Pins and Needles
Chapter 7: Consilio et Animis
When Hermione woke up again, she found herself squinting against sunlight. Raising her arm to shield her eyes she looked towards the sofa. Minerva was sitting there, in her dressing gown, a book in hand, just as she had when Hermione had fallen asleep. Their eyes met and Hermione managed a drowsy, "Hey."
"Good morning," Minerva answered with an amused smile. After a moment's pause she added, "Briar Rose."
Hermione chuckled and blinked her eyes a few times in an effort to regain her senses, then asked, "Have you been sitting there all the time?"
"I can see how it might appear that way, but no. I actually had this transfigured into a bed as well and had a good night's sleep. You slept for …," she paused for a moment to look at the grandfather clock across the room, "... a little more than ten hours. Deely was nice enough to serve an emergency breakfast in here or I might have starved."
"I haven't felt this rested for … ," Hermione hesitated, trying to remember, then settled on, "... ever."
"It was well deserved then," Minerva said. Rising from her seat, she continued, "You must be starving though. Shall we meet in the kitchen in a few minutes? I would like to change first."
When they had finished breakfast, Minerva turned to look at Hermione intently and asked, "So, are we going to get this done?"
Smirking at the resolute tone that reminded her a lot of the Professor McGonagall she had known for six years, Hermione answered, "Aye, ma'am."
Minerva had to smile at the teasing, but then proceeded to ask, in a much gentler voice this time, "If you were having second thoughts you would tell me, right?"
Hermione grew serious again. "I would. But I don't. I can't wait to get it over with."
"Well then." Minerva pulled out one of the chairs in the dining room and motioned for Hermione to do the same. Turning them to face each other they both sat down.
"Is there anything else you need me to do?" Hermione asked while pulling up her sleeve, removing the concealment charm and holding out her arm.
Minerva shook her head. "If you feel up to it, you might want to pay close attention to the spells themselves. It will be a rather unique chance to observe a very archaic and obscure kind of magic. A rather complex one, too, if I may say so myself." She closed her eyes for a few seconds to focus, then looked at Hermione again. "Ready?"
At Hermione's nod, Minerva started murmuring the necessary incantations. Hermione recognised the words easily enough – she had been reading up on the topic after all. The intricate wand movements that were accompanying them, however, were indeed a sight to behold. At one point she saw Minerva's eyes widen in what appeared to be surprise followed by her brow creasing. Before she could start to worry, she heard her murmur yet another spell, this one unknown to her. Finally, after what felt like an eternity but could not have been more than a minute, if that, Minerva's movements stopped and she let out a deep breath.
Only then did Hermione realise that she had been observing the other woman so intently that she had not been paying attention to her arm at all. Looking down to take in the new mark, it was something else that struck her first. "The throbbing is gone."
"The throbbing you neglected to mention?" Considering the unique circumstances as well as the fact that Hermione looked sufficiently abashed, Minerva decided against lecturing her on the dangers of encountering unknown complications while performing a highly complex spell and merely added, "Yet another sick twist designed by Mrs Lestrange."
Hermione kept staring at the new mark on her forearm, unable to form words. Her right index finger was tracing the unicorn, trembling slightly. When the tears forming in her eyes threatened to spill over, she suddenly threw herself into her mentor's arms. The tight embrace somewhat muffled her words, but it was still possible to make out repeated thank-yous in between her sobs.
In an effort to calm her down, Minerva tightened the embrace even further and gently pressed her lips to the top of her head, "You are most welcome, dearest."
Hermione had no idea what had happened next, but suddenly she found herself pressing a kiss onto the other woman's lips. For a moment she froze, then drew back, her eyes widened in shock, and frantically started to apologise. "I'm sorry! I didn't … I'm so so–"
She was stopped short when Minerva put a soft finger over her lips and said, "Please calm down. It's fine." She pressed another kiss onto Hermione's forehead, then ended the embrace, giving Hermione's shoulders one last squeeze before heading towards the kitchen. "Tea?"
After taking a minute to calm her nerves Hermione followed Minerva into the kitchen and sat down at the counter while the older woman was brewing their tea. Still fascinated by the new image on her forearm she traced her finger along the clan motto this time. Consilio Et Animis. "Minerva?"
"Yes?"
"I meant to look up your family's motto … But, um … I forgot." Her cheeks reddened, betraying her embarrassment at this atypical negligence.
"Our motto," Minerva stated pointedly, before translating. "By wisdom and courage." At Hermione's incredulous look, she grinned, "I, too, rather like it." When Hermione turned her gaze back towards it, her look still full of wonder, Minerva added, "I have been meaning to tell you – if you still want to use a concealment charm, do not hesitate to do so."
"I'm not sure I want to." Hermione looked up again, as if asking permission.
Minerva shrugged. "Then, by all means, leave it as it is. Just know that I will not be offended either way."
Hermione quickly blinked away the tears that threatened to rise again. "You're pretty damn amazing, you know that?"
She got a tender smile in return. "I do try." Placing their cups on the counter, Minerva walked around it and sat next to Hermione, facing her. "May I see?"
"Huh?" It took Hermione a moment to understand that Minerva had not had a chance to take a good look at the result of her work yet. "Of course!"
She held out her arm enabling Minerva to study the pattern. After a few moments, she looked up again. Smiling broadly, she tapped the motto and said, "I think it suits you."
Hermione beamed at the compliment. Then she grew serious. "I am really sorry for not mentioning the throbbing. When I researched the spell, I should have realised it couldn't have caused this. I had just grown so used to it, I never even considered that. I would never have kept it from you intentionally!"
"I assumed as much. Now stop beating yourself up about it, it did work out."
"Only because you cast three spells at once! I didn't even know that was possible!" Hermione was feeling her excitement bubble up. There was so much she could learn from this incredible witch.
"It is quite neat, isn't it?" Minerva did not bother to hide her pride at her abilities. "I can do two spells simultaneously without any problems. Three will usually work as well, though I try to avoid it when the outcome really matters. It depends on a lot of factors, of course. The difficulty of the spells, how familiar you are with them, whether there are any distractions, and so on.
"Albus was a master of this. He could manage three without breaking a sweat and I have no idea what his limit was. He was constantly practising though. Most people would not realise it, but he was usually maintaining at least two spells whatever else he was doing. Floating candles, and similar charms. I tried to do the same for about a week once, before deciding I treasured my sanity too much."
Hermione's eyes had become wide while listening to her mentor's explanations. "Will you teach me how to do that?" she asked, her excitement evident.
"Of course." Minerva's eyes were sparkling as well. She was overjoyed at getting to see this excited, hungry-for-knowledge side of Hermione again that she had both admired and enjoyed so very much as her teacher at Hogwarts. "But right now, I would like you to do something else. Would you try and shift the wards around the manor?" Hermione looked at her reluctantly, fully aware of the possible consequences of messing around with complex protection spells, but Minerva continued, "Just give them a gentle nudge. Trust me, I am right here."
While trusting Minerva was not an issue, Hermione was still a bit wary when she started casting the necessary spell, only to gasp in surprise as she discovered that manipulating the wards was as easy as breathing. She finished the incantation, taking care to restore the initial state.
Answering her unspoken question, Minerva said, "They are designed to keep out anyone but family. I was not sure they would respond to the mark, but as they do, you should also be able to apparate at will. Welcome to House McGonagall!"
