The Fifth Floor Bathroom
"See them Slyhterins?" Mary was off party planning duty now, Sirius always thought it was amazing she could go from 100 to zero and back in a second. That's partly why he dated her a while back. They were kids, and he was Sirius, so it didn't work out, obviously. Especially because of Remus. Remus Lupin. Moony. My Moony. It always did that, his mind, it liked the sound of his name so it said it in every way he could.
"What about them?" Alexander raised an eyebrow.
"Piss off, I don't mean you." Mary scoffed at the scoffing of the accusation, true enough Alexander was a Slytherin, and true enough the Slyhterin kids had a shit reputation, earned it though, Sirius thought, he knew what went on behind the scenes and under the lake, in the common room. His family, all but him, were in Slytherin. He knew what happened there. And he didn't like it. He couldn't stand the people in Slytherin, Alexander was the exception, he had met him long before he was a Slytherin, so he could get a pass from Sirius. Still, he was in an eternal and futile crusade to salvage the reputation of Slytherin against the Death Eater allegations.
"Who do you mean then?"
"Snape and Mulciber and the likes, the worse ones." The likes probably meant his brother, Sirius knew, they all walked on eggshells around the topic. And he thanked them for it, not out loud of course, then he would have to acknowledge the whole thing and he wasn't about that now, was he? This is rhetorical. Because no. The answer is no.
That was where Alexander was on thin ice for Sirius, kind of. They had a complicated relationship, he didn't want him to get along with Regulus and his friends, but he was the one who asked him to keep an eye on him their second year. He still kept him up to date on Regulus when no one was around. He was the last bridge he wouldn't burn. But he had to accept that Alexander was their friend as well. Their acquaintance at the very least.
But that was odd.
Yes it was odd, he was always up in everyone's business and jumping around the tables like tonight. But he was a bit rushed tonight wasn't him?
"Pricks the bunch of them." Alexander also had trouble with Snivellus. That's how he started to get along with the Marauders in the first place. Snape was being a prick, that was too broad, he was always being a prick. He was ranting about the Marauders, for the fifth time that week, and something snapped Alexander, he started going off on him, saying it was more than enough to hear him rant about them in the common room he wanted one single bloody-fucking class where Snape wasn't ranting about them and how he was at leat twice as annoying and not one eight as funny. That bought him some points.
"Well, Marlene and I," Mary finally went on with her point, Marlene was busy painting her nails at the moment, they were cut short and her nail polish was like electric pink? Shocking pink? Wasn't sure. "While we were waiting on the train for our dear Lily,"
"Who ditched us for Maurice Malarky," Marlene commented. They whistled and laughed.
"I had a Prefect Meeting!" They had been poking her with her crush on the Ravenclaw Chaser for a while now.
"Sure you did," Marlene glanced at her.
"I'm never finishing my story, am I?" Mary sighed.
"I'm listening." Peter said.
"So," Mary leaned in and gestured for the rest to huddle, "They're saying how they're getting the dark mark on them as soon as they turn sixteen because their family names and whatnot."
"That's so desperate." Marlene shrugged it off, "they're just dying to feel important." It was not, they all knew it, but she tried to relieve the tension anyways.
"Disgusting is what it is." Sirius made a face of displeasure. Who in their right mind would get the mark like that? Sirius ran from the mark once, it wasn't that hard. Sure he left behind his family, his little brother, his house and repressed profoundly the fact that they used the cruciatus curse to get him to agree, so he ran away from home? How hard was that?
"I'm off to the bathroom." Alexander left in a hurry. He was probably bored and had already heard this shit from the Slytherin table. But who cares because Remus was looking at Sirius. Remus Lupin was looking at him, his eyes, amber, warm, piercing eyes were looking at him like he wanted to eat him alive.
They had been having some secret rendezvous since late last term. And all through summer. Sirius was thankful of two things about that summer: first was James Potter (and Effie and Monty, his parents), he would always be thankful for them, always, every day of his life, they took him in after everything, he literally owed them his life; second, and a little bit meaner, he was thankful for James' trash observation skill and heavy sleep. Remus was allowed to stay the summer at the Potters home as well, so every night, and every time James was in the shower, and every time they managed to be alone the two of them, Remus and Sirius well... they had a good old time.
And right now, Remus was giving him the look.
Mary had other plans though, or just wanted to be an obstacle because she scooted over when Alexander left, and grabbed Sirius' arm. It wasn't odd, they were both generally touchy and especially with each other, but right now, Mary was using him as a rest for her head and hugging his arm, and that was standing in the way of sneaking out with Remus John Lupin and doing things he hadn't done in... well hours--they did have a quick snog in the train's bathroom before meeting with the rest. But those hours were still too long.
He was eyeing him like he was food, and Sirius relished in the thought. He was seventeen alright? He's allowed to be horny over his best friend and secret boyfriend (?) he wasn't sure about that, they hadn't had much time for talking.
Mary was talking again, Sirius loved her, he really did--as a friend, obviously, the other was saved for Remus. But he loved her and loved listening to her yapping, but BLOODY HELL he had more pressing business (Remus was pressing his foot against his...under the table). "So I says to myself says I, Mary, this is no day for a do," she was still talking and grabbing him. This was penance surely, sins from a past life being paid right here, right now.
Marlene was chiming in as well, "Merlin Mary, I just don't know if that's true." Sirius didn't even know what they were arguing about--they were arguing now, seemingly. Pugatory, it had to be that, Sirius was being forced to climb to the top of the mount and pay for his sins to get to heaven--who was of course Remus Lupin.
James was in on it as well, "no, no, I think Marlene has a point." It had to be a conspiracy. This so called friends were rooting for his downfall.
"I'm not sure guys, you see I met this lad once..." Even Peter, sweet sweet Peter was also a traitor.
He rued the day they decided to keep it a secret, if not, he would jump over the table and grab Remus from the tie right this moment.
"Have you guys considered it really, because I don't think you've accounted for..." Lily, the last bastion of friendship, he was truly alone, a love-struck Caesar being stabbed by his closest friends. Remus pressed him harder.
"I'm sick!" His mouth was quicker than his brain, "Stomach!"
But Remus' brain was faster than the rest, "I'll take you to Pomfrey, I've to talk to her anyways."
He stood up with an urgency he had never before felt in his life. Praying to whichever god might be listening that they didn't see the tent he was hiding beneath his robes.
They rushed out the great hall, across the hallways to the fourth floor bathroom, it was always empty on account of that pest of a moaning ghost. There was just two people he was hoping to hear moan tonight, and she was neither.
But fate was truly against him, because the bathroom was already locked, someone seemed to have had the same idea and beat them to it. Sirius blames the traitors.
"Fifth floor bathroom is out of service." Remus eyed him. It was just a staircase away, right on top of them. He could hear his heartbeat, beat, beat, beat. His blood was rushing. All the running, all the foreplay, all the pressing. Sirius was dying with anticipation. A happy death that would have been.
Remus slammed the door behind them. He left out a bite. A literal bite, Sirius was making sounds he didn't know could be produced by him. They pushed against each other, they were giving hot and heavy a whole new meaning.
Sirius finally climbed to the top of Purgatory and was tasting heaven in the lips of Remus Lupin.
Then Remus pushed him away. Not sexy. Not hot. He knew those. He also knew worry. He knew alarm. This was alarm.