Bob Reynolds X Thunderbolt!reader (post Thunderbolts, No Spoilers!)

okay but it's so true and it makes me over the moon

The band Ghost is so fucking funny to me. Their frontman currently looks like this:

Or some version of a horny goth clown, but the guy underneath it has got the wettest saddest eyes I've ever seen. Just look at him:

This man admits to being very sensitive and cries at the drop of a hat.

He has a wife and kids.

He wears the costume because he doesn't like the way he looks on stage as a rockstar.

He treats the audience like his children. They're officially called the children of Ghost for that and also because of the play on "children of god."

The band literally fucks around on stage while riffing this badass music. They go through physical comedy skits every concert like the three stooges. For example:

Two demons throw guitar picks at each other when they get angy.

One guy grinds and licks the stage like a cat in heat.

One of them shakes their tits at goth clown man and scares him shitless.

One of them twirls goth clown man like a ballerina as he dances by them.

Several of them slap goth clown's ass when he waddles by.

He created the band to make people happy, to celebrate being a fucking weirdo because he always felt left out, and to make fun of Christianity because it makes people feel bad. He lost his older brother, and it tore him up so bad that the music he made as a result launched him into a worldwide music career.

This man ends every concert "ritual" with three things:

1. Be nice to each other

2. Help each other

3. Go fuck yourself

(Literally and figuratively)

Their music is 70% "fuck me I'm so horny", 10% "I love you so much" and 20% "ethereal badass metal".

Look at how much fun he's having, dude.

It's literally just a rock band filled with the nicest people on earth wearing costumes like a Shakespearean play. And all they do is make up funny little lore stories and serve cunt.

Eddie rolls his hips as he fucks you slowly.

He’s fucking you like he has all the time in the world. His plump lips form an O as he watches you underneath him.

With each slow stroke you can practically feel every vein on his cock. When he’s fully seated you swear you can feel him in your lungs.

He has you chanting a single word over and over as he loves you.

please please please

“What do you need, baby?” he coos in your ear. “What do you want, the moon? Fuck, the way your pussy is hugging my dick, I’ll get you whatever you fucking want.”

His tempo doesn’t change, you feel like a live wire.

“You, please I just need you.”

brb rereading this until i have it memorized

The Archivist - Sebastian Sallow x Female!Reader

Summary: Weeks after discovering some ancient tomes you're unable to decipher, you reach out to the Ministry of Magic Archives for help decoding the timeworn pages. The last thing you'd expected was for Sebastian Sallow to show up, much less for him to be so... attractive. Had he always looked like that?

Alternatively summarized as Sebastian Sallow pursued a professional career as a book nerd and also happens to be really well versed in sex.

Word Count: 6,969 (LMAO)

Warnings: 18+. aged up characters, explicit sexual content, size difference, Sebastian wearing glasses again

Up on Ao3 here for your viewing pleasure

You honestly didn’t think you’d ever thrown on clothes faster than you did the day someone apparated into your living room with a deafening crack, followed by a crash and a muffled, “Shit, ow.” 

If you were to die, you weren’t eager to do so half-naked and half-asleep. 

After hastily tying your robe around your waist and stuffing your feet in a pair of deteriorating slippers, you cautiously stuck your head into the hallway, the unruly strands of your bed head sticking to your cheeks and poking you in the eye as you assessed the situation. 

At the end of the hall you could see a stack of books scattered across the floor, along with a previously organized collection of newspapers now strewn over the top of a prone body. Said body was stirring beneath the crumpled parchment, and you bit your lip and wished desperately for coffee as you weighed your options. 

Option one: it was a murderer and you should leave immediately. The only problem was that the hallway leading to the front door was now blocked. Shit. 

Option two: it was a burglar, and if you could remember where you’d left your wand last night, you could petrify the man in place until officials came to your aid. 

Option three: it was a murdering burglar, and you might as well attempt to find out as much as you could before you wound up gruesomely cut down so you could at least haunt the bastard. 

As the concealed figure attempted to sit up, you heard another thump as something fell from above them, followed by an irate groan, and you gripped the doorway to your bedroom tightly as you managed to call out a meek, “Hello?” 

All movement and noises in the living room ceased for a moment, the air still and silent. You swore if the intruder dropped so much as a pin, you would hear it. The pair of feet belonging to the unknown man dragged along the floor as he seemingly stood himself up, and figuring that no burglar would be such a noisy wreck, you took your chances and slowly made your way down the hall to take in the damage done to your living space. 

Bizarre as it was to be so civil with someone who’d essentially broken into your home, you rounded the corner and found yourself asking, “Are you alright?” 

You were met with your potential adversary as he turned around, and you were equal parts surprised and confused to discover that it was none other than Sebastian Sallow. It had been years since you’d last seen him, the two of you having gone your separate ways after graduation as you continued hunting down ancient magic sites and he pursued a career within the Ministry. The last letter you’d received from him had come in a little over a year ago, sadly informing you that his sister had finally passed, albeit peacefully. 

To find him now standing in the midst of your demolished living room was a shock in and of itself. 

“Sebastian?” you asked incredulously, your eyes raking down his disheveled but well dressed body. He had certainly grown since you’d last seen him, his long legs accentuated by pressed slacks, and the suspenders that wrapped over his sculpted shoulders left little to the imagination. The button up he wore was just shy of being too small for his broad figure, and when you glanced back up at him, you watched as he brought one of his hands up to his face to fix his crooked glasses. 

“Hi,” he said lamely, flashing you a somewhat sheepish smile. “Sorry for the mess– I, uh– well, I think I landed on something when I popped in.” 

Your eyes flicked down once more to the toppled stacks of books that now covered the floor, and your brow cocked of its own accord as you breathed out a laugh, “You don’t say.”

Still reeling from the abrupt wake up call, you could only stare dumbstruck as Sebastian fixed his clothing and picked invisible lint off of his shirt, then offered his hand to you. “Sorry about the books. And the, uh, language. I’m here about the old tomes you found?” 

As you accepted his outstretched hand and tried not to pass out from the firmness of it, you blinked and attempted to figure out what he was referring to. “Tomes?” 

“The ones you wanted looked over?” He let go of your hand to rifle through the small satchel strapped to his thigh, and it took a herculean effort not to drool over the sheer width of his leg. Merlin’s bloody balls… you’d been holed up indoors for too long. “You sent in this consultation request a few weeks ago,” he said, pulling out a small slip of parchment decorated in your familiar scrawl, and then it all started to come back to you. 

It had been nearly a month since, but during your last excursion to Scotland, you’d come across a set of unique, fragile tomes buried deep in an ancient magic site there. As curious as you’d been to read through their contents, the text within was hardly legible, and in truth, you weren’t even sure it was written in English. In a bid to still make use of the age-old books, you had reached out to the Ministry of Magic Archives to have someone potentially aid you in deciphering the timeworn pages. After almost a month with no response, you had simply shelved them all and moved on to planning your next trip.

“I completely forgot,” you muttered, taking the paper from Sebastian to read it over. “I kind of gave up hoping that the Ministry would send someone.”

“They weren’t planning on it,” he started to say, sounding conflicted as to whether or not he should continue. “But after I got my hands on the request, I took something of a personal interest in the case.” 

Jokingly, you teased, “You hold that much sway working in the Archives?” 

“I do when I’m the Archivist.” 

“You’re the Archivist?” Your jaw dropped comically fast, your eyes wider than saucers as you processed his statement. Suddenly you were looking at your former friend in a whole new light. In your mind, you had always assumed the Ministry’s Archivist would be… well, ancient. Old and withered, graying and feeble. Not youthful and– quite frankly– hot. “How did that happen?” 

Sebastian rocked back on his heels as he stuffed his thumbs in his pockets, the very picture of modesty as he shrugged, “It’s technically my trial period since the old Archivist just died a few months ago. But yeah, I guess my thirst for knowledge and reading habits paid off. At the very least it impressed the Minister enough for him to promote me.”

Eventually you managed to pick your chin up off the floor so you were no longer gaping at him like a fish, and you bashfully tucked a particularly stubborn strand of hair behind your ear as you cleared your throat and said, “Well, congratulations then. Glad to hear you’re doing well for yourself.”

Sebastian stared at you for a long moment before laughing softly under his breath, his hand sweeping through the front of his curly hair, “Thanks. But anyways, I can take a look at those tomes now if you’ve still got them?” 

“Oh, yeah, sure. They’re on the shelf by the couch, let me just get changed.” 

“No worries,” Sebastian said quickly, grinning widely as he moved around you further into the living room, his eyes roving over you momentarily. “I’ve got this.”

Did he just… check you out? No way, you thought, shaking the idea from your mind entirely. 

You tracked the brunet as he strode over to the cluttered shelf beside the sofa, watching intently as he moved a few books around until he found the unmistakable tomes propped against the wooden panels. With the utmost care, Sebastian carefully withdrew one of the three with delicate fingers, his touch featherlight and ever conscious of the fragile nature of the bound piece of foreign literature. As he thoughtfully deposited the book on top of the coffee table, you couldn’t help but admire how gentle he was being with it; with hands that big, you found his tender touch to be something of a contrast to his entire person. 

Shamelessly, you also found yourself wondering how those hands of his might feel against your skin. 

Beating back your lustful thoughts with a mental brick, you managed to say with an even tone, “I’m surprised you can tell what’s what in that mess of a shelf. I’ve been told I have a bit of a hoarding problem– most people can’t separate the floor from the walls.” 

“Well, I’m not most people,” he retorted, flashing you a dazzling smile from over his shoulder. “It takes a bookworm to know one. My old overseer at the Archives used to tell me I ‘had no shelf control’.”

The silence that settled over the room was utterly loud, and as Sebastian’s face took on the hue of a ripe tomato, you were fighting a grin with every fiber of your being. Your lips contorted into something resembling a downward smile while the Archivist-in-training turned back to the bookshelf, dragging a hand down his flushed cheeks as a pained groan weaseled its way out of him. “Please forget I said that. I’ve picked up on one too many library jokes in the past five years.” 

Sweet Merlin, he was dorky as hell. Please leave, excessively hot Archivist. Either leave or stay for about six hours and don’t go until I’m ready to let you.

To spare him his dignity and also because you needed to refrain from staring at his attractive backside, you spun on your heel to head into the kitchen. “Can I get you something to drink?” 

“Please,” he sighed in agreement, sounding all too excited about the change in topic. 

“I’ve got tea, coffee, and… water,” you finished pathetically. The barren cupboards above the pantry nearly brought a tear to your eye, and you made a mental note to do some shopping later if you had the time. 

Sebastian set the second tome down on the coffee table at the same time he called out to you, “Tea is fine, thank you.” 

It took a smidge longer than normal to boil the water, seeing as you had to pause your efforts to find your wand buried beneath the piles of maps in your bedroom. Once you had it in hand, however, you whipped up two steaming cups of black tea and returned to Sebastian minutes later to hand his cup over to him. He took it graciously, plainly eyeing you up over the brim of the mug as he took a tentative sip, and your stomach flipped at the suggestive look he fixed you with. 

“I’m a little jealous, you’ve got one hell of a collection here. I almost wish I could take some of these old books off your hands.” 

“Mm,” you hummed around a mouthful of tea, swallowing pointedly. Sebastian’s eyebrow twitched minutely. “Well, I think it might be time for me to clean house a bit anyways. If you wanted to, you could always come back and take your pick of what you like.” 

His brows rose momentarily before settling, a muscle in his defined jaw ticking as he glanced between you and the tomes on the table. Then with a voice like pure sin, Sebastian smoothly said, “And what if I like more than the books?”

Shit, shit. Redirect. You fought to employ every ounce of self-control in your body so you wouldn’t just jump into his strong arms and straddle him right there, but you were acutely aware of a few facts; you looked like you had fought a Hippogriff in your sleep, you had sorely little on under your robe, and Sebastian's eyes had been devouring the noticeable outline of your collarbone for the last minute or so. Fuck. 

“Then it sounds, uh,” you started to say, struggling to form words with the broad shouldered Adonis across from you seemingly undressing you with his eyes. “Like we might be on the same page.” It was the truth– you were as interested in the Archivist as you were in the purpose for his visit– but once the unintentional pun registered, you rolled your eyes and dug the heel of your palm into one eye, swearing softly. To his credit, Sebastian just laughed, taking another hearty sip of his tea as you shyly smiled up at him. 

With more work to be done back at the Ministry and your tomes in hand, Sebastian dutifully let you know that while he couldn't stay presently, he would absolutely be coming back later that night. He followed you into the kitchen to deposit his cup beside the sink, intentionally reaching over your shoulder to set the mug down before letting his fingers ghost along the skin of your neck. Goosebumps broke out all over your body at the contact, and when you turned around to face him with the counter pressing against your rear, his hands came to deftly adjust the revealing neckline of your robe with a coy smirk tugging at his lips. 

“See you at seven,” he purred, leaving you a blushing mess in your kitchen as he stepped back, winked, then apparated away. 

—

By the time seven o’clock rolled around, you had bathed, gone to the market to replenish your sorry excuse of a pantry, tidied up the previously demolished sitting area, and started cooking dinner. Part of you felt like you were getting ahead of yourself with everything, but after spending the entirety of your day reflecting on the stolen glances Sebastian had sent your way and his rather telling comment in the living room, you told yourself it couldn’t get any more obvious than that. 

He had always been rather cute during your time at school, but something about seeing him grown and fully matured had ignited a fire in your veins that stubbornly stayed burning for hours. 

When he showed up five minutes early at six fifty-five with freshly washed hair and wearing a darker version of his earlier outfit, your doubts all but vanished. Clearly you weren’t the only one itching to make a good impression. 

Sebastian followed you into the living room, now noticeably cleaner than it had been earlier in the morning, and held up the bottle of wine he’d been holding at his side. “I know you’ve got tea and water, but uh. I figured why not. It’s Friday after all.”

You smiled softly and let your hands brush against his as you took the wine from him, curiously watching as his fingers flexed when his arm returned to his side. “Thank you. I take it the Archivist doesn’t go to work on the weekends, then?” 

“The Archivist in training doesn’t, but I’m sure my free time will be a commodity before long. I’m pretty sure the last one frequently slept under his desk at the Ministry Headquarters. What about you? Any drab desk jobs to speak of?” 

“Nope,” you said, gesturing to the couch as you turned to head back into the kitchen. “When I need the extra money I’ll help out Sirona at The Three Broomsticks, but for the most part my explorations and Professor Fig’s estate hold me over well enough. I’m hardly ever home anyways, so it’s not like there’s many expenses to keep track of.” 

“I see,” Sebastian huffed as he collapsed into the couch, spreading his long arms along the top of the backrest as he took in the neater state of the living room. “I’m guessing your adventuring is why there’s so many books in the first place. Have you ever thought about upsizing?”

“Hardly,” you set the bottle down on the kitchen counter and chanced a look at the man on the sofa, oddly pleased to see him so at ease in the midst of your cluttered home. “I’d much rather downsize the collection. I don’t even need the majority of what I have– I’ve read through it all ten times over.” 

He nodded, “Fair enough.” 

“Anyway, I imagined you’d be hungry, so dinner’s almost ready.” 

“Oh, damn,” Sebastian mumbled, sitting forward to run a hand through his drying hair as you flitted around the kitchen. “You didn’t have to.”

“Unless you planned on feeding yourself later, I think most shops will be closed by the time you leave,” you said pointedly, turning to hide your grin when you observed the brunet flushing bright red. Miraculously you resisted the urge to add ‘if at all’ to the end of your statement. You unearthed the corkscrew buried deep within the kitchen drawers and popped open the wine bottle, filling two glasses before striding back into the living room to hand one over to Sebastian. “Feel free to take a look at any of the books, see if any of them might be worth taking to the Archives.”

The larger man gave you a lopsided smirk as he took the offered glass and clinked it gently against yours, muttering his agreement before shamelessly ogling your retreating form returning to the kitchen. The cinched waist of your otherwise simple dress was incredibly distracting. He elected not to sift through the piles upon piles of books, opting to instead watch as you hummed to yourself and stirred something on the stove, which Sebastian was beginning to realize smelled pretty fantastic. He was grateful for the distance between you both so you couldn’t hear his stomach growling. 

Once the food was ready, you ate with comfortable conversation flowing between the two of you the entire time. You asked Sebastian what he did in his soon to be nonexistent free time, and you were surprised to hear that he had taken on the role of Feldcroft’s token handyman. In his own words, the muggle approach to fixing things was relatively therapeutic, and he loved getting his hands dirty almost as much as he loved having his nose burrowed in book pages. It explained his physical appearance, at the very least. Until now, you’d just assumed he had a habit of squatting massive stacks of books in the Archives when he was bored. 

In turn he had asked you about your hobbies, about the ancient magic sites you visited, and about living on-the-go so regularly. It was so normal for you now that you barely batted an eye at being away from home for weeks at a time, and you told him as much with a half-hearted shrug. 

Lazily, you swirled the remaining wine around in your glass, bringing it to your mouth as you murmured, “It’s not like there’s anything waiting for me here, so I don’t mind it.”

Sebastian watched you intently as you finished off your drink, taking in the pretty flush decorating your cheeks and the delectable way you licked your wine-stained lips in the moment that followed. “Anything, or anyone?” 

“Hm?” 

“You don’t have anyone to come home to? No pets, no kids…” he trailed off, the rest of his question dangling in the air like a lone cloud. Your eyes fell to Sebastian’s hand as he sensually ran his pinched fingers along the stem of his own glass, and his half-hooded eyes hidden behind his glasses said everything in place of the missing portion of his sentence. 

No lover, is what you knew he was indirectly asking. 

“Do you see anyone else here?” you teased, the sides of your mouth curling into a coy smile.

“No,” Sebastian retorted, pushing his empty glass away as he sat back in his seat, amusement etched across his handsome face. “Then again, it doesn’t hurt to check. Had to make sure I was reading things correctly.” 

You perched your elbow on the armrest of your chair and balanced your chin on top of your fist casually before asking, “Was that another one of your jokes?” Hoping that you looked more confident than you felt, you mirrored his position and crossed one of your legs over the other, taking immense satisfaction in the way the brunet’s throat bobbed at the sight of your legs outlined through your attire. 

Sebastian looked puzzled for a moment before realizing what he’d said, and he rolled his eyes at the same time an airy laugh spilled from your lips. “An accidental one, make no mistake,” he moved forward to the edge of his seat, leaning forward to play with one of the folds of your dress with his index finger. “But I have been thinking about you all day, and I may or may not have convinced myself that you’re way out of my league.” 

“You should be more confident,” you whispered, dropping your hand to clutch at the one the Archivist was inching towards your leg with. His fingers immediately spread to accommodate your smaller ones, and you tugged him a smidge closer so your noses were mere inches apart. Jokingly, you taunted him further by asking, “Did you still want to look at my book collection?” 

Before you could so much as yelp, Sebastian closed the distance between the two of you in a flash and pressed his lips to yours fervently, any lingering awkwardness falling away like leaves on a tree. His free hand came to curl around the back of your neck, holding you firmly against his mouth as he angled his head to the side to deepen the kiss further, and you couldn’t help but moan against him at the brutish feeling of his broad hand holding you in place. 

He pulled away just enough to brush a tinier, more delicate kiss against the tip of your nose before he sighed, “I really don’t give a damn about the books right now.” 

A budding Archivist not caring about books? The scandal, is what you wanted to say, but then Sebastian’s lips were back on yours, swallowing your pending comment with a ferocity that had your stomach churning wantonly. Those brilliant hands of his left your neck and your hand to trail along your waist, his fingers digging firmly into the bodice of your dress to pull you towards him, and you followed his guidance all too willingly as he urged you from your seat. Within seconds you were in his lap, melting against him as he ground his hips up into yours while simultaneously using his hands to rock you against his hardening cock, and a satisfied groan emitted from him as you allowed him to move you as he pleased. 

In-between kisses, Sebastian managed to croak out, “Bedroom?” 

You barely managed a nod, too enthralled by the man under you to form actual words, and at the same time you dove back in for another heated kiss, Sebastian looped an arm around your back and the other under your ass as he stood up, lifting you with him as though you weighed nothing. Instinctively you hooked your legs around his hips, letting him haul you along to your bedroom while your hands flew to his neck to clutch at him ardently in a bid to keep your mouth glued to his. His ability to multi-task was something to compliment later on, because he kept walking and working his mouth over yours with a finesse that bordered on inhuman. 

The next thing you knew you were being thrown down on the mattress, bouncing in place briefly before you had to bite your lip to stifle a curse as you watched Sebastian fucking crawl up the bed towards you, predatory and sexy as hell. As soon as he was within reach, you grabbed for one of his suspender straps and pulled him closer, kissing him once again and moaning eagerly when you felt his hand grip at the seductive curve of your waist to squeeze before he settled on top of you. With his knees on either side of you, it was impossible to overlook the feeling of his achingly hard cock pressing down against your leg, and Sebastian groaned loudly when you tried lifting your hips to convey your impatience. 

“Someone’s excited,” he murmured against your swollen lips, grinning to himself as you worked to catch your breath. “Have you been thinking about me, too?” 

“Yes,” you gasped, your train of thought momentarily derailing when Sebastian moved so his chest was pressing against your clothed breasts, his hips flush with yours to better grind against you. “Don’t you own a mirror?”

Instead of replying to your thinly veiled compliment, Sebastian dipped his head into the crook of your neck to nip and kiss his way along your jaw with a rumbling moan, the force of his ministrations forcing your head back against the pillows. He was as eager as you were, that much was certain. As he rutted his concealed cock against your thigh, you heard and felt him shudder against you, and in an attempt to silence himself, the Archivist’s plush lips latched firmly onto a patch of skin under your jaw to suck a mark there. 

The stinging sensation of him biting down had your eyes fluttering shut, your entire being relishing in the light pain his teeth bestowed upon you, and Sebastian blindly reached for your wrist to pin your arm above your head. The dominant display had you voicing your approval in the form of a low moan, enjoying how being stretched out for him allowed for his other hand to rake down your side to start bunching up your dress. His movements didn’t cease as he lifted his hips slightly to free up the rest of the fabric trapped beneath him, and he expertly collected the material into a disheveled heap below your navel. When his dexterous fingers ghosted along the waistband of your undergarments, your next breath caught in your throat and caused you to gasp shakily. 

You felt as Sebastian’s lips curved into a smirk against your spit-slick skin before sitting back on his heels to murmur, “You’re so noisy.” 

Through his lashes, he watched as a brilliant flush swept up your neck to cover your face, and you timidly tried to hide your cheeks with the back of your free hand. “S-Sorry,” you stammered, but the man above you was having absolutely none of your self-consciousness. 

Your mediocre shield was wrenched away from your face and pinned up alongside your other hand in an instant, and you blinked up at Sebastian in blatant surprise as he leaned menacingly over you. “Don’t stop,” he implored you, biting his lip as he took in the sight of you beneath him. “I love it. 

The brunet secured your wrists into one of his hands so he could drop the other one back to your aching center, swiping two of his fingers up your slit through your underwear to feel the wetness that had collected there. The sensation left you breathless, another choked gasp weaseling its way past your lips and earning a dark chuckle from Sebastian. His digits moved up to slide beneath the fabric blocking his path, and a low groan sounded from him as he felt how truly soaked you were from his efforts. Without looking away from your pinched features, he gingerly slid a single finger in, biting his lip hungrily at the way your lips parted and your head rolled to the side when he began steadily pumping in and out of you. 

When you felt his thumb begin to rub against your clit, your eyelids fluttered shut from the intense pleasure that washed over you, pulling a strangled whimper from you. “Fuck, Sebastian–”

The hand he had securely wrapped around your wrists tightened a fraction to draw your mind out of the gutter, and he roughly gritted out, “Look at me, darling– open those pretty eyes for me.” You couldn’t help but oblige him when he referred to you so sweetly, and when you cracked your eyes open once again, his body seemed to shudder with delight as he growled, “So fucking perfect. My name sounds damn good when you say it like that.”

With his gaze burning into yours and the close proximity between the two of you, you didn’t think the overwhelming euphoria you felt could get any better. That is, until he added a second finger into the mix. The initial stretch was felt only briefly before his thumb pressed against your sensitive bundle of nerves, the persistent ministrations against your clit muting any discomfort and leaving you arching brainlessly beneath him as that hot, incessant feeling in your gut roared to life. It was tantalizing, and your hips bucked off the mattress in an attempt to chase his movements and reach the climax you were utterly desperate for. 

“Please, please,” you begged mindlessly, your desire to come so potent that it was almost painful. “Please, Sebastian, please.” 

“Already?” he tsk’d mockingly, shaking his head minutely as he eagerly wet his bottom lip and removed his thumb from your center. “I think you can hold on a bit longer, don’t you? I’d much rather end this with my cock, if it’s all the same to you.” 

The lack of friction sobered you up instantly, and the lustful haze that had clouded your mind cleared enough for you to blink blearily up at him, a small frown playing on your lips. “Really?” 

Sebastian cocked a brow at you, as though daring you to tell him he was being unreasonable. “Would you rather this end with my hands?” 

You tried to roll your hips up into his hand before relenting rather quickly, and you muttered, “F-Fine. Just hurry up, I might throttle you if I have to wait any longer.” 

Sebastian grinned wickedly at the way your back arched when he curled his fingers inside of you before torturously withdrawing them. A small sigh slipped from you when he let go of your wrists and slid away to hastily begin shedding his clothing, taking care to be gentler with his glasses as he set them down on the nightstand, and once he was wholly bare before you, the only thing you could do was stare. 

His physique was mind boggling; toned, defined muscles made up every inch of his torso, accentuated by broad shoulders that you were convinced didn’t belong anywhere near someone who worked in a glorified library of all places. His skin was sun-kissed and peppered with freckles, a testament to the aforementioned physical labor he claimed to enjoy. It hadn’t made much sense to you before when he’d told you– forgoing magic to use his own hands to help fix things. But if a habit like that gave a man a body like his, you would never doubt his preferences again. 

All of Sebastian looked positively divine, including his cock. Thick, hard, and twitching tellingly, it arched proudly against his taut stomach, the head violently red and already leaking beads of pre-cum in response to the situation at hand. You swallowed thickly when you realized that that would be inside of you, and you were suddenly grateful that he’d told you to wait. Not to discredit his fingers or anything, but you had a nagging feeling that you would enjoy his lower parts far more than his hands. 

Ignoring the nervousness that settled in your stomach, you sat up to quickly pull the sleeves of your dress down your arms, wriggling out of the attire quickly before throwing the bunched up material to the floor. As you reached down to slide your underwear off, Sebastian returned to kneel in front of you and stopped you by lightly pushing you flat against the pillows, then ran his hands along the plane of your stomach. 

“Allow me,” he said chivalrously, taking care to gently slip his fingers under the waistband and sensually remove the material entirely. With nothing else separating you from him, Sebastian took his time eating you alive with his eyes, letting his hands drag up your thighs and squeeze at your knees before pushing your legs apart so he had space to siddle forward. The blunt head of his cock bumped against your slick cunt, and a barely there shudder ran down your spine in anticipation. 

It took a good amount of self-control for you to let Sebastian press into you achingly slow, his eyes pinching shut while his teeth savaged his bottom lip, and when he was finally sheathed inside of you fully, the brunet was practically shaking with the desire to fuck your brains out. He waited, though, his palms sliding from your knees to your upper thighs to dig his fingers into the skin there, raking his hungry gaze over you while he gave you a moment to adjust. 

You appreciated the sentiment, because Merlin– he was big. It was impossible to overlook every delicious inch of him pressing against your inner walls, the subtle grinding of his hips stretching you out more and more to the point where your breath continuously caught in your throat. It felt good, though. Good enough to leave you wondering why you’d never sought him out when the two of you were still in school together. 

At some point, however, you realized Sebastian was fucking with you. It probably had something to do with the repetitive, shallow thrusts he teased you with, and when you craned your neck up to look at him, he was already staring at you with a wide grin splitting his face, his tongue poking out between his teeth. 

“W-What?” you grumbled, your hands fisting in the sheets. “Are you going to make me beg or something? I already said please.” 

“I was just enjoying the face you were making,” Sebastian said, rocking his hips just enough to leave you arching towards him. “You look like you’re trying really hard to keep it together. It’s cute.” 

“I’m flattered,” you breathed out around an airy laugh, then wriggled your hips down in an attempt to bait the Archivist into moving. Mercifully, it worked. 

Sebastian gave a throaty moan, leaning forward to brace one hand on the side of your waist while the other gripped at your thigh tighter, and he withdrew his cock languidly before plunging back in. Your breathing hitched and your head fell back against the pillows at the abrupt sensation, and the sight of you so obviously enthralled by his efforts was what expelled the remainder of his patience. 

Holding onto your thigh with bruising strength, Sebastian fell into a steady, toe-curling pace. He pulled you onto his cock with every deep plunge, digging his feet into the bed to lend some force to his thrusts, and his reward was the sound of your shaky voice reverberating off of the bedroom walls as your spine rounded. You keened loudly, overcome with both the feeling and the sight of Sebastian– because not only was he deceptively good at rendering your mind into a puddle of mush, he looked amazing while he was doing it. The muscles in his arms rippled as he supported himself above you, his brown curls falling into his face as his head hung heavy between his sculpted shoulders, and when your arousal had you clamping down on his cock harder, those full, kissable lips of his fell open around a guttural groan. 

“Fuck, you feel incredible,” he grit out through his clenched teeth, gazing down at you with lust-dark eyes that made your blood burn hot in your veins. “So bloody gorgeous– like a fucking work of art.”

His praises left you whining in earnest, and you didn’t bother to keep your voice down in the slightest. With every sinful noise that escaped you, Sebastian’s hold on you seemed to intensify, and his thick cock filled you harder with every desperate pump of his hips. His ragged breathing left you craving more of him– all of him– and you rutted against him as much as was physically possible in a bid to take him deeper. 

Sebastian picked up on your desires wordlessly, and he shifted his hold on your thigh so his hand was looped around it to better pull it to the side, giving him the room he needed to spear into you with wicked precision. It also allowed him to discover what you sounded like crying out for more, your voice reedy and strident within the four walls of the bedroom, and when he shifted his hips down to achieve new depths, your moans echoed around him. He had to be hitting a good spot. 

“Right there, Sebastian, fuck– right there–” 

Your lower half was positively shaking, and Sebastian was honestly at his limit. He sat up momentarily before grabbing both of your legs, watching as you blearily tried to figure out what was going on while he pulled your knees over his shoulders. Moving over you swiftly and urgently, he bent you back and rammed his thick cock back into your tight heat, animalistic grunts sounding from him as you arched tight and cried out, but you were barely given the space to breathe before he was fucking you hard– hips bucking rough and deep and so fucking good that you were left screaming and gasping helplessly at the sheets. 

Sebastian pinned you to the bed and pounded into you, his own moans dripping loud from his lips as his hands grasped at the sweaty, flushed skin of your waist, pulling you close while he filled you over and over and drank in your noisy pleas for more until your back was arching clear off the bed and your thighs were shaking. You were barely holding on, your climax from earlier roaring back to life in your gut and rendering your tongue a lead weight in your mouth.

Forming words was damn near impossible, but you still managed to babble out, “Like that, Sebastian, fuck, just like that– I’m close– please, I’m–”

He obliged you instantly, keeping up his pace while he brought his hand between your legs to thumb over your bundle of nerves, his hips angling upwards with every deep, precise plunge. Taking his bottom lip between his teeth, you watched through your slitted eyes as he bent forward to press a chaste kiss to your parted lips, swallowing your breathy whines with a satisfied expression playing over his face. “Come on, darling. Let’s hear how you sound falling apart on my cock, yeah?” 

As if you even needed the encouragement. 

Every muscle in your body tensed as a wave of unparalleled ecstasy crashed over you, and your hands flew to Sebastian’s shoulders to absentmindedly attempt to grasp at something to ground yourself. His movements didn’t stop as you writhed beneath him– milking every possible noise out of you with unconcealed fervor– and it was only when you sagged into the sheets twitching and whimpering that Sebastian let your legs drop to the sides so he could wrap his arms around you to give you the last of his deep, quick thrusts before he was coming too, your name tumbling over his lips as he fell alongside you. 

“Fuck,” Sebastian murmured directly beside your ear, still draped in a boneless heap on top of you as you trembled against him. One of your hands slid up to bury your fingers in his tangled curls, and you mumbled something unintelligibly into the crook of his neck. He pulled back slightly to hear you better, “What?” 

Your eyes were still glazed over as you came down from your post-coital high, “Are the Archives chock-full of sex books or something?” 

Sebastian smirked tiredly at you, pulling out gently before collapsing beside you with his arms still wrapped securely around your waist. “One or two. Why?” 

You stared up at the ceiling in a daze and shook your head softly to yourself, “Because you’re a little too good at that. It’s kind of scary.”

“Good scary or bad scary?” 

“Good scary,” you clarified, turning over so you could face the brunet and smile softly at him. The way his entire face lit up at the sight of you would live on in your mind for years to come, you were sure, so you wistfully said, “We should do this again sometime.” 

Sebastian paused, leaving you worried for a short second until he wriggled in a way that let him press his hard cock against your stomach, and he closed the distance between the two of you to give you a chaste kiss on your nose before grinning mischievously. “Like right now?” 

You raised your eyebrows in silent surprise before laughing playfully, rolling over onto him before taking his face in your hands to kiss him deeply. It was a sweet moment– tender, affectionate, and heartwarming. It only ceased when you let go of his cheeks to move down his larger body, already itching to put your hands to better use. 

The only thing that stopped Sebastian from staying holed up within the warm, comfortable confines of your bedroom with you forever was the imminent arrival of Monday, but Saturday and Sunday were days well spent. You were rather disappointed when your time together came to an end– enough so that you actually pouted when Sebastian had slid out from beneath the covers to get ready for work. Thankfully though, the Archivist was as unwilling as you were to call it quits after everything, and following a heated, lengthy kiss, he promised to come back as soon as he was able. 

It only took him eight hours to find himself back in your bed, but you knew then that it would be impossible to stay away from him for very long from here on out. 

dude yessss I looove alice in chains no one else I know listens to them, I just love music I could listen to my playlists on repeat forever!! Do you design your own tattoos at all? Or is this your first one??

trying to motivate myself to be a little more active here, i want to discover some new writeblrs to follow!! feel free to reach out if you wanna!

i'm particularly interested if you...

🎧 write adult fiction, especially literary fiction, horror (gothic or otherwise), gothic romance, fantasy, or really anything with a gritty/emotional feel

🎧 like any bands from the 90s grunge scene (or 80s hard rock) (i can and will yap for days)

🎧 like vampires, pirates, or cowboys

🎧 are a fellow college student (we can struggle together!!)

even if we don't have any of this in common, i'd love to chat anyway! hopefully this finds some folks <3

Ruined ✩ Bob Reynolds

Pairings: Dom!Bob Reynolds x Thunderbolts Teammate!Reader

Warnings: +18 SMUT MINORS DNI. no use of y/n. secret hookups, armory sex, unprotected p in v, praise kink, power play, slight sub!bob energy but make it neeeedddyyyyy and feral, desperate!bob, dominant!reader, interrupted sex, yelena being yelena, begging, orgasm denial (sort of), overstimulation, dirty talk.

Summary: The Thunderbolt's press tour is a fucking disaster—Valentina's controlling, the team’s a mess, and Bob Reynolds looks at you like he’s one second away from losing his mind. When you catch him pacing the armory alone, you take what you want. But when you tell him to stay quiet and be good... Bob doesn’t stay quiet. And he definitely doesn’t stay good.

Word count: ~4k

Author's note: need bob reynolds to absolutely destroy me. can't even think or breathe cause he's taking up space in my mind. living in my head rent free and i am not complaining. I'm loooovvvinnnggg these two so much, might make more shots with them cause what the hell???? the dynamic thooooo!!! love me some dom and sub bob <3333333 he's so babygirl i can't take it anymore.

masterlist.

"Quiet, Bob."

The words came out as a whisper, but the threat in them made Bob Reynolds shiver under your touch. His back hit the cold armory wall with a clang, head tilting back, mouth already parted on a moan. His shirt was god knows where—somewhere between the racks of rifles and dusty, outdated StarkTech. Your mouth was on his, tongue sliding deep, fingers fisting his curls like you needed an anchor. And Bob? He was already halfway gone.

It had been a long, brutal week.

Valentina had decided that the Thunderbolts—the shiny New Avengers—needed a rebranding for a more "palatable" public. And what better way than a grueling, nonstop, goddamn press tour?

You were paraded like collectibles. Forced smiles. Posed photos. Tactical suits are tailored to make you look sleek. Heroes for the modern age, like she'd said.

Like a fucking boy band.

You were all lined up and put on display like action figure dolls.

"Smile for the cameras," she'd coo, pacing in front of you like a general inspecting her soldiers. "We're selling salvation, not trauma. Wipe that frown off your face, Bucky."

Bucky didn’t even flinch. Just stared through her, arms crossed, his metal hand twitching like it wanted to be anywhere else. Or wrapped around her throat.

Valentina didn’t stop there.

“You,” she snapped at you during the third press op, finger jabbing the air like it might actually hit you. “Need to look grateful, sweetheart. Do you know what I’m paying to make you likable? Not that you aren’t—you’re a doll, really—but come on now, you have to stop glaring at the children like you want to throw them into traffic.”

It was all bullshit. She’d even made Bob do interviews. Bob, whose voice cracked anytime someone looked at him too long.

Yelena had muttered something in Russian that was definitely a curse and didn't even try to smile.

Alexei had laughed too loudly during a morning show segment that made the host flinch, and a lighting rig tripped over.

Ava vanished in the middle of a red carpet appearance—literally phased through the floor and didn’t return for hours.

Walker kept trying to one-up Bucky in interviews. "Sure, Barnes is a legend," he'd say, clapping his shoulder, "but some of us chose to be heroes."

Of course, you snorted a little bit too loud. Loud enough for the mic to catch it. Loud enough for Walker to glare at you and Bucky to smirk.

And Mel? Poor Mel had to endure Valentina's bickering, forcing all of you to pose for pictures while muttering apologies like there was no tomorrow.

You were the first one to be asked for solo shots in the new tactical gear.

"Just a few poses," Valentina said, flashing a big, bright PR smile. "You wear it so well. We want something sleek. Powerful. Sexy, but not, like, thirst trap sexy, you know?"

You didn't miss the way Bob watched. He didn't say a word; he barely moved. But his eyes? They devoured you. Dark, wide, hungry. Like he was seconds from losing it in front of everyone.

Later that day, you'd found him in the dark armory, pacing like a caged animal. Shoulder tense. Breathing shallow.

So you pushed him up against the wall. Fist in his hair. Mouth on his.

And now—

“You have no idea what you do to me,” he growled against your lips, teeth grazing. His hands were gripping your hips tightly, grinding against you, still half-covered by his pants but already leaking, already thick and throbbing for you. “The way you looked in that suit—I couldn’t fucking breathe.”

You rolled your hips against his, slow and punishing. “You could’ve said something.”

“I could’ve snapped.” He laughed, breathless, voice fraying. “I nearly did.”

He didn't even make it to the bench.

By the time you shoved him down, Bob was already panting, pupils blown, knees buckling. He hit the floor with a groan, legs spread, cock heavy and flushed. You were on him in seconds—knees framing his hips, hands pressing down on his chest, owning him.

You thanked God for wearing a dress.

He didn't even see your panties come off. Just blinked and they were gone, tossed somewhere on the floor. His pants already shoved down far enough, his cock already free.

He looked up at you like you were something holy. Divine. Dangerous. Like he'd beg to be burned if it meant you kept touching him like this.

Then you reached between you, lined him up, and sank down in one thrust. He filled you up completely.

Bob swore, loud and wrecked—“Fuckfuckfuck—” his head hit the floor, back arching, eyes wide and pleading.

“God, you feel so fucking good—tight—perfect—I can’t—”

You clapped your hand over his mouth.

“Quiet, Bob.”

He whimpered behind your palm. His hands were everywhere—your hips, your ass, your thighs—like he didn’t know what to hold onto first.

You started to move—fast and rough, giving neither of you time to adjust. You didn’t want slow. Didn’t want sweet. You wanted to feel it. The way he stretched you open, filled every inch, the way his cock hit deep, perfect with every thrust.

Bob moaned into your palm, loud and choked and shameless. His hips bucked up hard, matching your rhythm, chasing every thrust like he couldn’t help himself. His grip on your ass tightened, spreading you wider for him, pulling you down harder.

Your name spilled from his lips again and again, muffled and wrecked.

“You’re so—fuck,—you’re so perfect—need this for so fucking long. I can't even fucking think when you're on me like this—God, yesssss"

You leaned down, dragging your lips along his jaw.

“You like being under me like this?”

He nodded, feverish, muffled praise tumbling behind your hand.

“Mhm—yes—fuck, please—you don’t know what you do to me,” he breathed against your palm, words falling out between gasps. “Been thinking about this—every night—every time you walked past in that suit, I wanted to fall to my knees—wanted to ruin you or be ruined, didn’t even fucking care—just needed you.”

You grinned, filthy and pleased. “And now you’re ruined under me.”

He whined, hips snapping up with such force that it knocked a loud moan right out of you.

“You feel that?” you gasped, rolling your hips in a slow, dragging circle. “That’s how deep you are. You’re so deep, Bob. I can feel you so deep inside me. God—you feel so fucking good."

“You’re so fucking perfect,” he moaned, eyes blown wide, hands gripping your thighs like a man drowning. “Such a good girl. God, you take me so fucking well—look at you—riding me like I belong to you—”

“You do,” you growled, dragging your nails down his chest. “You’re mine right now. You hear me?”

“Yes,” he gasped. “Yes, fuck—yours—always—please god don’t fucking stop—”

You clapped your hand over his mouth again, smirking down at him.

“Quiet, Bob. Don't you dare fucking come until I tell you to."

He whimpered behind your palm, body trembling, trying so hard to behave, to stay still, to not fall apart completely under your touch. But you kept moving—fast, hard, relentless. Your thighs burned. His cock throbbed deep inside you with every stroke.

And just when he was seconds away from breaking—

Hiss. The door slid open.

“Oh my fucking god.”

Yelena’s voice hit like a bullet.

You froze. Bob’s eyes flew open, pure panic, still fully inside you.

Yelena stood frozen in the doorway, eyes wide, hand flying to her face but only half-covering her view.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she muttered. “The armory? Are you both deranged? This is where we keep weapons, not—whatever the hell this is.”

Bob let out a muffled moan under your hand, utterly betrayed by his body.

Yelena pointed without looking. “Oh my god, this can't be happening. You’re—on top of him. And he’s—Jesus Christ, Bob!”

“Yelena!” you snapped, glaring over your shoulder.

“Alright, alright!” She held up both hands, backing away. “I’ll leave you to your... deep reconnaissance.” She snorted. “Real in-depth work going on here.”

“Yelena! GET OUT!”

“Leaving! Leaving!” she laughed, ducking out as the door hissed shut again. “Just make sure no one ends up disarmed.”

Your heart was still pounding when the door slid shut again, sealing Yelena—and her mouth—on the other side. You didn’t move, still straddling Bob, still full of him, flushed and breathless.

“You okay?” you asked, teasing, one brow raised. “She didn’t scar you for life, did she?”

Bob’s chest was heaving beneath you. He blinked up at you. Something shifted in his eyes.

“No,” he said—low, steady. Then, with startling force, he sat up.

“Bob—?”

His hands gripped your waist, hard. The next second, you were on your back, sprawled across the cool floor, his body covering yours. He was still inside you. Still rock hard. Still throbbing.

“You tease me like that,” he growled, voice rough and frayed, “and expect me to behave?”

Your breath hitched.

“You told me to be quiet. Told me not to come.”

His mouth was at your throat now, kissing, biting, breathing heat against your skin.

“You think I’m gonna ask again?”

You clawed at his back, nails dragging over sweat-slick skin.

“Bob—”

“No,” he snapped, thrusting hard. You gasped, your back arching off the floor. “You don’t get to be in charge now.”

He fucked into you like a man possessed—deep, fast, relentless. All the praise from before was gone, replaced by low, hungry grunts and the sound of skin on skin.

“You wanted this,” he hissed against your ear. “Wanted me like this. Loud. Messy. Mine.”

You moaned, wrapping your legs around him, trying to pull him deeper, and he gave it to you—over and over again.

“You feel that?” he growled, pounding into you. “That’s not deep. This—this is deep.”

You couldn’t even form words. Just gasps. Moans. Scratches across his back.

And he loved it.

He didn’t stop until you were shaking, whimpering beneath him, your control shattered.

He leaned in, panting against your cheek, his voice a rough whisper.

“Now tell me who’s fucking ruined.”

ughhhh yesssss

Bucky knowing at least 31 languages according to CACW, super serum brain enhancements and the fact he learned Xhosa in Wakanda, leads me to believe he must have the fucking gnarliest of language blurring. You know when you can't seem to figure out how to word something in one language so you skip over to a different one but wait no one knows that...

I also don't think English would be Bucky's default language anymore. It's his birth language, sure, but Russian is probably the language he defaults to now after 80 years right?

So if Bucky's ever delirious for whatever reason, extreme tiredness, magic, super drugs or whatever who knows, do we think he talks in the most insane blend of languages, does he say a sentence in Japanese then switch to Korean and then to Polish, do we think he'd point blank say "I'm sorry I don't speak English" in English to his English speaking friends or teammates because he thinks in Russian and about fifteen other languages before he gets to English, and then goes "oh wait I do" or...?

About this Blog

Welcome!! My name is MJ and this is my little archive of hyper fixations! (Seriously, I cycle through media like it's no joke— it might be a problem . . .) I'm 21, I work full time and take care of my family and I'm also working on starting my own art business.

Over the years, writing (and reading) has been crucial to my mental health and something I've always turned to for comfort. I've lost touch while life has gotten in the way and I've become too busy to truly immerse myself into my own creativity. But, I really want to get back into writing and find that passion again— sharing it with like minded people is the best way that I know how. Come with me for the ride?

I love receiving asks and I'm usually open to any suggestions and requests, don't be afraid to be friendly!!

I won't tolerate any sort of negativity on this blog, think before you post.

Minors do NOT interact as I often reblog other writers' NSFW work and may even begin to write some of my own in the future. I will block anyone without their age posted in their bio. Thank you for understanding :)

Remember you are in charge or your own media consumption.

Get To Know Me MORE!

I hate choosing a favorite color because genuinely it changes every day, but a notable mention is definitely a lovely dark cherry/maroon red or a deep plum purple ♡

Lately, I've really been into the ACOTAR series, Arcane, Supernatural, Marvel, Harry Potter and Hogwarts Legacy (fuck JKR tho wtf is wrong with her), Stranger Things, Star Wars, TASM, and plenty of other fandoms

My top favorite movies include (but aren't limited to), Brandon Lee's The Crow, The Last Unicorn, Interview With The Vampire, and Pulp Fiction

I listen to a lot of Radiohead, Weezer, The Cranberries, Mazzy Star, Sugar Ray, Arctic Monkeys, MCR, Deftones, Ghost, No Doubt, and TV Girl (manipulator music fr, smh)

I have two kittens and a dog and they are the sweetest ever ♡

this early dancing (2/2) | sirius black

Sirius rested his hand at your neck and you felt yourself seize up as he pushed his thumb into your throat. He was gentle, sliding up slow until the tip of his index finger was pressed into the underside of your jaw. He stretched his hand out over your neck. You swallowed, which he surely felt, and then he moved his hand to the space behind your ear, thumb pulling your lips into a wonky smile. "Smile, beautiful."

You smiled. He nodded approvingly and kissed the corner where his thumb wasn't, head tilted in, before pulling away like nothing had transpired.

summary you and Sirius navigate the dizzying affection between you both while trying to keep it secret [14k]

warnings fluff, smut, marauders era, mutual pining, idiots in love, she/her pronouns used for reader, fem!reader

read part one here

You woke up to somebody knocking loudly at the door. You flinched, disentangling yourself from Sirius' iron tight hold and remembered you were wearing his shirt. "Shit. Shit. Fuck," you cursed in a whisper. Sirius didn't even stir.

You pulled your dirtied pyjama bottoms from the day before yesterday on and cracked open the door. Lily stood on the landing, arms crossed, gaze quizzical.

"We want to go into town. You two are the last ones up."

"Right, I'll get him up," you said, cringing at your appearance.

She peered over your shoulder at Sirius, at the duvet you'd thrown off of you both, at the body sized space facing his chest. She looked back at you and zeroed in on your shirt before she shut her eyes, holding her weight up with her hand on the doorway. "You didn't."

You shuffled from foot to foot. "What?"

"Tell me you didn't."

"I didn't."

Despite asking for it, your denial rubbed her the wrong way.

"Do you think I'm blind?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"I tried the door. It was locked."

"Sirius is serious about sleep privacy."

She groaned and tipped her head to the sky, ginger curls bouncing.

“Oh my merlin."

"I like him, Lily," you said quietly, leaning in very close.

When she deigned to look at you again her eyes were softer. "I know you do. I only hope you know what you're doing. Do you know what you're doing?"

"Not yet," you said, clearing your throat.

"Well," she said, tucking a curl behind her ear, "you have another two days to work it out."

"Right. Two days."

You both looked at each other, Lily solemn and you embarrassed. The holiday was taking place over a long, 4 day weekend. The first day, Friday, you'd spent mostly in the car as you and James has spearheaded the no magic rule of your holiday; though no one was really listening, James had insisted on the drive from the Manor to his family cottage. Day two, yesterday. Today was day three.

She peered over your shoulder again and then looked straight in your eye

"What's he like?"

You giggled breathlessly, infecting her with your glee until she was laughing too.

"That good?"

You nodded multiple times, feeling heat climbing your face to roost at the tips of your ears. "Yeah."

She smiled and then shrugged. "Well. We're young, right? Any mistakes should happen now.”

You felt the word mistake like a jab in the side but continued smiling. "Yeah."

She sensed a potential misstep and her smile wavered apologetically.

"I'll wake him up," you said quickly, nodding your head towards the sleeping ravenette. "We won't be long."

Lily said, "Alrighty," and made her way across the landing and down the stairs. You trusted her to keep your secret for now, turning from the door which you'd closed to slink back into bed by Sirius, stealing time you didn't have.

He groaned and wrapped his arm back around you, the weight of it across your front still unfamiliar despite a whole night of checking it was really his arm. He pulled you close, breathing in the back of your neck. You felt your pulse hammering in your chest, a rush of adrenaline coursing through you as you remembered what you'd done the night before. How he'd been – after the photograph he'd persuaded you into the shower and had continued his manhandling, pressing you to the cool tile. He'd dropped to his knees, spread your legs.

Sirius' arm came to life and snapped you from your reverie, hand moving up your chest and neck to turn your face to his. He was blinking, bleary eyes already full of a tenderness that turned your stomach. You turned in his arms until you were practically nose to nose.

"Was that the door?"

"Lily. Everyone's going up town," you clued him in, tucking a misbehaving strand of hair behind his ear. He closed his eyes again at your touch.

"Town," he mumbled, drifting off. You giggled quietly and set your hand on his face, fingernail scratching lightly down his cheek. "What for?"

"Just to look, I think. Maybe dinner… Sirius, we really have to get up, everybody's waiting."

He groaned one more time and then forced his eyes open. His hand came up the back of your head to lead your forehead to his mouth, where he planted a firm, chaste kiss. Then, appeased, he tumbled out of bed to look for something to wear. You watched him stretch distractedly, the late morning light catching his body in stripes through the curtains and painting him the blinding white you often imagined him as. Glowing, he pulled a fresh t-shirt on and discarded the one he'd slept in as well as his boxers. You looked away, eyes drifting to your own made bed.

No wonder Lily had clocked on so fast.

You moaned and curled in tightly on yourself. You would've liked to work out for yourself what had happened last night before the others found out.

"What's the matter with you?" Sirius asked, scraping the front parts of his hair into a bobble.

"Some twat defiled me last night."

He gasped, legitimately shocked. "Defiled. What a way with words you have."

You squinted at him.

He chuckled, meandering over to your side. He sat by your knees and pulled his rings from the bedside table, sliding them on slowly and then setting his large hand over your hip. "C'mon, sweetheart. They're waiting for us."

You inhaled to say something and then shut your mouth.

"What?" he asked.

You weighed your words carefully before you spoke. "Kiss me?"

He grinned, leaning down until your mouths were barely an inch apart. "We haven't brushed our teeth," he said, and then pulled away.

"Get dressed," he encouraged, patting your shoulder and standing, "'nd then I'll kiss you. Deal?"

You resented his rejection and scrambled into a cheerful summer outfit, a midi skirt and a graphic t-shirt torn asymmetrically to expose your navel. You barreled into the bathroom and saw Sirius already at the sink, smelling of deodorant and cologne with a toothbrush between his lips. You did as he had, deodorising and spraying perfume on your neck and behind your ears, toothbrush in hand.

Sirius spat into the sink and wiped the back of his mouth, running the water.

"Think there'll be breakfast?"

You laughed, feeling toothpaste at the corner of your mouth. "Hungry?"

"Worked up an appetite."

You spit and washed your mouth out with a handful of water, trying not to care that he was watching you dribble. He'd seen worse, at this point.

"What do you fancy?" you asked him, squaring your hair up and wetting a flannel to quickly dab your face clean.

He sidled up into your space, hand going straight to your chin.

You looked up at him and felt apprehension deep in your marrow, but he didn't move to kiss you. You pouted at him, feeling hard done by. He leaned forward to peck your pout, expression all cool and collected when he pulled away, refusing to show if you’d had any effect on him.

You hated his guts sometimes.

You'd sorted your purse out for the day and was just about ready, pulling the door open when Sirius reached out over your head and shut it, effectively pinning you between his chest and the door.

"What?" you asked.

He looked at you steadily.

"What?" you asked again, giggling nervously.

Sirius rested his hand at your neck and you felt yourself seize up as he pushed his thumb into your throat. He was gentle, sliding up slow until the tip of his index finger was pressed into the underside of your jaw. He stretched his hand out on your neck. You swallowed, which he surely felt, and then he moved his hand to that space behind your ear, thumb pulling your lips into a wonky smile.

"Smile, beautiful."

You smiled. He nodded approvingly and kissed the corner where his thumb wasn't, head tilting in, and then he pulled away like nothing had transpired.

"Ready?" he asked you. You nodded, dazed.

-

The sun was especially cruel today, you thought, taking shelter under the awning of a fragrant gelato shop. You stood as close to Sirius as you could without one, being clingy and two, being obvious, breathing in the comforting drifts of vanilla and cream.

"What flavour will you get?" Mary asked you. You got up on your tiptoes to see over the small crowd at the front of the shop.

"I'm not sure, there's too many."

"I'm gonna get strawberry," she said. "And maybe pistachio, if they have it. And rocky road. And salted caramel."

Marlene snorted. "You don't want much, then."

Mary wiped her hands down her lilac sundress, model hands pressing into her waist, wrists adorned with silver bangles that clinked when she moved. Dorcas returned from looking at the menu in the window and pushed her chin over Mary’s shoulder. “I agree with Mary.”

“Did you even hear what she said?” Marlene asked.

Dorcas smirked. “Nope.”

A lover’s quarrel ensued. You looked out the corner of your eye at Sirius and found he was doing the same thing, and you both had to look away to stop from laughing.

Lily, Remus and Emmeline had stationed themselves at a cafe table a little ways away, the latter two looking positively miserable at such warm weather, while Frank and Alice had wandered off an hour ago. James emerged from the crowd with his hands full of ice cream pots and a big fuck off cone covered in all the trappings, a flake and nuts and a maraschino cherry.

You eyed it, in awe at its gravity defying physics.

“Wonder who that one’s for,” Sirius murmured, words for your ears only. “He’s irredeemably whipped.” And then, when James kept the cone for himself, his roaring laughter, which warmed your chest. James looked over at Sirius and grinned, soft scoop on the tip of his nose, stark against his brown skin.

Lily was rolling her eyes at the whole debacle, a smaller tub of gelato in her hands.

You looked between your friends happily. Only the ones who’d heeded your advice remained unburned. Emmeline was red from head to toe and complaining of it miserably, where Remus was much more sun-kissed. James’ colour had warmed where Lily, who had let him slather her regularly in sunscreen, was still pale as milk with a dusting of pink over her face where she’d forgotten.

Dorcas and Mary had charged into the shop holding hands now the line had receded, Marlene unhappily at their heels.

“Wanna change your bet?” Sirius asked, bumping your shoulder lightly.

“Wanna change yours?” you fired back. He met your eyes and said nothing, though he was smiling something awful. “James wouldn’t let either of us. God forbid he’s right, I don’t have the galleons.”

“I’ll bankroll you,” he said.

“So generous.”

“Not the first time I’ve heard it, funnily enough.”

“Yeah?” you asked, pressing your lips together to hide your smile. “And who’s telling you these things? I’d love to meet them, compliment their ability to lie so well as to trick you, loverboy.”

“Ah, that’s where you’re going wrong.” He leaned down to talk into the shell of your ear, sounding insufferably full of himself. “Can’t lie with their mouths full.”

You chortled, pushing him away. “Girls are good fakers.”

He nodded, looking up very quickly and then back at you, struggling to hold back his own smile. “I’ll have to keep my eye on you, then, next time. Lest you pull the wool over my eyes.”

Next time.

You nodded your head as if it were the most agreeable course of action. “I’m an adept liar. Even with my mouth full.”

“You don’t mind if I test that theory?”

“Anytime you want.”

His eyes had darkened, pupils dilating. You didn’t think it was the sunlight. “I’ll hold you to it.”

You held his stare for only a few moments before you were looking away, shy again. You couldn’t understand where your flirting had come from, only that it had you crossing your legs where you stood. You looked into the parlour to avoid Sirius’ eyes and saw the line had depleted now to only your friends, who were dawdling as Mary glanced over the ice creams, sorbets and gelatos with her hands spread over the glass as she made up her mind.

You started into the shop without saying anything and he followed, knuckles brushing yours for a split second as you walked. Pins and needles traversed the skin of your hands, eating up your wrist. You screwed your hand into a fist.

“What do you want?” he asked.

“Will you choose for me?” you requested, having thought little about it.

He grinned. “Sure will. You wanna go wait outside?”

It was freezing in the parlour. You weighed your options; the edging on unpleasant cold with Sirius or the sweltering summer heat with the rest of your friends.

“I’ll stay,” you said impishly, looking down at your sandals.

You could see his arm out the corner of your eye, tanned and dewed with sweat.  You were sweating yourself and still hoped for it to get warmer, excited for the opportunities higher temperatures might bring about, like shirtless Sirius, and sweaty Sirius, and maybe even cranky Sirius.

Mary had decided and was now being served two pots with 5 different flavours of gelato. You huffed a laugh through your nose, the situation made far funnier by Marlene’s clear lack of patience. Dorcas was crunching on a wafer loudly at her side. You missed Sirius ordering, much too distracted by Mary’s reception and review of each flavour, and even more so when she tried to get Marlene to taste some off of the same spoon.

You turned back, “Marl won’t even share a spoon with Mary, there’s no way they’re going out,” you informed him, turning back to find he had his wallet out and had already paid. You rummaged through your bag for your purse. “Wait, Sirius, I’ll get you back.”

“You’re alright.”

He clapped you on the shoulder in a friendly manner and then massaged the skin there in a way that was decidedly not. You listened for the sounds of the mystery throuple exiting the shop and turned around to make sure before bending your neck so your cheek rubbed against Sirius’ hand on your shoulder. His ring scratched your cheek.

“What’d you get us?”

“It’s a surprise.”

You hummed, turning your face to press your mouth into his fingers, allowing yourself a full minute of this.

Sirius squeezed your shoulder and pulled you into his side, running his hand with pressure down your arm. You turned to face him, hoping he could read the domestic contentment dripping from your every pore. Something about his returned look made you think he could.

It was an insane pleasure, this stolen moment between you both. You’d often thought that the whole, ‘you make me feel like we’re the only two people on earth’ thing was a total farce, love dramatised by fools who didn’t know better. Now, you’d admit (perhaps as a newly-stated idiot), that loving someone and feeling it returned was a transcendent feeling: the kind of feeling that had you one second standing in an ice cream parlour and the next second standing totally alone with your love for company — and it didn’t feel lonely, despite it all.

And then somebody spoke and you were tethered, back in your shoes, meeting eyes with an apron clad shop worker who handed Sirius two ice cream cones with a big customer service smile.

They were startlingly pink, besides the light brown waffle cones. Pink ice cream, pink wafer, pink chocolate straws, topped off with matching maraschino cherries.

You gawked at them.

“What are these?” you asked.

He pointed at the scoop. “That’s raspberry sorbet.”

“Right, but they’re pink?” you asked softly, adoringly, digging through your bag for your camera. “Can I take a picture of you?”

He looked like his first impulse was to say no. He, with a chagrined expression, stepped back with the ice cream counter and chalkboard menus behind him. You moved back to fit it all in frame, smiling at tough, cool Sirius not knowing which way to pose.

“Smile, baby,” you said. The pet name caught him off guard and had the desired effect, a brilliant, carefree smile overshadowing his unassuming stance.

You snapped a photo of him and cheered.

You put your camera away and let him hand off your cone, seeing it now up-close. “Wow! The wafer’s a heart,” you said, eyes wide.

“It’s a Pink-Heart cone,” he informed you, pulling his maraschino cherry free to push gently into your cone. You licked the sorbet, surprised at its refreshing, fruity flavour.

“You didn’t want something cooler? They have your favourite,” you said, glancing at the tray of vanilla brownie. “We never see that these days.”

“I thought we should match,” he said, uncharacteristically quiet. His cheeks were dusted pink as the sorbet.

You stretched up to kiss him as quickly as you could.

“Thank you,” you said, lips cold on his warm cheek. “I’m gonna get you some vanilla brownie by the time the week's up, Black.”

-

You emerged from the parlour after finishing your matching cones and nobody batted an eyelash, eager to begin the walk to the indoor market before the sun was any higher in the sky. James was fanning Lily with a menu he’d nabbed at the parlour as they walked, Lily in the throes of a deep conversation about meditation and spiritual  healing with Marl while James was turned the other way, shit-talking Sirius.

You were dawdling at his side, talking to Frank about something he couldn’t quite catch in between James’ intense conversation.

He liked how you gravitated to his side before you remembered yourself, how you fell into his step and then shook yourself. Sirius knew you were both distracted to the point of suspicion but neither of you could help it, apparently. Finally, you bumped into his side and apologised, blushing.

“You can bump into me anytime you want, sweetheart,” he said, throwing his arm around your shoulder. And, as he’d thought, everyone was so used to his flirtatious behaviour that it flew under the radar.

You relaxed under his touch and continued your conversation with Frank with no further incident. James was glaring at him when he turned back, feeling his smile slip.

James was looking at him as if to say, caught you, dickhead.

“What do you think? Yes or no?” he asked. Sirius scrambled to think of what his friend had said moments before, and thought, fuck it. Fifty-fifty chance I get this right.

“Of course, mate. Yes, all the way.”

James grinned a shit-eating grin. “You think Bulgaria has a real chance of winning this season?”

Sirius winced. “No,” he admitted. “No. I definitely do not.”

“That’s what I thought.”

James pushed his glasses up at the side with one knuckle, frowning. Sirius watched as James gaze travelled across his arm and to your shoulders, watched him study your face and your touching skin. He levelled Sirius with a shockingly uncharacteristic glare, and Sirius wasn’t surprised when James thrust the menu at Lily and grabbed his arm, pulling him away to the side.

“We both need a wee,” James lied haphazardly.

With little more than that he’d sequestered and harangued Sirius within an inch of his life, totally furious. “You absolute wanker. I tell you everything. I told you about my first erection. I told you about my second erection, which, if you remember, was very sexually confusing. I told you abou-“

“Your third erection?”

James scowled.

“You did.”

“I know I did, arsehole. That’s literally my point.”

Sirius leaned against the warm limestone wall of the charity shop James had dragged him to, now separated from the main group with no clue where they were besides the market, which was huge. They’d be lucky to find them again. Sirius wished desperately for a cigarette, and suddenly James was offering him one.

“I’m on holiday,” James sniffed at Sirius’ silent judgement, passing him the lighter.

Sirius lit his cig and kicked one leg up on the wall behind him. James attempted the same, slipped, and scowled deeper. “My point was,” he said, clutching the box of cigarettes in his hands so tightly Sirius worried he’d crush them, “we tell each other everything. So: you’re a wanker.”

“I wasn’t sure what to tell you. I’m still not sure.”

“Have you slept together?”

Sirius said nothing, flicking ash on the ground in feigned disinterest. James groaned and took his silence for what it was.

“Well, you could start there!”

“James, shall I tell you when I need to piss, as well, or are we allowing a small margin for privacy?” James looked so hurt at this that Sirius sighed and admitted defeat. “I’m sorry.”

“I know,” James muttered. “Still an idiot.”

“Mm.”

“You didn’t tell Moony, did you?”

“What? When have I ever played favourites?”

“You’ve slept with two out of three of your best friends. It’s not unheard off.” The pair descended into laughter which itself descended into hacking coughs. Sirius stubbed the cigarette out under his shoe. James continued his joke. “Seriously, I’m getting insecure at this point. You only like the quiet types, or what? I can be whatever you want, baby.”

Sirius shrugged, chuckling, and found that James was right. He did like the quiet types, and that surprised him. Not that his fancying you was ever in question, but still.

“I’ll say - I imagined you with a proper bombshell.”

“Fuck off,” there was real heat behind this, ”she’s hot.”

“Sure. She’d be the hottest dame in the library.”

“Cunt.”

James’ startled laughter echoed down the streets as they set off walking again in the direction everyone else had gone.

“She’s a bombshell. A real stunner,” he argued, thinking of you in his jacket, in the shower, in his sleep shirt. “She’s killer.”

“Right, don’t get your cock out. I take it back. And it’s not that I don’t think she’s fit, it’s that she’s - Y/N. Very unassuming.”

“There was nothing unassuming about that bikini,” Sirius defended you.

“Margin of privacy, or something?”

Sirius knew he had gone red, feeling a little sleazy. He cleared his throat. “Your girlfriend is literally the smartest person we know.”

“Yeah, she is,” James agreed dreamily. “And she’s a bombshell.”

“Right. That solidifies my point. You can look freakishly hot and frequent the library.”

“My god, man, are we still on this one? I already took it back.”

“You’re a bitch.”

And with that the market came into view. The outside was busy, which made Sirius think the inside would be tenfold, herds of families and dogs on their leads could be heard from a mile away. The crowds of customers flanked each merchant, most already with a bag of goods under their arm or grease-stained brown paper bag in their fingers. Sirius could already smell the bakery on the air, salt and fresh bread and something sweet, and thought maybe he’d find you there, browsing the sweets, looking for something to share.

There was a bullet silver burger van camped out at one end of the market with a line that stretched to the other. The fragrance of hot oil and searing beef patty had both himself and Prongs looking at each other cheekily. Neither attempted to reason with the other as they joined the queue, and though both felt a shot of guilt for abandoning the group on a second excursion they couldn't be blamed, Sirius thought, half an hour later with a full stomach. We're only men. Boys, even. What were we to do? Ignore hunger?

Sirius and James pushed past stalls full of secondhand books that he knew you'd probably perused already and a man who boasted to have the newest selection of tapes, a tarp layed out with what must've been a thousand vinyl records tiled over each other like domino's that'd fallen flat, even a mobile home full of stuffed animals and porcelain dolls.

If the warm roar of the outside was anything to undertake, the inside was worse and better in different ways. Worse, much worse, to have people packed like sardines; shoulder to shoulder the people walked, prams bashing like bumper cars into the legs of dawdlers, kids screaming bloody murder anywhere you looked.

The first indoor feature was a man and what seemed to be an opening like a rabbit's burrow down into the room, toy cars piled floor to ceiling at the walls in their mint boxes. It gave the room an illusion of shrinking, he thought, and was likely due an imminent cave in. Sirius wouldn't go in there, to James' great disappointment. He ragged him for his cowardice until he was distracted by a stand of handmade copper trees endowed with sweeping boughs of crushed crystal coloured warm orange, cerulean blue, raspberry pink and a sunset purple so light that the light that shone through it took on no colour, where the others acted like stained glass, catching the light where it could to arc lines across the table.

"Ooh, Lily would find this so darling."

Sirius rolled his eyes at his ridiculous best friend, turning from the admittedly gorgeous trees to look, sceptical, at a series of bird shaped statuettes similarly made up of wire where fabric took the place of crystals to create feathers. He wasn't overly fond and moved on again to the next table, which was laden with velvet boxes tucked carefully with rings.

Most were of the time, natural, raw gemstone set in silver and gold. Some were more proper, a general everyday man's engagement or promise ring. He looked at these with no illusion of anything but still a general thrumming fondness that maybe one day he'd be looking over a kindred selection for something for you. And then he felt so absurd he forced himself to turn to the other side of the wide aisle to a different stall. It was from the same vendor but this table was stacked with earrings. The large majority were silver or sterling, shaped after simple things like stars, hearts, ladybugs and kittens.

Like the rings, there was a velvet tray of gemstone earrings as well. Roughly half were silver, the other gold, each set with shining stones. Though he had no clue how authentic any of them were, the sign boasted amethyst, jasper, carnelian, dark lapis lazuli and jade. The jade piqued his interest. He racked his eyes over the studs until he'd zeroed in on green, marbled cabochons set in gold. A spiky yellow sticky note just underneath said 'REAL JADE AVAILABLE, SEE ATTENDANT. IMITATION JADE ON DISPLAY'.

That answered his question about authenticity

When he'd finished at the jewellery stand he found James, who was where he'd left him, haggling over a small copper tree.

"Prongs," he said disapprovingly.

"Yeah, alright," James said, opening his wallet to pay the vendor in full.

"You've more money than half the people here put together and you're trying to rip off a struggling artist," Sirius said scornfully as they moved on, though it wasn't fully serious. James grinned, shaking the small tree in his hands and pausing to listen to the small sounds it made.

"It's not about the money," James said, tree still up to his ear, "it's about the haggling itself."

"Surely you can draw entertainment from other facets of your life? Like a normal person?"

"What do you suggest?" he said devilishly.

"Let’s find the sorry lot first before you start planning any jokes," Sirius suggested.

James nodded sagely. "Yes, yes. Brilliant idea once again, my handsome friend."

"Handsome!"

"Fiendishly so."

"You're not half bad yourself," Sirius said, rolling his eyes.

James needled into his path, silly, melodious tree still held higher than it had any reason to be held. He was close enough to kiss, which had been the intention, openly trying to feel Sirius up a touch as the butchers came into view.

"Maybe we should get something for dinner," James thought aloud, forgetting his seduction.

Sirius pulled his necklace from under the fabric of his shirt to run between his fingers, biting his bottom lip thoughtlessly. "I don't know," he said, thinking it over.

James nodded as if Sirius had said something more and said himself agreeably, "Right - what if Lily had the same idea. We rock home with enough for everyone and she's got double."

Sirius was peering over people's heads, searching for a familiar face. It was impossible to distinguish individuals from the fast moving crowds and he quickly gave up, flicking James square in the forehead.

James' hand came up to hit Sirius back and he caught it. "No need to get violent."

James tried again.

"Mate," Sirius laughed, having blocked him for a second time.

"You flicked me!"

"Yeah, cos it's your fault we don't know where anyone is."

"It's your fault for not telling me you're fucking Y/N!"

"You are?" Mary asked, wide eyed.

She'd appeared from the right, holding a pastry in a paper bag and looking very shocked at this revelation.

"No, Mary," Sirius said. Pleaded. Not no as in no, I'm not, but no as in good lord, please don't repeat that. No, as in, let the ground swallow me up where I stand.

She took a bite of her donut looking indelibly satisfied by this discovery.

The others were close behind her but not quite there yet. Sirius took the opportunity to stand crossly and spitefully on James' foot, pressing down with his heel. His mouth opened in a silent scream, and, after blinking rapidly, he hung his head. "I deserved that."

"You did. Where's Y/N?" Sirius imparted the first sentence on James and then the question to Remus, who was eating a chocolate donut. He chewed his treat slowly and made no effort to answer.

"She couldn't decide what to get," Lily provided, holding a bag out towards her boyfriend. "Oh, is that for me? We'll trade."

"She's that way?" Sirius asked, nodding.

"Yep. Enjoy your boy talk?" Lily asked him with a knowing smile, and fuck, did everyone know now?

"No. James got a semi. Super awkward," Sirius informed her solemnly.

He smiled to himself at the group's raucous laughter and set off to find you in the market, following the smell of toasted sugar until the bakery was in sight, a three-sided booth with a grill that was cooking freshly made Welsh cakes and scones. You were standing a little ways off, looking worriedly at the bulging paper bag in your hand, talking to yourself silently. You looked a vision, skin shining with the golden light streaking from the skylights, your hair a little messier than it had started this morning, lips hinting at a pout.

He'd managed to get toe to toe with you before you noticed him, and you jumped at someone suddenly in your space. When you realised it was him you smiled big, cleaving him effectively clean in two, before frowning.

"You scared me," you complained.

"I'm sorry," he said, so close he had to look down to talk to you.

You didn't mind his proximity, reaching up nonchalantly to push hair out of his eyes, bracelet slipping down your wrist.

"Did James rag you terribly?"

"Not really," he said, the small stresses of the day falling away as you spoke, "he was more interested in what's in my trousers than you, I'm afraid."

You were bemused, shaking your head. Your hand fell away from behind his ear to offer him the paper bag. "I wasn't sure what you wanted, so I got a couple."

He looked into the paper bag full of his favourites and kept his face expressionless, worried if he started smiling too often at you he might never stop.

"What's for you?"

"I haven't decided."

He looked at you carefully. "Do you want something now?"

You were bashful, "I really can't decide. They all look nice."

"Pick whatever you want and I'll get it."

"No way, you already got me ice cream."

"You got me these, so we're square."

"And if you buy me sweets we'll be unbalanced again."

You didn't win the argument, compromising in that you'd only let him get you your favourite one and nothing more, licking the crumbs from the corner of your mouth as you chewed. Neither of you had rushed to find the group again, content to lean against a sliver of bare wall opposite the bakery booth away from everybody for a little while.

"You're not gonna have one?" you asked, looking crestfallen.

He grimaced, stomach still swimming in grease. The burgers would stay a secret between him and James, but he'd rectify your expression.

"I'm saving them for after," he said, appeasing you with both hands smoothing flat the top of your head to your neck, holding you still to kiss the top of your head. "Thank you, sweetheart."

You nodded and went back to your treat looking a little starstruck, if he did say so himself, his hands coming to rest loosely over your shoulders. It was nice, to stand there listening to other people living their lives, an amicable silence between you both as you ate, occasionally looking up at him with something to say about a passerby.

When you finished you wiped your face with a napkin and moved a hand up to hold his forearm, looking deep in thought, eyes on your touching skin.

"What are you thinking?" he asked.

You looked like you might answer. He leaned down to hear you over the noise of the market but you never did end up saying anything, resting your cheek against his arm until you both figured you were stealing time.

Sirius led you to where your friends had last been. You'd hesitantly hooked your pinky finger through his as you walked, looking anywhere else but his face. He would've laughed at your shyness - he'd fucked you to the point of tears only last night - but he was endeared to you so deeply he couldn't summon up the sound. You dropped his hand when you reunited with your friends and was whisked away by Remus, to his disappointment. Lily laughed at this.

“You have been monopolising her,” she said pointedly. “She has other friends.”

“Not like me.”

Lily shrugged, grinning wickedly. “Guess not.”

“You spend too much time with James.”

“Says you.”

“There wasn’t a path for my life where I didn’t end up this way, Lilykins.”

She looked like she would disagree.

“I know this is a no magic holiday,” James whispered, looking in your general direction sheepishly, “but are we sure we can’t just apparate home now? I wish we’d brought the car.”

“The walk was good for us! And besides, what else could we have done all day?” Lily asked.

James descended on her, “I’m so glad you’ve asked that, love. I was thinking-“

Lily slapped her hand over his mouth.

“We’ve talked about this.”

Sirius tuned out of that conversation in a brilliant show of willpower and found his eyes on your back. He then shook himself terribly and thought, dear lord, I’m worse than James.

“Where are we going now?” he asked quite loudly, hoping to catch everyone’s attention. It worked to a degree as everybody stopped walking, though if it answered any questions was up to opinion.

“We're starving,” Mary said.

“You didn’t eat, did you?” Lily asked.

James smiled easily. “No ma’am.”

“Where are we?” you asked.

“Where’s Frank and Alice?”

“Some pub, they said. The Seagull.”

“We could go there? I quite fancy something cold.”

And so off the group went, trudging along sunburned or at the least sunwarmed, James leading the way because he swore he knew exactly where the pub was and this was definitely the quickest way. Then, when he asked for directions, the group miserably began walking back towards the sea.

The Seagull was a twenty minute walk from the Potter’s beachside home, which was reassuring, as the group didn’t look like they had much left in them.

“You know,” Sirius said, “you could’ve disapparated home and fetched the car.”

“It's a no magic holiday! We were very clear about this!”

“Grow up.”

“Y/N,” James called very loudly, “Sirius is dissing the no magic holiday!”

You looked over at them and sniffed. “I won’t recover.”

The group joined forces to tag team him until he’d had enough, pulling his trump card.

“So I’ll suppose you’ve all been doing the washing up manually?” Nobody would meet his eyes. “That’s what I thought.”

“Lighten up, Black,” you said, drifting to his side like the breeze had carried you. “I’ve been doing them all with my hands.”

He frowned at you. “Since when do you do dishes?”

You bristled. “And what does that mean?”

“You should not be doing the dishes. I do your dishes.”

“I’m a grown up,” you said, embarrassed now.

“You haven’t been doing other peoples, have you?”

“Sirius, friendship is doing things for other people. You do my dishes. I do James or Lily’s or whoever’s — it's the same thing.”

“It’s not the same thing.” We’re hardly just friends, he didn’t say.

You walked in silence then, not mad at each other but at an understanding that there was more to be said in a less public space because you both knew exactly why Sirius did your dishes and opened doors for you, rubbed your back when you were sick and brought you soup. Not for a reward or with any expectation, but because you were his best friend, and he liked you to a point beyond that line.

There were a lot of things you probably should’ve said to each other by now. You should’ve talked about it. He should’ve told you how he felt the moment you’d kissed him and shocked him more than anything had ever shocked him in his life, frozen and wondering if he’d walked into a daydream.

But. He didn’t bring it up. You didn’t bring it up. And it felt right - that there was no question there, that there was no sudden affirmation. He realised you’d always been on this route together and the kiss hadn’t been between two friends, it had been between him and you. He wanted to reach out and hug you, upon this realisation, wanted to pepper you in kisses and praises like you deserved. How dreadful that so much love would have to be kept for tonight, or even tomorrow.

“Sirius?” you whispered.

“What?”

“Are we a secret?” you asked quietly.

He thought about it. Yards behind the others you meandered, content to walk in the summer evening and take in the sights, take in the other person, to roll in the simple pleasure of each other’s company surrounded by friends with nothing in the world to work out besides each other.

“Do you want to be?” he asked.

“No!” you cleared your throat. “No. I - I don’t want to be, if you don’t want to be. But, maybe for a little while longer…”

He nodded, having been thinking the same thing. “Let’s me and you work this out first, sweetheart.”

You opened your mouth to add something and was immediately cut off by James, who stood in front of The Seagull, waiting. “Come on, lovebirds, we’ve beer to drink!”

“He’s always so grandiose,” you laughed, and then, looking at him, “not that you’re much better.”

“Definitely need a doctor after that one, doll. Good one,” he said sarcastically, accepting the door from James and letting you walk in first, other hand pressed to his heart like he was wracked with pain.

The pub was nice and clean, more of a restaurant than a pub, really, with big ceilings and lots of open space. The smell of roast and gravy and then, under it all, the unmistakable sweetness of cocoa powder thickened the room, yellow light burning away in sconces on the walls. He walked over a paisley red carpet on your tail, past families at long, dark wood tables, past booths and the bar, where the wall was backlit and bright showcasing a miraculous variety of drinks, their bottles glowing like lava lamps. There was a small hallway which opened into a big, conservatory-like room lined with booths that surrounded a dance floor and a small stage at the back. The summer breeze drifted in through the open patio where a stone veranda housed tens of metal tables and chairs.

The veranda was where Alice and Frank were stationed, both obviously having already drunk their fill. They cheered with the rest of the group's arrival, Frank raising a mostly empty pint glass.

“Where the fuck have you guys been?”

Sirius helped James manhandle the tables into one big one and pulled a chair out for you, then threw himself into the one next to you.

“Where haven’t we been!” Dorcas said excitedly.

“Can we have a round before Dorcas starts her rendition?” Marlene asked. “I would like to be tipsy for this.”

“I’m parched,” Mary agreed.

“I thought you were hungry?”

“I’m both. Starved and parched, truly.”

Sirius pressed his knee to yours. “What’re you having?”

-

You tipped back the dregs of your drink, feeling the beginnings of warmth curling in your stomach, licking up your skin to nest in your chest happily. Tipsy warmth was soon holding your body like a lover, and you found yourself ridiculously happy. Sirius had been lovely all day and only got better with drink, hand under the table and squeezing your thigh.

He’d inched closer and his hand had inched higher under your skirt to match, pinky finger a hair's width from your underwear. He wasn’t trying anything, simply rubbing your leg as he chatted and laughed with the others]. You tried not to let it go to your head.

Your chips had gone cold by now. You reached for one anyway, cringing as you chewed.

Sirius slipped his hand in your shoulder bag and pulled out the baked goods you’d purchased for him earlier.

“Help me eat these.”

You stood so you could assess what he had. He tore the paper bag to lay the sweets out flat, a brownie and a donut, a millionaires shortbread and half a danish. You leaned down to inspect them, really thinking, moving half in front of Sirius’ chair.

You felt his knuckles against the back of your thigh. He drew a teasing line that made you shiver, dipping his hand under your skirt. He pushed the flat of his hand up the inside of your thigh and stopped before he could touch you. You turned sideways to protest, eyes landing on his slouched form. His other hand came up to your waist, straightening you out so you couldn’t see his face.

“Which one do you want, sweetheart?”

You struggled to make a decision. The tip of his finger was moving against your underwear now, so lightly it tickled. If he hadn’t been holding you in place you would’ve squirmed away. He shifted his leg in between yours, his shoe nudging your sandal, forcing your legs open that little bit more. His hand came up flat palmed against your cunt, rubbing. You moaned and looked around you with wide eyes.

Your friends were all half-cut or preoccupied. James was sitting on Lily’s leg, talking very passionately about something with wide eyes, so enthusiastic his drink sloshed over the side of his cup to drip over his legs. Remus and Emma had disappeared in a drunken bid to win something from the claw machines. The girls were drinking from a pitcher of gin and watching the tv at the back, you could hardly see them through the other restaurant goers who now populated the patio. Frank and Alice were both on the verge of being paralytic.

You would’ve intervened had Sirius not started searching, big fingers pushing your underwear into the crease of your cunt, looking for your sensitive clit.  When he found it he bullied it, sweeping rough lines until your legs were shaking. You braced yourself on the cold metal table and looked down at your skirt. You couldn’t tell what he was doing if you were an outsider, but you knew, and this was all enough to have you wet and seeping through the cotton of your underwear.

He knew it as soon as you did. “Baby…” he said softly, voice full of an arousal so reverential it made your legs weak. “Are you wet?”

You giggled weakly as he pushed your underwear to one side, fingers finding your wetness. He didn’t enter you, only pushed your slick up your front to circle your clit. He slid your clit between his two fingers and you were so scandalised you sat down forcefully on his leg with his hand trapped between you. He laughed, flexing his fingers before pulling away.

He leaned forward like nothing had happened and picked up the millionaires shortbread with the same fingers he’d just used to make a mess of you, fingers still shining. He sat up properly and pulled you to his chest, bringing the biscuit to your mouth. He didn’t say anything and neither did you, but he didn’t move until you’d taken a bite. He pulled it from you and you turned to watch him eat the rest, the heat between your legs was unbearable as he licked his fingers clean.

He laughed at your reaction to his amorous behaviour, swaying you on his lap, hand clutching your hip. “You look appalled.”

You shifted backwards on him in a staged show of wanting to talk to him privately. If he was going to play dirty, you would too, your thought, brushing yourself against his crotch. “Whatever is poisoning your mind is incurable, Sirius.”

“If the wet patch on my leg is anything to go by,” he whispered back, “I’d say you were suffering the same sickness.”

You shook your head, turning your body to cover your actions from prying eyes. You put your hand down flat an inch from his cock and spread your fingers, pleased at how his pupils had dilated. “I don’t know what you mean.”

He squeezed your waist with enough pressure to make you hesitate, moving so his mouth was hovering over your collarbone.

“What was it you said earlier, doll? You’re a good liar, even with your mouth full?”

“Adept,” you corrected him, breath hitching as his teeth dragged against your skin, “I’m an adept liar, even with my mouth full.”

He breathed warm air on your skin in a brief chuckle.

“That’s where you’re wrong. Your mouth’s empty and your lies are something awful. You think I don’t feel you making a mess on me right now?” he teased, lifting his head. You ducked yours.

“Don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“What else did you say, hmm?”

You looked down at his lap to avoid his eyeline, wearily eyeing his hardening cock. “I don’t remember.”

His hand climbed your back until he was at your neck, lifting your head up. He looked much too calm and collected to suit you, eyes half-lidded.

“Gonna let me test your theory, doll?”

You smoothed your hand over his cock, revelling in his twitches. You squeezed his length and said coyly, “What theory?”

He grabbed your hand, the only sign he’d been affected by you. “Will you play stupid all night? I can treat you like you’re stupid, if you like.”

“I’m not stupid,” you mumbled, hand burning in his. “I’m a good liar, is all.”

He didn’t say anything for a while. You were both frozen in time, waiting to see who would give in.

He narrowed his eyes.

“Here’s what’s going to happen. I’m going to the bathroom. You’re going to sit here looking all pretty and making a mess in my seat. You can even have another pastry, if you like,” he said this with a sardonic smile. “And then you’ll come meet me in the bathroom, and we’ll see how good of a liar you really are.”

You swallowed.

A slither of his usual softness welled to the surface. “Is that alright, sweetheart?”

You tried not to smile as you nodded.

He helped you up off of his lap, looking like he might kiss you before he went. He didn’t, turning sharply to the doors and exiting quickly. You followed him with your eyes, felt your longing like a harp string being plucked between your legs as the minutes ticked on. The anticipation had you shifting in your seat, worried he was right and you’d leave behind a clear mark of your excitement behind when you got up. You gathered the spoils he’d left behind and wrapped them back up as best you could to hide away in your purse.

You counted to sixty five times, just to be sure, concerned somebody would see you follow him out and connect the dots before you were ready for them to be connected.

You walked the small hallway with your heart in your throat, coming to the unisex bathroom. It was locked.

You knocked.

It was pulled open quick and shut quicker, Sirius pulling you in fast enough to steal the air from your lungs. You laughed and he laughed, mouths meeting in a wanting kiss, desperate after so many hours of dancing around each other, his hand forceful at the nape of your neck as he pulled you to his mouth with no time for soft touches.

“Is this okay?” he asked. “I know I was abrupt. Is this okay?”

You nodded over and over, trying to catch him in a kiss again. His laugh was melodic and hoarse at once, holding you back with his hands on either side of your face.

“You’ll tell me if you don’t want this?”

“I’ll tell you,” you agreed, aiming for his neck. He finally set you free after seconds that stretched like millennia. You used your freedom to kiss his jawline, pinching things down his neck that had him grasping your hair.

He pulled you back to his lips and pushed you up against the countertop that housed the sinks basin. There wasn’t enough room for him to set you up there which he lamented loudly.

“Thought the theory involved my mouth?” you asked bravely.

He looked surprised and then his eyes clouded up with lust a shade worse than before.

“Who’s the guinea pig?” he asked as you kissed down his neck again, down and down and down until you were on your knees in front of him, pushing his shirt up to kiss his torso lightly, plastering each tattoo in a blanket of affection.

“Definitely you,” you said, hands at his waistband. You pulled it from his skin and let it fall again, a soft snap that made him hiss through his teeth. You looked up at him and gave him your most demure smile, keeping eye contact as you slipped your hand into his trousers, into his boxers, closing your fist gently around his aching length. You pushed up to full height on your knees and watched yourself carefully stroke his length, nervous but wanting to do well.

Sirius was back to the version of him you didn’t see so much, suave and debonair with his hand resting at the back of your head. You looked away to dip forward, pausing with your mouth by his head. You stuck your tongue out and licked.

He groaned, hand tightening in your hair. Esteem raised by his reaction, you worked the bottom of his shaft with one hand and took him into your mouth, sucking his head. You popped off and started again, opening your mouth wider, using your tongue to your advantage. Already spit was gathering at the corners of your mouth waiting to dribble down your chin, you pulled back to catch it in your hand, pumping his cock with your wet fingers.

The taste of precum filled your mouth as you paced yourself, taking slow mouthfuls of him. He was beginning to guide you gently off and on to his cock, establishing a rhythm. He tried to guide you back and your resisted, taking as much as him as you could manage before you gagged on his cock, dribble connecting your mouth to his dick when he pulled you off, moaning loudly.

“Fuck, don’t do that.”

“You didn’t like it?”

"Don't ask questions you already know the answer to," he reprimanded, eyes closing as you worked back down, bobbing your head as you worked. His grip was tighter now, and as he began to thrust up to meet your mouth you found yourself with your spare hand between your legs, spreading your cunt to play in your own slick, pushing two fingers inside yourself.

Sirius eventually opened his eyes and his cock jumped in your mouth at the sight of you.

“Fucking your mouth, you like this? This the kind of thing that turns you on?” he asked, moving his other hand so both were braced behind your head.

He thrust in and you stayed down on his cock for as long as you could manage, breathing through your nose. You gagged, wet eyes shutting on instinct.

He brought his thumb to your cheek. “Show me those pretty eyes."

You opened them, bleary with tears, to look into his handsome face adoringly. He tipped his head back, eyes on the sealing. “Fuck, I’m so fucking lucky. So fucking lucky, baby. You’re fucking-“ he was cut off as you pushed his cock against the back of your throat, hand tightening painfully in your hair.

You almost felt bad when you had to pull away, gasping. He was panting, thumb digging into your cheekbone. You caught your breath with your face pressed to his thigh and tummy, kissing his tattooed torso mindlessly as you pumped his shaft, rubbing your finger pads over the head of his cock to collect his beading precum.

His abdomen was tensing, you realised smugly. His breathing was fast and coloured by his voice. He almost sounded desperate.

You stuck your tongue out and rested this coke on it momentarily, and then away. “Ask me something?”

“What?” he questioned.

“Test your hypothesis,” you ordered him, aiming for the back of your throat again. He seized up, smiling wickedly at your game.

“Fuck… how’s this cock baby? Hitting the back of your pretty throat?” he was convincing, if a little breathless.

“No,” you said, or rather hummed, the sound travelling down his cock. He moaned, holding his hand against the side of your face.

“Y’so fucking good for me, letting me bruise up your throat.”

You pulled away to breathe. “I’m not.”

He grinned something awful. “No?”

You felt spit dripping down your face, pooling at your sternum. He fucked your mouth, your throat, not so it hurt but enough to agitate your gag reflex and tear ducts. He was moaning a steady stream of curse words now and they sounded like the sweetest thing - breathy and deep.

He wiped your eyes and cheeks with the meat of his palm for a moment, cleaning you up. “You’re fucking pretty.”

You smiled with his dick against your lips.

He fisted your hair and didn’t last much longer with your lips around him, pushing you away semi-gently to fist his throbbing cock until he was cumming over his torso.

“That’s spiteful,” you said, hand clutching his thigh.

“What is?” he asked, exasperated.

“Could’ve cum in my mouth,” you said, bravado dissolving as you went, words starting brave and ending shy.

He pouted at you condescendingly. “Oh, I’m sorry, doll. You’re right, I’m spiteful.” His thumb at your wet bottom lip, opening your mouth. “Spiteful - but not selfish. You can kiss it off me, if you like?”

You called his bluff and leaned forward. He pulled back. "How's my girl? You want me to take care of you?"

"No. Keep your hands off of me, Sirius."

You were a terrible liar, mouth full or not.

-

Your hair was wet, soaking even, salt water dribbling down your back, and you were cold enough now to regret your dip in the ocean, to regret even more that you'd left your shirt and jacket at the cottage. The sun shone all morning before this, the tide as close as it could be when you'd first made it down this morning, Sirius taking your hand to spin you around, dancing as you went. The rock pools had been filled, the sand freshly dampened under your bare feet.

You went for a swim while the sun was bouncing around on the waves, Sirius pulling you in without a word. He'd left his shirt on the drier sand and you'd both stood beaming, ankle deep in the sea and with little clothing. He'd grabbed you up and chucked you into deep water, where you emerged livid, throwing yourself at his chest to topple him over. He'd fallen into the water, waves lapping at his chest with you half on top of him, giggling in victory. It reminded you of your first kiss, laughing and unable to help yourself as you leaned down and connected, hand splayed on his lovely chest, feeling the metal of his pendant warm under your touch. You’d spent a long time like that kissing and smiling under the warmth of the sun until the cloud cover stole away the heat and left you a damp, shivering mess.

Sirius had retrieved his t-shirt and you’d quickly pulled it over your damp skin, long enough to cover your bikini bottoms when standing.

“You should keep that one.”

“Yeah?”

“Looks good.”

You twirled as you walked, shuffling backwards and him facing forwards, chasing the sun down the beach. You trusted him not to let you trip.

You felt like a new version of yourself. Hair wet, skin damp and clammy from the cold sea breeze and somehow still in high spirits, smiling as you trekked backwards over the squishy sand.

“We can’t go up there without shoes,” he said, pointing at the darker shade of rocks that covered some of the beach, “but we can definitely try to find one lower down.”

You searched, or rather Sirius searched and you watched his face. His eyes brightened when he spotted one that seemed to be traversable without putting both your lives in imminent danger.

“D’you see that?” he asked suddenly.

No, you thought, obviously I didn’t see that. You’re handsome and you fancy me and you think I’m going to spend my time with my eyes on the ground?

“No,” you admitted instead. He grabbed your shoulder in one big hand and pointed towards the sandy edges of a rock pool. You followed his finger to discover what had captured his attention: a small brown crab was scuttling around, burying itself in sand and then emerging, indecisive.

Only when you got closer did you realise it was a hermit crab, it’s shell a rich yellow ochre edged in deep browns. Sirius mad a wide circle around the crab and kneeled on one side, encouraging you to do the same.

You kneeled opposite him, felt your knees sinking into the damp sand. It coated your skin.

Sirius, shirtless, looking like he’d descended from some empyrean place where the streets ran deep in milk and honey and smiling like he was somewhere similar in your company. You felt, emphatically, that disconcerting feeling of blindness that came on occasion with being around him, felt as though looking at him for too long would leave his image burned into your eyelids. Masochistically, you found yourself unable to look away. He reached out his hand, knuckles flat to the coarse sand and was ecstatic when the hermit crab crawled close, slowly making its way into his palm. You couldn’t believe it, looking at him in shock. He looked up at you with elation in even the lines of his face and you found he wasn’t so blinding, after all; he was looking at you, you were looking back. The clouds shifted and gold leaked from the sky in gossamer threads, framing him in lustre, warming your chilled skin.

“You want to hold it?” he asked, frantically transferring the crab from palm to palm.

“No.”

“He won’t bite.”

“He has pincers.”

Sirius thrust his hand at you and the crab almost flew off. It then pinched him to which he turned his hand upside down with a shriek, shaking it off.

“Told you so,” you said. He nodded to himself, expression agreeable, and then got to his feet, his thighs at your eye level. You pulled at the edge of his borrowed t-shirt where it stuck to your wet skin.

“You did,” he said, looking at your thighs. You pretended not to notice until he met your eyes. “Still cold?”

“No, baby,” you said, words soft and ridiculous in your mouth. You said it anyhow, overtaken by fondness. “The sun's out.”

He smiled and bent down to kiss you.

-

“James,” you said later, showered and fed and trying to be discreet. The others were playing an intense game of crazy eights, from which you’d dragged your friend away. “I need a favour.”

James looked back at the large coffee table covered in booze and cards and surrounded by your laughing friends and said, “Can’t it wait ‘til we’re not having such a knee-slapping good time?”

You rolled your eyes at his dramatics. He huffed.

“Fine, yes, what do you want?”

“I need you take me into town.”

He gasped. “Town! Whatever for?”

“Can’t you avoid talking like a posh wanker for a bit? I’ve only just eaten.”

He found this so funny he forgot to be mad, which was brilliant as you’d not intended any maliciousness to come with it.

“Why are we going to town?” he asked, turning from you to collect the keys.

“I want-“ right, you hadn’t technically admitted your situation to James yet, “I want to get a quart of vanilla brownie ice cream.”

“We have ice cream here!”

“Right, but we don’t have vanilla brownie .”

He frowned sympathetically. “Your period?”

You laughed boisterously and, when Sirius turned to look at you from the coffee table, cleared your throat.

“It’s for Sirius. It’s his favourite and we never see it anywhere and I want to do something nice,” you whispered, cheeks heating.

His smile was kind.

“Alright, get your shoes on.”

-

“So, you’re fucking?”

“James, please keep your eyes on the road.”

-

You’d managed to charm the ice cream to stay frozen and shoved it under your bed when Sirius opened the door. You flinched up and tried to look as casual as possible, hands behind your back.

“Where’ve you been?” he asked, closing the door behind him softly. He flicked the light on at the wall.

You couldn’t help smiling. It was ridiculous. You had a secret to keep but seeing him made you overtly happy.

“What’s with the smile?” he asked.

“When do people usually smile?”

He leaned against the door casually. “Something good happen on your fun run with Jamie? I don’t believe it.”

“You’re so mean. You do know he's your best friend?”

Sirius tipped his head back against the door and levelled you with a smirk. “I thought you were my best friend?”

“I am.”

You sat down against your bed's headboard, unable to work out what he was thinking.

“Come play Rummy.”

You let yourself fall flat on your pillow, groaning. “There’s only so many card games I can lose.”

“Exactly, and I already beat you in most. Be generous and give me the full sweep.”

“I’m tired.”

“Come on,” he said, walking over to pull you up by the hands. “Cards and drinks and then bed.”

“Swear?”

He was laughing now, pulling you into his hold. “Swear.”

You leaned into his chest for a self-indulgent moment and then you let him spirit you downstairs. The living room was airy and bright as the evening began. Everyone was exactly how you’d left them, half cut and giggling, piles of sweets and werthers in place of poker chips.

Remus seemed to be the most intoxicated out of everybody. You sat down next to him and Sirius followed, knee touching your knee cross-legged in front of the table.

“What happened to not needing alcohol to have fun?” you asked him.

“That's still true! I could be having fun without it, now I am having fun with it,” he said, talking out the side of his mouth. “Take Emma, she’s sober and she’s having a brilliant time.”

Emma was giggling wildly. “I don’t need to drink to have fun. The worse you get the more I win.” She had a large mound of winnings.

“What’re you having?” Lily asked, sitting on the arm of James’ chair.

“I’ll get it,” Sirius said, standing up, “I know exactly what she wants.” The joke was that he brought back two bottles of beer, chuckling at your grimace. He convinced you to try it. “You never try anything new, sweetheart, I’m widening your palate.”

You’d murmured, stupidly, “You widened my palate just fine last night.”

He choked on his mouthful of beer, slamming the bottle down hard enough to topple Emma’s tower of sweets. You took a tentative sip of your own and hated it.

“What is this?”

“James brought it.”

“Well, if that’s true this is blatant sabotage.”

“Try mine instead?”

You eyed his bottle suspiciously. It was darker than yours had been. “No, I don’t think so.”

“Try it!” he prodded, holding it closer to your mouth.

You shuffled back until your back was digging into Dorcas’ calves. She didn’t notice, half asleep on Mary’s shoulder while Mary and Marlene talked over her head.

“Try it,” he said again, rim of the bottle at your lips.

You let him tip it into your mouth and when you’d tasted enough you slapped your hand over his, pushing it away. You swallowed, almost gagging. “That’s much, much worse,” you said hoarsely.

“You’re pathetic.” Funny how that made you feel warm instead of sad. You shook your head at your own thoughts and pushed his hand away.

“I want something nice,” you complained quietly.

“There’s Pimms in the fridge,” Emma said, shuffling cards for Rummy.

“What the fuck! And you got me beer?”

“Widening your palate!”

“It’s wide enough!”

You climbed up onto your feet, felt his hand on your knee as you climbed over him to pour two glasses of pimms from the pitcher in the fridge, putting extra fruit in yours. Then you slinked back into your spot and took up your cards for Rummy, settling in for a good night. Sirius accepted the pimms though he didn’t look like he wanted to, tipping his fruit into your glass.

Halfway into the second game you leaned into Sirius’ side.

“What?” he asked you, dipping his head in.

“I don’t know the rules,” you whispered.

"I know you don't. Want me to teach you?"

"No."

He rolled his eyes and slipped his hand behind your back, fingertips pushing beneath the waist of your corduroys to mess with the elastic of your underwear absentmindedly as he expertly instructed your next play.

-

You mildly recognised when Sirius, having tucked you into his bed that night after too much alcohol soaked fruit, got up. Assuming he needed the bathroom you'd curled into the place he'd previously been, leaching his warmth and breathing in his smell. You weren't sure how long you drifted, waiting for him to come back but when he did he was buzzing with something akin to excitement, bringing his hand to your face.

"Wake up, sweetheart."

You looked at him in annoyance. "It's night time."

"You're so smart."

"I don't know why you're mocking me. I'm right," you complained, trying to hide your face in his side.

He rubbed your back in a placating manner before pinching the flesh of your waist. "Get up."

"Why?"

"I have something for you."

"Can't wait 'till tomorrow?"

"Nope. Quick, get dressed. Or don't," he added, fingers pushing up past the hem of your shirt to cup one of your breasts. This had you much more awake than his voice “I like this outfit. Doesn’t matter either way.”

“Where are we going?” you asked, feeling yourself melt under his touch. He moved his hand back to your ribs and squeezed.

“The beach.”

“We can’t swim, the tides out.”

“We’re not swimming. I’ve made a picnic.” He said this quietly, softly. You pushed a stray lock of hair behind his ear and considered your options. Then, with no choice, you dragged yourself out of bed and shrugged on a short, black skirt and a jacket overtop the oversized shirt you’d been sleeping in. You threaded your hand through the fabric circle on your camera and let it dangle from your wrist.

“Time is it?” you asked, shoving your socked feet roughly into a pair of ankle high canvas shoes. You didn’t bother tying the laces well, tucking them into the shoe.

“Past midnight, now.”

You followed him down the stairs and out the silent house as quietly as you could, hurrying down the path to the seashore. Sirius carried a picnic basket with a blanket stuffed between the handles and the camping lamp on top in one hand and took yours in the other, swinging it gently as you walked.

“We could’ve done this in the morning.”

“I was thinking…” he began, helping you pick over driftwood and seaweed to a patch of sand that looked dry enough. He set the picnic basket down and you took one end of the blanket from his hand to help him spread it out. Once it was done he looked at you from across the blanket. “That this would be our last night as a secret.”

“Okay,” you said, not smiling.

“Okay?”

You cracked, beaming. “Yeah, okay, idiot. Course it’s okay. Are you kidding?”

He moved the basket to the middle of the blanket and sat down heavily. You sat by his side, looking up at the sky, void black and smattered in stars like crushed pearls, breaths blanketed by the sound of far off waves cresting the shore. He cracked open the picnic blanket and found he’d made your favourite kind of sandwich and cut them all small, diced up fruit and drinks spelled to stay chilled.

“No magic holiday,” you muttered under your breath, taking one of the cold drinks into your hand. “Why does nobody respect the no magic holiday?”

“Babe. I didn’t want to say, but — your camera is enchanted. Did you know?”

You took the camera from your wrist and turned it on. “Fine, whatever. Can you begrudge me when I’ve had so many nice photos?” you asked, and then emphasised with a flash as you took one of him unawares.

He shuffled backwards and moved the basket to the side, switching the battery lamp off. “You’ll have to show me that one before I destroy the damn thing.”

“Don’t worry. You’re very photogenic,” you comforted him. You performed the spell and soon the photo was trying to project into the air. You turned the camera downwards and it was displayed across the blanket, Sirius’ handsome, surprised face, eyes blown by the flash.

“Hate that,” he remarked, stretching his legs out. You shifted closer to his side and tucked one of your legs over his, happy when his hand instantly came up to mess with your thigh.

You flicked to the next photo, one you’d taken hours previous of Remus nauseated in James lap, looking unhappy with Lily who was perched on the arm. James looked positively incensed, staring straight into the lens.

The next photo: James outside the ice cream parlour, the stainless steel bucket of vanilla brownie ice cream in his hands, beaming.

“What’s that?” Sirius asked.

“Nothing,” you said, flicking to the next photograph quickly.

Most of the group gathered at the kitchen table that morning for brunch, Sirius with his hair still wet from the shower. James had made enough blueberry and chocolate chip pancakes to feed a small army in the middle of the table, Mary squirting lemon juice over Emma’s pancakes. Marlene had a heaping spoonful of sugar suspended over her plate.

The early hours of the same morning, a wide shot of Sirius in the bathroom putting on deodorant while you waited in his bed. You still remembered how the morning had felt, warm and still dark out, your bare legs hiked up close to your body with his pillow pressed to your chest after a lazy, half-asleep make out session, your lips still tingling as you’d reached for the camera.

A group photo at The Seagull taken by a muggle who’d been amazed by the camera. Remus and Sirius had thrown their arms over your shoulders and each other, Lily on Remus' other side throwing up leave signs as James posed with his back to her side and his arms crossed. Alice and Frank had been too tipsy to do anything but smile abashedly as the rest of the girls took to kneel in front of them, all beaming, even shy Emma.

A few from the market of the amazing things you’d seen, as well as the weird things. Lily holding her little copper tree aloft with a brilliant grin on her face. Remus looking over a table of secondhand books while Emma already had two new ones in her arms.

The ice cream photographs, where Sirius had been much more ready and yet somehow looked less prepared.

A few from the night before featuring you in his jacket that made you blush to high heavens, flicking past them fast as Sirius protested.

Lily and James squished together on the beach the first proper morning there, posing happily. Remus being comforted for his repeated chicken losses on Mary’s thigh, protesting the photo with a hand half covering his face. The rest of the group played cards in the background while Marlene, cig held between her lips, wiped the floor with everybody smugly.

The first group photograph with the breathtaking sunset in the background. Alice and Frank book-ending the girls and Remus with Lily and James on the other end with Sirius, his arm stretched out over your shoulders at the end of the throng. You paused, looking at the photograph for the first time since you’d taken it. Your heart already ached with nostalgia, despite the photo being new. You knew that you were looking at a time you’d never be able to go back to, and felt that suddenly this whole holiday had been a gift. You laughed, pointing at James' face, his eyes barely open. You looked at yourself,  remembered how your skin had felt on fire under Sirius' arm.

“I don’t look half obvious,” you poked fun at yourself. Sirius didn’t say anything. You looked at him sideways and then slid your eyes to him. “You look-“

Sirius was looking at you in the photograph, face laden with guilty indulgence and then, worse, love. Eyes soft at the corners, lips not quite smiling. The real Sirius rubbed his hand up and down the inside of your thigh. You blinked, worried you’d tear up, and turned to him furiously, forgetting the camera.

“What the fuck is that?”

“What?” he asked, alarmed.

“Why’re you looking at me like that?”

He squeezed your leg. “Like what?”

“Like you loved me.”

He leaned in so his nose was close to yours.

“Why’d you kiss me?”

“You know why I kissed you.”

“Reckon it’s the same reason I was looking at you then. Like I loved you.”

You pushed back into the blanket, hair splayed out in the sand. Sirius followed you down, turning on his side to look at you. Only the moonlight illuminated him now, carving his face in shimmering silver and shadow. He searched for your hand and brought it up to his mouth, eyes on your face as he kissed your knuckles delicately. You turned on your side to mirror him.

“I’m mad for you. Mad for you,” he repeated, timbre low. “After tonight, I want everyone to know you’re mine. Are you gonna - be mine?” he asked tentatively, waiting for you to answer patient as any worldly saint, rubbing his thumb over your hand when you took in a ragged breath.

“I’ll be yours,” you told him shyly. “I’ve been yours.”

He ducked in to kiss you, mouth unyielding against yours. You quickly broke the kiss to seek an answer for your burning question.

“How long have you been looking at me like that?”

“A long time,” he answered, trying to kiss you again.

“Really?” you asked, giddy and disbelieving at once, evading his mouth. “Think I’d notice that.”

“Trust me, doll, you don’t know the half of it.”

The words struck you in the chest violently.

“You think I don't?”

“And what’s that mean?” he asked, nosing under your jawline until you were baring your neck, hand in his curls. He dragged his teeth up your neck to settle over your pulse.

“You think you like me more than I like you? Delusions.” Your words were broken up by shuddering inhales as he started tracking love bites over your throat.

“That’s exactly what I think.”

“Grow up, handsome.”

“Handsome!” he said against your quick-bruising skin, laughing. “What, you don’t believe me? Doubt the depths of my affections?”

“No, no.” He pushed his face up to look at you as you spoke, pressing his thumb into one of your hickeys. “I don’t-“

“Don’t worry, sweetheart. Any doubts you have are my fault. I’ll endeavour to alleviate them,” he swore, tone serious. You felt the brush of his hand over your torso, felt him push up your shirt to explore the stretch of your abdomen.

And how did you manage to get yourself into these punishing situations? You felt your stomach tighten at his promise alone.

"I don't have any doubts," you mumbled, half to appease him and half to save yourself from his teasing. "I just don't think you know how much I like you."

He kissed you sweetly on the temple. "Of course I know, lovely girl."

You pushed him away from your chest, pushing your legs to one side, groaning at his sincerity. He sat up and dug through the picnic basket for a second before producing a small velveteen bag. You watched his hands carefully from where you were lying, watched as each finger moved, the flex of his knuckles. He offered the bag to you where you were lying still.

You held it high above your eye. "Turn the lamp back on?"

He did. You upended the contents of the bag into your palm. Three pieces of green and gold fell out, shining, shot through with silver.

You poked at them gently with your fingertip.

A pair of earrings and a charm.

"That's for me," Sirius said, picking out the charm.

"For you…"

"For my necklace."

You stared at him.

"It's my piece of you," he said softly, eyes tracking to your bracelet. "So we match."

You climbed up on your knees, leaning around his shoulders to unclasp his chain from beneath his dark hair. You slipped the charm over the eyelet and moved your knee between his legs to get close to him before closing the clasp and straightening the chain, secured again at his breastbone. You'd made to settle down again and he was wrapping his arms around you, pulling you close, arms firm but not rough against your ribs, hands closing around your back. You wrapped your arms around his neck in turn.

"You really think you like me more?" you asked into his hair.

He moved you from side to side, squeezing as he spoke. "I love you."

You pushed your fingers into his hair bringing his head closer to your neck, feeling a white hot adoration burning in your chest. "I've loved you longer."

"Not like this, sweetheart."

He kissed your smiling lips quickly, pulled back to look at your face before pushing back in. You shooed him away.

"Help me with these," you said, offering the earrings, which he clipped onto your ears with no complaints. “Thank you. They’re - they’re beautiful.”

He scratched the back of your hand delicately, a silent you’re welcome. "We need a picture," he said decisively.

You nodded in agreement, tucking yourself into his side as he fiddled with the camera. You couldn't bear to look away from his face. "Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked, grinning.

"I love you," you told him, smiling through the flash as the camera went off.

-

"You're fucking?" Remus asked incredulously.

The entire people carrier groaned in disbelief.

"And he's supposed to be the smart one," Sirius whispered to you. You pressed your face into his arm, laughing.

thanks so much for reading! <3

my masterlist

so you're ready to start reading tasm!peter...

Do you know someone who may be impacted by Andrew Garfield and his constant assault of incredible acting, boy-next-door-to-DILF-transition facial hair, colorful couture, and well-fitting pants? If so, there may be help.

If you're new to the TASM fanfic fandom and feel overwhelmed, you're not alone! I recommend any new reader START by following these incredible writers who have a large number of TASM!Peter fics, and taking a deep dive into their "masterpieces." These are works that I think truly illustrate their passion and storytelling style (not just their amazing TALENT):

@spidervee - Just read it all. Clearly one of the most prolific TASM!Peter writers on Tumblr, and worthy of being "Queen Vee" since a lot of us got back into writing because of her. Everyone knows her for her blurbs, but start with Band Aids on Broken Hearts, Even on Your Worst Days, and Fractured and Familiar (part 1 and 2), and be amazed as you track the progression into deeper, risker hits like End of the World As We Know It, A Little Wicked and The Wild. Her magnum opus masterpiece is (so far) The Spider and the Sunflower.

@blooming-violets - Such a brilliant and creative mind, it KiLLs mE. First work I came across was Pinky Promise, which is a phenominal story in re: pacing, characters, drama, action, etc. Then I am REVIVED by her naughty "angel" series she DOUBLE JEOPARDY MURDERS ME AGAIN with Something Unforgivable and I'm like "goddamn this is poetic and it hurts." Then she literally murders LOTS OF PEOPLE with Smitten, which I would call a masterpiece. stabby stabb death stab

@withahappyrefrain - Girl is on fire with ideas, patron saint of Daddy Kink and Sundresses. I could not possibly list all of the amazing works on here (especially all the blurbs which are my daily sustenance) but I'd say her crowned jewel is Here Comes the Sun.

@rae-gar-targaryen - Supreme Avocado, Attorney at Law. Has a great mix of content with a chunk of TASM!Peter, such a beautiful way with words, including her visually-sublime sweet masterpiece hang the stars upon tonight

@abibliophobiaa luna lovepine-piney-piningqueen-of-pineville - Perfect Places is a 3rd degree slow burn and is just FANTASTIC. Sleep Peter burns for it. And I burn for them. Speaking of which, I'd say the magnum opus is Another Love, which is an incredible AU feat of genius.

@fallensilencefics writes TASM!Peter almost exclusively and might also get me double-pregnant with her smut works. Also Angel of the Airwaves is like a fucking awesome superhero!reader / poc!reader fic unapologetically and it's also a masterpiece.

@mrshipsmcgee - CAIT! Dis bitch got me pregnant; current awaiting a DNA test. Also: our mother-goddess, because that's her energy, and she helped me with my first stories and inspired me to get back into writing, and I encourage you to check out In Another Universe, Symbiote and my other fav, A Lord & A Lady, her Bridgerton AU that I really loved even though I've never seen Bridgerton.

@p3mybeloved started her tasm writing journey a few months after some of the others on this list but i'm blown away by how OBSESSED i am now. Also I just fucking STARTED We Can Be Heroes because I suck at tasking let alone multitasking and now I feel like I want to read one chapter a month because I don't want it to end.

@luveline Writes 50 blurbs a day with bottomless talent like it's a Happy Hour Special at Applebees and so many of them have made me WEEP like I'm alone at a Happy Hour at Applebees, she is truly a gift.

@lanadelreyscokewhor3 Is the Patron Saint of Innocence Kink and I have to be alone in a forest every time she writes something that's TASM Peter because I should not be near other humans.

@peterthepark I think she's currently retired from TASM!Peter Duty but read her lovely oneshots and her spicy Ridiculous fics are required reading for Blonde Frat Boy Peter (what is blonde fratboy peter? *laughs nervously* it was is a thing)

If you haven't discovered @decadentpaperduck, @foreverrogers, @indouloureux, and @ddejavvu then what is the point of the internet...

and honestly this list can get so long but I really need to eat now. These are blogs that I feel like post majority TASM!Peter and have all been responsible in some way for crafting the way I write.

BUT enough about my opinions. I know I missed some excellent "must read" stories.

Moots, please help me out by reblogging with your favorites!

Mini Master List - Bucky x Reader

(updated… idk when, it’s been a minute LOL)

🏆  Greatest Hits 🌸  Let’s go on a feels trip 🔥  Get your panties wet 🥺️  Sad bitch hours

All of my readers are female unless otherwise specified. An 18+ rating doesn’t necessarily mean smut (but it usually does!)

[low priority for updates] means I will be continuing the fic!!! I’m just focusing on finishing some of my other WIPs before I do. Please stop sending me asks if I’m continuing these fics, thank you! 😤

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