arts, shall we? Not to mention,' she said, speaking over Poppy's protests, 'who won the Quidditch Cup four years running.'

'Just because you were Captain,' snapped Poppy, 'does not make you perfect, dear Minerva.'

'No,' Minerva agreed, 'but I was pretty damn close.' Pomona, Trudy and Rolanda burst out laughing.

'Come now, Poppy,' Minerva said to disgruntled school matron, 'you were made Ravenclaw Prefect in fifth year, weren't you?'

'Yes,' agreed Poppy, 'but you were Head Girl, remember?'

'Oh,' Minerva said. 'Right.'

Poppy finally chuckled and shook her head. 'You were too unpredictable to be a Prefect,' she said, with rare affection. 'To brilliant and Quidditch-obsessed.'

'I'm willing to concede that point,' Minerva said with a smile, as Trudy laughed.

It was getting on to midnight now, and although Trudy knew she ought to be leaving soon, she was reluctant to do so. She'd be dead tired tomorrow, though, having stayed up so late two nights in a row. The Ball hadn't been half as fun as this, although she did miss Filius' cheerful presence.

It was a little while later when the talk turned back to Minerva and Dumbledore – a fact that Minerva was less than pleased about.

'Minerva, may I ask you a question?' Rolanda requested, sobered up a little bit and sticking to gillywater.

'I suppose so,' Minerva allowed, having switched to gillywater herself some time ago.

'I was only wondering – you've worked with Dumbledore how long now? Forty years? How is it that you never got together during all that time?'

Minerva took another slow sip of gillywater before answering. 'Well,' she began, 'you know that there was a thirteen-year gap in between my last year at Hogwarts and when I first started working here. I'd mostly done Transfiguration research, writing papers, Animagi studies, that sort of thing. But during that time – I was married, as well.'

Trudy dropped whatever sweet she'd been holding in shock.

Minerva nodded. 'We were married when I was twenty-three,' she said, nodding to Poppy, who'd obviously been there. 'But he was killed just two years after that – some drunken wizard in a bar with a grudge against him.'

Trudy clapped a hand to her mouth in horror. Minerva looked at her with a smile, shaking her head. 'It's alright,' she assured her. 'It feels like a lifetime ago.'

'I didn't really have much to do with wizards in general over the next few years, with the exception of James Trapp,' Minerva continued. 'He was an Unspeakable for the Ministry, and we met when I was twenty-nine. Very nice wizard, very talented, and we quickly struck up a relationship.'

Poppy was shaking her head slowly, putting a hand on Minerva's shoulder.

'There was an accident a year later, and he ended up in St Mungo's, completely out of his mind. Some experimental study in the Department of Mysteries – I was never told exactly what. He died a short while later.'

Trudy was officially convinced that no one had worse luck than the woman sitting before her.

'So, you can imagine, when I first started at Hogwarts, men were very low on my priorities list. And then the war with You-Know-Who came, and the Death Eater trials, and war again…' Minerva shrugged and trailed off.

'There's also that minor fact of you not knowing if he was in love with you,' Pomona said, trying to lighten the atmosphere. It seemed to work, for Minerva laughed.

'There was that, too,' she agreed. 'Though that's not to say he is now. Anyway, on to more cheerful topics. Is that the last Ginger Newt you're about to eat, Pomona?'

Later, as she prepared for bed, Trudy was reminded again of the fact of how little she really knew her colleagues.

Up in the high, circular Head's office, Dumbledore frowned as he read the wrinkled newspaper Filius had given him that afternoon, The Evening Prophet beside it on his desk. This was not good news – not at all.

TBC

Hope you all enjoyed, and that it was worth the wait. Hopefully, updates won't be so long in coming :) Reviews please! :)