"Rolanda Hooch, you are insane!" declared Serena Sinistra, and she meant it. Yet, her silver-haired friend grinned.
"No, Sera, I've got a sense of humor."
"You're insane."
"I am not."
"You are."
"I am not."
"You… oh, stop it, Ro!" Serena annoyedly interrupted herself. "Okay, I have to admit it- it is quite a funny idea…"
"So you're in?" Rolanda quickly said, yellow eyes twinkling mischievously as she nudged her friend.
"No, I am not!" Serena exclaimed, yet then, she hesitatingly added
"Or perhaps I am…. but whatever, Ro… Let alone the fact that it really is a crazy idea- I mean, you are risking your very life, little lady."
Rolanda sighed and reluctantly answered
"Yes, I know. She'll kill me, won't she?"
"Oh yes she will!" grinned her fair-haired friend. "And excuse me, Ro, but I am not really in the mood to receive another example of the infamous Scottish temper…"
Rolanda laughed and shook her head.
"Me neither, Sera, believe me! And… I have never been attacked by an irate cat before, and I don't think I want to experience it…"
Serena nodded.
"I agree. So why don't you just drop the idea and…"
"Oh no!" Rolanda objected immediately.
"She needs it! She's all busy and stressed, and a little fun won't kill her. She needs to relax…"
"Yes," Serena muttered thoughtfully. "Perhaps she does… but…" she added doubtfully. "I doubt she'd like this way of relaxation."
Rolanda grinned.
"Of course she won't… at least, in the beginning. She'll probably make a big fuss about it, but she'll have a great time, I promise you…"
Serena coughed softly.
"Are you sure we're talking about the same person? I mean, she…"
"I am talking about our dear friend the formidable Deputy Headmistress Minerva Katherine McGonagall, so yes, we are talking about the same person. And I just know she'll have fun with this in the end. And by the way…"
She winked and grinned again.
"We need her, remember, Sera? She's the only one…"
Serena laughed.
"Oh, yes, I forgot that. Do you really think she can still do that?"
Rolanda nodded in a semi-stately way.
"I am sure she can."
~*~
So the two women went up to their friend's rooms- better get it over as quick as possible- and Rolanda banged in a very typical way on the large, ebony door.
"Password?" an elf-like creature on the painting next to the door shrieked.
Rolanda grinned.
"White warrior."
"Right." the elf answered as the door went open and Rolanda and Serena entered.
Minerva was sitting at her desk, correcting- as usual- various essays with her ever-present quill and red ink bottle. Yet now, she was staring surprisedly at her friends, raising one eyebrow.
"Hello Ro, Sera." she then greeted.
"Hi, Min." the other women answered, almost in unison.
Minerva laughed.
"Okay, what is wrong with you two? I am not dangerous, you know? I mean- you just called me by that stupid abbreviation of my first name again, and I did not explode, did I? You are standing there and staring at me as if I am some kind of dangerous animal!"
Rolanda sighed.
"How right you are, Min." she thought, and she knew Sera was thinking exactly the same thing. Yet, she remembered her mission and grinned.
"Well, you can be quite dangerous sometimes, Minnie…" she smiled, as she sat down nonchalantly on the large couch.
"But actually, we've come here with a Purpose."
Minerva turned around on her chair to face her friends, and smiled.
"And since you so obvious capitalized the first letter of "purpose", I guess it is quite serious, isn't it?"
Serena nodded, yet Rolanda shook her head.
"No, and that exactly is the problem! It is not serious!"
"Oh?" Minerva asked, obviously quite taken aback with her friend's quick answer.
"Now what is it?"
Serena sighed and looked at Rolanda. Rolanda sighed and looked back at Serena, who hissed
"It was your idea!" and stubbornly crossed her arms.
So Rolanda began.
"You see, Min, remember our 7th year?"
Minerva raised her eyebrows and smiled faintly.
"What part of our 7th year, Ro? The part where you tried to match me with Tom-bloody-Riddle? The part where you kept on singing "Albus and Minerva, sitting in a tree"? The part where you added me to the Quidditch team even though you knew I didn't want to be in it?"
"Min, we needed a Chaser!" Rolanda objected, yet Minerva went on.
"The part where you tried to hex Moira Zabini and ended up throwing up snails all over me? Or the part where you pulled me on the stage with you and Sera to do a "playback-act", as you so nicely called it?"
Yet, she smiled. Yes, it had been a quite- extraordinary year.
But Rolanda didn't look at all taken aback by Minerva's waterfall of words. She just grinned sheepishly and said
"The last one."
"What?" Minerva asked.
"Well, you asked me which part, and I say "the last one"."
As Minerva slowly realized what Rolanda was trying to tell her, Serena held her breath. This was such a stupid idea. A stupid- stupid idea. A real "Rolanda-idea"...
"The part where…"
"Where you pulled me and Sera on the stage and started to sing "Let's Twist Again" and "See You Later, Alligator"?"
Rolanda grinned.
"Well, they were actually "in", then. But yes, I mean that one. You see, Min, you are so stressed, and I…"
Minerva's mouth fell open, and she indeed looked very dangerous as she slowly asked
"Are you saying what I think you are saying? Rolanda Elaine Hooch, are you…"
"No need to use my hated second name, my dear…" Rolanda went on imperturbably.
"You are all stressed and you are going to get a serious nervous breakdown one of these days if you don't…"
"I," Minerva spoke briskly. "am perfectly capable of…"
Yet, here, Serena interrupted her, very much wondering why she was defending Rolanda's insane idea.
"Oh no, Minerva, you're not giving us the "perfectly-capable-of" crap! You know, Ro has actually a point here! Last year, your were hit by four stunners… -*four* stunners right into the chest, young lady!- and you have been running around like a madwoman all summer. "Hogwarts-business", "Order-business"… my god, Minerva, you must be exhausted!"
"Yet, I am not!" Minerva answered very shortly. "And even if I was, then whatever Rolanda is implying would only make it worse!"
"But what am I implying?" Rolanda suddenly asked mysteriously.
Minerva rolled her eyes.
"Okay, Ro, I don't know precisely what you are implying, but if it involves a stage, singing and dancing, then my answer is "no". Clear?"
Rolanda grinned. "Three out of three, my dear. And you are in. Clear?" she mimicked.
Minerva gave Rolanda a look that would probably have frightened even Lord Voldemort himself. Serena, at least, felt as if the wisest thing she could do was run away- away, away, away. It probably was, yet, she stayed.
"It'll be good for you and we need you!"
"Why?"
"Because the Yule Ball desperately needs some good music, this year."
"That is not a reason."
"And because of The Voice."
Sera literally held her breath as she saw Minerva's cheeks flush bright red.
"OH NO, ROLANDA!" she then yelled. Yet, when she realized she didn't want her students to hear it, she managed to control her voice again.
"Oh no, Rolanda, not "the voice"!" she spoke very angrily.
"But oh- Minerva," Rolanda now almost begged. "We need you! We need you! You are the only one who can do that "Staying Alive"-Beegees voice… Oh, please?
"I WAS DRUNK, ROLANDA!" Minerva exclaimed. "YOU had made me drunk with all your BLOODY nasty punch!"
"Still…"
"STILL WHAT?"
"You know, Min, when you are yelling, your Scottish brogue is really quite obvious, dear. You really have to work on that…"
"Don't. Change. Subject." Minerva interrupted her very, very shortly.
"Okay, okay…" Rolanda raised her hands in defense. "Okay, you were drunk, and okay, it was probably my punch, yet still- you could sing it, Min! With that extremely high-pitched voice! Without sounding extremely "wrong"!"
Minerva sighed.
"Flattery will get you nowhere her, Rolanda. I am not- I repeat, not…"
"If you don't do it for us," Serena suddenly interrupted her friend. "then do it for your Gryffindors."
Minerva stared very surprisedly at her friend.
"What? Why would…"
"They desperately need a bit of fun, Minerva. With the return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, they do not have much funny things in life anymore…"
"Oh, yes, and seeing their Transfigurations teacher and Head of House act like a teenage idiot will make them feel any better!" Minerva answered sarcastically.
"Actually, Rolanda replied dryly. "It will. And for heaven's sake, Minerva, don't you know what "fun" is about anymore, with all your "Important Business"! Don't you? My god, Minerva, just do it!"
"I am sorry, Ro, but I am not- not!- going to participate in this stupid…"
"My god, Min! Will you now finally stop with this whole "I-am-made-of-iron-and-I-feel-nothing"-attitude! Listen, I am going to ask the Headmaster, and if he approves…"
"Then he is just as big a moron as you, Ro."
"Then you will participate!"
Minerva smiled.
"But he won't approve, Rolanda… Even Albus will realize…"
Rolanda grinned.
"Oh, so you trust "Albus", don't you, Miss "I-Call-The-Headmaster-By-His-First-Name"? Albus and Minerva, sitting in a tree…"
Minerva smiled faintly.
"You've been singing that song for fifty years now, Rolanda. It's getting a bit boring…"
Serena smiled.
"Yes, but she has a point, you know!"
"Yeah!" added Rolanda. "I mean- your password…"
"What's wrong with it?"
"White warrior?"
Minerva's cheeks grew a darker red.
"What does Albus mean, my dear? And Wulfric, which is his third name, I believe?"
Minerva frowned, yet smiled.
"Do not change subject now, Rolanda! Yes, I trust Albus! He will not approve this."
"We will see."
"No, Sera, I've got a sense of humor."
"You're insane."
"I am not."
"You are."
"I am not."
"You… oh, stop it, Ro!" Serena annoyedly interrupted herself. "Okay, I have to admit it- it is quite a funny idea…"
"So you're in?" Rolanda quickly said, yellow eyes twinkling mischievously as she nudged her friend.
"No, I am not!" Serena exclaimed, yet then, she hesitatingly added
"Or perhaps I am…. but whatever, Ro… Let alone the fact that it really is a crazy idea- I mean, you are risking your very life, little lady."
Rolanda sighed and reluctantly answered
"Yes, I know. She'll kill me, won't she?"
"Oh yes she will!" grinned her fair-haired friend. "And excuse me, Ro, but I am not really in the mood to receive another example of the infamous Scottish temper…"
Rolanda laughed and shook her head.
"Me neither, Sera, believe me! And… I have never been attacked by an irate cat before, and I don't think I want to experience it…"
Serena nodded.
"I agree. So why don't you just drop the idea and…"
"Oh no!" Rolanda objected immediately.
"She needs it! She's all busy and stressed, and a little fun won't kill her. She needs to relax…"
"Yes," Serena muttered thoughtfully. "Perhaps she does… but…" she added doubtfully. "I doubt she'd like this way of relaxation."
Rolanda grinned.
"Of course she won't… at least, in the beginning. She'll probably make a big fuss about it, but she'll have a great time, I promise you…"
Serena coughed softly.
"Are you sure we're talking about the same person? I mean, she…"
"I am talking about our dear friend the formidable Deputy Headmistress Minerva Katherine McGonagall, so yes, we are talking about the same person. And I just know she'll have fun with this in the end. And by the way…"
She winked and grinned again.
"We need her, remember, Sera? She's the only one…"
Serena laughed.
"Oh, yes, I forgot that. Do you really think she can still do that?"
Rolanda nodded in a semi-stately way.
"I am sure she can."
~*~
So the two women went up to their friend's rooms- better get it over as quick as possible- and Rolanda banged in a very typical way on the large, ebony door.
"Password?" an elf-like creature on the painting next to the door shrieked.
Rolanda grinned.
"White warrior."
"Right." the elf answered as the door went open and Rolanda and Serena entered.
Minerva was sitting at her desk, correcting- as usual- various essays with her ever-present quill and red ink bottle. Yet now, she was staring surprisedly at her friends, raising one eyebrow.
"Hello Ro, Sera." she then greeted.
"Hi, Min." the other women answered, almost in unison.
Minerva laughed.
"Okay, what is wrong with you two? I am not dangerous, you know? I mean- you just called me by that stupid abbreviation of my first name again, and I did not explode, did I? You are standing there and staring at me as if I am some kind of dangerous animal!"
Rolanda sighed.
"How right you are, Min." she thought, and she knew Sera was thinking exactly the same thing. Yet, she remembered her mission and grinned.
"Well, you can be quite dangerous sometimes, Minnie…" she smiled, as she sat down nonchalantly on the large couch.
"But actually, we've come here with a Purpose."
Minerva turned around on her chair to face her friends, and smiled.
"And since you so obvious capitalized the first letter of "purpose", I guess it is quite serious, isn't it?"
Serena nodded, yet Rolanda shook her head.
"No, and that exactly is the problem! It is not serious!"
"Oh?" Minerva asked, obviously quite taken aback with her friend's quick answer.
"Now what is it?"
Serena sighed and looked at Rolanda. Rolanda sighed and looked back at Serena, who hissed
"It was your idea!" and stubbornly crossed her arms.
So Rolanda began.
"You see, Min, remember our 7th year?"
Minerva raised her eyebrows and smiled faintly.
"What part of our 7th year, Ro? The part where you tried to match me with Tom-bloody-Riddle? The part where you kept on singing "Albus and Minerva, sitting in a tree"? The part where you added me to the Quidditch team even though you knew I didn't want to be in it?"
"Min, we needed a Chaser!" Rolanda objected, yet Minerva went on.
"The part where you tried to hex Moira Zabini and ended up throwing up snails all over me? Or the part where you pulled me on the stage with you and Sera to do a "playback-act", as you so nicely called it?"
Yet, she smiled. Yes, it had been a quite- extraordinary year.
But Rolanda didn't look at all taken aback by Minerva's waterfall of words. She just grinned sheepishly and said
"The last one."
"What?" Minerva asked.
"Well, you asked me which part, and I say "the last one"."
As Minerva slowly realized what Rolanda was trying to tell her, Serena held her breath. This was such a stupid idea. A stupid- stupid idea. A real "Rolanda-idea"...
"The part where…"
"Where you pulled me and Sera on the stage and started to sing "Let's Twist Again" and "See You Later, Alligator"?"
Rolanda grinned.
"Well, they were actually "in", then. But yes, I mean that one. You see, Min, you are so stressed, and I…"
Minerva's mouth fell open, and she indeed looked very dangerous as she slowly asked
"Are you saying what I think you are saying? Rolanda Elaine Hooch, are you…"
"No need to use my hated second name, my dear…" Rolanda went on imperturbably.
"You are all stressed and you are going to get a serious nervous breakdown one of these days if you don't…"
"I," Minerva spoke briskly. "am perfectly capable of…"
Yet, here, Serena interrupted her, very much wondering why she was defending Rolanda's insane idea.
"Oh no, Minerva, you're not giving us the "perfectly-capable-of" crap! You know, Ro has actually a point here! Last year, your were hit by four stunners… -*four* stunners right into the chest, young lady!- and you have been running around like a madwoman all summer. "Hogwarts-business", "Order-business"… my god, Minerva, you must be exhausted!"
"Yet, I am not!" Minerva answered very shortly. "And even if I was, then whatever Rolanda is implying would only make it worse!"
"But what am I implying?" Rolanda suddenly asked mysteriously.
Minerva rolled her eyes.
"Okay, Ro, I don't know precisely what you are implying, but if it involves a stage, singing and dancing, then my answer is "no". Clear?"
Rolanda grinned. "Three out of three, my dear. And you are in. Clear?" she mimicked.
Minerva gave Rolanda a look that would probably have frightened even Lord Voldemort himself. Serena, at least, felt as if the wisest thing she could do was run away- away, away, away. It probably was, yet, she stayed.
"It'll be good for you and we need you!"
"Why?"
"Because the Yule Ball desperately needs some good music, this year."
"That is not a reason."
"And because of The Voice."
Sera literally held her breath as she saw Minerva's cheeks flush bright red.
"OH NO, ROLANDA!" she then yelled. Yet, when she realized she didn't want her students to hear it, she managed to control her voice again.
"Oh no, Rolanda, not "the voice"!" she spoke very angrily.
"But oh- Minerva," Rolanda now almost begged. "We need you! We need you! You are the only one who can do that "Staying Alive"-Beegees voice… Oh, please?
"I WAS DRUNK, ROLANDA!" Minerva exclaimed. "YOU had made me drunk with all your BLOODY nasty punch!"
"Still…"
"STILL WHAT?"
"You know, Min, when you are yelling, your Scottish brogue is really quite obvious, dear. You really have to work on that…"
"Don't. Change. Subject." Minerva interrupted her very, very shortly.
"Okay, okay…" Rolanda raised her hands in defense. "Okay, you were drunk, and okay, it was probably my punch, yet still- you could sing it, Min! With that extremely high-pitched voice! Without sounding extremely "wrong"!"
Minerva sighed.
"Flattery will get you nowhere her, Rolanda. I am not- I repeat, not…"
"If you don't do it for us," Serena suddenly interrupted her friend. "then do it for your Gryffindors."
Minerva stared very surprisedly at her friend.
"What? Why would…"
"They desperately need a bit of fun, Minerva. With the return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, they do not have much funny things in life anymore…"
"Oh, yes, and seeing their Transfigurations teacher and Head of House act like a teenage idiot will make them feel any better!" Minerva answered sarcastically.
"Actually, Rolanda replied dryly. "It will. And for heaven's sake, Minerva, don't you know what "fun" is about anymore, with all your "Important Business"! Don't you? My god, Minerva, just do it!"
"I am sorry, Ro, but I am not- not!- going to participate in this stupid…"
"My god, Min! Will you now finally stop with this whole "I-am-made-of-iron-and-I-feel-nothing"-attitude! Listen, I am going to ask the Headmaster, and if he approves…"
"Then he is just as big a moron as you, Ro."
"Then you will participate!"
Minerva smiled.
"But he won't approve, Rolanda… Even Albus will realize…"
Rolanda grinned.
"Oh, so you trust "Albus", don't you, Miss "I-Call-The-Headmaster-By-His-First-Name"? Albus and Minerva, sitting in a tree…"
Minerva smiled faintly.
"You've been singing that song for fifty years now, Rolanda. It's getting a bit boring…"
Serena smiled.
"Yes, but she has a point, you know!"
"Yeah!" added Rolanda. "I mean- your password…"
"What's wrong with it?"
"White warrior?"
Minerva's cheeks grew a darker red.
"What does Albus mean, my dear? And Wulfric, which is his third name, I believe?"
Minerva frowned, yet smiled.
"Do not change subject now, Rolanda! Yes, I trust Albus! He will not approve this."
"We will see."