Breakfast at Cygnus'

Cygnus woke up from his snooze revived to find Ariadne still there. To be perfectly honest though, it was still dark out. He checked the bedside clock. 3:47. He thanked the gods for waking up. He did not want to sleep in the first place. But unfortunately, sleep was a stern master, and he had no choice. Waking up the first time with her gone was hard enough, he wasn't about to let it happen again.

He slowly, and carefully he pulled his arm from her waist. He pulled the sheets up to cover her from the cold, and just because he couldn't resist, he kissed her lightly on the forehead before leaving the bed. He put his bathroom back on, and headed to the kitchen.

He heard somewhere, food was a way to a person's heart. Or something like that. He couldn't really remember. Anyway, the point was he was going to cook breakfast. At 3 something in the morning. He looked at his supplies.

He wasn't really sure what she did or didn't like. He took some eggs, some flour, some bread and some bacon. Well, might as well try a bit of everything. Unlike some Purebloods, Cygnus actually knew more or less how to cook. Sure his meals would never be considered gourmet but he liked it, and his friends seemed to.

Most of the Purebloods Cygnus knew didn't. Most of the Blood obsessed Purebloods anyway. The had servants for that job. Cooking was simply below them. Cygnus didn't think so. Cooking was fun. Knowing how to cook was a skill everyone should know.

He started up the pan.

Bad dreams were an almost nightly occurence for Ariadne, and had always been. She hadn't realised that wasn't normal until she started going to Hogwarts, and noticed that her dorm mates actually slept through the entire night rather than waking up several times before it was finally time to be awake. By then it was so habitual that she didn't really care too much, and later on in life she found it useful when she had to be up at odd hours to do Corvus' bidding.

So when she rolled over in bed, eyes slowly opening, and saw the time displayed on the clock as being 4:02am, it was with a mental shrug and a "business as usual" attitude. She'd already tossed to her other side and closed her eyes again when she wondered why her clock was right next to her instead of sitting across from her bed, like it had always been.

Icy blue eyes were once again unshuttered to the world, and Ariadne sat straight up in bed, nearly bumping her head in her haste as she remembered where she was. Horror filled her when she realised she'd actually allowed herself to fall asleep with Cygnus, and now he was gone. Even when she'd slept with Corvus, she was always the first to wake up, since she despised the weak position sleep put one in, and avoided being seen that way at all costs. Corvus, of course, couldn't care less, and seemed to require more sleep than she did, anyway.

Without realising it, she snatched up a pillow from Cygnus's side of the bed and hugged it protectively to her chest. The smell emanating from immediately flooded her nostrils, sending a sharp twinge of longing through her; the scent was as attractive as the man. Gulping, she tossed the pillow aside roughly, disgusted with herself. It was one thing to use Cygnus for information, or for revenge, but to actually allow herself to feel anything beyond that for him was simply unacceptable. Even Corvus in his endless parade of dalliances never went that far; making Ariadne jealous was practically his way of showing affection for her, really.

She remembered how she'd drifted off to sleep in Cygnus' arms, and felt a pang of guilt and shame. If Corvus ever found out, he'd be heartbroken -- well, extremely hurt, anyway. Ariadne realised she'd probably woken up because Cygnus wasn't there, and felt even worse.

"Shit," she hissed under her breath, swinging her legs over the side of the bed and then remembering, with a shock, that her clothes hadn't made it to the bedroom this time. A more colourful expletive left her lips this time, as she realised that Cygnus was awake and likely somewhere in the flat. The only way she could leave without him seeing her was by Apparating, and her wand was in her robes, where it always was. There was nothing for it.

Ariadne clenched her jaw and, with as much dignity as she could muster in her unclothed state, marched to the bedroom door and wrenched it open. The smell that hit her this time made her stomach gurgle in anticipation -- something was cooking, and it smelled mouth-watering. Of course Cygnus could -- and would -- cook for her. He'd probably raced her to wake up on purpose, not wanting her to leave him again like last time. She was pretty sure things like this were what was meant by the phrase "caught between a rock and a hard place."

Stepping out into the hall, Ariadne attempted to locate some of her clothes before she made it to the kitchen, with no success. Out of options, she grabbed a tiny hand towel from the bathroom and wrapped it around her waist, which was better than nothing, anyway. She stepped into the kitchen, sniffing at the absolutely irresistible scent that was emanating from it, and smiled faintly at Cygnus.

"You're up early."

Cygnus thoroughly enjoyed cooking. He enjoyed it even more when he was cooking for someone other than himself. There was just some joy to be gotten by seeing other people enjoy the meal you so lovingly made. Unconsciously, he whistled a playful tune as he flipped pancakes. Not that him cooking for someone was a normal occurrence. It was mostly his mates who ate his dishes. His old flatmate and him used to have an agreement. Cygnus would cook while Nicolas would wash up. A settlement that fit both parties as Cygnus enjoyed cooking but didn't exactly look forward to the dishes and Nicolas liked to eat home cooked meals but had no patience with cooking. Magic was involved so the chore wasn't actually as laborious as it was for Muggles.

Cygnus was just making the finishing touches on his french toast (putting more cinnamon on top) when he saw Ariadne emerge from the bedroom. A smile appeared by its own accord.

"I could say the same thing about you." He wondered if she usually woke up at these ungodly hours. He himself relished a good night's rest and would only consider an alternative for a very good reason. Sleep was good, sleep was great. Cygnus did have the occasional nightmare but he always woke up not remembering what they were. He also had good dreams. Very good dreams. Dreams, in fact, of a certain raven haired witch.

He realised she was clad with a hand towel and couldn't help but blush. The towel wasn't covering much. To himself occupied, he set the plate of french toast on the table. There was hardly any space for it. While, the oakwood table wasn't the largest table in the world, it would easily fit four. Add a few dishes of breakfast food and you got yourself a feast to rival Hogwarts. There were omelets and poached eggs, and just plain old fried eggs, beans, toast, french toast, sausages, bacon, hash brown, chips, muffins (a little bit on the burnt side but muffins nonetheless) and of course to add a bit of colour into the mix, chopped up fruits.

"Considering what happened the last time," he attempted to keep his tone lighthearted but his voice dropped to suggest otherwise. "I've decided to entice you to stay longer with a bit of food."

That was an understatement if there ever was one. Cygnus looked at the plethora of food with a slight frown and a sheepish grin. "I may have gone overboard."

"I didn't really know what you wanted so I made a few selections." He inspected his culinary creations from left to right, generally (with the exception of the burnt muffins) he was pleased with the outcome. Suddenly his face fell at a thought that just occurred to him. He raised his eyes at her. "Please tell me you're not a vegetarian."

He worriedly glanced at the almost empty bowl of fruit on the kitchen counter. "If you are, I mean, I could chop up more fruits..."

Ariadne didn't notice Cygnus' embarrassed little blush; she was too busy staring open-mouthed at the feast he'd laid out before her. The guilty twinge went up by about a hundred as he openly admitted he'd done it to entice her to stay. Although she had generally been described as a hard-hearted woman, Cygnus' resemblance to his brother gave him a definite advantage, and his efforts were enough to melt even someone as icy as Ariadne. She wasn't used to anyone going to such lengths for her, so for the moment she took pity on Cygnus and in an uncharacteristic display of affection, strode over to him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

"You might have gone overboard," she agreed, leaning her forehead against his. "But not in vain, because I'm not a vegetarian, and I am very much starving and impressed by this layout. Ten points to Gryffindor," she joked, her lips twitching into a smirk. She was toeing a thin line and knew it, but if she was going to be punished for this, she may as well enjoy it a little, right? At least then whatever terrible punishment she received would be deserved.

"Now. What have you done with my clothes?"

Cygnus took advantage of their current proximity by placing a kiss on Ariadne's nose. He was much relived to find out that she wasn't a vegetarian. Nothing like cooking a full blown meal for someone and finding out they couldn't eat it. He respected the life-styles of the meat-less but he thought they were missing on one or two things that made life delicious.

What Cygnus wanted to say was, 'I've hidden them until you've had your fill.' What he said instead was, "I put them on the sofa." He was such a lady killer. He was rather fond of the view of Ariadne in her current state, but he seemed unable of denying her of anything.

"So, which do you want to try first? I wouldn't exactly go for the muffins..." He glared at the muffins disdainfully. The burnt muffins stared back, innocently.

Ariadne smirked up at Cygnus as she felt the towel around her waist catch against him and fall to the floor with a whisper. All the essential parts were hidden either by her long hair draped down her shoulder, or by the embrace they were still locked in, and so her face remained free of any blush for the moment. Instead, she directed a mischievous gaze at the man who apparently could refuse her nothing. In her most seductive voice, she leaned into his ear and whispered.

"Would you mind getting my clothes for me, then?" The manner in which Ariadne was cosier up against Cygnus left little room for refusal, and she was prepared to be amused at how he would manage to both do as she'd asked to make her happy, while probably not being too concerned with her wearing anything at the moment.

If Cygnus was a Muggle, a few years older and had a weak heart, he was sure to suffer from a premature heart-attack. Out of that option, his heart decided to instead, beat as loudly as it could. Loud enough for even Ariadne could hear, Cygnus was almost sure of it. He was having trouble thinking. He could only focus on two things: He needed to get Ariadne's clothes and Ariadne wasn't wearing anything. The feast on the nearby table was forgotten in favour of the feast before him.

What he really wanted to do was take her to the sofa for a round two of the last night's activities. She was irresistible. But no, clothes. She wanted clothes. He needed to get...

"My wand." His voice was strained and raspy. It was on the kitchen counter, closer then where the sofa was. He could summon her clothes in no time. He just needed to take a few steps back. But he couldn't leave her exposed. He could, but he didn't think he could really control himself. But his voice was such a dead give-away of where his thoughts really laid. He mentally cursed himself.

"I need to get my wand." His voice was no better.

Ariadne could indeed feel Cygnus' heart pounding against her exposed skin; his reaction was in no way lost on her and his voice left nothing to the imagination. It was difficult not to laugh at the predicament she'd put him in, but she managed to contain herself to a rather self-satisfied smirk.

"What do you need your wand for?" she asked innocently, shifting her weight onto her other leg. Legimency wasn't necessary to read Cygnus' thoughts at the moment, it was written all over his face. She wouldn't have refused him, either, but it was much more fun to watch him squirm first. Last night she'd been the one to start things, now it was his turn to figure out how to take the lead, if only he could stop drooling long enough to learn how.

As Ariadne moved against him he was all the more aware of just how close she was to him. If it was at all possible, his heart started beating faster.

"Clothes?" Was his bewildered reply. His brain didn't seem to want to function to form proper sentences now. It didn't want clothes. No. It liked not having clothes. Clothes were too restricting. Clothes should be outlawed. Clothes were bad.

It was taking all of Cygnus' self-control not to push her against the kitchen counter and kiss her senseless. A very attractive woman was in his kitchen without any clothes on and he wanted to get her clothes? That didn't seem very logical to his brain. What was he supposed to do again?

Everything in him wanted to go with his instinct, just sod everything and go for round two. But he resisted. He wanted to know for sure she would consent. To every other bloke out there, consent was probably when she dropped the towel.

"Can I kiss you?" He hid his desire under the question, his eyes burning for more than just a kiss but he was too much of a gentleman to ask for more.

Ariadne arched her eyebrows at the question. Really, after everything, he still needed to ask? She didn't know it was possible for anyone to be so timid. It was that timidity which frankly shocked her into speaking her mind more bluntly than she'd done previously with Cygnus.

"Are you always so shy and uncertain of yourself, or are you simply fond of hearing yourself talk?" She'd guess the former, based on the barely-concealed lust she saw in his eyes, which he seemed to be just scarcely suppressing. There was so much potential there, lurking behind a wall of insecurity, and Ariadne was determined to draw it out somehow. Fortunately, she was in the very position to do so.

She dropped her arms from around Cygnus' neck, using her newly-freed hands to flip her long hair over her shoulder and resting down her back. Then she stepped back very slightly, only far enough so that his body was no longer blocking hers from view. The smirk reappeared, and she inclined her head -- a gesture of challenge -- and folded her arms at the waist. If that wasn't answer enough for Cygnus, may Merlin have mercy on his soul.

Cygnus was a little hurt at the insinuation. He was just the type of guy to move slowly, to be certain of the boundaries and never to cross them, unless the boundaries allowed him. His little dalliance with Ariadne was so unconventional for him that he was uncertain how to handle things. It made him revert back to his old state, way back when, before Hogwarts. He had been his brother's doormat.

But he was a Gryffindor, and for good reason. At the challenge that Ariadne had so kindly put in front of him, he was rest assured that consent was no longer an issue. It was given. He gave in to his need, and with one gallant step, closed the distance between them, locking her lips with his and at the same time, wrapping his arms around her exposed back. He stepped it up to make the position slightly awkward for her, so she'd have to hop up on to him, or else lose her balance.

Ariadne was pleasantly surprised at how Cygnus had risen to her challenge. Gone for the moment was his previous gentleness; at the moment, she didn't miss it, enjoying the way his lips were crushed against hers, and the way it almost seemed like he had purposely put her in a position where she had to wrap her legs around him, or risk falling. That decision was made almost without even thinking, and she found herself leaning against the kitchen counter rather precariously as Cygnus kissed her.

Feeling it was rather unfair that he got to keep his robes on while hers were in the other room, she slid her arms around his neck again, as much to maintain her balance as to carefully tug at his collar, moving to kiss his exposed flesh as she pulled it down. Other than being vaguely aware of the kitchen counter digging into her skin, Ariadne had completely forgotten where they were, never mind the meal Cygnus had just so thoughtfully prepared.

Out the window, as dawn started to seep in, a jet-black bird launched into the reddening sky.