Final chapter, following Serios Aster's "Castle's Made of Sand" in her Little Lion Man fic. Check Little Lion Man for the epilogue! Happy reading!

One Sweet Love

"Sleepless nights you creep inside of me – paint your shadows on the breath that we share … You take more than just my sanity; you take my reason not to care …" ~Sara Bareilles, One Sweet Love

"Barty?" the voice startled him; he had been somewhere between deep in thought and staring off into space and not thinking about anything at all. The hand on his shoulder was more what caught his attention; the voice his mind alerted him to after the fact. Turning around to see who was talking to him, though he already knew who it was because it wasn't like anyone else spoke to him, especially lately with all those fucking rumors …

"Oh; hey Reg," he said sort of neutrally, still not completely back from his mental trip to outer space. Blinking a few times, he let out a breath, pushing a few strands of blond hair out of his face. He knew he couldn't just make up an excuse to leave; Reg sort of caught him. Barty wasn't in the business of upsetting Regulus if he could help it, but at the same time … Hazel eyes glanced around cautiously; the last thing he wanted was for them to be seen together, even in such an innocent and meaningless place as the lake …

"I fucking hate this place," Reg commented as he sat down next to his fellow Slytherin, and Barty's eyes narrowed a little nervously as he looked at his friend. He didn't say anything; just waited for Regulus to explain the statement. "It's not the rumors, and hell – it's not classes. I don't even know what it is, but this is …" he trailed off for a moment, almost seeming frustrated with his inarticulate thoughts before he finally finished with, "I don't even know."

"This certainly hasn't helped," Barty responded in a slightly dead tone, eyes wandering back out over the gray water of the lake so that he didn't have to look at his friend and consider the color of Reg's eyes, which were evidently the same color as the lake and the sky … It was almost like he couldn't escape his friend, no matter how he tried – he always saw something or thought of something that made him think of the boy. It was horribly frustrating more often than not when he was trying to avoid Reg – which admittedly was not often.

"Look, Barty – I know you've been avoiding me because of the rumors. I appreciate the thought, but," Regulus was saying this all in a bit of a rush, and Barty knew that it was because he wanted to get whatever he was saying out before the blond interrupted him or told him that they needed to separate. "I don't care anymore. It's not like I … I can't deal with this alone, Barty. I can't – you're my best friend."

The blond sixth year smiled sadly, shaking his head a little. "I was worried that you had freaked out …" was his only comment; he had tried to reassure Regulus when he'd seen the boy across the room or something by smiling in his direction, or trying to give him some other sort of non-verbal cue that he wasn't angry at him …

"Barty … I … I've been thinking." Oh boy; here we go … This is always dangerous … he thought to himself as he sent a sideways glance at his friend to let Reg know that he was paying attention, even though his head was killing him and he wanted nothing more than to curl up in his bed for the rest of forever. "I know you told me to forget it but, Barty – I can't. I really can't – I wish I could, but I don't want to."

What do you mean you don't want to …? You just said you wish you could forget it, but you don't want to … Barty blinked at the contradiction in Regulus' sentence, knowing full well that it wouldn't be kind ot point it out to him, as he probably didn't actually realize what he was saying, and Barty knew what he was on about anyway. "I mean, for fuck's sake Barty! If we're going to be fucking ostracized, why the hell don't we—" Yeah … Clearly Regulus was just talking, and had either removed the filter between his brain and mouth for cleaning, or had just destroyed it entirely by trying to cram too many ridiculous things through it. There was a pause, as he seemed to realize what he had just insinuated, and then, in a much quieter voice, he added, "I'm not imagining things … I'm not …"

"Reg, what are you saying …?" he said in a slightly exasperated tone; he was sure at this point that his friend had just convinced himself that he liked his best friend back, even though there were copious amounts of evidence in the contrary. "What brought this on?"

"I don't know," "I just … I don't know Barty. I feel something – I do. And I'm not … I might not know exactly what I feel, but I do feel something, Barty! I tried to forget and … God, I just want this to be over. I can't take it! … I don't want to prove them wrong." Swallowing slightly, hazel eyes stared at Regulus Arcturus Black for what he just said. The blond, after he managed to collect himself, shook his head a little, shutting his eyes and turning away from the dark haired boy.

"Reg; you're just … confused. And upset," he said after a while quietly, voice just a touch hoarse. Reaching up, he gently rubbed at his own temples, attempting to assuage the pounding that he was finding there, "and, someone's going to see us if we stay here – I should go—"

"Dammit Barty, have you listened to a word I've said?" Reg cut him off and the blond paused, looking over at him, clearly surprised. He didn't even have the energy to get defensive or snap back at the pale boy – he just looked at his friend for a long time, and had the sudden indescribable urge to cry. As he was not a Nancy, he wasn't going to; but suddenly his throat was tight, and he could feel that weird, tell-tale pressure behind his eyes.

"Yes Reg," he started, voice wavering a little. He paused a moment to gather himself a little before he continued. "Yes – I always listen to everything you say, even if you're just babbling like a goddamned idiot because you don't like it when it's quiet. And I remember what you say too – remember second year, in the winter when we were up in the tower at god only knows what hour finishing those stupid charts because we'd been playing exploding snap and lost track of time? When you made that comment about your family naming everyone after ruddy stars and you and your brother's names, and then you realized what you'd said, and you were so glad because you thought I wasn't listening? Well Reg, I was. You said, 'I've always liked my brother's name better than mine, but come on – he's named after a dog. I guess Regulus is a good constellation prize, huh?' One of the dumbest lines you've ever uttered, but four years later and I still know … I still care enough about what you say to know, even if it's just stupid shit."

The entire time he spoke, he looked away from his friend, not daring to try and meet Reg's eyes; he absently wondered if that would get through to him how long he had been completely smitten with his best friend, but he doubted it. His voice was even for the most part as he spoke, never raising or really lowering, though he was very quiet as he said it – he wasn't even sure he wanted his friend to know the depths of his devotion to him; honestly, sometimes it scared him when he thought about how there would be no decision for him to make if it came down between his life and Regulus' … Or even just his life and Regulus' happiness …

"So I guess just … Don't bother asking me if I'm listening to you," he finished with a small laugh that sounded hollow. "It's a stupid question." His friend seemed shocked for a moment, probably because he never expected that very level answer, and especially not with that example as a response. Taking this opportunity as it presented itself, he stood, dusting his pants off absently, though there was likely no need; they were sitting in the grass, far enough away from the water of the lake that there was no exposed dirt or sand.

"Barty, wait," his friend almost sounded like he was pleading, and the blond braced himself; he hated the idea of making his best friend cry, but he even more hated the idea of making his best friend miserable for the rest of his existence.

"Reg, I can't," he said, his own tone just as pleading – pleading with his friend to be strong, to try and endure without him, even if he thought he couldn't. "I don't want … to hurt you more than I already have … I don't want to give anyone anymore reason to think we're some kind of item …" There; he'd admitted it – and his friend was at a loss for words. Excellent. Turning and sighing, secure in the knowledge that he'd most likely ruined the only real close friendship he'd ever had in his life, he paused when he heard Regulus say,

"Hold on; you don't want to be seen together …" it was almost as if Regulus was puzzling something out. And, just as Barty was about to keep walking, Reg continued, "I know where we can go!" the blond Slytherin blinked, confused – but before he could manage to ask any questions, he was being dragged away from the Lake and into Hogwarts Castle …

"Reg, where the hell are we going …?" Barty asked, breath coming in quick pants as he tried to keep up with the Slytherin Seeker as he was dragged up stairs and around corners, down corridors … The only time he was able to rest were the few moments it took for staircases to move when they did it, which was only twice on this journey. He was in no way physically inclined, and while he was skinny, he had never really engaged in strenuous physical activity for an extended period of time, so this jolly romp was probably going to kill him. Or at least it felt that way.

"Nearly there … It's on this corridor and should be …" he searched for a moment, or at least appeared to, and eventually his face lit a little, and he walked purposefully over to a rather hideous tapestry of someone, Barty hadn't the foggiest idea who, and some strangely attired trolls … Staring at it in something between abject horror and strange fascination at it, he didn't notice at first that Reg had promptly turned on his heel and begun pacing back and forth in front of the wall on the other side of the corridor, eyes closed and apparently very intently focusing on … Something.

"Reg, mate? … … Are you alright?" the blond asked, concerned for a moment by his friend's strange behavior, not exactly sure what to make of it. The youngest son of the Moste Noble and Ancient House of Black didn't respond, and the other sixth year just watched him, head cocking to the side, unsure of what to make of this strange display. However, when Regulus stopped pacing and turned to face the wall,, Barty paused … Was that door always there? Had he just not noticed it before …?

Regulus, however, did not seem surprised by the door, which made him think that he just hadn't seen it; he just calmly went over to it and opened it, turning to look at Barty with an expression that said something along the lines of, 'well, are you coming?' … … Oh what the hell … he thought with a mental shrug as he went inside the room, hearing Regulus enter behind him a moment later, closing the door behind him.

This was a room Barty had never been in before, though that wasn't what was strange about it – there were lots of rooms the blond hadn't been in inside of Hogwarts. The place was huge. But this … Well, it was very dark, and it sort of looked like the dormitory, in so far as there was a familiar canopied, green dressed bed in the middle. He couldn't really see much else, because the candles that were lighting the room managed to only really light that much up – well, that and the small nightstand table that stood next to it, which had a blue glass bottle sitting on it that looked oddly familiar to Barty.

"Well, I guess I asked for someplace comfy to sit so we could talk …" he heard Regulus mutter to himself as he touched the blankets on the bed, before pulling himself up onto it and looking over at Barty, who still didn't know what to make of this room.

"Reg … what's going on …?" he asked cautiously, stepping towards the little table and picking up the bottle on top of it, "and why is one of Madame Pomfrey's strongest painkilling draughts here …? This is one of the ones she fed me when I was in the Infirmary for a week …" (1)

"Huh? Well, you have a headache, right …?" Reg said in that oddly sly tone of voice that said he wasn't telling Barty the whole of something. Hazel eyes lit on gray, and he waited for the rest of the response. "And, it didn't come from the Infirmary, if that makes you feel any better … There's probably only one dose in it anyway …" Frowning slightly, Barty checked the bottle, holding it up to his ear and lightly shaking it a few times. True to his word, there was only about a mouthful in there, which was enough to get rid of the pounding in his temples without him accidentally overdosing and killing himself with it.

Hesitantly, he smelled the contents of bottle through the mouth; yep – same bitter smell, and he was sure it would be the same horribly bitter taste. Pausing just another few seconds, he put it to his lips and tossed it back, attempting to avoid his tongue with it and make most of it hit the back of his throat, which was really not very successful … But then, it never was, or so he concluded as he felt the slimy stuff ooze down his throat and he winced accordingly.

"Gah … Well it sure as hell tastes like it came from the Infirmary …" Barty's whole body did a sort of disgusted shiver in response to the horrible tasting stuff. It never ceased to make him want to gag with how thick and … viscous … the stuff was. "Did you brew this? And, what is this place?" he asked, turning slightly and gesturing into the rather atmospheric darkness that was surrounding them. Regulus shook his head in response to the first inquiry, and then said,

"It's this place that one of the elves in the kitchens told me about when I was grabbing some food and trying to find a place to study for that huge Potions exam we had a couple months back – remember I was desperate to find a quiet place to study?" Barty nodded; he on the other hand knew he was going to fail, so he didn't even try to practice brewing anything, lest he turn himself into some sort of toad and completely missed the whole test. "Well, this place … It will only appear when someone really needs it, and it gives you exactly what you need; you just walk back and forth three times in front of where the door is supposed to be, and think about what you need …. I was totally skeptical until I came here and did it and when the door appeared, it was a room stocked with all of the ingredients and supplies I needed to try brewing everything we'd learned up until that point as many times as I wanted …"

Bartemius Crouch Jr. just stared at his friend.

"And I figured," Regulus continued, an almost nervous tone seeping into his voice, "that we need someplace to talk, that no one can see us or hear us, and that no one can just walk into if they like. With some where comfortable to sit so we can talk, and some painkillers for you to get rid of your headache …" Glancing around the room, he blinked a few times … for some reason, this just felt … like it had an oddly romantic atmosphere, what with the candles and all – though he didn't make a comment about that. If the room was somehow reacting to Regulus' thoughts, conscious or subconscious, well, the dark haired Slytherin seemed to have convinced himself that he held a reciprocal torch for the blond, so …

"Ok Reg," Barty sighed, pulling himself up on the admirably squishy and comfortable bed, "let's talk." And with that, he proceeded to remain completely silent and look at Regulus Black pointedly, clearly expecting him to initiate the conversation. Which made him get awkward pretty quickly and squirm a bit, which was what Barty had figured would happen.

"Well, I … I just …" he seemed to be at a loss for words, reaching up and nervously rubbing the back of his neck with one hand and pausing for a moment to collect his thoughts. "I already told you; I feel something for you; I just—"

"Reg; we're best friends. If you didn't feel something for me, I'd be shocked and confused," Barty interrupted in a bit of a deadpan, raising an eyebrow at Regulus, who shot him a look.

"I know that," he said in a slightly testy voice, "but that's not what I mean. I mean … I dunno what I mean. Just – look, Barty; all I'm saying is that … Well, do they have to be wrong …? … The rumors, I mean? … We did kiss, you know …" Barty bit back a sigh, not wanting to frustrate his friend more than he already had, but knowing that he needed to prove to Regulus that he wasn't interested in Barty.

"No Reg – you kissed me," the blond said, a hint of a tease in his voice, "I didn't have much say in the matter." He held a hand up to interrupt whatever Reg started to say to defend himself; it was his turn to talk now. "And it was a spur of the moment thing because you found out I have a flame for you; I get that part. But really …" the sixth year Slytherin sighed quietly, bringing a hand to tangle in his hair in a slightly nervous gesture, tugging at it lightly, trying to come up with a way to show Regulus that he wasn't actually attracted to him … …

Well, there was that, he supposed …

"Alright, let's try this," he said after a moment's pause, and his change of attitude seemed to disorient Regulus for a moment. Moving closer to his best friend, he raised a hand, brushing a few strands of hair out of Reg's face and tucking them behind his ear.

"You tell me if you feel anything, alright …? Or if this just seems silly to you," Barty said as he leaned forward, voice quiet. It seemed like Regulus was a little nervous, but the blond ignored that as he gently kissed the brunet's cheek. Just once … Then once more; a few soft little kisses on his cheek, and down his jaw a little – Barty was figuring that Regulus was going to tell him that it tickled at best, and at worst that it was just strange to him, but … What he didn't count on was no response at all. After a moment, he paused, glancing up at Reg.

The darker haired Slytherin had his eyes closed, and he was holding still, though not entirely rigid, and was breathing evenly; after Barty had ceased his actions for a moment, he opened one eye to look at the blond, and then said, "No; keep … Keep going … I don't know … what it feels like yet …"

Hazel eyes narrowed slightly in confusion; not the response he had figured he'd receive … But he did as asked, trying not to do anything other than just quiet little kisses, mostly on Reg's face, but some down further, beneath his ear, across his neck … It was around then that he realized Regulus was shivering. Blinking, Barty started to ask, "Reg? Are you—"

"D … don't stop … Not yet … It … It feels … ok …" he said, voice a little shaky, and tone a little distracted. There was another pause before he started to kiss again, hazel eyes flickering up to Reg's face so he could watch for a change in expression. Slowly, he pressed his lips against his friend's warm skin, trying to focus on how Regulus was reacting … Instead of just focusing on Regulus in general; because that was a sure-fire way for him to ruin everything with his dick again, which he was getting decently proficient at. Reaching up, he lightly played with a few strands of the brunet's hair on the other side of Reg's face before lightly tangling his fingers in it, slow, warm kisses still playing against his pale skin.

"You can … kiss me … if you want …" Regulus said uncertainly and Barty paused for a second, letting out a sort of shaky breath; he was failing at not paying attention to how close he actually was to his friend; he was so close he could hear Reg breathing, shaky little sounds … Swallowing a little, he sat up a bit more and bit his lip lightly.

"I … … Reg, are you sure …?" there was a slightly jerky nod and one gray eye opened again to look at him … A bit of hesitation later, and he leaned up, softly brushing his lips against the brunet's , breathing unsteady and head a little light as he felt the pressure of his friend's slightly chapped skin against his … Barty couldn't help the small noise he made, something like a whine, as he pushed his lips more firmly against Regulus' … The noise turned into one of surprise when the other sixth year Slytherin put his arms around Barty's neck clumsily and clung to him gently; a pretty good indication that he didn't want Barty to back off or stop any time in the near future.

Reaching up, he lightly started to run his fingers through Regulus' semi-long hair, gently petting him; almost trying to calm him – he was pretty tense, pushed up against the blond, almost like he was afraid of something. Or just extremely nervous; a more plausible idea. Eventually, Barty pulled back from the brunet's pale lips, breath coming out in sharp little hitched pants; Reg's did the same.

"Hey …" he murmured quietly, laughing a little breathily, "it's ok … calm down, Reg …" Glancing at his friend's slightly flushed face, and nervous expression, he made a decision and started to coax Regulus into laying down, thinking it would make him more comfortable, and less on edge as he laid down as well next to his friend. They had taken up this same positioning before, when they wanted to talk and have a bit of privacy with the curtains closed around one of their beds … but it had never been in this context before, so it was strangely familiar and foreign to Barty at the same time.

At this point, he just started lightly running his fingers through the other's dark hair, mostly trying to soothe him a little; he seemed pretty uptight about this, most likely because it was a completely new thing to him – it was to Barty as well, but thanks to his subconscious, the scenario wasn't unthinkable, or even that uncommon to him, so he had a little bit of a leg up on Regulus in that respect. Leaning down to kiss Reg's temple, he surprised Barty again when he leaned up for a second kiss, this one more chaste, and a bit more shy, since the brunet was initiating it this time, and it wasn't almost completely random.

Another noise from the blond; Barty wanted to hit himself for that desperate little sound, but he couldn't stop it … Reg was kissing him; not in one of his stupid dreams – in real life. For real. The thought made him tremble slightly, and he couldn't help pushing his body up against his best friend's, shivering at how warm he felt, even through their robes.

"Reg …" he whispered when he turned his face to the side slightly, lungs burning and in desperate need of air. Panting, he could feel the youngest Black's breath on his face, mingling with his own … Then he realized all at once that he felt too warm. Reaching up with an almost fidgety hand, he tugged on the buttons that were keeping his white shirt closed, undoing two of them and pushing the black fabric of his robe out of the way a little. The movement seemed to catch Regulus' attention, because he hesitated for a moment before reaching down with hands that Barty could see were shaky and fumbling with the rest of the buttons.

"Ahhh … R-Reg …" the blond whimpered, not expecting the quick, uncertain kisses against his throat and neck that were suddenly being administered. He swallowed thickly, attempting to keep his mind under control, but everything was starting to get much warmer; he wasn't sure how long he could handle these teasing little touches that weren't meant to be teasing … Gently, he stroked the back of his friend's neck in a way that was supposed to come off as encouraging, but that was only because he needed something to focus on that wasn't Regulus Black's lips …

Tilting his head back, he didn't do anything except make a pleased noise when he felt the black haired Slytherin's lips move lower, down to his collar bone, over his skin … A fluttery little breath escaped him, and the hand that was not playing with Reg's hair came up to his forehead, and he lightly pressed it there, breaths becoming a little more tense and sharp as his body started to get warmer … And, as much as he didn't want to discourage Regulus' exploration, he did want to do his own examining of the Slytherin seeker, so … Gently, he pushed the black haired teenager back a little, fingers moving down to undo a few of the buttons on Reg's shirt after he undid the green and silver tie that was holding the collar rigidly in place. There was something that might've sounded like a vague protest maybe, but he ignored it entirely as he pushed the brunet's robe off of his shoulder and started to carefully undo the buttons of his friend's shirt.

"Uh; Barty – I … Ahh!" the end of the sentence was basically forgotten when Bartimeus Crouch Jr. ran his fingers over a pert little nub of flesh underneath the fabric of the white shirt, and it was instead replaced with a slightly surprised little shout that the blond of the two rather enjoyed hearing, and decided he would endeavor to hear again. Leaning down and kissing Reg's skin after he got the shirt completely unbuttoned, his lips travelled gently across the pale teen's chest, apparently finding what he was looking for as his lips gently circled a nipple, which made Regulus squirm.

"Nnnng …" another quiet sound escaped his friend, and this one made Barty shiver, and then endeavor to draw that noise out of Regulus again … And again …

Eventually, the blond lost track of what was happening; he didn't know who was kissing who or what was touching where … It was just warmth and sweat and dizziness, tangled limbs and messy hair and haziness. Whimpers and gasps – did that sound come from him, or from Reg …?

Did it matter?

He had to think that no – no it didn't … All that mattered was the two of them, right here, now, in this moment … Honestly Barty had no idea when they had both lost their robes and shirts – in fact, he wasn't even sure where the clothing was, if it had fallen off the bed or was tangled in the sheets with them, but again, he found himself not really caring either way …

Eventually, the candle light caught the edge of the glass bottle that was still sitting on the nightstand, and the blond paused, at the moment on his back because one of them had rolled them so that the brunet was leaning over him, but he couldn't be bothered to figure out which of them it had been. However, seeing the bottle made him pause for a moment; he had finished the bitter liquid off in a quick swallow … So why did it look like there was more now …? And about the same amount that he had taken again. One dose.

The idea came to him almost before he realized he was reaching out towards the bottle – leaning up and kissing Regulus again gently, he pulled back and murmured in a half whisper, half pant, "R … Reg …" However, his attempt to regain his friend's attention wavered and started to fail as he felt shy lips play across his neck and chest.

"Re~g …" he whined, lightly pushing at the brunet's shoulder and stifling a whimper. This caught the attention of the youngest son of the House of Black, and for a moment, the blond forgot what he had been trying to say. Licking his lips, his eyes closed with a shuddery noise and he pressed a hand against his mouth, ceasing thought and movement for a long pause, feeling nothing but warm, shivery tendrils of pleasure.

"Hmmm …?" the humming noise tickled Barty's chest and he squirmed a little, forcing his hazel eyes open so he could look at Regulus. Swallowing thickly, it took a moment for his thoughts to calibrate themselves, and he remembered what he was going to say … However, with Reg's full attention now, he bit his lip, feeling the sudden grip of uncertainty … The fellow Slytherin so far had been cooperative, even participatory, in their … uh … actions … But, the blond wasn't so sure, when directly confronted with going further … what his friend would think of that …

"I … n-never mind …" he managed, letting out the breath he hadn't known he'd been holding; he was fine with this – this was more than enough – it was more than he could have hoped for even on his most optimistic days …

"What … What is it …? What's wrong?" the gray eyed teenager asked between short breaths, frowning a little and attempting to catch Barty's gaze. However, hazel eyes wouldn't meet his – at least, not for a very long moment. When he did hesitantly look up, he licked his lips again, nervously… But eventually he leaned up, pressing up against Regulus and carefully turning them over, pushing him down carefully onto his back. Dodging the questioning look he was receiving, instead running his hands across the Seeker's lean muscles, and following behind his fingers with his lips; wasting time on something that, as far as he was concerned, could never be a waste. Eventually, a bold hand slid down and tugged at the brunet's pants at the waistband, slowly and nervously unfastening them …

He noticed that Reg had gone pretty still, though he wasn't telling Barty to stop – so he didn't, shaky fingers easing them down off of the brunet's hips, worrying his lip between his teeth nervously and glancing at his friend for a moment before sliding a hand between his legs. The blond watched Reg's face with fascination as his back arched up, leaning down and kissing the corner of his lips as Reg made a strangled noise and then turned to kiss him back and cling to Barty as the blond started to move his hand slowly, which surprised him a little.

"There's more … of that potion now …" he mentioned softly, gesturing to the bottle on the nightstand and removing it, and said, "Reg … can …" the whisper was hesitant against the brunet's ear as Barty's fingers traced down lower, faltering a little, ready to pull away at any sign of apprehension from Reg. Eventually, however, his hand found its mark, curling gently on the brunet's backside and squeezing. There were a few moments of confusion on Reg's face, and then, the other sixth-year's cheeks turned scarlet. Immediately, Barty shied away, going to move his hand and forget that the idea had ever even occurred to him …

"I …" he stopped moving when Reg put a hand around Barty's wrist and started to speak, "… didn't say no …" Hazel eyes widened at the implication, and immediately he was sort of flustered,

"I – I mean; Reg, if you don't want to it's …" the blond paused, his words trailing off as he watched his friend's resolved expression, and bit his lip again … He wanted to – he really did, but … He knew that look on his face … He knew what it meant. Regulus had this habit of wanting to do for everyone else, even if it was an inconvenience for him, or he didn't want to … Barty could tell he was uncertain. Normally, he'd second guess his friend and try to do what he thought Reg wanted, instead of what he claimed he was alright with …

And yet … he found that this time, he didn't want to. He was sick of playing these guessing games with Regulus – for once he could do what he wanted, and he knew it wasn't going to hurt the brunet; the potency of the potion would immediately banish any pain or discomfort that would be brought about by it … He fancied that Reg's face was a little surprised when he nodded and moved his hand back to it's previous position, fingers slicked with the slimy liquid from the bottle. He could have been imagining the brunet's apprehension though – he honestly wasn't sure.

"Just … Relax … I won't hurt you …" he murmured softly, kissing his friend's collar bone as he stroked the pliable flesh underneath his finger tips. Barty watched Reg's face carefully, but all he saw on it was an awkward discomfort – no real pain, which made him sigh quietly.

He tried to distract Reg from the strange feeling, using his other hand in more pleasurable areas, which eventually elicited reactions from him of the more vocal, pleased variety. It was an excruciating amount of time he took preparing his friend – but rather than relying on the pain killing draught, he wanted to be sure that there wouldn't be any reason for it to really hurt in the first place … But even Barty's patience wasn't infinite …

Sweat.

Heat.

Panting.

A name; quiet on kiss-swollen lips – the barest of whispers. The movement of their skin was slow and languid – barely there at all … The movements took his breath away, his heart raced – the noises in this dream-like reality echoed and arched; writhed through the air around the bodies that mimicked the sounds. The sounds that danced only for the two of them, hidden in the black, a white-hot crouch against the sheets …

"Nnnnnng … Re-Reg …"

He could hear the brunet making tiny, shuddery little whimpers, and his own breath kept getting stuck in his throat; those noises kept making his heart leap up into his throat as he tried to move slowly … But soon he couldn't take it anymore, pressing the brunet down onto the mattress, moving a short, shivering rhythm. The blond tried to stay quiet; his head was spinning – it was so hot, so good … It didn't take long before he couldn't breathe; didn't know which way was up, and he didn't care. All he knew was Regulus; the strong, dark haired sixth year was what made up the entirety of his universe …

"Nn … Barty …" when the gray eyed teenager breathed that tiny whimper out and tensed, the blond clung to him tightly, knowing he'd found a certain spot and knowing that he should keep finding it … His arms slipped underneath Reg's back and clawed at his shoulders as he panted and trembled, arching closer and closer to something he couldn't quite reach … Frenzied kissing now, he was so close – a trembling hand slid down between them; he wanted Reg to reach the end with him.

The blond cascaded over the edge of oblivion a few moments before Regulus, their names on each other lips as they collapsed, tangled in each other, sweating, hot, and panting, and falling asleep that way between the sheets, forgetting about Hogwarts, it's students, and the rumors that were outside of this dark, candlelit room …

– Fin –

Let me just say, I had a TERRIBLE time writing this … Probably the most difficult vague lemon that has ever come across my computer screen, which is ridiculous … But anyway …

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SEIRIOUS xD

This is the end of my additions to this fanfic collaboration; please check Little Lion Man for the Epilogue!

Footnotes:

1 – I know the Room of Requirement doesn't produce food/drink, but I'm going with a strict definition of those two things here; this isn't meant for sustenance, it's meant to kill pain, so it's allowed.