I get home about forty-five minutes after Hieronymous left the Glen. I run from the bus stop all the way up to the door, unlocking it with magic before walking inside. Hieronymous is sitting at his desk with his shoes off, tweed jacket around the back of his chair. He immediately looks up as I walk in, a playful smile on his lips. "Well?"
"I think you sold it," I say, closing the door behind me. I don't wait. I rush over to him and jump into his lap, planting a kiss on his lips. I wrap my arms around my neck as I kiss him, travelling from his lips to the space between his neck and his jaw. "I have never seen you so social," I say between kisses.
"And I have never seen you so shy," he breathes as his hand fists in my hair.
"It was awkward," I say, pulling away from him. "Usually you're only like that around me."
"Do you want me to only be like that around you?" he asks, raising an eyebrow, and I think about it for a moment.
"Yes," I say. "Out there to everyone else, you're Professor Grabiner. But this is you. Hieronymous. My Hieronymous."
"Your Hieronymous?" he asks as he snakes both arms around my waist.
"My Hieronymous," I repeat in a lower voice.
"And if I'm yours?" he asks, kissing my neck. "What do you want to do with me?"
I pull away slightly. "You are making this so difficult for me."
"That is not my intention," he says, but I can't take him seriously with that smirk.
"Soon," I whisper in his ear as I kiss him again. He runs his tongue along my jaw line and I moan, sliding off his lap and grabbing his hand as I pull him towards the bed. He pulls off his shirt as he goes, and I pull him between my legs, unbuckling his pants for him. I still have not seen him entirely naked yet; I'm saving that for another time.
He reaches out and strokes my hair, and I moan as I relish the sensation. He does that a few more times, just gently running his hands through my hair before I can't take it anymore. I grab him and push him backwards onto the floor, tracing kisses from his navel up to his neck, my hands gliding over his bare skin.
He rolls around so that he's on top of me, his hands pinning my wrists to either side of my head. He dips his head down so that he's whispering directly into my ear, and I can feel his breath on my face. "This could be interesting. Should I continue?"
"Yes and no," I whisper, grinning.
"Yes and no?" He runs a hand down my chest and I buck up my hips to meet his hand.
"Not yet," I say, biting my lip. "Soon though."
"Soon?" Suddenly he teleports us onto the bed, and I fall back into the fluffy white pillows.
"Soon," I confirm. "I think you know when I want to."
He smiles up at me, planting a row of kisses on the inside of my arm. "I might have some idea."
"And then I'm yours?" I ask in a low voice as I kiss him again.
"I think you're already mine," he says. "But I want all of you." Our bodies start to wrap around each other, and I have to break the kiss and pull away.
"Soon," I repeat, more to myself than to him. The air is thick with tension, and so I quickly think of something, anything, to distract us from making a mistake and doing this too early. "So about the final?"
"The final?" he asks, raising his eyebrows. "I thought you weren't going to take it." Mercifully he takes the hint and pulls the blankets over him and I follow suit, pulling off my jeans and shirt and cuddling into the crook of his arm.
"Well I was told I didn't have to take it," I say. "But that doesn't mean I don't want to. I want to be tested. I mean, I'm already at forty-five merits, might as well go for the extra five."
He takes a deep breath. "Tori, you shouldn't take it."
"Is it really that bad?" I ask him.
"If I tell you that it is, then I know you'll take it," he sighs. "Let's just say this test is designed to challenge you in a way that you haven't been challenged before in previous examinations."
"Go on," I say.
"You know I can't." He sounds frustrated. "As your husband, this is the wisdom that I am imparting on you: given what you have been through this year, you should not take this test. You are not being required to take it-"
"If I don't take it then people will say I'm getting special privileges for sleeping with the teacher," I argue.
"Tori, you know that's not why."
"No, but it's what some people may say," I tell him. "I want to be on equal footing with my classmates. If everyone else is taking it, then I should take it too."
He sighs and kisses my temple. "There is a difference between bravery and foolishness."
"Eh, they sort of go hand in hand," I tell him. "Do you think I'm going to fail the test? Is that it?"
"No, I don't think you're going to fail the test," he says. "But I'm worried about what's going to happen to you if you pass."
"That really doesn't sound good," I say, more to myself than him.
"Then will you tell Potsdam that you won't take it?" he asks me.
"I don't think I can do that," I say slowly. "Whatever it is, I need you to know that I can handle it."
"You don't have to prove anything to me," he says. "I can't guarantee what your test will be like. It's different for everyone."
"I think you're giving me too many hints," I tease, although I still don't know what to expect. "You're going to be there watching me though, right?"
"Do you want me to be watching you?" he asks.
"You were watching the last one," I say. "I don't know. If it's really as bad as you say and I get hurt, then no, I don't want you watching. But at the same time-" I prop myself up on one elbow to get a better look at him. "I'm going to pass that test. I'm not just going to pass it. I'm going to ace it."
He hugs me to him, and for some reason, it feels like he's holding me tighter than before. "Don't worry about me," I tell him. "I can handle myself."
"I know," he murmurs. "That's exactly the problem." I'm about to ask him what he means when he puts his palm on my forehead. "Don't overthink it. Sleep now."
I want to argue with him, but his magic is much too powerful for me to contend with, and so I just roll back into his embrace as I close my eyes and drift off to sleep.