"Mmmmm."

Minerva McGonagall frowned.

"Mmmmmmm,"

She turned her right ear in the direction of her reading companion, waiting to see if the sound would come again, and if it had indeed come from him.

"Mmmmmmmmmmmmm."

"I beg your pardon, Albus?" Minerva McGonagall looked up from her copy of "Transfiguration

Today" and stared across the table at Albus Dumbledore.

"Nothing." He replied, popping another sherbet lemon into his mouth. She turned back to her magazine.

A few minutes later she was distracted again.

"Mmmmmmm."

"Did you say something, Albus?" She asked, again looking up from her magazine.

"Not exactly." The Headmaster answered.

"What do you mean 'not exactly'?" She said, putting the magazine down in her lap and taking a sip of her tea.

"Well, the sound that came from my mouth is not technically a word…so I suppose you could say that I didn't really say "something". I said nothing. Technically."

Minerva shook her head and smiled. "I see. And why, may I ask, were you saying nothing? Technically."

"Ah, I was just testing something." He replied with a twinkle.

"Do I want to know?"

"Not yet. I promise I'll tell you when my results are conclusive."

She smiled and shook her head, picking up her magazine and continued where she had left off.

After a moment or two of discreet sucking and crunching from Albus's side of the table, she heard him pop yet another sherbet lemon into his mouth as he began to make the strange noises again.

"Fffffffffffffffffffffffffff. Interesting, but not really." He muttered to himself.

She tried not to allow herself get distracted.

"Puh."

She raised an eyebrow, but continued with her article.

"Puh. Puh-puh. No, definitely not."

A frown began to deepen on her brow.

"Ssssssssssssss. Hmm! That's enlightening. Ssssssssssssssss"

He mouth began to tighten.

"Pppppppssssssssss…ooh no! Quite inappropriate!"

The magazine held no more attraction for her.

"AaaaaaaaD. Rubbish."

Her fingers began to drum on the arm of the chair.

"Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrhhhhhhhhh. Possibly, possibly…"

"Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!" He let out a sigh. "That is so much better!"

"Albus!" Minerva had risen from her chair.

"Forgive me my dear, did I distract you?"

"Yes you did. "What on earth are you doing?!"

He smiled at her across the table.

"Well, my dear, I was conducting a little experiment into the initial letters of the names of Hogwart's staff members. I am considering using acronyms in all in-school correspondence. To save on ink."

Minerva blinked.

"I was checking to see if the abbreviations would serve to remind me of them in any way."

"Whatever for?"

"Because if they do, I fully intend to begin using them on a daily basis. To save on breath. I am getting very old, Minerva…" He shrugged. "And you have been engrossed in that magazine for approximately two hours now. I am dying of boredom."

She smiled, and put the magazine on the desk.

"You have my undivided attention. What did you discover?"

"Well!" he said with a smile, his eyes twinkling merrily "There are only two staff members whose names I tested that worked. The others were all useless. For example, there is simply no way to elongate Poppy's consonants. And Pomona Sprout sounded like "puss", which would surely be more appropriate for you, Tabby."

Minerva arched her eyebrow at him and he flashed her his charming, school-boy smile.

"Severus, on the other hand, will be happy to know that the short version of his name not only reminds me of him, but of his house. Sssssssssssssss."

She put her hand over her mouth to stifle a laugh.

"And what about me, Albus?"

"Ah, my dear, I think you know that you win the competition hands down."

"And why is that?" she asked, with a self-satisfied smirk.

"Because, my love, you are the only person I ever think of who makes me go Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!"