Light in the Dark (Niall/Patrick)

[Patrick Genesis]

Another day another gloomy start.

Patrick woke up in a fog, staring out the window of the Gryffindor tower with a forlorn expression. There was no sun out today, but then again, there was never a sun out in his world. It died with Mordecai's smile. With a sigh, he moved from his bed, to shower and shave before dressing in a worn hoodie and ripped jeans (thank god for Saturdays) and old shoes (this time he used the bloody Repairo spell to fix them, they looked much better) and climbed out of the portrait hole and down the stairs with his hood up so he could avoid talking to people.

That last staircase was feeling squirrelly today as he headed down and decided to change mid stride. Patrick stumbled and decided to fall backwards to prevent twisting anything. He was fine, but as he sat there, the heat of embarrassment crept up his spine. The hood was flipped off and he ran both hands through his hair, letting it stay spiked up and glittering of gold as the sun peeked out from behind the clouds. For a moment, the light was uncomfortable and he had to shield his eyes from the harsh rays.

But, it was who was in the light that made those blue eyes squint.

Across the hall, he could see him. A dark haired Lion with a smile that could have brought the sun out of hiding. He was...beautiful.

With a low groan, he pulled himself up from the staircase and slid his hands in his pockets, looking at the other male with a curious expression, eyes fiercely focused on him as his frame leaned to one side, cooly, on the base of the rail. His face read an interest as the faintest upturning of his lips twitched the corners of his mouth.

'Who are you?' He thought.

[Niall Firrs]

Saturdays...most definitely the best day of the week in Niall's opinion. There were absolutely no classes, and if it was Saturday, it meant that tomorrow there would be another full day of the weekend. How could anyone not love Saturdays. That morning, after throwing on a pair of black skinny jeans and a lime green and black striped tee shirt, along with his favorite pair of sneakers, and one of his favorite hats, Niall had gone down to the Great Hall, and had eaten breakfast with his little brother Murtagh. After that, he had gone off with his bestie Kalani, and the 2 had hung out and had a short jam session with their guitars. All in all, so far, today had been an awesome day. And therefore, was it really any wonder that, as he made his way back to Gryffindor tower in hopes of attempting to take a short nap, that a wide grin was plastered on his face? He didn't think so.

He was getting closer to the tower, when suddenly one of the staircases moved. Looking over at the staircase, his grin widened, as one thought came to his mind, oh look, a shortcut. As he made his way to the staircase though, he noticed someone was just sitting on the stairs, probably having fallen back when the staircase moved. Niall vaguely recognized him, he was pretty sure it was a housemate of his, but he couldn't recall his name...actually...he couldn't recall if he even knew the boy's name. But as he looked at him, Niall couldn't help but stare as he realized that the guy was...without any other better word....completely gorgeous. Niall was a bit picky, he didn't just go around having crushes or being attracted to different guys every other day. It took a lot to truly grab his attention, to truly get him hooked, wanting to get closer to someone.

But standing here looking at the guy sitting only a few steps away from him, Niall was hooked. He didn't think he'd ever been this attracted to someone, at least not in a long while. Forgetting all about his nap, he decided to do something about it. Taking the few steps, and crossing the distance between the two of them, Niall stopped, standing in front of him, leaning against the bannister. "Hi..." he said, "I don't think we've ever formally met...I'm Niall." Giving the other guy a friendly smile, he held his arm out to him. "Looks like the staircase surprised you...its happened to me before," he said, still smiling warmly, "need a hand getting up?"

[Patrick Genesis]

He was coming toward him? Bollocks! For a moment, he didn't know what to do. That was until he spoke. How on earth had he never seen him before? Niall...that was a name he'd surely have remembered, especially with eyes like his. It was an instant pull like he'd never felt before in the entire span of his life. He smiled brightly up at him from the stairs, reaching up and taking a hold of his arm and feeling a jolt of electricity as his fingertips brushed the softness of his skin.

"Niall..." He said, the word sounding like a croon upon his lips and it was enough to make him lick his lips afterward. Almost like he wanted to keep that name on his tongue. "I'm Patrick. Most people call me Blues, though." For a moment, he was stuck in a state of awe, looking down at the shorter male with a soft smile that just wouldn't go away.

Right. Stairwell.

"Yeah, it caught me by surprise. Luckily I know how to land as to not hurt myself too badly. First year, I probably fell all the way from Gryffindor Tower to the bloody Dungeons. Busted up my ankle pretty badly, but Madame Pomfrey fixed it up pretty fast." Rambling. Good job, playboy. Anxiously, he ran a hand through those golden locks and let his eyes drop back to him a moment. Damn. Where was he going? He couldn't even remember. That gaze just wiped his memory.

"Where were you heading, Niall? I hope you won't be late on my account. Then again, falling over myself turns out to be a good thing, I got to meet you out of it." He winked softly at him, a broad grin taking over his features. It was slowly reaching his eyes and he enjoyed the feeling of light and happiness, though brief, that was cleansing his soul. "Maybe the stairs thought I should fall for you." He laughed and winked again.

[Niall Firrs]

As the guy grabbed his arm, and pulled himself off the ground, a chill ran up Niall's spine. He repeated his name, and as Niall heard his voice for the first time, he swore he'd never heard a voice that beautiful in his life, but, he was probably exagerating. He went on to say that his name was Patrick, but most people called him Blues. Niall had to admit he was curious where that nickname had come from but he knew better than to pry. And so he simply nodded, still smiling. "Well its nice to meet you Blues." It was one hundred percent true too, he was glad he had met him. He didn't know why this instantaneous attraction was coming on so strong when they'd really only just met, but Niall wasn't going to fight chemistry.

He went on to say that yes, the staircase had caught him by surprise, but he knew how to fall back and pretty much avoid injury, and Niall nodded. It was good to know how the handle yourself when the staircases started moving. He continued, telling a story about how he'd hurt himself his first year, and Niall chuckled a bit. He was rambling a bit, but Niall didn't mind, he thought it was adorable to be honest. Niall had no clue how he hadn't noticed him before now, in 6 years at Hogwarts, especially since they were in the same house, how could he have been so oblivious to such perfection? He really didn't know at all, the only thing he could think of was he had been too preoccupied with worrying about his little brother the past couple of years, that he hadn't been fully aware of anything else.

Blues asked him where he had been heading, saying he hoped he wouldn't be late on his account. But then added that on the other hand, falling over himself had turned out to be a good thing, because he'd gotten to meet Niall. Niall couldn't help but grin at that one. He then said that maybe the stairs wanted him to fall for him, laughing and winked at him. At this Niall fell into a fit of laughter himself. Calming himself down, he smiled at the other boy. "Well if that's the case, I'm glad they did. It isn't every day I find gorgeous guys sitting on the stairs you know." he winked at him, his grin widening. "And as for where I was headed," he said, "it was nowhere important. And right now this staircase feels like the best place to be anyway.

[Patrick Genesis]

"Does it now?" A smouldering gaze lit up the embers within those eyes and his body moved to near him with but one single step. Hands hung relaxed at both of his sides and he found a smile forming on his lips. "I dare to say that any spot where your presence is close would be a better place for me. You seem to bring the sun into my world. I hadn't seen it today until I saw you." Wow...where was this coming from? He felt confident, open, warm...feelings that he found hard to find on his own.

He straightened up, yet still he gazed at Niall with a look of compassion. Maybe he'd tell him why the nickname had stuck with him. "I know Blues is an off nickname, and it took a bloody long time to stick, I tell you, but how about we head upstairs and I tell you?" He started up the stairs, waiting for the other boy to follow.

"I used to think it was because of the eyes, but it was actually my singing. They used to say I was singing the Blues because I tend to sing everything that pops in my head when I'm thinking. For a month straight it was the Blues, then there was Rock, some Country, but my heart couldn't get into that." He laughed slightly, shaking his head before settling his hand on the center of the boy's back. "I feel awful that I've never seen you before. Because honestly, you're one of the most handsome men in the dorm. I feel like I've been walking around with my eyes closed for the past five years."

It was truth, every word. How had he missed this boy? "So, if I ever shrugged you off...I apologize. Whole-heartedly. And I can promise that it won't happen again."

[Niall Firrs]

As Patrick spoke again, and he moved closer to him, saying that any place Niall was close would be a better place for him, and he hadn't seen the sun that day til he'd seen him, Niall felt a slight blush finding his cheeks. It was weird, because Niall had basically given up on romance the previous summer, when a boy in Hawaii where his mother lived had played with his head, and hurt him badly. But the moment he'd seen Patrick...he'd just been drawn to him, he just felt like he needed to be near him. So in a way, he knew what Patrick meant about not seeing the sun. It was strange, Niall had never been this attracted to someone this quickly. It was like a moth to a flame, and Patrick was the flame, the bright, beautiful flame.

He then spoke again, stating that he knew Blues was an off nickname, and that it had taken a very long time to stick. He then said why didn't they head upstairs, and he would tell him, starting slowly up the staircase. Niall said nothing, simply nodded and smiled, following him. He explained that he used to think people called him that because of his eyes, but that it was actually because of his singing, and Niall's smile widened to a grin. Growing up in a very musical family, where each and every one of his siblings sang or played an instrument or both, music was a huge part of Niall. And he loved finding other people who loved music even a fraction of as much as he did. "That's really great that you sing," he said, still grinning, "I do too, and I play guitar... I kinda grew up in a family where it was kind of impossible not to be musically talented. My dad's in a band, my older brother's in a band, my older sister's a dancer, my mum plays the guitar, my 2 younger sisters both sing, and my younger brother plays the violin..." He laughed slightly as he spoke. "Suffice it to say, music's in my blood."

Patrick put his hand on Niall's back, and Niall felt himself melting at the gesture. When he said he felt awful that he'd never seen him before, saying that he was one of the most handsome men in the dorm, Niall's stomach did a flip, it was a feeling Niall hadn't had in a while. When Patrick went on to apologize if he'd ever overlooked him, Niall just shook his head. "No please, don't apologize. If we overlooked each other, its as much my fault as yours. A lot of the time I'm just in my own little world unless I'm with my small group of friends. I don't always pay close attention to what's clearly right in front of me," he said, "So believe me, you have nothing to apologize for. If anything, I'm sorry." He gave the other boy a warm smile as he finished speaking, his icey blue eyes sparkling. "Besides...regardless if we overlooked each other before, we both saw each other today didn't we? As far as I'm concerned that's all that matters."

[Patrick Genesis]

Wow, he came from quite the musical family. That was something that was impressive to him and he found himself drawn into everything he was saying and hanging from his words like a lovestruck idiot. The boy was lost in those dark eyes.

With such talk of finding each other, he felt his heart flutter and his arm wrapped tighter around the other boy. Patrick's stride shortened slightly and he pulled Niall into the corridor leading back to the Gryffindor dormitories. He smiled and looked deep into those eyes before saying, "Whatever forces brought me you...I am eternally grateful. I'm just happy you think the same."

Maybe he was crazy, but at times when he caught his gaze that he felt like he could see into the future of his life and see him at his side. He was falling hard.

[Niall Firrs]

If it was possible to fall for someone after only just meeting mere moments ago, Niall was pretty sure it was happening. He had never been a real believer of love at first sight, but with the way his heart was pounding and his stomach was flipping and twisting, he was starting to change. He felt Patrick's arm tighten around him, and found somehow he was feeling uncontrollably happy about it. He really didn't know how he hadn't noticed him before today, but now that he had, he was sure he didn't ever want to not see him again.

As they turned down the corridor leading towards Gryffindor Tower, Patrick spoke up again. Saying that whatever forces had brought Niall to him, he was eternally grateful, and he was glad Niall thought the same. And at those words, Niall just stopped. Staring up into those gorgeous blue eyes, he did the most impulsive thing he had ever done in his life. Reaching up, and running his fingers through that beautiful blonde hair, he murmured "Saying I'm eternally grateful I found you today, would be an enormous understatement..." And with that, he pulled his face closer to his, and kissed him on the lips. Merlin having those perfect lips on his felt good, far better than he could have expected. Pulling away, a small smile formed on his face. "I'm sorry...I couldn't help myself."