I don't know if I need to preface this but warning: explicit content ahead
Giselle pounded her fist on the Transfiguration professor's office and waited, breathing heavily as she shoved her unruly hair out of her eyes. She was terribly late for her last Transfiguration catch-up lesson before Christmas break and she silently cursed McGonagall for choosing to teach their final class early on a Saturday. She had much preferred the evening sessions, it was almost impossible to turn up late to them.
The door swung open and Giselle beamed at her professor, pretending that she was exactly on time. "Good morning! Your favourite student has arrived on time," she lied sweetly.
Professor McGonagall stared at Giselle in perplexity, glancing at the books in her hands with her sharp eyes narrowed. She was fastening the buttons of her tartan cape over her emerald robes and she had swapped her usual pointed black hat for the fuzzy brown deerstalker that she wore when snow descended on the castle. Giselle noticed that the fireplace further in the room had been extinguished and her desk was free from books - she was going out.
"Er, professor?" started Giselle, arching a brow, "are you bailing on me? Have I been replaced? Who are you cheating on me with?"
"Don't be silly, Miss Crouch," sighed McGonagall, readjusting her gloves as she walked back into her office, gesturing for her to follow, "our lessons have come to an end, there was only one module that you needed extra work on and you've mastered interspecies metamorphosis - a lot faster than I expected, I might add." Giselle tried not to act smug but she couldn't help it.
"Aw! Thanks Minnie! I'm glad you finally understand how talented I am," she said cheerfully, dumping her heavy books onto the desk as they were starting to ache her back, ignoring the abrupt shock on her teacher's face at the mention of her first name, "although I wish you gave me a heads up, the books you've set us this year weigh a tonne!"
"Then levitate them, my dear. I did inform you of our change of plan," said McGonagall, deepening her frown slightly as she observed her student. "When I couldn't find you after dinner yesterday I asked another student to pass on the message. They swore to me that they told you when I saw them at breakfast earlier this morning."
Baffled, Giselle blinked at her and pouted. Did someone speak to her yesterday and she simply blocked their existence out of her mind? That might have been likely, she trained herself to subconsciously block out noise whenever she was in proximity of Sirius and, due to them being in the same house, they were near each other a lot.
"Who was it?" she asked when she came up blank.
"Mr Black-," started McGonagall and Giselle automatically scoffed in revulsion, disappointed in her professor's mistake. Of course, thought Giselle snidely, I should have known!
"That was your first mistake, professor," she tutted, shaking her head, "that explains it. Black never told me about our cancellation and he never intended to. You shouldn't have bothered talking to that waste of space."
Professor McGonagall pursed her lips and paused, watching Giselle as though she were trying to read her thoughts. "I wasn't aware that you two were no longer friends," she muttered, watching the girl's reaction.
Giselle swallowed the sudden dry lump in her throat and scowled at her boots, miffed at the change in topic. She didn't want to talk about Sirius, she spent her waking hours avoiding him as though he were deathly contagious with dragon pox and whenever they did have to be in the same room they constantly spat insults at each other and refused to act civil. If their relationship was at rock bottom before, it was now entering the depths of Hell - their intimate encounter during their Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson sparked a deep hatred within Sirius and she could see how badly he wanted to hurt her every time they locked eyes. Their friendship was irreparable.
"Mhmm," Giselle hardly glanced at her professor as she scooped up her books again, suddenly desperate to be alone, "that's quite impressive, I'm surprised you haven't noticed his ignorant remarks about me in class."
"No, I learned to ignore Mr Black's comments in class a very long time ago," mused McGonagall, shooting Giselle a wink that summoned her pretty smile, "but now I understand how you've managed your new record-breaking no detention streak, well done Miss Crouch."
Twitching faintly at the improper last name, Giselle rolled her eyes and made her way out of the office, giving her professor her weekend back. "I'm a changed woman, professor! I've turned a new leaf, I've grown up, I'm-,"
"-waiting for the right opportunity to strike," finished McGonagall, peering over her spectacles knowingly as she fought the smirk on her lips. "You may have grown whilst you were away but you certainly haven't changed - I'm onto you still."
The pair swapped the cold office for the even colder first floor corridor and Giselle watched her professor charm the door with her usual security measures, keeping quiet as to not ruin her facade as a well-behaving student. She didn't want to give away her plans of getting herself disowned in case McGonagall tried to stage an intervention, her head of house had given her a serious talking to in the past about her views on family and she was in no state to receive another; her family problems were far worse than she knew.
"I guess I'll leave you alone now," sighed Giselle dramatically, scuffing her boots against the ground in a sulk, "since you don't have to babysit me anymore, you can return to your blazing social life… Where are you going, anyways?" She smiled sweetly at McGonagall, charming her into staying a little bit longer. She didn't have any other plans for the day and she didn't fancy going back to the empty Gryffindor Tower, solving her boredom was her main priority and she didn't care if that meant she would have to hang out with her teacher.
"I'm meeting Professor Sprout and Madam Hooch in the Three Broomsticks," admitted McGonagall, slipping her wand into her cape pocket before whisking off. Giselle hurried to follow her.
"Oooh girls day out?" said Giselle, grinning at the thought of the three teachers down in the rowdy pub downing pints of beer and singing folk songs and she suddenly wanted to witness it for herself. "Can I come?! I can teach you this new drinking game I picked up in France, you'll love it!" she gasped.
Professor McGonagall shot Giselle an odd look and shook her head, amused. "No you can't, Miss Crouch, I don't think that would be very appropriate," she said slowly, unsure whether she was being serious or not, "why don't you find your friends?"
Giselle puffed out a harsh breath of air and continued to sulk. "...They're in Hogsmeade, they're busy."
When she first heard that their lesson was cancelled, Giselle instinctively thought of tracking down Lily with the suggestion of visiting Hogsmeade as she had never been to the village (legally) before but that thrilling idea died when she remembered that Lily was already in Hogsmeade with James - on their first date. As bored as she was, she wouldn't dare interrupt the blossoming, semi-unexpected development, she couldn't risk blowing James' opportunity and she didn't want to make Lily more nervous than she already was. It took Giselle a lot of strength to stay away from them as they left the school after breakfast and she privately commended herself for having such strong willpower.
"Why don't you join them?" suggested McGonagall, her heeled boots clacking on the stone floor as they walked. "You no longer need your father's permission to visit the village now you're of age."
"Absolutely not, I'm not third-wheeling the Head Boy and Girl's first date! That's too much, even for me," she laughed, pulling an awkward face as the thought of being sat next to James and Lily as they snogged. "No thank you!"
Eyebrows disappearing behind her hat's brim, McGonagall nodded at the revelation but she kept her own views of the Heads' date to herself but Giselle swore she heard her mumble "Merlin please give me strength." She understood where she was coming from, though, it was quite the turn of events, their six year long feud was infamous. Once they reached the entrance hall, Professor McGonagall bade Giselle a swift farewell along with the suggestion that she solve her boredom with some homework when she headed out into the gentle snow blizzard beyond the castle's walls.
Giselle pondered her teacher's words and eventually headed up to the tower, deciding to brave a visit to the village by herself. She was used to spending a lot of time in her own company, many of the students at Beauxbatons steered clear of the rebellious British girl that seemed to attract trouble, no one bothered to try and get to know her but she didn't mind, she knew she was returning to Hogwarts and consciously chose not to get attached to anyone.
She swapped her school robes for a pretty buttoned short skirt, a thick cream turtleneck, her knee-high heeled boots and shoved on her cosy shearling coat that would protect her from the snowstorm. With one last quick peek out of the window, Giselle slipped on her white fur headband to shield her ears from the frost and left her dorm, unusually chirpy at the prospect of facing the relentless weather.
A to-do list started to naturally form in her head as she wandered down to the front gates of the school, she wanted to hit all of the main attractions in the hopes that it would spark some nostalgia but she cringed when she remembered the marvellously vibrant pink shop front of Honeydukes. The glorious funhouse that was Hogsmeade's premier sweetshop used to be her main way into the village - it used to be her favourite passageway out of school - she had spent hours inside the store but every single memory was tarnished by the presence of Sirius' dumb face, he was the one who showed her the secret path.
Giselle mentally crossed Honeydukes off her list.
She reached the entrance courtyard and instantly cheered up at the sight of the white wonderland, the crisp powder covered everything in sight and made it ten times more enchanting and the soothing silence that hung in the air was a blessing, it was like nature had stopped to watch the snowfall in awe. Quietly squealing as she heard the snow crunch underneath her boots, Giselle exited the castle and followed the path of footprints down to the gates but her solo journey ended when she spotted a figure on the path ahead of her.
She hesitated when she recognised their rather worn cloak, hurriedly thinking of a way to scare him and she smirked as she whipped her wand out and pointed it at her boots, "Silencio!"
Biting her lip to stop the giggles that would give her away, Giselle crept up behind Remus and wrapped her arms around him, making him jump in fright. "SURPRISE HUG"
"MERLIN FUCK! ELLE!" he screamed, gripping her arms instinctively, "I almost stunned you!" He spun around with an antagonised huff but ultimately hugged her back, relieved that he wasn't being attacked. He smelt strongly of coffee today, it almost made her nose sting, but Giselle held in her gasp as she clocked the new gash running from his cheek all the way down his neck and past his chunky knitted garnet scarf, the puckered edges were swollen and she could see it was giving him a lot of pain but she chose not to comment. The full moon appeared only two days ago and he had been hiding in his dorm ever since.
"You would have had quite the task trying to take me down, don't kid yourself," she said airily, dismissing his statement with a wink, "although for a second I was afraid you were someone else, they definitely would have tried to stun me."
"That would have been very entertaining, especially if I were Fitzgerald or Selwyn, they seem very determined to take you down," he mused back, smiling fainting at the mention of the usual tension between Gryffindor and Slytherin, "I saw Walters on my patrol the other day and he was very descriptive in the ways he wanted to hurt you." Giselle linked arms with Remus and joined him on his stroll, the path was now rather slippery and she didn't want to fall face first into the snow and ruin her makeup - her eyeliner took ages to perfect.
"Yeah, well, he can join the queue," she told him, unbothered, "but that does explain why I've seen him hanging out with my brother, I guess they've got something in common."
Remus chose not to say anything but she felt his side-eye on the side of her flushed face.
"What are you doing anyways?" she asked him, moving on from the awkward silence that ensued. Remus pulled out a letter from his pockets and passed it to her, shaking his head in annoyance.
"I was planning on spending most of my day in bed but Peter sent me a letter and, being the best friend that I am, I couldn't say no," he explained and she scanned Peter's almost indistinguishable handwriting, thick snowflakes were gently smudging the ink.
Moony!
Get your arse down here now!
Prongs has finally pulled and I need help trying to stop Padfoot from ruining it.
Also can you bring my wand with you? Padfoot swapped it for a stick again, it's probably somewhere under his bed… How do I keep falling for it?!
WT
Giselle blinked and re-read the letter a few times, mouthing the nicknames to herself. Since being back she heard the names in passing but she never took much notice of them, they didn't have nicknames for each other before and she knew they had a hidden meaning when she realised that the boys called Remus Moony - very subtle.
"Does WT stand for Wormtail?" she asked innocently and he nodded, suddenly suspicious.
"How do you know that?"
"I don't know whether you guys know this or not but the people in your vicinity can hear you when you shout," she said with a snort, rolling her eyes as he blushed.
"We're not that loud," he defended modestly.
Giselle nodded, pretending to agree. "Yeah, okay sure… by the way, did you manage to find that porn magazine you lost the other day?" she asked but ended up bursting into laughter when he let out a strangled yelp. She caught their vulgar shouty conversation on the way back from dinner last week and had been dying to tease him about it ever since.
"What?! Uh, I don't- what do you-," Remus covered his eyes momentarily and his shoulders sagged in defeat, "ok fine maybe we are a little loud sometimes." His red, flustered expression was especially sweet and she squeezed his arm in reassurance, soothing the spooked look in his eyes. They reached the gates and promptly gave their names to the aurors who were stationed there by ministerial demand, a security measure that Professor Dumbledore assured the school was necessary. Giselle recognised one of them from her visits to her father's office and the clown inside of her replayed the image of Bartemius' empty chair in the Quidditch stands, summoning fleeting shots of venom into her mood.
"Names?" grunted the older auror, peering through his thin spectacles that were splattered with snow.
"Remus Lupin," he answered politely.
"You already know my name," exclaimed Giselle, feigning offence. She clasped her chest and stared up at the auror but he looked unamused.
"Name?" he repeated, his voice deeper this time.
"But it's the most important name ever! Everyone knows my name, you should be honoured to be in my presence! Don't you know who my father is?!" she gasped, growing distasteful as she pictured her father's sickened face. Remus, disturbed by her reaction, linked his arm through hers once more and tried to pull her away.
"It's Crouch's eldest," answered the other auror, a younger woman with short, spiky white hair, "ignore her, she can go." Giselle caught her eye and bowed, exaggerating her thanks.
"Wow! Thank Merlin! Someone here knows my name!" She began again but Remus saw to her plans and succeeded in dragging her away as he was much stronger than her. Escaping the strange looks from the aurors, the pair ambled down the snowy path surrounded by the thicket of the pine trees that protected them from the icy highland winds. Giselle ignored Remus' distraught glances and re-read the letter still clenched in her hands.
"So James and Lily are making out-,"
"What the hell was that?" he interjected, not bothering to act subtle with his concerns. She licked her frozen lips and shook her head, waving away the slow creeping shame that was flooding her body, scolding her for losing her cool in front of Remus.
"...nothing," she mumbled.
"That was not nothing," he snorted, tugging on her arm so she would meet his gaze, "I know you were trying to make a point back there. I thought you and your father were ok now?"
Giselle had no trouble looking up at him now and she sneered at his assumptions, slightly hurt. "Far from, what makes you say that?" she spat.
"You two certainly looked like you were getting along when he visited school, and not to mention that cheesy article in the Prophet," he reminded her and Giselle tutted, vexed by his opinion. The article made her sound like the world's dullest person but thankfully she was barely mentioned in the story at all.
"What can I say? We're a family of talented actors, Father made sure we had perfected our adoring little family act over the summer since his chances of becoming Minister have skyrocketed. I didn't know I was that believable," she admitted in a huff, forcefully kicking the snow out of her way as they began to descend into the village. She tried to submerge herself into the glorious view that greeted her, the wintery tundra had transformed the sleepy village into a Christmas wonderland bursting with life but the stubborn rage inside of her ruined the moment. It looked fine.
"Oh…" he didn't say much, she could feel the awkwardness in the air between them but Giselle brushed the sensitive subject away by tightening her grip on his arm and resting her head on his shoulder, stealing his warmth.
"Let's forget about that and appreciate the fact that this is technically my first visit to Hogsmeade," she reminded him with a flutter of her eyes and he immediately brightened.
"Oh yeah!" he laughed, "it's way easier navigating the village when you're not under Pro- uh James' cloak. You need to check out the new bookshop that opened up last year, it's so much better than Tomes and Scrolls, they don't shout at you for eating near the books!"
"I'll be sure to check it out," she remarked, smiling at his enthusiasm, "but you could always come with me? I'm going to be alone all day?" She batted her lashes again in the hopes of charming him into ditching his mates but he laughed sheepishly and ruffled his sodden shaggy hair.
"Or you could come with me? I'll make sure Sirius behaves," he proposed, eyes glimmering in longing but Giselle extinguished his dreams with a scornful pout.
"Don't bother, it'll only end in tears… or blood," she warned him and he nodded in defeat.
"Worth a shot."
When the pair breached the village's cobbled stone walls that were buried beneath a few feet of fresh snow, they parted ways. Giselle automatically ignored the feverish howls from the group who were waiting for Remus and she headed straight for the main high street, her mind focused on her own plans. It was easy to lose herself in the rhythm of the village, she was happily distracted by the scattering of jolly shoppers, the faint chorus of Christmas carols that floating through the air along with mouth-watering aromas of cinnamon, orange and spiced wines, and Giselle couldn't stop gasping at the ornaments in the shop windows. The residents of Hogsmeade tried their best to bring some festive cheer to the town with their excessive decorations and it seemed to be working, she hadn't seen this many people smile in a very long time.
Most of her day was spent traipsing around the village shops and the surrounding area, she explored all of its secrets and absorbed as much information from the visitors signs as she could, she never took any notice of Hogsmeade's rich history before since she was always too distracted with causing mischief instead of learning. She found the Shrieking Shack the most fascinating and she subconsciously spent most of her time in the shack's garden, trying to find a way inside. Sirius used to tell her to stay away from the haunted house; the memory only made her more determined.
A couple of hours later, Giselle left Remus' favourite bookshop with a new volume on magical creatures and a sneaky smirk on her lips. She planned on staying in the cosy bookshop until closing time but after accidentally catching Mary and Dorcas making out in one of the more private sections, she made the conscious decision to leave them alone - their crimson faces and embarrassed splutters were adorable and she promised to keep their secret. She thought of heading back to the castle but the bright lights that emitted from the crowded pub down the road caught her eye and a warm goblet of mulled wine called her name, she couldn't resist.
The Three Broomsticks was by far the most popular spot tonight and Giselle tried to shake away the nervous butterflies when she entered, she knew most of Hogwarts would be in here and she needed to be wary - sober Sirius was a lot to handle and she didn't want to linger on how he would act when he was intoxicated but her body had other ideas, a firm shiver rocked her.
The last time she saw him drunk, he rubbed himself against her and tried to persuade her to unzip his trousers, he was insatiable and the look of lust in his grey eyes when he popped the buttons of her shirt had been burned onto the back of her eyelids. The old memory zapped her like a bolt of lightning and suddenly she sensed strong stirrings deep in the pits of her abdomen, conjuring up old feelings towards the boy she hated. That night in the kitchens was one of the hottest sexual encounters she had ever experienced and it consumed her during her first nights in France; she couldn't stop thinking about how badly she wanted to feel his hands on her again. She tried to reach that level of intensity with other boys whilst at Beauxbatons but the chase was fruitless, even when she lost her virginity she didn't feel as powerful as she did with him and she loathed herself for it.
Glowering at the floor, Giselle stomped up to the bar with the intention to drink away the terrifying feelings. I'm frustrated, she told herself confidently, it's just because I'm surrounded by horny couples, that wasn't anything. These awful thoughts will go away, they did last time. Fuck someone else and you'll feel better again. She didn't acknowledge those around her as she shuffled her way towards the quieter side of the bar, she was far too aggravated to pretend that everything was fine.
But, of course, the universe had other plans.
"Oh my God!" Giselle jumped at the sudden yelling in her ear but her heart relaxed its frantic beat when she realised who it was, "I was hoping you would turn up, we need to talk right now!"
Giselle had never seen Lily look more alive, she was radiant. It was pretty obvious that she was way past tipsy, the pink in her milky cheeks was persistent and her pearly smile never faltered, she was giddy with giggles and she didn't even care about the state of her smudged lip gloss. She was wearing a dress she borrowed from Giselle, the slinky French design caught her attention the second she rummaged through her friend's wardrobe and the jade satin material complimented her eyes perfectly, she looked gorgeous and Giselle knew James hadn't kept his hands to himself - she spotted a couple of red nail marks on her thigh. All of Giselle's dark thoughts vanished in a heartbeat and she squealed; their date was a success!.
"Bathroom - now!"
The bathrooms in the pub were delightfully clean and cosy with panelled walls and floral accents, luckily it was small and they could see no other shadows under the toilet doors. Lily locked them both in a cramped cubicle and took a deep breath, running her hands through her loose waves. Giselle patiently sat on the toilet and crossed her legs, fizzing with intrigue as she stared up at her. Even in the dim bathroom lighting she could see Lily's eyes sparkle.
"Start at the beginning," prompted Giselle with a grin when Lily continued to giggle, she was too lovestruck to act normal.
"Honestly, Elle, it's been the best day ever. Straight away, he gave me a bouquet of white lilies that smell incredible!" she started and Giselle nodded as though she was a judge and Potter's efforts were a performance.
"Ten points to Potter," she added.
"And then he offered to fly me to the village since the path down was too icy and, to my own surprise, I said yes," said Lily, her blush worsening.
"But you hate flying?" pointed out Giselle with a scoff, "remember when you threw up on my pink jacket? And I'm a smoother flier than Potter, I can't believe this."
"I cleaned it up straight away!" reminded Lily, "but anyways, I didn't throw up on James so that's ten points to me."
Giselle wiggled her eyebrows and nudged her with her foot. "So you rode his broom?" she purred teasingly.
"Pfft not yet!" cackled Lily uncharacteristically, "not on the first date!"
"Oh my Merlin! You want to though!" squeaked Giselle, gasping at Drunk Lily's confidence, "keep going! When did he kiss you?!"
Lily smoothed her shiny hair out of her face and smirked, her eyes alluringly heavy as she thought of their snog. "Actually, I kissed him. He almost kissed me during our picnic in the memorial gardens down by the stream but I think he noticed how much I was sweating and he was really sweet about it, he didn't make me feel like I had to kiss him or even hold his hand," she swooned and shook her head, embarrassed, "but that was when my body told me to woman up and make a move. We went shopping for a while, I thought he was going to insist on paying for everything but we split everything equally and then I just… pounced."
"You… pounced?" repeated Giselle, speechless.
"We were coming out of the apothecary down the road and I kinda pulled him into the alleyway and snogged him," admitted Lily, glowing from her adoring date. She bit her lip and giggled once more. "I couldn't resist. He's a really good kisser."
"I'm so proud of you!" sighed Giselle sincerely, sniffing away a tear. She was enthralled, this was the best case scenario and she was desperate to hear James' version of the story, she knew he was on top of the world right now and she wanted nothing more than to join their table and watch them as though she were in one of her Care for Magical Creatures lessons.
"You're practically glowing, Lils. Potter did so well!" she cooed, climbing to her feet and kissing her best friend on her cheeks. A whiff of spiced liquor rolled off her and Giselle cackled, choking on the fumes. "I can't breathe, how long have you guys been drinking?"
"A couple of hours? We were only stopping for a couple but then the rest of them showed up and it turned into a triple date pretty fast. Not that I minded, Marlene actually acted like her old self again, it was really nice," she explained, smiling faintly.
"Wait, triple date?" wondered Giselle, pouting.
"It's Remus and Peter but they're just acting as though they're on a date, don't ask," Lily waved her hand, gesturing for her not to press for more information, "but you should come and join us, we were hoping you would show. It is technically your first time here and we should celebrate together!" she pleaded, using her prettiest wide-eyed pout she could muster. Giselle wanted to say yes and the words almost rolled off her tongue but her muscles ceased.
Sirius is with them, her subconscious reminded her, remember what happened last time. Remember his hands...
Giselle simply grimaced and shook her head, getting ready to leave the bathroom. She readjusted her skirt and tugged on her socks, miffed that Black was ruining her chance to get drunk with her friends. At least she still had Slughorn's party to look forward to.
"Sorry sweetheart, I'd rather not cause a scene and ruin your date with James," she said with a kind smile and Lily groaned, exasperated with the whole drama.
"I'm so sick of this, why can't you two just kiss and make up?! It'll make everything so much easier and we can all hang out together!" she moaned, poking Giselle in the ribs as they shimmied out of the cubicle, quickly touching up their gloss in the mirror before they left.
"Keep dreaming Lils!" shrugged Giselle, blocking out the dark hisses in the back of her mind. She couldn't feed the forbidden thoughts. They faded back into the crowds of drunken patrons and parted ways when they reached one of the staircases up to the balcony with one last kiss on the cheek, promising to catch up later before bed.
Giselle slid onto one of the empty stools at the bar and patiently watched the barmen as they dashed about, conjuring frothing ice cold pints or whisking up delicious cocktails as they chatted merrily to their patrons. The joy on their faces caught her eye and she began to daydream about what it would be like to own a pub herself one day, it looked like fun. Maybe after I retire from my stint on the England team, she thought to herself, absently tapping her long nails on the bar, I reckon I could manage a pub, maybe Potter would want to co-own it? It could be a Quidditch pub! We could do themed nights, the décor would be outstanding, old brooms on the wall, drinks named after special moves! I bet Lily would help us out with bookkeeping-
"Good evening pretty lady," one of the barmen had finally noticed her and they snapped her out of her daze, "what can I get for you?"
Giselle blinked and gazed up at the strong young man, he had a head full of curls the colour of honey and his lopsided smile was charming, his Scottish brogue crackled like spitting embers and she dazzled him with her winning smile. It triggered a blush in his cheeks and his hand skidded off the bar, chuffed that she was showing interest..
"A goblet of your finest mulled mead please, Handsome. Maybe a couple of firewhiskey shots to warm me up as well," she ordered, removing her coat. She pretended not to notice him checking her out and she crossed her arms on the bar, exaggerating her breasts as he seemed to enjoy them. The flirtatious behaviour burst out from her, she needed to channel this energy and divert these horrible compulsions and the chap in front of her was leading the line of potential hook-ups, he seemed just as keen.
The young barman nodded furiously, wanting to please her.
"Coming right up," he winked, "and how about I give you an extra shot for free since I've kept you waiting? A bonny girl such as yourself should never have to wait."
Giselle licked her plump lips and embraced his compliment with a slow flutter of her long lashes. This was a nice bonus! "How about you do a shot with me and then maybe I'll forgive you?" she purred.
His blush devoured his face like a fierce sunburn, his stutter was cute and his voice got deeper. "It's on the house, beautiful."
The drinks arrived in a blink and they tapped their shot glasses together, maintaining their heated eye contact. The shots seared in her throat and fuelled her confidence but she hid the heat well and slammed them down on the bar, impressing her company.
"You've done that before," he chuckled, wiping his mouth before the whiskey dribbled down his strong chin.
"Maybe once or twice," said Giselle softly, sipping her mulled mead. It tingled on her tongue and she sighed, finally feeling the Christmas spirit, "it's a special skill of mine, some call it a party trick."
"Oh?" drawled the bartender, raising his bushy dark brows.
"Mhmm," she dropped her voice and leant forwards, captivating his attention, "you see, I don't have a gag reflex, it makes swallowing a breeze..."
His jaw dropped.
"Hamish!" interrupted a curvy, pretty lady with the same bouncy honey curls as the man in front of her, smacking his arm as she passed, "stop flirting with our customers! There are people waiting to order, leave the poor girl alone."
"Yeah Hamish," purred Giselle, smirking into her drink, "be a good boy and tend to your bar!"
Hamish's eyes darkened and he chuckled, his voice deeper than ever.
"You're trouble," he murmured under his breath as he swung his rag over his shoulder, "I've got my eye on you." Giselle bit her lip and slowly pulled her new purchase from her handbag, keeping her sultry eyes on him.
"I know, I've seen you checking out the girls," she teased him back and it left him with the broadest grin on his face as he continued to serve his customers. The stirrings in her pit of her stomach returned with added fire and a soft throbbing started in between her thighs, reminding her how horny she was. She liked the way he stared at her. The hiss in the back of her mind was satisfied but she was afraid that it wouldn't last, she had a tendency to get too carried away.
Giselle attempted to read her book as she drank her way through many goblets of wine but it soon became a prop when Hamish struggled to stay away from her, she pretended to admire the gory anatomy of a giant when she caught him leering at her countless times from under his lashes and every wink she sent him darkened the colour in his cheeks. She was so immersed in their provocative banter that she didn't notice the eyes watching them from the shadows of the balcony above.
"Come on Giselle!" laughed Hamish, dangling a cherry in front of her, "there's no way you can do that!" She pouted and leant forwards, capturing the cherry delicately between her teeth.
"You doubt me? You shouldn't do that, Hamish," she murmured, popping the cherry into her mouth before he whipped it away. Something dangerous glinted in his dark eyes and she knew the curling of his lip had a hidden meaning. He had been lapping up her performance for over an hour now, he gave up tending to other orders when she asked for another round of shots and she welcomed his eagerness with an endless roll of innuendos. She saw his hands edge towards her over the bar as time ticked on, he was begging to touch her and he managed to persuade her to slide down to the end of the bar, away from the drunken crowds.
"But there's no way you can tie that stalk into a knot," challenged Hamish, staring at her lips as she played with the green stem. Giselle closed her mouth and got to work, wiggling her eyebrows as she went and she giggled in satisfaction when she revealed the neatly knotted cherry between her teeth. His jaw dropped again.
"How the fuck did you do that?" he scoffed, running a hand through his hair before snatching the cherry to inspect it for signs of tampering. Giselle winked and leant back, proud of her performance.
"I spent two years at Beauxbatons, they take French-kissing very seriously over there," she told him casually, admiring her nails before meeting his hungry gaze again. "I've had a lot of practice."
"That explains why I've never seen your face in this pub before," he chuckled, his eyes flickering from her chest to her glistening lips again before adding, "I wonder what else you can do with that tongue…?"
The suggestion rippled through her body like a sudden chill and she clenched her thighs together, enjoying the slow burning sensation below. Giselle smirked and teasingly glazed her tongue over her top lip, drawing Hamish in.
"Maybe I could show you?" she whispered, the yearning to be touched forcing her forwards. He grinned and suddenly slipped his hand around her neck, leading her into a passionate kiss. His lips were smooth and fiery, the copious spirits that sat on his breath intoxicated her and she tried to catch her breath but he wouldn't let her, he wanted more.
"I don't like cherries but they taste delicious coming from your tongue," muttered Hamish thickly as she drew away and Giselle blushed gently, leaning on her hand and gazing up at him.
"What fruits do you like?" she wondered, eyeing up the fresh fruit bowl on the shelf behind him. Hamish scrambled below the bar and pulled out a thick binder full of multicoloured parchment and he started to flick through it.
"These are our cocktail recipes," he explained, searching for the right page, "you haven't lived until you've tried the Pineapple Fyre Crab." Giselle perked up and nodded approvingly, peeking at the sparkling diagrams that flashed up at her from the book.
"Can you make one for me?" she asked sweetly and Hamish looked up, thrilled at her enthusiasm.
"Why don't we make it together?" he suggested, gesturing for her to join her on his side of the bar. Giselle didn't need telling twice, she slid from her stool and hopped over towards him, tugging on her skirt before she flashed the whole pub. From this perspective she could see more of the faces that surrounded them and her heart sank when she spotted her brother and his friends at a table near a set of stairs, he wasn't too far from her and she wondered how long they had been there. Junior looked up from his hushed conversation momentarily and caught his sister in the act, meeting her glare with a deeper frown.
Fortunately Hamish unknowingly came to her rescue by brushing his hand against her side, pulling her in closer towards the bar and she switched her attention to him, smiling even wider now she knew Junior was watching. She batted her lashes and cocked a hip, getting ready for her cocktail-making lesson. "This better be good, I'm parched!" She encouraged him.
Within the first few seconds of their lesson Giselle realised that Hamish's offer was a simple ruse so he could touch her but she didn't mind, his amorous actions seemed to hit a nerve within Junior and Giselle couldn't stop smirking as he got angrier and angrier in the shadows across the room, she noticed that the familiar vein in his neck was throbbing and his freckled face turned a nasty shade of salmon - she liked to ridicule him with public displays of affection, there was a reason why one of his common insults for her was 'whore'.
When Hamish handed her a sharp knife to cut the pineapples she giggled and whipped out her wand, glancing up at him as he stood behind her, guiding her through the steps. "Isn't it easier to use the cutting charm?" she asked innocently.
His cheeks reddened and his smile grew nervous. "Aye, probably - but I'm a Squib. My aunt hired me to work here so I could engage with the Wizarding world still," he confessed, embarrassed, "I understand if you want to go-,"
Giselle quickly shook her head and bit her lip, maintaining their eye contact. "Hell no, none of that matters, I don't believe all of that blood purity crap. Don't worry I'm not my father," she laughed, trying to make him feel more comfortable. He immediately cheered up at her reaction and pushed into her further, resting his head on her shoulder so he could whisper into her ear, the loud music died and Giselle could only hear his voice.
"Regardless of my blood status, I still know how to use a wand," he breathed and Giselle felt him rest his slow-swelling erection on her arse and goosebumps pricked her skin. She was enthralled by his teases and she pushed back into him, she wanted him to know how much she liked it. Pretending to concentrate on the precision of her pineapple cuts, Giselle stifled her smile and looked back towards her brother to worsen the situation. The clown inside her was cackling at the glorious opportunity that presented itself to her, encouraging her to mock Junior.
But she couldn't meet Junior's eye, two people were blocking her path through the patrons, their backs to the bar as they addressed the table of Slytherins. Giselle craned her neck, attempting to catch a glimpse of his cold brown eyes but an icy spasm of fear flooded her when she recognised the backs of the interceptors' heads. They were growing louder and the darker haired of the pair was starting to shake, a drunken argument was imminent and Giselle prayed that they would keep her out of it but her hopes were feeble.
Hamish continued to help her with the Pineapple Fyre Crab, whispering crude suggestions into her ear and pecking her neck as they messed about with the bottles of spirits. His splashes of alcohol were careless and Giselle giggled as it sprayed her face but Hamish took the opportunity to taste her lips again and kissed the droplets from her cheeks.
"Wow, I really like pineapple but that tasted even better coming from you," purred Hamish, gently cupping her face as he stole another slow kiss and Giselle wrinkled her nose, groaning.
"You've already used that line, try again," she told him devilishly and took the finalised cocktail from the bar, inspecting their handiwork through her hazy eyes. They had consumed most of the ingredients during its composition and it rushed straight to their heads, she had to squint slightly to see the glass clearly.
"You know what? I'm very pleased with that!" she said cheerfully, holding the drink up to the candlelight above them. Hamish scoffed and clumsily fished pineapple stems from the glass, smirking at her mistake.
"I totally meant for that to be there," she drawled confidently but her freckled cheeks gave away her blunder. She took a sip of the drink and sighed dreamily, indicating her appreciation at his choice in cocktail and he grinned, watching her in longing.
"Thoughts?" He asked.
"Delicious! Do you want some?" She offered Hamish the straw but he knocked it out of his way, his eyes fixed on her lips. He gave up with his subtle seduction attempts and strived for something deeper, he was still hard from their physical contact.
"I do but I want to try it from you," he said huskily and hooked a finger under her chin, stealing another kiss. His tongue wasn't shy this time and it took her breath away, fuelling the fire down below. She clenched her thighs and shivered when she sensed how wet she had become but her sudden increased sensitivity alerted her to the faces watching them. Despite being hidden in the shadows, their section of the bar was easily accessible and visible to those who knew where to look.
Giselle broke off their kiss and glanced towards their audience, drunkenly absorbing the rage radiating from Sirius who was trembling from head to toe. Remus was holding him back and fighting off Junior who was spitting into Sirius' ear, blatantly riling him up. They wanted a fight, she could read it on their faces as though it were written in luminous ink but the trio froze when they realised she had spotted them.
Without thinking, Giselle grinned at them and gestured towards the horny man kissing her neck, exaggerating each point of her finger.
"He's a Squib!" she mouthed at Junior. His snarl was wiped from his lips and he turned to Sirius with one final taunt. Giselle couldn't hear what they were saying over the raucous ambiance but she didn't need to, it happened all at once. Whatever Junior said triggered something within Sirius. He calmly shrugged out of his fur coat, threw it at a speechless Remus, rolled up his sleeves and punched Junior square in the face.
Giselle didn't know how to react, the beautiful sight of her brother falling back onto the floor, clutching his broken, bloody nose was magnificent but she wished it wasn't Sirius who delivered the violent blow, she didn't want to give him the pleasure. The table of Slytherins behind the stairs roared to life as soon as Sirius' fist connected with Junior's face and they joined the brawl, sparking hostility between the patrons.
Hamish instinctively snatched Giselle's hand and pulled her away from the bar scuffle, not wanting to get involved. She let him drag her and battled the urge to glance over her shoulder to search for a certain face in the chaos; she should be focused on the cute boy leading her towards the empty mens' bathroom, not on the idiot starting drunken fist fights behind her.
"I should be helping them right now but I'm not wasting this chance," hissed Hamish, tugging harder on her arm as they escaped through the pub and Giselle sensually bit her lip, daring to accept his advances.
"Is my tongue worth getting shit from your aunt later?" she wondered and he nodded furiously, struggling to contain himself.
"Yup!"
The gents' bathroom was much darker than the ladies' and the moody lighting made her stomach flutter nervously, she felt the tension grow between them and she became quite shy as she realised this was their first time being completely alone with each other. The distant shouts of the fight drifted under the bathroom door but the pair ignored it, they could only look at each other.
The instant they reached the end cubicle Hamish locked the door and pushed her up against the wall, persistently kissing her lips. His tongue wasn't shy this time and each stroke against hers summoned stronger throbs from the wetness between her legs than before and she started to roll her hips into his.
"You're so sexy," he whispered breathlessly, running his hands up and down her curves. He tugged the hem of her turtleneck from her waistband and exposed her sheer bra, groping her breasts in urgency. Giselle finished peeling her top off and tossed it to the floor, latching onto his face again. She kissed him back harder than he anticipated and it spurred him on as his febrile fingers slipped under her skirt, inching towards her silk panties.
Giselle gasped and felt her heart in her throat when Hamish massaged her lips through her underwear, savouring her softness with a pained growl and she knew he wanted more. He could feel how wet he had made her and she rushed to reciprocate his eagerness, her hands trailed down to the buttons of his tight checkered trousers and he froze.
"I knew you were trouble," grunted Hamish, squeezing his eyes shut momentarily when she yanked down his pants and grabbed his swollen cock firmly. Giselle cheekily grinned when he moaned and bit his bottom lip, he was trying to stay quiet but her hand started to twist and he thrusted into her, desperate for contact. He was thicker than she expected and she wondered how much of him she could take. "Shit! Grab it harder," he demanded, his eyes a shade darker. Giselle huffed away her apprehensiveness and shook her head, testing him.
"I thought you wanted to see what my tongue can do?" she purred, looking up at him from beneath her lashes and he shuddered, his eyes wide in revere as he nodded maniacally.
"Show me," he breathed.
Using her discarded top to cushion her knees, Giselle sank down to the ground and used the exhilaration that filled her to fuel her sexual deed. She spat on the tip of his erection and massaged him slowly, prolonging his strained gaze but Hamish hung his head and swore under his breath. She could feel him heat up under his touch and she revelled in the achievement of making a grown man tremble, it made her feel very powerful. She lazily sucked on his head, and the sounds of her slurping and panting drove him crazy. He threw her fuzzy headband away and knotted his hands in her hair, persuading her to take more of him in her mouth. Luckily for Hamish, roughness turned her on.
"Do you like that?" said Giselle in her most alluring voice, blinking back tears as she came up for air. Hamish tried to speak, he gritted his teeth and nodded, shoving her head back into position. He was close already, she could tell by the way he twitched.
"Let me feel the back of your throat before I fuck you," he rasped, panting as he rolled his thick cock against her tongue. Giselle wiggled her brows and willingly obeyed, showing Hamish her party trick. She curled her fingers around his hips and tested her limit, deepthroating until he squirmed.
"S-Stand up," spluttered Hamish, his face now a dark shade of beetroot as sweat rolled down his neck. She choked and wiped her glistening lips clean, suddenly invigorated that she was finally going to quench the fire inside of her. The stirrings deep inside of her were bubbling but she didn't feel as hot as she did that night. She hadn't reached that level yet but from the quiver in her legs and the beads of sweat dripping down her back, she expected to feel it soon.
Please, she silently prayed, eyeing Hamish carefully as he tried to control himself. Please work!
"Turn around and bend over, baby," he growled, his eyes black from the salacious fantasies running through his mind. Giselle spread her legs slightly and obediently bent over, grabbing onto the pipes on the walls for stability. She flicked her hair over her shoulder and winked at him, beckoning him to act in his dirty compulsions. The creature in her chest purred gently, intrigued to see how this would turn out.
"Fuck me," she whispered darkly.
Hamish didn't need to be told twice - he peeled her skirt from her arse and took his time caressing her pussy, smothering her neck with wet kisses. Giselle closed her eyes and focused on his rough hands but she couldn't stop her whimpers when he slipped her soaked panties to the side, letting her know what was about to happen. He swore again when his fingers entered her and she shivered, pushing back against his hand.
"You're so tight," he groaned, biting down on her shoulder, "your pussy feels amazing..."
"You haven't felt anything yet," she hissed. Giselle struggled to stay quiet as he reached her swollen clit but the moment she felt him stroke the tip of his cock against her lips her heart stopped, dropping to the bottom of her ribcage.
BANG!
"Stop!"
"You've got to calm down!"
"CALM DOWN?!"
"Padfoot, wait!"
Giselle had never felt so naked and scared in her entire life. The door to the men's bathroom burst open with a deafening slam and the pair trapped in the cubicle froze, terrified that they had been caught, but the familiar shouts knocked the breath from her lungs. Of all the people…
"Mate, you're bleeding quite a lot. Come here," said James gruffly and Giselle squeezed her eyes shut, silently praying for someone to come in and drag them out of the room. As the bathroom door closed the sounds of the distant fight floated in but their intense conversation quickly drowned it out.
"Don't bother," scoffed Sirius scornfully, his voice crackling like a roaring fire, "guys just leave me alone."
"No, we're going to talk about this right now," demanded Remus, Giselle glanced at the cubicle door and spotted the shadow of his feet on the floor. Her stomach churned and she gripped the pipes tighter, fearing that she was about to hear something she shouldn't. "What the fuck was all that about?!"
"I don't know what you're talking about," spat Sirius automatically and she heard the squeaky taps gush water into the sink. Someone huffed and they started to yell again.
"Stop playing dumb!" shouted Peter, "we're sick to death of these mood swings and we know all of this is about Elle-,"
Giselle jumped and clamped her hands over her and Hamish's mouths when something fragile smashed on the floor, stopping their gasps from giving them away. He thanked her with a wink.
"DON'T SAY THAT NAME IN FRONT OF ME EVER AGAIN!"
Ow… He had never sounded so murderous before and it genuinely hurt her, she felt her heartstrings ping painfully. Giselle fought the prickles of tears and glared at the door, wishing that Sirius would spontaneously drop dead. She hadn't done anything to deserve all of this hatred and she started to doubt why she ever liked him in the first place.
"...that was quite the reaction," said James slowly after the awkward silence that followed Sirius' outburst, "this has gone too far now, Padfoot. Talk to us."
"Yeah! I almost had my eyes gouged out for you, we deserve an explanation," urged Remus with a huff. "What the hell did Junior say to you?"
"It really doesn't matter," sighed Sirius tiredly.
"You've just started a full-on pub brawl, half of Slytherin are trying to skin us alive, and you've just given Crouch two black eyes and a few loose teeth. That's a lot for something that doesn't matter," said Peter dubiously and James snorted.
"Actually Junior deserved that assault, Sirius doesn't need a reason for that," he corrected and Giselle perked up slightly, agreeing wholeheartedly with her friend. Damn right Potter!
"So does his sister," growled Sirius to the room's distaste, "that fucking bitch."
"You've got to tell us the truth," pleaded Remus, walking away from their cubicle, "Padfoot please - we know you still like her-,"
Another delicate item shattered on the floor and the boys groaned, overlapping murmurs covering up their attempt to repair the bathroom their friend was insistent on breaking. This time the hidden pair were prepared and remained silent but Giselle's heart was racing, she was surprised that no one could hear its resonant beat, she didn't know how she was still standing - this was bad.
"I don't like her," swore Sirius in a strained voice, "I can't stand her. She is the worst human being I have ever met, she's exactly like the rest of her repulsive family and I can't believe I fell for her sick, twisted lies."
"How many times do we have to tell you?! She said she wrote to you!"
"SHE'S FUCKING LYING!"
"NO SHE'S NOT!"
Giselle covered her face and tried to block out their screams but it rattled around in her brain, festering and bringing all of her dark thoughts to the surface. She didn't know if she could take much more and she ignored the comforting pat from the boy beside her.
"If this doesn't matter then why are you freaking out?!" countered James, riling him up.
"Because I fell in love with that vile witch and she broke my heart! She promised me that she wouldn't forget about me and I believed her, but she tossed me aside like I was nothing! You know exactly how much she hurt me, especially you Moony, and now you're turning against me and siding with her?!"
"We're not siding with anyone, this is so dumb!" exclaimed James in frustration. "I should be out there right now kissing my girlfriend, which by the way you guys haven't congratulated me yet, but instead I'm in here trying to convince you that this is just one big misunderstanding."
"This isn't a misunderstanding, this is our reality now. If you want to be friends with her then fine, do whatever you want, but don't ever mention her in front of me again. She is dead to me," said Sirius in his thickest voice and an uncomfortable silence filled the bathroom.
A thunderous roar clashed against Giselle's eardrums and she could taste blood. Every hair on her body stood up straight as searing ice pumped through her veins, she was apoplectic with rage and the violent stimulations ravaged the pits of her stomach, she was physically seething and her body didn't know how to process these new feelings. She couldn't function.
As the ringing in her ears died she realised that the quartet had vanished from the bathroom and Hamish's hands were back on her body, trying to warm her up again. The thrill of almost getting caught had maintained his excitement and he gently rubbed his erection against her arse.
"That was close-," began Hamish, laughing in relief, but Giselle couldn't take it anymore. She was desperate to fulfil her needs. Grasping his cock in a death grip, she arched her back and slid onto him, groaning from both pain and pleasure. Hamish choked and held her hips tightly, grinding into her as his knees knocked from the tantalising sensation. His gasps of ecstasy told her he was enraptured with her overzealousness but it wasn't enough for Giselle - it wasn't him.
It's never going to be enough, reminded her subconscious. Blinking back her hot tears, Giselle succumbed to her darkest thoughts, pretending that the boy who hated her guts was the one in between her legs.