#BUT I am also FASCINATED by whatever the hell is going on between merlin and toast

[lastoneout]

I want whatever the fuck it is they have

[kitchfit]

Year in Review: TV Shows

¡Feliz Dia de los Reyes! And Happy New Year! And also happy belated Hanukkah, Christmas, Yule, Bodhi, Kwanzaa and Diso, probably some other holidays. BOXING DAY. You all get a gift! And it's the same thing you ask for every year that I know you love so so much: Unwarranted opinions about tv shows from a stranger on the internet! I am truly generous.

Shadow and Bone s1-2

Confession: I grew up with these books. It’s one of the only book series I snatched up as soon as they were released, and to this day I will read anything Leigh Bardugo slaps my face with, so I was ecstatic to discover they were making a Netflix adaptation. And damn one thing I cannot critique is the casting for this series. Jessie Mei Li pulls off the classic orphan chosen one YA protagonist so well without being cliche, which is also something Bardugo was able to do in the books. And Freddy Carter and Kit Young have just become Kaz and Jesper in my head, replacing whatever image I had of those characters originally. Also evil Prince Caspian is hot!

Season one is genuinely a fantastic adaptation. They seamlessly combine the storylines of Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows. The gaps in pacing from the first book have had their slack picked up by these lovable criminals playing out a similar storyline to their first book, with Alina taking the place of the Grisha scientist as their object of kidnapping. Everything plays out so fluidly that I was enamored with my first and second watch through.

Season two on the other hand is messy as all hell. They try to adapt multiple books into one storyline like season one, but none of them blend in well together. The bastardized Crooked Kingdom plot (which was my favorite in the series) is completely disconnected from Alina’s story to the point it felt confusing and exhausting each time they went back to it, while the Siege and Storm and the Rise and Ruin plotlines are so rushed I could barely follow what was supposed to be happening. Plus they added their own ending, which is fine conceptually, I get them wanting to do their own thing, but I wish they either just adapted the books, or committed to making something original, instead of this clustered amalgamation.

The Owl House s3

Everyone knows this is a show that deserves MINIMUM six seasons and a movie. The world is incredibly fun and versatile, and the characters are fascinating and enjoyable to watch. But Disney is homophobic and lame and Oh My Shit is that Steamboat Willy making out with Oswald the Rabbit?? Holy Shit. I can’t believe that’s canon now! Thank you Bob Igor. 

That being said the writers and animators did a fantastic job on tight storytelling in these last two seasons. A lot of shows that aren’t given enough space to tell their story will cut out “filler” content to shove all the dramatic moments they want in your face (looking at you Voltron), but Owl House strikes a nice balance between slice of life character episodes and the more plot focused episodes in the short time they have. There’s so many background details and one off lines that create an intricate backstory that adds both to the lore and the motivations of our deadly Puritan villain. It also delivers on a fantastic ending that works both as a definitive end to the series or the jumpstart to a sequel if it ever gets graced with a renewal.

Merlin s1-5

Back in the day this show was grouped in among the other popular BBC shows at the time + Supernatural, and thus it gets a similar reputation nowadays as a queer-baity overrated show that goes on for too long. I don’t think that’s wholly undeserved, but Merlin is leagues better than either Supernatural or Sherlock and is much more consistent in delivering quality episodes than even New Who, though that last one is higher quality overall imo.

The cast all give a fantastic performance as their characters go through some genuinely well written character arcs, especially Anthony Head as Uther who blends goofy freak with hateable bigot so well that his antagonism commands the flow of the entire first three seasons. Like what’s his fucking problem? After he gets out of the picture however the pacing does tank as the plot forces out about three near identical Morgana takes over Camelot conflicts.

This show is also campy as all hell, and blends together lighthearted comedic episodes alongside extremely well written dramatic plots pretty well, though it occasionally stoops to some tonally dissonant melodrama. Uther falls in love with a farting witch like two episodes before Morgause nearly kills Arthur. I do think the will-they-won’t-they between Merlin and Arthur was written intentionally, and while their friendship is enjoyable to watch develop, the answer is obviously Won’t, because gay people don’t exist in Camelot times. Also Guinevere’s characterization fucking tanks in the last season for no reason at all, but it does have a good ending overall.

Dragon Ball Z Kai s1-4

Every year I make my dad watch a shonen anime all the way through. In 2020 it was Jojo’s, 2021 it was Hunter X Hunter, last year it was Naruto (Ocean Cut), and this year it was Dragon Ball Z Kai. So far there’s been no losers, he’s loved all of them (though he got burnt out on Part 5 of Jojo’s). It took a bit for him to get into Dragon Ball; the Saiyan saga did not hold his interest until the Vegeta fight, but he was thoroughly engaged through the Frieza saga and ESPECIALLY the Cell saga. He told me Cell is the most evil villain in all of the anime I forced this 49 year old to watch. I myself had never watched all of Dragon Ball Z in order before this year, and I’m happy to say most of it holds up, at least in Kai.

Season one is overall hard to rewatch from the beginning, since after Goku’s death we get several episodes of mindless training and running on Snake Way that we already know won’t pay off, but damn the cinematography and choreography in that first Vegeta fight is genuinely stunning and I can probably rewatch that anytime. Season two on Namek pulls off writing without Goku much better. There’s a strong sense of tension as all of these different conflicts barely miss each other: Frieza’s army killing off the already small population of Namekians as Vegeta, Gohan, and Krillin are searching for the Dragon Balls. Writing Vegeta as a secondary protagonist in this arc despite still being a violent jackass is genius and this whole section is thoroughly engaging. Pacing grinds to a crawl when the Ginyu Force show up, and I’m sad to say this continues into the Frieza fight. It’s a good fight, but after the Supper Saying shows up they could have ended things pretty quickly, but the fight draws on and on until even Goku gets bored. 

The Cell saga is easily peak Dragon Ball. This is the season Saturday morning cartoons would replay over and over again, so it's the one I’m most familiar with, and damn it I see why they did that. It’s a fun, messy time travel story that focuses on the development of our two biggest protagonists. Goku and Krillin? Nah fuck them I mean Gohan and Vegeta. We get conclusions to their character arcs that are so bombastically enjoyable that Toriyama NEARLY approaches good writing.

Season 4 on the other hand can’t decide whether it wants to be a continuation or its own thing and it shows in the pacing. The Buu saga is way too fucking long for no reason, the stakes rise to an absurd extreme and towards the end none of the characters seem to take any real notice. Goku lets his own son die to save a dog and an old man and then laughs it off as a brain fart. I like Majin Vegeta and regular Buu but everything afterwards overstays its welcome.

Castlevania s1-2

It’s kind of insane to me how good this show is. It takes the plot of an NES game with minimal dialogue and cool set pieces and transforms it into an epic ensemble story where every character has a fascinating arc to explore, not to mention animated BEAUTIFULLY. The show does NOT hold back on gore, but at the same time pulls it off with elegance so the blood and guts don’t feel gratuitous. Castlevania 3 was also my favorite as a kid despite never having finished it so it was personally very satisfying to see this one adapted. 

The relationship between Trevor, Alucard, and Sypha is also adorable and one of my mainstays when I think of fictional Polyamorous couples. Their dynamics are further developed in the latter seasons, but the Dracula fight is so stellar that I was satisfied with ending it there for now, I still need to watch the Rondo of Blood anime.

My Adventures With Superman s1

This show was so cute! And also very vindicating after Snyder’s Superman changed every depiction of the character into a deconstruction on whether helping people is good or evil. Or maybe those were the only ones I saw after that. I was introduced to Superman through the Justice League cartoon and that will always be my primary understanding of the guy, so it’s nice to see Clark written in a similar light. 

However, it’s Lois Lane that really takes center stage in this show. I mean it’s her adventures after all. She is NOTHING like any previous Lois Lane and is an essential brand new character, and she plays off of Clark’s personality SUPER well and their romance is adorable to see develop. I saw a lot of comparisons of her character to Luz and honestly I see the resemblance, not only in design but in dialogue. Which is fine I like Luz, but it forces me to compare it to the Owl House. 

While this show also has very little time to tell its story, unlike TOH it’s paced like shit. Every episode that they put out is fantastic, but all of them feel like the conclusion to a grand story arc, rather than 10 episodes in succession of each other. They introduced multiverse shit in episode SEVEN. And while I love the new design of Mr. Mxldsjdnsk (especially considering I had just finished Dragon Ball Z), they did not earn that shit. This is obviously a production problem I can’t blame on the writers, but this is a show clearly designed as a slice of life with action thrown in, it needs cute fillery episodes, dammit. STOP RUSHING EVERYTHING.

King of the Hill s1

I don’t know if it's a controversial take to say King of the Hill is easily the best adult-oriented American cartoon, right? I think everyone should be on the same page on this. Like the Simpsons is way too long to be objectively good anymore. Maybe Futurama outclasses it but like. Family Guy? American Dad? BIG MOutH? None of those even have jokes. King of the Hill manages to not only be hilarious as all hell, but also tell a meaningful story.

As someone who has grown up in the relative south (Not Texas) I see it as both a satire, celebration, and deconstruction of the culture of rural America. Most episodes focus on Hank trying to give Bobby a meaningful childhood and teach him valuable lessons, but in the process realizing that the culture he grew up in kind of fucked him up a bit, and instead of digging his heels in and refusing to change, he alters his behavior and views for the sake of his son. Bobby himself is a lovable goofball who shows off the fun of growing up as some country hick. Watch this clip of Bobby playing spin the bottle right fucking now.

Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake s1

ANOTHER PIECE OF MEDIA CAPITALIZING ON THE MULTIVERSE TREND LETS GO. I spoke before about the inherent metafiction in Multiverse narratives. I think Fionna and Cake understands that aspect well, which makes sense as in Adventure Time the Multiverse had already been an established fact. This sequel is more of an elaboration on previous world-building from the original, rather than following the trends of Marvel or whoever. It also makes me care about two characters I couldn’t give a shit about in the original, that being the title protagonists. They were cute in Adventure Time, but in my first watch through I really couldn’t be bothered with the watered down, gender-swapped variants of our main dudes, and in this show they basically discard all those episodes anyways! Cool!

Their arcs follow the existential nightmare of being people from a “noncanon, illegitimate” universe, and their quest to bring magic back to their world. It’s a compelling narrative and their differences and similarities with Finn and Jake are genuinely fun to compare and contrast while also being fun characters in their own right. I like the realization Fionna has midway through the series that the violent adventures she craved are actually kind of horrifying, and the simple quiet life she used to have was nice. I’m excited to see what the writers have in store for the both of them in the future.

But the real meat of this season comes in the deconstruction of the fan favorite character, Simon Ice King. Fionna and Cake was his fanfiction, after all, though that gets somewhat retconned. He was already a tragic figure in the original, and the final season gave him a bittersweet ending: his sanity returned but now eternally separated from his wife by her Eldritch transformation. This show gives his character the space and time to process exactly what the hell he’s supposed to do with his life now as well as understand the problems he and Betty had when they were in a relationship. I’m glad to see Simon finally get something far more resembling a happy ending than he ever got in the original.

Adventure Time s1-7

This is a show that I would describe as “high patience, high reward.” It’s not something I truly got into until college, as I was put off by what I saw as Lolz Random humor I was trying to distance myself from as a Cool Mature Teenager™. I still had a hard time getting through the first couple seasons in my first watch-through, but it was an easy show to put on in the background while doing research for papers. Eventually I was hooked and sped through all of it at blinding speeds. 

Fionna and Cake inspired me to revisit the show, and I’m happy to say I have a higher tolerance for the aspects of the show I found obnoxious the first time around. The wacky mathy-math lingo of the characters generally fades into the background and builds a distinct vocabulary of this goofy sci-fi fantasy world. It was also fun to see how aspects of the earlier episodes inspired later developments of the world, like the Zombie Businessmen establishing a possible dystopian setting for our goofball protagonists.

Unlike my first viewing, the pace breaker actually started around season five. Their are some fantastic episodes in this period of the show, but overall the world stops developing as fast and each episode acts more as an exploration of the characters. It’s nice to spend more time with all of these weirdos, but it’s made it tough to binge. That’s actually a positive now that I think about it. 

I like Finn a lot. I like that he’s flawed and he fails all the time, it makes it more enjoyable to see him mature as a person. If any episode encapsulates his personality the most, I think it’s the Hall of Egress, where Finn is trapped in a dungeon that resets every time he opens his eyes. It’s probably my favorite episode in the entire show, and plays to all of AT’s strengths: a great mix of comedy and introspection without ever being melodramatic

Scott Pilgrim Takes Off

I was initially disappointed with this show when I realized it wasn’t a direct adaptation of the original comic. It plays this fact as a twist, playing out the first volume in its entirety until the very end, where SPOILERS Scott Fucking Dies. The “Takes Off” part was literal: that dude is Gone. The second episode even plays this for laughs as Envy Adams has a spontaneous concert over his funeral and no one besides Ramona seems to care that their friend exploded. It felt like a cruel joke making fun of fans of the original. 

I’m glad I pushed through, though, as all of this was a ploy to put Ramona in the center stage, changing the goalpost of Beat Up the Seven Evil Exes to Investigate the Seven Evil Exes for possible murder/kidnapping motives Columbo-style. In most of the adaptations, Ramona is always playing off of Scott’s dumbass behavior, and it takes a while to truly dig into her personality. Putting her center-stage gives the audience an immediate view into her character and she may be the most likable she’s ever been. 

This show works as a sequel to the original through some time-travel shenanigans, and brings back series creator Brian Lee O’Malley, as well as the cast from the movie. This whole deal, if the rumor is true, apparently came out of Michael Cera responding to a group email meme with the og cast a decade late with “That’s funny,” and got everyone talking again. With that in mind it changes my view on the show as a whole, it's not a cruel joke, it’s a love letter to everything that came before it. 

I do still have a couple complaints, mostly that a few characters are heavily flanderized, namely Wallace and Scott himself, but like. That’s fine. How many times have we seen these characters explored? Like what 5 times now? I’m fine with them taking a comedic back seat to explore the dynamics of the rest of the cast. It’s also really satisfying to see all the exes get meaningful character arcs, which they never really got in the other versions of SP including the original. It makes me want to see what else they might have in store, but there are no plans for a continuation. Probably because that cast listing was expensive as hell. Do you know how much Chris Evans voice acting costs??? $7.50/hour AT LEAST.

Bee and Puppycat s2

Damn this show is so comfy. Everything from the characters, the music, the voice acting, the animation style, the COLORS! Even when the show hits the dramatic button it never stops being such a delight. It’s also longer than I remember, and gives a lot of time for every plotline to unfold. There’s intrigue and mystery surrounding every inch of this Mario Galaxy-ass setting, and it never fully reveals its hand, but that never takes away from the simple, slice-of-life story about two roommates taking part time jobs to make ends meet.

There’s a heavy theme of responsibility and young adulthood with all of the characters, which is also super relatable to me rn. The most responsible character in this show is the six-year old landlord with WAY too much on his shoulders. I like the dynamics with the Wizard family, I feel they present very realistic sibling relationships overall.

I tried checking out season 1 on youtube. I’ve heard people call it a continuation, but season 2 really is just a reimagining of this short youtube series. It’s only an hour long but for some reason it failed to grasp me. It’s somewhat tonally different, and the romantic tension between Bee and Deckard is weird to me after watching season 2. I’m glad they abandoned that as a plotline.

And those are all the shows I watched this year. LAST YEAR. I did not finish this when I wanted to, so to speed things up I’m gonna skip over the final movie list. Long story short Coraline rules, Home Alone 2 is violent and funny, Love Actually Hugh Grant is hot, and Christmas Vacation SUCKS. Fuck National Lampoon all my homies Hate national lampoon. Next time I will be doing the final games list. Wahoo!

[mcmactictac]

So I’m trying to write a paper on the pros and cons of fandom culture for a media class right. And let me just say it makes me SO MAD trying to find sources because there are so many genuinely wonderful things about fandom and there are many complex social issues reflected in them. Yet so many of these articles are all just based so heavily in sexism? Like playing into that “crazy fangirl” stereotype. And listen I get it yk some people are like that. But I want to talk about WHY fandom is so important to so many people.

Everyone is so quick to judge without getting any understanding of where the sense of attachment comes from. Yes, fandoms have bad people. Yes, there is fetishization, doxing, and a shit load of other problems. It just drives me nuts that those problems are pointed out and no academic sources make an effort to figure out why those problems occurred. Like the relationship between society and fandom is so fucking interesting and its really interesting to see how different fanbases reflect different viewpoints on things.

Also I’m tired of everyone saying we control the media. I have not sat through years of queerbaits; through all of November 5th and the hell that came after it for people to say that producers always listen to fans and give them whatever they want/target everything towards them. Like yes ofc massive media companies are going to take advantage of people cause sadly that’s just how so many of them are. But that doesn’t take away from the genuine meaning and support that media gives us? 

Like brief academic moment here we’ve been talking about Stanley Hall’s model of communication and the idea of encoding and decoding, and how media can have multiple different meanings. I fully agree that people’s own cultural experiences and personal contexts change the way they interpret something. And it’s absolutely fascinating to see how fanbases can have such a large majority of people who draw the same conclusion from media based on their experiences. Especially with queerbaiting and queer coding. I've been thinking about BBC Merlin a lot recently and how interesting that show is not only on its own but in relation to it’s fandom. How so many people can watch it and see magic as something so clearly queercoded, and identify themselves with that characters, and then other people can insist that we’re grasping for straws. 

I just wish it was taken more seriously yk? Like the good and the bad that comes along with it are both very real and intense emotions, especially with so many neurodiverse people in fandom space who become hyperfixated on media. That’s something that has a massive impact on people. Fandom can be a space to connect with others, to explore your own identity, to critically reflect on what you’re consuming, to inspire yourself to create! 

Whenever people outside of fandoms talk about fanfiction it’s always about slash fiction and YES that is a part of it but I have read some truly incredible and impactful fanfictions that has understood the target audience better than a majority of media sources. Fanfiction that can speak to you, reflect your own feelings, provide a sense of comfort or a way to express emotion. Like yes there’s fic’s that are just smut but I’ve seen just as many 100k+ fics that are like focused around found family, mental health issues, AU’s with incredible worldbuilding, fans who put the devotion into creating well rounded characters and expanding upon the foundation placed before them. I’m tired of all that being ignored, because it should be appreciated. I’ve seen so many people who manage to communicate a certain feeling or emotion through fanfiction better than in books I’ve read.

And as so much of adolescent culture shifts online I think fandom spaces are HUGE in terms of self discovery. I’m tired of adults invalidating fandoms because it’s just “made up of obsessive teen girls” there is so much more to that and every day I am tempted to write an essay (not for class) on it because I have so many thoughts on it and I absolutely hate that people refuse to take it seriously.

Wow ok clearly had some feelings there thanks for coming to my TED talk 

[a-small-batch-of-dragons]

It’s Not That Bad Part 2

prompt: I loved your Merlin dragon fic!!! I re-read it like 5 times now. Can I be so humble as to request a small sequel? Nothings cooler than your portrayal of Merlin as a BAMF dragon and Arthur having heart eyes 😍

Yes! Moar of the bois!

Read on Ao3 Part 1!

Pairings: Merthur, can be platonic or romantic you decide

Warnings: none. Merlin’s a little shit but what did we expect

Word Count: 1578

Okay, Merlin’s gonna take the blame this time. This one’s on him. Definitely. No two ways about it. He’s big enough to admit he screwed up. He is! This one’s definitely on him. Absolutely not a question about it.

In his defense, what was he supposed to do when he saw a sorcerer with a magic circle around a dragon’s egg chanting ominously as a bunch of storm clouds formed overhead, not run into the middle and push it out?

Yeah, as if.

Gwaine whoops so loudly Merlin’s ears rattle.

 “Alright, alright,” he wants to say, even though he’s got no right to, “calm down, you’re gonna make my ears explode.”

 But he doesn’t say that, because he was no better.

 “Hey, my turn!”

 “Merlin, come down, they’re going to spot you.”

 “Don’t listen to them, Merlin, let’s just stay up here forever!”

 He can hear Gwaine’s pout as he lands back in the clearing, Percival affectionately ruffling Gwaine’s hair as he grins like a little kid. Merlin snuffles at Arthur’s cape before flopping onto his belly.

 “Come on, Merlin,” he laughs, “you can’t be that tired already.”

 “Listen, when you’re a dragon and there’s suddenly more of you, you can be as tired as you want to.”

 “Maybe if you got off your skinny arse more—“

 “Say that again and you’ll find out just how skinny my arse is right now.”

 Arthur, of course, because he’s an absolute prat, scratches behind his ears. He gets right under the section of Merlin’s scales and stays there. Every single muscle in Merlin’s body relaxes.

 “That,” he manages to grumble, “is not fair.”

 “Sure, Merlin.”

 Merlin manages to switch his tail up to bat at Arthur’s cape.

 “So what are you going to do now?” Lancelot leans against the stump in the center of camp. “We’ve not got much to do except wait until the moon.”

 “Yep.” Merlin closes his eyes. “Which means I get to take a break.”

 “A break?” Arthur rolls his eyes. “You call this a break?”

 “You can’t yell at me to do chores, I don’t have to save your arse, and I don’t have to go anywhere.” He scuffs his chin back and forth on the ground. “I can just take a nap. Right here.”

 “Merlin.”

 Merlin just yawns—not breathing fire everywhere!—and clicks his jaw, settling on the forest floor and leaning his head up against Lancelot’s tree stump. Lancelot chuckles and rests his hand on the dragon’s forehead.

 “I think he’s quite earned a rest, don’t you think, sire?” Lancelot nods back toward Camelot. “He has just saved our lives only yesterday.”

 Arthur grumbles, sitting on the log. Leon rolls his eyes good-naturedly and pats him on the shoulder.

 “Your Merlin will be back before too long, and you’ll both be your normal selves again.”

 Arthur looks up at him with a frown. “How am I not being normal?”

 Elyan coughs but it does nothing to hide the way the water sprays out of his mouth. Percival passes him a cloth.

 “You miss having your little Merlin,” Gwaine says, chomping into an apple, “which was to be expected.”

 “What?” Arthur splutters. “I—what on earth are you on about?”

 Merlin, meanwhile, is having a great time. It’s warm outside, the sun feels like a fire-warmed blanket on his scales, Lancelot’s hand keeps making little stroking motions over his forehead, and he’s pretty sure that low rumble is coming from him.

 “You’re both attached at the hip, we know. You don’t have to hide it from us.”

 “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

 Oh, did he mention how much better the trees smell with a dragon nose? The scent of the pine and the slightly sweet smell of the blossoms are intoxicating. He flares his nostrils out to drink it in, is this why Arthur loves coming out to the forest so often? It’s wonderful.

 “Sire, there is no one else around. You can be honest.”

 “I am being honest!”

 “Sure, Arthur.”

 The ground is so warm. He could go to sleep right here. Right…here…never wake up again…

 “I am being completely honest! I think it’s you lot that’ve lost a marble or two.”

 “Merlin, can you believe this?”

 Go to sleep…not have to worry about anything.

 “Yeah, Merlin, you’ve been awfully quiet.”

 Can you hear something? Merlin can’t. It’s too nice outside. Perfect nap weather.

 “We can see you, Merlin, we know you’re not asleep.”

 Dragons regularly sleep with their eyes half-open. It’s a fascinating piece of information. Merlin should tell Gaius about it.

 “Merlin.”

 “Hey, that’s my thing!”

 “Merlin,” Lancelot chuckles, poking the scales between his eyes, “come on.”

 “I’m a dragon,” he mumbles, “I don’t have to do anything.”

 “I mean, if you’d like to wait for them to tease you when you can’t knock them over with barely any effort, you can.”

 Lancelot’s got a point.

 Merlin opens his eyes and lifts his head, staring at the other knights. Gwaine’s got a shit-eating grin wide enough to fit four apples. Elyan and Percival are staring at Arthur. Leon’s got his court-smirk on. And Arthur is glaring at the ground with bright red cheeks.

 “So what do you want?”

 Gwaine shrugs. “Only for you to help us get Princess here to confess that he misses having you around as you normally are.”

 “Well, I’m certainly not as easy to shove around like this.”

 “Damn right,” Arthur mumbles.

 “But you’re also not as easy to hoard protectively to himself,” Gwaine says, “or pretend you’re gonna get sent off on a massive list of chores so that we don’t get a chance to talk to you.”

 “I do not do that?”

 “Really?” Merlin frowns. “That’s not what you’re doing?”

 “Merlin!”

 “See? Even Merlin agrees!”

 Leon chuckles. “At least we’ve moved past you insisting to be the one to escort Merlin to the dungeons.”

 “Wait, wait, Princess did what?”

 “Leon, don’t you dare.”

 “What,” Leon blinks innocently, tilting his head, “is it not prudent?”

 “I—well, yes, it’s relevant, but you—why—just don’t.”

 “Come on, Leon,” Percival says, “don’t hold out on us.”

 “Yeah, Princess, shush.”

 “Perhaps Merlin should tell us this,” Leon suggests, “I believe you would be willing?”

 “I think that’s a great idea!”

 “Yeah, Merlin, you’ve been holding out on us.”

 Merlin huffs. “I would get angry and Arthur would march me downstairs. That’s it. End of story.”

 “Oh, no, my friend,” Leon says, and what did Merlin do, forget to polish his chainmail or something?— “Arthur did not simply march you downstairs. He would catch you in his arms as you tried to rush whatever noble was making an egregious overstep of personal liberties and hustle you out the door in an embrace.”

 The chunk of apple in Gwaine’s mouth flies out and hits Merlin’s snout.

 “Hey!”

 Gwaine is too busy laughing to be able to respond to an indignant dragon who did not deserve to have apple spit up at him.

 “You—you—of my lord, it’s like a ballad,” he manages through gasping cackles, “that’s so sweet!”

 “It was quite nice.”

 “Oh…that’s what you meant,” Merlin mumbles, “I think you should still, uh, not do that.”

 “Do what,” Leon blinks, “continue to tell them about things that happened?”

 “Yep.”

 Leon raises his hands. “Oh, well, if you say so, Merlin.”

 “Now why,” Arthur grumbles, “is it that you’ll listen to him and not me?”

 “We like Merlin better than you.”

 “Gwaine!”

 Gwaine shrugs innocently. “What? It’s true.”

 Yeah…whatever happened to Merlin taking a nap?

 “Merlin’s also a dragon right now, sire. I’m playing it safe.”

 “He won’t be in a day.”

 “Oh, I’m aware.”

 A twig snaps.

 The clearing hushes. Percival’s hand goes to his sword. Even Gwaine sobers and looks around.

 Movement. Behind Merlin.

 He holds still, waiting, until he feels something prick his tail.

 In a flash, he whips around and roars, jaws wide, ready to snatch the offending object out of the air. The bandit he whirls on screams before he disappears down Merlin’s throat.

 “Bandits!”

 Before th knights can make it past Merlin’s tail, he rushes forward, grabbing another bandit and hurling him across the clearing. The bandit collides with his companion and they both tumble to the ground, still. The last bandit readies a crossbow.

 “Rot in hell, foul beast.”

 Well. Merlin can’t have that.

 All that remains of the bandits are smoking pieces of armor and a few saddlebags that were too worn the burn.

 Merlin huffs, shaking his head and turning back around, intent on getting his nap, thank you very much, only to realize the knights are frozen, looking at him.

 “…what?”

 “Bloody hell, that was fantastic.”

 “Are you sure you don’t want to stay a dragon?”

 “That was impressive!”

 “Good show, mate.”

 Arthur just stares at him. Eyes wide. There’s more flush to his cheeks, but not from embarrassment. The way Arthur’s looking at him now is almost like…wonder.

 “…Arthur?”

 Arthur sheaths his sword and walks up to him, resting a hand on his snout.

 “Arthur?”

 Lancelot, bless whatever intuition the gods gave him, loudly declares that they’re going to need more firewood and hustles the rest of the knights off into the woods. Arthur barely watches them go.

 “Arthur, what’s—“

 “I miss you being as you really are,” he says softly, “because I can’t properly congratulate you for how impressive that was.”

 Merlin blinks. Oh. Well, then.

 “…it’s only until tomorrow.”

 Arthur smiles. “Then I’d better appreciate having you as a dragon until then, hmm?”

 The rest of the knights come back to Merlin sleeping in the clearing, Arthur tucked up against his chest, between his claws.

[futurewriter2000]

Heartless - pt. 10

A/N: You guys are going to hate me so much hahahahhaahahahha. 

XX

::::

No dirt. No pain. Only silk and warmth. 

Your fingertips only felt the smoothness of the silk and the sheets. The cushions were so soft beneath you that you almost sunk into it. This bed definitely wasn’t your bed. It wasn’t bumpy old mattress with hard pillows and harsh blankets. It felt most comfortable you had in years. 

Opening your eyes to the beautiful morning sunlight, you saw a shadowy figure at the foot of your bed. He sat there, reading a book and you knew who this was. Most definitely, you would remember your life-long bully. 

“Mooorning, (y/n).” he glanced up with his bright green eyes, one more blue than green. 

You tried not to show how fear quickly overtook you. You felt sweaty, more than sweaty. You felt you had died and ended up in hell with him by your side. Keeping your eyes steady, cold, you answered in the same voice. “Mulciber.” you nodded and he plastered an amused smile on, still reading his thick book. 

“Wait... Let me just finish this.” he said, lifting his index finger at you as his other hand trailed down the page. 

And you waited, just as he said. You waited for him to finish reading because you didn’t know where to even start questioning about your surroundings. 

His finger stopped and slowly, he closed the book and put it on the desk next to the bed. He pulled his leg up on the bed and stared into your eyes with his blazing green colour. 

“I’m just keeping an eye on you, Potter.” he smiled widely, chuckling and shaking his head. “You, (y/n) Potter. Who knew...” he continued to chuckle.

“Quit the games, Mulciber. Tell me where I am. Why are you here?” 

“I’m your baby sitter, darling.” he leaned back on the foot of the bed and crossed his arms in front of your chest. “You and me are now bonded forever.” 

Your heart sunk. It was as if you swallowed it whole down your throat. 

“Oh, it’s not that bad, (y/n). I just know how stubborn you are.” he scooted off the bed and walked to you, his hand trailing up your leg and up to your bare left hand. “And also... you can throw a punch.” he smiled and sat down, taking a hold of your hand. 

You wanted to tear it away from him but he wouldn’t let it go. “Do you want to test this theory, right now?” you seethed at him as he chuckled.

“We are going to have so much fun together.” he kept caressing your hand and as much as you hated to admit it... it felt good. Your eyes travelled to your hand that he held and watched how beautifully, tenderly his hand brushed against your own. “You have beautiful hands, (y/n) Potter.” he charmed, his eyes glinting with a wonderful shimmer. 

“Is that it, Mulciber?” you let out a scoff. “Flirting with me?” 

“You’re in debt to the Dark Lord, Toots.” he grinned maliciously and you jumped, wanting to pull your hand away from him but he gripped it extremely tight. 

“I’d never-”

“You did though, can’t you remember?” he asked, pulling your hand to his lips and brushed it against your knuckles. “He saved you, now you owe him-”

“Owe him what?” you asked, heaving and feeling your heart beat. 

“Loyalty.” he continued to smile. 

“I will never bow to him!” you started to lose control with your temper but Mulciber only laughed and pulled himself closer, turning your hand around and caressing your forearm. 

When you looked down at your forearm, you quickly looked away, taking a deep breath in. “Oh, my God.” you let out a shaky breath, squeezing your eyes shut as tears fell down your cheeks. 

“It doesn’t look bad on your pretty little arm.” he continued to speak, trying to look up at you but you kept your head turned away from him. 

He came over to you, up until the two of you were face to face. He put his hands on your cheeks and made you face him. Your eyes, despite the fear, were fierce and strong. He brushed away the fallen tears and smiled- softly, something you hadn’t expected from him. “I’m doing this for one person only, (y/n) Potter.” he spoke seriously, observing your forehead, your eyebrows, your eyes that he found appealing the most- then your nose and your lips, soft and plush. “You never know when you’ll end up dead here so you should consider yourself lucky being stuck with me than any other of us.” his eyes now focused on you, looking into you as if he was drilling into your soul. “You stick with me, you do as I say and you’re alive.”

“I’d rather die-”

He pressed his thumb on your lips and looked even deeper, which you hadn’t thought was possible but he looked so deeply into you, that you thought you were standing bare naked in front of him. He touched every corner of your soul with his eyes and there was something you never knew you could see in his eyes; empathy. 

“You live. Your family lives.” he finished, this time removing himself from your soul and giving you the look of respect before he removed himself away from you. 

He stood up and started backing away from you, further and faster. 

“Brush away the tears, (y/n). We both know that’s not you.” he plastered his perpetual smirk. “Pull yourself together, do whatever he says.” he continued as he turned you his back and started walking to the door.

“For who are you doing this?” you blurted out, trying to reach out for him.

He looked over his shoulder and mumbled something before taking a firmer look at you and smiled. “Just do as I say.” 

And just like that he was out of the door and standing in front of his leader.

“Well?” the Dark Lord hissed in his usual cold tone.

“She’s awake.” 

“And?”

“She’s expecting you.” Mulciber said, not even looking him in the eyes. 

“Brilliant.”

:::

You jolted awake, eyes widening as your fingers beneath you gripped the marbles of dirt and pushed your whole body weight off the ground. 

You were facing him, him, the Dark Lord- the one you have dreamt about and you were staring at him- at his large red eyes that had a slit instead of a pupil. 

He stared at you with fascination. “Interesting.” he hissed, pointing his wand at you. “Very interesting.”

“I take it back!” you scrambled on your feet, swaying left and right and holding yourself against the trunk. You felt sickness wash over you from pain- so much pain that it almost burst outside of you. 

“You’d do me a fair good.” he continued calmly, trying to approach you but you only stepped back.

“STAY AWAY FROM ME!” you shouted, looking around to find your wand before remembering that your wand was half-broken. The thought of no wand made you want to cry so badly- sob even. God, you were so exhausted, so much in pain. Your bumpy bed never sounded more like a dream than it did right now. 

He was in front of you- in front of you... (y/n). He is in front of you. Do something. 

“Why can’t I get inside your mind?” 

(y/n).... Do something before he kills you.

He took a hold of your head, holding it firmly between his hands as you felt a sudden pressure inside your head- as if you skull was about to burst. 

It hurt, your head hurt, your vision... your vision??- Your vision burst into the stars...

---

It was after midnight when James sat in the living room. His head was in his hands and he couldn’t stop himself from crying. He did it every day. Every night at the same time because it was the only way he could without anybody knowing.

And with every night it came a realisation what happened to you. You cried... every night just like he did and nobody knew. He thought other’s would notice but nobody ever did and that pushed him into more tears.

He was supposed to protect you! He was your brother and everybody noticed that he stopped being your brother a long time ago. Everybody except him.

“I’m sorry, (y/n).” he sobbed into his hands, feeling nothing but tears that soaked his palms. He rubbed his eyes and tried to look up but by now his eyes really hurt. They were puffy, bloody red and broken.

And he didn’t know why he felt as if he was grieving after you but hope- hope that you’re coming back now, today, this moment, this minute, this second. He just wanted you back. He wanted you here. Too many days passed without you in it. A week- a week too much. Seven days without you were spent like seven years in Azkaban for him- especially where he was the guilty one. He was the one that shoved you away and now you weren’t here. You weren’t here with him to console him. You were the only person who ever saw him cry. You were the person who made him feel strong when he was weak. You were the only one who held him when he needed to be held but what happens when the only person who you needed wasn’t there anymore?

If it wasn’t for the sudden rumble in the hall, James would have wailed out loud from pain of losing you. He felt something was wrong. He felt it inside of him like your bones were his bones. It wasn’t physical pain- it was a strong tingle and it was so strong that it hurt. He knew something wasn’t right and by the sound that just appeared in the hall... that made him-

“James?” a sudden woman’s voice came from the hall and he shot his head to the figure, brushing away his tears.

He thought it was his mother, standing and catching him so weak and vulnerable but it wasn’t James. It was you- you in a black turtle neck and jeans.

“(Y/N)?!” his eyes widened, looking at the bag you dropped on the floor. “Oh thank God!” he ran into your arms, almost knocking you on the floor when his arms wrapped themselves around you and lifted you off your feet. “I’m so sorry, (y/n)! I’m a bloody idiot to have ever thought my life would be better without you! Merlin,-” he pulled away, cupping your face. “- I’m never leaving you again. I’m so sorry for ever telling you all the things that I said. They aren’t true. They were never true. I was being a gromless pillock, like you always call me but blimey, have I missed you- I thought you were dead somewhere and it was my fault but I love you, (y/n)-” he continued to blubber non-stop.

“James, calm down-”

“MUM! DAD!” he shouted at the stairs. “SHE’S HOME! SHE’S HOME!” he said turning back to you.

“Have you been crying, James?” you asked, cupping his wet cheeks and brushing your thumbs across it.

“You cut your hair?!” he looked at your short hair that fell down your shoulders. “And- what happened to your chee-” he stopped to observe the scratches on your skin; one specifically that stretched over your right eye, down your eyebrow and to your cheek.

“Ah, it’ll heal.” you smiled at him, slapping his hand away as he pulled you into another hug.

Then you heard tumbling over the stairs, your parents and Sirius all looking at you. Your mother ran to you first, giving you a tight hug and so on until everybody made his turn. Well, mostly everybody.

Sirius was still there standing at the stairs, looking lost and guilty. His eye has gotten better since the last time.

You smiled softly at him, opening your arms and hugging him. As soon as you did, his arms wrapped around you like he had never thought you’d come back to him.

“I’m so sorry, (y/n).” he mumbled into your neck, taking a long deep breath of you and not finding a single fragmance of coconut on your skin. But you still had your own scent, the one that made his mind go into clouds. It was never the coconut. It was you. You was all he needed.

And it was not any different for you. The way he smelled was more than wonderful. No cologne, no shampoo but him. His smell, the one you fall in love with. The one that’s warm and safe, the one that brings you home.

You pulled away, cupping his cheeks and looking at him as you did James before. “Reset button?”

He let out a laugh. “Reset button.”

But if only it was that easy.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

the “ ::: “ in the beginning implies as the reader was dreaming/having a flash in their head. 

[cryingoverafictionalcharacter]

Fred Weasley x Muggle! reader

Prompt: Ok so I had this cute idea, cuz I’m a stem major and whatever. But like, what if Fred was dating a muggle born, and while they were really into their wizard studies, their parents also made them keep up on muggle school/life, and tells Fred about it and he finds it fascinating. So yeah here's that!

You are in the Library studying for some of the tests you have coming up. You have a Herbology and Divination exam coming up, but you're also reading through a muggle textbook on zoology, since it was a topic that you were still really interested in, and your parents wanted to make sure you stayed up to date on your muggle studies.

You are interrupted by your boyfriend Fred, who comes and plops himself down in the seat next to you, giving you a grin.

“Morning gorgeous” He says kissing the top of your head, causing you to smile. 

“You better not be here to distract me” You said jokingly, thought Fred does have a tendency to side track you.

“Distract you? Never! You’re not the only one who studies Y/n” He say's sarcastically, causing you to laugh.

“Oh really then, what are you studying?” You ask, causing Fred to look around the table quickly before his eyes landed on your muggle text book.

“Same as you...” He says picking up the book “Zoology!” He says, before furrowing his eyebrows and looking at the book more closely. “Like Magizoology? I didn’t know we had textbooks that looked like this” He said, allowing you to snatch the book back from him grinning.

“I am taking Magizoology, but this isn’t for that, this is a book on non-magical animals” You explained, putting down the book, trying to get back to studying. But of course, Fred wasn’t going to let you go with that explanation. 

“What, so like frogs and stuff?” He asks, flipping open the page randomly, landing on a picture of an Octopus, taking a moment to read over the page.

“What the bloody hell is a chromatophore?” He said, eyes landing on the first bolded word he saw.

“Its what makes octopuses able to change colors” You explained, causing his eyes to grow wide 

“They change colors?!”

After that day, Fred would often pester you asking for fun muggle animal facts, and you honestly had a lot of fun with it. You would talk about similarities and differences between muggle and magic animals, you talked about their behavior and other things. He was really interested, and he could tell how passionate about it you were.

Fred also started getting into your other textbooks that your parents had made you bring.

“Hey Y/n, what does this book and our relationship have in common” He asked you one day when you were hanging out in your dorm.

“What Fred”

“We both have Chemistry”

“Fred I swear to Merlin”

In all honesty, Fred loved to see how passionate you were about learning new things, he even went as far as helping you study sometimes.

“So what’s the SATs?” Fred asked in the middle of one of your studying sessions.

“Its like the OWLS or NEWTS exams for muggles. Muggles take them so that colleges can see if we should go to their school”

“Why would you want to go to muggle school?” 

“My parents want me to keep my options open”

George even notices and starts making fun of him for it.

“Yeah there's these animals called Okapis, and they’re super weird looking and-”

“Damn Fred, looks like your genius girlfriend/boyfriend is finally rubbing some brain cells off on you”

But secretly George also loves to hear about it.

One Christmas though Fred invites you to stay at the burrow. He obviously told his parents all about you, and Arthur is ecstatic to say the least.

“So, the Hubble Telescope is able to take these from space?” He asks, looking at pictures on your phone which you were allowed to have since you were off campus.

“Yeah, oh here's one of Pluto its gorgeous”

“Fascinating!”

You ended up gifting Arthur a few of your old Astrology and Zoology textbooks for Christmas to help him with his muggle studies. He didn’t put them down the entire break.

You also give Fred one of your old iPods, which you have filled with songs that you think he would like.

You spend a lot of the break laying together in his bed, one ear bud each, just listening to the music.

Molly absolutely loves you, and thinks you’re good for Fred. She sees the way he looks at you when you’re talking about something you’re passionate about, and the smile on his face says everything.

At one point play Just Dance on your laptop, which gets very competitive very quickly. But its also a huge hit.

When you’re both finally done with school, Fred and George start the Joke shop, and you decide to peruse whatever you’re passionate about. Fred supports you every step of the way.

__________________________________________________________

IDK what this is! I just had the idea in my brain and needed it out lol. Hope you like it. Also, Okapis are lit, please look them up, I love them.

[thatonedracostan]

Special Chaser // Draco Malfoy x Reader

Request by @x-potter-head-x​: It's a Slytherin party and a game of spin the bottle starts but when the reader spins and it lands on a random male Slytherin, you look really uncomfortable and Draco speaks up and it's just really cute and fluffy at the end?

(Thank you so much for the request!)

Summary:  You are the only female player in the Slytherin Quidditch team. Everyone thinks you're special and you hate it. Especially this one specific housemate of yours who has been hitting on you ever since word came out about you getting in the Slytherin Quidditch team. You have no plans on entertaining him as your eyes are set on one person already, your own team's seeker, Draco Malfoy.

A/N:  I know the request only asked for a party scene but I wanted to sprinkle something extra so I challenged myself by trying to write a Quidditch scene and I'm never doing it again (maybe) I haven't written anything in 5 days because of the summer heat but finally, I'm back at it again hehe also no beta I'm so sorry HAHA

Word Count: 2.3k

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“She goes for a throw and—Ten points to Slytherin!”

Lee Jordan’s voice echoed as you managed to throw the quaffle into one of Gryffindor’s goalposts. You heard cheers coming from the Slytherin bleachers and groans from other houses, but you didn’t pay them any attention. You were too focused on the game in front of you. 

You were one of the Chasers in the Slytherin Quidditch team and the only girl in it. At first, the captain of the team was hesitant to let you join, mostly because you were a girl. However, once they saw your incredible skills and prowess, they welcomed you. You’ve always been fascinated with Quidditch and this fascination of yours made you want to try out for the team. 

At first, you were having second thoughts. Your house’s team, despite being great, has a reputation for not playing fair, and the fact that the team didn’t have any female players made you doubt your decision even more. But your doubts were immediately cleared when you remembered who the Slytherin seeker is, Draco Malfoy. Not only do you admire his skill in Quidditch, but you also quite fancied him. This was enough reason for you to join the tryouts, wherein you succeeded in getting a place as one of the Chasers, which brings us to the present.

You saw a glimpse of Draco and Harry, both trying to catch the snitch in front of them. You wouldn’t have noticed that you were staring if it wasn’t for Goyle hitting the bludger away from your direction. You shook your head and thanked him then proceeded to go after your fellow chasers.

It went on for a while, with the scores almost tied. You managed to avoid one of the bludgers headed to your direction but this gave Angelina, one of Gryffindor’s Chasers and their captain, a chance to snatch the quaffle from you. She quickly made her way towards your team’s goalposts. You were about to go after her when you heard Lee’s announcement that Draco Malfoy has caught the snitch. This meant that Slytherin won the match. You looked at the bleachers and the Slytherins celebrating. You even saw Snape slowly clapping from the teachers’ stand which made you a bit proud. 

You flew down the pitch to meet with your team and your captain congratulated all of you for doing a good job. Your eyes immediately searched for Draco to congratulate him for catching the snitch but you were too late as he already made his way to the changing room. You sighed and walked towards the changing room, following him.

“Hey, L/N.” a voice called behind you. You closed your eyes and sighed in frustration. You continued walking, not even bothering to look back and see who just called you. You heard his footsteps following you and you stopped in your tracks. 

“Leave me alone, Spencer.” You turned around to face the boy who just spoke. He still had your house colors painted on his face. Just like you, he was in Slytherin as well. You hated his guts so much.

“Am I not allowed to congratulate you for winning a match against Gryffindor.” He smirked as he reached out a hand to your face in an attempt to brush your hair away from your face. You swatted his hand away before he could even touch you. He’s been hitting on you ever since word got around that the Slytherin Quidditch team has a new female member, and you hated it. You knew he wasn’t really interested in you, he just wanted you so he could show off that he’s dating the only female member in the Slytherin Quidditch team.

“I already told you I’m not, and will never be, interested in you.” You barked at him, your eyebrows furrowing in both anger and annoyance. “So please, for Merlin's sake, leave me alone.” You stormed off before he could even say anything. 

When you reached the changing room, you were sad to find out that Draco wasn’t there anymore. You changed quickly and headed to your common room as fast as you can. You know there’s going to be a victory party held in your common room. It’s a tradition whenever the house wins a match, not to mention this match was against Gryffindors so you’re sure this is going to be one hell of a party.

—

You were right when you thought that this was going to be one hell of a party. It’s only been an hour and the common room already reeked of firewhiskey and butterbeer. How they managed to sneak those in, you have no idea. 

Of course, this wouldn’t be a victory celebration without your fellow Slytherins congratulating you and other players for the win. The one who received most of the congratulations was Draco, being the star seeker and all. 

Drinking wasn’t really your thing but Pansy has insisted that every player should take a shot or two of firewhiskey for whatever reason. It only occurred to you that you were a lightweight as two shots of firewhiskey were enough to make you tipsy. 

You were standing by the sides, listening and watching other students dance and have fun over the loud music when a familiar light blonde hair caught your attention from the other side of the room. You remembered that you were supposed to congratulate him after the match but you didn’t quite catch him. You downed the remaining butterbeer you held in your hand and made your way past the dancing students and towards Draco, who was talking to his friend, Blaise.

“Hey, Draco.” You called out to him. The two men turned their heads to look at you. Your vision was a tad bit shaky but you didn’t care. “Congratulations for catching the snitch before Potter.”

Blaise looked at you, then at Draco. He flashed him a sly grin before excusing himself, leaving you and Draco to yourselves. You felt your heart skip a beat with the realization but brushed it off. The only time you’ve interacted with him is during Quidditch training and meetings. One time, he complimented your flying skills and you swore you felt like dying.

“Congratulations to you too.” His eyes met yours. “You did well against those Gryffindor chasers.” You laughed and told him it was nothing and it was he who basically made the team win. You saw a small smile on his lips which made your heart flutter. The two of you continued to talk about the match earlier. Even though the two of you can only talk about Quidditch, you didn’t mind. Talking to him was enough. 

Your conversation was cut short when Pansy yelled something about playing a game. Not wanting to be deemed a buzzkill, you made your way to the center of the common room, where everyone who wanted to join was sitting on the floor, forming a circle. You sat beside Pansy, who was holding a bottle. You were still a bit dizzy from your drinks earlier but it was slowly wearing off. Draco looked uninterested but he still sat in between Pansy and some random Slytherin boy whose name you can’t really recall. 

Perhaps it was the drink, but you can’t help but stare at Draco. Pansy was saying something but it didn’t register in your brain as you were too busy staring at Draco. You didn’t even notice that some of the students were leaving the circle as Pansy was explaining. Despite his uninterested look, Draco still looked very attractive. His cheeks were tinted pink, probably because of the alcohol, but it didn’t seem to bother him at all. His arms were crossed across his chest and he was staring at the floor in front of him. You secretly wished you were the floor so that Draco would stare at you but your longing stare at the blonde seeker was interrupted when Pansy shoved the bottle in your field of vision. You took the bottle from her hand and looked at her.

“Y/N, since you are a very special member of our house’s team—” You groaned, interrupting her speech. One of the things you hated is when people would think you were “special” just because you’re a female player in the Slytherin Quidditch team. Sure, it was a surprise, considering it’s been years since the team had a female player but you just can’t see how it made you different. The Gryffindor Quidditch team has lots of female players and no one calls them special. You hated it. “—I give you the honor of spinning the bottle first.” Pansy had a cheeky grin on her face as she, and everyone else, waited for you to spin the bottle.

Wanting for all of this to be over, you quickly spun the bottle. When it stopped spinning, you looked at who it landed on.

Bloody hell.

The bottle’s head pointed at no other than Terell Spencer. He wiggled his eyebrows at you and smirked. You leaned over to Pansy’s side.

"Is this going to be like truth or dare?" You whispered at her, not knowing the game mechanics. She looked at you with an “are-you-serious” look on her face.

“Y/N, you dumbass.” She whispered. “Didn’t you listen to my explanation earlier? You have to kiss whoever it lands on.”

 Oh no.

 You felt your stomach drop. Sure you were tipsy from the alcohol but there is no way you’re going to do that. In fact, you didn’t even sign up for this. You looked at everyone in the circle, except Spencer. They were all waiting for you to do something. You were so mad at the fact that he would use this as an opportunity to get to you, but panic overpowered your anger when you noticed everyone’s eyes on you. You glanced at Draco and noticed that he was looking at you, worry in his eyes. He must have noticed how uncomfortable you were because the moment your eyes met, he stood up. This made everyone’s attention shift from you to him. That made you feel a little better. He crouched beside you and held you by your arms to help you stand up. 

“I think Y/N needs to rest now.” He told everyone. You couldn’t see everyone’s reaction since you were facing Draco’s chest but they were definitely not pleased. The panic in your chest was quickly replaced by a rapid beating of your heart when you noticed how close you were to Draco. You heard a few protests from Pansy and the others, but one voice stood up.

“Don’t be such a spoilsport, Malfoy.” It was from Spencer. Some people in the circle agreed with him. This made Draco’s blood boil. He knew how much Spencer annoyed you to the bone. He would always see him try to make a move on you despite the fact that you already told him you weren’t interested. It made him mad.

“Can’t you gits see that she’s uncomfortable?” Draco snapped at them. The entire room went silent. Even those who weren’t even in the game were now watching the scene in front of them. You glanced at your side and saw Pansy mouth you a “sorry”. You just smiled at her weakly in response. Draco lowered his head to your ears and whispered.

“Wait for me by the stairs” 

You nodded and walked towards the stairs leading to the girls’ dormitory. No one dared to block your path as you made your way to stairs, in fear that Draco would snap at them as well. You overheard Draco and Spencer argue a bit more but you couldn’t make out what they were saying. You couldn’t help the pounding in your chest when you were processing everything that’s happening. Why is Draco standing up to you? Could it be that he…? No, that’s impossible. You shook your head. That’s so highly unlikely.

“Why do you even care, Malfoy.” Spencer sneered at him. “Is she your girlfriend? Are you two dating?” 

This caught Draco off-guard, he felt the blood on his face rise. Blaise was snickering in the background and Pansy was telling—no, threatening everyone to leave. 

“That’s none of your business.” He retorted and left to follow you, leaving a confused and surprised Spencer behind. 

You saw Draco heading your way. You shook your head in an attempt to shake off your thoughts from earlier. 

“Are you okay?” He asked, his voice laced with concern. You just nodded weakly. 

“Yeah, just a little woozy.” You could feel your dizziness coming back, but this time it was with a bit of sleepiness. You yawned and Draco insisted on walking you to your room. He said something about him being scared that you’ll just “pass out and sleep on the stairs” before you even reach your room if he didn’t go with you. You laughed at this and playfully hit his arm. He pretended to be hurt, which made you laugh more. He smiled at the sight of you laughing. Only if you were aware of the things you do to him. 

The two of you reached the door to your dorm. Before you opened the door, you turned to your back to face him.

“Thanks for earlier.” You thanked him. 

“It was nothing.” He closed his eyes and shrugged. There was an awkward silence. You realized that you haven’t really asked him why he stood up for you earlier. You were about to open your mouth to say something when he placed his hands on both of your shoulders. 

“You should rest now. Don’t worry about that git Spencer, I’ll make sure he doesn’t bother you anymore.” Before you could say something, he leaned over and kissed your forehead. Just as quick as the kiss, he left, leaving you a blushing mess. 

You brought your hand to your forehead and touched the part that Draco kissed. You stared at the empty space in front of you for a little while before everything finally sank in. The feeling of his lips lingered on your skin. 

"Did Draco Malfoy just kiss my forehead?"

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A/N: I finished writing this one-shot without any title in mind I'm so sorry the title is wack lmao also I hope this was okay??? I’ve literally been too sad to write anything for the last 5 days (not to mention the blistering h e a t) :’) but I’m going to try and work on Yule Ball Dilemma’s next chapter so I could update as soon as possible.

[missjosie27]

Year 2 Part 5- Quidditch for the Ages

Hey, guys!

Welcome to my 5th chapter for Year 2. Spoiler Alert: it’s my first time writing a Quidditch match so I hope I did it justice.

As a warning, I do hope my readers who are Slytherin can forgive me xD But in all seriousness what happens in the story now is a backdrop for growth and understanding later. Especially for David. I do not intend for Slytherin to be the ‘evil’ house in this story. But it will take time.

Enjoy!

For the second Halloween in a row David found himself in the hospital wing, only this time it was for an injury suffered by someone else, notably his best friend. 

Madam Pomfrey had appeared suspicious when he gave the explanation for what happened, which was basically that Rowan wasn’t feeling well and was exhibiting ‘flu-like’ systems. This was definitely stretching his fibbing ability, as common colds and the flu could be cured readily by most trained mediwizards and staff. But though Rowan woke up, he was still shivering heavily, multiple blankets wrapped around his body, sipping hot chocolate to warm his body. Thankfully, the head of the Hospital Wing didn’t ask too many questions, allowing him to stay for a brief period.

“I’m sorry this happened, Rowan,” David apologized in a low voice, so Madam Pomfrey couldn’t hear them. “It’s my fault.”

“D-Don’t worry about it,” the Indian preteen reassured him through chattering teeth. “We both wanted to find this vault, remember? It’s important to you.”

David rubbed his hands together and looked away. Rowan would be fine, but an unpleasant guilty sensation spread through him. Losing Jacob had already been painful enough and that had been his fault too. He didn’t want to gain back a brother but lose a friend.

“How are you feeling?” he asked, honestly, trying to redirect the feelings of shame.

“Like I g-got hit with the Knight B-Bus,” Rowan responded, taking a sip of his hot chocolate. “One made out of pure ice.”

“Madam Pomfrey will have you out of here in no time. She’s never failed anyone.”

Rowan smiled to again assure his friend he was not angry nor sore over the situation.

“I t-told you, d-don’t worry about me. I should b-be back in a day or s-so. Go out and l-learn as much as you c-can in my absence.”

The talk came to an end as Madam Pomfrey gently ushered him out, saying that her patients needed rest (though most simply needed buckets after eating too many sweets). As soon as the hospital wing doors were shut, he was surprised to see Penny standing outside. Her normally bubbly features were colored with worry and even a bit of disappointment.

“David, what happened?” she asked simply. 

“Merlin’s beard, Penny, how did you know where we were?”

“You forget, I know almost everything around here. But it wasn’t exactly hard to figure out. You and Rowan didn’t show up for the feast.”

David smacked a hand in the middle of his forehead. He should have known Penny of all people would be the first to notice them gone, given that her group of friends and his were virtually synonymous. She had an eye for this sort of thing.

“I assumed you were going after the vaults again,” she continued when he didn’t respond.

“You caught me, okay?” he admitted, not bothering to lie. “Are you angry or something?”

“I’m not angry, Dave,” Penny told him, taking a few steps forward. “I was just worried and wanted to make sure two friends of mine were okay. I take it Rowan isn’t?”

“He’s fine but it’s still my fault. We found the vault door, and I became reckless. I touched it and it immediately began firing off some kind of freezing spell and one them hit Rowan. Got him here as fast as I could.”

“Well that’s good he’s okay, but wasn’t Madam Pomfrey suspicious?”

“She was, but as far as I know she didn’t alert Dumbledore or any of the other Professors. Told her he was feeling ill and left it at that.”

Penny breathed a sigh of relief.

“That’s strangely fortunate. You definitely don’t want anyone else finding out, there’s enough competition out there as it is. Especially with Merula. I keep hearing rumors about her and none of them good. They say she’s recruiting her own gang to try and find the vaults and still wants you out of the way.”

“What else is new?” David groaned. “Well, anyway, thanks for letting me know about this Penny.”

But she stopped him again as she gazed into him with those sparkling, blue eyes that reminded one of an innocent doe.

“Dave, you can’t keep doing this by yourself.”

“That’s why I have Rowan with me.”

“He’s just one person and he narrowly avoided getting seriously hurt. What if you’re next?”

The twelve year old Gryffindor wasn’t really concerned with his own safety, not in the conscious sense. He had never considered he might become injured or fall victim in the quest to find this vault. Jacob was the main focus, not him.

But then again, Penny also had a point.

“You’re right. I do need to be more careful, but I promise nothing will happen to me.”

“We both know that’s a promise you can’t keep,” she told him seriously. “I’m only asking you one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“Don’t keep me out, Dave. Next time you plan on entering a cursed vault, let me know so I can help.”

The offer was so genuine, it overrode his desire to protect her. How could one turn down Penny Haywood? Moments such as these showed why she clearly was a Hufflepuff through and through.

“Okay, Penny. I will.”

An enormous hug and an even bigger smile indicated from the blonde indicated all was well. 

“Thanks, Dave! Please tell me when Rowan gets out of the hospital wing.”

Despite the warm and fuzzies from Penny, there were more questions to be asked and many more to be answered. What was inside the vault? Did it have anything to do with the vision he received when he touched the door? And what did Voldemort have to do with this?

Is this what Jacob went through when he tried to find the vaults? 

Deciding he didn’t want to know the answer, suddenly realizing he was quite famished David shoved his wand back into his pocket and went to see if there was anything left to eat at the feast. Maybe Tonks had saved him a treacle tart or two.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Tension ran high within the school the next few days, but for once the reason was not due to cursed ice. The first Quidditch match of the season was coming and it featured the two biggest rivals within the interhouse competition: Gryffindor vs. Slytherin.

Anyone who knew anything about Hogwarts knew that the two houses had a history going back to the infamous duel between Godric Gryffindor and Salazar Slytherin, which eventually led to the latter of the two leaving the school. In the modern context, students of each house generally disliked each other, and it sometimes graduated to outright hatred. Throw Quidditch into the equation and that animosity often boiled over into war. The bold, brave, athletic lions versus the cunning, calculating, underhanded serpents. 

David, being on one side of that rivalry, was not exactly unbiased but he didn’t particularly care. His experience with Slytherin was not a positive one thus far, the primary culprit being Merula Snyde and her constant antagonism towards him and his friends. Being a mere second year, he was not the main target of any of the older Slytherins’ ire but it seemed that no matter what he did, she would never cease in her relentless bullying and badgering. The afternoon potions class Friday prior to the match only served to fuel his own animosity towards the silver and green.

Rowan had still not been released from the hospital wing, so he was left on his own to complete the brew Snape gave them for the day. David was not unskilled in the subject but it was difficult to focus on your potion when there was a constant thorn in your side sitting at your table.

“Where’s Khanna, Grant? I still see he’s noticeably absent.” Merula taunted him through the steam of the bubbling cauldron.

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” David shot back, doing his best to ignore her. She was one of only a few people capable of getting underneath his skin and to do so now would be unwise with Snape watching. 

“Oh, please. It doesn’t take a genius to know you and that four eyed creatine were off searching for the vaults during the feast. He’s probably still trying to unfreeze himself in the hospital wing.”

“Well we agree one thing, Merula, you’re certainly no genius.”

The Slytherin girl ducked as Snape walked by, adding a pinch of unicorn horn to her potion before returning to her taunting.

“Full of jokes but no substance as per usual, Grant. You’ve found nothing, but I’ve been investigating the vaults myself and you wouldn’t believe what I found.”

“I’m sure it’s quite fascinating. Much like your inability to shut the hell up.”

But true to form, Merula was both stubborn and relentless.

“Khanna is gone but I’ve been working with people to locate and break the vault curse before you. Whatever is inside will belong to me, so you may as well give up now.”

So, Penny was correct in her information that Merula had her own little posse. Of course, the Hufflepuff was rarely wrong but to hear it from the Slytherin herself was more concerning. At the risk of going down the rabbit hole, David took the bait and indulged her.

“What makes you think you’re going to open the vaults before me? I bet you’re no closer than I am.”

“I’m willing to whatever it takes, Grant. That’s the difference between you and I.”

“The difference,” he said, while stirring his cauldron counterclockwise. “Is that I’m merely trying to find my brother. You on the other hand are like every other Slytherin that ever lived- selfish, deceitful, and power hungry. So stick that in your pipe and smoke it.”

Merula gave him her usual nasty leer.

“You’ll be regretting those words soon enough.”

“Or what?”

“Or else,” cut in a smooth, silky, dangerous voice. “I shall have to give both of you detention for not finishing your work on time and disrupting my class.”

Their conversation had gone on far too long, evidently, as the greasy, beaked nose of Professor Snape bore down upon them, his expression far from pleased.

“Sorry, Professor,” David apologize in an attempt at damage control. Snape was not quite as passionate a Quidditch fan as McGonagall, but he never passed up any chance to humiliate or show up the other houses. Non-Slytherins were extra careful not get on his bad side leading up to a match.

“I don’t need your sniveling excuses,” he dismissed sourly. “But what I do need is an explanation. Several ingredients from my private storeroom have been stolen in the last few days and I’ve received word you are the culprit. What do you have to say for yourself?

Dave couldn’t help but deliver a tongue in cheek response.

“And what makes you think it was me of all people?”

“Perhaps it’s in connection to your search for the cursed vaults? Or because you, like your brother, insist on testing the boundaries of this school and my patience? Whatever the reason, I have no desire to know what goes on in your warped, tiny mind. Give me one good reason I shouldn’t give you detention for the rest of the year.”

The rest of the class’s eyes were on them now, Ben looking quite afraid, while Charlie looked on apprehensively (Jae was already asleep by this point). But it wasn’t their reactions David keyed in on, rather it was Merula’s that gave everything away. Her eyes were alighted with malicious glee, a knowing smirk plastered across her face. It was then and there he knew she was the one behind this.

“I don’t know. But I would ask Merula given that she looks as though Christmas came early.”

That threw the second year Slytherin in for a loop as the malicious glee quickly evaporated into a frantic denial.

“Only someone as pathetic and desperate as you would try and pin this on me, Grant! You’re just as loony as your brother!”

Snape looked over at his pupil.

“Is this true, Miss Snyde? What credence do you give this accusation?”

“None,” she said but her response did not meet her eyes. “If I want to see him expelled it’s because he’s a disgrace and a danger to Hogwarts.”

David fully expected Snape, the most blatant in expressing favoritism towards his own house, to simply take Merula at her word and be done with it. Which is why what happened next came as a shock to everyone. 

“I genuinely wish you weren’t lying.”

Merula’s eyes looked as though they might pop out of her head.

“Excuse me?!”

“As I have stated before you are an absolutely atrocious liar, especially for a Slytherin. You will stay after class to receive your punishment. The rest of you, finish up your potions, put them on my desk and get out.”

No one needed to be told twice. David, hardly believing his luck, was content to do as Snape instructed and followed the rest of the Gryffindors and Slytherins out of the door while Merula was forced to remain behind. But as he was about to head down the hallway, the preteen gave into temptation and placed himself at the edge of the stone wall close to the door. He needed to hear why he was not assigned the blame, and his rival faced the brunt of the potion master’s wrath.

“Professor,” he could hear Merula use a falsely innocent tone she only used to get out of trouble. “I don’t understand why I’m the one being punished. It was Grant, not me.”

“Save your pathetic explanations for whichever idiot among your posse has the time to listen.”

“But…I-”

“Do you really think I was blind to the fact that this was a scheme cooked up by you and your housemates? Or that when I was tipped off by that gigantic oaf Mr. Lee, I failed to notice traces of Boomslang skin on his hands? No, this was an ill-advised, foolhardy endeavor that was unworthy of even the lowliest of our house. And as such, you will come by every Friday evening to clean the storeroom you stole from until Christmas. Is that clear?”

Evidently, she did not, because Merula continued to argue.

“But Professor! You hate the Gryffindors and Grant! Why do I have to serve detention?”

“That is neither here nor there,” Snape growled, the anger increasing in his voice. “Our house prides itself on cunning and ambition. You possess the latter but not the former, Miss Snyde. Grant saw right through your attempt to frame him and the fact that he did means you didn’t even bother to cover your tracks. Consider today a test, a test that you failed.”

“But-”

“The next ‘but’ to come out of your mouth will ensure another Friday added to your lengthy detention sentence. Now, begin cleaning at once lest you continue to test my patience.”

That was all David needed to hear and the reaction was one of slight surprise and relief. Snape was punishing his own student not out of fairness but for being sloppy, which he supposed made sense. It also meant that he had time to visit Rowan later in the evening and with any luck, they’d be able to watch the Quidditch match tomorrow.

As he exited the dungeon, he came across an unsettling sight, however. Standing in the hallway, chewing some Drooble’s gum was the Slytherin girl known as Ismelda Murk, the one who had attacked Charlie on the train earlier in the year. She said nothing as he walked by, but carried a most wicked, frightening smile and never took her visible eye off him, her other eye shrouded by her shoulder length, black hair. 

“Creepy,” David muttered to himself, but gave it no further thought as he made his way towards dinner. There was a Quidditch game to be played tomorrow and now more than ever did he want to beat Slytherin.

The lion did not concern itself with the schemes of snakes.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

At last the day came and the sunny, crisp November morning was pulsing with excitement. Gryffindors and Slytherins alike donned their colors- jackets, jumpers, scarves, gloves, hats, flags, banners- it had all the feel of a classic in the making featuring Hogwarts’ two biggest rivals.

It was all the more surreal for David, who grew up listening to Quidditch but had never seen a match even at the most rudimentary level. It was another activity his mum severely restricted growing up. But there were no parents here to tell him ‘no’ and little to contain his excitement. He was ready for this.

Adding to the general atmosphere was the fact that the Gryffindor Quidditch team had two new extraordinarily talented members in Charlie Weasley and Skye Parkin. True to his word, it was the skill not the broom that earned the second eldest Weasley the spot of seeker. So proud was Professor McGonagall, she ended up ordering him a new comet series for proper matches. David had only heard rumors, but anyone who witnessed Charlie play was floored by the speed, quickness, and precision he possessed. True to his humble nature, his friend never talked much about his own Quidditch abilities but retained quiet confidence. If half of those rumors were true, Gryffindor was in good hands.

The second name among the new arrivals was Skye Parkin and this one generated even more buzz than Charlie. Skye was also a second year and was from the famous Parkin family, a clan hailing from the high hills of Scotland legendary for their long line of successful Quidditch players. So prominent they were, they had even founded their own Quidditch team, the Wigtown Wanderers.

Unlike most of the old families, the Parkins did not belong to any particular house and were spread out evenly at Hogwarts spanning the centuries. Her brothers had been placed in Ravenclaw and Slytherin respectively, but Skye was the only child who had inherited her father Ethan Parkin’s Gryffindor courage. Every bit as talented as her brothers, she was placed as a chaser and excelled in the natural instincts required for the spot- passing, positioning, and speed. So anticipated was her debut that some were saying she was better than her father at the same age.

In David’s personal opinion, that was quite a lot to put on a single twelve-year-old girl but he had seen Skye in class and at the lunch table on numerous occasions. She was truly fearless and did not blink at a challenge, even from older students. Notorious for her poor grades, she was not an academic favorite among the staff, but McGonagall had given her enough tutoring to ensure her grades were adequate enough to join the team, so determined she was to win the cup.

In addition to this good news was that Rowan was finally well enough to leave the hospital wing. Though Quidditch was not his forte, David managed to convince him some fresh air and healthy competition would be good after being cooped up in a ward for three days. Not to mention Bill would also be there cheering on his brother so it provided an extra incentive.

Waking up that morning, David wasted no time in getting dressed and making sure Rowan did the same.

“Ironic. I’m usually the one trying to get you out of bed,” his best friend grunted. 

“Yeah but that’s for boring stuff. This is Quidditch!”

“Remind me again, why I should care?”

In a sequel of their first day at Hogwarts, it was David’s turn to throw a pillow at Rowan.

“Because we need to be there when we kick Slytherin’s arse.”

“….”

“Also, Bill’s going to be there.”

“Coming.”

It didn’t take long for the boys to get dressed, fill up on a breakfast of sausage and eggs, then head down to the pitch where the entire student body filed in. They found their seats in the Gryffindor section alongside Bill, Jae, Ben, and a few others.

“Dave, Rowan,” Bill greeted warmly. “Good to see you both. Grab a spot.”

“We’ll be standing up most of the time anyway,” Jae told them. “If this is anything like most Quidditch matches.”

“Or if you want to see,” Ben pointed out.

“Well I’ll certainly be on the edge of my seat given this is Charlie’s first match. He’s been dreaming of this moment for years, so I know how it important it is for him. Plus, I promised Fred and George full details in my letters.”

“Fred and George?” David asked, puzzled as to who he was referring to.

“My younger twin brothers,” Bill elaborated. “Tricky little devils they are, always up to no good. Constantly driving mum crazy,” he added with a laugh. “But they’re also aspiring Quidditch players themselves. They can’t see Charlie in person but it’s the next best thing.”

“Is this really such a big deal?” Ben wondered aloud. “I mean, I know we aren’t friends with the Slytherins but still.”

A half second later, one of the bigger Slytherins from the bleachers parallel to theirs shouted “Gryffindor sucks Abraxan cock!!!” while the rest of his friends laughed hysterically, pointing and jeering.

“Does that answer your question?” Bill asked rhetorically.

“Crushing Slytherin is the only thing that matters,” David affirmed. “Personally, I wouldn’t mind rubbing it in Merula’s face if only to get her to shut up.”

“You and that girl are something else,” the eldest Weasley chuckled. “But in all seriousness, we have the best chance at the cup this year since James Potter last played for Gryffindor. Skye Parkin is quite the sensation and my brother isn’t too shabby himself.”

“He’s that good?” Rowan pipped up.

“You guys don’t know Charlie like I do. Unless dragons are involved, Quidditch is his primary passion. He was zooming around the house with a toy broom from the time he was three. Trust me, he’s very good.” 

A tap on the shoulder alerted them to the presence of Penny and her group consisting of Chiara, Tonks, and Diego, all of them donning the Gryffindor red and gold for this occasion. 

“Hello you courageous Gryffindors,” Tonks quipped. For this occasion she had morphed her hair into a spiky, red and yellow mullet which was quite the sight to behold.

“Hey guys!” David said cheerfully. “Glad to see you’re supporting our side today.”

“Are you kidding? No one in their right mind would support Slytherin over Gryffindor,” Penny remarked making a sour face. 

“Most of our house is supporting you today. As are the Ravenclaws,” Chiara informed them.

Indeed, she was right. Though not all of them chose to wear red and gold, most of the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw students were choosing to sit far from the Slytherins, who were congregating in their own little sphere. 

“The Slytherins are, shall we say, not well liked among the rest of the school,” Diego shrugged. “They tend not to play fair or with honor, so I am told.”

“You’re giving them too much credit,” Penny replied to him, her normally chipper face again turning disdainful. “Slytherins almost never play fair.”

“Be that as it may, they still usually field a decent squad year after year,” Bill spoke sagely. “And they came in second last year to Ravenclaw. Titus Hammersmith is going to go the extra mile to ensure that doesn’t happen again.”

“Yeah well Titus can sit on a pin. Personally, I’m just excited to watch Skye Parkin for the first time. I’ve heard she’s amazing!”

That caught David’s attention as he gazed over at the blonde.

“I didn’t know you were such a Quidditch fan, Penny.”

“Are you kidding? I know everything there is to know about it! And the Parkins are legends. That’s another reason I’m supporting Gryffindor today. Her dad is incredible, and I know she will be too.”

David laughed before glancing over at Rowan who looked noticeably uninspired.

“Cheer up, will ya?” he said while elbowing him playfully. “Match hasn’t even started yet and you already look as bored as I do in History of Magic.”

“I’m sorry, Dave. I guess sports just aren’t really my thing, you know? I’m more of a thinking kind of person when it comes to fun.”

“Just you wait, Rowan,” Bill encouraged. “By the end of the day you’ll have an appreciation for this. Quidditch is like nothing ever experienced before.”

Just then a loud, booming voice cut across the chatter, so loud in fact, it echoed across the pitch.

“Ladies and gentlemen I’d like to welcome you all to the beginning of the 1985-86 interhouse Quidditch season! With the first of the six matchups yet to come I can guarantee a 98.7 percent chance of excitement! Especially with these two notorious rivals, Gryffindor and Slytherin!”

Peering up into the booth, David saw a burly blond boy seated next to Professor McGonagall, megaphone in hand, the Sonorus charm in full effect. The enthusiasm espoused was only matched by the look of pure joy in his face, as though talking Quidditch was just as exciting as playing it.

“Who’s that?” Ben asked aloud.

“Murphy McNully,” Bill answered straight away. “Third year in our own house. Absolute nutter when it comes to Quidditch. Don’t get him started or he’ll never stop talking.”

“Why doesn’t he just play himself?” David joked.

“Because that chair isn’t just for kicks.”

Diego handed him the binoculars and indeed Murphy was not merely seated in a common chair, rather it appeared the chair was his main method of transportation as it was coupled with wheels on each side.

“Why does he need a wheelchair?”

“No one knows,” Jae said, tossing up his yellow hoodie to keep warm. “The way I heard it, if you ask why he clams up. Just about the only thing that gets him to shut his hole.”

“Rumor it was dark magic during the war,” Tonks whispered.

The speculation ended as a sudden whoosh alerted them to the arrival of the first team from the lockers.

“And here come the Gryffindor squad!” McNully announced with gusto. “Parkin, Barrett, Blishwick, McLaggen, Weasley, and Brown. Captained by Orion Amari!”

Cheers went up from seventy five percent of the stadium with only the hisses and boos from the Slytherins spoiling the unanimity. For David, the sight was amazing as he awed at witnessing actual Quidditch players race around the pitch. The red was quite distinctive, even in the glistening sun, the seven starters flying in an impressive V formation.

Another whoosh of wind announced the arrival of the infamous opponent which Murphy wasted no time in pointing out with almost equal gusto.

“And here are the Slytherins! Radcliffe, Rowle, Rosier, Chapman, Fernsby, and Burke. Captained by Titus Hammersmith!”

The cheers and jeers reversed this time, as the boos became louder while the screams of support were largely drowned out. 

“This Orion Amari bloke looks like he already got hit with a bludger,” Tonks snickered as she passed the binoculars to Chiara and Penny who also giggled.

David couldn’t deny that she had a point. Upon closer inspection, the Gryffindor captain had the face of someone who was ready to soak up sunshine at a beach, not an intense, grueling Quidditch match.

“Orion is a bit eccentric; I’ll give you that,” Bill laughed. “But looks can be deceiving, he knows the game and he knows how to get the best out of people.”

“So how come we only won a single game last year?” Rowan asked.

“He was only made captain halfway through his fourth year. Plus, they didn’t have my brother or Skye Parkin,” the eldest Weasley added with a confident smile.

The referee Madam Hooch approached the center of the pitch to release the bludgers and the snitch while simultaneously giving warning to each team.

“I don’t need to remind you I want a nice, clean game. Captains, shake hands.”

Orion and Titus did so, though the latter definitely looked like he was trying to crush the former’s hand. However, if Orion felt anything, he did not show it, his mellow expression unchanging. For the lanky, blond Slytherin, his face turned to a scowl indicating his displeasure and dislike. 

Without further delay, Madam Hooch threw the quaffle into the air and the match was on.

“And there goes Slytherin in their main line of attack with the three R’s, better known as Radcliffe, Rowle, and Rosier, a top of the line chaser squad from last season who nearly set the record for the most goals in a single season with fifty seven. Rowle ducks and passes it to Rosier, dodges the bludger and flips it to Radcliffe, she shoots...!”

Thankfully, for the Gryffindors, the keeper Liam Brown punched the ball away and into the hands of Orion who headed up the field. 

“Spectacular play by the Gryffindor keeper, and there was only about a 37 percent chance of a save there!” McNully continued to ramble. “And there goes Amari and my word folks, he’s broom surfing!”

Indeed, it was an impressive display of skill as Orion smoothly navigated his way past the Slytherin defense despite their attempts to knock him off his broom. But instead of taking a shot on goal, he feigned a throw, cutting back around and tossing it back to a wide open Skye Parkin, who took the quaffle and put it through the main hoop for the first points of the game. 

“And there you have it, folks! Rookie sensation Skye Parkin, daughter of the world famous Ethan Parkin, with the first points of the game and of her career here at Hogwarts!” McNully shouted excitedly. “Gryffindor leads 10-0.”

David and company cheered loudly while Penny jumped up and down screaming, “I told you she was good! I told you!”

And that wasn’t the end of the scoring. Bill had proven correct about Orion and his methods. Though he was unorthodox, the sheer unpredictability of his moves meant that the Slytherin beaters were constantly missing their mark and the chasers could move with ease. Before long, he and the other Gryffindor chaser, Ruth Barrett, had scored another goal apiece, making the score 30-0 in the Lions’ favor.

“It’s really something, isn’t it?” David yelled over the noise to Rowan.

“Orion and Skye are amazing,” came the agreement.

Indeed, the fireworks only continued from there. Slytherin did manage to put a goal past Liam Brown to get on the board, but the celebration was short lived as Skye managed to punch the quaffle out of Rowle’s hand, snag it, and race single handedly towards the goal. Dodging the attempted bumps from Deanna Radcliffe, Skye slipped underneath her resurfacing on top and scored on the right-hand hoop for her second goal.

“Did you see that?! Merlin’s beard did you see that?!” McNully exclaimed. “By George what a move that was!”

It was so crafty, no one on Slytherin had any time to react. And judging by the look on Skye’s face, David knew she was loving every second of this. She was truly in her element.

The Gryffindor defense continued to remain solid throughout the game with the beaters McLaggen and Blishwick scattering Slytherin’s three Rs time and time again. But the real story was Skye, Orion, and Ruth, who as a collective were nearly impossible to stop. Seeing a live game for the first time, David began to get a grasp of what made this unit so incredible. Orion was fluid and freelance, but always aware of where his teammates were, his passing skills exemplary. Ruth Barrett was a model of efficiency, there was no aspect of her game above the others, rather she was simply consistent at everything- passing, scoring, and flying. And then there was Skye. Just twelve years old, she was running circles around the Slytherins, too fast to catch and too agile to hit with a bludger. Together, the three were making their opponents look silly. It wasn’t until the first dirty play of the game that Skye’s one weakness was exposed.

After scoring her fourth goal to make the score 90-20 in favor of the Lions, she failed to notice Hammersmith coming straight towards her whilst she celebrated.

WHAM!

“Look out folks! The Slytherin captain has just attempted to knock Parkin off her broom and into next week! That’s an obvious foul which no doubt Madam Hooch will be quick to call!”

He was on the money as the hawk eyed referee began to berate Hammersmith for the foul while Skye attempted to stop herself from careening off the pitch. Eventually she managed to hang on and right herself, flustered, but otherwise unharmed.

Boos rained down on Hammersmith, who snarled at his detractors.

“I told you they don’t fight fair,” Diego remarked.

“Crawl back to your hole, wanker!” Penny screamed down at him, causing some of the boys to raise their eyebrows.

“She really is a fan,” Jae muttered.

But she wasn’t the only one. David was yelling insults too and even Rowan got in on the act at the blatant attempt at sabotage. Some of the Gryffindors began throwing food and other objects as Madam Hooch tried to wrest the situation back under control.

Though Skye was not hurt, her teammates did not take kindly to the insult. In retaliation, Henry McLaggen crushed a bludger at Hammersmith while the penalty shot was being set up, catching him painfully in the stomach. Rowle then flew up and punched him in the back of the head while Liam Brown rushed over and caught the Slytherin with a right hook.

At this point, things were getting out of hand and Hooch was screeching her whistle for the ruckus to cease, but it was an unlikely source who stepped in to prevent an all out brawl. Orion flew down to the commotion and put himself in the middle, separating Gryffindor and Slytherin alike. David couldn’t tell what was saying but it had the desired effect as his teammates eventually backed down, as did their opponents.

“What on earth could he have said to diffuse that?” Ben asked, shocked as everyone else.

“I have no idea, but whatever it was, he deserves a medal for special services to the school,” Bill observed, grabbing the binoculars from Diego. 

“Are the Slytherins always this dirty?” Rowan asked him.

“Not always. Sometimes they’re so good they don’t need to. But Hammersmith doesn’t fool around. If he can gain a psychological edge, he will.”

“I just hope Skye is okay,” Chiara said quietly for the first time.

“She better be,” Penny growled. “Or else I’m going to pay a personal visit to the Slytherin common room tonight.”

David, however, looked up at Skye and saw that not only was she fine, she was glowing. Far from being angry, she gave a laugh and took the quaffle for a penalty shot. Calm and collected, she easily punched the ball past the Slytherin keeper Jessica Burke to make the score 100-20.

“Seems fine to me,” he said aloud.

Nothing confirmed this more than what Skye did next. A confident smirk plastered across her face she rushed past Hammersmith, causing him to flinch which garnered a laugh from the crowd.

“She’s more than fine,” Tonks snickered. “She’s got the whole Slytherin team eating out the palm of her hand.”

Play resumed and with Madam Hooch on the lookout for any more shenanigans, both sides did not attempt any more roughhousing. However, the Slytherin defense seemed to double their efforts as Hammersmith and his counterpart Malcolm Chapman kept hitting bludgers furiously at the Gryffindor chasers to keep them at bay. This paid off in the end as Felix Rosier snuck a goal past Liam Brown putting the score at 100-30.

“We’re up by seventy but I’d feel better if this ended soon,” Rowan groaned. 

“Are you still not enjoying yourself?”

“Are you kidding? Of course! I want to win this thing!”

David and Bill shared a knowing smile, quite pleased they had converted their friend.

“Well don’t hold your breath,” the eldest Weasley told them. “Quidditch matches can last for days if need be. No one goes home until the snitch is caught and Gryffindor’s lead isn’t large enough to make up the difference if Slytherin gets to it first.”

“They’d need to be up by one hundred and fifty points,” Penny explained to Rowan. “Personally, I could watch Skye score goals all day.”

While that was true, David had a feeling that Charlie would have to come up clutch. Lost in the hoopla of the scoring and scrappy play was the fact that the snitch had not been seen once over the course of the match. The second Weasley patrolled the skies, tailing Douglas Fernsby, the Slytherin seeker now and again but there was no luck so far.

“You think he can pull it off?” he asked Bill, who was scouring the field for his brother. 

“Trust me, he can,” came the confident reply. “Once he spots that little golden ball, it’s game over.”

Suddenly, the roar of the crowd rose a few decibels as people began pointing.

“And here we go, the first attempt to end the game!” McNully boomed into the microphone. “Charlie Weasley, the promising Gryffindor seeker has gone into a full long sprint for the snitch!”

Seekers occasionally feigned going after the snitch to throw off their opponent, but this was not one of those times. From a distance, David could see that Charlie had a determined, hungry look on his face. A tiny glint of light confirmed that was indeed after the snitch and closing in fast.

“He’s going to do it! He’s going to do it!” Bill yelled over the noise, grabbing onto David in excitement. “Come on, little bro!”

The snitch was notorious quick and difficult to see, but the young Gryffindor seeker was not to be deterred. Fernsby of Slytherin was on the other side of the pitch and had no chance whatsoever. It was simply a matter of seconds.

“Look out!” someone yelled.

Out of nowhere the the Slytherin chaser, Rowle, came in like a bullet with the clear intention of knocking Charlie off his broom. But in a stunning display of broomsmanship, the Gryffindor simply slipped underneath his broom, hanging upside down as Rowle crashed into the ground. Righting himself, Charlie regained his focus, stretched out and caught the little golden ball in his right hand, ending the match.

“WE WIN!” Bill screamed to the heavens as the rest of the Gryffindors began jumping up and down like maniacs.

“And the match has ended!” McNully said hoarsely into the megaphone. “And what a stupendous display from the young Gryffindor seeker! Simply amazing I don’t think I’ve seen a move like that in all my years watching Quidditch and I’m thirteen years old! Gryffindor wins, 250-30 in the biggest route of Slytherin in fifty years!”

The commentary was soon drowned out by the increasing tidal wave of cheers and roars from the crowd. Many Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws joined in the celebration, Penny chief among them, who was almost as ecstatic as the Gryffindors.

For his part, David whooped and hollered in the celebrations, being engulfed in a tidal wave of hugs and high fives, food smuggled from the Great Hall raining down on his head. The solemn faces of the Slytherins were long forgotten as the stands began to clear out and the party headed back to the Gryffindor common room.

Victory did indeed feel good, and for a short time, it was enough to overlook any complications involving Merula, the vaults, or Slytherin in general. They could hide in the grave of Salazar himself. Fortune favored the bold. 

It was time to celebrate, courtesy of two brave Gryffindors in Skye Parkin and Charlie Weasley.

[bixgirl1]

The Sexual Awakening Of An Innocent Pureblood, Dating The Randy Prat Who Lived - Ch. 29

So sorry about the angsty fighting from last chapter!  Relationship growing pains, you know what it’s like.  Or, you do now, if you’ve been following along! Anyway, @l0vegl0wsinthedark and I thought you guys might deserve a reprieve, so we got Draco together with his Slytherin friends for some lighthearted drinking and inappropriate conversation.  (psst!  spoiler alert! ...Draco’s a lil bit of a hypocrite!  lol.  You’ll see what I mean.)

So we hope you enjoy this break from the angst, and also Blaise, who makes his first appearance. (But, really, who doesn’t enjoy Blaise?!)

If you’d like to catch up or maybe read the whole thing over, you can find our masterlist: Here

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Trading Secrets, And Other Revelations

~Two weeks after Harry left; at the Silver Dragon, Friday evening~

Draco, throwing back half a tumbler of whiskey and biting around it as he swallows: *hoarse* Damn, but that burns. *pauses, staring into his empty glass* I need another.

Pansy, raising her eyebrows even as Blaise signals the bartender: *lightly* When you asked us out for drinks, love, I'd no idea you'd be determined to get sozzled so quickly.

Blaise, smirking: Shut up, Pansy; at least drunk Draco might give us details on his boy toy. *lounges against the bar, grinning as Draco takes a swallow of his new drink* So. Is he as good as that Quidditch player last year claimed?

Draco, fixing Blaise with a dead glare: *dangerously* One - he is not my boy toy; he is my boyfriend, whom I'm in love with. Love, Blaise, that thing you're likely to never find because you're too busy sinking your cock into a fresh twat every night. Two - it is literally none of your business but he is utterly spectacular and that fucking Pudd Uni Chaser barely even had an idea seeing as Harry fucked him for only about a week. *knocks back his drink again* *shudders even as he gestures to the barkeep* And also, fuck you both.

Blaise, eyes dancing: How spectacular? *grins rakishly* And I like quite bit of cock, too.

Pansy, glancing at Blaise: And since when do you use words like "cock" and "twat" and "fuck?" *lips twitching mischievously* Don't get me wrong, I like it, but I've never heard you talk that way before. Where’d you learn it?

Draco, snapping: Harry. *expression turning almost desperate for a second at the mention of his name*

Blaise, wiggling his eyebrows: *snorts* Is this you actually confirming that you two are fucking? Never thought I'd see the day you'd give it up, after you wouldn't budge for me in school....

Draco, lip curling as he turns to Blaise: And thank Merlin for that. I'm so glad I didn't 'give it up' to you, not when Harry is clearly the better candidate. *fingers clenching around his glass* *low* The best candidate.

Pansy, delighted: If you think you're going to squirm out of details again after a comment like that, you're mad. *eyes him for a moment; casually clears his empty glass and shakes her head at the bartender* So! What makes him so special other than the million boring Orders of Merlin I'm sure he has framed next to his bed? *pouts prettily* What makes him so special that you've been able to ignore us so often?

Draco, making a half hearted grab for his glass, corner of his mouth lifting reluctantly: It's easy enough to ignore you both because all you ever want to talk about is sex. *rolls his eyes without looking at either of them* Yes, Pansy, I said sex.  Now shut your mouth, darling. *abruptly* And as long as we're talking about Orders of Merlin, he probably ought to receive one for his skills between the sheets as well. *turns pink as he sinks his face into both hands* Merlin, where is he, I miss him--

Blaise, laughing: *claps him on the shoulder* *to Pansy* I knew it. I knew once Draco got a taste of the-- what was it he used to call it?

Pansy, sly: *quickly* Naked touching.

Blaise, nodding: Right. I knew once he'd gotten some proper naked touching he'd be one of.those eager ones. *ironically, to Draco* You went 26 years without and can't even go a week now? *leers a bit* Although, if you find yourself wanting--

Draco, sharply: I swear to Salazar, if you proposition me one more time for sex, I will cut it off. You won't have anything to touch me with. Nobody touches me but Harry, how hard is that to grasp? *sighs* And it's been two weeks, and this isn't just about the sex, so please don't be an arsehole.

Blaise, rolling his eyes: Fine. Merlin, would you relax a bit? Half the fun of having sex is talking about the dirty details. *waves a negligent hand* But if you're too-- *grimaces* --in love to have any fun with it--

Pansy, tsking at him: *slaps Blaise's arm* Must you? Fuck, I'll go home with you later if you'll stop trying to get into Draco's pants. Apparently, Potter's cock is made of enchanted goblin gold; you're not going to get anywhere. *turns to Draco, missing Blaise’s suddenly burning stare as she hides a smile* Fine, you don't want to talk about the spectacular sex. What is it about then? Tell us... But if you insist on being boring, can you also try not to be a Hufflepuff?

Draco, swallowing hard, blinking rapidly: You-- you don't get it, you two... He's-- he was supposed to be back a week, ten days ago. *suppressed panic* He hasn't even owled or Floo'd me. This-- that's not like him, he'd never leave me to worry if he can help it-- *hands curled into tight, trembling fists* *whispering* I don't even know if he's alive.

Blaise: *huffing a sigh* Of course he's fine, Draco. You've landed one of the most desired and powerful wizards in the world and you're spending your time worrying he's going to die? *dryly* If this is what love does to you, count me out. *snickers* And maybe he's just taking a little vacation; Potter doesn't seem to have your antiquated sexual morals. Could be holed up in a hotel somewhere with a--

Pansy, furiously: *hisses* Shut the fuck up, Blaise. He's not joking. *rests a hand on Draco's arm* Pay no attention to him; he's just jealous that you and Potter ended up with each other instead of with him. *cuddles a bit closer* *softly* He is right, though; Potter's powerful. All those awards are for something. Bloody hell, darling, we watched him defeat the Dark Lord when he was seventeen; you've got to know he can take care of himself, whatever he's doing. *glares at Blaise*

Blaise, frowning: Now we're supposed to be the kind of people who--? *off Pansy's murderous expression* Fine. Draco, Potter's fine. Why don't you simply go into the MLE offices in the morning and charm some witch or wizard with that smile of yours and find out when his last report in was? He might just not be in a place where he can contact you; but I'll bet they've heard from him in the last day or so.

Draco, shaking his head, licking dry lips: He's gone undercover and it's-- he's on an incredibly sensitive mission and I wouldn't want to butt into something I have no business in and endanger him or fuck things up for him or-- *breathes in deeply, exhaling shakily* *looks around* *beseechingly* Please let me have another drink?

Pansy, mouth turned down: *gestures to the bartender* Wouldn't you rather be nice and fresh for a good healthy romp if Potter shows up tonight? *as Draco gulps down his drink* *wry* Guess not.

Blaise: *exasperated* Look, do you remember my mother's fifth husband? *at their blank looks* The one who's still alive. *rolls his eyes* Well, he's a pretty decent bloke. Liked me. Worked with the MLE as a Hitwizard before he started retired from the life. Probably why he's still alive, actually. Anyway, he still has connections. If it'll wipe that pathetic look off your face, I'll firecall him in the morning, see what can be found out. *takes his own drink and throws it back with a grimace*

Draco, turning to him, as if daring not to hope: You'd-- you'd do that? *at Blaise's huff of exasperation* O-only if there's a guarantee that Harry will remain safe. *very slightly loosening up* Thank you, Blaise, I--

Blaise, shaking his head: Just stop. Next round's on you. And I think I deserve at least one good detail about Potter in bed.

Draco, with a small laugh: What do you want to know?

Pansy, giving him a squeeze before moving away to pick up her own drink: *gleefully* Oohhh, does he--

Blaise, nudging her: Uh uh. My favour, my question. *thinks for a moment before an unholy smile lights on his face* *overly casual* I don't suppose you'd be so wanton as to know what rimming is?

Draco, staring impassively for several seconds: *turns away and picks up his drink* *sips primly* Harry's the absolute god of rimming. Why d'you ask?

Blaise: *chokes on his drink, coughing it everywhere* *pats himself frantically before Pansy snickers and points a wand at him to dry him* *incredulous and fascinated, leaning in and lowering his voice* You're not serious. You don't actually let him-- You're bluffing. You don't even know what it means, do you?

Draco, flicking imaginary lint off his shirt: Oh, yes definitely bluffing. I absolutely don't know that rimming is eating someone's arsehole out-- *with a wicked side glance* --and I absolutely don't allow Harry to do that to me for hours every week, no I absolutely don't let him, no, sir. *snorts softly into his drink and hurriedly wipes his mouth*

Blaise, massively impressed: *whistles long and low* *reluctantly* Now I really am jealous I didn't end up with either of you. *pauses* I don't suppose you'd consider a third sometime...?

Draco, rolling his eyes on a patient sigh: No, Blaise, I'm not sharing him. *quickly* And before you say I’m possessive, you should know Harry's a million times worse. *smug* He will destroy you if he found out you regularly try your luck with me.

Blaise: *sulky* It was just an idea…

Pansy, perking up: So. I've helped you loads! Does that mean I get a bunch of questions too?

Draco, carefully: You get one, Pans.

Pansy, frowning: I get at least five! *talking in a rush before Draco can interrupt* Are you the top or the bottom? Bottom, right? Right?  What's his thing? *smacking Blaise without even looking at him* Not like that! Just--everyone has that something that drives them nuts in bed. What’s his? What's yours? Have you tried toys? Done it in public? What does the golden package look like? Does he hold off for a long time or is he an overeager sod? How often a day do you go at each other? What positions have you tried? What's your favorite thing he does with his hands? Would you ever consider a third? What if it was a woman? *breaks off, breathless from the litany*

Blaise: *instantly* I agree, Pansy should get at least five questions.

Draco, fighting a smile, blush rising up his cheekbones: I change my mind, you get none. Absolutely none. Besides, I can't tell you both about this stuff, just last month I gave Harry a really-- *mouth twitching* --hard time because I found out he gave Weasley some details and-- well, I can't be a hypocrite, can I? *smirks slowly* I mean, of course I can be, but I choose not to. *laughs*

Pansy, practically bouncing on her toes: *wheedling* Just two, then! *nudges into him, bats her eyes* You know, I helped fix you two up, if you think about it…

Draco, with a long suffering sigh: Fine, pick the two you most desperately want answered and I'll see what I can do. *dodges her backhanded smack with a laugh*

Pansy, chewing off her lip gloss while she considers: *leans into Blaise when he taps her and listens intently to him whispering in her ear* *nods decisively* How often a day and his kinks.

Draco, staring exasperatedly at them: We don't keep count, nor do we have pre-set goal to tick off-- *grins* The most we've gone in one day has to be seven times-- *thoughtful* --or was it eight? It was all a blur in those first few weeks. *gazes dreamily at nothing, a strong strain of sad longing clearly visible* *shakes himself out of it* *looks around at them both staring keenly at him and scowls* And I don't-- *blushes profusely* I-- I don't know what you mean when you say his kinks...

Blaise, mouth agape: *faintly* Potter can go eight--?

Pansy, eyes twinkling: You know "rimming" but not "kinks"? *gives a peal of laughter* The thing that... That gets him really going.

Draco, blushing deeper: *snaps* I know the word, just not what you were asking.  No-- no, nothing in particular..

Pansy pointing accusingly: You lie! Your ears have gone all red! *shakes her head* I swear, Draco, you have the worst tells of anyone in the history of Slytherin. Give!

Blaise: *soundlessly, confusedly still mouthing 'eight'*

Draco, snapping: Spanking, alright?! I get off on being spanked. You both are the absolute worst-- *slaps both hands over his burning face*

Pansy, eyes growing round: *breathes* Of course! Oh my God this is the best day ever. *giddy* But... that wasn't the question... What are Potter's kinks?

Draco, muffled from behind his hands: He-- he likes me to-- he likes it when I-- *slightly lame* --say stuff. *groans*

Blaise: Eight? I mean, stuff? Like...? Praise? Calling him daddy? Stuff is pretty broad…

Draco, looking around in total bewilderment: Why would I call him daddy? I don't even call my own father that. *flummoxed* Why are you such a weird person, Blaise?

Blaise, exasperated: *snorts* Well,.you obviously haven't dived too deep, yet. *shrugs* I thought, with the spanking... *waves a hand, smirking at the renewed wash of pink in Draco's face* So explain, then.

Draco, tightly: There is nothing to explain. You asked for two questions answered, and you've got it. *raises nose snootily* Now stop being so completely vulgar, you two.

Pansy, looking at him shrewdly: *slow* It's... It's dirty talk, isn't it? *glancing at Blaise* The way he spoke before. Like he's-- *begins giggling uncontrollably* --like he's had some practice at it! And he said... Oh sweet Merlin, he said he'd learned from Harry! *doubles over, clutching.her stomach as she laughs* Blaise, snickering at the look on Draco's face: *blandly, at Draco's glower* What? Who'm I to judge Potter for liking some raw language with his fucking? Have you met me? Hell, I got a semi when you said the ‘twat’ and ‘cock,’ before. *grins widely, flashing his teeth* But it's nice to know that something as simple as that could weaken the knees of the Golden Boy…

Draco, eyes narrowing menacingly: Both of you’d better forget I ever told you all this or I'll help with a lovely little Memory Charm-- *threateningly strokes his wand under his sleeve*

Pansy, laughter finally starting to die: Oh, stop. *rolls her.eyes playfully* We know, we know. We'd tell you anything you wanted, except you already know it. A little reciprocity is nice, is all. *takes a sip of her drink to hide her lingering smile* All right, fine. Other stuff, then. What was the "important event" that kept you from the Wizarding Arts gala last month? You never did end up telling me.

Draco, brow furrowing: I don't remember, I think it was the night Harry had wanted to drink wine out of my-- *eyes widen, one hand flying up to slap over his mouth* *glances around quickly at them, mouthing soundlessly and shaking his head* I-- I mean-- *swallows* *loudly interrupting them as they both start to talk* I think it may have been the night I met the Weasleys. *nods firmly* No, that was definitely why we couldn't make it.

Blaise: *bites lip hard* *mildly* Drink wine out of your what now?

Pansy, starting to dissolve into giggles again: Does he at least have any good wines stock--? *laughter stops abruptly* Wait, what? What? You met the Weasleys? Merlin's sake, Draco, why?

Draco, his irritable glare turning quickly into anxiousness: I mean... They're his family, aren't they? And-- and I told you he was over at the Manor to meet Mother and Father officially-- and, well-- Molly and Arthur Weasley were very kind and Ronald Weasley is as crass and infuriating as ever although Granger can be rather pleasant and--

Pansy: *stiffly* This sounds very... It sounds like he's following the steps of formal-- *scowls* Draco, is he giving you gifts?

Draco, smiling and melting slightly as he mentally lists out each of the wonderful, well thought out gifts: Yes... Each and every one of them more than I'm deserving of--

Blaise: *brow furrowing in irritation* *exchanges a plaintive look with Pansy* *snaps* What number is he on?

Pansy, just as put-out: You haven't already met with his closest friends, have you?

Draco, looking between the two of them nervously: Number twelve and...I have, yes. They have a decent place, surprisingly tasteful decor--

Pansy, gritting her teeth: *terrifyingly calm* And though I'd wager that the Weasleys don't give a fig about formal pureblood courtship rituals, and Granger and Weasley even less, you still somehow managed to get that out of the way -- over a month ago -- without thinking to arrange a dinner for the man who's obviously about to-- *nostrils flaring* With your best friends and your boyfriend?

Blaise, shaking his head: *stares at Draco evenly* Seriously? The parents, I get, but his friends came first? *muscles in his jaw twitching* If that's how you feel about it.

Draco, horrified: No! No, that's not how it-- The thing at Weasley and Hermione's was completely spontaneous! They-- they invited us over for a nightcap after dinner at the Burrow and-- and it just seemed really rude to refuse, especially because Harry wouldn't have tried to force me but I could tell he really wanted for the four of us to spend some t--

Pansy, glaring daggers at him: *sweetly* But it counts, right? A private meeting wherein your relationship with one another is discussed with his closest friends? Tell me, was your relationship discussed in any capacity at all?

Blaise: *narrows his eyes* This was a bloody month ago?

Draco, shaking his head impatiently: Pansy, no!  You're assuming absolu--

Pansy: *glowering* *catches a glimpse of someone stumbling through the Floo* Well, speak of the-- *face whitens* *grabs Draco's arm steadyingly* *whispers* Draco--

Draco, frowning at her in confusion: Wh--? *follows her gaze and cranes his neck, looking behind curiously* *spots Ron Weasley, still in his official robes ripped over one shoulder, one side of his face and neck bloodied, standing on tiptoes and searching desperately for someone, eyes slightly crazed* *feels his glass slip out of his hand, hears it hit the bar and then tumble to the floor with a tinkling crash* *leaps to his feet, tearing through the pub towards Ron* *heart thudding, voice cracked and hoarse* Weasley! Weasley, what--?! *sees the look in his eyes* *feels his knees buckle and reaches out blindly for the nearest chair, shaking his head* No... No!