First of all I wanted to make this AU because I want Sirius to have a good happy thing like James had with Lily and Remus had with Tonks. Canon Siris had a shit deal and I am not going to go over that again so I'm going to AU this fanfic because it's fanfic. Secondly, Slytherin has the highest percentage of purebloods and I doubt people like Lucius Malfoy would live in a 'damp, cold' Common Room described in canon so it's getting a major makeover. Lastly, I'm assuming more than one student brought a cat to Hogwarts so there's going to be a few roaming around because cats are precious and shouldn't be neglected in a storyline.

Chapter One.

Midori Brooks was not a nice witch.

The sixth year Slytherin Prefect was the kind of girl who once made fun of squibs and occasionally made out with other people's boyfriends because the ensuing drama would give her an excuse to test out one of the more interesting spells from books from the Restricted Section of the library.

Even the infamous Bellatrix Black knew not to mess with the petite raven-haired beauty with a tendency to hex someone before speaking.

Ever since Midori defeated Black not once but thrice in a duel that fateful day in Greenhouse Two, Bellatrix developed a strange fixation with her younger Housemate, always trying to recruit her into some death-eating cult.

Sure Midori was a little hostile and her perchance for mischief oft mistaken for malice but she wasn't anywhere twisted enough to be in Bellatrix's league, and the last cult she wanted to join was one spearheaded by a sociopath whose members thought snake-skulls with tongues hanging out were a cool thing to tattoo onto their own bodies.

Gross. Just gross.

As Midori strolled through the Slytherin Basement, fellow Prefect Lucius Malfoy called out a greeting.

Lucius's girlfriend glanced up from her book with a scowl, jealousy sharpening her pretty face.

Narcissa Black, Midori repressed a sigh, was a haughty ice princess with major insecurity issues. As the youngest sister from the noble (cough) House of Black she was just about the last girl Midori had expected to date the silver-tongued playboy of Slytherin but even she had to admit Lucius wasn't bad to look at even one overlooked the cancerous growth that constituted his personality.

Narcissa slammed down her book down as Lucius inquired about Midori's day and began to rise, reaching into her robes.

Midori whispered, "Aguamenti," pointing discreetly at the blonde's head. Water instantly drenched her slender classmate, sending nearby witnesses into roaring laughter and the victim careening into her sister.

Bellatrix froze, looking torn between fury and amusement as ink spilled all over her parchment. As her sister spluttered and clung to her, Lucius outright laughed and clapped. Boyfriend of the year he was not.

To prevent retaliation Midori placed a full Body-Bind Curse on Bellatrix before the witch could shake off her whining sister.

Midori gave an innocent shrug as Narcissa spluttered like a drowned rat, too enraged to hex her back, or perhaps too scared to take her in a duel with Bellatrix incapacitated and her boyfriend evidently not going to serve as backup.

Lucius paled dramatically as Midori shot him a narrow-eyed look and leveraged her wand at his crotch.

"Flirt with me one more time and I'll serve your bollocks to Cissy as pâté." Levelling Narcissa with a sneer, Midori chided, "Even you can do better than him."

As Malfoy pushed to his feet, eyebrows drawn, Midori slammed him with a hex she'd been dying to try out. His skin began to bubbl e. Chaos was absolute as Midori made her way through the Commons.

Replaying the strange incident, she wondered if Bellatrix had orchestrated the drama. Midori knew she wasn't Malfoy's type but he wasn't one to ignore a challenge, and for some odd reason the male population at Hogwarts considered Midori the ultimate red flag to their grotesque egos.

Iron-black fireplaces shaped into a dragon's mouth centered on the west and east walls radiated warmth, washing over Midori as she weaved her way through fragrant leafy plants, shrubs, and bookshelves that formed a maze to partition the enormous room into semi-secluded alcoves for studying.

Banners hung proudly from the ceiling, not the thick or heavy fabrics of other Houses but light, airy material that fluttered as if disturbed by a gentle, non-existent wind.

Her mood lightened considerably as she followed a marbled pathway toward the sleeping quarters where emeralds the sizes of newt spleens, each worth a goblin's fortune lighting up beneath her feet as she glided over the paved trail. No spells were permitted in the corridors, making navigation difficult.

The long narrow path before Midori twisted deep underground, lit by small spheres of blue drifting through the air not unlike dandelion fluff. Like the entrance to the Slytherin Basement itself, the bedroom doors were hidden.

Counting gemstones as reference Midori quickly located the area she sought and retrieved her wand, six and a quarter inches of the rare silver lime wood with the core with two inseparable twin unicorn hairs. Tapping it at a specific groove on the left wall, a panel shuddered and groaned but no door appeared. She tapped another groove and the same thing happened. On her fifth attempt she'd succeeded in locating her room.

The solid barrier beside her shimmered then melted away, revealing the entrance to a lavishly decorated room with not one but three queen sized beds.

The Slytherin Basements were naturally the best available at Hogwarts. Midori's room was styled like a feature spread in Luxury Dwellings only with less red and more purple. Seventeen parcels rested neatly on her vanity table made of moonspun marble, and a ginger cat she never bothered to name purred loudly atop a clean pile of robes.

Unlike the other Houses all Slytherins from their very first year were assigned their own individual rooms. There was no sharing of space or dorms to be packed like cattle, and since their House was located beneath the Great Lake there was no size restriction to the dimensions of the private quarters either, the only limitation the strength of spells to counteract water pressure and infrequent attacks by mermaids hammering on the windows.

After sorting through letters, Midori's heart plummeted as she read several letters from her growingly meddlesome father espousing the wonders of arranged marriage. His views were vile and utterly barbaric. Temples pounding, she abandoned the letters and ripped into a package from Honeydukes. Once her spirits were sufficiently bolstered she sought through the rest of her letters. The last one, a plain envelope with her name scrawled in bold letters made her tense. Thinking it was another overdue library fine, she hissed as she began to read. The message made her palms shake and the Sugar Quill she consumed turn to lead in her stomach.

He's bluffing, she told herself firmly despite her racing heart and flushed cheeks. The initial shock eventually faded as denial gave way to fear. Forcing her fisted hands to unclench the crumpled pieces of parchment, Midori reread the elegant words that had sent her nerves into a tailspin.

I have, in my possession, some delightful photos of you wearing nothing but dimples and posed like a naughty puss waiting to be spanked. If you care to preserve your modesty you know where to find me little Miss Sex Kitten.

- S.B.

Anger eventually came to her rescue, jolting her into action. After incinerating the message, a quick time check revealed it was only quarter to eight.

Within minutes Midori found herself racing up the stairs into the Great Hall. Even as logic cautioned her to think before acting, she raced ahead, hexing the terrified younger students when they proved too slow to move.

As she descended upon the Great Hall, the devil in the form of a handsome dark-haired boy glanced up from a generous heaping of apple crumble and several heads at the Gryffindor table turned to stare.

James Potter greeted Midori with a long whistle and smirked, "Looking good, Brooks!"

Normally she would've turned his hair grey but she was too incensed, too focused on her prey this time than spare Potter a withering glare.

"You." Midori hissed at Black, the word emerging breathless and strangled. "You bastard!"

"Actually my parents are still married, more's the pity." Sirius drawled as he dug a fork into a delicious, fragrant apple tart. "Simmer down, kitten, we have an audience. You don't want to cause a scene, do you?"

In view of the teachers, a dozen curious Gryffindors, and one convulsing James Potter silently dissolving into a fit, Midori forced herself to calm and managed to grit out, "Could I please have a minute? Alone?"

"Polite aren't you? Here, eat some pie. You look starved," Sirius smirked.

A chorus of 'ooohs' from nearby idiot Gryffindors made Midori's vision mist red as warm apple filling and pastry smeared over her lips and chin.

"Open," Black chided. "Look at you, you're shaking, kitten. If you faint on me I might have you kiss you."

The temptation to hex Black was overwhelming Midori tasted blood as she bit back the words blistering her tongue, managing to refrain even as she gripped her wand, belatedly wiping her face.

Forcing her shaking hands to steady, she cast a Souring Charm over the food within Black's immediately vicinity. His eyebrows pinched as his fork clattered to the floor.

"Accio Pumpkin Pastry." Black lazily waved his wand. "Now, now, kitten, you still have my full attention, don't pout. I assure you I can multitask."

"I need to talk to you." Midori snarled.

She'd always been cool and collected, always prided herself on her calm composure no matter how rattled, but she'd never been tested like this. There were allowances to be made for hissy fits when confronting a blackmailer.

"Right-o. If you want to talk so bad, give me your wand." Black arched an eyebrow.

"Scared of poor little old me?" Midori taunted.

Black merely shrugged. "I'm not stupid. You're one hell of a witch. Give me your wand or I'll wait for McGonagall to finish and help her escort all the first-years to bed."

Midori brushed off the compliment, compressing her lips. She was not that pathetic little girl starved for attention or validation anymore, damn it! She was not going to melt because someone tossed some crumbs of praise her way!

"Well?" Black murmured, "What's it going to be, kitten? Dinner's almost over and I have a busy week ahead of me. So much homework to do, you see."

There was a thud and a crashing of plates as she turned to find a solemn sandy-haired boy, the Gryffindor Prefect Remus Lupin dragging away one howling James Potter.

"I wonder if Penny Blanc knows you refer to her as a tedious chore," Midori sneered.

Black tutted, expression twisting. "Now, now, kitten, let's not be nasty. Are we going to talk or what?"

With shaking hands Midori retrieved her wand and attempted to stab Black's outstretched hand. He grabbed her wand just before she made contact and she swallowed a protest at the rough way he treated it and the location he decided to stow it.

Curious eyes followed them from the Great Hall, not just from the Gryffindor table but suspicious faces from Slytherin, Lucius Malfoy's eyes narrowing before he turned to mutter something to Gordon Crabbe.

Midori barely refrained herself from kicking Black as he ushered her beyond the teacher's table but was saved from temptation when she reminded herself no part of her wanted to touch any part of him.

Anxiety burned like acid in her gut and coursed through her veins, rendering her legs jelly-like as Black led her into an empty classroom on the second floor.

She flinched when he lit the chandelier overhead with a spell and was dismayed to find herself shaking.

Acutely vulnerable and conscious she was alone in a room with the notorious Sirius Black, she kept a good distance between them and barricaded herself behind a desk, eyeing the door and mentally calculating the distance.

Without her wand, there was little she could do to defend herself, virtually no way she would win in a physical fight against the Gryffindor beater.

"What do you want?" Midori asked coldly when Sirius had the nerve to start humming, twirling his wand just to taunt her.

Would he extort her for money? His parents had cut him off years ago when he was sorted into Gryffindor House. He couldn't possibly want sex, not with the gaggle of giggling girls who traipsed after him as if he was some kind of rock star. Rumours swirled he was responsible for divesting the virginities of almost a third of all Fifth-Years.

Midori bit her tongue, shifting foot to foot as the silence stretched thin.

She waited until her body could no longer physically contain anxiety, a boot tapping rapidly against the ground but Black didn't seemed to be inclined to speak anytime soon.

She didn't want to provoke him - he already had the upper hand and her wand. Her chances of negotiating the return of her photos was nil if she ran her mouth.

Damn him.

Her anxiety approached crippling new heights when he finally deigned to speak, straighting to full height, looking far too serious for her piece of mind.

She'd never seen him like this, not even when Severus Snape had confronted him shortly before the Whomping Willow attacked her fellow Slytherin over what Snape later brushed off as a 'misunderstanding'.

Misunderstandings between Black, his lifelong partner Potter, and poor Snape were legendary at Hogwarts but they never escalated to such a degree that the Ministry had been called in. To this day, no one knew what happened down on the grounds although rumours of werewolf attack had prompted several parents to converge and have a collective apoplexy in Dumbledore's office.

"I must say Brooks, you look good in pink. Didn't think it was your colour."

"Black," Midori snapped, hating how her words trembled despite her best to speak normally. "Let's not play games. How did you get those photos and what do you want for their return?"

Black chided Midori's impatience before feigning a pensive look, crooking a finger. "You."

She issued a challenge no red-blooded male could resist. Sirius cursed himself as he stared at the defiant little Slytherin princess who fired his blood and made him ache with wanting.

"I'm not for sale. Did you mistake me for one of your cousins?" Midori anchored her hips, eyes flashing. "You have some nerve, Black."

"Can't say I'm into incest but I am rather glad we're not related. So you're not going to deny it's you in those photos, kitten? Those photos got my nerves all aflutter."

Sirius's blood turned molten as he recalled the photos in question and the way she positioned herself. The smile she wore, Merlin, he had to adjust his posture as Midori snarled something about feeding his testicles to the Giant Squid.

"Don't be cruel, think of his welfare. He might get indigestion." He said lightly.

She looked so damn innocent standing before him and yet he had in possession explicit proof otherwise. Midori Brooks had the face of an angel albeit a rather smug one that proclaimed she was better than the rest of the world and the body that could tempt a legion of holy warriors to fall.

It wasn't just her looks. The infuriating little mix possessed an intriguing combination of haughtiness and sensual allure that forced him to make an absolute arse of himself since the beginning of their fourth year, trying to attract her attention to which she'd responded with increasing coldness and curt words. It took a while before he figured out she'd been flirting with him. Had she truly wished to dispel his attentions she would've hexed him like her other poor unfortunate suitors. The girl was deadly when truly riled.

Perhaps he shouldn't've have embarrassed her, Sirius inwardly sighed, or tried to needle her so much when their paths first crossed but he'd been a lovesick prat back then, unwise in the ways of wooing, only wanting to get her attention, determined to make her pay attention to him.

She'd paid attention all right. He'd almost set her on fire in Care of Magical Creatures.

Despite the incident that basically declared he had no chance with the Slytherin princess, over the past two summers his obsession spiraled. Perhaps there was some truth in chasing after someone he couldn't have, but all cliché and joking aside (and after one too many Butterbeers Black entered an insane bet with his best mate that he could take Midori Brooks down a few pegs, a bet that had circulated widely around the school thanks to one eavesdropping Malfoy and was coming back to bit Sirius in the bollocks, and not in a naughty kinky fun way he liked being nibbled on) Sirius Black had finally resolved to achieve one goal before the end of the year, and the goal was getting Midori Brooks in bed.

He no longer wanted the money or bragging rights. He just wanted to see Midori's creamy thighs wide open and that glorious raven mane spread across his pillows.

"What do you want for the return of my photos?" Midori scowled, unnerved by Black's silence and unrelenting stare. "This isn't funny. Tell me what you really want."

"You."

"No! I'm not sleeping with you–"

"There'll be no sleep involved, kitten. I also need some answers–"

"Then read a damn book or find a Ravenclaw to tutor you!"

He laughed, sending chills down her spine. The sound stroked her like a bodily caress.

Her arms banded tight over her stomach as she contemplated hurtling herself out the window. It was only two stories down. She suffered worse injuries from Flying Lessons. Lust was wholly inappropriate, she told herself, but it burned like a wildfire, beyond her control. She eyed the window and calculated the distance, wondering just how fast Sirius could move.

Sirius watched Midori plot, fighting a grin. Her mind, her devious little mind was what got to him. If she hadn't retaliated, in her subtle passive-aggressive manner over the past two years, he might've gotten over his crush but instead, she captured his attention and a dog simply didn't let go of his bone.

He almost had an stroke when he first heard whispers of the existence of her photographs and earned himself three months of detention cleaning Hospital bedpans by hand after confronting their owner, having planted his fists, repeatedly and quite vigorously into the slimy Ravenclaw bastard who'd taken them in the first place.

Sebastian Norton had remained stubborn until Sirius discovered he wasn't above using illegal spells when push came to shove, and wasn't that a shock? He was a Black after all. Mummy would've been so proud.

Midori trembled as something dark crossed Black's expression. She tried and failed not to think how many copies of her pictures he's made and how many would circulate around the school by morning.

For the first time in her life she questioned her wand work. The only witch in school who could possibly beat her in Charms was Lily Evans but the redhead Gryffindor was too much of a goody-goody-two shoes to help Black, and she would likely turn in a book of illegal charms to Madame Prince or the Headmaster over squirreling it away and learning them all.

Had she cast the spell wrongly, Midori bit her lip. Her photographs should've looked like mundane scenic pictures taken by any regular Joe.

It wasn't like she could've practiced on something willy-nilly, the spell was utterly draining but evidently she screwed up given that Sirius was in possession of her photos.

Midori swallowed hard, trying to remind herself she wasn't ashamed as Sirius's eyes roamed her body, shame flogging her pride and lust hitching her breath. Fighting a blush she lifted her chin. Sirius grinned.

She made a choice while in a secure, loving relationship, never mind it hadn't panned out, she reminded herself. Her heart ached at the thought of Sebastian turning the photos over to Black. Why had he done it? Sebastian was a good guy. They'd bonded in the library as first years, and he wasn't the type to simply do something as cruel as distribute his ex-girlfriend's naked photos. Had she misjudged him?

Clearly, a cynical voice mocked. This is what happens when you're desperate for someone to love you.

Love was an illusion that inevitably led to betrayal.

She thought they'd parted on good terms. Nausea crept into her throat. Sebastian had dumped her and Bellatrix and her cronies gloated for months. Her eyes widened as a horrifying thought occured. Had Bellatrix gotten a hold of her photos?

"Where the fuck did you get my photos?" Midori burst out.

Sirus stared at the girl before him and suppressed guilt. Merlin he wanted to touch her but blackmail wasn't the approach to get a girl into the romantic mood.

Midori looked as if she was about to cry but it must've been a trick of light for she stared at him with such hatred he almost wondered if he'd imagined all those brief, admiring glances from her whenever he braved the Slytherin stands on the Quiddich Pitch.

"You're fucking pretty." He blurted and watched disbelief tighten her jaw.

"You're fucking unbelievable." She snapped, shaking her head. "You think compliments are going to get you into my good graces?"

"It's worth a try." Sirius shrugged. "Do you want some flowers and chocolate and shit?"

"Why?"

"Because I'm fucking romantic?"

Midori's eyes narrowed. As a matter of fact she did want chocolate and flowers but not from him. Not, she repeated sternly as her internal audience clamored, from him.

Sirius conjured rose petals and swirled them around her, smirking as her lips peeled into a snarl. "No? Don't like the colour?"

Her features, by natural alignment of her boning lent her a fragility that made him want to hold her and promise to protect her from the world but he knew better. Midori Brooks wasn't a damsel in distress, she was the damsel that created distressing situations. She was so put together he wanted to throw her into a muddy pit and see if shit would stick, he wanted to ruffle that waterfall of midnight silk just to see it in glorious disarray. The only way to see something other than a blank stare gracing her pretty face was when he riled her, and he wondered if she was even capable of smiling instead of her default sneer.

His conflicted feelings toward the Slytherin were profoundly irritating. He spent countless sleepness night trying to remember he didn't like Slytherins. They were a backward bigots, obsessed with preserving tradition and a rigid sticklers for rules of society better left to a bygone era.

Sure, Midori was gorgeous but she wasn't the first pretty girl to be sorted into Slytherin and he managed to ignore them all so why did she make his heart race faster? What was it about her that made him forget she was everything he should despise?

Blue eyes watched him, unblinking. The color of her eyes were an unnatural eerie blue rimmed with flecks of darker hues. Midori reminded him of a cat, a sleek, beautiful and aloof cat that he wanted to chase and lick all over.

Maybe that's why he wanted her so badly, Sirius acknowledged ruefully. He was, by all accounts, a dog person and she was, well, cattish to be polite. They said opposites attract right? Well consider him bloody attracted.

Midori was sure she was going to have a heart attack as Black stared at her in a manner that bespoke of a tormentor trying to decide which method to best inflict damage, to rip the wings off a butterfly so to speak.

Had she really been that stupid to hand over her wand and follow him to a deserted classroom away from potential witnesses to hear her scream? She flinched when Black stepped toward her.

"I said I want answers." His tone contrasted his violent expression. "What possessed you to fuck Sebastian Norton and how exactly did you fuck him? Why him?"

He wasn't jealous, Sirius told himself. He just wanted to kill that smug-faced bastard. How had someone that slimy managed to get Midori Brooks in bed was, in his books, a crime against humanity.

Midori folded her arms, the action drawing attention to her chest and firing his blood.

"Tell me how you got those photographs, Black and what I have to do to get them back."

Once she had her wand back she was going to kill him, Midori thought wildly. Then she'd slice Norton into a thousand pieces of beef liver for the cats roaming around the halls forever convincing her to take those stupid photos.

Almost expecting Black to be predictable and demand a blowjob, Midori was taken back when he laughed.

"Blackmail's such a nasty word, kitten. Why don't we call it… fate? Fate placed those photographs into my hands and fate will bring you to my bed."

Laughing. He was laughing at her. Midori's fingers twitched, disbelief colouring her expression. Angry enough to spit she took a step toward him and flinched as he reached out to stroke her cheek.

"Did you just touch me?" She spat, hands curled into fists.

"Did I?" Sirius asked innocently. "Come closer. You'll like my touch."

Oh she might serve a few years in Azkaban but she was most definitely going to kill Orion Black's oldest son, Midori scowled. The man would probably thank her and send her flowers in prison.

The door slammed open just as Black expelled a breath, suddenly solemn. "Look Brooks, here's the deal. What I really what–"

James Potter rushed in, bizarrely bald and smelling strongly of cat urine and rotten fish. He wheezed, sounding as if he inhaled too much helium. "Padfoot, we have a problem! Evans's allergic to sunflowers and this," he gestured his visage frantically, "This is the thanks I get!"