The One with the Secret Feelings

When you finally got your letter to attend the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft of Wizardry, written by your mother, you were really happy. During summer break, your mother had told you so many stories about the magical school.
     Now, your time has come to experience your mother's stories.

You stood in front of the gates of the Great Hall, waiting to make an entrance. Your mother spotted you and smiled slightly. The gates opened, your cue to walk.
     ''Ms. McGonagall!'' Professor McGonagall calls, causing everyone to look up. She puts the Sorter Hat on your head and it immediately starts to ramble. ''Ah, another McGonagall. Yeah, I had to think five and a half minutes to decide which house she belonged to, which made her a hatstall,'' it rambles.     
     ''You also have an amazing set of brains. Bravery I see too, you already know how to fly, huh?'' Professor McGonagall has to try her best not to laugh.

     ''Alright, also this McGonagall belongs to ... GRYFFINDOR!'' the Head shouts. Everyone claps and you walk to the lion's table. ''Hi, I'm Charlie,'' a red-haired boy introduces. ''Hi, I'm Y/N McGonagall,'' you smile and shakes his hand.

You sit in the common room, doing your homework for Potions when you hear a certain ticking noise (it is kinda catchy ;p). You turn your attention from the book to the window, spotting a beautiful owl. You open the window, letting the owl inside. "Come in, little friend. It's cold outside," you greet the little creature by petting it softly. She makes soft screeches of gratefulness. It's winter after all.
     She tilts her paw, showing you a little parchment. You carefully took it off her paw. ''Thank you, you may go back to your owner,'' you whisper. The owl gave you a goodbye screech and flew back where she came from. You open the parchment;

Dear Ms. McGonagall,

Are you free this upcoming hour? Perhaps you could stop by my office to have a cup of tea.
A sapient Gargoyle is guarding the entrance of my office. Speak 'Sherbet Lemon' and the Gargoyle gives you access to my office.

I look forward to speaking to you with a nice cup of tea.

Yours sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore

You gather all your papers and books and tide them up in your bag. You walk from the seventh floor to the second floor. You noticed the Gargoyle, which Professor Dumbledore had mentioned.
     ''Sherbet Lemon,'' you say. The gargoyle steps aside to reveal a staircase. Once you have walked all your way up, you see a beautiful wooden door. You were about to knock when something held your back. ''Come in, Ms. McGonagall,'' a sudden voice speaks. You were a bit surprised when you opened the door. Professor Dumbledore looks at you with a kind smile. "Professor, how did you know it was me?'' you ask curiously.
     He laughs quietly and walks his way to you. ''I know how other teachers enter this room and I have been expecting you. Sherbet Lemon?'' he says and holds a bowl with yellow candies. ''Uh, sure. Thank you,'' you say while picking one candy out of the bowl.

You look around the room, admiring its beauty. ''Have a seat,'' he says gently, pointing at the chair. ''You have a beautiful room, Professor,'' you say while taking a seat. With a simple swing of his wand, he makes two cups of tea. ''Thank you,'' he smiles and sits on the edge of his desk.

     ''You are quite a flyer, aren't you?'' he asks with a little smile. The question makes you smile too, ''yeah, what can I say? For nine years, I think? From the very start - I have it from my mother. She had taught me how to fly at a very young age. My grandma didn't approve, but it never went wrong.'' Professor Dumbledore laughs, ''your mother can be stubborn here and there. Just like you.''

''I don't want to be rude, Professor, but why did you invite me to come over? There must be a reason for it?'' you ask curiously. Professor Dumbledore grins, ''sharp as always, aren't we?'' His comment makes you blush a bit.
     ''Well, yeah. I have something I have to proclaim,'' he says seriously. You straighten up a bit, ready for his announcement. ''Okay, I'm all ears,'' you say. He sighs, ''the reason I asked you over is that I ... your mother ... I ... -'' he stammers, he hasn't found the right words. ''Yes? Professor?'' you ask.

''I love your mother,'' he manages to say.

     He looks at you with an unknown expression. Once the information settled down, a big smile appeared on your face. ''Wow, that's ... that's just amazing,'' you say smiling, causing him to smile too.
"May I show you something?" he asks. When you nod, Dumbledore gets on his feet. He opens a cabinet, revealing some sort of metal basin.

"This is a pensieve. It is a magical object where you can review memories," he explains. He points his wand to his temple, drawing a silvery white string. The circumstances in the basin changes within a second, creating the memory.
"Be my guest," Professor Dumbledore says gently. You bow towards the basin, feeling the cold liquid on your face. A strange feeling overwhelmed you and the next moment you open your eyes, you stand in a classroom;

You look around, noticing that this the classroom for Transfiguration is. Walking to the desk where you see your mother. The closer you came, the awful sound reached your ears.
She was crying. You kneel in front of her desk, laying your elbows on the desk. You try to draw her attention to you, but you're invisible for her.
You see a picture standing on her desk, it's your mother and a man. Her hand reaches for the photo, causing more tears to fall. Then it hits you, that is your father.

"Minerva?" you hear a familiar voice behind you. You turn around to see Professor Dumbledore. Your mother looks up, seeing Albus and quickly wipes her tears away.
"Albus? What are you doing here at this hour?" says your mother, trying to sound normal. "I could ask you the same question," he says as he walks over to her desk.
"What is on your mind, Minerva?" Albus asks concerned. "It's... it's nothing important," she says, sniffing a bit. "I haven't seen you cry since you fell off your broom in the finals against Slytherin," he chuckles slightly, causing your mother to giggle too.
"Tell me what's bothering you," Albus says gentle. You notice the care in his eyes.

"I... I had given birth, a few summers ago," she stutters a bit, "a little girl, Y/N." Albus smiles warmly, "that's lovely to hear." Your mother has a little smile on her face too, but it fades away.
"Only, Dougal was very sick during my pregnancy. And... and he didn't make it to see his little daughter," your mother breaks down in tears. You look at Professor Dumbledore, who has tears forming in the corner of his eyes. He pulls your mother in a firm hug.
It breaks your heart to see your mother like this, but you are grateful that Professor Dumbledore was there for her when you couldn't.

"I didn't know what to do. I'm a teacher here, but she is at home. I... I didn't know what to do. My parents decided to raise her, to prepare her for Hogwarts. I have spent much time with her in summer breaks," she says. "How old is Y/N now?" Professor Dumbledore asks. "She is 7," your mother smiles proudly.

The scene changes within a second.

You recognise it all, this is your backyard. You see yourself, with your mother and Professor Dumbledore. You frown a bit at the sight, just because it was odd to see it from this perspective. Seven year old you laugh with your mom and the man.
"Mom, you have to see this," you say happily. You sprint away, leaving the two behind with a surprised look. You came back with a broom and within a second you were flying in the air.

"I see that someone has been practicing," your mother says proudly and kisses your forehead. "Mom, who is this man?" you ask curiously. Your mother looks at Albus, who looks back. You see the look in your headmaster's eyes.
"He's a very good friend of mine," she eventually says. She turns back to Albus, giving him a kiss on the forehead. "Thank you, Albus. For everything." "Everything for you, Minerva."

The scene becomes black and now you're standing in the Headmaster's office. You look at Professor Dumbledore, quite in shock.
"She has to gone through a lot," you say quietly, "thank you for being there for my mother when I wasn't be able to." Professor Dumbledore smiles gratefully, "I have done it with much love."
"You really do love her, don't you?" you ask seriously. "Yes. Yes, I do," he says. "Don't we have this ball upcoming?" you ask. "Yes, a Christmas Ball," he confirms. "Ask her for a dance," you suggest, "I'm sure she'll say yes. And maybe you could tell her how you feel, after all these years."

Christmas Ball

(Screw the ages at this moment, let me ;). Little explanation; when Newt's around 16, McGonagall hasn't actually born yet, so screw the time line :))

"Y/N, you look stunning," Newt says with a smile on his face. Your cheeks turn into another colour than your skin. "Thank you, Newt. You don't look back yourself."
When Newt had asked you for the Ball, he was nervous as heck. You have seen him couple of times. You happily said yes, even though he's a Hufflepuff.

You enter the Great Hall, which isn't the Great Hall anymore. It has been turned into a Ballroom, it is beautiful. You have spot your mother in a green dress, which simply made her beautiful. You also spot Dumbledore, who is standing next to her in a silvery dress. Now you realise, they are perfect for each other. Now you want that your mother comes one day to tell you about your father and so, because she has found another love, Albus.

Each pair of the four houses has to open the Ball. Professor McGonagall has chosen you and Newt. You, Newt, and another six students are ready to open the Ball. You look at your mother, who looks at you with pride in her eyes.

You have opened the Ball, which means that others are allowed to dance to. You can see from the corner of your eye that Dumbledore takes your mother to a dance. You caught a glimpse of the headmaster, who smiled.
You looked back to Newt, who was just staring at you. He blinks, "sorry. I... I don't know what happened," he apologised. "No need to apologise, you silly," you smile. Once you look around the room, you don't see your mother. 'Go for it, Albus,' you think.
A slow song came up and you laid your arms in his neck. He hesitated if he should lay his hands on your waist or not. You laid his one hand on your waist, letting him know that it was okay, which made him smile.

Extended Scene

Minerva's P.O.V.

I see my daughter dancing so elegantly. I watch with a smile on my face and pride in my eyes. "She is doing great," Albus whispers. "She does, she has her place here," I smile proudly. 'That's my little girl.'

The openings dance is over, which means everyone's allowed to dance. "May I take this dance?" Albus asks gently. I smile and he gently grabs my hand, joining the dance floor.
I enjoyed the dance very much, Albus was looking, almost staring, into my eyes. "I want to tell you something, but it has to be more in a private place," Albus grins, his eyes are sparkling - through his half moon spectacles.

He gently gets ahold of my hand, leaving the Great Hall. I was quite curious about what Albus wanted to tell me.
     "Minerva?" Albus says, looking me in the eye. "Yes, Albus?" I say curiously. "I... I have involved your daughter to something," he starts. I furrow a brow, "why?" Albus chuckles,

"just let me talk. Your daughter has given me the courage to do something I should have done earlier." I still don't get his point.
     He grabs both of my hands gently, looking me in the eyes. "I love you, Minerva," he says in one breath, leaving my breathless.

Then I get a smile on my face. "Then I think, my daughter has the right spirit," she says pecking his lips, causing Albus to smile widely.