Bedknobs and Broomsticks [HP fanfic; BNB Book 1]

Potions Fiasco, Part One

Mid-November, 1977

The rest of the week slowly became a constant strategy for Mariah in order to avoid a confrontation with Sirius. Once classes were over, Mariah would grab her bag and put as much distance between her and the classroom as possible. She'd expected Sirius to give her the cold shoulder after their fight, but that seemed to be the opposite of his plan. In fact, it required careful stealth and awareness to avoid him. He seemed to be everywhere she went, alone or with Kurt, and if he wasn't already there waiting for her when she arrived, he popped up not long after she got there.

"It's like he always knows where I am!" she complained to Kurt as they made their way down a deserted corridor after yet another run-in. "He's following me everywhere!"

"It's because he knows you're with me," said Kurt. "You know, I think I've actually made the top of his Most-Hated list."

"If you've surpassed Snape, but that'd take a miracle," said Mariah, frowning.

They hadn't argued like they had in the common room, but Sirius had started joking with her, or rather at her, and laughing sharply at her expense whenever he saw her. The way he spoke to her, or loudly to those surrounding, one might have thought she was a five-year-old with her first crush, and he the simpering parent. It was driving her mad.

Kurt often met her by way of another route before they met up, even if they had been in the same class. They hadn't left a class together since Monday when Sirius had followed them all the way down to Herbology, speaking loudly to James about how they were blocking the flow of traffic in the hall. Eventually Mariah had rounded on him and transfigured him into a rabbit, overdoing it a little so that his nose had been twitching uncontrollably for several days.

Now they were walking back from Potions in the dungeons, Kurt escorting Mariah up to Gryffindor Tower. They took secret passageways and side corridors that, though they lengthened the trip, were less-likely to be monitored by Sirius. It was there that they often stopped for a few moments alone.

"Kurt..." said Mariah softly, her eyes closed as she felt his hands move up under her skirt along her legs. "Don't ruin it..."

"It's not ruining," said Kurt, relinquishing his hands to continue their quest above the skirt. "Consider it improving..."

"Kurt..." Mariah said his name again, looking at him imploringly.

"Why not?" Kurt's lips moved from her neck and returned to her face. Mariah sighed, relinquishing her arms from around his neck and cradling them around his middle.

"Not here," she emphasized. Kurt held her gaze for a moment, and then a smile broke his face and his lips met hers more forcefully than before as he pressed her against the wall. One of his hands held her arm up straight against the wall while the other traced her curves, wrapping around her waist and holding it tightly as he felt one of her legs wrap around him.

"Ooooo, look, ickle Lovelly's got a shnookums!" They broke apart with identical groans as their faces turned upwards. Peeves, the poltergeist, was floating there, with a sickly sugared look on his face as he cackled down at them. He flipped upside down, making hideous smooching noises, and looked at Mariah. "Ooooooo, AND it's Jiggery Jaeger! Are the gargoyles riverdancing yet, Jiggery Jaeger!?" He broke out into a Scottish dance, wailing at the top of his lungs.

"Let's get out of here," Kurt shouted over the noise, taking Mariah's hand and leading her down the passageway, Peeves dancing after them, now swearing loudly in a Scottish accent.

They managed to escape Peeves around the corner and reached the Gryffindor common room soon enough, Kurt giving Mariah a quick goodbye kiss before setting back off for the dungeons. Mariah had stepped through the portrait hole to find Sirius and the other Marauders sitting on the couch near the dormitories, doing homework. She felt his eyes on her watchfully as she crossed the room and passed them, heading up the stairs.