Disclaimer: The lovely J.K.Rowling

Author's note: I am sorry this took so long, but I drove to Paris for some time (ok, ok, only five days, I admit it) and then I was sick (yeah I love being sick on vacations, that's the real fun *irony*) and then school started again (I was healthy again *cheers*) and I got back some important exams and had to spend some days comforting myself (no ok, it wasn't that bad ;). So I'll promise that the next chapter will be online sooner!

WARNING: If you a) don't like fluff and/or

                                b) don't like AD/MM

then just skip this chapter, I promise you won't miss any answers, because this chapter is full of only two things, the one is loooooooots of fluff (and my god, you will drown in it, I promise) and looooooots of AD/MM, don't say you haven't been warned!

@Sarah: I tried, I really did, but I guess I am helplessly romantic, I am sorry *goes hiding*.

@Samantha Black: So many reviews, thank you thank you thank you!!!

Thank you so much to all my reviewers! You are amazing and simply the best! It honours me that so many are such great authors themselves and like my story *is honoured*. Thank you thank you thank you! (and don't forget to go on reviewing ;)

And now Ladies and Gentlemen, put on your life vests (don't want you to drown in the fluff) and on we go:

Her rooms were pleasantly dark. Minerva stood in the middle of her living room contemplating what to do. She felt like crying and screaming at the same time. The small Chinese vase standing next to her tempted her to throw it against the next wall. She ran her trembling fingers over the smooth surface of the vase, she wanted to behave irrationally, she needed to get rid of the anger inside of her, but destroying her favourite antique vase wasn't going to help and Minerva knew it. How dare he come back like this?

A soft knock on her door made her stiffen. Why did this man always know when she wanted to see him least, but needed to see him most?

She had her back to the door, but she heard him entering and stopping at the door after closing it again behind him. They were silent for few minutes, before Dumbledore started to speak softly: "You think what I did was wrong, don't you?" Minerva didn't turn around. "You sure had your reasons." came her cool answer.

Dumbledore tried again: "But they don't justify what I did, do they, my dear?"

Minerva spun around so suddenly, that Albus reflexively took a step backwards: "No, they don't! And you want to know why? Because thanks to you I made a goddamn fool of me!" Albus listened quietly, her anger didn't surprise him too much, he had expected her to react furious once she saw him again. "What sort of deputy headmistress am I not to know what's going on in Hogwarts? I don't even get informed about the headmaster's plans. People will point with their fingers on me and what will they think….. ?" "Since when do you care what other people say?" Albus asked gently.

Minerva fell silent and stared at the floor for a second, before looking up again, directly into Albus' blue twinkling eyes: "When did I lose your trust, Albus?" The question had been merely a whisper and Dumbledore was surprised at the sudden sadness in her eyes. He took a step forward and stood directly in front of her: "Never Minerva, you know I trust no one the way I am trusting you."

She broke eye contact quickly and turned around again, the anger was back: "Really? Then why did half the world know of your plans before I did?"

"Half the world my dear?" She snorted: "Why did Sirius and Remus get informed and why did even Snape and Magnus know about your whereabouts before I did, why did the whole Order of Phoenix know it? Do you think that's what trust is about, that I am the last to know what's going on? What is going on after all? I still don't know! Is that your idea of trust? Is that how much our friendship is worth, because if that is the case then I was clearly mistaken, because I thought that we had something special between us." The tears returned to her eyes, but she didn't care this time. "Albus what did I do wrong? Can you even begin to imagine what I went through, what you put me through? How dare you make me think you are dead and then you return, just as if nothing had happened?

I thought I lost you…. ." her voice ebbed away. She was crying now, tears streaming down her face, shoulders shaking, she covered her face with her hands and sobbed quietly.

Albus stood motionless for a few seconds, before he stepped forward carefully and embraced her quickly, when he realized that she wasn't going to pull back.

He had never seen her like this. He had seen her sad and exhausted before and with tears in her eyes, but never had he seen her crying so openly, accepting getting comforted, almost asking for it.

She was right he thought bitterly, he had no idea what she had gone through. He got a faint idea when he tried to imagine what would happen to him should she die or disappear.

Their relationship didn't base one love and trust, Dumbledore knew it was more.

It started with harmless admiration, went from deep friendship to love and in the last thirty years to so much more.

Love comes and goes, Dumbledore knew this, he had been in love many times in his long life, had enjoyed the butterflies, this warm feeling, the kisses, the passion, the time together, but love passes, it's not forever, but what he and Minerva had, was forever.

It was something Albus was not able to describe, Minerva was his life, he depended on her, even though that wasn't visible to the world, she was what mattered most to him, her advise was since many years important for him, her company necessary. He knew sides of her no one else knew, he knew the Minerva McGonagall that was childish and irrational sometimes, not simply the stern professor and Quidditch fan.

They were bonded far beyond love, and still Albus had to realize that he had jeopardized this relationship, he should have told her about his feelings a long time ago, he was sure she felt the same, but a silent agreement was different than having proof.

He felt her calming down in his arms and gently guided her to the small sofa that stood in the corner of the room. She dried her eyes and blew her nose, before looking uncomfortably at him: "I am sorry." But Albus simply shook his head: "Don't be, I think this was long overdue." She wanted to speak again, but he held her back: "Shh, let me talk now, there are some things I have to explain to you, that I should have explained a long time ago, and I am not talking about the events today." He took her hands in his and smiled gently at her: "I think I never told you how much you mean to me, an I never thanked you for being part of my life."

Her eyes widened with surprise. "Minerva, I met you so many years ago and you were simply my student, not more and not less, but I had the luck to meet you again and I was blessed to become your closest friend, but Minerva you didn't just stay a dear friend of mine, you became even more than that, my love. How shall I make you understand without sounding too trashy?" She had to smile a little at that.

"I just know that I could not live without you, you are the most important person in my life and the phrase that gets the closest to what I feel for you, is: I love you." Minerva had to swallow hard not to start crying all over again: "And I love you Albus, I always have." He leaned forward to place a quick, gentle kiss on her lips. Their hands were still joined and she smiled at him: "I am sorry for all this, but it was all too much without warning." He smiled as well: "I know my dear and that's why I'd like to give you your desperately needed answers tomorrow, when we both had some sleep. I know that I need it." She was instantly concerned: "Are you all right?" He laughed: "Of course, just a little exhausted, you don't fight Voldemort every day." He kissed her on the forehead: "What do you think of breakfast together? The students and teachers won't return till afternoon, so we would have some time for us." "That sounds wonderful, Albus." She led him to the door and with one last soft kiss they said goodnight.

Minerva kept standing at the door for a long time, going over the events of the day again and again, it was funny how quickly everything in life could change from dark to light, from sad to happy and unfortunately the other way around, too.

If she learned something in those last weeks then it was to treasure what she had as long as she had it.

~~~

"Where is Dumbledore?" Harry scanned the Great Hall for Hogwart's headmaster, but couldn't find him. There were still about sixty people in the Great Hall, celebrating, eating and drinking.

"He left quickly after McGonagall had." Hermione told him in a knowing voice. "Do you want to imply something, Hermione?" Ron asked and the Gryffindor girl sighed in exasperation: "No Ron, I am using irony, because it is fun, of course I want to imply something. I think McGonagall is mad at Dumbledore for all this."

"I know I'd be." Molly and Arthur Weasley had joined the children at one of the tables and Mrs. Weasley turned to her husband: "Don't you dare ever doing something like this to me, I promise I'll kill you with my bare hands afterwards, but McGonagall isn't the type of person to do something like that." Arthur bent down to the boys and whispered: "Dumbledore is so lucky!" which earned him a playful slap from his wife. He bent down again: "See!"

The five of them laughed loudly. "I just hope they'll solve their problems." Ron said. "I am sure they will, they are a great team." "Yes they are." Molly agreed with her husband. "Well kids, it's bed time, it's far past midnight already and school starts again the day after tomorrow!"

The three kids groaned in protest, but obeyed nevertheless. It's been a long day and it didn't take them more than a few seconds to be asleep.

~~~

Everyone still alive? Good! Please review (I think *lol*), you will get your answers in the next chapter I promise and I guess that the next chapter will be the last one (don't hit me). I think about writing a sequel though or an epilogue, I don't know yet…