Harry Potter McGonagall x Dumbledore

Chapter #9

Minerva pov.

It has been a year since I found out about my cancer and I was growing weaker. Poppy was insisting on telling Albus but I wouldn't allow her, this caused tenson between us when I went for my weekly breathing treatment. Albus and I only ever talked if it was related to Hogwarts, even at meals the only words spoken between us were 'pass the ____ please' and that was it. Severus has been a great friend, dispite his cold demeanour he was there for me when I needed him. We'd even kept in touch over the summer with an owl every other week asking if I was ok.

The 7th year Hufflepuff's walked in for thier double transfiguartion breaking me from my thoughts. "Good Evening." I called as they took thier seats. "Today we'll be studying animagi, as I'm sure most of you know I am an anamagus myself." I annouced "Now who can tell me what an animagus is?" I asked the class, most of the class had put up their hands to answer. "Miss Clearwater." I called "An animagus is someone who chosses to turn into an animal form." The girl answered "Does anybody now what mine is?" I asked, there was less hands raised this time, I chosse a small girl in the front "Miss Chan?" "A tabby cat Professor." She answered "Correct, how can you tell my animagus from an everyday cat?" I aksed  a rather quiet boy in the back "Mr Parker?" "The marking around your eyes Professor, they match your glasses." He answered shyly "Very good."

I used my ward to write apon the board noted in witch the students copied down. They copied down notes untill the end of class when I annouced their homework. "I want a 2 foot essay on what your animagus would be and why." Some students nodded as they left, but one boy remained.

"I knew him to be shy, he was muggle born but very smart. "Professor McGonagall" He asked shyly when all the students had left "Yes Mr Quinn." I answered "Would I be able to see your animagus please." He asked looking at his shoes as he finshed the question "Of course." I stood and walked around to the front of my desk and turned into a sliver tabby cat but as a transformed I grew weak and tried and started feeling breathless. I was in my cat form no longer then a second before I fell to the floor unconcious.

Dumbledore pov.

I had been trying to write letters but found myself unable to consentarte so I took a walk along the halls of Hogwarts to clear my head. As whenever I'd taken a walk to clear my head in the last year I ended up walking by Minerva's classroom. Normally the halls would be quiet and somewhat peaceful sometimes that piece was broken by Minerva's voice coming threw the door telling a class what to do or answering a question but this time I was met with a frantic student running from her rooms. "Professor Dumbledore." The Hufflepuff boy cried as he saw me. "It's Professor McGonagall." He pointed to the classroom, he'd no sooner said her name and I was running.

When I got to the front of the classroom I saw a sliver tabby cat with very distictive markings around its eyes. "Minerva." I mutter and fell to my knees. "What happened boy?" I questioned never taking my eyes of Minerva "I-I asked t-t-to see her a-an-imagus a-and she j-just fell." He stuttered "Ok, run ahead to the hospital wing, tell Madam Pomfrey I'm on my way with Professor McGonagall and that she needs help." I intsruted the boy, he took off running without another word as I picked up the cat and carried her to the hospital wing.

I ran threw the doors of the hospital wing and found Poppy standing by an empty bed "Over here Dumbledore." She called. I placed the cat Minerva on the bed and Poppy told me to draw th curtain. I did as she asked but she wouldn't let me in to see how Minerva was.

I paced the hospital wing up and down as I waited for Poppy to finsh with Minerva and noticed that there was a student sitting on a chair in the far corner of the room. It was the boy I'd sent ahead to warn Poppy. The boy noticed my gazed and cleared his thoart "Um, Professor Dumblerdore sir?" He said neverously "Yes?" I asked "How is she?" He asked "I'll be honest I don't know Mr Quinn." I replied "But I have no doubt in Madam Pomfrey." I added at the boy's shocked face. "Thanks sir." He smiled sadly.

After another 15 minutes the boy left to go to dinner under stirt insturctions not to tell anybody about what happened to Professor McGonagall unless Dumblerdore himself told the boy otherwise.

I only had to wait five minutes after Mr Quinn had left before Poppy emeraged from behind the curtain again. "How is she?" I asked instantly "She's in a bad way Albus." She replied grimmly "What?" I asked shocked "Minerva asked me never to tell you this but I have to Albus. What I'm about to say is going to be hard to hear." She took a deep breath before continuing "Last year when you found Minerva on the floor I ran tests for everything under the sun to cover the bases. When the results came back I retested them and then retested them again hoping for them to results to have been wrong. Minerva had lung cancer." She paused as I gasped in shock "She begged me not to tell anyone espically you, she didn't want to worry you or make you watch her slowly fade away. She wanted to make it easier on you in case she --passed." She paused again gauging my reaction "Telling you she didn't love you was one of the hardest things she's ever had to do, she ran away in tears and had a coughing fit witch led to her blacking out, Severus saw me carrying Minerva here and started asking questions. When he came back the next day Minerva told him about the cancer." Poppy finshed

"C-can I see her?" I mumbled "Of course, just know she might be upset when she wakes. She doesn't know I've told you about the cancer and she'll proberly be mad that I have." She warned "Ok." Was all I could manage as I stood and walked behind the curtain to Minerva's bedside. She was human now. "The transformation clearly took alot out of her, more then she had." Poppy said sadly "She's been getting slowly weaker in the last year." She added "Is she dieing?" I asked "I don't know Albus. She could pull though and have months or years or she could have weeks even days." Poppy answered with a tear running down her face. "I'm sorry Albus, but with an illness like this it's just imposible to know." She added when I hadn't said anything "When will she wake?" I asked "It shouldn't be more then a few hours." She answered. "I'll leave you two alone. Come get me when she wakes." Poppy added and went around the curtain once more.

"Oh Minerva dear, I'm so sorry. I should have been there for you and I wasn't instead I was busy getting jealous of Severus for dancing with you at the ball." I sighed

I heard footsteps and a voice calling out for Poppy. "Poppy? Poppy are you here?" I reconiezed the voice as Severus' I heard more footsteps and then Poppy's voice "Severus whats wrong?" I heard her asked "You and Minerva went at dinner, I feared something happened again." I heard Severus answer

I heard Poppy and Severus come around the curtain again "She transformed into her animagus for a student and callopsed. She hasn't woken since but I was able to get her to transform back into a human." I heard Poppy explain "Did Minerva tell Albus?" I heard Severus whisper to Poppy "Poppy told when after examing Minerva" I answered before Poppy had a chance to. "He had to know Severus." I heard Poppy defend "I agree" Severus answered "But Minerva isn't going to be happy." He added "I know." Poppy replied