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mrsfrecklesmarauders · 1 year

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Minerva's true love. Part 1.

Okay. This is part of my Muggle AU. Remus is not around because he will meet the boys in six year when he transfers to Hogwarts.

Minerva ends up having a special love for him because he is a trans kid just like her. But that comes later.

So just a little background: Minerva met Dougal when she was a student at Oxford. Before she transitioned. Other students used to bully Minerva who back then was known as Michael. She was known as "Tiny Mike" because she used to be skinny. And Dougal had always defended her. But Dougal as a straight man didn't notice her before her transition. Minerva never dared to speak to him either way.

There at Oxford, Minerva met Albus Dumbledore, who was a last year student and a genius when Minerva was a freshman. They became friends. And it was Albus who helped Minnie transition.

When Minerva was in her thirties, she encountered Dougal again. Now as her true self. They fell in love. But Minerva hid her true identity and the fact that they knew each other from before. But Dougal fell for her and he left his fiance to be with her.

That's when Minerva decided to tell him the truth. Of who she used to be and how he used to help her back then, when she was "Tiny Mike". Dougal was shocked to find the truth at first and he asked Minnie for time.

But then days later, Minnie saw him kissing. his ex. And she decided he didn't love her and she ran away. They never saw each other again until now.

Right, now enjoy. Hope you like it.

Also, if you are interested in Albus and Gellert's story, I am planning to dive into it as well. But in another post.

*********************

"Good morning, Minerva. You're early"

Albus smiled as Minnie took a seat without saying a word. She was still furious.

"Can I offer you some tea? Coffee?"

Minerva scoffed and pretended to be reading something that Albus knew it was one of his knitting magazines.

"Are you still angry, Minnie?"

Silence. Albus almost laughed.

"Minnie..."

"I don't speak with traitors...." Minerva spat "And don't call me Minnie"

"A traitor? Why am I a traitor?" Albus giggled.

Minerva looked at him.

"You are really asking, Albus?" Minerva said "You know what you did..."

It wasn't Albus, actually. It was destiny. It was fate. It was probably the fact Dougal McGregor was Minerva's true love.

You see, Rosmerta was looking for a new bartender. She was going mad with the amount of clients she'd been having lately and the lack of staff she had. And guess who applied? Rosmerta had asked Albus for help. It wasn't Albus fault. And Albus had smiled at how destiny was funny when he saw Dougal's name in the applicants list.

"I told you I didn't do anything, Minnie" Albus explained "He applied"

"And you had to tell Rosmerta to hire him?" Minerva scoffed.

"We both agreed he was the best for the job... Better not have students around alcohol"

"But... But..." Minerva groaned "Why do you meddle, ha?"

"What?" Albus smirked.

"Yeah Albus! You are a meddler! You meddle into Rosemerta's business and you meddle into my life..."

Albus tutted "Why do you care? I thought you said you were far over him"

Minerva blushed. But she tried to hide it. Albus was pleased.

"Or maybe... After all these years... You still have feelings for him?"

"But what is your problem?! Ha!" Minerva squealed angrily "I am not longer young, a freaking teenager like the kids I teach. I am an old grown up woman. My life is teaching so don't freaking bother me, do you understand!?! And I am not speaking to you!"

Minerva whispered insults and swear words as she continued to peek into Albus' magazine.

Albus smiled.

"A very mature woman, I see"

Minerva continued to ignore him.

They heard a knock on the door.

"Come in"

Someone stepped into Albus' office. It was Dougal.

"Sorry to interrupt, Mr. Dumbledore" Dougal said with a smile on his face. Dougal was a nice man. Always gentle, always kind. Nothing like the wanker Minerva had told him about.

His eyes flickered towards Minerva.

"Aah Dougal, please come in" Albus raised from his chair to welcome him.

Minerva turned her head in surprise.

"What in the name of God are you doing here?" she asked.

It had been funny the first time they encountered each other a few days ago. Out of surprise, Minerva had poured her drink on Dougal's head, the minute he said Hi. And then she ran away. It had been ages. 23 years to be precise. Minerva had married Elphistone trying to forget about Dougal. May Elphistone rest in Peace. And Dougal had confessed that he was finally getting divorced from his wife.

All that time apart. And for what? A misunderstanding?

Before Dougal could answer, Albus spoke.

"I called him" he said "I wanted to give Mr. Dougal a tour around the castle"

"Yes... I..."

"But why?" Minerva interrupted, speaking only to Albus "He is Rosemerta's bartender. He has nothing to do with the school"

"Yeah you are right, Minerva" Albus nodded "But Dougal will actually live in the castle..."

Minerva's eyes opened up like plates.

"I offered him one of the teachers empty dorms"

Minerva turned towards Dougal furiously.

"And your wife doesn't mind that?"

"My ex wife" Dougal answered "And no she would not mind. As long as I stay far away from her. I don't think she wants to see me around" he chuckled.

"Well, save your personal things for someone who cares..." Minerva shrugged "I am leaving..." she stood up.

"But we had a meeting with Slughorn just now"

"It looks you have other things to do, Albus" Minerva said this giving a nasty look at Dougal. Then she walked to the door.

"It was nice seeing you again, Minerva" Dougal said with a special smile on his face.

"I wish I could say the same..." Minerva spat "But it is so sad to see how some people age..." she looked at him up side down "So sad, really..."

Then she tried to get through the door but Dougal was blocking the way.

"Excuse me..." Minerva said.

"Minnie..."

"Excuse me!" And she practically pushed Dougal away to cross.

Then she slammed the door closed.

Dougal smiled.

"I forgot the temper Minnie had. So stubborn, that woman" he said "I used to love that about her"

Albus smiled as well. Albus had to do something. It was obvious that there was still something there. If only Dougal knew how much Minnie suffered without him. How much she loved him. How she never really got over him. And judging by the way Dougal still looked at Minnie, he hadn't gotten over her as well. Albus was going to do something to get them back together. He wanted to see his best friend happy.

"Shall I show you around?"

"Yes, please" Dougal sighed.

So they walked out of Dumbledore' office to explore the castle.

**************

Albus was just finishing serving himself a tea when he heard a knock on the door.

"Come in"

Albus saw the head of James Potter popping in. The poor boy looked a bit pale.

"Good morning, sir"

"Mr. James..." Albus smiled "Please come in..."

James stepped in, followed by Sirius Black, and Peter Pettigrew. Those three troublemakers. They had done mischief every since they got to this school. But brilliant things. Brilliant things for sure. Albus was sure they could help him with his plan.

"Good morning..."

"Good morning, sir..."

Albus had a sip of his tea.

"Good morning..."

The three boys stood up really close to each other. They didn't say a word. But they had guilty expressions.

Albus raised an eyebrow.

"Well, gentlemen... I called you here because..."

"I am sorry, Mr. Dumbledore!!" Peter cried "We didn't want to explode the toilets... It was just a silly little prank! And it got out of control..."

So it hadn't been a plumbing problem then... Impressive...

"Peter..." James protested under his breath.

"Please don't expell us!" Peter begged "My mum would surely kill me if you do"

"Come on, Peter" Sirius rolled his eyes "Your mum is cool. My parents are gonna bury me alive"

"But why?" James shrugged "We didn't do anything"

"You clearly don't know my mum when she is angry, Sirius" Peter ignored him.

Sirius smirked "I would love to see that!"

"Oh shut up!"

"We didn't do anything" James added "We didn't do anything, Mr. Dumbledore!"

Albus almost laughed. This was his opportunity. He was going to take this prank of them as an advantage. Those brilliant minds could know exactly what to do with Minnie and Dougal.

"I don't know, boys" Albus fakely sighed "The amount of trouble you've been this year and now this..." Albus tutted "I don't know if you would be able to pass the year..."

Lies. Albus did the impossible to help those who were in danger of losing the year. Besides, these boys were brilliant. But Albus needed to lie now. And based on their pale expressions he was doing a great job.

"What?" James gasped.

Peter looked like he was going to vomit.

"Please, Mr. Dumbledore..." Sirius begged "There must be something we could do!"

Albus sighed, standing up.

"Okay... I might be able to help you..."

The three boys looked at him hopefully.

"I could..." Albus began pacing "drop all the charges against you. And leave your record clean so you could pass the year..."

"We'll do anything..." Peter cried.

"If...." Albus continued "If you help me with something"

"What is it?" James asked carefully.

Albus smirked.

"Are you boys fans of romance?"

The three boys looked between each other.

#marauders #maraudersera #muggle au #trans minerva mcgonagall #minerva mcgonagall #dougal mcgregor #minerva x dougal #albus dumbledore #james potter #sirius black #peter pettigrew #madam rosemerta

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houseteacherofgryffindor · 1 year

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Professor Minerva McGonagall ist eine große, streng aussehende Hexe mit straff zu einem Knoten frisierten schwarzen Haaren und einem Respekt gebietenden Auftreten. Wie ihr Nachname und ihre Vorliebe für Schottenkaros andeuten, stammt sie aus Schottland. Prof. McGonagall heißt nicht von ungefähr Minerva nach der römischen Göttin der Gelehrsamkeit: In Hogwarts ist sie die Lehrerin für das Hauptfach Verwandlung, die Hauslehrerin des Hauses Gryffindor und stellvertretende Schulleiterin.Als Animagus ist sie in der Lage, sich in eine silbrige Tigerkatze mit deutlichen Markierungen rund um ihre Augen zu verwandeln, die dasselbe quadratische Muster um die Augen hat, wie ihre Brille. Sie ist als Animagus beim Zaubereiministerium registriert, wie es gesetzlich vorgeschrieben ist. Nach ihrem erfolgreichen Hogwartsabschluss entschied sie sich gegen eine neu entflammte leidenschaftliche Liebesbeziehung zu Dougal McGregor, einem Muggel, der nichts über ihre magischen Kräfte wusste, für eine Trennung und ein Leben in der magischen Welt. Zunächst in der Abteilung für Magische Strafverfolgung des britisches Zaubereiministeriums tätig, wechselte sie bereits nach zwei Jahren als Verwandlungslehrerin nach Hogwarts. (Auf Pottermore ist die Rede davon, dass Dumbledore damals der Leiter dieses Fachbereiches war. In den Büchern werden nie Fachbereichsleiter erwähnt).Erst nach Jahrzehnten, nachdem ihr einst verschmähter Muggelliebhaber tot war, willigte sie ein, ihren ehemaligen Chef aus dem Zaubereiministerium, den mittlerweile pensionierten Elphinstone Urquart, zu heiraten. Allerdings behielt sie ihren Geburtsnamen bei und wurde bereits nach drei Jahren Witwe. Danach zog sie wieder ins Schulgebäude.

Sie ist die Partentanten der Zwillinge @auroramcgonagall und @princessofdurmstrang

#userfakevz #gryffindor #gryffindor quidditch team #minerva mcgonagall

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a-foray-into-magic · 1 year

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The cemetery in Hogsmeade was very quiet. The whole of Hogsmeade was very quiet, in truth. Large funerals tended to have that effect. Witches and Wizards had descended upon the small village as a show of respect to Elphinstone Urquart, who had died from the bite of a Venomous Tentacula. They had also come to show their respects to his widow.

Minerva McGonagall stood there alone, draped head to toe in black. Her hat had begun to droop and yet, she could not move. She stared blankly at the new headstone and the fresh mound of dirt was covered in flowers. For three years, they had been married and it had been some of the happiest years of her life. She found herself regretting that she hadn't taken one of his earlier proposals.

Faces flashed through her mind as she stood there. Dougal McGregor, her first love. Her brother, Robert, had been killed by Death Eaters. James. Lily. Marlene McKinnon. So many of her students had been lost. And friends. But the weight of the entire war still weighed on her shoulders, despite it being four years over. But Phinny. She dared not leave this spot, not yet. The idea of returning to the cottage they shared here in Hogsmeade was too much. His presence was all over it, imprinted there for always. She would go back to Hogwarts. As soon as she could will her feet to move. She didn't want to leave him in the cold wet Earth alone. She swallowed down the lump in her throat. This was ridiculous. She was going to catch her death of cold if she remained here.

A hand suddenly rested on her shoulder, and the rain stopped pouring down on her. Turning her head, she found herself looking up at Albus Dumbledore. He'd been there earlier for the funeral and burial, then had returned to Hogwarts. But he was here now. He didn't have to be. She wasn't an overly emotional woman, preferring to keep herself stoic and composed. But with Albus, she needn't do that. He had known her for most of her life. His eyes met her own and her tears rolled down her cheeks. She couldn't find her voice. But if she had, she would have simply spoken his name.

"Come," was all he spoke, apparating to the castle, specifically arriving in his private chambers, where he had a small sitting area. A thin brow raised, but this was Dumbledore. Of course, he could apparate here. He had put up the spells to prevent it. Why shouldn't they apply to him? Closing his umbrella, he used his wand to remove their jackets. The fire in the fireplace roared, warming the room and he dried them both off with ease. Minerva allowed this. She had no inclination to do much of anything beyond exist.

"I didn't imagine that you wished to go home this evening," he spoke gently, preparing some tea for them. He knew how she liked it. She felt a whisper of a smile pull across her lips as he drew out a tin of shortbread biscuits. She hadn't much of an appetite, but she nibbled at it.

Sitting down beside her, Albus said nothing. The floor was hers. But Minerva felt weary. Down to the bone tired. She instead leaned her head on his shoulder and allowed herself to cry. It was a quiet way to spend the evening, but one that was needed. She was exhausted. All day, she had thanked people for their kind words. Appreciating that they had travelled to celebrate Phinny's life. He'd had so many friends! People from the Ministry had come in force. Her hand ached from how many she had shaken. Grief was not only emotional but physical. She had comforted his friends and co-workers. Their grief had come before her own. Now that she was facing her own, it seemed horribly overwhelming. The witch felt almost like she might not rise from the spot she was sitting in. What she appreciated was that Albus wasn't forcing her to speak or do anything that she didn't want to do. He was simply there. He had always been there.

And that was a greater magic than any spell she could cast.

#minerva mcgonagall #dynasty rpg #drabble #otp; minnie & albus

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yayitsabi · 2 years

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He didn't realise how much he could feel her agony, how much he needed her happiness and how desperately he begged and prayed silently to the higher power to show mercy on her until she was clutching his robes, sobbing uncontrollably, both kneeled down on the blood covered floor of now-in-shambles house of her long lost young love, who was now dead.. ironically due to same thing that seperated them.

Maybe it was also then he should have realised that she was becoming his whole world..his life..his love.

Albus Dumbledore was falling in love with her... slowly.. unknowingly..but surely..

#albus dumbledore #harry potter #albus x minerva #minerva mcgonagall #mmad #admm #albus x gellert #gellert grindelwald #hp #Dougal McGregor #minerva x dougal #McGonagall x McGregor

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brunuhvielle · 2 years

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Minerva McGonagall & Dougal McGregor

First love is never forgotten... No matter how many years have passed.

#hp #my edit #minerva mcgonagall #dougal mcgregor #minerva x dougal #young minerva #kate middleton #dan stevens #harry potter #hpedit #hp edit #aesthetics #dark acadamia aesthetic #dark academia #scotland #love #hogwarts #books #literature

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ladycapuleti · 3 years

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Bianca and Lele (Un medico in Famiglia)

Minerva McGonagall and Dougal McGregor (Harry Potter world) ➜ first and last time togheter

#harry potter #fancast #harry potter fancast #decade: 1960s #francesca cavallin #giulio scarpati #minerva mcgonagall #minerva x dougal #dougal mcgregor #umif #un medico in famiglia #stagione 6 #lele martini #bianca pittaluga #lele x bianca

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hogwartsbypictures · 4 years

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Minerva “I still can’t believe we have found each other, Doug” McGonagall and Dougal “Love you, Minerva, always will” McGregor

Taken by Malcolm “oh, if mother knew about this” McGonagall , summer 1953

**Hope you enjoyed Young Minerva McGonagall **

#minerva #minerva mcgonagall #Minerva McGonagall X dougal mcgregor #Dougal McGregor #Malcom McGonagall #little brothers are terrible #hogwarts #hogwarts express #hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry #hogwarts houses #hogwarts castle #witch x muggle #muggle #teenagers #young love #hogwarts by pictures

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pfenniged · 5 years

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The Story of Minerva and Dougal

#Harry Potter #minerva mcgonagall #Dougal McGregor #my graphics #my graphic: harry potter #harrypotteredit #hogwartsgirlgang

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persialiu · 6 years

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#professor minerva mcgonagall #minerva #minerva mcgonagall #mcgonagall #professor mcgonagall #dougal mcgregor #isobel mcgonagall #harry potter #jk rowling

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aroacehogwarts · 6 years

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Professor McGonagall - Pottermore

Childhood

Minerva McGonagall was the first child, and only daughter, of a Scottish Presbyterian minister and a Hogwarts-educated witch. She grew up in the Highlands of Scotland, and only gradually became aware that there was something strange, both about her own abilities, and her parents’ marriage.

Minerva’s father, the Reverend Robert McGonagall, had become captivated by the high-spirited Isobel Ross, who lived in the same village. Like his neighbours, Robert believed that Isobel attended a select ladies’ boarding school in England. In fact, when Isobel vanished from her home for months at a time, it was to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry that she went.

Aware that her parents (a witch and wizard) would frown on a connection with the serious young Muggle, Isobel kept their burgeoning relationship a secret. By the time she was eighteen, she had fallen in love with Robert. Unfortunately, she had not found the courage to tell him what she was.

The couple eloped, to the fury of both sets of parents. Now estranged from her family, Isobel could not bring herself to mar the bliss of the honeymoon by telling her smitten new husband that she had graduated top of her class in Charms at Hogwarts, nor that she had been Captain of the school Quidditch team. Isobel and Robert moved into a manse (minister’s house) on the outskirts of Caithness, where the beautiful Isobel proved surprisingly adept at making the most of the minister’s tiny salary.

The birth of the young couple’s first child, Minerva, proved both a joy and a crisis. Missing her family, and the magical community she had given up for love, Isobel insisted on naming her newborn daughter after her own grandmother, an immensely talented witch. The outlandish name raised eyebrows in the community in which she lived, and the Reverend Robert McGonagall found it difficult to explain his wife’s choice to his parishioners. Furthermore, he was alarmed by his wife’s moodiness. Friends assured him that women were often emotional after the birth of a baby, and that Isobel would soon be herself again.

Isobel, however, became more and more withdrawn, often secluding herself with Minerva for days at a time. Isobel later told her daughter that she had displayed small, but unmistakable, signs of magic from her earliest hours. Toys that had been left on upper shelves were found in her cot. The family cat appeared to do her bidding before she could talk. Her father’s bagpipes were occasionally heard to play themselves from distant rooms, a phenomenon that made the infant Minerva chuckle.

Isobel was torn between pride and fear. She knew that she must confess the truth to Robert before he witnessed something that would alarm him. At last, in response to Robert’s patient questioning, Isobel burst into tears, retrieved her wand from the locked box under her bed and showed him what she was.

Although Minerva was too young to remember that night, its aftermath left her with a bitter understanding of the complications of growing up with magic in a Muggle world. Although Robert McGonagall loved his wife no less upon discovering that she was a witch, he was profoundly shocked by her revelation, and by the fact that she had kept such a secret from him for so long. What was more, he, who prided himself on being an upright and honest man, was now drawn into a life of secrecy that was quite foreign to his nature. Isobel explained, through her sobs, that she (and their daughter) were bound by the International Statute of Secrecy, and that they must conceal the truth about themselves, or face the fury of the Ministry of Magic. Robert also quailed at the thought of how the locals – in the main, an austere, straight-laced and conventional breed – would feel about having a witch as their minister’s wife.

Love endured, but trust had been broken between her parents, and Minerva, a clever and observant child, saw this with sadness. Two more children, both sons, were born to the McGonagalls, and both, in due course, revealed magical ability. Minerva helped her mother explain to Malcolm and Robert Junior that they must not flaunt their magic, and aided her mother in concealing from their father the accidents and embarrassments their magic sometimes caused.

Minerva was very close to her Muggle father, whom in temperament she resembled more than her mother. She saw with pain how much he struggled with the family’s strange situation. She sensed, too, how much of a strain it was for her mother to fit in with the all-Muggle village, and how much she missed the freedom of being with her kind, and of exercising her considerable talents. Minerva never forgot how much her mother cried, when the letter of admittance into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry arrived on Minerva’s eleventh birthday; she knew that Isobel was sobbing, not only out of pride, but also out of envy.

School Career

As is often the case where the young witch or wizard comes from a family who has struggled with its magical identity, Hogwarts was, for Minerva McGonagall, a place of joyful release and freedom.

Minerva drew unusual attention to herself on her very first evening, when she was revealed to be a Hatstall. After five and a half minutes, the Sorting Hat, which had been vacillating between the houses of Ravenclaw and Gryffindor, placed Minerva in the latter. (In later years, this circumstance was a subject of gentle humour between Minerva and her colleague Filius Flitwick, over whom the Sorting Hat suffered the same confusion, but reached the opposite conclusion. The two Heads of house were amused to think that they might, but for those crucial moments in their youths, have exchanged positions).

Minerva was quickly recognised as the most outstanding student of her year, with a particular talent for Transfiguration. As she progressed through the school, she demonstrated that she had inherited both her mother’s talents and her father’s cast-iron moral sense. Minerva’s school career overlapped by two years with that of Pomona Sprout, later Head of Hufflepuff House, and the two women enjoyed an excellent relationship both then, and in later years.

By the end of her education at Hogwarts, Minerva McGonagall had achieved an impressive record: top grades in O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s, Prefect, Head Girl, and winner of the Transfiguration Today Most Promising Newcomer award. Under the guidance of her inspirational Transfiguration teacher, Albus Dumbledore, she had managed to become an Animagus; her animal form, with its distinctive markings (tabby cat, square spectacles markings around eyes) were duly logged in the Ministry of Magic’s Animagus Registry. Minerva was also, like her mother, a gifted Quidditch player, although a nasty fall in her final year (a foul during the Gryffindor versus Slytherin game which would decide the Cup winner) left her with concussion, several broken ribs and a lifelong desire to see Slytherin crushed on the Quidditch pitch. Though she gave up Quidditch on leaving Hogwarts, the innately competitive Professor McGonagall later took a keen interest in the fortunes of her house team, and retained a keen eye for Quidditch talent.

Early Heartbreak

Upon graduation from Hogwarts, Minerva returned to the manse to enjoy one last summer with her family before setting out for London, where she had been offered a position at the Ministry of Magic (Department of Magical Law Enforcement). These months were to prove some of the most difficult of Minerva’s life, for it was then, aged only eighteen, that she proved herself truly her mother’s daughter, by falling head-over-heels in love with a Muggle boy.

It was the first and only time in Minerva McGonagall’s life that she might have been said to lose her head. Dougal McGregor was the handsome, clever and funny son of a local farmer. Though less beautiful than Isobel, Minerva was clever and witty. Dougal and Minerva shared a sense of humour, argued fiercely, and suspected mysterious depths in each other. Before either of them knew it, Dougal was on one knee in a ploughed field, proposing, and Minerva was accepting him.

She went home, intending to tell her parents of her engagement, yet found herself unable to do so. All that night she lay awake, thinking about her future. Dougal did not know what she, Minerva, truly was, any more than her father had known the truth about Isobel before they had married. Minerva had witnessed at close quarters the kind of marriage she might have if she wed Dougal. It would be the end of all her ambitions; it would mean a wand locked away, and children taught to lie, perhaps even to their own father. She did not fool herself that Dougal McGregor would accompany her to London, while she went to work every day at the Ministry. He was looking forward to inheriting his father’s farm.

Early next morning, Minerva slipped from her parents’ house and went to tell Dougal that she had changed her mind, and could not marry him. Mindful of the fact that if she broke the International Statute of Secrecy she would lose the job at the Ministry for which she was giving him up, she could give him no good reason for her change of heart. She left him devastated, and set out for London three days later.

Ministry Career

Though undoubtedly her feelings for the Ministry of Magic were coloured by the fact that she had recently suffered an emotional crisis, Minerva McGonagall did not much enjoy her new home and workplace. Some of her co-workers had an engrained anti-Muggle bias which, given her adoration of her Muggle father, and her continuing love for Dougal McGregor, she deplored. Though a most efficient and gifted employee, and fond of her much older boss, Elphinstone Urquart, Minerva was unhappy in London, and found that she missed Scotland. Finally, after two years at the Ministry, she was offered a prestigious promotion, yet found herself turning it down. She sent an owl to Hogwarts, asking whether she might be considered for a teaching post. The owl returned within hours, offering her a job in the Transfiguration department, under Head of Department, Albus Dumbledore.

Friendship with Albus Dumbledore

The school greeted Minerva McGonagall’s return with delight. Minerva threw herself into her work, proving herself a strict but inspirational teacher. If she kept letters from Dougal McGregor locked in a box under her bed, this was (she told herself firmly) better than keeping her wand locked there. Nevertheless, it was a shock to learn from the oblivious Isobel (in the middle of a chatty letter of local news) that Dougal had married the daughter of another farmer.

Albus Dumbledore discovered Minerva in tears in her classroom late that evening, and she confessed the whole story to him. Albus Dumbledore offered both comfort and wisdom, and told Minerva some of his own family history, previously unknown to her. The confidences exchanged that night between two intensely private and reserved characters were to form the basis of a lasting mutual esteem and friendship.

Marriage

Through all her early years at Hogwarts, Minerva McGonagall remained on terms of friendship with her old boss at the Ministry, Elphinstone Urquart. He came to visit her while on holiday to Scotland, and to her great surprise and embarrassment, proposed marriage in Madam Puddifoot’s teashop. Still in love with Dougal McGregor, Minerva turned him down.

Elphinstone, however, had never ceased to love her, nor to propose every now and then, even though she continued to refuse him. The death of Dougal McGregor, however, although traumatic, seemed to free Minerva. Shortly after Voldemort’s first defeat, Elphinstone, now white-haired, proposed again during a summertime stroll around the lake in the Hogwarts grounds. This time Minerva accepted. Elphinstone, now retired, was beside himself with joy, and purchased a small cottage in Hogsmeade for the pair of them, whence Minerva could travel easily to work every day.

Known to successive generations of students as ‘Professor McGonagall’, Minerva – always something of a feminist – announced that she would be keeping her own name upon marriage. Traditionalists sniffed – why was Minerva refusing to accept a pure-blood name, and keeping that of her Muggle father?

The marriage (cut tragically short, though it was destined to be) was a very happy one. Though they had no children of their own, Minerva’s nieces and nephews (children of her brothers Malcolm and Robert) were frequent visitors to their home. This was a period of great fulfillment for Minerva.

The accidental death of Elphinstone from a Venomous Tentacula bite, three years into their marriage, was an enormous sorrow to all who knew the couple. Minerva could not bear to remain alone in their cottage, but packed her things after Elphinstone’s funeral and returned to her sparse stone-floored bedroom in Hogwarts Castle, accessible through a concealed door in the wall of her first-floor study. Always a very brave and private person, she poured all her energies into her work, and few people – excepting perhaps Albus Dumbledore – ever realised how much she suffered.

J.K. Rowling’s thoughts

Minerva was the Roman goddess of warriors and wisdom. William McGonagall is celebrated as the worst poet in British history. There was something irresistible to me about his name, and the idea that such a brilliant woman might be a distant relative of the buffoonish McGonagall.

A small sample of his work will give a flavour of its unintentional comedic value. The following was written as part of a poem commemorating a Victorian railway disaster:

Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silv’ry Tay! Alas! I am very sorry to say That ninety lives have been taken away On the last Sabbath day of 1879, Which will be remember’d for a very long time.

38 notes · View notes