Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, not me, unfortunately.

Chapter 8: Yeti

The steam thickened after James spoke, and Aurora purred against him, craving his warmth even in the hot pool.

"I think there are a number of things we can do." Aurora traced the tip of her finger along James' chest, swirling his dark chest hair in different directions. He shivered.

"Like… what?"

"Like…" Aurora sat up, expertly placing her hand on his upper thigh, causing a restrained gasp. "Like making out until the steam turns to ice."

"Please, elaborate," James panted. She described what they could do in the hot tub that they had to themselves.

"And after that, I would kiss you-" James pressed his lips against hers, interrupting her flow of speech and capturing her perfectly off guard.

"Like… that?" James whispered after a pause. Aurora grinned giddily, climbing on top of his lap and drawing her arms around his neck to stare at his eyes. No girl had ever done this to James before, and she just stared. But Aurora wasn't just any girl, James knew and drew her im into a longing kiss. Aurora dipped further into the pool, the water swallowing her navel, the bottom of her ribline, her breasts, then lapping at her collarbone. This was something that he knew. Aurora kissed him deeper, curling her fingers through his already unruly hair. James felt up her sides, lifted her further onto his lap, feeling the vibrations of her moans as they kissed. Suddenly, a crack resonated in the forest, disrupting the perfect silence of the moment. The pair tore apart, Aurora covering her chest instinctively.

Heavy breathing from behind a large oak. James tossed Aurora her wand, and she sank into the water, concealing herself in the thick steam. Loud footsteps echoed in the forest, and James placed the intruder at nine meters away, maybe less.

"Aurora," James hissed. Aurora shot him an icy glare.

James sighed deeply, gliding to the other edge of the pool to catch a better glimpse of the creature. All he saw was the moonlight, then-

A yeti. A yeti, no more than two meters away from them, glimmering in the moonlight like some ethereal spirit. James knew better than to trust the mysticism of the creatures - he had seen what yetis left behind after a meal, or rather, lack thereof. The yeti lumbered about, it's feet tripping on boulders and tree roots. A flock of crows cried in the distance. Aurora was inaudible. James glanced over.

She was gone.

Aurora crept around the side of the tree, shivering violently. She estimated that she had five or ten minutes out of the water before she got hypothermia. It didn't matter now, a heating spell would do the charm. But she couldn't even breathe without fear of the yeti coming after her.

The yeti swayed uncertainly, drawing closer to the pool. From Aurora's angle, James was near invisible, pressed against the cold stone at the edge of the pool. She felt a tinge of guilt at leaving him but quickly shook it off. There was a more important matter at hand. And this important matter was currently taking large steps towards James.

It was then that Aurora knew she had to be impulsive. To be dangerous and violent in her decision would be the only way she - or James - would make it back alive. Aurora leapt out nimbly, avoiding branches at all costs as she neared the yeti. It was too late, the yeti had already heard her and swung around, grabbing her in a hairy fist.

"Aurora!" James yelled, leaping out of the water as Aurora fainted, going limp in the yeti's grasp, her wand falling soundly to the pine-needled carpet. The yeti shook her around a bit, before flinging her deeper in the forest with a loud crash. James tried to run after, but the yeti blinked, unmoving. With a loud curse, James apparated seven meters away. Apparating, as useful as it was deterring vetis, exhausted the already light-headed James. The yeti swivelled towards James again, lumbering after him. James ran towards the unmoving mass that was Aurora.

"Aurora, no, no, Aurora, it's going to be-" Suddenly, there was a loud splash, and the yeti disappeared into the earth. James stood up quickly, letting Aurora's head fall to the ground. The yeti had disappeared into a hot spring.

It was dark and warm. Aurora couldn't move, but she didn't particularly want to. She shifted slightly. The pillow she was resting on was hard… Aurora woke up in an instant. James Sirius Potter was curled up underneath her, shirtless.

"Go back t'sleep." James shifted in the bed, drawing her head back onto his chest. Aurora relaxed infinitesimally and nuzzled her cheek into his chest hair. She tried to stay awake, she had so many questions. Where were they? What happened to the yeti? And her wand? Soon, all of Aurora's questions seemed irrelevant as she fell into a dreamless sleep.

When Aurora awoke at last, it was bright out and a sliver of light perceived through a circular window. The walls around her were covered in a subdued ocean wallpaper that seemed to ripple. The room was cluttered, stacked with boxes and drawings, but Aurora found that she could move freely enough, as it was a large room. It almost looked like a Muggle beach house, but Aurora could see fat snowflakes drifting outside, through the etchings of frost.

"G'morning." James was awake, perched on the edge of an overstuffed armchair with a kind of boyish ease only he could have.

"Where are we?" Aurora finally eased herself up, letting the covers pool around her waist. James smirked, not before Aurora realized that she was shirtless. She dove back under the covers. "Look away!"

"It's nothing I haven't seen before," James teased.

"Oh, why don't you take a picture," Aurora hissed. She stared around the room trying to further assess her surroundings. James took apparent delight in her confusion, staring unabashedly at her barely-concealed figure. Only then did Aurora notice a mug of steaming tea in his hands. He held it out.

"I'm naked." James rolled his eyes. In a fluid motion, he stripped himself of the sweater he was wearing and tossed it at Aurora. Aurora let out a muffled yelp. In truth, the sweater smelled of him, coffee and fire and the distinct smell of James. She shrugged it on, ignoring how it easily eclipsed her figure.

"Thank you."

"My pleasure." Aurora sipped the tea, not removing her eyes from his.

"Where are we?"

James stood up and walked over to a particularly small box on the bedside table. He withdrew a small sheet of paper and with a flourish of his hand, it unfolded to reveal a large map. As if repeating a lesson to a small child, James explained that they were thirty kilometers south of Tibet, that after the yeti had knocked her unconscious, he had apparated her to the nearest place he could think of. Unfortunately, overnight, while the pair slept, the skies opened and deposited a record amount of snow.

"We're snowed in?" Aurora squeaked.

"It's not ideal."

"Not ideal?" Aurora stood up, and James flushed at the glimpse of bare upper thigh. "We are stuck kilometers away from our mission. Damn, how does anyone know we are here?"

James sank back into the bed, reclining into the pillows. Normally, Aurora left him breathless and frazzled, and he took pleasure in seeing her so disoriented. Hm… frantic Aurora was a sight to behold. Especially in a sweater that barely covered-

"James!" Aurora launched herself onto the bed, taking James by surprised. She twisted herself over him, pinning his arms into the bed above him. He smirked. Her small hands gripped his wrists tightly and she growled at him, trying to suppress the growing ache in her stomach.

"Fuck, Aurora."

I'm back. I'm sorry for the hiatus, I should have more chapters to be released. Anyways, here is chapter eight! I hope everyone is staying safe right now. (:

Talie