Song:
Right down the line (Gerry Rafferty)
"You've been as constant as a Northern Star, the brightest light that shines."
Mr. Belby,
Congratulations! We are in the pleasurable position to announce that the potion you subjected for testing under the number #889 has successfully passed all necessary trials and is now ready to become available to the public.
You are required to sign the papers attached below, as well as turn in a complete recipe of the potion, including exact measurements and detailed instructions.
Roman Nott.
(Research Committee member)
Euphemia sat opposite from Callisto, watching as the girl went through the letter. She was rather sure Callisto wouldn't know how to react, but nothing could ever prepare her for her bursting in tears the moment she reached the letter's end.
Callisto couldn't really register why she had started crying out of the blue, embarrassment raking through her body as she tried to calm down, only sobbing harder as the woman hugged her. It almost felt unreal; as if she had just made it up. Yet, the letter clutched between her fingers was all the proof she needed to convince herself it was actually real.
Callisto Claire, or rather Damocles Belby for the sake of formalities, had succeeded.
"What the hell?" James blurted out, as he walked into the kitchen, his voice still groggy from sleeping. "Why are we crying?"
"It's happy tears, Jamie."
That only seemed to make Callisto even more emotional, because she hugged Euphemia even tighter, her mind completely blocking out James' presence.
"What's going on?" Lily mumbled, walking into the kitchen with Remus and Sirius behind her.
"Who died?" Sirius asked, immediately slapping his hand on his mouth. "Sorry, that was insensitive..."
"Everyone is fine, guys." Euphemia stated, smiling as Callisto broke the hug. Her cheeks and nose were bright red from crying, her eyes glistening with tears as she wiped the tears off, trying to ignore the itching feeling on her cheeks.
"Listo, what happened?" Remus asked, sitting down next to her and laying a hand on her shoulder.
Callisto shook her head, putting the letter in her pocket.
"Nothing, I-" She cleared her throat. "I just got a letter, that's all."
"I'd only cry like that if Marlon Brando sent me a marriage proposal." Lily pointed out, looking at her quizzically. "Who was the letter from?"
"Marlon Brando." Callisto sniffled. "He wants to marry me."
"Homewrecker." Lily narrowed her eyes, sitting down next to her. "He was supposed to be mine."
"I'm better." James stubbornly muttered.
"Oh, he was a very handsome man." Euphemia agreed, nodding. "Still is, but he was unmatched in his youth..."
"Mom!"
"No, they're right, Prongsie." Sirius stated, shrugging. "But, what about the letter?"
"It's from the ministry and it says that Sirius Black should mind his damn business."
"Aw, does the minister think about me?" Sirius cooed. "I knew he looked at me with lust in his eyes. He wants a piece of that ass."
"Sirius." Callisto called, sighing. "No."
"Noted."
~ ~ ~
"Something's off." Lily hissed, dragging Sirius into James' bedroom. "I'm not insane, I swear."
"Of course not, Evans." Sirius hummed. "I will be filing a restraining order against you though if you keep saying that."
"They definitely fucked." Lily continued, pacing up and down the room. "Oh, I know those looks, Black. They've been doing the deed right under our noses, those cheeky motherfuckers..."
"How do you even know, Lily?" Sirius asked, plopping down on the bed. "Moony would tell us."
"How do I know?" Lily scoffed. "Didn't you see them? He put his arm around her, they spent all day whispering to each other and he kept checking her out."
"He put his arm around her because they are finally back to being friends, they kept whispering because James said he'd crash them with his antlers if he ever heard Callie's voice again and he always checks her out and then he blushes like an idiot."
"Yes, but this time, it was different."
"How so?"
"Oh, it's different, Sirius!" Lily exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air. "They definitely did the dirty, I'm telling you."
"None of them have hickeys."
"Then they kissed!" She argued, her eyebrows furrowing in concentration. "Look, I have an idea."
"We're not torturing them until they tell us."
"No, toe rag." Lily huffed. "We tempt them to give into desire, and then we catch them like the little pesky mice they are."
"Hey, don't bring Pete into this!"
"Peter is a rat, Sirius, not a mouse." Lily pointed out. "And you call yourself a good friend."
"Rats, mice... they all love cheese in the end."
"I like cheese too."
"Well, damn, Evans, do I have news for you..." Sirius hummed, shaking his head. Lily just smacked his head with a random newspaper she found lying on James' desk and when he shot her a shocked look, she smacked him again for good measure.
"Are you in, Sirius?"
"Are you going to assault me with that newspaper again if I say no?"
"Precisely."
"I'm in, Evans."
~ ~ ~
"Oh, I have a cool idea." Lily mused, plopping down on the couch. Callisto looked at her curiously, noticing the empty water bottle she was holding, a mischievous glint in the redhead's eyes.
"What idea?" James asked, pushing his glasses further up his nose.
"Truth or dare." Lily answered, moving down to the floor. "We haven't played it in forever."
"Sure." James said immediately, sitting next to her. Lily sent him a bright smile, watching as they all gathered in a circle, her eyes narrowing in suspicion as she spotted the little distance between Remus and Callisto.
"I spin the bottle first." Lily said, placing it down on the floor, and spinning it carefully. The neck of the bottle pointed at Sirius who immediately shouted "Dare", slapping his hand on the ground.
"Let James draw a bunch of shit on your face, take a picture and send it to Dumbledore."
"Deal." James let out a triumphant cry as he grabbed a pen from the table and motioned for Sirius to walk over, rubbing his hands together.
"Okay so, I'm thinking something along the lines of...genitals."
"And broomsticks that fart." Lily proposed, high-fiving James. "Oh, and draw Sirius with cat legs."
"SOMEONE SAVE ME!"
"No." Remus stated, glancing at Callisto momentarily. "Our hands are tied."
Callisto just smirked, making Sirius let out a shriek of horror as the pen touched his forehead. He emerged from the couch a few minutes later, a penis drawn on his nose while his cheeks and forehead were filled with James' doodles, including all of Lily's disturbing sketches.
"Do I get to spin the bottle now?" Sirius sheepishly said, looking at his reflection in the mirror grumpily. He didn't wait for anyone to reply and gave it a spin, the neck landing on Remus.
"Moony, truth or dare?"
"Dare"
"Take a shot for every time Prongs moves around."
"He'd die." Callisto pointed out, snickering. "You good, Jace?"
"Drank a bit too much coffee." The boy admitted, shrugging. "Like... five cups back to back."
"Good to know."
"Well, in that case, change clothes with Callie." Remus and Callisto reluctantly stood up and walked out of the room.
Callisto barely heard Lily shouting about something, before she entered Remus' bedroom. She closed the door shut, the wind getting knocked out of her lungs as Remus pressed her against it.
"Hey there." He smirked, looking down at her. His arm was right next to her, his palm making harsh contact with the door as he kept her trapped between him and the hard surface. His brown eyes that were usually filled with warmth were now gleaming mischievously, his gaze intense on hers as he leaned down slightly. She could smell his cologne, mixing with the faint scent of the fabric softener Hope had used to wash his sweater.
"They're waiting for us." Callisto stated, a faint smirk playing on her lips. "Don't be impatient."
The hand that was gently resting on her waist trailed inched closer to her ass, his lips ghosting over hers, barely touching them as his fingers started playing with the hem of her shirt. His hands were warm and rough, making her skin burn as he touched her bare back, his lips travelling down her neck, never really making harsh contact with the pale skin. He stopped close to her collar bone, biting the skin gently as he sucked, Callisto's eyes fluttering shut. Her nails dug deep in her palm as he pressed against her completely, her lower abdomen fluttering at his touch.
"I'm not." Remus murmured. "In fact, you'll see I can be quite patient when I want to."
"I'm not the one with the hard-on, Lupin."
He just laughed, his fingers tracing over the skin and leaving behind a trail of goosebumps.
"The real question is, how patient can you be?" He gently kissed the bruise he had left on her collarbone and pulled away.
And just like that, she could breathe again. Callisto was painfully aware of the hickey on her collarbone, her finger going over it as Remus sent her a cheeky wink, pulling his shirt off him.
"Turn around." Callisto stated, tapping her foot on the ground. "I'm not about to undress in front of you."
"Give it a few hours."
"You're an ass."
"Bite me." He shrugged, a lopsided smile on his lips as he turned around. Callisto pulled her sweater over her head and handed it to him, taking his own from the bed. They quickly exchanged pants, Callisto letting out a laugh as the hem of the pants dragged around the floor. Remus turned around, struggling to button up the pants.
"Why are they so tight?" He asked, slightly out of breath.
"Because I don't have a dick, Remus." She dryly responded, rolling her eyes. "Much less a boner."
"Oh, fuck off." He huffed, putting on the sweater. Thankfully, it was long enough to cover the "problem area", while Callisto ended up cuffing her pants three times to stop them from getting dragged around.
"You look good in my clothes, Claire." He complimented, looking her up and down. "In fact, I'd like to exchange wardrobes."
"Aw, wait until you wear my tight pants."
"Now, that would be too much for you." Remus taunted, opening the door and motioning for her to come out. "Ladies first."
"What a gentleman."
"Always." He smiled. "The view's great too."
"I've been told." She retorted, smiling as he pressed a quick kiss on her cheek just before they entered the room. Lily looked completely confused, her eyes darting between the pair, while James bit his lip to suppress a chuckle. Sirius didn't hold back, pointing at both of them while laughing loudly.
"Well, aren't you both a sight!" He exclaimed. "How are the family jewels doing, Moony?"
"Adapting." He dryly responded, sitting down. "I think bell bottoms are my thing from now on."
"Go on everyone, say it." Callisto urged them. "Thank you, Callisto."
"My turn." Remus interjected, spinning the bottle. James immediately shouted "dare" like Sirius had when the bottle landed on him, cracking his knuckles. "Do a handstand for four rounds."
"That's not that bad."
"While Sirius tickles you from time to time."
"Die."
James reluctantly stood up and did the handstand against the wall, his glasses falling from his nose down on the ground. Lily let out a small chuckle and picked them up, placing them so they wouldn't slip down again and took a seat next to him.
Four rounds went by and both Callisto and Remus were intact, while Lily had ended up braiding cutlery in her hair, Sirius had joined James in the handstands for no apparent reason and James looked like he was about to collapse as Remus painted his nose red for Sirius.
The bottle landed for the first time on Callisto, Lily's interest immediately peaked.
"Sit on Moony's lap for two rounds."
Callisto just stared at him, glancing at Lily who seemed more than satisfied with the dare he had given her.
"Are you okay with it?" She asked, looking at him. He had blushed a faint shade of red, but nodded nonetheless.
"It's eh...fine."
Actually, it's more than just fine.
Callisto gingerly sat down on his lap, trying to ignore the hammering feeling in her chest as she felt his warm breath tickling the back of her neck.
"No, the other way, Callie." Sirius complained, motioning for her to turn around. "It's part of the dare."
"Pervert." She dryly mumbled, turning around. Remus blushed even harder, still not fully recovered from his previous dare, the friction on his lap only making it harder for him to stay composed. A small smirk etched on her lips as she purposely faintly moved her hips. Remus' eyes narrowed and she just raised an eyebrow, the interaction not getting unnoticed by Lily's examining stare.
"Is that good enough for you, Pads?" Remus asked, tilting his head to the side.
"I don't know, you tell us." Sirius smirked. "How are we feeling?"
"Oh, just great." He said through gritted teeth. looking anywhere but her. Callisto didn't seem to share the sentiment though, her gaze lingering on him as she studied every single feature of his face. From the old scar right over his brow, the first he had gotten on his face, to the freckles on his nose and his pink lips; her eyes ran over every nook and cranny.
"Why does our Elphie look hypnotized?"
"Since when are you a communist, Potter?"
"What do you have to do with the community?" James asked confused, looking at Lily who let out a loud laugh. "What the fuck is a communist?"
"Oh, I just love purebloods." She snickered, ruffling his hair. "Ever heard of Marx, Potter?"
"Hm, no." He admitted, shrugging. "Anyway point is, why is Claire looking at Moony like she's going to murder him?"
"That's her loving face." Sirius cooed, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.
"Where the hell should I look? The ceiling?"
"No, look at your boyfriend instead."
"I'm bloody trying, but you baboons k-"
"AHA!" Lily exclaimed, standing up so abruptly she almost fell back. "I KNEW IT! YOU TWO ARE TOGETHER!"
"Thank Merlin we are, or this would be very awkward for all of us."
"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME?!"
"AND ME, WHAT THE HELL?" Sirius shot up, his anger quickly dissolving as both Remus and Callisto looked at him inquisitively. "AND JAMES!"
"I knew." The boy stated, grinning. "Caught them making out I'm the kitchen."
"YOU KEPT THIS A SECRET FROM US?" Lily screeched, grabbing Sirius' hand. "THIS IS IT, POTTER. I'M TAKING THE KID AND I'M LEAVING YOUR SORRY ASS."
"It wasn't a secret though..." Callisto murmured, Lily's incoherent shouting being too loud for her to ever be able to overcome. She turned to Remus and pointed at the door, a mischievous smile on his lips as he nodded.
Lily Evans didn't realize the couple was gone until she turned to where Callisto was seated, only to be met with absolutely nothing.
~ ~ ~
My cheeks always itch after I cry....
Also, I bumped my face on a window like an idiot in the bus cause I fell asleep and now I have a slightly bruised eye.