Minerva walked off to the private, teachers' only part of the grounds, where there was a walled garden she could relax in.
Sitting in the brilliant sun in the garden was more relaxing than Minerva had ever remembered since she had started teaching at Hogwarts fifty years ago. Suddenly she heard footsteps behind her, and she jumped as she was not expecting anyone else to be out on a Saturday. Most professors had marking to do; she did too, but she had to deal with her relationship first.
"Hi, beautiful, I thought I might find you here." said Albus coming and sitting next to Minerva, and putting his arm around her; she was sitting on the marble bench that sat in the middle of the garden. "I take it Pomona figured out about us at breakfast; otherwise you'd be locked in your office finishing off all those papers you have to mark. Now, tell me what's bothering you, hmm? You can't hold it in forever and I'd prefer that you don't take it out on me in the future, so talk to me now."
"Albus! You scared me half to death. I wasn't expecting any interruptions. I only come here when I really need to think and as it's a beautiful day, I thought that it would be perfect." Minerva said lying through her teeth because she wasn't ready to talk to anyone quite yet.
"Minerva Kathryn McGonagall, don't lie to me, I know the truth. I talked to Pomona when she came in from walking with you, and she seemed upset with something she or you said, and as I know you and your Scottish temper I thought it might have been you who said something rotten. Now, come on, talk to me, I won't tell anyone what you've said, I promise." Albus said trying to coax her into telling him because she was so stubborn.
"She's just angry because I didn't tell her about us when we first got together. She knows about us, she figured it out at breakfast this morning, and when she confronted me on our walk I may have let it slip that we'd been dating for a while. I'm afraid that she may tell the staff if we don't do it first. I'm scared, I don't know how the staff will react, and I'm not sure that I'm ready to have people prying into my private life again. On the other hand, I love you and I'm not afraid to let everyone know, but for the first time in a long time, I feel really unsure of how to handle this situation, I suppose, because I've never been in this situation before." Minerva sighed as she said this and put her hand over Albus', as if to let him know that things would be okay between the two of them no matter what.
"I know you and Pomona are close friends but you should have told her that we made a pact to keep the relationship a secret because we are both very private people. I'm sorry you're fighting with her over me that is not fair. We can tell the staff if you want, but only if you're absolutely certain that making our relationship public is absolutely what you want to do. I don't want Pomona pressuring you into telling the staff anything, be independent, the way you've always been, and make your own choices and everything will come out right in the end. I'm leaving this in your hands, I'm fine either way, if you decide that we're going public that's fine and if you decide we're not that's fine too. So long as you're comfortable and happy, I'm happy. I love you. By the way, Pomona is not the only one who knows about us. When she guessed this morning, she told Filius and Aurora at breakfast about what she saw, although I don't think Aurora was very convinced. I have a very important question to ask you and please don't interrupt, I don't get nervous very often, but I certainly am now." Albus said as he got onto one knee on the grass in front of her. If he had only known that Pomona, Filius, Severus, Sybil, Hagrid, Madame Poppy Pomfrey, and Aurora were watching he would never have asked what he was about to ask the shy, and private Minerva McGonagall. "I know you love me, and if you love me half as much as I love you then this is not a stretch. I fell in love with you heart and soul, you are my world, and I can't imagine one day for the rest of my life without you. Will you, Minerva McGonagall, make an old fool very happy and marry me?" As he said this he produced a ring with an emerald centre stone and diamond edging.
While he had said all this Minerva had quietly started to cry. "Why in the world would you want to marry me, I'm only going to cause problems with the board of governors for Hogwarts, you know that as well as I do. But, as you've asked and I'm not abject to the idea, yes, of course I'll marry you. I love you, my angel, and I really don't deserve you or your love, but as you've so kindly bestowed it upon me I want to thank you." Minerva said this as she kneeled down on the grass beside Albus.
"The board of governors can take their old-fashioned rules and stuff them. Nothing is going to come between me and marrying you, especially not the board of governors. For someone who's as brilliant as you are I can't believe you think that you don't deserve my love. You're the only one in the whole world who does deserve it; love is very subjective, and I've picked you to share my life with, please remember that you are important, lovely, and very caring. That is why I love you. Well," Albus said, "that and you're very sexy, and you're an excellent French-kisser."
When this was proclaimed by Albus, Madame Poppy Pomfrey promptly fell out of the bush that the staff was hiding behind, and due to the crash Minerva had whirled around to face the bush. "I should have known." said Minerva walking over, picking Poppy up, looking behind the bush, and finding the rest of the staff. "All right the show is over, vacate this garden immediately, and don't tell anyone else about what you have seen here. If Albus and I choose to announce this I want it to be a surprise to everyone else. Do I make myself perfectly clear?"
A chorus of yeses went up as none of the people who had been hiding in the bush wanted to incur the wrath of Minerva McGonagall over anything, but her private life was something that she got irate about if someone told a secret to anyone. All the professors quickly left the garden, and Minerva slowly walked back to where Albus was still sitting on the grass.
