6th year explorations

****Who’s watching whom?****


“Can you BELIEVE her? Honestly!” Hermione continued to rant and babble about the happenings in potions. Harry and Ron glancing at each other with smirking grins on their faces. They had never seen her get so agitated by someone; well maybe Malfoy but he instigated most if not all of the confrontations. And what they saw in potions was not a confrontation so much as a struggle over who was smarter.

“Like I didn’t know that the eggs incubate for exactly 95 days. I was just rounding it out for the sake of the class…” She continued as they all walked across the grounds towards Herbology, which they had again with the Slytherin’s.

The class began much the same as Potions. Professor Sprout asked if anyone knew how the Windlygon flower protected itself and the two girls spent the next 15 minutes showing the other up with information ranging from where the flower got its latin and common names to how the spiked pollen embeds it’s self in the skin of anyone who tries to pluck a flower. Finally, Professor Sprout stopped them and awarded both houses 10 points for superior knowledge.

Hermione was just red in the face. *Why am I so darn angry? I should be happy that someone has more than half a brain in this school. She just seems to throw out her answers like she’s done a thesis project on the subject. I work really hard to get to know all this stuff and she… well… I don’t know how she knows all this stuff. Uugh! *

They spend the remainder of class gathering pollen samples, while wearing thick dragon gloves so no one would fall asleep accidentally. Malfoy noticed that the two girls kept taking quick glances at each other sizing each other up. He smiled to himself.


By dinnertime Hermione had worked herself up to an all out tizzy.

“Hermione!! Would you give it a rest already?” Ron asked for the third time that day. He rolled his eyes and turned back to his plate.

“Well!…I!..ugh!” She shut her mouth and glared at him then glared even harder at the defenseless food on her plate. She stabbed at a carrot and devoured it but didn’t really taste it.

Harry sat beside her lost in his own thoughts. He chanced a glance at the Slytherin table. Malfoy and his group were talking animatedly and he realized they were rehashing the events of the day’s classes.

* Fucking Malfoy! All I have to do is look at him and my blood boils. Stupid prat! *

He pulled his eyes from Draco and noticed that Samantha wasn’t joining in on the conversation. She sat at the edge of the group just staring – not even at her plate but into space. No expression, not sad, not angry but blank. It kind of creeped Harry out to see an expression so… so… so… well blank.

“Hello? Earth to Harry?” A hand waved in front of his face. Harry’s head snapped up to look at Ron whose eyes were wide. Ron’s head nodded toward the front of the great hall.

There at the head table stood Professor Durang. Well she wasn’t exactly standing. More like leaning on the table with one leg hitched up leaving her knee and ankle to dangle over the side. It swung back and forth like a little child’s legs would on a swing set at the playground. What she was wearing though was anything but child like. Her feet sported dark brown leather lace up boots that came up to the knee. They looked crisp and shined in the firelight. The toe was pointed and the heel about three inches tall made her curvy frame look elongated. She wore a one-piece dark brown suede dress that came to mid thigh. At the hem was beaded fringe that also sparkled in the firelight. The shoulder straps were spaghetti thin and crossed at the back, which was exposed to just above her bum. She leaned further onto the table resting on her hand, flicked her hair over her shoulder and lifted her head back laughing at something Hagrid had said.

Snape seated at the other end of the table, glared at her but still was unable to remove his gaze. He knew this display was meant only to tempt and infuriate him.

Harry gulped and his mouth gaped open. He was having thoughts about her that he knew he shouldn’t be having about a teacher.

Hermione watched the two boys in their drool fest. She furrowed her brow and pulled her lips into a tight line.

*Honestly! Guys and their hormones! *

“I’m going back to the common room.” Hermione told them as she got up to go. They hadn’t heard her, they, along with the rest of the boys (and some girls) in the great hall were totally enamored with watching the woman’s obvious performance.

With a disgusted look shot at her friends then to the front table she strode out of the hall.


She watched her try to get her friends attention.

*Wow, she’s getting really pissed at them. *

Samantha, again found herself watching Hermione. She saw Hermione look to her friends and then up to the front table where Professor Durang was making a spectacle of herself. She looked back toward the Gryffindor table.

* Stupid boys! Don’t even know what they’ve got right in front of them…What? Where did that come from? *

Hermione got up and walked out the great hall with Samantha’s eyes on her the whole way. Once Hermione was past the hall doors Samantha squeezed her eyes shut and ground the heels of her hand into the sockets.

* What am I thinking? *

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*****DADA class*****


Defence Against the Dark Arts class couldn’t start soon enough for Harry and Ron. They arrived at the classroom a good 20 minutes early along with all the other guys (and Millicent Bullstrode) trying to get a good seat. Hermione met them there just as class was to start and took a seat at the back, one of the only seats left.

Professor Durang entered the classroom from her office in the back. She observed the class as she descended the small staircase and walked to her desk. To the disappointment of all the males in the class she was not wearing tight, form fitting clothes, like she had at dinner the other night. She wore gray sweat pants cut into shorts and a tank top that had the male and female symbols entwined on the front in hot pink. Her legs are shapely and ankles are slender leading to her feet, which are bare with pink painted toenails. Her eyes scanned the students as she entered the room.

* White blonde hair – handsome angular features…. obviously a Malfoy. Tanned freckled skin, shaggy red hair hanging over crisp blue eyes. Hhmmm…full lips…Weasley’s son…not bad at all. *

Her eyes hesitated slightly over Harry. *The scar…Potter. *

She took a few more seconds to look over the other students.

“Would everyone please stand from their desks? Yes, that right.” called Durang from the front of the class. The students did as told although hesitantly. The Professor waved her wand and the desks disappeared. With another flick of her wand a large padded mat covered the floor. She walked around to the front of her desk clapped her hands together, rubbing her palms.

“Well, let’s see….” Durang said now walking among the students. She stopped in front of a boy.

“You…. Mister?….”she waited for the boy to fill in his name.

“Finnegan. Seamus Finnegan, Professor.” He rocked back and forth on his toes anxiously smiling.

“Up front, please Mr. Finnegan.” Her voice was commanding yet soft. She nodded up toward her desk and led the way. Seamus followed behind her. Dean and Ron giving him wicked smiles and thumbs up. He only grinned wider.

“Looks like a duel.” Ron whispered to Harry who nodded back in agreement.

Indeed Seamus had pulled his wand out and was taking the dueling stance.

“No, no Mr. Finnegan. Please place your wand on my desk if you would.” He did as requested and placed it on the desk next to her wand. “And remove your robe as well.” He stripped of his robe so quickly you would have thought it was on fire.

“Here is the scenario Mr. Finnegan. We are in battle against each other and each of our wands is no longer in our possession…lon thn the battle field or snapped by an opponent.” She was twisting her hair up into a bun at the top of her head and securing it with decorative sticks as she spoke to Seamus and the class. “It is a battle you can ill afford to lose. You need to gain the upper hand and defeat me. Now…, how do you propose to do so?” She had finished arranging her hair and now stood to the side of the class facing him, hands on her hips.

Seamus shifted uncomfortably. He looked toward the students for advice. They looked as puzzled as he felt.

“Come, come Mr. Finnegan. What are you going to do?” She asked more firmly.

“Professor? What can I do without my wand?” He whined.

“Well, what can you do?” She asked back.

“I… could run circles around you.” He snorted at trying to make a joke.

“And how is that going to gain you an advantage in this situation?” She raised an eyebrow, not seeming amused.

“Well, maybe it would make you dizzy and you would fall over.” * Then I could pounce on you. * His smile widened at his wicked little thought.

“Interesting strategy, although wouldn’t you agree, Mr. Finnegan that our only option now is hand to hand combat?” She asked squaring her shoulders and lowering her chin to look at him from under her brows. “Now, attack me.”

His mouth popped open. “But I can’t do that! You’re a…a…teacher!” He was going to say girl but thought secondly about that because she was obviously a woman.

She said nothing but continued to look at him. He could swear he saw a flicker of a smile run across her face but it vanished.

Again Seamus looked to his fellow students. Half of them were stunned and giving him wide eyes not to do it, while the other half was nodding vigorously and egging him on.

Seamus looked back at Durang where she was now bent forward slightly; knees bent, arms beside her ready for the assault.

*Aww bloody hell! Here goes nothing…*

He charged his professor hoping to hit her in the abdomen and knock her over, but she easily sidestepped his attack just before he was to make contact. Durang used the boy’s own momentum to flip him in the air and slam him onto his back. She then took his wrist, yanked it is such a way that it caused him to roll over onto his stomach. Pulling his arm up behind him, palm up she grabbed his pinky and held him in that position while placing her foot at the base of his neck. The professor paused holding the position momentarily then released him.

Seamus lay there reeling. He wasn’t hurt, well, except his ego. A few snickers were heard from the back of the room and he could imagine Malfoy and his cronies making jokes.

Durang bent over Seamus helping him to his feet. She smiled softly to the boy and winked.

“Thank you for your assistance Mr. Finnegan.” He was grinning from ear to ear now as he rejoined his mates.

“I need another volunteer, please to demonstrate this next move.”

Despite having just seen a fellow classmate get his ass kicked every boys’ hand flew in the air. It was hard not to notice the red head bobbing up and down amid all the other boys.

“Yes, Mr. Weasley I presume? Please come to the front.” She motioned for him to join her at the front of the class.

“Stand here…” She pointed to an area on the mat. “and face the class. Good. The goal here is to get your opponent, me, on the mat. Now use any means necessary, understand?” Ron nodded not trusting his voice.

She stepped in front of him with her back to him. He could smell her perfume. She took a step back closer to him leaving a breath of distance between them. She then reached back and placed one of Ron’s arms around her waist and his other across her shoulders in front of her neck. His grip tightened reflexively pulling her back into him. * Oh Merlin! Oh…..! Don’t get a boner…don’t get a boner…don’t get a boner!!! * Ron started turning pink.

Durang continued speaking to the class. “My opponent has a distinct advantage in this position. Lets see what happens. OK Mr. Weasley, begin.”

He paused for only a second then grabbed her tightly, lifting her off the ground; her feet dangled a good two feet from the mat. *Well…now what do I do? * Ron didn’t have time to finish his thought it happened so quickly. In a few blurred seconds he found himself sprawled face down on the mat with Durang’s knee pressed painfully into the middle of his back, his arm twisted behind him, wrist wrenched to the side.

*What the bloody hell just happened? * Ron asked himself as he continued to be held in that rather painful position. Finally she released him and helped him up. With a smile she thanked him and sent the now crimson pink boy back to the join the class.

Durang turned to face the class and explained that she would be teaching basic hand-to-hand combat moves along with intermediate wizard dueling and shielding.

Hermione huffeddly dly and rolled her eyes.

“Is there something you would like to ask Miss…..?” Durang turned to Hermione.

“Granger. Hermione Granger. And yes I do have a question.”

Durang leaned her butt against her desk arms crossed, listening.

“Well, Professor I t set see how I…us girls are supposed…” Hermione was cut off.

“This is not about brute strength Miss Granger. Am I not smaller is stature compared to the two students who assisted me earlier?” She didn’t give Hermione a chance to answer and continued. “It’s about leverage, it’s about outsmarting your opponent before they even make their 1st move. It’s about assessing ones situation instantly and arriving at a strategy to overcome the obstacle. Then when your opponent makes a move you are one step ahead.” She had left her desk, wand in hand, and was now walking slowly toward Hermione.

“We witches and wizards often tend to only focus on the mind aspect of magic. We need to reconnect ourselves back to our bodies and trust instinct.” Durang stopped in front of her. Hermione thought that she had invaded her personal space a little too much but didn’t back up. Durang held Hermione’s eyes for a moment; the class watched unblinking.

“Miss Granger? Would you close your eyes please?” It wasn’t really a request.

Hermione did as told very grudgingly.

“Now, I am in front of you, yes?” Durang asked.

“Yes.” Hermione answered, rolling her eyes under her lids. She heard footsteps at the back of the room and Durang’s voice called out.

“I am behind you, yes?”

“Yes.” Hermione huffed. *Duh! * She then felt a warm breeze on her neck.

Again, steps to the right and Durang’s voice. “To your right?”

“Yes.” Hermione started. Another warm puff of air on her cheek.

“Are you sure I’m to your right?” Called Durang from Hermione’s left.

“Well…” Hermione hadn’t heard footsteps.

“What about now?” Durang from the far front of the room.

Hermione was confused now.

“Don’t think about where I am…” Came the professor’s voice from some where above her.

*Above me? No that ridiculous! *

Hermione felt hot from all the eyes of the students on her. She tingled from head to toe feeling their presence. Her face was getting flush from embarrassment. No that’s not entirely true; her face was physically warmer and she could feel the warmth on her chest and the on the front of her thighs, too. Her heart started thumping in her chest and her hands began to get sweaty. Subciouciously, Hermione licked her dry lips and the moisture evaporated instantly.

*Yes, definitely warmer in front of me…* She gave an involuntary shiver, not from being cold

“Your ….in front of me.” Hermione said breathily as she exhaled and opened her eyes. Professor Durang was so close to Hermione that she could see flex of green in the professors blue eyes. Hermione snapped her head back and stumbled backward a little, her body electric hot realizing how close the professor had been this whole time.

The corner of Durang’s mouth curled into a sideways grin as she raised an eyebrow. “Yes, we definitely need to reconnect to our bodies.”

The professor spent the remainder of class evaluating everyone’s shielding capabilities then dismissed class.

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A/N: Yeah it’s a long chapter but are you really complaining? Thing are getting warmer and can only get hotter as the story
goes.


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