It's All There In Black and White - A Harry Potter Fanfic

Something To Write About

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters, they belong to the magnificent JK Rowling

The rest of the day went by pretty much the same. Minerva found, when she entered the Great Hall for dinner later that evening, that there was no longer the strange silence when she entered the room, but instead a frenzy of giggles and whispers as she passed by the house tables. She pretended not to take notice as she took her seat beside Dumbledore at the staff table. As soon as she did, she noticed Professor Sprout leaning over to whisper something to the potions teacher, Severus Snape, who then gave a half smirk and cast a look over at her. She felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment. Even the staff believed that it was true

Dinner went by the same as breakfast with an uneasy feeling hanging heavily in the air around the staff table. The students continued to laugh and gossip about the days events, shooting looks up at the teachers as if expecting something to happen. Minerva narrowed her eyes viciously at a pair of Hufflepuff 4th years who were starring intently at her and Albus and whispering quiet loudly. She was able to make out a few sentences such as 'how romantic' and 'a secret love affair' before giving them a stern loo, silencing them immediately.

After dinner was finished and the plates were cleared, the students rose from their seats and filed out of the Great Hall and back to their House dormitories. On their way out, Minerva caught the sympathetic looks from a Gryffindor 3rd year, Hermione Granger, and gave her an appreciative nod. At least one of her students didn't think the rumor was true.

As soon as the Great Hall was nearly empty, Albus turned to Minerva and held out his arm. "Shall we?" He asked, his blue eyes twinkling.

Minerva nodded and accepted his arm, as they made their way back to Albus's office.

When they arrived, Minerva took her seat in her favorite arm chair by the fireplace, feeling relieved to be away from the constant gossip that seemed to be everywhere today. She looked around the room at the portraits of past portraits that lined the walls. Some of them were sleeping while other were visiting each other, whispering to one another in a way that greatly resembled some of her 1st year students. It was clear that no matter where she went, everybody had seen the article and were talking about it behind her back.

Eventually, Albus returned and collapsed in the chair across from her, looking equally exhausted as her. She noticed there was a decent amount of letters piled on his desk, which were obviously complaints from the Ministry, as well as parents.

"Tough day, huh?" He asked in a joking tone. Leave it to him to find a way to make a joke about any bad situation. Though she refused to admit it, one of the many reasons she loved him was that he could always find a bright side to anything. He always found a way to make her smile, even when she was in the worst of moods.

Minerva shook her head and scoffed "You have no idea." She replied.

Albus gestured to the stack of letters that were cluttering his desk and laughed.

"I think I do." He replied with a familiar half smile. They both laughed at this, even though they both should be taking the matter a bit more seriously.

There was a slight pause of silence before Minerva spoke, her voice slightly anxious.

"So I assume you've seen the article?"

Albus chuckled "Yes, after I was flooded with millions of letters first."

"I'm sorry..This must be harder for you since your headmaster." She said sympathetically.

"Not to worry, my dear, I've dealt with much worse."

Minerva shook her head again "That woman is just awful...printing lies about people..."

"How do you know that they're all lies?" Albus asked,

Her heart skipped a beat - Had she heard that correctly? She opened her mouth to speak only to be cut off.

"Minerva, I've been doing a lot of thinking lately.." He said, his tone serious. Minerva could feel her heart pounding against her rib cage. Was what was happening really happening? "And its taken me until now to realize my feelings about you.."

"Albus..-"

"Minerva, my dear, you are much more than just my Deputy Headmistress. You are my closest friend and.. I love you."

Minerva starred at Albus, completely speechless. She couldn't believe her ears. Had he really just said what she'd wanted to say to him for years? It felt as if the entire would had stopped. When Minerva opened her mouth to speak, wanting to tell him how she'd loved him for years but was always too scared to tell him. In the end, she felt that there was only one way to show him how she felt. Slowly, she rose from her chair and crossed the room, over to where Albus sat. Without speaking a word, she bent down and kissed him lightly on the lips, something she'd been wanting to do for a long time.

The kiss lasted a good couple minutes before she broke away. She looked directly into Albus's eyes, her lips curling into the slightest smile, and whispered:

"I love you too."