A New Place, A New Love

Author's Note: This chapter was a bit difficult to write because I wasn't sure how to proceed. I know that I am talking a lot of time to write this, and I apologize. When I write a chapter, I am looking at the screenplays to make sure that I am following the story as close as possible and that takes a lot of time. I hope you like this. Enjoy

Disclaimer: You already know what I am going to say. I have none of the talent or money that came with this series.

Chapter 7

Minerva rolled over in the bed to see light streaming in from the soft curtains flowing in the breeze. She felt refreshed and was ready to start the day, but laying here in the bed she felt too comfortable to get up. A grin made its way onto her face as she thought about her dinner with Gandalf last night. She hadn't laughed that much in a long time, and he had made her feel like she was floating above the clouds.

After staring out the window at the beautiful scenery, she decided to get up and get dressed. She made her way towards an armoire that sat in the corner of the room, and searched through the abundance of clothes that it housed. Picking out one that was navy blue with long sleeves and decorative embroidery in white lace, she went into the extravagant bathroom.

After taking a quick shower and getting ready for the day, Minerva exited the bathroom and decided to explore the room that she was sharing with Gandalf. She walked out of her room and into the sitting area that housed the fireplace and the large bookshelves. She pulled a book down and opened it. Hand written on the inside cover were the words 'Property of Gandalf the Grey' and that made her smile. Obviously he had stayed here enough to accumulate that many books.

"You are welcome to borrow them whenever you like," Gandalf's voice caught her by surprise.

She spun around and saw him standing in the door way that led to the dining area.

"I didn't mean to startle you, my dear," he said as he came closer to her, "You look magnificent by the way."

Bowing her head to hide the blush, Minerva placed the book back and stepped closer, "Thank you, and it's okay."

Taking her hands in his, he brought them to his lips and placed a gentle kiss to the top of them. He then led her out of the living room and into the dining area.

"I hope you are hungry," he chuckled as he pulled out her chair and helped her to sit, "It seems like they wanted to make sure to feed everybody twice over."

"Everything looks delicious!" she said thinking about how it reminded her of the feasts at Hogwarts.

Their breakfast passed in much of the same way as their dinner had. They were very comfortable with each other and their laughs filed the room. When they were done, Gandalf helped her up and led her out of the room and into the hallway. They walked arm in arm together through the halls, occasionally stopping to look out at the scenery around them. When they made it to a pass way that was completely open to the outside air, they stopped to look at the scene of the waterfall and the greenery around it.

"It's amazing here," she breathed out as Gandalf smiled at her, "I never really thought I would see something this beautiful ever again."

Gandalf watched as a brief look of sadness crossed her face. She seemed to be caught up in a memory from the past and as he studied her face, he could see that a deep sorrow was haunting her.

"What do you mean by that, Minerva?" Gandalf probed softly.

She hesitated a moment before she decided to open up to him, "From where I come from, we just finished years of war. The man that headed the other side of these wars was a young boy when I knew him. He was powerful and he was dark, but he was so young. I actually went to school with him. He was a few years younger, but I still knew about him, everybody did.

"Part of me wishes that I had tried to do something to make him feel different about those around him, but I also know that he would have still grown up to be the dark wizard that he was…I lost so many people to him and his followers, and so did others. He took the man that I loved from me. He took past, present, and future students from me, and I honestly thought that I should have died with them. Why was I more deserving of life then all of those other innocent lives?"

When she turned to him to ask this question, he saw tears streaming down her face. He pulled her into his arm and held her as she finally let all of the feelings from the past go. She gripped him close to her and just let all of the pain and the fears from the past 50 years. Here she was in the arms of a man that was so similar to Albus, but he was so different as well. Here is another man that she is falling in love with, but this time she wouldn't let him go.

"You can't think like that, Minerva," he whispered into her hair, "You have to remember them, but you also have to move on."

"I know," she said shakily, "And I think being here is my second chance at moving on."

"Why don't we go see the others and get your mind off of this," he said, gently rubbing her back before pulling away.

He started to lead the way back through to the castle, but Minerva grabbed his hand and pulled him back to her. They looked at each other for what felt like an hour before Minerva stood up on her toes and lightly brushed her lips against his. He responded and wrapped his arms around her lithe frame, and hers went around his neck. She held him there until they slowly broke apart and rested their foreheads against each other.

"I guess that is one way to get your mind off of things," he chuckled.

She smiled up at him before laughing with him, "I've been wanting to do that for a while actually."

"So have I," he said gently "Particularly when you finally woke up."

"Oh, really?" she teased.

"Yes," he leaned down and kissed her gently again, "I thought I had lost you for a moment. When they first brought you in you were pale and completely limp. At first I thought you were dead, but they said you were just drained."

"I did use a piece of magic that I had no business using," she said.

"From what I heard," he brushed his hand against her neck, "you were brilliant."

"Well, I will be taking it easy for a while," she hugged him again.

"Good," he kissed the top of her head as they began walking off towards the room where everyone would be gathering soon to talk about the fate of the ring.

TBC…