A/N- Sorry about the wait, guys. I've been crazy busy with school and stuff. But here it is, the sequel to "Perfect Enemy"! I hope you guys like it ^-^
SPECIAL THANKS TO tabby-fanny AND HER SISTER! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR AWESOME IDEAS! I HOPE YOU LIKE WHAT I DID WITH THEM!
"Don't do this, Minerva. You can't let them just take you. Deny it, lie if you have to. Please just...don't get yourself killed."
"Severus, I'm sorry...but I must atone for what I did." She looked at Fudge and nodded. The two started walking away when Snape grabbed her hand.
"You aren't who you used to be. You aren't some careless teenager anymore." He wiped her tears away and smiled half-heartedly, trying to cheer her up.
She lowered her head and brought his hands to her cheeks. "Maybe...it'd be better for you not to visit me."
"What? Why not--"
"Please, Severus." She let his hands go and kissed his cheek. "
"It's time to go, Minerva." Fudge held her arm and looked at Snape. "I'm sorry, Severus, but this is the way it has to be."
He fought back tears as his angel was pulled away. He walked to the window and watched the two silhouettes until they had disappeared. A hand on his heart, he slid to the ground and cried. Please don't die on me, Minerva. I need you...please...
"Can I talk to you?" Minerva came up to Snape after a staff meeting and looked at him. He detected something in her eyes and sat down.
"What's the matter?" He held her hands as she sat and she sighed.
Her eyes were full of regret, her voice thick with concern. "I may have to go away for a while, I'm afraid."
"Where are you going?"
"..."
"Minerva?"
"...Azkaban."
"WHAT?" It came out louder than he'd expected. His eyes widened with shock. "Why do you have to go there? What happened?"
"Do you remember when I was attacked by a dementor?"
He nodded. Of course he remembered. Her face, full of fear, was still frozen in his mind. Her scream still rang in his ears. How could he forget something like that?
"Well...that memory...the one that frightened me...someone discovered."
"What do you mean?"
"A man knows what I did. He claims to have been a witness to it, and he's coming out of the shadows to testify." She looked up at him. "I must see the Ministry of Magic and they will give me my punishment."
His heart felt like it had exploded in his chest. He gently held her cheek in his hand. "What did you do that was so dreadful?" he asked in a soft voice.
"I..." She burst into tears. "Oh Severus..." She buried her face in his chest and cried for a while. He held her comfortingly and wondered what could possibly make her this upset.
"I didn't want it to happen," she said eventually. "If I had just listened to the Headmaster...if I had just left it alone...he wouldn't have gotten hurt."
"Who? What happened?"
"I was in my fifth year. I remember it quite vividly. I was a cocky girl at the time. I thought I was able to defend myself against whatever came at me. So when the Headmaster told us about the Forbidden Room in the castle, I thought of it as a challenge. About a month later, I snuck out of the Gryffindor common room and went up to the room. I had no idea what was behind the door, but I didn't care.
"It was very dark. I remember walking in and the door closing behind me. I used a spell to light up the room and was surprised to find it empty."
"Empty? Why was the room forbidden if there was nothing inside?"
"That's what I was thinking. I looked all over the room and detected a strange pattern on the floor. I don't know how I did it, but I opened it and went down a flight of stairs. I thought I heard someone behind me, but it was just the door closing. This room was lit brightly, and I gasped when I saw what the room contained."
"What? What was it?"
"I'm still unsure of what it was. It looked an awful lot like a snake, but also like a hippogriff. I was amazed by it. It didn't seem threatening, so I approached it. I reached my hand up to touch it and was met with a young man's voice.
"Minerva, don't!" he said. "Get away from that!" I should've listened to him, but I didn't. The instant my hand caressed the beast's head, it sprung up, ready to attack.
"Of course I wanted to defeat it, so I whipped my wand back out and pointed it directly at it. My friend, James, ran over to me and tried to pull me away from it. I pushed him aside and. . .I tried a "Reducto" spell on it. I ended up sending it on a rampage. It kicked wildly but wouldn't come toward me. James came back over to me just as I was going to release another spell on it.
"He. . .he got in the way. I ended up hitting him and he fell. It was like I was watching a horror movie...One second his eyes are looking up at me, pleading for me to rescue him, the next. . ." She shook her head and sobbed uncontrollably. "I didn't want it to happen. I didn't want to kill him. He just. . .he got in the way and. . .it squished him. I couldn't believe it. I was terrified and I ran out of that room as fast as I could."
"It wasn't your fault, Minerva. You aren't at fault."
"If I had just listened, he would still be alive."
"How can you be brought to the Ministry for this? It wasn't your hand that killed him."
"The man is making it seem as if I wanted him dead. He thinks I purposefully attacked James and ran out because I didn't want to be tied to the scene. But that isn't true! I loved James, I would never want to kill him."
"You loved him?"
". . .Yes. I never got the chance to tell him, though."
It isn't your fault. He stood up and looked out the window again. His hand touched the window gently and he silently prayed that wherever she was, she was safe.
"Minerva McGonagall, are you aware of the charges being held against you?"
"Yes, I am."
"And what do you plead?"
She remained silent. Out of the corner of her eye, Dumbledore stood and walked over to her. "This woman has dealt with this tragic memory for many years. Is it really necessary to bring back the past?"
"You do not understand, Albus. This woman killed a boy and then denied having any part in it. She must be tried."
"But Azkaban, Cornelius?" He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Surely her crime is not that serious."
"She's a murderer, Albus."
She winced. A murderer? Me? Her eyes filled with tears and she looked down. She had nothing to say that wasn't already known. Nothing except. . .
"I was in love with the boy, Cornelius." Her voice was so soft that most had to strain their ears to hear her. "Why would I kill someone I loved?"
I'm gonna cut it off there. Yes I know, you wanna kill me now, right? Well, I'm now making this sequel a two-shot. So you're going to have to wait for the final part ^-^ Please review!!