By Reason Of Birth

"Sidi Rbat- Morocco," he answered. "In the house my mother grew up in. Come with me," he said, taking her hand back and leading her to on of the blue doors at the back of the house. It was a sitting room, with beautiful fabrics and woods.

The most breathtaking part, though, was the view. There were two large windows facing the Atlantic Ocean, showing a vast sandy beach stretching out as far as she could see. Surfers were in the water, and there were people on the beach, playing in the surf.

"Shouldn't there be more people on the beach, or is it private?" Hermione asked, noting that considering the excellent temperature the beach was fairly sparse.

"No, it's public," he told her, "but very hard to get to. Do you want to go check it out?"

"I don't have a suit with me," she responded, turning from the window to Blaise, who was standing right behind her.

"That's okay. I told Theo where I was taking you, and he had Lammy procure one for you; as well as some of your other clothes in case you wanted to change. It will cool down after the sun sets."

"You are such a Slytherin," she said, giving him an 'I should have known' look.

He chuckled as he led her to the guest room where all of her clothes had been put, before he went to his own room to change into his trunks.

She met him back in the courtyard, a towel wrapped around her torso, the silver sticks out of her hair, securing it in a bun with a rubber band. "You did this on purpose, didn't you?" she accused him with a glare.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he responded through his chuckles.

"You know perfectly well what I'm talking about- you had Lammy choose the smallest swimming costume that I own, and no others, so I wouldn't have a choice in the matter." Her arms were folded over her chest, and she gave him her best severe look.

"Well, it sounds like something I would do," he replied, his lips curved into an inviting smirk. "And with all that skin that's sure to show, you're going to need quite a bit of lotion. Would you care for some help applying it?"

"No, I think I've changed my mind about the beach. I'm just going to change into one of the sundresses that Lammy picked out." She turned around as quickly as she could so he couldn't see the smile on her face, and slowly started to walk back towards the guest room.

"Hermione, I'm sorry," Blaise said, reaching out for her arm. "I didn't realise it would make you so uncomfortable. If you want to wear one of my shirts, I can go and get one for you."

She turned back around so she was facing him and stepped in close, touching her lips gently to his, the kiss surprising him. "No, I'll be fine; I just don't want you to assume anything in the future," she said. "Though I could use some help with that lotion... but only on my back. I can reach everywhere else."

Blaise kissed her in return, light, fluttering kisses that barely touched their lips together. "Are you sure?" When she smiled and nodded her head, he continued through his kisses. "Well...I admit...I'm not as talented as you...and I will need considerably more help."

He pulled away from her, walking to an ornately carved sideboard, and pulled out a bottle of sun lotion. She took off her towel and laid it on the sideboard, then took the bottle from him. She paid him no attention as he goggled at her nearly naked form, rubbing the lotion into her skin and making sure to get her face and ears.

When she had finished, she handed him the bottle wordlessly as she turned around. She soon felt his hands rubbing the warm liquid over her back, shoulders, and neck. He massaged it into her, and she felt the loss of his skilled fingers when he was no longer touching her.

She turned around and found that it was her turn to goggle at him. This was the first time she had ever seen him without a shirt on, and she couldn't help but wish Wizarding culture was closer to that of Muggles, and would be accepting of him going without his shirt more often.

"Hermione," Blaise cleared his throat, "I'm up here." Hermione immediately covered her face with her hands, mortified to be caught gaping at her date, even if he had done the same to her. He pulled her hands away and grinned at her red face. He then put the lotion bottle in her hand. "My turn," he said as he wriggled his eyebrows before turning around.

Her blush deepened as her hands glided over his back and shoulders. His skin was silky soft, and his muscles rippled under her touch. When she finished, she reluctantly pulled away and stepped back, putting some distance between them.

"Ah, ah, ah," Blaise admonished, turning to face her. "I told you, I need more help than just my back, and I meant it. How could I possibly rub myself down when I have such a beautiful woman here to do it for me?"

Hermione had quickly become convinced that her face would never turn back to its natural color so long as Blaise had his shirt off, and his compliments s did nothing to help the situation. It was one thing to be complimented on academics, but she didn't think she would ever get used to being complimented on her looks.

She stood there blushing, until Blaise took one of her hands in his, and squirted a liberal amount of lotion into it before he put the bottle down. He then rubbed her hands together, and placed them on his chest. He had to coach her at first, but eventually she was working the lotion into his dark skin in earnest. It wasn't until she reached his slightly rippled stomach that she noticed the growing tent in his trunks.

"You can finish yourself," she stammered as she quickly stepped back and away from him.

"Are you sure?" he asked, invitingly.

She unconsciously licked her lips as she glanced down to his trunks and back up. "Yes, I'm sure."

"Okay, but only since you insist," Blaise said, not wanting to push her too far, too fast. He quickly finished applying his lotion, and grabbed his towel.

Just before they left the house, he opened one of the many blue doors and entered the room. Hermione tried to peek her head in, but he came out of the room just as quickly, not wanting her to peek at his surprise until he was ready. He was holding a green surfboard under his arm and had a big grin on his face. "I am going to teach you to surf," he informed her with a wink.

"Really? I wouldn't have pictured you surfing... or playing any other Muggle sport for that matter. Well, maybe rugby," she mused as they made their way to the water.

"If you recall, my family was neutral during the war. My mother is well respected within her circles, but she refused to take a stance either way, and, since I was still a minor and under her guardianship, I wasn't forced to make a decision of my own... I would have chosen your side, though," he concluded quietly, having sensed the question he knew to be on the tip of her tongue.

She didn't answer him, instead she looked up at him, and he was somehow afraid that he would fail to measure up to whatever it was that was in her mind. Eventually, she smiled softly at him and nodded her head once.

The lesson went on for an hour and a half, and by the end of it, she had ridden a wave for an entire fifteen seconds before she had lost her footing and fell into the water. After the grueling lesson, she decided that this must be how Blaise kept in such good shape; she had certainly never heard the word 'exercise' pass through either his or Theo's lips.

They each took a separate shower when they returned to the house, and changed into fresh clothing. Blaise escorted her to the kitchen, where they prepared a light dinner of salad and chicken.

"How do you do that on a regular basis? My whole body aches," Hermione moaned, sinking onto a sofa once they had cleaned up after their dinner.

"You get used to it," he replied as he picked up her feet and sat down. They talked as he massaged her feet and calves, and they both drifted off to sleep, exhausted from their time in the ocean.

~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~~*~~~

"HERMIONE JEAN NOTT!"

The booming voice jolted Hermione awake, and she kicked Blaise in the stomach as she sat up straight, frantically looking around for Brisco.

He, Caoilinn, and Zarina were in the doorway of the room. Caoilinn had her arms folded over her chest as she watched the two teens scramble to their feet, while Zarina quickly covered her smile, and gave them a very stern look.

Brisco, on the other hand, stood with his feet squared with his shoulders, glowering at them, though more so at Blaise than Hermione.

"Merlin, I'm so sorry! We fell aslee-"

"Hermione, I do not want an explanation right now. You were supposed to be home forty-five minutes ago, and instead you and Blaise were asleep in MOROCCO!"

Caoilinn moved forward, resting her hand on her husband's arm as she kissed his shoulder. He calmed down a bit, but his face was just as stormy as when she had first seen him in the room. Zarina was now standing with her son, her face still expressionless as she whispered into his ear.

"But-"

"No buts. Your mother and I were worried sick. We didn't know where you were, or if anything had happened to you and Blaise."

"But, Daddy!" The entire room went still as she clapped her hands over her mouth, each person shocked at what she had called him.

"Hermione, we are going home now. We will talk about this in the morning. At the very least, though, I can guarantee that you and Blaise will not be alone together for quite some time."

Chapter End Notes:
as always, thanks to everyone who reviewed and read and to lupie for betaing,