Post by Hayley Harrison on May 21, 2015 19:32:39 GMT
I'm moving everything onto here, detailing from the moment Hayley was kidnapped until....wherever it goes. Each post is a seperate 'chapter' so to speak, as they were originally presented.
Something stung and she collapsed. Elisa was safe...that was...that was...go--Hayley twisted into an uneasy unconsciousness. Her eyes began to close as she tried to stay awake. Robert ran past, brandishing his wand. She tried to call out to him, to warn him that there was someone behind him but there was no time and suddenly he was bleeding. He was bleeding and she couldn’t help. There was so much blood on her hands. She cried out, but the sound was muffled by a hand closing over her mouth. Then there was nothing.
---
He sat on the bench outside, face turned up to the sunlight, eyes closed. The summer weather was utterly out of place for December, but what wasn’t out of place in the Room these days. He briefly wondered if Scarlet had used this room too with Sulpice.
He felt a mild annoyance at the idea of the Slytherin setting foot in here, but it bothered him less than it did before. Perhaps the cut on his arm had something to do with that, perhaps it was the party on the roof that warmed him up to the idea that not all Slytherins were rotten.
His ears were primed for the sound of crunching that Hayley would make coming up the path to the house on the rocks. Their house.
He chuckled, a brief image of a possible future for him and Hayley flashing in his mind. Their house indeed.*
Hayley came up the path, picnic basket looped over one arm. She smiled when she saw him there relaxing in the warm sun. Her footsteps slowed and she stepped onto the grass to make less noise; she didn’t want to disturb this image.*
He had heard her but kept his pose.*
She smiled and approached him quietly, then leaned forward to give him a kiss on the cheek.*
He opened his eyes at the last moment and shot out his arms to take hold of her shoulders. His intention was to throw her to the ground and get her in a griplock.*
Hayley let him, tumbling to the ground.*
He was good in the onset and rolled on top of her on the ground, but his finish was sloppy and he lost his balance from there. She would easily be able to roll him off if she wanted to.*
She didn’t. She just loosed the picnic basket and pushed it aside so it wouldn’t get crushed. “Hi.” *
“Hi. You’ll have to work on that stealth if you’re gonna last long in the match,” he remarked. “Or hope that you encounter me in close quarters.” He kissed her teasingly.*
“I think I’ll be okay.” She wiggled her wand out from its spot on her sleeve and pressed in into her own side. Annie had been teaching her during lessons, and now the dissolusionment charm was spreading up and down from her hip. She rolled off him and stood up, her smile invisible. *
“Wow.” From so close, she was easily visible: a distortion in the air with a trace of her original colour in it. But in a natural arena and from longer distance, she would blend right in.
“Good job. You’ll have to teach me that someday. In fact, we could do that now. Or not.”
The sun was warm, the flowers were many and the colours of the house seemed brighter than ever. This wasn’t a day for practice, he thought. But if she was up for it.*
“Maybe later. You promised dance lessons.” She tapped her head again and the spell dissolved.*
“Yeah I did.” They were back to the subject of Christmas.
“After lunch then?”*
“Sounds good,” She picked up the picnic basket again. A light quilt had appeared folded between the top and the handles. “We could go down to the beach.” It was a beautiful day. Really beautiful. For the first time in a while, her smile was absolutely radiant.*
He beamed at that suggestion. “Let me carry that though. It’s a steep walk.” He held out his hands.*
She laughed, shaking her head. Her curls flew, obscuring her view of him for a moment. “I can handle myself, Robert. I’m not going to break. You can take the quilt though.” Hayley handed him the blanket. *
He smiled but added for good measure. “It would be lady-like to accept. When we’re at my house …” He stopped.*
“When we’re at your house, I’ll let you carry whatever you like. But it’s just us right now, Robert. And that means we can act normal.” *
“Yes we can. Just thought I’d mention it. You have to come across as a …” proper witch. “You know. Mother expects as much. I have no idea what Father thinks, but it is safe to assume he expects more and tolerates less.”
He was blood-swimmingly nervous about this. Mostly, but not exclusively, for Hayley.*
She knew that, he’d said as much before, and she was nervous too, but she felt like she could probably handle it. Most likely. It would be nice for him to show a little confidence in her ability to be lady like.
“I know, Robert. I know.” She almost stumbled over a rock, but managed not to. *
“Sorry.” He watched her stumble but was not unduly worried. Another little quirk of the room was that while walking down this weaving path down the cliff, they could not really hurt themselves. He’d found this out when he fell over a loose rock and saw the rocky ground come at him rapidly, until he bounced back on a cushion.
He was sure that they could hypothetically jump off the cliff and land in a huge pile of pillows or something. He lacked the courage to try it though.*
“It’s alright, I just want you to worry less.” They neared the bottom of the cliff face and Hayley stepped onto the rocky shore.There was a large flat rock a little ways away that they’d eaten on before. She headed for it. *
“I’ll try.” He knew that was in vain. He couldn’t help it.
The warmth of the stone spread through the quilt as he sat down.
“I’m not sure what made the room so sunny today,” he said, looking again at the sky over the sea. “Maybe it just felt like it, who knows.”*
She had a feeling it had more to do with the goofy smile that kept appearing on his face. She sat next to him and opened the basket. “Here, I brought you tuna.” She knew it was his favorite. There were crisps in the basket too, and a jug of iced tea and a couple of plastic cups as well. Hayley pulled out her own sandwich (chicken salad) and poured them each a glass before starting in on her food.
“It’s almost a shame to be wearing these stupid tights.” The room was warm, the breeze inviting, and she was wearing her winter uniform. She set her cup and sandwich down and stood up again, kicking off her shoes. *
He nearly choked on his first bite of the tuna sandwich. He really needed to stop being such a dirty-head.
When he had cleared his airway with a gulp of iced tea, he choked out, “Did you do that on purpose?”*
Hayley giggled and shook her head, “no,” she held up a hand like she was taking an oath, “I promise I did not.” Then she tugged her tights off.
The sweater came off next, then the tie, then the button up till she was in her cami and skirt. “Much better.” She sat back down on the blanket and stretched her legs in front of her. The light shone on her smooth skin and she smiled. The warmth of the sun was much more easily enjoyed now.*
As was its reflection on her skin. He himself was only in shirt. The rest was inside the house. He felt like with Hayley he could safely give in to the urge of looking at her rather than the sun, and so he did. He could not agree more that it was much better.*
Hayley munched on her sandwich, “Robert?” She waited till he was looking at her face, “this is the last time we’ll come here this semester,right? We won’t have much time in the next week. And then at your parent’s....we’ll have to be careful.” *
“Yes we will. They’ll be expecting us to be good friends, fortunately, but we can’t look like more than that,” he answered honestly.*
“That’s doable.” She smiled at him, her free hand finding his on the rock. It really was a beautiful day. *
“I’m glad you think so. I’ll be shaking head to toe trying to act normal around you. I can’t just stay away from you, don’t want to either. You’re the guest of honour. But I fear I’ll slip up all the time.”
He let sand run through his fingers that weren’t under hers.*
Guest of honour....she never would have expected that. Not in a million years. “It’ll be alright, Robert. I promise, we’ll make it work. We always do.”*
“We always do,” he agreed. “Somehow.”
The cut on his arm still had a huge plaster on it, so he kept it out of sight. There was something that still needed resolving.*
She took a sip of her tea, thinking. The sunlight bounced off the waves,sending little sparkles of light onto the sand. “And hey, maybe one day we won’t need to. Still, no use worrying too much about it right this second.” She lay back on the rock and stared up at the cloudless sky. *
“I think I may have figured out why the room made it sunny,” he said after minutes of silence. In his sitting position he had been able to shamelessly admire the view without feeling caught.*
She grinned, “and why is that?”*
His blush was hard to see in the bright sun.
“Oh, nothing. It’s silly on second thoughts.”*
“Nothing?” Hayley stretched, bending her knees and then laying them flat again before she sat up and leaned towards him, her mouth catching his before he could stop her. *
He caught the kiss with glee, wondering if she knew what he’d been thinking. Probably. He leaned forward so she didn’t have to so much.*
Hayley wrapped her arms around him and leaned back, pulling him forward with her. She sucked on his bottom lip a moment before releasing, “see, we can make anything work.” *
“What’s working?” He knew what his first thought was, but she probably didn’t mean that.
Or did she?*
“Everything.” And it was true, there were a lot of problems, but right then, everything was okay. She kissed him again, deeper this time. Her hands were around his neck, playing with the base of his hairline. *
Oh good, she didn’t.
He responded by deepening into the kiss, hands on her shoulders as she lay back on the sand.*
Her face felt hot, her grip tightened bringing him closer. The sun beat down on them, the warm air making everything hazy. She pressed her tongue against his lips, opening his with a gentle prod. *
He let her lead, not sure that he could. It was still disconcerting, the new way he looked at her even now, especially now. His hand went down to her waist, resting on the thin fabric of her blouse.*
Hayley’s unclasped her hands from his neck and slid them down his chest, finding the hem of his top without really thinking about it. She was moving on instinct, her only thought being that she wanted to be close to him. *
He was not sure what she was thinking, but he let her.*
She pulled it up then hesitated, waiting for him to make sure it was okay.*
His mind shot all over the place. Once that was quieted down a bit, he nodded, hardly sure what he was getting himself into. It was fair to say the talk had been spent on him in his family’s way. But they wouldn’t go that far.*
Hayley pulled his shirt up, breaking the kiss to get it over his head. She paused, looking at him. She’d never seen him without a shirt before. “You’re very handsome, Robert.” *
“Thanks,” he said shyly, trying hard to ban out the voice in his head that told him to stop, at the same time wondering if it had a point. He kept his eyes trained on hers to resist the urge to look down. It wouldn’t help.
“It took taking my shirt off for you to say that?” he teased, instantly turning completely red in the cheeks as he managed to hit home what he had not to looked at.
He just kept looking at her face until he felt he could speak again. He’d hate to break the moment.
“So can I …?” He locked up and instead shifted a part of her blouse that had come loose from her skirt to indicate what he meant.*
She thought a minute, then nodded. “I always thought you were handsome....I just thought I’d say it. I don’t think I have before.” Hayley looked a little confused, her cheeks were stained a deep red.
Before he could remove her blouse she pushed up enough to kiss him again, then relaxed. “You can take mine off, Robert.” *
He started pulling it loose from her skirt. Everywhere his fingers touched the skin, they pricked and he made a slight jerky motion away from it as it burned. He was too aware of it maybe.
When the blouse was free, he paused. How should he go about it? Was there some proper way? Wouldn’t it get damaged? Maybe he should just let it go.
But because she had said yes and he did not want to be a coward, he went on with it. He took some of the fabric near her waist between his hands and started pulling it up over her torso, lifting himself off her to make that possible.*
Hayley pushed off the ground to help him,unable to figure out if she should laugh a little at his hesitation, or make him stop. It was odd, every time his skin brushed hers he flinched. Did he not like it? She bit her lip, lifting her arms for him.*
He stopped again when he felt a hard edge and realised what it was. He’d reached the end of her stomach and under the rest was …
“Are you sure?”*
She nodded, “yes. Unless...unless you don’t want...” *
“I don’t know. I do. You’re beautiful. But isn’t it indecent or wrong or something? I don’t want to trick you into something …”*
Her blush deepened, “I’m not being tricked...and I don’t think it’s indecent...at least, with you it doesn’t feel indecent. You really think I’m beautiful?” *
“Always, and the sunlight looks great on your skin. It reflects.” He absent-mindedly touched some of her exposed stomach, where the sun made a soft reflection, making it seem like she glowed.*
Hayley smiled, sure again. “Thank you. You can keep going if you want and...” she could feel where he had stopped, just below...she swallowed. “You can, if you want...you can touch them...I mean...I won’t mind.” *
His eyes widened. He hadn’t even thought to … “Ehm … o-okay. I’ll try to …” He didn’t know. Be gentle? Not to think too impure things?
He ltook hold of the fabric again, at the very end, and lifted it up, not daring to look at what he was doing. There was only so far he could lift off the blouse though. Inevitably, his hand had to touch her again. Or well, not her so much. The fabric of her …” He swallowed.
Eventually, he reached her head, glad that he had somehow passed that okay. Checking tht it was okay, he lifted it over her head - the thin material wenteasily - and slid it up her arms until it came off. Then he lay there with the wad of clothing in his hands and not knowing for the life of him what to do next. He was still too nervous to look down.*
She took his hands, uncurling his fingers and pulling the shirt away. Then she pressed herself against him and kissed him again.*
He answered the kiss with as much enthusiasm as before but the feel of the skin between them touching sidetracked him. The fabric over her … felt strange, unlike that of normal clothing. Smooth and satiny. For lack of looking down, his hands travelled back from her shoulders to her waist. Now, with the question if this was okay beyond them, it was easier and he stroked her skin, feeling the warmth of the sun on one side and the cool of the shadow on the other. She had very smooth skin. Always had. He wanted to say this, but figured his throat would be too locked up anyway and so he just put that energy into the kiss as well.*
There was a sense of rushing, but she ignored it, her hands exploring his shoulders instead. Her fingers found the scar and she paused, her lips stilling as her fingertips slid over it.*
He detached. “What’s wrong?”*
She shook her head, “nothing’s wrong. It’s just...I’ve never...” she hadn’t seen them in two years, not since they weren’t scars at all, but fresh cuts. “They look better than I expected,” she swallowed, a little of her smile returning. She sat up, pushing him gently so he’d sit with her, then she kissed him again, fiercer this time, leaning forward into him. *
“Yeah, they’ve faded a bit.” He looked down at them himself. “Do you know that feels like ages ago. A different life almost. Do you know what I mean?”*
Hayley didn’t actually. She still dreamed about it. Almost every night. That probably wasn’t normal. But she didn’t say that. “It was ages ago,” she said instead. “And you’re all better now.”*
“Yes. Is it strange that I keep telling myself that it’s all over now? That we’re done. Just to keep my head on straight. There’s enough problems going around with the Slytherins.”*
She shook her head then leaned forward against his unscarred shoulder, arms wrapping around his back. “That’s not strange.” This was though, this sudden shift in mood. She kinda wanted to backtrack a bit. *
“And next year we won’t need this room anymore,” he piped up. “We can just meet in the real world, walk around the grounds, sit under the big oak tree by the lake ...”*
Hayley didn’t bother correcting him. She didn’t go out onto the grounds unless she had to.And near the lake....forget it. She just smiled, “yeah...” *
“Will you miss this room?” He thought he might.*
“It’s the one place where nothing can touch us. I don’t want to leave it.” She inched closer to him, any closer and she’d be on his lap. “It’s the one place I feel safe from everything.”*
“Yes, but that’s wrong, isn’t it?” He smiled and ruffled her hair. “We have an army of friends to look after us. When Seamus is gone, we’ll be fine.”*
She frowned into his shoulder, but didn’t comment. Seamus worried her, but there was more than just him. Hayley sighed, running a hand absently up and down Robert’s arm. *
His eyes kept drifting from her face. He tried hard not to, because she was sure to notice and he didn’t want her to think that’s the only thing he cared about. To distract himself from it and save them both embarrassment, he pulled back after a while and reached over for the basket to get a chicken sandwich. “You should be prepared to eat a lot over Christmas. I don’t know how much you normally eat, but we go overboard, I think.”*
She didn’t like him pulling away, but didn’t say anything about it.
“I don’t eat very much, I’m not hungry often.” Her smile was forced as she ran a hand over her flat stomach. Her own sandwich was only half eaten, and she didn’t really want any more.
“Is that going to be a problem?” *
He looked down, then at her unfinished sandwich.
“It would be polite to eat some of what is offered. But you should eat enough anyway.”
He picked up the sandwich. “Mouth open.” He grinned.*
Hayley raised her eyebrows at him. She could be polite, and she didn’t need to be fed like a little kid. *
He held his hand in place just outside her mouth. “Don’t make me wrestle you for it,” he joked. Secretly, he would not mind having to wrestle her right now. There was enough space on the sand for it. The sandwich might come out ruined though, but that was okay.*
She rolled her eyes, “fine,” and opened her mouth obediently.*
He put it into her mouth carefully. “If you’re going to be shirtless more, and I’d like that, you should pay more attention to your body.”*
She took a bite and chewed, thinking it over. “I pay attention, I just don’t feel like eating,” she said when she was finished swallowing.*
“Well, then I’ll just have to feed you myself, don’t I?” he teased.
He glanced down, at the lavender bra. “That colour looks good on you,” he said before he could stop himself.*
Hayley blushed, “thanks, it’s my favorite. The colour I mean. Shades of purple...you know.....” She was babbling so she stopped. *
“Sorry. It’s not really appropriate talking about that, is it?”*
“It’s okay,” she looked up at him, smiling gently. “Really it is.”*
“But boys aren’t supposed to see that,” he protested. “It’s private.”*
“Boys aren’t seeing it, you are.But I can,” she reached for her button up.*
“No. I don’t mind. I like it,’ he admitted, blushing. “But …” He grinned nervously. “I guess you’re right.”*
She nodded smartly, “Yep. Always.” Hayley was quiet a moment, “thank you.” *
“Thank you? For what?”*
“For liking it.” It felt good.*
“Oh.” he had not even considered that it was a compliment. It was true. “You’re welcome.”
Just to prove to himself that he still had the nerve, he put a few fingers on her stomach. It was indeed very flat.*
Hayley shifted and took his hand, spreading his fingers over her stomach. “See, that’s not too hard.” *
He smiled. “And here I was thinking you only did it for my benefit.”*
“Not at all....” she considered moving his hand up, to see if he would. No one had ever...it would be okay if he did. Other people...that would be wrong. She didn’t think she would like that. But Robert. Robert was different. Hayley moved his hand just a little.*
A shiver went through him when he realised what she was doing. One hesitating moment, his hand pulled away a bit, but then he placed it back, closing his eyes. The touch alone was enough to make his head spin. In fact, he was a bit unsteady on the ground.*
“Robert?” It really was up to him. She looked at him, rather wishing he’d open his eyes. It was easier to tell what he was thinking that way. Her free hand rested on the side of his face.*
Maybe he should just go with it and switch of his mind. But he didn’t know if that was such a good idea. If it pestered him with that kind of thought under normal circumstances, what would it do when set free?
He nodded and smiled again, but kept his eyes still closed.*
“Should I...?” She moved his hands again until she felt his fingers brush the material.*
Another slight jolt, but less this time. “Hmm?”*
She moved them up further, then stopped. “Only if you want to.”*
“What do you mean?” His voice was breathless.
Hayley squeezed his hand, “I’ll stop moving it if you want me to.”
“No, go on.”
Her hands were shaking, her skin alive. She brought his hand up till it covered her breast. She took a deep, heavy breath. Her fingers held over his still.
He felt her chest rise under his hand. It had not quite sunk in yet that this was what those felt like.
“Silky,” he said hoarsely, well aware that his fingertips were touching skin. He wouldn’t pull his hand back as long as she kept her hand on it, he decided. But it was not easy. Any time, he wanted to pull away scared of his own reaction.
He opened his eyes, making sure to look at her face and not down. It took only a few seconds for that to fail as his eyes flitted down and up again. His throat locked. Right.
She nodded. “Yeah.” Hayley took his other hand carefully in hers and moved it to match the other. “Is it...do you.....” She waited a moment and then pressed her lips to his gently. Little waves of sensation moved up and down her body, and odd sort of tingling engulfed her. *
He closed his eyes again, finding that it was easier that way. Blindly, he met her kiss, leaning forward a bit.
She pressed his hands into her a little more, inching closer.*
~~~~~~~
Something stung and she collapsed. Elisa was safe...that was...that was...go--Hayley twisted into an uneasy unconsciousness. Her eyes began to close as she tried to stay awake. Robert ran past, brandishing his wand. She tried to call out to him, to warn him that there was someone behind him but there was no time and suddenly he was bleeding. He was bleeding and she couldn’t help. There was so much blood on her hands. She cried out, but the sound was muffled by a hand closing over her mouth. Then there was nothing.
---
He sat on the bench outside, face turned up to the sunlight, eyes closed. The summer weather was utterly out of place for December, but what wasn’t out of place in the Room these days. He briefly wondered if Scarlet had used this room too with Sulpice.
He felt a mild annoyance at the idea of the Slytherin setting foot in here, but it bothered him less than it did before. Perhaps the cut on his arm had something to do with that, perhaps it was the party on the roof that warmed him up to the idea that not all Slytherins were rotten.
His ears were primed for the sound of crunching that Hayley would make coming up the path to the house on the rocks. Their house.
He chuckled, a brief image of a possible future for him and Hayley flashing in his mind. Their house indeed.*
Hayley came up the path, picnic basket looped over one arm. She smiled when she saw him there relaxing in the warm sun. Her footsteps slowed and she stepped onto the grass to make less noise; she didn’t want to disturb this image.*
He had heard her but kept his pose.*
She smiled and approached him quietly, then leaned forward to give him a kiss on the cheek.*
He opened his eyes at the last moment and shot out his arms to take hold of her shoulders. His intention was to throw her to the ground and get her in a griplock.*
Hayley let him, tumbling to the ground.*
He was good in the onset and rolled on top of her on the ground, but his finish was sloppy and he lost his balance from there. She would easily be able to roll him off if she wanted to.*
She didn’t. She just loosed the picnic basket and pushed it aside so it wouldn’t get crushed. “Hi.” *
“Hi. You’ll have to work on that stealth if you’re gonna last long in the match,” he remarked. “Or hope that you encounter me in close quarters.” He kissed her teasingly.*
“I think I’ll be okay.” She wiggled her wand out from its spot on her sleeve and pressed in into her own side. Annie had been teaching her during lessons, and now the dissolusionment charm was spreading up and down from her hip. She rolled off him and stood up, her smile invisible. *
“Wow.” From so close, she was easily visible: a distortion in the air with a trace of her original colour in it. But in a natural arena and from longer distance, she would blend right in.
“Good job. You’ll have to teach me that someday. In fact, we could do that now. Or not.”
The sun was warm, the flowers were many and the colours of the house seemed brighter than ever. This wasn’t a day for practice, he thought. But if she was up for it.*
“Maybe later. You promised dance lessons.” She tapped her head again and the spell dissolved.*
“Yeah I did.” They were back to the subject of Christmas.
“After lunch then?”*
“Sounds good,” She picked up the picnic basket again. A light quilt had appeared folded between the top and the handles. “We could go down to the beach.” It was a beautiful day. Really beautiful. For the first time in a while, her smile was absolutely radiant.*
He beamed at that suggestion. “Let me carry that though. It’s a steep walk.” He held out his hands.*
She laughed, shaking her head. Her curls flew, obscuring her view of him for a moment. “I can handle myself, Robert. I’m not going to break. You can take the quilt though.” Hayley handed him the blanket. *
He smiled but added for good measure. “It would be lady-like to accept. When we’re at my house …” He stopped.*
“When we’re at your house, I’ll let you carry whatever you like. But it’s just us right now, Robert. And that means we can act normal.” *
“Yes we can. Just thought I’d mention it. You have to come across as a …” proper witch. “You know. Mother expects as much. I have no idea what Father thinks, but it is safe to assume he expects more and tolerates less.”
He was blood-swimmingly nervous about this. Mostly, but not exclusively, for Hayley.*
She knew that, he’d said as much before, and she was nervous too, but she felt like she could probably handle it. Most likely. It would be nice for him to show a little confidence in her ability to be lady like.
“I know, Robert. I know.” She almost stumbled over a rock, but managed not to. *
“Sorry.” He watched her stumble but was not unduly worried. Another little quirk of the room was that while walking down this weaving path down the cliff, they could not really hurt themselves. He’d found this out when he fell over a loose rock and saw the rocky ground come at him rapidly, until he bounced back on a cushion.
He was sure that they could hypothetically jump off the cliff and land in a huge pile of pillows or something. He lacked the courage to try it though.*
“It’s alright, I just want you to worry less.” They neared the bottom of the cliff face and Hayley stepped onto the rocky shore.There was a large flat rock a little ways away that they’d eaten on before. She headed for it. *
“I’ll try.” He knew that was in vain. He couldn’t help it.
The warmth of the stone spread through the quilt as he sat down.
“I’m not sure what made the room so sunny today,” he said, looking again at the sky over the sea. “Maybe it just felt like it, who knows.”*
She had a feeling it had more to do with the goofy smile that kept appearing on his face. She sat next to him and opened the basket. “Here, I brought you tuna.” She knew it was his favorite. There were crisps in the basket too, and a jug of iced tea and a couple of plastic cups as well. Hayley pulled out her own sandwich (chicken salad) and poured them each a glass before starting in on her food.
“It’s almost a shame to be wearing these stupid tights.” The room was warm, the breeze inviting, and she was wearing her winter uniform. She set her cup and sandwich down and stood up again, kicking off her shoes. *
He nearly choked on his first bite of the tuna sandwich. He really needed to stop being such a dirty-head.
When he had cleared his airway with a gulp of iced tea, he choked out, “Did you do that on purpose?”*
Hayley giggled and shook her head, “no,” she held up a hand like she was taking an oath, “I promise I did not.” Then she tugged her tights off.
The sweater came off next, then the tie, then the button up till she was in her cami and skirt. “Much better.” She sat back down on the blanket and stretched her legs in front of her. The light shone on her smooth skin and she smiled. The warmth of the sun was much more easily enjoyed now.*
As was its reflection on her skin. He himself was only in shirt. The rest was inside the house. He felt like with Hayley he could safely give in to the urge of looking at her rather than the sun, and so he did. He could not agree more that it was much better.*
Hayley munched on her sandwich, “Robert?” She waited till he was looking at her face, “this is the last time we’ll come here this semester,right? We won’t have much time in the next week. And then at your parent’s....we’ll have to be careful.” *
“Yes we will. They’ll be expecting us to be good friends, fortunately, but we can’t look like more than that,” he answered honestly.*
“That’s doable.” She smiled at him, her free hand finding his on the rock. It really was a beautiful day. *
“I’m glad you think so. I’ll be shaking head to toe trying to act normal around you. I can’t just stay away from you, don’t want to either. You’re the guest of honour. But I fear I’ll slip up all the time.”
He let sand run through his fingers that weren’t under hers.*
Guest of honour....she never would have expected that. Not in a million years. “It’ll be alright, Robert. I promise, we’ll make it work. We always do.”*
“We always do,” he agreed. “Somehow.”
The cut on his arm still had a huge plaster on it, so he kept it out of sight. There was something that still needed resolving.*
She took a sip of her tea, thinking. The sunlight bounced off the waves,sending little sparkles of light onto the sand. “And hey, maybe one day we won’t need to. Still, no use worrying too much about it right this second.” She lay back on the rock and stared up at the cloudless sky. *
“I think I may have figured out why the room made it sunny,” he said after minutes of silence. In his sitting position he had been able to shamelessly admire the view without feeling caught.*
She grinned, “and why is that?”*
His blush was hard to see in the bright sun.
“Oh, nothing. It’s silly on second thoughts.”*
“Nothing?” Hayley stretched, bending her knees and then laying them flat again before she sat up and leaned towards him, her mouth catching his before he could stop her. *
He caught the kiss with glee, wondering if she knew what he’d been thinking. Probably. He leaned forward so she didn’t have to so much.*
Hayley wrapped her arms around him and leaned back, pulling him forward with her. She sucked on his bottom lip a moment before releasing, “see, we can make anything work.” *
“What’s working?” He knew what his first thought was, but she probably didn’t mean that.
Or did she?*
“Everything.” And it was true, there were a lot of problems, but right then, everything was okay. She kissed him again, deeper this time. Her hands were around his neck, playing with the base of his hairline. *
Oh good, she didn’t.
He responded by deepening into the kiss, hands on her shoulders as she lay back on the sand.*
Her face felt hot, her grip tightened bringing him closer. The sun beat down on them, the warm air making everything hazy. She pressed her tongue against his lips, opening his with a gentle prod. *
He let her lead, not sure that he could. It was still disconcerting, the new way he looked at her even now, especially now. His hand went down to her waist, resting on the thin fabric of her blouse.*
Hayley’s unclasped her hands from his neck and slid them down his chest, finding the hem of his top without really thinking about it. She was moving on instinct, her only thought being that she wanted to be close to him. *
He was not sure what she was thinking, but he let her.*
She pulled it up then hesitated, waiting for him to make sure it was okay.*
His mind shot all over the place. Once that was quieted down a bit, he nodded, hardly sure what he was getting himself into. It was fair to say the talk had been spent on him in his family’s way. But they wouldn’t go that far.*
Hayley pulled his shirt up, breaking the kiss to get it over his head. She paused, looking at him. She’d never seen him without a shirt before. “You’re very handsome, Robert.” *
“Thanks,” he said shyly, trying hard to ban out the voice in his head that told him to stop, at the same time wondering if it had a point. He kept his eyes trained on hers to resist the urge to look down. It wouldn’t help.
“It took taking my shirt off for you to say that?” he teased, instantly turning completely red in the cheeks as he managed to hit home what he had not to looked at.
He just kept looking at her face until he felt he could speak again. He’d hate to break the moment.
“So can I …?” He locked up and instead shifted a part of her blouse that had come loose from her skirt to indicate what he meant.*
She thought a minute, then nodded. “I always thought you were handsome....I just thought I’d say it. I don’t think I have before.” Hayley looked a little confused, her cheeks were stained a deep red.
Before he could remove her blouse she pushed up enough to kiss him again, then relaxed. “You can take mine off, Robert.” *
He started pulling it loose from her skirt. Everywhere his fingers touched the skin, they pricked and he made a slight jerky motion away from it as it burned. He was too aware of it maybe.
When the blouse was free, he paused. How should he go about it? Was there some proper way? Wouldn’t it get damaged? Maybe he should just let it go.
But because she had said yes and he did not want to be a coward, he went on with it. He took some of the fabric near her waist between his hands and started pulling it up over her torso, lifting himself off her to make that possible.*
Hayley pushed off the ground to help him,unable to figure out if she should laugh a little at his hesitation, or make him stop. It was odd, every time his skin brushed hers he flinched. Did he not like it? She bit her lip, lifting her arms for him.*
He stopped again when he felt a hard edge and realised what it was. He’d reached the end of her stomach and under the rest was …
“Are you sure?”*
She nodded, “yes. Unless...unless you don’t want...” *
“I don’t know. I do. You’re beautiful. But isn’t it indecent or wrong or something? I don’t want to trick you into something …”*
Her blush deepened, “I’m not being tricked...and I don’t think it’s indecent...at least, with you it doesn’t feel indecent. You really think I’m beautiful?” *
“Always, and the sunlight looks great on your skin. It reflects.” He absent-mindedly touched some of her exposed stomach, where the sun made a soft reflection, making it seem like she glowed.*
Hayley smiled, sure again. “Thank you. You can keep going if you want and...” she could feel where he had stopped, just below...she swallowed. “You can, if you want...you can touch them...I mean...I won’t mind.” *
His eyes widened. He hadn’t even thought to … “Ehm … o-okay. I’ll try to …” He didn’t know. Be gentle? Not to think too impure things?
He ltook hold of the fabric again, at the very end, and lifted it up, not daring to look at what he was doing. There was only so far he could lift off the blouse though. Inevitably, his hand had to touch her again. Or well, not her so much. The fabric of her …” He swallowed.
Eventually, he reached her head, glad that he had somehow passed that okay. Checking tht it was okay, he lifted it over her head - the thin material wenteasily - and slid it up her arms until it came off. Then he lay there with the wad of clothing in his hands and not knowing for the life of him what to do next. He was still too nervous to look down.*
She took his hands, uncurling his fingers and pulling the shirt away. Then she pressed herself against him and kissed him again.*
He answered the kiss with as much enthusiasm as before but the feel of the skin between them touching sidetracked him. The fabric over her … felt strange, unlike that of normal clothing. Smooth and satiny. For lack of looking down, his hands travelled back from her shoulders to her waist. Now, with the question if this was okay beyond them, it was easier and he stroked her skin, feeling the warmth of the sun on one side and the cool of the shadow on the other. She had very smooth skin. Always had. He wanted to say this, but figured his throat would be too locked up anyway and so he just put that energy into the kiss as well.*
There was a sense of rushing, but she ignored it, her hands exploring his shoulders instead. Her fingers found the scar and she paused, her lips stilling as her fingertips slid over it.*
He detached. “What’s wrong?”*
She shook her head, “nothing’s wrong. It’s just...I’ve never...” she hadn’t seen them in two years, not since they weren’t scars at all, but fresh cuts. “They look better than I expected,” she swallowed, a little of her smile returning. She sat up, pushing him gently so he’d sit with her, then she kissed him again, fiercer this time, leaning forward into him. *
“Yeah, they’ve faded a bit.” He looked down at them himself. “Do you know that feels like ages ago. A different life almost. Do you know what I mean?”*
Hayley didn’t actually. She still dreamed about it. Almost every night. That probably wasn’t normal. But she didn’t say that. “It was ages ago,” she said instead. “And you’re all better now.”*
“Yes. Is it strange that I keep telling myself that it’s all over now? That we’re done. Just to keep my head on straight. There’s enough problems going around with the Slytherins.”*
She shook her head then leaned forward against his unscarred shoulder, arms wrapping around his back. “That’s not strange.” This was though, this sudden shift in mood. She kinda wanted to backtrack a bit. *
“And next year we won’t need this room anymore,” he piped up. “We can just meet in the real world, walk around the grounds, sit under the big oak tree by the lake ...”*
Hayley didn’t bother correcting him. She didn’t go out onto the grounds unless she had to.And near the lake....forget it. She just smiled, “yeah...” *
“Will you miss this room?” He thought he might.*
“It’s the one place where nothing can touch us. I don’t want to leave it.” She inched closer to him, any closer and she’d be on his lap. “It’s the one place I feel safe from everything.”*
“Yes, but that’s wrong, isn’t it?” He smiled and ruffled her hair. “We have an army of friends to look after us. When Seamus is gone, we’ll be fine.”*
She frowned into his shoulder, but didn’t comment. Seamus worried her, but there was more than just him. Hayley sighed, running a hand absently up and down Robert’s arm. *
His eyes kept drifting from her face. He tried hard not to, because she was sure to notice and he didn’t want her to think that’s the only thing he cared about. To distract himself from it and save them both embarrassment, he pulled back after a while and reached over for the basket to get a chicken sandwich. “You should be prepared to eat a lot over Christmas. I don’t know how much you normally eat, but we go overboard, I think.”*
She didn’t like him pulling away, but didn’t say anything about it.
“I don’t eat very much, I’m not hungry often.” Her smile was forced as she ran a hand over her flat stomach. Her own sandwich was only half eaten, and she didn’t really want any more.
“Is that going to be a problem?” *
He looked down, then at her unfinished sandwich.
“It would be polite to eat some of what is offered. But you should eat enough anyway.”
He picked up the sandwich. “Mouth open.” He grinned.*
Hayley raised her eyebrows at him. She could be polite, and she didn’t need to be fed like a little kid. *
He held his hand in place just outside her mouth. “Don’t make me wrestle you for it,” he joked. Secretly, he would not mind having to wrestle her right now. There was enough space on the sand for it. The sandwich might come out ruined though, but that was okay.*
She rolled her eyes, “fine,” and opened her mouth obediently.*
He put it into her mouth carefully. “If you’re going to be shirtless more, and I’d like that, you should pay more attention to your body.”*
She took a bite and chewed, thinking it over. “I pay attention, I just don’t feel like eating,” she said when she was finished swallowing.*
“Well, then I’ll just have to feed you myself, don’t I?” he teased.
He glanced down, at the lavender bra. “That colour looks good on you,” he said before he could stop himself.*
Hayley blushed, “thanks, it’s my favorite. The colour I mean. Shades of purple...you know.....” She was babbling so she stopped. *
“Sorry. It’s not really appropriate talking about that, is it?”*
“It’s okay,” she looked up at him, smiling gently. “Really it is.”*
“But boys aren’t supposed to see that,” he protested. “It’s private.”*
“Boys aren’t seeing it, you are.But I can,” she reached for her button up.*
“No. I don’t mind. I like it,’ he admitted, blushing. “But …” He grinned nervously. “I guess you’re right.”*
She nodded smartly, “Yep. Always.” Hayley was quiet a moment, “thank you.” *
“Thank you? For what?”*
“For liking it.” It felt good.*
“Oh.” he had not even considered that it was a compliment. It was true. “You’re welcome.”
Just to prove to himself that he still had the nerve, he put a few fingers on her stomach. It was indeed very flat.*
Hayley shifted and took his hand, spreading his fingers over her stomach. “See, that’s not too hard.” *
He smiled. “And here I was thinking you only did it for my benefit.”*
“Not at all....” she considered moving his hand up, to see if he would. No one had ever...it would be okay if he did. Other people...that would be wrong. She didn’t think she would like that. But Robert. Robert was different. Hayley moved his hand just a little.*
A shiver went through him when he realised what she was doing. One hesitating moment, his hand pulled away a bit, but then he placed it back, closing his eyes. The touch alone was enough to make his head spin. In fact, he was a bit unsteady on the ground.*
“Robert?” It really was up to him. She looked at him, rather wishing he’d open his eyes. It was easier to tell what he was thinking that way. Her free hand rested on the side of his face.*
Maybe he should just go with it and switch of his mind. But he didn’t know if that was such a good idea. If it pestered him with that kind of thought under normal circumstances, what would it do when set free?
He nodded and smiled again, but kept his eyes still closed.*
“Should I...?” She moved his hands again until she felt his fingers brush the material.*
Another slight jolt, but less this time. “Hmm?”*
She moved them up further, then stopped. “Only if you want to.”*
“What do you mean?” His voice was breathless.
Hayley squeezed his hand, “I’ll stop moving it if you want me to.”
“No, go on.”
Her hands were shaking, her skin alive. She brought his hand up till it covered her breast. She took a deep, heavy breath. Her fingers held over his still.
He felt her chest rise under his hand. It had not quite sunk in yet that this was what those felt like.
“Silky,” he said hoarsely, well aware that his fingertips were touching skin. He wouldn’t pull his hand back as long as she kept her hand on it, he decided. But it was not easy. Any time, he wanted to pull away scared of his own reaction.
He opened his eyes, making sure to look at her face and not down. It took only a few seconds for that to fail as his eyes flitted down and up again. His throat locked. Right.
She nodded. “Yeah.” Hayley took his other hand carefully in hers and moved it to match the other. “Is it...do you.....” She waited a moment and then pressed her lips to his gently. Little waves of sensation moved up and down her body, and odd sort of tingling engulfed her. *
He closed his eyes again, finding that it was easier that way. Blindly, he met her kiss, leaning forward a bit.
She pressed his hands into her a little more, inching closer.*