Story Notes: ~Written for my dear friend, Holly (Blaise), because I am a poor betch and couldn't think what else to get her for Christmas... ~

Er... I suppose this is slightly Christmas-y?

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I'm making no money from writing this. The characters, places, and pretty much the entire world were created by J.K. Rowling, not me.

Wow. I think this might be one of the hottest sex scenes I've ever written. O.O So, umm... Congratulations Holly?... On with the story!

Rendering Infatuation

"We have all faced hardships during the War. We have all experienced the agony of losing someone during the War. Voldemort was the most terrible Wizard in history, but his reign has come to an end! And that is why we must celebrate now, people of the Wizarding World! Why, the Ministry itself..."

A long-haired man sat in the audience beside his godson, dozing lightly. His robe-clad chest gently rose and fell with every deep, peaceful breath he took. His pink mouth was slack and slightly parted, and a shiny wetness was gathering at the corners of his lips where drool was gathering. The green-eyed man next to him glanced over at him and elbowed him discreetly. The man came right awake with a small jolt, then glowered at the man who had dared to wake him from his nap.

Harry grinned over at him and pressed a finger to his lips in a sign to be quiet, motioning to the stage where the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, continued to drone on about the War and all the Ministry had accomplished after the troubled times had finally ended.

"And so, dear friends, that is why we must honor the courage of these men by the presenting them with an award of the highest prestige, the Order of Merlin, First Class."

The audience clapped uproariously as Severus Snape, the Malfoys, Ronald and Hermione Weasley, Blaise Zabini, Remus Lupin, Harry Potter, and, with a bit of encouragement from Harry, Sirius Black all rose from their seats in the audience and made their way up to the stage.

After they were each presented with the prestigious award, they were then bid to remain on stage. They stood behind the Minister as the man concluded his overly pompous speech with wishes of good faith and Christmas cheer to all. Sirius rolled his eyes as they were finally released to enjoy the Christmas party.

The men and woman lauded as War heroes crowded in together as they tried to get down from the stage, the mull of the crowd below them making it an agonizingly slow process as they all waited below to congratulate them. The party-goers seemed to be all smiles as they chatted happily to each other about the war being over and gossiped about certain "heroes", about whether they deserved such a high acknowledgement or not. Sirius heard his name being whispered in awe more than once or twice as he stood apart from the crowd with Harry, but he paid it no mind. He was just relieved his name had been cleared and Voldemort and his followers were gone, and he and Harry and Remus were all safe.

Speaking of his godson, the impudent little whelp suddenly caught sight of someone in the crowd and smiled. He turned to Sirius and leaned up on tip-toe to kiss him on the cheek. "I'll catch up with you later, Siri. Off to find Sev!"

Sirius glared at his retreating back as the young man practically pranced away to join his precious Potions Master.

Left alone and not feeling particularly social this Christmas Eve night, he wandered over to the refreshment table where a punchbowl had been set up. As he poured himself a glass of the cool red liquid, he found himself sincerely hoping that the Weasley twins had already been around to spike it.

He stood by the white tablecloth covered table and sipped at his drink, observing the guests without much real would much rather be at home, getting ready for Christmas with Remus and Harry, perhaps playing a rousing game of Exploding Snap by the glow of a warm fire... He would be so comfortable, wearing an old pair of pajamas instead of these robes. He fidgeted a little. The hem of his light-blue robes was a bit too long, and the collar was irritating the skin on his neck considerably.

A sudden movement out of the corner of his eye made Sirius glance sideways at the punchbowl again, where Blaise Zabini now stood, filling his own glass. He raised an eyebrow in surprise at finding the dark-skinned man beside him. "Zabini," he greeted.

Zabini glanced back at him briefly. "Black," he returned neutrally, in his deeply resonating voice.

Having no idea what else to say, Sirius returned his attention to his drink, swallowing the rest of it down in one go. He felt a sudden rush of giddiness as the liquid began to wok its way through him, realizing that it really had been spiked. It must be some new type of alcohol created by the twins, for it seemed to be very fast acting. Not that he was worried about it. He poured himself another cup and drank it down just as quickly before going for a third. Zabini stared at him oddly as he did this, apparently not having realized this about the punch, but he mad no move to walk away.

Sirius watched the other guests for long while as the night went on, picking out familiar faces and observing how much everyone truly had changed. He sighed, leaning slightly against the table now as he thought about how he hadn't really grown up, with Remus or even Harry. He felt again the bitter twinge of resentment at everything that Azkaban had robbed him from.

The crowd seemed to grow even heavier as the night went on instead of dispersing as Sirius had expected it to do. A man in bright orange robes shoved Sirius as he tried to squeeze by, in pursuit of a madly giggling ginger girl. Sirius's knee knocked against the punch table and he groaned and cursed at the sudden return of awareness of his body. A deep sound of laughter came from the other side of the table and Sirius looked up, bright gray eyes watering from the pain in his leg.

"What are you laughing at, Zabini?" he slurred, his eyes narrowing slightly as he tried to focus on the man in question.

Blaise looked up at him from across the table, laughter alight in his dark gaze. "You're not at all like they say you are, Black," he said, his lips quirked up into an amused smile.

Sirius tried to sneer, but couldn't get the muscles needed for that to work properly and settled on a haughty sniff. "And how is it that they say I am, Zabini?"

"Aside from the obvious 'he's still a homicidal maniac' theory, you mean? The ones who knew you in school are always telling stories about your arrogance and your promiscuousness. They say that by the end of your school days, you had slept with everyone in Gryffindor, the girls AND the boys, and half the members of all three other Houses."

"Hey, I didn't sleep with that many people, Zabini. I'm not that much of a slut. And I'd watch who you were talking to if I were you. I've got an Order of Merlin now, you know," Sirius threatened and was a little indignant that his response only startled more laughter from the Slytherin.

"So have I, Black. I was up there on that stage with you," he reminded him. "Besides, the honor still doesn't make us above anyone else."

Sirius glared at the man, then winced as he was shoved into the table again. "Fuck..." he muttered and jumped at the presence of a hand on his shoulder. He looked up again into the amused dark eyes of Blaise Zabini, who was much closer this time, and he suddenly felt slightly breathless.

"Come on," the dark man soothed, gently leading Sirius around the refreshment table to the unoccupied side that he had been standing on. His arm felt tingly where the man's fingers gripped him and he shrugged the hand off of him, blushing and muttering his thanks. Noticing his glass was half-empty again, he busied himself with pouring himself some more punch. Zabini just sipped at his own glass quietly, his eyes never leaving Sirius.

Sirius tried his best to ignore the Slytherin in front of him, who was now blatantly staring at him. His eyes darted out over the crowd again as he felt his face go hot; he was uncomfortable with the attention Blaise was minding him, but had drunk enough to be able to blame it on the alcohol. Not that Zabini was aware of the alcohol. 'Damn.'

"You're an odd man, Black."

"So you keep saying," Sirius muttered.

Zabini tilted his head bemusedly before continuing. "You know, I never really understood your contribution to the War. I mean, in my third year everyone was going on about what a Dark wizard you were, all the horrid things you had done, and how you were going to kill Harry Potter. And now, here you are, his godfather, a war hero, and with an Order of Merlin, First Class."

Sirius sighed warily at the turn in conversation. He was growing tired of having to explain this to everyone one person at a time. It wasn't pleasant. He lingered on a passing thought that perhaps he should call some sort of press conference and just announce it to the world then. As he realized what an explosive reaction that would cause, he quickly let the idea go and snorted into his cup.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing," he said quickly. He ran a hand through his silky black hair, leaning against a pillar and staring at Blaise intently. "You want to know about my part in the War, Zabini?" He waited for the dark skinned man to nod before continuing.

Sirius sighed again and shifted, arranging himself more comfortably against the pillar. "Very well, then. As you probably know by now, James Potter and I were close friends in school together. We were the closest of friends, along with Remus Lupin," he nodded to the tawny-haired wizard who was a few feet away talking with Snape and Harry, "and Peter Pettigrew.

"After we graduated from Hogwarts, James married Lily Evans, Harry's mum. Well, by that time, the first war was in full swing. They knew that Voldemort was after them, and they went into hiding under the Fidelius Charm. James wanted me to be their Secret Keeper, but I..." He trailed off and let out a harsh bark of laughter. "I was so stupid.

"Convinced that it would be obvious to Voldemort that they would choose me as their Secret Keeper, I talked James out of picking me. I reasoned that Voldemort would capture me, and I didn't want to be responsible if I told him anything under torture. We knew that there was a leak within the Order and I, being the stupid git I was, believed it was Remus. I convinced James to choose Peter as their Secret Keeper. No one else knew. To all outward appearances, it was me." Sirius watched as Blaise's brown eyes widened in realization and smiled bitterly.

"So it wasn't you who betrayed him. It was Peter. But.. you killed Peter-"

"Alas, no," mourned Sirius. "Wish I had." Zabini looked at him questioningly. He explained, "As soon as I heard the news about what happened to James and Lily, I knew that Peter had betrayed them and I went off to find him. Stupid decision, looking back on it. If I had just stayed where I was and told someone... But I didn't. I went looking for Peter. Found him, too. But I hadn't expected the dirty coward to be so clever. As I was screaming at him, he shouted at me, asking how I could do that to James. Then he let off a curse that killed twelve Muggles and he cut off his own finger, before transforming into his Animagus form, a rat, and how fitting it was. Why I didn't realize it sooner... Anyway, he got away. Escaped down the sewers, and I was stuck in the middle of all this wreckage. I knew how it looked to everyone, and I laughed as the Aurors Apparated in and took me off to Azkaban, sans trial. All the evidence was against me."

Blaise was quiet for a minute as he took all of this in. "So Pettigrew was an unregistered Animagus." Sirius nodded in affirmation, absently sipping at his drink. "But why would he learn to do that, and how?"

Sirius laughed again, old mischief gleaming in his gray eyes. "That is a whole other story, and not one I'm about to get into with the likes of you!"

"Understandable," Zabini acquiesced, smirking. "So, because no one else besides Pettigrew, the Potters, and you knew that you weren't their Secret Keeper, everyone thought it was you who had betrayed your best friend. And you went to Azkaban for twelve years because of it."

Sirius shuddered at the reminder of his time spent in the prison. Blaise tilted his head again. "How did you escape? Most people go mad or die within their first few weeks in the presence of the Dementors. How did you survive for twelve years?"

"Well, I knew I was innocent, didn't I?" Sirius's lips quirked up at the corners. "I knew I hadn't done it, and I knew that the one who had was still out there, and I was determined to make them pay." Sirius left out the part about how he had used his Animagus form to escape the stronger effects of the Dementors, as that would be giving away too much information to a person he hardly knew. "It was that goal that kept me going those twelve years, until I finally found a clue to where Pettigrew was, in an issue of the Daily Prophet that the Minister had left behind during one of his visits. As to how I escaped..." He shrugged. "That's something else I can't tell you. It's not just my secret to keep, and I don't know you well enough to want to tell you, anyway."

"Indeed," Zabini agreed, smirking. "Although, I certainly know you a lot better now."

Sirius glared at him, then down at the drink in his hand. Alcohol had made his tongue loose and he felt at a distinct disadvantage with the man. He picked up another glass and filled it with the red liquid, murmuring, "Have some more punch, Zabini."

Zabini gave him an incredulous look as Sirius practically shoved the glass at him. The dark-haired man chuckled, putting down his old glass and accepting the new one that Sirius held out to him.

They were quiet for a moment, drinking, as Sirius gathered his thoughts again. "Azkaban...took so much from me. My innocence, in a sense, for one thing. And my youth. My friends... I'm out of prison now, my name is cleared, but I still feel as if I'm trying to find my place in the world. Find where I belong. I didn't grow up like Remus did, or even Harry, who has matured so much since I've known him. I had to grow up in a completely different way, and I'm still immature in so many ways. I'm supposed to be a man now, but sometimes I feel like I'm still just a boy inside. I can't even be around Remus without feeling guilty about the past, and it hurts, because our friendship means so much to me. But what can I do? I can't take back what happened, or what I thought, and we don't see the world the same way. I was locked away from everyone for too long; I can't repair the damage, and I can never make up those years that we spent doubting each other when we should have been friends. And now I'm alone because of it...

"I wonder," he mused aloud, "what life would have been like if I had just let James make me their Secret Keeper? Would I even still be here now? Would they be here? Would I have found someone to share my life with, instead of having this terrible loneliness?" Sirius shook his head to clear it of the depressing thoughts and glanced over at Blaise. The Slytherin stared at him solemnly.

"Sorry," Sirius muttered, embarrassed now. "Got carried away for a moment...."

Sirius turned away but looked back again when he heard the Slytherin start to speak. "Are you really so alone?" he asked curiously, then cleared his throat. "I mean, I always thought you and Lupin were..." His cheeks went red and he coughed into his hand, darting his eyes away for the first time. Sirius stood there, shocked.

"Me and Remus?" he asked dumbly, and felt his heart flutter when Zabini wouldn't meet his eyes. "No, but I suppose I shouldn't be surprised; it's not the first time someone's assumed that about us! James was convinced all through our fifth year that something was going on between us..." He trailed off, shaking his head and laughing. "No. I mean, I love Remus. He's like a brother to me," he clarified, seeing the confused look Blaise shot him. "But there was never anything more between us than friendship."

"You never thought of it, then?" Blaise asked, his tone strange.

"Oh, we thought about it, certainly. We were teenage boys, we were both good looking... But he was smart enough to know what happened after I had slept with all my other bed partners, and I wasn't stupid enough to want to cheapen our friendship and possibly ruin it just for a one-off."

"But surely, now that everything has settled down? I mean, you obviously don't do that sort of thing anymore, do you?" Blaise insisted.

"No, but, Remus... He's my best friend. He's like a brother to me, more so than my actual brother was... No, I'm lucky to even have his friendship anymore. Lucky he's still my friend at all..." There was a faraway look in his eyes for a second as he thought about something.

"Why wouldn't he want to be your friend?"

Sirius's eyes cleared and he shook his head again. "It's stupid. Just old insecurities coming out again." He smiled weakly at Blaise.

"Anyway, back to what I did for the War. Well, Dumbledore knew after your third year that Pettigrew was alive and he was the one to be blamed for betraying the Potters. He had Snape dose me with Veritaserum to be sure, but that didn't do much since the dirty rat got away."

"So what did you do then?"

"I did what I could. I returned to my parent's estate, one of the Unplottable ones, and offered it to Dumbledore for it to be the Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. That's all I could do for a while; no one else was to see me until they could clear my name. So I was confined to that house for over two years, utterly useless.

"Until, of course, the time came for the Final Battle. No one was going to stop me from fighting then. I stood beside Harry. I protected him from the Death Eaters until he could get to Voldemort, and when I saw Peter, there, I killed him." He smiled eerily. "His body was still clearly human, his forearm branded with the Dark Mark. It was enough. I knew I would be free, and I was elated. So elated that I wasn't paying attention, and someone got me with a Blasting Curse." Pain like he'd never known it before. The skin being ripped apart from his right shoulder all the way down his chest to his hip. He was screaming and falling. On the ground, staring up at the night sky as spells shot by above him. He was going to die...

His eyes clouded over, squinting as if trying to remember something clearly. "The oddest thing..." Someone was kneeling beside him. They were whispering gentle, soothing words, like a song... Healing spells. And the warmth of being held by strong arms, secure and numbing... He trailed off, shaking his head and smiling.

He looked back up to see Zabini staring at him oddly. He giggled a little. "So, in short, I did nothing to warrant an Order of Merlin, let alone a First Class one. I don't deserve it," he whispered, fingering the medal around his neck.

"Don't say that," Zabini said, and the fierceness in his tone startled Sirius. He looked up, expressive gray eyes wide with surprise. "You deserve it, Black," he said gruffly, downing the rest of the contents of his drink and setting the glass down on the table.

"Zabini..." he said, shocked. "I really didn't do anything for this. I just killed a traitor. I'm only here because Harry-"

"Potter has nothing to do with it," Zabini snapped sharply, taking a step closer to Sirius. "You've done a lot, and you've been through so much." The man's hands worked for a moment, clenching.

"Zabini, I don't..." They were only a breath away now. Sirius had to tilt his head up again to see his face. Zabini's eyes were bright and slightly glazed. Sirius wondered if it was the alcohol the man had consumed that was finally taking effect. "Blaise..." he whimpered, and brought their lips together in a kiss.

Zabini's mouth opened easily for him and Sirius's tongue slid in, tasting the man for the first time. Zabini's arms slipped around his waist to pull Sirius in closer, and the smaller man moaned into the kiss. Blaise's tongue stroked against Sirius's insistently, tantalizingly, before he broke the kiss. Sirius panted harshly against the dark man's ear, his own hands gripping the man's broad shoulders helplessly as he mouthed along Sirius's jaw line, stopping to lick and suck at an earlobe. Sirius moaned, and Blaise nipped at it slightly, his hands running smoothly up and down Sirius's back before they slid down to his bum and gripped it tightly. Sirius felt himself hardening, defenseless to the sensations.

Zabini pulled back and Sirius stared up at him, his mouth still parted. Blaise smiled, releasing one of his hands from the grip on his behind to run his fingers along the red and kiss-swollen lips. "Not here," he whispered.

Sirius looked around them, reality coming back to smack him in the face. No one seemed to have noticed them, but he doubted that would stay true if they started fucking over the refreshment table. He nodded, gripping Zabini tightly, and focused on Apparating them both to Number 12 Grimmauld Place in one piece.

He felt the nauseous sensation of Apparation and breathed out heavily as they landed, stumbling slightly. At least neither one of them seemed to be splinched.

"You're drunk, Black," Zabini laughed, holding Sirius up and supporting them as they both stumbled over to the large bed occupying the room.

"So are you," Sirius pointed out, slurring slightly.

"Fuck..." Zabini frowned. "How did that happen?"

"The punch was spiked," Sirius muttered as he sat heavily on his bed and kicked off his shoes, lifting off the Order of Merlin to set it on the bedside table.

Zabini blinked, staring at him for a second, before he laughed loudly. "No wonder you were so eager to get me drinking as much of it as you!"

Sirius smirked. "Naturally. I didn't want to be at a disadvantage. Now, come here," he whined petulantly, opening his arms.

Zabini smiled at his antics, waving his wand and dispelling himself of his clothing, so that he was left standing before him in only his boxers.

Sirius's gray eyes took in the sight of the hard, toned body in front of him greedily, growling his approval. Blaise hooked his thumbs under the waistband of his underwear, his bottom lip clenched between his teeth, and pulled them down. He groaned as his impressive erection sprang free, and he pushed the boxers down and stepped out of them. He looked up at Sirius hungrily and crawled onto the bed, settling on top of Sirius and giving him a bruising kiss. Sirius groaned into the mouth as the Slytherin rubbed his erection against his leg, leaving a damp spot on Sirius's blue robes.

Blaise kissed his way down Sirius's neck, his hands parting the robes he wore with practiced ease. He pushed the shirt Sirius wore underneath up, revealing the white flesh of his chest and stomach. He shivered in the chill air, then cried out as one of his nipples was covered with a warm, wet mouth. Zabini licked and laved the pink nub, catching it lightly between his teeth until it was peaked before kissing his way across Sirius's chest to treat the other one. Sirius whimpered in pleasure, his hands clenching uselessly in the bedclothes.

"Blaise... Please..." he moaned when he didn't think he could stand the teasing anymore.

Zabini lifted his head from his chest with one last kiss to the peaked nipple. He sat up and helped Sirius to remove his robes and shirt before sliding further down over the man's body. His fingers deftly unzipped the pants and his hands hooked under them. "Lift your hips," he ordered, and Sirius raised them so Zabini could pull off his pants and underwear.

Finally, they were both nude and Sirius shivered with the intensity of his arousal. Zabini slid off of the bed to kneel between Sirius's legs. Confused, Sirius pushed himself up into a seated position, and cried out as tentative fingers brushed over the stiff length of his erection. Zabini lowered his head and inhaled the musky scent of his soon-to-be-lover's arousal, before he kissed and licked the skin of his inner thigh.

Sirius moaned in helpless ecstasy. Blaise was only inches away from the one part of his body that wept for his attention. Sirius reached out and tangled his fingers in the thick dark hair. "Please," he begged.

Zabini's eyes burned with lust as they stared into Sirius's. Then, one of his large hands gripped the base of Sirius's manhood, the other going to a slim hip to pin him down, and his cock was engulfed in warm wetness. Sirius made an incoherent noise of pleasure, his eyes squeezing shut tight at the silky wet feel of it. Zabini's tongue licked roughly along the underside of his shaft as his lips went down, slowly taking Sirius into his mouth inch by inch. "Ahh! Blaise...!" he cried as the head of his cock hit the back of the man's throat.

Zabini started back up, sucking hard around the cock in his mouth. His tongue swept across the head when he reached the top. He bobbed his head up and down slowly, and Sirius screamed as he felt the gentle, deliberate scrape of teeth as the man went down on him again.

"Mmmm... Mnahh... Blaise," he panted harshly, his fingers gripping at the hair desperately. Knowing he wouldn't last like this, he tugged at it slightly. "St-stop it..."

Zabini immediately stopped, releasing the cock from his mouth with a wet pop. Zabini licked his lips, tasting the salty pre-cum, and looked confusedly up at Sirius, lust blazing in his eyes. "What was wrong?" he asked hoarsely.

Sirius bent forward and kissed him, his tongue darting out to taste himself on the man's lips. He pulled back, panting heavily, and grinned at the dark-skinned man. "I just didn't want to come before you fuck me."

Something flashed in Zabini's eyes and suddenly he was being kissed again. The Slytherin pushed him back onto the bed.

His legs parted as Zabini settled between them, his hand stroking up and down the firm skin of Sirius's thigh. Blaise broke his mouth away to mutter a lubrication spell before he want back to laving his tongue along the gray-eyed man's jaw line as a slick finger probed at his entrance. The digit slipped inside him and began to wiggle around, pushing at the walls of his inner channel to loosen them up before a second finger slipped in to join the first. The fingers pushed in and out of him, twisting this way and that as the muscles started to give and relax. Blaise quickly added a third, scissoring and stretching him further. When he finally added a fourth finger, Sirius whimpered at the slight pain. Zabini hushed him and distracted him with a kiss as the four fingers worked to soothe the tense inner muscles into relaxation.

Sirius pulled away from the kiss, heavy-lidded and breath coming in short pants. "I'm ready," he whispered.

Blaise kissed him and got up on his knees, removing his fingers from the thoroughly stretched arsehole. Sirius lifted his legs and Zabini helped to settle them over his shoulders. Taking his cock in hand, he positioned it, looking up at Sirius with desire and possessiveness. "Are you ready for me, Black?"

Sirius's eyes flashed with impatience. "Just fuck me already," he snarled, his voice raspy from moaning.

Zabini chuckled and pushed his cock into him slowly. Sirius stiffened as the thick organ entered him, groaning out in pain and in pleasure. His flesh gave painfully as Zabini entered him to the root and stilled, waiting for Sirius's body to adjust. Sirius panted harshly, his hands clenching in the bed sheets as he willed himself to relax. Gradually, the burning sensation began to diminish and he was left with a fullness unlike anything Sirius had ever felt before. "Move..." he breathed.

Zabini slowly withdrew from Sirius before thrusting back in, his pace slow and unwavering in its steadiness. Sirius keened and moaned under him as his prostate was stroked with every deep thrust in and out. His hands fisted in the sheets frustratedly before reaching up to clench Zabini's shoulders, pleading with the man to go faster. However, Zabini seemed determined to ignore him. Sirius whined in protest and urged him in the only other way available to him. A wicked smile appearing on his face, Sirius clenched his anal muscles around the man's penis. Blaise gasped loudly above him and stilled, his hands clasping Sirius's hips in a grip that left no doubt that he would have bruises later.

"You stubborn man!" he gasped. "I...wanted this...to last...!" Zabini sped up, driving in and out of him so fast that Sirius gasped and screamed with the delightful friction it caused.

"Touch yourself," Zabini panted gruffly, thrusting in and out. Sirius moaned and complied, one of his hands releasing his shoulder and sliding down to grasp his own neglected and weeping erection.

He pulled and stroked it with the same rhythm as the cock pounding into his arse. "Ahhh," he moaned, feeling the heat coil and intensify in his lower abdomen. He knew his release was upon him. "Ahh... Zabini... Ahh.. Ahhh.. Blaise!" he shouted and came hard, the force of his orgasm rocking him to the core. His arse clenched spasmodically around the pumping cock inside him. He heard Zabini gasp and cry out as his own orgasm shook him, and felt the warm spurt of cum shoot deep inside of him. He moaned in ecstasy as wave after wave of his release shot from his cock, splattering both of their chests and some landing on Sirius's face with the force of his ejaculation.

Sirius's slim legs slipped from Zabini's shoulders as the man withdrew his flaccid penis and collapsed beside Sirius on the bed. Sirius turned towards him and pulled him into a lazy kiss before he lay his head on the man's shoulder, sighing in satisfaction. He felt Zabini pull them both under the covers of the bed and mumbled an incoherent thanks before falling into a drunken, sated sleep.

****

Sirius awoke to bright winter sunlight blinding the back of his eyelids. He moaned and tried to roll over; his movement was hindered, however, by a solidity beside him that groaned deeply when his knee collided with it. Startled, Sirius opened his eyes to see the blank and sleeping face of Blaise Zabini, who was turned towards him. Memories of last night came rushing back to him and he was aware of a pounding headache descending upon his conscious mind. Groaning, for more reasons than one, Sirius sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed.

The place reeked of the stale smells of sweat and sex. His chest and face were still sticky with cum. Grimacing, he reached for his wand and banished the mess from his and Zabini's bodies.

Zabini seemed to feel the spell tingle over him and sense from the lack of Sirius's body heat that something was going on and he woke slowly, the blankets slipping down to pool at his waist as he sat up in bed. They stared at each other for a few moments.

"Black," the man greeted in a sleep-raspy voice, Sirius shivered, feeling an irrational surge of closeness and affection towards the man in his bed. His eyes trailed down over the toned chest, the well-muscled arms, and down to the trail of hair at his navel that disappeared under the blanket to where the most intimate part of his anatomy was hidden from view. He blushed and darted his eyes away, but not before he saw the smug grin that had appeared on the man's face.

"Morning," he mumbled, pulling the sheets more securely around himself and staring down into his lap. He waited for Zabini to say something, but the man didn't seem inclined to do so. The silence around them grew awkward as they both searched for words.

Sirius didn't know what to do. On the one hand, they'd both been drunk last night. He hadn't anticipated this happening, and he was almost sure that Blaise hadn't either. It had been a spontaneous decision, sleeping with the man, and he fully expected the man to tell him that it had only been a one-off.

On the other hand, the night had been pleasant... More than pleasant. It had been amazing. He was reluctant to let the man get away from him, but knew he couldn't make him stay. He had enjoyed his time with Zabini, both in bed and out. Blaise Zabini was a charming, intelligent man whose calm demeanor soothed his volatile temper. His smile was sweet and his hands were strong and reassuring. He listened and understood what he had to say... He was perfect.

The bed groaned as weight shifted and disappeared from it. Sirius looked around to see that Zabini had climbed out of bed and his heart dropped to see that he had begun to gather his clothes. He cleared his throat, swallowing around his heart.

"Oh. You're leaving, then?" he asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

Blaise looked up at him and paused from buttoning up his trousers. He raised an eyebrow at the man who sat on the bed, but his gaze was intense. "Do you want me to stay?"

Sirius coloured under the intensity of those eyes boring into his. "I..." He looked away. "Nevermind." He stared hard at his lap, waiting for the man to leave him. 'Of course he wants to go. What have you got to offer him other than your scarred body?' his mind taunted bitterly. He jumped when he felt a hand on his knee and raised his head to see Zabini kneeling before him, his eyes blazing.

"No. Answer me, Sirius," he demanded fiercely. "Do you want me to stay?" he asked again, his low voice sending little thrills of excitement up Sirius's back and leaving no room for argument.

"Yes," Sirius whispered, blushing furiously. "Yes, I want you to stay."

Blaise smiled brilliantly and leaned up to press a soft kiss to Sirius's mouth. "I'm glad," he whispered. Sirius brought his arms around Zabini's shoulders and pulled him on top of him onto the bed.

They kissed again, and Zabini's hands stroked up and down the smooth expanse of Sirius's chest. Sirius broke the kiss with a loud gasp, but Blaise continued to mouth his way down to Sirius's chest. He pulled back a little, staring down at the pale flesh. His scar was now visible in the daylight and Blaise brought his hand down to trace along the pink flesh of the scar that ran down his chest. He bent his head, eyes fluttering closed, and kissed the new skin softly. Sirius gasped out in surprise, little tendrils of pleasure running through his body at the light touches. No one else had paid such special attention to the ugly wound marring his chest and torso. Sirius tried to squirm away, but Blaise held him firmly and kissed the scar gently, licking all the way down to where it ended at the top of his left hipbone.

Sirius opened his eyes and looked down at him. Zabini stared up at him intently, a strange look in his eyes, and he stroked the scar with his fingers again, murmuring something. Sirius felt a tingle go up and down the scar and recognised it as a healing spell.

"You!" he gasped, his gray eyes wide with dumfounded realization. "It was you. You're the one who saved me!"

Something like love flashed in Blaise's eyes and he pressed one last kiss to Sirius's hip before crawling back up the length of Sirius's body. "It's always been you, Sirius. You're the one I've been waiting for. You're the one I wanted," he said softly.

"I...didn't know," Sirius said slowly. "You never said anything. You never even hinted..."

"I didn't want you to feel obligated to do anything."

Sirius looked at him sharply. "I don't," he growled, and kissed the Slytherin. Zabini moaned and Sirius used his lack of action to roll them over so that he was straddling the man's waist. Zabini sat upright, his hands on Sirius's hips as he kissed his chest. Sirius threw his head back and moaned. It was perfect. Everything was so absolutely, incredibly....

"Sirius, I've got your Christmas present! Sev wanted to wait until later to come, but I... Oh Merlin!"

Sirius froze, his eyes closed, and tried to take a deep breath. He knew that voice. Had forgotten that the owner of that voice was coming over for Christmas. Groaning in both disappointment and humiliation, Sirius slowly opened his eyes and turned his head to peek over his shoulder.

In the doorway to his bedroom stood a crimson-faced Harry Potter, Christmas presents piled in his arms, and a smirking Severus Snape.

"I'm pleased to see that you have finally acted on your infatuation, Blaise," said Severus, smirking at their naked and entertwined bodies on the bed. Sirius groaned and tucked his head into Zabini's neck to hide his face.

Zabini's eyes gleamed with mirth and contentment as he stared back at his former Head of House. "I wasn't about to pass up an opportunity, even if he was drunk."

Sirius raised his head to glare at him, and then glanced over his shoulder again. "Would you leave and shut the door, please!" he snapped.

"Sorry!" Harry squeaked, red-faced. He ushered Severus, who was chuckling, out of the doorway and shut the door firmly behind them.

Sirius groaned again. "I totally forgot that they were coming for Christmas! Remus should be arriving soon, too." He eyed Zabini's nude body regretfully.

Zabini stroked Sirius's hip thoughtfully and offered him a sardonic smile. "Well, at least this saves us the trouble of explaining this to everyone."

Sirius laughed at that, and climbed off the bed, pulling on an old blue sweatshirt and black pants. Blaise was stuck with last night's clothing. Sirius combed his fingers through his long hair to untangle it as he watched the man dress, smiling happily at the new man in his life.

"Ready to face the world?" he asked as Blaise finished dressing, holding out his hand.

Blaise took it, smiling gently. "Yes. There's nowhere else I'd rather be."

Sirius pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. "Merry Christmas," he whispered. They left the privacy of the bedroom to join the others in the living room for Christmas, hand in hand.

Finite.

Chapter End Notes:

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed it! It was supposed to be for Christmas, I know I'm late, but I finished writing it Christmas Eve, and then I didn't have time to type it on Christmas or yesterday because I was with my family, so here it is!!

Also, I know that the Order of Merlin isn't really a medal (I'm pretty sure it's just like a paper or something) but I wanted to make it something people could see).

Please review! Tell me what you thought! I appreciate you guys so much, and I hope you had a wonderful holiday!!

-Ri

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