Legal Disclaimer: I own my stuff, but not the original source material. That belongs to whoever. Also, the opinions and interpretations I use here may not reflect the same in said whoever that owns the source material. Look, I'm just a poor college librarian. Suing me isn't going to get you anything but tears.
Warning: This work may be offensive to some readers. There is mild sexual situations and religious imagery. Feel free to back out if need be.
Author's Note: Mostly just a general reminder that I matched naming themes for my gender bends of Remus & Sirius. This is also apparently an Arts School No Magic AU. I dunno know. You think I know what is going on? I'm just the writer.
Submitting Info:
Stacked with: Hogwarts (Term 16); MC4A (Year 4)
Individual Challenges: La Vie Boheme; Kinder; My Favorite Things; Bard MC; Bard MC; Rian-Russo Inversion; Rian-Russo Inversion; Ethnic & Present; The 3rd Rule; Ship Sails; Gwen's HP Bribery (Y); Hold the Mayo; Gender Bender; Citrus Sale; Go Fluff Yourself; Colors Galore; Lunar Era; Old Shoes (Y); In a Flash (Y); Bucket Listing (Y); Two Cakes (Y); Eating Cake (Y)
House: Slytherin
Assignment No.: Term 16 – Assignment 02
Subject (Task No.): Fashion, Textiles, & Tailoring (Task#6: Write about someone rebelling [even if only a little bit].)
Other Hogwarts Challenges: 365 [223](Adventure); 1000 Prompts Challenge [660](Green Apple); National Hobby Month [07] (Dance); National Bird Day [04] (Romance); Play God Day [18] (Adventurous); Hot Tea [30] (Sirius Black); National Wedding Month [13] ("Perfect"); Colors [09] (Vanilla); Alphabetti [R] (Remus Lupin); Treat Yourself [Face Mask] (Romance)
Other MC4A Challenges: WiB [1E](In an Orchard); Vocab [4C](Notice); Ship (Canines)[2D (Huddling for Warmth)]; Chim [Ano] (Emerald; Gender Bend; Orchard); Hunt [Wi WD (Diabetes)]; Fire [x3](Fruits Basket; Sapphic Paradise; Winter Wonderland); Garden [Marauding Marauders (Wolfstar); Daphne Special (Skirt); Winter Wonderland (Cold)]; Swap [Outer Wear (Leather Jacket)]
Representation(s): Fem Remus Lupin/Sirius Black; Family Activity
Primary & Secondary Bonus Challenges: Easy Zephyr; Second Verse (Bechdel Test; Ladylike; Not a Lamp; Persistence Still; Found Family; Nontraditional; Unwanted Advice; Clio's Conclusion; Deadliest Catch; For the Vine; Muck & Slime; Hot Apple; Under the Bridge); Chorus (Wabi Sabi; Fizzy Lemonade; Mouth of Babes; Bandstand; Larger than Life; Unicorn; Surprise!; Turtle-Duck; Sitting Hummingbird; Some Beach; Hot Stuff; Jack's Jollies); Demo 2 (Sweetest Burn)
Tertiary & Generic Bonus Challenges: FR (Satisfaction); SS (Schooner; Seduce); AC (Sacrosanct; Orchard); CM (Yogin); TY (enfant); Share (Ameliorate)
Word Count: 759 words
(^^)
Tempting Fruit
(^^)
Rhea watched as Zeta twirled away from her like she was doing one of her ballet performances. Her emerald skirt spun out from beneath her leather jacket. The combination of dark brown leather up top and rich green below made her look almost like a tree that had been reflected in the still waters of a winter lake. The way that Zeta's wild curls spread through the air, as dark as Zeta's family name might suggest, continued that impression, looking more like roots seeking the grounding strength of the earth than branches reaching for the stars or gods that the Blacks named their children after.
She was, as always, beautifully perfect.
They had come to the orchard down the road from where Rhea's parents were living, at least for the time being. (Rhea thought it might last a bit longer, now that she spent much of the year away for school, even if she had a good feeling about this town and how it actually had a synagogue.) Somewhere else on the tiny farm, Hope and Lyall were also wandering. Knowing her father as she did and acknowledging just how long they had all been wandering the land for this little adventure (a silently ticking clock that Rhea was constantly aware of due to her diabetes), it was probably closer to the barn that hosted the craft shop and the food options. It was also the only heated building still open to the visiting public this late in the year.
Zeta stopped her dancing near one of the larger apple trees in the orchard. Never mind that she was wearing a skirt that easily cost more than Rhea's entire wardrobe (sans any pieces that were gifts from Zeta or their friend James, both of whom were wealthy kids with generous souls), she was testing the limbs in obvious preparation to climb the thing. The combat boots that she had paired her fancy skirt and blouse with vanilla flowers along the collar dug into the bark of the tree trunk.
"You're really going to climb a tree while dressed like that?" Rhea asked incredulously. Zeta flashed a grin over her shoulder before swinging herself around to sit on a branch that was just even with Rhea's head.
"Is there something wrong with the way I'm dressed?" Zeta asked, as if she didn't already know. Zeta's mother was always after her to act more like the proper young lady she was supposed to be. It was especially bad once Zeta had gotten accepted to Hogwarts School of the Arts and had gone into the dance program rather than music like Walburga had wanted. "Am I doing something that I shouldn't be, Miss Prefect?"
"You can't climb in a skirt, Zee," she protested as Zeta picked one of the last apples hanging on the tree. She polished it on her leather jacket, like that would do anything. "People might see your underwear!"
"Who says I'm wearing any?" Zeta waggled her eyebrows salaciously at Rhea as she took a large bite of the green apple she had just picked. The scent of it filled the space between them, just as sharp and refreshing as the chill permeating the early December air. "Perhaps you should check for me, just to be sure."
"We're in the middle of an orchard," Rhea said, unwilling to admit just how interested she suddenly was to verify if Zeta was wearing anything under her skirt. She could feel her cheeks heating from both the embarrassment of it and how aroused it made her. Hopefully, the redness from the cold air prevented Zeta from noticing the latter. A quick glace only confirmed that would have been asking too much. "Someone may see us!"
"Come on, moonshine," Zeta cajoled. Her tongue flicked out to gathered the drop of juice on her lips. Bracing herself with one hand on the branch, she spread her legs a little, just enough that Rhea could easily flip the hem out of the way if she really wanted to. Her smile would have been at home on the snake in the Garden as it tempted Eve. "Live a little. I know you want to. Besides, there's no one else around."
Rhea looked around their section of the orchard, just to confirm that what Zeta had claimed was true. Seeing no one, she looked back at the woman sitting on her branch, taking another bit of the apple in her hand. She was beautiful, just like any celestial being.
Without further resistance, Rhea gave into the temptation.