Note: This story takes place later the same night as "Never Turn Your
Back." You don't have to read "NTYB" first, but things will probably make
more sense if you do.
Disclaimer: They're JK Rowling's, not mine. They kept screaming around in my head. I had to release them, just to shut them up.
Two Sides of the Same Coin
Remus Lupin woke suddenly from a chaotic dream in which he was clambering up the outside of the Astronomy Tower. He was barely holding on, the tips of his fingers and toes struggling to find a purchase among the small cracks and dents in the stone. All the while Severus Snape kept flying by on his broom trying to knock Remus off. He felt disoriented for a moment until he pushed back the curtains from around his bed. The dorm room was dark and quiet. Remus noticed that the curtains were still open around two of his roommates' beds. Sirius Black had obviously not returned from his detention yet, but where was James Potter?
Remus quietly arose and put a bathrobe on over his pajamas. He eased the door to the room open and slipped out to descend the staircase to the common room. The room was deserted, except for James, a pile of books in front of him near the fireplace. Several parchments were scattered across the table, but obviously had not been written on in a while, as James was fast asleep in his chair, head back, snoring gently. Remus looked at the clock. 12:50. Where was Sirius?
Remus gently touched James' shoulder and shook him awake. "Prongs, it's late. Do you plan on sleeping here all night?"
James blinked owlishly at him. "Huh? What time is it? Why are you up?"
"It's almost 1:00 AM and Sirius isn't back yet. I don't suppose he had a date after his detention, did he?" Remus stared hard at his friend, knowing that James would probably be aware of any escapades that Sirius had planned.
"Not that I know of, I swear, Moony." James was all disheveled innocence, but Remus believed him. "It *is* kind of late for him to be wandering around. Think we should go look for him?"
At that moment the portrait of the Fat Lady opened and their missing roommate wandered in.
"Where have you been?" Remus sounded over-anxious, even to himself.
"I had detention, remember?" Sirius replied evenly, but with a somewhat bemused expression.
James straightened up and eyed him closely. "What's up? You haven't been at detention all this time. Did you do something awful to a Slytherin?"
Sirius flinched slightly as several expressions skittered across his face. "Why do you.Well, no, not really..um..I don't think so." He stopped speaking, wisely deciding that silence was better than babbling.
Remus and James exchanged glances. Remus stepped closer to Sirius and sniffed the air. He eyed Sirius accusingly. "You've just had sex with someone, haven't you?"
"What makes you think so?" Sirius asked, his expression now slightly appalled.
"I can smell it on you. It's a full moon in two days, and my senses are always sharper around that time."
"No, no, I just need a shower after all that clambering around with the telescopes."
"Liar. I am intimately familiar with your sex scent, as you well know. But I don't recognize the other person's scent that's on you. I'd say it was male, though. Am I right?"
James was grinning from ear to ear. "Oh, I like this. Let's play Twenty Questions based on Moony's olfactory analysis of your trysts."
"Well, I don't like it at all! It borders on an invasion of privacy!"
"Then you'd better start thinking about remaining celibate for the rest of your stay at Hogwarts."
Sirius snorted and flung himself into a chair, deliberately choosing one on the other side of the room.
Remus smiled evilly, and strolled over to his somewhat perplexed friend. "So, I'm right, aren't I? You were screwing around with someone." Sirius glared at him for a moment, and then nodded.
"And it was a guy?" Another nod.
James chortled. "Remus, tell us how this scent compares to Sirius' other lovers' so that we can start the process of elimination."
"Well let's see. It's not Greaves. His is more..um..tangy than this scent." He leaned closer, taking a few audible whiffs while Sirius pressed himself farther back into the chair. "And it's not Ridley. His scent is sort of sweet. And not Oakwood. He's kind of .I don't know.peaty."
Sirius looked more and more horrified as this little discourse progressed. "What is this!? Isn't there some other hobby you can pursue besides snuffling your way through my sex life?"
Remus shrugged. "I swear I'm not really lurking around corners spying on you, although I do find this interesting in a voyeuristic sort of way. And I can't help noticing what my senses pick up. You notice if a skunk has sprayed near by, don't you? It's the same thing."
"Oh, so now I smell like a skunk?"
'Oh, who cares?" James interrupted. "Just tell us who this mystery man is."
Sirius sighed, gazing into the fire. Then he looked up at them appraisingly, one eyebrow raised. "I don't know if you innocents are ready for this."
The others groaned. "We're no virgins, Sirius," James growled.
Remus added, "Hmm, James, neither of us have first-hand proof of your level of experience, but we'll take your word for it." His eyes shifted back to Sirius. "And you know better than anyone on the planet that I have some familiarity with sex."
Sirius smiled knowingly. "You've never made any objections that I can recall." He appeared more relaxed than at any time since his arrival, his expression one of completely unreliable virtuousness. "Do you want to continue playing Twenty Questions to see if you can figure out who my partner was?"
Remus suddenly started, eyes widening with apprehension. "You didn't have sex with a professor, did you?"
"Nooo, it wasn't a professor."
James' eyes narrowed slightly. "Sirius, why do I have the feeling that this was someone totally inappropriate?" He thought for a second, then suddenly leaped to his feet. "Oh, my God! It was Snape, wasn't it! You had sex with Snape!"
"NO! That's repulsive! Really, James, I *do* have some standards! Oh, alright. You want to know; I'll tell you. It was Lucius Malfoy."
Total silence greeted this declaration. Remus blinked several times, his gaze unfocused as if he had all he could do to try to process this information without any additional sensory input. And, James' jaw dropped so far it nearly bounced off his chest. Sirius was beginning to enjoy the response his news elicited from his friends. It somewhat made up for Remus' scenting revelation.
"You must be joking. Malfoy? He hates us. You're covering up for someone else," James said accusingly.
"No, cross my heart, it was the sainted scion Lucius. He..uh.seemed to want me."
"So, you horny bastard, you just said, 'Take me, I'm yours.' Have you completely lost your mind?"
"What makes you think I let him be in charge? That's certainly how he wanted it, but he lost control of the evening fairly quickly."
Remus and James slowly sat down, never taking their eyes off Sirius. He stared evenly back at them. Several moments passed.
James gave a little sigh. "Please don't tell us that this is love at first sight and you two are now an item."
Sirius laughed. "Hardly. Although I wouldn't be at all surprised if he approached me again."
"One taste of Sirius Black wasn't enough for him, eh? Snap your fingers and he'll come running after you?" Remus said teasingly.
"I think it's more a question of him wanting to have the upper hand. That fits into his peculiarly egocentric vision of how the world should be. He lost the battle tonight, even though he ambushed me. Somehow I can't believe he'll be content until he can prove his superiority. Now, I'm a challenge to him."
"So, you think he's going to try to seduce you or tempt you or buy you or bargain with you to get you to do what he wants?" Remus asked.
"Of course. It's what I'd do. And in some ways, I think Lucius and I are a lot alike when it comes to sex."
"You'd better be careful," James warned. "I wouldn't put it past him to try to get you into his bed by using some illegal potion. Then once he has you, he'll force you to be the Slytherins' personal sex toy."
"James, I'm not stupid enough to..."
"Ugh! Imagine having those cretins crawling all over you. Slobbering and drooling..."
"James, I won't."
"Bondage! Humiliation! Oh, Snape would love that. Whips and chains, or a saddle and bridle, or a collar and leash or..."
"James, get a grip.."
"They'll force you to do two at once, you know, Lestrange shoving it in your mouth while Rosier.. "
"JAMES!" Sirius and Remus shouted together.
"Calm down, James." Sirius smiled. "I don't think Lucius will use any enchantments. I bet he's decided that he can win this game without resorting to magic. So, all I have to do is let him think that he'll win. As long as he doesn't feel totally thwarted, he won't resort to his bag of tricks."
James regarded his friend disapprovingly. "It sounds like you've decided to do him again, should the opportunity arise."
"I'm not going after him, but, if he asks.well, we'll see."
Remus slowly shook his head. "You really will do anything, won't you?"
A flash of pure mischief sparked from Sirius' eyes. "Now where have I heard that before?" He stood up and stalked over to Remus like a predatory cat. He held out his hands, a dangerous smile playing about his lips. Remus tried unsuccessfully to keep a grin from breaking through his disapproving scowl. Giving up, Remus stared at Sirius and grasped his outstretched hands. Sirius pulled Remus smoothly to his feet, only to drop his hands and slide his arms around Remus, pulling him close. "So, Moony, what would you like to do tonight?"
James groaned. "Please, whatever you do, use a silencing charm. I'm begging you."
The other two remained clasped together, staring into each other's eyes. Without taking his gaze away from Sirius' face Remus whispered, "Good night, James. It's time for you to go to bed."
James gathered up his books and parchments, muttering under his breath. "Good night," he said as he started up the stairs. Glancing back, he saw that they hadn't heard him. Indeed, right at this instance he no longer existed for them. He shook his head and smiled as he quietly climbed the stairs. //Too bad Sirius can't see through that testosterone fog he lives in. He's got his perfect mate in his arms right now. That idiot better realize it before Remus gets tired of waiting and finds someone else.//
As James' footsteps faded, Remus pulled Sirius even closer and kissed him lingeringly. As their lips parted he whispered, "What I'd like to do is to eliminate Malfoy's scent from your body." His lips wandered along Sirius' jaw. "And erase the memory of his touch from your thoughts." He tilted his head to look into the gleaming blue-gray eyes. "And replace the taste of his lips and tongue and skin and cock with mine."
Sirius smiled gently at him. "I'm yours, love."
Hands fumbling at each other's clothes, they slowly sank onto the rug in front of the fire. As he surrendered to Remus' passion, Sirius had time for just one puzzled thought. // Why do people insist on dragging me to the floor with them?.I'm going to have carpet burns in all sorts of odd places.//
Disclaimer: They're JK Rowling's, not mine. They kept screaming around in my head. I had to release them, just to shut them up.
Two Sides of the Same Coin
Remus Lupin woke suddenly from a chaotic dream in which he was clambering up the outside of the Astronomy Tower. He was barely holding on, the tips of his fingers and toes struggling to find a purchase among the small cracks and dents in the stone. All the while Severus Snape kept flying by on his broom trying to knock Remus off. He felt disoriented for a moment until he pushed back the curtains from around his bed. The dorm room was dark and quiet. Remus noticed that the curtains were still open around two of his roommates' beds. Sirius Black had obviously not returned from his detention yet, but where was James Potter?
Remus quietly arose and put a bathrobe on over his pajamas. He eased the door to the room open and slipped out to descend the staircase to the common room. The room was deserted, except for James, a pile of books in front of him near the fireplace. Several parchments were scattered across the table, but obviously had not been written on in a while, as James was fast asleep in his chair, head back, snoring gently. Remus looked at the clock. 12:50. Where was Sirius?
Remus gently touched James' shoulder and shook him awake. "Prongs, it's late. Do you plan on sleeping here all night?"
James blinked owlishly at him. "Huh? What time is it? Why are you up?"
"It's almost 1:00 AM and Sirius isn't back yet. I don't suppose he had a date after his detention, did he?" Remus stared hard at his friend, knowing that James would probably be aware of any escapades that Sirius had planned.
"Not that I know of, I swear, Moony." James was all disheveled innocence, but Remus believed him. "It *is* kind of late for him to be wandering around. Think we should go look for him?"
At that moment the portrait of the Fat Lady opened and their missing roommate wandered in.
"Where have you been?" Remus sounded over-anxious, even to himself.
"I had detention, remember?" Sirius replied evenly, but with a somewhat bemused expression.
James straightened up and eyed him closely. "What's up? You haven't been at detention all this time. Did you do something awful to a Slytherin?"
Sirius flinched slightly as several expressions skittered across his face. "Why do you.Well, no, not really..um..I don't think so." He stopped speaking, wisely deciding that silence was better than babbling.
Remus and James exchanged glances. Remus stepped closer to Sirius and sniffed the air. He eyed Sirius accusingly. "You've just had sex with someone, haven't you?"
"What makes you think so?" Sirius asked, his expression now slightly appalled.
"I can smell it on you. It's a full moon in two days, and my senses are always sharper around that time."
"No, no, I just need a shower after all that clambering around with the telescopes."
"Liar. I am intimately familiar with your sex scent, as you well know. But I don't recognize the other person's scent that's on you. I'd say it was male, though. Am I right?"
James was grinning from ear to ear. "Oh, I like this. Let's play Twenty Questions based on Moony's olfactory analysis of your trysts."
"Well, I don't like it at all! It borders on an invasion of privacy!"
"Then you'd better start thinking about remaining celibate for the rest of your stay at Hogwarts."
Sirius snorted and flung himself into a chair, deliberately choosing one on the other side of the room.
Remus smiled evilly, and strolled over to his somewhat perplexed friend. "So, I'm right, aren't I? You were screwing around with someone." Sirius glared at him for a moment, and then nodded.
"And it was a guy?" Another nod.
James chortled. "Remus, tell us how this scent compares to Sirius' other lovers' so that we can start the process of elimination."
"Well let's see. It's not Greaves. His is more..um..tangy than this scent." He leaned closer, taking a few audible whiffs while Sirius pressed himself farther back into the chair. "And it's not Ridley. His scent is sort of sweet. And not Oakwood. He's kind of .I don't know.peaty."
Sirius looked more and more horrified as this little discourse progressed. "What is this!? Isn't there some other hobby you can pursue besides snuffling your way through my sex life?"
Remus shrugged. "I swear I'm not really lurking around corners spying on you, although I do find this interesting in a voyeuristic sort of way. And I can't help noticing what my senses pick up. You notice if a skunk has sprayed near by, don't you? It's the same thing."
"Oh, so now I smell like a skunk?"
'Oh, who cares?" James interrupted. "Just tell us who this mystery man is."
Sirius sighed, gazing into the fire. Then he looked up at them appraisingly, one eyebrow raised. "I don't know if you innocents are ready for this."
The others groaned. "We're no virgins, Sirius," James growled.
Remus added, "Hmm, James, neither of us have first-hand proof of your level of experience, but we'll take your word for it." His eyes shifted back to Sirius. "And you know better than anyone on the planet that I have some familiarity with sex."
Sirius smiled knowingly. "You've never made any objections that I can recall." He appeared more relaxed than at any time since his arrival, his expression one of completely unreliable virtuousness. "Do you want to continue playing Twenty Questions to see if you can figure out who my partner was?"
Remus suddenly started, eyes widening with apprehension. "You didn't have sex with a professor, did you?"
"Nooo, it wasn't a professor."
James' eyes narrowed slightly. "Sirius, why do I have the feeling that this was someone totally inappropriate?" He thought for a second, then suddenly leaped to his feet. "Oh, my God! It was Snape, wasn't it! You had sex with Snape!"
"NO! That's repulsive! Really, James, I *do* have some standards! Oh, alright. You want to know; I'll tell you. It was Lucius Malfoy."
Total silence greeted this declaration. Remus blinked several times, his gaze unfocused as if he had all he could do to try to process this information without any additional sensory input. And, James' jaw dropped so far it nearly bounced off his chest. Sirius was beginning to enjoy the response his news elicited from his friends. It somewhat made up for Remus' scenting revelation.
"You must be joking. Malfoy? He hates us. You're covering up for someone else," James said accusingly.
"No, cross my heart, it was the sainted scion Lucius. He..uh.seemed to want me."
"So, you horny bastard, you just said, 'Take me, I'm yours.' Have you completely lost your mind?"
"What makes you think I let him be in charge? That's certainly how he wanted it, but he lost control of the evening fairly quickly."
Remus and James slowly sat down, never taking their eyes off Sirius. He stared evenly back at them. Several moments passed.
James gave a little sigh. "Please don't tell us that this is love at first sight and you two are now an item."
Sirius laughed. "Hardly. Although I wouldn't be at all surprised if he approached me again."
"One taste of Sirius Black wasn't enough for him, eh? Snap your fingers and he'll come running after you?" Remus said teasingly.
"I think it's more a question of him wanting to have the upper hand. That fits into his peculiarly egocentric vision of how the world should be. He lost the battle tonight, even though he ambushed me. Somehow I can't believe he'll be content until he can prove his superiority. Now, I'm a challenge to him."
"So, you think he's going to try to seduce you or tempt you or buy you or bargain with you to get you to do what he wants?" Remus asked.
"Of course. It's what I'd do. And in some ways, I think Lucius and I are a lot alike when it comes to sex."
"You'd better be careful," James warned. "I wouldn't put it past him to try to get you into his bed by using some illegal potion. Then once he has you, he'll force you to be the Slytherins' personal sex toy."
"James, I'm not stupid enough to..."
"Ugh! Imagine having those cretins crawling all over you. Slobbering and drooling..."
"James, I won't."
"Bondage! Humiliation! Oh, Snape would love that. Whips and chains, or a saddle and bridle, or a collar and leash or..."
"James, get a grip.."
"They'll force you to do two at once, you know, Lestrange shoving it in your mouth while Rosier.. "
"JAMES!" Sirius and Remus shouted together.
"Calm down, James." Sirius smiled. "I don't think Lucius will use any enchantments. I bet he's decided that he can win this game without resorting to magic. So, all I have to do is let him think that he'll win. As long as he doesn't feel totally thwarted, he won't resort to his bag of tricks."
James regarded his friend disapprovingly. "It sounds like you've decided to do him again, should the opportunity arise."
"I'm not going after him, but, if he asks.well, we'll see."
Remus slowly shook his head. "You really will do anything, won't you?"
A flash of pure mischief sparked from Sirius' eyes. "Now where have I heard that before?" He stood up and stalked over to Remus like a predatory cat. He held out his hands, a dangerous smile playing about his lips. Remus tried unsuccessfully to keep a grin from breaking through his disapproving scowl. Giving up, Remus stared at Sirius and grasped his outstretched hands. Sirius pulled Remus smoothly to his feet, only to drop his hands and slide his arms around Remus, pulling him close. "So, Moony, what would you like to do tonight?"
James groaned. "Please, whatever you do, use a silencing charm. I'm begging you."
The other two remained clasped together, staring into each other's eyes. Without taking his gaze away from Sirius' face Remus whispered, "Good night, James. It's time for you to go to bed."
James gathered up his books and parchments, muttering under his breath. "Good night," he said as he started up the stairs. Glancing back, he saw that they hadn't heard him. Indeed, right at this instance he no longer existed for them. He shook his head and smiled as he quietly climbed the stairs. //Too bad Sirius can't see through that testosterone fog he lives in. He's got his perfect mate in his arms right now. That idiot better realize it before Remus gets tired of waiting and finds someone else.//
As James' footsteps faded, Remus pulled Sirius even closer and kissed him lingeringly. As their lips parted he whispered, "What I'd like to do is to eliminate Malfoy's scent from your body." His lips wandered along Sirius' jaw. "And erase the memory of his touch from your thoughts." He tilted his head to look into the gleaming blue-gray eyes. "And replace the taste of his lips and tongue and skin and cock with mine."
Sirius smiled gently at him. "I'm yours, love."
Hands fumbling at each other's clothes, they slowly sank onto the rug in front of the fire. As he surrendered to Remus' passion, Sirius had time for just one puzzled thought. // Why do people insist on dragging me to the floor with them?.I'm going to have carpet burns in all sorts of odd places.//