Lionel entered a little after, two cardboard boxes balanced on top of each other in his arms. It's true he didn't have much but, well, Lionel didn't mind at all. He kicked the front door open with the toe of his shoe, and slid inside, wand tucked into his back pocket. Spotting Marlene on the couch through the corner of his eye, Lionel carefully set his boxes down next to hers.

He turned to her, his mouth opened with a grin, about to say something, until he noticed her asleep. Lionel's grin softened sweetly and he sighed quietly, one hand rubbing idly at his chest. He crossed the space between them quickly and crouched down, meaning to wake her, but Lionel paused for a moment. He wondered if she'd notice if he kissed her. Maybe she'd wake up. Maybe she'd hate him. Maybe she'd kiss him back without realizing it. Maybe she'd kiss him back with realizing it.

Before Lionel knew it, he was catching his bottom lip between his teeth and holding his breath, leaning in carefully.

And then he stopped. Remembered himself. Exhaled softly, sadly, and regretfully pulled away.

He nudged Marlene's stomach with one hand. "Hey. Hey Marlene. Hey. Wake up. We're home."

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A squirm, groan, and sigh later, Marlene opened her eyes and smiled softly when she saw who was waking her. One arm went up the air and she arched her back, stretching and yawning in reply. Rubbing her eyes and sitting up, she asked, "When did you get in? Lionel, I should have stayed up for you, I'm sorry."

Marlene's smile widened. "Did you go pick your room, roomie?"

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Lionel willed the impulse to kiss her down, with a little difficulty. He smiles lopdidedly. "Nah I just got here. Dibs on the one with the walk in closet. You'll have to take the room with the garden balcony. Sorry. I need the space for my designer shoes." He laughed faintly and stood up. "Wake up, we have to unpack stuff now."

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"Designer shoes? Lionel, duck, I wish you had told me I'd be living with a bender."

Marlene giggled lightly at her own joke before standing and nodding. "Room with the balcony it is, then. What's the charm to change a wall colour, again? Completely slipped my mind."

She picked up her box and made her way to her new bedroom, whistling a random tune as she bounced down the off-white hallway.

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Lionel just watched her go for a moment, a silly sort of smile on his face before shaking his head and trailing after her, a box cradled in his own arms. He turned into his own room and set the box of his things down in the middle of the floor, and then a thought occurs.

"Hey," he called loudly, "You know it's bad luck not to make love in a new apartment?"

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"Better give Hestia a call," Marlene called back, pouting a bit more than necessary.

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His nose wrinkled before Lionel could help it. "She's still gone," he said, beginning to tear into the box. "You could call Fabian." There's a little bit of hurt in his voice that Lionel adamantly pretends doesn't exist.

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Unpacking went so much smoother with a wand. All the clothes hung neatly in the closet, the bed was made, but all her photos were arranged perfectly around the room by hand. It went by so fast, in fact, that it gave her time to lean in Lionel's door frame and say, "He's away. On mission. Haven't heard from him in days, if you must know."

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"Oh."

Lionel looked over his shoulder at her for a moment, then glanced to the floor quietly and turned away again, resuming unpacking with a wave of his wand.

"Must be hard."

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Marlene shrugged and looked at the floor.

"I knew what I was getting into. I can't complain, can I?"

She invited herself into his bedroom and took a seat on the end of his bed. "And besides," she added, "it's our first night in the flat. We don't need others around, do we? We can find a way to entertain each other, right?"

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A few select images flashed through Lionel's mind quickly. He coughed into his fist. "Ahh, yep. We definitely can...do that." Another cough and he composed himself enough to turn around. "So then, what do you want to do?"

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"You're the Ravenclaw," Marlene teased. "You think of something."

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Lionel smirked. "I really don't think you'd appreciate what I have in mind."

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"Oh Merlin," she winced. "You want to look at Nargle slides, don't you?"

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"And evaluate them through an existential, Kierkegaardian lens." He laughed, brushing his bangs out of his face. "You're such a duck."

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Marlene giggled. "I don't even want to know what any of that meant." She stood and joined him on the floor, peering nosily into his boxes.

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"Hey hey hey hey hey," Lionel said, scrambling for her waist to pull her away. "Don't look in there!"

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Marlene squirmed out of his grasp and peered in again. "Why not? What've you got in there, stained knickers?"

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Lionel reached out again and pulled her away, this time keeping a better hold on her hips. "That's where I hide my diary, duck. You can't."

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Her eyes went wide and she gave him a wicked grin. "Diary? How very, insanely interesting, Mister Lovegood."

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His lips echoed the words 'mister lovegood' again silently, a little smirk appearing. "It really is," Lionel told her. "But not for your eyes." He had yet to let go of her.

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"Well what's the point of having a wildly interesting life if you don't share it with others?"

She didn't notice his hands on her hips. Mostly because they felt so nice.

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Lionel smirked slowly. "So everyone can be jealous that they don't get to know."

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She finally noticed the warmth of his large hands on her waist and squirmed out of his reach.

"I'm not jealous," she pouted. "Just terribly offended you don't trust me enough to share your deepest thoughts with me, obviously."

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"Obviously," Lionel echoed, laughing. "I may be allowed to be persuaded, though." He stretches out flat on the floor, shirt tugging just a little up to show a thin strip of skin before his trousers started. Lionel raised his eyebrows in Marlene's dircetion.

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