Epilogue

"We are gathered here to witness the joining of two souls in the bonds of marriage. The magic of those souls is only theirs to give. It is their love for each other that will make this union strong." Professor Flitwick's squeaky voice carried to each ear in the room as Minerva and Albus stood before him with eyes only for each other. She wore robes of bridal white, a wreath of white roses and orange blossoms contrasting with the ebony of her hair, which fell in waves to her waist. He wore robes of the deepest purple, with silver moons and stars embroidered along the neckline, sleeves, and bottom. Their love for each other was almost tangible and made more than one woman a little teary-eyed. "Those of us who have worked with them or grown up with could not imagine a pair more different, but their differences are complements. One would not be complete without the other."

Tracey swiped at her eyes with the back of her hand, determined not to miss a thing. "We are here as witnesses to the bond they will create between them, but we have a duty as well. We are here to help them nurture and preserve their love in times of turmoil and times of joy, and to keep them safe by maintaining the secrecy of their love and this ceremony until such time as they deem it possible for us to speak of it." This, Tracey understood all too well. With Voldemort back and the Ministry turning a blind eye to the possibility, Albus and Minerva could not risk anyone learning of their marriage at this time.

Filius turned to Minerva, "Minerva Renee McGonagall, is it true that you come of your own free will and accord?"

Her dark eyes locked with Albus', she answered unwaveringly, "Yes, it is."

Filius next turned to Albus, "Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, is it true that you come of your own free will and accord?"

"Yes, it is," Albus' voice was calm, but Tracey could hear the joy thrumming underneath.

"Who can bear witness to the love these two share?" Filius asked the room at large.

Poppy Pomfrey and Rolanda Hooch stepped forward, each laying a hand on one of Minerva's shoulders while Alastor Moody and Stephen Carrick, a Healer and apparently good friend of Albus and Minerva's, each laid a hand on one of Albus' shoulders. Together, the four answered, "We can."

At a nod from Filius, the four of them returned to their seats. "And whose blessing accompany you?"

Minerva's mother, Diana McGonagall, rose from her seat. "The blessing of Minerva Renee McGonagall's family, both those here today and those gone before."

As she sat, Aberforth Dumbledore, rose from his seat. "The blessings of Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore's family, both those here today and those gone before."

"Please join hands," Filius requested. Albus and Minerva did so, their fingers entwining with each other automatically. "Let the powers of your intellects guide you in your marriage, let the strength of your wills and your magic bind you together, let the power of your love and your desire for one another make you happy, and the strength of your dedication to this joining make you inseparable even beyond death itself. So now I ask you, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, and you, Minerva Renee McGonagall, to pledge your vows to one another, and to seal those vows by presenting each other with the rings you have chosen as tokens of your love."

Albus plucked Minerva's ring from the tray Filius held and slowly slipped it onto Minerva's finger as he said, "I invoke the gods of creation, the gods of the elements, and the gods of love to bless our union. I willingly, and without reservation, enter into this bond with you Minerva Renee McGonagall."

Minerva repeated Albus' actions. "I invoke the heavens to allow my soul to blend harmoniously throughout time with the one who stands before me now. I willingly, and without reservation, enter into this bond with you, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore."

Filius pulled out the official parchment for the two to sign and, once they had, sealed it and tapped it with his wand, sending it to the Hall of Records at the Ministry. Once Filius had placed their marriage under the Fidelius Charm, no one would be able to see their rings or the paperwork until Filius had ended the charm. "It is now time to cast the bonding spell."

Filius nodded for Albus and Minerva to proceed. They reached out and clasped their left hands together between them so their rings touched. Each removed his/her wand from his/her robe pocket, and placed the tip of his/her wand upon the other's ring. They nodded their readiness to each other and began chanting together. "By the magic that courses within my blood and the love that resides within my heart, I take thee to my hand, my heart, and my spirit, to be my chosen one. To desire thee and be desired by thee, to possess thee, and be possessed by thee, without sin or shame, for naught can exist in the purity of my love for thee. I promise to love thee wholly and completely without restraint, in sickness and in health, in plenty and in poverty, in life and beyond, where we shall meet, remember, and love again. I shall not seek to change thee in any way. I shall respect thee, thy beliefs, thy people, and thy ways as I respect myself. Our bodies, our hearts, our minds, our souls we give to this union. 'Iunctio Matrimonium Infinitas'." Their rings glowed brightly for a moment and then faded back to their natural state.

"You have declared your intentions before your friends here present, and those who reside in the heavens above. It is with great pride that I declare that you are bonded. May God shower his blessings upon you both. Albus, you may kiss the bride."

When Albus took Minerva in his arms, she murmured something that Tracey couldn't hear. He murmured something back before kissing her. Everyone in the room, including the two participants, was awed by the bright glow that surrounded the two as their magics mingled and finally coalesced. Filius turned to the guests to explain, "That is what happens when two persons have absolutely no reservations about their joining. I've been privileged to witness it only twice before." The murmurs this announcement caused died down immediately when Filius added, "And now, I must again remind you of the need to keep this ceremony and the love that these two share as a secret amongst ourselves. The version of the Fidelus charm I am casting on them tonight will effectively hide their rings and the official documentation of this joining, but not any of our memories or feelings. We owe them our thanks for trusting us to keep them safe and allowing us to share in this celebration today, and we will repay them by keeping their bond a secret."

As Filius intoned the spell, their rings faded out of vision. Tracey sighed happily. It had been a beautiful ceremony and she was glad she'd been allowed to witness it.

During her second year, Tracey was incensed by Umbridge's audacity. When Tracey heard that her father had been forced to leave the school, she immediately went to her stepmother. Minerva welcomed her stepdaughter, but reminded her that discretion and caution were the watchwords of the time. Tracey didn't take offense at the reminder, more aware that it was said out of genuine care and affection for her. Tracey watched with Lynne, Ann, and Natalie as Minerva was carried back up to the castle. She tried not to cry in front of the others, but a comforting touch on her shoulder was all she needed for the tears to flood down her face. The others gathered around her, offering wordless comfort.

Tracey rose early the next morning to visit the Hospital Wing. When she reached it, however, Poppy told her that Minerva had been transferred to St. Mungo's. Tears appeared again and Poppy enfolded the girl in a motherly hug, well aware of how important Minerva was to Tracey. Too upset to go to classes, Tracey spent the morning in the Hospital Wing, and then went to lunch. After lunch, she went straight up to her dormitory and curled up in bed for the rest of the day.

She was relieved when Albus returned to Hogwarts and visited him as soon as she could. The state of his office surprised her and she demanded to know what had happened. He would only tell her that Harry had been very upset with him and had thrown everything around. Tracey reluctantly accepted the explanation and offered him the comfort of her mere presence. When Minerva returned, Tracey waited until after dinner to see her stepmother, wanting to give Albus some quiet time with Minerva first. When Minerva opened her door to Tracey, she merely commented that she and Albus had been waiting for Tracey to arrive. As she visited with her father and stepmother, Tracey was reassured by the obvious love between the two. She was much happier when she went to bed that night.

That summer, Voldemort began to move more openly, attacking the families of Muggle-born students. Many of the families moved away from England to escape the attacks, but not all of them could afford to do such a thing. Albus offered to have Order members put up wards and shields around their homes and many of them accepted the offer. Albus and Minerva personally erected the wards around the flat Tracey's family lived in. Although Sandra and Ryan were doubtful of the effectiveness of the shield, Tracey assured them that it was very strong. When Sandra inquired further, Tracey explained that, not only was Albus a powerful wizard, Minerva was powerful in her own right, so, between them, the wards were very strong.

That school year was very tense and melancholy. Almost every day, students learned that this or that family member had died. Every day, Tracey hoped and prayed that her family was safe at home. When Tracey returned for the summer holidays, she found her parents edgy and tense. Voldemort's presence was beginning to be felt in the Muggle world as well and Tracey overheard her parents discussing whether they should return to California or stay in England. She was very glad when they decided to stay.

It was during Tracey's fourth year that Harry defeated Voldemort. However, Albus and Minerva did not reveal their marriage right away. They decided to wait until the uproar died down. Arthur Weasley was elected Minister of Magic at the time and he worked diligently to remove spies leftover from the war. Alastor Moody was put in charge of the Aurors, who spent much of their time searching for escaped Death Eaters. Arthur also made sure that none of the captured Death Eaters could buy their way out of Azkaban, which was now being guarded by Aurors.

Although Albus and Minerva had intended to wait at least a year before revealing their marriage, an unexpected event forced their hand a few months early...

"How is it possible, Poppy?" Minerva asked, staring at her friend in shock and wonder.

The Healer gave her friend a look. "If I have to explain it to you, Minerva, what have you and Albus been doing all these years?"

"That is not what I meant," Minerva retorted, although a faint pink appeared in her cheeks. "I am not exactly young, you know. I thought I would not be able to get pregnant."

Poppy sighed and sat down on the bed beside the Deputy Headmistress. "Minerva, your husband is the only wizard He-Who-Is-Now-Dead feared, because he is so powerful. You are powerful in your own right. Your magic bonded with his when you married. With all the power, it is quite feasible for you to become pregnant."

"Why now, though?" Minerva asked, staring down at her still-flat abdomen. "Why not earlier?"

Poppy shook her head. "I have no clear answer, although I would say your combined magic knew the danger and prevented a pregnancy until the danger had passed."

Minerva nodded thoughtfully. "You may be right."

"Are you going to tell Albus?" Poppy inquired, gray eyes bright with curiosity.

Minerva stared at Poppy. "Of course I am." She paused. "I just do not know how."

"You will." Poppy patted Minerva's hand. "When the right moment comes, you will know."

Minerva smiled. "Thank you, Poppy."

"You're welcome, Minerva." Poppy smiled back. With that, they began to discuss the changes that would need to be made for the baby's sake.

Tracey and Colin had agreed on a Muggle wedding, since they'd both been raised in the Muggle world. The exchange of rings and vows was adapted to allow for the fact that he was a wizard and she was a witch. Most of their guests were from the wizarding world and the few Muggles would either have all memories of the magic Obliviated, or promised not to tell anyone. What caused the most stir was the fact that Ryan and Albus escorted Tracey down the aisle to where Colin waited. The wedding party had been made aware of Albus' relationship to Tracey, but most of the guests were surprised and Tracey didn't doubt that Albus' participation in the wedding ceremony would be reported in the newspapers the next day.

Minerva went into labor during the wedding reception and Tracey refused to go on her honeymoon until Minerva had given birth. At about ten-thirty that night, Albus emerged, into the waiting room, carrying a blue-swathed bundle. He walked over to where Sandra was holding a three-old-girl with black hair and bright blue eyes. "Diana?"

"Yes, Dada?" She looked up at her father curiously.

"I want you to meet your brother: Ambrose Brian Dumbledore." Albus sat down beside Sandra and pulled back the blanket so Diana could see Ambrose's sleeping face. A fuzz of auburn hair already covered his head.

Diana inspected her brother carefully before looking up at her father. "Me like."

"I am glad you like him, Di." Albus kissed his daughter's forehead before standing and letting the others in the waiting room have a look at his son.

Tracey and Colin were last, already wearing their traveling clothes. "He's going to be handsome, just like his father."

"Thank you, Tracey." Albus smiled at his oldest before looking at his new son-in-law. "I think it is time you left for your honeymoon."

Tracey smiled and kissed Albus' cheek. "Pass my congratulations on to Mother?"

"Of course, now go." Albus kissed her forehead and shifted Ambrose to one arm so he could shake Colin's hand. "Enjoy yourselves."

Tracey's smile turned into a grin. "Oh, we intend to, Father. We intend to."

"I'll take good care of her, I promise," Colin assured his father-in-law. "Don't forget to add my congratulations to Tracey's."

Albus nodded. "I won't forget, now go."

Holding hands, the new husband and wife disappeared from the waiting room and reappeared in the lobby of the wizarding hotel they'd chosen for their honeymoon. When they were finally alone in their hotel room, Tracey hesitantly asked if Colin regretted delaying the start of their honeymoon. Shaking his head, he drew her into his arms. "No, Tracey, I don't regret it in the slightest. In fact, I would have been surprised if you'd decided to leave before Ambrose arrived."

"I couldn't exactly leave before I knew if I had a brother or a sister," Tracey explained, as she rested her head on Colin's shoulder. Tracey had grown to just under five feet while Colin had managed to reach just over five feet.

They stood like that for a few minutes, enjoying their first chance for privacy all day. Eventually, Tracey lifted her head and kissed her new husband. Colin gladly returned the kiss and they didn't waste time adjourning to the bedroom. Comfortably ensconced in Colin's arms afterwards, Tracey slowly drifted off to sleep. Just before sleep claimed her completely, she felt Colin press a kiss to her forehead and murmur, "My lioness."

Finite

A/N: Many thanks to Magdelena for letting me borrow the wedding ceremony she used in 'Who's Marrying Whom?' I bet most of you thought Tracey was going to marry Dennis. -grin- I considered it, but decided he was too much like a brother for them to develop romantic feelings for each other. In case you were wondering where Diana came from, she was born the summer after Tracey's fifth year. Tracey and Colin waited for a year after Tracey finished at Hogwarts before they got married. Conveniently, Albus and Minerva's bonded magic timed the conception of the children so they would be born during the summer holidays. Diana's birthday is in early August while Ambrose's is late June. Once again, I'd like to thank everyone for their reviews and support.