The Marauders: Year Six #Wattys2017

Shackles

Shackles

When Elphinstone Urquart returned to Minerva McGonagall's office, it was to find the headmistress alone. She was sitting in the chair that Charlus Potter had occupied when Elphinstone arrived, leaning forward, her face buried in her arms upon the desk. The lighting was low, but even in the dim glow of the kerosene lamp and the sunrise coming through the window, he could see her shoulders shaking as she cried.

He went to her, waving his wand to extend the width of the chair, and sat beside her, leaning over her, his arms wrapping about her as he gently guided her crying face from the desk to be buried in his chest. Instead. "Oh Minnie," he whispered, and he gently stroked her hair - which was in a long braid that hung down her back, not yet knotted up into the usual style she wore during the day. "Minnie, Minnie," he said consolingly.

She let him hug her, but she didn't know what to do with her own arms, so she awkwardly left them sitting in her lap as she leaned against him. He smelled like bay rum and spearmint and she remembered the potions class in 1953 when she had learned of Amortentia and she shivered and closed her eyes tightly shut. "The poor boy... the poor boy. It isna fair," she breathed.

"Precious few things are," Elphinstone said, shaking his head. "You know this better than any, Min."

Gingerly, she brought her palm up to lay it against his chest... and slowly, her fingers wrapped around a bit of the fabric of his robes, holding onto him.

It had been decades since Minerva had allowed herself to let down her guarding wall.

Elphinstone looked down and softly kissed her forehead.

Minnie closed her eyes as she felt the touch of his lips on her skin, right at the hairline on her face, and she tightened her fingers as her heart rate quickened. Kisses were something that Minerva McGonagall had not allowed herself in decades either.

The last man that had kissed her had been Dougal McGregor and if she concentrated very hard she could still taste the Drambuie that had soaked his breath that day.

Elphinstone's fingers brushed her cheek, wiping away tears as he held his lips against her forehead still, his nose breathing in her scent. "I've missed you, Minerva," he whispered.

She opened her eyes.

Minerva McGonagall was about to push away when the door banged open.

"MINNIE... I've decided to stage a lie-in -- like John Lennon and Yoko Ono -- only it'll be me with my Moony -- to protest the sentence against Jasper Odair! I'm letting you know so that you're prepared when the media comes and they want to interview us so you can show them up to Gryffindor Tower and also do we have any spare shackles laying about? I need some because, well, I haven't told Rey about this yet, but you know Remus, he's a goody-two-shoes so I'm not sure how he'll take the idea of skivving off classes, even in the name of justice and --- " Sirius Black's loud voice proceeded him into the room - but he was still moving too fast to allow there to be time for the two adults to pull apart. He came to a full stop before them. Minnie stood up and straightened her robes, turning quickly and wiping her eyes with her sleeves and Professor Urquart looked quite alarmed - his hair appearing messier than usual and he stared at Sirius Black with wide eyes and a trembling lower jaw.

Sirius stared in disbelief.

"Mr. Black," McGonagall tried to keep her voice steady, but there was nothing doing, she cleared her throat and walked swiftly behind her desk, knocking her teacup over on the papers on her desk as she did and she scrambled to get her wand and siphon it up. "You - you canna be running into people's offices withou' a knocker on the door at least!" she scolded, her accent still thick as could be.