Professor McGonagall: Dark Conspirator
by Rainsong
A/N: Gee whiz, 16 whole reviews! I'm honored that I'm so loved, and that I'm getting such good reception! *Steps out of fantasy world* Please review this, I feel so defeated when I don't get a good number of reviews. I'm sorry it took me so long to update this time, but I just don't feel very MOTIVATED *wink wink*. Thanks so much to those who have taken the time to give their honest opinions. To all those who consider this a painful read, don't worry, it'll be over soon. Oh yeah..Constructive criticism please, because I know I need it!
~~~~~
It was minutes short of eleven o'clock, and the crowds gathered in the Gryffindor common room were dwindling as the hours passed. After the explosion during the Quidditch match, all of the students were confined to their seperate wings of Hogwarts as the faculty scoured the grounds for any signs of Death Eaters. Unfortunately, their search revealed nothing, and all had retired to bed for the night. Soon only the four Mauraders were left sitting by the fire, talking in hushed tones.
"So you're sure you didn't see anything?" Sirius asked James for about the fifth time that night.
Before James could answer, Remus spoke, looking at Sirius incredulously.
"Sirius! You'd think that you didn't care in the slightest that James could have died out there!"
Sirius leaned back in his armchair, looking back at Remus in a reluctant sort of way.
"Moony, of course I would care if James died. I would beyond care; it would tear my soul from my very body and rip it into shreds at my feet." Sirius said dramatically. "But the fact is, I wasn't worried. James is durable. He's like.. the Whomping Willow." he finished.
"Violent, disliked, and an off shade of green?" James asked dryly.
Sirius grinned. "Whatever floats your boat, mate. But I was thinking more along the lines of.. Well, actually I wasn't thinking at all. The Whomping Willow was the first indestructable thing that came to mind."
"What about a Bludger? Bludgers are durable." Peter suggested.
"Again with the violence factor!" James said, sounding annoyed.
"Speaking of random acts of the latter, do you think we should go McGonagall hunting yet?" Sirius asked, looking at James specifically.
James checked his watch. He nodded, saying "The rest of the teachers should be in bed by now. But keep in mind, I'm only doing this for you, Padfoot."
The two of them stood up, looking at Remus and Peter imploringly. "No, no, and absolutely not." Remus said stiffly, answering their thoughts. Peter, wincing slightly, nodded his head in agreement with Remus.
"Suit yourself, party poopers. But if we get some outlandish amount of reward money from the Ministry for catching one of their most elusive enemies, don't expect us to share it." Sirius said. He climbed out the portrait hole, the Invisibility Cloak tucked neatly under James's arm ahead of him.
Carefully, the two of them unfolded the cloak and slipped under it. With soft footsteps, they headed towards the second floor corridor, and down the hall to the teacher's sleeping quarters.
They could see Professor McGonagall's name gleaming in the torchlight when they reached the first set of rooms. Her door was open slightly, and James and Sirius could hear chatter from inside. Curiously, they crouched down near the open door and listened carefully.
"I just don't think that they should be here anymore. It obvious that they know too much." McGonagall's voice said.
"Are you sure? The two of them seem to have quite the knack for sitting monotonously though things they could benefit from. Maybe this is such an event." came the voice of Albus Dumbledore.
"I know, but I think it might be genuine this time. There's been a little over the normal amount of activity from them lately. And they are very bright, even if they don't always act it. It might be..inhibiting..to the rest if we allow them to continue." McGonagall said, sounding put-out.
"Alright, Minerva. I see your point. I give you permission to take Mr. Black and Mr. Potter out."
Sirius was so startled, he fell backwards, causing the cloak to slip off both of them. A sudden silence came from McGonagall's room.
"Did you hear that?" McGongall whispered quickly.
"No, but then again, I was entranced by this vase of yours. Is it new?" came Dumbledore's voice.
"Albus, do be quiet. There's someone outside of the door."
James and Sirius heared the shuffling of feet, and hurriedly threw the Invisibility Cloak over themselves once more. They watched as McGonagall opened the door, and peered out. She was wearing crimson robes and was looking particularly severe. Her eyes seemed to rest on James and Sirius for a moment, as though she could see them faintly and needed a closer look. Looking frustrated, she stared into the darkness of the corridor for a moment, and then slipped back inside.
Sirius breathed a sigh of relief. James turned to look at him, and whispered what had been on both of their minds for some time.
"Take us out?" James said weakly.
It looked as though a lightbulb had gone on in Sirius's head. His eyes opened wide, and his jaw dropped. He made a noise as if he was going to say something, but James held up a hand to silence him, and listened as McGonagall went on.
"Should I go now?" she said, sounding nervous.
"For Sirius and James? Well, it certainly could wait for morning. But knowing the pair of them, they're probably awake in the common room. If you really feel like a midnight stroll, be my guest, Minerva. Just make it quick and quiet. We don't want to wake the other students." Dumbledore replied.
James and Sirius looked at each other, equally as shocked. In one swift motion, they were taking the stairs towards Gryffindor tower two at a time.
When they reached the Gryffindor common room, James slipped out from the Invisibility Cloak and muttered the password. Thankfully, the Fat Lady didn't look up to see who it was, and let the door swing open. Thankful for her lazy behavior, the two of them slid in through the portrait hole.
Peter and Remus were still sitting by the fire, playing a spirited game of Exploding Snap. Remus looked up.
"So, I hope you're satisfied that Professor McGonagall is in no way a d-"
"Get whatever heavy objects you can find and barricade the door!" Sirius shouted. With his wand, he moved an armchair over to the opposite side of the room, setting it down against the portrait hole. James followed suit, moving another chair. Before they could continue, Remus stood up and sat down in one of the positioned chairs. He looked at the two of them sternly.
"Now tell me what you heard or saw that could possibly cause you shut yourselves in the common room." he said, as calmly as possible.
"McGonagall..she was talking to Dumbledore, and it was about us." James began.
"Us meaning Sirius and yourself, or us meaning the four of us collectively?" Remus asked.
"Sirius and me. She said she was going to 'take us out', and that we know too much. She's on her way." James replied quickly.
"So Moony, I hope you understand when I tell you to get out of that bloody chair so we can continue piling furniture." Sirius said, sounding irritated.
"No, Padfoot, not an option. Actually, I'm sort of disappointed in you. I thought you'd want to take on McGonagall, not run like a headless chicken." Remus said, an odd grin flickering across his face.
Sirius, looking suspicious, turned to James, who looked equally surprised at Remus's words.
"No, honestly. This is not Marauder behavior. Check the book." Remus said. He nodded to a thick, leather-bound book entitled 'Maurader Law & Code'.
Sirius suddenly sounded thoughtful. "You know, Prongs, he has a point. We've never run from Snape, and he was probably initiated into Voldemort's inner circle upon birth. What kind of simpering morons are we?"
"True. So, what say we go take the upper hand?" James said, looking determined. Sirius nodded, and they moved the furniture from the portrait hole. Turning to face the area where the back of the picture of the Fat Lady was visible. They both pulled out their wands.
"Ready?" James asked, looking nervous.
"Ready." Sirius replied.
With one push, they threw open the door. They were face to face with Professor McGonagall.
In unison, the two Gryffindors tumbled backwards, propped up by their hands. They were now sitting at McGonagall's feet. They both looked up in horror.
"Get back, bringer of Darkness!" Sirius shouted. The entire scene would have been very funny had the situation not been so dire.
"Mr. Black, what in Merlin's name are you speaking of?" McGonagall asked, looking shocked.
"We heard you talking to Dumbledore tonight. You're going to kill us both because we know too much about your plot!" James said, Sirius nodding vigorously.
"Kill you?"
"Yeah, you said you wanted to take us out!" Sirius replied, his wand held out in front of him in his shaking hand.
McGonagall sighed, looking almost amused. "No, Mr. Black, I am not here to kill you. But I am here because I want to take you and Potter out of my Transfiguration class. You seem to know all there is to know about the process of becoming an Animagus; your test scores have been above your average caliber. How you have this knowledge I do not know. But your lack of attention, while not irregular, is disturbing the class. I thought you might like to take another course until this one is complete." she said.
"But that explosion at the Quidditch match! We saw you give someone the signal to set of some sort of..explosive!" Sirius accused once more.
"Mr. Berthley? He was there as a supervisor. I had a meeting scheduled with him after the match, and merely was asking for the time. He pulled out his pocket watch." McGonagall said, looking more scandalized by the minute.
"Don't play dumb. We've caught on to you. We saw you in that room with Professor Grendel, showing him the Dark Mark on your arm!" James shouted accusingly.
Professor McGonagall faltered for a moment, looking slightly embarassed. "I was mixing potions, and I accidentally splashed a bit of the uncompleted mixture onto my arm. A rash developed, and I was asking Professor Grendel if he thought it was in need of medical attention." she said through gritted teeth.
"So you're not a Death Eater?" Sirius asked weakly.
"No, Mr. Black, I'm not. And I give you both a week of detention for even suggesting such a thing. Now, I suggest you wrap up your little detective session and get to bed." she said angrily. She spun around and bustled off, looking very agitated.
Sirius and James got up, brushing themselves off. "Well, she seemed a bit miffed, don't you think?" Sirius asked, looking not the least bit charinged.
"A bit miffed? Sirius, we just accused her of being a Death Eater. 'Miffed' doesn't even begin to describe it." James said angrily. They turned to see Remus sitting there, looking very content with himself.
"You tricked us into confronting her, didn't you?" James asked him, sounding defeated.
"Yes, I did. But I wasn't lying when I said that you needed to confront her. You couldn't sit in the dormitories, prolonging your fate." Remus said, grinning.
"Moony, you stupid git, mark my words: revenge shall be had upon you." Sirius said, glaring at Remus.
Remus picked up the heavy volume titled 'Marauders Law & Code'.
"Now there must be something in here about pranking fellow Mauraders..or possibly wild conspiracy theories with no backing in logic or educated thought, for that matter..."
He was silenced as two pillows hurled into his face, and James and Sirius swung a high-five. James grinned, seeming to forget about the week's worth of detention to enjoy this moment.
"I knew it'd work out in our favor."
~*The End*~
A/N: Please review this, and make my day ducky.
By the way: I do not own Harry Potter. Satisfied?
A/N: Thanks to everyone who put up with my bitchiness while writing this. It was particulary difficult for me, and caused a lot of grouchy wrong-side- of-the-bed days at school. Thank you.
by Rainsong
A/N: Gee whiz, 16 whole reviews! I'm honored that I'm so loved, and that I'm getting such good reception! *Steps out of fantasy world* Please review this, I feel so defeated when I don't get a good number of reviews. I'm sorry it took me so long to update this time, but I just don't feel very MOTIVATED *wink wink*. Thanks so much to those who have taken the time to give their honest opinions. To all those who consider this a painful read, don't worry, it'll be over soon. Oh yeah..Constructive criticism please, because I know I need it!
~~~~~
It was minutes short of eleven o'clock, and the crowds gathered in the Gryffindor common room were dwindling as the hours passed. After the explosion during the Quidditch match, all of the students were confined to their seperate wings of Hogwarts as the faculty scoured the grounds for any signs of Death Eaters. Unfortunately, their search revealed nothing, and all had retired to bed for the night. Soon only the four Mauraders were left sitting by the fire, talking in hushed tones.
"So you're sure you didn't see anything?" Sirius asked James for about the fifth time that night.
Before James could answer, Remus spoke, looking at Sirius incredulously.
"Sirius! You'd think that you didn't care in the slightest that James could have died out there!"
Sirius leaned back in his armchair, looking back at Remus in a reluctant sort of way.
"Moony, of course I would care if James died. I would beyond care; it would tear my soul from my very body and rip it into shreds at my feet." Sirius said dramatically. "But the fact is, I wasn't worried. James is durable. He's like.. the Whomping Willow." he finished.
"Violent, disliked, and an off shade of green?" James asked dryly.
Sirius grinned. "Whatever floats your boat, mate. But I was thinking more along the lines of.. Well, actually I wasn't thinking at all. The Whomping Willow was the first indestructable thing that came to mind."
"What about a Bludger? Bludgers are durable." Peter suggested.
"Again with the violence factor!" James said, sounding annoyed.
"Speaking of random acts of the latter, do you think we should go McGonagall hunting yet?" Sirius asked, looking at James specifically.
James checked his watch. He nodded, saying "The rest of the teachers should be in bed by now. But keep in mind, I'm only doing this for you, Padfoot."
The two of them stood up, looking at Remus and Peter imploringly. "No, no, and absolutely not." Remus said stiffly, answering their thoughts. Peter, wincing slightly, nodded his head in agreement with Remus.
"Suit yourself, party poopers. But if we get some outlandish amount of reward money from the Ministry for catching one of their most elusive enemies, don't expect us to share it." Sirius said. He climbed out the portrait hole, the Invisibility Cloak tucked neatly under James's arm ahead of him.
Carefully, the two of them unfolded the cloak and slipped under it. With soft footsteps, they headed towards the second floor corridor, and down the hall to the teacher's sleeping quarters.
They could see Professor McGonagall's name gleaming in the torchlight when they reached the first set of rooms. Her door was open slightly, and James and Sirius could hear chatter from inside. Curiously, they crouched down near the open door and listened carefully.
"I just don't think that they should be here anymore. It obvious that they know too much." McGonagall's voice said.
"Are you sure? The two of them seem to have quite the knack for sitting monotonously though things they could benefit from. Maybe this is such an event." came the voice of Albus Dumbledore.
"I know, but I think it might be genuine this time. There's been a little over the normal amount of activity from them lately. And they are very bright, even if they don't always act it. It might be..inhibiting..to the rest if we allow them to continue." McGonagall said, sounding put-out.
"Alright, Minerva. I see your point. I give you permission to take Mr. Black and Mr. Potter out."
Sirius was so startled, he fell backwards, causing the cloak to slip off both of them. A sudden silence came from McGonagall's room.
"Did you hear that?" McGongall whispered quickly.
"No, but then again, I was entranced by this vase of yours. Is it new?" came Dumbledore's voice.
"Albus, do be quiet. There's someone outside of the door."
James and Sirius heared the shuffling of feet, and hurriedly threw the Invisibility Cloak over themselves once more. They watched as McGonagall opened the door, and peered out. She was wearing crimson robes and was looking particularly severe. Her eyes seemed to rest on James and Sirius for a moment, as though she could see them faintly and needed a closer look. Looking frustrated, she stared into the darkness of the corridor for a moment, and then slipped back inside.
Sirius breathed a sigh of relief. James turned to look at him, and whispered what had been on both of their minds for some time.
"Take us out?" James said weakly.
It looked as though a lightbulb had gone on in Sirius's head. His eyes opened wide, and his jaw dropped. He made a noise as if he was going to say something, but James held up a hand to silence him, and listened as McGonagall went on.
"Should I go now?" she said, sounding nervous.
"For Sirius and James? Well, it certainly could wait for morning. But knowing the pair of them, they're probably awake in the common room. If you really feel like a midnight stroll, be my guest, Minerva. Just make it quick and quiet. We don't want to wake the other students." Dumbledore replied.
James and Sirius looked at each other, equally as shocked. In one swift motion, they were taking the stairs towards Gryffindor tower two at a time.
When they reached the Gryffindor common room, James slipped out from the Invisibility Cloak and muttered the password. Thankfully, the Fat Lady didn't look up to see who it was, and let the door swing open. Thankful for her lazy behavior, the two of them slid in through the portrait hole.
Peter and Remus were still sitting by the fire, playing a spirited game of Exploding Snap. Remus looked up.
"So, I hope you're satisfied that Professor McGonagall is in no way a d-"
"Get whatever heavy objects you can find and barricade the door!" Sirius shouted. With his wand, he moved an armchair over to the opposite side of the room, setting it down against the portrait hole. James followed suit, moving another chair. Before they could continue, Remus stood up and sat down in one of the positioned chairs. He looked at the two of them sternly.
"Now tell me what you heard or saw that could possibly cause you shut yourselves in the common room." he said, as calmly as possible.
"McGonagall..she was talking to Dumbledore, and it was about us." James began.
"Us meaning Sirius and yourself, or us meaning the four of us collectively?" Remus asked.
"Sirius and me. She said she was going to 'take us out', and that we know too much. She's on her way." James replied quickly.
"So Moony, I hope you understand when I tell you to get out of that bloody chair so we can continue piling furniture." Sirius said, sounding irritated.
"No, Padfoot, not an option. Actually, I'm sort of disappointed in you. I thought you'd want to take on McGonagall, not run like a headless chicken." Remus said, an odd grin flickering across his face.
Sirius, looking suspicious, turned to James, who looked equally surprised at Remus's words.
"No, honestly. This is not Marauder behavior. Check the book." Remus said. He nodded to a thick, leather-bound book entitled 'Maurader Law & Code'.
Sirius suddenly sounded thoughtful. "You know, Prongs, he has a point. We've never run from Snape, and he was probably initiated into Voldemort's inner circle upon birth. What kind of simpering morons are we?"
"True. So, what say we go take the upper hand?" James said, looking determined. Sirius nodded, and they moved the furniture from the portrait hole. Turning to face the area where the back of the picture of the Fat Lady was visible. They both pulled out their wands.
"Ready?" James asked, looking nervous.
"Ready." Sirius replied.
With one push, they threw open the door. They were face to face with Professor McGonagall.
In unison, the two Gryffindors tumbled backwards, propped up by their hands. They were now sitting at McGonagall's feet. They both looked up in horror.
"Get back, bringer of Darkness!" Sirius shouted. The entire scene would have been very funny had the situation not been so dire.
"Mr. Black, what in Merlin's name are you speaking of?" McGonagall asked, looking shocked.
"We heard you talking to Dumbledore tonight. You're going to kill us both because we know too much about your plot!" James said, Sirius nodding vigorously.
"Kill you?"
"Yeah, you said you wanted to take us out!" Sirius replied, his wand held out in front of him in his shaking hand.
McGonagall sighed, looking almost amused. "No, Mr. Black, I am not here to kill you. But I am here because I want to take you and Potter out of my Transfiguration class. You seem to know all there is to know about the process of becoming an Animagus; your test scores have been above your average caliber. How you have this knowledge I do not know. But your lack of attention, while not irregular, is disturbing the class. I thought you might like to take another course until this one is complete." she said.
"But that explosion at the Quidditch match! We saw you give someone the signal to set of some sort of..explosive!" Sirius accused once more.
"Mr. Berthley? He was there as a supervisor. I had a meeting scheduled with him after the match, and merely was asking for the time. He pulled out his pocket watch." McGonagall said, looking more scandalized by the minute.
"Don't play dumb. We've caught on to you. We saw you in that room with Professor Grendel, showing him the Dark Mark on your arm!" James shouted accusingly.
Professor McGonagall faltered for a moment, looking slightly embarassed. "I was mixing potions, and I accidentally splashed a bit of the uncompleted mixture onto my arm. A rash developed, and I was asking Professor Grendel if he thought it was in need of medical attention." she said through gritted teeth.
"So you're not a Death Eater?" Sirius asked weakly.
"No, Mr. Black, I'm not. And I give you both a week of detention for even suggesting such a thing. Now, I suggest you wrap up your little detective session and get to bed." she said angrily. She spun around and bustled off, looking very agitated.
Sirius and James got up, brushing themselves off. "Well, she seemed a bit miffed, don't you think?" Sirius asked, looking not the least bit charinged.
"A bit miffed? Sirius, we just accused her of being a Death Eater. 'Miffed' doesn't even begin to describe it." James said angrily. They turned to see Remus sitting there, looking very content with himself.
"You tricked us into confronting her, didn't you?" James asked him, sounding defeated.
"Yes, I did. But I wasn't lying when I said that you needed to confront her. You couldn't sit in the dormitories, prolonging your fate." Remus said, grinning.
"Moony, you stupid git, mark my words: revenge shall be had upon you." Sirius said, glaring at Remus.
Remus picked up the heavy volume titled 'Marauders Law & Code'.
"Now there must be something in here about pranking fellow Mauraders..or possibly wild conspiracy theories with no backing in logic or educated thought, for that matter..."
He was silenced as two pillows hurled into his face, and James and Sirius swung a high-five. James grinned, seeming to forget about the week's worth of detention to enjoy this moment.
"I knew it'd work out in our favor."
~*The End*~
A/N: Please review this, and make my day ducky.
By the way: I do not own Harry Potter. Satisfied?
A/N: Thanks to everyone who put up with my bitchiness while writing this. It was particulary difficult for me, and caused a lot of grouchy wrong-side- of-the-bed days at school. Thank you.