A/N: This one is also Rated M! Sorry, but I just couldn't help it. It seemed right for the progression of their relationship! The next chapter is really important though, so make sure not to skip over it!
Sweet Petit: Thank you so much for your kind words! I'm really glad you all are enjoying it!
S38: Thank you for the sweet reviews! As for your question, I'll be following the general canon regarding the First Wizarding War, etc. [I guess that's not really a spoiler, but it still feels like I've just given a lot away...]. This story will probably wrap up a little after the end of the war, but I plan on writing a sequel about the Second Wizarding War with the same protagonists that will wrap the entire thing up. It seems dauntingly ambitious, but I'm gonna give it a shot. That one will also generally follow the sequence of events from the books - I feel like diverging from them too much hurts the whole suspension of disbelief thing. Thanks for the question!
Also, I have very little self-control, which is why I can't seem to stop updating, even though I have real world responsibilities... I'm slowly becoming a shell of my former self...
dearmaggie: Thank you! I really value your encouragement and appreciation for my interpretation of Remus' character. I also get annoyed with the typical cliches in a lot of RL/OC fanfics, so I'm trying to avoid them, but we'll see how it goes. Thank you so much for reading. I hope I can live up to your expectations.
Revised and edited as of 6/7/14.
REVIEW!
Disclaimer: I own nothing!
Chapter 28: Of Dragon Handling and Imperturbable Charms
Rowan didn't know how it was possible for her to be so happy. The past three months with Remus had passed quickly and blissfully, and it was once again April. Their physical relationship had progressed slowly since New Year's Eve, and though they didn't get as much private time as they'd like, they'd become quite comfortable with each other physically, each having a favorite scar or beauty mark on the other's body and knowing exactly what touches made the other writhe. Their housemates had started thinking of them as a unit, and it had become quite the regularity to see them walking to class together with Remus' arm draped around Rowan's shoulder or her lying with her head in his lap on the Common Room couch, his fingers idly toying with a strand of her hair.
They'd developed a quiet routine of studying in the library together, both just content to be in the other's presence. He'd taken to arriving at the library in time to catch the end of her tutoring sessions. He pretended to come to tease the First and Second Year girls, but secretly, he enjoyed watching her with the younger students, marveling at her sisterly tendencies and how much they seemed to respect her. The girls all admired her to the point of adoration, and the boys all blushed under her attentive gaze, and though part of him wanted to knock them on the head for ogling his girlfriend, he couldn't really blame them. He did get a kick out of their scared looks at seeing him in the doorway, though.
On the rare days that she finished up with tutoring sessions early or a student didn't show up, he'd lock the door behind him and push her up against the table to show her just how much he admired her. He didn't think he'd ever get tired of the sound of his name on her lips or the feel of her muscles clenching around his fingers. This day, he came early to find her finishing up with the First Year Claire again. She hadn't noticed him come in, and he couldn't help but eavesdrop.
"- right!" Rowan said proudly. "See? You didn't need my help at all today. We've barely been here twenty minutes."
Claire beamed up at her and moved to collect her books but paused and turned back to Rowan. "Hey, Rowan? You and Remus Lupin are dating, right?" she asked slowly. Remus perked up at hearing the girl mention him.
Rowan raised an eyebrow but smiled. "Yeah," she said, amusedly.
The First Year blushed to her roots but continued slowly, "Well, I know this is probably rude, but I was wondering... about his scars."
Remus froze. He felt his heart stop for a moment. How would Rowan respond to this? He began to panic. Should he interject?
But Rowan seemed calm, amused even. "You want to know how he got them, right?" she said evenly, smiling lightly at the younger girl. The girl nodded fervently. Remus held his breath. "Well… his family used to handle dragons in Romania," she said matter-of-factly.
Remus had to cover his mouth to catch the barking laugh that threatened to burst from it.
"Really?" the girl asked, wide-eyed and clearly impressed.
"Yeah, and he still goes back every once in a while to visit relatives. He's quite good at it, though it's pretty dangerous," Rowan continued, smiling secretly to herself. "The scars make him look pretty sexy though, right?" she said teasingly.
Claire blushed bright red again. "I-I don't know!" she stammered, suddenly jerking to shove her books into her bag clumsily.
Remus fought to straighten his face out before turning around the corner, acting like he'd just arrived and knocked on the doorframe. "All finished?" he asked, attempting to smile innocently but failing. Claire jumped in her seat and turned jerkily, face bright red. Rowan was looking at him with a knowing grin – he'd been caught.
"Yep! Just packing up!" Rowan said cheerfully. "Good job today, Claire," she said grinning, subtly teasing the girl. The First Year leapt from her seat and scurried from the private study room, and once she was out of earshot, Remus laughed. He seemed to do that frequently with the poor First Year.
"You know it's rude to eavesdrop," Rowan said teasingly, standing to greet him.
Remus hummed in amusement. "You made me sound pretty cool. Dragons, huh? And you think my scars are sexy?" he asked suggestively.
She laughed and stepped up to kiss him lightly. "Philanderer," she said cheekily, and as she pulled away, he snaked an arm around her tightly to keep her pressed against him.
"Remus, wha-?" she started, confused.
He pulled the door shut behind him and locked it, pushing Rowan backward gently until her rear hit the table. "We have thirty minutes left until your room reservation is up. I can think of some ways to use it until then." He picked her up and gently placed her on the tabletop. "Maybe I can show you some of my scars," he said lowly, pushing her thighs apart and pulling her up against him.
"Remus," she gasped as she felt the junction between her thighs hit his quickly hardening arousal. "You're incorrigible!" she laughed.
He grinned. "Only because it's you," he said darkly, taking her mouth with his roughly.
It had been a couple of weeks since their last encounter of that nature, and both were feeling the need. Remus' lips slid against hers effortlessly. His tongue slipped past her lips with a deep sigh. Their kisses quickly became harsher and more hurried, breath coming out in rushes. In no time, he'd pushed her skirt up past her hips then unbuttoned her shirt and released her breasts from their confines, simply pushing the cups of her bra upward. He tore his lips from hers before taking a nipple in his mouth. She whimpered, and he stopped momentarily to pull out his wand.
"Imperturbable," he whispered at the door. He then looked back to Rowan with a grin and threw his wand to the side. She laughed delightedly, which then turned to a gasp as he returned to lavish his attentions on her breasts.
She felt his teeth graze her other nipple, and she let out another cry as she felt his thumb run up the middle of her panties, stopping to rub lightly at her small bundle of nerves. His tongue flicked hard against her just as he pushed against that spot, but just as she was beginning to enjoy the pressure of his hands, he pulled away. She looked up, panting and confused to see him grinning down at her.
"I want to do something new. You're going to have to trust me on this," he said breathily and excited. She nodded dumbly, feeling him push her gently so that she lay back, propped up by her elbows.
He slid down her body, keeping eye contact with her until he reached her hips. Hiking her skirt up farther, he reached up and hooked his fingers beneath the elastic of her underwear. Her breath came shallowly as she watched him slowly slide it from her hips. His callused fingers scalded down the length of her legs. She trembled with anticipation. The sudden cold at her most sensitive parts was unnerving, but soon he'd leaned over, propping himself up on his elbows and trailing his tongue lightly up the inside of her thigh.
Her hips jerked suddenly at the sensation, and a strangled cry erupted from her throat. She could feel him grin against her thigh before running his tongue along the juncture where her hip and thigh met. She shivered and felt herself throb – he was so close to touching her where she wanted. It seemed so wrong for her to want his mouth there. She was embarrassed at the very thought of it, but she couldn't deny the fact that she wanted it desperately.
"Remus, please!" she begged, and she felt him laugh breathily against her entrance.
Finally, his mouth was there. His tongue ran up the seam of her folds, flicking against her entrance and lapping up the wetness there. The cry that tore from her lips intermingled with the sound of his satisfied growl. His tongue then followed upward until it met that spot. He slid it painfully slowly over it.
Rowan's mind went blank, and she bit her lip hard as a shriek threatened to rip from her mouth. A low rumbling groan came from his lips again and vibrated through, and she had to cover her mouth to prevent herself from being too loud.
She felt him test different techniques and pressures of his tongue against her. He lapped and flicked at her clitoris languorously and then rapidly. Rowan's hips fought against his hands as he held her against his mouth. His assault on her continued relentlessly, and she began to feel the spasms of her muscles approach.
"Remus, Remus, Remus…" she cried, a mantra.
Finally, she felt one of his hands leave her hips. His fingers slid over her folds teasingly before she felt him slide a finger in her, curling gently and pulsing against her front wall at just the right spot. Suddenly, she was arching up off the table, hips bucking and tightening down on the digit. The spasms shot through her body, hips bucking wildly against his mouth. She shrieked a broken version of his name as she came. She thought it'd never end.
But it did, and she was left feeling spent, sprawled out on top of the table, her mind a blank canvas. When she came out of her daze, he was leaning over her, gazing at her languidly.
"Wow," she breathed. He grinned roguishly at her.
"You have no idea how erotic you look right now. I could stare at you for hours," he said lowly. She realized that she was still quite exposed, breasts out and skirt hiked up to her waist. She laughed breathlessly at her disheveled state.
"Well, let's get you cleaned up and get to studying, eh?" he said teasingly, standing up. He pulled her bra gently back into place.
Rowan frowned. "What about you?" she asked.
He smiled gently and moved to begin buttoning her shirt. "It's okay. You don't have to do anything like that for me. It's just something I've been fantasizing about, and I thought you'd enjoy it," he said, stooping to pick up her panties from the floor.
She frowned again, and before he could straighten up, she'd hopped off the table and was unfastening his pants, pushing him back against the table's edge.
"Rowan, what-" he gasped.
Her eyes were blazing and determined, fixated on the zipper of his pants. "Just let me!" she said fiercely, yanking down his pants with a tug.
Suddenly, she was on her knees, and Remus was sure his would give out.
"Rowan!" he choked, gripping the table tightly. She'd run her tongue tentatively around the head of his length before taking it into her mouth carefully. She went slowly at first, tentative and inexperienced. He felt her slide her tongue up the length as she slid her lips down, and he broken gasp tore from his throat. Rowan hummed with approval and tried it again. Remus was sure his eyes were rolling into the back of his head. Soon, she was pulling him in deeper, running her tongue along the underside and head experimentally.
Remus couldn't take this. Her mouth was so warm, so wet. He'd never known it could be like this. He looked down and saw Rowan's lips wrapped around him, sliding her mouth up and down his length. One hand gripped his hip for balance and the other gripped him, also sliding up and down his length with her mouth. The image was nearly enough to finish him. Then he felt himself hit the back of her throat. He saw stars.
"Rowan, I'm going to come!" he gasped, trying to get her to move. But when he looked down at her again, he saw her gazing up at him heatedly through heavy-lidded eyes, and he released himself into her mouth with a strangled groan. "Shit!"
She moaned, and he felt her swallowing his fluids, keeping her mouth on him as he finished. Finally, his member stopped twitching, and she released him, panting slightly and pink in the face from exertion.
His mind was a cloudy haze. He wanted to move, but he feared dimly that if he let go of the table, his legs might give out from underneath him. He felt like all the bones in his legs had turned to mush, and as desperately as he wanted to kiss her, he couldn't find control over the muscles in his neck.
As he gained register back over his body, he noted that Rowan had pulled his pants and underwear back up and was tucking his shirt in, refastening his pants gently. He watched her with rapt attention. After she finished adjusting his pants, she moved to his tie, which had come loose in their play, straightening it out and sliding the knot back into place. When she was done, she placed her palms gently on his chest and looked up at him, smiling warmly.
"You okay?" she said cheekily.
He leaned forward and kissed her gently. "Fantastic," he whispered against her mouth. She beamed at him before leaning back and looking around them with some frustration.
"Have you seen my knickers?" she asked.
He laughed heartily and took one hand off the edge of the table, unclenching his fist and revealing a pair of lacy black panties balled up in his palm. She playfully rolled her eyes at him. "Give them here, you pervert," she said.
He grinned and pushed himself away from the table, kneeling down and holding them out for her. She stepped into them carefully. He then dragged them back up slowly, and she felt his fingers graze up her legs once again. When he'd finished adjusting them against her hips, he kissed her softly at her hipbone and moved back up, a finger still hooked in the elastic.
"I like these," he said teasingly, releasing the elastic so that it snapped back gently and her skirt fell back to its appropriate length. She laughed and reached up to wrap her arms around his neck, kissing him. He looked down to check his watch.
"Oh, two minutes left – perfect timing!" he said cheerfully, turning back and kissing her soundly. "Guess it's time for Charms homework, eh?" he grinned.
As she laughed and stepped away from him, he grabbed both of their book bags and hoisted them over his shoulder, extending his other hand to her. She smiled at him with warm adoration and laced her fingers through his, opening up the door and heading out to the main studying areas.
"I liked your Imperturbable Charm, by the way. Good application of this week's lessons," she grinned.
He grinned roguishly back and leaned down to whisper darkly in her ear, "Anything as long as I can hear you scream my name like that again." He laughed when she swatted him in the chest, blushing to her roots.
As they tucked into their books, Rowan looked up to see Remus' gaze fixed on his textbook – mouth relaxed and fingers tangled in his hair – and she thought how it couldn't be possible to be any happier.
