Adventurerers! Planning [Closed to lilgiastar and The Dark L

Notes on countries

Ancient Greece had a network of magical paths that connected the ancient cities they ruled over. This was expanded by the Roman Empire but the knowledge was suppressed during the Ottoman conquest in an effort to prevent takeover when Constantinople was conquered.

Greece
Zeus Zone - Magical district in Crete, structures are mainly Minoan influence and there is a magical labryinth with a minotaur sanctuary beneath the district
Poseidon Port
Apollo Abbey
Ares Arena - Magical Sports and Games
Aphrodite Area - magical fashion
Hera Haven
Demeter District - On Naxos Island by the Ancient Temple of Demeter. Houses magical Greece's main library
Artemis Acre - contains many magical creature sanctuaries
Hephaestus Hill - Here be Goblins - On Nisyros island in the Nisyros volcano
Hermes Hamlet
Athena Alley - In Athens, only consists of the Ministry at the base of the Acropolis due to overpopulation
Dionysus Domain - Arts, music, food, and wine - main location of festivals and has the magical bazaar twice a year

Egypt
-Goblins have a monopoly on dig rights

North America
Native American Tribes

Central America
Mainly Aztec Empire with Mayan and Olmec influence further south

South America
-Incan Empire
-Lost City of Z has a secret society of magicals that don't really leave their borders since they want to keep all White Men out. Established during the rampage of the conquistadores.

Turkey
-Aurors are The Blue Order and are thought to be a secretive muggle intelligence organization. Established since the Ottoman Empire.
-Main magical district in Constantinople/Istanbul

Art woke up early that morning in a very strange yet extremely comfortable bed within a very beautiful room that looked looked like it belonged to a prince before he recalled the events of the day before. He felt himself blush when he remembered that they had... there was... no, he didn't want to think about it. What happened afterwards was even better since he had gotten to access the library - free access. It had the exceptionally rare (lost to muggles) ancient literature like Naturalis Historia of Pliny the Elder that the British Museum had, Oxford did not, and the curator refused to let anyone near the book, even Art who could read Ancient Greek but his application had been denied over and over until a policy was put in place (they probably found him annoying) that only allowed people to apply once a year and it was denied annually as well. He had genuinely thought he had hit gold when he saw The Book of Thoth that was said to be written by Thoth to contain two spells - one of which that allowed the reader to understand the speech of animals and one which that allowed the reader to perceive the gods themselves.

He was actually reaching for the Pliny text with a dreamy expression when he caught the Book of Thoth out of the corner of his eye and startled his house elf assistant (I is being Bokky, sir. I is the library's elf.) with a girlish squeal and bouncing to pick it up first. This was supposed to be lost! It wasn't even supposed to exist! The fictional Ptolemic era tale of "Setne Khamwas and Naneferkaptah" based off the real Prince Khaemwaset mentioned the book to drive in the point that humans should never try to gain the knowledge of the Gods, and he immediately started to read it. Or rather, he delicately set it down on the space he had created for ancient texts, worshipfully ran his fingers over the bronze cover that had Ancient Egyptian letters carved into it that warned all to never touch or read that which only belonged to the Gods, remembered the journal and snatched his hand back to fearfully ask the Bokky if the book was cursed, resumed his worship when he was reassured that Adriel had taken care it for the young master eleven years, four months, twenty-three days, six hours, fourteen minutes, and sixteen, seventeen eighteen seconds ago.

Disappointingly, it didn't contain the knowledge the story claimed it did. Well, maybe not quite so disappointing since the book was mostly a record of magical creatures that existed in Ancient Egypt - a majority of which were extinct or left after so much became desert - and the end explained the Ancient Egyptian process of how to become an animagus that included years of ceremonies and rituals that were not recorded in here. The references for those ceremonies did exist, some of them anyway, and it gave him a bit more insight on why animal heads were used. The theory of 'Gods being animagi' were only half correct - it was the priests that were the animagi and the animagus was sent to the temple that matched their beast. Any animal that did not match a god was sent to Isis - also known as Aset - the winged mother of magic that had close ties with Hecate and was influential even throughout the Roman Empire. Oh, he really couldn't wait to get back to Oxford now since Isis was worshipped by Cleopatra and he had a new set of ideas to look into!

He did get to Pliny's text which was more talk about magical beasts and plants, and he had asked Bokky why several of the ancient texts were about Ancient animals when Adriel had told him Antoine had been fascinated with the religions. Bokky had then said Master Antoine was very much in love with Master Adriel so would buy things on magical animals and ancient magics or African fetishes if he heard they might crop up in private auctions. Art was reminded of that passionate scene again and decided he definitely didn't want to ask more about that and requested information on Cleopatra's reign as well as the fall of the kingdom with her death to try to get a better direction on her tomb. He must have fallen asleep though since he was tucked away in this bed in a room that looked like "Queen Ravenclaw's personal chambers" if Ravenclaw had actually been a queen.

Dark blue walls with bronze accents, bronze furniture carved in the winged style of the Ancient Egypt of Isis' Eagle wings with blue velvet cushions, a floor of plush white carpet that looked like it would be as soft as a cloud, and a white leopard spotted rug in front of the door leading out. His clothes had apparently been laundered during the night since they were hanging in the open wardrobe along with wizarding robes cut in the latest French style and made with velvet or silk with brocade waistlines to cinch it there without the need of a tie or a belt and delicate lace or ruffles at the hems. He got up and organized the dresser so his clothes were on one side and the robes that were not his were on the other side, picked his outfit for the day (slacks, shirt, and vest), and looked around for a bath, found it through another door off to the side, and washed up to begin the new day.

He left his room (it even had a Ravenclaw-themed sitting room with a bookshelf that had entire sets of works like Encyclopedia Britannica and Shakespeare) and checked the neighboring rooms in the 'guest wing' that were also based off a royal version of Hogwarts houses. Others even further away from his that were based off other schools of magic that he actually didn't know too much about, those beyond were themed by countries or elements, and then he decided that Adriel would probably not even be in a room because it was the time when they usually had breakfast together so he would go to the ground floor to look for that.

It never occurred to Art to call for a house elf since he never really interacted with the things anyway. If he had one, he would love to have one like Bokky who kept such meticulous record and organized things so well that he was a walking and talking index and calendar system in one. The creature even understood that tea should never ever be served in a library that contained delicate works since he had not been offered any refreshments yesterday except when Matty popped in and insisted that 'Master Chee's guest must be being fed for it 'ad been over ten 'ours and Matty did not want to neglect Master Chee's Mister Arty and be called a bad elf but zere was a tea room across zee 'all so please please Mister Arty?' Which was exactly why he didn't like to be around house elves and Bokky was the only one he had met that did not call him that awful 'Arty' and he would suspect some kind of house elf conspiracy about his name, but that was apparently impossible since this was France and all other elves he had seen were in England.

Because of that elf reticence, he wandered the ground floor for half an hour. Who needed three sitting parlors, five tea parlors, a game room, or so many ball rooms that were season or holiday themed that he lost count! There were also half a dozen dining rooms ranging from small and cozy to grand and ostentatious, but they were all empty. He thought he was lost in the maze of stairs and halls until he found the main foyer, then sighed with relief when he heard voices coming from one of the three doorways opposite the front door below the grand staircase balcony.

"I don't care for your excuses, Mr. Chase," a very cold voice said once Art got close to the door. It took Art a second to place it as Antoine's because it was vastly different from the voice he had used when speaking with Adriel. "I gave you a six monz extenshee-own already and you 'ave shown me very leetle progress but keep asking for more money and more time! Non! Do you take me for a fool, you de put aire pissant?"

"No, Comte Duc de Trefle-Picques!" an American accent hastily said. "I do not think you are foolish! I just need six more months and I will be able to pay you back! It's the depression, you see?"

"If it ees ze depression as you say, eet will not go away in six monzs!" Antoine shot right back. "Non, if you need more time, I want collateral as you are not up'olding your end of ze deal. Lucky for you, I 'ave an extensive portfolio on you and you do 'ave somezzing I want. Zer is zis large plot of empty land that looks like a good place for a vacation home, yes? And so close to 'ollywood, I love ze films zough eet ees not as good as Pari'!"

"Comte!" the man loudly protested, then it went quiet. "Comte," he said in a more quiet and respectful voice. "I have plans to develop that land for the wealthy since California is attracting more and more people. It is prime real estate you are asking for what will be ten times the value it currently is in about twenty years!"

"You weell lose eet either way if you do not pay me," Antoine ruthlessly informed him. "I weell make sure you go bankrupt if I am not paid in six more months unless I get zis space. Non, don't answer now - come back in a week so you can zink about what bankruptcy means to you. I have a visitor for a few days at ze very least who I would razzer have fun wiz, and hees guest is right outside zis room so do not bump into heem on zee way out! Out! Out! I do not want to see you any sooner zen one week!"

Art froze up in fear when he realized he had been caught eavesdropping, not that it had been intentional. He had just been looking for Adriel, realized there was a business meeting inside, and kind of got stuck because he wasn't sure if he should leave or if he should wait and see if Adriel came this way. Plus he had been surprised to hear Antoine sounding so cold! He was so attentive to Adriel the day before that he had never expected to hear him threaten to absolutely ruin someone unless they gave him some land that he wanted. He barely noticed the sweating heavyset man in a tweed suit and bowler hat rushing past him since he was wonder what he should do since Adriel wasn't here to protect him, but then he heard Antoine addressing him.

"Please come in, Art," was said very politely, and Art reluctantly obeyed. The office was just as rich as the rest of the house with large solid desk made of sandalwood and portraits of his ancestors staring down at him in foreboding judgement. "Eef you zink you can use what you 'eard to turn Adriel against me, 'e would never believe you since I am 'is jewel!"

What? Art stared at Antoine because why was he talking about Adriel? "I was just wondering where he was?" he tentatively asked. Antoine looked very irritated with him, and he knew what irritated people did. "I didn't mean to overhear anything, I just didn't see him in any of the rooms by me."

"Zat is because 'e was wiz me all night last night," Antoine boasted with a haughty toss of his hair. "Why would 'e want someone like you 'oo ees more interested in paying attention to books zen heem when 'e 'as me - beautiful and 'appy to give 'im all my time and attention! I 'ave been wizz 'im for sixteen years and give 'im all ze affection 'e asks for and more. I want ze man's land because eet ees close to Adriel's sacred lands so I can visit 'eem or 'e does not 'ave far to go to see me!"

Art was starting to feel uncomfortable - he had a feeling they were having two very different conversations here since he just wanted breakfast and to see what Adriel had intended here in Paris because if he had a choice, he would rather stay in the library. If Antoine stayed irritated with him though, he might not get to stay in the library! And Antoine was right, he was beautiful so Adriel would want to spend more time with him rather than Art but Art had the books but only if he could convince Antoine that he was right. "Um, yes, it is better if he spends time with you?" he said, hope that having the correct answer here would not get his library privilege revoked. It got him a venomous glare so he rushed ahead. "I mean, you are right, I would rather spend time in the library rather than with Adriel, but he keeps insisting I need to see this or see that and I do like what he shows me but your library is absolutely astounding with texts I probably won't get to see again and I'm doing some research while I can so I am sure Adriel would rather be with you since he doesn't seem interesting in books very much?"

Art had apparently said the right thing for once since the glare went away and Antoine sniffed like he had been proven right about something. "Zen you can tell him non when he asks if you weesh to see somezzing today and I weell let you stay in ze library," Antoine stated. It was what Art wanted, so he nodded. "Good! We can get along as long as you understand your place and zat 'e loves me more!"

Art was even more confused since he had not been talking about love at all, but Antoine seemed pleased and he could be in the library all day. "What if he doesn't give me a-"

"Antoine?" Art heard Adriel's voice calling out probably from the stairs since it was close but also from above. "Matty said your morning meeting ended. I was wondering if you wanted to come along with me to the opera since I want to show it to Art!"

"Just tell him you weesh to be in ze library today!" Antoine angrily hissed at him in a quiet voice before he stood and rushed to the door. "Mon beau, good morning! Art eez wiz me in 'ere, we were just chatting about ze library! 'E said 'e was very impressed wiz my rare texts, zen he zinks you do not like books! 'Ow silly, yes? Eet just has to be ze right books ees all! I would love to go to ze opera wiz you, and we can use my balcony!"

Art was very confused again and he felt like he had whiplash at how Antoine had just gone from very very angry with him to light and happy with Adriel. Was it just him? He looked up at Adriel where he was numbly sitting and Adriel looked at him in concern even as he reflexively put an arm around Antoine's waist since the blonde had plastered himself against Adriel's side. "Uh, I don't want to go to the opera?" he slowly said, glancing at Antoine to make sure he said it right.

Antoine glared at Art for a split second before he looked up at Adriel with a happy smile. "Zen eet weell be just us two?" he asked. "Like a date! Eet has been a while since we 'ave gone to ze opera just you and I!"

Adriel sighed at Antoine but gave him a kiss on the forehead. "Did you intimidate Art, Antoine?" he asked with resignation.

"Non!" Antoine immediately denied looking very hurt with tears starting to form in his eyes. "I would never 'urt one of your guests! 'E was telling me 'e would razzer stay all day in ze library wiz zee books! Right, Art?"

Everything was starting to feel very strange just like it had when he had first seen Adriel and Antoine together the day before. Surreal. "I would rather read," he agreed, frowning at Adriel since he didn't like all these strange feelings he was getting. "I don't like crowds." And the library, even if seeing Antoine clinging to Adriel made him uncomfortable and reminded him of the times when he also clung to the bigger Navajo when his life was saved.

"The balcony Antoine offered doesn't have crowds and is very private," Adriel reassured before he squeezed Antoine's waist in a half hug and looked down to give him an apologetic smile. "Sorry I was suspicious, mon sucre d’orge. I know you are a wonderful host, the best host, and you just want me to be happy. Please forgive me?"

"Only if I get a keess," Antoine said as he got up on his tiptoes, and Art hastily looked away with a blush though it didn't block out the sounds of a kiss. Thankfully, it only lasted a couple second, but still! "Mmm, forgiven, mon préféré. You should let ze poor man rest and spend time wiz me! 'E seems to like ze library, but Bokky said 'e 'ad to be put to bed when 'e fell asleep on the desk. You 'ave worn 'im out, Adriel! Not many can keep up wiz your stamina. Maybe you can stay even longer, for a full week instead of a few days? Zen 'e will be rested and can research to 'is 'eart's content, I will get more time wiz you, and you can get time wiz me and show 'im what you want later when 'e is not tired!"

Art did not keep up with a lot of social interactions, but the one week reminded him of the conversation with Mr. Chase's one week, and he couldn't help but feel Antoine had somehow intentionally manipulated the 'three day stop' into an even longer one since Adriel was giving him a questioning look while Antoine was giving him an impatient one. While a week in the library didn't sound too bad, something felt off about the whole thing to him and he wondered if he should ask Adriel about it later. But Antoine said Adriel wouldn't believe him... "Uh..." he said, not sure what the right answer was for this because he didn't understand it at all.

"We can discuss after breakfast, yes?" Antoine declared as he smiled innocently up at Adriel. " 'e is obviously still tired and decisions can be made later - we can go along to ze opera tonight and let 'im rest and decide later."

Adriel in turn sighed down at Antoine and ruffled his hair. "Ah, you are getting jealous, mon petit monstre," he chided with a fond smile. "There is no need, he is not interested in me and we are just friends, truly. Not even a hug. As I said, he doesn't like to be touched. I will give you your opera tonight and Art his library, but I do want to educate him a little about entertainment so we can do something tomorrow. This way for breakfast, Art."

Art got up and trailed after the two as they started to talk about plans, though only after Antoine swore to give Adriel all the hugs and kisses he needed and wanted while he was there. Antoine had been jealous of him? Why? He was pretty and rich and had a castle and bought Adriel rare books and did stuff Adriel actually liked. Art was just... Art. Archivist and cartographer and librarian and scholar and someone almost everyone hated. Why would a French noble be jealous of someone like him? Over Adriel? Like Adriel said, they were just friends. He reached a hand up and scowled as he rubbed his chest since it felt uncomfortable for some reason. Books were better to understand and he was glad he could spend time with them today rather than the opera.

Adriel then said light heartedly tease with paying a compliment in an informal setting, Though Art didn't think that was something he could do and was not something he'd want to do around his family any way. Adriel then talked about flirting, specifically sexual flirting, which Art didn't think was necessary. He would not be doing such a thing, and he highly doubted anyone would do such a thing to him. And he was not going on any dates ever. So doing something like that on a date was not possible and would not happen. Adriel however then said he wanted him to be able to identify if anyone was flirting with him using their spoon. Wait. Their spoon? How? Why? What? Art looked down at his spoon, his face going red as a tomato, and he teetered between being curious to how one would even flirt with a spoon or insinuate sexual things with one, and wanting to change the subject as fast as possible but his intellect didn't let him. "What do you - ah - how w-would someone do that?" he shakily asked, his voice sounding much higher pitched then normal.

Adriel knew he shouldn't, but he couldn't help it. He knew he really really shouldn't because Art was his boss and he was trying to keep a friendly but professional distance with him right now, but he really really couldn't help it. He definitely knew there were even more reasons why it wasn't a good idea to amuse himself like this, but he was a hedonist and making Art turn red as often as possible was a game he had been playing from the start so he gave Art an innocent smile as he sat up and placed the cantaloupe back on the plate.

"Hm, watch my lips," he said in the casual tone he used to indicate there was nothing strange about Art's request, and when Art's eyes flicked down to them, he curled them into a slow smile and slowly ran the spoon on the bottom lip as he leaned forward a little bit. "Imagine they are lips you want to kiss," he said when Art looked confused but embarassed, and inwardly giggled when it made Art turn a little more red before he darted his tongue out to lick the tip of the spoon for a split second. Then he twisted the spoon in his hand so the bottom was facing Art and slowly started to suck on it like the empty spoon tasted so good that it absolutely had to be savored like a rare delicacy.

Art froze as he felt something... Something.... It was like something lightly zapped his spine when Adriel's tongue flicked out like that, and he felt a bit of panic when he realized there was even more to the spoon licking thing and he really didn't want to know more! "You can stop!" he yelped, and was so relieved when Adriel immediately stopped.

"My eyes are up here," Adriel said with an amused smile since Art still had not looked away. He was completely red like he had just downed a grand pepperup potion and would have steam coming out of his ears at any second. "And that is just the mouth. I mentioned eyes as well, but there is an added element of body language to it, too - they will shift to present their body in a way they hope you might find sexy. That is how you flirt with a spoon though - it is meant to bring all kinds of naughty thoughts to the mind and have you thinking about having their lips on your body somewhere."

Art absolutely wanted to die now. "Can we go back to our room?" he squeaked out, shoving any and all thoughts of Adriel's lips on him somewhere firmly down before they could even develop, and Adriel was even more amused because Art didn't know what kind of insinuation that was. Ah well, he would inform Art of it at a future date when he didn't look like he was about to faint.

The Dark Lady: I think an alligator is perfect - he would feel soooo safe with it after the first time he saw it fight for him
lilgiastar: what if it was a komodo dragon? a LOT of the same qualities of an alligator and terrifying one of the best hunters on earth AND a loner. they only ever see other ones during mating season and otherwise are completely alone
lilgiastar: you always see alligators in big groups, i dont think ive ever seen like just one. theres always like 5
lilgiastar: though i dont think Art would recognize it immediately
The Dark Lady: sec
The Dark Lady: Crocodile might be better - they can be in groups or singular about
The Dark Lady: I don't think komodo dragons are right though - highly agressive and sadistic
lilgiastar: true they are super aggressive.
lilgiastar: usually one of them dies when they try to mate
The Dark Lady: They also represent self confidence and wisdom with purpose in every movement in the spiritual meaning
The Dark Lady: None of which Art is
lilgiastar: good point
lilgiastar: crocodile then
The Dark Lady: Alligators are patient. Unlike impulsive crocodiles, alligators wait for long stretches before ever making a move.
Are you the type of person who can commit to long-term projects with ease? Do you practice a lot of self-control in your everyday life? --
The Dark Lady: If you’re more of a planner than an impulsive person, you have something in common with the alligator.
The Dark Lady: When you set your sights on something, nothing can get in your way. If friends describe you as determined or even relentless, it’s a good sign that the alligator is your spirit animal.
The Dark Lady: Do you always find a way to get what you need? Are you good at making do with what you have? If so, the alligator’s resourcefulness is something you can benefit from in your day-to-day life.
The Dark Lady: Art sounds like all of that - he is a long term planner and tenacious as fuck
lilgiastar: thats true that does sound a LOT like him
lilgiastar: i like it
lilgiastar: Art wont XD
lilgiastar: but i do
The Dark Lady: Crcodiles are similar, but they are impulsive and vocal rather than patient and self control
The Dark Lady: I love it

Seventh year Adriel noticed a lot of flustered looks sent his way by witches the morning after the Play Witch article was released, and he sent a few winks or blown kisses in the direction of those that actually met his eyes rather then looked away. It was all playful, of course, he had been friends with them since first and, in the case of some of the sixth years, his second year. The rumors around him about his highly active broom closet activities were overblown anyway - it was two or three times a month, and most definitely not in a cramped and easily caught in broom closet unless it was requested. He never confirmed or denied them when he was asked though - he would just smile and walk away unless one of his actual partners wanted to talk about things together in public.

It was a little more surprising to see a couple of the female teachers look at him sternly with a faint blush, but Professor McGonagall just looked stern as she pointed to a door that led to a side chamber when he walked into the Great Hall. He gave her a bright and happy smile and chirped out a "Good morning, ma'am!" as he obeyed her silent command, then all but skipped in that direction and grabbed an apple from the Slytherin table before he entered. He lost Hufflepuff ten points for his cheeky greeting, but it was worth it to get the muffled laughter his actions caused his friends to make. He nibbled on the apple as he waited in the empty chamber, and fifteen minutes later, a twitchy Remus and a slouching Sirius entered with the transfiguration teacher following behind them. She closed the door behind her with a final thud and scowled at the three of them.

"What were you thinking sending that in to Play Witch!" she immediately started to lecture. "In all my life, I have never had a student write such smut! Is this another one of your pranks?! Which one of you came up with this stunt!"

Sirius and Remus looked miserable, and it was Sirius that spoke up first. "It wasn't like that, I swear! We got an owl a few weeks ago saying we had been selected by the readers for an exclusive expose as Hogwarts' top bachelors, and they asked for hobbies, interests, foods, and any pictures we would like to share with nude photos only after graduation!" he protested while Remus nodded along. "They offered pay, and Remus needs money after graduation for clothes. I thought it was just a bit of harmless fun!"

McGonagall turned her glare to Adriel, then faltered a little bit as she recalled all the trouble he had caused since the second he stepped on school property. The Rutabaga Incident was now a story told in the ministry, and there were so many more since his first year. Still, this was too far for even him so she doubled down on her scowl and glare. "And what about you, young man?" she asked. "Are you going to say you were not aware of this?!"

Adriel grinned down at her and enjoyed the eye twitch. He missed the days when he grinned up at her, but it was also amazing to be taller than most of his teachers. "Oh, I didn't know about the story, but they said they wanted to know all my kinks so I wrote three pages both front and back!" he shamelessly admitted making Lupin choke and Black's jaw drop. Honestly, they acted like they didn't know him! As if he would be anything but honest even if it was stretched a bit, especially if it gave the teachers a harder time. "I also told them my firm boundaries, what I consider consent which is something you lot really should explain much better to prevent misunderstandings that often occur, my hobbies, my tribal beliefs about open sexuality, and my exact measurements everywhere. I would like to point out that I am also an adult wizard, I can sign my own contract, my father would sigh and just be happy I am not in jail again, and my grandparents would be happy as long as I am happy. My tribe doesn't know and they don't really care if I do these things since they expect me to learn your ways and they do say literature is an insight into another place's culture."

He was rather amazed that she let him finish... And amazed that she still had the capability to be made speechless. He did suppose the sex taboos of England had not really been taken as more than a harmless 'students are filled with too much hormones' the few times he had been caught in the act and lost point while earning detention, but that was for being out after curfew. The trick was to do it before curfew in areas nobody went. "I think the more important question is are you two dating?" he curiously asked as he turned to the other two boys.

"NO!" they both shouted at the same time while springing apart for more distance.

"Detention!" McGonagall said since the loud No had her finding her voice again. "Detention until the holidays, Mr. Chee! And-"

"No," Adriel firmly said. "There is nothing in the school rules about writing to outside newspapers or magazines. I will file a formal complaint if you try to give any one of us detention or remove points over the article. I will also file a complaint if you guys try to impose that kind of rule on us since we are adults and have every right to write to whomever we wish as long as it isn't illegal."

"You have your O.W.L.S so you can no longer make unreasonable demands since the minimum requirement of the contract has been met!" McGonagall all but hissed, barely keeping her composure at the audacity of the boy. "We cannot expel you, nae, but you can always choose leave!"

"I have grown fond of Hogwarts in the last few years, but I will not hesitate to write a very scathing review to the Daily Prophet and the New York Ghost about the suppression of the written word and unjust treatment if you try to punish us," Adriel stiffly replied after drawing himself up to his full height. "We were not aware of how the information was to be used and we are not sending in nude photos while we are here, so any lewd misconduct is firmly with the magazine that we signed a one year contract with after being deliberately misled. While I don't mind the story and find it greatly amusing, Messrs. Black and Lupin are obviously unhappy with it. You should stay out of our business if you are not going to provide any support to three people who were taken advantage of."

Sirius and Remus had never gotten to see Adriel really argue with the staff - there were some minor arguments, yes, but none like this. Any argument along these lines had been held behind closed doors when Dumbledore and McGonagall had learned it was the best option when trying to reason with Adriel and to keep these kinds of humiliating lectures away from everyone else. The Gryffindors both felt a bit warm as they were actually defended by someone for a change, and they stared at the Hufflepuff in awe. Sirius felt like he might be developing a bit of a crush for a second, but he ruthlessly crushed it down because there was no way he could say or do anything with Remus or Adriel after that embarrassing article. It did make him think about how story-Adriel offered suspension bondage, though...

Remus, on the other hand, felt respect bloom. Yes, the marauders had accepted his werewolf side and ran with him as part of the pack, but they didn't have the power to openly stand up for him. He felt like Adriel might be someone that could do that, and with how Adriel was even friends with the centaurs, he thought he could be accepted as well. Remus was technically already Adriel's friend, but only in the 'everyone is my friend' kind of way rather than the closeness he shared with the marauders. As he thought about it though, he realized that Adriel wasn't very close with anyone in the school even though he liked everyone - including that really unfriendly fifth year Ravenclaw who seemed to dislike everyone except for Adriel. He thought the name was something like Rays or Kays. Reese?

McGonagall had started to rub her temples with her fingers and had completely forgotten the two lions behind her who were having their own internal issues. It had been a while since she had been treated to a headaChee - named such because the migraines he caused didn't fit with his name but headache could. Thankfully, the Hufflepuff head of house came in at this point because she was so done with him - it was less than one year and he could be the world's problem then. Maybe having a whole planet to terrify would keep him from doing too much damage to a single place.

"Are you causing trouble again, Adriel?" Professor Sprout gently chided as she entered and closed the door behind her. "You should know better than to give the poor deputy a hard time! She already has a lot of work with teaching and managing the Gryffindors with their four rascals and the school!"

Adriel did a full one-eighty and looked at her with sad eyes and a tiny pout that was very hard to spot unless someone was looking at his lips like Sirius was, not that Adriel had noticed. "Mrs. Sprout, my Gaia!" he dramatically wailed. "I have been taken advantage of by a magazine along with my two friends and we are getting in trouble for it! They never told us they were going to use our names in such a lewd way - only that we had won a popularity contest and they wanted rights to the very decent photos of us they had along with personal information like hobbies. I don't mind it, but the other two do, yet we are stuck in a one year contract and there is nothing we can do to stop it."

"No, you know what?" McGonagall sighed in a mix of anger and resignation. "You take care of this, Pomona. I have... I have some essays I need to grade."

Pomona watched with surprise as the indomitable transfiguration teacher stiffly walked out of the room, then she turned to Adriel and gave him a frown while she placed her hands on her hips. "Adriel Chee, did you just hurt your teacher's feelings?" she scolded. "I have not seen her look so sad in years! What did you say to her?"

Adriel crossed his arms and looked away, willing to act like an unhappy kid. "She tried to give me detention until winter break and I told her there were no rules about writing to magazines or newspapers," he replied, then had to stop a smile of amusement from interrupting his petulant expression when he saw Sirius and Remus staring at him in confusion. "Then she said I was free to leave the school if I was unhappy with the punishments, and I told her that while I have grown fond of the place, I would not hesitate to write the Prophet or the Ghost about how a teacher badly treated three students who were misled and taken advantage of by a magazine and trapped into a one year contract rather than provide us support." He turned to face her and give her an earnest look. "I don't mind what they wrote about me, but it bothered the other two a lot. They don't deserve to get yelled at and have detentions for something that was not their fault."

Professor Sprout sighed then reached out and ruffed Adriel's hair. "That doesn't give you the right to be mean to your teacher, Adriel," she chided. "You can spend the next two weeks with me helping me grade essays for the first to the third year students so you can get an inkling of an idea for the amount of work we do. Tuesdays and Fridays in my office young man! Go on the three of you, breakfast will be over soon."

Adriel smiled up at the teacher and moved past her, but he turned a little to give Sirius and Remus a wink before he slipped out the door. He went straight to the Hufflepuff table and sat down by George - his dorm mate - and grabbed a bowl of oatmeal and started putting berries and honey into it. "Why are all the girls staring at you today?" George asked. "Did you do something with your hair and they noticed it? Because I don't see anything different about you today, mate."

"Oh, no, I'm in Play Witch," he said as he looked up to see Remus and Sirius sit by their friends at the Gryffindor table still looking a little shell shocked. "The teachers tried to punish me just now, but Mrs. S is a sweetheart so I just have to help her with a bit of grading for the next couple of weeks."

"Oh," George dismissively said, then took a bite of his toast which he immediately spat out afterwards. "Did you say Play Witch?! You can't drop that on a bloke in the middle of a conversation, Adriel!"

Adriel scrunched up his nose in disgust at the half chewed bread on the table as did a few others. "Really George, stop acting like hearing these kinds of things from him is a surprise like that," Alexis primly said as she sat on Adriel's other side and started to fuss with his hair. 'Cute article by the way, but it sounds very... contrived? They should have asked me to write it since I would be able to make it sound more believable. I like option B, though."

Adriel grinned. "Nah, option A has a lot more potential," he said. "In reality, that would make a long term goal a lot better since we would all get to figure out each other's likes while giving the other two the opportunity to explore their feelings for each other without me getting tangled up. I wouldn't mind C for the quick and fun route, thought." That earned his arm a small smack and he snickered. "Er... Keep in mind that they are definitely not dating, please, and spread the word for respect because they are very unhappy and didn't realize what they were getting into."

"Sure, but I want some kisses in the broom closet this afternoon in return, and so will my sister," Alexis replied before she started to braid his hair.

---

Adriel spent the weekend discreetly watching the two Gryffindor boys who appeared to have outwardly recovered when they didn't get as hard of a time as they were expecting to get. He did do his Sunday bothering of Art who would never leave the library if he had a choice. Adriel found it fun to find a new reason every time to get the cranky bookworm out and about and try to get him to get along with others in small and quiet settings. Sometimes it would work and sometimes it didn't, but the worst of the bullying had stopped after he pranked several of them hard (labeled The Biscuits and Gravy Incident and nobody trusted the bread for a while) that it warned off the rest. It did not help Art make new friends though because he didn't want to socialize with anyone, and the only reason he did with Adriel was because Adriel could tell him stories about the latest archeology sites he would see during winter and spring. Art was being even more surly this year though, and he suspected it was because it was his last year here so he planned to also give Art his Wednesdays in a final effort to try to get Art to come out of his shell so he wouldn't be lonely after Adriel graduated.

During that weekend was also when he would occasionally see Sirius looking back at him, and he would smirk making the other boy immediately return to what it was that he had been doing. Sirius was apparently good enough to suppress his blushes and fidgeting, but the looking was enough to clue Adriel in about there being some kind of interest. If he had had the choice, he would have chosen Remus first simply to play and experiment for fun, but doing that now would push Sirius away and he was gluttonous enough to want them both. He waited until Monday's herbology class to make his move since they shared it with the lions, and when the class ended, he slid in between James and Sirius as they started to leave and hooked his left arm around Sirius' right one. "Sorry, I need to borrow him real quick," he chirped to the other three boys, then dragged Sirius off in the direction of the lake.

"What are you doing?" Sirius hissed as soon as they were out of earshot of everyone else. James, Remus, and Peter had stopped where he had left them, and now they were apparently waiting to see if their fourth member needed help. "People will get the wrong impression if you just grab me up like that!"

"Is that a bad thing?" Adriel asked with a small pout while he looked Sirius in the eyes through lowered lashes. He flashed a quick grin when he saw Sirius start to blush and released his arm with a wink. "I was just curious about a couple things is all. Do you really think there is a broom closet rivalry?"

"What?!" Sirius spluttered and flailed his arms a little. "No!" He shook his head hard to also express the no, then immediately calmed himself down and crossed his arms. "No, that was another one of the made up parts. Did you really send three pages front and back like you told Minnie?"

"Nah, it was just three pages with an additional note," he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Writing on the back of parchment or paper makes letters messy and appear crass, lazy, or poor my grandmother says." Adriel twitched his lip to show he was joking with the last part, and they both snickered a little.

"My dear old mother used to say the same thing," Sirius said with a roll of his eyes. "But three pages, really? How much of that was uh... you know?"

Adriel slowly smiled until it was a mischievous grin and he leaned in as though he was going to share a secret making Sirius also lean forward to hear it. "If you really want to know, why not find out yourself?" he said in a low voice. "I will say that the suspension bondage is true. Give it some thought and let me know." He ran his tongue over his lower lip as he backed away to draw Sirius' eyes to them, then turned and walked off.

---

Adriel got a response a lot sooner than he had expected - he figured he would have to wait until the weekend before he heard anything. It was still Monday and he was heading to the dorm after dinner when the kitchen portrait swung open and he was yanked into the kitchen. He almost tripped because it had been so sudden that he was fully off guard, but his arms caught something invisible (oh, and didn't this magic feel interesting, it reminded him of grandfather's fairy circle a little bit) and then there were clumsy teeth at his throat as he was pushed back against the wall next to the kitchen painting. The sudden assault had him going from zero to one hundred when the hood of an invisibility cloak slipped back to reveal that it was Sirius behind the attack, and he swallowed a groan since the portrait door was still open a little bit and the room was filled with house elves.

Gods, invisible sex. He thought he just discovered a new kink. "Stop," he hissed as he got his bearings back, then arched his body up against Sirius when the sadistic mink gave his neck a hard suck before he let him go. Sirius could not step back though because some time in the last couple seconds Adriel had wrapped his arms around his waist and held the other man again him, and he looked a little uncertain and hurt. "Oh god, I don't know which is more of a turn on - you, you invisible, the elf audience, or the possibility of one of teachers or fellow students walking in on us."

Sirius grinned when he heard Adriel's quietly groaned confession and ground himself against him. "Nobody will know as long as we are quiet since I am wearing the cloak," he murmured back. "What you said earlier left me so hard that I couldn't walk right all day and James thought you secretly hexed me. I begged to borrow the cloak and have the time tables for prefect patrol this week."

Ah, yeah, impulsive Gryffindor trait was why he was ambushed, but he pushed his hips forward so Sirius' movements could give them both some more pleasure and moved his hands down to find and squeeze the invisible ass. "Mmm, yes," he quietly moaned, agreeing to stay the way they were for now. "I mean, we could sneak around at night, but I prefer finding uh... interesting places during the day. Makes setting things up a lot easier."

"That sounds bold like a Gryffindor," Sirius huskily whispered, then leaded in to give Adriel a deep kiss which was fully returned. They were both talented kissers so it didn't take them too long to shelve the planning for now, and they both got so wrapped up in each other that it took one of the elves pointedly clearing its throat for the third time for them to even notice it was there or that they were in the kitchen.

"Young students is not be doing this in kitchens, sirs," the elf said in a scathing voice. "Even young students that are adults is not being allowed. Students is finding somewhere else to do the naughty, but kitchen is for the elvses!"

"Wait, when you say the kitchen is for-" Sirius started to say, but Adriel slapped a hand over Sirius' mouth to shut him up because he also thought the elf may or may not be implying that they have sex in here. "You are right, we are being very rude," Adriel said with a smile to the elf. "We will find another location for our illicit affair, like one of the empty rooms in the dungeons. Come on Sirius, you don't want to ask questions that might have an answer you really don't want to hear."

Adriel yanked Sirius's hood over his head then pulled him out of the kitchen and kept a careful grip on his arm so he didn't lose his invisible accomplice. There were a few other housemates in the hallway since the kitchens were right by their entrance, so he waved to few and smiled as he turned to go down. "What time is it?" he quietly whispered.

A couple seconds passed before Sirius whispered, "Almost nine."

"Ah, good, we have a couple hours to use the room I have in mind,"

"What room?" Sirius whispered back.

"It's a surprise."

Adriel had warned Sirius to keep quiet and hold on to the back of his robes so he knew where he was before he took the stairs down into the dungeons. Much like the corridors outside the Hufflepuff area, there were Slytherins hanging about in odd places here and there, though there were a couple students from other houses around Sluggy's class since the potion teacher was so popular with his club even during nights without a gathering. He was about to walk past when he heard the professor himself call out for him.

"Ah, Adriel!" Slughorn said from inside the room, and Adriel looked back to where he estimated Sirius was behind him before giving a small smirk and turning for the doorway of the class. "I thought I saw you walking past, m'boy! I have to say, I found your last essay on teas quite a refreshing change. Come in for a moment, I have about fifteen minutes until the next student arrives!"

Adriel felt Sirius's hands on the back of his robes start to loosen up because he was probably thinking Adriel might want privacy, so he smiled at the professor while he discreetly moved his hand behind his back to gently squeeze Sirius's wrist to reassure him. "Of course, professor," he said as he walked in, and only released the wrist when he felt Sirius was moving along beside him. He took a seat at the front table and used the large piece of furniture to cover up the fact that he also pulled Sirius into his lap before the boy could take the other chair.

Evenings in Slughorn's class was usually used for student meetings where the teacher networked with his students. Adriel actually liked coming by after he had been invited to the slug club in his sixth year since the parties was a good place to meet new people who had graduated Hogwarts and Sluggy often handed out interesting bits of information on occasion during private meetings like these. There was music softly playing in the background to keep students at ease, and the sound nicely hid Sirius' gasp of surprise at being pulled down and then held around his waist by Adriel. Since the cloak was there, it also meant pinning his arms to his sides but that was all fine and dandy for Adriel. He gave the professor a smile even as he started to rub Sirius' upper thigh, and while Sirius felt tense, he wasn't squirming uncomfortably, so Adriel figured it was okay.

"Would you like some tea, m'boy?" Slughorn asked. "I also have some biscuits."

"I would appreciate the tea please, professor," Adriel respectfully replied. "No biscuits, though. I had dinner not too long ago and do not like to sleep on a full stomach." Adriel waited a moment for Slughorn to turn and start making some tea, and he leaned forward against Sirius. "Kick my foot once if you don't like something or twice if you want me to stop altogether," he whispered. "Tap my foot twice if you want to play a bit here." There was a couple of seconds with no response and the sound of china clinking in the background while the music played, then he relaxed when he felt to taps on his shoe from Sirius' foot and shifted to make them both more comfortable.

"So your essay talked about using herbs to make teas for minor ailments and the like," Slughorn said as he turned around with the tray in hand and moved his great bulk around the teacher's desk. "It sounds similar but also very different to the oriental wizards that brew teas for medicine. Yours sounds more palatable, for one!"

Adriel placed his left arm on the able while he kept the right in his 'lap' as he grinned at the teacher and nodded. "Their medicines are more like potion brewing than it is a tea," he replied while the cup was set down in front of him. "Thank you, professor. Anyway, I have brewed teas even using freshly plucked dittany in Greece, but there is even regular mallow that grows in the wild of the Ottoman empire that can be used as a milder form of mallowsweet."

"Oh really?" the professor said in genuine surprise as both eyebrows came up. He turned to move back to his desk without noticing that the tea was untouched. "What properties does mallow bestow in one of your teas?"

Adriel slid his hand from the top of Sirius's upper thigh to rub against his crotch right next to his dick. It had apparently gone a bit soft with the travel and now the meeting, but he could feel it start to stir with interest as Sirius quietly but sharply inhaled. "As you know, it is used in child-friend potions to sweeten certain ones a little most of the time, but it can also be used to 'sweeten the deal' for certain other potions," he explained even while he mentally added a check next to 'invisibility kink' with full intention to disclose it to Play Witch as well as small suggestions in how it could be used. Whoever was writing the story really did need a few pointers on creativity since Alexis was right on how it had sounded a bit contrived. "Like pepper-up to grand pepper-up, for example. It is also used by the centaurs for their divination along with sage, oregano, alder, and a few other ingredients." He got a very quiet whimper when his thumb moved to slide up along Sirius' length over the layers of clothing. "In a tea brewed with other herbs meant to help increase awareness for the mind, I believe mallow could be used to help open the third eye as you call it."

Slughorn clapped with delight. "Marvelous!" he excitedly declared, and the loud sounds made Sirius jump a little before he slumped back against Adriel's chest with a slow exhale. "That really is a an intriguing theory, but it could be dangerous to test it unless you have... Well, no, it isn't potion brewing either, is it. How do your people test these things without harming yourselves?"

Adriel flashed a grin at the teacher even as he dipped his hand down lower on Sirius, and the other boy shifted to spread his legs open enough for Adriel to palm his balls. "Ah, you know I cannot tell tribe secrets, sir, but I will say that it helps that we do not use toxic ingredients in teas like you find in potions," he explained, then gripped Sirius's inner thigh in warning when he started to squirm a bit before he resumed his teasing, but it made Sirius groan a little louder than he should have. "Apologies if you heard that, my stomach is still digesting. Anyway, any actual poisonous or mind altering ingredient is very carefully handled by more experience medicine men, and younger Navajo like I are not allowed to use them at all without supervision."

"Oh, no worries, but the tea could help with your digestion," Slughorn replied with an air of kind hospitality, so Adriel used his left hand to pick the cup up and carefully drink a little. "I am thinking about inviting an African wizard to the next gathering - one of my old students took a position at Uagadou as an English teacher and I am sure I could ask him to bring one of his colleagues along as a plus one."

"That would be lovely, professor," Adriel said as he brought his left hand down to grip Sirius's hip since he had started to trail his finger along the boy's inner thigh and it made him buck up with a swallowed gasp. "However, I think our fifteen minutes it about up. Maybe we can continue this discussion tomorrow during my free period? I would offer my evening, but I will be assisting Professor Sprout with grading assignments since she was unhappy that Professor McGonagall and I quarreled. I really don't mean to antagonize the Deputy Headmistress anymore, but I think there is just a little too much history between the two of us after my earlier years of acting out when I was too young to realize that being forced to come here was not as terrible as I had thought it to be."

Slughorn laughed and shook his head with a fond smile. "Nonsense, all the teachers love you even when you were a bit of a handful," he declared. "Even the Deputy, yes, though I think you are right in that you frustrate her in equal measures as well. Sadly, I do not have time tomorrow, but drop in when you have a free evening any time and we can continue this talk. And before you say anything, I will not tell you who the African wizard I have in mind is! You will just have to come to the yule party this year, and please try to keep your dates to three or less people this time. I'm not trying to suppress your traditions, but too many will make it difficult to make sure everyone has food and drinks! Ah, and before I forget..." Slughorn leaned forward as if he was confiding in something and Adriel tilted his head to indicate he was listening even as he stopped touching Sirius to start smoothing down his robes and the cloak. "I heard about the magazine, m'boy, and if you need any advice about such things, my private office hours for the Slytherins are from ten to midnight and I will write you a pass to wander after the eleven PM curfew if you set up an appointment."

Adriel nudged Sirius to get off his lap even as he smiled and nodded at Slughorn again. "Thank you for the offer, sir, and I will keep it in mind," he replied as he stood once Sirius was off of him. He felt the other boy carefully grab the back of his robes again. "Have a good evening, and I will be sure to keep my dates to only two or three this year. All of the girls were just so very eager to dress up nicely last year that I didn't have the heart to leave any of them behind, but I will let them know I will be choosing different friends to avoid favoritism this year. Have a pleasant evening!"

Adriel turned and left after he was bade good night, and as soon as they were a safe distance away with nobody in their immediate area, Sirius stopped him by gripping the back of his robes tightly and jerking him back to his chest. "That was a cruel thing you did to me, Adriel," Sirius whispered into Adriel's ear. "I should pay you back for that. Was that where we were going?"

Adriel leaned back against Sirius so he could turn his head and nuzzle his neck. "Oh no, that is just taking advantage of an opportunity," he purred in a low voice making Sirius shiver. "You were also fully into it, so no paybacks or I will have to retaliate in kind. Our destination is a bit further down, dungeon eight."

Sirius ground his erection against Adriel's butt, then groaned when it wiggled back against him. "Alright, fine, an unused classroom," he panted. "Let's go."

Adriel wasn't going to correct him on the assumption since it did seem like that at first glance, but they were both eager since the pace was quicker than it was before. He opened the door and gestured for Sirius to enter the nearly empty room, then pulled out his wand to set up a weak alert barrier on both ends of the rarely used corridor before he entered and closed the door. "No locking charms," he warned as he set up a silencing spell and a notice-me-not with perimeters set a couple inches before the walls and door since Sirius had pushed back the invisibility cloak and started to point his wand at the door. "I swear Mrs. Norris can sniff them out or something, and the teachers check for spells on doors while they walk down the hallways. It's why locked cupboards are always found out, but ones that are unspelled are occasionally overlooked."

Sirius blinked then grinned. "Is that how you are never caught?" he asked, then started to glance around the room to see what was so special about this almost empty room specifically. "If I had known you knew these things, I would have jumped your bones a couple years ago with I started experimenting with guys. How did you find out?"

Adriel snickered at Sirius' questions, then he flicked his want to conjure some soft cotton rope. "I'm never caught because I understand the value of discretion, Mr. Black," he teased with a smirk then started pulling things out from the pouch around his neck. Traditionally, it was only supposed to hold 'Navajo tools,' but it had not taken him long after he received it for him to mentally correct that to 'personal tools.' "And I found out because I have known many curse breakers over the years and have made it a game to ask them what techniques they would use if they were teaching at Hogwarts and had to do patrols to find students skipping curfew but didn't want to check inside every room to do so. Then I tested the theories until I found ways that worked. Mrs. Norris is the tricky one, but she only patrols in locations students shouldn't be like the teacher's corridors or after curfew hours. You can start stripping as far as you are comfortable with, by the way."

Sirius' neck gave a twinge of pain when he jerked his head around from observing the front of the room where the teacher's desk was as soon as Adriel said the last bit. The desk was one of the few pieces of furniture in here and there were a couple of old student desks up against the wall, but the room was otherwise barren in the back where they were standing so he was easily able to spot the coil of rope along with metal rings, scarves, candles, and some long white feathers on the floor. His eyes widened and he grinned with delight. "Oh my, are those for me?" he coyly gasped as he turned his attention to Adriel who was stripping off his outer school robes. "I don't see any suspension gear here, though."

Adriel summoned one of the student chairs over and dropped his robes on it before he pointed up. "This room used to be the detention room when the chains were still used by caretakers," he explained with a smirk and started to roll up his shirt sleeves. "The chains are in Filch's office, sadly, but the hooks are still in the ceiling and we know they are definitely stable enough to hold people up. I still plan to test them to make sure that age hasn't weakened the supports, though."

Sirius swallowed hard when he realized this really was happening. Bondage was a regular thing for him, though he rarely got to be the one tied up since most just assumed he was the type to want to tie his partners up, and his partners were usually females anyway. Even the ones that had tied him up did it as more of a fun foreplay kind of thing. This was the first time he was being treated more like a sub, and he felt his heart start to pound in his chest as he froze in indecision. Did he trust Adriel? Growing up in Grimmauld Place left him with a healthy amount of paranoia, especially after he had been sorted into Gryffindor. Everyone trusted the Hufflepuff though - well, everyone but the bullies. He remembered the lesson the Marauders had been taught over Snape, but the snake had also been punished when he had thought it meant he could hurt them as well. So yeah, maybe the bullies also trusted Adriel since he still liked him despite the fact that for a whole week, he and James kept finding themselves in humiliating situations and they still didn't know how it was done. Still, being tied up was one thing, and tied up and left hanging in the air at the complete whims of someone else was another.

"Hey, shhh," Adriel said when he had glanced up after there had been no movement for several seconds from Sirius. He had expected the other boy to immediately start stripping since he had seemed so eager until this point, so he carefully approached the Gryffindor like he would a started horse and stroked his hair. "If you don't want to do anything or want to do something different, that is ok. I didn't mean to come off too strong and should have properly asked if this was what you wanted."

The gentle touch, compassion, and tone was unexpected for Sirius since he had only ever received something similar to it from James' mother when he had first fled to the Potter's estate. He immediately melted against Adriel and hugged the Hufflepuff tightly as he tried not so cry. Despite the continued hair petting and a comforting return embrace, he did manage not to cry, but there were still some embarrassing Padfoot whimpers and whines while he was being held and had reassurances continue to be told to him. "I uh... sorry," he mumbled into Adriel's shoulder, mortified now by how he had broken down. He didn't want to step away since he didn't want to see the disdain or pity in Adriel's eyes. Thankfully, years of pranking meant he could come up with excuses on the fly. No need to bring in his paranoia from his upbringing into this. "I want to try, but I haven't done it before and was a little overwhelmed. Nobody has... uh... Everyone expects me to be a top since I'm a Black and a Gryffindor."

Adriel stopped stroking Sirius' hair and buried his fingers deep into his hair and lightly scratch his scalp. Sirius seemed to like it a lot since he immediately started to relax. "Mmm, well everyone knows what I think about the house identities," Adriel carefully teased. "The same goes for family expectations. Your blonde cousin is stuck up and cold, but your little brother is adorable with his attempts to be proper though he watches you when you are not looking because he wishes he had your freedom of not caring about appearances. They are both Slytherins and Blacks but very different, and you also have your own traits that isn't identified by house or family. If you want to take this slow, I really am ok with it - I get off on the having fun process, not the act itself, and I don't have fun at the expense of others."

"Unless you are getting revenge," Sirius tried to point out, though it also came out as a mumble since his head was being scratched so well.

"Nope, that's the sadism," Adriel giggled and started to rub Sirius' lower back with his other hand. "It's possible to have fun with it, yes, but revenge itself isn't fun, it is personal vigilantism. Do you like this?"

Sirius was just starting to relax even more with his back being rubbed, but when he was asked if he liked what was happening he had to swallow a groan. "Yeah," he breathed out. "I uh... I like being taken care of." The last bit was rushed like it was a dirty little secret, and he realized how strange it must sound that he had been more nervous to admit that bit out loud than he had about suspension bondage or even bondage itself.

Adriel felt Sirius start to tense up again so he lowered his mouth to his ear and lightly swiped his tongue to wet it while he stopped scratching Sirius' scalp so he could grip his hair tight enough to keep him in place without hurting him. "Shhh, I like to take care of people," he hotly breathed into the spot he had licked making Sirius shiver and moan. "We can keep it our dirty little secret if you want - I am very discrete."

Sirius couldn't believe he was being seduced like this when he gave a louder moan and started to rub up against Adriel with want. He had just made taking care of him sound so dirty, and he definitely wanted to play even more now than he had earlier. He tilted his head in an open invitation to access his neck, but he whined when Adriel flattened his hand on his lower back to force him to go still and didn't immediately start kissing or biting his neck.

"First tell me what you want to do tonight and then you will get a reward," Adriel purred. "I might not give you everything, but I will give you a lot if you are good."

Sirius gripped the back of Adriel's shirt tightly where they had been while he held him. "Merlin, I will be good," he promised. He wished he could rut against Adriel again, but his hips were being held in place as was his head. He could break himself free, but he didn't really want to because he was happy with someone else controlling his movements at the moment. "Bondage, blindfolds, wax, those candles I saw, uh, spanking is good but no paddles or canes, definitely willing to bottom, uhmmm, and is this a one time deal or will we be doing this regularly?"

Adriel lightly nipped Sirius' neck, then sucked on the spot to reward him and got a whine of pleasure. "I wouldn't mind making it a regular thing as long as you can accept that you are not the only person I sleep with," Adriel said to state his own terms. "Of course, you are also free to have other partners as well. Unless you are interested in being my pet? I haven't had one of those before, but I think you would make a very good pet if you were interested." He was being honest about that, too. Navajo didn't have pets because animals could not give that kind of consent, but Sirius could, and he had recently seen a master/pet relationship during the summer in Las Vegas that looked interesting enough to try. He was surprised that Sirius was good pet material - not because he was a Black or a Gryffindor, but because he acted so confident and independent all the time. The Sirius that was like obedient putty in his arms would be a good pet, though.

"Pet?" Sirius croaked because the thoughts that went through his mind at that offer was very conflicting. Would he have to give up his freedom like a master/slave relationship? It was tempting to let go and say yes while he was so horny, but he knew he would immediately regret that. Pet also implied being cared for and getting attention, and maybe wearing a collar or something. He didn't want to be leashed, not figuratively anyway. Adriel also didn't make it sound like being a pet would be a requirement to keep a regular exchange going, and he didn't care who Adriel fucked as long as he could continue to make Sirius feel good. Yet, despite his worries, the Padfoot inside was eagerly wagging his tail at being wanted. "What does that require?"

Adriel gave a hum of approval and slipped the hand on Sirius' lower back down to his ass and squeezed it. "Well, you could rut against me now until you cum in your pants for one," he teasingly offered with another encouraging squeeze that made Sirius buck up against him with a whine while Adriel shifted a little to make the hollow of his hip a good spot for it. He smiled when Sirius didn't try to do more, though. "We would negotiate the terms of you being a pet. For example, I would love to have my collar around your throat so you know who belonged to me, and I could share you with certain other people if you were amenable to being passed around with you always having the option to say no. Head scratches and attention in public or in private, your choice, and I would take you along to places like Sluggy's parties while places like Hogsmeade would be your choice as to where you go. I'm not interested in making commands or demands about your life, but I guess it would be kind of like an option of having dates that only I can offer without either of us having to commit to more. Either a collar or a bracelet would not be negotiable, nor is me taking control of all your activities, but the rest would be including you deciding if you don't want to commit your choice of partners to me and who I pick out for you."

Padfoot was whining to accept while Sirius distrusted an offer that sounded too good to be true. It was unfair that Adriel had been squeezing his ass and running a finger down his crack over his pants the whole time, too. He really wanted to take that offer to just hump on the Hufflepuff like the dog he was, but he looked back at the pile of items on the floor a few feet away because he wanted that even more. "Can I think about it?" he asked.

Adriel followed where Sirius was looking at then smile. "Take all the time you need," he agreed before he pressed his hip against Sirius' hard length to make him look back up at him. "Go strip and lay on the desk, but put the cloak on the chair. I'll bring the things over and we can get started." He leaned down to nip then suck on Sirius' lower lip, then he released him. "And the rewards for being good still stands."

Sirius stood a little dazed for a second until Adriel mentioned rewards. He grinned at him then strutted to the front of the room while making sure to sway his hips. Sadly, the cloak was still on him, so Adriel didn't get to see the swaying ass, but he smiled at the attempt and moved to pick up the rope, scarves, and candles, then put the rings, the outer robes, and feathers away into the pouch. Sirius realized his mistake when he reached the front and checked himself over when he saw Adriel was collecting things rather than looking at him, and he huffed as he pulled off James' invisibility cloak and laid it on the back of the teacher's chair. "Uhm, the cloak is on loan so please don't use it," Sirius said out loud before he started to pull off his robes.

"Mmm, I actually planned to throw it over you if someone came along," Adriel explained as he stood up. "I could explain that I came down here for a big of quiet time, but it would be really difficult to explain evidence that will obviously be displayed on the table if we aren't done by curfew."

Sirius barked a short laugh while he loosened and pulled off his tie to toss on top of the school robes, then he winked at Adriel as he started to unbutton his shirt starting from the top. He was gratified to see his slow undressing was being watched as Adriel sauntered towards him with the ropes and everything held in his arms. When he reached the bottom of his shirt, he unbuttoned the top button of his pants with a quick flick, then smirked when the movement made Adriel's tongue dart out to lick his lips. "Like what you see?" Sirius drawled while he let his shirt slide off his shoulders and pulled it to add to the rest of the pile on the side.

"Can't wait to taste," Adriel answered as he looked Sirius in the eyes. "You look delicious." Adriel's eyes trailed back down when Sirius brought his hands up to pinch his own nipples, then he got down on one knee to start undoing his shoelaces. "Do you suck or swallow?" Adriel couldn't help ask since the lower position would have put Sirius at the right height to give a blowjob. Still, he had to get the ropes tied to the bottom of the desk since they were on a time limit so he stepped back before Sirius replied to begin doing that.

"Never really had an interest either way," Sirius replied as he pulled off one shoe then the other and both socks. "I wouldn't mind trying since I like the taste of my own." Padfoot was delightfully flexible.

"Maybe next time," Adriel said with a sideways glance to see Sirius was putting his shoes under the chair where his clothes were piled on top of. "Well, for mine, anyway. I will enjoy feeding you your own, though. I'm almost done here, so better hurry up - we don't want to waste time after all."

Sirius didn't need to be told twice - he gave Adriel a coy smile as he unzipped his pants and slid them and his boxers down at the same time. He wasn't shy of his size either - he was six inches and still growing so he expected to top at seven or eight by the time puberty was over. He grinned since Adriel was watching it bob up and down after it had popped out, and he was so hard that pre was already starting to drip to the floor. He wondered what Adriel would look like under his clothes as he grabbed his wand from his pants to cast a quick scourgify on the dusty desk, then places his pants and underwear on the chair and put the wand on top. By the time he got on top of the desk, his movements had made some of his thigh sticky with dripping precum, and he sat cross legged and leaned back on his hands to proudly display that.

Adriel tested the last knot on he had just finished, then put the rope on the corner of the desk so all four had ropes on them. "Lay down, I'm sure you know how this part works," Adriel said, then smirked when Sirius complied with a pout since he had not mentioned the display that had been presented to him. He immediately started on the left wrist since that was where he was standing, but he wrapped the cotton rope down the arm and to the elbow, tied it there, then wrapped it back to the wrist before completing it with a second tie so it looked like a crisscrossing wrap on gladiator sandals that laced up to the knee. "Test it - pull and tug a bit and tell me if anything hurts." He watched as Sirius tested the rope then moved his hands to a thumbs up gesture - both the one that was tied and the free one. "Good, but here on out, you will be vocal and tell me if something hurts, is uncomfortable, or is not something you want," Adriel said as he moved to the other arm and started to tie it the same way. "You can get as loud as you want to express pleasure since I have silencing spells on the room as well as a notice-me-not that will deter any student though not some of the staff. If someone walks in, I can cover you with the cloak, but I can additionally continue to play with you disillusioned or otherwise if you really liked what we did in Slughorn's room. Test, and are you interested in that?"

Sirius was trying not to pant as proper rules were laid down for him - no having to guess expectations or do something wrong. He tested the second rope and groaned when it also held firm, then had to go back over the last few seconds of conversation when he realized he needed to answer a question. "Uh, just not in front of Filch or Minnie - he is an automatic turn off and she is like my aunt," he answered, then whimpered when Adriel touched his leaking tip with a finger then sucked on it to taste him. "I'm good, I'm uh, I like everything so far."

Adriel smiled at Sirius as he splayed a hand on the other boy's soft but flat stomach to feel the soft skin there, then he dragged it down his sticky hips and thighs as he walked to the rope for the right leg. "Yes, you are being good right now," he agreed out loud even if that wasn't what Sirius had meant, but it was the right thing to say since he felt him shiver under his hand. "Are you aware you have a praise kink?"

Sirius laughed at the question - it was half disbelief and half desperation. "I am aware now," he said as Adriel started to lace up his right leg to the knee with the interesting tie that was being used. It actually held him down a lot better than cuffs or anything else that just went around wrists and ankles would. "Where do you learn this shit?"

Adriel hummed. "BDSM communities in the States, hearing stories from friends, experimenting on myself or others, and muggle magazines," he replied, then finished off the last tie for the leg. Rather than tell him to test, he tickled the bottom of Sirius' foot, and immediately got a jerking reaction when Sirius either tried to kick or get away but was unable to. "Did the rope hurt?"

"No," Sirius answered, feeling a bit dizzy now with the whiplash of going from exceptionally turned on to being tickled in a way that he hadn't felt in a long time if ever. He heard what Adriel had said, but he was distracted since he could still feel his toes twitching even though the tickle was only for a second! "I don't know if I liked that or not."

"You never did say yes or no to feathers," Adriel mused out loud for him as he started to tie down the last leg. "Are you interested in experimenting with that on less sensitive areas?"

"Yes," Sirius immediately agreed. He thunked his head back on the desk since he could no longer keep it up to watch Adriel as he had been the whole time, so he had to pretty much just feel what was happening with the rope while he stared at the ceiling. When he was told to test the last one, he tested all the restraints together, then whimpered when all of them held firm with almost no give. "The rope is fine, no pain, I am comfortable. Does England have those communities?"

Adriel grinned at how Sirius answered the question he had not gotten to ask yet, then he pulled out his wand to disillusion all the ropes as he retraced his steps to go back to the top. "Sure, there are some in London and a couple other places, but none at all for the gay," he explained along the way. "That's jail time on the muggle side." Sirius' eyes were closed and he was struggling to keep his breathing even, so Adriel grabbed a scarf and folded it in half length-wise, then placed it over his eyes. "Lift up your head a little so I can tie the blindfold." He deftly tied it as soon as he had a little space, then trailed a finger on Sirius' lips which made the other boy reflexively lick them. "This would be so fun to send to Play Witch if he could," Adriel sighed as he stepped back to pick up a candle. "Maybe we can redo this night after we graduate if you are more comfortable with the idea of what they are doing." Since Sirius could no longer see what was happening, he had held the unlit candle a foot above Sirius' chest and wandlessly heated it up so it started to drip just as he finished that sentence. "Just for full disclosure since you are close friends though, I am interested in seducing Remus as well. I would prefer you not say anything to him since the chase is half the fun." He had dripped a good amount on Sirius by this point, and he stopped pushing heat into the wax so he could lean over and lick a nipple.

Sirius was only half paying attention to what Adriel was saying as he squirmed and panted and hissed with each drip. That last lick actually forced a moan out of him though, and he tried to arch up into the mouth only to find it was not there. That in turn made him struggle even harder with need while he whimpered, but a flat hand on his belly calmed him down. Something about Remus? "What about Remus?" he rasped out.

"I want to seduce him, and I would rather you not tell him about it since I would like to catch him myself," Adriel said with a wicked smile though Sirius couldn't see it. He kept the hand on Sirius' stomach where it was and started to pull up the dried wax on Sirius' chest. "I just wanted to let you know since he is a close friend of yours, though if you really dislike the idea, I will refrain until our own arrangement is through."

"He's uh," Sirius started to say, then bit his tongue to stop himself from blurting out that Remus was a virgin. "No, I don't mind, though I don't think mmmm he is into blokes. He never said he was." The wax being pulled away from his chest didn't hurt since he didn't have a lot of chest hair so he kept it all shaved off, but with the blindfold on, it felt nice. He couldn't stop the quiet moan in the middle of the sentence when his nipple was brushed up against. "Can I cum? Will you let me? I just need an edge off, I swear!" He was definitely not above begging since he was a dog and he would rather do that than risk cumming at the wrong time and ruining their night.

Adriel huffed a quiet laugh and brushed the remaining wax off of Sirius' chest before he replied. "I suppose you have been a good boy and should get a reward," he decided, then leaned over to mouth his way from Sirius' chest down to his weeping cock. He licked up the large puddle of pre on the abdomen, then listened to Sirius whine and pant as he took his time cleaning the whole area with his tongue. He liked when his partners were cleanly shaved since it allowed him to do these things, and he kept Sirius from bucking up by holding both hips down to the table. By the time he started to suck on Sirius' balls, the Gryffindor was earnestly begging to have his dick sucked, but he kept to his own time table just so when he finally sealed his lips over the head of the penis and released the hips he had kept pinned down, Sirius immediately started to fuck upwards into his mouth despite the strain it put the rest of his body under. Adriel kept his lips sealed around the shaft to suck and met each thrust with a stroke of his tongue, and when he felt Sirius's impending orgasm, he pinned the hips down hard because Sirius was wiggling so hard, and sucked on only the head while running his tongue from slit to sensitive glans so Sirius would unload everything into his mouth.

Sirius couldn't help but wonder if Adriel would be a cat if he was an animagus when his begging for more was ignored to tongue bathe the area. By the time he felt warm suction on his balls, he couldn't think even that and was gibbering anything he thought Adriel might want to hear just to get that mouth on his fucking dick. And when it finally got there and his hips were free, he was so desperate to cum that he didn't even consider what warm cavern he was fucking into, only that he was finally able to do so and he wanted to chase his pleasure as quickly as possible just in case it was taken away. He was so close when he felt himself get pinned down that he wailed out with desperation because he thought he wouldn't get to. But no, the suction was still there, and he shouted when he came so hard that he saw stars while he continued to try to buck up.

Sirius' first thought when he started to think again was that that tongue should be made illegal. The mouth was borderline, but that tongue came from the devil. His second thought was that the tongue was still lazily licking his still partially hard dick and it would get over sensitive soon. "I need a short break to catch my breath," Sirius groaned, and thankfully Adriel got the hint since he pulled away. Nothing was said which worried Sirius for a few seconds, but he felt his jawline get tenderly cupped so his face could be angled a little, and guessing it was for a kiss, he complied and was happy when he found that he was correct. The kiss quickly turned filthy though when Adriel dumped a mouthful of his own cum into his mouth, and they both moaned as they shared the flavor like that until it was gone and they both needed to breathe.

"Would you like me to untie you?" Adriel since it didn't take him long to catch his. He lightly trailed a finger from Sirius' shoulder down to his wrist to enjoy the feeling of the invisible ropes while he visually checked for any damage.

"Just the blindfold, I want to see you," Sirius answered several pants later. A few seconds later, he was blinking hard to adjust to the light before he could focus on the amused smile of his partner's face. "You're still dressed?" he couldn't help but whine even as he saw that aside from the freshly fucked mouth, Adriel's appearance had not changed much from when he had last seen him. He wanted to see him naked!

"Oh, no," Adriel said as his smile turned into a smirk. "I'm going to have you begging like a desperate whore one more time before we have to leave - there is about forty-five minutes left if I take into account your need to get dressed - and I will do that without stripping at all. Think about it as an incentive for being good next time - your homework will be the pros and cons of being a kept pet and what kind of pet you would like to be if you want to be one. If I were to guess, I would say a dog, and I would mount you like a bitch in heat."

Sirius felt a thrill shoot down his spine and all the way to his toes at the dirty talk even as he stared up at Adriel in shock. Did he know? No, of course he didn't. One part of him warned he could get a little too deep with a person like this, and the other part of him was willing to submit to anything Adriel wanted. He reminded himself that he was a Gryffindor though and gathered his scattered wits up, then gave Adriel a grin. "Will I be graded on my assignment, Professor?" he asked with a bit of cheek.

Adriel was elated with the response and showed it by leaning in closer. "As long as it is turned in by nine am this Sunday," Adriel played along with a kind but professional tone. "I was thinking I might treat you to a private room along with breakfast at the three broomsticks if you do your assigned work, and I could give you some one on one tutoring with any subject you are struggling with in a more comfortable atmosphere. For now, let us resume your detention, Mr. Black."

Sunday, October 9th, 1977

Adriel had gone to sleep a little early after the Hogsmeade trip where he got several little gifts for his friends and the professor while he dragged Art and Matt along for a bit. Around noon, he found them a cozy little café to sit and read in while drinking tea, and he left them to their silence so they could relax in each other's company. He paid for a meal of little tea sandwiches to be served to the bookworms with explicit instructions that it was just to be placed close to their right hands and not to interrupt their reading with questions - just refill the cups if they got low and serve the single meal in an hour, then around three in the afternoon to let them know the time. He wished he could see the looks of surprise the two would probably end up with when they realized so much time had been spent in peaceful reading in another person's company, but he had to remove himself from the equation for that to happen. It was a little underhanded, but he hoped that Art would start thinking of peaceful company when he was around Matt, so there was no guilt or anything about 'abandoning his friend.'

He spent the rest of the day walking around and chatting with others here and there while a new band called 'Voldemort and the Death Eaters' was trying to introduce English punk rock to the wizarding culture in the center of the village. They had a few of the students listening with interest, but the audience was fairly small. Adriel found the snakes and skulls theme a bit too much, but the singer had a very charismatic voice even if his snake makeup looked a bit repulsive (how did he hide his nose like that? Theater clay or transfiguration?) and the ragged musicians wearing masks behind the singer looked cool so it definitely left an impression of sorts. He hoped they got popular - the English magical culture needed things like this because their bland music was boring and repetitive.

Since he knew he would need to be at the Three Broomsticks earlier than nine to set everything up - much earlier than nine just in case Sirius thought '9AM sharp' meant ten or fifteen minutes early - he wanted to get up at five so he would have enough time for a bath and everything. He was very very picky about his cleanliness when it came to letting others do things to him or having actual sex - while he didn't mind if they had a day's sweat on them, he didn't want someone to put their mouth on him and make a face of disgust because they didn't like the taste. He preferred to be pleasing to the senses so it wasn't just about taste - there was how he looked and how soft his skin was that mattered, and he hated body hair on himself so he made sure to spell pluck everything that might have grown in since he last did it a week ago and then applied oils to soften the skin and give a light cedar and pine fragrance to himself.

He towel dried his body and spell dried his hair, then added the same oils to the latter while he kept a towel around his waist. An early bird fifth year stumbled past him for the showers while he carefully coiled his hair before it was pinned to the top of his head, then he pulled and set the frock that he wanted to wear out. He knew it was a bit ostentatious, but the wizarding world could be that and he wanted to be presentable... Plus it was something a university teacher would have worn a century or two ago and he hoped that Sirius was having enough fun with the role play they had been doing that he would come in dressed as a student.

He was buttoning up the velvet vest after putting on the silk cravat when the fifth year padded out with a towel around his waist then stopped to gawk at Adriel. "Hot date?" Darron asked as he looked Adriel up and down. "Sheesh, that's something I expect a pureblood to wear. One of the rich Lordy ones, you know?"

Adriel grinned at the kid through the mirror reflection then straightened out the cuffs of his shirt. "Eh, my grandmother thought it looked pretty in a French catalogue so it was one of her many suggestions when I came to do my school shopping for this year," he explained. "I agree with her opinions since she usually has very very good taste and was going to wear it to Slughorn's party this year, but I'll go with a renaissance robe for that. However, it makes me think of university professors rather than pure blood, you know?"

Darron pouted since he got an answer to the question that was not a question, then shook his head. "The girls are going to be unhappy they didn't get to see you in this," he said with a snicker. "Sure you won't say who your date is?"

Adriel threw on the outer coat and winked. "Do I ever?" he asked before he turned and left the boy's showering room. He tugged the cuffs of his shirt again as he walked across the empty common room to make sure that they lined up with the coat sleeve, then checked the time as he walked out the barrel entrance and nodded when he saw it was a little past seven. Most early birds were just waking up - most would not actually get up until after eight and the late risers woke after nine with ten being the end of breakfast, but either way the carriages should be in the process of being hitched so he could take one down to Hogsmeade. As soon as he stepped out of Hogwarts, he put a top hat on his head to complete the look, and walked straight for the carriages.

Seeing the thestrals being hitched wasn't a new thing - when you grow up surrounded by poor health and disease from terrible housing, food, and poverty, death is also a common sight. Even if he had not been able to see them before, he had done his animagus training in the summer before sixth year and had killed some wild horse poachers, though he had not told anybody about it. The screams of the horses being caught had spurred him into attacking out of panic, and the ones that had been trying to catch him to breed on their farms were the ones that paid for it. He had felt some guilt afterwards since they probably weren't going to kill any of the horses, but their rough handling did cause two of them to die so he wasn't too upset about it. Poaching mustangs in the US was illegal, but there were still many who wanted the strong breed for their prized rodeo horses to mate with, and Adriel had zero intention of spending his animagus month around humans trying to breed him to mares so he didn't stay feeling guilty for long.

He patted the nose of the thestral once he was dropped off in Hogsmeade then went straight to the Three Broomsticks. It was pretty empty with only a few adults having breakfast and a rather very good looking man sitting at the bar that Madam Rosmerta was flirting more heavily with than usual going by her body language. He walked over that way and winked at her when she did a double take at what he was wearing, then leaned up against the bar. He nodded at the other man with him, then gave Rosmerta a heart broken smile since he (and a majority) of the boys had been flirting with her since she started working a few years ago. She was a good sport about it as long as none of them took it too far, and there was a new tradition for the older boys to tell the younger boys that unspoken rule so that nobody would ruin the fun for everyone else. "My beautiful love, have you already moved past me?" he asked while giving her puppy eyes. "I understand you hesitate to accept my offers of a date since I am a student, but I do graduate soon and could whisk you away to France or the Caribbean Islands if you but wait six months longer!"

Rosmerta smiled widely at Adriel's extravagant claims of exotic travel for a second, then she placed a hand on her hip and tried to look put out. "Oh Adriel, you act so very sweet on me, but don't think I haven't read a certain magazine that talks about your broom cupboard exploits," she teased as she waggled a scolding finger at him. "Besides, you have something to do today, and it is definitely not me."

Adriel laughed at the innuendo and shook his head. "I was wondering if I can kip up there a bit early because I want to set a few things up - this outfit is something an elite professor would have worn at a muggle university like Eton or Cambridge and I am tutoring today," he explained with a shrug. "I wanted to make it fun since a boring lecture would not be listened to and our DA professors are already bad enough. So who is your friend?"

Rosmerta snorted at Adriel's lie since she knew exactly what he was getting up to, but she also knew he was very particular about being discreet so she let it slide and smiled at the other man. "He is Tom Riddle, lead singer of the band you probably saw playing yesterday," she said. "He's going to be playing again today to promote his music, then plans to move on to..."

"London," Tom smoothly inserted with a really sexy voice that surprised Adriel. No wonder Rosmerta was flirting with this guy so hard. "It's punk rock that has recently became a little... not popular, but I guess better known in the muggle world. It used to be just garage rock, but with the classism that is so prevalent in both the muggle and magical world, I'm hoping to send a message in the same way our counterparts are to stop allowing gold to let injustices pass and to improve social conditions for the less wealthy or influential purebloods in places like Knockturn who are condemned because they are thought to be in those areas because they are dark, not poor. The ministry's corruption and the gold flowing away from the poor minority is oppressing us all!"

Adriel felt a little bit of something inside die as that sexy voice immediately went into political preaching that translated to 'pureblood entitlement' coached as 'muggle classism!' and using muggle-based music as an a way to make people think they are being progressive to make the speech palatable to the muggleborns so the gullible would support the movement. He glanced over at Rosmerta to see her fluttering her lashed at Tom, and he gave one noncommittal nod that neither agreed nor disagreed with the man. "Well, it was nice to meet you," he said before he stepped back and smiled at Rosmerta once more. "I will be heading up, but will you please have the elves pop in breakfast at around 8:30?" Best to get away from the political activist with a personal agenda as fast he could since he had nice plans that included a lot of physical activity and zero twisty politicking. At least it wasn't cult preaching, but religion was just barely one step below politics.

"Always so polite, Adriel," Rosmerta said with a light hearted laugh then made a shooing motion. "Yes yes, go have your fun. I'll have lunch sent up the same way right before the noon rush hits."

"I plan to be here after five if you are interested in hearing more then," Tom offered with a charming smile as he eyed Adriel's fine clothing, and Adriel returned it with an unimpressed look before he looked away. Tom's eyes flashed with anger, but he thankfully turned back to the bar.

Adriel blew Rosmerta a kiss then turned to go up to the second floor were the private rooms could be rented for dinners, meetings, or as a room for the night. She had apparently read the Play Witch article and would now make her own conjectures about the veracity of it when she saw Adriel's guest was Sirius if he didn't use the invisibility cloak again, but she was discrete unlike the Hogwarts rumor mill or the Hogshead so it didn't matter if she knew who was going to be with him today.

The room he entered had a circular dining room table for four, two couches with a tea table between them, a small table by the window that held a vase of flowers, and shaggy brown carpeting. It was actually the table that had him wanting to rent the private meeting room rather than a bedroom, and as soon as the door was closed behind him, he started to work on transfiguring things. Yes, his grades were terrible and he barely managed the EE to enter NEWT level, but that was simply because he refused to have anything to do with casting transfiguration spells on animals or turn things into animals. Dropping a teacup that is also a rat would be a horrible thing to do if it shattered since nobody could actually say if a rat felt the pain from it or if it was traumatized once the cup had been repaired and the rat turned back. And what happened if the cup was just left shattered? Yeah, no, Adriel was staying away from it just like he was staying away from politics, and he would take the A that he would end up getting during NEWTs even if he could transform a whole room into other things.

The table top was transfigured into six foot diameter wagon wheel with a rotating axle where it met the table stem. He pushed it to make sure it could move, then put one of the wooden chairs on top to turn it into a tabletop so it looked like a regular table despite the wheel hidden below and used a sticking charm on it. The second chair was transfigured into a saw horse bench with rings before he set it to the side where it would be out of the way and disillusioned it, then he walked over to the window and opened it up. The sheer lace curtains then had an imperturbable charm cast on it to prevent any sounds from the room to leave it so there was only the illusion of being overheard, then he sucked on his lower lip as he considered the couches.

Hmm, the couches were actually a more cozy spot, but... Ah, well he could lead Sirius over to it after their breakfast. One couch would be better than two, however, so he walked over to shrink it, stick it to the wall, and disillusion it then rearranged the remaining couch so the back of it was to the wall with the table in front, and the small table with flowers could go to the corner. That also left an open space in front of the window which would draw attention to the face it was open, so it made Adriel happy. He pulled off his top hat and placed it next to the flower vase, then sat to lounge on the couch while he waited for the breakfast to pop up half an hour later. The room looked a little empty since one couch was now missing, but the large space in front of the door could later come in handy if he wanted to transfigure the disillusioned couch into a bed or something else later.

He got to lounge for half an hour before the breakfast appeared on the table, then stood when it did. He walked over to it to inspect the meal - mostly finger foods like he had asked for or things cut into bite sized pieces along with extras like chocolate syrup, yogurt, and honey and the like - but he didn't touch anything so the freshness charms weren't interrupted. He could be wrong about expecting Sirius early and end up with a Sirius who wanted to be 'fashionably late,' but if he did that, Adriel would probably include a punishment discussion depending on the kind of activities that Sirius was actually interested in. Likewise if Sirius was going to be early, though that would only get him a warning of sorts.

He had no sooner had that thought than he heard a key being put into the door, so he turned where he was to face the door and watched as Sirius uncertainly looked in then gave him a nervous smile that turned into a wary look when he saw what Adriel was wearing. Adriel in turn smirked at Sirius. "Muggle university professor," he said as he correctly deduced Sirius' thoughts - everyone new how much Sirius hated the pureblood culture. "Come in, Mr. Black." Sirius entered with a sheepish expression, and Adriel took note of the faded Queen T-shirt and jeans with a leather jacket and boots, then walked over to him as he closed the door behind him. "Hmm... you must be very eager since I never see you come to class-" he paused to open his pocket watch "-almost twenty minutes early. You are not dressed appropriately for breakfast or lessons, however."

Sirius blinked as he looked up at Adriel, nervously licked his lips once as he thought how he should respond, then decided to say 'fuck it' since he was dressed how he was anyway. "Yeah?" he asked as he pushed his hair back with a cocky grin. "What're you gonna do about it, prof?"

Adriel grinned back and moved forward more to crowd Sirius until he was up against the door. "Demand that you immediately remove all of your clothes since even that would be more appropriate than what you are wearing," he purred in a dangerous tone. "You could choose to say no, of course, but if you comply, I will give you a reward." He had to grab Sirius' wrist and pin it against the door when he reached out to grab the front of his frock, though. "Ah, ah... I haven't given you permission to touch yet. The lesson hasn't progressed that far. Strip."

Sirius' attempt to grab Adriel for a kiss had been stymied, but the commanding tone had made him go very hard so he immediately shrugged off his jacket as soon as his wrist had been released. Adriel turned to get something from the breakfast table while he pulled off his shirt and kicked off his boots at the same time, and he saw a bottle of olive oil in Adriel's hand when he started to walk back. Sirius resumed removing his clothes when Adriel raised an eyebrow at him because he had stopped to stare and wonder what creative things Adriel might do with that, but he couldn't stop staring while he tripped his pants off since he saw that Adriel was unbuttoning his own pants to let out his own cock. Apparently, Adriel did not wear underwear under his clothes - something that was going to be on Sirius' mind now every time they shared a class. They were about the same size, though Adriel might be a touch wider, and he suddenly felt nervous as he wondered if Adriel was going to put that in him now with the olive oil for lube?

"Socks also," Adriel said out loud since Sirius had stopped to nervously stare with his pants around his ankles and his socks still on. "Relax, I'm not going to just fuck you, and especially not without talking about it first," he reassured, then smiled when Sirius blushed then kicked off his pants so he could pull off his socks. "No, I'm thinking we are both a bit eager this morning, so I want to take the edge off before we talk. No need for you to make hasty decisions because you are too horny, after all."

Sirius grinned at Adriel as he leaned back against the door to try and look casually sexy now that he wasn't worried. "Yeah?" he asked while he watched Adriel pour some oil on his hand to slick up his own length before setting the bottle on the floor to move back to crowding him once more. "That does sound... mmm... promising."

Adriel had reached out to also slick Sirius' penis with a twist of his wrist while Sirius had been speaking, then he put two fingers into his mouth from his clean hand while he grabbed both their dicks in the other. "Shhh, dogs don't speak, they should just hump," he quietly said into Sirius' ear. "I also haven't put up any silencing spells yet, so be careful not to smack your ass on the door if you don't want someone to come up and investigate."

Sirius started sucking on Adriel's fingers as soon as they were in his mouth, then grabbed the other boy's hips and started to thrust with a quiet moan. They both had to shift a few times before a good position, grip, and speed good be found, and Adriel was moving with Sirius towards the end with his own quiet panting while Sirius sucked hard on his fingers with his own quiet whines. He came first all over Adriel's hand and clothes which mixed with oil and precum, then whimpered when Adriel pressed him up against the door to rut against him without releasing his hold on their cocks and made Sirius oversensitive enough to try to squirm away. His movements seemed to help Adriel though since he came right after with a bite into Sirius' neck that made Sirius shudder, moan, and go still, and they panted for a few seconds with their combined mess and Adriel's hand still in between them before Adriel took a small step back.

"Mmm, that was fun," Adriel said as he brought up his messy hand to see how they tasted together, then pulled his fingers out of Sirius's mouth and offered him a taste.

Sirius looked a little skeptical, but he leaned forward to lick a portion that didn't appear to have oil on it and tilted his head a little as he sucked on his tongue. "Why does yours taste a little sweet?" he asked when he finally put his finger on what was different.

"Fruit heavy diet," Adriel said with a wink. "Too much meat, milk, garlic, or onion makes the body produce muskier scents and flavors while fruits like pineapple or berries that are naturally sweet will make your body fluids sweeter and smell nicer. I do not eat garlic and the like for days before going hunting since animals can smell it." He pulled out his wand to clean his clothes, spelled Sirius' clothes to the table in front of the couch nicely folded up so they wouldn't wrinkle, then tucked himself away and buttoned his pants up. "So, we can eat breakfast like normal or I can hand feed you like a pet while we discuss terms if you wish."

Sirius grimaced a little since now that he was sated and they weren't actually involved in sexual activities. The differences between his nudity and Adriel's posh clothes made him feel very self conscious. "Uh, will you take off your jacket at least?" he asked with a small blush while he waves at Adriel's clothes. "It just feels very weird."

Adriel snickered but shrugged off the jacket. "Sure," he said, then put the jacket over his left arm before he also undid the cravat and unbuttoned the vest to add them to the pile. "It was just part of the roleplay. Please continue to tell me if something makes you uncomfortable - I will never get angry."

Sirius watched as Adriel put the clothes into a little black pouch with a turquoise stone in the center around his neck. He had noticed it, of course, but he hadn't really paid it much attention in the past and he recalled it had held the things Adriel had used in the dungeon Monday night. "That is actually pretty cool looking, what is it?" he asked.

Adriel was working on unbutton his shirt cuffs and he shrugged. "Medicine pouch - a Navajo sacred object," he answered, then pulled the hair pins out of his hair so his hair spilled down from the coiled bun he had made that morning. "I keep my personal items in it but not my school items or uniforms - that is what a school bag and trunk is for. Do do you want to see how hand feeding feels?"

Sirius nibbled on his bottom lip as he considered if he wanted to try it, then he nodded once. A large cushion was conjured on the floor beside one of the chairs, and Adriel moved to sit on the chair so Sirius figured that the cushion was his spot. He felt a flutter of nervousness as he lowered himself on it, then shifted around a bit until he was sitting comfortably on top like a dog would and looked up at Adriel. "Woof," he said with a cheeky grin to hide how he felt.

Adriel grinned back and reached out with both hands to start scritching Sirius' head. "Awe, such a good boy," he cooed when Sirius enthusiastically leaned into the scritches and wiggled his ass a bit like a sitting dog wagging its tail. Adriel was pretty amused that he spotted the canine similarities and wondered if Sirius would be a wolf or a dog if he ever decided to become an animagus. "Yes, who is a good dog? Yes you are! Good dogs get kisses!"

The nervousness Sirius had felt melted away when he suddenly found himself being heavily snogged while his head was scritched at the same time. It felt so good that he put his hands (paws) up on Adriel's thigh so he could get up on his knees and enthusiastically kiss back, then let out a whine when Adriel leaned back and removed one of his hands. He wasn't embarrassed at all about the disappointed sound since Padfoot was just as glad for the attention, and since Adriel apparently wanted a dog, he had the appropriate skills to be the best dog there was. Adriel gave Sirius an affectionate smile that made butterflies erupt in his stomach (that was a little embarrassing), but he turned his attention to the table and came back with a sausage in hand that he nibbled on before offering it to Sirius. Sirius gave it the proper sniff and lick that would be expected, then looked up at Adriel as it was fed to him.

Adriel petted Sirius' hair and grinned since Sirius seemed very happy. "Is this fine? Would you like to continue this?" he asked, and when Sirius nodded, he picked up a bite sized piece of toast that had a small portion of egg salad on it and hand fed it to Sirius as well. The first half of breakfast passed that way with Adriel keeping one hand on Sirius's head to pet and scritch him while he nibbled and shared some things, flat out gave Sirius other things, and ate the vegetables Sirius didn't seem to like at all while fruits were hit and miss. When it was time to talk though, he asked him how he liked his tea, and prepared a cup which he offered before he picked up a glass of apple juice for himself. "So your biggest worries are that I will take your freedom and throw down some rules you won't like, right?"

Sirius settled back with his tea and nodded. "Yeah, my family were really uh.. strict... and there were a lot of expectations," he explained as vaguely as he could while still being honest. "I don't mind the things we have done so far - I actually like a lot of it a lot - but I don't want to end up finding out there are rules that suddenly apply later on that I don't want but can't really back out of or something."

Adriel scrunched his nose at the idea of doing that to someone but nodded. "Okay, so the golden rule with me is always going to be that if you don't like or want something, I won't do it," he said. "That can be stated as a simple no, you don't have to give a reason why you don't like it, and if you want to play so you can say no without meaning it, we can have a safe word that normally would never be used like "Dr. Pepper" which would mean no instead. Even if we make rules right now, they can be changed any time you decide you don't like them or want them in the future. We will renegotiate then so we can both be happy and know what each other's clear boundaries are, but I will never try to trap you and also expect the same courtesy in return. That means if you decide now that you want me to choose who you can play with like a dog owner might do with their dog but decide you want to choose your own playmates again later, then just give me the heads up and that is fine. I would like to know if rules change before you change them since we both want clear rules for this, but things like sleeping with other people is understandable if you break it since I will be sleeping with others still. Things that won't be so easy to ignore is if you bring someone else along on one of our play times without asking me ahead of time since I won't be doing that to you."

Sirius nodded with a solemn expression while Adriel laid all of that out. "So pretty much don't be a hypocrite about the rules," he summarized. "Maybe we can separate them into pet rules and real rules so I know which ones are more flexible?"

Adriel grinned since that was precisely it and nodded at the separation of rules because it was a good idea. "Sure," he agreed as he prepared a small plate with scones and sausages to give to Sirius. "First rule as a pet rule is that either of us can end the pet play without ending the overall play at any time. Second real rule is that either of us can end playing with each other at any time. No reasons have to be stated - if you end up wanting to date someone or just get bored, I don't care. I do hope we can end things amicably either way so we can be friends after, though."

Sirius accepted the plate that was offered to him and placed it on the cushion in front of him. "So I can also add rules, right?" he asked, then relaxed when Adriel nodded. "Okay, so first hard rule is no actually painful punishments like dark spells, flogs, or anything like that."

Adriel was a little horrified when that was the first rule Sirius stated though he hid it. "Uh, yeah," he agreed. "I would never cast a dark spell in bed regardless. I don't like to truly hurt the other person. Some people might like light flogging or paddling, but I don't actually want to hurt anyone physically or emotionally so I refuse to do things that will make them bleed, scar, humiliate, or anything along those lines. For example, I have no problem running a knife along someone's skin, but I won't actually cut them. Likewise, if I use a flog, it is most definitely soft leather with absolutely no metal, stone, or wood bits at the ends - the most I will do is tie a knot at the end. I will also never use anything that would cause pain without first going over rules for things like that. Uh... As far as punishments, I don't really do that, either. Make you strip or deny you pleasure, but I'm more of a reward system, you know?"

Sirius was reassured by what Adriel said, then snickered at the end. "I do like the reward system," he agreed. "What kind of collar are you thinking about? One with spikes?"

Adriel shook his head no. "Spikes would make it a bit harder for me to bite and suck on your neck," he pointed out with a smirk. "Definitely leather with a ring in the front to hold the pendant I want to use and a brass buckle in the back. I plan to use runes on it so you can even shower with it on, and nobody will be able to remove it except you or I. You can pass it off as part of your rebellious muggle fashion... How public do you want this to be? As in would you want me to put a leash on you if I took you to Hogsmeade, or do you want to keep everything behind closed doors and completely private?"

Sirius was a bit disappointed to not have spikes, but Adriel did have a point with it. "Closed doors for the foreseeable future," he said. "James... He isn't against gay relationships, but like everyone else, he thinks only sissy guys bottom or sub. I don't want him to look at me differently or for him to think you manipulated me into this. He uh... Never really liked you anyway, but he never disliked you. Well, not after he got over the Snape incident and learned you could prank as good as you got. He thinks the hat probably wanted to put you in Slytherin, but it almost put me in there so..." He shrugged.

"Huh, really?" Adriel asked as he picked up an orange and started to peel it. "Most people this I would be Gryffindor, actually. The hat said I could technically go anywhere, but my hard work and fairness was definitely Hufflepuff, and any other house wouldn't have a hope of containing my chaos. It said something about Slytherin specifically imploding, so... There you have it."

Sirius laughed at the story and couldn't wait to tell James. "Oh man, that is awesome," he giggled out. "Am I allowed to tell the others?"

Adriel shrugged. "Sure, all the Hufflepuffs know and are very proud that I made them my Hogwarts tribe," he said. "I wanted more people from the other houses in my tribe, but there is only a few of the others and Gryffindors the least. Your lot are very self sufficient, head strong, and independent so while I have friends, I only have a couple in my tribe."

Sirius blinked and tilted his head. "Tribe?" he asked. "Not a harem?"

Adriel shook his head. "Nah, harem is property and I am very much against slavery," he explained. "I also don't sleep with a lot of people I consider my Hogwarts tribe. Tribe are those I trust to have my back and would happy throw off the constraints of Housism to cause chaos at a moment's notice if that was the next battle tactic, but I haven't had to wage war against the staff since the third year event."

Sirius tilted his head as he thought about their chaotic third year... So much shit went down. "The time the gargoyle walked into the Great Hall and held up a sign that demanded a retirement plan?" he asked, but Adriel shook his head no and leaned back with a grin. "When all the seventh year bigots all puked rainbows and marshmallows at the same time during breakfast? That day in February when all the classes were cancelled because the stairs went on strike? Er... When the paintings were all drunk and sang ninety-nine bottles of beer on the wall, only they started at nine hundred and ninety-nine bottles so it was from dawn and well into the night? Hmm... The parade of armor doing the cha-cha was us... What event?"

"I am under contract to never reveal what happened that day," Adriel smugly said. "I made sure there was fair treatment with no punishments without irrefutable evidence able to be presented, but I can't tell anyone what I did nor am I ever allowed to do anything like it on Hogwarts grounds again even if I maybe was a perpetrator though I refused to confess to anything without a contract in place. So on that note, are there any other rules you would like?"

Sirius was burning with curiosity, but he shook his head no. "I have no future partners lined up at the moment, so I don't mind being offered to others as long as I have the option to say no and that they are not allowed to tell anyone about our position," he added. "If I don't like it, I will let you know, but it sounds like the muggle blind dating only without dating and more sex so... Win win I guess? Just females, though, I don't feel comfortable with another guy unless I know them."

Adriel nodded. "And you mentioned toys... What about set ups?" he asked. "Things like props, cages, and the like?"

Sirius picked up a scone and smirked. "Sounds interesting," he said before he took a bite.

Adriel grinned. "So I could tie you up to a medieval torture wheel and do unspeakably fun things to you?" he asked with a leer.

"Sure, if you can find one," Sirius agreed with a wave of his scone. "I'd also be fine with being gagged with your rule of going over things before we do things, or use of a safe word and role play."

"Any role plays you are not comfortable with?" he asked. "Muggle or magical. I am pretty partial towards 'research and experiment' kind of roleplays, like doctor, scientist, department of mystery, and the like. Ah, you like that idea too, I see."

Sirius moved his hand to cover his dick, the twitching traitor, and finished swallowing the last of his scone. "I wouldn't mind being the subject," he said as he stuck his nose in the air like he had not been caught out. "Muggle does sound fund though... The one movie with lightning and building a man? Mad scientist is what Lily called that type I think."

Adriel smirked and pulled his wand out to trail the end on Sirius' neck for a moment. "Maybe it should be a metal collar instead of leather then?" he teased as he slipped his wand back into his sleeve. "Something one would put on an experimental animal since we can't do plastics here in Hogwarts. Do you want a pet name, or just to go by Sirius?"

Sirius set his plate and cup to the side, then leaned forward so he could rest his arms on Adriel's thigh while he looked up and gave him the best hopeful puppy look he could. "I'll leave both options up to my new owner?" he offered, then leaned into the scritches that Adriel gave to him with a happy dog grin.

One of the many places of Greece they dropped by on their return trip was the Dionysus Domain since Adriel hoped to get Art to sample a little bit of magical wine after he heard the only kind Art had tried was elf-made wine. France was the leading wine country in the muggle world, but Greece was the best on the magical side and there was always a sampling event on Friday evenings. Art was reluctant, of course, but he promised that one of the benefits for paying to enter was the option to accept a draught that prevented drunkenness, so he got a yes and off they went. Adriel had talked Art into letting him keep his chest belt in his Navajo pouch for additional security as well so Art could relax, and though he had been reluctant to pass over something that felt like such an integral part of himself, he was relieved that it was at least going to someone he trusted.

The even itself was held in a walled in area of the community that had banquet tables decorated with real fruit cornucopia, jams and preserves that looked like golden ambrosia and truly did taste divine small wine glasses that contained three or four swallows of wine, and platters containing crackers, breads, and cheeses. Everything was split into small sample sizes, even the food, and they all had labels on what vineyards, type, and year the wines were while the foods were labeled with the bakery, farms, greenhouses, or island they came from. It was definitely geared towards marketing, but it was also casual with private tables under trees that were meant for anywhere from one to a dozen people depending on the ticket purchased. Adriel picked up a gold ticket for two which got them a nice private clearing with a small table for two that would have sample platters pop into place with attentive service of a house elf, and soft background sounds of a lyre played by a female centaur that was positioned in a location where the music was meant for four tables in clearings set around her. Yes, decadent, but Adriel was a very hedonistic person and tickets really were inexpensive at only two galleons for the two of them. The community did not make money from it, they made money from the purchases made from interested parties who got to sample things and wanted to buy their favorites before they left.

Adriel showed Art first how to actually drink wine - it was not knocked back or swallowed, it was held on the tongue, then gently swished around. Some might swish it like it was mouthwash, but he explained that doing so was exceptionally pretentious and a show that wine tasters put on and should not be followed because it was sickening. So gentle swish around the tongue, not in the cheeks, then swallowed in increments when one is first sampling a wine to understand the full flavor it conveyed so drinking it in the future he would know how he would want certain wines to flow across the tongue for proper appreciation. Once he was satisfied that Art understood and they had some summer sausages and cheeses in them, he started in on the more fun wines. The wines that made a person blow bubbles or gaily do a small jig, others that made the imbiber feel light hearted happiness or a wistful longing for a gentle childhood memory. There were wines that tasted of the nectar from honeysuckle and others that felt cool and refreshing like sipping a cloud might feel, but Adriel made sure the wines sampled were no worse than gentle sorrow and kept them steered towards the bright and happy ones instead. The ones he declined for their table were those that would cause belligerence of a 'hero,' boasting similar to veela effects, mourning and tears, ones that would make someone talk about what was on their mind, and the other such things he thought Art may find embarrassing. By the time they were done with the samples, Art seemed to be in a better mood (not scowling or frowning) so he decided to take him out to the festival area where there was dance and music with more food and wines.

They stuck to the edges of the crowd though he pointed out the choreographed dance on the stage with nymphs and fauns and led them to a bench in the back with a good view. Much like in the painting, both genders were nude. Adriel explained there were transfiguration masters that were hired to transfigure the men, and the actors were hired by talent and appearance so that all human parts remained natural. The also pointed out to Art that no children had been seen at all because the Domain was specifically for those that were twenty and older with an age line about it that only a full Gringotts curse breaking team could break, so not to worry and to relax and watch the show since it was very traditional. When Art looked like he was about to get up and flee because the scene turned very sexual in nature since the orgy was part of the choreograph, he cast a sticking charm on Art to keep him in his chair.

"Watch it, Art," he told him. "While there is actual penetration and fondling, there is no orgasms since the dance is to showcase the dancer's flexibility and how they continue to flow with the music. It is an art, not a porn, and it should be treated no differently than seeing moving portraits that depict similar scenes from the renaissance time period."

Art was extremely red, but he settled down as much as he could to watch and try to think of it as statues or painting. It was so hard to with things jiggling like this or that, and how the... the... Well, the looks on their faces! He couldn't believe Adriel was making him watch this, but Adriel was watching with a normal expression as were a lot of the people around them so... Maybe it was normal to watch.

"The ancient Greeks had similar festivities and dances to commemorate Dionysus, so think of it like that," Adriel said with a smile. "Yes, plenty of people in the crowd will end up leaving in twos or in threes to find a room together for the night, but the Domain is very strict about sex in public locations so you won't come across anyone fornicating in alleys or anything here. It is why we have a huge selection of hotels to pick from, and there are also brothels with professionals that teach their clients the art of lovemaking. Maybe we should go to one after so you can stop jumping at every mention of sex? They are strictly professional and a lesson would go a long way to helping you understand the talk I gave you. If you want, I can go with you and be the male representation so you don't have to actually touch the female."

Art couldn't even speak he was so mortified. First the naked dancing that turned to... to what was happening on the stage! Then talking about how people were leaving - people he had not noticed leaving until Adriel said that! And then a brothel?! And lessons?! Well, he was kind of curious, but still! He tried to say no, but all he managed was this weird squeaking sound, and it made him turn even more red and he was forced to cover his face with his hands because he was not going to think about the time Adriel and Kon were... Nope nope nope.

"Shhh, you don't have to be so nervous or embarrassed," Adriel reassured as he rubbed Art's back after sending magical warmth into the hand. Hm, Art must be very affected by what was happening tonight also since he had almost arched his back at the touch but had not pulled away and both was and was not relaxing at the touch. He had also shivered, too, and that was highly telling about Art's state of arousal even if the other man wasn't aware of it. "We are friends that have gone through a lot together, so there is nothing to be shy about. Think of it as a continuation of the talk, but with a model who is willing to just be part of what happens. And if you want to touch, she will also be willing, and I can show you how to touch so if you ever are with someone like Athena, you will know exactly what to do so you can make sure you are not a selfish lover. The biggest complaint I hear from women is that their partners are very selfish, stick it in, orgasm themselves, than do nothing for her. I know you don't date, but you might change your mind in a few years and you don't want to end up changing your mind then leave the person you are with wanting since they will be very unhappy."

Art barely followed along with what Adriel said since he was doing the hands thing again and now he felt so warm and tingly everywhere that he had a very strong urge to just hold on to Adriel for some reason. He guessed that Adriel was right though - he did not want to leave someone unhappy with only him getting pleasure. Wait, was this what he was feeling? It did feel good and Adriel did say pleasure felt really good. He was about to ask that but this time all he could manage was a sound that he thought sounded very similar to what Adriel had made when he was with Kon that one night only in his throat and then Adriel's hand was gone and he whimpered.

"Oops," Adriel said in an apologetic tone since he had meant to relax Art, not seduce him. He quickly undid the sticking charm and leaned back a little to give Art some space in case he got angry. "Sorry, uh, that is called seduction, but I really didn't mean to do it, just give you some comfort. Sometimes discomfort or sadness can turn into pleasure if comfort is given which is why I said you never offer a crying woman sex since they will regret it almost every time the next morning. The mind will do a lot of things to escape pain or discomfort including turning to sexual feelings, so uhm... A brothel would help with how you are feeling right now, also?"

Art peeked between his fingers at Adriel when he started apologizing and then explained more things to him and it all made sense? He was not interested in men after all, and he was feeling very uncomfortable, and now his own thing was very hard to the point where it was king of hurting, so... A brothel would help? Well, a brothel was for sex, and Adriel said it was sexual feelings so... He gave a small nod. Adriel was right they had seen and done a lot of things, he had even seen Adriel with Kon, so it wasn't like it would be too strange to see Adriel with a woman, more normal actually since Kon was a man and he still didn't understand how it worked but that was fine since he was not interested in men. Then Adriel stood up and offered him his hand and he slowly reached out to accept it but didn't want to say anything because he was making sounds when he did and it the most embarrassing thing of all. Well, that and how his pants had a tent because of his thing being so hard, but he could fix that by pulling up his pants a little better and wiggling until his thing wasn't sticking that way.

Adriel shook his head with amusement and waited when Art notice his own arousal because he couldn't look up from the ground and had to figure out how to adjust his own pants. He stayed silent while Art figured out how to fix the problem, then led him to one of the brothels that wasn't too far away. While he preferred to get a verbal yes to things, he figured Art was incapable of speech at the moment so he accepted the nod in its stead, and when they were in the lobby of the brothel, he held a finger up to the woman at the counter in a 'I need a minute' gesture and turned back to Art.

"I would prefer if you could say yes or no, but if you still can't, you can nod or shake your head, okay?" Adriel got a nod from Art who was still red and staring at the ground. "Do you want me with you?" A nod. "Do you want your own female?" A shake. "Do you want to be able to touch her?" A shake, then a nod, then a final shrug. He figured that meant Art did, but was unsure and nervous and in denial. "Do you want her curvy like Aphrodite is?" Art flushed even more red and didn't answer in any way. "Uhm... Do you have any preference at all in how she looks like hair color, length, or skin color?" A shrug. "How about a classic Greek look?" A nod. Adriel quietly sighed with relief and led him to the counter.

"Welcome to the Golden Nereid," the beautiful lady at the counter greeted with a sultry smile as she eyed the gorgeous specimen in front of her. All part of the job, though in this case, not an onerous one at least. "We specialize in baths and massages here along with silk ties and other sensual pleasures. What is your chosen fantasy tonight?"

Adriel smiled at the woman as he felt Art move to hide behind him. "Ah, I am a little picky," he said in a seductive tone. "Classic Greek looks like you, but with a woman who is more than willing to be the recipient of lessons tonight. I would like to teach my friend how to give a woman pleasure."

The woman very much wanted to fan herself at the response because those eyes silently promised many orgasms, but she widened her smile and fluttered her lashes since she was a professional. "I would be more than willing to fulfill that fantasy personally," she purred. "Just give me a minute to find a replacement. If you would, please head to the sitting room through the door on the left side of the counter and take a seat and look through the catalogue of available rooms to pick the one you and your friend would like to use."

Adriel winked at her then turned to the door she had indicated. He didn't have to make sure Art stayed with him since he felt him grab the back of his shirt to tag along, though when they got to the sitting room, he pointed at the couch. "Sit there, Art, and we can look at the rooms together," he said in a gentle tone. Art seemed to hesitate a moment before he robotically moved to the couch and sat on one end, and Adriel grabbed one of the books on the table, checked the cover to make sure it was the right one, then picked up the one that had been under it since the first had been photographs of the available men and women. He moved to sit by Art with a few inches of space between the two of them. "Okay, I need your input here," he told Art as he opened the book. You should pick the room, one you think is most comfortable for you. The only rules are that if you pick one with a bed, there can be no curtains or footboards that might obstruct your view. A room with a large table like a hot pool with a massage table would be best from a purely instructional point, that or one with an ottoman style floor space, but your comfort comes first. So flip through the pages and point out a few you think would be nice, and remember that you might be stripping your clothes off during the lessons. Don't be embarrassed since we have seen each other naked and she has seen many men with all types of bodies and you would definitely be in the category of a very nice body."

Art doubted he would ever be able to speak at this rate. He didn't think his body was that nice despite what Adriel kept saying. He knew better than to argue about it by now - Adriel would just tell him how nice it would be to lick chocolate off him or something, only way worse, and then he would have more images in his brain he really didn't want and chocolate syrup was still... Nope. He was not going to think of chocolate syrup. Ever since dessert with Athena, he knew it was a bad idea to think of chocolate syrup. And why was he thinking about chocolate syrup still?! Adriel would ruin all the favorite desserts at this rate! He breathed in and out like Adriel had taught him so he could look through the pages, then pointed at the first one that met the specifications that had been said. It was a hot bath one, but he didn't care since he doubted he could get comfortable in any room and at least it was normal to be naked in a bath.

Adriel eyed the picture a little skeptically as he wondered if Art was just picking to pick. "Don't you want to look at other rooms just to make sure?" he asked, then smiled when Art scowled and started to flip through more pages. He relaxed back into the couch as he watched the pictures and saw a few other nice rooms he himself would have picked, but they were skipped over. "I normally don't hire a companion unless it is to experiment with something new that I can't find a trustworthy or experienced partner for," he said after a minute to fill in the silence. "A professional is very good for those things - it would be like hiring a professional book binder to repair an old book rather than trying to figure it out yourself or to get someone you know to do it for you just because they work with the newspapers. Prostitution is the oldest profession in the world as I am sure you know, and the ones here cater for a lot of things so they don't bat an eye at anything you might request as long as you go to the right brothel. When they say they specialize with sensual things like the one here, it means they don't do more extreme acts that include pain and such, they are more about helping a person relax and feel good. And I will shut up now since that color of red can't be good for you at all and I do hope to get you to relax enough to talk at some point tonight. Remember that consent isn't just no means no, it is that everything means no unless there is a clear yes. Your nodding is a grey area for me unless gags are involved, but I understand you can't speak right now so it is similar to that. Just make sure to say or indicate no if you really don't want to do anything and I will make sure to end things right away no matter what we are in the middle of."

Thankfully that got Art to relax just a tiny amount and he nodded before flipping back to the first room he had picked and leaving it there. Adriel picked up the book and gently moved it to the table, debated on giving Art a comforting touch, but decided it was a bad idea since Art would not want it if asked and if he just did it, it could just be more seduction and he didn't want to make Art do something he would regret. The longer the silence went on, the more Adriel wondered if this was a good idea at all, so he cleared his throat. "Are you sure you are ok with this?" he gently asked. "I don't want to push you into anything."

Unbeknownst to Adriel, Art had actually started to calm down a little since it was quiet and he could actually think. He had decided on the baths again since it was logical if he might get naked and probably would see Adriel naked if he was teaching him (don't think about Kon) and also figured Adriel had a very good point about making sure Art knew how to make someone else happy since he didn't want to have sex with someone and leave them angry. They would leave him then, and he would go back to being rejected just because he didn't know how to have sex. He wasn't interested, but Adriel's constant talk of not burning bridges and that me might change his mind in a few years was a possibility even if he didn't see it, and he had been happy around Athena, so it was better not to ruin something he could have prevented. Then Adriel surprised him with the question. "Uhm, yes," he quietly said out loud. "I um don't want to uh... Ruin something by uh n-not knowing what to do."

Adriel blew out the breath he had been holding with relief since Art finally spoke. "Okay" he agreed as the earlier woman slipped into the room. He glanced at her and indicated the open book and continued to speak with Art. "Remember that most people are actually pretty shy with their bodies, it is not just you, so when I am showing you things today, it is actually uncommon for people to be as forward as I or the lady will be. Rather than just do things to someone, you should always ask if they want to, and while it is being done, ask if they like it. That is the best way to know if what you are doing is right since everyone has different likes so what works for one person may not work for another person. Now, what is the name of our lovely hostess tonight?"

"I go by Galene of the calm seas, sirs," she said with a small curtsey that raised her arms to show the bare ribs with a small curve of side boob her toga left exposed. "One of the daughters of Poseidon. May I have the pleasure of your names?"

Adriel smiled and put an arm on the couch behind Art who was staring at her with wide eyes before he blushed and looked away. "I am Adriel, prince of the Navajo people, and this is my friend and companion Artemio, named after the Goddess Artemis and a highly intelligent researcher from Oxford that will most likely be in the papers soon," he said. The introduction was grand, yes, but he wanted to amuse Galena and make it a memorable experience for Art who was now beet red again and staring down into his lap. "His studies and passion into history has left left him a little ignorant in the ways of women, and I wish to correct that tonight since he will most likely find himself beset with many offers soon. He does not think he is beautiful as hard as it is to believe."

Galene raised a hand to her hand in surprise. "No?" she asked. "He looks so magnificent! Someone who could have passed as a noble or a rich merchant in Ancient Greece or Rome! I know I am more than pleased to have the honor of helping you teach such a gorgeous man. The both of you are so beautiful that I am already the envy of the other Nereids that caught a glimpse of you when you both entered the foyer of our establishment."

Art was not a violent man, but he was so embarrassed that he almost wanted to hurt Adriel now. He was not gorgeous or beautiful or magnificent, though he had no doubt the other 'Nereids' probably did fine Adriel handsome because he was. He also knew he couldn't open his mouth to deny anything right now because his throat was tight like it had been earlier when he had squeaked, so he raised his head to glare at Adriel for this then scowled when he got a smile.

Adriel leaned in a little with a smile to Art's scowl and glare. "So beautiful that I wish to devour you, remember," he purred to Art, and made Art blush furiously and look away. He turned his head to wink at Galene who actually watched that short interaction with a touch of lust, and she giggled in response. "I do have another dish to play with tonight, though. Or rather, one to instruct you with, but it is still the same thing since you can always have fun with lessons. Are you ready to go?"

Art was calling Adriel every insult he could in every Ancient language in his mind while he tried to keep his heart in his chest. Ugh, he felt like he had just hiked up the to the Cave of Zeus at a dead sprint. Why did he have to say something like that and remind him of chocolate syrup and everything else that had happened on their trip all at the same time! Then Adriel asked him a question, something about going, and he gave a jerky nod and stood up because he suddenly felt like sitting next to Adriel was waaay too close so he was definitely ready to move.

Galene delicately held a hand to her mouth to hide her smile as Adriel also stood and smiled at Art and how nervous he was. Ever since that night Art had walked in on him and Konstantinos, he had amused himself more by turning Art into a blushing mess any time he knew they would be in a safe area for an entire day. Toying with Art on the expedition was not something he did aside from a few light blushes since the last thing he needed was a mute and distracted Art on unexplored islands, but now that the dangerous things was done, it was play time before more dangerous things in England had to be taken care of. Galene seemed to understand how he was teasing Art as well and was on board with helping the man with his confusion so he gave her a small bow. "At your pace, my goddess," he said with a wink.

Galene giggled then turned to lead the way to the hot bath suite, though she kept glancing back to look at the adorably awkward Artemio and the tall and handsome Adriel. She pressed a hand to her belly when it fluttered with anticipation as she met the latter's eyes and looked forward to hide her blush. She really did hope he was more than just talk, since that alone had her very eager for the upcoming 'lessons.' As much as she enjoyed sex, men came here for their own pleasure, so hers was usually coincidental and that was considered as part of the job. It was so rare to have a client that seemed eager to pleasure one of the Nereids.

The room they entered was white marble with red pillars and accents. The massage bench was cushioned and there were a couple of clay pots filled with water and wine with goblets for a guest to use, but the only other seats was inside the bath itself. "The changing rooms and showers are on the left and the restrooms if they are needed at any point are on the right," she said as she turned back with a sultry smile. "Your clothes will be laundered as part of the service, there are robes you will be allowed to keep as souvenirs since we do not reuse them, and I bathed a couple hours ago and have had no clients as of yet today. My fees are three galleons per hour, though if you wish to keep me all night, it will only be fifteen galleons with a room for us to share. Please keep in mind that while you may remove anything off my person, my bracelet is the only thing that is enchanted to stay on as it works as a contraceptive and alerts the security if I am harmed in any way. The establishment and government does care for its workers and citizens greatly, so any undue force will be met with harsh penalties and prison time. I do not believe either of you to be violent men, but I am also required to give those warnings for the safety of all involved. I will wait for you both down here while you use the facilities on the left."

Adriel smiled at the tasteful way she said 'go take a shower' and turned to Art. "Let us not keep our hostess waiting, Art," he said and led him to the stairs on the left. Much like a Hamam, the dressing room had cubicles with baskets though there were only half a dozen cubicles unlike a hamam which could have up to two dozen depending on the size of the place. "We need to shower first - for places like these, you do not enter a pool without being clean first. A hot pool is meant for soaking to relax and socialize. You want to put all your clothes in one basket and leave it in the cubby for them to wash, and the robes in the basket for you are a very fine cotton quality that are thick enough to sit in the bath without them going see-through. The shower stalls all have privacy curtains so I will strip and go in so you can undress without being watched to shower yourself."

Adriel immediately pulled off his shirt with only that as a warning and smirked when Art almost fell over with how quickly he turned to face the other way. "Galene is pretty, yes?" he said in a conversational tone as he sat on the wooden bench so he could remove his boots next. "Her hair especially, but she has creamy smooth skin. You can tell it is natural since her makeup is very light and the toga shows her sides a bit. Nudity is one thing, but when clothes hint at more without actually showing them, that is called enticing. It enticed people to want to remove those clothing, so when people dress like that, it can be an invitation. Other times, it is very much not an invitation since people also like to wear things to feel pretty or sexy for themselves rather than for other people, so you never touch a person even if they are all but naked unless you get a spoken yes. Some people are afraid to say no so they say nothing, and you see that most often with those that have been abused or raped in the past which is far too common to see in the muggle world. It happens less in the magical world since magic is a great equalizer, but it does happen, especially in marriages where people feel trapped because of circumstances like things being arranged or them being disowned for it. These things can also happen to men in both muggle and magic situations, it isn't limited to just women as well."

Art had tensed up when Adriel had started talking about how pretty Galene was - about her hair and her skin and hadn't Adriel said something about his own? Both of hers were much nicer than his, but Adriel had also said he wanted to dev... uh... what he said on the couch. No, he wasn't going to think of that, it reminded him of the talk about oral sex and he very much didn't want to think of that, either. Thankfully Adriel moved on to reasons why taking silence as a bad thing or just touching people without a yes was also a bad thing, and he nodded as he listened to Adriel get undressed. Then he said the last part. "How can it happen to men?" Art asked since he had never heard of a man being raped by a woman. "A man gets hard if he wants sex."

Adriel stood and wrapped a towel around his waist. "A man can be sodomized by another man since it is another hole, or even forced to perform orally through threats," he pointed out. "Not just that though. Getting hard is a natural reaction. You wake up hard often but do not think about sex. There are other times when you get hard but are not thinking of attraction or sex. It just happens, and you don't think about it. A woman could rub your dick and also make you hard, then tell you it is what you want because that is proof. You will feel humiliated and think she is right, so you stop saying no and let her do as she wishes to your body. There are many ways like that to trick another person into thinking they want what they do not want - like 'if you love me, you want this' or 'I feel neglected and unloved because you won't give me that.' Those are just three examples of making someone feel guilty and do something, but there are dozens if not hundreds of ways to coerce someone. Technically, me telling you that going to the brothel is a good idea so you don't ruin things in the future with someone could also be considered coercion, and that is why I keep asking you if you really are okay with this because I don't want you to be upset or unhappy about this tomorrow when it is all done."

Art was very surprised since he had never thought of any of that, or that Adriel had kept asking him if it was ok was because he was worried he was making him do something he didn't want. He thought about the whole situation more carefully, then shook his head. "I won't regret this tomorrow," he said more firmly. "I am nervous, but I uh... I have been curious for a long time, ever since uh... That night in Naxos with uhm... When I walked in on you? I never saw a uhm... I didn't think that s-sex was that pleasant? But you s-seem to make it sound very good and then there was Athena and uhm... Yes, I want to know."

Adriel grinned though Art couldn't see it. "I am relieved to hear that, then," he said before he turned to pad off to the shower stall and closed the curtain. "You are safe to strip now!"

Art quickly removed his clothes wanting to get this part over with as fast as possible so he wouldn't have to stand naked and exposed for long. He hadn't realized Adriel was worried enough to feel relieved about what he said, but it made him feel a lot more relaxed and comfortable about the whole thing since Adriel was clearly thinking about his comfort. He had even wanted him to pick the room and had asked about the woman he might want and everything, and even came along so that Art wouldn't have to touch anybody! He really hated being touched and it made him feel something warm in his chest that Adriel was watching out for him even though he was technically no longer required to. He grabbed the bath robe he had set to the side and went to the shower furthest from Adriel, then started to wash himself with the soap that was provided. It smelled good, like honey and wine, and he heard Adriel get out first.

"I'll wait downstairs with Galena, but if you aren't out in ten minutes, I will come and fetch you," Adriel warned. "You can change your mind at any time as well, but please do come out on your own so I know you are willing. Trust me, it is nowhere near as scary as the time we went on that island with the manticore, and you did great then, so don't be afraid to come join me now if that is what you want. I'm leaving a pair of sandals outside your shower too, they are new as well."

"Okay," Art said out loud while he wrestled with a panicky feeling. He went on that island because Adriel was with him! Now he was going to be left alone! But Adriel wanted him to come down himself if he was willing, and he remembered Adriel saying 'show, don't tell since it is easy to lie with words,' so he calmed himself down by telling himself that it was just showing Adriel proof of what he said earlier and finished his shower. He threw on the bathrobe before stepping out, then put on the straw sandals that Adriel had set out for him, checked the time and saw it was almost nine, and did the breathing exercises when he hesitated at the door so he could actually open it and peek out. Adriel and Galene were quietly talking down by the pool, then Adriel looked up at him and smiled that same smile he always gave Art when Art was nervous and that also made him feel warmth in his chest. He slipped out of the dressing room while he rubbed his chest and wondered if he was getting heartburn from the wine, and it was only nine steps to reach the bottom and he stood there not sure what he was supposed to do.

"Come here, Art, and just watch," Adriel said when he saw Art's uncertain body language. "Stand by me, battle distance so no more than three feet away but preferably closer to Galene so you can see what I am pointing out. I let her know you do not like to be touched and it is lessons for you, but I also promised her orgasms so you can see how a woman reacts when you give them one and how their body also reacts so you don't get tricked by fake reactions. Some women will pretend they are having orgasms just to make a man finish quickly because she doesn't want sex, or because she is trying to seduce a man and stroke his ego for money or information. A person who has just had good sex is more likely to give things to the other person as a show of affection which is why prostitutes were also some of the first spies and assassins as well. Sex is very integral in all species that require a mate, so it is good to keep these things in mind because you will be very very popular soon and I don't want you tricked or raped either."

Since Art was now by him, he gestured to Galene and winked at her making her smile. "This is a lovely specimen of a woman," he said. "She has all the classic signs of beauty - unblemished skin, a symmetrical face with a straight and delicate nose, full lips, large eyes, and hair with volume and shine that looks soft to touch. She is also graceful-" he paused so she could shift her stance to a more graceful pose that exposed her side and accentuated her hip on the other side by putting a hand on it "-has a beautiful voice, and is well versed in how to please a man with her words, her body language, her mouth, her hands, and her genitals. Most women as I mentioned are modest." He paused again so she could take a more modest pose and look away with a slight blush. "That is the body language of a woman who is shy but flattered." She changed her pose again to purse her lips, let her blush clear away, and almost shrink inward. "That one is a woman who is unhappy and feeling intimidated. They appear very similar, and an unobservant or uncaring person won't pay attention. Now, a friendly woman who is being polite and professional-" Galene changed her pose to face them with a smile and offered Adrien her had which he accepted and slightly bowed over "-has an open body language with a friendly smile and is not exhibiting fear or shyness. One who is feeling forced to act like that though will not have that sparkle in her eyes and the corner of her eyes will probably be a little tense. Yes, like so."

Galene relaxed after holding a forced smile for a couple minutes until Adriel nodded at her for her to relax and released her hand. "Her currently body language is her natural one - ah ah, my beautiful Nereid, relax - she tried to shift to something a little more seductive when I pointed that out, but you can see the slopes of her shoulders are currently smooth and she doesn't show any signs of stress or tension on her face. Her lips are showing she is genuinely amused by the current situation, and that she is not shying away at all by our proximity shows she is not uncomfortable, either. This is how you want your partner's body language to be - relaxed, open, and willing. You can do this in many ways, but the first thing you must always do it this." He turned to her with a smile and offered her his hand. "May I please begin touching you?"

Galene giggled as she accepted his hand. "Most definitely, yes," she answered with a large smile.

Adriel moved so he was standing behind her but facing Art who was blushing but watching. "Now, just because I have permission does not mean I go immediately for her breasts or anything," he told Art. "By offering her my hand, I implied that the touching was only with my hand. She may not like being kissed or having someone's mouth on her body, so rather than assume a 'yes' means all touching is okay, I do something like this."

His left hand went around her waist to splay out on her belly, and he released her right hand to lightly trail his hand up along her right arm. "Please tell him what this feels like to you and if you like it?" he requested.

Galene had been a little distracted by the warmth on her stomach with the light touch, but she brought her face up to smile at Art. "Being held from behind like this makes me feel how strong he is in a comfortable way since his touch is so gentle," she said after she thought about it for a second. "And the light trailing on my skin leaves goosebumps because it tickles a little but in a good way like silk or velvet or other nice and soft things. I like both feelings and I would like more."

Adriel trailed his fingers up to her shoulder, then started to gently massage it with a little bit of heat which made her give a soft sigh and relax a little more. "The main way to get a person to relax is through massages," he told Art. "Different people like different amounts of pressure, so it is best to start off with light pressure and ask them in they want it harder and if they like the spot. You look for any area that feels hard and gently rub on it to loosen up tension."

"Mmm, just a little harder and a centimeter closer to the spine," Galene requested with her eyes lidded with pleasure. Magic hands, definitely magic hands. "Oh my god you could be hired here by all of us just for your massages."

Adriel grinned at Art and winked since Art knew how a massage from him felt. He took half a step back so he could massage the other shoulder with the hand that had been on her belly, and she groaned and lowered her head to better expose the area when he applied magic with that hand as well. "Learning to give massages should be done with your partner," he explained to Art. "It is honestly a lot of trial and error to learn how to give them. Your hands will also get tired out unless you use strengthening exercises like gripping a rubber ball or doing pull ups on bars - things that train your grip. I have been handling weapons and a bow since I was young, and they require constant training, so they keep my hands strong so I could give her a massage for hours." She moaned at that. "But if you have good technique, you can have your partner happy within five to ten minutes, and you get good technique through experimentation and practice while asking them if they like something and how they like it." Galene moaned an agreement. "May I please start to undress you?"

Galene was ready to tell him he could do whatever he wanted as long as he didn't stop massaging her, but she was a professional even if it took Art's squeak of alarm to remind herself that she was here to help Adriel teach someone else. "Yes, please," she said after she swallowed to make sure that her voice would be steady. He didn't even fumble with her toga clasps when he undid them both after sliding his hands over her shoulders and down to them. She raised her head and smiled at Art as her robes dropped to her feet to display her naked body.

"This is a woman's body - or rather, this is Galene's body," Adriel said as he slid his hand to her ribs then down her sides to rest on her hips. "Every woman looks different. They might have very small or very large breasts, their stomach might be round it it might be flat, they might be skinny or they might be fat. You can see Galena has a little bit of roundness to her stomach which is very typical in Greek art. Her hips are smooth and a little narrow, but they will widen if she ever gets pregnant since a woman's body goes through a lot of permanent changes when they have a child. Her nipples are pink and small, but they do darken with age around thirty and the nipples would get bigger if she were to get pregnant as well. Her legs are nicely toned which shows she is active in walking and using them as are her arms and if you hold her stomach a little or see her back, you can feel the muscles in the stomach or see the toned muscles in the back. Turn around, luv."

Galena turned around and smiled up at Adriel which made him huff a laugh and smile down at her before he looked back at Art. "Again, calf muscles, firm thighs, buttocks that appear soft but you can see the flex of every time she shifts, a curve on the small of her back, and the muscles supporting the spine that are visible in how the back and the spine are not completely flat. That small bump on both sides of the spine is a very good indication for core strength which is needed for a good sex workout - it means she won't just collapse to the bed and make you do all the work. Questions so far?"

Art was still blushing, but with the instructional way Adriel was doing this, he was able to take it in. He was very nervous that he would have to see Adriel do things, but building it up like this was ok. Since Adriel and Galene both looked very beautiful, he could actually relate the scene more to a painting like Adriel had mentioned several times in regards to nudity on the stage and then here, but it wasn't as bad as he had feared at all. Very educational in fact. He shook his head no since Adriel was telling him things he had not even thought to ask.

"Okay, good," Adriel said then smiled at Galene. "Will you please help me move the massage bench here?" he asked her, and she brightly smiled and happily bounced over to the farther side of the bench to showcase her body which made Adriel chuckle as he walked the few steps over to the closer side. They lifted it up together and carried it over so it was only a foot away from Art, and she eagerly sat down in the center and looked over at Adriel attentively. "That is the enthusiastic consent I was talking about," he told Art with a smile at Galene. "She hasn't said yes with her words, but you can see how eager she is to get to the next part. So step one is making sure they are relaxed and understand what is happening when you ask for consent like our talk in the dressing room or how she very obviously knows what is going on, and step two is making sure your partner is eager and wanting to participate. It's not fun to have a one sided conversation about Ancient Greece to someone who is not interested, and it should not be fun to have a one sided sexual experience with someone who is not interested. So on that note, how to pleasure a female. Galene, may I please touch your breasts?"

Galene was ready. She was sooo damned ready with the way Adriel talked about her body like it was something to be properly handled. "Yes please, you may even use your mouth or any other body part you want on them," she said with a wink. "Artemio can as well. Any permission I give you he also has."

Adriel laughed and moved to sit next to her. "There we go, she just skipped ahead of a couple other steps, but that is a good thing since blanket permissions means you don't have to take things slow any longer," he told Art. "Usually a more experienced partner will give you blanket permissions, someone who really really wants sex, or someone who trusts you. But just to be on the safe side, you also ask them to please tell you if you are doing something they do not like and to please tell you if there is something you can do better."

"Okay," Galene agreed as Art nodded he also understood.

"When it comes to breasts, they are a tender area on a woman's body so you never grab them hard, grip them, or press down on them hard unless the woman specifically states she wants that or you know she likes pain," Adriel said as he lifted his hands and gently cupped them. "Nipples are an erroneous zone for most men and women, but not all of them. You can send pleasure from lightly brushing the tips with your thumb." Galene licked her lips when Adriel did that and was now looking down to watch his hands. "You can lightly pinch them between your fingers. You can also carefully press your fingernail in in a different type of pinch. And you can do similar with your mouth using lips, teeth, tongue, breath, and suction. One method both men and women like would be tongue and breath like so."

Adriel lowered his head to her breast, laved his tongue on the nipple and areola, then blew on it which made Galene shiver. "I like that, yes," she said with a smile. "You are welcome to try the other one if you wish, Artemio?"

Art had been find as a bystander. He was used to being a wall flower, even. Being asked that reminded him of all the times he would be snickered at by the class when he was asked by a teacher to work on a problem, and while he could do it back then because he knew the answer, he was suddenly afraid because he knew he would get it wrong and then she would laugh at him because he was not like Adriel and he had no idea what he was-

"Shhh, it's ok, Art," Adriel soothed. "Galene is just very happy to teach you. Remember, she is a professional so won't judge you at all - she has given you permission to touch her, she is eager, and she has no doubt slept with some very terrible and inconsiderate clients that she had to smile and be nice to. In this situation though, she is a teacher so she would just say what she likes so all you would have to do is correct your technique until you got it right. Most importantly though, it is okay to say no, you don't need to worry about either of us rejecting you since I am your friend and I have already promised that I am willing to leave at any time you want to stop. Just breathe and ask yourself if you want to accept her offer without thinking about anything extra."

Art closed his eyes to start the breathing exercise so he didn't see Galene mouth an apology to Adriel or how Adriel brushed her lower lip with his thumb and winked at her. He thought about how Adriel looked when he licked her nipple once he calmed down and put a hand to his stomach because it was warm and fluttery there. He guessed that meant yes since the image had made him feel pleasure on a much lighter scale than when Adriel had touched his back at the orgy scene, though thinking of that made him feel much warmer so he gave an uncomfortable squirm, then he opened his eyes and nodded. "I think I would like to try," he quietly said, but didn't move.

"Alright, come sit on the other side of her like I am and relax," Adriel said to Art, then smiled when he complied.

Art gave Galene a nervous glance before he focused on Adriel after he sat down. "Okay, now what?" he asked.

August 6th, 1935

Seven PM rolled around and Art nervously paced in his living room since Adriel had not knocked on his door like he had promised for the 'practice date.' Had he changed his mind? He knew it was stupid of him to think of going on a date! Even if it was a practice date he wished was not a practice date but a real date. He had checked and rechecked himself in the mirror for the last half hour to make sure he looked as perfect as he could get without a single hair out of place. And now it was 7:05 according to his watch and Adriel was never late so obviously he wasn't going to come at all. Art looked at the door feeling his heart start to break, but then a knock came.

Oh god. It was Adriel! What did he do? He had just given up but he knew that knock! Oh wait, Adriel was here! And Art was just leaving him standing out there! Art almost ran to the door in a panic because leaving Adriel out there was way worse than opened the door to find out maybe it was just some vacuum salesman, but no, it was most definitely Adriel because the lacy white summer dress with seashell jewelries had Adriel written all over it despite the fact that he really could not recognize his friend in the beautiful woman in front of him that was not wearing the normal kohl that Adriel usually wore even as a male but had some kind of pretty and sparkly makeup under and around his eyes that drew attention to them like kohl usually did. Ah, and there was more makeup, too, but it was so subtle that he had not noticed it. And he was staring since Adriel just smiled at him and was opening his mouth to say something and Art knew he should greet him first but what came out was "You are late," and then a scowl because he had not meant to say that at all.

Adriel grinned since he was a little worried about the ten seconds Art had been staring at him without a greeting, but with the blunt rudeness and the scowl, he was on familiar grounds once more. "Oh, I know," he said, careful to keep his voice to a husky feminine one. "One of the nearby neighbors decided he and his friends wanted to steal a date, didn't understand no, and so had a date with the knife on my thigh. I was supposed to be here ten minutes early, but blood is terribly hard to get out of white. I am glad to report that I did get it out, the boys ran off with only a bit of light bleeding from their leader since really didn't want blood on me, and they have hopefully learned to never try to force a lady on a date in the future. You might want to move into a magical area or apply for a closer apparition point to your house, though. I don't want you mugged by those types of people."

That was an unusual response from Adriel - he never drew knives on muggles first and was more likely to break their nose instead. But on second thought, Adriel was probably only 5'3" so maybe he didn't have the strength? No, no, the off-the-shoulder dress with the laces did make him look a little delicate, but at a second glance he could still see Adriel's muscles since he knew how to look past lace and makeup, so it wasn't a lack of strength because Adriel could probably knock him out even without magic not that that was saying much. Still, he was more fit than the average muggle because he had had to increase his workouts and stuff to keep up with demanding expeditions and had gotten tired of being literally carried by Adriel and didn't want to be seen as weak. He wasn't as tone as Adriel, but there was definitely muscle right below the skin of his stomach that could be seen if he sucked it in and his chest was pretty firm now.

Adriel wondered if he broke Art again since he was just staring at him wide eyed still - he recalled the only other time Art had seen him as a female something similar had happened. "May I please come in?" he politely prompted. "I would like to check my hair and make sure I still look ok."

Art almost stumbled in his haste to move back and open the door wider. "Oh, yes, sorry!" he apologized. "I mean, please come in. I was just wondering uh... Why didn't you break their noses or something like you usually do?" When he closed the door behind Adriel, it was a bit too hard, and Art winced a little at how clumsy he felt now.

Adriel glanced back at Art and gave him a small smirk. Huh, they hadn't even started their date yet and Art was so nervous and jumpy. "I'd be in a lot more trouble from the police if they found out I wasn't a lady," he pointed out with a small wink. "My other option was to use magic, but aurors on the other side don't like muggle baiting. The knife was the best believable option - I just had to act like an American whisky drinking woman and tell them I was used to castrating bulls back on the farm after I sliced one arm that had a hand that was trying to be a bit too grabby, and they decided they most definitely did not want to stick around. Anyway, I need to check my hair real quick."

Art had meant to say Adriel looked fine or just let him go on to use the bathroom, but another part of his brain that sounded like Adriel said 'remember to be polite, and if all else fails, a small but sincere compliment can help even if it is about the color of a woman's shoes. It just has to be honest.' "You're beautiful," he blurted out instead, then his eyes went wide because he really did mean to only say Adriel's hair looked nice and now his face was all red. "Uhm, I mean... Your hair isn't messed up."

Adriel's smirk widened into a larger smile as he looked Art up and down as well. He had not immediately noticed since he had still been a bit frazzled over fighting in heels then having to clean his dress in an alley with magic while worrying about being late, but Art actually put a lot of work into his appearance tonight. His usual curly hair had been combed back with a minimal amount of pomade, he was wearing the watch his father had gifted to him, and his dress shoes were shined and polished very well. He even had a folded silk kerchief in his suit pocket! "You are looking very sharp and handsome yourself, doll," he complimented before he went off to the bathroom since poor Art obviously needed a break for a minute and you really couldn't trust most men to notice if hair was out of place.

Art was standing at the door one moment as he watched Adriel strut off after calling him handsome, then in the next moment he was sitting on the couch and not sure how he got there, but he leaned forward over his knees and started his breathing exercises. Adriel was here! He had not blown him off! He said he was handsome! What was he supposed to do next? Something about flower but he forgot to buy flowers! No, wait, Adriel said no flowers. Talk about flowers? Well, he supposed he knew a little bit about flowers between potions and reading Flora and Fauna books for Greece and Egypt to make sure he knew what animals or plants would be around to kill him (all the animals, some of the plants) but he didn't have a favorite flower. Did Adriel have one? How could he not know if Adriel had one or what it was if he did have one! Adriel seemed to always know everything about Art. Oh! He could tell Adriel the story about how Chloris made roses and how Aphrodite named them! Adriel liked stories, so that would probably work. But then what? Adriel mentioned the theater, but was there supposed to be dinner? Was he supposed to pick the movie? He didn't know any movies!

Adriel came out and saw Art was having one of his little panic moments. He breathed out a quiet sigh and shook his head. "Hey there, it's just me," he reassured Art with the soothing tone he used when Art's thoughts were spiraling. Art looked up at him looking a little wild-eyed to he gave him a regular smile. "We've gone out to eat dinners and have done a lot of things together. Just because I look like and am dressed as a female doesn't mean you need to think of me anyone else except for Adriel. You should always treat your date the same way you do when you interact with them in a regular setting and it will help keep the pace calm and steady with no awkwardness or fear."

Right. Calm. This wasn't their first dinner. This wasn't the first time he saw Adriel dressed like a girl, either. The first time, Adriel had embarrassed him so bad that he ended up not nervous at all with Athena's dinner invitation. This time he was trying to calm him down. Of course, this was their first dinner with then on a real date, well, a real practice date. Damn, Adriel still didn't know how he felt either so he didn't know everything about Art after all. He frowned but nodded since he was now unhappy about this being a practice date rather than a real date.

Adriel sighed again and walked over to Art. "Hey, you should not frown on a date," he lightly teased with a smile. "Here, take my hand and I will apparate us to King's Crossing. Regent Street Cinema is wired for sound and I picked up tickets yesterday for 'The 39 Steps' that was released five days ago so even I haven't seen it! It's an Alfred Hitchcock movie about a British spy so plenty of adventure and no worrying over ancient history being mangled. Adventure, thriller, and a bit of romance since the hero gets the girl probably, but I think you will like it... or at least not dislike it. Way better than the attempts movies have made to try to reproduce Ancient Greece or Rome stories, trust me. It's like they say 'Oh, let's do a story about Julius Caesar, only there will be a girl in it that he loves so he becomes the Roman Emperor, but his brother, Caesar Augustus, decides he wants the girl and the throne so he tries to have Julius assassinated. So Julius fakes his death, runs off with the woman he loves, and leaves the throne and the politics to his brother to live happily ever after.' Terrible, right? The title of that one was Julius Caesar, an Italian silent film from 1914 and one of the most painful two hour experiences I have suffered through. The popcorn was great, though." Ah, that got a laugh, finally, so he smiled at Art. "Let's go to the apparition point at King's crossing and take the train to Oxford Circus station - the area is too crowded to apparate close enough to because it is a large shopping and entertainment district. It shouldn't be too bad since it is a Tuesday evening, though."

Art stood up and accepted Adriel's hand - he was feeling much better now that he knew what he was supposed to be doing. "I thought I was supposed to pay for the tickets since it is my date?" he asked since that did concern him a bit. Plus he was the man right now as strange as that felt. Adriel would still be the one to protect them though if something like a 'rabid muggle attack' as Adriel called them happened. Actually, it had already happened, hadn't it. "Were you hurt earlier?"

Adriel blinked up at Art as he briefly released his hand to rearrange it so their fingers intertwined. "Right as rain," he said as he held up their hands and smiled. "This will tell everyone we are together as a romantic couple tonight, so we will be fine if you are worried about that. Movie is the ten o'clock showing so if you are worried about paying, you can pick and pay for our dinner. Oh." He paused to pull the tickets out from the corset and tucked them into Art's jacket pocket behind the kerchief with a wink.

Art's whirling thoughts over the words 'romantic couple' pretty much matched the feeling of side along apparition he found himself in. That and the image of Adriel sticking his fingers down his own chest to pull out the tickets that had probably been against bare skin then tuck them into his pocket. Maybe Adriel did know? Adriel had not once said 'practice date' when he mentioned a date today, so he probably figured it out, right? He looked down at Adriel as he considered the possibility while they walked and his eyes were drawn to the bare shoulders. Uh... What had he been thinking about, again? Adriel's shoulders looked so smooth and so did his neck... He really was very pretty tonight and Art kind of wanted to reach out and touch.

"Two tickets for Oxford Circus," Adriel said in his feminine voice after he led the silent Art into the train station and to the ticket booth. He had noticed Art staring at him for the last thirty seconds or so and figured his friend was still adjusting to him looking like a female tonight. Plus being shorter. He figured the reduced height would be better for Art to help him feel more masculine since Art wanted dating practice and part of it would be taking care of the woman that had caught his eye. Still, the staring would unnerve most people, so as he released Art's hand so he could pass over a few coins to trade for the tickets, he glanced up at Art and smirked. "I appreciate that you like what you see, but staring like that is rude. If you want to look, you need to talk to me so that looks and glances would be more normal."

Art blushed since he had been staring (been caught staring), but he also frowned because Adriel had paid for tickets again since he had not been paying attention. Plus now he needed to think of something to talk about. Ah, Adriel did say he could pay for dinner, so he would ask about that. "Is there anything you would like for dinner?" he asked as they walked to platform four. He glanced down at Adriel's hand along the way since his own hand suddenly felt bereft. "The British library isn't far from Regent Street, about half a mile, so I know a couple small places."

Adriel clasped his hands behind his back and flirtatiously leaned forward with a small flutter of his lashed. "You know what I like to eat, so I will let you decide," he said with a smile. The frowning was really cute, but he hoped Art didn't frown at his dates. This look of surprise with a hint of blushing at how close Adriel was was much better than the frown. "Just something light but filling, please. I skipped lunch on accident since I was getting ready for our date, and by the time I realized it, it was a bit too late. Ordering for a date you know well shows intimate knowledge of your partner, so I'm sure you will do great."

Intimate? Intimate?! Wait, he had to order for Adriel to prove he wanted intimacy?!?!?! Art felt like he suddenly had the most difficult rocket science equation dropped in front of him or was told to work backwards from E = mc² to figure out what Einstein did! What was the right answer? Adriel like salads and fruits! Oh, but filling and neither were filling. He was going to fail and Adriel was going to think he didn't want intimacy and... Would getting dinner right get him a good night kiss? No, stop thinking. Don't think. Nope nope nope he really didn't want to faint in the middle of platform four of King's Crossing. Sheep! Sheep were safe! "How is Mrs. Fluffy?" he asked, desperate to change the subject.

Adriel smiled and shook his head as he made a note to himself to be careful about the flirting. Poor Art had gone red, then pale, then pink, then red again before he suddenly asked about the little lamb that he had introduced Art to after Greece. Just like Mr. Bear, Mrs. Fluffy had been named something meant to be temporary and just got stuck with the name. "Mrs. Fluffy is doing very well," Adriel said as he gave Art a tiny bit of space. "She recently had a lamb of her own that I had not gotten a chance to write to you about, but the new lamb is beige as well. Would you like to go see her tomorrow? The lamb is still suckling and has no teeth, so you can even bottle feed her if you would like."

Art's eyes grew wide. Mrs. Fluffy had a baby? A fluffy baby girl! "I have never bottle fed anything before," he said, feeling conflicted between excitement at the new lamb and fear about bottle feeding. "What if I drop her? What if Mrs. Fluffy doesn't like me touching her baby? What if-"

"Shh," Adriel soothed and reached out to hold Art's hand again since the train would be coming in the next minute. Best not let the crowd that would be getting off think him to be single since drawing a knife in the middle of a train station was a very bad idea that would end with him in jail. Again. Scotland Yard probably had a very strange file on him, come to think about it. "Mrs. Fluffy loves you and will probably see you as the lamb's uncle or godfather. As far as bottle feeding, all you have to do is sit down, put her in your lap, then hold the bottle close to her face. The lamb will do all the work and will also love you since feeding a baby lets them know they are safe and secure. Mrs. Fluffy will also appreciate the small break from raising a lamb since children and babies are very exhausting to raise no matter the species."

Art nodded and was about to reply, but the train's incoming horn went off so any further conversation was hopeless. But he did have Adriel's hand again! It was nice, and he moved close to Adriel as the train stopped so nobody could bump into him and force them apart or anything. Adriel meant safety, but a smaller female Adriel also made him want to wrap an arm around him and hold him like he did Mr. Teddy. Plus there was that smooth neck with the short and soft looking hair he could barely glimpse right behind Adriel's ear and he was staring again so he looked away with a blush.

Adriel was a bit surprised that Art was hovering so close to him, though when he looked over, Art was looking away embarrassed. He was really wondering what was going on in Art's head since he had been acting a bit strange ever since he knocked on the door for the practice date, but he chalked it up to Art being unfamiliar with how dating went. The train finally stopped its screeching stop though, so he gave Art's hand a small squeeze to get his attention and smiled. "It is ok if you want to stand close or even try holding me," he told him since he figured Art was embarrassed about the proximity. "I've had you in my lap many times, so this is fine, yes?"

Art blushed even harder as he looked at Adriel in shock. How could Adriel say things like that like it was so easy! The times he had been in Adriel's lap were times he didn't really pay attention to what was happening because something terrifying had just happened. Like the scorpion he found in his boot one morning in Egypt! He would have died for sure when it stabbed his foot three times in the span it took him to put his foot in, scream in pain, then jerk it off, if Adriel didn't keep all those antivenom potions on him. He had not sat sat in Adriel's lap like... like the reason they were on a date, and now he was suggesting he hold him! "Uh... I... Let's get on the train," he said since the doors had just opened and he went to pull Adriel in only Adriel pulled him back with a laugh.

"We have to wait until people stop exiting," Adriel told Art since people were now getting off the train. "Exits go first, then it is safe for us to get on. I'm guessing you don't ride much?"

Art blushed again and shook his head no. "Greece was the last time," he mumbled, then pulled Adriel onto the train since the slow old lady finally cleared the doorway. The seats were plush and purple and there were all kinds of ads for cigarettes, ales, jewelry, and watches. Art held on to Adriel's hand as he looked for a good seat, saw a corner one that he wanted but paused. "Would you like the corner seat?" he asked Adriel since he realized he didn't want anyone to sit on the other side of his date.

Adriel had had to practically dance to keep up with Art as he was pulled along because his heels weren't good for the longer strides Art was taking. When they stopped, he was about to tell Art that he would need to be more considerate about pace when on a date because lady's dress shoes and feet were delicate, but he was asked a question before he could say anything. Wait, Art was offing him a corner seat when Art usually preferred to take them to keep as far away from people as possible? He curled his lips into a smile and briefly leaned to Art's arm. "Awe, here I was about to be all unhappy with you for dragging around when I'm in heels, then you do something sweet," he purred and figured Art's face going very red again was a good enough punishment and reward. "Thank you."

Art didn't let go of Adriel's hand as he stiffly stood in place while Adriel accepted the offer seat, but it didn't seem to matter since the Navajo just let their arms stretch out before Art felt himself tugged forward a little. Adriel had leaned up against him! And called him sweet! Then thanked him! Adriel was right though, he did need to be more careful with his steps like how Adriel was careful when Art was struggling through any terrain that was not a paved road. Still, he was sweet! Adriel had never called him that before! But maybe he is just acting for the date? But Adriel knew now that it was a real date, right? No, he needed to stop thinking about that or he would start thinking about kissing at the end of a date and he really didn't want to think about kissing the smiling lips that always looked so soft... Nope. No no no no don't think about it. He turned to sit down next to Adriel and blankly looked up at the ad above the window in front of him.