~Time To Begin Again~

Minerva was recovering from her injuries at St. Mungo's. She had been transferred home early on in her care. For the first few days after her injuries, she couldn't speak and her vision had been blurry at best. It didn't help matters that no one knew what had caused the problems in the first place. But slowly she had healed and was on her way to making a full recovery.

Minerva was tired of being stuck in this horrible narrow cot. You would think they could transfigure these lumpy beds into something a little more comfortable. She glanced at the clock impatiently. Because she had finally made enough progress in her recovery, they would allow her to have private visits from friends and family. Today was the day Albus said he would come. She was as nervous as a schoolgirl both because of her feelings for him and because she was going to ask him all the questions that had been flying around in her brain since the defeat of Grindelwald.

At the appointed time, the door slowly opened to leave a slight gap. Minerva couldn't resist a small gasp of pleasure as a beautiful bouquet of flowers appeared followed by a smiling Albus.

"My dear, how are you feeling today?"

"Much better thank you. And how are you? You seem to be very popular these days especially among the witches." Minerva allowed a small smile to grace her lips as Albus became flushed. "Don't worry, I won't press you for details, on that anyway. I do have a few questions if you have time to answer them."

Albus drew a seat next to her side and took her hand. Minerva tried to slow her heart that seemed to have a mind of its own. She wanted to speak to him calmly and couldn't afford to let her feelings show.

"I will be happy to answer anything you wish to ask. The nurses say you are doing much better and should be released any day."

Minerva let out a sigh, happy that she would not have to fight with Albus about filling her in on the details she had missed. "I would like to know what happened from the attack on the team through what I missed during the duel with Grindelwald."

Albus stood and looking very serious took out his wand. "That will be quite the story. Let me make you more comfortable before I start." Casting a spell under his breath, Albus transformed Minerva's cot into a comfortable settee, complete with luxurious pillows. He leaned close and Minerva felt a shiver spread across her body. She couldn't help the spear of disappoint that shot through her heart when he arranged the pillow behind her back and sat down.

"The night of the attack, I heard something in the woods. I decided to investigate. Unfortunately, you saw me and that is when the attack started. I am not a registered animagus and I have always been very careful to keep my form a secret, because we were both in attack mode with each other, I guess they figured I was a real wolf especially since they are so prevalent in the area. I was stunned as you were but they left me where I lay. The rest of the team was eventually subdued and Grindelwald's troops took them away. Finally the stunning spell wore off and I was able to transform back. After hunting for traces of where everyone was brought, I came upon Medgar. That was when I first suspected he was a traitor. He told me he had seen you taken to a house in the woods. I followed him and that was when we found you. It had been two days since the attack"

Albus paused in his story to look into Minerva's eyes. She felt like he was looking through to her soul. "I was so relieved to see you alive that I momentarily forgot caution. Grindelwald had transformed something on your robes into a portkey and we were brought to his lair. I am sure this was his plan all along and Medgar was his help. You see, Medgar and Grindelwald are related. Medgar was his great-nephew and the heir to his conquered territory." Minerva could not hide the shock in her expression. "He confessed everything after we caught him trying to return to his homeland. He set you up. It seems he was jealous of you and Kostas." At this, Albus raised an eyebrow as a question to Minerva.

"Medgar was always trying to impress me with his family ties and fortune. I had no idea who or what he was; you must believe me."

Albus smiled. "I never thought you were a spy, Minerva. I am just curious as to where he got the idea the two of you were an item."

Minerva relaxed and continued. "Well, when we were staying at the safe house, he entered my room while I was bathing and asked me if I needed some help washing." Minerva felt her face become hot as a blush spread up her neck. "I never knew he was so dangerous or jealous. I am afraid I insulted him in more ways than one."

Albus couldn't hold back the chuckle that bubbled forth. "Well, it seems he was quite smitten with you but after your rejection he turned to revenge. We ended up trapped with Grindelwald and the fight began. His game made me rethink my plan of action. I couldn't possibly do anything to harm you and I deflected the spells he was throwing at me as a way to get more time to think of a way to defeat him. When I accidentally hit you, I became distracted and that is when Grindelwald cast the body-binding curse. After he decided to kill me, you started to give off an aura of energy. I have never felt anything like it. All of the magic surrounding you shot at me in a beam. It hit me and I felt a surge of power and broke out of the curse.

"We fought, but all of Grindelwald's spells were deflected. He started to throw curses at the others in the room and that is when they were revived. I ended up killing him. It was a simple spell-blocking curse I was hoping would protect everyone but for some reason it caused his wand to go crazy. It exploded and threw him against a wall and straight onto a spike, one of his torture devices, killing him instantly. Once he was dead, the ropes retracted and everyone was free. You, I believe, know the rest including the fight after we escaped."

Minerva looked thoughtful and decided to ask the one question she was the most curious about. "Albus, I do have one other question. How did you know that the room was charmed to reverse gravity?"

Albus couldn't help the twinkle that sprang into his eyes. "Minerva, why am I not surprised that you would be most interested in something of that nature?" Her intense gaze never left his face. "Very well! Few know I have this gift and it is best if it stays that way. I have the ability to know when magic is in use. I can even detect what variety is being used and in some cases down to the type of spell. I can tell when something or someone is hidden. It is almost as if I can see through magic to what is really there. I hope I am not making it too confusing." Albus glanced into Minerva's eyes, which were filled with respect and something more.

Albus stood and walked to the window in the room. He stared out at the magically enchanted scene before turning around and giving her another of his piercing looks. Minerva felt like he could see all of her thoughts as if they were floating in the air around her. "There is one more thing I would like to discuss. I want to apologize for deceiving you. I know you cared for Kostas and you must have been hurt to find out that he didn't even exist. I fell in love with you and threw caution to the wind that day by the woods. You are so strong, beautiful, smart and brave. Everything I have ever wanted is embodied by you."

Minerva had never been so happy in her life. Albus Dumbledore had just confessed that he loved her. Standing and walking slowly to his side, she took both of his hands in hers. "After Kostas kissed me, I was so confused. I did not know what to do or how to cope. It took a few days for me to sort out my feelings. I had a variety of emotions for Kostas but there was another man who owned my heart. Albus Dumbledore what I discovered is that I love you. Maybe from the first time I saw you in the Great Hall or perhaps when I beat you at our first game of chess and I can not imagine spending my life without you."

Her hand reached up and brushed against his cheek. Not needing further encouragement, Albus bent down, embracing Minerva in his arms and brought his lips to hers. A spark seemed to jump between them and Minerva shivered with pleasure. Her body was pressed up against his and when his tongue softly began to explore her mouth she felt her legs weaken.

When they broke apart, Albus led Minerva back to the settee and sat beside her. Cupping her face gently, he whispered the words she knew she would never forget. "You have made me the happiest man in the world. I love you Minerva McGonagall."

The End

A/N: We just wanted to send out a special thanks to everyone who has taken the time to review this story!!! We hope you have enjoyed reading it as much as we enjoyed writing it ^_^