Articulation 7/15

[allyndra]

I have no self discipline. I knew that about myself in asscoiation with things like chocolate cake, but I didn't know it about myself in association with getting my stories posted here. They're all up at www.thecroff.com, if you feel like reading them but not waiting for me to get off my ass. 

Anyway - on to the fic. In this chapter, Xander meets Hermione, Ron, and Remus. A rollicking good time is had by all.

Xander gave his spatula one last swipe across the surface of the cake and smiled. 'Perfect.' It was a monument to chocolatey goodness, dark and sweet and gooey. And he, Xander Harris, had made it all by himself. He felt a little glow of pride at that accomplishment, even as he told himself that it was no big deal. His admiration of his creation was interrupted by a long hand sneaking into his field of vision, creeping toward his beautiful frosting. Xander smacked the fingers with his spatula, splattering them with residual frosting.

 

"Ow! Xander," Harry whined. This didn't stop him from licking frosting off his fingers, though.

 

"Hey, chocolate is sacred. You don't profane the frosting by stealing it before it has received its proper adulation. Next time ask, and I'll save you a beater."

 

"Fine," Harry said as he got the last of the chocolate off his fingers. "I'll just have to find something else to nibble on, then." Xander didn't mind at all when this statement led to Harry's lips nipping at the side of his neck. He turned to catch the younger man in a kiss. Harry ended the kiss by biting gently at Xander's full lower lip before moving to take an earlobe in his teeth. He sucked at it for a moment, then worked his way down Xander's jaw to his throat. The carpenter closed his eye and leaned his head back, sliding his hands around Harry's waist and pulling him close. After a few minutes, he forced himself away from the wizard's ministrations.

 

"I hate to interrupt your snack, but I refuse to meet your friends for the first time wearing a chocolatey shirt and covered in hickeys."

 

"Spoilsport," Harry accused. But he stepped back to allow Xander's escape. "Let's get changed, then." Since they'd known they would be cooking, both men had planned ahead and laid out a change of clothes in the bedroom. As he tugged his shirt off, Xander turned away from Harry, lest his resolve to keep his distance be overcome. As much as he didn't want to meet Ron, Hermione, and Remus in a dirty shirt and covered in hickeys, he wanted still less to meet them with *no* shirt and covered in hickeys.

 

As he dragged a thin green sweater over his head, a thought occurred to him. "Harry? Remember how upset you were when you realized I was a muggle? Are you sure your friends will be okay with you dating me?"

 

"Well, Hermione's parents are muggles, so she won't care. And you know, you aren't much like most muggles." Suddenly Harry laughed. "I'd wager they wouldn't even know you're a muggle if you don't tell them."

 

Xander smiled. "Really? You're right; I could fool them." He sounded more confident now. "I'll take that bet! What'll you give me if they don't figure out I'm a muggle?" He turned around to face the now-fully-clothed wizard.

 

"Hmmm. A prize. Errm...you fool them, and I'll do whatever you say for one day. If they suss out that you're a muggle, you do whatever I say." He waggled his eyebrows lasciviously at his boyfriend.

 

"Deal!" Xander held out his hand to be shake on it. "Are there any rules?"

 

"Fool them for at least two hours. You can be vague, but no actual lies. We want to be fair, after all."

 

"Check. Vague but honest is my middle name. Actually," he mused, "vague-but-honest is almost better than my real middle name. Maybe I should change it."

 

"Change it later. They'll be arriving in a moment." Checking the mirror to be sure everything was in order, the two men moved to the living room to wait. It wasn't long before green smoke billowed from the fireplace, heralding their guests' arrival.

 

***

 

Ron was the first one through. Harry knew this even though he couldn't see his friend through the smoke, because he heard a sharp voice say, "Honestly, Ronald! You're blocking the way." A moment later, all three of them had stepped out of the fireplace and into the room.

 

Before even greeting Harry, Hermione was studying the rune wards on the mantle. Xander had put a set over the fireplace soon after he'd learned that it could be used for transit. "Harry! Have you been studying without me?" Hermione knew full well that Harry had never taken Ancient Runes at Hogwarts.

 

"Sorry to disappoint you, Hermione. Xander made those." The thought that Xander wanted to protect him gave him a rush of warmth. Hermione's sharp brown eyes swung to Harry's companion, bright with interest.

 

"Did you create the design yourself?" she asked.

 

"No, I found it in Cwrdellyn's 'Protections of the Gods' when I was researching the inscription on a shield."

 

"I've been wanting to read that! Do you own a copy?" Hermione's face lit up at the idea of a book she hadn't read.

 

"It's not mine, but I can borrow one from my employer," Xander replied. Harry decided to step in before Hemione kept the conversation on books all evening.

 

"Why don't I introduce everyone?" he said. "Xander, this is Hermione Granger, Remus Lupin, and Ron Weasley. Ron, Hermione, Remus, this is Xander Harris." There were handshakes all around, and Harry maneuvered everyone over to chairs and sofas. As he went to the kitchen to fetch drinks, Remus followed him.

 

"Harry, I'm pleased you've found someone who makes you happy. I am concerned about one thing, though; have you told him that I'm a werewolf?"

 

Harry flushed. "I'm sorry. It didn't even occur to me."

 

"Yes, well. I know it doesn't matter to you, but I'm afraid it matters very much to other people." Remus' face darkened as he remembered the outraged demands for his removal from Hogwarts, even though he'd already resigned at that point.

 

Harry wanted to reassure Remus that Xander wouldn't care about such a thing, but he couldn't. He knew that the American had been fighting magical creatures for years, and he had no proof that Xander would differentiate between demons and werewolves. Merlin knew there were plenty of wizards who didn't seem to care about the difference. "We'll tell him now. Do you want me to tell him?" Harry offered.

 

Remus smiled at the protective note in Harry's voice. "I'll tell him. I am meant to be an adult, after all."

 

Harry and Remus carried the drinks back to the living room, where Ron was enthusiastically describing his work at the Quibbler. He was deep in a story about how he was trying to get Mr. Lovegood to carry a section on sport when he saw Remus' serious expression and stopped.

 

"Xander? Remus wanted to get your reaction about something." Xander looked up expectantly.

 

Remus cleared his throat. "You see, when I was a child, I was out at night. It was a full moon. I was attacked. I was...bitten." He paused, and Xander jumped into the silence.

 

"That sucks. That happened to my friend Oz."

 

"What I'm trying to say is, I'm a werewolf."

 

"Yeah, I get that. So's Oz. How did you handle it? Oz used to lock himself in a cage in the library, and we'd take turns staying up with him, reading out loud or listening to music. It was like a furry slumber party."

 

Remus looked a bit stunned at this easy revelation, so Harry decided to help him out. "Remus used to lock himself up, too. Then his friends learned to shift into animal form so they could keep him company."

 

"Cool. I knew a girl who shifted into a rat, once, and got stuck that way for over two years." Xander turned back to Remus. "How do you handle it now?"

 

This time Hermione answered. "The Wolfsbane Potion has been a breakthrough in the treatment of lycanthropy. When properly administered, it allows the human persona to remain in control of the body, even while transformed."

 

"Oh, good. If you still had full out wolfy nights, I was gonna track down Oz for you. He's got his wolf controlled through charms, herbs, and meditation. He doesn't even have to shift anymore." This announcement was met with startled silence. Remus' face was such a mixture of hope and doubt that it made Harry's heart hurt. It seemed to have an effect on Xander, too, as he said, "I can track down Oz, anyway. I'm sure he'd be willing to help."

Remus nodded his agreement, while Ron and Hermione beamed their approval. Harry pulled his boyfriend over and kissed him on the forehead. He said, "Thanks, Xander. That would be brilliant."

 

"So," Ron said after a brief silence. "Were you going to feed us, then?" Harry smiled and led the way to the table.

 

***

 

Xander had to respect Hermione's interrogation strategies. She got everyone telling stories as they ate. It was a brilliant way to make it look like she *wasn't* just trying to find out more about the man in her friend's life, but Xander caught on. His best friends weren't girls for nothing.

 

The current topic was bad romantic encounters. Harry had told the tale of his disastrous and soggy date with Cho. Ron regaled them with a blind date he had been fool enough to let the twins set him up on. Hermione had threatened to tell them about her first date with Ron, but had given in to his pitiable look and had told about a date with Viktor Krum during which he hadn't spoken once.

 

Remus began his story. "Did anyone ever tell you that Sirius and I dated when we were at school?" Everyone shook their heads. Remus noted the way Harry's expression had saddened. "It's alright, Harry. He wasn't my one true love, and I wasn't his. I'm happy with Tonks. But my story happens in our sixth year." He went on to tell a hilarious story about the surprise Sirius had got up for Remus 17th birthday. None of them could figure out why Sirius had thought it would be romantic to flood the great hall, but they laughed at the image of all the students and teachers crowded on top of the tables, floating near the enchanted ceiling.

 

"Your turn, Xander."

 

"Okay, let me tell you why love spells are not the answer to your romantic woes." Once Xander had told them about trying to win back Cordy, Hermione shifted the topic to school. She talked about her favorite subjects, waxing eloquent over Arithmancy. Harry and Ron snickered about the predictions they'd made in Divination. When it was Xander's turn, he made a show of pointedly looking at the clock, making sure Harry saw him. It had been two and a half hours.

 

"Oh, I was bad at everything but woodshop. I actually liked history a lot, but I never studied."

 

"But what about magical subjects?" Hermione asked.

 

"Oh, you didn't realize? I'm a muggle." Xander sat back with a satisfied grin at their astonished expressions.

 

***

 

As they watched Ron, Hermione, and Remus step into the Floo and vanish, Harry pulled Xander into his embrace. "See, they loved you."

 

"Even though I don't have any magic?" Xander asked, kissing Harry lightly.

 

"Are you sure you don't have any magic?" Harry asked playfully. "It can't be normal to look that good in a jumper." He slid his hand up under Xander's green jumper and ran his fingers along his stomach.

 

Xander stepped back. "Oh no, you don't. You are going to save your strength. You'll need it, 'cause tomorrow you are going to do everything I say!" With an evil smile, he gathered up his things and headed out the door. "Bye, baby."

 

Harry stood and stared at the closed door after Xander left. Thank heavens the other man didn't have any magic! All by himself, he was more than enough. Harry got ready for bed and tried to force his mind out of its cloud of anticipation and into sleep.