A/N: Okay guys, here we go. Before anything else, let me make a few things clear: For the purposes of this story, the year is 1942, and Minerva is from Germany.

Yes, I know that this is different from cannon, but it's what I needed to start the story how I wanted it. It'll make sense, I promise! Hopefully this doesn't bother anyone too much. Again, bare with me!

I don't know how much time has passed before I begin to wake. The first thing I see when I force my eyes open is the white ceiling. I sit up, realizing I am in a bed, and in a white gown instead of my dress. What's going on? I notice rows of beds on either side of me and on the opposite wall identical to mine. How did I get here? The last thing I remember was appearing in a strange place and blacking out… This must be where the vortex dropped me. But where am I?

A strand of my dark hair falls into my face. With a huff, I raise my hand to tuck it back behind my ear, only to stop in my tracks half way.

My skin isn't green!

I stare at my hand for a moment, thinking I'm hallucinating, but no, it's real! What the hell? It's so strange. I mean, I'm just so… well, pale. My arm is the same, and I throw back the sheets to inspect my legs. They're pale too! Not a hint of green anywhere. Did someone here find a cure? Impossible, I've searched for years! And yet…

You're looking a bit green…

I remember the man's voice above me. I'd wanted to laugh at him, but perhaps he wasn't as stupid as I thought. Was the green fading that much when I arrived?

Well, at any rate, I suppose this will make it much easier to go around un-noticed. That is, if no one here knows who I am. I wonder… Did I do this somehow? If so, this place must have one hell of an affect on my magic.

If I even still have my magic, of course.

The door to the room begins to open, and I force the look of shock and fear from my face, feigning normalcy. I have no idea who these people are or what I'm in store for, but I'll be damned if I show fear.

A short, plump woman dressed in what could pass for some sort of healer's attire bustles in. She walks faster once she sees that I'm awake. Following behind her is a tall man with long auburn hair and beard, and blue eyes behind a pair of half-moon glasses. He's wearing the most ridiculously colored robes I have ever seen in my life.

Despite his flamboyant clothing choice, I find my immediate attention going to the woman. I don't like how quickly she's advancing on me, particularly when I'm in such a prone position.

"Who are you? Stay back! What are you doing?"

She pulled some kind of odd stick out of her pocket, and it looks as though she's about to point it at me.

The woman pauses, looking a bit surprised. I hear the man coming up behind her, chuckling.

"Poppy, perhaps it would be best to explain before anything else."

"Yes of course, Professor."

I turn my gaze to the man beside her, eyeing him with suspicion. He only smiles at me.

"Hello, I am Professor Albus Dumbledore." He says, holding his hand out to me. I nod, but don't make a move to take his hand.

"Hello. You said you would explain?" He drops his hand back to his side.

"Ah, yes indeed. Well, you appeared in front of me in Diagon Alley quite suddenly. You immediately looked rather sick, and though I tried to speak to you, you did not respond to me. I'm afraid you fainted, and I brought you here for Madame Pomfrey to aid in healing you."

Ah, so he is the man I saw in the street, then. I give the woman a sidelong glance. "So I was correct in my assumption that she is a healer of some sort?"

The man, Dumbledore, nods. "Yes. You're currently in the infirmary of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, of which I am the Deputy Headmaster. Ms. Poppy Pomfrey is our school's medi-witch."

I stare at him a moment, trying to make sense out of what I was being told before Professor Dumbledore speaks again.

"You have the ability to do magic, do you not? I figured you appeared in Diagon Alley by apparition, but we could not find a wand among your possessions."

Diagon Alley? Apparition? What is he talking about? I've never heard of any of these things, but I suppose a wand is that stick that Poppy woman attempted to use on me. Very odd.

"Yes, I can do magic, but-"

Suddenly I freeze, realizing much too late that I am missing something. The Grimmerie, Nessa's shoes! Where are they? They weren't on me when I woke up.

I turn to them sharply, giving them my most menacing glare. "What did you do with them?"

The healer backs up slightly, but the man just looks confused. "Pardon?"

"You said you looked through my possessions. Where are they. The book, those shoes! Give them back to me! You have no right-"

I pull back the sheets and stand on surprisingly strong legs, crouching down to check under the bed.

"Miss-"

"Where are they! They belong to me!"

I turn toward a door, probably the healer's office, and through the window I see both the Grimmerie and the slippers. Sighing in relief, I reach toward them and both items are summoned back into my arms.

Well, at least I know I still have my magic.

I spin back toward them, "Just what were my things doing in your office?"

"I- I was simply holding them until you could reclaim them."

"And did you do anything you should not have while you had them?"

"No, of course not. I promise I didn't touch them."

I narrow my eyes at the woman, but she seems to be telling the truth, so I relax.

"I apologize for the outburst."

"That's quite alright," Professor Dumbledore says quickly. "Obviously they mean a great deal to you, we should have told you sooner."

I nod to him, putting the things on the table beside my bed and sitting down on it.

"Now then," He says. "Maybe you can help us understand how you got here."

I look at him, feigning confusion. "I don't know. I can't remember much of anything."

"What do you remember?"

My expression hardens instantly, knowing I have to proceed with caution. "I was brought here by the shoes. A man with a great deal of power wanted me to join him at his side because of my magic. I cannot remember his name but he did horrible things, and I refused. He tried multiple times to kill me and very nearly succeeded, but I managed to escape and was brought here."

Professor Dumbledore nods slowly. The healer comes up to whisper in his ear, but I can still hear her.

"Albus, it must be a portkey! Perhaps she escaped from Grindelwald!"

He nods again, though he doesn't look quite convinced.

I keep my face blank, though I have no idea what they're talking about. Who is Grindelwald?

"Is anyone looking for you?" I tense at his question, looking up at him sharply. He instantly rethinks his question. "I mean family. Surely they're worried about you."

I scoff. "Trust me, no one's worried about me. I don't have any family."

"Do you remember where you are from? Your accent isn't British."

"British? Is… Is that where we are?"

He chuckles, "No, no. The castle is in Scotland, but most of our students and staff are from England. You have a strange accent."

I stare at him. I have an accent? I didn't realize those from Oz had any kind of accent. Wonderful, something new to worry about.

When I don't answer, he speaks again. "Perhaps Germany? It sounds like a German accent."

Germany? I have no idea what that is, but I certainly don't have any alternatives, so I nod.

"Yes, that's it. Germany."

He nods, and I relax a bit. Obviously no one recognizes me here. Great, now all I need to do is escape these people and their questions.

"Well, if you wouldn't mind, I would like Poppy to perform a diagnostic spell on you, just to make sure you have no lasting injuries."

I nod after a minutes hesitation, laying back in the bed. The woman comes up to me slowly and raises her stick over me. I tense, and she glances at me.

"This won't hurt at all, I swear."

I nod, and she waves it over me, causing a tingling sensation all over my body, but no pain.

Madame Pomfrey pauses when she looks at the result, and the Professor immediately notices. "What is it, Poppy?"

"What? Oh…" She glances at me, "No injuries that can't be healed fairly easily, Albus. Depleted magical core, fresh scars, bruises... You also seem to have a few moderate burns. Do you know what those are from?"

My eyes widen. Burns? That must have been from the water Dorothy threw on me. I vaguely remember feeling as though I was on fire..

"No, sorry. I can't remember much up until I woke up and managed to escape."

Poppy nods slowly. "Well, we can use a potion for those, not to worry."

Professor Dumbledore nods, "Good, good. Now, do you have anywhere to stay, miss?"

"Uh…" Shit. Shit! What am I going to do now? The only thing I wanted was my things back. My plan only consisted of that and leaving Oz. I didn't think about what I would do afterwards.

"Well, no, actually. I… I didn't plan very far ahead, you see."

He nods seeming, oddly, to understand. "Ah, yes. Well, you can always stay here in the castle until you figure that out. What did you do before you arrived here?"

My eyes widen only slightly. What am I supposed to tell him? That people thought I was a terrorist? No, no, that simply wouldn't do. Let's see…

"I was a teacher." I blurt it out before I can stop myself. I did often help Nessa and Boq with their homework and spent a great deal of time with Dr. Dillamond, so I guess that's the closest I'm going to get.

The Professor's eyes light up. "Really? Wonderful! Then I insist you stay here in the castle. In fact, I have a marvelous idea!"

I raise an eyebrow at him, looking at him in suspicion. "And?"

"Well, at the moment Hogwarts finds herself without a Transfiguration professor. Seeing as you are witch, I don't see a reason why you couldn't fill that position. Room and board would, of course, be provided, as well as a steady salary."

I stare at him, as does the healer. Is he mad? I appear out of nowhere in the middle of a street, act like a mad woman over a book and shoes, he knows absolutely nothing about me, and yet he's offering me a job? With… children?

"Well- I… Yes, I can do magic; That is true, but I don't remember anything about Transfiguration."

"That's alright, we still have a couple months before the students return for the school year. I am sure I can jog your memory."

"I…" My first instinct is to call him crazy and decline his very odd offer, but then I stop myself. I mean, really, what else am I going to do? I know no one here, I'm not even sure exactly where I am… No one seems to recognize me yet, and I'd be able to make a living for myself with his proposal. Sure, it involves children, but I actually always liked children. They were always scared of me back in Oz, and a rumor went around that I ate them, but I don't see any reason why I shouldn't take this chance. After all, I doubt I'll get another one.

I look back up into his blue eyes, a feeling of determination filling me. "I'll do it."

He smiles broadly, a twinkle in his eyes. "Splendid! We'll start as soon as your magic is back at a normal level. Oh, and by the way, I don't think I asked your name."

"It's-" I cough, suddenly realizing I can't give him my real name. If anyone were to come looking for me it'd be that much easier to evade them… Quickly, I think back, remembering all the books I'd read as a child. Only a few names I truly liked popped out at me, and I find myself speaking even before I had made the final decision.

"McGonagall, Professor. Minerva McGonagall."

He smiles warmly at me, placing a hand on my arm. Despite myself I flinch back, but he doesn't remove his arm.

"Ms. McGonagall, I will not hurt you. I only wanted to tell you not to call me Professor. Albus will suffice."

I relax, chiding myself for acting like that. I give him the smallest of smiles. "Alright, Albus. But only if you call me Minerva."

He smiles again, patting my arm. This time I manage keep myself from flinching.

"Minerva it is, then." He grabs my hand and places a kiss on the back of it, something only Fiyero was brave enough to do.

"Welcome to Hogwarts, Minerva McGonagall."

A/N: Thanks for reading, everyone! And PLEASE review! I like to know what everyone's reactions are. Thanks guys! See you soon.