Disclaimer: I do not own the original canon nor am I making any profit from writing this piece. All works are accredited to their original authors, performers, and producers while this piece is mine. No copyright infringement is intended. I acknowledge that all views and opinions expressed herein are merely my interpretations of the characters and situations found within the original canon and may not reflect the views and opinions of the original author(s), producer(s), and/or other people.
Warnings: This story may contain material that is not suitable for all audiences and may offend some readers.
Author's Note(s): This piece was written for a challenge in the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry (Challenges & Assignments) on the FFN forum.
The Challenge Information:
House: Gryffindor
Thrift Store Item: A grey t-shirt that reads "show me your kitty"
Prompt[s]: n/a
Word Count: 770
-= LP =-
The Seduction of Shirts
-= LP =-
"I give you what you want but nothing is for free." – Halestorm, I Get Off
-= LP =-
Katie had a plan.
Today would be the day that she finally snagged herself the chaser of her dreams. She had tried all manner of ways to ask her out, but Alicia had her plans, and they didn't include chasing after romance before she had finished her post-Hogwarts education. Well, Alicia had finished her apprenticeship just that afternoon and Katie was through being subtle.
She took special care to dress for their meet-up. The jeans hugged every curve. The boots ended just below her knees, and had just enough heel that her hips would sway when she walked. But the shirt she had the forethought pick up from the secondhand store was sure to be the thing which tipped the balance in her favor. On its faded gray fabric, it demanded that the reader show her their 'kitty'. Below the letters was an adorable fluffball of a kitten with large blue eyes.
She was going to get her woman at last.
"So, are you ready to go?" she called out as she let herself into Alicia's flat. They had been latchmates since leaving Hogwarts, treating each other's flats as exchangeable with their own. Yet every night saw them both back in their own beds. Hopefully, that would end tonight.
"Just about," Alicia called from her bedroom.
Never one to shy away from the chance to make herself at home, Katie draped herself across Alicia's couch. She made sure she could still see Alicia's bedroom door from her reclining position—and that the shirt could be easily read, of course. It was her lure after all, and she had her mind to hook a nice catfish. She shook her head to rid herself of the image of Alicia with the whiskers of said fish. She loved the other woman dearly, but that was not an attractive look for anyone.
Her grin grew sharp when Alicia froze in the doorway, staring at her. Katie's eyes raked over her crush. Alicia had worn a pixie cut for the last few years and the lack of weight made the rolling waves she had had in Hogwarts turn into wild curls springing like coils out from her head. It made Katie's fingers itch to tangle in them every single time she saw them—and she was likely to get the chance to do it, too, because more than one night had included watching shows on the telly while Alicia fell asleep with her head on Katie's lap and Katie played with her curls.
As much as she loved Alicia's hair, it was her outfit—oh, no, nothing that simple, although that pleated skirt held possibilities that Katie was almost literally dying to explore. It was the tee that Alicia had on that had Katie's breath hitching in her throat. In dark gray letters against a bright blue background, the shirt declared that to the reader that bell ringing is what Alicia did best above the black silhouette of the Notre Dame Cathedral. There was just so many possible ways to respond to that and at that exact moment, Katie wanted them all. Trust Alicia to get her hot and bothered by cheesy pickup-lines thinly disguised as muggle literary references.
God, she loved that woman.
"So, you look nice," Katie purred, rising from the couch to stalk closer. Her voice was as thick but airy as highland fog. She let her teeth show as she grinned. "Practically good enough to eat."
"Oh—is that why you want me to show my kitty? I thought you just had a thing for cats."
"If they belong to you, then I'm sure I love them." Katie leaned in, careful for once in her life to not push someone's boundaries. No matter how much she loved the darker brown Alicia's tan skin turned when she blushed. No matter how used to Katie's misbehavior Alicia was as her best friend. "So I hear you're really good at ringing bells."
"Yeah," Alicia agreed. She sounded out of breath and Katie hadn't even touched her yet. "Really good at it. I've been practicing."
"Oh?"
"Yeah," Alicia repeated, flashing a mischievous grin at her. She was already backing into her bedroom. "How about I show you? Do you think you'd like that, Ms. Bell?"
"More than anything," Katie replied honestly. She poured all her pining into those words. Alicia simply smiled at her confession and crooked a finger at her. Unwilling to even try to resist, Katie followed, shutting the door being her.
Later, Katie would think about framing the best shirt she had ever found.
Oh, and the one with the cat, too.