Fic: King of Cups (Ch. I)
Title: King of Cups - Chapter I
Author: Munanna
Pairing: Albus/Scorpius
Summary: Scorpius has been a meanie, but recently he's had a change of heart. Let's see if he can win Albus over, starting at the Carnival. (Dom!Scorpius and Sub!Albus, basically.)
Word Count: 3170
Rating: NC-17 for the sex but mostly for the sex in later chapter. :)
Warnings: Both Albus and Scorpius are 16 years old. Kissing. Handjob.
Genre: Romance, humor, unabashed smut.
Prompts: Person: James Potter II // Place: Carnival // Object One: Tunnel of Love // Object Two: Ticket // Food: Cotton Candy // Emotion: Joy // Freeform: Win or Lose //Song One: "Carnival" - The Cardigans
Disclaimer: You know the words. I don't own anything important, just a lot of inappropriate thoughts.
AN: It's my first try on this pairing. It's meant to be the first chapter of, well, many. Ahem. *squirms nervously*
King of Cups
Some Kind Of A Prologue
He won’t look at me.
My father told me about his father, a few years ago when we first came to Hogwarts. That he, the famous Harry Potter, took down the Dark Lord and saved us all. He says it with respect, but I can always hear the underlying resentment. They didn’t like each other very much back then, and despite my father’s own achievements it’s still obvious that he has no surplus of goodwill towards the Golden Boy, as I’ve heard him refer to him in an unguarded moment. Grandmother and grandfather are a bit harsher in their judgement, but not much, although they won’t say anything. It’s hard to speak ill of someone who saved your child. Well, to think that the hero of the Wizarding World managed to produce this; the skinny little nothing squirming beneath my foot. His glasses are broken on the ground beside him. He’ll repair them easily afterwards, it’s just part of the decor, like his squirming. I put more weight on the foot I have on his chest and he groans in pain and stops trying to break free.
He still won’t look at me.
See, it’s a bit complicated. You know when you’ve got off on the wrong foot with someone right away and when you’ve realized it was a mistake it’s a bit late to fix, and every day it gets a little bit closer to too late, and well, after six years it feels downright impossible? Yeah, well, that’s what happened. And that’s why I’m standing in the greenhouse after the Feast with a foot on his chest; because he was stupid enough to go with me even though he knew what would happen, and I had to do it because he’d probably think that I was an impostor if I didn’t. Oh, yes, and you know how complicated things tend to make themselves more complicated? That too.
”Look.” I say, giving him my most reasonable smile. It’s really very reasonable. ”I can be very nice.”
That wasn’t a lie. I can be extremely nice. Just because he’s never seen it, and clearly doesn’t expect it, doesn’t make it less true. Even now, the mild, green eyes fill with incredulity at the mere suggestion. That stings. ”It’s true. Now, in the spirit of that House Unity -thing you’re always on about we should really go to the Wizard Carnival together. So, when are you and your charming family going? And please answer, my foot is getting tired.” I wonder if he knows what he’s doing to me. He blushes so easily, it really isn’t fair… and oh, there it is, finally, he’s angry now, his eyes are spitting green venom at me and as pretty as he is my own bitter disappointment overwhelms me because I know that he’s going to refuse.
”None of your business, Scorpius! Now let me up!”
I let him up and back up a few paces to give him some room. I love the way he uses my name. All the other Gryffindors call me ”Malfoy”, as per usual in school, but kind and patient Albus calls everybody by their first name.
He gets on his feet a bit unsteadily and observes me with wary eyes. I give him a look full of sympathy (clearly genuine and perfected, albeit a bit hard to pull off in this context).
”You know I’ll be getting the information anyway, Albus.”
Since the beginning of the term I have used his first name too. It sounds very intimate. I delight in his involuntary shiver every time I use it. He runs his fingers through his hair, making it even messier.
”Please don’t ruin it.”
Pleading? It’s all I can do to hide my ecstasy. ”It’s Lily’s first visit to the carnival, she’s been ill the last two times they’ve been here. Please don’t ruin it for her.” He says. Time to give him something to think about. I close he distance between us and lean down so that my mouth is almost touching his ear.
”I don’t plan to.” I whisper before I exit the greenhouse. Just before I step out into the sunlight I hear his mild voice, tinged with tentative hope:
”Saturday.”
CHAPTER I - THE CARNIVAL ATTRACTION
”Listen guys, Mom and Dad left me in charge, okay? Don’t run off.” James’ anxious voice was very unlike him and his siblings regarded him hesitantly. Finally Albus shrugged.
”Relax. It’s going to be fine. Carnivals are made to run off on, it’s part of the fun. You can’t enjoy it without running off.” He argued. James sighed, but nodded as his little brother disappeared into the crowd. Lily made to follow but he grabbed her hand in a firm big-brotherly grip.
”We stick together, at least. I want to come home with a maximum loss of one the first time I was left in charge of you kids.” Lily sighed but relented as James Potter II let himself be dragged to whatever place she wanted.
///
Albus promised himself to find them later. Right now he wanted to find his best friend; Eurydice. And on the way, he couldn’t help stopping by a few places… the last time the carnival had been in town he had been twelve and it was just as glorious as he remembered. The carnies were as friendly as ever, all toothy smiles and glittering eyes, beckoning you to try this, try that… Albus stopped by an attraction called ”Hit The Dark Wizard”. You got five balls and apparently, if you managed to hit the dark wizard square on the nose all five times you won first prize. In that case the first prize was a Pygmy Puff in a little box. Already little children pleaded with their parents to try. Albus hung back and watched them try, to shy to try himself. He laughed at himself as he realized that he really did want a little Pygmy Puff. Many disappointed children had to leave with a smaller prize, like a magic quill that tickled the writer, or one that changed colour. Albus continued his exploration and marvelled at all the sights. On a small stage a person who obviously had suffered a magical accident at some time or another sang beautifully with his two mouths in perfect harmony with one another. A woman walked past Albus and he almost walked into someone else while staring at her hat; apparently made out of glass is it towered three feet over everybody else, a beautiful design. But that wasn’t the spectacular thing. The hat was also an aquarium, filled with water and curious seahorses that seemed as interested in the humans as they were of them. The witch moved graciously through the crowd, a smile for everyone.
That, and many more amazing things along the way, made him almost dizzy with wonder. So much, in fact, that he barely noticed the owl landing on his shoulder until it dug its claws in to announce its presence. Albus yelped and accepted the envelope it carried in its beak. The outside was blank except for the Malfoy seal. Albus gulped and backed in between two tents to get some privacy. After a couple of minutes he finally broke the seal. Inside was just one thing: a ticket. Albus squinted through his glasses. A ticket to The Love Tunnel. The blush that run rampage over his face had to be noticeable from space, he felt, and therefore turned to the side so that he could hide it more easily. This had to be from Scorpius, but what was the meaning behind it? A year ago he would have thought it was an elaborate plan to humiliate him, but this last year had been… different. Not in a bad way. Not that he had ever felt that Scorpius hated him, exactly, but he had a very cruel sense of humour and seemed to find Albus’ personality almost provoking. Like his mildness alone demanded Scorpius’ attention. And unlike his big brother Albus has no wish to get into fights. It just wasn’t in his nature to do so. Instead, he had just resigned to avoid Scorpius as much as possible and tried not to antagonize the situation when he couldn’t. Remembering the last day of school he couldn’t help but wonder, though… was it possible that he actually wanted to be friends after such a long time? Or..? And here his thoughts came to a screeching halt. No need to go there. Surely meeting him would do no harm. Probably not. On the other hand, it probably would, but this was one of those typical times when Albus’ particular brand of Gryffindor bravery showed.
Five minutes later he was floating gently into the Love Tunnel on the back of a giant swan charmed, he suspected, not to peck him to death. The tent was huge on the inside, another very convenient charm. And what an inside it was; a giant garden at night time, with a full moon floating heavy and inviting above the trees. The sky stretched from horizon to horizon like a giant diamond necklace and among all the trees and shrubbery fireflies moved lazily from flower to flower. Albus shifted on the feathery back, mindful not to fall into the water of the stream taking them forward, and stared at the splendour. He had almost forgotten all about Scorpius when he noticed that the other boy walked beside him not five feet away, easily keeping pace with Albus and the swan.
”Hi.” Albus said quietly. It still sounded too loud in the peaceful silence. Scorpius turned his head and smiled at him, and this time the smile held no mockery. It was by no means a warm smile, more like the sleek smile of a Cheshire cat, not at all to be trusted.
”You came.” Scorpius stated softly and watched Albus’ hesitant nod. He wasn’t going to ask why, had never really been one to push his luck. Instead he held out his hand, meaning for Albus to take it. He didn’t, only stared at it as if it was a snake. Scorpius raised an eyebrow and Albus blushed in the darkness.
”Um. N-no thanks, I’m good. Um.” He said. When Scorpius didn’t retract his outstretched hand, he looked away. ”Look, I know you’re just going to make me fall into the water. I’d rather not.”
”I give you my word that I’m not going to make you fall into the water.” Scorpius said calmly. Albus glanced up at him before looking away again. Half a minute of intense silence passed before Scorpius felt a hand touch his hesitantly, nervous and clumsy touches before he seized it in a firm grip and just held it for a few moments, giving the owner a chance to calm down. Then he suddenly gripped it harder and pulled sharply, with enough force to lift Albus clean off the swan. He would have fallen into the water had Scorpius not followed through the momentum and caught him around the waist. Half a second later Albus stood on firm ground with a strong arm wrapped securely around his waist.
”What… you..! That was..! why… I..!” He sputtered and blinked, staring at the swan as it drifted serenely into the darkness ahead and disappeared out of sight. He drew a trembling breath and sighed, defeated. ”Alright, you got me. Well done. So here we are. What now?” He noticed with alarm that Scorpius was leading him into the shadows among the trees.
”Well, now I was hoping that you would be so kind as to explain to me, again, the merits of House Unity.” He said lightly, well aware that the innuendo should have hit anyone like a ton of bricks. Albus, however, seemed oblivious to it. To Scorpius’ delight he didn’t seem quite as oblivious to the physical closeness. He could see the other’s blush in the darkness and imagined him to be beet red in daylight.
”Look, please just be honest with me. No games.” Albus said, his nerves finally at their end. ”If you want hex me, just get it over with. If you want to talk, then do it.” His voice was as soft as ever, but the trembling gave it all away. Scorpius forced his face into a mask of seriousness.
”And what if I want to do neither of those things?” He asked. Albus looked up at him, never unhappier with being so short as at that moment.
”Just… do whatever you want.” He whispered and above him the Cheshire cat smiled. And then the world was lost in an onslaught of sensations. Scorpius pressed their bodies together before backing him up against a tree, pinning him securely so that his roaming hands were free to do whatever they pleased. The kiss was hungry, no starved, and Albus gasped and writhed against him with a feeling of being devoured. To his horror he didn’t mind at all. Scorpius took full advantage of Albus gaping mouth and tasted his lips, tracing lightly before coaxing the other’s tongue out to play. Tip against tip, like two snakes fighting or mating. Scorpius ended the play with a harsh bite on the lower lip before tracing his jaw line and down his throat to nibble on a soft spot where the quickening puls made the skin tremble. Albus tilted his head back to rest against the tree as he gave himself completely to these new sensations, unable to form a coherent thought, unable even to listen to his common sense having an anxiety attack in the outskirts of his mind. He felt a hand snaking in under his robes, stroking his thighs, caressing his stomach and he parted his knees slightly, instinctly and felt an disproportionate wave of joy when Scorpius made a sound of approval deep in his throat. The wandering hand wandered lower and Albus drew a shaky breath as his incoherent thoughts scattered like startled mice. He couldn’t for his life account for when his pants had been opened enough to allow the hand to touch him there, but the sensation of skin to skin was too much. Scorpius bit his throat again and again as the dark haired boy trembled against him, stuttering his lust into his shoulder as he came.
Minutes passed. Long fingers traced the lines of Albus’ face as his breath steadied, played lazily with his hair. The fragile walls around the moment eventually crumbled and Scorpius could feel the exact moment when reality came crashing down on them like a tidal wave. Albus stiffened and pulled away and Scorpius didn’t try to stop him, only watched him warily as he felt his own face settle in its usual cold, haughty mask. Wide, green eyes stared at him filled with confusion, shame and even a little fear. The mouth, now swollen and red, opened and shut a few times before he simply turned and ran. Scorpius sighed and leaned against the tree. This was clearly going to be harder than he had anticipated.
///
It seemed to Albus that he had fled forever before he calmed down enough to actually think about how he was going to get out of the tent. After awhile he found that it was based on will alone; once he had calmed down enough he noticed that all he had to do was to relax his eyes when he stared into the darkness of the garden, and eventually it would change just like when you try to see a 3D image and the outline of the tent wall would become visible. He ducked beneath it and came out the other side, blinking against the harsh daylight.
”Hey.” Eurydice’s voice was annoyed and slightly worried. The Greek witch had a stick with rainbow
colored cotton candy in each hand and she tilted he head to look at him. He gave her a shaky smile, determined to take the earlier incident to his grave.
”Hi. Er… sorry.” He said, and she shrugged.
”No problem. If you got distracted in the Love Tunnel, then I just have to congratulate you, haven’t I?” She said with a wicked grin as she handed him a cotton candy. The walked to a more or less cleared area designed for people to eat. She flopped down on the grass, licking purple fluff off her fingers and he followed. When he didn’t offer her any details on the Love Tunnel ride she fished out his MP3-player out of her pocket and handed it to him with a smile. ”Thanks. I really loved it. Your muggle stuff isn’t so bad, you know.” She claimed and he smiled gratefully.
”That’s wonderful. Any particular song you’ve been listening to?” He asked while idly flipping through the songs, making sure nothing important had been deleted by mistake.
”Yeah, I really like Johnossi, almost any song. And the Cardigans! I love their songs. Especially the carnival one, because, you know… today. Jeez, this thing is sticky.” She said and flexed her fingers, making a face at the feeling of skin sticking to skin. ”Bleh.” She finished, but he had barely time to draw breath to comment before she continued. ”You know, if you insist on keeping your secret date a secret I might be reduced to sneaky methods. And that would mean that I’d be a Slytherin, essentially.” She pouted and gave him such ridiculously overdone puppy-dog eyes that he laughed aloud. ”Please don’t turn me into a snake, Albus.” She pleaded. He grinned.
”Look at it this way.” He said. ”If and when I ever tell anyone, you’ll be the first okay?” She looked disappointed but threw up her hand in mock defeat.
”Fine! But withholding entertaining gossip from your best friend is bad Karma, you know.” At that moment a little box that hung on a string around her neck rattled and a strange chirping sound made Albus frown before he realized what it was.
”You won a Pygmy Puff?!” He exclaimed and leaned down to peer at the box as she lifted the lid carefully.
”Yeah.” She said and regarded the fluffy little ball with boredom. I don’t particularly want it though. I thought of feeding it to my cat…” As if the little animal understood her it began to chirp and twitter madly. Albus got the impression that it was talking very fast.
”Hey!” Albus protested. ”I can take care of him… her… whatever it is.” He said. She shrugged.
”Be my guest. I suppose you could always use it to pick up girls. It should be a babe magnet.” She said, nudging him as he blushed and picked up the little creature. It nestled in his palm and looked up at him with big, soulful eyes. He petted it carefully and sighed. Overall, this particular carnival trip was turning out to be much more than he had bargained for.
Author: Munanna
Pairing: Albus/Scorpius
Summary: Scorpius has been a meanie, but recently he's had a change of heart. Let's see if he can win Albus over, starting at the Carnival. (Dom!Scorpius and Sub!Albus, basically.)
Word Count: 3170
Rating: NC-17 for the sex but mostly for the sex in later chapter. :)
Warnings: Both Albus and Scorpius are 16 years old. Kissing. Handjob.
Genre: Romance, humor, unabashed smut.
Prompts: Person: James Potter II // Place: Carnival // Object One: Tunnel of Love // Object Two: Ticket // Food: Cotton Candy // Emotion: Joy // Freeform: Win or Lose //Song One: "Carnival" - The Cardigans
Disclaimer: You know the words. I don't own anything important, just a lot of inappropriate thoughts.
AN: It's my first try on this pairing. It's meant to be the first chapter of, well, many. Ahem. *squirms nervously*
King of Cups
Some Kind Of A Prologue
He won’t look at me.
My father told me about his father, a few years ago when we first came to Hogwarts. That he, the famous Harry Potter, took down the Dark Lord and saved us all. He says it with respect, but I can always hear the underlying resentment. They didn’t like each other very much back then, and despite my father’s own achievements it’s still obvious that he has no surplus of goodwill towards the Golden Boy, as I’ve heard him refer to him in an unguarded moment. Grandmother and grandfather are a bit harsher in their judgement, but not much, although they won’t say anything. It’s hard to speak ill of someone who saved your child. Well, to think that the hero of the Wizarding World managed to produce this; the skinny little nothing squirming beneath my foot. His glasses are broken on the ground beside him. He’ll repair them easily afterwards, it’s just part of the decor, like his squirming. I put more weight on the foot I have on his chest and he groans in pain and stops trying to break free.
He still won’t look at me.
See, it’s a bit complicated. You know when you’ve got off on the wrong foot with someone right away and when you’ve realized it was a mistake it’s a bit late to fix, and every day it gets a little bit closer to too late, and well, after six years it feels downright impossible? Yeah, well, that’s what happened. And that’s why I’m standing in the greenhouse after the Feast with a foot on his chest; because he was stupid enough to go with me even though he knew what would happen, and I had to do it because he’d probably think that I was an impostor if I didn’t. Oh, yes, and you know how complicated things tend to make themselves more complicated? That too.
”Look.” I say, giving him my most reasonable smile. It’s really very reasonable. ”I can be very nice.”
That wasn’t a lie. I can be extremely nice. Just because he’s never seen it, and clearly doesn’t expect it, doesn’t make it less true. Even now, the mild, green eyes fill with incredulity at the mere suggestion. That stings. ”It’s true. Now, in the spirit of that House Unity -thing you’re always on about we should really go to the Wizard Carnival together. So, when are you and your charming family going? And please answer, my foot is getting tired.” I wonder if he knows what he’s doing to me. He blushes so easily, it really isn’t fair… and oh, there it is, finally, he’s angry now, his eyes are spitting green venom at me and as pretty as he is my own bitter disappointment overwhelms me because I know that he’s going to refuse.
”None of your business, Scorpius! Now let me up!”
I let him up and back up a few paces to give him some room. I love the way he uses my name. All the other Gryffindors call me ”Malfoy”, as per usual in school, but kind and patient Albus calls everybody by their first name.
He gets on his feet a bit unsteadily and observes me with wary eyes. I give him a look full of sympathy (clearly genuine and perfected, albeit a bit hard to pull off in this context).
”You know I’ll be getting the information anyway, Albus.”
Since the beginning of the term I have used his first name too. It sounds very intimate. I delight in his involuntary shiver every time I use it. He runs his fingers through his hair, making it even messier.
”Please don’t ruin it.”
Pleading? It’s all I can do to hide my ecstasy. ”It’s Lily’s first visit to the carnival, she’s been ill the last two times they’ve been here. Please don’t ruin it for her.” He says. Time to give him something to think about. I close he distance between us and lean down so that my mouth is almost touching his ear.
”I don’t plan to.” I whisper before I exit the greenhouse. Just before I step out into the sunlight I hear his mild voice, tinged with tentative hope:
”Saturday.”
CHAPTER I - THE CARNIVAL ATTRACTION
”Listen guys, Mom and Dad left me in charge, okay? Don’t run off.” James’ anxious voice was very unlike him and his siblings regarded him hesitantly. Finally Albus shrugged.
”Relax. It’s going to be fine. Carnivals are made to run off on, it’s part of the fun. You can’t enjoy it without running off.” He argued. James sighed, but nodded as his little brother disappeared into the crowd. Lily made to follow but he grabbed her hand in a firm big-brotherly grip.
”We stick together, at least. I want to come home with a maximum loss of one the first time I was left in charge of you kids.” Lily sighed but relented as James Potter II let himself be dragged to whatever place she wanted.
///
Albus promised himself to find them later. Right now he wanted to find his best friend; Eurydice. And on the way, he couldn’t help stopping by a few places… the last time the carnival had been in town he had been twelve and it was just as glorious as he remembered. The carnies were as friendly as ever, all toothy smiles and glittering eyes, beckoning you to try this, try that… Albus stopped by an attraction called ”Hit The Dark Wizard”. You got five balls and apparently, if you managed to hit the dark wizard square on the nose all five times you won first prize. In that case the first prize was a Pygmy Puff in a little box. Already little children pleaded with their parents to try. Albus hung back and watched them try, to shy to try himself. He laughed at himself as he realized that he really did want a little Pygmy Puff. Many disappointed children had to leave with a smaller prize, like a magic quill that tickled the writer, or one that changed colour. Albus continued his exploration and marvelled at all the sights. On a small stage a person who obviously had suffered a magical accident at some time or another sang beautifully with his two mouths in perfect harmony with one another. A woman walked past Albus and he almost walked into someone else while staring at her hat; apparently made out of glass is it towered three feet over everybody else, a beautiful design. But that wasn’t the spectacular thing. The hat was also an aquarium, filled with water and curious seahorses that seemed as interested in the humans as they were of them. The witch moved graciously through the crowd, a smile for everyone.
That, and many more amazing things along the way, made him almost dizzy with wonder. So much, in fact, that he barely noticed the owl landing on his shoulder until it dug its claws in to announce its presence. Albus yelped and accepted the envelope it carried in its beak. The outside was blank except for the Malfoy seal. Albus gulped and backed in between two tents to get some privacy. After a couple of minutes he finally broke the seal. Inside was just one thing: a ticket. Albus squinted through his glasses. A ticket to The Love Tunnel. The blush that run rampage over his face had to be noticeable from space, he felt, and therefore turned to the side so that he could hide it more easily. This had to be from Scorpius, but what was the meaning behind it? A year ago he would have thought it was an elaborate plan to humiliate him, but this last year had been… different. Not in a bad way. Not that he had ever felt that Scorpius hated him, exactly, but he had a very cruel sense of humour and seemed to find Albus’ personality almost provoking. Like his mildness alone demanded Scorpius’ attention. And unlike his big brother Albus has no wish to get into fights. It just wasn’t in his nature to do so. Instead, he had just resigned to avoid Scorpius as much as possible and tried not to antagonize the situation when he couldn’t. Remembering the last day of school he couldn’t help but wonder, though… was it possible that he actually wanted to be friends after such a long time? Or..? And here his thoughts came to a screeching halt. No need to go there. Surely meeting him would do no harm. Probably not. On the other hand, it probably would, but this was one of those typical times when Albus’ particular brand of Gryffindor bravery showed.
Five minutes later he was floating gently into the Love Tunnel on the back of a giant swan charmed, he suspected, not to peck him to death. The tent was huge on the inside, another very convenient charm. And what an inside it was; a giant garden at night time, with a full moon floating heavy and inviting above the trees. The sky stretched from horizon to horizon like a giant diamond necklace and among all the trees and shrubbery fireflies moved lazily from flower to flower. Albus shifted on the feathery back, mindful not to fall into the water of the stream taking them forward, and stared at the splendour. He had almost forgotten all about Scorpius when he noticed that the other boy walked beside him not five feet away, easily keeping pace with Albus and the swan.
”Hi.” Albus said quietly. It still sounded too loud in the peaceful silence. Scorpius turned his head and smiled at him, and this time the smile held no mockery. It was by no means a warm smile, more like the sleek smile of a Cheshire cat, not at all to be trusted.
”You came.” Scorpius stated softly and watched Albus’ hesitant nod. He wasn’t going to ask why, had never really been one to push his luck. Instead he held out his hand, meaning for Albus to take it. He didn’t, only stared at it as if it was a snake. Scorpius raised an eyebrow and Albus blushed in the darkness.
”Um. N-no thanks, I’m good. Um.” He said. When Scorpius didn’t retract his outstretched hand, he looked away. ”Look, I know you’re just going to make me fall into the water. I’d rather not.”
”I give you my word that I’m not going to make you fall into the water.” Scorpius said calmly. Albus glanced up at him before looking away again. Half a minute of intense silence passed before Scorpius felt a hand touch his hesitantly, nervous and clumsy touches before he seized it in a firm grip and just held it for a few moments, giving the owner a chance to calm down. Then he suddenly gripped it harder and pulled sharply, with enough force to lift Albus clean off the swan. He would have fallen into the water had Scorpius not followed through the momentum and caught him around the waist. Half a second later Albus stood on firm ground with a strong arm wrapped securely around his waist.
”What… you..! That was..! why… I..!” He sputtered and blinked, staring at the swan as it drifted serenely into the darkness ahead and disappeared out of sight. He drew a trembling breath and sighed, defeated. ”Alright, you got me. Well done. So here we are. What now?” He noticed with alarm that Scorpius was leading him into the shadows among the trees.
”Well, now I was hoping that you would be so kind as to explain to me, again, the merits of House Unity.” He said lightly, well aware that the innuendo should have hit anyone like a ton of bricks. Albus, however, seemed oblivious to it. To Scorpius’ delight he didn’t seem quite as oblivious to the physical closeness. He could see the other’s blush in the darkness and imagined him to be beet red in daylight.
”Look, please just be honest with me. No games.” Albus said, his nerves finally at their end. ”If you want hex me, just get it over with. If you want to talk, then do it.” His voice was as soft as ever, but the trembling gave it all away. Scorpius forced his face into a mask of seriousness.
”And what if I want to do neither of those things?” He asked. Albus looked up at him, never unhappier with being so short as at that moment.
”Just… do whatever you want.” He whispered and above him the Cheshire cat smiled. And then the world was lost in an onslaught of sensations. Scorpius pressed their bodies together before backing him up against a tree, pinning him securely so that his roaming hands were free to do whatever they pleased. The kiss was hungry, no starved, and Albus gasped and writhed against him with a feeling of being devoured. To his horror he didn’t mind at all. Scorpius took full advantage of Albus gaping mouth and tasted his lips, tracing lightly before coaxing the other’s tongue out to play. Tip against tip, like two snakes fighting or mating. Scorpius ended the play with a harsh bite on the lower lip before tracing his jaw line and down his throat to nibble on a soft spot where the quickening puls made the skin tremble. Albus tilted his head back to rest against the tree as he gave himself completely to these new sensations, unable to form a coherent thought, unable even to listen to his common sense having an anxiety attack in the outskirts of his mind. He felt a hand snaking in under his robes, stroking his thighs, caressing his stomach and he parted his knees slightly, instinctly and felt an disproportionate wave of joy when Scorpius made a sound of approval deep in his throat. The wandering hand wandered lower and Albus drew a shaky breath as his incoherent thoughts scattered like startled mice. He couldn’t for his life account for when his pants had been opened enough to allow the hand to touch him there, but the sensation of skin to skin was too much. Scorpius bit his throat again and again as the dark haired boy trembled against him, stuttering his lust into his shoulder as he came.
Minutes passed. Long fingers traced the lines of Albus’ face as his breath steadied, played lazily with his hair. The fragile walls around the moment eventually crumbled and Scorpius could feel the exact moment when reality came crashing down on them like a tidal wave. Albus stiffened and pulled away and Scorpius didn’t try to stop him, only watched him warily as he felt his own face settle in its usual cold, haughty mask. Wide, green eyes stared at him filled with confusion, shame and even a little fear. The mouth, now swollen and red, opened and shut a few times before he simply turned and ran. Scorpius sighed and leaned against the tree. This was clearly going to be harder than he had anticipated.
///
It seemed to Albus that he had fled forever before he calmed down enough to actually think about how he was going to get out of the tent. After awhile he found that it was based on will alone; once he had calmed down enough he noticed that all he had to do was to relax his eyes when he stared into the darkness of the garden, and eventually it would change just like when you try to see a 3D image and the outline of the tent wall would become visible. He ducked beneath it and came out the other side, blinking against the harsh daylight.
”Hey.” Eurydice’s voice was annoyed and slightly worried. The Greek witch had a stick with rainbow
colored cotton candy in each hand and she tilted he head to look at him. He gave her a shaky smile, determined to take the earlier incident to his grave.
”Hi. Er… sorry.” He said, and she shrugged.
”No problem. If you got distracted in the Love Tunnel, then I just have to congratulate you, haven’t I?” She said with a wicked grin as she handed him a cotton candy. The walked to a more or less cleared area designed for people to eat. She flopped down on the grass, licking purple fluff off her fingers and he followed. When he didn’t offer her any details on the Love Tunnel ride she fished out his MP3-player out of her pocket and handed it to him with a smile. ”Thanks. I really loved it. Your muggle stuff isn’t so bad, you know.” She claimed and he smiled gratefully.
”That’s wonderful. Any particular song you’ve been listening to?” He asked while idly flipping through the songs, making sure nothing important had been deleted by mistake.
”Yeah, I really like Johnossi, almost any song. And the Cardigans! I love their songs. Especially the carnival one, because, you know… today. Jeez, this thing is sticky.” She said and flexed her fingers, making a face at the feeling of skin sticking to skin. ”Bleh.” She finished, but he had barely time to draw breath to comment before she continued. ”You know, if you insist on keeping your secret date a secret I might be reduced to sneaky methods. And that would mean that I’d be a Slytherin, essentially.” She pouted and gave him such ridiculously overdone puppy-dog eyes that he laughed aloud. ”Please don’t turn me into a snake, Albus.” She pleaded. He grinned.
”Look at it this way.” He said. ”If and when I ever tell anyone, you’ll be the first okay?” She looked disappointed but threw up her hand in mock defeat.
”Fine! But withholding entertaining gossip from your best friend is bad Karma, you know.” At that moment a little box that hung on a string around her neck rattled and a strange chirping sound made Albus frown before he realized what it was.
”You won a Pygmy Puff?!” He exclaimed and leaned down to peer at the box as she lifted the lid carefully.
”Yeah.” She said and regarded the fluffy little ball with boredom. I don’t particularly want it though. I thought of feeding it to my cat…” As if the little animal understood her it began to chirp and twitter madly. Albus got the impression that it was talking very fast.
”Hey!” Albus protested. ”I can take care of him… her… whatever it is.” He said. She shrugged.
”Be my guest. I suppose you could always use it to pick up girls. It should be a babe magnet.” She said, nudging him as he blushed and picked up the little creature. It nestled in his palm and looked up at him with big, soulful eyes. He petted it carefully and sighed. Overall, this particular carnival trip was turning out to be much more than he had bargained for.