CHAPTER NINE – BOXING DAY, AT 'LA GONDOLE MAGIQUE'

'I've wanted to come here since they opened this place,' Hermione said.

They had passed though a secret entrance in the Embankment Station building – to an observant Muggle it would have looked like the door to an unused maintenance room and triggered the irresistible wish to get away from that eldritch corner – and were standing on the jetty that gave access to one of wizarding London's newest and most acclaimed restaurants. Critics couldn't quite agree what was more awe-inspiring: the food or the exotic locations it was served in. La Gondole Magique was, just as the name led to believe, a large boat in the shape of a Venetian gondola, equipped with spells and charms that enabled it to travel in a way similar to the ship Durmstrang's staff and students used for longer trips. Now it was also decorated for Christmas, and the light of the fairies perching on the masts and tows was reflected in the black water of the Thames, so that the ship seemed to float on a carpet of diamonds.

'It's beautiful, and if the food is half as good as they say…' She glanced up at Severus. 'You seem a bit subdued.'

He smiled at her and leaned in for a kiss. 'A minor disappointment.'

'Anything I can do to help?'

Severus sighed. 'Not really, I'm afraid. Let's go in, shall we? It's bitterly cold out here.'

They made their way along the jetty, which was swaying slightly, and stepped onto the boat. The restaurant, a few steps down from the deck, was under the waterline, which made for a cosy and enclosed atmosphere. The rich reds, browns and golden accents of the decoration – Hermione merely gave Severus a good-natured little push when he muttered something about Gryffindor colour schemes – conveyed a den-like feel to the room; otherwise, Hermione thought, it might have been a bit claustrophobic.

A waiter met them at the door and checked their reservations. He was clad in something that vaguely resembled the sailor suits Hermione's father wore on childhood photos, and Severus had to nudge her twice because she was giggling, but nudging only made it worse.

'We shall be leaving in half an hour,' the waiter informed them, ignoring Hermione's fit of near-hysterical snorting, 'right on schedule. Dinner will be served as we reach the Great Barrier Reef, about ten minutes after the departure. May I accompany you to your booth?'

'I'm having trouble stopping myself from jumping up and down,' Hermione confided to Severus as they followed the waiter. 'I've never been anywhere near Australia – my parents insisted on making the trip back on their own, probably because the Ministry had sent Redfoot and Bielinski to reverse their memory spells. They didn't react too well to the sight of a wand for quite some time.'

'I taught Bielinski during his seventh year, which was my first at Hogwarts. If he's as clumsy with charms as he used to be with potions… Thank you,' he said to the waiter who'd handed them the list of aperitifs. 'What would you like to drink, Hermione?'

'The way I'm feeling tonight, champagne seems like the only option,' she replied.

The waiter retired and Severus focused his full attention on Hermione. 'You are very beautiful tonight.' He reached across the table to catch her hand, and kissed her wrist. 'What was that about the way you're feeling?'

Hermione gingerly touched her coiffure. 'It's the hair, isn't it? Makes all the difference.'

'No, my darling, it's you. You're positively radiant.'

'Say that again!'

'You're positively radiant.'

'Not that!' Hermione batted his hand. 'The other bit!'

'I have no idea what you're talking about,' Severus said, mischief sparkling in his eyes. 'I seem to be suffering from a momentary bout of amnesia – until you tell me more about the way you're feeling tonight, that is.'

The waiter brought the bottle, held it out to Severus for inspection and, once it had been duly approved, carefully opened it.

Hermione picked her flute off the silver tray the waiter offered her. She waited until the bottle had been securely stored in a waiting ice bucket, and the waiter had left. 'To mating rituals,' she said, raising her glass.

'A toast the originality of which is only surpassed by the promises it holds. To mating rituals.' Their glasses clinked together, and Severus got a tantalizing glimpse of black lace as Hermione leaned forward. 'This neckline suits you to perfection. It enhances the line of your shoulders and neck. Which, I would like to point out, I feel an irresistible urge to kiss.'

'Do you? That's good to know.' Eyes dancing, she stroked the stem of her flute; Severus's eyes were following the movement of her fingers, mesmerized. His face had taken on an uncharacteristic pink hue. 'Anything else you'd like to kiss?' She suggestively licked a drop of champagne off the rim of her glass.

'Hermione…' Severus shifted in his seat, which made her grin, and took a fortifying sip. 'If that's how the evening is going to continue, I ought to have read up on deflating charms. Oh Merlin,' he murmured, when a silk-clad foot began slowly to move up and down his calf. 'Hermione, does this mean…'

'You're definitely going to get lucky tonight, if that's what you wanted to know.' When a full minute had passed in silence, Hermione giggled. 'If I had known that this announcement was going to be a massive conversation killer, I'd have kept you on tenterhooks a bit longer.' She reached over to touch Severus's cheek. 'This stunned silence – is it stage nerves or enraptured anticipation?'

'A little of both, I'd say. It's not often that I actually care what a woman will have to say about my performance.'

After draining her glass and putting it down, Hermione took his right hand in both of hers. 'I'm aware that insecurity isn't a female monopoly. But look at it this way: I haven't had sex for, oh, two years, easily, and before that only ever with one man. Believe me, I'm also quite anxious about my performance. Because this is serious, isn't it?'

'Very,' he confirmed gravely.

She opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by a Sonorus-enhanced voice. 'Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. Welcome to La Gondole Magique – I trust you will all spend a very enjoyable evening at the Great Barrier Reef. For your own safety, the ship's inbuilt Sleeping Beauty spells will be activated in thirty seconds. Please put aside your glasses and extinguish cigarettes, pipes and cigars. The ship will be leaving in exactly twenty seconds.'

The two remained as they were, holding hands, and stayed frozen in their position until the spell was lifted and both blinked to adjust their eyes to the sudden flood of light coming in through the windows. They had arrived at the Great Barrier Reef.