A/N: Okay folks, beginning this chapter and for the next ones, you will find out why this story is rated M. If you are not of an age where you can handle these scenes between two consenting adults, please stop reading right now. Otherwise, be warned! This story was rated M for a reason.
Chapter 7 – The Internship
It was finally here, the time to leave for Britain. Marcus could not wait any longer even if the departure was only half an hour away. He was in the inner courtyard of St. Leandre waiting with the other students and their families. His parents had come also, not really because they cared for him, but because they wanted to maintain a semblance of family unity. The only thing Marcus was happy about was the fact they had brought his little sister along.
"Marcus, who is that girl?" she asked, openly staring at Genna.
Like him before he attended St. Leandre, she had never seen a handicapped person before. Gently, he put his finger under her chin and turned her head towards him.
"Amanda, do not stare; it is not polite," he said quietly, trying not to draw the attention of his parents who were talking with Professors Murray and Carlisle.
"Who is she, Marcus?" asked Amanda again.
"She's Genna," he answered quietly.
"The Genna?" she asked surprised. "The one from your letters?"
Marcus had written to her about Genna knowing she would be happy to know he had no intention of marrying the girl from the previous summer and had actually found someone he loved.
But Marcus' heart broke when he saw his sister's eyes. Gone was the mischief from the previous summer, gone was the sparkle that any twelve year old should have in their eyes. Her eyes only looked old and Marcus figured it must have come from the realization she was growing up in a house with no parental love, only parental expectations she could not hope to fulfil. And now, he felt guilty to leave her for the entire summer.
"You know, if our parents knew..." she began, in a tone too old for her age.
"Yes, I know," said Marcus with a grin. "And can you imagine if they knew my internship is in Healing?"
"Oh! That would be priceless," she said distantly, as if she was slowly building a shield between them so she wouldn't get hurt by his departure.
Marcus leaned down to look into her eyes.
"Amanda, I know this is hard, I know you don't want to see me go, but please don't forget you're only twelve years old," he said seriously. "In September you'll be here with me and things will be better, okay?"
She nodded bravely and where Marcus would have expected to see tears, they were none. Like quite a few times before, he had the impression she wanted to tell him something but his asking was interrupted by the arrival of his parents. While the other parents were hugging their departing child warmly, his parents were staying distant and proper.
"Marcus, please give my regards to Minister Shacklebolt and make us proud and live up to the Tyler's name," said his father formally.
"And please convey my regards to the Ambassador and his wife," added his mother as formally.
Marcus knew he would not get more: no well wishes, no display of affection, only messages to important people and subtle warnings about disgracing the family name. After a quick hug to his sister, an utterly disgusted Marcus turned his back on them and walked to the portkey, laying his eyes on Genna and remembering how she warmed his heart. As sad as he was to leave his sister behind, he was glad to know Genna would be with him every day.
Marcus made sure, one last time, he had his shrunken trunk in his pocket with his shrunken pouch of galleons, and put his hand on the portkey. Genna, looking up at him with a smile did the same, quickly followed by the other two students. A few seconds later, he felt the familiar pull behind his navel and they were gone.
Some time later, they landed in a courtyard which looked so similar to the one at St. Leandre's that Marcus thought for a moment he was back where he started. The only thing telling him he was in Britain was the people in front of him.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," said an older lady with a severe air about herself. "I'm Headmistress McGonagall."
"Hi," said Marcus, shaking her hand. "I'm Marcus Tyler, and this is Geneviève Hudon, Louis Cloutier and Lauren Hatchell."
"Welcome."
Marcus heard a commotion to his right and saw Harry walked towards them with a smile on his face. He was followed by Ginny and other people Marcus didn't know.
"Good afternoon, everyone!" said Harry, reaching them. "How was your trip?"
"Good," answered Marcus with a smile. "Short."
The others mumbled some answer and Ginny went to hug Genna, welcoming her warmly.
"I have some people to introduce to you," said Harry. "Louis, this is Neville Longbottom and Hannah Abbott. Neville will be your mentor during your stay, and like we told you a few months ago, you'll be staying with them at the Leaky Cauldron.
"Lauren, this is Hermione and Ron Weasley. This summer, you'll be working with Hermione in the Ministry of Magic, Department of Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, and you'll be staying with them.
"Marcus, this is Healer Troovus and his wife, Professor Troovus. While you'll be staying at our house, you will be working at St. Mungos with him."
Marcus looked at the man surprised he was relatively young behind his crazy wizard appearance.
"Healer Troovus is one of the best Healers at St. Mungos. He works in the Unknown Ailment Division and gets to see the strangest cases coming through the Hospital. And, of course, he saved Ginny's life, for which I will eternally be grateful."
"Oh! Mr Potter!" protested Healer Troovus. "You saved our Hospital! Consequently you saved a lot more people than I ever will!"
Marcus could see there were a fair amount of respect between the two men and he could not wait to hear the story behind this strange friendship.
"Healer Troovus," said Marcus, shaking the Healer's hand. "Happy to meet you."
"Likewise, young man, likewise. I heard great things about you and I can't wait for you to join me on Monday."
"I look forward to it," said Marcus warmly. "I cannot wait to begin!"
"Good! We can really use the enthusiasm of youth! I'll let you get settled and I'll see you on Monday."
"You're leaving, Healer Troovus?" asked Harry.
"Yes, Harry," he answered. "I have a peculiar case of something in my ward which makes me think of Amazonian Flu and I want to check on my patient before taking my wife to dinner."
"Amazonian Flu?" asked Marcus curiously. "I read about that."
"Well, Mr Tyler, you'll get to see something similar on Monday," said the Healer with an amused laugh.
Once Healer Troovus and his wife took their leave, Marcus and Harry joined Genna and Ginny.
"I'm so glad you're finally here," said Ginny to Genna with a sincere smile. "Tomorrow, we're supposed to go to the Burrow to play Quidditch and I'm sure you'll enjoy it. I think Neville will join us also, and so will Ron and Hermione, and the other students, of course."
Genna smiled back at Ginny, amused by her energy and happy to have her friendship. Genna truly believed Ginny could be quite the party all by herself if she wanted to.
"Time to go," said Harry, putting his arm around Ginny's waist. "We want to have you settled in and maybe take a trip to Diagon Alley, if you're up to it."
Ginny walked to Genna and whispered '12 Grimmauld Place' in her ear while Harry whispered something in Marcus' ear. Genna looked at her puzzled.
"Our place is under a Fidelius Charm," said Ginny with a shrug. "The press is not as bad as it used to be but we would still have our privacy invaded otherwise."
"Oh!" said Genna.
"Since we cannot Apparate from here, we've got to use the Floo network," said Ginny, walking into the school. "Professor McGonagall has it set up in her office for us."
"The others aren't coming?" asked Genna.
"No. They'll use the fireplace in the Teachers' Lounge," answered Ginny with a shrug. "We don't want everybody to know the Fidelius secret."
A few minutes later, Ginny showed her to a bedroom on the first floor of Grimmauld Place, next to the sitting room. The room was a classic pink and beige with a double bed and a beige chest of drawers.
"There used to be two beds in here," said Ginny quietly. "I shared this bedroom with Hermione during the war, when the Order of the Phoenix was headquartered here."
Genna remained silent. She didn't really know what to say to her as the memories did not seem easy.
"I'm sorry I'm so gloomy," said Ginny with a hesitant smile.
"That's okay," said Genna, putting her clothes away in the chest of drawers. "I think I would be sometimes gloomy too if I had seen half of what you saw."
"You've heard about it?"
"Not the details but enough to know it must have been horrible," answered Genna. "We mostly learned how Harry survived when he was a baby and faced Tom Riddle again when he was seventeen. We also learned the Order of Phoenix was part of the resistance, and so was Dumbledore's Army. And, of course, since Harry defeated him, he is in our newspaper relatively often. And since you are with the Harpies, we heard about some of what you did too.
"But we don't really know what you did during the war, we mostly read about what you're doing now."
Genna finished to put her things away and turned to Ginny.
"Where does Marcus sleep?" she asked.
"Upstairs," answered Ginny. "Next floor up."
"I'd like to see the rest of the house," said Genna.
"You'll be okay with the stairs?"
"Oh, yes! St. Leandre is full of them and there aren't any concessions for me," answered Genna with an amused smile.
Marcus' room was right above hers. It was light blue and beige, and furnished similar to hers. Ginny and Harry's bedroom was the floor above, right over the Sitting Room. There was also another bedroom on their floor. The floor above them had two more bedrooms.
"There's an attic above where we stored our old things."
"Wow! You guys have a big house!" said Genna.
"Yes," said Ginny with a smile. "It didn't use to look like much but I like what Harry and the house elves have done with it."
"House elves? You have house elves?"
"Yes," answered Ginny surprised by her question.
"I've never seen any before," said Genna. "I know there are some at St. Leandre but we don't get to see them."
"Oh! You'll meet ours," said Ginny with a smile, leading the way down the stairs. "Malda, Kraecher and Dobby are quite social."
Ginny showed her the sitting room next, and then the dining room and Harry's office. She finally brought her to the kitchen where they met with Marcus, Harry and three house-elves, one of which was a youth.
"Oh, Merlin!" exclaimed Genna. "He is adorable!"
The female house-elf which Genna assumed was Malda, beamed at her.
"Yes, he is," agreed Ginny, leaning down to catch the youth who had run to her.
"Aren't you adorable, Dobby," she asked him.
Dobby nodded vigorously and smiled widely.
After Ginny introduced the other two house-elves, they sat at the table and ate a light dinner before visiting Diagon Alley.
ghghghghghghghgh
It was early morning when Genna, Marcus and the Potters took the Floo Network to the Burrow. Genna had to admit, she couldn't wait to see the Quidditch game, especially since Ginny and Harry were both to play in it. Ginny had told her the pitch at her parent's house, the Burrow, had been built for her when she joined the Harpies. Shortly after, she had invited some of her League fellow players to practice there one Sunday and from then on, they had met weekly to hold friendly games and have dinner.
The four of them were making their way towards the pitch when they met a group of young people, maybe in their third or fourth year.
"Genna, Marcus, this is my adoptive brother, Connor McKeithan, and his friends Allison, Guinevere and Gregory. Guinevere is also a Seeker and she's very, very good," introduced Ginny with a warm smile.
"Nice to meet you," said Genna smiling also.
"She'll bite you, you know," suddenly said Connor, looking intently at Genna. "She'll bite you and you'll like it. If you remember who you are, it may save you."
Connor held Genna's gaze for a moment while Genna wondered what he was talking about. Connor's statement felt rather odd to her.
"Connor, are you alright?" asked Ginny worried, breaking their eye contact.
"Yes," he answered, turning his attention to his adoptive sister. "It's something I saw in my dreams."
Ginny nodded once seriously, apparently understanding what he meant.
"Let's go on to the pitch," said Ginny to her guests after a few more moments of heavy silence. "It should be rather crowded today."
"Ginny, what was that all about?" asked Genna, once they were out of earshot.
"Connor, well, he's a Seer," she answered worriedly. "He Sees things."
"And what he Sees, does it always come true?"
She wondered what he had meant by someone biting her.
"As far as I know," answered Ginny.
That gave Genna a strange feeling of uneasiness but as soon as she walked into the pitch, the feeling was all but forgotten. When Ginny had spoken about meeting professional Quidditch players, Genna had imagined one or two. Therefore, she was very surprised to get to meet over twenty of them, including world renowned Viktor Krum and his lovely wife, Adira. While eleven professional Quidditch players were playing, another ten had come just to enjoy an afternoon among friends. Like Ginny had said, Louis and Lauren were also there with Hermione, Ron, Neville and Hannah.
After dinner, the four students, who were new to this crowd, had found one another and were sitting together, looking at the others mingling and speaking about Quidditch and the 'good old days'.
"I have the impression I walked into a modern history book," said Louis, shaking his head. "Do you guys know who Neville Longbottom is?"
"Yeah! And what about Hermione and Ron Weasley?" added Lauren.
Genna did not really know the other two students but found them rather nice. She knew Louis came from the Lac St-Jean region like her but he was born in Roberval, which was on the other side of the lake. Lauren came from Nova Scotia. Being a Muggle-born, she had not been readily accepted by her House and the other students in general: the English because of prejudices and the French because they mostly did not associate with English. Genna thought it must have been rather lonely for the tall blonde girl.
"I guess you two hit the jackpot," said Lauren to Marcus and Genna with an amused smile. "Harry and Ginny Potter. Is there a more prestigious couple in the entire wizarding world?"
"Probably not, unfortunately," said Ginny from behind Lauren.
Taken by surprised, Lauren jumped and turned around, blushing furiously.
"Well, I reckon it's better to be popular because you saved the world than because you were a mass murderer or something," added Ginny with a shrug.
Genna smiled amused when she saw Lauren blushing even more.
"Genna, Marcus, we'll be leaving shortly," Ginny said. "We've got a big day tomorrow."
And a big day it was. After dropping off Marcus at St. Mungos, Harry took her first to the Ministry to introduce her to everyone and get her visitor's cards, and then to the Auror training facility. The training facility was huge. Situated in a warehouse along the Thames, it could be modified to address the needs of the moment.
"It's a little bit like the Room of Requirement, you see," explained Harry.
"What's the Room of Requirement?" asked Genna.
"Oh! Right! You're not from Hogwarts," said Harry. "The Room of Requirement is a room at Hogwarts which can modify itself to fit the needs of the users. For instance, if you need a bathroom, it will provide you with a bathroom. If you need a place to sleep, it will provide you with a bed and a place to sleep.
"Our training facility is very similar," he continued. "Our need is so great for Aurors right now that we needed an appropriate facility. Hermione researched some old magic and directed the creation of this place. Of course, it's not as versatile as the Room of Requirement but it serves our training needs."
At the moment, the room was set for duelling practice.
"Now, let's spar a little and evaluate what we can work on," invited Harry.
After a few minutes, during which Genna held her own, Harry stopped them.
"Genna, have you begun non-verbal spells?"
"Some," answered Genna.
"Okay. This next round needs to be non-verbal," directed Harry. "You do the offensive so I can see what you can do."
Non-verbal was a lot harder but she still managed relatively well on the offensive. The defensive, on the other hand, was disastrous.
After an afternoon of practice, Harry stopped them.
"Harry," asked Genna, "as an Auror, don't you have cases to work on?"
"Oh, yes," answered Harry. "That's why tomorrow you'll be training with Ron on strategies, and Thursday, with Donald Caruso in Threat Assessment. We'll train on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays."
Strategy? Threat Assessment? Genna wondered why she would need all this but had to admit, it would be greatly interesting to learn other things than spell work.
"And as soon as we can fit it in, I'd like you to learn about Investigation Tracking, and Muggle Combat and Defence."
Genna frowned. Investigation was definitely not in the realms of Defence. She had the impression she was being trained to be an Auror. And that's what she told Marcus, later that night, when they were both laying in each other arms on her bed.
"It's very strange, Marcus," she said. "As much as it sounds like a lot of fun, I wonder why they are training me like this."
"I don't know," he said quietly, kissing her hair. "Maybe in the long run, it will make you better at Defence overall."
"Maybe," she said. "But enough of me! How was your day?"
"Awesome!" he answered with a smile. "I saw my first case of Amazonian Flu. It's pretty horrible, really. I also saw a case of poisoning. It wasn't pretty either. And everybody was quite intrigued with my focus stone. Did you know they don't use them here?"
"No, I didn't," answered Genna. "Marcus, talking about stones, I have a problem with mine."
"How?" asked Marcus surprised.
"I... I cannot hold it," answered Genna sadly. "And since I need to touch it to use it, I cannot use it when I duel, or do spells."
Genna hoped he understood what she meant.
"I think I may have an idea," he said slowly. "Have you ever thought about having it mounted on a necklace? If you keep it under your clothes, it would be in direct contact with you, which should be enough for you to use."
"I never thought of that!"
"Then, let's go to Diagon Alley tomorrow night to see what the jeweller can do."
ghghghghghghghgh
Friday morning began with her first session in Muggle Combat and Defence. She had two instructors: and attractive and athletic woman in her late twenties, Ruth McMagnan, and a tall and muscular man who reminded Genna of a Muggle refrigerator, Steve Longhorn. Longhorn was barely older than her. He was a new recruit from the Law Enforcement office and he was to be Genna's punching bag.
"Now, Genna, don't worry about hurting him," said Ruth seriously. "If you do, we have magic and we'll put him back together in no time."
Genna nodded nervously looking at this mountain of muscles. She felt very small in her Muggle sweats and tight sport t-shirt. She had no doubt this man could do to her a lot of damage while she doubted she could give him a scratch.
"By the end of the summer, you should be able to hurt him," added Ruth with a chuckle.
Genna looked at her doubtfully.
"Even with your handicap," she added as if reading Genna's mind.
After three hours of lessons, Genna was surprised on how much she enjoyed Muggle combat. She really saw it as a way to get out of a sticky situation without falling back on magic.
"Good job, Genna," said Ruth, giving her a towel at the end of class. "Mr Potter has asked us to work with you on Monday and Wednesday nights also, for about an hour before you go back home. So we'll see you Monday at 4pm."
"Thank you," said Genna, making her way to the shower.
The afternoon was spent with Harry, sparring with non-verbal spells. Now that she had her stone hanging around her neck, resting on her chest, she could use it to focus her energy and she took Harry by surprise more than once.
"Next week, we'll begin situational combat and defence," said Harry once they were done for the day.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"If you ever are to be attacked, Genna, it will most probably not be in a perfect duel situation," he answered. "It's likely to be in a crowded street full of people, or an empty and dark alley, or again in a building somewhere. Next week, we'll begin training you in a street setting and have you evaluated the threat level of what is around you and respond accordingly."
"Oh," she said, wondering for the hundredth time why she would need to know something like that.
"By the way, your spell work was a lot better today," he said.
"That's because I can now use my focus stone," she answered with a smile.
"Focus stone?" asked Harry.
Genna remembered Marcus telling her they didn't use stones in Britain.
"Yes," she said, reaching the chain around her neck and pulling out her ruby.
"Wow!" exclaimed Harry. "That's a big ruby!"
"Yeah," said Genna with a grin. "I found it in the rubble of the cliff which fell on me."
"And how does it work?"
Genna explained to him how the stones worked while they walked to the fireplace at the other end of the warehouse.
"That's how Marcus was able to save me when Steve Smith threw a septumsomething spell at me at the beginning of the year," she finished.
"Sectumsempra?" asked Harry.
"That's sounds about right," said Genna. "I had never heard the curse before. You've heard of it?" she asked, turning to Harry.
Genna could have sworn Harry had turned a shade whiter.
"Harry, what's wrong?" she asked concerned.
"Nothing," answered Harry just a little too quickly for her to believe him.
The smile he gave to reassure her did not quite reach his eyes, which looked haunted.
"And to answer your question, yes, I've heard of it. It's not a very friendly spell. I wondered how a student in your school came across it."
"No idea," she answered. "Apparently, I was lucky to survive. But it did leave quite an ugly scar."
"I don't doubt it," said Harry. "I don't doubt it at all."
ghghghghghghghgh
Marcus was happy on how things between Genna and he were progressing now that they were in England. While they worked hard during the day, they spent their nights together, without the pressure of homework. Marcus loved that he didn't have to leave her to go to his Common Room at the end of the day, that he could stay with her for as long as he wanted.
And that night was no different. He had taken her out to a romantic dinner in Diagon Alley, and was satisfied with himself from seeing his girlfriend glow with pleasure at being taken care of. It was very late by the time they made their way home, and when they took the Floo back to the house, there was only Kraecher in the kitchen.
"Hi Kraecher," said Genna with a radiant smile. "Did you have a good evening?"
"Kraecher did have a good evening, mistress Genna," he answered.
"Kraecher, where are Ginny and Harry?" asked Marcus.
"Master and Mistress Potter went to bed early."
"Maybe we should consider going to bed, too," said Genna sadly.
Slowly, they made their way up the stairs and stopped in front of Genna's bedroom door. She turned towards him and raised her head just so, in the way he always understood as meaning she wanted to be kissed. And kiss her he did, holding her face in his hands, and pouring out all the pent up love he felt for her, the whole seven years of it. He was so in love with her, he couldn't see straight anymore. And it took less time than he thought possible for his body to respond to their kissing. He tried to hide his discomfort like he usually did, by leaving a few inches between their body, but Genna's arms went around his waist and she pulled him towards her. This position and the clothes he had been wearing tonight did not afford him the option of hiding his discomfort. She stopped kissing and with shinning eyes stared at him in wonder.
"I... I do that to you?" she asked.
"Yes," he whispered, cupping her cheek with his hand and kissing her tenderly. "You've been doing that to me for a long time," he added, putting his forehead against her and closing his eyes, enjoying the feel of her belly against him.
"Why... why... haven't you told me?" she finally asked.
"Because I didn't want you to think it's all I wanted," he answered. "I didn't want you to think I didn't love you."
"Come," she whispered, taking a step back into her room.
He looked at her, puzzled. Did he just hear her inviting him in her bedroom when she knew of his discomfort? But she was standing there, looking up at him shyly and expecting, and he took a step forward, then another one, then another. When he was in the room, he saw Genna flick her wand. The door closed softly and he heard her whisper the privacy charms. She then stood there, just looking at him. Marcus could only admire her petite and perfect body, covered with a pale beige buttoned-down flowery sundress. Her legs were long and shapely, and her feet were clad in black sandals with two-inch heels. Marcus thought someone really had to know to notice her crooked foot.
Genna blushed and looked away, obviously very nervous.
"You're so beautiful," he whispered, taking a slow step towards her and capturing her mouth with his.
He pulled her into his arms and sat her on the bed. He took her crutches and put them in the space between the bed and the bedside table, where she usually put them. He took their wands and put them on the bedside table. He then looked at her and kissed her again, gently, taking his time, before resting his forehead against hers. She was nervously biting her lips.
"Marcus, I... I don't know what to do," she said.
"Are you ready for all of it, Genna?" he asked gently.
She didn't answer but he had his answer when she didn't meet his eyes.
"Then I promise you we won't go all the way," he said as if she had answered him. "And I want you to tell me if you want me to stop," he added, kissing her again.
At his words, he could feel her relax against him. Marcus did not know if he had enough self-control to stop but this was Genna, the girl he had loved since first year, the girl he had every intention of spending the rest of his life with, so he had time. He kneeled on the floor in front of her and slowly removed her shoes. Getting to his feet, he pulled her to hers, pulled the blankets, and held them for her to crawl in. He removed his shoes and socks, and fully dressed, crawled in after her. He lay on his side, facing her.
The eyes she laid on him were full of trust and nervousness. Marcus remembered the first time he had been with a woman. He had been nervous too. But he wouldn't rush this. As much as he wanted her, and wanted her now, he wouldn't rush this because it was all about her, and no longer about him.
Kissing her with all the love he felt, he unbuttoned her dress slowly, every one of the thirty little buttons. Once he was done, he pulled the fabric opened and got a glimpse of a white lacy bra, holding perfect little breasts.
"Merlin," he whispered, swallowing loudly and closing his eyes.
Keeping control was hard and he very nearly came just at the sight of her. He felt her wiggle next to him and opened his eyes. She had pulled the dress away. Marcus swallowed again and his breath caught in his throat when he felt her pull his shirt out from his pants and undo the buttons one by one, like he had done for her dress. He honestly thought he would pass out for lack of oxygen when he finally felt her hands on his chest. He took his shirt off the rest of the way and kissed her again, gently caressing her breast through the fabric.
"Would you let me touch you?" he asked in a whisper.
"Yes," she breathed against his mouth.
He unclasped her bra and removed it, exposing her to him. Self-consciously, she brought her hands to cover herself but he gently stopped her.
"Please don't," he said. "You're so beautiful."
And he caressed her already hard nipple with his thumb, feeling her move towards his hand and moan softly, as if shy about her own reaction to his touch. He was still caressing her when he felt her hands go for his belt buckle. She fumbled with it for a few seconds and finally opened it. She then undid his button and pulled down his zipper, releasing some of the pressure on him. She tugged down at his pants, clearly telling him she wanted them gone. He removed them quickly and laid back on her side, his thumb caressing the flesh under her breast.
"Would you let me touch you?" he asked again, hoping she would know he didn't mean her breasts this time, and hoping she would let him.
"Yes," she whispered.
He pushed her on her back and slowly removed her panties. She raised her hips from the bed to help him and settled down again. He could not believe the incredible amount of trust she was showing in him. Here she was, completely naked, in front of him, trusting he would stop like he had promised her. Marcus was touched by her trust and even if he knew he would keep his promise, her naked body under his trembling hands did not make matters any easier. And things got a lot harder when he felt her hand tug at his boxers, pulling them from his left hip, as far as she could. He shook his head as if to say no but she brought her lips next to his ear and whispered: "I trust you."
"Genna," he began, short of breath, ready to protest. "I... I won't be able to stop."
"I trust you," she said again, looking at him in the eyes. "And... and..."
She blushed furiously at that point and looked away.
"I... I want to discover you, too," she finally said, still not looking at him.
And Marcus, even knowing how critical his situation had suddenly become, could not deny her. He removed his boxers, liberating his painful erection.
"Oh!" she said when she saw it. "Marcus... is it... is it going to fit in me?" she asked worried.
"Yes," he answered. "But not tonight because I promised you," he said, kissing each of her worried eyes softly, trailing his finger from her shoulder to her hip. "I want to touch you," he whispered against her mouth.
She responded by bringing her arms around his neck and deepening the kiss. Slowly, he brought his hand at the apex of her legs and touched the soft curls there. He went lower and gave a little pressure with his forefinger. Genna broke the kiss and gasped. Eyes full of wonder found his, and her legs pulled apart as if by their own accord.
Now with a better access, Marcus' finger searched her folds to find her clitoris. She was wet and Marcus knew if he hadn't promised, she would already be ready for him. He knew he found it when she moaned and her eyes almost rolled into her head. Now that he found what he was looking for, he lowered his fingers and slipped one into her. Her eyes flew open and she gasped again.
"Marcus," she whispered, bringing her shinny eyes to his. "Oh, Merlin!"
He slipped another finger into her, all the while making sure his hand rubbed gently against her clitoris. Her eyes flew up into her head again and Marcus thought at that moment, with her hair all over the pillows, she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He slowly worked her up and finally brought her over the edge, feeling her contract on his now very wet fingers.
"Marcus," she whispered, at a loss for words.
She rolled onto her side and he kissed her again, happy to see he had made her come. He felt her hand move from his chest to his side to his hip, and he stopped her, grabbing her hand gently in his when he felt it going for his erection.
"You don't have to," he said.
"But I really, really want to," she said, looking at him straight in the eyes.
And he saw the truth in her eyes.
"Show me, okay?" she asked shyly.
He nodded and, covering her small hand with his, slowly brought it to his penis. He gasped when he felt her hand on him and slowly proceeded to show her what to do. After a few minutes, he let go of her hand, bringing his to caress her cheek. He kissed her longingly and rested his forehead on hers, feeling her hand first explore him and then proceed to move up and down, like he had shown her.
"Genna," he whispered, with his eyes closed. "Genna," he whispered again, suddenly opening his eyes and looking at her.
His hand was shaking against her cheek and he was now panting hard. He was so very close, closer than he had thought possible, closer than he would have been had he done it himself, even if the fantasy would have been Genna doing it to him.
His breath caught in his throat and he moaned as he came, shooting his semen all over her belly and hand.
"Don't move," he told her gently, after a few moments of enjoying the afterglow of his climax.
He grabbed for his wand and cleaned up the mess.
"Did you... did you... was I okay?" she asked shyly.
"Merlin, Genna," he said. "How could you even doubt it? You were okay when you were just a fantasy. Now, you're just perfect."
He pulled her to him and kissed her longingly, caressing her breast again.
"Marcus, we need to sleep," she said.
"I know," he said. "Turn around, Love."
She did and he pulled her to him, bringing her back to his chest, spooning her perfectly. He brought his hand to her front and rested it on her belly, burying his nose into her hair.
"Are you comfortable?" he asked her.
"Oh! Yes," she answered with a yawn. "Will you stay tonight?"
"Yes, I will," he answered.
"Please don't leave without waking me," she asked sleepily.
"I won't. I promise."
A/N: If you want to find out more about how Harry saved Ginny, how Healer Troovus saved Ginny and how Harry saved the Hospital, please read Harry Potter and the Ring of Power. Otherwise, just PM me and I'll brief you :)