A Knight to Remember

A/N: Hey, welcome to my story. This is my take on how Minerva came to be the way she is, and everything that entails (hint, new character). This story will not follow the canon's timeline, but otherwise I will try to keep true to it. If anyone has any questions please let me know. I also have no beta so any errors are my own, let me know if there are any. So on with the story. Hope you enjoy.

Ch 1

This was it. This was the day that she'd been working towards for seven years now. She should have been happy that it was all over, so why did she feel so bad?

She sat on her bed with her trunk open in front of her, meticulously placing each item inside. Without a doubt when she went to move it later nothing would stay where she'd placed it, but it didn't really matter, she was only doing this to keep her mind off of what was happening. This was her last night in the castle. She passed all her N.E.W.T.s and everything was finished. This was supposed to be a time of celebration; in fact, everyone else was already in the Great Hall. She, however, was far from in the mood to celebrate. All she wanted to do at that moment was to sit and cry.

As she placed and replaced items in her trunk she knew there was no more that she could possibly do. Her feelings overwhelmed her as she realized the gravity of the situation, there were no more classes to sit through, no more studying to be done, no more tests to be taken. She should have been happy to be free from all the work, but that stress was part of her. Without it she didn't know what to do. A tear trailed down her cheek as she fell back on her four-poster.

At that moment she heard someone enter the dorm, not even bothering to look up she just laid there. A familiar voice spoke a moment later in a tone of annoyance, "Minerva McGonagall! Is this where you've been all night? Sitting up here brooding? Come on, this is a celebration! You need to get out of here."

"Poppy, I'm really not in the mood to celebrate." Minerva closed her eyes as more tears threatened to fall.

Poppy Pomfrey sat on the edge of her bed looking over at her best friend, "Min, I know how hard this is… it's hard for all of us. But you need to get out of here. Just let your hair down… have some fun. You don't want to remember your last night sitting up here alone crying do you?"

Minerva smiled up at her, "You're right," she finally conceded. Raising herself up on her elbows, "I'll be down in a few minutes alright?"

Poppy patted her leg smiling, "That's more like it." Closing the door again she left the room.

Minerva thought for a moment. Poppy had been right, she didn't want to spend her last night in her dorm crying, but she wasn't up for a celebration either. She realized where she needed to go. Slipping off of the bed and walking through the door Poppy had vanished from a moment ago. Passing through the portrait hole she made her way to a very familiar classroom. As she opened the door to the classroom she was unsurprised to find it dark, but she could hear music playing close by. She walked up the aisle, her hand passing over each desk on her way to the front. Memories of the hours she'd spent here flooding back to her. The thought of her first transfiguration made her smile. Nothing more than a matchstick into a needle, but she could feel the enormous amount of excitement and pride as she managed it on the first try.

As she got farther to the front of the room the music gradually got louder. Stopping in front of the door leading into the professor's office, she hesitated, unsure if this was the smartest option or if she should simply go back to her dorm. Shaking her head at her lack of Gryffindor courage, she knocked on the door. It opened a moment later to reveal her favorite professor. He wore robes of dark blue, his auburn hair was just long enough to fall onto his shoulders, and his brilliant blue eyes shone down at her from behind his signature half-moon glasses, "Minerva, what a pleasant surprise!"

"Good evening Professor, do you mind if I come in?" she asked, still unsure if this was the right course of action.

"Please do." He smiled down at her, moving to the side to allow her access to the room. "Would you care for a game of chess?"

She smiled, taking a seat in front of his desk, "That's exactly why I'm here. I thought this would be our last chance before I leave."

He pointed his wand at the desk and a chess board and pieces flew out of one of the drawers to align themselves perfectly on top of the desk. "Can I offer you something to drink? I picked up some Gillywater on my last trip to Hogsmead. I remembered that you'd finished the last bottle during our last game."

Thinking, she smiled to herself, unable to believe that he'd remember such a mundane thing. She chose to surprise them both with her next statement, "Do you have anything a little… stronger? This is supposed to be a celebration."

He was surprised for a moment, but caught himself and nodded, his eyes twinkling as he looked at her, "What can I get for you then, my dear? I have butterbeer, oak-mured mead, or firewhisky."

Without thinking she answered, "Firewhisky," shrugging when she saw the look on his face, "I've never had it."

"Please be careful then." He said picking up the bottle and two glasses.

"I've had scotch with my father before, I can't imagine that this would be much worse." She retorted taking the glass he offered her and draining it in one gulp. She felt the liquid burn a trail down her throat, warming her from the inside out. She was surprised to find that she already felt better.

He said nothing as he watched the smile slowly break out on her face. Following suit he threw back his own. "Do be careful Miss McGonagall."

"Don't worry about me Professor." She smiled back at him as she moved a piece on the board.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, both enjoying the comfortable peace that surrounded them, taking sips from their glasses. Once he'd lost almost half of his pieces he looked up at her as if seeing her for the first time. Her emerald eyes narrowed in concentration, but a small smile played over her lips. Her ebony hair cascading gently down her back made it hard to concentrate on anything other than his desire to run his hands in it. He remembered back to when he first realized the feelings he held for her were more than just that of a student and mentor. It was the first day of her seventh year. She was wearing a green calf length dress, showing off her tan legs. It was the first time he'd seen her out of school robes. The sight had forced him back to his office, keeping a safe distance.

Finally tearing himself away from admiring her when she looked up at him he asked, "So Minerva, what are your plans for the future?" Her smile faded as he asked. He was uncertain why but he felt like that was the wrong question to ask. They'd never talked about it much, but he knew that she could do anything with her talent.

Sighing she answered, "I have been accepted to the Auror training program for next spring. They were full for this fall. So for now I'm going to get a job."

He nodded, still feeling as if she wasn't saying something. "Well I am certain you will do great things."

She smiled sadly, moving another piece, taking his queen while he wasn't paying attention. She remained silent, taking another glassful of the warming liquid, her head starting to cloud over now.

"Happy to be finished with school?" He asked gently. Seeing her knock back another drink answered the question for him, but he still waited.

A tear rolled down her cheek, "Honestly no," her voice cracked, forcing her to take a shaky breath. "I've worked so hard for this moment, but now I just feel…"

He took her hand in his, rubbing his thumb over it, "I understand, you feel lost, alone, scared. Just remember my dear; as long as we have friends we can never be truly alone."

She gave a short laugh, another tear streaking its way down her face, "How can you say that? I won't see my friends, I won't see my family," she hesitated, "I won't see my favorite Professor."

He smiled back at her, his heart warming although due to the kind comment, or to the firewhisky he was unsure. "I am never more than an owl away." He gave her hand a squeeze.

The tears started coming down more rapidly, "It's not the same," she sobbed. "I'll never get to see you again. No more chess games, no more coming to you when I have a question, it's all over!"

He stood, realizing that the amount of alcohol he'd consumed was much more significant than he'd originally thought, and hurried to her. Kneeling in front of her chair he pulled her to him, letting her sob into his chest. After a while the tears slowed but didn't stop. He pulled back from her, wiping the tears from her face with both hands, keeping one cupping her face he said quietly, "I will always be right here if you need me."

She was unsure if it was the firewhisky, or her own emotions that led her as she leaned into him. She gently brushed her lips with his.

He pushed away from her hastily, getting to his feet and leaning against the desk, "I am sorry Minerva, I cannot."

"Why not?" She asked, her eyes pleading with him, seeing the sadness cross over his features, "I'm no longer your student. You and I are both adults."

"That does not make it right." He closed his eyes, willing himself to stay strong, although this was what he wanted more than anything.

"Why?" she asked gently, getting to her feet. "You want this as much as I do," she walked the two steps to stand in front of him. She stood on her tiptoes and pulled his head down to hers. Their lips crashed together, both lost in the other. He knew it was wrong, he was so much older than her, but he couldn't stop. Between the firewhisky and the feelings they had for each other it didn't take long before it got heated in the small room. Pulling back from her he saw her eyes darken, reflecting his own. He took her hand and led her through a door to the side, pulling it open to reveal his private rooms. He closed the door behind them, leaving the game and bottle forgotten on his desk.

…

Minerva opened her eyes and slammed them back shut. Her head pounded against her skull. She'd never felt like this before in her life. She thought she was going to die, and was afraid she wouldn't. Her stomach twirled as she attempted to sit up. As figure next to her stirred she froze. Looking to her side she saw the figure of a man, his auburn hair strewn across his pillow, one arm draped lazily across her stomach. Gasping, she tried to remember what had happened the night before, the memories of the previous night being more than a little hazy. She could remember crying on her bed as Poppy came up to drag her out of the dorm. She remembered coming into the classroom, and up the stairs. She remembered coming into his office and playing chess, being offered a drink. Then it hit her. Her cheeks blazed with embarrassment, even though he was not yet awake to see it. She couldn't believe that she'd basically seduced him! She had known for a long time that she'd had feelings for him, but it was most out of character for her to act on them!

She froze again as he opened his eyes. She could see the confusion pass over him as he looked at her still sitting in his bed. She watched as the events of the night came back to him as well. He didn't say anything for a long moment, not knowing exactly what to say. Finally he started, pulling his arm back, "Minerva, I…"

"It's okay." She answered, slipping out from the blankets to recover her clothes, turning away from him to hide the tears that threatened to fall.

"I did not…"

"Neither did I." she finished, pulling her clothes on. She could feel her own heart breaking as she steeled herself for what she knew she had to say, "Look, last night was… ," she stopped not knowing how to finish, "but let's not make any more out of it than needs to be."

He looked at her, suspiciously. He knew this was not what she'd wanted to say, and if he was honest with himself it was the last thing he wanted to hear. It took everything in him not to pull her back to him and tell her what last night had really meant. He finally nodded, understanding that this was the only course of action allowed to them, "You are right. We are just two friends who drank too much and let our loneliness cloud our judgment."

She finished dressing and turned to him. She smiled and leaned in to give him a peck on the cheek, both feeling their hearts break as she did so. "I need to go. If I'm not back in the dorm before Poppy wakes up I'll never hear the end of it. I'll owl you soon."

He smiled, trying to hide what he was really feeling, "I will be waiting."

She looked back at him, a small smile on her lips, as she left the room. Knowing the love of her life would never know the truth.

...

A/N: So please let me know what you think. I crave reviews, even if they're flames. So please read and review. Thanks.

A/N2: If any of you are just joining me, please give this story a chance. Although it does start out in a rather sad tone, it will get better. Have a little faith!