Fan fiction: Harry Potter
Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter. I own the original characters. Any similarities to persons living or dead are coincidental.
Rated R: For violence, some language, mature content, and eventual slash. Though I haven't decided how much, you have been warned.
Author's Notes: Well it took me almost a year to write this. I'd like to say that all that time was spent slaving away at it but I can't lie. At least not that blatantly. I am going to finish this story eventually... I hope, but as always, real life comes first. Thanks to those of you who have been patient.
Haley didn't return to the owlery after his Red Hair had left. Even though he had spent the moonfall out on errands, he did not feel tired and so decided that he would fly around the Hogwarts just to see what was about. He was joined by another snowy owl. From what she had told him, she was the companion to Green Eyes.
All the owls knew who Green Eyes was. Their companions were always talking about him in some way or another. Though the owls themselves did not normally concern themselves with the humans outside of their post duties, it was hard not to know about him. Because Haley was sometimes a companion of his Red Hair, he knew all the Red Hairs considered Green Eyes like a hatch-mate.
Haley enjoyed the stories Hedwig had told him though they were small. He found it funny yet concerning when she had told him about the time Green Eyes had nearly forgotten her at the Round One's tree. He thought no human should ever have an owl companion if they were not going to take care of them. Hedwig then explained how the Round Ones liked to screech at Green Eyes.
She understood the humans better than most owls did. Green Eyes was just trying to escape his nest. He had never forgotten her again and always thought of her first when they were traveling, especially to the Hogwarts. Haley still could not understand, but he accepted that Hedwig knew what she was doing.
They flew about and began to hunt. Hedwig was a keen hunter and an experienced flyer. Haley was still quite young so he followed her lead. They found a quick meal of some mice and were soon feasting. When they were through, they took flight. Haley went off to circle the Hogwarts again while Hedwig went to visit her Green Eyes. He had apparently hurt himself again.
Haley flew in close to get a better look at a shadow that had caught his eye. Most owls could not see very far but Haley was different. Though his eyesight was not spectacularly better than other owls, it was enough to be significant.
He perched on a low turret of the Hogwarts and directed his meager sight towards where he thought he saw the shadow. He could not be positive from this distance but he thought he saw some more movement. He dropped off the turret and spread his wings to slow his descent. When he reached the small window sill, he landed expertly with only a few silent flaps of his wings.
Hedwig might have been the better flyer, but he was the better lander.
Either his eyes were playing tricks on him or the shadow he had seen disappeared quickly once inside the Hogwarts. Haley decided that he would fly around the inside just to be sure. He dropped off the sill and did a beautiful spin that allowed him to glide into the Hogwarts right as the doors closed.
He flew all around the inside of the Hogwarts. He got a few looks from several of the students who were not used to the owls, but most just ignored him. After flying throughout the west half of the Hogwarts, he found himself in the main stairwell. It was there that he saw the shadowed man. For some reason, he couldn't see the man clearly, even with his better than owl-normal eyesight. It was like the man wasn't there, but at the same time was there. The man appeared to be pointing at something down a hallway.
Haley knew this man was about to do something very bad, so he flew into action.
Kim smiled as he walked from the Hospital wing along side Simon. After seeing Mr. Devlin, he had gone to see if Harry was any better. Simon had done the same and had brought Harry up to date on what happened at dinner. Madame Pomfrey let them visit for a very brief while but soon shooed them both out. That Harry was okay was all Kim needed to know. He wouldn't even need to write his parents about it.
Simon's fears weren't so easily alleviated. After hearing most of the talk from the other students as they left the Great Hall, he was made acutely aware of just how much the wizarding world did not appreciate homosexuals. What made it worse was that Crabbe and Goyle had already told their fellow Slytherins their version of what had happened between Draco Malfoy and Harry.
Naturally, they embellished on what they saw. Not only was Harry's arm around Simon, they were snogging heavily. As the rumor mill goes, by the time it got around to the school, Simon and Harry had been just shy of shagging when Malfoy and company had caught them, and in anger, Harry had attacked first.
Harry had already been told the rumor by Hermione and Ron so Simon didn't have to suffer the embarrassment of bringing it up, but he couldn't fathom how Harry could take the whole situation so calmly. Harry could only shrug and say that he was used to things like this. Harry was more concerned about how Simon was going to deal with the rumors.
Simon didn't have a chance to answer because Kim had shown up. After another round of the "How are you doing?" game, Madame Pomfrey kicked both visitors out of the hospital wing. Now the two youths walked slowly back to their respective dorm in silence.
After a minute or so, Kim stopped them both. He wore a mild frown.
(Why are you so down?) the younger boy signed.
Simon just shrugged and was about to continue walking when Kim stopped him again.
(It's about the rumor, isn't it?)
(Look, nothing happened!) Simon signed and yelled, (And I don't appreciate...)
Kim grabbed Simon's hand then held his finger up to his lips as if to silence the older boy.
(Don't talk, just sign,) Kim signed, (And I'm not making fun of you, I was just worried is all.)
(Thank you for your concern, but save it.)
Simon walked off in a huff only to be kicked by Kim. Kim scowled and began to sign furiously at Simon.
(Look! I was just trying to help. You don't have to be such a git!)
Kim stalked off not bothering to see if Simon had a retort. Simon scowled in anger as he rubbed his lightly bruised calf. He was about to chase after the brat and give him a few more words when a loud bang echoed throughout the hallway. Simon's first thought was that it was a car back firing but that was impossible; there were no cars out here. Then the cold realization hit him. That was a gun shot.
His fear was confirmed when he saw a man dressed in black clothing fighting a white owl over what was definitely a gun. The owl had won and knocked the gun out of the stranger's hand but at a cost. The man in black swung with a vicious punch and hit the owl square in its body. The owl screech and followed the gun down into the stairwell.
Simon would later recollect that it was at that point the real fight had begun.
Eric growled in frustration as he watched the owl fall along with his gun down the stairwell. His invisibility had fallen completely when the owl surprised him and now he didn't even have his gun. No matter, the son of his most hated enemy would just have to die by his bare hands. He looked up at the young boy he once affectionately called nephew. The boy recognized him instantly. Eric sneered.
And then he found himself thrown back as if a concussive grenade had been thrown at him. He fell down the stairs and it was only due to the mixture of his telekinesis and physical training that allowed him to survive with just less than moderate bruising. As he looked up to the top of the stairs, he saw the wretched little bastard with a stick in his hand.
Not even thinking about the connotations of that he flung the boy far back with his powers, but the boy was almost as quick and had cast another blast, this time hitting him square in the face. He screamed as the spark burnt his flesh and temporarily blinded him.
Eric knew instantly that the burn was bad enough that even Friga would not be able to heal it without scarring. Now he was really pissed off. Using his fury he unleashed a powerful telekinetic blast at where he thought the boy was. Though Eric knew he did not strike the boy directly, it was just as good.
The top of the stone staircase exploded underneath the wretched boy, scattering debris and stone shrapnel practically everywhere. The explosion also threw him right into Eric's hands.
He grabbed the boy by the neck and began to squeeze. The boy kicked and flailed but Eric barely noticed due to the adrenalin running through his veins.
"Dear nephew," Lear taunted, knowing full well the boy could not hear him, "How I wish you were your fath-ERGH!"
Eric fell back down the stairs—his legs having completely failed him for some reason—with the boy landing on top of him. His anguish lightened considerably when his eyesight began to clear but it didn't last long as he saw a teen-aged boy pointing a wand in his direction. He became even more disheartened when he felt and heard the crack of his nose being broken by the now dangerously hysterical child.
Hit after painful hit landed on Eric's face and he felt real fear for his life. Gathering what little mental energy he had left he used his psychoportation ability, imagining himself at the bottom landing where the entrance hall connected to the stairwell. Unfortunately, his control was lacking under the onslaught of his enemy's son, and the boy came with him, still trying to beat the life out of him.
Eric grabbed the boy and flung him aside as if he weighed nothing. The boy cried out as he landed on his arm wrong and Eric heard the tell-tale snap of breaking bones. He sneered victoriously as he managed to crawl out the entrance hall.
Whatever spell the other boy had hit him with was still in effect but he still had some mental strength left and used it to escape. When he reached the great entrance doors he ported once again to the castle gates where Aesop was waiting to spirit him away into the night.
Simon didn't know how he had done it, but his wand was pointing at Kim and he had somehow slowed the boy's fall. It was just enough to prevent him from being seriously hurt but the deaf boy did give out an audible "OOF!" when he landed. However, the precocious first year did not seem the least bit deterred. His legs shot up and back down as flipped himself into a standing position.
Simon instinctively tried to warn Kim, but realized too late that the boy could not possibly hear him. As he started to reach out to grab the younger boy, a loud crash rang throughout the hall forcing him to flinch. Debris from the stone staircase where Kim once stood shot out and Simon ducked just in the nick of time, receiving only a few minor scratches to his face. His body was not so lucky as a fragment of sharp stone wedged itself into the back of his right shoulder.
Simon yelled out in pain and dropped to the floor in effort to avoid more flying debris. When the heavy pieces cleared Simon looked around to see where Kim had landed. Fear clutched his heart when the small first year could not be seen. He scrambled up and to the edge of where the staircase used to be and gasped at the sight before him. Instead of seeing Kim unconscious as he had expected, he saw the young boy dangling by his neck in the hand of the mysterious intruder.
Simon's wand hand flew into action and pointed at the man's feet. He knew that he yelled out a spell but his conscious mind was still trying to grasp the fact that a young boy was being murdered right before his eyes. The man's legs fell out from under him and he and the boy ended up sprawled on the landing.
Simon watched in a mixture of fascination and horror as Kim brought down fist after fist into the dark man's burnt face. What horrified him even more was when they both disappeared right before his eyes. Knowing that this was impossible made the fact all the more frightening.
The sound of a child screaming in pain rose up from the bottom of the stairwell. Simon rushed to the side of the broken staircase, catching himself on the railing as he slipped on some debris. He looked down to the bottom of the stairwell and saw Kim laying awkwardly against a wall, his right arm clearly broken and bending the wrong way. The dark intruder was nowhere to be seen.
Kim stormed away from Simon no longer interested in his excuses. He had only been trying to help. He had heard the rumor about Harry and Simon and though he didn't believe for one moment that they had been found shagging each other, he did think they were acting remarkably similar to his translator and Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.
Kim's thoughts were interrupted when he saw before him a man fighting with a snowy owl over a gun. The owl managed to get the gun away from the man and was rewarded by a back fist to its body. The owl went flying down the staircase. Kim gasped as he recognized the man. He brought his wand up just as the man turned to him and sneered. Clearly the man recognized him as well.
Without a second thought Kim released the biggest spark he could manage at his estranged uncle. The man fell backwards and Kim rushed forward trying to keep the advantage. He had just released another spark when he found himself flying backwards through the air. He felt a rush of adrenaline similar to that when he had ridden the roller coaster at an adventure park, only it was accompanied with a healthy dose of fear as his body came closer and closer to the ground.
Kim was surprised he had landed as light as he did but it was enough for him to lose his breath for a moment. He breathed in heavily as he raised his feet and then exhaled sharply as he flipped himself upright. He ran forward to engage his uncle once again and once again found himself hurtling through the air.
He could not hear the explosion of the staircase but he certainly felt the concussive force. Shards of stone shredded at his legs, feet and back as he flew towards his enemy. The man caught him right out of the air and immediately had his hands around his neck. As the evil man slowly squeezed the life out of him, Kim saw the hideously burnt face of his uncle.
It was in that moment that Kim really began to fear for his life. It was that moment that he fully understood exactly what it meant to be a Knight of Merlin's Keep and the dangers that came with the title. And he knew that he had to survive this night, so he kicked and kicked. A fury he had never before felt was let loose, fueled by the malice that he saw in his uncle's glassy eyes and his own embarrassment at having relieved himself.
He began to kick harder and harder but even with his fury at its fullest, the lack of oxygen had already caught up with him and he was beginning to lose consciousness. Then as suddenly as the choking began it ended. He could once again breathe and breathe he did. He discovered that he was now on top of his uncle and his fury could now be realized. He lashed out with his fist hard into the man's charred face.
As Kim's punch landed on Lear's nose, he felt the cartilage snap and before he could stop himself he threw punch after punch. His uncle had betrayed the Knights, had betrayed his father and had betrayed him and to top it all off, had even tried to kill him. He kept punching and punching, not realizing that they were no longer on the landing but on the ground floor of the stairwell.
Once again he experienced the feeling of flight only this time, when he landed, it was leagues more painful as he was flung into a post. Kim screamed as his arm snapped brusquely in two and the broken bones ripped through his skin. The pain was so much that he could not even straighten himself.
The explosion rang throughout Aaron's head, instantly waking him from his pleasant dreams. He instinctively covered his ears as if to protect his hearing and cursed himself for forgetting to remove the hearing spell before he fell asleep.
After taking a few moments to let his "hearing" adjust itself to his wakeful state Aaron was out the door to investigate the noise. It had to have either been very close or very large for the sound to carry that far and that loud. Seeing as the hallway seemed remarkably the same Aaron suspected it was the latter.
As Aaron made his way through the hallway he noticed that the all the portraits were either empty or their occupants were all running towards the Grand Stairwell. From their excited words he gathered that something horrible happened but the portraits did not yet know what it was. Aaron decided to haste himself towards the Grand Stairwell also.
Aaron was confused at what he saw when he reached the stairwell. There were no stairs leading to or from the landing; he was completely cut off.
"What the hell?" he asked himself as he stepped out onto the landing noticing stone debris at his feet. He looked up to see the staircase above him. It looked like it had been detonated with an explosive. He also noticed Simon clinging to the remains of the railing.
"Simon!" he called up to the boy, "Are you okay?"
The young teen managed to straighten himself out safely on the remains of the landing.
"I'm fine but Kim is hurt!" he pointed down to the bottom of the stairwell.
Aaron leaned over to look where Simon was pointing and he saw the leg of his young charge sticking out from behind a stone column.
"KIM!" he shouted reactively, knowing full well the deaf boy could not hear him.
Aaron looked around frantically to see if anyone else could reach the boy but no one else had yet shown up, though it was only a matter of time.
"Damn these stairs," Aaron hissed, "Never around when you need them."
"The stairs are charmed to avoid dangerous areas," an old wizard portrait said from his crowded frame, "It is to help avoid further injuries."
"Not bloody useful if you cut off the only source of help," Aaron scoffed.
Just as he did so, a stone railing slid out from the wall trapping him onto the landing. Aaron had only enough time to turn around to see what was happening before the landing suddenly dropped like the stone it was made from. He grabbed onto a railing to steady himself as he was lowered into the stairwell. Like a lift in a muggle building, the landing stopped the next floor down where there was a staircase. The railing that was blocking his path slid into the wall.
Aaron was dumbfounded for only a moment then he shot down the staircase taking three steps at a time. The moment he left the landing, the railing replaced itself and the landing floated back to its original floor. Aaron noticed none of this as he ran to the main floor.
He got to the boy just as other teachers and students arrived to see what was the matter. Kim's legs were a bloodied mess and his right arm looked even worse. The bone had clearly broken through the boy's skin and Aaron was glad the robe sleeve covered the sight.
Kim's wails shot through Aaron's heart and he somehow knew that the boy was suffering through more than just physical pain. Aaron gently placed his hands on the boy; one on his right shoulder and the other on his right hand. With a deep breath, he concentrated.
"Immobilus Segmentum" he whispered, followed quickly by a "Poena Supprimere". Kim cried out as his arm was locked into place but soon relaxed as the pain relieving spell took effect.
Even though the pain in his body was significantly reduced, Kim couldn't stop crying which confirmed to Aaron that Kim's distress was much more than physical. Not really knowing what else to do he gently picked the boy up. Kim immediately buried his head into Aaron's chest and wrapped his good arm tightly around his Tutor.
At the end of an hour, everyone in the school had heard about the fight in the Grand Stairwell and that the Headmaster had also been injured and taken to the hospital wing. To help control the inevitable panic and rumor-mongering, the entire student body was brought down to the Great Hall where they would spend the night much like two years previous when Sirius Black had been on the grounds.
As the other professors watched over the students, Professor McGonagall was in the hospital wing still trying to find out everything that had happened. Even after giving him a calming drought, Kim was in no emotional state to explain what happened and when pressed he would avoid looking at Aaron and everyone else. Aaron finally convinced the Deputy Headmistress that attempting to continue was completely futile at this time.
Simon was another matter entirely. It took most of that hour to get Simon calmed down again, for once he'd seen the blood from his wounded shoulder the panic attack he was so valiantly trying to avoid hit him full force. It took two full adult doses of a calming drought before it seemed to have an effect.
He explained as best he could what had happened and what he did but they still had no idea who the mystery man was, though McGonagall would have guessed correctly that it was this Lear person they were to be watching for.
The Deputy Headmistress had not heard from Darrin Killroy so she could only hope that he was out looking for Lear and had not yet known about the attack. Only Dumbledore would know for sure where the Slytherin was, unfortunately the Headmaster was still unconscious. Madame Pomfrey had managed to revive him but for just long enough to ensure that he was not in a coma. Once she had dealt with his concussion she gave him a sleeping draught much to the chagrin of everyone else.
"I wouldn't give a bleeding whit if it was Merlin himself. He's my patient and I say he needs sleep now!" she said and then proceeded to force the potion down the man's throat ending any possible argument.
At this point, Professor McGonagall was at the end of her wits. She left the injured to Madame Pomfrey's care so that she could try and curtail the wild stories naturally running rampant amongst the student body. Aaron stayed to watch over Kim and in case the medi-witch needed to communicate with the boy.
He and Harry Potter began a conversation to try and alleviate the boredom.
"Didn't Simon mention something about an owl?" Harry asked.
"Haley, Bill's... Um, Professor Weasley's owl," Aaron flushed slightly at mentioning the defense professor so familiarly, "Hagrid is taking care of him. He says that there are definitely some broken ribs but other than that the most extensive damage is bruising. That is one tough bird."
"He's in good hands with Hagrid," Harry said reassuringly.
There was an awkward silence between the two and neither knew exactly how to fill it. Harry kept glancing back to Simon, the worry quite evident on his face. He would immediately turn away whenever he thought the translator might be looking but Aaron simply shifted his chair so that he didn't have a direct view of Harry or Simon.
"I heard about what happened," Harry said yawning.
Aaron shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He knew that eventually he would have to deal with the students about the kiss but he really hadn't expected it to be so soon, especially with the other events that night. He turned to Harry and saw the boy looking both worried, sympathetic and extremely tired.
After a few moments of staring at each other, Harry continued.
"Mr. Devlin," he asked turning to look at Simon, "Is it okay for a guy to like another guy? I mean, you know... like a guy likes a girl?"
Aaron took a deep breath and thought how to answer the question. Clearly Harry's question was about himself and the Ravenclaw in the next bed, not Bill or the fact that Aaron had kissed him.
"I'm not sure I'm the right person to ask that, Harry. We come from very different cultures."
"But you're English, aren't you? I know you spent a lot of time in America."
"Yes but that's not what I'm talking about," Aaron shifted back towards Harry, "You come from a hearing culture, I come from a deaf culture. The deaf community is, for the most part, far more accepting of things like that, mostly out of necessity.
"I don't understand," Harry shook his head.
"There are far more gays in the world than there are deaf people. If we deaf are to maintain our culture, then we really can't afford to be as selective. That would mean accepting those who would otherwise be different be it by religion, sexual identity, political preferences... And boy can the deaf community get political.
"My point is, the one thing that defines our community and our culture—our lack of hearing—trumps pretty much anything else that might be out there that would normally separate us. The hearing community is much more vast and as a result, people are more selective of who they would associate with and most definitely they are more selective on what they consider appropriate or acceptable behavior.
"So for me it would be okay, but I can't speak for anyone else."
Harry looked back at Simon, not feeling any better about his situation and his face showed it.
Aaron watched the teenager for a moment and then decided to go out on a limb. After all he could hardly be embarrassed any more than from this evening. He only hoped that Harry wouldn't withdraw due to his own embarrassment.
"It's frustrating, isn't it? To be attracted to someone you're not supposed to be attracted to."
Harry's head snapped around towards Aaron, a mixture of fear and anger playing across his face. Aaron held his hands up as if in surrender.
"Whoa! Believe it or not I'm on your side," he added quickly, "In more ways than one."
"You mean you're gay?" Harry asked after a full minute of observing the translator.
Aaron nodded. "Though I would ask if you didn't toss that around. Normally I wouldn't care but after this evening I don't want anyone thinking ill of Professor Weasley."
Harry nodded but then furrowed his brow in concentration, pondering what Aaron had said before. "So you really are attracted to Bill, um I mean Professor Weasley?"
Aaron smiled slightly and released a heavy sigh. "Very much so."
"I thought that was all just Fred and George."
Aaron shook his head, "They tried to dose me with veritaserum only they accidentally made it wrong. It worked in that it compelled me to tell the truth, but their weird formula also made me act out what I was thinking."
Harry couldn't help but be stunned by Aaron's admission. He personally didn't have an issue with it, but having been raised in a restricted and bigoted environment himself, it was still a shock to hear a man profess intimate feelings for another man. The fact that Aaron Devlin didn't try and hide his actions behind the twin's prank shocked him even more.
"Does Professor Weasley know this?"
Aaron leaned back as much as he could in the uncomfortable chair. "I'm not sure. Probably."
"I wish I could be as open as you," Harry said softly, not really looking at anything.
"So do I, but I think you are already aware of the likely repercussions were your secret revealed. I'm not sure if the wizarding world is ready to hear their great hero is, how shall I put it, abnormal."
Harry scoffed as he looked back to Simon. "It wouldn't be the first time. But I could care less what the wizarding world thinks of me," then he sighed, "But it's not me I'm worried about."
Aaron chuckled ruefully, "Birds of a feather."
Harry gave Aaron a sympathetic smile then a huge yawn.
"You should sleep," Aaron suggested and with a nod Harry curled up into bed and was fast asleep.
Aaron tried to make himself more comfortable in the stiff chair but it was difficult. As he considered just climbing into one of the hospital beds, his stiff chair suddenly transformed itself into a rather comfortable couch. He was about to jump up but a tall red-headed man sat down next to him.
Aaron froze, his hands on the couch as if to propel him up. Bill just relaxed back, looking at the translator. His face was passive and as collected as ever, but Aaron saw the cacophony of emotions in his eyes. Aaron slowly leaned back into the couch but he couldn't fully relax.
"Hi," Bill said quietly.
"Hello," Aaron replied just as quietly.
"How's Kim doing?"
Aaron looked at the child sleeping fitfully.
"Physically he's going to be fine. Madame Pomfrey mended his arm like it was a scratch and the wounds on his legs were mostly superficial. Looked worse than it was. Emotionally..." Aaron had to pause while he reprocessed everything, "He was almost murdered. How can one deal with that, especially at his age?"
"Not an easy thing to deal with, I suspect."
"The thing is," Aaron swallowed hard, "If Simon tells it right, Kim didn't panic. He actually fought back right until the end. God what bravery. A Gryffindor if there ever was one. And I so had him pegged as a Hufflepuff.
Bill leaned forward in thought.
"No, I think you had it right to begin with. Kim should be in Hufflepuff.
Aaron threw a sharp glare at Bill. "That wasn't bravery?"
"Oh, no, don't get me wrong," Bill put his hands up in surrender, "He was as brave as any Gryffindor could ever be. I'm just saying that he strikes me more as a Hufflepuff from his behaviour. He works twice as hard as any of his classmates even in things that his lack of hearing has no bearing on and it doesn't faze him one bit. He practically relishes the work."
Aaron became contrite and lowered his gaze, "Sorry."
"There's nothing for you to be sorry about," Bill said softly, "I'm the one who should be apologizing..."
"You didn't do anything," Aaron interrupted, "I embarrassed you in front of the whole school."
"You were under the influence of a botched potion," Bill replied, "Everyone knows it was a prank by the twins. I'm just sorry you had to go through that. I can assure you that they won't be messing around with Veritaserum again for some time."
"So..." Aaron wasn't exactly sure what to make of that. Did Bill think that Aaron's words in the Great Hall were false? Merely a product of a poorly-made potion? "You weren't offended by... er everything and all?"
"No," Bill shook his head slightly, "
"Even if what I said was true?" Aaron went cold, not believing that he was actually admitting his attraction to Bill.
Bill's heart began pounding. Aaron really did like him! He took a deep breath to calm himself.
"Actually, if what you had said was true, not only would I be quite flattered, I would probably feel the need to reciprocate the sentiments.
Aaron's heart nearly beat out of his chest. The cold he was feeling turned almost instantly into heat. He was glad the light was low because he as sure he was turning bright red. He tentively reached out to grasp the red-head's hand and found it. Their hands grasped each other tightly as if either one let go their feelings would fade away as if some dream.
Aaron's blush increased dramatically as his body reacted to the touch. He felt the heat in Bill's hand and surmised correctly that Bill was also aroused. It took all his restraint not to jump the man right there but having been in several failed relationships he found that starting one off with sex was not the way to make it last. And he wanted this one to last.
Aaron noticed that Bill had started to shake slightly and he looked at the tall man with concern. A myriad of emotions played across the Defense Professor's face and his eyes flared with with passion and fear.
"What's wrong?" Aaron asked in a whisper, afraid that his normal speaking voice would break their connection.
"I... I don't know what to do now," Bill replied nervously, "I've never been with... I've only dated girls in my youth and... well to be honest I was never quite adept at it.
Aaron raised his eyebrows at hearing that.
"Really? I always thought you would have the women swooning all over you."
"Oh, well that's easy enough to do by just looking at them," Bill said unabashedly, "But trying to get a decent conversation out of them would be like trying to get You-Know-Who to do the Hula. Damn near impossible and even if you managed it you wouldn't like the results."
Aaron sputtered, trying to stifle his laughs. It wouldn't do to have Madame Pomfrey kick them out for being loud. He regained his composure quickly enough but gave Bill a look. Bill seemed completely unrepentant and Aaron couldn't help but smile.
The moment was soon over when Bill once again seemed to be at a loss. Aaron decided that if they were to get anywhere he would have to be in control, at least at first. He couldn't imagine Bill doing well in a strictly passive role, but that suited Aaron. A good relationship was one where both had an equitable contribution.
Aaron squeezed Bill's hand lightly, "Well I have some experience with this and I am pleased to tell you that so far you're doing just fine. The best thing for us to do is just act normally and not to rush into anything."
The tension that Bill was holding inside himself was released with a heavy sigh. Aaron smiled and shifted himself closer to the red-head. Bill reacted favorably by placing his arm around Aaron and then pulling him in closer. Aaron released a sigh of his own as he relaxed into the muscular man's embrace.
After a few quiet, enjoyable minutes Aaron turned and looked straight into Bill's eyes.
"As much as I'd like to just continue sitting here, I feel we should discuss how we are going to go about this," Aaron said carefully, "I have never bothered to hide who or what I am. I don't go about advertising that I'm gay, but I've never really denied it when asked.
"I have to tell you, Bill, if I'm asked, I won't lie. At least I won't lie about myself."
Bill took a deep breath and slowly released it, "I've only come out to my immediate family and the Headmaster. It's not something the wizarding world has come to accept with any positive feelings."
Aaron nodded, "I understand. Well, you already agreed to help tutor me so we can use that as an excuse to see each other, but we should probably try and rope in the longing looks."
Bill furrowed a brow at Aaron's unusual statement and Aaron chuckled, "We've been noticed by a certain Gryffindor who should be a Hufflepuff. Apparently we're acting like 'girls'."
Both Bill and Aaron chuckled lightly and Bill pulled Aaron back into his embrace, needing the contact.
"It's funny, Fred and George played that little prank in the hopes that we'd get together. I doubt they meant to do it so publicly."
"Well the irony isn't lost on me but I'm still going to get revenge."
"Oh?" Bill was suddenly curious as to what kind of revenge could be wreaked upon the twins that didn't involve massive violence. His voice said as much.
"Nothing permanent or disfiguring I assure you," Aaron added hearing Bill's unease, "But whatever I do it'll be sure to leave a lasting impression. I just need to brain storm a bit."
Bill couldn't help but grin wickedly, "Please tell me you'll let me help you."
"Well seeing as how we were both embarrassed by that little display I don't see why not."
"Good," Bill chuckled, then let Aaron go with a sigh, "I'd better get to sleep if I want to be coherent in class tomorrow.
Aaron stood with him and they looked at each other once again. Aaron gingerly leaned in and kissed gently on the lips. After a brief moment they met each other in a deeper, more passionate kiss. Aaron couldn't help but whimper his pleasure with Bill's taste. All too soon for both of them they parted.
"I had best be going," Bill croaked out quietly.
Aaron could only nod, imagining just what kind of trouble they would get into had they held the kiss any longer.
The interpreter flopped down on the couch once Bill was gone and once again fell asleep with a smile on his face.