#(yes there is a reference to harry running away from home bc he saw his parents kiss each other—and more—one too many times)

[padfootastic]

in a turn of events that doesn’t surprise anyone im sure, @impishtubist has caused yet another scene to be stuck in my head until i wrote it down. so, have some sexy, greying sirius; a deeply thirsty, appreciative james who won’t let him dye it; and a very-fed-up-of-his-parents-antics harry for prongsfoot wednesday!

x

Harry entered the house with ‘I’m home!’ on his lips that died an instant death as soon as he registered what he was seeing.

“Er,” he hesitated. Does he really want to—? One more look at the scene in front of him and he decided to bite the bullet. Better to clear the air now than keep stewing on it later.

“Um. Is this a—kink? A fetish? Should I leave and never come back?”

In any other scenario, the way both his parents froze and looked at him with wide eyes would’ve been comical.

If only Dad wasn’t straddling his Papa on the ground, one of his hands holding both of Papa’s above him with disturbing ease.

“Er—“

“It’s not what it looks like, Haz!” Dad yelped, cutting across Papa who’s face and neck were turning a steady pink. “I swear.”

“Then why are you still—like that?” Harry asked, deciding to play it safe and look at the boring grey couch in the living room instead. Nothing scandalous going on there.

He could hear the scrambling of feet, a few thumps, and a mini-yelp, absently wondering about the amount of noise the simple act of getting up could produce.

“Right.” Dad cleared his throat. “So, Harry, would you please tell your Papa that he is, under no circumstances, allowed to dye his hair?”

Harry blinks, turning to his other, exasperated, father in silent question.

“Harry, will you please tell your Dad that this is my hair and I can do with it as I please?”

“Not when you promised yourself to me!” Dad yelps and Harry is hit with an intense wave of regret at instigating this.

“Promised—?”

“Yes! Our wedding, you said, and I quote, ‘I give myself to you, James Potter, mind, body and soul’, don’t tell me you forgot.”

“Of course I didn’t forget,” Papa throws his hands up in the air. “But c’mon James—this is not what I meant when I said body!”

“What, you think I only wanted you for that ars—“

“Dad!” Harry, yelps, mortified. He can feel his cheeks heating in a violent blush. He can feel a similar flush creeping up Papa’s neck. Sadly, his words don’t have the deterring effect he’d intended.

“I mean, it is spectacular, don’t get me wrong, but you’re more than just a beautiful body, Si!”

“James, please, have some mercy for our child, if not me,” Papa says. Thankfully, this seems to register as Dad’s eye widened, part horror and part apology. Harry waves it away tiredly; though he’s no less embarrassed every time it happens, growing up in the Potter household with two extremely affectionate parents has exposed him to much worse. He’s accepted it as his lot in life.

“Er—yeah, anyway,” he coughs, ruffling his hair, “Bottom line—Sirius isn’t allowed to dye his hair.”

“I literally never agreed to that.”

“Too bad because you will,” Dad says, slowly moving towards Papa with a look on his face that Harry is loath to describe as predatory. If only it wasn’t so true.

“Oh?” Papa’s left eyebrow rises extraordinarily high, as it tends to do quite often. He crosses his arms over his chest in challenge. The motion makes his Dad smile.

“Mhm.” The two of them are chest-to-chest by this point, staring into each other’s eyes. Harry could probably conduct a whole rave party right here, right then, and they wouldn’t even notice. That is when he decides it’s high time he should step in—not literally, Merlin, no—before they end up doing something that makes him try to run away (again).

“So I was right—it is a kink,” Harry says dryly, once again regretting starting this entire conversation in the first place. He should’ve just turned back around and gone to the Weasleys instead.

“Harry, no—“

x

Three years later, Harry—who’s almost blissfully forgotten about the entire incident—walks into his parents’ house to an almost identical scene, just with his Papa on top this time. This time, he makes the sensible choice he still regrets not making all those years ago, and walks right back out the door.

Let those two sort it out on their own. Merlin knows his intervention hadn’t helped a bit the last time around.

[lightskinrry]

spill about the nymph fantasy pls!!! also take care & i hope things get better really soon for u and ur family <3

Omfjsjsj thank you for indulging me and being sweet ily❤️

This became incredibly long and poorly written im sorry lmaofhfn but I’ve been composing this story in my head for weeks so there’s so many details😭😭😭 well I put it under the read more <333 also pls picture either harry answering fanmail or harry in the golden mv but in a prince Philip from the little mermaid outfit for this lmaofejfn

Soooo hear me out Harry is a prince in a far away land and outside of his prince duties he loves to play music he loves art and he doesn’t like the high society life so everyday once he’s done at the castle he travels to the forest near by and there’s this enchanted place hidden behind the bushes deep in the forest and there’s a pond and a small waterfall and a big tree with a huge branch and it’s so beautiful and he comes here everyday to play music and write and sing and every day the nature around him in this little hidden haven responds; the wind blows to the rhythm of what he’s playing, the water dances around when he sings and he just feels so at home and safe in this place he leaves little offerings and gifts

he doesn’t know exactly what it is about this place but there’s something there that he loves and then one day he’s talking to himself about a song he’s writing trying to find lyrics and he feels water dripping down on his forehead and he catches a glimpse of someone perched up on the branch watching him but they disappear before he actually can make a form out of them and he tries to shake it off but everyday he discovers a little bit more of whoever is hiding there; he hears a giggle when he’s playing out of tune, humming when he plays the strings of his guitar, a foot print in the wet grass and everyday he talks to them without ever seeing them reassuring whoever lives there that he won’t harm them and that he wants to know them but they never show up

until one day the land is attacked and Harry is wounded during battle he runs to the refuge hoping no one would find him he tries to heal his wound but he passes out sure he’s going to die and when he awakes someone is leaned over him their lips so close to his he thinks an angel wants to kiss him but the moment his eyes open fully the person runs away from him he tries to stand up and ask them to stay but the pain of his wound hold him down he looks down on it and realize it’s almost completely healed he looks around him and he sees little pots and other items and food used to heal him he crawls to the water pond to drink and he looks at himself the peach fuzz on his face indicating that’s he’s been out for almost a week and someone took care of him all this time he’s so baffled he rambles thank yous endlessly he asks the person if he can at least see who saved his life and he promises over and over again he won’t hurt them but there’s still not a peep ....

he lays down and fall asleep bc he’s still very weak and when he wakes up again he keeps his eyes closed and he feels water dripping down on his forehead again he speaks before moving or he doesn’t even open his eyes, he’s softly greeting the person who helped him thanking them and reassuring them again,,, he can hear their breathing and the droplets of water still hit his forehead in the most gentle way so he knows they’re still here.

He decides to open his eyes very slowly and he finally sees the person perched up on the branch, their naked body laying on it and gazing down on him, water dripping down their hair and twigs and flowers inside their hair,, he can’t quite believe his eyes for a second but once they make eye contact he just stares silently, the nymph stares back; eyes big with wonder... they stay there like that silently for a while he doesn’t dare to speak by fear they’ll run away again but in the silence the nymph gets down of the tree.

Harry stays down on the grass his head looking at the sky not wanting to make a move,,, he can feel them walk around him, looking at him and he feels safe.... the nymph kneels next to him and touch his face with their fingertips, softly tug on the curl that’s falling on his forehead, they check on his wound and grimace at the look of it, they get water and plants to put on it and Harry flinches at the pain but doesn’t make a sound. When they’re done they make eye contact again but they don’t speak and the nymph leaves and as they walk away Harry tries to stop them and ask them for at least a name and they just turn around and smile at him before disappearing again....

Harry realizes his wound is finally healed and he knows he has to get back to the castle so he leaves promising to come back again the next morning he finally makes it back home and it’s a celebration that the prince has returned safely and the next morning he takes his guitar and some food to bring to the pond and he stays there offering the food to the nymph waiting for them to come out he stays there and wait all day but they don’t come out he’s starting to think that maybe he made the whole thing up in his head bc of the pain but just as he starts to leave he hears branches and twigs breaking behind him and the food he brought is not there anymore he takes a deep breath and looks up to the branch where he saw them for the first time and they’re there!! Laying on their tummy gazing at him and eating the food he brought.... before he can speak the nymph gets down of the tree and analyzes him, they walk around him in a circle looking to see if he’s maybe hurt, they check his wound and smile contently at the sight of it healed,,, Harry doesn’t move and doesn’t speak but the nymph touches his face before their name fall out of their lips....

They are finally talking and Harry couldn’t be happier he knew it was real!! He speaks ever so softly scared that if he speaks louder he might scare them away again,, he doesn’t dare to touch them not even their hands let alone their arms and he doesn’t look at their eyes too long he’s so intimidated by their beauty and grace he can barely make sense but he profusely thank them for saving his life and he rambles about knowing there was someone living here. The nymph interrupts him to ask him to sing bc they love to hear him and he’s so taken aback he can only say yes so they sit next to him and listen while he plays the guitar and sings songs about long forgotten love stories and heartbreak

He stays there for hours just playing and singing, the nymph doesn’t say a word they just listen... until it’s dark and Harry excuses himself because he has to go home,,, the nymph finally asks him if he would teach them how to play the guitar and he promises he’ll back tomorrow to teach them

And he comes back... every day for weeks, teaching them the guitar, writing songs, listening to them sing, bringing them food and flowers and other trinkets he finds that he thinks they would enjoy and everyday the nymph speaks more and more and they tell him how much they love the sun and their favorite flower and color

One day Harry comes back and the nymph greets him gleefully jumping on their feet so happy to see him and he stays there all day they play and sing and write and eat as they do and by the end of the day as the sun sets and the pond is washed over in golden tones he pulls out a gold necklace with a sun pendant,, he explains to the nymph that it’s a gift for them that he saw the sun pendant and it reminded him of them,, he asks if he can put it on them and the nymph agrees so filled with tenderness from his gesture,,, they tell him they love it and that they’ll keep it forever and once he’s done placing it on their neck as they turn around to face him their eyes meet and it’s like time is frozen, they kisses his cheek to thank him and wishing him a good night... Harry is slightly disappointed but he kisses their cheek back for the first time and the nymph gets so flustered and so Harry starts to leave but right before he could get out of the bushes the nymph appears in front of him and thank him again they caress his cheek right where they kissed it a few moments ago and in a deep breath Harry cups their face to bring it closer to his and as their lips are barely inches away he whispers can I kiss you to which the nymph only answers by pressing their lips to his,, when their lips finally detach they’re both blissfully looking at each other,, the nymph says good night and watch Harry walk away promising again he’ll be back the next morning

When he comes back the next morning bringing the nymph his usual offerings; food and flowers and crystals and rocks just things he knows they enjoy they spend the day again talking playing and singing they don’t mention the kiss but when the day ends and Harry is about to leave the nymph offers him a necklace they made out of pearls specially for him they ask if they can put it on him and as they’re done placing the necklace on Harry and he turns around to face them; they lean over to his face, eyes closed and lips pouted ready for a kiss... Harry giggles looking at their silly face expecting a kiss and they get embarrassed they explain to Harry that they thought it was custom to kiss after giving a gift and Harry cups their face and kiss their nose,, telling them how cute they are for being a little clueless on social norms,, he kisses their forehead and their eyelids and finally their lips before whispering that he loves to kiss them

From now on they make it a little tradition to kiss everytime they give each other something, making their own little social rules in their own little world

One day Harry arrives at the pond and the nymph is nowhere to be found but two other beautiful nymphs are there, they analyse him with despise talking among themselves that they don’t understand why the nymph of the pond would find interest in a human like him, they do refer to him as pretty and magnetic but that he’s a man and he’s never to be trusted... Harry doesn’t necessarily understands what’s happening but he just asks if the nymph is here referring to them by name and the nymph comes out and cast the others away, apologizing if their siblings were rude to him... Harry tells them that there’s no need to apologize and they keep their little ritual and learn about each other more

It’s only when the sun starts to come down that they’re laying on the grass, the nymphs head on Harry’s chest that they contemplate the sky in silence and the nymph kisses Harry’s chin and jaw and as the breeze passes them by they start to kiss, their hands traveling all over their bodies and their heartbeats synchronising... the soft evening air starts to feel heavier and it’s like there’s a wave of heat in the pond,, the nymph straddles themselves on Harry never unlocking their lips and when he breaks the kiss to breathe he’s suddenly very aware of what the other nymphs said about him; he becomes hesitant and shy away from the nymph’s mouth,,, he asks them if they really want to go further than a kiss, further than touches, if they’re sure they want him; if they really trust him 

and the nymph only grabs his face to kiss him deeper to let him know that they never had a doubt and so they make love right there on the grass; the nymph on top of him, their hips moving to the rhythm of the water and their face gleaming in the golden hour and Harry can only say how beautiful they are, how perfect they are, how they feel so good.... Hes sitting up while the nymph rides him so he can make eye contact and kiss their lips, his hands resting on their waist, sliding on their hips and sometimes grabbing their ass, always moaning on the nymph’s lips about how magical they are and its when he picks them up to fuck into them that he finally hears them talk between muffled breaths and moans; repeatedly calling his name... he thrusts harder every time the word harry leaves their mouth until they both come undone on each other, the nymph first : waves of water covering Harry and a last moan of his name against his lips and barely seconds later Harry releases himself inside the nymph,,, thanking them time and time again 

and now they’re staying in this position, their lips trying to find each other in the dark now that the sun has set, giggling in each other’s mouth its only after a while that Harry finally gets up to leave and the nymph is somehow terrified by the idea that he might never come back but right as he leaves, same as every night, he kisses them and promises to come back tomorrow....

so yeah thats about where im at in the nymph fantasy lmaodvnh from then he keeps coming back and they keep fucking in every possible positions so its just horny ass shit and then I thought maybe he’s gonna ask them to come to the city to visit the castle and attend a ball and since theyre a bit clueless on social cues it will be fun and awkward and maybe there’ll be conflict like he’s already promised to someone else or maybe he’s actually the god Apollo trapped in his human form and he’s found a new muse but now that hes in love he doesnt know what to do who knows my brain is full of possibilities lmaohsdvbhv

[bisou-doux]

The Starving Games ft. Freddie Weasel: AKA Pt. 1 of my Hunger Games x Harry Potter crossover series (OC x Fred Weasley)

Warnings (None of these are really graphic, but feel free not to read if any of these things make you uncomfortable!!): Blood, knives, knife wound, character death(s), severe injury mention (lost limbs), dead animal mention?? (a rat) 

This is the first fic I’ve ever written! I got the idea from a post I saw from @wand3ringr0s3 Comments and criticism are GREATLY appreciated and it’d be really cool to get some feedback on my writing style!! 

a/n: Also if I do write more, this is gonna be an enemies to allies to lovers situation bc I <3 angst 

Tagging my mutuals: @ourloveisforthelovely @darthwheezely @amrtxntia  @anchoeritic @kellsslut @whizboingies @beiahadid

Darkness. Pure black. I hear noises coming from somewhere. Muffled. Echoing through the endless void around me. The noises become louder. Someone is talking. The more I listen, the louder and clearer they get. Clear enough that I can almost make out the words. Suddenly, everything goes deafeningly quiet. My ears start ringing. But then, a single voice echoes through the silence, “Seph?”. I recognize it immediately. “Maeve?” I call out. “Seph? Is that you?” she responds, her voice shaky with fear. “Yes, yes, Maeve, it’s me. Where are you?”

“I don’t know.” she responds, panic rising in her voice. “Seph, I’m scared.”

“I know. I know, kiddo,” I swallow hard, “Hey. Hey, listen, I’m gonna find you, okay? Just stay calm.”

My heart is racing. I look around for some sort of clue, but nothing but complete darkness surrounds me. I tentatively reach my hand out in front of me. My fingertips graze something. Something cold. I take a step forward and reach out again. My hand finds what feels like a thin chain. I roll it around in my fingers before pulling down on it. The space is immediately flooded with blinding white light. I blink a few times to adjust my eyes to the sudden brightness. I’m at home; a tiny one room flat that I share with my mother, sister, and our cat. Except it’s empty- no furniture, not even a door. I see my sister standing a few feet in front of me, her hands bound together by a thick rope. “Maeve!” I rush towards her. “Seph!” she cries. As I reach out to hug her I’m pushed back by an invisible force. I look up and there she is- standing inside a giant glass dome. I take a few steps back, trying to register what I’m seeing.

“Shall we draw the names?” I whip my head around to see a woman in a magenta frock standing on the other side of the room. Her dress is covered in so many frills and flounces that she takes up half the flat. On her head is a ridiculous blonde wig that must add at least two feet to her height. Her face is covered entirely in white powder, with her cheeks overly rouged, and her top lip painted magenta to match the dress. She looks like a very posh clown.

“I-I’m sorry what?”

She laughs airily, “The names, darling. Surely you remembered?”

“Remember what?”

She tsked then pulled out two smaller versions of the glass dome from the frills at the front of her dress. They each had a small slip of paper in them. “Go on. Pick one.” Her voice was incredibly high-pitched, and she spoke with a capitol accent. I stepped towards her and hesitantly reached into the bowl in her right hand. I unfolded the slip of paper, ‘Maeve Whitlock’. I stared at the name in confusion.

“I don’t understand.”

“Will you take her fate as your own?”

“What do you mean? What fate?”

The woman let out another laugh, this one high and cold, it echoed around the entire room and caused the floor to shake. Suddenly, I heard Maeve call out to me, “SEPH!” I looked back to where she was in the dome. There was a dark, shadowy figure standing behind her, holding a knife to her neck. Her hands and feet were bound to a small wooden chair, and her mouth was now gagged with a dishcloth. I ran towards the dome, panic rising further in my chest. “MAEVE!” I shouted desperately. She looked at me fearfully, tears rolling slowly down her cheeks. I banged and kicked and rammed my body at the glass so hard, I should’ve shattered something. But it was no use. I looked back to where the woman had been standing, but she was gone. The shadowy figure stood still, holding the knife to my sister’s neck.

“LET GO OF HER YOU FREAK!” I cried, banging my fists against the dome. Maeve was panicking now, her chest rising and falling rapidly, tears running down her face, her muffled pleas penetrating through the glass. “MAEVE.” I cried out; my voice cracked as the salty tears streamed down my cheeks. But I was too late. The dark figure suddenly slashed the knife across her throat, her cries stopped and she slumped down into her seat, eyes still half open, blood now seeping into her blouse. “NO!” I screamed, sinking down to the ground. The glass squeaked as my hands dragged down over the exterior. I looked back up towards the shadowy figure, only to see it was no longer there. In its place I saw myself, a satisfied smile on my face. I heard the clownish woman’s disembodied laugh echo through the flat, “What a pity,” the voice said, “you could’ve saved her! But now, I’m afraid, you must face the consequences of your actions.” The clone slowly raised the hand still holding the knife, and pointed directly at me. Suddenly, I felt the cool touch of metal against my throat. The other me winked, and I felt the blade drag deep across my neck. I started to choke, the blood pooling into my airways. I instinctively brought my hand up to the wound. My vision started turning black around the edges. I looked down to see the front of my dress already soaked in red. The last thing I saw was my own hand, holding the knife, droplets of blood falling steadily from the tip of the blade. Then, everything went dark.

My eyes shot open. All I saw was fur, and something was blocking my breathing. I sat up quickly, and the ball of fluff leapt off my face. The cat looked up at me from his new place on my lap- those big amber eyes practically staring into my soul- and meowed loudly. I sighed in annoyance. “Stupid cat.” I grumbled as I lifted him up and let him jump to the floor. I rubbed my eyes and tried to slow my racing heartbeat. My body was covered in a sheen of cold sweat. I looked down at the bed to see my sister still sleeping soundly beside me. I took a deep, shaky breath and stroked the top of her head, moving away some of the stray hairs lying across her face. I glanced over at the digital clock next to me, SUNDAY: JULY 4. 8:26 AM. Today was Reaping Day; no wonder I had that horrible nightmare. This would be my 4th year participating in the drawing, it was Maeve’s first. How unlucky it was that her twelfth birthday had only been three days prior. If she’d just been born a few days later, she could’ve been spared for another year.

I sighed and swung my legs over the side of the bed. My mother was already awake, sewing some buttons back onto Maeve’s school shirt. “Hi, mom.”

“Hi, sweetie. Did you just wake up?”

“Yeah, just now.” I yawned.

“Is Maeve still asleep?”

“Yeah.”

“What time is it?”

“Almost 8:30. Should I wake her up?”

“No, it’s okay,” she sighed, “let her sleep some more. I’ll wake her up soon.” She held up the shirt to examine her work, “Still needs a few more stitches…” She held the needle between her teeth and reached down to her sewing basket to grab another spool of thread. I looked down as I felt the cat’s bushy tail brush past my ankles. I knelt down and scratched behind his ears.

“Did you feed Tulip yet?” I asked. The fluffy, tricolor, flat-faced cat was now sitting at my feet, purring contentedly.

“Didn’t have to; he caught his own breakfast. A huge rat, which he so lovingly dropped on my pillow this morning.” My mother replied.

I stifled a laugh.

“Since you’re already up, go ahead and shower. I’ve laid out your clothes for you on the kitchen table, so when you’re done, just change into them and come back here so I can do your hair. Okay?”

“Okay.”

She smiled at me then went back to her work. I grabbed some soap and a clean towel from the small shelf near the entrance and walked out. “Make sure you don’t use up all the hot water!” she called out as I closed the door behind me. “Don’t worry, I won’t!”.

We didn’t have our own bathroom- there was one toilet and one shower per floor, which could be shared by anywhere from 5 to 20 people. There were 5 apartments on each of the 4 floors- all one room- with one bed, a stove, a sink, a small table and chairs, and some shelves for storage. Each apartment had a heater and air conditioner, but they were never guaranteed to work when you needed them. Sometimes only one side of the building would have heating, or only certain floors had AC, or only specific apartments. Often, the whole building wouldn’t have either for days at a time. The same thing happened with the water and electricity. You could never fully rely on any of the appliances being in working order. As a result, we shared a lot with other apartments. If someone’s stove wasn’t working, they could just knock on a neighbor’s door and use theirs. If only one apartment on our floor had heating during the winter, there were no objections when everyone else would come over and make themselves at home. It made it feel like we were all one family, and it was customary to refer to many of your neighbors as your aunt or uncle. This was common throughout the District, as almost everyone aside from the mayor and peacekeepers lived in small, rundown tenements, expanding outwards from the city center, which was home to the Justice building. Here, in District 8, we produce textiles. There are 6 factories in total; one of which is entirely dedicated to making peacekeeper uniforms. We typically start in the factories at 14, splitting the day between school and work. We aren’t assigned specific jobs until we turn 18. Until then, those in charge of production make requests for certain numbers of workers, and we go wherever we’re needed. Once we finish school, we’re assigned permanent job positions based on both our aptitude tests and our performances in various factory tasks. The better you do on the aptitude test, the better (or at least safer) your job will be. Those with the highest scores tend to be assigned as desk jockeys- where the risk of dying on the job is fairly low. Those with the lowest scores are sent to work in the most dangerous parts of the factories; you can always tell who works there because chances are, they’ve lost some part of their limbs...or face...or they’re, you know, missing a hand...Then there’s those whose scores fall somewhere in the middle; if they have a specific skill, like baking, or perhaps healing, they’re assigned a job based on that. The rest are assigned mid-level factory jobs, which were still dangerous, but the chances of getting to keep all your fingers were significantly higher! (But not guaranteed).

When I turned on the shower, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the water was delightfully warm. It took everything in me not to keep standing there, enjoying the warmth, until the water would turn cold. I shivered as I stepped out of the shower and quickly wrapped my towel around me. I walked swiftly down the hall and flung open the door to the apartment. I grabbed my outfit from the kitchen table. A white trapeze-line dress ending an inch or so above my knees, long billowy sleeves pulled tight at the wrists, and a mock turtleneck with tiny ruffles adorning the edge. My shoes sat on the floor next to it; dark blue suede ankle-boots with small square heels.They were a birthday present from my mother; most definitely from the black market. I got dressed and pulled up a stool in front of my mother’s chair. She combed through my curls as gently as she could, but I still winced when she pulled too hard at a knot. She braided four small plaits at the front and sides of my hair, pulling them into two larger braids that she twisted together and pinned to the back of my head. She handed me the mirror. I looked into it and smiled, “It’s beautiful. Thank you.” I turned around and hugged her tightly. She smelled of soap and clean linen, and something else I couldn’t quite put my finger on- all I knew was that it was comforting and warm. I held on a little longer than usual. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, inhaling her scent. She brought her hand up and gently stroked the back of my head. We both knew what could happen today...I tried my best not to think about it. Maeve soon came back from the shower and changed into a mod-style purple dress and black mary janes. My mother braided her hair in a similar style to mine, adding a small flower clip at the side. She looked us once over, nodded, then stood at the mirror and added a few pins to secure her own hairstyle. She sighed, “Ready?”

“Yeah.” “Yeah.” my sister and I said in unison.

My mother chuckled lightly as we stepped through the threshold.

We walked the few blocks over to the underground and boarded the train headed to the Justice building. The train car was packed. Everyone was dressed in their best (and most colorful) outfit. These types of clothes were only worn on special occasions; those above working age wore grey coveralls to work and school, and something drab and ill-fitting otherwise. As we exited the train car, I kept a tight grip on Maeve’s hand. As we emerged from the underground, our eyes were bombarded with light, and I squinted as the brightness flooded my vision. When my eyes adjusted, I spotted the registration table. I gave my mother a brief hug and went to join the girls’ line with Maeve. Soon, we’d reached the front. I looked down at Maeve, “You want me to go first, kiddo?”

She glanced up at me with wide eyes, then stared forward and shook her head. 

“You sure?”

“Mhmm. I just wanna get it over with.”

“Okay.” I hunched over and whispered into her ear, “You’re gonna be fine, I promise. It’s not as bad as you think. I’ll see you in a few minutes, yeah?”

She nodded. I gave her hand a squeeze and watched her walk up to the table. I heard them speaking faintly and a few minutes later, she turned around to look at me, a nervous expression on her face. I gave her a reassuring nod then headed over there myself. 

The woman at the table sat there with a bored expression. She looked to be in her 30’s, but the heavy dark circles under her eyes seemed to age her quite a few years.

“Last name?” She said. She didn’t bother to look up at me. 

“Whitlock.”

“Whitlock…” she muttered, flipping through the pages, “Right, Whitlock. Persephone?” 

“Yeah.” 

She crossed my name off the list. “You’re sixteen?”

“Yes.” 

“Okay,” she sighed, “Hold out your hand, please.” She took a small device next to her and clipped it onto my index finger. I winced when I felt the needle prick my skin. She unclipped the device then stamped my wrist with the capitol’s sigil. 

“You can go join your age group, fourth line from the left.”

“Thanks,” I muttered.

She paused, then looked up at me sympathetically, “And um, good luck.”

I nodded and gave her a curt smile before heading over to join my peers. We were arranged by age and gender, boys and girls separate, all standing in rows in front of the stage. I stood waiting, and mindlessly watched the rows slowly multiply. I didn’t know how much time had passed, but soon enough, I looked up at the stage to see a woman in a bright magenta pantsuit. The hem of her skirt was decorated with a flounce of fabric, and she wore a light pink blouse underneath her suit jacket. The front of it contained so many ruffles, you could hardly see her neck. Her hair was pale blonde, and styled in a way that made it look like a cloud sitting on top of her head. Her face was powdered white, save for her blushed cheeks and glossy lipstick. Her lips were absurdly over lined, both painted a shocking fuchsia that closely matched her outfit. She approached the podium with tiny steps and cleared her throat daintily, “Welcome, everyone, to the reaping ceremony for the 59th annual Hunger Games!” People remained silent; the only reaction being a cough from someone in the crowd. She cleared her throat once more, “As always, we shall begin by watching a special film from the capitol, telling us the history and origins of this unique tradition, and to remind us why we are all standing here today.”

At her words, the two televisions turned on to display the Capitol’s sigil. It faded out, and a film about the glorious history of Panem started rolling. I tuned out and stared blankly at the rows of people ahead of me. When the film concluded, Ms. magenta up at the podium clapped enthusiastically. She was the only one. “Oh, wasn’t that wonderful?” She exclaimed, “What a rich history this nation has.” 

I scoffed, that’s one way to put it, I thought. 

“Now, as always- ladies first.” She stuck her hand into the large glass bowl on the right side of the podium and shuffled her hand through the slips of paper before snatching one up. She gingerly unfolded the paper and held it delicately between her index finger and thumb. 

She cleared her throat and read out the name, “Maeve Whitlock.”

I felt my heart stop in my chest.

No. 

My eyes darted through the crowd and I saw people make way for her as she slowly walked to the stage, shaking with every step. Images from my dream flashed through my mind- most poignantly, the image of me watching helplessly, as a dark shadowy figure slashed a knife across my sister’s throat. Panic rose in my chest; my heart beat so loudly in my ears that I barely heard myself shout, “WAIT!” Everyone turned to look at me. My breathing sped up as I suddenly felt at a loss for air, “I volunteer.” I added, my voice cracking slightly, “I volunteer as tribute.” Maeve looked back at me with pleading eyes and shook her head furiously. I avoided her gaze and stared straight ahead as the crowd parted to allow me through to the stage. I paused to grab Maeve’s hand and squeeze it tightly. I cradled the back of her head and planted a kiss atop her forehead. I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment as I shakily released her from my grasp and allowed the other girls in the crowd to place a comforting hand on her shoulders as they quietly pulled her away from me. I walked up to the stage and slowly climbed the short flight of steps to then take my place just behind the glass bowl from which my sister’s name was drawn. I can’t believe I’m about to be shepherded to my untimely death because of a stupid glass bowl. I felt my hands getting clammy, and I held to the hem of my dress to keep them from shaking. Ms. Magenta smiled and stepped towards me, “And what is your name, dear?”

“Persephone Whitlock.” I stated.

“And you are…?”

“Her sister.”

“Her sister! Oh, well, of course you are!” she remarked, “Well, that was a very brave thing you just did, Persephone. I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say that this was a truly inspiring moment! Well done! And may the odds be ever in your favor.” she smiled brightly and turned towards the crowd. There were a few measly claps, but they quickly fell silent. “And now, let us draw our male tribute.” She stepped over to the glass bowl on her left and repeated the process. I stared blankly past the rows of people; only when she read the name was my trance broken, “Frederick Weasley.” A tall, redheaded boy emerged from the crowd. I stared as he made his way up to the podium. I recognized him from school. I didn’t know him well, but I knew he had a twin brother- George, I think- who’d lost an ear in a factory accident a few years prior, and was thus ineligible to compete in the Games, as his injury would be an unfair advantage to the other tributes. Apparently, he’d been checking the cogs underneath a broken machine when it somehow turned on and cut his left ear clean off. It was formally reported as an accident, but it’s been rumored that he did it on purpose. There were no witnesses, so no one can say for sure, but if it was intentional, I can’t say I blame him for doing it. There are very few ways you can get out of the games if you’re under 18- something as extreme as losing an ear would certainly fall under that category. I stared at the redhead as he took his place behind the other glass bowl. He was tall, at least 6 foot 4, and seemed to tower over my own 5 foot 10 frame. I’d always thought I was fairly tall for my age, and was used to surpassing most adults in height; but standing next to him, I felt like a child. His entire body was long and lean, but I could tell from the way his shirt clung to him that he was not just skin and bone. He had a well-structured face. Round brown eyes, thin lips, a prominent, romanesque nose; his jaw was clenched as he stared straight ahead and refused to look at me. Him and his brother were known for pulling pranks and cracking jokes at school- there was a strange, impish quality to his features that unintentionally revealed his penchant for mischief. Every inch of his cool, pale skin was covered in freckles. Despite his pallid complexion, his cheeks always seemed to have a slight blush to them that made everything about him appear bright and lively. However, at the present moment, his face had been drained of all colour, save for a rather sickly green tinge. No wonder he doesn’t want to look at me- poor kid looks like he’s about to puke. Ms. Magenta finally stepped forward, “Excellent! We now have our two lovely tributes! Both of whom will now be escorted into the Justice building to await further instructions; Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor!” And with that, the Capitol’s sigil was once again displayed on the TVs, and its anthem blasted through the speakers. Suddenly, I felt four hands grab me by the arms and forcefully pull me backwards. I stumbled slightly, and looked up to see the two peacekeepers responsible. They continued to pull me across the stage before practically shoving me down the stairs and onto the cobblestone street. From the corner of my eye, I could see that my fellow tribute was receiving the same gentle treatment as they dragged- I’m sorry, escorted him- to the large, looming structure behind us. As they “escorted” me towards the building’s heavy brass doors, I looked back frantically, trying to spot my mother and sister. But the crowd had gotten rowdier, and they were all being jammed together as the peacekeepers continued to push them away from the stage. My breathing quickened, and I could feel the blood pumping through every vein in my body. When we reached the threshold, the brass doors opened to reveal a high-ceilinged marble hall, and a rush of cool air escaped them. So THIS is where all our air-conditioning goes, I thought to myself. Every sound echoed through the building’s marble interior. I craned my neck upwards and tried to take in every opulent detail as I was dragged down a hallway and shoved into a small room, where the peacekeepers finally released me from their vice grip. “Wait here,” one of them said. They both left and shut the door behind them. I massaged my sore upper arms. “You didn’t have to pull me so hard, you know!” I shouted at the door, “not like I was planning on going anywhere!”. I sighed and stepped back from the door. “Assholes,” I muttered to myself. I plopped down onto a green velvet armchair and examined my surroundings. The walls and ceilings were paneled in rich, mahogany wood. The square panels above me were covered in intricate carvings, complementing the elaborate crystal chandelier hanging in the center. While I assumed the floor was wood, it was hard to tell because of the heavy oriental rugs that adorned its surface. There were two large windows behind me, both framed by plush velvet curtains. They were the same emerald green as the chair, and were tied back with a thick, gold rope that had tassels on the end of it, so as to allow in natural light. There was not much furniture in the room aside from two armchairs- one of which I already occupied- a round, wooden coffee table between them, and two empty bookshelves inlaid in the wall on either side of the room. A thin blue vase containing a single white rose sat in the center of the coffee table. The smell of it was unnaturally overpowering. Something about it made me uneasy, so I carefully pushed it to the far side of the table and shifted away from it. I unconsciously started chewing on my lip. I couldn’t sit still. Sitting there shaking my leg, or playing with the hem of my dress, wasn’t helping. I let out a frustrated groan and jolted up from my seat. I continued to chew my lip as I restlessly paced back and forth across the room. The heavy rugs didn’t hide the creaking of the floorboards as I stomped across them. After what felt like hours, I heard the door creak open. I stopped in my tracks and ran to the door to greet my mother before she’d even entered the room. Her and my sister enveloped me in a bone-crushing hug which I eagerly returned. The peacekeeper standing behind them cleared his throat. We slowly let go of each other and turned to face him. “You have ten minutes to say goodbye- not a second more.” he said in a gruff voice. As my mother and sister stepped fully into the room, the peacekeeper roughly shut the door behind them and left. 

END OF PART ONE

a/n: If you’ve made it this far,  1. Hi, I love you 2. Will I write more for this series? To quote John Mulaney, “Who’s to say?”. 

[niceonebeale]

Sappy Neric season-finale two-part episode idea

As anyone who looks at my posts knows, I’m constantly complaining about the lack of Neric in NCIS: LA episodes. So I’ve come up with a Neric-centered season finale idea because I’m Neric trash and don’t have anything better to do.

First episode:

Shows Neric wearing cute nerdy pajamas asleep and cuddling in bed, alarm goes off, they wake up, ‘good morning’ kisses and ‘I love you’s (with pet names bc of course), along with classic adorable Neric banter. Cut to them walking into Ops. Kensi, Deeks, Callen and Sam are already there looking worried. Neric asks what’s going on, news footage of an on-fire car out the front of Neric’s apartment block is on the big screen, Eric recognizes it as his, cut to opening credits.

The news reporter says they found two bodies in the car (male and female), the team wonders why Neric would be targeted (insert ‘knowledge of classified Navy intel/secrets’ line here). Nell has questions- who was in the car, who rigged it, etc. K, D, C and S ask Neric how they got to work (they walked to the mechanic where Nell’s car was being serviced, then drove it to HQ). K, D, C and S go to check out the crime scene, identify the two bodies as an East Asian man and an African-American woman (clearly not able to be passed off as Eric and Nell). The team then wonders what the man and woman were doing in Eric’s car, and if a third party blew it up, and that the man and woman were the true targets.

(Insert plot here about the team identifying the bodies and why they would be targeted, turns out they were undercover agents/spies/whatever. Also includes K, D, C and S checking out all the nerdy and geeky stuff in Neric’s apartment (ideas include two sets of Harry Potter books and movies, a Star Trek chessboard (Nell’s), two lightsabers and a whole shelf full of action figures (Eric’s)). Back in Ops, K, D, C and S tease Neric about their stuff and call the action figures ‘dolls’, which of course annoys Eric no end.)

End part of episode:

K, D, C and S figure out that the car explosion was just a cover to lull everyone in a false sense of security because Neric were the actual targets all along. They try to call them, but don’t get through.

Meanwhile, Eric takes Nell to an empty lot, Nell recognizes it as the place the bar that held the trivia night they went to once was. He leads her over to a specific spot, says something like ‘I know this isn’t the most romantic of places, but this is where we were sitting the moment I’d realized I’d fallen in love with you’ along with a cute nerdy reference and that he wants to spend the rest of his life with her. Eric gets down on one knee and pulls out a small box, opens it to reveal a ring, Nell starts to get lil’ tears in her eyes. Eric asks her to marry him, Nell of course says yes and that he’s the love of her life/soulmate etc., he cups her face in his hands and kisses her, she wraps her arms around his middle, they kiss for a lil’ while, he’s then about to pull the ring out of the box to put on her finger when an SUV pulls up and four masked people jump out. #1 and #2 knock Eric out and drag him to the SUV, Nell manages to punch #3 but gets knocked unconscious by #4 and falls to the ground. SUV speeds away, screen goes black with the ‘to be continued’, episode ends.

Second episode:

There’s a ‘previously on NCIS: Los Angeles’ with scenes from the previous episode (including the proposal and Eric kissing Nell). Cut to hospital room. Nell wakes up, Kensi’s there. Nell asks where Eric is, K looks sad and says that they don’t know, Nell attempts to get out of bed saying she has to find Eric, K tells her that she has to stay put for at least a day (she fractured something when she fell/landed), Nell isn’t happy. Cut to a warehouse or someplace, a man’s tied to a chair with a bag over his head, kidnapper pulls it off to reveal Eric. Eric immediately starts asking where Nell is and if she’s okay, tries to escape from the chair but can’t. He then recognizes the kidnapper as a villain from a past episode, cut to opening credits.

In the warehouse, Eric says that they (the kidnappers) can do whatever they want to him as long as Nell’s safe. The kidnapper laughs and punches him/knocks him unconscious, he slumps forward in the chair with his eyes closed. Cut to Kensi walking into Ops where Deeks, Callen and Sam are. They ask K how Nell is, C asks if the Nellverine jumped out the window and escaped. K replies that she tried to, then asks D, C and S how they’re getting on with the tech stuff. Unsurprisingly, they’re not doing great. Just then, S’s phone rings, he answers it. Cut to Nell in her hospital bed, asks if they’ve found Eric yet, S says no. Nell then offers to help them with the tech in Ops and walks them through how to use it.

(Insert more plot here, including the team identifying all four kidnappers, Nell arriving back from the hospital, she sits in Ops looking at pictures of her and Eric on her phone, and we can see that she’s crying a lil’ bit, and says something like ‘come back/home to me, my little sugar monkey/my love’, etc. Up in Ops by herself, Nell finds the place where Eric’s being held, looks around to check she’s alone then pulls the gun out from under her desk. She leaves her phone, grabs some old files and goes into the burn room, incinerates the papers then escapes through secret tunnel in the burn room to outside, gets into her car, speeds away. K, D, C and S look for Nell but can’t find her, a random coworker says they saw her going into the burn room ten minutes ago. The team look at each other then run to the burn room, no sign of Nell.)

K, D, C and S go up to Ops and find Nell’s phone on the desk, then try to figure out where she went. Cut to Nell arriving out the front of the warehouse, sneaks around the side, quietly knocks one of the kidnappers out with her gun. She then goes in and finds herself in a hallway, shoots another kidnapper, then makes her way down to a room at the end. Back in Ops, the team think they found where Nell is, and leave. They get to another warehouse, it’s deserted and clearly not the right place. They then figure out the right place and head over there. Cut to Nell standing outside of a door holding her gun ready, and about to enter the room.

End part of episode:

Nell enters room, shoots kidnapper #3. She sees Eric tied to the chair, runs over to him and pulls the bag off his head. There’s tape on his mouth so he can’t talk, but you can tell he’s relieved to see her. He then looks alarmed, Nell starts to turn around but before she can, she’s knocked to the ground. She twists around to see kidnapper #4, quickly empties the rest of her mag into him and kills him. He falls to the floor, Nell tosses her gun aside. She grabs a knife she hid inside her jacket, cuts the rope tying Eric’s ankles then wrists, all the while saying ‘it’s okay baby, I’m here, you’re safe now’, etc. (Or alternatively ‘Wolfram, you’re safe with me’, which makes him smile a little). They both have tears in their eyes. Nell peels the tape off Eric’s mouth, he falls forward into her arms, they hug and kiss and cry and stroke each other’s hair. Nell says ‘I love you, I love you so much’, Eric replies ‘I love you, I love you so much too’. They break apart slightly, Nell brushes Eric’s hair out of his face and straightens his glasses, tells him that she’s so glad he’s safe. Eric of course dittos what she said, then background music (‘Question’ by the Old 97’s) starts to play. Eric gets to one knee, pulls the ring box out of his pocket and says that he realized when he arrived it was still in his pocket. He says ‘I know you already said yes, but since I didn’t get the chance to give you the ring, it’s not a proper proposal’. Nell has tears running down her cheeks while she smiles. Eric then says ‘take two- Nell (insert middle name (if she has one) here) Jones, will you marry me?’ Nell says yes, he slides the ring onto her finger, they have a tiny lil’ makeout session (in which she cups his cheek with her hand bc come on that’s adorable), then she tucks her head into his shoulder, he kisses the top of her head then rests his chin on top, they cuddle, their arms wrap around each other tightly.

The camera then pans out slightly to reveal, unnoticed by Neric, K, D, C and S standing in the doorway, and it becomes clear that they arrived just in time to catch the proposal. Neric, sensing that they’re not alone, look around to see the rest of the team smiling at them. Neric then turn back to each other, Eric tilts his head (we all know what this means), Nell smiles at him, he leans forward and kisses her. Camera then pans out but still focuses solely on Neric (still kissing), then the screen goes black and the episode ends.