The rest of the summer continued much in the same manner that the first Saturday had. And it was fun, having these private little excursions where I could go up to Hieronymous' room and get to know him. Most of the time we would talk, or we would read quietly together, or he would lecture me about magic. And, yes, sometimes we would kiss. It never got very far, but that didn't really bother me. He was almost double my age but he was as inexperienced as I was, so I agreed to go slowly and take things at his own pace. After all, the school year would be starting soon and he would be back to being my professor again.

On this day, I was reading a book on the philosophy of green magic. The book talked about how some believed that witches and wizards got their magic through a stronger connection to nature than non-magical folk, and thus all the other magics had their roots in green magic. It was an interesting read, but classes were starting soon, and I just couldn't pay attention.

"I kind of miss you yelling at students," I say idly as I close the book and push it away from me.

"Oh?" he muses. "Should I start with you then?"

"No," I laugh as I flop onto my stomach. "You don't have to yell at me. Yell at the silly freshmen that are coming in this year. Scare them silly, like you always do."

"The silly freshman?" he asks. "You mean the ones that leave love notes on my desk that say my voice is like butter?"

I freeze, my face going scarlet. "That wasn't my idea. I-I had nothing to do with that."

"I must say, you are quite the poet," he says dryly. "Although if you prefer to leave me any more poems detailing your affections, I must encourage you to do so in private."

I stick my tongue out at him teasingly, but the memory stirred up something else. "Umm, sir?"

"I'm noticing a startling trend," he says, more to himself than to me. "You only say 'sir' when you are asking a question that you know you shouldn't be asking."

"Or I'm just preparing to get back into classroom mode," I say, before adding, "Hieronymous" for good measure. He sighs and waits for me to get on with my question. "What did ever happen to him? Damien, I mean?"

"That is none of your concern," he says sternly, turning back to his desk.

"Okay," I say. "You don't need to explain exactly what happened, but is it safe? Is he gone for good?"

He turns back to me quietly, his face not giving much away. "Are you concerned?"

"I mean-"

"Did he hurt you?" he asks seriously. "Has he ever-?"

"No, no," I say quickly. "I mean he was my senior for orientation, and he, he gave me a pie once and he wanted to be friends, and, and more, later, but, but there was always something, off, about him, and I told him no and he got really mad and he said I would regret it, but I figured it was just an empty threat and he never, like, came after me, or anything. And then I heard about the incident with the freshman boy and I never saw him again."

Hieronymous nods slowly, as if trying to make a decision about something. "He was trying to suck the soul out of a freshman student," he said at length. "Unfortunately the idiot boy gave his consent and so what Mr. Ramsey did was not technically illegal by magical definitions; but, strictly speaking, that is firmly against school rules and he was expelled. Wards have been set up to make sure he cannot enter school grounds again."

"Okay," I sigh, letting out a breath. I notice that Hieronymous is watching me carefully. Slowly he rises from the desk and sits down next to me on the bed. "In any case, there is nothing to worry about. He cannot enter the school grounds and I have sworn to protect you. While you are under my protection, no one is going to harm you."

"Is it bad how safe that makes me feel?" I roll over onto my back, looking up at him.

He just smiles and bends down to kiss me gently. I wrap my arms around his neck and hold him close to me, pulling him closer. His arms snake around my waist and I moan as I shift my weight so he is lying on top of me on the bed. As we kiss, I buck my hips up ever so slightly into him, and he takes advantage of this position in order to slide his hand up the outside of my thigh, his fingertips just lightly gracing my butt. I break the kiss with a grin, nuzzling his nose with mine as he starts to pull away. "Sorry," he murmurs, embarrassed.

"No, don't be." I tangle my fingers with his as I sit up beside him on the bed. "Whatever you're comfortable with. We're going at your pace here."

He sighs. "Yes, you have made that quite clear. However, I am supposed to be a bit more mature than you. I should be the one making sure you're comfortable."

"And I am," I reply. "If I wasn't, I would tell you."

"Duly noted," he says, looking at his watch. "It's getting a bit late; you should be getting back to your dorm."

"If I must." I smile, pulling away from him dramatically. I reach forward and kiss him one more time. "Next Saturday is our last Saturday together before you become my teacher again."

"Oh horror of horrors," he says sarcastically, and I make a face before heading out the door.

I am grinning and breathless all the way out of the building. Smiling to myself, I decide to take the long way back along the trails. One night I had returned to the dorm too early, all giddy and breathless, and Ellen started to think that I was starting to go crazy after all. As I walk, I start to hum to myself, enjoying the warm summer breeze. Suddenly I hear a rustling in the foliage and turn around. "Is someone there?"

I bite my lip nervously before I shake my head. "Okay, Donald, very funny. Ellen will not be very happy with you if you decide to prank me! Believe me, I'll tell!" But my threat is met only with silence. Frowning, I'm about to turn when suddenly I see a brilliant flash of purple light and a jolt of electricity shoots through my brain…

"-there you are!"

When I open my eyes, Ellen is kneeling above me, her face inches from mine.

"Did I oversleep?" I ask cautiously. Suddenly I'm aware that I'm not in my bed, I'm on the ground, outside, on the trails. What am I doing out here?

"You didn't come back so I went looking for you," Ellen explains as I get to my feet, using a tree trunk to steady myself. "Did you take a nap out here?"

"Uh, must have," I reply sheepishly as I stretch out my muscles. It felt like I was lying out here for hours. "I was just coming from, uh…" I hesitate, coming up empty. "…you know."

"Sure," Ellen says quickly. "Let's just get you inside, all right?"

"Yeah," I take her arm in mine as we head back into the dorm. "Yeah, I better get my sleep schedule back in order before classes start. Old Grabby-pants will have a cow if I fall asleep during one of his classes."