07-23-03Beauty School Drop-out

07-23-03

 

By: Griselda La Fey

Beta- reader: Corrin

Pairings: AD/MM

Rating:    All Ages

Summary: Albus and Minerva once almost got together. But something held Albus back. Will he ever find out how wrong he was?

 

Authors’ Note:

Okay, this is without a doubt the most stupid bit of fanfic I’ve written so far. I got the inspiration from a little  hair-colouring accident I had this evening. I interred to paint my hair in a nice, light red colour. You know, like a well polished chestnut. Instead it came out a little more… red. As in traffic light red. I hate it. I just hate it. Well anyway, while I was washing my hair this evening (did it six times, didn’t work) I came up with the idea for the AD/MM fic.

Plus, I saw a movie the other night with Alan Rickman where he played the role of a famous barber. (the movie ‘s called ‘Blown Dry’)

 

Disclaimer: 

J.K. Rowling owes Harry Potter and it’s characters. Elinor Dashwood is mine, but I burrowed the name from Jane Austens ‘Sense and Sensibility’. (great movie, starring Alan Rickman and Gemma Jones) I know Jane Austens Elinor Dashwood would never act this silly, but hey, I deserve a  break…

The title of the story comes from the movie Grease. You know when Frency has her little accident in tin-tin class and her hair turned pink.

 

And yes, I know, there’s more than five years of age difference between Dumbledore and McGonagall, but this is my party.

 

*****

Chapter 1:

That was NOT suppose to happen!

 

‘Elinor, come on! Open the door! You have to come out! You’ve been in there all evening!’ Ginny Weasley had been knocking on the door of the bathroom of the Gryfindor Girl’s dormitory for at least twenty minutes. Still, her friend showed no signs of coming out.

 

‘I can’t!’ someone exclaimed inside the bathroom, sounding rather desperate.

 

‘Come on, it can’t be that bad!’ Ginny answered, wondering what could her always so calm and clever friend make sound so distressed.

 

‘It’s truly hideous!’ Elinor wailed from the bathroom.

 

‘What is?’ Ginny almost yelled in frustration.

 

Slowly the door of the bathroom opened. Elinor stepped out, looking extremely grave. ‘Laugh and die’, she said dangerously.

 

Ginny’s eyes widened in horror as she saw her. ‘Oh Merlin! What the hell have you done?’

 

*****

The next day the fourth- year Gryfindors made their way to the dungeons for their double potions class. Ginny walked next to her friend, with a worried look on her face. ‘I don’t think Snape will let you get away with this’, she muttered.

 

‘Well he better has to’, Elionor answered, ‘because there is just no way I am going to show him, or the Slytherins what happened to me’.

 

The Gryfindors sat down and Snape closed the door. An immediate silence felt over the room. The potionmaster began to speak: ‘Today we shall brew a complex potion, known as the…’ he halted as his eyes rested on Elinor. Ginny held her breath.

 

Elinor wore a black veil, covering her entire hair and making her look like a gypsy.

 

‘Miss Dashwood, take that thing of your head’, Snape sneered impatiently.

 

‘I am afraid I won’t be able to do so sir’,  Elinor replied calmly.

 

‘And may I ask why not?’ Snape asked with a dangerous tone in his voice.

 

Elinor tried to look straight in his eyes. ‘for a personal reason, sir’.

 

‘What in Merlin’s name do you mean?’ Snape’s voice was just above a whisper, daggers stabbing from his eyes.

 

‘I will not take of the veil’, Elinor stated simply.

 

‘Remove the veil, or ten points will be taken from Gryfindor’, Snape spat coldly.

 

‘I cannot take of the veil!’

 

‘Twenty points from Gryfindor, now take of the veil’.

 

‘No’.

 

Another thirty points from Gryfindor and a week worth’s’ detention. Take it of!’

 

‘Just do it’, Ginny hissed

 

‘NO!’

 

Snape’s mouth turned into a scary, evil smile. ‘Fifty points taken from Gryfindor. Now report yourself to Professor McGonagall.

 

 

Chapter 2:

The Remains of the Day

 

*****

 

In the meantime, headmaster Dumbledore had other problems to deal with. He knocked on the door of Professor McGonagall’s office and entered as she called ‘come in’.

 

McGonagall smiled when she saw the headmaster enter. ‘Albus, what can I do for you?’

 

‘I wondered if I could use your office to read some of this letters’, he asked, holding out a hand of parchment.

 

McGonagall frowned. ‘Of course you can. But what happened to your own office?’

 

Dumbledore let out a resigned sigh and said: ‘the portraits are having another row’.

 

‘About what?’ McGonagall asked, trying to hide a smile.

 

Dumbledore shook his head. ‘Don’t ask. Apparently Pinheas insulted Dilly and she tried to hex him. That wasn’t so much of a problem, until the others decided to interfere. They are all shouting at each other like banshees now. I can’t even hear myself think’.

 

McGonagall failed to suppress her laughter and gestured to a chair near the fire. ‘Well, be my guest. Would you like some tea?’ After she poured them both a cup of tea she sat down on her desk again and continued to grade papers.

 

Dumbledore tried to read the letters, but he found that he couldn’t concentrate. After a couple of minutes he gave up and stared at McGonagall. He liked watching her when he was sure she wasn’t looking. She was now completely engrossed in the papers she was grading. Her face frowned as the students had done and poor job and lighten with joy as they had got the answers right. He loved the fact that she was always so dedicated to everything she did.

 

He also loved her hair. It was tied in the usual bun now, but he knew it reached her waist when she wore it down. Not that he had seen it down in a long time. The last time was more then fifty years ago, when they where both students at Hogwarts.

 

He smiled sadly at the memory. She was five years his junior. He had been in his fifth year when she arrived at Hogwarts. He had liked her immediately. Just brotherly affection, he had told himself sternly. Nothing more. But the more time he spend with her, the more his feelings changed. And by the time it was Christmas he realised that he was in love with her.

 

He didn’t tell her, or showed his feelings. He feared that he would lose their friendship if she didn’t return his feelings. Which he thought was a high possibility. An age difference of five years was a lot if you where a teenager. He enjoyed their friendship and expected nothing more.

 

Until the holidays before his final year. Spending the summer at his home and missing her it suddenly hit him. This would be his last year. Their last year. After that he would lose her. Of course they could owl and meet ocasionily, but it wouldn’t be the same.

 

He decided that he would tell her that he loved her that year. Whatever the outcome may be, he was going to take his change.

 

The seventh year started and at first he was just glad to be around her again. Then he began to look for the right opportunity to tell her. But it never came. He didn’t worried about it, he had the entire year to tell her.  Until one evening in January when he overheard a conversation that ruined all his changes

 

Two girls where excitedly whispering to each other by the fire. He pretended to be engrossed in his book and they didn’t notice him listening. ‘Did you noticed that Minerva has been seeing a lot of Charles Weasley over the past month?’ one of them giggled.

 

The other girl nodded. ‘Of course, they make a lovely couple, don’t you think?’

 

His mind was racing. Charles Weasley and Minerva?  Could that be possible? He had noticed too that they had  been spending a lot of time together. But he hadn’t read too much into it. He’d always figured that they where just classmates that get along well.

 

‘You know’, the first girl was saying, ‘I always thought Minerva would end up with Albus’.

‘Nah, he’s too old for her’, the other said. ‘she and Charles are a much better match’.

 

He had heard enough. He closed his book and made his way to the boys dormitory. After that day he had stepped back. They were right after all, he was too old for her. With a broken heart he watched as the two of them get closer over the moths. They never actually became a couple. He guessed that happened after he had graduated.

 

He started to work as an Auror first and later as a Transfiguration Teacher. He lost contact with her after she moved to France to become an Animagus. After two years he heard the surprising news that Charles Weasley had married Virginia Matthews. He had felt sorry for her, imagining how heartbroken she must feel.

 

Then he became Headmaster of Hogwarts and the position of Transfiguration teacher came open. Minerva McGonagall was his first choice and he was happy when he heard she had accept, thinking that he was over his infatuation. He was wrong. The moment he saw her back, after twenty years he knew that he still loved her.

 

And now, almost forty years later, he still did, more then ever. But he never told her. They settled back in their old friendship, which go stronger over the years. Afraid to jeopardise what he had gained back, he remained silent.

 

 

Chapter 3

The Pink Lion

 

*****

They both looked up as they heard a knock on the door. ‘Come in!’ Professor McGonagall called. The door opened and revealed a fourth year Gryfindor, wearing a ridiculous black veil. ‘What is it Miss Dashwood?  McGonagall asked.

 

‘I’ve been sent to see you by Professor Snape’, Elinor replied.

 

McGonagall’s face turned into a very stern expression. ‘How do you mean sent?’

 

Elinor clasped her hands behind her back. ‘I refused to take of my veil when he asked me to’.

 

McGonagall looked at the student in front of her, not believing her eyes. Elinor Dashwood was a very bright, calm student. She never caused any trouble, she worked hard and her grades where excellent. And now she stood her, wearing a hideous veil and just being sent out of Snape’s lesson.

 

‘Why are you wearing a veil’, she asked.

 

Suddenly Elinor looked a bit embarrassed. ‘I… I just had kind of an… an accident’.

 

McGonagall felt she was beginning to lose her patient. ‘What kind of accident? Miss Dashwood, stop being so vague and tell me what happened!’

 

Knowing there was no way she was going to hide it any longer, Elinor drew a deep sign and pulled of her veil. Both Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore gasped in shock. Elinor’s normally brown, shoulder- length hair now had a violent pink colour.

 

McGonagall was the first to recover from her shock. Pointing at the chair in front of her desk she ordered: ‘sit!’ Carefully Elinor sat down on the edge.

 

‘I have one question’, Professor McGonagall said quietly, ‘why?’

 

Elinor found it impossible to meet her head of the House’s eye. ‘I wanted something different’, she muttered.

 

‘Well, you certainly succeeded at that attempt’, Professor Dumbledore said pleasantly. He looked as he was thoroughly enjoying himself.

 

‘Again, why?’ McGonagall asked.

 

A blush crept over Elinor’s face. ‘I…I… it’s just that…well…’ she began to stammer.

 

‘Does this have anything to do with to do with William Clark?’ McGonagall chipped in.

 

Elinor’s head snapped up. ‘How do you know that? Meanwhile Dumbledore was looking at McGonagall in amazement.

 

McGonagall smiled wearily. ‘I just know’.  ‘Well?’ she added.

 

‘I just wanted to impress him’, Elinor said softly. ‘But that’s not that easy since he is three years older then I am.

 

‘Then why not pick a boy of your own age?’ McGonagall asked gently.

 

Elinor looked at her sceptically. ‘Professor, did you like fourteen year old boys, when you were fourteen?’

 

Despite herself, McGonagall grinned. ‘All right, fair point. But still, someone as intelligent as you…’

 

‘Well, that’s exactly the whole point’, Elinor suddenly blurted out, ‘people only ever see me as a bookworm. I just wanted him to like me, but then I heard him say that he could never go out with a girl who had hair with the colour of pepper and salt. So I decided to paint my hair. It wasn’t suppose to get pink, it was suppose to get auburn. I just wanted him to notice me and not as just a bookworm’.

 

She paused for a second. ‘Well, he won’t think I’m  a bookworm anymore. Now I’m just a big, pink- headed moron. Plus I’ve lost Gryfindor 100 points in one go and to top it all, I’ve made the only person who can help me angry with me!’

 

‘How so?’ Dumbledore asked confused.

 

‘Professor Snape’, Elinor explained, ‘I need a potion to restore my normal hair colour. Professor Snape is the only person who can make that potion. And I don’t think he will be thrilled to do it’.

 

Professor McGonagall handed her the tartan tin and said in a reassuring voice: ‘have a biscuit and we’ll see how we sort this out’.

 

 

 

Chapter 4:

You’re the One that I Want

 

WARNING: very much fluff.

 

*****

Twenty minutes later, a much more relieved Elinor Dashwood left Professor McGonagall’s office. Smiling softly, McGonagall closed the door behind her. To some extend, she could understand how Elinor was feeling. She had been in love with an older student as well, when she was at Hogwarts. And he too didn’t return her feelings.

 

He still didn’t.

 

‘I’m so glad I’m not fourteen anymore’, she grinned, turning to Dumbledore. ‘Was it really that bad?’ he asked with a bemused expression on his face.

 

McGonagall nodded. ‘Yes it was. Feeling insecure about yourself and the world around you all the time. I hated it’.

 

Raising his eyebrows at the idea of Minerva McGonnagal feeling insecure, Dumbledore hesitated for a moment. Something was nagging on his mind. Taking the risk he asked:  ‘So, you never liked fourteen year old boys when you were fourteen?’

 

McGonnagal shook her head. ‘Of course not. Much too immature. Most girls feel that way about boys of their own age, didn’t you know?’

 

‘But what about Charles Weasley?’ Dumbledore asked, unable to stop himself.

 

McGonagall’s face grew soft when she remembered him. ‘He was an exception’.

 

His heart sank. Of course, I should have known, he thought bitterly.

 

‘… he was so much in love with Virginia Matthews’, McGonagalls voice continued. ‘of course she felt the same way about him, but he never knew. He didn’t dare to ask either. I’ve spend the most part of my third year convincing him to ask her on a date or anything’.

 

Dumbledore’s head snapped up so quickly he felt his bones crack. ‘But everyone thought you two were a couple!’

 

McGonagall nodded. ‘That didn’t help the matter. Virgina was so jealous. In the end we sorted the whole thing out and they’ve been together since. We are still friends. Did you know that I am Arthur Weasleys godmother?’

 

Dumbledore blinked his eyes, trying to digest the information. ‘So you’ve never… you never where…?’

 

‘We were nothing more than friends’, McGonagall answered, ‘good friends, just like…’

Suddenly her expression saddened and she looked away from him.

 

‘Like who?’ Dumbledore asked, coming closer towards her. But she shook her head. ‘Nothing, never mind’.

 

He placed both his hands on her shoulders. ‘Come on, what were you going to say?’ he urged gently.

 

She paused for a moment and then looked up. With a shock he realised that she had tears in her eyes. ‘like us’, she finished her sentence in a soft voice. ‘I’ve never asked you this Albus, but I’ve always wanted to know. What went wrong between us back then? We were friends for two years and then all of a sudden in my third year, you became so distant. You started to avoid me and I’ve never understand why. What did I do or say that made you…’

 

He placed a finger on her lips to silence her. ‘You didn’t’, he told her gently, ‘like so many others, I too believed that you and Charles were a couple’.

 

She frowned slightly, trying to ignore the fact that he was standing so close to her and the effect it was having on her. ‘But how did that change everything?’ she asked, not understanding, ‘Charles and I weren’t a couple, but even if we were, why should that have made any difference to our friendship?’

 

He brushed a strand of hair away from her forehead. ‘Can’t you tell?’ he asked softly. ‘I wanted us to be more then just friends. I loved you so much then, but I didn’t want to stand between you and Charles, so I drew back’.

 

Her eyes widened in surprise. ‘You… you where in love with me, while we where at Hogwarts? Why didn’t you ever tell me?’

 

He was still stroking her face as he answered her. ‘I wanted to, but I was convinced that you felt only friendship for me’.

 

Tears began to stream down to her face. ‘I thought you felt only friendship for me’, she said as he brushed the tears away. ‘You were five years older then me, but I loved you from the first moment we met. I still do’.

 

He looked at her as if he was hit by a stunner. His mind was railing with what she’d just said. She loved him back then? She loved him now? Unable to speak he stared at her as if he didn’t dare to believe his eyes.

 

Misreading his silence, she stepped back. Her face turned crimson red as she stammered: ‘Of course that was a long time ago… I know you’ve moved on…you don’t feel…I mean, I…I… don’t expect you to… to…just forget what I’ve sai…’

 

Finally recovering his senses he bend down and kissed her, before she could finish her sentence. She froze for a second, then she wrapped her arms around his neck and returned his kiss, while he folded his arms around her.

 

After their kiss had ended they stayed in each others arms. ‘I love you Minerva’, he whispered as he stroked her hair. ‘I just wish we hadn’t lose those sixty years’. She looked up and cupped his face in her hands. A happy smile spread across her face. ‘Let’s not waste another second then’.

 

Fin