The Empress of Magic

Chapter 123 : The Bastard Queen and The Goblin King

Minerva McGonagall didn't know how everything in her life could have gone wrong in such a short amount of time, but it had and now she had no will left in her to figure out how to move forward......

So many of her students, members of her own House which were entrusted to her, were now dead, their bodies buried within the earth of Camelot, joining those of countless others who had passed on before them...

, ..... I'm sorry.........' was a constant thought that plagued her wherever she went. , ....... Please...... Find it in your hearts to forgive me for failing you.........'

There was not a day that passed since the attack on Hogwarts where she wasn't haunted by images of those same children she had taught and seen grow while in the castle's halls being torn apart piece by piece or eaten alive.....

She let her gaze sweep across the snow-covered shrouds and trees accompanying Camelot's graveyard, her feet carrying her forward as her heart filled itself with remorse.....

Remorse for all the things left unsaid......

Remorse for the things she had unknowingly participated in........

Remorse for failing them in all things that mattered.....

The former Gryffindor stopped in front of the grave of one Aiden Skeeter, using her gloved hand to brush away the snow piled up on the stone that carried his name and date of birth.... as well as the date of his death.....

,, .... Good day, Mister Skeeter......" greeted the tired witch, crouching down to fix the flowers left for him by others, before adding her own bouquet, as she had done for the other graves in the days since the funeral. ,, ........ I heard from Filius that you liked poppies most, so I took the liberty to take some from my grandmother's garden to gift to you......"

Fixing the blue piece of cloth she had used to tie the flowers together, she made sure the white vases charmed to stay rooted next to the former Ravenclaw's headstone held enough space, before separating them into two smaller bouquets and placing them in one of the vases each. ,, ... She was a Muggle, my grandmother on my father's side that is and enjoyed partaking in gardening in her free time..... Even won a few prizes for it.... So I can assure you that these were grown with the finest care there is......"

She herself was rotten awful with everything plant-related, the skills of her grandmother had completely skipped over her son and granddaughter, but she had spent many years at the frail elderly woman's side watching her work her very own kind of magic on them, and could tell a good poppy apart from already wilting ones.....

,, There..... that should do it..." she muttered, finally done with arranging them to her liking, while also being mindful of the other flowers left for the teen, one of them a Spider Lily that she knew had been left there by Celestia personally since no one else within the castle knew how to grow them to have such a deep coloring while retaining their shine.

,, I apologize for postponing my visit to you for so long.... I..... I know that I am probably the last Professor you wished to see here, but I wanted to personally apologize to you..........." she whispered, feeling twice her age at the moment. ,, I wasn't a good role model to you or any other student for that matter..... Too focused on the wrong to see or hear those who could have truly needed my assistance...... Hells, some days I can't help and look back and wonder about what could have happened if I had just turned around and asked more questions, or even just asked how you all were fairing instead of avoiding the obvious........."

There were so many faces over the years, belonging to her lions as well as the Ravenclaws, Slytherins, and Hufflepuffs alike....

And she could recall each time one of those faces had stopped yearning for her help, instead learning to adapt as their crumpled expressions that had carried around hope and betrayal were replaced by anger and hatred, the sole emotion left in their hardened hearts being a need for vengeance.....