Payment in Kind
CW/ Sex with a minor, drug and alcohol use.
Christmas 1974 – Camden High Street
Sirius staggered slightly as he shouldered his way out of the Black Cap pub. Mrs Shufflewick had been on, and the pub was packed with gay guys, lesbians, and even straight folk coming to see the drag act.
He rummaged in the pocket of his leather jacket, a Christmas present from James, and pulled out his rolling tobacco. He wasn't so fucked up yet that he couldn't roll, which was fine. The next part of the plan wouldn't go so well if he were too drunk, but four snakebites & black on an empty stomach had left his head buzzing. He leant against the wall and stared down Camden High Street as his fingers worked, his eyes lingering on the tube station as he licked and sealed the paper. The tube was still open, he could just head back to Angel and then to Grimmauld Place for the punishment that was inevitable for sneaking out. But there was a gig on at the Irish Ballroom, and that was tempting too.
And there was the plan.
He started to walk.
Since arriving from Hogwarts, he had spent every possible minute here in Camden Town, not just because he loved the scene, the buzz, the punks and the hippies and the gays. He had a plan.
There was a muggle tattooist up towards the canal that stayed open late, Sirius had been watching him for a week now. He wasn't too bothered about the laws, or probably hygiene but that didn't figure into Sirius' plan, so long as his customers new how to pay the right price.
Sirius had watched and had asked around. He knew the advertised cost of an underage tattoo.
He put it down on the counter, along with his design. The man took the pouch and checked its contents; the weed was good, and there was lots of it. The LSD had been more expensive.
The guy considered Sirius, he was barely over eighteen himself. Sirius stood still, and let his eyes rake over the DMs, the torn skinny jeans that sat on his hip bones and the line of runes around his left hip showed under the slightly too small Ziggy Stardust t-shirt. Sirius had grown again in the past month and was nearly as tall as his father. His shoulders were getting broader too, even though James still told him he was too skinny. James, lecturing other people on skinny.
Sirius pushed James out of his mind, he knew he looked older than he was. Was certain of it when the guy took the LSD and pushed another tab into Sirius' mouth on his fingertip.
Sirius grinned, his best devil may care grin, and stepped around the counter, 'Do you take payment in kind?'
It was just oral in the end, but the guy came in his mouth and if there was anything Sirius hated it was that. But better than his hair, that was worse. And it saved him the thirty quid.
By the time he left, the tube was closed, which meant walking home. If he was lucky Walburga would have been put to bed by his father, then it would just be Orion's wrath to face tonight, on top of the come down that he knew was coming. He hated LSD, but it had been worth it.
He slid his hand under the jacket and over his shoulder, he could feel the heat of the tattoo through the clingfilm and his t-shirt. There was still magic upon magic to pour into the open wound, but that would have to wait until his parents were done.
It was still worth it.