A New Place, A New Love

Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoy this, and I would really appreciate any ideas that you guys have to offer along with any comments. Please review! Enjoy

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the ideas from the LOTR or the HP series. This takes place after the "Deathly Hallows" and during the "Fellowship of the Ring"

Chapter 1

Minerva McGonagall moved through the hallways of the school thinking about the events that had transpired the last few years. She had lost a lot of friends and loved ones in the last year, and she could remember each one walking in these hallways. Fred Weasley, Alastor Moody, Remus Lupin, Nymphadora Tonks, Severus Snape, Albus Dumbledore, and so many more. Albus. The man that she had loved for as long as she could remember, but of course he had to protect her from all the dangers that he would bring to a relationship.

As she continued through the hallways she caught her reflection in one of the few remaining suits of armor. The lines of age were not as prominent as they were during the war, but she was getting older. She could count the number of gray hairs on her once completely raven head on one hand, but it was more than she used to have, and that just solidified her feelings. She was old and now almost all of her friends were gone. Hell, most of her students were now dead, and she was alone.

Passing by the Seventh Floor Corridor, Minerva was startled by the materialization of a door. As she turned towards it she realized where she was and what this must be. With apprehension in her every step she reached out a hand to grasp the ornately carved wooden handle. The door was embellished with gold accented carvings and stood at about 8 feet tall. She pulled the door towards her to reveal nothing but darkness. Walking cautiously into the darkness she took out her wand to light the way.

What she saw surprised her. She was in a pantry on some type with enough food to feed the entire school. There was another door at the other end so she inched towards it, but as she took another step forward, the door behind her shut and disappeared. Well, I guess that option is out of the question. Crossing the rest of the pantry, she could hear voices coming from the other side of the door. One of the voices sounded young and the other sounded like….Albus? No. It couldn't be!

They were talking about something, some kind of ring that the younger one was supposed to hide. Then the other one seemed to get angry at something and there was a crash and some yelling. Another voice joined the conversation, and his name was Sam. The older one was asking Sam questions about what he heard, and Minerva caught a name. The older one's name is Gandalf.

Minerva leaned forward to try to hear better, but her foot caught onto a broom that had been leaning against the wall. She tried to catch it before it hit the ground, but she was unsuccessful. Before she knew what to do, the door swung open and she was grabbed around her waist. She was drug from the pantry and whipped around, bringing up her wand as she spun. She was met with a gray staff and the one she assumed was Gandalf.

He looked so much like Albus, and it made her hesitate for a moment bringing her wand higher.

"Who are you?" Gandalf spoke as he put himself between the stranger and the two hobbits.

Minerva looked stunned for a moment but quickly recovered, "Minerva McGonagall. I am from Scotland. I mean no harm, I just sort of ended up here and I am not quite sure how."

Gandalf studied her for a moment and then nodded, "I can sense magic in you are you a witch?"

"Yes," Minerva felt somewhat relieved, but was still ready to attack if need be. She was ready to ask her own questions when Gandalf approached her.

"I am Gandalf the Gray, and these hobbits are Frodo and Sam," Gandalf gestured to them with his staff and then turned to her, "Now where is it you said you were from? I am not familiar with Scotland, and I know Middle Earth pretty well."

"Middle Earth?" Minerva was thoroughly confused. Why would the Room of Requirement send her to another world? She didn't even know it could do that. "I think I was put into another world. I am not from here. I am from regular earth."

Gandalf laughed at her antics and couldn't help but look at her. She was wearing a green robe that seemed to cover a very attractive figure that was swallowed by the black clothes that she wore underneath. Her raven hair had a few gray strands that made her look distinguished and the few lines that were on her face didn't take away from her beauty in the least. Not wanting to be caught staring, Gandalf quickly started up a conversation.

"I am sorry my dear, but I do not know how you got here either."

Now realizing her surroundings, Minerva could see that everything was built for the hobbits, but not Gandalf and herself.

"I am guessing that this is not your house, but Frodo's?"

"Yes," Gandalf said a bit surprised, "but how did you know?"

A bit embarrassed, Minerva looked at the ground before meeting his eyes, "I heard more than a little of your conversation, probably as much as Sam here."

Gandalf looked a bit troubled by this news, but the look was gone before she could decipher it any more. He took on a serious expression and looked at her with an expression that she had seen on another face too many times to count. She was about to be told information that she wasn't going to have a choice in accepting.

"We have a great evil in this world that is attached to that ring," Gandalf points to the ring that Frodo holds, "And they must leave in order to keep it save."

The next ten minutes was full of plans of where everyone was to go and how they were to get there. Then next thing Minerva knew, Frodo, Sam, and her were headed for Bree and a place called "The Prancing Pony." That is where Gandalf would meet them, and they were to stay for a while.

As Gandalf took off, she and the hobbits took off towards large fields of corn, or at least that's what it looked like. They walked through the field in relative science until Frodo decided to break the silence.

"So, you said you are from Scotland," Frodo looked over his shoulder for a brief second, "What's it like there?"

"It's quite like this place actually. It is green almost everywhere and there are cobblestone fences with large open lands. It does rain a lot, but it is my home and I love it." Minerva finished with a look of longing in her eyes.

"What do you do there?" It was Sam who spoke, "Do you travel like Gandalf to different places?"

"No, I am a teacher at a school of witches and wizards," Minerva stated.

They were continuing through the field when Frodo and Sam were tackled to the ground by two other hobbits. They heard screaming and yelling and Minerva deduced that it was the owner of the field and the food in the other hobbits hands must be his. She heard one of the yell run and followed out of instinct. She was able to reach the head of the line before the others and she came to a drop off where she stopped. She felt three bodies slam into hers and she was about to fall over the edge and was pushed further when another hit them. They tumbled down the hill and ended up sprawled out on a path. She was dazed, but she noticed that everyone was up and Frodo was looking down the path.

Minerva noticed something was off with Frodo, "Frodo, are you alright?"

He didn't respond for a while, but when he did it was quiet and chilling, "We need to get off the path."

Nobody seemed to hear, so he turned and said it again this time dragging the others off the path and behind a bluff. Just as they were clear of the path, Minerva could feel a chill run down her spine and hooves of a horse and a horrible screeching sound. She was brought from her thoughts by Sam pulling at Frodo's hand. They had to get out of there, and Minerva was not going let anything happen to them. The other two hobbits seemed to know where they were going and soon they were running toward some type of lake. Before she knew, everyone was on the raft and they were getting ready to go, but everyone was yelling. Why are they- Frodo!

Turning to look behind her, she saw Frodo being pursued by a dark figure on a horse. Without thinking twice, Minerva took out her wand and cast the first spell she could think of to counteract the darkness that was about to envelope Frodo.

"Expecto Partonum!" Minerva bellowed and sent her patronus straight at the rider. That was just what Frodo needed to make the rest of the run and make it to the raft. She felt as if the rider's featureless face was staring directly at her, but at the moment, she couldn't care less. She had protected Frodo, and that is all that mattered.