Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Minerva McGonagall, sadly.

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CHAPTER 19

(Summer 1989)

"WHAAAAAT?!" Minerva winced in sympathy as Daniel flinched and held the phone about a foot away from his head. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU'RE ENGAGED?! TO WHOM?!" Daniel's mother did not sound pleased.

Minerva and Daniel had been making phone calls and letting family and friends (well, only a very few on Minerva's side) know about the engagement and upcoming wedding. The general sentiment seemed to be complete and utter astonishment.

Minerva did feel somewhat sheepish when forced to admit that she'd only known the man for a handful of weeks, but her joy managed to assuage her feelings very nicely…as did the man himself. Talk about chemistry! She began to blush just thinking about it; they just could not seem to keep their hands off each other.

Each moment they spent together only made them hungry for more. After Lizzy's daughter, Sadie, had caught them making out for the third time, Lizzy had hinted that perhaps Minerva should move her things to Daniels house; however, they both knew she'd been teasing. Minerva's parents—particularly her strait-laced father—would not react well to the couple cohabitating before marriage.

So the couple had to put up with the embarrassment of being caught kissing, touching, and making out by every member of the family. Will had joked that they were living in one another's back pockets.

At least we won't have to wait long. Minerva thought as she gazed admiringly at the sparkling engagement ring on her slender ring finger.

Agents Peregrine and Picquery had been very helpful about explaining the fine points of the regulations, which had boiled down to the couple having to set a definite wedding date, no longer than six months after revealing the magical world. If the date were pushed too far back or the wedding were canceled, then Daniel would have to be obliviated.

Neither Daniel nor Minerva had wanted a big wedding—it being the second marriage for both of them, and mostly a secret on Minerva's side—so they'd decided on two weeks, to give their family members time to travel to the island. Then they'd obtain a marriage license from the local courthouse and have a quiet ceremony on the beach in front of Daniel's house.

"Minerva," Daniel had assured her when he'd knelt before her with the engagement ring, "I knew on our first date that I'd fall in love with you and marry you. I'd have asked you to be my wife without any of those regulations. All they've done is help speed up our timeline. And I'm not complaining at all, because it just means more of my life that I get to spend with my favorite person. I love you, Minerva McGonagall. Will you marry me, and let me spend the rest of my life living and loving with you?"

Minerva had knelt next to him in the warm sand and said, "Yes!" and "I love you too." between kisses and caresses.

The sound of Daniel setting the phone down brought Minerva out of her thoughts.

"Well, that went well, I think." He said happily.

"Well?" Minerva's eyebrows shot up.

"I mean," Daniel plopped down next to her on the couch. "They were surprised, but they'll get over that. And they're all coming to the wedding. And they'll all understand, as soon as they meet you, why I had to snatch you up!"

Then, to illustrate his point, he scooped her up, eliciting an undignified squeal from her. He sat her on his lap, pressing his lips to her neck and breathing in the scent of her hair, making her shiver.

The sooner the better. She thought with a moan as he kissed his way down her neck and laid them down on the couch.

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"—nt' M'n'rva?" Liam said around a mouthful of chicken. The family and Minerva and Daniel were enjoying supper together.

"Don't talk with your mouth full, Liam." Lizzy said, not for the first time, and Minerva smiled.

"Yes, Liam?" She said.

"Do I have to go to Ilvermorny for school?" the boy said, after swallowing. "Can't I go to Hogwarts, so you can be my teacher?"

Minerva smiled. "You know I would love to see you every day and spend time with you, Liam." Minerva had already had this discussion with Lizzy and Will. "However, at Ilvermorny you will meet friends and get to know your fellow wizards and witches who live nearby. It's important to be involved in your community."

The boy looked unconvinced.

"Besides," she added, "As my nieces and nephews (the children of my brothers) can attest, I couldn't be your 'Auntie Minerva' at Hogwarts. Our relationship would be quite different. You would have to call me 'Professor McGonagall,' and I would have to treat you just like my other students, in order to be fair. And you would soon find that I am very strict with my students."

"Strict?" Liam looked incredulous. "You?" This was a word he would never have applied to the woman who'd spent the summer reading to him, riding bikes with him, playing on the beach with him, and—recently—demonstrating amazing spells and charms for him.

"Must be losing my edge." Minerva commented dryly.

Lizzy snorted. "Liam, trust me, Auntie Minerva can be very strict. She used to babysit me, when I was your age, and she never let me get away with anything!"

"Minerva used to babysit you?" Liam said in surprise.

"I thought she was younger than you!" Sadie piped up.

"Witches age differently than non-magical folk, dears." Minerva explained, glancing at Daniel with a smirk.

He had been very surprised, when they had filled out the paperwork for the marriage license, to discover that Minerva was fully twelve years his senior. After they'd left the courthouse with their license, she'd explained to him why she looked so youthful.

"My little tabby is actually a cougar!" He'd laughed, and she'd elbowed him in the side.

"That's why you and your mother look so young!" Lizzy exclaimed. "I've always wondered why you and Aunt Isobel looked so young, and I just assumed it was genetics!"

"Well, you were right!" Minerva answered with a smile.

"Will Liam be like that?" Lizzy asked.

"Yes." Minerva answered. "Liam will age normally until he reaches physical maturity—about the age of seventeen—then he will age at about one half the rate of a non-magical person."

"So, I know it's totally taboo for a man to ask a woman this," Will said, "but how old are you, Minerva?"

"I'm fifty-three." She smiled.

"You're OLD!" Sadie exclaimed.

"Sadie!" Lizzy admonished, but Minerva only laughed good-naturedly.

"Old enough to have been your mother's babysitter." She winked.

"Geez, Minerva!" Will said. "I thought you were in your mid-thirties!"

"Thank you." She said.

"Wait!" Will said, "So that guy Albus—the one who looks like Merlin—he looks pretty old! How old is he?"

"He's one hundred and eight." She answered.

"Whoah!" Will said.

"Wait," Lizzy said, "A hundred and eight?"

Minerva nodded.

"So do wizards and witches live much longer than regular people?"

"They can do." Minerva answered. "Some live to over one hundred and sixty, though that is rather rare."

"A hundred and sixty?!" Sadie shrieked.

"Holy cow!" Liam exclaimed.

"Indeed." Minerva smiled again.

"If you're a witch," Sadie piped up, "do you ride on a broom?"

"Sadie, that's silly!" Lizzy said.

"Not silly at all!" Minerva exclaimed. "I love to fly!"

"What?" Daniel gasped. "That's a real thing?"

"Absolutely!" Minerva chuckled. "Though the racing brooms we ride don't really look like a broom you'd sweep the floor with. They're sleek and very fast, and we play a sport called quidditch on them."

"Quidditch?" Liam said.

"Yes, quidditch!" She answered. "It's the greatest sport in the world! It's fast, and dangerous, and requires a lot of skill—and it's almost as fun to watch as it is to play!"

"Do you play, Auntie Minerva?" Liam asked with awe.

"I used to. An injury in my seventh year rather put paid to my quidditch aspirations, but I'll play a friendly pick-up game now and then, and I love to cheer on my Gryffindors in the school tournament."

"I love magic!" Liam beamed.

"So do I." Minerva ruffled his hair.

"Minerva," Daniel said with a sly smile, "Show Will and Lizzy the charm to make the dishes wash themselves."

"What?!" Lizzy said, as Minerva waved her wand, and they all watched in wonderment as the dishes flew through the air and began to wash themselves in a sink suddenly full of hot, soapy water. "You have been holding out on me, Minerva McGonagall!"

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AN: Thank you, SchaMG and Spin84, for your helpful reviews! I'm so glad you're enjoying this story! I hope you're all coping during this very strange time.