A/N: Hello again my lovelies! Here we are again, this chapter turned out quite well, I really like it, but it TOTALLY didn't turn out like I had imagined it would. Hopefully you all like it, and all still with me. Sorry I got kinda bogged down there a little. Mothers is still on the boil, and by that I mean that it's not done…

So stick with me.

Thanks, as always go to Spin, who is utterly tremendous in her endeavour to make this so utterly awesome. So thank you darling :D

-0-

As soon as Minerva returned to her rooms, she sat down to write a letter to Harry with Álainn tucked in her arms contentedly. The little one was so tired she could hardly keep her eyes open as Minerva's quill scratched across the parchment. She wasn't sure who else to discuss Hermione's disappearance with that would not come to investigate. It was terrible to think, but the last thing they needed was the Ministry's investigations splashed across the Prophet.

Dear Harry,

I reply to your earlier owl with a heavy heart. Ronald did indeed return from Australia with a different, new set of priorities. When I asked him about the 'relationship' he had with Hermione, he said it was 'open to discussion'. I have to congratulate myself on not removing a body part or two. As such he seems totally unaffected by her disappearance, and I wonder if the fame of being 'Harry Potter's Friend' has gone to his head.

I wonder if you are having any better luck at locating our friend.

I find myself with a free evening, so if you would like to join me for tea we can discuss ideas, again, about how to find Hermione.

Yours,

Minerva McGonagall.

"Oh Álainn," she said quietly, shifting the small child in her rapidly numbing arms as she secured the letter with a few charms, as well as her seal.

The little girl opened her eyes with a yawn and looked up at Minerva, stopping the woman's movement and completely capturing her attention for a few moments.

"Where could she be, hmm?" she asked softly, stroking the baby's head. "Come," she said standing carefully, "let us get you to bed."

She put Álainn down for a nap and returned to her office, sending the letter off with an owl and starting on the large pile of correspondence she'd been avoiding for days.

"You answer so many letters, my dear," Albus said from his portrait. "I'm sure I don't remember ever answering that many."

Minerva rolled her eyes and threw a piece of balled up parchment at his image.

"That is because I did it for you, you old coot." She smiled as Severus snorted, and shook her head at an apologetic looking Albus. "I know, Albus, I know, but you were always far too busy to answer your mail."

"What of the repairs?" Severus asked, as Minerva walked towards the window. "What have you got left to complete?"

"We have now finished the Quidditch stands. They were the most important, and just in time too, as tomorrow we will be meeting with all of the students wishing to play in the new league."

"I'll miss our wagers." Severus smirked at her as she chuckled.

"Oh, I don't doubt that after a few weeks we shall have different teams to place some friendly bets on, though I do not know what on earth you could raise that I would want."

"I'm sure I will find something."

Minerva stared off at the bridge she still had to finish, mentally arranging her week to fit in the most important part of shoring up the foundation beams.

"What are you thinking, my dear?" Albus asked with a sigh.

"I am wondering what on earth kind of child Álainn is, whether she is under some sort of enchantment, or an errant spell perhaps. Whether she is just gifted, and whether it is dangerous for her to grow like that overnight."

She saw Albus open his mouth to speak, but continued on, finding that talking to a portrait was actually rather therapeutic.

"I am also wondering if Hermione will ever come back, if she is well, if she is sane even. I want to know where she is; I want to know she is okay. I," a tear rolled down her face, "Merlin, I want to take her in my arms and hold her while she cries, and tell her that it will all be better one day, maybe not soon, but one day she will wake up and it will all seem like a distant memory." She brushed her tears away angrily, her voice getting steadily louder. "I want to stand before a defeated Tom Riddle and tell him that we will prosper, no matter the hurt and the suffering he has caused, and I want to scream and rage at him."

She was pacing now, ignoring the worried looks from the other portraits as she continued on her rant.

"I want to shake Ronald Weasley for abandoning his friends in their hour of need, in order to chase a bit of skirt. For I can assure you that is all it is," she said, building up into a full blown rage. "But most of all, I want some hope, no matter how small, just one TINY BIT OF HOPE for the future!" she screamed, throwing the might of her rage at the mirror above the fireplace. She watched in horror as it manifested into a ball of white light, collided with the mirror and exploded into a million pieces. Realising in a split second she was in danger of being impacted by the slivers of glass, she threw herself behind the sofa, covering her head as she felt the tiny shards fall all around her.

Shocked to the core at what she had done, she slowly stood, carefully brushing off her robes before taking out her wand and shaking her head as she thought of the charm to fix it.

"Well that was immature of me," she said in embarrassment, blushing a little as Albus and Severus watched her with an air of trepidation. "Don't look at me like that," she said awkwardly. "I'm fine, a momentary lapse is all."

There was a moment of silence as they watched each piece of mirror fly back to its proper place and mould together seamlessly. Before the mirror had fully repaired, there was an almighty scream from Minerva's room and she sighed, going to Álainn's cot and picking her up, soothing her cries.

"What is it child?" she asked, swaying from side to side with Álainn pressed tight against her chest. "It's all right, shh, it's all right."

The crying went on for quite a while longer, but nothing seemed to be working. She cuddled and bounced her, trying to soothe the screams until Minerva felt like her heart - not to mention her head - was being ripped in two.

"Oh baby, it's okay, please don't cry sweetheart," she repeated over and over. "It's okay, tell me what's wrong, please," she pleaded.

Minerva sat on the floor, back against her bed and rocked from side to side, not even realising there were tears rolling down her own face as she whispered affirmations of her love to the baby.

She pressed her lips to Álainn's forehead, frowning when she realised the little one was quite warm.

"Oh baby!" she exclaimed, sitting with her knees up and the child lying on them as her instincts took over. She ran her fingers down the closure of Álainn's romper suit, waiting for the magical seam to open before she pulled the layer of clothes off the baby carefully, leaving her in just a nappy.

"Is that better, my love?" she asked, picking Álainn back up and holding her to her chest, but she was still flushed and crying vociferously. "What's wrong, baby?"

She could feel Álainn pressing her head against her robes, so she Transfigured them into something softer, a loose shirt and a pair of slacks. Holding tightly to the babe she picked up her wand once more and sent a Patronus to Poppy, who appeared a moment later in her doorway, looking sadly at Minerva.

"Oh Min," she said, kneeling at her side and putting her hand on Álainn's back.

"I have rocked her, soothed her, tried to feed her… I simply don't know what is wrong," she said despairingly over the noise.

Poppy waved her wand a few times, muttering under her breath until she clicked her tongue, nodding her head.

"Ah, I see," she said quietly. "Give her to me, Min, while you get up, you can't spend the day on the floor. You may think you will be all right, but I know what you're hip is like and I'm telling you that you can't."

Minerva, now free of the baby, groaned as she rolled over and pushed herself up off the floorboards awkwardly. Poppy directed her to the bed, where she sat down and got her child back. She smiled down at Álainn, even though she was still crying, and accepted the baby bottle Poppy passed her that she had just been shaking.

"It has a few potions mixed in – one for the fever and one to calm her down. I think she just has a sore throat, probably stayed outside for just a little too long," she said gently, clearly trying to soften the blow to Minerva, whose heart clenched even so.

"Oh my Álainn, I'm so sorry, baby," she whispered, as she gently eased the teat into the little mouth, stroking the red cheek as Álainn quickly latched on and started sucking. "That's it beautiful, there's a good girl," she sighed thankfully as the room went quiet.

"Well, she should settle now. I know that she sometimes sleeps on your chest, Min," she began only somewhat disapprovingly, "you might want to do that tonight, if only to ease your own worries." Poppy smirked as Minerva glowered at her teasingly.

"Thank you, Poppy."

"You're most welcome," she smiled, and left the room.

"Well, it looks as though we won't be setting the bridge tomorrow then," Minerva said quietly as Álainn finished the bottle and was indeed much calmer than she had been before.

It was just as Álainn began to drop off again, clearly exhausted from all the crying, that there was a knock at her office door and she sighed as the baby's eyes opened in shock at the noise.

"Oh bother," she muttered as she walked back to her office, sitting behind her desk and only remembering her attire at the last moment. "Damn." She waved her wand again and changed back into her robes. "Enter," she said sternly, waiting for the door to open.

"Professor?"

She sighed upon seeing Draco Malfoy come through the doors and her eyebrow crept up her forehead. The boy had kept an extraordinarily low profile since he had reappeared at the Main Entrance at the beginning of the year. She shifted uncomfortably as he eyed the baby in her arms, who was back on her way to slumber.

"Mr Malfoy," she said quietly, with a nod. "What can I do for you?"

"Um…" He shifted uncomfortably, glancing around the room until he saw Severus' portrait and he froze. Minerva tilted her head, watching with interest as the young man blinked a little, inclining his head to Severus who simply nodded back and Minerva realised this was not a discussion to have across the desk.

"Come, Mr Malfoy," she said standing abruptly and gesturing for him to sit on her sofa, waiting a moment for Álainn to settle once more in her arms as she sat opposite him. "What is it that you wanted to see me about, Draco?" she asked gently, somewhat disturbed to see his eyes rather watery.

"I, I need to tell you something," he whispered, refusing to meet her eyes. She sighed and summoned Álainn's bassinet, placing her in it carefully and tucking her in before perching herself on the coffee table before Draco, something which surprised him a little if his widening eyes were anything to go by.

"Draco?" she prompted kindly, smiling as he looked at her. "No matter what happened, no matter what your father or your mother may have done, they were – are – still human. You must not think that you have to pay for their sins. I see you keeping your head down and I'm very proud of you for that. There is no more being above anyone else, there is no more blood supremacy propaganda and I am delighted to see you have realised that is not the answer."

"Thank you," he said shakily with half a smile, "but I think perhaps you should listen to me before you say anything. I was… We were all at home when they brought Potter, Weasley, and –" He stopped and swallowed before continuing. "And Granger."

Minerva's heart stilled in her chest, she was sure of it as his grey eyes darted to her face, then down to his own hands that were clutching each other tightly on his knee.

"She'd done something to Potter's face, so my aunt, Bellatrix, couldn't make out who it was." He chanced a look up again. "I knew… I knew it was him, but I couldn't… I'd seen what she did to people and I knew that I couldn't say anything. I'm a coward, a poor excuse for a Malfoy, but I was, she was –"

He was shaking by now and Minerva fought reaching out and taking his hand, knowing that he was unlikely to welcome such a move.

"Go on, Draco."

"It was all right until Bellatrix found the sword. Then everything went crazy." Minerva watched as he lifted his eyes and looked at Severus, who looked stricken by what they were all hearing. "It was supposed to be in her vault at Gringotts you see, but it wasn't. There was a Goblin in the cells, so they grabbed him, and he told her it was a fake. Bellatrix was so sure something was going on though, so she sent the two boys to the dungeons with Wormtail and kept Granger – Hermione – with us."

"Oh Merlin," she whispered as she realised what he was about to tell her.

"I don't know how long it went on," he said, choking a little as a few tears escaped him, "but she screamed so loudly. My aunt was crazy, and even Mother was shaking; I could feel her as she held me still. She knew that if I moved, Bellatrix would make me, I don't know, do something to her."

Minerva was trembling as much as he was now and didn't think as she reached across and took his hand, squeezing it, making him go on.

"She was Crucioed so many times and then, then Bellatrix took out her knife, the one with an emerald handle," Minerva nodded, knowing the blade well, "and carved a word into her arm."

"What did it say?" she whispered, not really wanting to know the answer.

"Mudblood," he sobbed. "I'm so sorry Professor, I, wanted to tell you. I saw her, I knew she was ignoring it, like I was, but I'm a Malfoy and we know how to do these things, but she doesn't, she couldn't take it," he said sadly. "When I found out she was missing, I realised I'd failed again. I'm a coward and I don't deserve to be here."

His hand went to his pocket and Minerva had to concentrate very hard on not reaching for her wand as he brought his palm forward, opening it.

"Oh Draco," she said sadly, looking at his hand. Lying there in two pieces was a wand; Draco's wand to be precise. "Draco, that was foolish. From what you've told me, I wouldn't say you were a coward at all, rather a child, forced into a war that you did not what to participate in, and the role of Head of your Household; which you were not ready for."

Minerva took his hand, curling his fingers around his broken wand.

"I want you to keep this, young man," she said quietly, tipping his chin up so he would look at her. "And on the next Hogsmeade weekend, you come and see me, and I will take you to get a replacement."

His eyes widened again, but this time she saw gratitude, and just a little bit of hope.

"Minerva, I think you've found it," Albus said softly from behind her, making Draco frown.

"Found what, Professor?" he asked, wiping his tears away quickly.

"My little bit of hope," Minerva replied with a smile, cupping the young man's cheek. "I know you have been forced to do things no young man should ever have to, but you are always welcome here."

They both looked over as Álainn started to wake.

"Excuse me," she said getting up and lifting the blinking child out of her cradle before sitting back down in front of him. "Sit back, Draco," she said, nodding towards the rear of the chair.

He looked confused as he glanced up at Severus.

"Um, what?"

"I believe that Minerva wishes you to sit back on the chair, Draco," Severus said. "I think it wise to follow her direction."

Draco cautiously leaned back and Minerva smiled as she leaned forward and put Álainn in his arms, shocking him no end.

"Professor, this isn't a good idea," he said awkwardly, sitting incredibly still as the baby stared up at him.

Minerva couldn't help but smile as Álainn giggled and waved her hands toward his face.

"Nonsense. Consider this an extra-curricular activity. I happen to know that when you were born, your father, though he will never admit it, was so utterly enamoured with holding you that Narcissa was quite put out."

"Really?" he asked, looking up sharply.

"I would, once again, listen to her," Severus said quietly with only the barest hint of a smile on his face. "As your Godfather, I can corroborate her statement."

"Wow," he said to himself, making Minerva chuckle as she shook a bottle, warming it with a wave of her hand.

"Here, make yourself useful while I finish my paperwork," she said, passing him the bottle. "She'll know what to do."

The afternoon passed quietly with Minerva writing letters, signing forms and watching the boy she'd watch grow up into something she thought he might never come back from, play with a baby so attentively it brought a smile to her face.

She had lost track of time when the Floo signalled an incoming visitor and so she stood with her hand on her wand as Harry Potter strode through the fire, looking every bit the Auror-in-training he was.

"Harry!" she exclaimed, opening her arms and accepting his hug, holding him for a moment as he did the same.

"Hiya, Professor – sorry, Minerva," he said with a laugh. To his credit when he saw Draco he merely glanced at Minerva, who smiled, and then walked over to him and held out his hand.

"Malfoy," he said stiffly, but not unkindly.

Minerva watched on with interest as Draco looked down at the baby, who seemed happy to see Harry somehow, before looking back at the boy who had been his nemesis since they first stepped into the castle.

"Potter," he replied with a nod, accepting the hand and shaking it formally.

"Well, I believe I have now seen it all," Severus said shaking his head.

"Severus," Harry said with a wave to the painting before standing before Albus and grinning as the great wizard simply stared at him, bringing tears to Minerva's eyes at the look on her best friend's face.

"I think I'll go," Draco said, standing up carefully and passing Álainn to Minerva with a slight smile. "Thank you, Professor," he said quietly, taking the hand not holding Álainn and bowing over it, placing a kiss on her knuckles.

"You are quite welcome, Mr Malfoy, smooth talker that you are. Get out of here, and come back on your Hogsmeade weekend when we shall go to Mr Ollivander's. You are not likely to pass your NEWTs without a wand."

"Yes, Headmistress," he said with a genuine smile this time, nodding to Harry before striding from the room, looking another inch taller than he had when he arrived.

"Did you have a good afternoon?" Harry asked with a wry smile as the door closed.

Minerva glared at him playfully before nodding toward her sofa and passing him Álainn, who seemed more than happy to be in his arms.

"Considering I haven't met her yet, she seems awfully friendly," he said absently.

"Aye," Minerva said, leaning over to brush the baby's soft head. "She is that."

"You didn't tell me in your letters what Álainn means?" he asked, looking up at her from his seat.

"It means beautiful," Minerva said, summoning a house elf and ordering some tea.

"She is beautiful," he said, cooing over her. "You should talk to Andromeda," he suggested. "Teddy isn't that much older."

"I wish I could," she said sadly. "Unsurprisingly, the students are quite enamoured with her, and the staff of course know, but I would like to be as discreet as possible," she said with a shrug. "I have tried to explain it to Poppy and the others, but they do not understand. She needs to be here."

She watched as Harry smiled, playing with the tiny hand clutching his finger.

"You do not have to tell me what that is like," he said with a cheeky smile, reminding her so much of his father. "Been there, done that, Professor."

She chuckled and passed him his tea.

"True," she said simply, sitting back and sipping pensively from her own cup.

"I'm sorry about Ron," he finally muttered, looking even more like James had when he'd been caught pranking someone. "I," he grimaced as he caught her eye, "I may have perhaps told him he was a prat."

"Well, you did no more than I," she said, grimacing as she remembered the way he had dismissed Hermione's disappearance.

"Um, yeah, you didn't thump him, did you?" he asked casually, refusing to look back at her.

She couldn't help it, she tried very, very hard, but she just couldn't stop herself as she threw her head back and laughed.

She could feel all the portraits looking at her, and she knew Harry would be staring, but the thought of someone breaking Ronald's nose was not all that upsetting to her.

"Well then," she said wiping a tear from her eye, "perhaps you did do a little more than I did, though no more than I wished to."

Harry chuckled. "He always seemed so loyal, and then suddenly he was in the papers, and everyone wanted a piece of him. Then he wasn't the Ron we knew anymore." He sighed, letting his head lean against the back of the sofa. "I hadn't realised he'd been going behind Hermione's back though," he frowned. "Hermione was trying so hard to be with him, to make everything appear so perfect between them."

Minerva nodded, suddenly sobered by what Draco had told her earlier.

"Harry, did Hermione tell you what happened when you were taken to Malfoy Manor?" she asked carefully. His head flew up, his eyes catching her gaze as he looked at her anxiously.

"No! Did she tell you? She refused to talk about it with me, even after the Battle."

Minerva sighed. "Let me have her," she said gently, taking her child back and cradling her on the rocking chair, letting it swing back and forth as Álainn played with her ring.

"Draco was there," Minerva said, looking at Harry as a look of recognition passed over his face.

"Damn. Of course he was." He dropped his head in his hands, scrubbing his face roughly. "How bad was it?" he asked. "I was so concerned about where we were going next I didn't push. I should have, shouldn't I? We could hear her screaming from all the way in the dungeons, but she would never say what happened."

"Bellatrix tortured her," Minerva said straightforwardly. "Hermione was hit with the Cruciatus curse, and Bellatrix cut into her arm, carving the word 'Mudblood'."

"Oh my God," Harry said shaking his head. "What if she –"

He didn't finish his sentence and Minerva didn't want him to.

"We can't think that," she said quietly, shifting Álainn to her shoulder and leaning her cheek against the baby's head. "We have to assume she's alive and just missing."

"Prof– Minerva," Harry started, "what if she isn't, what if we're searching for nothing?"

"Harry," she said sharply, making Álainn jump a little. "We have to go on thinking that she is simply not here," she insisted, looking at him, "because I cannot bear to think of the alternative."

Harry sighed and with a nod, he stood.

"I am with you there, Minerva."

She chuckled as she stood as well and took his hand in hers.

"You always were, my dear." She pulled him closer and swept him into a sideways hug, rocking all three of them gently as his arms wrapped around her waist and he sighed into her shoulder. "Now," she said sniffing and standing up properly, "I happen to know of a Seventh Year Gryffindor who has been pining away rather a lot these last few weeks. I suggest you visit the common room, my boy," she said with a wink as he leaned in and pressed a kiss to Álainn's head, and another to Minerva's cheek.

"Thanks, Minerva."

He was gone before she could answer and she chuckled, dancing a little with Álainn before realising what she was doing.

"Don't stop on our account, Minerva," Severus said, surprising her somewhat. "You deserve to be happy, and you made my Godson's day. For that I will be eternally grateful."

She smiled as she curtsied comically and continued to dance around the room, looking a lot younger than she had in a very long time.

"Well done, my dear, well done," Albus said as he nodded to the other portraits, gesturing for them to leave her quarters. "I miss you, Minerva," he whispered before exiting his own painting and letting her dance until dinner.