To love her

Chapter 49

The children were about to leave when a
cauldron over the fire place begins to rattle.
"Oh!" Hagrid looks to the feline before both jumping to attention.

"Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!" He puts the egg on the table as the cat sat beside it smiling.
"It's time!" She purrs excitedly as the children quickly gather around.

"Uh, Hagrid, what exactly is that?" Harry asks his eyes focused on the peculiar egg.
"That? It's a ... its um..." he looks to the cat for help however before she had chance to answer and excited Ron interrupted.
"I know what that is! But Hagrid, how did you get one?"
"I won it. Off a stranger I met down at a pub. Seemed quite glad to be rid off it, as a matter of fact."

"Yes well I can understand why, they're quite a handful but worth it." The black haired cat said as the egg began to rattle.Pieces fly off as a dragon emerges. It squeaks and slips on an egg piece.
"Oh my sweet Merlin he's a little gem!" The cat awes, transfixed by the creature.
"Is that...a dragon?" Hermione looks to Hagrid.
"That's not just a dragon. That's a Norwegian Ridgeback! My brother Charlie works with these in Romania." Ron informs the girl.
"Isn't he beautiful? Oh. Bless him, look. He knows his mummy. Hehe. Hallo, Norbert."
"Hagrid we discussed this, we are not naming him Norbert."
"I'm his mum I'll decide."
"I'm his aunt and I'm not having him bullied by other dragons because you named him Norbert." The cat rolls her eyes "What kind of stupid name is that anyway?"
"My great uncles name is Norbert." Hermione looks to the cat.
"Because it's a good name." Hagrid smiles.

"Aw look he's making sounds." The cat changed the subject moving to Hagrid's shoulder instead.
"Just to clarify, we are not naming him Norbert." The cat whispers into his ear.
"Noddy?"
"Well it's better than Norbert I suppose." The cat rolls her eyes.

Hagrid leans forward and began scratching the little guys chin, talking to him as he does so.
"Who's a striking young dragon." Trixie smiles
As the little creature sneezes and blows a fireball into Hagrid's beard.

"Ohh! Oooh, ooh, ooh," Hagrid dabbed his beard whilst the passenger aboard his shoulder chuckled.
"Good boy, that's the way to do it." Trixie praises the little dragon who wags his tail in response.

"well...he'll have to be trained up a bit, of course." The half giant dusts the burnt bits from his beard.

***

The cat sat on Harry's shoulder as the four headed back to the castle, all entirely unaware of The Professor waiting there return.

"What are you doing up Draco, you know it's past curfew." Minerva arches her brow.
"I was looking for aunt Bella..."
"So was I." Minerva sighs.
"Come on let's get a hot chocolate, I have a feeling that woman's gone off gallivanting again."

Minerva and Draco sat at her desk both sipping hot chocolate.
"So how are you finding it here?" Minerva asks before taking a sip.
"I like it, though some of the children here aren't very nice..."
"Are you having a hard time with someone? If so I highly recommend you tell me Draco-"
"No nothing like that, it's just their tongues run wild and spread stupid rumours." He nibbles on a marshmallow that he'd just fished out of his drink.
"Yes well you'll find people do that a lot in life, there's nothing we can do about it, other than rise above it." She offers a smile.

***

"Right, be absolutely silent, Professor Mcgonagall has the ears of a cat" the cat whispers before pausing a moment then chuckles.
"No pun intended." She adds as they all walk in silence. Hermione glancing here and there making sure she couldn't see anyone.

'Ah shit' Bella thought mentally as the familiar sent instantly reached her nose. She jumped off the boys shoulder planning on making a run for it when the woman herself appeared, her brow arched perfectly as she stares down at the feline.

"Good evening." The woman folds her arms, her attention shifting from the cat to the three children. The feline meows then begun kneading  against Minerva's feet.

Back at Minerva's classroom she sat at her desk staring at the three students whilst Draco stood to the side having also been 'caught wandering the halls'

"Nothing, I repeat, nothing gives a student the right to walk about the school at night." Minerva informs them in her stern voice completely ignoring the feline sat on her desk.
"Therefore, as punishment for your actions, 50 points will be taken." She adds.
"50?!" Harry couldn't believe it.
"Each. And to ensure it doesn't happen again, all four of you will receive detention." Minerva glances towards the cat who'd made her way over and began kneading Minerva's hand.

She knew exactly what the woman was trying to do, oh but she wasn't going to fall for it.

Draco frowns as the woman meets his gaze, he looked puzzled but she couldn't very well let him go free when she'd punished them for walking the halls past curfew which is exactly what he was doing.

The three left leaving Draco behind.
"You do understand Draco why I had to do that?" Minerva asks
"Yeah I guess, I mean it's not exactly fair giving them detention then letting me go free, especially when they clearly saw me." The boy sighs.
"I'm glad you understand Draco." Minerva offers a smile, pushing her jar of biscuits that just appeared in his direction.
"Have some biscuits before you go." She winks and the boy happily accepts, closing the door behind him.

The feline turns back into Bellatrix, who has her hand slapped away when she reaches for a biscuit.
"Oh no you don't!" Minerva snaps
"That's just favouritism." Bella folds her arms.
"Taking three young children out-"
"Hold up there, I didn't take them anywhere." Bella defends herself.
"I was at Hagrid's, they showed up uninvited and I figured I'd turn myself into a cat to see what they wanted." Bella shrugs.
"Oh..."
"Yeah, oh. So next time, before you pull out your talons and try to kill me, how about asking me." Bellatrix reaches for the jar of biscuits, her eyes examining the woman before her.
"Nice robe by the way, is it new?"

Minerva frowns then glances down at her attire.
"Oh yes, it is actually but then again you would have known that if you were back earlier."
"Sorry love but Hagrid insisted I stay a while longer then those children showed up and I couldn't just leave them there..." Bella rounds the desk coming to stand in front of Minerva.
"You know you owe me an apology for trying to kill me just now."

"You are the biggest exaggerater I know."
"You know...if you show me what's underneath that robe I'll forget all about it." Bellatrix smiles wrapping her arms around Minerva's waist.
"Never." Minerva smiles, earning a growl from Bellatrix.
"You really are cruel." The taller witch whispers as she leans in to capture Minerva's lips.
"You don't know the half of it." Minerva whispers against blood red lips.