A/N I apologize for the short length of the last chapter, but it served as a logical stopping point. I hope you enjoy this chapter. I haven't received many reviews, so cannot help but believe interest is waning. Still, I will not abandon the story, and I hope you won't either.

Chapter 14

McGonagall Manor, Scotland, Thursday, April 17, 2014 (aka the never-ending day)

Sighing happily, Hermione pushed back gently into the sinfully soft body spooning her. Talented fingers languidly stroked her from breast to belly in a hypnotic fashion, lulling her into a light doze. They had spent much of their vacation in each other's arms, taking advantage of no interruptions to leisurely make love, cuddle, and talk. Although they were loving and passionate while at Hogwarts, too, the work and time constraints inherent with the venerable school often curtailed their ability to indulge to such an extent. During this vacation, however, they had taken the time to explore each other's body inch by inch, tasting, familiarizing, marking, memorizing. They wore not a stitch of clothing, not worrying that someone might appear at their door unannounced needing immediate attention.

Hermione stretched, moaning as her back arched and two warm hands pulled her hips into Minerva's alluring body. She felt her mate grinding into her backside, and Hermione positioned her leg on top of Minerva's toned thigh, opening herself up completely to inquisitive fingers which slid through her wet folds.

"Hermione, mo Gràdh, you feel delicious," Minerva murmured, her lips grazing Hermione's ear, causing her to shudder with arousal.

"Minerva, please! I need to feel you." Hermione's passion rose higher as those talented fingers lightly stroked through the copious amount of liquid her body was creating in anticipation of making love. She wanted a stronger touch—needed it.

"Mmm, I know, my dear. I'll take care of you. I do love how your body responds to me," Minerva said. The light panting Hermione heard near her ear indicated just how much Minerva was affected by touching her.

Hermione undulated sinuously against her wife's body, feeling Minerva shadow each motion with her own body. She felt light nips delivered down her neck and shuddered with arousal. Two fingers rubbed on either side of her swollen bundle of nerves, causing Hermione to moan long and low, reminiscent of the wind's sound while flowing through Hogwart's empty corridors late at night. Hermione pushed her lower body toward those tortuous fingers, desiring a stronger pressure. She moved her hand to capture them, but Minerva evaded her touch and restrained Hermione's hand gently while sucking on her neck.

"In a hurry, are we?" Minerva's lightly chuckled as she squeezed Hermione's hand, continuing to move her body in the slow, sensuous rhythm they had set.

"You are driving me crazy, woman! Touch me!" Hermione practically growled.

"Mmmm. As you wish," Minerva murmured, her hand releasing Hermione's and sliding into her slick folds forcefully, filling her completely.

"Yes!" Hermione hissed.

They picked up speed as Minerva touched Hermione just where she needed. Hermione's thighs and buttocks tightened as she pushed upward each time Minerva pressed the palm of her hand against Hermione's sensitive clitoris. "Just…a little…more," Hermione huffed, half out of her mind with how good it felt.

A bright light illuminated the room quite suddenly, causing them to pull apart and reach for their wands. A white vapor took the shape of a crocodile and spoke with Andy's voice. "I am with the Priestly twins directly outside of Hogwarts' front gates. We are being attacked by several Death Eaters. I have sent word to the Aurors on the property, but there are at least a dozen surrounding us. Hurry."

Jumping out of bed, Hermione stumbled slightly as she attempted to ignore how her body throbbed with want. She felt strong arms wrap around her waist from behind. "Later, mo Gràdh. We will continue this later," Minerva said and kissed her behind the ear before letting go.

They pulled sheets around them, transfiguring them quickly, then raised their wands so that they would be ready for what awaited them and apparated to Hogwarts' gates. As Hermione let loose with a stun spell on the nearest Death Eater, she saw Andy tackle one the twins—Caroline?—saving the young woman from a hex. They rolled to the side, and Andy jumped up with a spell on her lips. Hermione could not watch any longer, however, as she needed to protect herself from several curses thrown at her.

One curse whistled over her head as she ducked, and Hermione promptly directed a Confundus charm at her attacker, coupling it with a Conjunctivitis curse. The masked Death Eater roared in pain and ripped off her mask. Hermione gasped when she recognized the woman. It was Daphne Greengrass, Draco Malfoy's sister-in-law. Hermione would be quite shocked if Draco was part of this conspiracy. He and his parents had turned their backs on the Death Eaters at the end of the Second Wizarding War. Hermione incapacitated the screeching witch with a strong stun spell and looked around to see how everyone else was faring.

She saw Minerva down the dirt road dueling with a tall, muscular man. Noticing another man running toward them, wand arm extended, Hermione yelled out, "Epoximise," as she aimed at a bunch of large rocks and swung her arm toward the man. The rocks adhered to his body forcefully, knocking him over.

Hearing an explosion, Hermione ran toward Andy, Caroline, and Cassidy. She watched in awe as Andy created a mini-tornado and directed it toward three Death Eaters. A low, constant rumbling filled the air, as if the whirlwind were discontented with the food it was given to eat. Hail ejected out of its funnel, bouncing off the quickly-soaked ground. The Death Eaters were caught up in the debris and lifted fifteen feet above the ground, arms and legs askew. Masks were ripped off, robes torn open, and boots pulled away by the high-level winds and debris feeding the unnatural whirlwind. Andy released them, and the Death Eaters were easily apprehended after they fell heavily, battered and breathless, onto the ground.

"Wow, Professor!" one of the twins exclaimed. "That was unbelievable!"

Andy chuckled. "I assure you, Cassidy, with magic just about anything is possible."

"Thanks for protecting us, Professor," Caroline said. "They came out of nowhere."

Minerva joined Hermione, who stood off to one side of the subdued Death Eaters. Her face showed her distaste. "Rodolphus and Rabastan Lestrange. How unfortunate to see you again. Did you truly believe you would prevail?"

Hermione looked on in shock. Rodolphus was the widower of Bellatrix, and Rabastan was his brother. Remembering how Bellatrix had ruthlessly tortured her during the Second Wizarding War under the guise of furthering Voldemort's plans, Hermione felt bile rise in her throat, and stepping behind a nearby tree, Hermione bent over to vomit. After an endless few minutes, Hermione wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and grimaced. Angry with herself at this apparent weakness, Hermione stood up stiffly and leaned against the tree, listening to Minerva's conversation with the Lestranges.

"Why were you attacking?" Minerva demanded.

"Did you really believe we would slink into the background, live in the shadows just because Voldemort no longer leads us?" Rodolphus sneered. "We have planned for this day, and victory is within our grasp!" He balled his hand into a fist and shook it at Minerva. "You cannot stop us. And these girls," he flipped his hand dismissively at the Priestly twins, "will be our bargaining chip with their mother."

"You are awfully confident considering you are surrounded," one of the Aurors said. Hermione had never met him before.

"You are so pathetic. So short-sighted," Daphne mocked. "Here you are wasting your time defending these pathetic shadows of the Princhek line while their mother is no doubt already under our colleagues' control." She smiled meanly. "She was lured there by another dragon attack at the MacFusty Dragon Sanctuary at dawn. Unlike past attacks, however, she found two dragons and several Death Eaters waiting for her. She will agree to join us, using her unique gift on our behalf, when she learns that her precious daughters are under our control."

"Obviously, they are not," Hermione said firmly pointing to the young women.

"She doesn't know that, though," Rabastan said, contempt dripping from his words.

"Andrea," Minerva called urgently, "you have to go to Miranda. Now. Let her know that her daughters are safe. We will contact the Ministry and send help as soon as we can."

Watching grim determination settle over Andy's face, Hermione stepped forward and said, "I'll go with you."

A hand on her arm stopped her. Confused, Hermione gazed into concerned emerald eyes.

"No, Hermione. We must keep Miranda's daughters safe and help secure Hogwarts," Minerva said softly. She turned toward her niece. "Go, Andrea." A moment later Andy was gone.

In a low voice, Hermione said, "Don't you find it suspicious that we were able to capture them so quickly? They are a diversion. We need to help Miranda." Hermione stared into her wife's eyes earnestly.

"Andrea will help her," Minerva insisted. "And I am sure more Aurors have already arrived at the sanctuary."

"Aren't you going to help my mom?" Caroline interjected.

Hermione turned toward her and smiled reassuringly. "Professor McGonagall has left to join her, and the Ministry is sending reinforcements. She will be fine."

"But what about you?" Cassidy asked. "No one could win if you helped them, too." Her eyes flickered between Hermione and Minerva beseechingly.

"Thank you, dear," Minerva said, patting Cassidy's arm. "We appreciate your confidence in our abilities. Surely you must know that Professor McGonagall is extremely skilled, as are the Aurors."

"Yes, but they might not be enough!" Caroline said. "Mom hasn't been in a duel since before we were born!"

"Your mother is an extremely powerful witch. You have never had occasion to witness her talents, but I assure you, she is one of the best alive," Minerva said. Hermione's eyebrows rose in surprise. She had no idea.

"Excuse me," one of the Aurors interrupted. Hermione recognized him to be Jackson Williamson. She had met him and some of the other Aurors before vacationing at the Manor. He motioned for them to come with him. Once they had moved away from everyone else, he placed a silencing charm around them. "We have word that the Death Eaters at the MacFusty Dragon Sanctuary are putting up quite a fight. We have several injuries, including two deaths." His solemn countenance reinforced just how perilous the situation was.

Instinctively, Hermione glanced over at Caroline and Cassidy, concerned with how they might react to the news. Her eyes met Caroline's, and Hermione realized her mistake when comprehension filled those blue eyes and she emitted a startled cry.

Caroline grabbed her sister's arm and disapparated.

"No!" Hermione yelled, hand extended uselessly. "Shit!"

"Well, that changes our plans," Minerva muttered. She looked at Jackson. "You'll have to finish up here. We'll go after them."

A moment later Hermione and Minerva apparated into a burnt, soggy field at the bottom of a large hill. Rain pelted her as she looked around. In seconds she was drenched. She could hear shouts and roars from beyond the crest of the hill. Through tacit agreement, she and Minerva made their way up the incline, wands drawn. Once they reached the top, Hermione's mouth dropped open in shock.

Before her was the proof of a vicious battle. Several people lay in the mud unmoving, limbs resting in odd positions and blood soaking the ground around them, making Hermione queasy. She hadn't seen such destruction since the times of Voldemort's reign of terror. Rubble littered the ground, and most of the structures were decimated.

Hearing a roar, she looked up, blinking against the cold rain drops, to stare with wide eyes at the largest dragon she had ever seen. The wingspan alone easily reached fifty feet. She, Harry, and Ron had released a similar dragon—a Ukrainian Ironbelly—when they had broken in to the Lestrange vault at Gringotts during the Second Wizarding War to find a horcrux. That dragon had been a pale gray, much smaller and less powerful, no doubt due to its captivity. This one was powerful, enormous, and angry.

Behind a large boulder the twins squatted. Evidently, they had not yet been spotted. She saw Miranda and Andy across the field, battling back to back against seven black-robed, masked Death Eaters. Aurors dueled with several others while the sanctuary employees attempted to stun the dragon. More Death Eaters apparated in, and Miranda was hit by a spell. One of the twins yelled out and began running toward her mother, her sister in hot pursuit. Andy turned and threw spell after spell at those who had turned their malevolent intentions toward the two young women.

"We need to get down there," Hermione said urgently. She could see the Death Eaters focusing on the Priestlys and Andy. They would not be able to fight off so many for more than a few minutes.

"Hermione, turn into a phoenix," Minerva directed as her eyes flittered over the field of battle. She made the change quickly, not needing to know Minerva's motivation. Once she turned into her animagus form, Minerva wrapped an arm around her and extended her wand arm. "Apparate to them and then change back."

With a loud squawk, Hermione apparated across the field, startling everyone enough that they stopped dueling for a few moments. Unfortunately, the Death Eaters recovered from their surprise more quickly, and before Hermione knew what was happening, she felt excruciating pain overtake her and heard her name wrenched from Minerva's mouth in such a terrified voice that it jarred Hermione's soul. She was unable to reassure her wife, though, since at that moment she felt her body convulse and burst into flames.

A/N Don't worry-leaving you with two cliffhangers in a row is a bit too brutal, so I have posted the next chapter for you. Enjoy!