Chapter 27: Liaisons
Sirius followed Lauren through the halls, answering all her questions. He told her about becoming Animagi, the Whomping Willow, and the Shrieking Shack.
Lauren stopped abruptly in front of a door near a statue of a rather befuddled looking man. He listened as she whispered the password, which he thought was "squeaky clean."
She pushed open the door, grabbing Sirius' hand to pull him in along with her. Sirius looked around, the bewilderment on his face rivaling that of the sculpture outside. He looked around at the gigantic room. There was a candle-lit chandelier hanging from the ceiling, emitting a golden light that bounced off of the almost blindingly white marble floor and walls. In the middle of the room was a large, empty basin the size of a small swimming pool.
"What is this place?" he asked, his mouth hanging slightly open in awe.
"This is the prefects' bathroom," Lauren said, grinning at his reaction. She had been amazed the first time she was there, too.
"Wow. If I had known you guys had these kinds of perks, I would have behaved better," he said, titling his head to the side.
"For some reason, I doubt that," Lauren replied.
He laughed. She was totally right. No bathtub could take the place of all the pranks he had pulled over the years…well, except the one (which Lauren didn't know about and he hoped she never would).
She walked over to a cabinet on the wall. There was a first-aid kit in there, for minor complaints. Prefects had better things to do than to go to the hospital wing to heal a parchment-cut.
She turned back around, carrying the case in her hands. Sirius was sitting on the edge of the bath, surveying the taps surrounding it. He was definitely considering testing them out sometime. He was now aware of the room's existence and knew the password…Speaking of which, he was going to hurt James and Remus later for never telling him about this place. And they called themselves his best friends!
Lauren grabbed a fluffy white towel from the huge stack in the corner of the room. Then she sat down next to Sirius and propped the kit on her knees as she opened it.
"Will you turn on the tap with the diamond in it for me?" she asked, looking down at the cut on his arm.
He turned to the other side, using his right hand to turn the diamond encrusted handle. Clear, warm water came rushing out.
Lauren tapped his shoulder and he turned around to face her. She was holding the white towel out towards him, praying that he wouldn't make some inappropriate comment. "We need to wash your cut first," she said, not making eye contact with him.
Sirius fought the urge to ask what she wanted to wash later, then took the towel and held one corner of it under the water. Then he turned back to Lauren, handing the towel to her. He knew he was perfectly capable of doing this himself…but he really liked it when she got all…caring and stuff.
She took it and hesitated, holding it up in the air between the two of them. Then she gingerly pressed it to his arm. He grimaced. The magnificence of the bathroom had taken his mind off the pain for a while, but it was back full force.
When she removed the towel, Lauren leaned in to inspect the wound. It didn't look that bad, considering the circumstances. She rifled through the contents until she found what she was looking for, a tube of Calypso's Cut Healer.
Sirius watched Lauren warily as she unscrewed the cap and squeezed a bit of the cream onto her fingertip. Whatever that was, he was pretty sure it was going to hurt.
Lauren raised her eyes to his, looking at him with an apologetic expression. "I'm afraid this is going to sting…er, a little. But it will only last for a second, I promise," she said soothingly.
Sirius felt himself tense at her words, preparing as she lifted her hand to his arm. He felt the cream "working" the instant her finger touched his arm. 'Fuck!' It was horrible. It felt like it was going to burn his arm off. He closed his eyes tightly, his jaw clenched. Then she started spreading it over the cut. He grasped the edge of the bath with such force that his knuckles turned white.
Lauren was filled with pity as she watched his reaction. She tried really hard to smear it as quickly as possible. When she was done, she placed her hand lightly on his, then leaned over and kissed his cheek.
Sirius had opened his eyes when Lauren touched his hand. He was amazed. The pain was gone. He looked at her and smiled. He watched as her expression changed from concerned to happy.
"See?" she asked, raising her eyebrows hopefully.
He nodded, leaning forward to kiss her properly.
"Now all I have to do is just—"
"There's more?" Sirius blurted exasperatedly. If that was only the first step, he dreaded what was coming next.
Lauren smiled at him. "Well, if you'd just let me finish, I just have to wrap some gauze around it. It doesn't hurt," she said reassuringly.
"Okay," Sirius replied resignedly. He had no reason to doubt her. She had told him the truth about how that bloody cream would sting.
Lauren took a roll of gauze from the case and unrolled it. Then she placed it over his cut and started wrapping it around his arm. She tried not to think about how strong and muscular it was…and how much she wanted it wrapped around her…
Sirius watched as Lauren carefully dressed his wound. He was so lucky to have her there. There was no way that James, Remus, or Peter could have done this. Not that he would have wanted any of them to.
"Okay, all done," Lauren said brightly as she tied the end of the gauze, securing it tightly. Then she grabbed her wand and said, "Caveat Aqua," a simple waterproofing charm.
She closed the first-aid kit and walked back to the cabinet, putting it back in its usual spot.
Sirius was still sitting there, watching her.
"I think I want to take a bath before breakfast," Lauren said slowly once she turned to face him.
"So…what are you saying?" Sirius asked, amused.
Lauren rolled her eyes, and finished, "Alone, Sirius."
Sirius looked at her with his pleading puppy-dog eyes. "You really expect me to leave? I don't know my way back to my dorm," he pouted.
Lauren sighed loudly. She knew that there was nothing she could do. Sirius always got his way, especially with her.
"Fine. But…keep your…boxers on. And behave yourself," she said sharply, trying not to blush.
"Fair enough," Sirius replied, grinning widely. Lauren walked over to the diamond-encrusted tap again and started filling the pool with water.
Meanwhile Sirius had undressed. He walked up behind her, clad only in his red and gold Gryffindor boxers. Then he leaned down and kissed the back of her neck gently.
Lauren straightened immediately, then whirled around to face him. She was staring right at his bare chest. She hadn't even realized that he'd had the time to remove his shirt. She shifted her gaze downward slowly. Apparently that wasn't all he'd taken off. She'd only seen him once like this before. On Christmas Eve. But that night the room had been dark. She could see much more clearly now…Geez, he was built like an effing Greek god…not that she hadn't noticed before, but the bright lighting lent itself to a more objective observation…His broad shoulders tapered to narrow hips, and she could see his hip bones protruding slightly at the top of his boxers, and his stomach…
Sirius laughed and placed his hand under her chin, tilting her face up so she was looking him in the eyes. She quickly glanced to the side and blushed, embarrassed that she'd been caught staring at him.
"So, do you usually bathe fully dressed?" he asked in an amused tone.
"Well…no…" she said slowly, backing up to take off her robe. She hadn't really thought about her own attire before…
Sirius stretched out his arm behind her, preventing her from moving too far away…and from falling backwards into the still shallow water. "Allow me," he whispered.
Lauren nodded hesitantly. In an instant Sirius' hands were on her shoulders, sliding her robes off her arms and onto the cool marble floor. Then he put his hands around her neck, loosening her Ravenclaw tie and whipping it off. He slowly unbuttoned her white shirt, pressing light kisses to her skin as it was revealed. She fought the urge to whimper. Finally, he pulled the shirt off of her, letting it drop to the floor. He pushed her down gently so she was sitting on the edge of the gigantic bath. He let his hands run down her legs until he reached her feet, tenderly pulling off her shoes and socks, never taking his eyes off hers the whole time. Then he stood her back up. Brows knitted, he surveyed her skirt. He wasn't sure how…then he saw a tiny zipper-pull on the side. He grasped it gently and pulled it down. Her skirt practically fell off of her hips by itself, but he caressed the sides of her body anyway.
Suddenly Lauren flushed as she realized that she was standing in front of Sirius, wearing only her navy undergarments. She awkwardly crossed her arms in front of her chest.
Sirius looked at her in amazement. She was even more breathtaking in the light. He could tell she was uncomfortable, though. He didn't want her to be. He grasped her wrists, pulling her into him.
He leaned down to whisper into her ear, "I said it before, and I'll say it again. You are so beautiful."
Lauren smiled and turned her face to his. She kissed him softly on the cheek. He could be so sweet sometimes.
He bent down and deftly picked her up, carrying her in his arms as he stepped into the pool. Then he lowered them into the water. He could really get used to this…
Lauren squirmed and he set her down gently. She waded over to the tap and turned it off.
He moved to the side of the bath, inspecting the different faucets. He went over to the furthest one from him and turned it on. It emitted a thick white foam. He let it run for a while, and then turned it off. He repeated this until he had moved all the way around the pool. He couldn't decide which one he liked best.
Lauren smiled as she watched Sirius experiment with the taps. He was so curious, like a certain little boy she used to know. It was really cute.
Sirius turned back around to face the middle of the pool, where Lauren was standing, a pleasant look on her face. He smiled slyly as he waded towards her.
Lauren eyed him warily, expecting a kiss. But he just went right past her. Then she realized what he was doing. He was heading right for the diving board. 'Uh oh,' she thought, looking around for a way to shield herself from the unavoidable shower she was about to receive.
Sirius grinned as he pulled himself out of the water. He stepped up to the edge of the board, then cannon-balled right into the center of the pool, only a few feet from Lauren.
Lauren sputtered as a huge wave of water splashed over her. She shook her head and rolled her eyes. He had been so romantic a few minutes ago, and now he was acting like a ten-year-old.
Sirius floated back to the surface of the water. He stood and moved so he was standing in front of Lauren.
"I thought I told you to behave yourself," she said firmly as a grinning Sirius reached his hand up to push the sopping wet strands of hair out of her face. 'A very sexy when wet ten-year-old,' she was quickly reminded with one sweeping glance.
"Oh. I thought you meant that I shouldn't do this…" he trailed off as he wrapped his arms around her and pushed her backwards until her back was resting on the sloping side of the pool. Sirius lowered himself on top of her, the tip of his tongue tracing her jaw line gently. He'd never done that before…Then he kissed her hungrily. After a while, Lauren started moving her hands over his slick back. Sirius had already been exploring her body with his hands for some time.
Suddenly a giggle pierced the air. Sirius' head whipped up. Then he noticed something for the first time. There was a single painting on the wall. The mermaid inside of it was giggling loudly, splashing her fin around. Lauren placed her hands on Sirius' chest. He stood up, clutching her shoulders so she was also standing.
"If she's awake, then everybody else should be awake, too," Lauren said quickly, a hint of panic in her voice.
Sirius nodded and jumped out of the bath. Lauren climbed out after him. He grabbed two towels, wrapping one around his waist. He enveloped Lauren in the other one, slowly running his hands up and down her arms to dry her. Their eyes locked for a moment, but another giggle broke the spell.
Lauren coughed nervously and backed away from Sirius, drying herself quickly and putting her robes on. Then she turned to Sirius, who had pulled his clothes on hastily. She fought back a laugh as she noticed that he had put his t-shirt on backwards.
"Go," Lauren said. She would be in so much trouble if anyone saw him.
He obliged, turning around and hurrying out the door. She jerked her shoes onto her feet. She looked around, and then pushed the button that removed the water from the bath. Then she placed their towels in the laundry pile and walked out, holding her robes shut tightly with one hand and gripping her clothes with the other.
She turned the corner, and promptly ran into someone. She looked down at the floor, preparing some kind of excuse. Nothing came to mind. She wasn't really a quick thinker when it came to things like this. She just hoped that whoever it was hadn't seen Sirius leaving the prefect's bathroom.
She looked up, and released the breath she had been holding in relief. It was Sirius.
"Why didn't you go back to your room?" she asked. He could still get in trouble for walking around the corridors this early in the morning, especially with his shirt suspiciously on backwards.
"I wanted to walk you to yours," he said, shrugging his shoulders.
Lauren frowned. "I thought you said you didn't know how to get back to the dorms," she reminded him.
Sirius gave her a sheepish grin. She sighed. She hadn't believed him when he said that anyway. He then put his arm around her waist, pressing her into his side.
They walked to the Ravenclaw dormitories in silence.
When they reached the entrance, he asked her, "Will you eat breakfast with us today?"
"Sure," Lauren said. It was strange. If someone had told her a year ago that she would be in love with Sirius Black and friends with the infamous Marauders, she would have laughed in their face and recommended they go to St. Mungo's and quick. But now, that was exactly what was happening.
Sirius couldn't help but smile as he walked back to Gryffindor tower. He didn't even notice all the weird looks he was getting from the occupants of the paintings he passed. He was quite a sight, really, with his wet hair and shirt gone awry.
When Sirius reached the common room, he noticed the Marauders at their usual table, playing exploding snap. Well, they were pretending to play exploding snap. Sirius had definitely seen Remus attempt to keep him from seeing what they had actually been doing. But even from the doorway, he could tell what they had been perusing.
Sirius sat down nonchalantly. He looked at Remus' face. The cut was healed and barely noticeable. Remus gave Sirius a wan smile as he asked, "Are you fixed up now?"
Sirius forced a smile as he replied, "Wow, I can't believe you guys really think I'm that thick." Then he quickly reached under the couch Remus was sitting on, pulling out the Marauder's Map, which his friends hadn't even bothered to clear. He looked at his friends with disdain. Didn't they have their own lives?
The three of them burst out laughing when they saw Sirius' expression. So much for pretending that they hadn't been looking in…okay, spying.
James was practically rolling on the floor. "I see that Lauren figured out what to do with you," he managed between fits of laughter. "You might want to make sure you put your shirt on the right way next time!"
Sirius looked down at his shirt and shrugged. He could pull it off. He was Sirius Black, after all.
Remus had kept himself slightly more composed than James. When he noticed that Sirius was none too happy about what they had done, he looked down at James and said, "Oh, get off the floor, you git. We all know about your little rendezvous with Evans in the broom closet Wednesday night."
James stopped laughing immediately. "Oh, that was a Head Students' meeting, that was."
It was Sirius' turn to laugh.
"I'm sure it was," Remus commented wryly.
"So tell me Jamie, did you and Lily go for a ride?" Sirius asked gleefully. Remus chanced a glance at James. He was seething—no, make that foaming at the mouth.
Once he had himself over control, James said calmly, "Even though it's none of your business…we decided to wait."
"Oh? Evans has really got you whipped!" Sirius barked.
Remus noticed that the two taunting boys had caught the attention of more than just Peter. Breakfast was about to start, and during the course of the conversation many Gryffindors had groggily meandered their ways downstairs. Much more awake now, some students were pretending not to be listening, while others were just blatantly staring at the pair. It was time to end this.
"Oh come on, Padfoot. Like Lauren doesn't have you on a leash?" Remus noted quietly, staring pointedly at Sirius.
"Ah, well. That…is not necessarily a bad thing," Sirius said, a twinkle in his eye. The other Marauders eyed him curiously.
Sirius laughed at his friends' expressions. Then he shook his head furiously, sending drops of water flying all over them.
"Sirius!" the three boys cried in unison