Post by ginger newts on May 11, 2005 17:21:06 GMT -5
A/N: This is the story from the challenges I asked for. Thanks to everyone who participated.
Title: Albus and Minerva in The Case of the Missing Cat Toy
Summary: Minerva’s favorite cat toy goes missing during the summer holidays. Will Albus’ schemes help her get it back or is it gone forever? (Not technically a mystery I suppose, but I found it amusing.)
Rating: 12+
Albus crunched up the end of his sugar quill and rose from behind his desk. “I’m going out to Hagrid’s hut, he asked me for a word earlier,” he informed his wife.
She signed the last of the end-of-term reports neatly and then stretched. “Alright, I think I’ll go back to my rooms for a little exercise. I feel as though I haven’t moved for days.”
Albus chuckled and kissed her as she stood up. They walked to the door and down the stairs together, turning in opposite directions once they gained the corridor.
“I’ll come and find you when I get back,” Albus said.
“See you later.”
Minerva turned to the left and made her way quickly through the castle to her rooms. It was the third day of the summer holidays and the first opportunity she’d really had to spend time anyway she liked. As soon as the door closed behind her, Minerva transformed into a cat and stretched. She arched her back and then extended first her right leg and then her left behind her, finishing with a flick of her tail. Feeling much better already, she went in search of her favorite toy. It was a tiny stuffed lion Albus had found in a Muggle pet shop and charmed to appear in Gryffindor colors. The small soft toy was perfect for batting around or carrying in her teeth, Minerva could even toss it into the air and lunge at it on the way back down. It was her favorite way to take a bit of exercise after a long day.
Minerva ran under the couch, where many of her toys tended to end up, but couldn’t find the lion. Undaunted, she checked under the desk and then ran into the bedroom to try under the bed. After many minutes of searching and sniffing, there was no sign of the beloved lion. Instead, Minerva settled for batting a small colorful ball containing a bell around the floor. By the time Albus arrived, she felt much more refreshed and relaxed than she had earlier.
“Everything alright at Hagrid’s?” she asked, transforming back into herself.
“Yes, he just had a message from the Centaurs, nothing to worry about. Fudge dropped in while I was there, I had to take him up to my office and give him the reports. That’s why it took me so long,” he explained. “I noticed you were playing with a jingle ball when I came in; was Godric unkind to you?”
“He’s gone missing,” Minerva admitted in dismay.
“Well, he couldn’t have gone off on his own,” Albus reasoned.
“I looked everywhere, he’s not here,” she insisted. “I haven’t looked for him in a while; you don’t suppose one of the student’s cats may have carried him off do you?”
Albus thought for a minute. “Didn’t you have Argus in here to fix the flue last week? Perhaps Mrs. Norris took the lion.”
“I’ll never see him again,” Minerva said sadly.
“You never know, my dear. Godric may turn up yet. Let’s go to dinner and then later we can try to figure out a way to find him.”
“Alright,” she agreed, “but I’m sure he’s gone forever. That Mrs. Norris is one mean cat, there’s no telling what she did to my poor little lion.”
After dinner, Minerva transformed into a cat again and searched the castle for her toy, to no avail. All she found in the kitchens were the house elves cutting vegetables in preparation for the next day’s meals and in the dungeons she didn’t see anything but Severus stomping around in an obvious foul temper – she left the area as quickly as possible. In a broom closet on the fourth floor, Minerva discovered a smelly wiggling mass that she did not care to identify.
“Find anything?” Albus asked when she returned to her rooms.
“No,” she answered dispiritedly, sitting down beside him on the couch.
“Well, I know it’s not the same, but I found something in my office you might enjoy.” Albus reached into his pocket and withdrew a purple ball of yarn.
Minerva gave him a “you must be joking” look, but he ignored it and unraveled one end of the yarn. Holding the ball in his hand, Albus dangled the loose end over the floor and encouraged Minerva to transform and try playing with the makeshift toy. She sighed and decided to indulge him. For the next quarter of an hour, Albus guided the string as Minerva chased it in her cat form. Eventually, he laid down on his back on the couch and the yarn ended up on his leg. Minerva, surprisingly engaged in the game, leapt onto the arm of the couch and then pounced on Albus’ leg. Albus smiled and slowly drew the yarn up his body with Minerva following. He didn’t stop until his arm was extended beyond his head and the yarn was dangling over the floor, just beyond his silvery white hair.
Minerva paused, animal instincts warring with human logic. After a moment she transformed back, straddling her husband’s hips she looked at him with amusement. “I’ll admit this has been more entertaining than I thought, but Albus, if I keep going I’m going to be sitting on your face.”
Albus smiled wickedly, several answers on the tip of his tongue. He let the ball of yarn drop to the floor and pulled his wife down to lie on top of him. She settled down with a contented sigh and they spent the next several minutes exchanging lazy kisses before Albus spoke again.
“I think I have an idea for how we can find Godric,” he said. “Tomorrow, we’ll bait Mrs. Norris with another cat toy and you can follow her to see where she takes it.”
“She won’t take it if she sees me there,” Minerva reasoned.
“Don’t worry, I have a plan for that,” Albus assured her. “Let’s go to bed and I’ll explain it all in the morning.”
“It’s still early,” Minerva answered in confusion. “I’m not tired.”
“Neither am I,” Albus answered with a smirk.
Her only answer was a smile as she got up and led the way into the bedroom.
As they were lying in each other’s arms later, waiting for sleep to overtake them, Albus told Minerva his plan for the next day.
“We shall by morning inherit the earth – our foot’s in the door,” he finished grandly, causing Minerva to laugh and slap him playfully in the chest.
“I think you desperately need sleep, Headmaster,” she told him in a mock-stern voice.
“I believe you’re right, my dear,” he answered with a yawn. “I love you, good night.”
“Good night, Albus, I love you too.”
After exchanging one last kiss, the couple settled down to sleep for the night. When Albus woke up a few hours later, however, he discovered that he was alone.
“Minerva?” he called softly, heading into the sitting room.
She was standing near a window, her easel set up to catch the moonlight, with the end of a paintbrush tucked between her rosy lips.
“What on earth are you doing?” he asked sleepily.
“That quote you used earlier stuck in my mind,” Minerva explained. “This image came to me and I had to get it on canvas before it left. What do you think?”
Albus crossed the room to inspect the painting as Minerva reached out and made a few careful strokes. The brush returned to her mouth and a moment later Minerva was coughing and spluttering while Albus doubled over with laughter. Not paying attention, she had placed the water color covered bristles between her lips instead of the handle end of the brush. Albus recovered his composure enough to conjure a glass of water, which Minerva readily accepted.
Title: Albus and Minerva in The Case of the Missing Cat Toy
Summary: Minerva’s favorite cat toy goes missing during the summer holidays. Will Albus’ schemes help her get it back or is it gone forever? (Not technically a mystery I suppose, but I found it amusing.)
Rating: 12+
Albus crunched up the end of his sugar quill and rose from behind his desk. “I’m going out to Hagrid’s hut, he asked me for a word earlier,” he informed his wife.
She signed the last of the end-of-term reports neatly and then stretched. “Alright, I think I’ll go back to my rooms for a little exercise. I feel as though I haven’t moved for days.”
Albus chuckled and kissed her as she stood up. They walked to the door and down the stairs together, turning in opposite directions once they gained the corridor.
“I’ll come and find you when I get back,” Albus said.
“See you later.”
Minerva turned to the left and made her way quickly through the castle to her rooms. It was the third day of the summer holidays and the first opportunity she’d really had to spend time anyway she liked. As soon as the door closed behind her, Minerva transformed into a cat and stretched. She arched her back and then extended first her right leg and then her left behind her, finishing with a flick of her tail. Feeling much better already, she went in search of her favorite toy. It was a tiny stuffed lion Albus had found in a Muggle pet shop and charmed to appear in Gryffindor colors. The small soft toy was perfect for batting around or carrying in her teeth, Minerva could even toss it into the air and lunge at it on the way back down. It was her favorite way to take a bit of exercise after a long day.
Minerva ran under the couch, where many of her toys tended to end up, but couldn’t find the lion. Undaunted, she checked under the desk and then ran into the bedroom to try under the bed. After many minutes of searching and sniffing, there was no sign of the beloved lion. Instead, Minerva settled for batting a small colorful ball containing a bell around the floor. By the time Albus arrived, she felt much more refreshed and relaxed than she had earlier.
“Everything alright at Hagrid’s?” she asked, transforming back into herself.
“Yes, he just had a message from the Centaurs, nothing to worry about. Fudge dropped in while I was there, I had to take him up to my office and give him the reports. That’s why it took me so long,” he explained. “I noticed you were playing with a jingle ball when I came in; was Godric unkind to you?”
“He’s gone missing,” Minerva admitted in dismay.
“Well, he couldn’t have gone off on his own,” Albus reasoned.
“I looked everywhere, he’s not here,” she insisted. “I haven’t looked for him in a while; you don’t suppose one of the student’s cats may have carried him off do you?”
Albus thought for a minute. “Didn’t you have Argus in here to fix the flue last week? Perhaps Mrs. Norris took the lion.”
“I’ll never see him again,” Minerva said sadly.
“You never know, my dear. Godric may turn up yet. Let’s go to dinner and then later we can try to figure out a way to find him.”
“Alright,” she agreed, “but I’m sure he’s gone forever. That Mrs. Norris is one mean cat, there’s no telling what she did to my poor little lion.”
After dinner, Minerva transformed into a cat again and searched the castle for her toy, to no avail. All she found in the kitchens were the house elves cutting vegetables in preparation for the next day’s meals and in the dungeons she didn’t see anything but Severus stomping around in an obvious foul temper – she left the area as quickly as possible. In a broom closet on the fourth floor, Minerva discovered a smelly wiggling mass that she did not care to identify.
“Find anything?” Albus asked when she returned to her rooms.
“No,” she answered dispiritedly, sitting down beside him on the couch.
“Well, I know it’s not the same, but I found something in my office you might enjoy.” Albus reached into his pocket and withdrew a purple ball of yarn.
Minerva gave him a “you must be joking” look, but he ignored it and unraveled one end of the yarn. Holding the ball in his hand, Albus dangled the loose end over the floor and encouraged Minerva to transform and try playing with the makeshift toy. She sighed and decided to indulge him. For the next quarter of an hour, Albus guided the string as Minerva chased it in her cat form. Eventually, he laid down on his back on the couch and the yarn ended up on his leg. Minerva, surprisingly engaged in the game, leapt onto the arm of the couch and then pounced on Albus’ leg. Albus smiled and slowly drew the yarn up his body with Minerva following. He didn’t stop until his arm was extended beyond his head and the yarn was dangling over the floor, just beyond his silvery white hair.
Minerva paused, animal instincts warring with human logic. After a moment she transformed back, straddling her husband’s hips she looked at him with amusement. “I’ll admit this has been more entertaining than I thought, but Albus, if I keep going I’m going to be sitting on your face.”
Albus smiled wickedly, several answers on the tip of his tongue. He let the ball of yarn drop to the floor and pulled his wife down to lie on top of him. She settled down with a contented sigh and they spent the next several minutes exchanging lazy kisses before Albus spoke again.
“I think I have an idea for how we can find Godric,” he said. “Tomorrow, we’ll bait Mrs. Norris with another cat toy and you can follow her to see where she takes it.”
“She won’t take it if she sees me there,” Minerva reasoned.
“Don’t worry, I have a plan for that,” Albus assured her. “Let’s go to bed and I’ll explain it all in the morning.”
“It’s still early,” Minerva answered in confusion. “I’m not tired.”
“Neither am I,” Albus answered with a smirk.
Her only answer was a smile as she got up and led the way into the bedroom.
As they were lying in each other’s arms later, waiting for sleep to overtake them, Albus told Minerva his plan for the next day.
“We shall by morning inherit the earth – our foot’s in the door,” he finished grandly, causing Minerva to laugh and slap him playfully in the chest.
“I think you desperately need sleep, Headmaster,” she told him in a mock-stern voice.
“I believe you’re right, my dear,” he answered with a yawn. “I love you, good night.”
“Good night, Albus, I love you too.”
After exchanging one last kiss, the couple settled down to sleep for the night. When Albus woke up a few hours later, however, he discovered that he was alone.
“Minerva?” he called softly, heading into the sitting room.
She was standing near a window, her easel set up to catch the moonlight, with the end of a paintbrush tucked between her rosy lips.
“What on earth are you doing?” he asked sleepily.
“That quote you used earlier stuck in my mind,” Minerva explained. “This image came to me and I had to get it on canvas before it left. What do you think?”
Albus crossed the room to inspect the painting as Minerva reached out and made a few careful strokes. The brush returned to her mouth and a moment later Minerva was coughing and spluttering while Albus doubled over with laughter. Not paying attention, she had placed the water color covered bristles between her lips instead of the handle end of the brush. Albus recovered his composure enough to conjure a glass of water, which Minerva readily accepted.
Kandie
