Andromeda Black

andromeda cassiopeia black. age eighteen. slytherin house. middle child. have any questions? send me an ask. :) this is a roleplaying blog played by Michele

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It's Not a Date, It's a Picnic || Ted & Andromeda

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A smirk played at his lips and he was so inwardly smug when he heard her struggle to speak properly, and even then she was slightly out of breath and her voice was a tad shaky. “How about,” his eyes lit up as he began his offer, “we completely forget propriety and forgo holding back because it might seem too forward, as you put it.” Ideas were swimming around in his head, not a single one of them clean in the slightest. If Andromeda wanted to be forward, then by all means, she should. He told her so, too. “In fact,” he said gruffly, “be as forward as you like. No complaints will come from me, I swear.”

Surely Andromeda hadn’t just offered that. Surely she had actually just cursed him and now he was in a coma and dreaming. This was, after all, a moment straight out of his (and any other teenage boys) dreams. He couldn’t find his voice, so he just nodded enthusiastically, if not slightly disbelievingly. It seemed as if she was taking his previous statement to heart. The smile she gave him should be as illegal as the Unforgivables, he thought absently. It was doing things to his brain -and other parts of his anatomy- that weren’t at all safe. Ted allowed himself to be pulled down, his final position a pile of cozy pillows and blankets, with Andromeda snuggled into his side.

For a few moments, he simply stared at her, his eyes wide in amazement. He brushed a lock of her hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear. He allowed his hand to linger by her neck, his thumb grazing the bottom of her jaw. Hesitantly, as if any sudden movements would jar them both back into reality, he kissed her. Their lips melted together and, once again, Ted felt a spark within himself that made him feel like there was nothing else on this planet that was more important than snogging Andromeda Black. Ted’s heart was probably on it’s way to shutting down, or bursting, or something equally bad. It hadn’t stopped its pounding since they had first kissed. Now it was beating an even crazier tempo, excited and nervous and thrilled all at once.

He left her lips and pulled her into an embrace, inhaling the scent of her hair as he tucked his face into her neck. Her body was pressed up against him and he nearly groaned with delight. Never in his wildest dreams could he have imagined this happening - Ted Tonks and Andromeda Black? It was absurd even to his own ears, despite how badly he wanted it. He pressed a kiss to the exposed skin he could reach through her hair. “This has got to be a dream,” he mumbled against her skin. “There’s no way this isn’t a dream.”

[andromxda]

Did he know what that smirk did to her? He so rarely employed it – but it went straight through her, slicing through her every defense and rationale. It was almost enough to knock her feather-light once again. How was it possible? With Ted, like this—she felt both powerful and powerless all at the same time. She was filled with this sense of feminine power, as though she knew exactly what to do; as though she was no fumbling, inexperienced girl. But too, she felt the sway that the situation held over her: a piece in this game that someone else had been playing, drawing her ever nearer to him, to this. She felt strong, sexy, and shaken. How was it all possible? “I think I can handle that,” she replied to him. Oh yes, she certainly could. And how.

She looked at him, a fire smoldering deep within her. Would he? Surely, after all that, he wouldn’t turn her down. She didn’t think she could stand it if he did—everything she was seemed to be hinging on this singular moment, whether or not he would join her. Whether or not he would have her—really, not just a quick heated kiss in the middle of a moment, not just a tender moment had by accident. This was a moment of decision and her heart pounded at the idea he might just turn her down.

But he didn’t. He didn’t, and it was the best thing she’d ever experienced—she could feel herself soaring up and above her body, and then suddenly found that feeling utterly grounded at his touch. It required all her faculties just to process it all. He touched her—innocently—touching her face, gently caressing her… and yet, it was one of the sexiest touches she had yet experienced. Her breath caught, and her eyes fluttered shut as his thumb grazed her jawline. He kissed her, and she felt as though her entire body had become fluid. She pressed close to him, anxious for more and more contact, as much as she could possibly get. Her fingers curled in his hair, caught there at the back of his head. This was what she was meant to do, she thought, she was made to kiss this boy.

Her heart was beating a tattoo and she could feel it matched, there, the same whirling tempo in his chest as hers. She could feel, too, the heat winding and coursing through them both—so hot that she thought it might threaten to burn them both up. And then he released her, and held her all the closer. She thought she might explode just at the perfection. So close—so wonderfully close. A light kiss, and then words that brought a coarse laugh from her throat. “Oh, no,” she replied, her voice thick. “Because I’ve had this dream—and it does not measure up to the real thing.” Grinning—because it was true—she watched for his reaction only for half a second before she took her attention elsewhere. Fingers snaked down, slithering beneath the hem of his shirt and stroking the skin she found there, absolutely enamored of just the ability to touch him. Her mouth found busy work as well—trailing wet, hot kisses in a wild path across his exposed throat. “This is the real thing, Ted.”

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Just Drinks || Ted & Andromeda Post-Hogwarts / AU

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Surprising to even himself, he found himself relaxing as they chatted. He was enjoying himself, something he hadn’t really done in quite a while. When one was fighting in a war he supposed opportunities to relax didn’t really come around all the frequently. Ted smirked at her, his eyes lighting up as she teased him. Was she flirting? It had been so long since he’d been flirted what he wasn’t completely sure he’d recognize her words for what they were if she was flirting. “I’m very popular at the healing centers, don’t you know? I might be, Ms. Black. So many tricky wounds and curses to tackle, I’m not surprised all you healers want a piece of the action.” Ted retorted jokingly, a smug look on his face. “Really though, I’ve not really ever given a choice in the matter. I’m hovered to a bed most times and the Healers come to me.”

He watched her closely, taking pleasure in the way she smiled up at him. As he focused on her mouth he had the sudden urge to find out what it would be like to kiss her. Shaking himself from such a dangerous thought, he brought his eyes back up to focus on her own. He needed to stop thinking about what she’d be like to snog and focus more on what she was saying to him. If his train of thought didn’t change, a few more drink would be all the encouragement he’d need to find everything he ever wanted to know about her snogging techniques.

At twenty, Ted wasn’t innocent by any means, but he hadn’t actually had a woman in his life in quite some time. Most of the people he worked either were men, or women who wanted nothing to do with him. With his job training and the war, he wasn’t left with much time for a social life. Ted had never been the type of person to be okay with sleeping with strangers, so while he knew many of his coworkers had multiple affairs to distract them from their daily woes, Ted didn’t.

He wanted to blame his loneliness on his attraction to Andromeda, but somehow he knew it was more than that. There was a fire between them that he couldn’t blame on being alone for so long. The air was filled with sizzling electricity and the urge to just touch her was becoming stronger by the minute. He was being drawn to her and there was absolutely nothing he seemed to be able to do about it. He wasn’t really sure that he wanted to try. Some things needed to run their course before they left your system. Wasn’t that a saying?

Before he could contemplate further, she replied. And then Ted knew something was going to happen. They were both toying with the idea of something more, he could see it. They way she leaned in closer to him, the spark in her eyes, and Merlin the way she looked at him. He was surprised; never in a million years had he thought he would be in a situation likethis. With her.  Imagined and hoped, maybe, but he had never believed it would actually happen. His lips curled into what could only be called a predatory smile. “I’d do no such thing, Ms. Black. Cross my heart, hope to die,” he recited, the childhood oath coming out with a heated edge that was anything but innocent.

"That sounds like a challenge." Ted laughed, "One that could end up causing us both a load of trouble. But you know, us Puffs are known to be ready for anything life throws at them. That doesn’t stop once we graduate." He took one last gulp of his Firewhisky, the alcohol lending to his boldness. "Would you like to test that saying?"

[andromxda]

While talking to Ted, she could almost pretend that the last three years hadn’t happened. Andromeda could almost see herself and him again as teenagers: seventeen and careless and just barely ignorant of the violence that would too soon engulf their worlds. She’d known him then—not so well as she’d liked—and often had wished she could get away with it, with seeing him like this. She wondered what may have happened, if they’d found each other with a bottle of firewhisky in some disused classroom in the midst of their seventh year. Where would they be now? 

Or would it have mattered at all?

 He smirked at her, expression alight, and she knew—oh, yes, it would have had to have mattered. There was a bloody war on and here they were, sitting on bar stools and flirting like they’d both just had a rough day at the office. Her lips curved gently. “Well, then, I’ll just have to have a talking to with the rest of the girls down at Mungo’s so they know better next time.” She winked at him. “We’ll just have to make sure they hover you to the right beds now.” Merlin above, there was something about him, not the liquor that warmed her blood, that made her feel—more, more than just the girl who had tossed off a comfortable position to heal the victims of war, more than simply that one Black sister. And damn if that look he kept giving her made her feel like the mythological Andromeda, a rival to Aphrodite 

She liked it. She’d never liked the myth that had been attached to her name – the details of it taught to her for as long as she could remember. When she’d been young, she had clung onto the ending of it: that Andromeda had been saved by a hero, Perseus. The moment that she’d given up on waiting for her Perseus and save herself from her family’s sacrifice had been a crystallizing one for her. No one was going to save her but herself – and so she did. But the intensity of his gaze, the sheer focus he had on her—oh, it made her want him.  Not the way she might have at sixteen; that time for fairy tales and believing in heroes that could save her was long past gone. But for tonight? Oh, yes. She could so easily imagine how skillful those lips of his were—and his hands… strong, she would bet. The thought nearly had her eyes clouding over, the sensual buzz of her thoughts melding with the pleasant tipsiness that the alcohol had granted her—and she took another long sip from her glass.

Andromeda didn’t really go out and do things like this—she didn’t get drinks with some guy, and while she did date—and well, she was no blushing virgin, after all… but this wasn’t something she normally did. And, hell, all the boys she’d taken back to her flat had been at least one step on the side of almost family-approvable. It wasn’t a conscious choice she made, it was simply that ingrained into her. When she dated, it was usually a friend of a friend, or a co-worker. Occasionally she’d even go out with a friend of one of her kinder cousins. But… Andromeda dragged a hand through her hair as she watched him – aware he was watching her all the same. Was his thought process the same as hers, as well? She smirked a bit, thinking it might just.

And then he spoke again. Her heart pounded, and his words – the intensity of them – felt like molten silver streaming through her. “Stick your wand in your… eye?” She responded, her own voice sultrier than she’d known it could be. She tilted her head, regarding him. “You should call me Andromeda,” she noted. “It’s only right, as many times as I’ve seen you half-undressed.” The look she sent him – remembering the shape of that half-naked form – was absolutely wicked.

The sound of his laughter spurred her. “You may be right there,” she said. “But,” she shrugged, “like I said… I can handle myself.” She smirked. “Are you certain? We Slytherins – graduates or not – can be rather cunning—“ Taking his cue, she drained her glass of the last of the glorious burning liquid. “So long as you’re up for the challenge.” She stood from her stool – impressing herself by not swaying – and leaned in close to him, barely a breath away from his lips—and a sizzling challenge in her eyes. “Are you, Mr. Tonks?” 

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Just Drinks || Ted & Andromeda Post-Hogwarts / AU

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Ted laughed, but the smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. “By my count I think I’ve broken every single one of them at least once.” He eyed her, remembering just how many time she had patched him up. Somehow he’d always found himself being stitched back up by her and he wondered now if it was a coincidence or not. He owed his life to her, ten times over at least. In the past few months the fighting had escalated and the teams Ted went out with rarely ever escaped without serious injuries. Ted had a habit of fighting longer than he should, often getting chastised for hurting himself further. The way Ted saw it though was that if he could still stand he could still fight. Any injuries he sustained or pain he suffered was worth it if he managed to bring even a single Death Eater scumbag in.

She moved closer to him and he was surprised to just how close she sat to him. Closer than he’d ever been to her outside of a Hospital setting, that was for sure. He found himself studying her face, surprised at how lovely he found it. Without the worry and stress of Healing, she was quite pretty. He hadn’t truly focused on her looks since his days at Hogwarts; one didn’t find much time to check someone out when they were fighting consciousness or grimacing in pain, after all. He was pleased to have the opportunity now.

She was a better distraction than the alcohol he was drinking; Andromeda Black had always fascinated him. How could someone so lovely and kind come from a family as horrid at hers? It was a testament to her soul that she managed to escape such a family and not be bittered by it. He wondered how she managed it, healing those who had been wounded by those she grew up with, her older sister or other relatives. She was a strong woman, that was for certain.

Ted could tell her day was just as horrible as his. Her reluctance to speak about it evident in her tone of voice and the heartbroken look in her eyes. He nodded, “That’s the idea, at least.” He took another gulp of his drink, finally feeling a warmness settle in his chest. Ted raised his eyes at her brazenness and found himself truly smiling for the first time in months. “Devishly handsome, eh? Careful with the compliments, Ms. Black. They might just get you into trouble.”

[andromxda]

His laughter warmed her, even if his smile didn’t quite seem to light up his entire face - as she remembered it once had. “My point exactly,” she said. She hadn’t realized that, not exactly - she’d known the broken ribs had happened often but… something about that made her want to heal them all all over again. Her Healer instincts fought in her mind - she felt the yearning to make him feel better. But unless he came to the hospital - well. It wasn’t her place, she reminded herself. “I don’t think I’ve healed that many of your ribs. Have you been cheating on me with another Healer, Mr. Tonks?” She asked teasingly.

She liked being this close to him. This close to him—the bustle of the rest of the pub faded into the background, but despite the fact that the bustle was why she had come… she didn’t mind, because he was filling all those spaces in her mind that the sounds were supposed to fill. This was certainly the closest she’d been with him not half-gone on the pain of his injuries. And, Merlin help her… she liked it. Her lips curved as she looked at him. He was harder, now. No longer a boy in front of her—but certainly head to toe, a man. Good. 

Her life since beginning her career as a Healer had changed drastically. She had started out still clinging to the social standards that she’d been raised to believe so thoroughly in. She might not have bought into the anti-Muggle propaganda they’d shoved down her throat… but she’d been so well-groomed into the society, it was a wonder that she had decided to become a Healer. She remembered herself at eighteen, young and green and still so damned proper. Things changed, she thought. She wasn’t the half-shy girl she’d been then. And she was so glad of it. She’d lived her life in the years that had passed since. In less than four short years, she had become so radically different… she didn’t see much of her sisters or mother anymore, but she sometimes wondered if they would even recognize her now—and found she didn’t care so much.

The estrangement wasn’t a disowning - but that didn’t matter terribly much, either. She supposed the only difference was that she would be allowed back, should she wish to grovel. And perhaps she wasn’t quite blasted off the tapestry yet, she mused, as she sipped more of the firewhisky in her glass. However, it was her family who was being foolish. She would never go back. She was free now, she thought. The world was going to hell in a bloody hand basket—but she was free to do as she pleased. The estrangement that had come not long after she’d entered the Healers program had been possibly the most liberating thing she’d done to date. 

She eyed the man beside her. Well. So far, anyway. “Trouble?” She smirked. There it was, she thought. A real smile on his face. And better than that, she thought, there was something there in his voice—something that lit her up in a way she wouldn’t have thought possible after the day she’d had. “I think you underestimate me, Mr. Tonks.” She sent him a look, full of mischief. “I can handle anything trouble could throw at me… can you?”

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Just Drinks || Ted & Andromeda Post-Hogwarts / AU

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Ted was too lost in his drinks to notice her as she walked in, nor did he even raise a head when she sat down two bar stools over and ordered her own drink. He continued to stare off into the distance, his eyes hazy and unfocused. It wasn’t until she spoke his name that Ted’s attention was caught, and when he jerked his head up and his eyes landed on her, something caused his stomach to clench. Her. It was her. Ted nearly ignored her in favor of downing even more alcohol, but rather than be rude he instead replied, “That it has, Ms. Black.” His eyes flickered to her left hand and noticed no engagement ring rested there. No pureblood marriage for her yet; he almost chuckled, knowing how badly that must’ve pissed her parents off. Then again, he supposed everything she did now pissed them off. Good riddance, he thought.

"I believe I had a gash in my side, internal bleeding, and a broken rib the last time I saw you." Ted said tightly. Meeting anyone now-a-days could almost always be related to an injury of sort. Although now it was hard for Ted to track or even remember what scar had come from where. Smaller injuries were left to heal on their own - too many injured, not enough healers or supplies - which often left Ted with jagged scars, burn marks, and bruised skin.

Ted’s Firewhisky still wasn’t doing the trick, his head feeling completely normal and lacking the buzz he had come looking for. Muggle liquor would have done a better job, but he couldn’t be arsed to get up, leave, and find some. Grimacing, he shot back the new finger of booze that had just slid up in front of him. Yes, some things Muggles just did better, and alcohol was one of them. He needed a distraction, and to his irritation the drinks just weren’t cutting it.

He looked at the seats between him and Andromeda and eyed the one next to him. “If you want some company while you drink, you can sit here.” He thought of adding that he didn’t bite, but thought better of it. He wasn’t one of those types of guys in bars. Besides, win the mood he was in right now, he might very well bite. “I’m assuming your day has been as shit as mine.” He stated, not even bothering to ask. He could see it in her eyes, in the way she held her body, they way she gripped the bottle in her hands. Exhaustion, mental and physical. He imagined he looked much the same.

[andromxda]

She’d always been a watcher. As a child, she had watched other children. As a student—she’d watched the other students. She’d been a prefect for a time, and so it had been part of her job once she’d become a fifth year. But she’d always watched—and Ted Tonks had been one of the many fellow students who had fascinated her. A gift student, but a Muggleborn. Down-to-earth, intriguing. But she’d kept her distance. She’d simply watched.

And then she had watched as he graduated from Hogwarts with her and joined the Ministry at the same time that she had joined St. Mungo’s. Through their interactions because of how often their pathways did intersect because of their complementing lines of work—the Healer and the constantly injured—she got to watch him still. Her hands had healed his bones, his skin, his bruises. But more than watching the injuries he accumulated—he always seemed to be getting new scars, she noticed—she watched him change. She was sure she had changed, too. But she’d watched the easy-going and bright young man become cynical and hardened. It hurt, a little, but she knew she was much the same way. War did that to a soul, or it killed it—your soul or your existence, one. 

But in some ways, he was still the same. Maybe not idealistic… but, well. One thing that hadn’t altered was her attraction. Merlin, he was handsome. He’d been a boy still - as she’d been a girl - when she first thought it. But now they were both adults, both grown. And still she thought it. She thought it as she rubbed healing potions into his naked flesh. She thought it when she observed his growing collection of injuries at various stages of the healing process. And gods above help her, she thought it as she sat two seats down from him at the bar in the Hog’s Head. She smiled as he spoke. She wondered, idly, if he knew of her estranged relationships. Probably not. It wasn’t public knowledge, and she doubted he cared.

“Ah, yes,” she said, nodding. “You break any more of those and we’ll have to use skel-e-gro to put you back together,” she warned. But she smiled warmly at him. She wasn’t feeling the buzz yet, but there was a tingle coming at the quick succession of drinks. She was now on her third in as many minutes. She wanted to feel loose and free and lovely and warm and firewhisky was a good way to get there. At the invitation, her smile widened. “Thanks,” she said, easily moving down to the seat closest to him. Hello, gorgeous, she thought. Her expression shuttered as he mentioned the shit day, as her carefully constructed walls shattered. The company, the alcohol, the noises of living disintegrated into the images of broken bodies, pieces of people strewn across the hospital. 

Shouting orders, sobbing tears even as she tried to piece them all back together, even as she told younger healers to handle the families as she worked so frantically to save the ones that came to them most whole. And failing, failing miserably at nearly every turn. For every life she saved that day, there were six lost. She closed her eyes a moment, rebuilding the walls in her mind. “Yeah,” she said, her voice tight. “But let’s not talk about the shit day. That’s what we’re here to forget, isn’t it?” It would be easy to explain about the bomb. It would be easy, but it wouldn’t help her. She raised her glass. “I’m here for the alcohol and the noise.” She smirked. “And bonus for me, I even get the pleasure of devilishly handsome company.” 

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It's Not a Date, It's a Picnic || Ted & Andromeda

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Ted was setting his wand down when he heard Andromeda huff. He turned to give her an expression that clearly said, “Excuse me?" when she -for the lack of a better word- exploded.

“My problem? What’s my problem?” He shot back, ready to argue when she began hollering once more. Knowing he wouldn’t get a word in edge wise until she shut her mouth, Ted just stood there with his arms crossed and his eyebrows raised. Listening to her shout at him was a new experience; it was clear the girl shouting at him was full of fire, and he really felt sorry for anyone who decided to really piss her off.

Finally, when she shut her mouth and stopped her bloody ranting, Ted had a chance to speak. “First, if I had a fucking problem touching someone else’s girl, as you put it, then I wouldn’t have bloody kissed you in the first place!” His words came out heated, rushed, and loud. It wasn’t necessarily true as Ted didn’t normally make a habit of kissing girls who had boyfriends, but when the boyfriend in question was a cheating bastard like Evan, Ted didn’t particularly care.

He was angry she thought any of that though, which is why he had shouted back rather than just snogging her senseless again. Actually, maybe next time he would try that as a tactic to make her shut the hell up before she had a chance to really dig herself a whole.

He had stepped toward her sometime during his rant and now they were so close together he could see the shaking of her hands. “Secondly,” he began, his voice a lot softer than it was but still holding a lot of fire. “My only issue is that you think I’m daft enough to pretend it never happened. You’re the one who was acting like nothing ever happened. I was just following your lead, you crazy woman.” He stepped closer to her, angling his movement so she would back up into one of the tables. “My only issue is that you’d ever think someone could be snogged by you like that and not want to repeat it.” He closed the distance between them, a lot more confidence in his actions than he actually felt. This was a Gryffindor moment for sure. “Again,” he bent his head and whispered, making sure he held her eyes with his own, “and again.” Once the last word left his lips he placed a feather light kiss upon Andromeda’s slightly parted lips. “And again,” he spoke against her lips, this time kissing her harder. He leaned back, a slight smirk playing on his lips. His eyes opened to look back at her, studying her face an committing this moment to memory. “Do you have a problem with that?”

[andromxda]

She was just so pissed. She was just standing there in the moments after her outburst, trying to calm herself down because she felt like she was about to tear her own hair out because she was just so angry and frustrated—but then he started in on his response to it. And all Andromeda could do, all she could manage was just to stand there and stare. She’d expected a flippant answer, or maybe just a shrug-off. She’d expected something simple, something that would only piss her off even more.

He didn’t have a problem with kissing her. That was the first thing that kept echoing through her mind as she just stood there—staring—incredulous. Dimly, she thought, she needed to break up with Evan. As soon as possible. Now would be best, but that would require leaving this room with Ted in it, finding Evan, and then having that entire conversation and all of that could take hours. Hours she could be spending in this room, with Ted. The formality of Evan could wait. 

Then he spoke again, and oh. His voice. Merlin, how was it that she’d never noticed his voice before this September? It went all soft but still full of that fire and passion and her mind went thick just listening to it, all intense and focused. Such a voice was dangerous. Her heart jumped as he spoke. She had no words—yet—and could say nothing as he backed her up until she connected with one of the work tables. And then he was there, so close she could feel the heat from his body and it was making her skin absolutely buzz with the proximity. And almost kissing her—and then his lips met hers and all she could hear was the word again as the lightest of touches became a kiss that made her feel. And then he stepped back, and she just felt dizzy. Her lips were parted now, as she stared at him, not sure exactly how to catch her breath or even her footing. She was going to hold the last two minutes in her memory. Forever. She didn’t think anyone else would ever make her feel the way Ted did, not the way he almost—then barely—then passionately kissed her and made her lips tingle and just want.

“I—“ her voice felt so thick that she had to clear her throat. “I only asked if you wanted to work on the potion because asking if you wanted to continue kissing me senseless seemed a bit forward,” she said. She’d thought of asking if he wanted to go test the comfort level of the blankets and such she’d gathered for when they needed to test the potion they were brewing… but that had been a step past forward. But she’d regained her footing, her mind in the moments it had taken her to explain herself… “Why do you think I reached for the poppy petals like that?” She smirked, and as he had taken a step back - took a step forward. She pressed her body close to his again. “I needed to be close to you,” she said. She tilted her head back to look in his eyes.

“So my only problem—is that you aren’t repeating it,” she told him, just before she pressed her lips to his heatedly, taking the opportunity to explore his mouth without the threat of rain and with the certain knowledge that they both wanted this, absolutely. Smiling against his lips, she positioned herself to lead them backwards--holding lightly to his shirt to tug him along. She paused, pulling back from the kiss to smirk at him. "I've got you exactly where I want you, Ted Tonks," she told him, as she fell back against the pillows and blankets that she'd gathered for cushioning. "Coming?" She asked, a wicked smile in place.

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[andromxda]

Andromeda Black moodboard

[gemmadaily]

[safe-bytes]

[andromxda]

safe-bytes:

Gemma Arterton

Vogue UK Mar 2012

[forevermarlenemckinnon-blog]

Sweet dreams and sleepovers / Marls and Meda

[forevermarlenemckinnon-blog]

"Shove off!" Marlene groaned, an embarrassed flush staining her pale cheeks, although she was fighting a grin. Her cry was in response to pretty much everything Meda said from insulting her kissing skills to the idea of children with Rabastan. Marriage was not on Marlene’s agenda, let alone children. She shuddered at the thought, but decided to let the comments go in favour of hugging her friend back. Although not (lightly) whacking Meda’s arm was easier said than done when she brought up children. The conversation turned to her seducing Rabastan, and she couldn’t help the teasing smirk that appeared on her face. "I could seduce you if I tried, you know. Not even the great Andromeda Cassi-whatever-you-absurd-middle-name-is Black can resist the charms of Marlene the great seductress!" Marlene laughed, batting her eyelashes teasingly at Meda. ‘Punch him in the face’ Meda said, and Marlene could’ve groaned as she settled down to curl up next to Meda. It was true, Marlene knew, Rab wasn’t exactly the brightest boy of the bunch when it came to romance. Getting him to fall for her would take a lot more than a little bit of flirting and a short skirt. Literally punching him in the face but work better, she mentally grumbled before sighing, and falling asleep next to Meda.

At some point during the night, Marlene awoke to the sounds of Meda muttering someone’s name in her sleep. Marlene was a light sleeper, so it didn’t take much to wake her up. Upon closer inspection, Marlene realised that the name Meda was murmuring over and over again was Ted. As in Ted Tonks, the bloke who Meda had totally denied having any feelings for whatsoever. A slow, wicked smirk crossed her pretty face as she prepared to wake Meda up. No way was Meda getting away with this, not after Marlene had just spilled her guts about Rabastan. Meda woke up, and even in the darkness Marlene could tell she wasn’t happy which only served to further Marlene’s amusement. “Something you want to tell me, Meda?” Marlene asked, sitting up straight and folding her arms over chest as she muttered ‘lumous’ so she could see Meda cmore clearly. Her knowing smirk made it clear that she knew what Meda had been dreaming about, and she wouldn’t buy any bullshit story Meda tried to spin.

[andromxda]

Andromeda laughed. It wasn’t often that she could catch the upper hand in these situations - at least not with Marlene - so she was definitely relishing it. Even more so as she saw Marlene starting to blush. Had she ever seen that phenomenon? She couldn’t remember. It was sweet, though, and Andromeda certainly softened her laughter at it. That was the moment at which Rabastan and Marlene became her cause, as she decided just then. She would see them as a couple! She would help! She would… matchmake. Of course it would have to be quite subtle so as not to arouse Marlene’s suspicions. She would have to be sneaky enough to keep Marlene unawares while being blatant enough for Rabastan to get it. However, she was dragged from her plotting and planning by Marlene’s words, which only caused more laughter to erupt from her. “Cassiopeia,” she reminded her friend. “It’s not that hard to remember—and no.” She grinned. “You could never seduce  me! I’m not that easy, McKinnon.” It was with that that they curled up in sleep together.

Until that happened. Damn it. Damn it! Ugh. Stupid dreams—and now Marlene had that stupid knowing grin. Had she spoken in her sleep? Better to pretend ignorance. Sometimes people don’t remember their dreams, she remembered. She might as well feign that. It could work, she told herself. Totally could work. “What? No.” She huffed. “I was asleep. What could I possibly tell you?” She frowned in the glow of Marlene’s spell-light. “Do you want to talk about Rabastan more or something? I mean - I would think that could wait til morning,” she whined. She would not reveal her secret. Nope. Nope. Nope.

[txtold]

Just Drinks || Open Post-Hogwarts / AU

Ted was in his third and final year of Auror training and he rarely ever got weekend nights off, always getting stuck with the shitiest shifts - just like the rest of the Auror-trainees. Tonight, however, Ted had managed to get the night off. After the week he had had, Ted knew exactly what he’d be doing and where he’d be doing it. The Leaky Cauldron would be packed, Ted hadn’t been a part of Muggle culture enough in the past year to really know a good pub to visit, and he didn’t feel like drinking at home. The Hog’s Head wasn’t as bad as people wanted to make out and he didn’t have to deal with chatty barmaid’s here like he would at The Three Broomsticks. Tonight, he just wanted to drink. Drink until he couldn’t remember anymore.

Since he was at the top of his group in the program, Ted got dragged along and many of the raids the Aurors went on, even on missions that involved Death Eaters. Recently, Ted had seen too much. He’d done too much. A few more months and most likely he’d be an Auror, seeing and doing much worse. Ted cringed at the thought and drowned himself in his Firewhiskey, raising a finger and demanding a shot of something stronger. 

At the age of twenty Ted shouldn’t have such a dreary outlook on life, but without a foreseeable end to the war he was fighting in he couldn’t help but feel so beaten down. Sure, there were many turncoats that had weakened the Dark Lord’s side, but for every Death Eater that had sought sanctuary with the Order or Ministry, there were two to replace them. Too many people had been killed in the last year. When the Minister had officially declared war thirteen months ago, people began to drop like flies, regardless of their blood status. He was lucky to still be alive. Survivors guilt racked him, as did the haunting images of war that plagued his mind. He gulped down the liquor that had just been sat down in front of him. “Another, and keep them coming if you will.”

Drinking may not have been the smartest option, but it was the only one he had at the moment.

[andromxda]

It had happened again. Another bomb. After her shift—after dealing with what she had to do, after trying and miserably failing to put pieces of people back together again and saving the occasional life—Andromeda holed herself away into one of St. Mungo’s linen closets and cried her blood-shot eyes out for a good hour.

She was a Healer. It was all she’d ever wanted to be, ever since she had made the conscious decision to not just be the simple housewife—the society wife—her mother had wanted her to become. Oh, her mother (and younger sister, now) had her “causes,” her little charities and garden club or whatever it was that she did. She planned parties and sometimes fundraised for some charity or another. But she never did anything beyond organizing things. Andromeda had wanted to help. She’d looked at her older sister, Bellatrix. The girl who had tormented had become the woman who tortured. She knew that much, at least. She didn’t like to think much farther. Had it been her estranged and deranged sister who had planted the bomb in the heart of Muggle London on the busy workday?

Her heart ached at the thought, the possibility of it. But no, she mused. Bella wouldn’t likely have been the one venturing into the filth of the Muggle side of the city. Her beloved leader would have sent someone else, she was sure. Taking a deep breath, Andromeda dried her tears, and put up the walls she often imagined in her mind: the walls that kept thoughts of her family far from the forefront of her mind, the walls that kept as much of the war out as possible. She needed them. Sometimes it was survivors guilt - why was she still alive? - and sometimes it was just plain guilt, the wondering if she could have done anything else, if she could have stopped any of it before it had ever started, somehow… and sometimes it was just the pain of dealing with it from day to day. She patched up everyone: the Muggles, the Aurors, the Order members, those who staunchly stayed neutral… and even the Death Eaters who came under her care. Despite her misgivings to the situation, despite it all - she still treated them all, healed them all. It was her job.

It was her oath.

Even as it pained her, she thought, as she left the hospital. She could go home, she mused. She could go to that tiny flat that she tried to keep cheery. She hadn’t be disowned as Sirius had - but she may as well have. She’d walked out, and she didn’t speak to any of her family members anymore. She paid her own way, with her Healer’s salary… and while she wasn’t technically no longer a part of the family (as far as she was aware) she was also an unwelcome presence at any gathering, she was sure. The failure of a daughter who refused to serve the pureblood way, and equally refused her place in the society she had been raised to be a part of. She instead toiled for the masses, healing bodies and minds. And she was grateful for the opportunity to do so. But tonight—tonight she didn’t want to go to her empty home, she didn’t want to curl up in a ball on her secondhand sofa and cry into a carton of takeaway like she so often did at the end of a really awful shift.

She wanted people, and sights and sounds, and just the experience of living.

So she went to the Hog’s Head. She’d never ventured there as a student - scared away by the stories and too enchanted by the Three Broomsticks - but as an adult… well. It had become to suit her view of life, in a way. Life was dirty and scary, after all. So was this establishment. She slipped onto one of the barstools next to a blonde man who seemed as disheartened as she was - she recognized him, too. Ted Tonks. He had been in her year, they had never really talked much… but she knew him. More, she’d patched him up a time or two. He was in the Auror program. She got a lot of those. She wondered if his day had been as shitty as hers. “Give me two Firewhiskys,” she said to the bartender. “To start with, anyway,” she muttered. When they came up, she gulped them down fast. She glanced over to Ted - noticing he was doing much the same. “Long time no see, Mr. Tonks,” she said. The lights, the people, the noise, the sounds of the living—it helped. It helped to reaffirm that reality did keep going even as London scrambled to heal the wounded, bury the dead. It helped keep the pain at bay as much as the burning drink. 

[txtold]

It's Not a Date, It's a Picnic || Ted & Andromeda

[txtold]

He bit into his cheek, angry at himself for thinking there would have been more. She’d come to her senses, realized what she had done by kissing him, decided she’d made a mistake. Talking about that would only make their situation more awkward. Damn him though, Ted wanted nothing more than to pull her up next to him, prop her up on the tabletop in front of him, and snog her once again. He knew they’d made a mistake, sure. He knew that what they had done was wrong - she did have a boyfriend, after all. Ted, however, really didn’t give a rat’s arse. Kissing her felt more wonderful than flying and it was just as addicting.

Ted ground his teeth, closing his eyes for a moment to school his emotions. Deep breath in, deep breath out. She was acting as if nothing had happened. He, foolishly, had thought what had happened might mean more, hold some kind of meaning besides a simple snogging session. It had been charged with electricity; anyone could have seen that and he had certainly felt it himself. Maybe that was his problem - he had felt something and she hadn’t. Maybe she was just having fun, screwing around on Evan because he screwed around on her. And Ted was just her payback.

Ted tore the semi-dried lavender into sections, tossing the smaller bits into the mortar angrily.

His body stiffened when she pressed up against him, and he held his breath without realizing he was doing so. Andromeda was a Slytherin, sure, but he’d never known her to be cruel. Or to play with someone’s emotions. He glared at her, pissed that she could act like that and at his own body’s reaction to her touch. He felt such a strong urge to pull her back to him that he nearly reached out to do just that. Instead he picked up the pestle and started to ground the herbs into a fine dust, his knuckles turning white from the grip he had on the stone tool.

"It’s fine," he muttered, his elated mood from just minutes before turning dark and stormy. He didn’t appreciated being used or played with or whatever Andromeda was doing. He considered bluntly asking her what sort of game she was playing, but he found that he really didn’t  want to hear the answer. It would just hurt him worse, no doubt.

Done with the mortar and pestle, Ted picked his wand up and pointed it under one of the cauldrons. “Incendio,” he breathed, trying hard to focus solely on the charm he was casting. He’d learned long ago that your emotions could super-charge even the simplest of spells and despite his irritation with Andromeda at the moment, he didn’t want to set the room on fire just because he could keep his emotions in check.

[andromxda]

The quieter Ted was, the more irritated Andromeda got. So - was this his game, then? Snogging her senseless in one moment, making her feel more than she’d felt in—well, in actual memory and making her feel as though she mattered. As if they could be something important, and real, everything she had ever wanted for as long as she could remember—and then come inside and pretend it never happened. Was it his morality? Ted was big on morals, she knew, and well… Andromeda bit her lip. Technically she was still dating Evan. She felt a twinge of guilt at the reminder: everyone had said such things about Evan… no one could have guessed it would have been Andromeda to be the unfaithful one. But even with that, she didn’t regret it. She couldn’t. 

Oh, she adored Evan, and cared deeply for him. He excited her. But he also scared her. While he was certainly still part of the same boy who gave her that first little kiss and the boy who she could trust to comfort her during her nightmares… he was also this new Evan that was frightening. She had always loved Evan—friend, cousin, boyfriend—but there was also a budding darkness in him. She knew it existed, even if she rarely saw it. He didn’t show it to her. To her, there was always the real laughter and what she saw as the real Evan. But she knew better, deep down. He could be cruel, and callous… and was capable of darkness that she likely could not fathom. 

But for all of that, for all the excitement that her first boyfriend had brought her, Andromeda now realized there was a lot missing. There was affection with Evan, but also a demand. He never said it, but she felt the bundle of nerves when she was alone with him - felt the worry of what if I don’t? and the pressure to make him happy. Andromeda adored Evan, but things with him weren’t easy. For every person she could count that was pleased with such a match - coming mostly from those who feared she would stray from the path her parents set out for her - there were two who felt it wasn’t a good one. Then there were the dreams. If she’d been happy with Evan - as she could’ve sworn she had been, just a month ago - why was she having these dreams? 

Ted was still silent.

Andromeda’s heart ached. She could remember with perfect clarity the day they’d argued about her dating Evan Rosier. And perhaps with more, when they’d made up. It was wrong, wasn’t it, to have such depth and emotion with her platonic friend and contrastingly a sense of pressure and uncertainty and conflict about her boyfriend? It wasn’t supposed to be that way. She glanced at Ted, furiously crushing lavender in the mortar. She felt so much for him. And that couldn’t be wrong. Did that mean he just… wouldn’t have anything to do with her now, until she broke up with Evan? Is that what he wanted? If that was the issue, then why had he acted that way outside? The questions frustrated her so much - she slammed down her knife. He just set the fire aflame, and she huffed. 

“What is your problem, Ted Tonks?” 

Andromeda turned to glare at him. She felt waves of emotions all fighting within her. “Where do you get off, pretending it never even happened?” Irritated, she pushed her hair up and out of her face as she swung towards him. “If you’re ashamed of what happened, fine. If you have some ridiculous guilt about touching someone else’s girl? That’s your problem.” She fumed. “But if you think you’re going to just stand there and pretend none of it happened so it goes away? You’ve got another think coming, Tonks, because guess what? It happened. It was amazing, it happened, and if you regret it—well.” She ran out of steam in that moment. “Then clearly you have issues.” Her heated rant over - but all of the emotion still banging around inside of her - she just stared at him, daring him to keep standing there in his stupid little silence.

[txtold]

It's Not a Date, It's a Picnic || Ted & Andromeda

[txtold]

Ted took a childish glee from running full out in the pouring rain with Andromeda. Surely she’d never acted like this around anyone else. It definitely wasn’t what you’d expect a lady to do. They’re hands stayed clasped together, even as they slid and slipped and nearly fell multiple times on their way back to the castle. The rain had them both soaked to the core and truthfully Ted didn’t see the reason to be in any sort of a hurry. Once they reached the castle, the spell between them would be broken and they’d realized the way they were acting wasn’t acceptable.

His stomach churned unhappily at the thought.

Before they reached the castle, however, Andromeda pulled them to a stop under one of Hogwarts’ large trees - the non-deadly kind. It was nice to be out from under the deluge of cold, Scottish rain, and even better to be pushed up against the tree by Andromeda. And when she kissed him once more -her lips didn’t linger, but that din’t matter as they still were on his for a moment- well, Ted thought he’d died and gone to heaven. He laughed as she pulled away and began to run off towards the castle, her laughter being swallowed by the rush of rainfall. Ted’s face lit up and he took off after her once again.

They made quite a mess entering the Castle, but Ted’s mind was far past caring. Without really focusing on what he was doing, he performed a drying charm on himself while Andromeda mirrored him with her own wand. Ted was taken aback when she grabbed his hand, leading them down into the Dungeons. They both stayed silent and Ted followed her lead, letting her maneuver them through the dank hallways to the right classroom. The room had been prepared for them, noting all the supplies and ingredients that littered multiple counter tops.

Ted waited for Andromeda to speak first, unsure where exactly their kisses had left them. Maybe entering the Castle had broken the spell and she was no realizing her mistake. And when she finally did speak, asking if he wanted to get started on their potion project, Ted deflated. “Oh,” he scrunched his face up and studied the cauldrons in front of him. “Sure. I’ll start crushing the lavender with the other herbs. We need eight sprigs for the first potion, right? Since we’re doubling the normal time, we double the normal amount.” He said, almost to himself, avoiding Andromeda’s eyes. If she wasn’t going to talk about what had just happened…well, then he guess he wasn’t either. Even if his lips were still buzzing from their contact with hers.

[andromxda]

Running in the rain – it took her straight back to her childhood years. All that time spent with her playgroup, the group of pureblooded kids that she’d grown up with. It took her back to the drizzly days that she’d run with Marlene, no matter what she was wearing. It took her back to helping Marlene shove the boys into awful mud puddles—and the ones they jumped into, half because it looked like fun and half to just plain spite Andromeda’s mother who had always insisted on those fancy white dresses when she went to the other houses. The punishments for those days of mud and rain were always worth it.

Just like this one was.

She couldn’t stop laughing and grinning back at Ted as they ran, and when she stopped to catch her breath and kiss him again – oh, how she wanted to just stay there, wrap herself right up in him and kiss him until the night fell, and even longer still. But she didn’t, because the rain would chill and she was eager to get inside, where they could be warm and dry and most definitely alone. Maybe he’d remember that he wasn’t supposed to do this with her when they were inside—but she hoped he wouldn’t, she prayed that he’d still feel the same when they were in those dungeons, dry and safe and alone.

As she watched him, smile in place, hoping he’d see what she really wanted from him—her mind played a possible response: Yes, he would say as he stepped towards her, a mischievous playing across his features, and she would have just a half-second to smile before he leaned her back onto a table and began to—Andromeda was jerked from her delicious possibility-fantasy by harsh reality. Sure, he said. But not in the heated way she had daydreamt just then. She schooled her features to hide her crippling disappointment. She nodded, silently, as she set to work. “Yes,” she said to his question. “And I’ll work on chopping these, then.”

As she chopped the ingredients, she cast a sidelong look at her potions partner. And smirked. So he wanted to forget all about what happened out there? Well. She certainly wasn’t going to make it easy for him. “Sorry—“ she said, reaching across him to another ingredient. To reach, she had to press her body close to his. The close contact set her nerves on fire, and she realized her plan was having an effect on herself as well. She glanced up at him, and smiled sweetly. “Forgot to grab this.” She stayed close for a moment - desperate for the contact - but then she set back to her workspace, cheerfully chopping away. 

[forevermarlenemckinnon-blog]

Sweet dreams and sleepovers / Marls and Meda

[forevermarlenemckinnon-blog]

"Hey! I was not an awful kisser!” She cried indignantly, though Marlene was smiling. However that smile quickly dropped off her face when Rabastan had been brought up. So much for changing the topic. She hadn’t really thought about it much before, but now that Meda brought it up Marlene couldn’t stop thinking about kissing Rabastan. It was one thing to be forced to endure feelings but a totally different thing to act on them. Or think of acting on them. One would think that kissing your best friend would be weird, particularly when you’d grown up together and gone through all those awkward puberty phases together. Surely that would be enough to keep any relationship platonic. Alas, that was not the case for Marlene. She’d known James all her life too, and to her James was a brother and always had been and the idea of even thinking of him like that made her want to be sick. Rabastan, on the other hand…he’d never felt like a brother to Marlene. That’s not to say they weren’t close - you’d be hard pressed to find two children more joined at the hip than Marlene and Rabastan were - it’s just that while she’d never really thought of him romantically (ignoring the crush she had when she was 8, that did not count. Rabastan didn’t even know it had existed and Marlene was determined to keep it that way.) she’d also never thought of him as platonically as she had James. Physically they’d always been close as children, and they were still like that now so it really shouldn’t have surprised Marlene that the lines between romantic and platonic were starting to blur.

“‘One of the girls’?” Marlene exclaimed, her eyes widening and a slight flush began to spread across her pale cheeks. “Bloody hell, Meda. First of all, skipping ahead a bit aren’t you? Secondly, just how many kids do you think I’m gonna have? The correct answer is none, by the way,” Marlene grumbled, Meda’s teasing was making her want to hide under her pillows and pretend this conversation never happened. “I hate you,” she grumbled, voice half muffled by the pillow she had dramatically hidden her head in. She was really regretting teasing Meda about Rab now, because karma was a bitch. 

Marlene sat up when Meda started talking about how good feelings were so she could see her best friend. It made sense, in a way, what Meda was saying. Marlene didn’t have many examples of the right way to fall in love and be in a relationship, but she had enough bad ones to know what not to do. Still, she was such a skeptic when it came to herself and love. Meda believed love would fix them all, Marlene believed she was too broken to be fixed. She didn’t let many people in because she was too scared they would lave - that Marlene would do something to make hem leave. Most of her inner circle was people she’d known since childhood. With the exception of Dorcas who Marlene trusted just as much as she trusted Meda, James and Rab. She had other friends, but not close ones. Part of Marlene, a rather large part actually, hoped that Meda was right. That love really was a magical cure to their fucked up childhoods which had broken them all in some way or another. Part of her wanted to fall, but part of her was terrified. Terrified of him not feeling the same. terrified of her fucking up or him leaving. Terrified of ruining one of the best things in her life. But Marlene trusted Andromeda. Marlene wasn’t really known for making the best decisions for herself, and she trusted her best friend and her advice implicitly. Marlene knew if the situations were reversed she would probably give the same advice. After all, what’s the good of being alive if you don’t do anything? 

And that’s what you do. You let yourself fall, and you bring him right with you.

"Are you telling me to seduce my best friend?" Marlene asked in disbelief, her tone laced with amusement as she stared up at Meda.

[andromxda]

Andromeda let out a laugh, then popped another chocolate into her mouth. “You weren’t great, either!” She teased. She loved teasing Marlene – usually it was the other way around, so the reversal was extra-fun for the Slytherin girl, sitting in the Gryffindor dormitory. She wondered, sometimes, what it would’ve been like to have been housed elsewhere – not Gryffindor, because she didn’t think herself all so brave and bold like Marlene and the other girls in the house. She always entertained the idea of being a Ravenclaw, maybe a Hufflepuff – though the idea there was just imagining her mother’s face should that have occurred. Or Bella’s. Another small giggle escaped Andromeda’s throat at that thought.

If she had been sorted a Hufflepuff, though, she’d have always just been a few doors down from Ted—she’d right now, while she’d been having those dreams, be just mere yards from his bed. That thought, in contrast, made her nearly choke on the chocolate she’d been savoring. With great effort, she swallowed the dangerous treat – and the even more dangerous thought. Let’s just not think about those dreams when around Marlene, she thought. Girl already seems to know things before I do… She shook her head and smiled. “And of course I’m skipping ahead! But it’s only logical, see. Because I wasn’t ever even thinking of him in that way – but there you are, falling in love with the guy. Of course I’m skipping there! Just like you did,” she said sweetly. “Oh? Honestly? Three. Maybe four, if you like things symmetrical. I imagine any fifth child would be purely accidental. But you mustn’t tell him that, because no child needs to be told they are an accident,” she said sagely.

She patted the back of Marlene’s head. “No, you don’t. You could never hate me. I’ve been your best friend for longer than either of us can remember… remember?” She giggled, only a moment, but she leaned over to hug her tightly as she seemed to process all that she’d said. Her heart ached for her friend (and for herself, but that was another matter entirely) because … well, Marlene had never had her faith in love or feelings unless it was purely platonic. Andromeda had always been the one pining for love and romance and the way your heart could skip a beat or twist in your chest when someone special was near, or looking at you just in that way.

Evan never made her feel that way, she thought, and instantly ignored it in the same breath.

She brightened as Marls seemed to be catching on. “Why, of course,” she said, a devilish look on her face. “Not me, though, Rabastan. Obviously. Seducing me could just not end well.” She laughed again. “I highly suggest you punch him in the face with it, so to speak. The boy probably wouldn’t understand a subtle seduction if it was right in front of him.” Andromeda yawned and stretched, pushing the chocolates away. “Now, that’s all settled, can we get to sleep?” She curled up in her best friend’s bed and fell fast asleep.

He was touching her—fingers stroking gently, lazily, across her stomach as her pulse leapt. She could see him there, pressing kisses – just as gentle, just as lazy – to her wrists, her sides. Her fingertips. She squirmed beneath his touch, wanting, needing more contact—more friction—more everything. “Ted,” she whined, and watched his blue eyes come up to lock with her gaze. There was amusement, and arousal, swirling in them. “Ah ah,” he said, teasing. “Patience, Andromeda.” He spoke her name and she could have melted. She bit her lip and he kept on with his lazy patterns, driving her absolutely mad. His lips made a slow and winding path of kisses up her body, tasting her lips in the moment before he slipped inside of her—

“What?! What? What!” Andromeda jerked awake, looking around her wildly. She’d been in the middle of the most amazing dream, again, and she—oh. Shit, she thought. She gulped as she could see Marlene’s eyes in the darkness. “What, Marlene,” she hissed. She couldn’t know. She couldn’t. There was no way that her best friend knew what she’d been dreaming about. None. Whatsoever.

[txtold]

It's Not a Date, It's a Picnic || Ted & Andromeda

[txtold]

"It may just be," he answered, knowing that’s exactly what he meant it as. He was playing a dangerous game, flirting with her. He’d be dead in an instant if Evan Rosier were to see them like this, but at that moment his brain had lost all ability to think logically. 

His eyes widened as she scooted closer to him, his heart pounding faster and faster. Without really thinking, he set his plate of food down next to him, uncaring how it settled onto the blanket. She was going to kiss him. No, he was going to kiss her. And never stop, if he had anything to do with it.

"I would never," he whispered back, moments before his lips met with hers, his eyes closing as he made contact with her. They had met as if there was a magnetic pull between them, something pulling them closer and closer until contact had been made. It was exhilarating, and his body was overwhelmed by the feeling. She kissed him with determination and he met her passion with his own. Never had a kiss felt so… so electrifying. He relished in it and did exactly what his hands had been itching to do moments before.

His pulled her closer to him, scooting her easily across the blanket since she was already so close. His arms stayed around her, almost possessively. His hands, oh his hands! They were under her shirt in an instant, touching the skin he’d only dreamed of feeling. It was smooth, taught and giving in all the right places. When her teeth bit into his lower lip - a nip that had a growl growing in his chest- he squeezed her hips, pulling her even closer. One of his hands left it’s position to run up her arm, graze her cheek and then tangle itself into her hair.

How he was ever going to stop, he didn’t know. They were barely making time for oxygen as it was. Stopping didn’t seem high on their list; he knew it ranked low on his. He didn’t care if what he was doing was wrong, or if it was going to get him in trouble or hurt. Nothing he had ever done had felt so right in his entire life. He’d never connected with someone so perfectly and he was determined to keep her as long as he could.

Even more, Ted was determined to ignore the stupid voice inside his head that was screaming at him to stop. Becoming involved with Andromeda Black like this was a sure fire way of becoming a permanent resident of the Hospital Wing. Not to mention he was surely to end up with a broken heart in the process.

Before Ted had a chance to come to a decision -listen to his conscience or listen to his gut and continue snogging her- a crack of thunder had him jumping back from the girl he was holding. His lips no longer focused on hers, he was able to turn his head back and look at the sky. Not even two second after his eyes found the dark, rain filled clouds did they open up and pour down upon him, Andromeda, and their forgotten picnic.

A hearty, yet surprised, laugh burst from him and he looked back at Andromeda, her hair already becoming weighed down by the rain. They were quickly becoming soaked. “I think we need to get out of here, don’t you?” he asked, already moving to his feet. He held out a hand to her, offering much more than just help to stand up. He looked at her, at their ruined picnic, and he still couldn’t help the smile on his face.

[andromxda]

Her breath caught in that moment, as he answered her—Merlin, did he know the effect he had on her?—and at that moment, she knew she couldn’t resist the challenge, and certainly couldn’t resist him. She’d never felt like this in her entire life: oh, sure, she’d flirted with boys before, she’d kissed a few—and of course, she was with Evan. But she’d never felt like this. Not only was her heart beating straight out of her chest (or felt like it might, at least) but she felt like her skin was buzzing in the places where they might almost touch his.

Did she kiss him? Did he kiss her? She wasn’t even sure—it felt like spontaneous combustion, the way their lips met and fed upon each other. Gods alive, why had she been resisting the urge to do this for so long? She never wanted to do anything but this—just in his arms, against his lips. Her heart tumbled in her chest. His arms were surrounding her, holding her just close enough, and his hands were there, just beneath her shirt, his fingers pressing against her skin. Her nerves buzzed at the contact, and a breathy sound escaped her throat as her mind instantly leapt to how much she’d love those hands, those fingers all over the rest of her as well.

He growled and the sound of it went straight to her belly, coiling there in a tight, hot ball that just kept growing every second that the kiss continued, but she didn’t care because she never wanted it to end, she never wanted to stop tasting his lips, feeling his touch—gods, she had never wanted anything more than she wanted him in those moments, these fleeting moments. She could feel it—the urgency, that this could be her only chance to touch him, taste him—and she poured everything that she had, that she felt and wanted, into these moments, and into that kiss.

Who needed air, who needed space or anything else for that matter, when you were wrapped up in Ted Tonks? She was contemplating, in her heated mind, whether she should just push on Ted until they were horizontal and she could climb all over him when the thunder clapped. Andromeda, for one, couldn’t care less. Rain? Just water, after all. A little water would not spoil these hot moments in which she was getting exactly what she never knew she’d always wanted—but he jumped back. It felt like he had been ripped from her: the loss was striking. She watched him, wanting to just screw the weather and continue exactly what they’d started – but he glanced up and the sky opened up.

He laughed, and it touched her heart—she could feel the sound making ripples there in her chest. Did he know? Surely not. She returned the laugh, and took his hand, leaping to her feet. She glanced down a moment at her picnic, ruined beyond belief but so much more than she’d have hoped for, and nodded. “Yeah,” she said, squeezing his hand even as she felt her heart turning over in her chest. She linked her fingers in his as she started to run in the rain. Ted made her feel brave, made her feel more. She stopped beneath a tree, halfway between the pitch and the castle, to catch her breath. She laughed. “Just wait a moment, okay?” She breathed deep, pecked his lips gently, and then began running again, blushing.

She led them both into the castle, where they performed drying charms on their soaked clothes and hair. And from there, led him quietly (almost in secret) to the dungeons—the extra potions room she had reserved days earlier, for their project, awaited them with the materials and ingredients already set aside. “Did you want to get started?” The academic part of her—the avid student that kept her reading spellbooks for fun and study—wanted to get started. But the rest of her, the girl who could feel her heart flipping in her chest and the way his eyes made her feel, the part of her that could so easily remember how he tasted, the way his fingertips could make her skin buzz, wanted nothing more than to forgo the project to taste him all over again.

[andromxda]

I said remember this moment in the back of my mind The time we stood with our shaking hands The crowds in stands went wild We were the Kings and the Queens And they read off our names The night you danced like you knew our lives Would never be the same You held your head like a hero On a history book page It was the end of a decade But the start of an age Long live the walls we crashed through How the kingdom lights shined just for me and you I was screaming long live all the magic we made And bring on all the pretenders One day, we will be remembered I said remember this feeling I pass the pictures around Of all the years that we stood there On the side-lines wishing for right now We are the Kings and the Queens You traded your baseball cap for a crown When they gave us our trophies And we held them up for our town And the cynics were outraged Screaming, "This is absurd!" Cause for a moment a band of thieves In ripped up jeans got to rule the world Long live the walls we crashed through How the kingdom lights shined just for me and you I was screaming long live all the magic we made And bring on all the pretenders I'm not afraid Long live all the mountains we moved I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you I was screaming long live that look on your face And bring on all the pretenders One day, we will be remembered Hold on to spinning around Confetti falls to the ground May these memories break our fall Will you take a moment, promise me this That you'll stand by me forever But if God forbid fate should step in And force us into a goodbye If you have children some day When they point to the pictures Please tell them my name Tell them how the crowds went wild Tell them how I hope they shine Long live the walls we crashed through I had the time of my life, with you Long, long live the walls we crashed through How the kingdom lights shined just for me and you And I was screaming long live all the magic we made And bring on all the pretenders I'm not afraid Singing, long live all the mountains we moved I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you And long, long live the look on your face And bring on all the pretenders One day, we will be remembered

[forevermarlenemckinnon-blog]

Sweet dreams and sleepovers / Marls and Meda

[forevermarlenemckinnon-blog]

"Um, yeah no sorry Meda. I think the kiss we had when we were kids kind of proved that we weren’t, sadly, meant to me," Marlene teased, wondering if she could possibly change the topic of conversation away from her and her feelings and onto something a little less uncomfortable. She didn’t do feelings. Feelings were messy and complicated and never ended well for anyone. At least, not in Marlene’s opinion. When it came to herself, she flirted and toyed with boys and used them for a good time. She’d had a relationship in her fifth year which had lasted a few months before she found out he’d been cheating on her. That had only hardened and confirmed her belief that she just wasn’t cut out for relationships. When it came to other people, Meda for example, Marlene only wanted the best. Marlene wholeheartedly believed Meda would find her one true love and get married and be happy with the fairytale ending. She was a hypocrite like that, while Marlene was a skeptic about love when it came to herself, she believed it existed for other people.

But here she was falling for Rabastan. Of course, she just had to skip the whole crush and ‘I like you’ phase and go straight to I think I’m faling n love with you. Marlene never did anything half hearted, everything she did she did with her whole heart and soul and apparently this was no exception. It was funny, because when Marlene was eight years old she had actually had a crush on Rabastan. Of course, she’d put that down to a childish admiration because in her eyes he seemed to be the ultimate rebel, wearing punk clothes and doing the most hilarious imitations of their parents that had her in fits of laughter almost instantly. Marlene had grown up, though, and she was sure that that crush had vanished along with her childhood fantasies about her and Rabastan running off to form a punk wizarding band. Apparently not, however, as here she was getting butterflies when he looked at her. Could she be any more of a cliche?  Urgh.

Andromeda continued to talk, and Marlene attempted to pay attention to what she was saying so she wouldn’t get lost in her own melodramatic thoughts. “I was meaning in the context of if you had to marry him! Not for me!” Marlene cried, and suddenly images flooded her mind of her having to marry Rabastan and she wanted to throw something at the wall. Feelings were uncharted territory and Marlene hated it. She felt like a silly, cliched, teenage girl from all those sappy romance movies Meda made her watch over summer and it just felt so wrong, yet at the same time - dare she say it- she liked it. She liked how Rabastan made her feel, even though she would never admit to that, and it terrified the heck out of her. Marlene was all for trying new things, just not new things like this. Groaning, Marlene resisted the urge to bury her head in the pillow and hide and pretend like this conversation had never happened.

"If I had bloody well known that spending so much time with him would result in this mess I wouldn’t have done it,” Marlene pouted irritably, she always did have a flair for dramatics after all. What she just said had been a lie, Had Marlene known being glued to Rabastan’s hip would result in feelings she probably wouldn’t have changed anything. Not because she wanted these feelings and the messyness of falling for one’s best friend who probably and most likely didn’t feel the same way but because consequences were tomorrow’s problem and best dealt with by not dealing. She would’ve waved the prospect of feelings off as something for her future self to deal with and nothing would’ve changed. Merlin she was such an idiot. “Of course it’s something to feel stupid about! Feelings are stupid and you know what’s even more stupid? Falling for someone who probably views you as a little sister or something! Medaaaaa,” Marlene whined dramatically, practically throwing herself all over her best friend before flopping back into the pillows. “What do I do? How do I make these feelings go away? How do I make him feel the same way? Urgh, you’re the love expert, what do I dooo?”

[andromxda]

 Andromeda laughed. “Well, obviously. You must’ve been an awful kisser back then, you know,” she mused. “I sure hope you didn’t kiss Rabastan with such an unskilled mouth,” she teased. Andromeda laughed again. Oh, it was nice for some good news. Yes, it was troubling for Marlene – but Meda thoroughly believed that feelings for Rabastan (which Andromeda had no doubt would be returned, of course) was a good thing for Marlene. Finally, a guy who could prove to Marlene that not all relationships are awful and doomed! Someone who could show Marlene that good of love. And Marlene, in return, could remove that strangely shaped stick up Rabastan’s arse and the both of them could stop worrying themselves over her own complicated love life.

And neither of them even knew about the dreams. Ha.

“I know that! You know that! …but…” Andromeda grinned: it was payback time. “You know, I mean… if you guys actually did get together, and get married. Wow. Think of your kids! Those blonde curls. The surly looks! Oh and the mischief, of course. Plus you could outfit them all in those cute little leather jackets the two of you used to wear all the time.” She blinked, then grinned even wider. “And I can tell them all about all the things you and I used to get up to! Ooh, I bet I could even teach one of the girls how to push a boy in the mud correctly.” She sighed wistfully. “So sweet. And you two, you’d be the neatest old married couple. Crotchety but still loving. Griping at each other while cuddling. Yes, that’d be the two of you, hands down.”

“No, you wouldn’t, because he’s Rabastan, and the pair of you wouldn’t have been able to avoid it, even if you wanted to. Because it’s who you are.” Andromeda grinned. “It’s sweet, though! It is. Plus, it isn’t like you’ve much to worry about – you’re practically the only person in the world who he isn’t awkward as hell around, anyway, and we both know he’d do just about anything for you.” She shrugged. “It’s not something stupid, Marls. Feelings are not stupid.” She stilled, looking fiercely into her best friend’s eyes. “Feelings are what make us whole again, after everything that has screwed us up. Falling in love can be what fixes  us, because not only can we be twice as whole as our parents ever were, we know to stay. We understand that.” She softened. “Besides, if Rabastan still sees you as that little girl, you aren’t the Marlene I thought you were,” she said slyly. “Short skirts, flirtations – you’d have his head spinning, Marls.” She nodded. “And that’s what you do. You let yourself fall, and you bring him right with you.”

Love expert. Pah. If only Marls knew… but that wasn’t for tonight, anyway. If she ever admitted to any of it – she still wasn’t sold on speaking about it aloud – it couldn’t be tonight, not with Marlene in such turmoil of her own.

[txtold]

It's Not a Date, It's a Picnic || Ted & Andromeda

[txtold]

Ted’s eyebrows shot up and a new kind of heat flooded through him. He definitely enjoyed seeing her so flustered, and hearing that she wouldn’t mind him showing up in just a towel anytime really did a number on his ego. He didn’t really know what to think about that, but he knew he liked that the idea of it all made her blush profusely. With much more cheek and confidence than he felt, he replied, “Our new dress code is towels, eh? Suits me just fine.”

Later that evening he’d be shooting himself -or rather, cursing and hexing- for saying any such thing. He didn’t know what was coming over him when it came to her, it was like his mouth had no filter. Nor, did it seem, did his heart. It was thudding against his rib cage so fast he was sure it was going to explode, or something that would cause lasting damage.

He felt the absence of her feather-light touch, and hated it. He wanted her hand back on him. He imagined it trailing over his stomach, up his chest, around his back. If one whisper of a graze had his skin still tingling then those touches would most certainly send him reeling. He shouldn’t be thinking about such things, but it was her own damn fault for touching him in the first place. He wanted more, wanted to know exactly what it would be like to be touched by Andromeda Black, without abandon. His mind then wondered what it would be like to run his own hands across her own body, and he nearly hummed in pleasure at the mere thought.

Too far. He was going too goddamn far. She wasn’t his to touch, his to think about, or his to have fantasies about. But damn him if he now didn’t want it all. He’d been able to ignore all of his feelings before, to push them into a dark corner of his mind and do his best to strictly stick to being friends. One little touch was all it took to undo it all, and now he was screwed for sure because he didn’t see how he could stop now that he had started.

He was lucky to have the distraction of having food in his hands, or else he’d probably find them touching her, regardless of what his brain screamed at him. Not that it really did any good, his mouth found a way around the boundaries his brain kept reminding him of. And once the words were out of his mouth, his body seemed to respond in earnest. This was happening, whether his common sense wanted it to or not.

Something lit up inside him when she responded, when her eyes met his and she leaned forward to bite the fuit he was holding out to her. He felt the cold juice of it trickle onto his fingers, but mostly he was focused on the feel of her lips barely brushing against his fingertips as she took the fruit into her mouth. This was… oh gods what did he get himself into? He watched as her mouth closed around the strawberry, as her eyes closed in pleasure, and as she chewed slowly as if to savor the flavor, with rapt attention. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. Eating a strawberry should not be that fascinating.

He didn’t know how he spoke, but he did. “You ruin them with chocolate? For shame. They’re much better with whipped cream.” His voice sounded fair away to him, but he supposed that was because his attention was still so focused on Andromeda - her mouth, to be specific.

He nearly sputtered at her next words, a horribly dirty laugh escaping from his chest a moment after. “Us Hufflepuff’s may be advertised as being fair, but I assure you, I much prefer playing dirty. Bring it on, Miss Black.” His words were slow, and to his ears he didn’t even sound like himself. He couldn’t believe he had actually said that, but the idea of playing dirty with Andromeda Black had his insides ablaze. The was an urgency building up inside him, something pushing him farther and farther just to see where it went, that he couldn’t hold back. He was being reckless, totally inappropriate, and it was absolutely thrilling.

[andromxda]

She watched his expression, wary of treading on the side of awkwardness again, seeing as that was one of the only things she seemed to be capable of today—but she was pleasantly surprised as she watched his expression shift. Her heart leapt to her throat for a moment as he spoke, then she settled as it sunk in: the implication that she saw was that Ted wouldn’t mind her in naught but a towel. The thought of both of them clad only in terry cloth certainly sent her pulse quickening and a slew of images assaulting her mind. She couldn’t hide the smug pleasure that shot through her at that.

Maybe tomorrow she would remember that she had a boyfriend, that she shouldn’t be flirting with anyone – let alone the one person she had sworn was just a friend only a week beforehand. She shouldn’t be fantasizing about Ted Tonks, let alone trailing her fingers against his exposed skin. She shouldn’t flirt, she shouldn’t move closer to him to taste a strawberry from fingertips. She shouldn’t do any of these things, because of her family, because she had a boyfriend—but there in front of Ted, she didn’t give a single damn about any of those reasons not to, because she had half a million reasons to do each and every thing and so much more.

He had given her a signal: a sign that she wasn’t the only one who was feeling all of this, the heat and the spark that could shimmer between them. She wondered—if things were this intense with these barest of touches, what would it be like when they pressed against each other? Would the earth tilt like they said it would in those books about falling for someone for the first time? And just how would he touch her? Ahh, if the dreams were any indication, she could scarcely imagine what reality would be like—so much better, so much more. She ached for it, and almost blushed again because she did.

She was getting ahead of herself.

The strawberry wasn’t just her favorite treat in the basket; oh, that much was certainly the truth—she’d always loved the fresh, sweet taste of the bright red berry. She’d gotten into a basket of the ripe berries once while wearing a white dress—the juices had slipped from her mouth and coated her fingers, staining the pristine dress pink and red all over. She just barely—oh, just barely—stopped at the light brushing of his fingers with her lips as she took the taste, tamping down the urge to lick the stray juices from his fingertips just then. But as she opened her eyes and saw him watching her like that—oh, every moment from his offering to just then was worth that singular look. No one else had ever watched her like that, and certainly no watching had ever set her blood so afire.

“Whipped cream?” She laughed. “I’ll have to try that.” At this point, she wasn’t thinking of strawberries coated in chocolate or whipped cream: no, those toppings were sparking other tasty ideas in her mind. “Is that a challenge, Mister Tonks?” Her eyebrows raised, and her pulse raced—another opening, another invitation. Perfect. She eyed the bowl of strawberries for a moment, then leaned ever so slightly closer to Ted, stretching over the blanket to close the space: when she stopped, hovering, she was mere inches from his face. “Don’t underestimate me, Ted,” she murmured, her voice low. The feeling there was heady, so close to him—in those moments just a breath away from him.

She’d always been taught that when she wanted something—to take it. And so she did. She took, in a swift motion, laying her lips against Ted’s. Her lips worked fervently against his, nipping gently on his bottom lip as though it was one of the ripe berries—one hand quickly found itself in his golden hair as the other found its place returning fingertips to that expanse of skin it had only moment before ghosted over. Yes, yes! Her mind shouted in triumph, as her heart thudded wildly in her chest—this was exactly as wonderful as she’d imagined, she thought as she lost herself in the thrill of the kiss.