Finding Another Heart

The headmaster paced in his office with hands clasped tightly at his back. The frown that had first made its appearance last week seemed to have taken up permanent residence on his forehead. The new Charms Professor Filius Flitwick sitting in an armchair by the fire watched Dippet as he made yet another circuit from one end of the office to another.

"This is unlike him, Filius. It has been more than a week with no word. Not a word."

"Traveling to Egypt takes a bit more time than visiting London or Paris, Armando."

"Would a quick note have taxed him so? I must answer Theodore's letter. The longer I wait the more time he will have to crow over me. He still has not forgiven me for stealing you from under his nose last year."

"As I recall he accused you of masquerading as the antithesis of St. Nicholas. One who taketh not giveth."

Dippet snorted sitting on one edge of his desk. " A wolf among sheep was his chosen metaphor with him assaying the role of the cuckolded shepherd. My talent chooses to manifest itself at inconvenient times and places. I have long ago resigned myself to it."

"Sounding me out at Beauxbaton's own Christmas feast was far from ethical."

"Perhaps a bit more tact would have served better but, Filius, I swear, the first time I met you I knew that I needed you here. Hogwarts needed you."

"How did you know? You've never told me."

"It is not a knowing exactly." Dippet drummed his fingers on his desk. "I am not a seer nor am I blessed with visions of any sort. However, I did inherit my family's innate talent for finding things or people. The very first Dippet made his living finding water for his muggle neighbors. From then on there has always been one or two in my family that developed the finder's touch, as we call it."

"A useful gift for a headmaster in need of faculty." Flitwick observed wryly.

"It is not that I purposely seek out teachers at other schools, it just happens. The instant I meet someone, see a picture or hear a name, I may sense that he or she can benefit Hogwarts in some way. I then do what I can to make sure that Hogwarts proves fulfilling for that teacher."

"I will say that your efforts have been successful. The faculty as a whole is very satisfied here." Flitwick commented. "We have spread the word to our colleagues."

Dippet pointed at a tall stack of flattened letters on a corner of his desk. "I feel rather guilty being besieged by applications from highly qualified and sought after professors. The other headmasters have intimated to me that they feel they have to settle for Hogwarts' leavings, faculty wise. My protestations of innocence fall on deaf ears. By the by, you are still on speaking terms with Theodore are you not?"

"Oh, yes, never did he blame me directly for my seeming defection." Flitwick grinned. "I will admit that Beauxbaton had its attractions but your offer, let alone the chance to be at Hogwarts, well, it was irresistible."

"Albus had better make his case utterly irresistible!" Dippet slapped an open hand hard on his desk and stood up. "What is taking so long? It is a simple Yay or Nay."

"From what you have told me of Miss McGonagall and that which we have been able to glean about her family background, simple it will not be. She has many options open to her."

"She needs to be here, Filius. I rarely feel this strongly about anyone. She must accept."

"Your gift does not guarantee certainty then?"

"No. The decision is wholly hers to make as it was for you. I can only sense in my mind and heart that she belongs here and nowhere else. For her sake, Albus must succeed."

The pen hung poised in mid air ready to commit to the first letter and word while the journal lay open and waiting on the table. Their mistress however had other thoughts and plans than to dutifully catalog the finding of the entrance stone. Minerva looked at the blank page and for once could not proceed. Not because she had nothing to write but because what she wanted to write and what she needed to write were two vastly different things. Her mind was not on dry, academic terms. Instead her thoughts centered on the man carefully making an etching of the stone marker.

Minerva turned from her journal to study Albus openly. He was a tall man but not imposing. His presence did not overwhelm. Yet, wherever he was people took notice. His face was not handsome but rugged and full of character. His voice was not loud but soft with the unmistakeable stamp of conviction and strength. Strength and bravery. He's not afraid to be gentle and strong. He's not afraid to want, to give or to need. Qualities I craved and never knew until now. She sighed. "To think I dreaded your arrival and now loath your leaving. We are in a tangled mess! What is the right thing to do, Albus?"

Albus looked up from his etching. He laid the chalk down and walked to Minerva's makeshift desk. "I know what I want and need. I want to hear you laugh at least once a day. I need to look into your eyes when I first awaken each morning. I crave to kiss your lips before I fall into slumber. With that I am content but I will be happiest to have your heart be light and free."

"When Piers returns, I'll break things off cleanly. It's the only way." Minerva's hand grazed his sleeve. "Will you wait? It would be painful to him were I to run to your side too quickly. He has been good to me all these years. I owe him to show respect for his feelings and not shame him in front of those who know of our relationship."

"How long do you need?"

"A few months. I want to finish the excavation properly. I will come to you at Christmas."

With one finger Albus tilted her face upwards and gazed into her eyes. "Is this, us, what you really want, Minerva?"

Minerva did not look away. She consciously mimicked his earlier declaration. "I want to hold your hand as we go on long walks together. I need to talk, to banter with you every day and every night. I crave to feel your touch every moment we are together."

"Am I the man you want? You have only known me for a few days. True our magicks sing together. But harmony and compatibility do not guarantee any relationship."

"For once my heart and mind are in full agreement." She cupped his face in her hands. "I have discovered that all those notions of romantic love are not so unbelievable. I lay all blame at your feet. Why you ask? Because you are the man who makes me take notice whether I want to or not. You are the man who makes me feel joy in being alive and in your company. You are the man with whom I can be myself with no thought to hide my feelings or thoughts. For all those reasons and more are you the man that I want to be with, to get to know better. That is, if you will have me?"

"Sometimes having is not as good as wanting. What if you find me lacking, my dear?"

Minerva wrapped her arms about his neck. "I propose that we do all we can to disprove that old saying."

"I accept your proposal, Ms. McGonagall." Unheeding of their surroundings or the fact that anyone could stroll in, they touched lips. Albus pulled her tightly against him deepening the kiss. There was no lightness to this kiss nor tender exploration. All was heat fueling the urgent need to get as close to the other as possible. Some time later, one of them moaned softly as they parted. "Now that I have secured you for myself, can I interest you in taking a position at Hogwarts?"

"You are incorrigible!" Minerva laughed. "Fine. You may state your piece. I warn you teaching does not come naturally."

"I've seen you with Khalil." Albus drew up another chair and sat upon it facing Minerva.

"One child does not compare to a classroom full of them."

Albus motioned for Minerva to rest her legs on his lap. Smiling impishly, she did as he asked. "Armando said that you have not formally applied for a position but word was spread of your interest."

"One sentence in a long letter to Uncle Theodore started this whole thing." Albus unlaced her boots then took them off. To her delight, he began to rub her feet. "Hmm, is this part of the Hogwarts benefits package?"

"As Deputy Headmaster I am obliged to see to the happiness of the staff in any way I can." His hands kneaded the soles of her feet with a light but firm touch. "Uncle?"

"Not by blood. He was my father's best friend. After my parents died, Uncle Theodore looked after my education."

"Was there anyone else in your family? How old were you?"

"Just me and my grandmother. I had just turned eleven when my parents died. In fact I was at Hogwarts in first term."

"What? It must have been just before I started teaching. What house were you sorted into?" Albus moved to her ankles.

"Gryffindor."

"I do not remember seeing your name among the graduate lists."

"For my own protection, grandmother and Uncle Theodore both agreed that my leaving England was for the best. I left Hogwarts and moved to Beauxbaton. During summer holidays I would live with my grandmother. I had always thought that I would either go into the family business like my father or research as my mother had."

"And what is the family business?"

"The Diplomatic Service. My father was the English diplomatic attache assigned to the Paris office. All the McGonagalls had served the public in some function or other. My mother's family, on the other hand, were all academics." Minerva could not go on. Albus' hands had traveled upwards to her calves and were now gently kneading her flesh through the material of her trousers. She gasped aloud. Her head lolled back enjoying fully the sensations his touch provoked from her body. "Albus ..."

"Ever since I saw you in your trousers I've wanted to touch your legs." Albus ran appreciative hands up from her toes to her knees. "This is the best I can do for now. Should I stop?"

Her back arched a bit as his hands slid up her thighs. His thumbs rubbed concentric circles into her flesh a few inches above her knees. "No ... yes ... no. You are doing your utmost to convince me, aren't you?"

"Would you expect any less of me? Do lie back and relax, Minerva." Albus moved his hands descended downwards once more. "The letter?"

"I had realized early on that I did not possess the proper temperament for the service. My mother agreed and she encouraged me to excel in academics. My grandmother used to say that I am much like her daughter was. I suppose she's right. I have multiple honors in Transfiguration and Charms, a pile of published works and here I am finishing my thesis on Egyptian Transfiguration just like my mother."

"To have accomplished all that so early is admirable." For his gentle massage of her calves, Albus was awarded with a whispered moan.

"But where do I go from here? That's what I wrote to Uncle Theodore about. He said that I ought to consider teaching. I did not agree with him nor did I refuse outright. Because of that I have been approached by almost every educational institution professing their need of my services."

"You have refused all offers so far."

"I am uncertain if teaching is suitable to me. Will I have the patience to deal with my charges? I grew up in a world of adults, Albus, I can relate only uneasily with children. I've had good teachers and bad. I would like to be seen as a good teacher. Can I learn how to be one?"

"You do not wish to continue in research work?"

"No. I embarked on this excavation and a research career for a reason. It's my reason and it has driven me and my choices for as long as I've lived." Minerva pulled her legs from his lap and sat up stiffly.

Sensing her change in mood, Albus gave her his full attention. "Go on."

"My parents' deaths were not natural. The doctors all thought they suffered from a magical degenerative disease. It was only years after their deaths that the truth finally revealed itself. An ancient unrecorded curse was laid upon them. I vowed while my grandmother lay dying that I would find the curse and the cure. It was my way of honoring my parents but also so that it could never be used against anyone else's family. Years of research, preparation and false leads have finally led me here to Abu Sindel."

"Minerva, how can you be so sure what you seek is here?"

"The curse was rare and unknown because it was practiced only by a small sect of Egyptian magicians. They kept the secret amongst themselves. I have narrowed the sect's main influence as extending in this area and this area alone. The knowledge is here."

"You have several excavations ongoing here. Where do you begin your search?"

"I was hoping to get lucky, Albus."

Albus looked at her closely. Her eyes were alight with excitement. "I take it you got ... lucky?"

"Unbelievably lucky. You see I know who made the original curse and it is his tomb that we have found."