Welcome to my new story

I haven't written in the HP universe before, so, if you review, please be considerate.

I don't own anything related to Harry Potter (and I worship JK Rowling) so, please, don't sue me based on borrowing them…they wanted to come out and play.

This will eventually be HGMM f/f, so, if that's not your cuppa…move right along. That said, this is a multichapter fic but only the prologue and first chapter are ready for posting and I'm posting them together (because I'm quirky and I don't like it when the chapter number doesn't match up with the website's chapter number).

Enjoy!

Prologue

"Miss Granger…Hermione, I can't."

"I know. I know that. I just needed to tell you. To explain myself. I knew you wouldn't feel the same way for me as I do for you. I knew this was a pipe dream but after all the death and pain and suffering I've seen over the past few years, I had to do what Dumbledore would have wanted. I had to give love a chance to live here." Hermione's eyes were shining with tears of sadness. She was holding them back so as not to embarrass herself any further in front of the person she respected most in the world. "I'm sorry if I've made you uncomfortable, Professor McGonagall. I hope that we can still be acquaintances." The young woman turned to walk away before she broke down. She wanted the privacy of her own house to grieve that which would never be.

"Hermione, a moment, please," Minerva said quietly. When she saw Hermione had stopped, Minerva turned back into her chambers and retrieved something. "Hermione, look at me. I know this is going to seem strange but I want you to take this with you."

Turning back, Hermione looked questioningly at her former professor.

"Really, dear, take this with you. I think, rather, I hope, one day you'll understand. You'll know. Just take this with you, please," Minerva finished with a whisper. She stepped closer to Hermione. Stopped just in front of the younger woman. Minerva reached out for Hermione's hands and put the small object there. As she closed Hermione's hands around the little statue, Minerva leaned in and kissed the smooth cheek. "Please, Hermione, don't forget me and one day you will understand. I promise, beag piseag, you will understand," Minerva whispered directly into Hermione's ear.

"I could never forget you," Hermione whispered back, flinging her arms around the older woman's shoulders.

The professor hugged her back, tightly holding the smaller body to her own for a moment. "Nor I, you, Hermione. Be safe," Minerva let go. She had to force her arms to release the younger woman. She had to force her legs to step back. She had to force her eyes not to cry. She could not force her heart not to break…

Chapter 1

One year earlier…

"Now that the students have gone home, I hope most of you will stay on to repair Hogwarts with me. She defended us all with her very foundation and we need to have her halls ready in four months' time for school to begin again. I know I am not the Headmistress of Hogwarts School and that the Ministry must still appoint one but I hope you will not mind if I take on some of those organizational duties right now. There are so many situations to be resolved and I don't want to see any of them fall through the cracks while we wait to hear from the new Head. I believe we should all take some weeks off to mourn those we've lost and then meet back here to begin the rebuilding of our castle – our home." Minerva McGonagall looked around the staff room, which had survived the battle relatively unscathed, at the Hogwarts faculty that was left. They had lost too, too many. She would have to find a way to honor the dead and the living. "If everyone could come and see me in the head's office before leaving, I need to know who will be returning to rebuild, who will be returning to teach and who will be retiring. Thank you all. Before we go our separate ways let us have a moment of silence for the current and past students and professors we lost in this battle and in this war."

As one, the Hogwarts faculty rose from their seats and connected themselves to one another with a hand on a shoulder, or an arm around the person nearest them. They stood together for a long moment before breaking the silence.

"Charity Burbage," Professor Flitwick offered, "loved every student she ever had."

"Remus Lupin," whispered Madame Hooch, "a true friend to this school and all those in it."

"Mad-Eye Moody," came from Pomona Sprout, "saved Harry and so, saved us all."

"Fred Weasley," acknowledged Madame Pomfrey, "never failed to produce a smile."

"Lavender Brown," sniffled Sybill Trelawney, pausing when some people gasped, "faithful and kind, passed away just last night."

"Sirius Black," said Slughorn, "a loyal comrade to the end."

"Colin Creevey," Madame Pince mentioned, "too young to be taken like this."

"Severus Snape," Firenze said boldly, "whose true course of actions could never be revealed before his death and Dobby, the brave, little house elf who saved the boy who lived."

"Albus Dumbledore," cried Hagrid, "there will never be another."

"And so many, many more that we shall not be able to name all those we lost," Minerva finished. "I shall see you all soon. The password to the head's office is probably not necessary right now but it is going to be lemon drops for the foreseeable future." The tall woman turned quickly and left the remaining faculty behind.

Instead of going immediately to the Head's office, Minerva headed to Gryffindor tower. She had a sneaking suspicion she would find a special group of students there and she was correct.

"Professor McGonagall!" Hermione's heart leapt into her throat at the sight of her favorite instructor looking so battered and bruised and yet, thankfully, so vibrant and alive.

"McGonagall's here!"

"McGonagall's made it!"

Similar shouts were made up the staircases to the dormitories as students came pouring down.

"Miss Granger," Minerva said, smiling, "I'm very glad to see you here but what in Merlin's name is going on in my common room?"

"Well, it seems just about every Gryffindor that was in the castle couldn't leave until making sure your common room was put back together correctly-"

"With a few well-placed additions!" Interrupted Lee Jordan.

"And there were so many of us that we decided to go ahead and fix the dormitory towers as well," Hermione finished.

Minerva looked around, finally realizing that Gryffindor Tower did seem unscathed, save for a few charred stones around one window. She knew there would be a reason for it but knowing she was already on the verge of being extremely emotional in front of a very large group of Gryffindors, she didn't ask.

"Thank you, fellow Lions. I know these coming days will be hard to get through and so we must always remember that we have come from the same place and we need each other. Not only the courageous Lions of Gryffindor but the other three houses, as well. Hogwarts has been home to so many of us in the wizarding world, it was right in some cosmic way that we defeated this terrible evil here, in the home of our magic. Anyone who needs somewhere to stay for a few days can, as always, find it here, at Hogwarts Castle," Minerva announced to her fellow lions.

They responded with a resounding cheer, as was to be expected.

"Come, let me show you what we've added in the dormitory towers," Hermione reached for her professor. The younger woman understood that her idol needed a moment away from others, she needed to breathe.

Steadying herself first, Minerva reached out and clasped hands with the young woman who understood her without even trying. She followed her up the tower stairs to the very top. What used to be a private study room for Gryffindor prefects was now a shrine to the history of the Gryffindor House. There were small portraits of Gryffindor lions who had been killed in the Battle of Hogwarts and the two previous wizarding wars. There were books about Gryffindor, past issues of the Daily Prophet and wizard magazines with articles about Gryffindors. There was a copy of Hogwarts, A History and a number of books about Godric Gryffindor. There was a section relating to famous Quidditch players, aurors and ministry officials to hale from red and gold. There was a bookshelf with a collection of portraits of past Headmasters and Headmistresses of Hogwarts who were from Gryffindor House. Noting her own picture was there next to Albus, Professor McGonagall turned to Hermione, "I'm not Headmistress, dear."

Hermione snickered a bit, "I should have known that's what you would say. I've just spent three hours summoning these books from all over the countryside and you notice your own photo on a shelf."

"I apologize, Miss Granger. The Gryffindor Library is beautiful. I should have acknowledged that first, of course. Is there a similar library in the boy's dormitory?"

"There is. We used the duplicating charm to make them the same. We figured that was only fair since boys can't get in to this room. We also added the slide spell to the boys' dormitory stairs. They were extremely offended about that spell, actually!"

"Really? I guess I should have thought of that years ago. That charm is ancient and we probably should have either removed it or added it to the boys' stairs a long time ago. You know you should really have a section here about you three, Hermione," Minerva finished quietly.

"I thought about it, but it just seemed too self-serving. I really wanted to include some things about Harry but we thought we ought to wait."

"For what?"

"Well, Harry and I decided that, if possible, we'd like to come back for our seventh year here. We both felt so at home at Hogwarts and it just feels so wrong not to finish school. I had always hoped to maybe come back and teach here which I, obviously, can't do if I don't finish school. It seems to us that most of the school year was not as effective as usual anyway and a lot of students will need to repeat it."

"Miss Granger-"

"I know it must seem very forward of me to come out and ask like this but-"

"Miss Granger-"

"I have some really good ideas about Hogwarts and the sorting and-"

"Hermione!"

Finally, the nervous, younger witch was silent. She nodded at McGonagall, tears shining in her big, brown eyes.

"Of course, you should come back and finish your schooling. I would love to hear your ideas. Perhaps, if you wish, you might stay here a while and help with repairs and we'll discuss next year and what it would be for you and the others of your age?"

"Oh, yes! That would be exactly perfect!" Hermione flung her arms around the older witch, "I knew you wouldn't let me down, Professor. I knew you would let me back!"

Minerva wrapped her arms around Hermione's waist, "I could never say no to you, Hermione. Surely, you must have realized that. After all, I did give you a time turner in your third year."

Hermione laughed a bit. Leaning back in the other woman's arms, she took a deep breath, "I have so many things to tell you. But the most important is that I am so, so glad to see you well. I missed you."

"And I, you. I worried so much for you this year, young lady! Of course, I worried about all three of you, my lion cubs out in the world."

"I'm not a cub anymore, Minerva, but I think that's a conversation for a different night."

"Indeed," Minerva answered, a bit surprised at Hermione's comfortable usage of her given name.

After another hug, they smiled softly at one another and stepped back.

"I'm needed in the head's office to meet with faculty. Would you care to come by for tea later? Perhaps we can discuss next year a bit? I would love to have a conversation about a happy future instead of sadness and loss."

"I'll be there whenever you're ready," Hermione answered, placing a gentle kiss on the other woman's soft cheek.

Minerva McGonagall, she is going to be a student for another year. Do not start something with no future and do not lead her on!

"I'll be ready for tea about three o'clock, Miss Granger," the Scottish woman said, stepping back carefully, "I shan't be ready for anything else for at least a year."

To be continued…

So….Should I keep it going or give up?