arrays | [ closed ] take just a little bit of time just to make you feel right

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[ closed ] take just a little bit of time just to make you feel right

The thing Leo has come to love most about being a half-blood and going to wizard school isn't the magic - it's the parties. Any normal teenagers can throw a decent party if given half a chance, but throw magic into the mix, and all bets are off. And, of course, he knows exactly the right way through the secret tunnels to get to Hogsmeade, and there is this one bar that'll give something a little stronger than regular old butterbeer to a bunch of underage kids, and then there's the entrance to the kitchens where Piper can talk the house elves into just about anything... Add all that together, and it's simple math, when you get right down to it.

The only thing to make your standard teenage wizarding party better here at Hogwarts is to bring in all the Houses in the Room of Requirement. The best part? Not having to sneak in anything from Hogsmeade, because the Room takes care of everything for them, and the supply is neverending.

It doesn't take much for these affairs to start getting out of hand, and Leo of course isn't one to let a good party pass him by. The Room is making sure he has a steady supply of his favorite drinks throughout the night, and the stereo he rigged up for a friend in third year is still going strong, playing some of the better tunes that both the Muggleborns and Pure-bloods can get behind. It's all to hang out before Christmas break, and to celebrate a great game of Quidditch - and there are even a good number of Hufflepuffs around, those that are too good-natured to hold a grudge against the Ravenclaw team for doing their jobs. All in all, it's a great shindig, and it's not until long after curfew that Leo even considers going back to the common room.

By the time he actually does go, the task turns out to be more difficult as he'd imagined it would be. The portraits are about ten times as entertaining as usual, especially that one knight, and even the ones that chastise him as he stumbles down the hall, trying not to laugh at how ridiculous some of them sound, ordering him to get back to his common room before one of the prefects or professors catch him.

"The prefects are still down the hall," he slurs, and Sir Cadar- Sir Cardigan? Whatever the name is, Leo doesn't care, but it's still funny that the guy thinks he needs an escort back to the tower. Like he's that bad. He's walking in a perfectly straight line, except for where the wall curves. And he's totally almost there, anyway. At least, he thinks he is.

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"What do I want you to do?" he echoes, incredulous. Hasn't he made that clear already? "Merlin, I... just want you to stop, alright?"

He closes the distance until there's only a little space between them, where he can reach out and poke her in the chest. "I like you, Goodman, and not just because of..." Leo says flatly, looking her up and down again like he had minutes before, shameless as he waves a hand vaguely at her dress, "whatever that is, or because you're pretty. There are reasons, and just because you can't see them doesn't mean they're not there, so don't you dare try to tell me I shouldn't feel like I do, you big prat."

It looks like he's finished, and he is. At least, until he thinks to add one little thing. "And a little snogging wouldn't be so bad, but you wouldn't want to take advantage, would you?" he asks, mocking tone and all.

It's odd, hearing him say those things, telling her that he can see her better qualities when she can't, eve through his offhanded insults.

"I don't like when you give me onceovers like that," Natalie whispers. Her guard has been lowered but that doesn't stop her from daring him a little more. "It's disrespectful."

And that, he decides, eyes narrowing, is a challenge. He very deliberately looks over her again, taking his time to enjoy the way that fabric falls over each little curve. Once he reaches the floor, it's back up again until he meets her eyes defiantly.

"Oh, I'm sorry. What was that about being disrespectful?"

"I bet you wouldn't go further than just staring out here."

It's even odder, this rough and rocky transition from playful banter to full out arguing to ... whatever this is. It's still considerably better than slamming harsh words like curses at each other.

"Considering," Natalie continues, "that everything else has been in private."

Did she just...?

"I could've sworn I heard you say not too long ago that some things should be private," he returns cooly, watching her carefully and trying to decide if this is a joke or just bait for some curse she's got waiting to blow.

But Merlin, is he tempted.

"They should be, but you like to do things I absolutely hate," Natalie counters.

She lifts her chin defiantly, hands on her waist. It's her way of giving him a free pass for something foolish since he's drunk and she's trying not to rebuild her walls right now.

"Yeah, I do," he says thoughtfully, eyeing her. The way she's standing is really... And she knows that he appreciates that look on her, and it's kind of infuriating, and -

He doesn't care in the least.

And luck is in his favor - he still hasn't moved away. So although Leo does have to take a small step forward, it's easy enough even through the haze of alcohol to reach up and pull her to him, leaning in to press his lips against hers. It's a bit rough, but no more than any of their other encounters thus far, and somehow, it's immensely satisfying to be the one doing this, whether he actually sort of has permission or not.

It actually feels ... great, the break from the strain between the two of them, and most of all, the roughness of the kiss. She likes how he pulls her close and how his hands feel on her.

Her arms drop to her sides and she kisses him with reckless abandon, tipping her head to the side to kiss him properly, sighing softly.

Confusing, really, how they've gone from a full-on row to... this. It's a nice enough change, though, that Leo can easily ignore the suspicious voice in the back of his head - the one insisting that she doesn't mean it, that she's only messing with him again, leading him on again, that she really does hate him and wants nothing to do with him. But no, that isn't what he wants right now, and it isn't the reality he'l accept - not until later. It's easier to kiss her now, pretending there was never anything wrong, because he likes this, and doesn't want it to end. That little sigh is just further encouragement, inviting him to curl his fingers in her hair and maybe to kiss her a little deeper, with the right angle.

Without thinking, Natalie slowly pulls him with her, backing herself against the wall, ducking away from any spying portraits who will surely gossip among each other. And maybe to other students. She doesn't care right now, though it will surely get to her in the morning.

She leans into his hand, grinning against his lips. He still tastes like - is it Firewhiskey? It doesn't matter. Natalie has to break for air for a moment, tilting her head back to look at him carefully, no malice in her gaze. A small smile pulls at the corners of her mouth.

In stark contrast from before, he follows without a single protest, completely unconcerned about the portraits or anyone who might see them out here. They aren't bothering to hide, and Leo doesn't see the point when this is such a perfectly good place for a good snogging. Maybe tomorrow he'll feel embarrassed, but he's long past that point tonight.

When they part, he looks back at her with the familiar spark of something fun and technically against the rules lingering in his eyes, and the obvious implication that part of the fun comes right from this not being allowed. They should be in their dormitories right now, the both of them asleep (separately, he reminds himself, remembering her "hypothetical" question from before) and very much not intoxicated or making out in the corridors. If one of the professors finds them...

Well. That's a problem for later.

"So," he asks, eyebrows lifted expectantly, "still think I wouldn't do anything, Goodman?"

"Shut up," Natalie groans, running her fingers through his hair to pull him in for another kiss.

It isn't as if there's something keeping them from ducking away, finding a place to themselves for some privacy, lest they run the risk of other students - worse, a prefect - finding them like this. She idly wonders how far they would be able to push each other, how many buttons of his that she can push herself.

She realizes this rush is similar to the way she feels when she's touched down after being in the air, the exhilaration of finishing a game, of winning. Is there a winner here? She doesn't know. She doesn't want to declare one, for once.

He's actually laughing when as she pulls him back to her. If she wants to stay here, then for once, he won't fight it. The risk is part of what makes it fun, and a detention from it is one he'd gladly take.

The one problem with what they're doing? His other hand is starting to get restless with not having anything to do, so of course he takes the path that's wide open before him - brushing his fingers over hers for one short, fleeting moment before resting them on Natalie's waist. That's a good place for it, Leo decides, idly playing with the fabric of her dress. This isn't so bad. This, he could get used to, if she would give him half a chance.

"What now?" she murmurs against his lips, lifting her hand to curl it into his short.

She doesn't mind if he doesn't answer right away, if at all, because she's so busy kissing him, biting his bottom lip every so often. She leans against the wall, pushing into him ever so slightly.

Leo doesn't even notice the soft, satisfied sound that leaves his throat when she does that, or the fact that he leans into her touch even as they keep this going. Feeling her teeth nip at him is only another way of enticing him, drawing him forward to press against her just enough to assure himself that this is real, and he brushes his tongue over her lip in quiet retaliation.

"You're the one with the issues here," he tells her frankly, without a trace of the earlier venom in his voice. "You tell me."

Natalie closes her eyes, leaning her forehead against his, breath coming in soft pants. She thinks before she speaks, for once in her life, lightly drumming her fingers on his chest. She wets her lips.

"I just wanna forget about everything I've said to you to make you yell at me tonight," she murmurs, keeping her eyes shut. "That I've been a complete prat, that you called me a twat," she says, enunciating the last word, "because I don't appreciate using women's parts as a curse word, "I just wanna forget everything except the few good things that've come out of this."

"You pissed me off," he retorts, grinning in spite of himself. All of this sounds good to him, and he'd be perfectly happy to just stay here with her for a while, though it's still hard to get that one image out of his mind when they're pressed against a wall like this and...

"Puedo vivir con eso," he adds, giving himself a mental shake to get rid of those thoughts. This is the girl he was just yelling at, not five minutes ago, and now this. Bloody roller coaster, she is. "You're going to remember that tomorrow, right? Cuando estás sobrio? Didn't have enough to drink that you'll black out and forget everything, will you?"

"I... didn't have as much as you did," she informs him, scratching the back of her neck.

She's always been capable at being incredibly difficult sober anyway.

Her head tilts to the side curiously, eyes flicking over him. "You've been half speaking in Spanish the whole night. What are you saying? Or thinking right now?" Not that he has ever been dishonest with her but he is especially honest right now. Her hands drop again, resting at her waist.

"En serio?" he mumbles, brow furrowed. "Um... Puedo vivir con eso... I can live with that." It's hard to think about translating when it comes so easily to him, especially when he's completely knackered, denials or no. When her hands fall to her waist, his hand takes hers to play with her fingers while he considers her question. "I think..."

He doesn't know what he thinks, and frankly, he hasn't even noticed up to now that he's been switching it up on her. Shaking his head, Leo finally says, "I dunno. What part?"

"The nice parts, probably, though I think you've made sure to give me the insults in English."

Her eyes lower to stare at their joined hands, focused on how he fusses with her fingers. She lifts one corner of her mouth in not quite a smile, lifting her chin. "Or," Natalie introduces another option, "you could just keep saying nice things in Spanish."

Well, that he can do. He's already forgotten most of what he's said before he started yelling, or what was in Spanish or English.

"Déjame pensar..." he drawls, starting to grin anew as he looks down at her. "Ese vestido se ve bien en ti. Mejor que las túnicas. Eres..." he shrugs, "lindo. Muy bastante." Tomorrow, he'll be embarrassed about all of this, even if she can't understand what he's saying. But for now, the words tumble from his lips without much trouble.

She wets her lips, not understanding a word coming out of his mouth but still feeling the blush bloom on her cheeks and creep down her neck. Maybe romance, or whatever the hell this is that they have, transcends even language barriers.

That thought would be something to snort at in the morning.

"Yeah? Y'mean it?" Natalie chuckles, keeping her voice low.

He shrugs again, smiling as the blush spreads over her cheeks. That's a win for Valdez, and he will definitely accept that.

"Sí, claro. Pensé que lo que incluso antes de que tú... me besó. Te ves aún más linda cuando se sonroja." Pondering that for a moment, he clarifies, "You're cute when you blush."

In an unusual move, Natalie lifts his hand to curve it around her cheek. They don't - this isn't what they do, tender things. If they're close, it's hasty and in the dark, with no time for real affection. It's a small step away from the norm.

Her eyes close again, as if she's nervous to see his reaction to her gesture.

It;s odd, experiencing this when all of their little trysts so far have been rough and not entirely pleasant. They'd sort of been competitions, just another way for them to duel, to see who could get the better of the other.

This is different.

This is... almost as if they'd never had all those problems in the first place. It's weird, but not... unpleasant.

So he's not entirely sure what to do with himself when she moves his hand, except maybe move that curl out of the way and be fascinated by how easily her cheek curves into his hand. It probably wouldn't be so interesting if Leo weren't, well... under the influence, but there he is. Maybe it'll make things similar if he takes it as an invitation, leaning in to press his lips against hers, this time gentler than before. There's nothing to prove anymore - at least, he doesn't think there is - so it's easier to just roll with the punches and see where this goes.

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