The Parent Trap:

Chapter 21: Its not like old times

Minerva used the back of her hand to wipe the tears that had fallen from her eyes away, she was still leaning against Albus and though it felt good to be in such contact with him again, it felt too intimate after so many years apart. She pulled away from him and quickly rose to her feet, she walked forward towards the lake and wrapped her own arms around herself protectively.

She stared out over the still lake and sighed to herself, it was hard being back here after so long. So many memories, so many familiar scents and focal points surrounded her and it felt as though she had slipped into the past. She didn't flinched when she felt a hand rest upon her shoulder; she had expected it because he had always done that.

Albus had watched her walk over to the lake and had then got to his own feet; he had made his way over to her and touched her shoulder gingerly. There had been a time when her own hand would cover his and she would step back against him but this time, she stood rooted to the spot and didn't move. Deep down, he hadn't expected her to step back but it had been wishful thinking that had kept some hope alive within him. He was finding it hard to read her, he had never had that problem before but then after listening to her as she talked to the girls, he began to realise that perhaps he only saw what he wanted to see and read her when it suited him.

"A knut for them?" Albus asked

"Maybe if you offer me a sickle," she replied with a hint of a smile "I might be persuaded!"

"Then I will offer a galleon!" he countered with a grin, they had come up with those saying while they were courting and he was overjoyed that she hadn't forgotten them.

Silence engulfed them again, she had told him what she was thinking but he knew that he shouldn't push her but then she needed to be pushed. He was thoroughly confused as to what he should do, his hand was still resting upon her shoulder and he was glad that she hadn't shrugged it off.

"Our girls certainly have their heads screwed on." Minerva finally said after a few tensioned filled minutes.

"I agree however sometimes I do think that spending time with Aberforth has rubbed off on Evie," he answered with a grin "I don't know if that's a good thing or not."

"Maybe a bit of both," answered Minerva, she had always liked Albus' younger brother, he had always managed to make her smile despite herself "How is Abe?"

"As unusual as always," Albus replied "he is building up quite a goat collection in the manor. They have eaten their way through tapestry after tapestry and one even tried to take a nibble out of the muggle portrait of our mother."

"Oh I am sure she liked that." said Minerva with a smile.

Minerva had only met Constance Dumbledore a handful of times before her death and had always found her pleasant but extremely protective of her boys. Albus' mother had asked Minerva some intense questions before she had even placed a foot in Dumbledore Manor. Constance had been extremely house proud, everything had its place and she hated people who would move things about. Achilles Dumbledore, Albus and Aberforth's father had often moved ornaments around just to wind his wife up. Minerva was sure that Constance would not be overjoyed with the fact that goats were now running wild in her beloved home.

"Does it feel to you like history repeating itself?" she suddenly asked

"A goat nibbling a picture?" asked Albus, who was slightly confused to what she, was talking about.

"No," she said with a shake of her head before moving away from him "us standing here, looking out across the lake."

"We did it many times," he said softly "we used to love coming here and watching the sun set. Good memories."

She turned around to look at him, her arms still wrapped around herself and her right foot tapping against the soft mound of grass she was standing on. She had to agree with him that there were many memories but they weren't all happy ones.

"I used to come out here when you had been called away to deal with something," she began "I would sit against that tree and stare into the lake. I would cry my heart beneath that tree when I was pregnant, I put it down to my hormones but I knew deep down it was to do with you, your job and your responsibilities. I resented you for being who you were because it meant that you were taken from me. I know that sounds selfish but honestly, I don't care."

"I never knew that it affected you so Minerva," he said sincerely "I should have seen it but I was too wrapped up in everything else. As I said in front of the girls, I only realised this when you had gone."

"Albus, why didn't you come after me?" she asked softly, that had been the one question she had always wanted to ask him.

Albus looked at her, his shoulder slumped with his own failure. They had covered this subject with the girls but it hadn't been answered properly and now she was asking him a direct question about it. It was time to face his own inner demons and not hide behind his job.

"I did want to come after you," he said honestly "I did think that you would be back in the morning and then the next morning and it went on for days like that and then it was to late. I was in denial, I thought that with time everything would be sorted out and we could get on with our life together but I was wrong, so very wrong. I convinced myself that you would walk back through that door and then another letter from the ministry arrived and I was needed. I lost sight Minerva and for that I am truly sorry for making you and our daughters suffer."

She nodded and turned away from him; she knew that it took a lot for him to admit that he was in the wrong. The fault couldn't solely be placed at his feet, she was to blame as well but at the time it was easier to blame him.

"The girls mentioned something about some letter's you wrote but you never sent them." She said as she walked closer to the lake.

"All to you after you left." He answered

"I would like to see and read them." She told him as she turned back around to look at him, she desperately wanted to read them.

"Of course," he replied "would you like to read them with me?"

Minerva shook her head; she wanted to be alone when she read this letters from him. She wanted to see if he had been aware of what had gone wrong soon after she had left rather then ten years down the line.

"If you don't mind," she began "I would like to read them alone Albus."

"I don't mind," he said, trying to hide his disappointment "they are address to you after all. I'll have Fawkes deliver them to you."

"Thank you," she replied with a faint smile "I think I'll head indoors for a while. I'll see you soon Albus."

Albus watched her walk away before cleaning up the unopened picnic basket and packing away the blankets. He then dashed off in the direction of his private office to fetch the letters he had written to her over the ten years they had been parted.

His office was organised chaos, he knew where everything was but other's were frustrated by the piles of parchments on his desk, books shattered everywhere and the numerous amounts of trinkets he had had picked up from people over the years. He knew exactly were the letters were, they were stored in a secret draw in his large, deep red mahogany work desk though you couldn't tell what wood it was made from under the piles of paper on his desk.

He felt for the chain around his neck and then carefully took it off; no one knew he wore a silver chain around his neck because it was hidden by his beard and also by his robes. Attached to the chain there was a white gold wedding ring, the same ring that had bound Minerva and himself as husband and wife thirteen years ago. He looked at it and read the inscription inside 'Forever and Always!. His blue eyes suddenly became misty and he had to fight back the tears that were threatening to fall. He shook his head and placed the ring in a small hole in his desk, it glowed a pale blue before a draw appeared from nowhere. He pulled the ring out of the hole and placed back on the chain before putting it back on around his neck. He touched it lightly before it disappeared under a mass of hair and material. The draw was heaving with letters to Minerva and without even reading one of them; he bound them up and made them smaller so they were easier for Fawkes to deliver.

Meanwhile, Minerva was curled up in one of the chairs in the bedroom she used to share with Albus. She was facing the fireplace and waiting for Fawkes to appear. She hadn't seen the Phoenix for many years and she wondered if he would still remember her. She hoped that he didn't hold anything against her because she knew that a scorned Phoenix wasn't probably the best choice to deliver letters. She and Fawkes had always got which had surprised Albus, it was known that Phoenixes were protective of their masters and didn't like to share but Fawkes had welcomed her with open wings and had even taken to sleeping on her side of the bed when she had moved into their rooms. Fawkes had also become protective of Minerva while she was carrying the twins; it was as though he felt it needed to be done since his master wasn't always around. Minerva had been extremely comforted by the presence of Fawkes and had often spoilt him a bit too much with ginger newts.

A ball of flames appeared to her right and if she had been anyone else, she would have screamed and pulled out her wand but she had spent some years in the presence of a phoenix and so knew to expect such an entrance.

Fawkes regarded the woman before him with an inquisitive eye, he peered at her for sometime and Minerva was beginning to feel a little uneasy but luckily for her, the phoenix then broke out into a beautiful trill and Minerva relaxed.

"Hello my friend," said Minerva softly as she reached out with her left hand "how have you been?"

Fawkes cocked his head to one side before knocking his head against her hand, he cooed contently and kept both his eyes on her.

"You do look very handsome," she told him and he nodded in agreement "and have you been looking after your master like I asked you too?"

Minerva had gone to see Fawkes before she had taken Abigail away and asked him to keep an eye on Albus till she was back, she knew Fawkes would watch out for his master like he always had done.

Fawkes thrilled and nodded his head before nudging her hand. Minerva smiled and rooted around in her pocket for a ginger newt. Fawkes took the ginger biscuit in delight and dropped off his parcel before flying to his perch in the corner of the room. Minerva settled back down in the chair and enlarged the package, she was taken back by the amount of letter's there seemed to be.

She opened the first one and silently read:

Minerva, dearest,

Where are you! I came back to find you and Abigail gone. Evie is crying for you and I must confess to not knowing how to settle her as you do. I am worried that something has happened to you. Is something wrong with Abi? Please my love, get in contact.

Forever and Always

Albus x

TO BE CONTINUED