Overwhelmed by the reviews (and emotions) generated by that last chapter.

I had expected cries of OCC when Hermione uttered the 'f' word. Totally agree with you. Explaination in the following chapter.

For my regular readers, I shall just say that I think I'm usually more subtle than in this next chapter, but however I expressed it, it always seemed to end up this way. Hope it pleases:

Chapter Seven

If we are to die tonight

Somewhere between the hours of 1am-3am

She met him eagerly, willingly, surprisingly expertly, drawing him in to the most delicious sensations. His eyes flew open in surprise as her tongue came into his mouth before he'd had a chance to make that particular move.

He had a brief glimpse of her eyes, closed in the passion of the kiss, causing him to moan as he closed his own eyes again and began drowning in the sweet, wonderful taste of her, caressing her tongue with his own, pushing hers back into her mouth so he could explore and taste her thoroughly.

It felt so good when her arms came around his neck, collecting him to her, encouraging him to move across so that the top half of his body was over her. He noticed his hand trembling slightly as it glided up over her curves until he found one glorious rounded breast to stroke and caress - the nipple so hard and high he couldn't resist taking it between his fingers and playing with it.

She gave a deep moan and writhed beneath him, pushing herself harder into his hand, and he responded by putting more pressure into his touch.

Her hands were running through his hair, then over his shoulders, down his back, setting a trail of fire wherever they touched. As they ran underneath his body, he instinctively lifted his hips in order to give her reaching fingers access to...

"No!"

He rolled off her, breathing heavily, his fingers to the bridge of his nose.

"What the hell am I doing?"

"I think we were about to have sex," she said, helpfully, sitting up.

"No. No, this is wrong. We can't do this, it's...it's..."

"Against the law for two consenting adults..."

"We may be consenting adults, but you are my pupil. I am your teacher...that is against the rules."

"Those rules might not exist in a few hours...and they definitely won't apply in a few months..."

"Well they do at the moment!" he snapped, letting his frustration get the better of him and instantly regretting it.

His response hung in the air between them for a second or two, then she sighed.

"If he wins this could be the very last time you have sex, but - as you pointed out - it probably won't be my last time and I'd rather like to have one enjoyable experience to remember...with someone I want it to be with, before I die."

He looked at her and then sat up slowly to face her.

"You...you don't have any other experience to remember?"

She blushed deeply.

"No."

"The Gods in their heavens! What are you thinking? What was I thinking...?"

"I'm thinking that I don't want my first time to be by force with a Death Eater...I'd rather it was willingly with you."

"And if Potter succeeds? What will you be thinking then?"

He put the question to her as though playing a trump card. She regarded him for a moment, then lifted her chin defiantly, looking him straight in the eye as she replied,

"That I'm glad my first time was with you. I want it to be with you, win or lose."

Completely at a loss, he spluttered,

"Why?"

She smiled.

"Are you totally naive, Professor?"

"At this very moment, yes. And bewildered." He ran a hand over his face and into his hair before looking at her again. "You were just going to...without warning me? Do you think that was entirely fair?"

She blushed deeper and lowered her eyes to the cloak.

"I...I...didn't want you to think I didn't know..."

He stared at her in disbelief.

"You wanted to keep up the 'Miss Know-It-All' appearance, even now?!"

-

Her embarrassment went deep. Had she made such a huge mistake?

She kept looking down at the cloak, not knowing what to say next.

There was another frightening crash against the door, enough to make it shudder for a moment.

Hermione let out a scream and they instinctively clung to each other, both faces turned towards the door, fearful of who was on the other side.

It took a few moments to realise that, once again, the door hadn't opened. No one was coming to get them. The battle was still being fought.

Simultaneously they let out heavy sighs of relief. Hermione was trembling, although she couldn't be sure every shiver was her own...

The side of her face was now against his chest, the hair there slightly coarse against her cheek; her arms were wrapped around him, clinging to his back. She had a close up view of the curves of his upper arm running across the end of her shoulder and round to her back.

He was holding her tight and she could smell the primeval scent of sweat, fear and arousal that pervaded them both. It vaguely reminded her of something, but...

She could have stayed there forever, revelling in the closeness of him, the contact with otherwise hidden flesh; feeling that as long as he was here with her, nothing bad could happen to her.

Slowly, she raised her head to look at him and for a moment she saw in his eyes that he had been frightened like her.

Was sex really the ultimate intimacy? How much more intimate to share the remaining hours before death. Were rules really that important now?

"This could be the last night of our lives..."

"I am acutely aware of that," he said, keeping his face close to hers; his arms tight around her.

She gazed into eyes that once upon a time had sent icicles down her spine. Now they sent spears of fire through her body, inflaming the lust, fuelling the burning passion inside that made her need him, want him, almost to screaming point...

She knew he was teetering on the edge of temptation. Surely no rules or etiquette should come between them - not if they were to die tonight...

Moving her lips the tiny distance to his, she kissed him very softly, very virginally, for only a moment before looking back up into his eyes.

"Please," she whispered, tears welling up in her eyes. "don't let one of them have this..."

-

He pushed his fingers into her hair as his eyes travelled her face.

She moved her mouth close again and began nibbling his lip, flicking her tongue over it, moistening it, melting any resistance in him that remained.

He moved to kiss her fully, his hand gliding round to the back of her head to pull her closer and support her as he lowered her back down onto the bed.

Half over her, his hand stroked her flesh, the smooth thigh, the curve of her hip, the dip of her waist, until once again he reached the wonderful firm breast so eager for his touch.

He moaned as her tongue flicked across the pulse as she kissed him on the neck, sending his senses reeling, feeling her push up into his caressing hand, urging him to touch her more.

He trailed his mouth across her shoulder and down to kiss her breast, taking the gloriously hard nipple into his mouth and licking it, rolling it between his lips, grazing it with his teeth, his own excitement increasing at the little orgasmic noises she was making.

Gently he pushed his knee between her legs and she began rocking herself against it, so, so wet.

He kissed his way back to her mouth. She looked at him, her eyes so full of lust he was almost overwhelmed by the need to be inside her. This was his fantasy come true. They were here; it was real; she was spread out, naked, beneath him and wanting him; begging him; but still he needed the final consent...

"Are you sure..?" he whispered.

"What more can I do to persuaded you?" she breathed into his ear.

She wriggled beneath him so he was now wholly on top of her, her knees rising either side of him, capturing him between her legs.

He felt a fresh surge of blood to his groin as her hand moved around to cup him and stroke him, guiding him to her.

"Absolutely nothing," he gasped, amazed at the confidence of her touch.

He closed his eyes as he began pushing in gently, feeling the inexplicable rush of male vanity at being the first to venture there. The conquering hero. The one she would remember for always.

He breathed out heavily, a long, deep moan escaping him. There was only one thing more exciting than opening a virgin...and that would follow shortly after...

...and as if all this pleasure were not enough, there was the wondrous, impossible miracle that Aphrodite was in his arms, desiring him as much as he desired her. If they were to die tonight, what better memory to take with him?

-

She was nervous - of course she was. No matter how well prepared she thought she was, being entered for the first time was a shock.

Her mother had told her the mechanics at the age of ten, but like a text book, the mechanics didn't explain the sexy bits.

So she'd been reading erotic fiction, everything she could find, studying different techniques and how to do them; the powers of the tongue, the lips, the eyes. She'd even transfigured her toothbrush into a phallus so she could practice how to touch a man to the greatest effect. She refused to approach sex for the first time, whoever it was with, without feeling she knew what she was doing.

She'd studied the methods of oral sex, never dreaming the mouth could be used in such a way; the different erogenous zones for men and women; and had been astounded to read that a dirty word spoken by a woman at the right moment could be so erotic to a man, let alone discovering for herself that it worked...

She had prepared herself as thoroughly as she did for any of her lessons, confident she would be able to raise her hand in class and answer correctly; defying anyone to call her a dunce when the moment arrived.

Oh! But the moment had arrived and suddenly she did feel unprepared.

Her Professor, the one she'd been thinking dirty thoughts about day in day out, the one her pillow metamorphosed into at night as she hugged it, was lying between her thighs about to do what she'd imagined him doing so many times...

She steeled herself as he came to her, feeling the first gentle nudge into her body and catching her breath as a stronger push made her jump with pain.

He kissed her ear.

"I'm sorry," he gasped. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"You didn't, not much...oh, please..."

He gave a deep, surrendering growl as she pushed her hips into him, urging him on, closing her eyes and biting her lip as he moved in, stretching her more than was surely possible. How much more of him could there be?!

Finally he stopped and looked at her, needing to know she was fine with this.

She was panting with both the shock and the thrill of being so completely possessed by him.

"It feels absolutely fantastic," she gasped, truthfully, and when he began moving over her, she moaned with delight as sensations she'd never imagined began building up inside her, relaxing her initial fear, easing his path.

Never had she experienced such feelings. She was now way past anything she had managed to produce on her own. Desperately her mouth searched for his, and when they met, the kiss was as deep and delicious as his thrusts were becoming.

Instinctively her hips began rocking to meet his own movements, his approval very apparent in the change in pressure of his kiss. She broke away to cry out as a wave of pleasure crashed over her. She dug her fingers into his back as noises she'd never made before issued from her mouth with each new, ever stronger wave.

His own gasps heated her neck. His mouth to her throat, his deep, growling moans vibrating against her flesh, pushing her up into ecstasy; and just when she thought she couldn't possibly go any higher, she felt his release deep within her, sending her soaring to a shattering orgasm...

------

Thank you to everyone who reviewed - including those who obviously had swallowed a bitter pill - hope this chapter provided the spoonful of sugar!

Kerichi: What?! Nut to butt? Really? So that Air Force guy I got stranded with was just...bastard! Sorry everyone. Hermione wasn't tricking Severus, it was this author's (BIG) mistake.

Grill: When you review my stories I feel like a little off-Broadway actor who knows Meryl Streep is in the audience. LOL.

May-Luna: Thanx. I would be happy for you to translate the story into French but perhaps you should wait to see if you like the ending?!

Helena Oe: Madness sequel will be up as soon as I finish this story. I know it won't get many reviews, but as long as I have a reader, I'll post, because I really enjoy writing it.

June: Yes to both and I blushed each time!

Irish Man: Your review made me laugh out loud. Thanx

A Fan: blown away!

Szara and Jill: Goodness! I've been slapped! My answer is (and other authors will back me up here) that it is good Hollywood tradition to leave your readers panting for more...and as much as I love posting on this site, there's no way I'm gonna do it whilst lazing on a beach!

And thank you SO much: Thousandl (lol) Kbluesmom Elora Nova Untamed Spirit Seagirl4ever Intelligent Witch A perfect Lie Kairi the Iced Rose Freedom isn't Free Oasis Blackmore cdkobasiuk Lynn Vanilla Kitty Kumiko ran The Great Green Leaf of Peril breziebear Something-or-other FemmeLoki Vickie 211 The Sexy Flower Melted Icicle Junella Lee74 Mr.Moosey Blackwater Arramous Tiffie101 Stargazer Starluver Tomigirl Potts Angeline Trinity Marquise Sportzgrl627 Really-A-Dopey-1 Miss3y Lettucequeen Q mouse