Thanks for the reviews guys :) I really appreciate it. S/O to Sibel88 and Amretta!
If, a week ago, somebody were to have asked Alicia on the train to school, who her potential conquests or pursuits for her final year at Hogwarts might include (were she actively seeking a pursuit, of course), Cassius Warrington - formerly just Warrington - would never have materialized on her hypothetical list. Yet here she was, sitting in a dusty abandoned classroom, with one lusty wizard cradled between her legs, and try as she might, she just couldn't bring herself to kick him where it mattered. In fact, she couldn't bring herself to move at all.
Ordinarily, had anybody said such a thing as Cassius had just said, Alicia might have laughed. Only, sitting here with her thighs dangling around his hips, she had a feeling that he'd been... well, not entirely untruthful in regards to a certain matter (if, of course, that was what he was implying).
His scent invaded her head, and she felt dizzy for it.
The moment stretched out, felt like an hour, only before Alicia could even blink in reaction to formulate a clever response, a loud screeching mewl interrupted her train of thought and both she and Cassius (Cassius!) flinched.
"Fuck," he hissed, "It's Mrs. Norris."
Of course it was Mrs. Norris. Any semi-intelligent first year learned to recognize that sound by the end of first semester. Cassius checked his watch, and he frowned.
"Shit, we missed curfew."
Alicia stared at him blankly, still dumbfounded as to his continued presence between her legs.
"Spinnet," he said. "Earth to Spinnet! We have to get out of here before Filch comes -
"Petrificus totalus"
Cassius gaped at her.
"Don't just stand there!" Alicia whispered hastily, suddenly finding use of her vocal cords once again, as she lowered her wand.
"You -
Yes, she had. Mrs. Norris lay on her side, looking all but dead, at the doorway.
"Go get her! Quick, before Filch sees!"
Cassius raced over to Mrs. Norris and shut the door. Meanwhile, Alicia quickly packed away their belongings, shoving everything in sight into both their book bags, regardless of ownership.
"Nox," Cassius whispered as they heard Filch shout after Mrs. Norris.
"We're so screwed," Alicia murmured.
"What did you go and do that for?" Cassius muttered back.
"I dunno! I panicked!"
They crouched down silently in the dark, waiting for Filch to break down the door and haul them up to Professor Umbridge to have them expelled, but the moment never came.
"He must have gone the other way," Cassius mumbled. "It's now or never. He'll come back this way -
"Are you mad! He'll eat us alive!"
"He's a squib," Cassius replied scathingly.
Alicia rolled her eyes. She could practically picture his sneer despite the darkness.
"Okay, fine. And what do we do if he sees us?"
"We run like hell."
Guided by the light that seeped through from the crack under the door, they crawled forward, silently, Cassius holding their book bags, while Alicia held the petrified Mrs. Norris in one arm.
They pressed their ears against the door, but couldn't hear Filch's footsteps.
"Alright, let's go," Cassius muttered.
"What about Mrs. Norris?"
He groaned.
"I don't bloody know! You're the one who -
"Shit!"
Footsteps echoed down the corridor, but luckily, soon disappeared.
"Fuck Mrs. Norris," Cassius replied. "Here's the plan, we put a silencio on her, unpetrify her, and then we run. Meet me in the library tomorrow morning and we can sort out our stuff then. If either of us gets caught, then, well too bad."
"That's your plan?"
"You have anything better?"
Alicia hesitated for a moment.
"Fine," she mumbled. "I'll meet you at - at my desk, right before breakfast."
"Your desk?" said Cassius, with only a hint of amusement in his voice.
Alicia didn't bother to grace him with a response.
They creeped out of the classroom, and as soon as it was evident that the coast was clear, they made a break for the closest set of stairs, hoping that they wouldn't come across Filch.
They didn't come across Filch.
Instead, they came across Snape.
Alicia mentally thanked Cassius for having been smart enough to cast a padding charm on their shoes, because had it not been for that, Snape would have more than certainly turned around. They rushed back in the direction of the abandoned classroom, but suddenly, they heard a voice growl from a distance, "Mrs. Norris!", and they knew they were trapped between a rock and a hard place. If Filch came any closer, they would not only be caught, Snape would certainly hear Filch's voice and turn around.
"Unbelievable," Cassius muttered. "Silencio," he hissed, pointing the wand at Mrs. Norris. He unpetrified her, and the cat shot off in Filch's direction.
"What'd you do that for?" Alicia hissed.
"So he doesn't come any fucking closer! Come on, we have to make it to the stairs."
He shoved her, forcing her to scurry forward, when suddenly a miniature door across the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy caught her eye. Alicia pointed at it, but Cassius shook his head furiously, mouthing too small. Snape had turned the corner, but suddenly, Filch shouted, "Mrs. Norris!" and they both leaped for the door.
Alicia yanked it open and crawled in, and Cassius quickly followed suit.
They slammed the door shut, locked it, and breathed out a sigh of relief.
The room, if one could even call it that, was dark, narrow and cramped. Cassius leaned his back against the door, slouching down upon realizing that his head grazed the ceiling when he tried to sit up.
"Lumos."
Cassius flinched at the sudden source of light.
"It's a passage," Alicia muttered, pointing her wand out ahead of her.
"Can you see the end?" Cassius asked, for all he could see was Alicia's very fine backside.
"No," she replied, "but we better take it anyway... I bet you any money Filch and Snape are still out there... I wonder where the door came from? I swear, it wasn't there earlier..."
"It wasn't," said Cassius. "And if it was, they would have come in here by now. Go on, then, my legs are going to fall asleep!"
"Alright, alright!"
Alicia crawled forward, but stopped after a second.
"What now?"
"Cushioning charms. Some of us aren't wearing pants," she said snidely.
"I can see that," said Cassius, smirking slightly.
"Oh fuck off, you can't be serious."
"But lace suits you so well!"
Alicia kicked out, but the padding charm they'd cast earlier on their shoes protected him from the impact. He laughed as he cast a cushioning charm on himself.
They crawled forward at what felt a snail's pace. Much to Alicia's dismay, the passage was too small for her to switch places with Cassius, short of having him crawl over her, so she dealt with the embarrassment by kicking out at him every few feet to keep him at a safe distance. Eventually, they came to a fork.
"Four passages," she said. "Which way should we go?"
Cassius took advantage of the space to shuffle next to Alicia, and they both sat up, grateful that there was enough room to sit up properly instead of having to be on all fours.
"I know," said Cassius suddenly. "Nox." He placed his wand on the palm of his hand. "Point me."
The wand shifted and pointed towards the second passage from the left.
"You go in front of me this time," said Alicia, pushing him slightly.
"Why, afraid I'll take advantage of you?"
Alicia rolled her eyes.
"Just go."
"In a minute, merlin, what's your hurry? My back's killing me. I don't suppose you'll give me another massage."
Alicia swatted him on the arm.
"That's probably why we missed curfew in the first place!"
Cassius shrugged.
"Can't say I regret it... should have a bloody masseuse in this school, what with all the books we have to lug around all day!"
"Well why not a masseur?"
"As though I'd want some great hulking oaf rubbing my back!"
Alicia snickered.
"What, scared of a little intimacy are we?"
"Oh fuck off. Anyway, I'm not the one who's scared of intimacy."
"Not this again... you realize I'm a Gryffindor. And you're a Slytherin."
"So? We're already stuck on this damned project... why shouldn't we get some fun out of it?"
Alicia groaned and dropped her head into her palms.
"Because," she mumbled through her fingers, "it wouldn't be fun. Think about it. First of all, we play quidditch. On opposing teams. Angie and Montague would eat us alive if they ever found out. I mean... fine. You're not... a terrible person -
"Gee, thanks -
" - oh, you know what I mean... you're not like - like Malfoy... not to mention, I'm sure if your family ever found out, they'd probably -
"Yeah, okay, you think I haven't thought this through? Merlin, Spinnet, throw me a bone here... You think I like liking you?"
"... you like me?"
He put on a falsetto voice. "You're not... a terrible person..."
Alicia laughed despite herself.
"Fine, I deserved that one."
"I'm not an idiot, Spinnet, and despite what you may think, I'm not a bloody bastard. All this Slytherin-Gryffindor rivalry, it's not all black and white. Anyway, the school houses, that stuff is just Hogwarts. This... blood situation... it isn't just England, it's everywhere. Besides, you think there aren't Gryffindors who think that half bloods and -
"Don't even say it."
"I wasn't going to. Half bloods and muggle borns. You think it's just Slytherins who think about it? Look at Augustus Rookwood, he was a Gryffindor, Sirius Black - Gryffindor. And there are Slytherins too, who aren't all about it either. Half of us are hypocrites anyhow... Shit, look at Theodore Nott, his mother was a half-blood!"
"... So what are you trying to say?"
"Nothing! I dunno. Nothing. I'm just saying, we can bloody have an affair or whatever you want to call it and it won't be the end of the world. Just because you're not a pureblood - oh don't look at me like that - just because you're some Gryffindor halfblood or whatever you are, and I'm some snot nosed pureblood fanatic Slytherin doesn't mean we can't shag on the side. That was self-deprecating humour, by the way."
Alicia snorted.
"Real romantic, Warrington -
"Never said I was."
"Yeah, well... always nice for a girl to pretend."
"Well don't. This is messy enough as it is."
"What's this? As far as I was aware, we're just two people working on a project - "
"Don't be thick. Obviously it would be less complicated if you were... say, a Ravenclaw, or better yet, a Slytherin -
Alicia laughed.
"Well maybe I'd think about it if you were... say, a Hufflepuff, or better yet, a Gryffindor," she said sarcastically.
Cassius looked at her, scandalized.
"A Hufflepuff? Well if that's your sort, then -
"I was joking," she said, smiling despite her better intentions. "Anyway, for all I know you could be the worst lay of my life -
"You wanna bet on that?" Cassius murmured, casting her a dark gaze.
Alicia swallowed.
"No. Not particularly... and - and how awkward would that be? If - if it sucked, I mean. Then we'd have to work together on this stupid project for the rest of the term, and - well. Yeah. I mean, there's a reason why I don't hook up with Hogwarts boys - rule of thumb, Warrington; don't shit where you eat."
"I guarantee," Cassius yawned, "that it wouldn't suck. I mean, I won't suck. You might, but -
Alicia whacked him on the arm.
"Watch it, I might hex you."
"I'm surprised you haven't already."
"Yeah, well... I'm tired. And it's terrible in here. Why are we still here by the way?"
"I dunno. Fuck it. Let's get out of here. I'm exhausted. But this isn't over."
Alicia groaned. "I just remembered I've practice in the morning."
Cassius scowled. "Same. Montague's got us running and swimming every damn morning."
"Swimming? He's mad! It's freezing out there!"
"We're wizards, suck it up!" said Cassius, mocking Montague's captain-voice.
They crawled silently down the tunnel, this time, Alicia at Cassius' heels. Exhaustion had suddenly set in, and neither of them could muster the strength to talk.
"We're going downhill," Cassius said suddenly, breaking the silence.
Alicia swore under her breath.
"What?"
"Gryffindor common room is in a bloody tower," she mumbled, yawning.
"Sucks to be you. We must be headed for the dungeons, it's getting colder."
"And damper," said Alicia, scowling. They continued to crawl in silence.
"There's something up ahead," said Cassius, a while later. "I think... I think it's a mirror. Yeah, it is -
He crawled forward a little quicker, and Alicia followed him. She peered over his shoulder and groaned.
"We're filthy," she said, examining their reflections. Their faces, which was all she could really see, were covered in grime. She could only imagine what the rest of them looked like.
"Yeah, well, we've been crawling around here for like an hour."
"That's it?"
Cassius tapped his watch.
"That's it."
"... and how the hell do we get out of here?"
"Maybe it's a door."
Cassius reached out to the edge of the mirror and tried to pull, but it was firmly anchored into the walls of the passage.
"Touch it," said Alicia. "Maybe - oh, it's like a portal!" Cassius' hand had disappeared beyond the seemingly glass surface of the mirror. "Look outside, see if there's anybody -
He was way ahead of her. He pulled his head back and gave it a shake.
"Dungeons," he said, sounding pleased. "Well, I'm home."
Alicia scowled.
"Well fuck. Now what do I do?"
"Gryffindor far from here?"
"Other end of the castle. Told you, we're in a bloody tower."
Cassius shrugged.
"Well... maybe you won't get caught?"
Alicia snorted. "I think it's awfully coincidental that this tunnel brought you straight to the Slytherin common room. There were four tunnels. One of them must have led to Gryffindor. I've the worst luck, I swear."
"You gonna go back?"
"Well what else am I going to do? God, Angie's going to kill me. Sneaking around was never this hard..."
"... well," said Cassius, grinning slightly, "If you want - you can crash with me."
"Are you mad?" she spluttered. "And if somebody were to see me?"
Cassius shrugged. "I'll check. Anyway, we've all got curtains."
"So? What if somebody happens to take a peek -
Cassius rolled his eyes. "We've girls over all the time... if we feel like being exhibitionists, the curtains stay open."
Alicia choked and Cassius laughed softly.
"C'mon, Spinnet, I promise I don't bite. Much."
"No, it's alright. I think I'll just head back..."
Cassius shrugged. "Suit yourself..." He stuck his head out of the mirror once again to check if the coast was clear. "Well," he said, glancing at her over his shoulder, "I'm outta here."
He crawled out quickly without saying another word, leaving Alicia alone in the dark, with nothing save the light from the tip of her wand to keep her company.
"Shit," she mumbled to herself, "Wait!"
Alicia crawled out after him, silently praying that nobody else would be on the other side.
Cassius looked down, alarmed, when something crashed into this calves.
"Spinnet!" he hissed. "What the fuck?"
He looked around quickly. Huh. The mirror was no longer there.
"Take off your tie," he whispered. "And put on my robes."
Alicia did as she was told, and her heart beat so hard she was convinced that she was going to go into cardiac arrest. She shoved her tie into her book bag and pulled out his robes. The hem dragged on the floor like a wedding dress.
"Put on the hood," he murmured. "I'm going to see if there's anyone in the common room. Stay behind me and keep your head down. A lot of the girls from other houses don't like to be seen if they're coming in for a shag, so as long as nobody sees who you are, you should be good."
Cassius dragged her down the corridor about four feet, and they came to a stop in front of a stone wall with nothing to distinguish it but a single torch.
"Boomslang," he whispered. The stones rearranged themselves, reminding Alicia of the entrance to Diagon Alley from muggle London at the Leaky Cauldron. A passage appeared, the walls flanked by silver lanterns that let out a ghostly glow.
"Come on," said Cassius, dragging her in by the hand. "Okay, you stay here for a second."
He sauntered down the short corridor, glanced around the corner and looked back, nodding his head. Alicia scurried after him, remembering to keep her head down. She walked so close behind Cassius that her face was practically glued to his back. She nearly fainted when laughter echoed through the Slytherin common room. She felt Cassius tense for a moment.
"Who's that, then, Cassius?" said a girl's voice. Cassius pushed Alicia towards the little flight of stairs ahead of them, obscuring her from view.
"None of your business," she heard Cassius say from the common room.
"Well it isn't Cartel again," said another girl in a haughty voice. "No shame, that slag."
"Who is it, then? A Puff, I imagine, if she's got her hood up. You boys disgust me, ought to stick to your own house -
The three exchanged sarcastic banter for a few more minutes before the girls' voices faded off, and finally seemed to disappear. Soon after, Cassius quickly came down the stairs.
"That was close," he mumbled, yawning widely. "Alright, turn around a second so I can see if any of the blokes are up."
Alicia heard the door at the bottom of the stairs open, and then Cassius tapped her on the back. She followed him into the dorm, heart still beating wildly, and let out a quiet sigh of relief.
She looked around. The dorm was rectangular, unlike her own circular dorm back in Gryffindor tower. There were windows next to every bed, although she noticed with shock that they didn't look down onto the grounds, but rather into - well, what she strongly suspected was the Great Lake. She hadn't properly looked around the Slytherin common room, having been surgically attached to the back of Cassius' robes, but suddenly she realized that they were indeed under the Great Lake. Strange fish with bulging, glowing pink eyes darted past the windows. Besides this, however, the dorm was essentially identical to her own. Instead of a red motif, everything was quite green, but she noticed with some pleasure that they had the same four-poster beds with the same trunks, and the same little night tables with pitchers of water and a little glass. No special treatment here. She was grateful that all the curtains were drawn, except for one bed which was empty at the end of the room, curtains pulled open, which she assumed belonged to Cassius.
He silently motioned for her to follow him and pointed to a little door off to the side next to his bed, mouthing 'bathroom'. She nodded but stood silently, awkwardly glancing around, her hood still pulled up over he head in case anybody decided to get up for a drink or to use the toilet. Cassius quietly opened his trunk and disrobed, much to Alicia's embarrassment. Disregarding her presence entirely, he stripped down until he was clothed in nothing but a pair of army green boxer-briefs, and disappeared into the bathroom. Alicia followed him before he could shut the door.
"Can I help you?" he snickered softly.
Alicia looked him in the face, trying not to get an eyeful of the rest of his body.
"I - er, you don't have pyjamas, do you?"
"Nope," he said, reaching for a toothbrush in the cabinet above one of the two sinks, "Can't say girls normally come over looking to have a slumber party."
Alicia flushed.
"Well... well do you have an extra shirt or something? Anything?"
Cassius shrugged, unable to respond as he'd begun brushing his teeth. He passed her his tooth brush when he was done. Alicia cringed. "Scourgify."
She brushed her teeth, trying to take in the bizarreness of the entire situation. Here she was, brushing her teeth using Warrington's toothbrush in his dormitory while he watched her through the mirror, as though nothing was out of the ordinary. When she was done, he poked his head out the bathroom door to make sure everyone was still asleep. Seeing that they were, he glanced back, and nodded at her. She followed him into the dorm, and he motioned for her to sit on the bed. It was going to be proof of his patience if he went the entire night - or what was left of it - without jumping her. He could hardly absorb the fact that a week ago, she hadn't even known his name, and now she was sitting on his bed in her little uniform, looking at him expectantly, hoping no doubt that he could magically procure a set of conservative pyjamas for her to wear.
He rummaged about his trunk, and then tossed her an old Falmouth Falcon's shirt he'd had since second year. She accepted it with a big smile. Cassius watched as she hopped onto his bed, and then she shut the curtains. He heard her shuffling about from behind the curtains, as he put away his own belongings. He thought about everything from his grandmother to Umbridge's perfectly parted hair to keep from being turned on by the sight of her clothing dropping onto the floor next to his bed, one by one. First a sock, then another, then her skirt - Fuck. He stumbled into the bathroom, and splashed cool water on to his face. Fucking Spinnet. This was absurd. How did he ever think this was going to work out? He didn't. Of course he didn't, because he hadn't thought of anything. The possibility of scoring with Spinnet tonight was meagre at best. If he'd invited Spinnet over to crash with him, it was out of pure, pathetic desperation. He took a piss and washed his hands, taking a deep breath before entering the dorm. The curtains to the bed were open again, and Spinnet was bent over his trunk, neatly folding her school blouse and tucking away her book bag. He could see the white lace trim of her panties poking out from under the too-short Falcon's shirt. Stupid girl hadn't even tried enlarging the shirt. Well, he wasn't going to volunteer to do it.
She turned around and looked at him over her shoulder, looking like the perfect picture of innocent and sexy, her little tongue flicking out to lick her dry lips. Her hair had been a mess when he'd gone into the bathroom, but now it was smooth and sleek, and fell past her shoulders, swishing around as she turned back to close the trunk. Cassius quickly slipped under the covers of his bed and set the alarm on his watch before placing it on his bedside table. Alicia crawled in next to him, hesitantly, before shutting the curtains on her side of the bed. Cassius did the same, and they lay silently in the dark, listening to the others sleeping, trying not to touch each other in the small bed.
Cassius groaned and rolled onto this stomach, suddenly missing his bed at home. Alicia shifted next to him, and he felt her cold toes accidentally graze his calf. She quickly yanked her foot away. She rolled onto her side so that her back was to him, and tried to fall asleep. Cassius shifted again, and he heard her breath hitch in surprise, feeling him brush up against her backside.
Fuck, she was a warm little thing, all curves and heat. Cassius wrinkled his nose, catching a facefull of her hair in his mouth, and gently pushed it aside. He heard her let out a little gasp at his touch, and she rolled over, so that he could feel her warm breath against him. She looked at him, so close that their noses were practically touching, her eyes half shut in exhaustion. He kissed her then, unable to help himself, and he felt her immediately sink against him. He pulled back suddenly, and they looked at each other silently in the dark. Suddenly, she kissed him back, and Cassius reached out to take her by the hips, sliding her over top of him so that she came to a rest in his lap. He sat up and slid his hands down over her t-shirt covered sides, until he felt the lace of her panties, and then the smoothness of her naked thighs. She bucked against him, surprised by his touch, and Cassius felt her legs wrap around his waist. He groaned softly into her mouth, and tugged gently at her hair, causing her to grind against him, letting out a little sigh of pleasure. He pushed her down onto her back after a few moments, kissed her, then looked down at her. She stared at him silently, and then tugged him down for another kiss.
Eventually, they ended up lying on their sides, looking at each other without saying a word.
"I - I'll think about it," she said softly in a shaky voice.
Normally, Cassius might have voiced an argument or two - what was there to think about? Hell, he wouldn't have been against sliding into her right this second, were she to have invited him to do so - but something told him that Alicia wasn't like the other girls, and not only because she was a Gryffindor, and a chaser to boot. Quite frankly, the knowledge scared him. This little thing he had about her wasn't some stupid obsession like he'd originally suspected. He had a horrible feeling that he actually fancied her. It wouldn't do at all. But he knew he had to have her now. What was he supposed to do? Forget all about her, while she was squirming against him, lying in his arms?
It would be an affair, purely physical, or nothing. And he didn't like the second option. He would have to keep his head straight, is all. Which was fine. He'd been doing it his entire life. Alicia Spinnet would be another blip in the line. He'd get over it. She said she'd think about it, which meant it was going to happen. If it was good, they'd keep it up. Then, they would graduate, he'd get married, she'd get married or not, and that would be the end of it. Or maybe... Maybe he could keep her around as a mistress. He thought about it, and the more he thought about it, the more excited he became. He would have his house, she would have her house - or she could even have the Berkley House, named after a long-deceased Warrington mistress... Then he frowned. No. Was he mad? Of course he was. They hadn't shagged once and he was already thinking about putting her up as his mistress. And as if she would even agree to such a thing! He felt her turn around so that her back was pressed against him once more, and again, he pushed her lovely hair out of his face before sliding his arm around her waist. She stiffened for a second, but then relaxed against him with a soft sigh. He hated how she fit perfectly against him, and he hated how quietly she fell asleep in his arms, while he stayed awake, arguing with himself, before finally falling into a restless, dreamless sleep.
The next morning, they awoke to the sound of Cassius' alarm, and the sounds of the other boys cursing and grumbling loudly as Montague urged them to get dressed. Alicia sleepily opened her eyes and for a second, forgot where she was, until she felt Cassius shift against her, his hard body a contrast to her own soft one. She felt shamefully at home against him. He was warm and smelled of - of everything good. She froze, suddenly feeling something stiff poking her in the back, and quickly, she rolled over. Cassius blinked and looked at her curiously before a flash of recognition crossed his face. He bolted up when he heard Montague bark his name.
"Fuck," Alicia mumbled, face burning in embarassment. "What time is it?"
"Six," Cassius replied, reaching for his watch, being careful not to let the curtains slide open.
"Urgh, I've practice. How am I supposed to get out of here?"
"Cass, merlin, what the fuck are you doing in there, having a wank? Let's go! Move it!"
Jesus, Alicia thought, he's more militant than Angie! She swore silently never to curse her friend and captain again. Montague was absolutely insane.
"He's got a bird in there, I'm telling you," said somebody else.
"Fuck off Ade," Cassius yawned loudly.
"Ah, told you!"
"I don't care if you've got the Harpies starting line-up in there! Tell her to get out and get your ass to the Lake. We're leaving now. If you aren't in the locker room in ten, I'll make everybody do a hundred sit-ups."
"That's your friend?" Alicia whispered in horror.
Cassius scowled, and stretched his back until he felt a crack. Alicia swallowed uncomfortably.
"Like what you see?" he said, smirking. He pulled Alicia onto his lap, and her face became a shade of puce when she felt him between her legs. He slid his hands down to her ankles and gently ran the tips of his fingers up her calves. She shuddered against him. Like hell she wasn't a virgin, he thought to himself. She was about as sensitive as one. He slid his hands up to her knees, and she was all but fucking him by the time he grabbed her hips.
"I'm going to fuck you right now if you keep that up," he growled, digging his fingers into her hips.
"That's what you said last week," she replied breathlessly.
He bumped up against her, and she let out a hiss.
"You think I won't follow through?"
"N-no - we have to leave," she said.
Cassius gripped her even harder, knowing that she was speaking the truth.
"I bet you're fucking wet, Spinnet," he murmured. "I bet if I wanted to, I could bend you over right now and just slide right in -
"I have to leave," she gasped, clutching his shoulders. "And so do you. If Montague comes back -
Cassius swore. If Montague came back. Fucking prick. His best friend was a lunatic. The others would kill him if Montague made them do the extra sit-ups, which he would. Over Spinnet. He clenched his teeth.
"Get dressed," he said brusquely, letting his hands fall to his sides. "Stay here for a sec, I'll pass you your things. I'm going to go check out the common room to see if there's anyone around."
Cassius slipped out of the bed, making sure to keep the drapes pulled tight in case any of the other boys woke up. It'd been madness, offering Spinnet a stay in his bed like the Slytherin dorm was some sort of bed and breakfast. Had his brains not been so addled by adrenaline and exhaustion... He looked down at himself. Half-mast... Was that a wet spot? Fucking hell. He was in fucking hell.
Alicia agreed wholeheartedly with this sentiment. Indeed, she was in fucking hell. She could hear the loud snores from whoever was left in the boys' dorm - Terrence Higgs, no doubt, who used to play seeker before Malfoy had usurped him, and most likely Alec Roy, who Alicia had considered to be the most decent Slytherin boy in her year because he'd once held a door open for her before realizing who she was. She was sorry to admit that Cassius had taken his place.
He slipped her belongings to her through the drapes, and then she heard his footsteps echo away. Quickly, she through on her clothing so that when he came back, they could leave right away. Had ten minutes already passed? Undoubtedly. She could picture Montague barking at his team like the dictator he was, demanding punishment for Cassius' tardiness. And she'd thought that Angie was nutters... She almost felt bad for the Slytherin team. Almost.
Alicia heard the door creak open again, and then Cassius' face appeared through the drapes. His expression was grim.
"A couple of third years are up," he said, frowning slightly, "trying to finish off a paper or something."
He disappeared for a moment before she could reply, and she heard him rummaging about his trunk. He stuck his head in through the drapes again.
"Here, put these on so nobody sees you," he said, passing her a Slytherin scarf and a pair of aviator sunglasses. Alicia blinked.
"You're kidding - I can't wear this! It's sacrilege!"
"You've already slept in the snake's den, baby," said Cassius darkly, "So put on the fucking glasses and the scarf or you'll be here til - well, who knows."
Alicia scowled at him, ignoring his little term of endearment, but she took the scarf and the glasses anyway. Of course, he was right. Stupid Warrington. She'd forgotten that he was a prick, ninety-five percent of the time.
"I look stupid," said, pulling up the hood of Warrington's robes so that her entire face was obscured.
"At least you're not advertising that you're a Gryff," he said quietly, leading her out of the dorm.
Alicia felt her heard pound against her chest as Cassius led her up the stairs to the common room. She could hear two boys arguing, the third years Cassius had mentioned, judging by the cracking voices. She would have laughed had she not been so anxious. They fell silent as she and Cassius came into view, but Alicia could see their smirks. Smarmy little bastards, even in third year.
They burst out laughing as soon as Alicia's back was to them, and Cassius barked, "Shut it, you brats!" She smiled inwardly.
Finally, they managed to leave the common room, and Alicia let out a sigh of relief when the bricks at the end of the little corridor revealed the main hallway outside. Cassius stepped out first to make sure nobody was about, then signalled Alicia to follow him.
Quickly, she pulled off Cassius' robes, scarf and sunglasses, and passed them to him. He put everything on, and started jogging down the corridor without saying another word. Alicia ran after him, clutching her book bag, because it occurred to her that she didn't really know where in the dungeons she was.
"Quit following me!" Cassius hissed when she caught up to him.
"We're headed in the same bloody direction!"
"Don't be daft, Spinnet - you don't think it looks a little odd that you're following me?"
"This is so messed up," she said in frustration, because for the life of her, she couldn't remember what 'normal' interaction between her and Warrington actually looked like. Oh, right. Because there wasn't any such thing as interaction between them in the past. She couldn't remember ever duelling him, because they never had. He'd always kept a slightly lower profile than say, Montague or Bletchley. She glanced sideways at him and he raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
"Nothing. Don't you think this is messed up?"
Cassius scowled.
"Yes, Spinnet, I think this is messed up, but maybe we should save that conversation for some other time."
They stopped and waited for the moving staircase to shift to the desired landing before breaking into a jog once more.
Now that they were in the main part of the castle, sleepy students started appearing, either on their way to the library to catch up on work due for the day, or to grab an early breakfast in the Great Hall.
Alicia's stomach growled painfully, telling her that she was later than she'd thought.
"What time is it?" she asked.
"I don't want to know. Supposed to be in the locker room for a ten-past six."
Alicia winced, but mercifully, they passed the Great Hall and students were milling about outside the doors, which meant breakfast had yet to be served. She scrambled to keep up with Cassius' long strides, and soon enough, they were in the corridor that led to all the locker rooms. Cassius disappeared into the Slytherin locker room without a word.
Alicia changed in silence, very aware that everybody else was most certainly already out on the pitch, and that Angie was going to break her neck when she finally made her appearance. Still... she could hear Montague's bark in the back of her mind, and she knew that Cassius had it worse.
This was the truth. By the time Alicia made it onto the pitch, and Angelina had started her sarcastic captain's speech about tardiness, Cassius had still not made it to the Great Lake. While he might have flown to the Lake to get there faster, then he would have been forced to run around with his broom for fear of having it stolen if he were to leave it lying around, and so he had to jog.
When Cassius finally made it to the lake, Montague was already counting loudly the number of sit ups that the rest of the the team had managed.
"Oh, good, nice to see you're alive," he said sarcastically, when Cassius came into view. Cassius yawned and shrugged.
"Sorry, mate -
"Did you hear that? Warrington says he's sorry. While he was off getting his jollies with some sexy bint, here you lot were, right on time, waiting for his ass! Oi, Bletchley, you think I didn't see that? Do I look like an idiot to you? An extra twenty for you just for that. Count with me, Cassius. Let's see, sixty-six, I think."
The rest of the the team groaned. They'd been at sixty-six when Cassius had arrived. It had to be at least seventy-two by now.
"Sixty-seven - I don't hear you, mate. Don't make me rewind -
"Sixty-eight," said Cassius resignedly. Fucking Montague. Bloody sadist. If he was good at anything, it was playing people against each other in the right ways. A proper chess master (which he was, both literally and figuratively). It made him a good captain, and a bloody pain in the ass.
"Sixty-nine."
"... ninety-nine."
"One hundred. Bletchley, don't stop or I'll make everybody join you."
The others writhed on the floor, gasping for breath, while Cassius and Montague continued counting. By sheer luck, or out of fear, Bletchley made it to the golden one-hundred and twenty, before collapsing onto this back, gasping like he was about to have a heart attack.
"Well, normally since we went for a swim yesterday, we should technically only be running today, but since we're already behind, why don't we just do both."
The team was too out of breath to protest, and Cassius didn't bother saying a word because it wouldn't do any good. Everybody had been in his position at least once before when Flint was still captain any how, Montague included. Certainly, a few of them would be in his position within the following weeks to come. While it wasn't like anybody tried to be late on purpose, waking up at the crack of dawn was quite simply exhausting. The extra sit-ups, while a pain in the ass, were not unfamiliar. Swimming in the lake, though, was a particular cruelty Montague had come up with. Flint had never been fond of the Giant Squid.
Because none of them had been prepared to swim that morning, they had to transfigure their underwear into bathing suits. Cassius choked back a laugh of disgust when Pucey, who'd never been fantastic at transfiguration, ended up in a set of satin panties that left nothing to the imagination. Montague glared at the unfortunate soul in disgust, but eventually, they were all ready to go. Higgs, who was the best at charms, quickly cast heating charms to avoid causing further delays, and soon, they were wading into the Lake, feverishly hoping that the Squid wasn't in one of its moods today.
Breakfast was a silent affair, for which Cassius was grateful. The team wolfed down as much food as possible without taking a breath, for they'd arrived later than usual, and classes began at nine. He knew that later on, he was in for a questioning, because Montague had made them all swear that there wouldn't be any... sleepovers until the Gryffindor-Slytherin match. Furthermore, Cassius rarely let girls stay the night. Spinnet's impromptu visit was going to cause more chaos than it already had, all of which he should have anticipated, had he been thinking with his head instead of his dick.