Continuing Tales

Thirty-One Days

A Harry Potter Story
by keelhaulrose

Part 17 of 29

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Thirty-One Days

She woke up slowly, blinking several times as she tried to orient herself. The room was dark, the lone candle nearly out. The chill had overcome at some point in the night, and Severus had conjured a second blanket. She was still wrapped around him, could feel his cock pressing into her thigh and the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest underneath her. There was a dull ache between her legs, but it thrilled her. She looked up towards Severus' face, and saw him looking down at her, a small smile on his lips, the light from the candle dancing in his black eyes.

"Morning," she whispered.

"Good morning," he replied, kissing her forehead.

"How are you?"

"I can't remember a morning I've enjoyed more. You?"

"The same. Did you get any sleep?"

"More than I'm used to. Curfew is going to lift in about five minutes."

"Good."

"Eager to leave?" his eyebrow arched.

"Desperate need to pee, more like."

He chuckled.

"Laugh all you want, but could you imagine what it would be like if Peeves got any idea we were down here all night?" she asked with a shudder.

"Could you imagine the look on Black's face when he heard whatever lewd song Peeves started singing?"

"Don't start that, Severus," she groaned, burying her head in his neck. "You'll just make me upset, and I'm in such a good mood."

"I can think of a few reasons I'd want you to stay in a good mood," he muttered, lifting her chin so he could kiss her.

"You do know our dorm mates are going to have noticed our absence," she sighed.

"All the more reason to hide out here all day."

"And tomorrow morning, when we have to go to class?"

"You went on an unexpected visit to your grandfather. I doubt anyone will give much of a shit where I was."

"Do you propose we don't eat all day?"

"I could be distracted enough to forget that I'm hungry."

She chuckled. "I might for a while, but there's still the bathroom conundrum."

"That one would be problematic. I'd be horribly upset if you soiled my lab."

"But you don't mind me defiling it?"

"That I think I can live with."

She craned her neck to kiss him again. "I'll make up some sort of excuse with my dorm mates. I need a shower, and I would like breakfast, but I wouldn't mind spending the rest of the day with you."

"Meet down here after breakfast, then?" he asked, hopefully.

"I'm looking forward to it," she smiled, kissing him.

She made sure the coast was clear before slipping out to the hallway. Deciding it was worth the risk of getting caught doing magic in the hallways she cast a Disillusionment charm on herself, and hurried through the corridors. She lifted the charm as she made it to Ravenclaw tower, where a small trickle of students were leaving to go to breakfast. Luckily none of them were her dorm mates so she was able to get into the tower without a second glance. Deciding to shower before she ate, she slipped into her dorm room, and couldn't believe her luck to find Danielle, Selena, and Jennae still asleep. As quietly as possible she opened her trunk and started getting her shower gear out. She knew her luck couldn't hold out, and when she tried to close the trunk it slipped, slamming down.

"Hermione?" Jennae asked sleepily.

"It's just me," she whispered. "I was going to take a shower. I'm sorry I woke you."

"Give me a second," she said, sitting up. "I'll go with you."

Hermione swore to herself, but waited as Jennae quickly got her things together. They went to the bathroom, taking shower stalls next to each other.

"Where were you last night?" Jennae asked as they got undressed.

"What do you mean?" she asked, trying to gauge what her friend knew.

"We were up until around midnight, and you didn't come back."

"What were you doing up until midnight?"

"We studied in the common room until about ten, then came up here. Danielle went to sleep quickly, but Selena and I stayed up reading."

"Severus and I got caught up finishing our essay, and I got in a little after ten. Then I wanted to get my Transfiguration work done, and polished my Charms essay. I went to bed around one in the morning."

"And you're the first one up?"

"I guess I'm just used to getting up this early."

There were a few moments silence as they stepped into the showers.

"Hermione? You know you don't have to lie to me. I won't tell anyone."

"What do you mean?" she asked, her stomach sinkin.

"I woke up a few hours ago. You still weren't in bed. And it's still made."

"Damn. I forgot that part."

"Were you with Severus?"

"Yes. We got a little carried away, and decided we weren't going to risk being caught out after curfew."

"Where were you?"

"A secret place only he, Slughorn, and I know about. And Slughorn doesn't use it at all. It's a nice little quiet place where we can spend time together alone or, if we're in an academic mood, blow things up without a crowd around."

Jennae laughed. "We were thinking of going out this afternoon to do some flying. Would you like to join us?"

"Oh, no. I don't fly."

"Come on, Hermione. You can't stay in the castle forever, no matter how distracting Snape is."

Hermione laughed. "I promised him we'd spend a little more time together, but I guess I can make it down to the pitch later. I'll stay on the ground, though, thanks."

"Hermione..."

"I really don't like flying."

"Fine. You can bring Severus if you want."

"I'll ask him. I don't know if he's much of a flier," she finished, biting her lip, remembering that Harry told her that Severus knew how to fly without broomstick later, so he probably wasn't shy about using one during his Hogwarts years.

She ate breakfast with her friends, and hurried back down to find Severus. He hadn't come up for breakfast, or if he had it had been while she was showering, but either way he wasn't in the Great Hall. When she reached the dungeon she hadn't even had the chance to step off the bottom stair when she heard someone running towards her. Without a word Severus pulled her around a corner into a darkened passage, pressed her into the stone, and started kissing her furiously, pushing her t-shirt up a few inches, winding a hand into her hair so it was messed up. She could feel the rise and fall of his chest against hers as he tried to kiss her and catch his breath at the same time, and then he was shrugging out of his cloak, which fell to the floor with an odd, muffled clanking noise. She tried to pull away to ask him what was going on, but he pressed harder into her so her shoulders and head were pressed painfully against the stone. Suddenly there were another set of footsteps, along with heavy breathing.

"Stop!" Slughorn said, and wand light suddenly filled the passage. Hermione blushed as she pushed Severus off. Slughorn's face went from anger, to surprise, to pride in the span of a few seconds.

"Mister Snape!" he chastised, though he punctuated it with a loud chuckle. "Miss Puckle! My apologies, my apologies! I did not mean to interrupt."

"Not a problem, Professor," Severus said, a hint of irritation in his voice, as though he were upset at the interruption, but Hermione caught a mischievous look Slughorn immediately mistook for satisfaction at his actions.

"I caught some scalawag in my private stores this morning, and I thought they ran this way."

"Oh, no," Hermione gasped. "Do you know who?"

"Unfortunately, no," he waved his hand. "I'll have to do an inventory, but some of your classmates are quite fond of brewing up love potions. I have some of the more rare and expensive ingredients. Though it seems you two hardly need the assistance. Now, as your Professor, and your Head of House, Mister Snape, I must insist you move along."

"No problem, Professor," Severus nodded, gathering their things. "We were planning on doing some studying."

"There are plenty of nooks around the castle, m'boy. Much more private, and less spider-infested, than this old passage."

"I'm sorry, sir. It won't happen again."

"I'm sure it won't," he winked.

Severus led Hermione out of the passage, and started to lead her upstairs. They crouched by the top of the stairwell until they heard Slughorn go into his office. Hermione crossed her arms and looked up at Severus.

"So, what did you steal?" she asked with a smirk.

"Do you think after that I'm going to show you where we might get caught by witnesses?" he hissed, grabbing her wrist and quietly leading her towards the private lab. Once they were safely inside he unwrapped a small jar from his discarded cloak. Inside was a liquid the color of ash, though it glowed softly red whenever disturbed.

"Is that Ashwinder venom?" she whispered, holding her hand out so she could examine the jar more closely.

"Yes."

"Why?" she asked in surprise, holding the contents up to the candle.

"You seemed as though you really wanted to work on the antivenin. I thought we could work on it together, since it means a lot to you."

She carefully put the venom on a shelf before launching herself at him. He dropped the cloak to wrap his arms around her, already tugging at the t-shirt she was wearing. She let him peel it off her, and he threw it to the side as she started fumbling with the buttons of his shirt.

"Damn you, why must you always wear so many bloody buttons?" she growled, and pointed her wand at his shirt. Immediately all the buttons unfastened themselves, and she pulled the shirt off and let it fall. He grabbed her waist and pulled her to him, reaching around as their bodies collided to take her bra off. She slid out of her pants as she did the same, and they laid side-by-side on the bed. She reached between their bodies and carefully wrapped her hand around his cock, gently moving up and down, and he groaned as his lips left hers, peppering her neck and jaw with kisses, gently sucking and biting in places. She wrapped her leg around him, pulling him on top of her, and rubbing against him to let him know she was ready. His hand moved between them, and he slipped easily inside her.

Their second time was easier than the first. She knew his rhythm, and rolled her hips to match his movements. He knew where she liked to be touched, what spots made her purr, where he could suck on her skin so her fingernails would rake across his. She refused to close her eyes unless he was kissing her, she wanted to see him, to know every moment was real. They finished together, and he collapsed next to her, refusing to let go of her.

"I could get used to this," she murmured against the skin of his neck before kissing it lightly.

He chuckled. "It would be nice to have somewhere else to meet besides this cold little hole in the wall."

"Like where?"

"What do you mean?"

"Once you're done with school you're going to have to live somewhere. Where were you thinking of living?"

"Not a damn clue. It'll be somewhere small. Somewhere inexpensive. I doubt I'll be making much money right after I leave school."

"What about when you're a little bit older? Once you have a job and a bit of money."

"Probably still somewhere small and inexpensive. I don't need a lot of space."

"What if I were with you?"

He studied her face for a long moment. "Some cottage. Out in the hills. With no one around us. Somewhere I could grow brewing ingredients in the backyard and not worry about some nosy neighbor wondering what I'm up to. It doesn't need to be big, I don't want kids, but perhaps a second bedroom for visitors. Somewhere where the air is fresh and the skies are visible at night."

"Sounds like a little slice of heaven," she murmured.

"I'd want enough area outside for flying."

"I didn't know you flew."

"Not much, but it is a good way to relieve stress."

"How would you like to release some stress this afternoon, then? My friends invited me flying, but I don't. But they invited you as well."

"I'll try to make it."

"Really?"

"It's important to you. Maybe tomorrow after class we can work on the ashwinder venom. I don't want to wait too long."

"Neither do I," she smiled, kissing him.

They stayed in the room until lunch, then he told her he'd meet her on the Quidditch pitch. She had lunch with her friends, and after they made their way out of the castle and down to the pitch. The day was crisp, but not too cold, and the sky was clear with only a soft breeze. There were many students flying through the air, enjoying what might be their last nice weekend before the winter. Hermione bid her friends goodbye as they went to collect some of the school brooms. She watched as they flew laps around the pitch.

"Sitting here all alone?" Severus said behind her, and she turned quickly to see him hovering on a broom just out of her reach.

"When did you get here?" she asked.

"Came out of the castle a few seconds ago. I got Lucius to lend me his broom."

She eyed the sleek, expensive looking broom. "Looks fast," she murmured.

"It is. Want a ride?"

"Not a chance."

"Hermione..."

"I don't like flying. I feel like I'm going to fall off at every turn."

He laughed. "Do you think I'd let you fall?"

"Not on purpose, obviously."

"Trust me, Hermione," he said, getting close enough for her to climb onto the broom.

She sighed, and stood up. Cautiously she let him climb onto the broom in front of him, and he reached around her, bending her over so their hands were on the handle. Without warning he took off. While the broom wasn't as fast as it would be had there only been one of them, it was much faster than she felt comfortable riding, and she shut her eyes tight, her knuckles white from hanging on to the handle. She felt Severus guiding them higher, felt the sun shining on her face, and felt Severus' chin resting on her shoulder. Suddenly they stopped and started to hover. His hands left the handle and slid up her legs, one coming to rest on her waist, the other lifting her chin.

"Don't look down," he ordered.

"Not a problem," she replied, keeping them tightly shut.

"Open your eyes," he sighed in exasperation.

She suppressed a shudder, but opened her eyes. She let off a soft gasp as she saw the Forbidden Forest, the lake and the mountains stretching in front of her. The last time she had been up this high had been on the thestral, and that was at night and she was more concerned about staying on the invisible horse than enjoying the view. She chanced a quick glance downwards, they were at least twice as high as the castle. Looking to her left she saw Hogsmeade. Far below students streaked in all different directions riding broomsticks while others sat on the lawn to study or watch a pickup game of Quidditch.

"What are you thinking?" he asked quietly.

"That part of me wants to encourage you to start flying, and we won't stop until we're safe," she replied honestly.

"Do you think we'd be able to stop?"

"No," she shook her head. "But it's fun to escape reality and speak in hypothetical sometimes."

She heard Jennae calling her name below them.

"Reality calls," Severus mutters, starting to head towards the ground.

She didn't close her eyes and he went into a gentle dive. She wanted to remember every part of their moment, knowing it would help her get through the difficult time that lay ahead. The sun was already starting to sink on her eighth day. She would need every moment of the next week to leave her impression on Severus, but part of her was afraid she was going to fail, and she'd only have memoies like their flight above Hogwarts to remind her of her time with Severus.

Thirty-One Days

A Harry Potter Story
by keelhaulrose

Part 17 of 29

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