Some Things Never Change

Ch. 02: Deviant Behaviour

"Gotcha!"

When Lucas felt a pair of hands close around his waist, he immediately went for his wand, whirling around to face his attack. Once he realized who it was, his angry shout echoed down the corridor.

"Rienne Sirius Potter!"

The girl clapped her hand over Lucas' mouth, green eyes darting back and forth as she pulled him into the shadows. "Quiet," she hissed. "You know I haven't any right to be out of the common room after hours. You want to get me into trouble?"

Lucas pushed her hand away from his mouth angrily. "I might have hurt you," he growled, shoving his wand back into his pocket. "You bloody well should get in trouble. Sneaking up on unsuspecting students. They ought to keep people like you locked up," Lucas grumbled, though he wasn't really very angry anymore. Try as he might, he could never stay angry with Rienne for long.

Rienne giggled and wrapped her arm around Lucas' waist. "I would like to know how I was able to catch you so unsuspecting. You were staring down that hall with a sort of glazed look on your face. 'A Slytherin should never be caught off his guard'," she said in a severe voice, mimicking their Head of House, Professor Snape.

"Yes, well, I thought I saw something, and it isn't very well-lit down here, if you hadn't noticed," Lucas said defensively.

Rienne raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You thought you saw something?" she echoed disbelievingly, clearly amused by the pathetic excuse. "Come on," she coaxed, pressing closer to him. "I won't say a word."

"Harry's here," he sighed. "He didn't want me to say anything because he can't stay long. He's just here to speak with my parents. The reason you caught me off-guard was because Harry was behaving sort of odd. That caught me off-guard. He acted as though he were trying to hide something from me. He's never done that before. I don't like it," Lucas muttered.

Rienne rested her head on his shoulder and began leading the way back to their common room. "You know how my dad is. He'd only keep something from you if he was trying to protect you."

Lucas couldn't deny the truth of her statement. "He might have said that," he murmured darkly. "Didn't have to be so abrupt."

At this, Rienne had to laugh. "If he'd told you he was trying to protect you, would you have let the matter drop?" she asked. "You would have been intrigued and pestered him for details, and don't try to deny it." Lucas crossed his arms petulantly and didn't reply. Rienne growled and pinched his side, hard. "Quit pouting. We are going to have fun tonight. Britton took it upon himself to plan a party." Lucas turned and looked at her, shock clear on his face. "I didn't even have to push him in the right direction," she added with a laugh.

"Britton actually planned ahead?" Lucas asked, his tone amused. "Perhaps I gave him too little credit earlier."

"Yeah, apparently he and Connor have all kinds of food from the kitchens and nicked your dad's Firewhiskey from home."

Lucas raised an eyebrow. "Then why are we waiting around here? If we don't hurry and get back, it'll all be gone." He seized Rienne's hand and pulled her down the corridor towards the entrance of the Slytherin common room, the girl laughing all the way.

"Carpe noctem," he said upon reaching the trapdoor, his voice somewhat breathless.

When the door slid open, the sounds from within echoed down the hallway immediately. Lucas and Rienne hurried inside, not wanting the noise to spread. They were immediately caught up in a raucous crowd of Slytherins.

Lucas glanced around a few seconds before finding the person he was looking for. He smirked at Rienne and began leading her across the room. He stood in front of Britton, arms crossed, face set in a frown. "Where is it?"

Britton swallowed thickly and handed over a half-empty bottle of Ogden's Olde Firewhiskey. "Am I in trouble?"

Lucas cracked a grin and uncorked the bottle, taking a long swig. He made a pained face as the liquid burned its way down his throat, and then passed the bottle to Rienne, who took a drink herself.

"No," Lucas replied with a laugh. "But you would have been had you not shared. Make sure this party is over by midnight. We do have classes tomorrow, after all." Lucas took the bottle from Rienne and took another drink from it before handing it back to Britton. "And make it clear that if I hear any complaints about hangovers in the morning, the person making the complaint will not be allowed at the next party." He raised an eyebrow to indicate he was serious. "Alright?"

Britton grinned. "You're the boss."

"Damn right. Now, unlike some people, I understand the virtues of a decent night's sleep." Lucas turned and walked away without another word, heading up the stairs to his dormitory.

"Don't worry about him. You don't have to end the party until one," Rienne whispered to Britton once Lucas was out of hearing range. "I'll keep him suitably distracted." Then she kissed him on the cheek and flounced away giggling in the direction Lucas had gone, Britton shaking his head with a lopsided grin.

Once Rienne got upstairs, she was suddenly alert and cautious, her instincts and reflexes becoming almost feline in nature. She wondered if she might be able to sneak up on Lucas again.

Rienne approached his bedroom door slowly, every step measured and wary, her footsteps making no noise. Her hand closed on the doorknob and twisted it carefully, pushing the door open soundlessly. She had no time to register that the room was dark and empty before the attack came, not from the front or back, but from the side.

Rienne shrieked as a shadow swooped in from her right and body checked her. Quite suddenly, she found herself pinned to the to the wall, arms stretched pleasantly over her head, a pair of soft and pliable lips moulding themselves against hers.

She struggled against the grip on her wrists, smirking as she kissed back, finally managing to free one hand. She wrapped this arm around her attacker's neck and buried her hand in his hair. With a growl, she yanked his head back and stared at him, her eyes sparkling wickedly.

"Lucas dear, I don't suppose you might try being a little less amorous next time. I think I'll have a bruise," she accused in a teasing voice.

"You'll be lucky if that's all you get," Lucas rumbled in response, wearing a mischievious smirk of his own.

"Uh oh, that sounded like a promise," Rienne sang, pressing her body flush against that of her boyfriend. "You'd better follow through on that," she murmured, her eyes now hooded and lust-filled.

"I wouldn't dream of letting you down," Lucas growled. Then Rienne pulled his head forward, crushing their lips together insistently, nibbling at his lower lip and tongue playfully.

Lucas smirked around the kiss and ran his free hand down Rienne's side to rest lightly at her hip. Without any warning, Lucas released her other wrist and used both hands to hoist her dainty frame over his shoulder. Then, Rienne kicking and screaming with laughter, he carried her into his bedroom and shut the door behind them.

Rienne squealed as Lucas attempted to toss her onto his bed, locking her legs around one of his thighs, so that he was pulled down on top of her, their faces inches apart.

"I've missed you," Lucas murmured, silver eyes focused on sparkling green.

"You saw me last week," Rienne said teasingly, running a finger down his cheek.

Lucas rocked his hips gently, eliciting a low moan from the girl beneath him. "I've missed you," he clarified, his tone carrying more meaning.

He had just leaned down to capture Rienne's lips again when his door was slammed open and Connor burst in, panting heavily.

Rienne was the first to regain her senses and swiftly kicked Lucas off her, laughing as he rolled ineloquently onto the floor. She rose from the bed and crossed the room to face the boy, who was still struggling to catch his breath. He had apparently run the whole way up the stairs.

"What is it, hon?" Rienne asked gently, setting a comforting hand on his shoulder. She felt Lucas' arms slip around her waist as he came up behind her.

"This had better be good," Lucas growled, his pale face tinged with pink.

"Caleb and Weasley are fighting, right outside the common room," Connor finally said.

Lucas' face hardened into a scowl and he stomped from the room, Rienne and Connor hurrying behind him. When Lucas got back down to the common room, he stopped right before the entrance, which was wide open, and bellowed, "Weasley!" his voice furious and foreboding.

The sounds of struggling could be heard in the corridor before Caleb Zabini and Michael Weasley dragged each other trough the trapdoor. One only had to look at the pair to realize it had not been a fair fight. Michael was easily four inches taller than Caleb, and far more muscular. Caleb had more of a swimmer's body; he was rather tall, but slim, with hardly any body mass compared to that of Michael Weasley. At the moment, Caleb's black hair was in complete disarray, and his hazel eyes were bleary and out-of-focus. He was rubbing his jaw and glaring sideways at Weasley.

Lucas strode over to the pair, seizing Michael by the collar of his robes. "What is the meaning of this?" the blonde snarled, yanking the other boy forward so that their noses were practically touching.

Michael pulled away, shrugging out of Caleb's grip and glaring at Lucas venomously. "I came down here to discuss the schedule for use of the Quidditch pitch with Potter, only to be attacked by this bloody lunatic," he growled, gesturing to Caleb, who was standing off to the side now, swaying slightly on his feet. It was obvious that the by had had a bit too much to drink.

Lucas rolled his eyes skeptically. "You needed to discuss that now?" he asked, his eyes narrowing critically. "No one starts practicing for at least two weeks, and you thought it necessary to make up a schedule the night we arrive? Have you spoken to Ainsley? The new Hufflepuff captain?" He let out a snort of derisive laughter. "You actually think anyone's going to believe that story? Be honest. You came down here to start a fight." Lucas crossed his arms expectantly, watching as Michael's face turned pink.

"I don't care if you believe me, Malfoy," the redhead spat. "I came down here to speak with Potter."

Lucas raised an eyebrow. "So you believe that coming down here to speak to someone else's girlfriend under false pretenses shouldn't warrant a fight?" he asked.

Michael blushed a brilliant shade of crimson, his face contorted with fury. He had pulled back a fist to lash out at Lucas when he found himself suspended upside-down in midair. He snarled angrily, thrashing about and looking for the person who had cast the charm. He was slowly rotated in place and found himself staring into the amused face of Professor Snape.

"Ten points from Gryffindor, Mr. Weasley, and may I say that you are just like your father," he stated coldly. "You have no right to be here, especially this late at night." He glanced over at Caleb, who sported a large bruise already darkening his jaw. "And another twenty for fighting." Snape continued before Michael could object. "You should simply be grateful I'm not taking more." He swished his wand and Michael whirled about quite violently so that he was standing upright on the floor.

Michael attempted a scowl, but looked as though he were too dizzy to manage it as he staggered from the room.

"Why hello, Professor Snape," Britton said cheerfully, crossing the room after carefully hiding the bottle of Firewhiskey. "I trust your summer holidays were spiffing and that Grandmother is well? What brings you here this fine evening?"

Snape smirked but otherwise ignored the boy, but Lucas shot him a vicious glare. "Everyone to their dormitories," he announced loudly. "This party is over." He glanced at Ophelia and Rienne, who were hovering over Caleb, tending his wounds, and then to Connor and Britton. "You five can stay, if you keep quiet." He shot a pointed look at Britton, who averted his gaze.

"I've spoken to my parents about Weasley," Lucas told Snape, sitting in one of the armchairs by the fireplace. "This isn't the first time this has happened."

Snape nodded, taking the seat opposite Lucas. No one was likely to forget the long-standing rivalry between Michael Weasley and Lucas Malfoy, nor the particularly violent episode last year that had begun with a wizard duel and had culminated in one bloody nose, one broken jaw, and two sets of torn and dirty robes.

"I'll speak to his Head of House," Snape told Lucas with a smirk. "Merlin knows she won't be pleased with him fighting again. If the situation does not improve, I will take it straight to the Headmistress."

Lucas nodded. "Thank you, Professor." Then he smirked. "Actually, how is Grandmother?"

"Harried, I'm sure," Snape replied with a small smile. "Chasing a five-year-old around would be enough to drive anyone mad, but I almost think she enjoys it. Some of you should go and visit her and Deimos some time in between classes," he said, directing himself to the six occupants of the common room. "I'm sure Cissa would enjoy the company and fawn over you the way she always does." Snape's lips curved into a small smirk. "And speaking of Cissa, if this crisis has been averted, I'll be getting back to my chambers now."

Rienne giggled and Ophelia looked rather queasy. Snape crossed toward the trapdoor, and had just stepped through the entrance when Rienne waved after him and called, "Have fun!"

Ophelia scowled, looking scandalized, and elbowed Rienne sharply in the ribs. They could hear a bit of muffled laughter from the corridor just before the trapdoor closed.

Lucas stood and stretched, crossing to the couch where Caleb was sitting, Ophelia and Rienne kneeling in front of him. "What do you think, Rienne? Does he need to go to the Hospital Wing?"

Rienne shook her head. "There's nothing so serious that it can't wait for tomorrow morning when he's sober."

Lucas gestured for Connor to come over and together they hoisted Caleb to his feet and slowly began leading him upstairs to the Sixth-year boys dormitory.

"Here you go, Caleb," Lucas said, seating the boy on his bed. "I appreciate what you did, but next time, leave Weasley to me. Especially if you've been drinking," he added with a laugh.

Caleb nodded and grinned, falling back onto his bed without bothering to get his pajamas on. Connor and Lucas left the room and closed the door behind them, meeting the other three of their number in the hall.

"You should all get to bed," Lucas told them. "Classes tomorrow and such. Do you all have a break after lunch?" They all nodded. "Good. If you like, you can accompany me to visit Grandmother Cissa; it sounds like fun." Then he leaned out and kissed Rienne on the lips. "I have plans for you," he murmured in her ear before pulling away. "But alas, they will have to wait." Without another word, Lucas turned and strode down the hall, not looking back. He smirked to himself, content in the knowledge that Rienne's green eyes were full of desire, and he was the most spectacular tease in Slytherin. And that was saying something.

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