Merrrryy Chrisssttmmasssss!

I trying to get this posted before the pre-Christmas day last minute prep kicks off. You know what I'm talking about? Pulling the presents down from all the hiding places around the house once the nephew has gone to bed, making sure all the veg is ready to cook, that you have enough alcohol and refilling all the bowls of chocolate and nuts around the house because you keep it all... yeah that last minute prep haha.

Anyway, I've been sitting on a part of this story for some time. People have asked for it, people have commented on it being missing in previous chapters however it just wasn't the right time. I wrote it into this chapter over a year ago, I always knew how it was going to end but just never had the time to write it. Intrigued? I hope so. Want me to stop wittering on so you can go read? Got it!

Happy reading

xxx

Chapter 13

They raced through the forest, keeping to rough terrain as much as possible to make sure they were not seen by the Death Eaters they were hunting. It was risky travelling by daylight but Severus knew that Minerva would not have rested until night fall. He had made her stop every now and again, forcing her to drink and eat to keep up her strength. He could sense she wasn't happy the constant interruptions but he didn't care. If he was honest, he was angry with her.

When Minerva had insisted that he prioritise Logan over her, he had wanted to shout at her, to knock some sense into her. 'If you care for me at all...' The words haunted him, stuck on repeat in his mind and he could feel himself becoming angrier and angrier.

'If you care for me at all...'

Did she really not know how much she meant to him? That she was the only person in his adult life that he would call a friend? After all this time, after everything they'd been through, after everything he'd done for her... did she really not see how much he cared?

They kept a distance between them as they walked, something they had not done the previous days they had travelled. She avoided his eyes, he knew she had a lot on her mind but he wanted her to see the anger in his own eyes, to see how much she had annoyed him. As he thought about it, he asked himself why he wanted her to see it... he didn't have an answer.

Severus was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice Minerva had stopped until he felt her hand on his shoulder pulling him to the ground. As he crouched down beside her, she pulled the map up for him to see what she had seen. They were practically on top of the black dot. Severus looked up as Minerva pointed to a large boulder and Severus knew that she suspected Logan was somewhere just behind it. Together they crept closer, keeping themselves as low to the ground as possible, as they appeared around the boulder, they were met with a clearing below them. Severus recognised the three Death Eaters from the photos Mad-Eye had shown him. They were sitting around a camp fire, papers around them as they were clearly planning something. He looked around the camp until his eyes landed on two figures bound together... Logan. He felt Minerva relax beside him, seeing him alive with her own eyes brought her some relief.

Severus pulled her back from the boulder and sat her down. "We'll keep watch from the trees below and once its dark, you will be able to slip in as your cat form unnoticed and release them." Minerva looked as though she wanted to argue. "Going in there in broad daylight will do nothing but get you both killed."

"I wouldn't give them the chance to kill me," she whispered.

Severus frowned at her. "Don't do anything stupid, Minerva," he said. "You're the most rational witch I know so I feel confident in saying that you know I'm right. The best way to keep Logan safe is to keep duelling to a minimum. Getting him and his colleague out of there without the Death Eater's knowing will give us a chance to get away safely."

Minerva sighed. "You're right..." she said. "It's just being this close... seeing him right there..."

"I know," Severus whispered as he touched her cheek. Seeing her so worried broke through his anger and he pulled her into a hug. He was still mad as hell but he knew if he wanted to keep her safe, he would need to have his head fully in the game. "Let's go," he said as he walked through the rough terrain and into the woods to find somewhere to take cover while they watched.

Daylight seemed to fade slower that it had on previous days.

Severus had offered to share the responsibility of watching the Death Eaters but Minerva had insisted on taking watch the whole time. He was worried about her. She was so on edge, so tense that she seemed ready to pounce if needed. Every little thing made her jump, the sound of a twig breaking or a bird's song. She needed to calm down not only for her sake, but for Logan's. She had lived through a war, he knew she would be aware of the fact that she needed to remain level headed for a rescue mission to be successful. But it seemed pointless to remind her of that fact. He knew she would not take kindly to him worrying over her.

He gave a heavy sigh and looked out toward the Death Eaters. He felt Minerva shift beside him as the men started to walk in Logan's direction. Severus carefully lifted his hand and touched her shoulder to stop her from running to Logan's side when the Mortem dragged him from the tree and pushed him down to the ground.

Severus couldn't help but hope that Dumbledore and Mad-Eye were on their way. He would of course fight alongside Minerva if he needed to but he hoped it wouldn't come to that. Death Eaters were dangerous and although he was confident in his and Minerva's abilities, he knew they could be at risk going head to head with three Death Eaters.

"We need to be careful," he reminded her.

"You don't need to keep saying that," she narrowed her eyes at him. "I know what I'm doing..."

At that a long drawn out scream drew their attention. Logan withered on the floor, his captors looming over him as Kholuf tortured him.

Minerva stood up and Severus quickly caught hold of her arm.

"Minerva, what are you doing?" He tried to pull her back down.

"Let go of me, Severus..." she pulled her arm out of his grip and before she could step forward, he jumped up and stood in front of her.

"It's too dangerous!" He said through gritted teeth.

"I will not let them hurt my son!" She elbowed him aside and pushed past him.

Severus could do nothing but watch as Minerva ran into the clearing. The three men turned to look at her, their eyes bright with excitement as they each raised their wands.

"Well what do we have here?" Mortem asked.

"It's got to be one of those Ministry Officials, we knew they'd come sooner or later," Moldark said.

"No, I know you," Kholuf gave a menacing grin. "Good day to you, Professor McGonagall."

Severus jumped to his feet and chased after her, his wand also raised.

But before he could get too far, time seemed to stop.

The air around them began to change. Minerva stood stock still, her wand clasped tightly in her hand by her side. Why didn't she have it raised? He tried to run toward her, to help to protect her but his feet felt heavy, like he was trying to run in a dream. But this wasn't a dream; they were here in the clearing, Logan lying still on the ground as the men tortured him.

"Let him go..."

Minerva's words were soft, almost like a caress but there was an edge to them, a veiled threat that something would happen if they didn't do as she asked.

The men smirked and Kholuf began to advance on her but Severus caught the moment it changed. He saw the way each of the men looked down at their feet, the glee in their eyes quickly turning to confusion. He realised it wasn't just him that couldn't move, it was happening to them too. Severus glanced back to Minerva and this time he noticed that she was slowly turning her wand with her fingers, a slight movement that he missed the first time. This magic, whatever it was, it was her.

"What is this?" Kholuf shouted with panic in his voice. "What are you doing?!"

"Let him go." This time Minerva's voice was louder, the edge more evident.

When the men still didn't do as she asked, he watched her flick her wrist and suddenly Severus was hit with a blast so forceful he was knocked to the ground. He opened his eyes to clouds of debris falling around him. It sparkled in the air like glitter, landing on his clothes as dust. His ears rang as if something loud had gone off and he shook his head to get rid of the feeling. He rose to his feet, staggering slightly from the blast. He lifted his head to see the three men struggling to their feet too.

"Minerva..."

Minerva turned to look at him over her shoulder and he froze at what he saw in her eyes. Hatred. So much hate.

"Minerva..." he stumbled toward her but before he could reach her, something blocked him. He could see nothing around him but he could feel a solid wall under his hands. "Minerva, let me through. Let me help. Please!"

Minerva turned her head away from him and raised her wand toward the three Death Eaters. Severus banged against the wall, withdrew his wand and sent curses at it, hoping that something would break through. But he couldn't, the wall of magic she had erected was solid. Even as a child he knew that his teacher was a powerful witch, had discovered what she was capable of when he reconnected with her as an adult. But what he was witnessing in that moment... he hadn't realised just how powerful she was. Was this the reason Albus had not allowed her to join the order? Was he perhaps afraid of what her power could yield?

"Minerva, damn you! Let me..." he stopped mid-sentence when he saw the three men aim curses at her. Three glowing orbs raced toward her but instead of colliding with her, they stopped just before as a blue aura pulsed around her. The orbs grew brighter, as though they were trying to penetrate the aura until suddenly they began to dim. The orbs began to turn blue and fade into the aura which grew brighter as it absorbed the magic.

Mortem and Moldark took a tentative step back; their wands lowering just a touch but Kholuf, the leader, stepped forward and shouted another curse.

Severus hated not being able to do something, he hated to stand by and watch events unfold but Minerva had given him no choice. She had pushed him away, keeping him out of harm's way and he resented her for it.

"Minerva!" He shouted against the wall and tried another curse but the wall remained intact, standing resolutely between them. "Damn you!"

Kholuf was still approaching Minerva, continuing to throw curses at her. The aura continued to brighten, to pulse around her until all of a sudden, the aura pulsed once more and then disappeared in a flash, leaving them in darkness.

Severus fell forward slightly as the wall disappeared and by the time he looked up Kholuf was lying in the grass, completely still and Severus wondered if he was dead.

Mortem and Moldark were also on the floor but they wriggled against invisible bonds, definitely still alive.

Severus glanced toward Minerva who was kneeling on the floor; her body slumped over, completely drained. He raced toward her and knelt down in front of her. He cupped her face in his hands, lifting her until she looked at him in the eyes.

"Minerva..."

She pulled away from him, looking down at the ground. "Lo... Logan..." her voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper. She lifted a shaking hand to point to where Logan was slowly drifting down to the ground. "Check... Logan..."

"My concern is you..." he began but she shook her head, her eyes lifted to meet his and he noticed they were filled with tears.

"Please..."

He sighed, knowing he couldn't ignore her plea. He pressed his forehead against hers and closed his eyes. "I didn't want this for you," he said quietly.

He felt Minerva's hand reach up to touch his cheek. "I know..."

He caught her hand in his as it fell and pressed his lips against her knuckles. Her skin was icy to touch and he wondered what price her power had come at, what had it done to her body? Before he ran to Logan, he shrugged out of his cloak and draped it around her shoulders. She seemed to curl in on herself as she snuggled down into the extra warmth his cloak provided.

"Logan..." she reminded him. Severus sighed, he didn't want to leave her but he knew she would not allow him to take care of her if she didn't know her son was safe.

Severus rose from the ground and made his way over to Logan. He could feel Minerva's eyes on him as he knelt beside Logan's body to check for a pulse. It was there, strong and steady. He looked over at Minerva and nodded. He watched her head drop, a sob wrack her body as relief flooded her entire system. Severus carefully lifted Logan's body with a levitation charm and took him over to her.

Minerva fell to Logan's side, her hands reaching for his face. She wiped at the blood on his forehead and pressed a kiss there as she clung to him.

Severus sat back and watched her. He couldn't imagine what she was feeling as she rained kisses across his cheeks and whispered things to him. He had never known that kind of love... had never had someone who would travel across the world to find him and bring him home, to protect him. He felt his stomach clench, his heart tighten. Perhaps Lily would have done it for him, once upon a time.

He walked away, giving Minerva time alone with Logan, and checked on the other Auror. He was in some kind of magic induced coma but he seemed unharmed. Severus levitated his body to lie beside Logan's.

He gave Minerva a few more minutes before he gently touched her back to draw her attention. "We must leave," he looked around the clearing.

"We can't just leave..." Minerva said, her weakened voice now trembling from crying. "That man..." she glanced over to where Kholuf still lay and shook her head.

"It was self defence," he said and Minerva gave him an incredulous look. "They would have killed you if you hadn't reacted first."

"Albus and Alastor will be here soon," she looked back down at Logan. "I will wait here with them..."

"Don't ask me to leave," he stared down at her.

"If they find you here..."

"I'm not leaving you," he could feel his anger building. "After everything, how could you think that I would..."

"Aunt Neva..?"

The weakened voice below them stopped their argument and Severus looked down at the man lying on the ground.

"Aunt Neva... what..?" Logan tried to sit up but Minerva quickly pushed him back down gently. He grimaced from the pain he felt.

"Hush boy," she brushed her fingers through his hair and leaned down closer. "You're safe."

"Did you..? Logan's eyes were filled with confusion and fear. "You can't be here, they will kill you..."

"You're safe," Minerva repeated. "I'll explain everything but for now, try to stay calm."

Severus knelt down and handed Minerva a potion he kept in his emergency supplies. "Dreamless sleep," he said quietly. "It might be best to keep him sedated until we get him to hospital."

Minerva reached for the bottle but Severus noticed how her hands shook. She glanced up and met his eyes, he could see how weak she was.

Severus looked down at Logan. "I need you to drink this," he opened the bottle and lowered it to his mouth. "It will help with the pain."

At first Logan shook his head and refused the potion.

"Please Logan," Minerva pleaded with him. "Please take it."

"But..." Logan winced. "If they come back... I must protect you..."

"The potion will help with that," Severus quickly jumped in.

"Trust us," Minerva gave him a soft smile. "Trust me."

With that, Logan took the bottle and with Severus's help, drained the potion.

"Thank you," Minerva said to Severus as they watched Logan drift off to sleep.

"I wish I had two," Severus mumbled. "You could do with a good sleep too." He watched Minerva smile.

"I will sleep now that I know he's safe," she said, her voice heavy with exhaustion. Severus watched her look over at the three Death Eaters. "We should secure them, we don't want them getting away..."

"I will do that," Severus offered. He wanted to make sure that Minerva rested after whatever magic she had used to take the three men down. He quickly got to his feet and walked to the Death Eaters.

"You'll pay for this," Mortem seethed.

"We know who you are, traitor," Moldark said.

Severus ignored them as he took care of Kholuf who was still unconscious. He quickly checked that he was still alive and then bound him to prevent him from escaping.

"The Dark Lord will return," Mortem spat. "He will rise again."

"I'm sure he will," Severus quickly slipped into the man these Death Eaters expected him to be. It wasn't as easy as it had been a year ago.

"He'll have you hunted as soon as he draws breath again and we'll be right by his side, watching him rip your body apart," Moldark said.

"Let me ask you," Severus turned to look at the two men. "Who do you think the Dark Lord will keep by his side?" He knelt down and began to strengthen the bonds on the two of them. "Will he keep the idiots who got themselves captured by an old school teacher, or will he take the one who gained the trust and confidence of his biggest enemy?"

The two men seemed surprised, maybe even confused by the question.

"He's talking about Dumbledore," Moldark mumbled.

"I know that," Mortem snapped. "I don't believe him."

"The man is old and wise but he is naive," Severus said watching the two men carefully as he began to weave a carefully worded lie. "He believes in second chances."

"You're not doing anything to support the Dark Lord," Mortem was becoming angrier. "You have done nothing to bring him back!"

"The Dark Lord does not require my assistance with that," he said. "But when he does return, I will be in a position to most help him take down Dumbledore..."

"Severus?"

Severus turned to see Minerva standing behind him, a confused look on her face.

"If you're telling the truth," Mortem began. "Then kill her."

Severus kept his eyes on her and he could see the river of emotions swirling in her eyes. He slowly rose to his feet, his wand hanging lose in his hand. He watched Minerva's eyes look down at his wand, how they had darkened dangerously by the time she looked up at him again.

"Do it," she said. "If this is where your true loyalties are, then do it..."

Severus couldn't take how cold her eyes had become. She had to know that he was lying to the Death Eater's, that he was playing a role for pretence and that he would never hurt her... she had to know that...

Before he could do anything, two flashes of bright magic hit the two Death Eaters and they slumped to the ground. Severus ducked down, pulling Minerva with him.

"You're in a world of trouble!" Mad-Eye shouted as he stomped angrily out of the forest. "Both of you!"

Mad-Eye was accompanied by Auror's, the majority of whom had quickly surrounded the Death Eaters while the others began treating Logan and his friend.

"Dumbledore is furious," Mad-Eye said to Minerva. "What the hell did you think you were doing coming out here?!"

"Surely you don't need to ask that?" Minerva asked, her voice was short and clipped.

Mad-Eye frowned. "You could have been killed!"

"This isn't the first time I've risked my life for his safety," she said. "I can't stop him from living his life but I will not stand on the sidelines when that life is in danger."

"We'll talk about this later," Mad-Eye said with a disapproving snort. He glanced toward Severus and gave him a long, cold stare. "I expected better from you."

"From me?" Severus sneered. "You really expected better from a Death Eater?"

"You have his trust, I thought you were different..."

"He is," Minerva interrupted. "He is loyal, Alastor, just not to you." Severus met her eyes but she quickly looked away.

"Albus wants to speak with you both," Mad-Eye gave a frustrated sigh. "My team will take Logan and Jimmy to St Mungos, I want you both to go with them to get checked over."

"I'm fine," Minerva said.

"You don't have a choice," Mad-Eye said with a stern voice. "If you want to get out of here, you'll go to St Mungos."

Minerva had stayed by Logan's side once they were transported to St Mungos. They had both been checked over by Healers and given the all clear but Severus still kept a watchful eye over her.

They Healers had kept Logan under sedation while they worked on the injuries to his body. They had told Minerva that while his body would have recovered within a few days, his mind could take longer...

Minerva hadn't spoken to him since Mad-Eye had interrupted their tense scene n Russia and Severus was beginning to worry. He wanted to talk to her about what had happened, about what she had overheard. But he knew he wasn't her priority right now, that her mind was on her son.

A knock at the door brought him out of his thoughts and he turned to see a young Healer walk into the room. "Excuse me Professor," the witch hesitantly waited until Minerva turned to look at her. "We need to run some tests..."

"We can step outside," Minerva touched her fingers to Logan's cheek before she stood up.

"The room next door isn't in use if you want to rest in there," the Healer offered. "I'll let you know once we've finished."

"Thank you," Minerva said.

Severus followed her out of the room and into the room next door to Logan's. He closed the door behind them and turned to see Minerva looking out of the window.

"You don't have to stay," she said without turning to look at him.

"Do you wish me to leave?" He could feel himself becoming angry.

They were both quiet for a moment, Minerva continued to stare out of the window and Severus hovered behind her, unsure what to do. He just needed her to understand.

"I wouldn't have done it, you know," he said. "I wouldn't have hurt you."

"I know," Minerva said softly.

Severus felt some relief at hearing her say that but the tight knot of guilt only got worst. "What you heard me say to them..."

"He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named may be gone but there is still so much work to be done in capturing his followers," she turned slowly to face him. "You were one of them once; I am in no doubt that your knowledge of them will be of use to Albus and the Ministry. You want to keep any loyalties you had with those people because Albus has asked you to keep your ear to the ground... is that right?"

Severus frowned. "Yes..." If she knew what had been going on, why had she been distant with him? He watched her lower her eyes and he knew she was worrying over something. "What is it?" He took a step toward her but stopped when he noticed the way she tensed. "What's wrong?"

"What you saw... what I did..." her voice cracked and she took a shaky breath.

"You protected your family," he said, his voice full of understanding. "You did that, all by yourself." She turned away from him again and wrapped her arms around herself. "What was it that you did? I've never seen magic like that..."

"Ancient spells," she said. "Family spells my father taught me... it served its purpose but I should've have done it..."

"Why?"

"Our bodies are not built to withstand that kind of power alone," she said. "It was Coven magic. It is supposed to be cast by many at once."

"It could have killed you," Severus said, realising what she had done to herself. It hadn't been the Death Eaters who were a danger to her; the real threat had been herself.

"I felt it," she said quietly. "If I had held on even a moment longer, the magic would have consumed me..." she gave a shaky breath. "I can be selfish sometimes," she said. "I didn't care about myself out there but upon reflection I can't help but think about Logan and Lydia if it had all gone wrong. How would they have felt if I had died protecting him?" She turned around to face Severus once again and as soon as he caught sight of the tears on her cheeks, he raced toward her and held her tight.

"You are not selfish," he said as she sobbed into his shoulder. "You are frustratingly selfless, always putting everyone else before yourself, no matter what you do. He is your son... he is fortunate to have someone like you in his life, someone who will fight for him." He envied Logan sometimes, for having someone like her who would give up everything for him.

"I scared you, didn't I?" She looked up at him. "When I blocked you out... I scared you."

"Yes," he said honestly. "But only because I wanted to fight by your side."

He watched her lips pull up into a smile through her tears. "I would fight for you Severus," she said, having obviously caught the meaning behind Severus's words. "I love you just as much as my family."

Severus stared at her for a moment. His mind was focused on one thing; she loved him as much as her family? He had quickly learned just how important family was to her in the early days of their friendship and so to hear her compare her feeling for him to that of her family, he was touched. He felt Minerva wrap her arms around his neck and hug him.

After hearing her say it first, he knew he felt the same way. It's wasn't a romantic love, he wasn't in love with her as he had been with Lily, but he was starting to realise what it was he was feeling for her. He loved her. He loved her in a way he had never loved anyone before, definitely not his family. She was his friend, probably the only person he trusted and felt safe with... she made his dark world a little less bleak, she was that one glimmer of hope he had never been able to find.

He wrapped his arms around Minerva's waist and held her tightly. "I would do anything for you," he whispered against her neck. "Anything."

Severus closed his eyes as he felt Minerva tighten her hug. He knew she had heard it, had heard what he had been unable to say out loud.

I love you.

Well, there it is. Minerva basically telling him he's part of her family and Severus telling her that she is everything to him, in his own way of course. We can't expect him to talk about his feelings so openly, not even for Christmas!

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it and please remember to let me know what you think.

Love to you all. I hope you have a lovely day.

Merry Christmas and happy holidays! xxx