A/N: Thank you all so much for your reviews, favorites and follows! Review responses to come, I just got a bit caught up today. You can find me on tumblr (nauticalparamour).
Please let me know what you thought of chapter eleven and be on the lookout for chapter twelve soon!
The words were pouring out of Hermione.
She'd gone back to her unfinished manuscript and read over every word, before squeezing in extra descriptions and sentences to describe the utter excitement that was flying - every stomach swoop and wind swept hair was captured as her two protagonists found themselves. But, she wasn't just inspired by the flying - it was the romance as well.
It was as if Hermione didn't have experience to draw from before, but there was something about the way that Marcus made her feel that she wanted to capture as well. The pining, the secret looks and touches, and not to mention the passion once they both finally gave into their desires and kissed one another. Again, she tried to capture each skipped heartbeat, each nipped lip in a kiss, and not to mention the absolute soaring magic that she felt with Marcus's magic fingers.
In fact, she was certain that she would be finishing up her manuscript soon enough that her publishers would have it ready to hit the shelves in time for the hot summer season. It was good, because her agent was sending her progressively more panicked letters about why Clementine Dearly hadn't published anything in nearly a year!
But, first, she would have to find the time to put the finishing touches on her writing. She and Marcus had certainly not stopped seeing one another, though they hadn't had time for something more formal like a date. Mostly, it seemed like they were always sneaking around in empty classrooms or broom cupboards for a quick (or not so quick) snog or a bit more!
Honestly, it made Hermione feel more like a student than a professor sometimes. In fact, they had even caught an amorous student couple on more than one occasion, who always seemed a bit surprised to find their Transfiguration and Flying Professors giggling and flushed with their hands all over one another.
It wasn't just Marcus that was keeping her busy though. A new term meant new lessons to plan and new quizzes and essays to make sure that her fifth year and seventh year students hadn't completely forgotten everything that they learned in the first term over Yule break. Also, she needed to start prepping her fourth and sixth year students because their next years would be OWL and NEWT years, so it was important for them to get off on the right foot. Oh, and the second years, too, because they would start selecting their electives and that was also a critical point in their education, even if thirteen year olds generally didn't see it that way.
And when it wasn't exams and homework, it was chaperoning the students on their trips to Hogsmeade.
Luckily, that meant a bit more time with Marcus. She was very impressed with his quick thinking during a staff meeting, when Minerva revealed that Filius had been called away unexpectedly, leaving Hermione without a partner to chaperone the trip to the village. Minerva hadn't even been able to call for volunteers before Marcus was valiantly offering to go along with her.
They met the morning of the Hogsmeade trip in the Great Hall, giving one another secret smiles, before boarding one of the first coaches that took everyone down to the magical village. It felt too odd to try to hold his hand when they were in front of three gawking third years, so Hermione settled for pressing her leg tightly against Marcus's own broad thigh, enjoying the feeling of his warmth seeping into her, and casually chatting with her students about what they planned to do with their afternoon.
Once they arrived in the village, they were left blissfully alone, as the students seemed to want to make themselves as scarce as possible. They walked along the main road together, without any particular destination in mind. Hermione bumped her shoulder into his arm every now and again, just wanting to be as close as possible to the former Chaser as possible. It was nice to be out and about like this.
"For the record, you are a much better chaperone partner than Filius," Hermione said, not feeling even a little badly about saying it. It was nice to get to spend the additional time with him.
"I'm glad to hear it," he said, looking at her out of the corner of his eye and bumping his own arm into her shoulder. It sent her a bit off course, laughing. "I hoped that you wouldn't think of me as a fool for jumping so quick to volunteer. It's been a while since we've had some quality time with one another."
"Not at all," Hermione reassured him with a grin. "I agree. Though, I don't really know how quality it can be, seeing as we are meant to be watching the students."
"Believe it or not, Granger, I do enjoy talking with you, too," he said with a snort. "Though, the extras are certainly highly appealing."
Hermione's mouth hung open. "The extras?" she asked, grinning. "Is that what you are calling it?"
"Well, yeah. What would you have me call it?" he wondered out loud.
She shrugged her shoulders at that. She wasn't entirely sure what to call what they were doing either. Enjoying one another's company? It felt too fragile to put any kind of labels on it. And for now, Hermione was just enjoying being loved up as frequently as she was. Still, she could dream of more...
"You know, I don't think that I've ever actually been on a date to Hogsmeade before," she said, daringly. She didn't want him to push back that this wasn't a date. "And so near to Valentine's Day, too! Mr. Flint, you know how to sweep a witch off of her feet."
She could see his cheeks pinking and for once she was certain that it wasn't from the cold. "I wish I could pretend like I planned it this way," he answered, honestly. "But, I just saw the opportunity to be with you and I took it."
Hermione hummed in agreement, knowing that it would have been rather far fetched. In any case, how would he have known that Flitwick would be called away for family business. "All the same, I'm going to count it," she said, coquettish and sweet.
Marcus gave her one of those crooked grins of his. "I don't think I actually ever went on a date at Hogsmeade, either. Usually just went to the Hog's Head with the guys," he explained her. "So we better do this right then."
Before she could argue, he was pulling her into Honeydukes so that they could look over all of the chocolates. It took a lot of cajoling and demuring, but Hermione ultimately revealed to him that her favorite treat was sugar quills. He bought her two packets and a bit of toffee for himself, which he was apparently partial to.
Next, the went into Scrivenshaft's, just because Marcus suspected that she liked it. Hermione didn't take too long, but did end up buying some nice parchment, a new quill, and some ink. She'd been going through ink like mad with all of her edits! But, she wasn't about to tell Marcus that. He dutifully looked around, but didn't buy anything himself.
Likewise, Hermione followed Marcus into Quality Quidditch supplies so that he could get a few necessities, like broom polish, and the latest Quidditch magazine. He chatted with the shopkeeper a bit, as it seemed that they were familiar enough that he knew a few details about Marcus. In turn, Marcus introduced her to the shopkeeper, who was extremely impressed to be meeting the Hermione Granger.
With their shopping handled, they popped into the Three Broomsticks for a pint of butterbeer. They sat next to each other at the bar, taking sips of the warm liquid while their fingers and noses warmed up. It was fun to observe the room, taking little bets on their students' lives - how dates would go and the like and if any relationships would survive out in the real world. When their pints were gone, though, they had to leave the warm pub and resume their patrol.
Marcus and Hermione walked down the main road, to the far side of Hogsmeade, where less students dared to go. Before she knew what was happening, Marcus was pulling her down a side alley, out of view of everyone else. "This isn't a proper date if I don't get a snog, is it?" he asked.
Hermione was only too pleased to wrap her arms around his neck and press her lips against his, moaning when he immediately deepened it. She delighted at the shivers that raced up and down her spine when his tongue tangled with hers, his hands already toying with the edge of her shirt. She felt like she was tingling all over. Godric, she wanted him more than she'd ever wanted anyone in her life!
He broke away from her lips to pepper her skin with kisses. He kissed her down from the edge of her jaw, down the side of her neck, until he was stopped by the collar of her shirt, his lips featherlight and teasing. Hermione pressed her legs together, desperate for a bit of friction to ease the ache she felt at her center. As though he were reading her mind, Marcus dropped to his knees in the snow before her.
His cold hands slipped under the skirts of her robes and Hermione pressed back against the wall, scandalized. "Marcus!" she said, unsure of why she wanted him to stop. "The students!"
He smirked at her. "Just cast a notice-me-not spell," he ordered. "No one is going to find us down here."
Her fingers shook as she found her wand and quickly cast a few privacy spells, while Marcus's head disappeared under her robes. Not being able to see what he was up to was heady, and she felt her heart hammer while she wondered what he was going to do.
His finders found the edge of her knickers and he slid them down her legs. She felt his hot breath on her slit and it suddenly felt like too much. Her legs shook as she leaned back against the wall, pressing her hand over her eyes. He pressed a tentative kiss and Hermione felt her hips jerk towards him of their own accord.
She whimpered when he reached around her legs to hold her in place, before he kissed her more soundly, easily finding the pearl at the top of her sex. Her eyes screwed shut tightly when he licked her slickness again and again, quickly finding the rhythm that she liked the most.
"Oh Godric," she said, surprised by how rapidly she was hurdling towards completion. She had never imagined doing this outside where they could be stumbled upon by anyone, but she enjoyed it far too much. Wrapped up in her own pleasure, she couldn't do anything but sigh and moan while he quickly pushed her towards the edge of her release.
"Please Marcus," she begged, while his tongue worked in tight little circles, until she was finally coming, moaning his name again and again. She felt boneless, her insides a melted, gooey mess.
Marcus gave her one last kiss once he was certain her orgasm was finished, before coming out from under her robes and standing back up. He looked far too pleased with himself, staring boldly into her eyes. "Well, that was quite a kiss for a Hogsmeade date, wasn't it?" he asked.
Hermione could feel herself flush from head to toe, but she was far too pleased with his verified magic tongue to scold him. Tentatively, she reached out to grab him by the belt, only to have her greedy fingers batted away by Marcus.
"No, this was more than enough for me," he said. "I'll be thinking of that for the rest of my life."
She shrugged, but didn't fight him on it. "You'll have to let me return the favor some time," she said.
"Well, I won't say no to that," Marcus answered with a grin. "But we should really be getting back. The carriages are about to leave for the castle."