Chapter 13

Princhek townhouse, London, Thursday, April 17, 2014 (aka the never-ending day)

A roar broke the early morning silence, jolting Miranda awake. She sat up as she heard more roars fill the air. Annoyed, Miranda's muddled mind tried to recapture the kiss she had just experienced in her dream. Andrea. Oh, how she missed the younger witch. Miranda hadn't seen her since Sunday. She craved Andrea's touch. If her work did not hinge upon the life and death of others, she would have kidnapped Andrea days ago and locked them both into a bedroom. It made her wonder how she would have acted if they had begun this thing while they were both in New York City. Would she have skipped work, turned her back on Runway, to whisk Andrea away to a secluded area? Surprisingly enough, she was quite sure that is exactly what she would have done.

To think that she had wasted so much time, so many years. At least she would see her tonight at McGonagall Manor for dinner—provided, of course, that their plans did not change.

Seeing the flash of flames lighting up the shadowed hallway, Miranda rose quickly and strode toward her den while combing her hair back from her eyes with her fingers. She stopped short at the door, stunned. The Hebridean Black statue was animated, though she had not activated it with her wand. It flew in wide circles, spewing fire through the cool morning air.

A booming voice invaded Miranda's mind.

Look to sky, Dragon Whisperer. Protect my land. Protect my clan. Beware of those who seek to destroy you and your kin.

What do you mean look to the sky? Miranda questioned silently. Is a dragon attack occurring here? She tilted her head back as if she would be able to see the dawning day through her ceiling.

My land, Dragon Whisperer. Go to Skye, the Hebridean thundered before roaring fiercely. Its purple eyes glowed with fury.

Miranda felt ridiculous. Of course the Hebridean was referring to the Isle of Skye, one of the islands of the Inner Hebrides in Scotland. She rushed to her bedroom to change, donning ebony dragon leather pants and matching boots, a warm rum-colored jumper, and a long ebony dragon leather coat. The leather would protect her not just from the elements, but also from dragon fire and several types of spells.

Returning to the den, Miranda pulled out a map of Scotland and studied the Hebridean area. She needed to focus so she could apparate to the remote island. She wondered whether the attack was occurring at the dragon sanctuary that the MacFusty clan ran. She hadn't had time to visit that one, yet. If memory served, it was on the island of Skye. She should probably begin there. Staring at the map for several minutes, Miranda gritted her teeth.

Then she apparated into chaos.

Instinctually, Miranda crouched and scuttled behind a large boulder. The sky lit up momentarily as a gigantic Hungarian Horntail let loose a long stream of fire. A female, she realized. Miranda raised her head enough to look around and saw several people running after the dragon, their wands waving in the air as various spells jetted from them. Most spells missed their marks, and the few that reached the dragon seemed to bounce off her black hide. The dragon wheeled in the air and dove toward the group of wizards, her maw opened in preparation of releasing another cascade of flame. Fire bounced off an invisible bubble which protected them, and Miranda sighed with relief. She noticed how several men, rather than wearing wizarding robes, wore heavy wool jumpers and tartan kilts. She realized they must be members of the MacFusty Clan, responsible for running the dragon sanctuary here where the Hebridean Blacks lived.

The dragon stopped her attack when she realized the wizards' protective spells were preventing the flames from reaching her target. She screeched her frustration before changing course, heading for the structures. Miranda knew what lay beyond the large hill directly ahead. Miranda could hear roars coming from that direction and guessed that another dragon was wreaking havoc there. At least one.

Stop! Her mind shouted at the Hungarian Horntail, hoping to disrupt the dragon's plans. She was confounded to find that she could not hear the dragon's thoughts. Normally, it was like tuning in to a particular radio station. She would just focus on the dragon near her and hear the thoughts as easily as she could hear the voice of anyone conversing with her. Now, though, she heard only a weak voice spitting forth fractured words.

My eggs…attack…dark magic….must…all gone…

A yowl filled the air as the dragon changed directions, once more focusing on the wizards attempting to stun her. Enough of them had banded together to direct a powerful combined stun, pushing the dragon backward.

Miranda continued to hide behind the large rock while attempting to mentally batter the dragon's mind. It was as if she were punching a brick wall. She tried to find an access point, somewhere that would allow her to infiltrate the dragon's mind. Finally, she turned to legilamency to punch through the block. She hated using this method—invading another's mind—but she felt she had no choice. Her body trembled as she concentrated on the images she saw streaming through the dragon's consciousness.

Death Eaters using the Imperius Curse on her and five other dragons…watching as the dark wizards destroyed several dragons' eggs, including one of her own…hearing the threat that the rest of the dragons' eggs would be destroyed if the dragons did not do as they were directed…attacks on people and property…flights to a rural, mountainous area near a moorland covered with purple heather where they were instructed to remain until otherwise directed.

Miranda recognized the barren area, at least, having hiked on that land many times during her youth. Now that she knew where the rogue dragons were, they only needed to find the eggs. Why would they need to threaten the dragons after they had placed the Imperius Curse on them? Miranda wondered, confused.

Refocusing on the dragon as she let out a horrible screech, no doubt due to Miranda's mental invasion, Miranda concentrated on breaking the curse. She could feel her energy draining as she pulled at the spell, unraveling it and removing the strands from the dragon's mind. She marveled at the strength of the spell-casters—placing such a curse on the dragons must have been extremely difficult. A dragon's mind was quite complex and powerful. Why would they go through such effort?

Finally, she felt something snap, like an elastic band, and she could hear the dragon's thoughts easily. You are free of the curse. Stop the attack, Miranda directed.

I cannot! They will kill my offspring, the dragon said, her thoughts reflecting sadness and anger.

We will save your eggs and free the other dragons, Miranda insisted, exasperated.

With a yowl the dragon veered toward Miranda and let loose a fierce barrage of flame. Miranda hurriedly protected herself with a shield charm, throwing a hand up in front of her head reflexively as the flames illuminated the sky.

"Ho! Who is that?" Miranda heard one of the wizards shout to her.

She looked away from the dragon momentarily and answered, "Miranda Priestly. You may know me as Miriam Princhek." She reinforced the shield charm as the dragon screeched and expelled another blast of flame at her.

"The Dragon Whisperer," he said, his voice filled with awe.

"Break off your attack on this dragon and concentrate on the other ones," Miranda directed before dismissing the conversation as superfluous and continuing her conversation with the powerful dragon. Why are you attacking me?

You lie! The eggs are hidden. They will be killed if I cease. The dragon roared and continued her fiery assault.

Insulted, Miranda rose to her full height and glared at the dragon. The weak rays of the recently risen sun poked through water-laden clouds and reflected off the dragon's ebony scales as she hung in the air, an enormous shadow in the sky. The maw remained open as flames lapped at Miranda's protective shield, and she could see the sharp, bronze horns on the dragon's face, each pike point glistening in the powerful flare of the fire.

How dare you! When have I ever lied to any of your kind? Treated you dishonorably? Betrayed your trust?

The dragon stopped her scorching onslaught and reared back, screeching into the overcast sky loudly as her wings flapped slowly. My apologies, Dragon Whisperer. However, I must continue to obey their odious orders until our progeny are rescued.

We will find them! Once we do, we will go to where the other dragons are being held and lift the curse from them, Miranda argued fervently. Not hearing any additional thoughts, Miranda felt stymied. I never imagined a dragon could be bound by an Imperius Curse, she mused.

The evildoers caught us unaware. Although we could not overcome the curse or control our actions, some have maintained the ability to recognize and understand what we have been forced to do.

Miranda blanched. That was much worse than mindlessly carrying out the commands dictated by the Death Eaters. She shook her head, saddened by the plight these dragons. Leave, she urged the dragon. Return to where they are keeping you, if you must. I will free the other dragons' minds of those aiding you with this attack and send them back, too. Once we find the eggs, we will come for you.

Only one other is here. The evildoers may realize I am no longer under the Imperius Curse and kill my eggs, the dragon objected.

No reason exists for them to suspect anything has changed, Miranda rejoined. I must go release the other dragon from the curse. Go!

Very well. Fare ye well, Dragon Whisperer, until next we meet, the dragon acquiesced before roaring so loudly that the land shook as she veered away.

Miranda rolled her eyes in exasperation before ascending the hill, mentally noting her tiredness after removing the Imperius Curse from the Hungarian Horntail. She would just have to push her body to keep going until the danger passed. Mounting the crest of the summit, Miranda eyes widened at the sight which greeted her. Four large structures were ablaze, men and women running toward them to extinguish the fires. More worrisome, however, was the house that was flattened—brick, stone, and wood destroyed and splayed around the area as if a tornado had picked it up and dropped it from a great height. Miranda hoped no one had been in the structure when it had been destroyed.

Feeling the wind push at her suddenly, nearly pressing her into the ground, Miranda looked up to see a massive Ukrainian Ironbelly floating through the sky. His dark-red eyes glowed like hot coals as he opened his maw and let loose a stream of flame toward the people attempting to save the Hebridean Blacks and their eggs from harm. As the sun hit the dragon, the gray color of his scales turned bright silver, blinding all who dared to stare.

Wasting no time with attempting to converse with the mammoth beast, Miranda pushed into the dragon's consciousness forcefully, witnessing streams of thought similar to what she had seen in the Hungarian Horntail's mind. She focused on breaking the curse, ignoring her growing fatigue, the shouts, the explosions—everything faded into the background as she sought to release the dragon from its unnatural mental prison.

As with the Horntail, she felt a snapping sensation directly before words flowed through her consciousness. The dragon was perplexed to find himself attacking a dragon sanctuary. Miranda was horrified to realize that some of the dragons had succumbed entirely to the Imperius Curse, blocking knowledge of their actions.

You are free of the Imperius Curse. Stop your attack on your brethren and distant kin, she instructed.

How did I get here? Why am I attacking the sanctuary? Where am I to go? And so Miranda's mind flooded with question after question.

Just as she was about to answer his questions and continue persuading him to stop his attack, Miranda felt her body become airborne as a stun spell hit her back and propelled her twenty feet through the air. She lost her breath when she hit the rocky ground, and she could taste the metallic tinge that signaled a split lip—the result of hitting her head as she landed. Groaning, her body overwhelmed from the magic she had expended to free the two dragons, Miranda turned her head to see who had attacked her. She heard several popping noises, even as she watched a broad-shouldered man began to stride toward her, wand raised. Looking around, she saw a dozen dark-robed figures wearing masks spreading across the scorched field at the bottom of the hill where she had landed. A hex bounced off the defensive shield she quickly erected even as her mind identified the new arrivals: Death Eaters.

"Fabulous," Miranda muttered while dragging herself off the ground, wincing as the ribs on her right side twinged. "Just fucking fabulous."