Chapter 8:Excursion

That morning Mirielle headed to her Potions class, and took a sit in the back as usual. She was going to pay attention to her Professor's reactions toward her after what happened. He entered the class and, as always, gave his short instructions. He made a point not to acknowledge Mirielle's presence. He was going around the classroom handing the last essay he assigned the students. She felt as he involuntarily stiffened slightly every time he passed by her. When he got to the point were he had to hand her the essay he hesitated a second before giving it back, without looking at her. She looked at the grade it was an 'O'. There was also a note:

Tomorrow night's lesson will not require your potion kit.

Bring your Dragon scale gloves.

S.S.

'Wow, he really wants to avoid me as much as possible doesn't he?'

She kept brewing the class potion until it was time to bottle it. She labeled it and stood up to put it on his desk. He was correcting papers when she approached him and saw his breath stop for a short period. Not long after she got to her desk, he dismissed the class.

……………………………………..

Next day went uneventful. Funny how she never realized how her life was so routine like. She just did not want to admit that the only thing she looked forward to now was the reason the rest of her life became a bit dull.

She took the gloves that were necessary for that night's lesson and headed towards the dungeon and knocked on the classroom door.

"Enter." Came his voice.

"Good evening Professor"

He was standing in the shadows behind his desk, back facing the door as he said "Today we shall be going to the forbidden forest. As it is raining, it will be safer. We are going to test your ingredient gathering techniques." After he finished he slowly turned around to face her.

As his deep dark eyes met hers she decided not to keep on the track he was intent on setting.

"So, that's it, isn't it? We are going to pretend that what happened didn't? She said her voice low and calm.

"It's forgotten." He said curtly.

Mirielle lowered her gaze to the floor, for a moment Snape thought the discussion was over but she said, "Forgotten, is it?", and walked around the desk that kept them apart until she came so close to him that he had to take a reflexive step back. Mirielle looked into his eyes again and he could se how hers burned with determination.

"Professor I do not think, nor will I let you make me believe…" She cut what she was saying to take another step towards him, as he took another step backwards to his rising annoyance. And she continued with a smile "…that I'm the only one affected by this closeness."

Snape glared at her, his eyes gleaming, took her shoulders and pinned her roughly to the nearest wall.

"Oh, God" came her surprised whisper, as she turned her gaze sideways to the floor. She was taking short rapid breathes and her heart was pounding.

He lowered his hands but kept her still with just his eyes. Mirielle's legs were trembling but not out of fear, but from the dominance he had projected over her. He was equally affected but by how overpowered she looked. But he ignored that feeling.

"Do you really think I'm going to pay attention to the ramblings of a child that presumes to know what I feel? This is not a game Miss Beaumont…" he stopped what he was saying to glare at her when he saw Mirielle smile to the floor.

"You have no idea how much I would like this was just a game, Professor, and I believe you would love it to be true as well. But to be honest, and I am sorry to break your hopes; I am affected so much by you that my legs can hardly hold me. I am willing to bet your position is not any different. I have heard how your voice trembles almost unnoticeably every time you speak to me. I felt how your hands shake slightly as you backed me up against the wall. And I can hear how every time you are near me…" as she said this she raised a hand and placed it on top of his chest "… your heart thunders in here."

When she placed her hand on him, he gave a small shudder and backed away. Snape looked at her with a face of total disgust and anger for what she was saying, even if he repeated his denial, it still was not far from the truth.

She took the space Snape put between them as an opportunity to head to the door. She had to get away from him for a moment. Her body was behaving in a weird way; it felt sensitive, tingly, and hot, even in the cold dungeons. When Mirielle got to the door, he spoke so she turned to face him.

"Do you really think I would actually come to care for some one like you?" he snarled sounding rude and disgusted by the idea, his eyes gleaming as he looked at her.

"Don't we have a pending lesson?" she said, ignoring his last remark.

Snape glared at her but nodded. He grabbed his protective gloves from the top of his desk as Mirielle conjured up a dark red ribbon. She pulled her hair up to tie it and he saw as her hair grazed her neck as she worked with it. Mirielle turned to look at him and saw as he looked at her.

"You know, sir? It will be difficult to take your words seriously if you stare at me… like that."

Snape watched as she walked out the door, glaring at her back. It took everything in his power to not loose control again. 'I have to agree with Dumbledore now; love, or at least things that are mixed with it, are definitely the strongest magic I have worked against.' He said angry with himself. 'I have gone through many difficult and dark moments, and I have survived… Still I rather go against all of them a hundred times than to go through this.' He thought and he followed her out the dungeon door.

Mirielle was waiting for him at the entrance hall leaning against the door. Snape arrived so she straightened up and opened the door and he followed her. As he said it was raining as they headed to the forbidden forest.

The school robes felt heavy and kind of stuck to her body, it was really cold out so it was uncomfortable. Her hair also got wet and it was sticking to her neck, a fact Snape didn't miss. 'This is going to be a long night' he thought as he sighed.

She was very skilled at finding plants between the wild weed. Snape noticed that she had the ability of finding animals in the most uncommon places and that even if she was a girl she was not squeamish. She found a lizard took it, killed it, took its eyes, legs, heart, and tail without giving it another thought and kept walking. She danced around the forest gracefully, as if it were in her nature finding plants and slaughtering animals in this dangerous place. They kept at it for a while. She identified and collected the ingredients and handed them to her Professor for him to put it in the bags he brought.

They got to a place were there was a good amount of wolfs bane when Snape heard a noise and stop on his tracks. Mirielle noticed it too and took out her wand without making any noise, and went to stand by Professor Snape. They stood back-to-back for protection on both sides. When suddenly something came out from the bushes on Mirielle's side. She used a non-verbal shielding charm, and soon after, casted the spell Petrificus Totalus without uttering a word. When Snape turned to see what was happening, to his surprise, the girl was already taking out a bottle and was about to kneel to collect the creatures fang venom.

When she finished she said, "Not as good as an adult's Acromantula venom but this will be useful for some potions. Don't Acromantulas hunt in groups?"

"Yes they do, this one was not hunting it was probably scared by some creature, we better leave, we don't want to be involved in an unnecessary fight."

They went back, Mirielle had no difficulty moving in the forest so they were out in no time. They kept on walking side by side and as she came to think about it, it felt kind of nice feeling the rain under the moon walking close to the lake with him. In fact it felt perfect she could not imagine it any other way as she did not saw him as a hand in hand, cuddling type of person, and thinking about it she would not want him to be like that.

"What are you staring at girl?" snapped Snape rudely as he stopped walking.

"I was just thinking how nice it is to walk with you on this beautiful evening." She said with a smile.

He glared at her so she added, "Well, you asked, didn't you?", shrugging and without loosing her smile.

She kept on walking ahead of him. Snape closed his eyes shook his head and took a deep breath. When he opened them again he wished otherwise because when his eyes landed on her moonlight illuminated figure, he could see how the wet clothes took the shape of her body and how she moved her hips as she walked.

They got to the castle she performed a drying spell to herself and when Snape arrived he did the same thing.

"You want help putting these away?" Mirielle asked smiling and when he gave her a questioning look she added, "Don't worry; it is not likely for the same thing to happen twice.", and headed for the dungeons.

When they got there Snape unlocked the door and she headed to the cupboard where he stored his ingredients. When she finished she came down from the small ladder and looked around to see he was not in the room. As she walked out to the classroom she bumped once again with her Potions Master, burying her nose in his robes, willingly taking in his scent, her legs feeling weak. She was so dazed that she did not felt as her hair let itself loose as the ribbon felled from it.

As Mirielle's hair cascaded down, Snape got a strong hit of its lovely smell, which now he realized smelled lightly of Gardenias. He slowly baked away dizzy by the rush of emotions that he was trying to control as they went through him.

"Will you stop doing that girl?" he snapped.

"Is not as if I were doing it on purpose." She answered trying to free her head from all the cloudiness. She felt quite annoyed, this 'bumping' had happened many times before but she was still not used to it happening so suddenly.

Mirielle looked into his eyes. Snape was glaring so she sighed, and at the same time slowly raised a hand to the side of his face, but stopped half an inch before touching it, and said:

"Why do you try so hard to hate me?" with a hint of sadness in her eyes.

Then she exited the classroom without another word. Snape stared at the door she had just closed. His cheek felt hot with the heat her hand emanated and he unconsciously raised a hand to it. When he realized what he was doing he felt angry with himself and turned around to close the cupboard. He saw a red piece of cloth laying on the floor he bent down to pick it up and realized it was what the girl had used to tie her hair, it was for some strange reason, warm. Snape scowled at the thing, as he headed to dispose of it he noticed that it still smelled like her hair.

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A/N: Well, one more. Hope it isn't tooooo bad ^_^. Thanks a lot for the reviews left guys, I had no idea one can become addicted to them, or that one could cheer up by re-reading emm XD. So, if u got the time, keep them coming no matter if it is to tell me how much the story sucks, ill still be glad to read them. THNX for reading!!!