Deeth ond fyghtynge: thatte ys nat terribli interestyng.

Drabble - Remus & Lily

Wed, 05 Sep 2007 21:28:41 GMT

Title: Damning With Faint Praise
Characters: Remus and Lily
Word Count: 100
Rating: G
Challenge: #133: Random Character Assignment. I was given Lily.

Remus sighed. One of these days, he had to learn to say no to his friends; otherwise, he'd keep ending up in situations like this one. Namely, trying to coax Lily into giving James a chance.

"Go on - name one reason why I ought to give that arrogant pillock the time of day!" Lily glared, her hair blazing in the afternoon sun.

"Er." Remus wracked his brain.

"You can't!" she exclaimed triumphantly.

"He's good with animals." Remus blurted the first thing that came to mind. It was technically true, at least.

"Well... I suppose that's something."

Remus smiled, relieved.

Drabble - Snape/Lupin

Sun, 26 Aug 2007 20:53:44 GMT

Prompt: Snape/Lupin, dark eyes and a dark soul

Remus didn't know what to expect when he found Severus after the war, holed up behind wards and walls that weren't all made of stone and mortar. Severus wasn't lauded as a hero in spite of his sacrifices; too many people saw the blood on his hands when they looked at him.

He looked into Severus' dark eyes, expecting to see a dark soul mirrored within -- or worse, nothing at all. Instead, he saw pain, isolation and deep wounds that would be long in healing.

He saw himself.

"May I come in?"

Severus hesitated, and then he stepped aside.

More info

Mon, 13 Aug 2007 16:17:33 GMT

Slashdot has written up a very good article about the latest LJ debacle, which outlines the PR and customer service problems LJ/6A have rather than focusing on fandom or porn. To me, it's gone beyond fandom and porn; although they are within their rights to do whatever they see fit, the way they've handled these situations, first in May and now in July, is just not good business.

Fandom 411 is a good directory for finding people on alternate journal services.

For Snape/Lupin fans, I've added a LJ migration resource page to the RL/SS wiki, and there's also a post where you can leave your alternate journal names and find your fellow shippers.

If you're a paid/permanent account holder who doesn't intend to support LJ anymore, check in at the Pay Nor More community, which is trying to get a head count of people who are no longer going to spend money on LJ.

As for me, I'm going to be primarily on IJ and JF from now on. Trying to keep up with four flists is too much, so GJ is going to fall by the wayside. I wouldn't stress myself with trying to keep up with 3 except I feel like I need to keep an eye on things for snupin_prophet. But it seems like more people are migrating to IJ because of GJ's tendency to delete a la LJ and less than stellar customer service, so I'll be focusing my energies there with JF as a back-up.

I've deleted my fic comm on Lj and am in the process of deleting posts with content that might get me in trouble if reported, namely cross-gen, underage (Harry/Neville, for example), bestiality, and incest. I'm getting rid of all cross-gen regardless of whether the younger character is of age or not because I don't trust LJ Abuse to judge fairly or accurately if something of mine is reported.

But everything I've deleted is posted on my website or my fic comm on IJ and JF, so nothing is gone for good, just removed from LJ's servers. The exception are my drabbles, and I'm slowly going through my whole journal and cross-posting all my drabbles to my fic comms and deleting those with questionable content.

I've migrated and/or backed up most of my comms; I still need to migrate the "Season of Mists" comm, but that's the only one left. I also need to go through the Snupin Santa posts and lock the underage smut stuff and change the links to the new SnuSa website, and I need to check the links on the lupin_snape thematic lists, transfer my icons, make a decision about what to do with pervy_werewolf and snark_n_bark, edit "A Chaos of Deep Passion" part 10, drop off my syllabi for copying, and start working on lesson plans because classes begin next week. Oy.

I know this has been stressful and annoying for a lot of people, but trust me - anyone who is involved in creating/maintaining fannish infrastructure on LJ has got it bad right now. I've been working on backing up/migrating/setting up for at least 5-8 hours every day for the better part of a week, and I'm still not settled and done. It's been crazy-making. And the funny thing is, I haven't even migrated my own LJl anywhere; it's mostly been dealing with community stuff.

I intend to use my LJ when necessary and to check my flist on LJ, but I don't know how much I'll be updating after I get everything settled at last. We'll have to wait and see what happens.

Thu, 09 Aug 2007 17:17:05 GMT

For anyone who has a JF account and is having difficulty with broken links, here's a secret tip: you can do a lot of things on JF by going to the LJ URL of what you want to do and replacing "livejournal.com" with "journalfen.net".

For example, if you want to change the layout of your journal, the direct JF link in the sidebar doesn't work, but if you go to

http://www.livejournal.com/customize/

and replace "livejournal.com" like so:

http://www.journalfen.net/customize/

et voila. You can change the look of your JF journal.

You can also create new communities in the same way. Go to

http://www.livejournal.com/community/create.bml

and swap out livejournal for journalfen like so

http://www.journalfen.net/community/create.bml

and you can create a new JF community.

Bottoms Up - multiple pairings, NC17

Wed, 08 Aug 2007 05:14:10 GMT

Title: Bottoms Up
Pairing: Remus/Severus/Bill/Harry/Neville/Draco
Rated: NC17
Warnings: orgy
Summary: Finding themselves house-bound together during a storm, the boys find a way to pass the time until they can leave.

"Well, that settles it. No one else is coming," Remus said as he let the curtain fall back into place, obscuring the view of the snow storm raging outside. "The meeting was meant to start fifteen minutes ago, and Albus isn't here. He never misses a meeting, which can only mean he's been detained by the weather."

"Minerva isn't here either, which makes more of a case for our being snow-bound than Albus' absence," Severus remarked, his tone dry. "You know how she is about punctuality."

"I imagine she's having fits right about now," Remus agreed mildly.

He glanced around at the others who had arrived before the storm had intensified. Bill was lounging on one end of the sofa, his long legs stretched out in front of him; Harry was sitting cross-legged on the hearth rug next to Neville, who kept darting uncertain glances at Severus, who was standing ramrod straight by the door, as if intent on making his escape as soon as the storm let up; Draco was also standing, having struck a haughty pose as soon as he walked in, gazing around at everyone else with barely disguised disdain. He was a full-fledged member of the Order and had been for a year, but he still held himself apart from the known Gryffindors, sticking close to Severus as a familiar touchstone.

"It doesn't look like it will let up any time soon," he said, addressing all of them. Severus scowled, and Draco's aloof expression was marred by a flicker of dismay. "But the house is warm and dry, and there's food in the larder."

"And liquor," Bill added, pointing to the liquor cabinet.

"It's a damned inconvenience!" Severus finally relinquished his post by the door and claimed the other end of the sofa, glaring around as if daring anyone to encroach on his space by taking the middle cushion. "Why Albus had to choose to meet in the middle of nowhere, I'll never understand."

"He felt our previous location's safety had been compromised," Remus said. Just like the Black House had been. Although it was Unplottable, Narcissa had got enough information from Kreacher to make things difficult for them. It wasn't long after Voldemort's failed trap in the Department of Mysteries that members of the Order found they couldn't go near Grimmauld Place without risking ambush. When the Dementor attacks began, Albus had changed the location of their headquarters. Now, they had changed again to this place, a small, secluded house which was, Remus had to concede, in the middle of nowhere. The house was Unplottable, and the grounds were surrounded by wards, of both the protective and anti-Apparation variety, which meant they were safe; they only had to deal with the elements. He glanced over at Severus and Draco, both of whom looked miserable and angry. And being stuck with each other, he silently amended.

"Drink, anyone?" he asked, heading for the liquor cabinet, and five arms shot in the air. Chuckling, he opened the cabinet and began taking down glasses. "All right, then. A round for everyone. Scotch? Brandy?"

"Scotch." Five voices spoke as one, and Remus glanced over his shoulder at his companions, amused. At least there was on thing they could all agree upon.

He poured generous rounds of scotch for each of them and began handing out the glasses, and then he settled in the middle space on the sofa, ignoring Severus' dark scowl as he did. He watched out of the corner of his eye as Severus scooted away from him, protecting his personal space, and he was quite surprised that Severus hadn't pointed out there was an empty chair available.

They drank their first glasses in silence, and when they had finished, Bill got up to refresh their drinks, pouring as generously as Remus had. Outside, the storm raged, the wind rattling the windows as the snow piled up in increasingly larger drifts, but inside, they were cozy and snug, and a look around the room showed that Remus wasn't the only one starting to feel the relaxing effects of the excellent scotch. The only thing that would make it better, he thought, would be if they had a phonograph; he'd kill for a Duke Ellington record right about now.

"So..." Bill glanced around, a smile tugging the corners of his mouth. "Is there anything the six of us can talk about without it turning into a huge argument, or are we all going to just sit here and stare at each other until the storm ends, or we can escape to the bedrooms, whichever comes first?"

"We could talk about how annoyed we all are with Albus," Severus grumbled, but it didn't contain the usual amount of vitriol -- a side-effect of the scotch, Remus decided.

"We could talk about Quidditch," Harry suggested.

"At least Weasley isn't here to rattle on about the stupid Cannons," Draco sneered.

'Yeah, well, at least he's loyal," Harry said half-heartedly.

"Figures he'd latch on to a team that couldn't win a game if the other team flew one-handed."

"I haven't noticed the Magpies doing so well this season either," Harry shot back.

"Better than the Wasps!"

"Who cares whether the Wasps are winning as long as their Seeker's arse is in view?" Bill spoke up suddenly, and then he went wide-eyed, and Remus could almost see the "I wish I hadn't said that aloud" word balloon over his head.

"Well," Harry said, glancing at him awkwardly. "You've got a point there."

All eyes turned to Harry, and Remus knew he must have looked as shocked as everyone else. Harry took another deep swallow of scotch and pointedly didn't look at anyone, especially Neville.

"Yes, all right, Wharton has a nice arse," Draco admitted grudgingly after the moment of stunned silence had passed. "But he can't play for shit."

"Well, McAllister wouldn't know a Plumpton Pass if it came up and bit him," Harry retorted, seeming to be so caught up in defending his favored team that he didn't notice Draco's oblique admission.

"McAllister is ten times better than Wharton! The Wasps have been a crap team ever since Chapman resigned as captain. Much as I hate to admit it, they should have hired Wood when they had the chance instead of letting the Bats get him when he left Puddlemere. Obsessed, that one, but a good strategist."

"I'll drink to that," Harry said, lifting his glass. "But the Wasps aren't crap."

Draco rolled his eyes, his expression one of long-suffering. "They lost their last four games."

"Their record is still better than the Magpies'."

"Is anyone else finding this conversation as relentlessly tedious as I am?" Severus interrupted.

"Do you want to go back to talking about the Seeker's arse, then?" The words came tumbling out of Remus' mouth before he had a chance to think about them first, but instead of taking his head off as Remus expected, Severus flushed and took a long drink.

"Would be better than listening to those two argue about whose team is less crap than the other," Severus mumbled into his glass.

"Potter's just jealous because we're not talking about his Seeker's arse," Draco said, his cheeks flushed and his eyes glittering from the effects of the alcohol, and Harry stared at him, stunned, and then opened his mouth to reply, but Severus cut him off.

"God, spare me from all talk about Potter's arse!"

"Fine, we won't talk about Harry's arse," Bill said, a wicked gleam in his eyes. "Any arse in here that you do fancy talking about, Snape?"

Severus finished off his second glass of scotch and drew himself up haughtily, but the effect was marred by the fact that he was wavering in place. "I don't fancy discussing arse."

"Then what do you fancy about it?" Bill asked, his innocent expression belied by the mischief in his voice.

"That," Severus said as he rose to his feet and made his way to the liquor cabinet, "is none of your business."

"Come on, Severus, truth or dare," Remus chimed in, enjoying the sight of Severus slightly tipsy and on the spot. "Tell us whose arse you do fancy. And bring that scotch over here while you're at it."

Severus splashed more scotch into his glass and tucked a second bottle under his arm before returning to the couch, glass in one hand and nearly empty bottle in the other. "I will not. Why are you asking me, anyway? Get someone else to play your little childish games if you're so damned desperate." He sat down heavily and plunked the full bottle of scotch on the cushion between himself and Remus.

Bill leaned over and took the nearly empty bottle from Severus' hand, pouring the remaining scotch into his own glass. "We've got an empty," he said, holding it up. "We could play spin the bottle."

Gulping down the rest of his alcohol, Neville made a face at the taste and then spoke up for the first time. "I'd rather play truth or dare."

It seemed everyone was surprised that Neville had opened his mouth, and they all looked at him, causing him to blush and stare at the rug, picking at a loose thread. "I - I would just rather play that than spin the bottle."

"Let me guess," Draco drawled. "It's because you've never been kissed."

"It could be because he doesn't want to kiss another man," Harry retorted, leaping to Neville's defense while Neville's blush grew even brighter, creeping down his neck.

"Oh, come on." Draco scoffed. "Anyone can tell Longbottom's a shirt lifter."

"That's rich, coming from you!"

"All right, all right." Remus leaned forward as he interrupted the quarrel. "Is there anyone in this room who's one hundred percent straight?" He glanced around, and while no one was quite willing to meet his eyes, no one raised his hand either. "Right, then that's sorted. Moot point -- find something else to argue about, or start snogging as it's clear to everyone, except possibly the two of you, that you want to do."

That left Harry and Draco gaping at him, their mouths working but no sound coming out, but at least they weren't arguing. "But Neville doesn't want to play spin the bottle," Harry said at last in a small voice, and it took Remus' alcohol-muzzy mind a moment to make the connection between that and the snogging comment.

"Right. Truth or dare it is, then." He glanced over at Severus. "You in?"

Severus took another swig and waved his hand languidly. "Long as I don't have to go first," he replied, his usually stiff posture relaxing as he leaned against the back of the sofa.

"Bloody coward." Remus reached out and pushed Severus' shoulder playfully, earning a dark glare in return. "Bill -- truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"I'm surrounded by men with no sense of adventure," Remus said mournfully. "All right, then -- tell us about your experience with other men. I always thought you were straight."

"Not exclusively," Bill said, grinning. "I had an fling with a bloke in Egypt. Black hair, black eyes, lush mouth." He took another drink of his scotch and smiled. "Gorgeous lips. I loved watching him when he was--" He cut himself off abruptly, looking at the younger men in the room sheepishly. "Er. Never mind that. He was my first, but not my last. I had a couple of male lovers for a while after Fleur and I broke up. Good enough?"

Remus nodded as he picked up the full bottle and opened it, passing it around once he had refilled his glass. "Your turn."

"Harry! Truth or dare."

"Truth," Harry said, topping off his scotch as soon as the bottle reached him.

"Hmph. Would've thought you'd be the most daring of all of us," Bill said, and Harry stuck out his tongue. "All right, since I had to spill the details of my love life, so do you -- tell us about the Boy Who Lived's romances."

Harry took a long drink as if to fortify himself and then set his glass down on the hearth. "Not much to tell, really. I kissed Cho Chang during fifth year and didn't much like it. Tried again with Hermione sixth year, and that was lots better. Didn't go anywhere, though." He stretched out on his stomach, propping his chin in his hands. "Colin Creevey kissed me a couple months after that, and I liked it enough to talk him into letting me shag him. That's about it."

"You shagged Creevey? Ewww...." Draco scrunched up his face in distaste.

"Shut up, Malfoy," Harry said, but his voice was lazy from the scotch, lacking any heat. "Neville, truth or dare?"

Neville glanced around uncertainly and drew in a deep breath. "Dare."

"Good for you, Neville!" Bill cheered, and Neville blushed to the roots of his hair.

"Hope I don't regret it," he mumbled.

Harry rolled onto his back, sprawling with boneless, lanky grace on the floor as he turned his head and grinned at Neville. "Have you really not been kissed?"

Twisting his fingers together in his lap, Neville shook his head, darting shy glances at Harry as he awaited his dare.

"Choose someone here to give you your first kiss, then."

Neville blinked as if startled, and then he glanced around, wide-eyed. He let his gaze pass swiftly over Draco and Severus, but he lingered over Bill and lingered even longer over Remus. Finally, he stood up and walked over to the sofa to stand in front of Remus. "You gave me confidence about my abilities with magic third year," he said, offering a shy smile. "I want you to give me confidence about this, too."

"Gladly," Remus said, returning Neville's smile and holding out his arms. "Come here, then, dear boy."

Although Severus and Bill both edged closer to the end of the couch to give Neville room as he crawled onto Remus' lap, they both were watching the proceedings with great interest. Remus, however, ignored the rest of the room, focusing his attention entirely on Neville.

He stroked Neville's cheek gently. "It's really quite simple. Keep your lips pliant, and remember to breathe. You can do that, yes?"

"Yes." Neville's voice was barely audible, but he met Remus' gaze steadily.

A first kiss, Remus thought as he smoothed Neville's hair back from his face. He had never given anyone their first kiss before, and he had never expected that anyone would ask him, but Neville trusted Remus enough not only to give him this gift, but also to place such faith in Remus' ability to teach him well. "We'll make it a good one, Neville," he said softly, and the shy little smile widened.

Neville sat awkwardly on Remus' lap, his hands clasped together tightly, and Remus decided against moving straight into a kiss; he wanted Neville to relax a bit first, and so he wound his arms around Neville's waist, coaxing him closer until Neville leaned against his chest. Rubbing Neville's back in slow circles, he nuzzled a kiss against Neville's temple. "Put your arms around me," he instructed.

After a moment's hesitation, Neville wrapped both arms around his neck, and Remus simply held him, continuing to rub his back until he felt Neville relax. Only then did he begin trailing gentle kisses from Neville's temple to his cheek, in no hurry to reach Neville's mouth; Neville's skin was warm beneath his lips and tasted faintly of salt when he darted his tongue out, and Neville gasped at the touch of his tongue, his fingers tightening on Remus' back.

"Shh..." Remus lifted one hand to Neville's hair, combing his fingers through it gently as he nuzzled Neville's cheek. "Relax. We're in no hurry." He kissed the corner of Neville's mouth, stealing another quick taste, and this time, Neville didn't jump. "You feel good in my arms, darling boy."

He cupped Neville's cheek in his palm and brushed his thumb back and forth across Neville's bottom lip, and Neville gazed at him, wide-eyed and panting, but no longer seeming nervous. He relaxed against Remus' chest, snuggling against him, and Remus held him for a moment longer before slowly leaning in to kiss him -- a light brush of lips against lips -- and then backed off again. Neville whimpered softly and rested one hand on the back of Remus' head, pulling him close again, and Remus accepted the invitation, returning to claim Neville's lips for a deeper kiss.

With a soft moan, Neville parted his lips, tangling his fingers in Remus' hair, and Remus skimmed his tongue along Neville's lips, tracing them before he slipped it between them. Neville's mouth was soft and sweet, tasting of alcohol and innocence, and Remus couldn't hold back a moan as he explored and tasted, wanting to memorize every inch. Neville arched against him, moaning louder, and then he slid his tongue along Remus', stroking it hesitantly, not sure what to do, but wanting to do something. Remus tightened his arms around Neville, curling his tongue around Neville's and coaxing it into his own mouth, wanting Neville to experience as much as possible in this one kiss.

With a soft noise of pleasure, Neville sealed his mouth over Remus' and began his own exploration -- shy, a little awkward, but curious and hungry, too. Remus yielded his mouth to Neville's questing tongue, silently encouraging him, and by the time they broke apart, both of them panting for air, Neville had grown confident enough to take charge of the kiss just as Remus hoped he would.

"Well done," he whispered, running his thumb across Neville's wet lips again and then putting his thumb in his mouth for one last taste of Neville.

"Thank you," Neville whispered back, smiling as he slid off Remus' lap and returned to his place on the floor beside Harry, who nudged him.

"Was that as good as it looked?" Harry asked.

Neville blushed and ducked his head shyly. "Better." Clearing his throat, he glanced around at everyone, who was looking back and forth between him and Remus with "damn" looks on their faces as they adjusted their trousers surreptitiously. "So... um... back to the game? Remus, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"And you called me a bloody coward," Severus exclaimed.

"I was just involved in Neville's dare. It wouldn't do to have all the fun straight-away."

Severus gave a derisive snort at Remus' disingenuous smile and looked away, and Remus turned his attention to Neville, who was blushing again.

"I can't think of anything to ask," Neville said.

Sitting up, Harry cupped his hand around Neville's ear and leaned close to whisper to him, and Neville's eyes grew wide and round. "I can't ask him that!"

"Why not?" Harry stretched out again, settling his head in Neville's lap this time. "If you don't, I will, so you may as well."

Glancing uncertainly at Remus, Neville took a deep breath. "All right, then... What's the k-kinkiest thing you've ever wanted to do but haven't done yet?"

"Rope bondage," Remus said promptly.

"Rope bondage?" There was a distinct note of interest in Bill's voice.

"Rope bondage." Remus let himself slide down until he could rest his head on the back of the sofa and, resting his hands on his stomach, he stretched his legs out in front of him. "It's quite beautiful -- an erotic art form, really. You use the rope to weave patterns and knots to create something that is aesthetically pleasing as well as restrictive."

"And you want to be tied up like that?" Harry asked, going nearly as wide-eyed as Neville.

"No." Remus' smile was predatory. "I want to do the tying."

Neville swallowed hard, his face turning even redder. "Your turn, then."

"Draco." Remus held out his glass in a silent hint to Bill, who was pouring himself a refill. "Truth or dare?"

"Dare," Draco replied, his lip curled in an arrogant sneer.

Bill sloshed more scotch into Remus' glass, and Remus thanked him and took a sip before issuing Draco's dare, as if wanting to let the younger man wait and wonder what he'd got himself into for a moment. "You must snog Harry for five minutes."

"WHAT?" Twin voices uttered this heated cry of outrage; for once, Harry and Draco were united in their shocked dismay at this pronouncement, and they both began protesting loudly.

"I'm not going to snog that ferret-faced prat!"

"Snog Potter? I'd rather kiss Hagrid's mutt!"

"Oh, for God's sake, spare us the histrionics," Severus snapped. "Lupin is right -- you've both wanted to suck each other's faces off for ages now, and you're being given a perfect opportunity to do so at no cost to your pride, so shut the hell up and get on with it."

Remus leaned over, intending to respond to Severus' remark, but the scotch had already begun to affect his equilibrium, and he ended up falling against Severus instead. To his surprise, Severus' shoulder wasn't entirely uncomfortable, and to his shock, Severus didn't shove him off, and so he remained there, feeling too heavy-limbed and content to bother pushing himself upright again. "And here I thought you might be a mellow drunk, Severus," he said.

"This is mellow, Lupin."

Draco eyed Harry with the same distaste he might look at a squished slug. "I won't do it."

"Then none of us will ever let you forget that you didn't have the guts to follow through on your dare," Bill told him, and Draco shot him a look of pure disgust.

"Fine! Come here, Potter, and let's get this over with."

"Fuck you, Malfoy," Harry replied mildly, still lounging in Neville's lap. "I'm comfortable, and it's your bloody dare anyway. You come here."

"Arrogant bastard."

"Spoilt brat."

"The tenderness of young love," Bill said with a mock sigh. "It brings a tear to my eye."

Grudgingly, Draco crossed over to the fireplace and, after a moment's hesitation, he knelt and straddled Harry's waist, bracing his hands on either side of Harry's shoulders. Neville watched Draco intently, as if guarding Harry, but Draco only smirked down at Harry, who stared back, his expression one of defiance.

"Going to lie back and think of England, Potter?"

"Something like that."

"I'll time you," Remus said, pulling out Severus' pocket watch and opening it, ignoring Severus' grumbled protest at having his possessions commandeered. "You may start... now."

With one last grimace, Draco bent over and touched his lips to Harry's, both of them holding themselves away from each other as much as possible. Over on the sofa, Bill shook his head. "Come on -- you can do better than that!"

Harry turned his head long enough to shoot the men on the sofa an annoyed glare before facing Draco again and reaching up to capture Draco's face between his hands, yanking him down into a firm kiss. Draco's squawk of surprise was muffled by Harry's mouth, but he didn't pull away, not even when Harry darted his tongue out and skimmed it along Draco's lips, tracing them. Sliding his hands up to tangle his fingers in Draco's hair, Harry coaxed Draco's lips apart with his tongue, an unexpected moan escaping him at the first taste of Draco's warm mouth.

It wasn't his dare, but Harry was determined not to give any of the others reason to tease him, or in Snape's case mock him, for not giving it his best. Besides, if he were honest, he had to admit that Remus was right: he was drawn to Draco, and kissing him wasn't as disgusting a thought as he pretended it was.

Draco's hair was soft and fine, twining around Harry's fingers as the kiss continued, and Harry took his time, exploring Draco's mouth at his leisure, feeling a surge of triumph when Draco began to relax against him, sinking down to lie on his chest. It wasn't long before Draco began trying to take control of the kiss, pushing his tongue into Harry's mouth, and Harry let him; he didn't care whose tongue was in whose mouth as long as he didn't have to give up the heat of Draco's body against his or the alcohol-laced taste of Draco.

Winding his arms around Draco's waist, he held Draco tightly against him, moaning as Draco bit at his bottom lip. Their hips were flush, and he could feel Draco's cock was as hard as his own; sliding his hands down, he cupped Draco's arse and pushed, and Draco took the hint, rocking his hips roughly against Harry's as they sealed their mouths together again, devouring each other hungrily.

He was vaguely aware of someone saying, "It's been five minutes", but it sounded very far away, and he didn't care anyway. Someone else replied, "Yes, but do you really want to stop them?" It sounded like Bill, noted the part of Harry's brain that wasn't drowning in lust, and he silently applauded Bill's pragmatism. He could feel someone's fingers in his hair, stroking it, and he knew they weren't Draco's, because Draco was clutching his shoulders. Neville, then. Poor Neville! Caught with Harry and Draco snogging frantically in his lap and no chance to escape.

That thought was enough to bring Harry back to himself, and he grabbed Draco's shoulders and pushed him away, panting. "It's been five minutes," he gasped, and Draco stared down at him, pale skin flushed, his eyes glazed over as if he wasn't comprehending Harry's words quite yet. Eventually, they sank in, and he scrambled to his feet, putting a safe distance between himself and Harry.

"I hope that satisfies the requirements of the dare," he said haughtily, smoothing his hair back into place as he tried to pull his dignity back into place around himself.

"Oh, yes. Quite." Remus nodded.

"Good." Draco turned a narrow-eyed gaze on Severus. "You're the only one left, so -- truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"Bloody coward," Remus said and then giggled softly as he snuggled against Severus' shoulder, and Severus rolled his eyes.

"You should have warned us you turn into a soppy drunk, Lupin."

"I'm not soppy," Remus protested. "I'm relaxed."

"Fine. You're not soppy. But if you dare call me dear or darling anything like you did Longbottom, I'll hex you so sober, you won't be able to get drunk again for the next five years."

"Kay."

"And get your hand off my thigh -- OFF! I said off, not up!"

Remus giggled again and pushed himself upright, taking another long swig of scotch as he sprawled in the center of the sofa while Bill and Harry chuckled at their exchange. "I won't call you darling," he said with drunken gravity. "Neville is darling. You aren't darling. You're challenging."

"What the bloody hell do you mean by that?" Severus glared at him, but Remus smiled beatifically and appeared engrossed in swirling the remains of his scotch around in the glass, seemingly unaware of Severus' question.

On the other side of the room, Draco cleared his throat. "You have a question to answer, if you're quite finished flirting with Lupin," he said, not bothering to hide his smirk.

"I am not flirting!"

"I am!" Remus declared in a sing-song voice, and Severus shot him the Glare of Messy Death, making Bill and Harry laugh even more, and even Neville dared to grin at seeing Severus' discomfort.

"Your question," Draco said silkily.

"Ask and be done with it," Severus grumbled, finishing off his scotch and putting the empty glass aside so he could cross his arms across his chest as he glared at Draco.

"Well, I for one am quite intrigued by the question you wouldn't answer earlier," Draco said, sounding too innocent to be innocent. "Do tell us -- out of everyone of your acquaintance, whose arse do you fancy? Give us three names."

"You little bastard."

Draco gave an elegant shrug, an evil smile wreathing his features. "I had to snog Potter, so shut the hell up and get on with it."

If looks could have killed, Draco would have been a sticky patch on the floor, but he appeared unfazed by the glare and made a show of tapping his foot impatiently. Severus stewed silently for a moment while everyone else watched him with identical eager expressions, waiting for his answer.

"Fine. Number one: Kingsley Shacklebolt."

"Oh, good call there," Bill agreed.

"Very good call." Remus nodded vehemently. "He's got the most wonderful arse -- tight and firm, just perfect for grabbing -- and he's lovely in bed. He makes these high-pitched squeaky noises when you..." He trailed off when he realized everyone was staring at him. "What? I'm a werewolf, not a eunuch."

Bill reached over and took Remus' glass from his hand. "I think you're relaxed enough, pet. If you get any more relaxed, you're going to scar Harry, Neville, and Draco for life."

"What about the trauma I'm suffering having to hear all this?" Severus demanded.

"Karma," Bill said, flashing a wicked grin.

"You're all bastards."

"We still need two more names," Draco reminded him.

"Number two: William Weasley."

A moment of silence greeted that remark, and then Bill blinked, looking as if he had no idea how to respond to that revelation. "Me?"

"Long red hair, black leather -- it's an intriguing combination," Severus replied, his tone clipped as he stared resolutely into the fire.

Once more, Remus was nodding enthusiastically, and Bill smiled wryly at the other three young men. "Don't worry, he's not going to ramble about my habits in bed. We haven't slept together."

"I would sleep with you, though," Remus announced cheerfully.

"Thank you for sharing." Severus scowled at Remus and scooted away from him, pressing against the arm of the sofa in his attempt to put more distance between them.

"You still owe us another name." Harry issued the reminder this time, unable to hide the light of unholy glee in his eyes.

Severus muttered something.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" Draco purred. "We didn't quite catch it."

"I said Lupin!"

Four jaws dropped simultaneously. Bill, Harry, Neville, and Draco gaped at Severus as if he had suddenly begun sneezing flobberworms, but Remus launched himself towards Severus' end of the couch, flinging his arms around Severus' narrow shoulders. "Me! He wants to shag me!" Remus hugged Severus with puppyish enthusiasm, trying to crawl in his lap while Severus squawked and struggled to push him away.

"Get off, you idiot!"

"No." Remus settled himself on Severus' lap and looped his arms around Severus' neck, stretching his legs out towards Bill's end of the sofa. "I'm going to sit here now." Pressing his nose just beneath Severus' ear, he closed his eyes and hummed with contentment. "It's your turn," he added, and Severus gave a long-suffering sigh, looking completely unrelaxed and refusing to put his arms around Remus in return.

"Fine. Weasley -- truth or dare?"

"Dare," Bill said, grinning as he watched Remus snuggle against Severus' chest.

"Find some way to get this damned overeager werewolf off my lap!"

Over by the hearth, Harry and Neville snickered behind their hands, and Draco shook his head, watching the spectacle with amusement in his pale eyes. Bill's grin widened. "Are you sure that's what you really want?"

"Yes, I'm sure! Get him off!"

"You don't like snuggling with me?" Remus pulled back just enough to look at Severus, his eyes wide and his lip quivering slightly.

"Oh, God..." Severus covered his eyes with one hand, and Bill burst out laughing.

"He's giving you the puppy eyes, and you still want me to lure him away?" Bill asked, the undercurrent of mischief in his voice giving away exactly how much he was enjoying this.

"You might as well let him stay," Harry said. "I mean, you know we're going to make you snog him the first time you accept a dare, and we won't stop hounding you until you do accept one."

"You aren't the one who has his bony arse digging into your thigh," Severus retorted. "Weasley, the dare still stands. Take the drunk werewolf off my hands by whatever means you care to devise."

"All right, but don't say I didn't warn you." Bill set his glass of scotch aside and moved to the middle of the couch, reaching out to clasp Remus' chin in his fingers and coaxing Remus to look at him. "Feeling good, are we?"

Remus nodded happily and gave Severus a little squeeze. "I haven't had this much fun in a very long time."

"I can tell you're enjoying yourself." Bill gave him a warm smile and stroked his cheek. "But I know a way you can have even more fun."

"How?" Remus leaned into Bill's hand, his contented hum growing louder, and he watched Bill intently.

"Come over here and sit with me." Bill patted his own thigh with his free hand, still caressing Remus' cheek with the other.

"But Severus will be lonely if I leave him," Remus said plaintively, holding onto Severus even tighter. "I don't want him to be lonely. He's been lonely for too long, and I'm fixing it."

Severus blanched and looked away at that. "I can hardly be lonely in a room with other people, Lupin. There is no need for you to keep me company."

"See? Why don't you come over here with me? Snape doesn't want to snuggle you, but I do." Bill's voice was smooth and enticing, and Remus bit his lip as he looked back and forth between Severus and Bill.

"You don't want me to stay here?" Remus turned to Severus again, still clinging to him, but there was a quaver in his voice, and over by the fireplace, Neville began to sniffle, and Harry captured his hand, patting it reassuringly.

"No," Severus replied tersely. "Go to Weasley."

Without another word, Remus crawled out of Severus' lap and into Bill's, hiding his face against Bill's neck; Bill wrapped both arms around him and cradled him in a protective embrace, rubbing his back soothingly. "There now. Isn't this better?"

Sliding one arm around Bill's neck and the other around his waist, Remus nodded as he curled against Bill, drawing his legs up so that even his feet were out of Severus' space. Bill gave him a squeeze and reached up to stroke his hair tenderly, glancing over at Severus. "Well, you got what you wanted. My turn now." Although whether he was referring to Remus or the game, Severus wasn't quite certain. "Truth or dare, Neville?"

"Truth," Neville said, still sounding a little sniffly.

"Who do you most fancy practicing your new-found kissing skills with?"

Neville shot Bill a startled look, but he didn't protest; instead, he bolted down another deep swallow of scotch and ended up having a coughing fit, and Harry sat up so he could pound Neville on the back until it was over. "Harry," Neville wheezed, bending over on the pretext of recovering from the coughing so he wouldn't have to see Harry's reaction to that news. "I asked Remus to teach me how to kiss because I knew he'd teach me how to do it properly, and I wanted to know what I was doing if -- if Harry ever wanted to kiss me."

He didn't dare look up, terrified of seeing pity or horror in Harry's eyes, but then Harry cupped his chin and tilted it up, and Neville had no choice but to look into Harry's eyes, which weren't filled with either pity or horror, but were gleaming with interest.

"Why don't you show me what you learnt?" Harry suggested softly, and Neville thought his heart might stop. He wanted to speak, wanted to say something, but Harry's words seemed to have short-circuited the connection between his brain and his mouth, and so he flung his arms around Harry's neck and kissed him instead.

Harry immediately parted his lips, and Neville eagerly slipped his tongue between them, moaning at his first taste of Harry's mouth; pressing against Harry, he tried to remember to breathe and how to do that little flick thing with his tongue that Remus had done, because that had felt neat, but he was so overwhelmed by the fact that he was kissing Harry at long last that he could barely remember his own name. He was drowning in Harry, reveling in the taste of him, in the warm scent rising from his skin, in the feel of their bodies against each other, and best of all, Harry was kissing him back and moaning, and Harry's hands were roaming all over Neville's back as if he was enjoying the kiss just as much as Neville was.

All too soon, it was over, and Neville broke away from him reluctantly, pulling back just enough to murmur against his lips, "Truth or dare?"

"Dare," Harry whispered, a glimmer of wicked amusement in his eyes, and Neville grinned.

Glancing over at Draco uncertainly, he wet his lips and then looked at Harry again. "You have to snog both of us -- me and Draco, I mean. At the same time."

"Oo, Neville's proving why he's a Gryffindor again," Bill teased, and Neville laughed, blushing and scarcely able to believe his own boldness. It had to be the scotch, he decided.

This time, Draco didn't have to be talked into anything; he moved swiftly to join them and knelt on the other side of Harry, watching and waiting, and Harry reached out to curve one arm around both of them, drawing them nearer. As he turned his head to capture Draco's mouth, Neville leaned over and began trailing kisses along his neck, running one hand up and down Harry's thigh, and Harry moaned and spread his knees apart as he knelt between them. Neville didn't care that the men on the couch could see everything they were doing; his happy buzzing mind was too fixated on making Harry moan some more, and he bit down on Harry's neck, sucking lightly as he slid his hand up to Harry's crotch, stroking his erection.

Harry's hips jerked, and he moaned even louder, devouring Draco's mouth with greedy hunger as Neville stroked him, and then he broke off the kiss, turning to face Neville, and it was Neville's turn to swallow Harry's eager little moans as he plunged his tongue into Harry's mouth. Need overcame discretion, and he fumbled with the fastenings of Harry's jeans, working awkwardly with one hand to free Harry's cock from the confines of his jeans and underpants, but then there were other hands helping him, and soon, Harry's cock sprang free, velvety hard and leaking. Someone laced their fingers with Neville's, and as he pulled away from Harry, he was surprised to find that it was Draco who was guiding their hands to curl around Harry's cock, stroking it firmly.

He stared at Draco silently for a moment, and then, as if by mutual consent, they leaned forward, lips brushing experimentally before returning for a deeper kiss, mouths opening and tongues dueling as their joined hands wrung cries of pleasure from Harry. It wasn't long at all before Harry's hips surged up against their hands, and he came hard and fast, warm fluid spurting on their hands and his stomach. Draco nipped at Neville's bottom lip as they parted, and both of them turned to look at Harry, who was panting and flushed, his lower lip rosy and wet as if he had been biting it. With a knowing smirk, Draco lifted his hand and began licking it clean, his eyes never leaving Harry's face, and Neville's own arousal doubled at the sight. Hesitantly, he lifted his own hand, darting his tongue out to taste; he had fantasized about going on his knees for Harry and letting Harry come in his mouth countless times, and now he had a chance to find out what that would be like. Not bad, he thought and quickly licked his own hand clean, relishing the dumbfounded look on Harry's face as he did.

Smiling, he tucked Harry back in and refastened his jeans while Draco pulled out his wand and cleaned up the spatters on Harry's shirt. "Your turn," Neville said primly, and Harry's mouth worked silently for a moment before words finally came out.

"Snape," he said, and the first time it came out with a squeak, so he cleared his throat and tried again. "Snape," he repeated. "Truth or dare?"

But there was no response, and the three young men glanced over at the couch to see what the problem was. Severus' cheeks were flushed, and he was resolutely Not Looking at any of them, Remus was still curled up against Bill and didn't seem to be paying attention to them, and Bill looked as if he'd been hit by a bludger.

"Are you sure you want to keep playing?" Bill asked. "Maybe you'd like to go upstairs instead?"

"Are you mad?" Draco sniffed. "Stop just when things are getting good? I think not."

"Fair enough." Bill spread his hands and shrugged until Remus made a little noise of protest, and he wrapped his arms around Remus again, holding him close.

Bottoms Up 2/2

Wed, 08 Aug 2007 05:12:52 GMT

"Snape," Harry repeated in the patient tone used to explain things to small children, "it's your turn. Truth or dare?" He paused and then gave a wicked grin. "I suggest you choose dare and get it over with."

"For once I agree with Potter," Draco said. "If you're thinking about trying to wait us out until we pass out, fall asleep, or stop playing, we'll simply hold it over your head that you wouldn't take a dare and taunt you with this knowledge at every given opportunity."

"Fine!" Severus glared at them, silently wishing painful, messy deaths on the lot of them. How he had got himself into this mess, he didn't know. It had to be the scotch. "Dare."

"You know what you have to do," Harry said, not bothering to hide the sadistic glee he felt.

"You're all evil voyeurs." Scowling, he turned to Remus, who was still curled up in Bill's lap, his face hidden against Bill's shoulder. "Come here, Lupin -- I have to snog you."

"No." The word was muffled but distinct, but Severus stared at him, scarcely believing what he had just heard.

"No?"

"No."

"You were all over me not fifteen bloody minutes ago!"

"You told me to go away!"

"Well, now I'm telling you to come back!"

"No!"

Severus stared at him a moment longer and then shrugged. "It seems you'll have to come up with something else, Potter. He doesn't want to cooperate."

"Not my problem," Harry replied, his grin widening. "Either you find a way to talk him into snogging you, or you have to forfeit the dare and put up with us gloating."

"I loathe all of you."

"Flattery will get you nowhere. Start sweet-talking, Snape."

Sweet-talking? Severus stared at Remus again, his mind utterly blank. For years, he had done nothing but push people away and keep them at a distance, and now, in one night, he was expected to forget all of that and figure out a way to draw someone near. He had no earthly idea what to do, and he knew that if he did try something, he would look either foolish or insincere.

"You might start with an apology," Bill suggested. "I think you hurt his feelings."

"Apologize?" Severus sputtered indignantly. "He's the one who crawled all over me and invaded my personal space without permission. He should be apologizing to me!"

Remus' head shot up. "I'm sorry I tried to be nice to you!"

"That isn't what I meant," Severus said, the words ground out through clenched teeth.

On the floor, Harry leaned over and stage-whispered to Neville, "I don't much fancy his chances of succeeding", and they both snickered behind their hands as they watched the show on the sofa with avid interest.

"Look." Severus rubbed the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger and sighed. "Lupin, do this one thing for me, and then you can go back to wallowing all over William and sulking for the rest of the night."

"Why should I?"

"Because I'm asking you to."

Even in his drunken state, Remus had to realize the significance of that. He had to know that Severus didn't ask anyone for anything if he could avoid it. Their eyes met and held for a long moment, and then Remus nodded. "All right," he said, his tone grudging. "But I won't sit in your lap."

"I'll find a way to live with the disappointment."

Easing himself off Bill's lap, Remus settled in the middle of the sofa again, tucking one leg beneath him as he shifted to face Severus, watching him silently. Severus waited for a moment, but Remus didn't say anything or make any move to initiate the kiss, and Severus grimaced. It was completely up to him, then. Joy.

"Let's get this over with," he muttered and then leaned forward to press his mouth against Remus'. Their lips met, warm and soft, but they didn't reach for each other; Remus' hands were in his lap, and Severus was braced on his palms as he leaned toward Remus. A burning knot tightened in Severus' chest as he fought to keep his desires in check; he wanted to coax Remus' lips apart and plunge his tongue into Remus' mouth, but he couldn't. He didn't dare. If he was to be humiliated, better for it to be because he failed to fulfil the dare than because he had revealed too much.

The stiff, awkward kiss continued for a few seconds longer, neither of them giving anything, and finally, he pulled back, putting distance between them once again. It was over, he had done it, and that was the end of it. Or so he thought.

"That was so... not hot," Harry said.

"Bloody boring," Draco agreed. "Here we've been giving them plenty of interesting things to see, and the only good thing we've got from them so far is Lupin snogging Longbottom. I find myself quite disappointed."

"Maybe that's what happens when you get old: you gain experience, but you lose passion," Neville piped up -- and then immediately clapped one hand over his mouth and blushed.

"I'm not old!" Bill mock-glared at Neville, who giggled and offered an apologetic smile. "Maybe Snape simply needs a refresher course in romance."

"I think so," Neville said. "I know Remus can kiss better than that, so it must be Professor Snape who needs the help."

"I do not need help," Severus replied icily.

"He doesn't want to kiss me." Remus reached for his glass of scotch, but Bill smacked his hand, and he drew back, clasping his hands in his lap. "He would probably have done better if you had asked him to kiss someone he doesn't hate."

"Is there anyone he doesn't hate?" Harry asked. "Aside from Draco, I mean. Besides, he said he fancies you and Bill!"

"Perhaps we should have him kiss Weasley instead, then," Draco said. "It can't be worse than him and Lupin."

"Would you kindly stop speaking about me like I'm not even in the room!"

"I know what he needs," Neville said decisively. "He needs more scotch."

"Right!" Harry cried triumphantly. "More scotch to loosen him up a bit." Harry walked on his knees across the room, grabbing the bottle of scotch along the way, and went to Severus' end of the couch; picking up Severus' glass, he filled it nearly to the brim and handed it over. "Bottoms up," he said with a cheerful smile as Severus took it from his hand gingerly, and then he crawled back to Neville and Draco, flopping down between them with his head in Neville's lap and his legs draped across Draco's.

Eyeing the glass as if expecting something to pop out of it and attack him, Severus took a small sip. He didn't want to get any more intoxicated than he already was; he had dropped his guard enough to be talked into playing this foolish game, and that was enough. Any more alcohol in his system, and there was no telling what might happen.

"Not good enough," Bill said. "Come on, Snape -- you can do better than that."

Scowling, he downed half the glass in one swallow, ignoring the round of applause that greeted that feat. The heat of the alcohol flowed through his blood; he could feel his cheeks growing flushed, and a warm lassitude weighted down his limbs. He allowed himself to sink back against the sofa before finishing off the rest of the glass, and he closed his eyes, feeling more relaxed the longer he sat still. Eventually, someone took the empty glass from his hand, and he opened his eyes again only to see Harry, Draco, and Neville watching him expectantly.

"Well?" Harry asked. "Ready to have another go?"

Severus shrugged. "May as well. Lupin, get your bony arse over here, and if you say no, I'll hex you."

"Not going to get in your lap again," Remus said, folding his arms across his chest and fixing Severus with a mulish glare.

Bugger. That meant he would have to move, and he wasn't sure he could at the moment. Rolling his head to one side, he looked at Remus, wondering how he could talk Remus into moving closer, but Remus' brows were drawn together in a stubborn frown, and his bottom lip jutted out. Tempting, Severus thought, feeling the urge to clamp his teeth on that tender lip.

The problem, he admitted silently, wasn't that he didn't want to kiss Remus; it was that he wanted to kiss Remus too much. If he let himself respond the way he wanted to, he would reveal far more than was safe, and so it was best that he kept Remus at a distance and let him think that Severus still hated him. But looking past the outward signs of stubbornness, he could see the hurt lurking in the depths of Remus' eyes, and he realized that his rejection had wounded more deeply than he thought.

Maybe, he thought muzzily, that meant it was safe to kiss Remus after all. There was a small, still-sober part of his mind that was having a screaming fit, but the part of him that was being fueled by scotch and lust plugged its ears and started singing "I can't hear you!", and he found himself reaching out to cup Remus' cheek as he leaned forward to close the distance between them and brush his lips against Remus'.

Sliding his fingers into Remus' hair, he cradled Remus' skull in his palm as he dragged his tongue along Remus' bottom lip before drawing it into his mouth and suckling it, and a soft noise of surprise escaped Remus' throat. As Severus nibbled his lip, Remus inched closer and rested his hand on Severus' thigh, running it slowly from hip to knee and back again, and as soon as Severus released his lip, he swiftly captured Severus' mouth, a low growl rumbling in his chest as he sought entrance with his tongue.

Severus' intentions of remaining detached crumbled and drowned in booze-soaked desire, and he moaned as he yielded to the kiss, drawing Remus' tongue deep and sucking it eagerly. Winding his arms around Remus' neck, he clung tightly, anchoring himself to the solid strength and warmth of Remus' body; he forgot about the dare, the other people in the room -- everything except the feel of Remus devouring his mouth as if he were a starving man and Severus was a banquet.

He was scarcely aware of Remus lowering him until his back hit the cushions and he felt Remus' body covering his own; without hesitation, he wrapped his legs around Remus' hips and arched against him, fisting his hand in Remus' hair as the kiss continued, hot and greedy and desperate.

When Remus finally released him, he gasped, drawing deep breaths into his starved lungs; slowly, he realized he was sprawled wantonly on the sofa beneath Remus, and his mouth felt swollen from the ferocity of the kiss, but he was still reluctant to let Remus go while his body was screaming for more.

"Well." Draco coughed and cleared his throat.

"That was better," Harry said, sounding dazed. "Lots better."

Remus let out a gusty sigh of contentment as he settled on top of Severus, resting his head on Severus' shoulder and showing no signs of moving any time soon, and Severus surprised himself by not minding. He curved his arms around Remus' shoulders and let him rest, enjoying the warmth and closeness more than he would ever admit aloud.

Closing his eyes, he let himself relax against the cushions. "William." His voice sounded deep and languid with satiation even to his own ears. "Truth or dare."

"Dare," Bill said, getting a chorus of "ooo!"s from Harry and Neville.

"It occurs to me, William," Severus purred, "that you're the only one among us who hasn't got caught up in this hormone-drenched snog fest. So -- take your pick. Whom do you want to roll around and make a fool of yourself with?"

"Actually," Bill said, an undercurrent of amusement in his voice, "I'm a greedy bastard. I want two people -- I want to pile on with you and Remus."

"We're going to need some more room," Remus murmured drowsily.

"I'm going to need some more scotch," Neville said.

"I know what you need." Harry leered up at him, making him blush to the roots of his hair.

"The question is, are you going to give it to me?" he retorted, feeling bolder thanks to the alcohol and the intimacy Harry had already allowed.

"We'll talk about that after Bill has his turn," Harry said, reaching up to touch Neville's cheek, and Neville beamed down at him, stroking Harry's hair tenderly. He could wait however long he needed to.

Meanwhile, Bill had begun moving furniture around, pushing it out of the middle of the floor, and he pulled out his wand, aiming it at the rug; he flicked his wand, and the rug began to expand and puff up, turning into a soft, plush mattress with more than enough room for all six of them to lie on it without crowding each other. "How's that?" he asked, putting his wand away again.

"Brilliant!" Harry rolled onto his stomach and crawled onto the enhanced rug, stroking its lush weave appreciatively before flopping down on it; Neville followed, stretching out on one side of Harry, and after a moment, Draco joined them, claiming the spot on Harry's other side.

"This means you have to move," Severus informed Remus, who was still lying on top of him, and Remus cracked his eyes open to peer at their new mattress and then smiled.

"That's nice -- it looks comfortable." Pushing himself upright, he leaned over until he was on all fours on the floor and then crawled to the rug, rolling onto his back and stretching lazily, his arms flung over his head. "It's very comfortable."

Bill sat down on the couch again and yanked off his boots and socks, and then he reached up and untied his ponytail, letting his hair fall around his shoulders. With a contented sigh, he raked his hands through it, finger-combing it before he rose to his feet and sauntered over to the mattress, sprawling on his back beside Remus.

Severus was the last to join them, taking a place on Bill's other side, close to Draco. "Now then. I believe you mentioned something about wanting to 'pile on' with the two of us?"

"Or the two of you could pile on me," Bill replied, both his tone and his expression hopeful.

"I like that idea." Remus shifted to lie on his side and began sifting his fingers through Bill's hair. "So pretty," he murmured, nuzzling beneath Bill's ear, and Bill shivered, tilting his head to give Remus better access.

"What did you have in mind, William?" Severus propped himself up on one elbow and rested his other hand on Bill's stomach, rubbing it in slow, small circles.

"I wish I had some popcorn," Harry whispered, resting his chin in one hand as he lay on his stomach and watched; he hooked his leg over Neville's and rested his free hand on Draco's back, wanting to remain in contact with both of them. Draco edged closer, pressing against Harry's side, and Neville did the same, all three of them never taking their eyes off the older men, especially Bill.

"I wish Bill was naked," Neville whispered back, and both Harry and Draco gaped at him, stunned. "What? He's hot."

"Well, yes," Harry agreed. "But... how much scotch have you had, anyway?"

Neville giggled and jostled Harry's shoulder affectionately, and they turned their attention back to the other three.

"You could start by kissing me," Bill was saying, and Severus fixed him with an intense, hungry gaze before bending his head and capturing Bill's mouth, slipping his tongue between Bill's lips without hesitation, and Bill moaned and wrapped one arm around Severus' shoulders as he returned the kiss with eager enthusiasm.

"Looks like Snape's doing better with kissing," Harry remarked.

"Whose tongue is that?" Draco asked, squinting.

"Who cares?" Neville said, toeing off his shoes and kicking them aside so he could stroke Harry's calf with his foot.

Remus caught Bill's earlobe between his teeth and tugged it lightly before nibbling his way along the outer shell of Bill's ear, and Bill reached out with his other arm to embrace Remus as well. Remus snuggled against him and stroked his chest, seeking out his nipples to tease them through the fabric of his shirt, and Bill gasped into Severus' mouth, arching his back off the mattress.

"I want to kiss you, too," Remus whispered and then licked Bill's ear. "But not on your mouth."

Bill's eyes flew open at that, but Severus shifted to lie across Bill's chest, anchoring one arm around his head to keep him in place as Remus began to move down Bill's body to settle between his legs, a predatory smile curving his mouth as he nudged Bill's thighs apart.

Moaning louder, Bill wrapped both arms around Severus, clenching his fingers in the back of Severus' jacket as he bent his knees and spread his legs, and Remus caressed his inner thighs, squeezing and stroking as he watched the kiss continue. Slowly, he slid his hands to the waistband of Bill's trousers, unfastening them and freeing Bill's cock from the confines of his trousers and underpants. As Remus grasped Bill's hips and sealed his lips around the head of Bill's cock and began swirling his tongue around it slowly, Severus reached up and captured Bill's wrists, pinning them to the mattress over his head; he was pinned down, at the mercy of two men who were apparently intent on driving him mad and making a very good start of it.

Bill writhed beneath them, tugging his wrists and trying to lift his hips, but he didn't really want to get free; he liked this feeling of being overpowered, and he surrendered to them with an ease and swiftness that surprised even himself. He yielded his mouth to Severus' exploring tongue while Remus curled his fingers around the base of Bill's cock and drew it as deeply into his mouth as possible, sucking hard.

Breaking off the kiss, Severus glanced back at Remus and then down at Bill, giving him a speculative look. "Lupin, I have an idea."

"Mm?" Remus reluctantly let Bill's cock slip from his mouth and looked at Severus questioningly. "What is it?"

"William seems to be responding favorably to being restrained. Perhaps we should give him more."

"Yes!" Bill nodded frantically. "Do whatever you want to me."

"Anything?" Remus' eyes lit up with interest.

"Anything."

"Let's tie him up!" Remus exclaimed, clapping his hands with glee, and Severus drew his wand, running his fingers along the length of it as a wicked smile tugged one corner of his mouth.

"My thoughts exactly," he said, aiming his wand at Bill. A silvery line of rope shot out of the tip and wound around Bill's wrists, binding them securely, and Bill moaned as he tried and failed to free his hands from the restraints. "Right. Lupin, you take his trousers off, and I'll unbutton his shirt."

Relaxing against the mattress, Bill didn't resist their efforts to undress him; he lifted his hips to help when Remus eased his trousers and underpants down, and he arched against Severus' hands while Severus meticulously unfastened each button. He'd been undressed before -- not often, but it had happened -- but never like this, and he liked it. He liked being at their mercy, liked feeling the thrill of danger and helplessness that he knew was make-believe, yet added a new and different level of excitement to their play.

As soon as his trousers and underpants had been stripped away, Severus grasped his shoulders, urging him up. "On your knees," he instructed, and Bill hastened to comply, relying on their help to keep his balance. Severus flicked his wand at Bill again, and the end of the rope binding his wrists slithered up towards the ceiling, suspended in mid-air, drawing Bill's arms up over his head, and as hard as he yanked, he couldn't lower them again.

"One of us is going to fuck you," Severus said, trailing the tip of his wand along Bill's jaw, and Bill shuddered at the caress, his mouth falling open as he panted for breath. "And one of us is going to suck you. Do you have a preference for who does which?"

"No, just do it -- quickly -- please." Bill rocked his hips, trying to bring some relief to his aching cock by brushing against Severus, but the man was just out of reach, and he groaned and bit his lip with frustration. "Please touch me."

Suddenly, Remus was pressed against him from behind, hands caressing his sides and fitting themselves to the sharp jut of his hipbones, and Severus was kneeling in front of him, bending over, his hair brushing against Bill's bare stomach and making him shiver. A tap of Remus' wand against his hip prepared him, and then he felt the head of Remus' cock nudging his entrance, and a low moan escaped him as much from the pleasure of being filled as from the burn of being stretched. Remus' fingers dug into his hips, and he felt Remus' breath hot against his neck as Remus eased into him slowly, and he pushed his hips back in a silent demand for more.

"Yes," he murmured when Remus was sheathed completely within him at last, and he let his head fall back against Remus' shoulder. "Merlin, yes. Fuck me. Use me."

And then Severus' mouth was on him, hot and wet and sucking, just as Remus began to move, and Bill cried out, sagging against Remus as the pleasure overwhelmed him. Remus clutched his hips, holding him still as he thrust hard and deep, and Severus cupped his balls in one hand, kneading them gently as he bobbed his head back and forth along the length of Bill's cock. He was trapped -- caught between them, unable to move, unable to seek relief until they granted it -- and he loved it. He moaned and squirmed and gave himself over to them completely, surrendering his body to the pleasure they took and offered.

Tension coiled low in his belly, winding tighter, and his breath grew ragged, his whole body taut as it neared the point of snapping. He was close, so close, and then Remus bit down on his shoulder, and Severus pressed two fingers behind his balls, and Bill screamed as his orgasm hit hard and fast and powerful -- more intense than any he'd ever experienced before. Severus lapped at his softening cock, swallowing his release greedily, and Remus thrust deep and held still within him until the aftershocks faded and he slumped, panting, against Remus.

Only then did Remus ease out of him, tuck his still-swollen cock back into his trousers, and reach for his wand to clean them both up, and Severus sat back, licking his lips and looking quite pleased with himself. Picking up his wand again, Severus flicked it at the rope, which slithered to the floor and disappeared, and he and Remus caught Bill, sandwiching him between them before he could fall over, and they carefully lowered him to the mattress, stroking his chest and back soothingly as he lay limp and sated in their arms.

"Fuck..." Harry breathed, wide-eyed as he gaped at the three of them. Beside him, Neville was breathing hard, and Draco's face was flushed, his eyes glittering with arousal.

Bill mustered the energy to chuckle. "Truth or dare, Harry?"

"Dare," Harry answered without hesitation.

"Threesome with Neville and Draco. Trust me, you won't regret it."

Scarcely were the words out of Bill's mouth before Harry was yanking his shoes off and throwing them aside and then stripping away the rest of his clothes as swiftly as possible. Grabbing his wand, he smacked his own hip and muttered the lubrication spell, and then he positioned himself on his hands and knees.

"Neville, you fuck me. Malfoy, get over here so I can suck you," he demanded, and rather than take offense to being ordered around, both of them immediately hastened to comply.

"You - you don't want any foreplay?" Neville asked hesitantly as he unfastened his trousers.

"Who needs foreplay after watching that? Fuck me now!"

Draco knelt in front of Harry and pushed both his trousers and underpants down, grasping the base of his cock and steadying it as he pressed the tip of it against Harry's lips, and Harry closed his mouth around the head eagerly, wriggling his tongue along the underside and feeling a surge of smug triumph as his ministrations wrung a moan from Draco's throat. Behind him, Neville grasped his hips and eased into him, pushing slowly, and Harry rocked back with an impatient growl, wanting Neville to thrust deep and take him hard, but he didn't want to take his mouth off Draco's cock long enough to say so.

Fortunately, Neville seemed to take the hint; he pulled almost all the way out, clenched his fingers on Harry's hips, and slammed into him again, and Harry let out a muffled cry around Draco's cock. He wanted to chant a litany of "yes"s, but he couldn't, and so he ground his hips against Neville's and sucked Draco harder instead. Neville's rough thrusts propelled him forward onto Draco, and he relaxed his jaw, settling into the rhythm. Draco began to rock his hips as well, fucking Harry's mouth with shallow thrusts, and Harry moaned and lapped at Draco's cock each time it slid out of his mouth, eager to taste him.

They fucked him and filled him, giving and taking pleasure with each thrust, and for the first time that he could remember, Harry felt complete. He relished Draco's harsh gasps as he neared release, and the sound of Neville murmuring his name over and over as he pounded into Harry with an abandon that Harry had never dreamt him capable of; all too soon, Draco cried out, his emission flooding Harry's mouth, and Harry swallowed, gulping it down. Reluctantly, Harry let Draco's spent cock slip from his mouth, gasping as Neville's thrusts grew faster and harder, and then Neville gave a wordless cry as he surged deep and came.

Harry was trembling as they eased him down onto the mattress; Draco cleaned him up while Neville cradled him close and stroked his hair, and then Draco joined them, spooning up against Harry from behind and draping one arm across Harry's waist.

"All right, Harry?" Neville asked softly, and Harry nodded, smiling as he relaxed in their embrace.

"Better than all right," he murmured. "That was brilliant."

"It wasn't bad at that," Draco said, but he was nuzzling the back of Harry's neck as he said it, and Harry chuckled and nestled closer.

"I wouldn't mind getting my hands on the geezers, though," Harry added softly, speaking just loudly enough to let Neville and Draco hear him. "What about you?"

"I'm in," Neville said.

"Yes, so am I," Draco agreed.

"Right. We'll have a bit of a rest, and then we pounce."

"What are you lot over there whispering about?" Bill asked, lifting his head just enough so he could see them.

"We were discussing how we'd like to get our hands on you three," Harry replied promptly. "But some of us are over-dressed."

"Not for what I have in mind, Potter." Draco crawled on his hands and knees over to Severus, a gleam of lust in his eyes. Kneeling between Severus' legs, he reached out to unfasten Severus' trousers, his nimble fingers working quickly, and Severus stared at him, stunned.

"Draco--"

"You've no idea how long I've wanted to do this," Draco said as he freed Severus' cock and stroked it to full hardness again. "Now who wants to do me?" he added, casting a lascivious glance over his shoulder at the others.

Without a moment's hesitation, Bill shifted his position, lying on his back, and both Draco and Severus moved to accommodate him; Severus drew his knees up to get his feet out of the way while Draco stretched out as far as he could on his hands and knees, giving Bill room beneath him. He unfastened Draco's trousers swiftly and propped himself up; it was an awkward angle, but he closed his lips around the head of Draco's cock, drawing it into his mouth slowly, savoring his first taste while Draco bent over Severus and relaxed his jaw, taking Severus deep, all three of them moaning in harmony.

"Dibs on Bill!" Neville exclaimed, and he crawled over to crouch beside Bill, stroking Bill's stomach and thighs as he watched Draco's hips undulating slowly, his cock moving in and out between Bill's wet, rosy lips. Unable to resist the temptation any longer, Neville bent over and trailed warm, open-mouthed kisses down Bill's stomach, reveling in the feel of his muscles quivering beneath the skin in response, and then dragged his tongue along the underside of Bill's cock. Bill's cry was muffled, but it was audible nonetheless, and Neville grinned, pleased with himself, before he took Bill in his mouth and began swirling his tongue around the head of Bill's cock, lapping greedily at the fluid seeping from the tip.

"That leaves you for me," Harry said, gazing at Remus with hunger in his eyes, and Remus nodded.

"And Neville for me."

At that, Neville jerked his head up, letting Bill's cock slip between his lips with an audible smack, and stared at Remus. "What?"

"Just turn so you're on your side," Remus instructed, scooting closer so he could unfasten Neville's trousers, but at the look on Neville's face, he stopped, glancing at him uncertainly. "Unless you don't want me to?"

"Yes! Yes, I want you to," Neville hastened to assure him -- and hastened to shove his trousers and underpants down his hips as well, wriggling with anticipation when Remus stretched out in front of him and nuzzled his cock, growling softly.

Grasping Neville's hip, Remus leaned in and closed his mouth around the head, teasing the slit with his tongue before drawing Neville's cock deeper, wriggling his tongue along the underside; moaning happily, Neville returned his mouth to Bill's cock, sucking hard to make up for his short absence. Pushing himself between them, Harry delved into Remus' trousers and hooked his leg around Remus', positioning it between his thighs so he could rock against it, the rough fabric of Remus' corduroy trousers rubbing against his bare skin heightening his arousal.

Severus plunged his fingers into Draco's hair, sifting through the fine, pale strands, only just coherent enough to wonder where the boy had learnt to do what he was doing with such skill; Draco's mouth was hot as he sucked and lapped, his fingers trailed along Severus' thigh to cup and knead his balls, and Severus groaned, feeling his body tightening as his release neared. Draco clenched his fingers in the fabric of Severus' jacket, moaning as he tried to resist the urge to thrust into Bill's mouth; he was close -- so close -- and Bill's agile tongue was bringing him swiftly to the edge.

Suddenly, that warm mouth was gone, but he barely had time to think about issuing a protest before it was back -- along with a spit-slick finger easing into his arse. Bill pushed his finger into Draco slowly, curving it as he sought out the sensitive gland within; Draco's muffled cry told him when he found it, and he stroked it as he thrust his finger in and out, driving Draco to the edge. Draco's hips surged, driving his cock deeper into Bill's mouth, and he came, shuddering with the intense dual pleasure. Caressing Severus' thighs, Draco sucked harder and bobbed his head up and down faster, feeling Severus quivering, on the verge of orgasm, and then it hit, and Severus fisted his hands in Draco's hair, crying out as he came, and Draco swallowed with greedy hunger, not releasing Severus' softening cock until he had lapped it clean.

Only then did he move, shifting so that he could latch on to Bill's nipple, worrying it with his teeth, and Bill let out a wordless cry, his back arching off the mattress to meet Draco's mouth. Neville massaged Bill's inner thighs with a firm, sure touch as he worked Bill's cock eagerly, pleased to the point of smugness by how he and Draco were making Bill writhe and moan, pushing him beyond articulation as his arousal built to a breaking point. One last harsh gasp for breath, and Bill's body went taut, his hips bucking as he came, and Neville clenched his fingers on Bill's hips as he swallowed the bitter fluid.

As soon as Bill slumped, sated and limp, against the mattress, Remus pushed Neville onto his back, growling as he lowered his mouth on Neville's cock until his nose bumped against Neville's abdomen, and Neville moaned, the sound of the growl making him want to bare his throat and spread his legs, ready to give whatever Remus wanted to take. Flinging one arm out, Bill sought Neville's nipples, teasing and tweaking them through the fabric of his clothes, and Neville squirmed, his breathing shallow and rapid as he struggled to draw in air, his fists opening and closing helplessly. He could feel the pressure building as he thrust into Remus' mouth, the growl vibrating against his cock and sending him him tumbling into orgasm.

Gathering up the dregs of his energy, he crawled over to flop down beside Harry and slid his hand along Harry's stomach, curling his fingers around Harry's cock and stroking it with a swift, demanding rhythm; Harry moaned around Remus' cock and lifted his hips to give Neville more room. Remus stroked Harry's hair, his fingers combing through it restlessly, growling louder, and Harry answered with louder moans of his own, sucking and licking, Remus' response increasing his enthusiasm until Remus threw back his head and let out a full-throated howl as he came, spilling in Harry's mouth. Letting Remus' cock slip from his mouth, Harry cried out, thrusting wildly against Neville's hand as his own orgasm hit, and then he collapsed across Remus' legs, too exhausted and sated to move right away.

Severus still lay sprawled on his back with Draco curled up by his side, resting his head on Severus' chest while Bill snuggled against Draco's back, one arm thrown across the younger man's waist. As soon as Harry rolled off his legs, Remus crawled over and flopped down on Severus' other side, and Harry followed, plastering himself against Remus' back, nuzzling the nape of Remus' neck. Neville didn't hesitate to do the same to Harry, tangling his legs with Harry's and curving his arm around Harry in a possessive embrace.

"We should clean up," Bill murmured drowsily.

Severus groped for his wand, waved it in a sloppy swish-and-flick and mumbled something that sounded like "scourgify". Dropping his wand, he wormed one arm around Remus and the other around Draco, pulling them close, and a contented silence fell over the room, punctuated by the sound of the fire crackling on the hearth and the occasional satisfied sigh.

"So..." Harry mumbled against Remus' shoulder. "Are we all going to want to Obliviate each other when we're sober and not so naked?"

"I don't want to forget," Neville said softly.

"Neither do I." To Harry's surprise, that was Draco.

"Me either." Bill and Remus spoke at the same time, and Bill chuckled and reached over to nudge Remus playfully.

A long silence followed, and finally Severus spoke up, turning his head to look at Remus. "I don't want to forget it."

"Good. Sleep now, and in the morning, we'll look each other in the eye, because we were all in this together," Harry said, his words trailing off into a yawn.

It felt good, he thought, snuggled together like a pile of exhausted puppies, wrapped up in each other's arms. He wasn't under the illusion that any of them were in love with each other, but he wasn't blind to the attraction, either. If Remus, Severus, and Bill didn't find their way into each other's beds after this, he'd be very surprised, and he found himself wanting to be sandwiched between Neville and Draco again as soon as possible.

Walls had come down that night, and bonds had been forged or strengthened. He trusted everyone in the Order, but now, he knew there were five men he would trust more than the rest, whom he would want by his side in the heat of battle. Warmed on both sides, he settled into his safe little cocoon, relaxed, sated, and happy with his new band of brothers, and sleep was swift in coming.