Disclaimer: All Harry Potter people, places, things, or ideas (all Harry Potter nouns) belong to J. K. Rowlings.

One Last Gift

Chapter 1: Never have I ever.

"Checkmate again!" Minerva McGonagall exclaimed as her white bishop and white knight cornered Albus Dumbledore's king.

Albus sighed in mock regret. "Must you always beat me so royally my dear?"

"Oh come now, it's only the first game of the evening. You can say I have beaten you royally at midnight," she stated. "It's not as if you have never won a game against me," she teased.

He chuckled. "I recall that I have not beaten you at chess since you were a student. I believe tea is in order."

One of the house elves brought them a pot of blackberry tea and two cups along with a few crumpets. Minerva poured them each a cup and noticed a glint of mischief in her old friend's eyes as she handed him his cup. "Albus, you have something on your mind, I can see it. Tell me what scheme has crossed your mind this time before I die of curiosity."

He smiled and looked at his teacup. "Why don't we play 'Never have I ever' with tea?"

She laughed at his suggestion. "You're just trying to distract me in hope of finally winning the game. Since I cannot be distracted so easily, let the games begin."

"Very well, my dear, I shall start, hmm. Never have I ever… painted a famous mural," he began as the game commenced.

Minerva's tea sat untouched. "Never have I ever participated in an opera," she said as she made her next move.

Albus thought for a few moves as his tea also lay untouched. "Never have I ever visited Beijing just to have Peking Duck."

Minerva smirked, still not having a sip of her tea. "Albus, if we keep this up, the tea will be cold. Never have I ever… tasted that fizzy muggle drink that they call Rootbeer."

This time Albus drank a sip of his tea after making his next move. He suddenly frowned at the teacup and placed a warming charm on their cups before turning back to his deputy. "Last week I wanted to try something new and decided to find what muggles call a 'soft drink,' wondering how a drink could be liquid and soft at the same time. I still do not know where the 'soft' comes from, but they do have some delicious fizzy drinks."

Minerva laughed as Albus continued their other game. "Never have I ever gotten into trouble with a fellow staff member."

Finally I can have some of my tea, Minerva thought to herself. She spoke after taking a drink. "It was all Xiomara Hooch's fault, as if that is an excuse. I think you were at a meeting at the time, but Mara talked me into turning Severus into a frog for a few minutes. Things did not go according to plan when she switched him with Neville Longbottom's frog. He did not speak to me for several weeks after that and then I learned that he had started an atrocious rumor behind my back about all the female staff members having warts."

Albus was laughing heartily by the time she finished, but then he paused and looked away for a moment in an almost melancholy expression, as if she had accidentally reminded him of something unpleasant. Then he seemed to draw himself out of whatever was bothering him. "Pity that I was not here for all that. And it seems, my fair feline, that I have succeeded in distracting you," he paused as he captured one of her bishops. "Never have I ever had a swim in the Nile."

Minerva smirked and left her tea alone. "Do you really think you will beat me? It will take a great deal more than what has just occurred in order to say you've won. Never have I ever… let me see, what were those Ravenclaws I caught in the hallway discussing today? You wouldn't believe the things I find students saying this late in the year. Ah, yes, never have I ever played strip poker."

The headmaster choked on his crumpet and shook his head. "My dear, I was supposed to be distracting you. I see now that I will have to try harder." He paused and she watched as a myriad of emotions played across his face. When he met her eyes again, the mischief had left. "Never have I ever truly admitted my feelings to someone I deeply care about," he said in a voice almost as quiet as a whisper.

She did not touch her teacup, not looking at him, but not paying close attention to the move she had just made on the board. Of all the things to say, why did he have to bring up that one? I cannot let him know. He was probably speaking about something in his past. I am only his friend and confident. After a long pause, she remembered that it was her turn, but her mind would not unglue itself from the topic he had thrown in her lap.

"Never have I ever told my best friend how much he means to me," it was quick and quiet, but Albus heard the whole thing.

As he looked at the board, he realized that he had finally distracted her sufficiently enough to affect her game. His knighted captured her queen. "It would seem, my dear, that I can indeed distract you, seeing as I have your queen."

She noticed that he had left his teacup alone also. Slowly looking up at him, she met his bright blue eyes with her emerald-green ones and it felt as if she were peering into a mirror of her own internal conflicts. Standing, she stepped closer to him and then bent down slightly so that though he was sitting and she was standing, they were at the same eye level.

"You have had my queen long before we ever began this game," she whispered.

Realization struck him and he smiled warmly. He reached up to touch her face, caressing her cheek. "Minerva, I have loved you for so long. I never dreamed that you could feel the same way."

Her eyes glistened with unshed tears of joy. "Albus, you old coot. I love you too, so very much," with that she closed the distance between them and kissed him gently.

He stood and they continued the kiss as it began to intensify. They broke apart for air and smiled at each other. "You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that," he whispered in her ear.

"Only about as long as I have," she added.

They kissed again, this time more passionately. His arms enveloped her as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He deepened the kiss and the two stood in the middle of the room snogging. She could not bring herself to pull away and he had no will to let her go. After so many years of hiding their feelings, a volcano seemed to have erupted, allowing their emotions to flow out freely. He began trailing kisses down her neck and along her collar bone. When their eyes met again, there was clarity in both pairs on how deep their love for each other ran.

He glanced toward his room and then back to her. She gave one nod and he picked her up. "Albus Dumbledore, I haven't been picked up since I was a girl," she said, attempting to reprimand him but then giggling.

They exchanged a searing kiss. "Perhaps it is time we changed a few things," he said with a youthful grin before they entered his bedroom and he shut the door.