Chapter 31: Public Enemy Number One
Howlin' for You by The Black Keys
"But you swept the floor with Hufflepuff last match, so why are you worried? You all played a phenomenal game."
"That's different."
"Why?"
"Because it's Hufflepuff! We're up against the bloody Gryffindors this Saturday, and they've been playing really well this year."
"Yeah, but they're up against you and Southgate. Come on, Tess. You'll be brilliant."
I looked up from my book. Emily and Lia were trying to give Tess a pep-talk for this Saturday's quidditch match outside D.A.D.A. while I tried to read a book that I'd nicked about memory charms. We were here earlier than usual, so the corridor wasn't full students' chatter, and that also meant that Avery and his lackeys weren't here either.
Emily's elbow nudging me drew my attention back to their conversation. "Are you coming with us? To the match in four days?"
"Yeah, I guess so," I said, half-heartedly keeping an eye out for Mr. Slytherin Blood Purist.
"Fuck, sound a bit less enthusiastic, why don't you?" Tess grumbled.
I didn't respond. I turned back to my book, worry and stress knotting the muscles in my head, neck and shoulders and making my insides churn. It wasn't as if they had to go back to their families in less than a month and obliviate them. The closer that the Christmas holidays grew, the more tense and nauseous I'd become, and the more I'd wanted to channel my anger into getting revenge on Avery. My nighttime prowling was doing little to settle my stress, and I was getting more peeved than Peeves. It was people like Avery, those who had the same beliefs, who were forcing me into obliviating my family, and who made it so dangerous for me to be a Muggleborn and a Seer. I waved to Lily as she walked by us in the corridor, blushing and talking with her Gryffindor friends, and took another look round for Avery.
"No! Why're you coming over here, arsehole? Does it look like I want to see you any more than I have to on the pitch?" Tess blurted out.
"Bloody hell, you don't honestly think I want to be over here, do you?"
"Fancy seeing you here, Rotter," I said as the Marauders arrived at the scene. Tess, Lia and Emily stood together, leaving me stuck standing awkwardly between the two groups, not properly part of either.
"Try not to smile too much, traitor," Tess said, making a face at me.
"Hey, kitten," Sirius said, casually dropping an arm around my shoulders and grinning at me.
"Hey, old man. Clearly Lily's not here, Rotter," I said to James. "So why're you over here?"
James flashed me an impish smile and nodded at Tess, who was scowling at him. "Padfoot and I are here to intimidate the competition, Stripes."
"Some intimidation you're doing there, Black," Tess muttered, not giving him the satisfaction of glaring at him; she glared at me instead.
Sirius laughed and looked at me. "I'm not here to intimidate her, Rhodes."
"Christ Almighty, I feel so safe now," I said, laughing and side stepping out from under his arm. I swept my gaze over the corridor and saw Avery amongst some other Slytherins, talking and looking pompous as ever. "Do you fancy doing something about that snake today, old man?"
Sirius grinned, his grey eyes twinkling. "Of course, kitten. Have anything in mind?"
"Find me this evening to hunt him down?"
He feigned surprise. "Really? Are you sure? Should I bring my wand or leave it in the dormitory?"
Sirius and I cracked up while James wiggled his eyebrows at us knowingly. "I told you, Moony. I knew he was going to get distracted."
Sirius huffed while Remus and James chuckled. "I'm not distracted, Prongs." He grinned savagely at Tess. "There will be no mercy, Rhodes, and we'll beat you and your team so badly, you'll wish you'd never picked up a broom."
"Piss off!"
"Get out of here, old man," I said, laughing and shooing the boys away.
Sirius grinned at me over his shoulder as he followed the boys. "I'll find you this evening, kitten, and then we'll hunt down Avery together."
"See you then, old man," I said and blew him a kiss.
Emily and Lia were giggling as the boys joined forces with the other Gryffindors, and then they turned to me and gave me knowing looks. All I gave them was a wry smile before I tucked my nose back into my book. I needed all the time that I could get to do my research and to think about what hexes and jinxes that I'd be using on Avery this time around.
Evening found me sitting on the stone benches outside the Great Hall, reading another book on memory charms while I waited for Sirius. I'd sat on this same bench at the beginning of October, waiting for Sirius to join me for a midnight trip to the Dungeons to nick potion ingredients. So much had changed in the past couple of months, but then again, my seventh year from the very beginning had been shaken upside down by him. It was too bad that we couldn't use the Invisibility Cloak that the boys had access to, but I wasn't about to let on that I had accidentally been eavesdropping. At least Sirius could use the Map (which I wasn't supposed to know about) to see where Avery and his cronies were, and then he'd lead us there to hex them into next year.
I'd been thinking a bit about what I'd heard in the forest, not only about the revelation of the Map and the cloak of invisibility, but also about what James had been implying. Sure, I couldn't deny that Sirius treated me differently than other girls, but did that necessarily mean that he fancied me and felt more for me than our current friends-with-benefits set up? And did I want more with him? The intimate dreams that I'd had of him were all the more taunting now, and I wished that I could shut off my dreams about him for at least a few months while we were growing closer together, because I hated being caught between dreams of a future with him and the current status of our weird friendship. Of course I'd had the most invasive dream about him where I was viewing the future through his eyes and I'd essentially become him for the duration of the wedding scene. How did I reconcile the scenes that I'd seen of us in love with present-day Sirius and Kersti? I rubbed my face in frustration and forced myself to not linger on my dreams. I couldn't start acting all weird when Sirius showed up.
"Oi! Kitten!"
I looked up and saw Sirius standing at the top of the stairs, grinning like the handsome devil he was. "Hey, old man."
He made a come-hither gesture. "Come on, kitten. We've got trouble to stir up."
I laughed and reducio-ed my book, tucking it into my pocket and then taking the stairs two at a time. I was breathless when I reached him at the top. Sirius's eyes were beautifully alight as he rocked back and forth on his heels casually. "Where'd you find them, old man?"
He leaned in to whisper in my ear, his warm breath tickling my cheek. "Snivellus was in the library and I made sure he saw me wandering around, so now he's following me. Stupid git is hiding round that corner over there, thinking I can't hear him."
"What about Avery?" I whispered back.
"Up a couple floors, found him with the Ma-"
"The what?"
His eyes were wide. "Nothing. The, er, 'tracking device' as you and Evans call it."
I shoved him playfully. "Dunno, sounded like you were about to reveal what it was."
He quirked an eyebrow. "Never. Come on, kitten. We've got to catch him before he drops his trousers."
I laughed. "What?"
"He's with a Slytherin bird, they're probably going to start shagging any minute now."
I giggled. "Let's get going, old man. I don't want to see any more of Avery than I have to."
We grinned and walked down the corridor, trying to muffle our laughter in our palms, attempting to look like rule-abiding, respectable students, and pretending to not hear Snape trailing us. The poor bloke thought that he was being stealthy but he was no match for my tiger hearing and Sirius's dog nose.
"Does Snape smell strongly?" I whispered, leaning close to Sirius.
He brought his mouth next to my ear. "Yeah, positively reeks. It's really hard for me to not plug my nose when he's around."
"Not jealous of you in that respect," I said, earning a chuckle from him.
We reached the sixth floor and Sirius led me down an empty corridor filled with disused classrooms, the sort of corridor that everyone knew was a hotspot for finding couples snogging in alcoves and corners. With our animagi ears, we easily heard the muffled giggles and snickering of a couple hiding in the corridor, and we grinned at each other before we headed that way, Snape following us all the while.
"This is brilliant, kitten," Sirius said to me, feigning surprise as we came upon Avery and the girl snogging. "We found our dear friend Avery."
Avery disentangled himself from the girl and stood up quickly, glowering at us facing him. His eyes bounced from me to Sirius. "Fancy seeing you here, Black and Grindylow. Come to get hexed into oblivion?"
Sirius barked out a laugh, his wand already drawn. "Come off it, Avery. This is hardly an even match for you."
Avery growled and faced us, drawing his own wand. The girl who'd been with him took one look at the boys sizing each other up and ran off down the corridor. Smart girl.
"How nice of you to join us, Snivellus," Sirius said as Snape came creeping out of a shadow to join his friend. He was rolling up his sleeves as he went, his face twisted in anger.
"You'd be so stupid as to set us up, Grindylow? You must really have a deathwish," Avery spat.
I grinned and drew my wand. "Just coming through on my promise to ruin your life, and I'm sharing the fun with someone else."
Sirius shot me a last grin before he cast a non-verbal spell. Snape started coughing and clutching at his throat, suffering under the effects of the pepper breath hex. Steam started emitting from his mouth like he was the Hogwarts Express pulling out of Hogsmeade station. Sirius and I didn't have much time to laugh at the sight, because Avery countered.
"Ventus!" he said.
I was suddenly hit by a force of wind so strong that my robes billowed out behind me and my skirt flipped up to reveal my tights and knickers to Avery. He cackled as he and Snape caught a glimpse of what was under my skirt. I struggled to pull my robes around me and hold my uniform down to shield myself.
"Thanks for showing me your knickers, Grindylow. It's a shame Black doesn't want to share," Avery jeered. Before he had time to react, I hit him with my own hex. Avery bent over and started retching fat slugs onto the floor.
Sirius high-fived me. "Nice one, kitten." He pointed his wand at Snape, whose ears started twitching, even as his breath remained fiery.
"Tarantallegra," I said with a lazy flick of my wand, and now Avery was doing a frenzied tap dance while slugs continued to spew from his open mouth.
Sirius pretended to yawn and waved his wand, and Snape's head began growing at an alarming rate.
"What did you just use on him, old man?" I asked, lowering my wand to watch Snape's swelling head.
"Illegal growth hex. Used it on Bertram Aubrey last year with Prongs. Wicked, yeah?" he said, grinning from ear to ear.
"It's… certainly something." I turned to him. "Why'd you and Rotter use it on Aubrey?"
He shrugged, watching Snape and Avery struggling under the effects of our hexes. "Because why not. He was being a git. And I was bored because we couldn't find Snivellus."
I smiled wryly. "Sneaky old man."
He turned to meet my gaze. "Look at you, kitten, jinxing the shit out of Avery. You'll make me so proud, I think I might tear up," he said, pretending to wipe his eyes.
I snorted and rolled my eyes, then used the stickfast hex to make sure Snape couldn't go anywhere. "You've had so much practice, you make duelling look easy."
Sirius ran a hand through his hair. "Like I said, you're learning from the best."
I cocked my head, watching Avery and Snape. "Should we continue? I feel like we've successfully humiliated them, not to mention I cock blocked Avery."
Sirius raised an eyebrow, a smirk shaping his lips. "You're really going to stop when we've got them like this? I don't think we've done enough yet."
I shrugged. "It's no fun now. It's not even a fight since they're overpowered."
"True. And there's no one to watch them be humiliated."
I tucked my wand back into my pocket and turned away, pretending to dust off my hands. "My work here is done, old man," I said and headed down the corridor, the sounds of Avery's retching following me.
Sirius caught up with me as he barked with laughter. "Either way, that was bloody brilliant, kitten."
Once we had put enough distance between the Slytherins, I stopped. I was in awe that I'd been partially responsible for making him so happy, even if it had been at the expense of Avery and Snape's dignities. "Yeah, it was," I said, unable to do anything but smile from ear to ear.
Sirius laughed his bark-like laugh and I couldn't help but join in. How could I have ever known that I would make him feel this happy? I never would have guessed. Mischievous joy was all over his face, and he gripped me in a rib-crushing hug.
"Sirius, I can't breath," I wheezed into his chest, which was rumbling with laughter.
"How about now?" he said and lifted me slightly off my feet.
"That's not helping!" I said, laughing and holding onto him for dear life.
He put me down and pulled away, but kept his gaze on my face, still grinning like a lunatic. "Thank you for suggesting we prank them today, kitten."
"Thank you for helping me, old man," I said and laughed again. My stomach hurt from laughing so hard, but facing Sirius while he was laughing too made it impossible to keep a straight face. I didn't feel bad at all for Avery, but I did for Snape. I couldn't imagine the horror of being picked on for so many years by James Potter and Sirius Black. But the damage was done now.
He pushed some hair away from his face. "It's a good thing Wormtail isn't here, or he'd be wetting himself with that show."
I wiggled my eyebrows. "Who says I'm not wetting myself, old man?"
He met my eyes and wiggled his eyebrows back. "That's not why your knickers are wet, kitten."
My mouth fell open. "You dog," I said and began poking him
He laughed and squirmed. "Help! I'm being attacked!"
I raised a mocking eyebrow. "And what's with your wand down your trousers anyway, old man? Or are you just excited to see me?"
He grinned. "You like it? I'm going to come over there and poke you with it."
"Not in public!"
"You're not into voyeurism?"
"No! Fuck, where's the nearest broom cupboard?" I said, looking around the silent corridor.
"Relax, kitten. I'm not going to shag you in public," he said, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he watched me. "Not yet," he added with a cocky smirk.
"You're a perverted, mangy dog."
"And you still can't get enough of me," he said and stepped closer until he was in my space. He brought our together. "So what does that make you? Hmm?"
I smiled up at him. "Fuck."
His eyes fell to my mouth. "Yeah, fancy doing that? I'd really like to fuck you right now."
I took a coy step back, a smirk curling my lips. "Lead the way, old man."
He took a step forward, eyes boring into mine. "Can I walk behind you? I'll tell you where to go?"
"Why?" I cocked an eyebrow.
"So I can watch your arse," he said with a smirk.
"Dog!"
"And pinch it."
He made a move to do just that and I swatted his hands away and covered my bum with both hands. "Ha! Now you can't see it!"
"No! Uncover your arse!" he said and pouted.
"No way, old man!" I said and dashed down the corridor.
"Get back here, kitten!"
"Come and get me, old man!" I said, turning to jog backwards with my hands in the air to taunt him. Sirius laughed and came striding after me, and leapt forward to grab my upper arm when I stumbled.
He smiled ruefully. "Careful, kitten. I can't have you smashing your head open on the floor."
I looked up at him. "Did you just save my life, old man?"
He stared and I stilled under the weight of his gaze. I shivered. "Maybe," he whispered, searching my face for something. He tore his focus away from me and looked around the corridor. "Come on, kitten. We still haven't found that broom cupboard," he said, the very momentary serious tone and expression gone.
It didn't take us long to find what we were looking for and then we were stumbling through the door and throwing it closed, and I waited while Sirius sealed us safely inside with magic. I never wanted to be interrupted while I was with him, and especially not during sex. It wasn't only that it would be mortifying, but that once we started, I never wanted to stop. As soon as he was finished, Sirius found me in the darkness and kissed me hard, his hands pulling me against him. I fisted his shirt and clutched the front of his robes, pressing myself as close to him as possible, needing to drown out everything but him. He must've had the same thoughts, because he gripped my hips harder and then walked me backwards until my back hit the inside wall of the broom cupboard. And then Sirius was snogging me for real, his tongue dominating my mouth and the whole length of his body crushing against mine, allowing me to feel every part of him at once. His mouth didn't taste of sweets like last time and instead I relished in his scent that enveloped me, the faint whiff of dog luring me in for more. I sighed into his mouth when his hands slid under my robes and shirt to caress my abdomen, and then his knuckles were brushing my hip bones as he explored further, fingertips peeling the elastic of my knickers back to push his hand lower.
"Fuck, you make me so mad, kitten," he said as he pulled his mouth away the tiniest bit.
"Mad?" I whispered, afraid of what he meant.
"Mad with the need to shag you. Fuck, you're so hot," he said and then his lips were on mine again, bunching my skirt up around my waist and a hand slipping back into my knickers. A strangled groan came from me when his fingers touched my cunt and as I felt his growing erection poking me. I relished in the sensation of being trapped between his hardness and the wall's.
"Fuck, you are excited to see me, old man," I gasped as he rolled his hips and poked me again.
"Always," he whispered, mouth dropping to kiss along my jaw and neck. "Merlin, you're so sexy."
I groaned again when he gripped my arse with his other hand. "Mmm, yeah?"
He found a spot along my neck, over my jugular vein, and sucked. "You make the most amazing sounds for me, kitten."
I moaned when he rubbed my clit and sucked harder on my neck, and he practically growled into my skin and pinned my body even harder against the wall. His scent enveloped me, his hair soft on my neck, his hands sure underneath my clothes and his body warm and solid, until he stepped back so that I wasn't being crushed to the wall anymore. I looked at him in confusion and worry.
"Sorry if I'm being too rough, kitten. Say something if it's too much," he said, genuine concern lacing his tone.
I smiled and shook my head, relief washing over me. "No, it's perfect."
"Really?"
"I like alternating with who takes control. And I really like your visible enthusiasm."
I saw his grin in the faint light and heard his chuckle loud and clear. He stepped back towards me again and pressed against me deliciously. "You know I'm always visibly enthusiastic about shagging you, right?"
I slipped a hand into his trousers to feel his hard-on. "Yeah, I do know. You're not exactly subtle about it."
He chuckled. "That makes two of us."
"I don't like being shy with you anyway."
"Good," he whispered against my lips. "I like that you're a spitfire."
"Good," I whispered back. "I like how you fuck me."
He groaned. "Fuck, you could make me jizz in my trousers when you say that."
I grinned and pushed some hair away from his forehead, and then he leaned in and we kissed hard. I wanted him being dominant today, pushing into my space and shoving everything else out and away for later. I wanted him overwhelming me, drowning everything out with his presence. As he plundered my mouth, I realized that only Sirius could make me feel this way, could consume my attention so totally to the neglect of everything else.
He drew his fingers along my cunt and cursed. "You're so wet, kitten. Always so wet for me."
"Oh, god. Please, Sirius," I said as my hips bucked, wanting more pressure. He rubbed my clit faster and harder while he took a mouthful of skin on my neck. He sucked harder and I cried out. I panted as he nuzzled the spot that he'd marred, then drew away to admire what he'd reduced me to- a panting, dripping mess. I stared back at him, feeling paralyzed. "You make me mad too," I whispered before he continued snogging me.
"And I think about shagging you every day, kitten," he whispered before he resumed our kiss. "I think about you every day." He kissed me again while I shimmied out of my knickers, tights and shoes. "You're the best shag I've ever had," he said against my lips.
I looked at him in surprise. "You mean that?"
He smiled. "Of course I do. You've no idea. The other ones don't even compare." He dropped his mouth to suck on the love-bite that he'd given me on my neck.
"You are by far the best shag I've ever had, old man."
"Good. I've been trying my best," he said and nipped my neck. I could feel his fingers moving along my cunt, going lower. He slipped two fingers inside me and at the same time bit down on my neck, gently enough that it didn't hurt, but enough to feel it. I cried out. He began finger-fucking me, slowly at first and then picking up speed, having no issues because of how wet I was, and at the same time sucking on my neck. Fuck, he was going to leave a massive love-bite at this rate. I didn't for a second doubt that he knew that, and I wondered if he were giving me a love-bite for a particular reason other than to make me fall apart in his hands.
"Are you trying to mark your territory with that love-bite?" I asked hoarsely.
He hummed vaguely before raising his head to stare at me. "You know, I'd fuck you right up against this wall, kitten." I shuddered, his fingers still twisting inside me. "But the logistics are… tricky."
"That's okay," I whispered as he withdrew his fingers. "I don't want to bruise my back."
"That too."
I turned around and braced my hands on the wall for support, and a guttural sound tore from my throat when Sirius came up behind me and slid inside.
"Kitten, are you alright? I'm not hurting you, am I?" he asked, stilling inside me.
"No, fuck. The opposite. Fuck, you feel so good."
He groaned and thrust slowly. "Wasn't sure how to interpret that sound you just made."
I moaned when he picked up a pace. "It's a good sound. It's just been a little while since we shagged. It feels so good to have you inside me again."
He groaned and gripped my hips. "Merlin, how do you know exactly what to say, kitten," he said and thrust faster. I cried out again and covered his hand on my hip with mine, clenching my fingers around his. I needed something firm to hold on to while my legs were turning to jelly and my head was fogging with desire. He tightened his fingers around mine and went even faster, driving us both quickly near to the edge. I let go of his hand, spat on my fingers, and rubbed my clit furiously, every muscle in my body going limp, my skin burning like it was aflame, and warmth licking up my limbs.
"Fuck, Sirius," I cried out.
"You going to cum for me, kitten?" he panted, sounding close himself.
"Yes, harder," I gasped. And then the wave of my climax rolled up inside me and I felt it come crashing down, my mind going blank and losing control. "Oh, god, Sirius," I moaned as I came around him.
"Fuck, Kersti," he groaned as he came inside me.
We stood there, my hand braced against the wall, his hands still gripping my hips, until we were breathing normally again and separated to redress ourselves. All he had to do was tuck his cock back into his trousers, while I had to wrestle my knickers, tights and shoes back on and straighten the rest of my robes.
"Was that good, kitten?"
I looked up to see Sirius watching me, a smile shaping his lips. "Yeah, really good."
He ran a hand through his long hair. "Yeah, I agree."
"I would complain about how we don't last long, but I think that's a compliment to each other."
He chuckled. "Yeah. If you thought I was lying about you being the best shag I've ever had- which I wouldn't lie about- you could find out how long I usually last and realize you make me cum so quickly."
I grinned. "I've had the shortest sex and quickies of my life with you, old man."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. You get me so hot and bothered all the time."
He let out a bark of laughter. "Good thing you didn't say that while I was inside you or I definitely would've jizzed."
"Glad it's mutual though."
"Me too, kitten. Nothing like a rubbish shag to suck the life out of me."
"'Suck?'" I said and laughed.
He snorted and tickled me. "You know what I meant."
"I know, old man." I paused to make sure my robes were straight and leaned my back on the wall that he'd just fucked me against, staring at him.
"Still not as good as fucking in my bed," he said, hands in his pockets and dark hair mussed.
"Mmm, true. Or in my bed?"
"Or in your bed. So many more positions."
"And it's more comfortable. No offense, wall," I said and patted it reassuringly. He laughed. "Next time it'll be in your bed or mine, old man."
"Looking forward to it, kitten. How's later this week sound?"
"Dunno if I'll have time," I said, thinking about the memory charm research that I had left to do, as well as the usual homework from classes. "Weekend?" I suggested.
"There's a quidditch game on Saturday, if we win you can come to the party after."
"'If we win?'" I teased. "That's awfully uncertain-sounding for someone who was trying to intimidate the competition this morning."
Sirius threw his head back and laughed. I joined in, happy because he was happy and that I somehow made him laugh rather often. "I can't predict the future, kitten. I'm almost certain we'll win, but I'm not a Seer."
I flinched. If I tried, would I be able to predict the outcome of the match? Would I look into a crystal ball and see me and Sirius in love? Would I see myself dying? I shook my head. "At the party then, old man," I said to cover up my falter.
He grinned, oblivious to my inner turmoil. At least the darkness hid what had been my panicked expression. "You should drink less so you can cum this time, kitten."
"I will drink less just for you, old man."
"Or we could shag first and then drink to our victory."
I snorted. "And have everyone, still sober, watching us run away to shag? No, thanks."
"What? It's not like they don't already know. The whole school knows we're fucking each other, kitten."
"That is true." I waited a beat before I spoke again. "You know, I was thinking about what you said the other day, about wanting to travel after you're done at Hogwarts. I've been to Sweden to see my mum's family so often, but only as Muggle. I think it'd be the first country I'd go to as a witch after school. It's one thing to know all about Swedish Muggles, but their wizarding society is another thing, and I want to see it for myself."
He smiled. "Yeah. Sometimes I wish I could see wizarding Britain with fresh eyes, you know? Like… erase all my shitty memories of it and… rediscover it? If that makes any sense." I nodded and smiled for him to continue. "I just wish my… heritage hadn't ruined my opinion about wizarding Britain." He tore his gaze away from me to think. "I know there are good parts and bad parts of this wizarding society, but I wish… I wish that…" He fixed me with a stare. "That I hadn't been born into the raving-mad and murderous part of it."
I smiled softly. "I can't even imagine. Well, I guess I can… empathize a bit. Not with the, er… wizarding heritage part, but more so being an… an anomaly, I reckon?" He stared at me, silent but transfixed. I swallowed and looked away. "I reckon… I dunno, I'm an anomaly too, at least among my family. Being a witch from a line of Muggles is… non-conformity at its extreme, I s'ppose. And it's not always great to be so different, so dissimilar from my family. Not that I'm trying to compare us, I just, er… I dunno. What I'm trying to say is that I at least sort of understand being an anomaly," I finished quietly, hoping that he wasn't angry with me for prying or assuming or bringing up our backgrounds.
Sirius was silent, and I could feel him watching me. I kept my gaze averted. "I've never thought about it that way, kitten," he said and I sighed with relief, the lack of irritation evident in his tone and use of my nickname. "I reckon you're right. It's one thing being born into magical society, and I've always hated what I was born into, but… I really can't imagine being born and raised as a Muggle and then suddenly discovering you were special and different from your family. That… it must've been rather… isolating."
I nodded and stared down at my shoes. "Yeah. My parents are happy for me and all, but I've always worried whether my brother was ever jealous of me. But he can't be too jealous, seeing how I turned out."
"What do you mean, kitten?" he said quickly.
"Oh, just my temper and grouchiness," I said nonchalantly, knowing that what I really meant was the burden of being a Seer.
"You're not that bad, kitten. Like I said, you've got a soft side. And like you said," he added, grinning and poking me, "neither of us open up to others easily and you want everyone to think you're prickly."
I stared, wondering how Sirius of all people understood me so well. "Did you remember everything from when we were really high?"
His lips curled into a half-smile. "Yeah. At least, I think so. Should we retell the events and compare our stories?" he joked.
I laughed. "Sorry for getting you too high, old man."
"Don't be sorry, kitten. I liked it." He studied me for a long moment, making my heart thunder in my chest. "Why do you have nightmares? You said you have 'really bad dreams.'"
I looked away, feeling my heart breaking. I wanted to tell him, I really did, but the cost was too high, but I worried that if I lied and he could tell that I was hiding the truth, he wouldn't want to be open with me about himself anymore. I rubbed my face. "I, er…" What was I supposed to say? I didn't want to lie to him, but I had no other choice; I couldn't put him at risk. The whole point was for me to not tell anyone, that was why I'd decided to obliviate my family in the first place.
"Sorry, kitten. I don't mean to pry," he said gently. "You don't have to tell me if you're not ready." He smiled, eyes never leaving my face.
I returned his smile. "Thanks, old man. It's, er… the reason why I have bad dreams is hard to explain, but I don't want to lie to you either… Sorry," I finished lamely.
"Don't be sorry. I'd much rather you tell me you don't want to talk about it than lie. And it wouldn't be fair if I forced you into anything when you're so good about not doing that to me." He pinched my arse and I laughed, the mood instantly lightened. "And anyway, I think it's time for you to retch up your nightly hairball."
I snorted with laughter. "Can your foot reach your head to scratch behind your ear? Or do you want to borrow my foot to get the job done?"
Sirius laughed and started tickling me. "Watch out, kitten, I'll give you my fleas."
"I already have them! It's your personal brand of venereal disease. Er… no offense, old man."
He tickled me some more. "I can't share my fleas with everyone, kitten. No one else is furry enough for them to survive."
"Oh, wow. I feel so lucky. I'll be sure to curse you when I have a million itchy spots on my back that I can't reach."
"Why don't you start undressing again and I'll itch your back for as long as you want."
I cackled and threw open the door, trying to dodge Sirius's tickle-attack. We came tumbling out of the broom cupboard together, laughing our heads off and jostling each other.
"So, old man, d'you reckon-"
"STUDENTS OUT OF BED! STUDENTS IN BROOM CUPBOARDS!"
Peeves came bouncing down the corridor, shrieking and cackling with glee at finding two students to antagonize. Sirius and I exchanged a look and bolted down opposite ends of the corridor while Peeves began singing a song of his own making about mad Black and soggy Grindylow being caught in a broom cupboard. It was too bad that we hadn't had the chance to say a proper goodbye, but I reckoned that I'd run into him sooner rather than later. I had to get back to my dormitory before I was caught out of bed past curfew, and I had a massive purple-red love bite on my neck to hide, which was too high up to be hidden by my shirt collar. Too bad Sirius's efforts to 'mark his territory' would be covered up with magic in the morning before I went out in public. But then again, he didn't even need to worry about me being interested in other blokes; it wasn't like I was shagging anyone besides him anymore. In fact, neither of us were wanting to shag anyone but each other, and I wasn't going to complain about getting Sirius all to myself.
