A Cat's Tail: Minerva McGonagall Fan Fiction

Chapter 1

A/N: I just want to clarify that Minerva's brother is also called Robert, as well as her father.

"Malcolm! Robert! No! Don't throw that!" Minerva looked up from her book as she was wacked in the face with some cornflakes. She sighed, getting up to wipe her face. She honestly felt sorry for her dad, being the only muggle in a house of witches and wizards and all. And it was even worse that her crazy little brothers (who were 8 and 6) found it hilarious when they 'accidentally' did magic, like launching cornflakes across the room at her, much to her father's dismay. 

Minerva looked at herself in the mirror. Her raven black hair was tied loosely in a ponytail, as it always was at night, which she promptly turned into a tight bun. She didn't want a hair out of place; it was her first day at Hogwarts after all.  She wiped the cornflakes off her face, and stared at her green eyes in the mirror. She knew she had a slightly odd appearance, and looked like the grandmother she had never met, but sometimes wish she had a more 'normal' appearance. Minerva got teased a lot by the kids in her village, and as a result, she turned to books for comfort.  And thanks to her brothers, her brand new book Hogwarts: A history, was coated in cornflakes

Minerva hugged her father tightly. "I'll miss you dad!" She whispered, trying not to cry as her dad kissed her forehead. She then ruffled Malcolm and Robert's hair. "I'm not sure if I'll miss you two menaces!" She laughed as Robert stuck his tongue out and Malcolm crossed his eyes

"Minerva! Hurry up! You don't want to miss the train." Minerva hugged her dad one last time than ran to the car to help her mum haul her suitcase into the boot. She looked at the place she had called her home for the last 11 years, and knew she would miss it. The creaky step, the loose floorboard, and most of all, the pictures of her parents' families, that were hidden away in a draw she wasn't meant to know existed. "Minerva! In the car, now!"

Minerva found it ironic (and annoying!) that, although the castle itself was only an hour away from her house, Kings Cross Station was very far away from Scotland. Obviously, with the help of a magic car that her father was oblivious to, the journey was much quicker. Despite that, it still felt like a very long journey, and Minerva was starting to get extremely nervous. What if no one liked her? What if she came bottom of her classes? What if the teachers were horrible? She slowly drifted off to sleep, worries plaguing her dreams.

A hoot from the back came from Minerva's owl Ash (who was grey with bright green eyes much like Minerva's) her just as her mum was pulling into the station, waking her up. "The train leaves in 10 minutes Minerva, so don't dawdle!" To a passerby, it would seem as though Isobel was just being mean, but Minerva knew she was masking her fear and envy under a mask of indifference. Hauling her suitcase onto a trolley, Minerva looked at her mum to see tears shining in her eyes. 

"I'll miss you mum," Minerva mumbled as she squeezed her mum like there was no tomorrow.

"Don't make me cry, Vera!" Minerva stared at her mum.

"Where on earth did you get Vera from?" Minerva asked, incredulous.

"Trying to find some nicknames for your future friends - and boyfriends! - to call you!" Minerva just rolled her eyes. "Anyway! You don't want to miss the train!" Wiping a tear from her eye. Minerva smiled, blinking away her own tears.