Yeah, I know, it took me ages again, and I'm truly sorry for that. Was rather busy lately but now the final chapter is up. Hope someone's still reading this. ;-) If so, please let me know what you think. Thanks for staying tuned.

Minerva sat at her desk, brooding over a book which was – according to Dippet – supposed to help her with the ceremony that would bring Albus back to life. But so far, she wasn't very lucky.

Suddenly, a beautiful dark brown owl tapped at Minerva's window, urging her to open it. Minerva let the bird in and went over to her desk where the owl had landed, sticking out her leg. Minerva saw that a piece of parchment was attached to the bird's leg and wondered briefly who'd send her a letter right now. She had never seen that bird before, and she was sure it didn't belong to the ministry.

Minerva gave the owl a treat so it could fly off again after she had removed the parchment from the owl's leg. The dark haired witch recognized the writing on the scroll immediately, and though she felt a twinge of anger bubbling up inside her, she knew that she should read the parchment. So she unrolled it and began to read. As she had suspected, it was from Severus.

Dear Minerva,

I know that you have every reason to be angry at me and that you probably don't see why you should read this letter. But please, do. It will help you understand the procedure you're about to undergo.

Believe me, when I say that killing Albus was the hardest thing I ever had to do. It hurt me more than you all will ever know but I'm glad that you found the horcrux. I know that the books in the Hogwarts library aren't exactly helpful when it comes down to reviving people; it's way too advanced Dark Magic. But I know, and if you read on, you'll find the instructions.

I hope one day you'll be able to forgive me for what I had to do.

Yours truly, Severus

This was followed by the detailed instructions how the ceremony, that would bring Albus back, had to be held. Minerva closed her eyes. She knew that Severus had risked a lot to get this letter with the instructions to her… but now she also knew that Severus hadn't really betrayed Albus. And knowing Albus, it had been his plan in the first place. Minerva wasn't quite sure so far, why Albus might have wanted Severus to kill him, but she trusted her husband and knew that he must have had a good reason.

Quickly, Minerva grabbed the instructions and hurried over to Lupin, Tonks and Moody who were waiting for her, all the while preparing Albus' body which had been brought back from the tomb. The sight of her dead husband made Minerva's eyes water but she knew that she'd have him back as soon as they'd completed the ceremony.

"I just got some rather unexpected help," she said showing the others the parchment with the instructions.

Lupin raised an eyebrow when he saw the signature.

"Are you sure that you can trust him with this, Minerva?" Lupin felt that it was too good to be true.

"Yes, I am. I've always thought that there was something fishy about the whole … murder. And I know that Albus trusted Severus with his life… and I'm sure that Albus knew what he was doing when he offered Severus the job here." Minerva looked at her companions. She could see the doubt in their eyes but she knew that she was right.

"Well, then let's see what Severus has sent," Moody said, taking the parchment from Minerva. He read through the instructions carefully but when he had finished, he nodded.

"Yes, that makes sense." Muttering a quick spell, various objects came zooming from everywhere. Minerva could just duck in time before she got hit on the head by a large chandelier which came flying through the open door from her office. Albus lay on a stretcher in their living room which Minerva thought fit for the ceremony.

"I guess that's all," Moody said, checking the parchment again but nodding. He quickly lit the candles on the chandelier, then motioned for the others to build a circle around Albus' body. Minerva had already placed the horcrux on Albus chest, close to his heart.

"Ok, we'll have to take our hands and then speak this incantation thrice." Moody placed the parchment where everyone could see it so they could read out the complicated spell. It seemed to be rather old magic; none of them had ever seen that spell before. True, it was Dark Magic but at least the aurors should have recognized it otherwise.

Taking each others hands, Lupin, Tonks, Minerva and Moody moved closer around the outstretched body before starting to read out the spell.

When they had finished the third repetition, a bright light suddenly emanated from the rose medallion lying on Albus' chest. Albus was practically lifted up in the air and seemed to glow himself.

"Keep the circle," yelled Moody, trying to avoid the bright light.

Minerva clung on tight to the hands of Lupin and Tonks. And as much as she wanted to see what happened to her husband, she couldn't see anything in the bright light. So she squeezed her eyes shut, hoping for the best since she didn't have any other option at the moment.

As sudden as it had appeared, the light disappeared again. Minerva carefully opened her eyes and looked at Albus. He looked quite pale… but that was probably to be expected, he had been dead after all.

Minerva let go of the others' hands and touched Albus' cheek. He felt still cold and… lifeless.

"It didn't work," she whispered, tears forming in her eyes.

Moody frowned and grabbed the parchment to check it again. His face brightened.

"Well yes, we forgot something. His true love has to kiss him," he said, his normal eye glinting mischievously.

Minerva lowered her head to Albus' face, looked at him for a second and kissed him then gently on the lips. She put all her love for him, all the desperation she had felt these previous days, in the kiss. And suddenly she felt, how warmth started to spread through his cold body. His cheeks got a rosy touch, and with a sharp intake of breath, Albus opened his eyes and looked at her.

"Minerva…," Albus said in a low voice.

"Albus… Albus, oh Merlin, I have you back," Minerva sobbed. She couldn't really believe that he was alive again but she felt it when he raised his arms and pulled her in a tight embrace.

"Yes, it's over, love. I'm sorry I had to do this to you," Albus whispered in her ear. When he felt Minerva nod, he released her and sat up.

"Thank you, dear friends, for doing this for… us. I know there's a lot to explain but I guess there's one thing I have to do first." Albus smiled at the other Order members before he got up and walked to Minerva's office. The brown owl had apparently returned for it was waiting on Minerva's desk.

"What… it had already flown away. Why did it return?" Minerva asked, looking surprised.

"Because it needs to take a message back to Severus," Albus answered, taking a piece of parchment to scribble a short note for the former potions master.

"So I was right, you were behind all of this?" Minerva asked, sitting down opposite of Albus.

"Yes, I was. You see, Severus had to take an Unbreakable Vow to Narcissa that he would help Draco to kill me… should the necessity ever arise. He told me about it, and since I didn't want him to sacrifice his life and his position as a spy with Voldemort, I told him to go through with it." Albus smiled contently. He knew that it would people a while to understand his reasoning but he was sure that Minerva would understand at some point, even if others didn't.

"Well, that sounds like a thing you would do," Minerva smiled. But she was glad that she had been right with Severus after all. She had never quite been able to believe that he had returned to the Dark Side.

"What will happen now? With you… and with Severus," she asked.

"Oh, I guess I'll just keep a low profile for a while as to give Severus a chance to find out some more about Voldemort's plans… and in the meantime I'll try to find a way to kill Voldemort. As for Severus… It's up to him what he'll do. If he chooses so, he can return to Hogwarts though that would put him in grave danger – again." Albus voice sounded tired. He knew that, once again, he asked a lot of the young man he had come to see as a surrogate son. But he also knew that Severus would do whatever necessary to put a stop to Voldemort.

Albus was about to seal the parchment when Minerva interrupted him.

"No, wait… let me add something," she said, taking the quill from Albus. She wrote rather quickly but Albus was able to look over her shoulder.

Severus, thanks so much for your help. Remember, you'll always have someone to turn to here… and we love you. Minerva

"Now you can seal it." Minerva handed the parchment back to Albus who smiled at his wife. He had known that she would react like that. That's why he loved her so much, her wisdom, courage and… forgiveness.

"Thanks, love," Albus said quietly before attaching the parchment to the owl's outstretched leg. The bird flew off with a loud hoot, as if to say goodbye, and soon disappeared into the falling darkness outside.

The End