A/N: Well, here we are again. I've had a bit of a lazy week, lots of things to do and not much time, or sometimes the inclination to do them. This is the last pre-prepared chapter of this one, so don't be surprised if it's a little bit of time before an update. My NaNoWriMo is going well and I have a tutoring job now, so between that you'll just have to be patient :D You all know you're able to PM me whenever and I'll always try to get back to you ASAP!

As always thanks to Spin, who's awesome Beta-ing skills have her in hot demand! But she's awesome so here we are all ready to go.

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The weeks passed with an energy that Minerva had not felt since she first started teaching. In a short time Álainn had grown surprisingly quickly and despite Poppy being quite sure that yes, she was quite well, and no, she didn't think it was anything to worry about, it troubled Minerva a little. She had received an owl from Harry that very morning telling her that he had finally sent Ronald to Australia, as a last ditch effort to involve him in the search for their missing friend, and that he would be back later today with any news. Harry had also mentioned that in the first week Ron was there he had "dined" with a young woman by the name of Sandy, but she tried not to think about that. Despite his fickle nature Ronald cared for Hermione, she was sure of it, and above all he was deathly afraid of Minerva so she had every faith that in between "dining" he would have done his best to find his actual girlfriend.

Now she sat at her desk, chewing on her thumbnail and ignoring the stares of her former colleagues, her eyes gazing into nothing as she contemplated.

"Minerva?" Severus said quietly, almost urgently.

She frowned as she thought about what Hermione would do if she knew that Ron, who by all accounts was supposed to be in a relationship with her, had been wining and dining another young woman.

"Minerva?"

She shook her head to clear the annoying sound that was distracting her from her thoughts. She had been told to expect Ron at around one and she was eager to find out what he had discovered. However, he was late – two whole hours late.

"MIN!"

"WHAT?" she cried, looking at Albus and Severus, who were pointing at the hearth rug.

She turned around, annoyance marring her features until she saw why they were trying to grab her attention. Her little Álainn was sitting up, rocking back and forth while trying to put her foot in her mouth and giggling as Minerva rushed over to her side.

"Oh my Álainn, what on earth!"

"Forgive me Minerva, but do babies usually sit unaided this early?"

Minerva couldn't talk, she was standing looking down at the small child, who upon closer inspection, didn't look that small anymore.

"I don't care what Poppy says, this is not normal," she said, picking the child up and starting at the weight difference.

"Minerva, have you thought of perhaps doing a parentage test?" Severus said as he watched Minerva contend with two energetically waving arms.

"I have already requested for Madam Roberts to prepare one, and I am merely waiting for her delivery."

"Blasted woman," Severus said quietly, shaking his head.

They were interrupted as the Floo activated and a rather pink-faced Ronald Weasley stepped through.

"Um, hello Professor," he said awkwardly, glancing cautiously at the small child in her arms.

"Ah, Ronald, I expected you a number of hours ago. Obviously you had trouble getting back?" she said, the height of her eyebrow indicating that there was absolutely nothing he could say to make her believe it, but she was quite willing to put it aside for the time being.

"Um, right, well, I went to Australia," he began and Minerva had to bite her tongue to stop from snapping at him. "She wasn't there," he said with a shrug. "I kept an eye on her parents' house, it's still sitting empty, and she hasn't been back." He shifted uncomfortably before clearing his throat. "Clearly she's gone. 'Mione is quite good at disappearing; if she doesn't want to be found then we're not going to find her."

"You seem rather calm about this, Ronald. I was under the impression that you and she were an item."

"Ah, well you know, we weren't, well… It's open to discussion."

"Hmm," she said, completely disgusted with his attitude. "So what you are saying is that you are unconcerned about her welfare because you have moved on?"

She watched him pale, but he remained silent, and she couldn't stand the sight of him any longer.

"Get out of my office, Mr Weasley. I will find her myself. I'm disappointed in you – I thought you were a better man than this."

He disappeared through the green flames and Minerva wandlessly sealed the Floo to prevent any more interruptions.

"Do you not think that was a little harsh, my dear?" Albus enquired as she paced, trying to ignore for a moment the portraits and little Álainn, who was sitting on the floor once again, kicking her feet and slapping her hands on the rug.

"No, I do not. Of all the Weasley boys he is the most fickle and I am disappointed by his temerity. I have half a mind to write to his mother, though I don't see how that will help Hermione."

"Is today not the day when you will finish repairing the Quidditch stands?" Severus asked, changing the subject. "I know Weasley was late, but you should do it before the light starts to wane, that way you can see which beams still need to be repaired."

"You are right," she said, Summoning her hat and cloak and placing them by the door. "Come on precious." She lifted Álainn from the floor, raising her high above her head and then down into her chest. "Let's get you ready to visit Poppy and perhaps after you can play outside for a while, hmm? You might enjoy the snow for a few minutes."

"Let us know what you find," Albus said as she left the room, and she waved her agreement as the door closed behind her.

Deciding that the stands could wait for a few more minutes, Minerva made her way to the hospital wing, lost in her thoughts as she practically marched through the castle.

"Poppy?"

She nodded to the two boys doing their homework around one of the beds while she waited for the medi-witch. It was nearly time for the Slytherin to return to his dormitory, but the older Ravenclaw boy had not wavered in his promise to make sure that he did everything he could for the younger one. It made Minerva smile despite her mood.

"Ah, Headmistress, what can I do for you?" Poppy asked, waving her into her office. Minerva marched in, created a space on the desk and placed Álainn on it, looking poignantly at Poppy as she stared open-mouthed.

"Oh, well, that is not exactly what one would call normal, is it?" she said with a frown, waving her wand over the young child who was sitting quite happily on the desk, laughing and smiling at Minerva.

"No Poppy, it is not. Can you tell me what is wrong with her?"

Poppy didn't answer, but simply continued chanting and waving her wand, muttering now and then about various things before she picked up Álainn and handed her to Minerva again.

"I'd like to do another age test to know whether she is actually aging, which I believe to be the case no matter how unusual that is, rather than some sort of growth abnormality. The fact that she seems to be sitting properly makes me think she is of a greater age."

Minerva nodded and cradled her child against her chest, worry piercing her heart as Poppy took a little blood which caused Álainn to cry properly this time.

"Easy, my love," she whispered, pacing the room with the baby while Poppy worked.

"Well that is unusual," Poppy said finally.

Minerva joined her, doing a double take at the piece of parchment before her.

"How can that be?" she said incredulously, looking from Poppy to the parchment.

"Honestly, I have no idea. I have never heard of this happening before, so I just don't know. If we had an ancestry potion that might help explain a few things, but I know we're waiting on that."

Minerva made a noise of agreement and went back to worrying, looking down at the babe in her arms and taking note of the differences.

"For now, while I try to gather the appropriate research, let us assume that no matter how incredible, she is four months and nine days old, as it says. Sitting up is normal for a baby of that age, which only confirms the test results. I think perhaps now would be a good time to start introducing some food, just puréed vegetables and fruit to start, and then we'll go from there."

"Poppy, I have never done this before. I understand the concept, but where do I start? Do I stop bottle feeding her?"

Poppy looked at her friend, wishing for once the woman's life could just be a little easier.

"No, keep her on the bottle for now as I said, and just introduce her to a few solids. She won't like all of them necessarily, but it shouldn't be hard to weed out which ones."

Minerva sighed, scrunching up her face at all the unknowns in her life. There was no doubt that someone from the Ministry would soon find out about her 'harbouring' a child that was not hers, but she refused to even think about that. With any luck they'd all be so busy trying to get the community back on track that they wouldn't bother her. It was not as if she, the Headmistress of Hogwarts, would harm a child. But it was something nagging at the back of her mind nonetheless.

Hermione of course dominated half of her thoughts. The fact that she was still missing was so utterly heartbreaking that Minerva couldn't help but think about all the terrible things that could have befallen the young woman, and just after surviving the war, too.

And then there was Álainn, and this strange aging. Minerva couldn't help but wonder if this is why her parents had abandoned her in the first place. Perhaps they couldn't cope, perhaps the idea of a less than normal child had put them off. She bristled at this thought, calming herself by cuddling Álainn a little closer as she neared the entrance to the castle, making sure that the child's hat and gloves were on properly. Looking at the little thing her heart suddenly clenched at the thought that perhaps this unexplained aging could be dangerous. A person's growth was slow moving for a reason, and to suddenly wake up a little older was surely less than ideal.

As she rounded Greenhouse Six she took a deep breath, inhaling the frigid air and awakening her senses. She looked up at the nearly-repaired stadium with a smile. The damage had been far more extensive than they'd first thought, and some new beams had been ordered but they had taken a little longer to arrive than expected. Hence, she was out here in the cold, determined to repair it as soon as possible, so Quidditch could get back underway.

She walked over to the section still roped off, clearing a patch of snow with her wand effortlessly and placing a warming charm over Álainn before depositing her on the hard ground near her feet, making sure that she would not tread on her when she moved during her spellwork. They baby grizzled a little as she was put down and Minerva stooped to tickle her gently.

"It's just for a moment, sweetheart. I only have to do this section and then we can go somewhere that is a wee bit warmer, okay?"

Álainn gargled a little and laughed like Minerva's words were the funniest thing she'd ever heard, making Minerva smile in response.

"I love you, little Álainn," she whispered, pressing a kiss to a rosy cheek before standing and taking a deep breath to centre herself and call on the magic needed to fix the beams.

It took a little longer than she thought it would but she moved seamlessly, all the while concentrating on the cracks and weaknesses in the wood, the snow piled up on top of them not helping matters. She could feel the sweat on her face cooling in the icy wind and she stepped up her incantation, putting more power into the movements and the spell in the hope that it would be easier to finish.

As the spell ended she glanced down at Álainn, who was happily lying on the floor playing with the snow in her nice new mittens, cramming it in her mouth. Minerva couldn't help but laugh, and charmed the snow to dance around the child to keep her busy during the next part, which was going to be the tricky bit.

"Minerva?"

She spun around to see Filius standing with a smile on his face as he offered his services with a show of his wand.

"Thank you, my friend."

"No, thank you Minerva, for having the courage to start to move forward. You are a wonderful witch, and a great leader," he said simply, stepping up beside her.

They began working as one, their voices working together as their movements also matched. Minerva took a moment now and then to glance at Álainn, who was no longer paying attention to the dancing snow, but to them both, as if listening to everything they were saying. It helped her to keep going when they came to a particularly tricky section that required more patience than skill as they knitted each individual splinter back together. They finished with a flurry of wands and words, leaning on each other, panting at the exertion but happy to have completed the job.

"I imagine she must be getting cold," Filius said when he finally regained his breath, leaning down to tickle Álainn's tummy. "Forgive me Minerva," he said tilting his head as he looked at her, "was she this big a few days ago?" Minerva shook her head, picking up the child and drying and warming her with a spell.

"No, she was not. It seems she has unusual growth patterns. Two weeks ago Poppy performed an age test and determined her to be about six weeks old, but a moment before we came out here she said that Álainn is now closer to four months."

To his credit Filius barely reacted, instead looking at the baby critically while stroking his chin.

"That is odd."

Minerva chuckled despite her worry.

"Indeed it is." She moved Álainn onto her other hip and turned to look at their handiwork. "A new coat of paint and it will be as good as new." She sighed, looking down at her colleague. "I am glad we are moving in this direction, Filius. I cannot help but think that I should have had the idea sooner, then perhaps Hermione would not have left."

She heard Filius grumble and then he was standing before her, looking as stern as one so short could.

"Minerva, you cannot blame yourself for not speaking to Hermione earlier. I, myself, did not help her either. I know that she was a great many things, but she meant a lot to you especially and I have every faith that once she deals with whatever it is she felt the need to leave for, she will be back."

Minerva nodded, taking comfort in Álainn's cold nose against her cheek.

"I hope you are right," she said turning to leave before deciding against it. "Filius, if you have nothing to do for the next half an hour or so, could I persuade you to take a stroll around the grounds with me? I would like to check on the remaining structures that need to be repaired and Álainn seems quite fine with being out here."

"I'd be delighted, Minerva," he said, falling into step beside her.

They wandered around the boundary, working their way inwards now and then to check on various bits and pieces until they were standing at on the castle side of the bridge.

"I should have fixed this first," she said shaking her head. "It's dangerous."

Filius clicked his tongue.

"Minerva, your wards are as solid as your spellwork; no one is going to get through them until we repair it," he said patting her arm reassuringly.

She made a noncommittal noise but nodded.

Transfiguring a swing from a branch on one of the remaining trees nearby, she placed Álainn into it and left her swinging while she leaned over the cliff to check on the structural damage underneath the remaining walkway.

"I did tell them to make it go boom," she said absently, smiling wryly when Filius chuckled.

"They did a marvellous job," he agreed, also peering over as far as he could without toppling over the edge.

"It will have to be fixed next," she said looking at it cautiously. "Once Quidditch starts there will be more students on the grounds and I cannot have their safety compromised," she said with a sigh.

"If you fix up the base framework first, then we can all pitch in with placing the secondary beams," Filius said placating her. "Just as with the stands, you are not in this alone, Minerva."

The Headmistress took a deep breath looking out over the expanse of valley before her and nodded her head.

"I do know that dear friend, I just tend to forget occasionally," she said with a smirk as she turned to face him. "We will do it together; Álainn and I will come down here in the next few days and attend to the lower beams."

"Shall we return?" Filius asked suddenly and Minerva checked the time, realising that Filius would soon have a class to teach. She had wanted to write to Harry anyway and was worried about her baby catching a chill.

"Of course, let us go inside. Come along little one," she said lifting Álainn out of the swing with a groan. Gosh you're getting heavy." She placed a kiss on a very rosy nose. "But I wouldn't have you any other way."