Hey, thanks for the reviews!
I was about to post a new chapter, than realized I forgot to upload this one here, so there you go, double update for you today!
Enjoy!
The long-awaited April holidays finally arrived, and I informed my uncle and aunt that I would be absent for a whole week; which pleased them, although they tried to hide it. I think they needed a break from me anyway, and from everything I represented.
I sat on the doorstep on the appointed day, at the first light of dawn, struggling to contain my impatience. I had no doubt that Minie would come to get me, I trusted her. The morning air was brisk, and the sky was streaked with long white clouds, like hasty brushstrokes. I rarely had time to sit somewhere and do nothing, and although for most children my age this situation would have been boring, it wasn't the case for me. Well, as long as it didn't last too long, I suppose. But anyway, I was absorbed in contemplating the sky, fascinated by its vastness, when a shadow came to obscure it. I looked up and saw Minie's stern face above me, illuminated by a wide smile.
"Minie!" I said, throwing myself into her arms.
She was momentarily disoriented by the strength of my embrace but responded without hesitation.
"Hello, Harry. I suppose your guardians won't mind if I skip the usual pleasantries?"
"I don't think they will!"
She offered her hand without saying anything more, and I took it. A feeling of suffocation overtook me; I closed my eyes, and then we found ourselves elsewhere.
oOo
We were at the top of a small hill, covered with grass dried by the cold, heather, and some patches of snow. The sky was the same as in Privet Drive, yet it showed a few differences, subtle but undeniable. It seemed higher, larger, its colours appeared more intense.
Down below, like a jewel of ice, a medium-sized loch sparkled, stretching nearly a kilometre in length. At its eastern end stood a manor, or at least something that resembled one a lot, from what I could see. A cold wind blew, and I had a brief shiver. Minie adjusted my scarf and smiled at me.
"Welcome to my home, Harry."
I smiled back, and she pointed to the building in the distance, on the shores of the lake:
"I thought it would be nicer not to go straight inside, I enjoy walking on the moor, and this way you can already familiarise yourself with the surroundings."
"That sounds perfect," I said, still smiling.
She hadn't let go of my hand since we had Apparated, so I squeezed it a little to make sure she wouldn't, then we began walking towards the manor. My bag on my shoulder was light, the sun was shining without being warm, and sometimes its brilliance, reflected by the snow, sent sparks of light onto the loch, forcing me to look away. Minie walked with a straight, stiff step, but as she seemed to relax, it became more fluid. I glanced at her out of the corner of my eye and had the impression that she had gained something on these lands, something that proclaimed she was at home here, in Scotland. Because clearly, we could only be here. It was the first time I had been so far from London, and the second time I had found myself in such a wild place, the first being a school picnic I didn't like to remember.
After about fifteen minutes of silent walking, we arrived in front of the manor. My eyes hadn't deceived me, it was indeed a manor, about three storeys high, with tall windows and built of heavy grey stones. I looked at Minie with curiosity, a little impressed.
"Minie, how come you have a house like this?"
"The family I was born into is an old Scottish family. They were rather minor wizards, but landowners, descendants of small nobles, vassals of medieval lords. This manor is the family estate. It came to me as the last member of the Mc Gonagall family. I haven't been back in years, to be honest; there's a lot to do at Hogwarts, and this place is far too big for one person. But it doesn't matter, I think we'll be fine here. I came by yesterday to clean and stock the pantry, so we won't lack for anything."
I nodded with a smile. Minie took out her wand and murmured a few spells. A distinct click came from the lock, and Minie turned to me:
"It's open." She pressed the handle, entered, and I followed her.
oOo
The vestibule was plunged into darkness, and Minie cast a new spell. With a sharp snap, all the curtains opened, and I could take in the interior. The vestibule was a square room about three metres by three, furnished with a comfortable sofa made of slightly worn purple fabric and many coat racks. The floor was covered with a rug in shades of orange, and after looking at it for a few moments, I noticed that the woven patterns depicted flames, and these seemed to flicker across the surface of the fabric. If I hadn't been standing on it, I might have almost thought they were real. I stopped observing it and looked around the rest of the room. Stone walls with niches for candleholders.
We took off our coats before stepping into the next room: A rather large sitting room, furnished with wide sofas draped in green silk arranged around a large stone fireplace on the left, and with tall windows. Minie didn't linger there, and I followed her.
We crossed a large tiled room, where a long wooden banquet table stood proudly. There were a good dozen high-backed wooden chairs and another fireplace. The walls were brightened by large emerald green tapestries, and I quickly made the connection to my friend's robes.
She pointed me towards the kitchen, then we climbed a fairly wide spiral staircase to reach the second floor. This floor was dedicated to sleeping just as the ground floor was dedicated to socialising.
It consisted of a wide corridor about a metre wide, pierced with a dozen doors on the right and left. Minie opened the second door on the left. Behind it was a fairly small bedroom compared to the rooms we had seen so far. The furnishings were quite simple. A wooden desk under the window, which overlooked the loch, a single wooden bed with a carved frame, covered with a warm checkered blanket, and a slightly open door leading to a bathroom.
"I'll sleep here. For you, Harry, I think I know which room will suit you."
We left the room and headed towards the last door in the hallway, straight ahead. It opened onto a bedroom that was about twice the size of Minie's. The walls were made of stone like the rest of the manor, and the floor was of smooth, light wood. No fewer than three windows pierced the wall, giving views of different facades of the manor. The view was magnificent. There was a fireplace near the four-poster bed with purple curtains. There was also a desk and a table, as well as two chairs in the room. A glass chess set rested on the desk.
"Do you like it?" Minie asked, smiling.
"It's perfect! Thank you so much! It's the first time I've seen such a big room, even Dudley has a smaller one!"
At her suggestion, I put my things down immediately and followed her into the kitchen. I spontaneously helped her prepare the meal, and we quickly got into the swing of things, ending up with a more elaborate meal than she had planned, I think, and with flour in our hair from a spontaneous battle caused by an unfortunate accident. She cleaned up the mess with a flick of her wand, and we sat down at the kitchen table, laughing, at a small wobbly table. The banquet table would have been a bit much.
oOo
In the afternoon, Minie finished showing me around the manor, not omitting the cellar (damp) and the observatory (a tower attached to the old building where she promised me we could return at night). We also went to the library, a magnificent room filled with books up to the ceiling, then we went outside. I discovered a broom cupboard leaning against the back of the manor, near the back door (my favourite cat assured me she would show me how wizards used brooms) and a small jetty on the loch. We considered taking a walk around the grounds, but a sudden rain forced us to take refuge in the sitting room. Minie had to mark papers for Hogwarts, but before settling down, she went to fetch me some children's books from the library. I got lost in the Tales of Beedle the Bard, and for a few hours, the only sound in the room was the rustling of paper. When we became hungry, we went back to the kitchen and enjoyed a simple meal and pumpkin juice.
We then spent a good hour talking about Hogwarts, lit by candles in the sitting room, before we went to bed. Minie took care to tuck me in, and we chatted a little more as sleep slowly took over me. I felt good and happy. I loved the manor, I loved no longer being in London, even though everything was new, and I felt good with Minie.
She wanted to get up to leave, but I shyly asked if she could stay a little longer. She smiled at me, transformed, and sat on the edge of my bed, waiting for me to fall asleep. I carried her reassuring feline form into my dreams.