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nidamae-approvedhpfanfics · 2 months

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Fanfic.com my favorites as of March 2024.

It's a LONG list- mostly Harry Potter with a small handful of Labyrinth.

Alphabetically #-A

3 Slytherin Marauders by severusphoenix Harry Potter u:07-31-2016 - Harry & Dudley flee an abusive Vernon to Severus Snape. Severus finds a new home for himself & the boys with dragons and hunt the Horcruxes from there. The dragons, especially one become their allies. Tom R is VERY different.

10 Minutes And A Week Of Hell! by CrazyDuck5280 Harry Potter u:02-10-2013 - 10 Minutes can be the difference between the peace and the hell at Hogwarts! AU third year

13 Hours by magically-strange Labyrinth u:09-02-2013 - In the immediate aftermath of Sarah's victory, Jareth looses his magic and the Labyrinth breaks, unleashing a deadly villain that threatens the life of every goblin in the Underground. Now, Sarah faces a even greater challenge than before: restore balance to the Labyrinth, or suffer the death of the Goblin King!

A Better World by Pennilyn Novus Harry Potter u:02-19-2010 - A lost child wanders into Knockturn Alley, and who happens to find him but Draco Malfoy?

A Certain Romance by Nautical Paramour Harry Potter u:05-24-2018 - After helping out an unlikely student, Hermione Granger finds herself with an unlikely friend. Marcus Flint is only too happy to return the favor. As their paths continue to cross, the more drawn to one another they find each other. But can they be more than friends? A slice of life fic that takes place mostly after the war. Flintmione.

A Champion by Takao1160 Harry Potter u:06-03-2014 - 4th Year - Starts with Harry's selection as a champion. Harry is different he is angry, intelligent, and he absolutely does not want to participate in the tournament. Harry has a secret that he has shared with no one and new Harry is released and the pay-back begins. Strong Powerful - Harry /Fluer/ Daphne - Hermione later in the story.

A Change is as Good as a Holiday by ChloeParker05 Harry Potter u:12-29-2022 - The summer after 4th year, Harry's stewing in the anger caused by his friends' useless letters. By the time he reunites with them, he's furious and has a rather loud argument with them. However, Tonks notices something while coming across the confrontation, and drags Harry away. When she tells him what she witnessed, his outlook on life is changed rather drastically.

A Date by Proxy by AnneM.Oliver Harry Potter u:03-30-2009 - Hermione was bored & wanted something new. She changed jobs, her hair, her clothes, and now she was about to do something completely "UnHermionish" & go on a blind date! She just wondered why her blind date was with her new boss, Draco Malfoy. Romance.

A Dementor Named Radish by lvidler.op Harry Potter u:03-24-2023 - Harry Potter's horcrux makes the Dementors pause. They decide that their way of following the order to take the soul of Harry Potter is to take Harry Potter with them back to Azkaban. A story in which the guards and Dementors adopt Harry and how it falls out after.

A Different Type of Furry Little Problem by blue artemis Harry Potter u:07-23-2012 - Hermione gets quite a bit more than she bargained for when she takes Crookshanks as her familiar.

A Few New Looks by RiverWriter Harry Potter u:06-05-2023 - Glimpses into Draco, Hermione, and Scorpius' life as a family. A sequel to my story, "A Second Look."

A Fine Spring Day by DarthMittens Harry Potter u:07-23-2017 - On a spring day in his 6th year, Harry watches couples in love stroll around the lake at Hogwarts. Harry wants what they have, so he takes a swig of felix felicis so he can claim Ginny as his own. Felix has something else in store for him, though. One-Shot. H/Hr. Pure fluff.

A Ghost's Revenge by Fairywm Harry Potter u:01-07-2023 - Harry wakes up to a voice in his head when he's six years old. Lily has stuck around, and now she's going to fix his life. First, she has to take care of Petunia. How dare that woman treat her son this way. Then she's going to find out who mucked up Harry's life in the first place.

A Grave Decision by Ebenbild Harry Potter u:06-20-2022 - Petunia, unlike Lily, listened to the stories their mother told them when they were little. The magical world already got part of her family. When Lily dies, Petunia decides that she won't give it more. "We are leaving." Good Dursleys! AU!

A Jaunt Through Time by lecturience Harry Potter u:04-11-2013 - COMPLETE. The odds of temporal displacement were tiny, too infinitesimal to count, and yet… The Harry Potter luck striking again, he supposed. So now there's an older, wiser, more mature Harry (well, the older part's true at least) stuck in the past. And he's determined that if he's going to change things, he'll have some fun doing it. (OR: Time travel minus angst equals this.)

A Late Night Rendezvous by angelically-devilish Harry Potter u:06-16-2009 - 2009 TWIN EXCHANGE FIC OF THE YEAR! Fed up with playing the villain in her recent break-up with Ron, Hermione escapes to the Grimmauld Place kitchen for some solitude. But what girl would turn down the company of a sexy, shirtless Marauder? SiriusHermione

A Little Wave, A Big Change by loverofeevee Harry Potter u:07-06-2018 - The usual story. Manipulative Dumbles, Harry gaining his independence. This takes place after Harry's third year. It was a perfectly normal day in Privet Drive. The birds are singing, the bees are buzzing, and the Dursleys were their usual cheerful selfs. Then suddenly...Now what on earth is going on this time!

A Lonely September by mem0rycafe Harry Potter u:01-31-2005 - Ginny is feeling lonely and left out. She lets her feelings out through drawings. What happens when Blaise steals her sketch book and gives it to Draco. The bigger question is why is Blaise stealing her sketch book?

A Looping of the Scales by Ms-Figg Harry Potter u:10-20-2009 - A potions accident gives Snape a new lease on life by taking part of it away. More to come.

A Magical Childhood by Kendra James Harry Potter u:08-01-2010 - An injured six year old Harry Potter wishes for escape from his cupboard with surprising results. As the wizarding world struggles to cope with his disappearance, Harry discovers childhood can be fun.

A Malfoys Curse by Goth1cPr1nc3ss Harry Potter u:07-03-2009 - Draco has a curse. All the male Malfoys line had it. He only finds out after his mother finds out about him and a certain girlfriend of his. Will he able to fight the curse or will he surrender to it? What does Hermione have to do with it?HGDM, RWPP, HPOC

A Marriage Most Convenient by AnneM.Oliver Harry Potter u:05-24-2010 - Hermione lost it all when she divorced. Draco would lose it all by age 30 if he didn't marry. Marriage to each other would be perfect, one would even say it was most convenient. Her daughter even looked like him, although, he wondered why that was.

A Parents Secret Gift by EvilDaystar Harry Potter u:06-05-2006 - What if Harry's parents had put in place a few contingency plans for Harry's future. How different would his life have been in the magical world then? Harry Potter first year AU story with some Albus Dumbledore perspective every now and again.

A Prism of Darkening Glass by Lomonaaeren Harry Potter u:06-26-2022 - AU, HPTN. Theo has gifted Harry with several things, but the prism he gives him a few months into fifth year is altogether different. COMPLETE.

A Revelation by MSgt SilverDollar and Snake Harry Potter u:06-23-2015 - REVISED AND UPDATED: NON CANON Features a super powered Harry with lots of money, titles and all that rot. Its meant to entertain those who like those stories and bash my least favorite JKR chars. Harmony all the way. Minor Revision: 7/12/14

A Second Look by RiverWriter Harry Potter u:02-17-2020 - Her best friend's life was a mess and she would have done anything to make things better for him and his sons. So, when she found her former enemy in a similar situation her heart went out to him as well... and the beautiful blond baby in his arms didn't hurt his case. It was certainly enough for her to give him a second look.

A Sirius Matter by witowsmp Harry Potter u:10-31-2007 - AU A few days after being rescued from the dementor's kiss, Sirius Black decides to share information with Harry about his destiny. The story continues on from there. HHr

A Sleeping Dragon Poked Awake by Genuka Harry Potter u:03-10-2019 - Harry spectacularly looses his temper at his trial before fifth year, issues an ultimatum to the entire Wizengamot, arbitrarily assigns Snape as his new guardian, and storms off to the Goblins for sanctuary... Oh and did I mention that he openly announced they had treated him badly enough that he was now willing to side with the Dark Lord? Let the chaos begin!

A Slytherin way of being by catchingafallingstar Harry Potter u:04-16-2019 - At the end of his third year at Hogwarts, while recovering after the final escape of Sirius Black, Harry received an unexpected visit which would not only change his life upside-down, but also affect all the magical world in time. COMPLETED!

A Soul-Mate's Kiss by IShouldBeWritingSomethingElse Harry Potter u:02-07-2016 - "You are bound, Hermione. You shared a Soul-Mate's Kiss." / SS/HG HEA...Always :)

A Subtle Love by MaryRoyale Harry Potter u:12-12-2015 - Blaise Zabini has loved Hermione for half of his life, but due to the war he has never felt comfortable revealing his feelings for her. After he acquires a genuine DA coin, he gets the opportunity of a lifetime, and he grasps it with both hands. Submission for Round 9 Hermione Smut on lj. Hermione/Blaise.

A Time for Changeling by Bloodpage-Alchemist Harry Potter u:07-15-2013 - Two Dementors showed up in Little Whinging and changed Harry Potter's world forever. Now he's on the hunt for family he's never known plus entangled in a web of political intrigue and subterfuge. Why does everything happen to him?

A Trunk With A Difference by CatsAreCool Harry Potter u:04-07-2019 - Lily had hoped for the best, but she always planned for the worst.

A Twisted Timeline by MadnessPersonified Harry Potter u:06-18-2008 - Much to his displeasure, Harry is thrown back through time into his six year old body. As a result, Harry decides to contort the timeline, purely for his own amusement.

A Witch's Tale by snowblind12 Harry Potter u:11-01-2017 - This is Hermione's story. The wizarding world is in a crisis; increasing squibs and decreasing magical power of pureblood children. Hermione has a theory. She finds friendship and love where she least expects it. Rated M for LEMONS and light D/s. Please forgive spelling and punctuation errors. Needs editing! Hermione, Theo and Draco. Also, Snape lived. Not Canon.

A Witch with a certain point of view by anorc Harry Potter u:06-07-2023 - Daphne's point of view chapters for Not With a Half-Blood. Daphne's parents had 'A Plan', and it made her little sister happy, so it was worth it, she supposed. But allying with the Malfoys to take the Black fortune meant... having to have a child with Draco one day. Ugh. Then Harry Potter won?, but the Malfoys had somehow changed sides. And then, she met Harry Potter at a party.

A Wonderful Caricature of Intimacy by Countess of Abe Harry Potter u:09-03-2008 - Draco loves his son more than anything in the world. So, when his ex-wife plans to take his son away, Draco asks the most unlikely person for help. Hermione must decide whether changing her entire life is worth helping the man she hates unconditionally.

A Year and A Day by Mutt N. Feathers Harry Potter u:06-02-2021 - There's no Voldemort, no war, just a Wizarding society in need to moving into the twentieth century even though they are on the cusp of the twenty-first. The Source of All Magic determines who you will be best suited to, and when you turn seventeen you are given a name. Sirius Black didn't get his perfect partner until he was forty, and he already knows her, and she can't stand him

Absence does Something to the Heart by PauloPT90 Harry Potter u:09-02-2020 - Happily engaged to Ron, Hermione returns to Hogwarts to complete her seventh year. But the end of the war brings about a change in the teaching style of the school with a big impact on inter-house cooperation.

Accepting Defeat by GrandeVanillaSkimLatte Harry Potter u:09-24-2008 - Mrs Weasley is determined to pair Hermione with a Weasley, any Weasley. Eventually it takes Fred and George to step in and save the day. Winner of the Twin Exchange September 2008 Challenge. FredHermione.

Accidental Affection by katmd Harry Potter u:08-04-2004 - When mutual friends decide to marry, Severus Snape and Hermione Granger find themselves presented with the perfect opportunity to get to know each other better.

Accidental Proposal by CJRed Harry Potter u:08-26-2017 - Hermione finds out that she is really a Nott, and there are so many rules to being a Pureblood, too bad Draco Malfoy seems to have forgotten one of the most important rules of all! Hermione/Draco. Theo and Hermione are siblings. Ignores epilogue and off canon in some other places as well. Set in 8th year. Language, Fluff, and Lemons. Complete.

All Bets Are Off by PrettiestStar17 Harry Potter u:10-27-2018 - Hermione has harbored a crush on Fred Weasley for years. But that's all it is! A silly, little crush that's lingered from her Hogwarts' years. That's all it is...until one of her best friends, Ginny Weasley, is thrown into a life changing predicament. As she rallies with the rest of the family to help Ginny, Hermione regularly finds herself in Fred's charming company. M+

All Fall by Lomonaaeren Harry Potter u:11-12-2021 - HPTN. Harry Potter is one of the few wizards strong enough to enable a newly-turned vampire to return to human, as long as he feeds them his magically-charged blood for a few weeks and they neither kill him nor feed on anyone else. Called on to help new vampire Theodore Nott return to himself, Harry wishes he understood why Nott is acting like he doesn't want to. COMPLETE.

All For You by hermoine snape Harry Potter u:10-29-2010 - Remus had to leave his only daughter at the care of London's Childern's Home after his home his burnt down by death eaters. "I'm doing this because I love you." he told her. He left the building hearing her cries. Pairing: HP/HG COMPLETE! Updated Chapter 8 &9 7/12/16

All Through the Night by Bloodpage-Alchemist Harry Potter u:06-02-2019 - Harry awakens transported back in time over 500 years. Hogwarts is still being built and, amid the bustle, Harry finds the warm, nurturing parental figure missing in his life, in none other than Rowena Ravenclaw. Will Harry ever go home? Will he want to?

All Was Not Well by White Angel of Auralon Harry Potter u:12-27-2012 - Harry was massively disappointed in how things were going after the final battle. Nothing had changed, it only looked like it on the outside. So he decides to change the past to prevent certain things from happening. Being the Master of Death has its perks. Time-travel, Harry / OC

All the Time in the World by burnable Harry Potter u:03-06-2022 - After an accident, Harry finds himself reliving his day, over and over. He decides to use his time... wisely. One-shot.

All with Accio by freakyfinger Harry Potter u:07-25-2012 - Can the TriWizard Tournament be completed with just one spell? OneShot.

Alone by cheshirecat1333 Harry Potter u:02-09-2011 - What happens when Hermione is left alone while Harry and Ron are searching for Horcruxes? Will a certain Head Boy and his best friend finally give her a break? HGDMBZ

A long wait for freedom by charlie-becks Harry Potter u:06-06-2012 - A 5year old child dies at the hands of his family And to this day can be seen at the house in which he died. Will he be saved or will he be on his own forever? Warning: mentions of abuse

Always Read the Fine Print by questionablequotation Harry Potter u:03-16-2015 - ONE-SHOT. After being entered into the Tri-Wizard Tournament against his will, Harry does some independent research on what precisely "magically binding" means...and comes up with a very different approach to the competition. As they say, the pen is mightier than the sword...but is the quill mightier than the wand?

A mother's love by Ree923 Labyrinth u:10-01-2013 - From the moment Sarah left the Labyrinth, Jareth knew he needed to get her back. He didn't know what human love was, but he knew he would die without her. Karen knew it too.

And All the Nights to Come by Lomonaaeren Harry Potter u:07-31-2020 - Gen. On the night of Harry's ninth birthday, everything seems to be breaking apart for him. His despair reaches out into the darkness and summons the one person who stands a chance of comforting him. COMPLETE.

And We All Fall Down by Rumaan Harry Potter u:10-26-2012 - The spring term at Hogwarts starts with a bang with the return of Draco Malfoy, back for his eighth year after a stint in Azkaban. But all is not right with Draco and Head Girl Hermione Granger can't help but get involved. EWE

Angry Harry and the Seven by Sinyk Harry Potter u:10-22-2013 - Just how will Dumbledore cope with a Harry who is smart, knowledgeable, sticks up for himself and, worst still, is betrothed? A Harry who has a penchant for losing his temper? Ravenclaw/Smart(alek)/Lord/Harry Almostcanon/Dumbledore Non-friend/Ron Harry&Daphne (Haphne). No Harem. Rating is for language and minor 'Lime' scenes.

Animagus at War by White Squirrel Harry Potter u:11-20-2023 - Sequel to The Accidental Animagus. Voldemort's back, and this time, he's not alone. Harry and his family are caught in the middle as the wizarding war goes international. Years 5-7.

Apprentic James by Lil Nezumi Harry Potter u:07-05-2012 - Char. Ooc, AU/AR, still within JK's world - Harry is apprenticed to a Diagon Alley businessman at the tender age of seven. From there the story changes... very mild bashing of some regulars.

Are You Gonna Be My Girl by CajunWitch Harry Potter u:02-17-2013 - Hermione returns for her final year at Hogwarts. Rejects Head Girl position, this year is all about fun for her. One night she and Ginny sneak out of Hogwarts. When they sneak back in, Head Boy Draco catches them. Ginny is able to get away, but Hermione is at his mercy!

A reason to drink by angelfromhigh Harry Potter u:07-26-2006 - Harry opened his eyes slowly, afraid that he had just had a drunkenly induced fantasy. He was sincerely hopeful that he had not just been kissing thin air.

Art of Love by wickedswanz Harry Potter u:09-02-2009 - Hermione needs the Order's sexiest wizard to teach her the art of love making after being dumped, and Sirius is only too happy to oblige. But can the king of love-em and leave-em give her what she desires or will his heart get in the way? Rating: ADULT

As the World Falls Down by Iavas Labyrinth u:12-09-2009 - Stories become legends, legends become myths, and myths eventually become life. Jareth has waited seven years since his defeat, watching as Sarah grows into a woman and into her dreams of acting. A careless wish summons him back from the Underground.

A tale of two phoenix by Rahmota Harry Potter u:02-22-2022 - Harry and Hermione. Die together but are reborn together as Heart's blood bonded Phoenixes. Their world was strange enough now they have to learn to adapt to the changes in themselves as they learn the secrets Dumbledore kept. An unexpected ally helps them out though. Rated M for descriptions of violence, sexual situations, language. No harem. Weasleys are neutral.

Atonement by old-crow Harry Potter u:09-10-2019 - Harry received some useful advice before the third task. The butterfly effect will be going full-speed. Not everyone is happy with the changes. Enjoy

A very Black plan by WriterRose1998 Harry Potter u:02-14-2023 - Harry knows he's in trouble. Sixteen years old and already fighting for his and his friends lives just because some old men couldn't ignore a barmy woman sprouting a few lines. Harry's a boy with the world on his scrawny shoulders and with no adults to help him. But Sirius wouldn't leave his pup without a chance of survival. The world better watch out for a Black with a plan.

Avian Anarchy by Teddylonglong Harry Potter u:03-21-2021 - In a previous life, Hedwig's soul had once belonged to Lily. Recalling everything from her former life, the bird chooses Harry as her familiar shortly before his 11th birthday and causes mayhem at all who want to harm her son. Completely AU, partly OOC. Dumbledore/Weasley bashing. HP LL. COMPLETELY AU!

#harry potter fanfiction #must read #ff.net #harry potter #good reads #harry potter fanfic #hp fanfic #harry potter headcanon #labyrinth

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dxmichelle · 2 years

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Unfinished Nerdshipping Prompt

A long time ago, I got a prompt request for "Roland bonding with Hermione", and I've picked at it here and there, and then it went untouched for probably almost two years. I want to say I'll return to it, but I really don't remember enough of where the plot was going to do it justice.

(Fun fact: reading through this again, apparently this was written before OLSSM Ch34, and cookies to whoever catches the detail pointing that out)

Lightning flashed through the kitchen windows in the Kaiba Mansion, followed swiftly by the crashing boom of nearby thunder. Had Mokuba been in the room, he probably would have clapped a hand over his ears and bolted, probably to either his brother’s bedroom, the home office, or (and most likely) to the library, where there were no windows and could wait out the storm in a more muffled place.

At least, that was Mokuba at ten. The current Mokuba at fourteen was much more adjusted to storms, though that last boom probably still would have spooked the hell out of him.

Roland mulled the thought over as he poured himself a fresh cup of coffee, and then turned and left the kitchen, heading towards the stairs leading down into the basement, where the mansion security room was located.

Mokuba probably still would have sheltered in the library.

Tonight, however, there would be no way of testing the theory. Mr. Kaiba and Mokuba were on their way back from a conference, the last working engagement of the week before the boss had taken an unprecedented block of time off, baffling most at company headquarters who were used to their fearless leader living out of his top floor office.

He, however, knew more than they did. Mr. Kaiba didn’t just point to a page of the calendar and decide to take a vacation. Mokuba didn’t finally pressure him into taking a few days off.

Miss Granger was in town. More accurately, at the mansion.

Which was how he found himself working a rare nightshift here instead of accompanying the Kaiba brothers to the conference. Miss Granger’s vacation was scheduled in advance, but not to start for the next several days, but from what limited information he received, there was some sort of threat risk in the British magical government, and she was “advised” to leave a few days early.

Roland paused at the top of the basement steps. The mansion was quiet. A little too quiet for his liking, but it was just the two of them in the house until the brothers got back.

The tall living room windows rattled with the next clap of thunder as he crossed the front of the mansion to the library at the far end of the hall. It was Hermione’s favorite room in the entire house, though her one complaint was the lack of natural light.

Not that it would do much good at this hour in the evening, under the heavy veil of storms.

As expected, she was curled up along the couch under a blanket, a thick book propped open in her lap.

“Miss Granger,” he said, knocking lightly on the door frame. Worry lines were etched across her face, and from this distance, he couldn’t tell if she was actually reading the book or just staring at it and turning the pages every so often.

He waited for her to look up at him before continuing, “Is there anything you need for the night?”

She shook her head, and drew the book closer to her chest. “Seto and Mokuba should be back soon, won’t they?”

“Soon,” said Roland as a faint jingle rang from somewhere across the library and she reached under the blanket, pulling out her phone. “When I last spoke to Mr. Kaiba, they were only a few hours from here.”

He watched her shoulders slump as she read whatever was on her screen.

“…They’re stuck on the highway,” she said. “There was a wreck ahead of them and they’re gridlocked.”

A quiet sigh, and then the book was closed and the blanket tossed to the other end of the sofa. “I suppose there’s no point in staying up then…”

They crossed back by the living room and she stopped, reaching the staircase in the main foyer. “Have you seen Crookshanks?”

“I have not,” said Roland, and he couldn’t help but notice the slight shift in her features. Another disappointment. “…I imagine, as per usual, he is rummaging through Mokuba’s bedroom, looking for things to hoard.”

Ah, there it was – a tiny trace of a smile crossed her face. “Probably.”

But even then, acknowledgment of her cat’s crazy habits didn’t completely hide that something wasn’t quite right. And it couldn’t just be because her boss pushed her to vacate London early.

It was also not his place to pry.

“Well,” she said quietly, “I suppose I’ll head up then. Good night, Roland.”

“Good night, Miss Granger.” He paused. “I will be in the security office in the basement. Do you know where?”

It seemed like a silly question, seeing as this wasn’t her first time staying in the house overnight. But she usually never ventured below the ground floor.

“I think so,” she said, nodded, and turned to head up.

He watched her disappear down the hallway, took a brief sip of coffee, and then retreated back down into the basement. The blessed part of working overnight was he could get a ton of work done in preparation for the upcoming week.

And, surprise surprise, Crookshanks was curled up in his chair at the desk, not asleep but staring at him with a smug-looking glint in his eyes.

Well, if there was any wonder if he would have to run the lint roller across his suit before the night was over, that was quickly answered for him.

Mug set down on the desk, he plucked up the cat – damn, this furball was heavy – and set him in the specially-made post just for him: an open shallow cardboard box with a soft blanket inside and a scribbled “security intern” written along the front. It sat in prime viewing position of the double monitors set up with the perimeter views of the house.

“She was looking for you, you know,” said Roland idly as he opened up his emails.

Crookshanks blinked at him and began pawing at a pen next to his station.

“Ah, no, that’s mine,” said Roland, dragging it away from him. He reached down, opened the bottom drawer in the desk and started rummaging through the random assortment of items inside.

All things picked up from various places along the floor in the mansion. All from Crookshanks running around playing at 3am when everyone else was asleep. A well-worn plush mouse was extracted and then dropped into the box.

“Here, play with that.”

Crookshanks looked at the mouse, and then back at Roland, as if to say ‘well, what am I supposed to do with this thing?’ and then reached for the pen again, catching it in his claws and dragging it up the side of the box.

The grip was lost and the pen dropped down with a slight clatter.

Roland shook his head and reached again for it, but before his fingers could close around the pen to pull it once more out of reach, Crookshanks shot out his paw and batted it right off the edge of the desk and onto the floor halfway across the room.

Roland raised an eyebrow, stared at the pen, and back at Crookshanks. Crookshanks stared right back with a rather smug look on his face.

“Very well,” he said, turned away, and took another pen from the desk, making sure to keep it far from Crookshanks’s reach. “If you want it, you have to go get it.”

The cat made a huffy sort of noise and then shifted to loaf facing away from him.

After a scratch behind the cat’s ears, he returned to work.

A clap of thunder later rattled the house, and he couldn’t help but stare up at the ceiling, despite being unable to see the storm raging outside. For it to be that loud all the way in the basement, lightning must have struck rather close to the mansion.

Crookshanks’s ears perked up at the second resounding boom and the basement lights that flickered mere seconds afterwards before completely winking out, taking out the desktop and all of the security monitors with it.

“Wonderful,” Roland muttered. He leaned down to open one of the desk drawers and groped around inside for the spare laptop that was kept around, but his blind search came up empty.

“Where is – oh,” he groaned and slumped back in the chair. Fuguta had taken the laptop into the company office at the end of his shift this morning due to some hardware failure. And since he hadn’t been back to the mansion since, the loaner laptop was still at Kaiba Corp.

So much for getting work done tonight.

He rolled the chair over to the filing cabinet on the wall, found the bottom drawer handle by sheer memory, and rifled around inside until his hand hit the flashlight buried all the at the bottom. Hauling it out, he turned it over in his hands until his thumb found the switch.

“Watch the batteries be dead,” he muttered as another clap shook the house. They weren’t in fact, and the beam cleared a path in the dark, lighting the way to the door and out into the hallway.

Well, if the office down here wasn’t going to run in the dark, he could use his spare laptop that he left in Mr. Kaiba’s office, from when his boss was off at Hogwarts. He took care of any work in the mansion from there instead of the basement office.

He got up and stopped to look at Crookshanks, who now had sat up and was curiously watching him. “You coming?”

Crookshanks made some sort of noise, stretched, and hopped off the desk to paw at the pen still on the floor.

“Keep it,” he said, and aimed the beam towards the hall. “Got a million of ‘em in the desk.”

Wind howled against the windows. A flash of lightning lit up the rear mansion grounds enough that he could see the tree line all the way at the far end of the property, to be followed almost immediately by another deafening thunder crash – no, make that two crashes, coming from the backyard, and then the house shook again.

Roland crossed the kitchen to stand before the patio door. Even with the quick and consistent lightning flashes brightening the skies it was still too hard to see outside, but it almost sounded like a tree fell. He’d have to check it out in the morning.

He turned away from the windows and started off towards the study, and had to stop halfway down the hall on the other side of the main floor. The power was completely out in the entire house. Not that he didn’t know the mansion like the back of his hand; he could walk the halls blindfolded. But Crookshanks liked to slink around and make off with anything he could determine to be a toy, and he’d rather not trip on anything left around on the floor in the dark.

Or on Crookshanks. Miss Granger wouldn’t appreciate that too much.

He stared blankly at the end of the hall. He had to travel via flashlight, but the light in the library was still on. Odd, but easily explainable the moment he stood in the doorway. Miss Granger was back in the library, wearing one of his boss’s Kaiba Corporation hooded sweatshirts, huddled under the blanket with the same book as before. Her wand was sitting on the end table in plain sight of the doorway, and it was clear that she used magic to turn the lights back on.

He clicked off the flashlight and checked his watch. It was at least two hours after she had originally gone to bed.

“Miss Granger?”

Hermione nearly jumped out of her skin, and he mentally kicked himself for not knocking on the doorframe first. Mokuba was this way too when he was engrossed in a game online with friends. So absorbed that you could walk up to him – right in front of him – and he wouldn’t notice you were there.

“Oh, it’s you, Roland,” she breathed, and then settled back into the couch, “I…I didn’t hear you.”

“Apologies – I didn’t mean to startle you,” he said. “I was on my way to find one of the spare laptops hiding around here, since…” he gestured wildly to the dark hallway behind him. “There’s not much else to be done at the moment.”

Hermione looked down at her book and ran a finger along the edge of the pages, and took a deep, silent breath. “I…I couldn’t sleep.”

“Not surprising,” he said, and watched her wince as thunder crashed over the mansion again. “Not a fan of storms, I’m guessing.”

“It’s not that,” she said softly, and scrunched up tighter under the blanket, and if he had to guess, withdrawing into Mr. Kaiba’s sweater. “I never used to mind them. They were cleansing, in a way. I used to sit in my family’s front windows as a little girl and watch the rain come down with such energy, it just washed everything away. And to go outside once it all stopped and see everything clean and bright and new, and the sun poking out among the last of the misting clouds. I loved it.”

She closed her eyes and smiled at the memory. “We had a covered porch in the first house I grew up in, and they’d let me sit out and read when the rain wasn’t blowing in towards the front door. It was so….”

Hermione paused, struggling to find the right words. “…Therapeutic, I guess.”

Another resounding boom from above, and another shudder.

“But not anymore,” said Roland.

She quickly shook her head. “It’s silly,” she said and raised a hand to wipe at the corner of her eye. “And you’d think me ridiculous. It’s alright, Roland. I’m sure you have plenty of work to do. Y-you don’t have to have me hold you up.”

Roland felt the phone in his pocket buzz and he looked away from her to check the incoming message.

Mokuba Kaiba: They’re FINALLY detouring us off the highway.

He heard Hermione’s phone jingle, muffled from its spot underneath the blanket, and he watched out of the corner of his eye as she dug around for it, only for her to sigh with even more visible disappointment at whatever had flashed across the screen.

“…did you get a message from Seto too?” she asked.

“Mokuba, but I’m sure they say the same thing.”

“They’ve been allowed off of the highway,” said Hermione, “But have to take a slower route back…”

#I really want to come back to this someday #someday maybe #michelle writes fic #nerdshipping

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cheesyficwriter · 2 years

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Happy Valentine's Day, my Romione lovers! I went skiing over the weekend and this little Muggle AU meet-cute popped into my head. Hope you enjoy ❤

Spontaneous

Spontaneous has never been a word used to define Hermione Granger.

She likes structure, she likes order, and she doesn't often stray from rules and plans. But when her boss challenged her to try something new over the weekend and return to work the following Monday morning with a detailed account of her adventure in hand, she couldn’t pass up the opportunity, no matter how much she desired nothing more than to curl up at home with a book and her cat, Crookshanks, in her lap.

It’s only a little bit disgruntling that it’s the weekend of Valentine’s Day, and her boss assumed that she didn’t have any other plans.

So many tame activities exist that she could have chosen for her task; cooking classes, scrapbooking, even going for a run as opposed to her usual brisk walk. But for some reason, she decides to try to fuel the rush of adrenaline she’s never had.

The reality of her spontaneous decision-making falls upon her as she’s carried by a rickety bench hanging from only a thin cable, leaving her with way too much time to dwell in her thoughts while ascending the chair lift.

Hermione trains her eyes to not look down, and instead focus on the clouds of white covering the evergreen mountains surrounding her. Her gaze can’t help but travel to the snowboarders and skiers down below, gliding upon the powder and burning their way down the hills with such speed she wonders if they all must be professionals.

Surely she’s not the only amateur skier here, right?

She adjusts her helmet and fits her goggles to her face as the lift approaches its final destination, and she barely manages to slide off of the bench and onto the snowy hilltop without falling flat on her face. Hermione breathes out a lengthy sigh, mentally cheering for herself she’s made it this far.

Another realization soon hits her. It’s too late for any second thoughts, as there is nowhere to go but down. She squints through the freshly falling snow, relieved to find her destination still visible, but the route there looks daunting.

Hermione recounts in her head she’s challenged herself to make new choices about her life—or rather, her boss did—but she agrees she needs to expand outside of her comfort zone.

She can do this. She can do anything she sets her mind to.

Looking around at the growing crowd of people joining her from the chair lift, she’s comforted by the fact she’s not the only apprehensive-looking skier awaiting her turn. But many of those skiers are accompanied by their significant others, a fact only serving as another rude awakening of the holiday weekend.

The trail she plans to take is freeing up, and Hermione approaches the edge with her skis clicked in. Her fingers are so cold that she can hardly maintain a proper grip on her poles, despite wearing thick gloves.

Before she can move another muscle, two men whisk past her sharing mutual loud yelps, both intent on racing each other down the mountain, leaving flurries of snow behind their skis. Hermione watches them for a few terrorizing seconds as their bright red hair swishes underneath their helmets until they’re no longer visible in her immediate eyesight.

“Okay, Hermione. Just relax.” She mumbles under her breath, closing her eyes for a brief moment before opening them.

The bitter sting of ice hits her face as she leans forward, reviewing the mental list of instructions she was given on how to stop herself when needed.

Parallel turn. Pizza. Parallel turn. Pizza.

The snow feels as slippery as a snake as she begins to descend the hill. Her hope of moving at a leisurely pace to the bottom is quickly thwarted as an ambitious one. She’s gaining speed too fast and her thighs are already burning as she tries to remember how to slow down.

Time stops despite her body still moving, and for a moment she wonders how on Earth she’ll survive this. Hermione’s heart pounds in her chest as she makes the decision to turn her skis, but the turn either comes too quickly or it’s too late. All she remembers is falling backward until she lands hard on her bottom, rolling a few paces until she comes to a resting point with her face flat in the pillowy snow.

She groans, regretting every single choice she's made thus far at the ski resort.

Hermione Granger, you are too ambitious for your own good.

A faint voice calls out to her.

“Are you okay?”

With her face still buried in snow, she doesn’t respond.

“Are you okay?”

The voice is closer this time, and Hermione hears a solid whoosh from her left side and a new pair of skis enter her view.

A body kneels down next to her. “Are you hurt?”

The man’s voice is sharper, clearer, and he sounds almost a bit frustrated that she’s not answering him. She tries to bring herself to nod so he doesn’t think she’s, well, dead.

When Hermione finds the courage to lift her head, she’s startled by the deep blue of the man’s eyes boring into hers.

“That was a nasty fall you just took. Do you need some help getting up?”

So many questions he’s throwing at her, and all that manages to come out of her mouth is, “Hi.”

A lopsided grin forms on the man's face, nothing but amusement glinting in his dark eyes contrasting his vibrant ginger hair so well.

“Hi there.”

Hermione makes no move to adjust her tangled limbs, unable to focus on anything but the palpitations taking over her heart.

“Can you move?” The stranger asks another question, his brows furrowing under the thin strap of his helmet.

“I-” The words get lost on the tip of her tongue, and she closes her mouth as she feels her cheeks grow warm despite the chilly air.

He searches the path for any lingering skiers. "Are you here with anyone else?"

She's certain his grin grows wider when she shakes her head no. The man stands up straight with ease and offers her his hand.

“C’mon. I’ll help you down.”

Biting her lip in contemplation, Hermione quickly decides it's best if she lets the stranger assist her. She doesn't fancy trying to figure out how to stand up with her skis as a bunch of onlookers watch her from the chair lift.

She places one gloved hand into his own, and he pulls her body up with such force that their chests bump together once she's in a standing position.

Hermione squeaks, not expecting the sudden closeness to a tall man with seemingly taut muscles underneath all his layers of clothing—not that she's thinking about the shape of his body.

This is not what she had planned for the day, but as she meets the man's curious gaze one more time, Hermione is satisfied with the knowledge she actually doesn't mind all that much where she's ended up in the madness of skiing.

In an impressive move, he whips his skis around until he’s facing her, keeping a firm grip on both of her hands.

Hermione's eyes widen as she checks his stance. “You’re going to ski backwards?”

A cheeky grin lights up his face and he nods once in affirmation.

“Wait.”

She blurts the word out before they can descend the mountain together, a question pestering the forefront of her mind.

“I promise it’s not the first time I’ve skied backwards. And I've also gone down this slope loads of times.”

“It’s not that. It’s just—I don’t even know your name. I’d like to give you a proper thank you if we ever make it to the bottom of this hill.”

His lips curl up again, an action that makes her stomach flutter in a way she wasn't expecting. “It’s Ron. Ron Weasley. And I look forward to that proper thank you…” His voice trails off as his eyebrows lift with the expectation for her to fill in the missing information.

She grins. “Hermione. Hermione Granger.”

He squeezes their joined hands with the slightest pressure before squaring his shoulders. "You ready?"

A shaky breath leaves her lips, but she nods anyway.

It's now or never.

Ron slowly begins to weave his way down the mountain, pulling her along like he's in control of her wagon. She's amazed by the fluidity of his movements and by the way looks over his shoulder periodically to make sure they're not set to collide into any other people.

"Don't look down. Keep your eyes on me."

Hermione's eyes snap to his baby blues she's been so nervous about getting lost in, but the fire displayed in them calms her tense muscles straight away.

"You've obviously been skiing before."

Ron laughs. "Yeah, most of my life. My whole family takes a holiday here about once a year and we stay in the lodge for a week. This is our first day."

The two men she saw on the slopes earlier must be related to Ron, she gathers, with their height and striking red hair.

"You probably have worked out by now that I am not an experienced skier. This is my first time actually."

"Ah." Ron shrugs. "I wouldn't have known that if you hadn't told me. I've fallen loads of times, no matter how much experience I have."

A surge of heat rolls through her body and Hermione marvels at this man's ability to make her feel comfortable and not at all embarrassed by her lack of coordination.

Ron skids to a stop as they reach the bottom faster than she had expected, but also at a pace that never made her panic along the journey.

"Thank you. I never would have made it without you."

"Did you even realize that I let go of your hands?"

Hermione gasps, looking down at her hands now clasped together in front of her. "Well, when did you do that?"

"About halfway down the mountain. The rest was all you."

Suddenly bashful, Hermione looks down at her skis, making an attempt to brush off the cakes of snow layering the tops.

Ron clears his throat, prompting her gaze to shift back to him, and he's rocking back and forth on his heels as the tips of his ears burn red. She briefly wonders why he doesn't have a fleece ear band to shield his skin from the cold, but then it dawns on her the color of his ears might be due to a different reason.

"Hey, you wouldn't fancy a drink in the lodge would you? There's a great pub ale that'll warm you right up."

She wants to say he already has warmed her up, but she doesn't want to mistake his friendliness for flirtation.

Hermione is about to politely decline in an effort to prevent embarrassing herself any further, but a voice in the back of her head stops her.

"Yes. I'd love to."

Ron's face splits into a massive smile for the umpteenth time today, a smile so contagious she can't help but match. He reaches for her hand without a word, guiding her through the crowd of people towards the warm lodge.

Maybe she'll work up the courage to try the slopes again later if Ron is willing to stay by her side to help her learn.

But Hermione is certain about one thing. She could definitely be spontaneous more often.

#romione #romione fanfic #ron x hermione #ron weasley #hermione granger #ron weasley x hermione granger #hp fanfic #hp fanfiction #romione fanfiction #romione drabble #muggle au #skiing #ice #meet cute #fluff #romance #romione fluff #cheesyficwriter

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louff4tw · 2 years

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I’m copy pasting this from a reblog I made but gonna make it pt 4 of my Percy Wedding series ( it’s a series now) someone said on my pt2 that it didn’t make sense for them to not come or to be petty and I’m like 🧐 it fits well with their actions in the books. No hate to the person who said it’s OOC but here’s why I know it’s in Character

Here’s pt 1

And pt 2

Pt 3

Here’s more reasoning on why I think it fits well with why they would do that/for pt1 why Percy would think they would

I think it fits perfectly. The Weasleys are not bad people but are petty af. It’s shown over and over again. They shit talk Percy all the time even in the beginning when he’s not even that bad. And it’s no wonder he basically locked himself in his room. Anytime he left his room he was mocked and bullied by the twins and others. Harry notices Mr. and Mrs. Weasley try to hide smiles or laughters. Mr. Weasley doesn’t try to hide it sometimes. He is the butt of their jokes constantly.

And Molly has shown she will judge you for EVERYTHING constantly! She judges Hermione over what the papers say in 4th year. Her clothes in 5th. Judges Fluer for EVERYTHING about her. Judges Bill and Charlie and the twins cause they don’t fit the box she wants them in! Like there’s a reason they moved as far away as possible. Charlie is seen so little he’s not even in the Movies. She has hid a smile at what the twins did.

Ron has shown he will be petty and distance himself. Continuously. Like 3rd book with Crookshanks. 4th with thinking Harry put his name in the goblet. Wouldn’t believe him. His BEST FRIEND. For a long time. Like it’s insane. And during the 7th book when he leaves over something so petty. He would never be my friend. He also took part in mocking Percy.

Ginny is also judgmental. Not towards people who are different but towards girly girls and being mean to them. She also took part in mocking Percy.

Bill isn’t very judgmental but he was also pretty pissed at Percy and has laughed at what the twins did.

Charlie we know almost nothing about so I’m not sure.

The twins. The damn twins. They bullied him. A lot. Any joke or prank it anything they said behind his back. That’s bullying. It was in excess. It wasn’t funny to Percy. And that doesn’t mean Percy is stingy or does not have a sense of humour but no one likes to be treated like that. They created this image of him and spread it around and treated him like garbage. He never retaliated either. They sent DUNG to his work before the fight and it wasn’t seen as a big deal. Anything that made him happy was mock worthy. Like how f ing dare he be excited about his job or learning or anything. And you can tell the image of him they spread around was false was when Fred died he said that was the first Joke Percy ever made. But in early books in the second one he makes some. He can have fun. They just made it unfun for him to be around them. Like no wonder he didn’t want to spend Christmas with them in first year. They continuously did petty and cruel things to him. They altered his stuff and him and his image and encouraged their younger siblings to do the same.

And Arthur ate that image they made up. Was so ready to believe Percy would betray them. And screamed at him and was so damn cruel to his CHILD. He was a child. He was barely a adult and he refused to ever apologize. Or talk about him or think about him. Like how heartless do you have to be to see your son. So young and just ignore him and HATE Him. All Percy wanted to do was make him Proud. But nope.

And none of them checked on him during the war or apologized. He was working in the ministry where he probably had to watch his boss murdered and non of them gave a fuck. Bill didn’t even invite him to the wedding.

Percy didn’t come back after 5th year cause he knew he wasn’t welcome. Like first time they saw him again they THREW food at him. They called him names when he THE CHILD apologized. His family never apologized and still saw it as Percy leaving cause he believed the ministry. And not cause his family didn’t believe in him.

So don’t try to say it’s out of character cause it’s not. It fits in with the books and how they treated him like crap for years before that fight. That they “are a family” is garbage.

I have a dysfunctional family. And this wasn’t it being a “normal fighting family” he was bullied and harassed by the twins and everyone laughed at and encouraged it. I love the Weasleys but they are not good people to those they consider different. They judge everyone who doesn’t fit their views.

#percy weasley #weasley #bill weasley #charlie weasley #fred #george #ginny #Ron #Ronald #Arthur #Molly #harry potter #fluer delacour #hermione granger

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snapelover14 · 3 years

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Questions for Harry Potter Blogs

House?

Illvermony House?

Marauders or golden trio?

Favourite next gen?

House combo?

Shitpost or fic?

OTP?

BrOTP?

Snape - good or bad?

Who deserved to live that died?

Elder wand, invisibility cloak or resurrection stone?

Who deserved redemption?

Who is overrated?

Favourite HP book?

Favourite HP film?

Favourite cast member?

More evil - voldemort or umbridge?

Which death hit hardest?

Quidditch position?

Wizarding Career?

Cursed child - yay or nay?

Favourite magical creature?

Dumbledore - hero or not?

Hogwarts pet?

Worst canon ship?

Favourite book scene not in movie?

Most hated character?

Drarry, Dramione or Drapple?

Patronus animal?

Boggart?

Favourite au?

Hagrid or Arthur Weasley?

Pigwidgeon or Crookshanks?

Favourite blog?

What did you do first - read books or watch films?

Other fandoms?

Ginny or Luna?

Have you ever cosplayed - and who?

Weird sisters or The Hobgoblins?

Quirrell or Lockhart?

Remus or Sirius?

Wolfstar or Remadora?

If you weren’t your house what would you want to be/what’s ur house combo?

AVPM or Cursed Child?

Draco- just one extra boi who deserved redemption, or cold blooded?

Wyr be a muggle or squib?

More frustrating animal to bump into - Mrs Norris or Fluffy?

Which triwizard task would u boss and why?

Favourite (not hogwarts) wizarding school?

Mandrake or devils snare?

Best ‘beast’ from Fantastic Beasts?

Which goldstein do you pity more?

DA vs og Order ?

Wyr ride a hippogriff or dragon?

Arrive to Hogwarts across the lake or bring pulled by thestral?

Wyr Sirius lives or Remus?

Wyr be a an animagus or metamorphmagus?

Visit diagon alley or hogsmeade?

George or fred?

time turner/invisibilty cloak?

Favourite weasley?

What was the most upsetting death?

Who would you want to cosplay?

What wand would you most want to own?

who was your first crush from the HP series?

Favourite subject?

Firewhisky or butterbeer?

What would you buy from Weasley’s wizard wheezes?

if you werent a wizard/witch - what magical creature/animal would you be?

Wizarding world or warner bros studios?

What betie botts every-flavour beans would be your secret favourite?

JKR - ya or na?

Have you been to any film sites?

Favourite widely accepted au trope?

Favourite professor?

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hpfluff-fest · 4 years

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HP Fluff Fest Masterlist

We would like to thank everybody who has made this fest such a success, whether as a prompter, creator, or reader! Both of us hope the featured fics and art have brought you happiness and warm fuzzy feelings. Now, without further ado, may we proudly present the HP Fluff Fest 2020 Masterlist.

Albus Severus Potter/Scorpius Malfoy

ART

🌻god, you're beautiful by lov-lyness || @lov-lyness, Traditional Art (G)

Scorpius and Albus are by a lake, Scorpius's soulmark is showing.

FIC

🌻Sticky Love by motherofmercury || @motherofmercury, 1.3k, (G)

Scorpius always leaves encouraging notes and reminders around their flat for Albus to find. Albus realises he's a messy person to live with. Cleaning and the discovery of Albus' romantic side ensues.

Bartemius Crouch Jr./Harry Potter FIC

🌻Coming Home Late by Firebull || @swampwitchkaterina, 525 words (G)

It had become a bit of a routine to them.

Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter

ART

🌻K is for Kiss by Pinkelephant42 || @pinkelephant42, Digital Art (G)

Harry escapes the spotlight to teach young magical kids. Draco is charmed by his son's new teacher.

🌻Moving in together - shopping for laughs. by digthewriter || @digtheshipper, Digital Art (G)

Trying out mattresses w/ your partner leads to giggles in the furniture showroom.

🌻The Case for Borrowed Underwear and Morning-After Pancakes by toutcequonveut || @cequonveut, Digital Art (Comic) (T)

Harry and Draco have just Done the Deed™️ for the first time. After a truly fantastic night, Harry wakes up alone in bed and wonders where Draco has wandered off to..

FIC

🌻Age is just a number by gnarf || @gnarf, 1.5k (T)

Married for decades, their life is perfect. Until Harry gets a call and hears the following words: "Mr Potter, we caught your husband stealing ten large packs of King Sized condoms."

🌻And They Say Romance is Dead by static_abyss || @static-abyss, 9.7k (E)

Harry is in love with Draco Malfoy. This is, quite possible, the worst thing that could have ever happened to him. Not because he doesn't want to love Draco but because now that Harry knows, he doesn't know how he's supposed to tell him.

Or, five times Harry tried to tell Draco he loved him and one time he succeeded.

🌻Chasing Coffee by Yesimawriter || @foularcadebanana, 5.6k (T)

Harry's service dog, Coffee, is obsessed with a certain Slytherin prat, and Harry cannot figure out why. It can't be because Harry wants to spend more time with him, right?

🌻darling, your kisses are sweeter than honey by unicorninthelibrary || @unicorn-in-the-library, 1k (T)

No matter how many years have passed, waking up next to Draco is Harry’s favorite thing in life.

🌻Dear (For Want of a Better Idea) Diary by tigersilver || @stripedsilverfeline, 12.3k (M)

Draco likes his life; there’s not much not to like. He’s got himself a family of rescued kneazles and nosy Weasleys plus two fun jobs to keep him busy, which is more than he ever expected, post-Voldemort. But he’ll have a bash at keeping a journal, just as his boss George suggested. Who knows? It might even help him sort out what’s up with Potter, right?

🌻Disastrously Perfect by savant (teii) || @teii, 8.3k (T)

Neville figured that whatever was going on between Harry and Draco, he could quietly keep out of the way and observe from a safe distance. Luna, however, has other plans.

🌻 Duck And Cover by Drarrymadhatter || @drarrymadhatterstuff, k (T)

Draco is struggling with eighth year, until he’s forced to adopt a flock of ducklings. Harry, convinced his old nemesis is up to his old tricks, decided to find out what he’s up to. When he discovers his fluffy secret, he decides to have some fun with it. However, along the way, he starts to realise how much Malfoy has changed.

🌻Ferret Support Services by CoCo (cportera) || @cportera, 4k (G)

Harry discovers a ferret while hiding away from his friends. He adopts the furry animal telling him secrets, never knowing the ferret might have secrets of his own.

🌻If This is Happiness, I Don't Mind Having This by Orpheous87, 6.2k (G)

Eighth Year isn't going too well for Draco. He's isolated and ignored by his classmates. Then he stumbles across a flock of tiny ducklings that need a helping hand. What Draco doesn't expect is someone to offer him a helping hand.

🌻I Knew I Loved You Before I Met You by Ladderofyears || @clemandben, 20.7k (E)

All Draco ever wanted was to carry his beloved husband's baby. It had been a journey of years, of tearful nights and smiling while he was breaking inside. It was finally happening though. They've tried for so long. They're having a child.

🌻Just Like Potions by vivi1138 || @penguinanimagus, 2.3k (E)

Kreacher is on holidays. Draco thinks he can cook because he's so good at Potions. Hint: he can't.

🌻Let Your Heart Hold Fast by MoonlitMarauder || @moonlitmaruader, 7.1k (E)

After three years together you'd think Harry would have learned to let Draco keep his secrets, but Draco is up to something. He just knows it. Or That time when Ron had to give Harry advice on his love life.

🌻Love In Ikea by kai_blxck || @im-kaifused, 30.6k (T)

In all the trips Harry had made to Ikea, Harry never expected to bump into the love of his life?

Draco never thought Wizards could exist but here he is, falling in love with one.

🌻Misunderstandings are as easy as A-B-C by VeelaWings || @veelawings, 3.4k (T)

A slow blink and Potter seemed to catch himself, clearing his throat and nodding, his smile friendly and bright when directed at Scorpius and Draco. “Hey Mal—”

“Mr Potter,” Draco spoke up rudely, but necessary. “This is my son, Scorpius Black. He’ll be one of your students this year.”

Potter looked completely wrongfooted for a few seconds before his mind appeared to latch onto the most likely conclusion. His expression cleared up as Scorpius took a step forward and offered a tiny hand.

“Hello, Mr Potter. It’s nice to meet you,” Scorpius said, enunciation steady and practiced.

🌻Seeking: pet carer for Bartholomew (four-year old rescue greyhound, no special needs) by GallifreyisBurning || @gallifrey1sburning, 14.7k (E)

When Draco’s boyfriend ends their relationship rather abruptly (and, frankly, extremely rudely), he leaves Draco with full-time responsibility for their rescue greyhound, Bartholomew. Draco loves his dog with all his heart, but the long hours he works at his law firm mean that he can’t possibly be home as much as Bartholomew needs. Enter Sirius Pet Care, an app designed to solve this very problem! When Draco books Harry, he’s relieved at how quickly the man and his dog bond. He’s less relieved by how unexpectedly, distractingly attractive Harry turns out to be… and how Draco’s afternoon meetings keep being “mysteriously” cancelled, meaning that he JUST HAPPENS to be home when Harry comes by. After all, it’s not appropriate to ogle one’s employees… right?

🌻sign me up for that full-time by M0stlyVoid || @bonesliketambourines, 4k (T)

Harry should have learned by now to never trust anything the Weasley twins try to pass off as a thoughtful holiday gift, no matter how innocuous it might appear.

🌻Soft & Hard by DragonGirl87 || @drgngrl87, 8k (T)

In which Draco is forced to grudgingly admit that Harry does have some taste and Harry learns more about mattresses than any sane person should ever know.

🌻Some Assembly Required by peachpety || @peachpety, 6.5k (E)

A relationship must occasionally endure a test of strength, be it confronting an ex, or meeting the inlaws. Sometimes, however, an inanimate object can make or break a couple. Harry and Draco's relationship is put to the test when they attempt to assemble a piece of IKEA furniture.

🌻They were Once Young by acupforslytherin || @acupforslytherin, 6.4k (T)

Draco nervously expected for the worst when Harry invited him to Godric’s Hollow for the summer holidays. Little did he know, he was in for a delightful French dinner, two generations of embarrassing Potters, and a fascinating story of how Harry’s parents got together.

🌻Too Many Legs by vivi1138 || @penguinanimagus, 4.4k (T)

Draco is thrilled when his son produces a powerful bout of accidental magic. But unlike most children his age, Scorpius doesn't stop there, and soon Draco is overwhelmed. Harry just finds it funny.

🌻Too precious to share by slowroad || @slowroad, 1.6k (M)

Harry and Draco are several months into their eighth year at Hogwarts. They've been in a relationship for a while now, but no one knows about them yet and they like it that way.

🌻Whiskers and Kisses by MotherBooker || @motherbookerao3, 1.5k (G)

When rabbits trust and care about a person, they can be very loving and affectionate creatures.

🌻With a Bite and A Hiss (and Some Curry On Top) by Zandra Gorin || @zandragorin, 4.7k (T)

Draco keeps bringing animals home and keeps cooking curry for Harry. Harry is of the opinion that it has got to stop. Well, not the cooking curry part.

Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter/Neville Longbottom ART

🌻Home is where the Bloody Plants are by Thunder_of_Dragons || @thunder-of-dragons, Digital Animated Pixel Art (G)

When Harry invited Neville and Draco to move into Grimmauld Place with him, his one condition was that they help him remove all of the old Pureblood artefacts. Draco was more than happy to agree, but he's determined not to let their drawing room become overrun by Neville's plants.

Draco Malfoy/Hermione Granger

FIC

🌻Crookshanks and the Worst Weekend by Aneiria || @aneiria-writes, 2.1k (T)

In which Crookshanks' perfect weekend is ruined by the arrival of a tiny, annoying, infuriating kneazle kitten who follows him home, and the wizard who comes looking for it.

🌻Stranded Apart by In_Dreams || @indreamsink, 10.5k (T)

Lost in the wilderness without their wands, Hermione and Draco will need to learn to work together if they want to make it out in one piece.

🌻The Art of Seating Etiquette by inadaze22 || @inadaze22, 9.7k (E)

Hermione believes that every problem has a solution, and that solution can be found in a book. That is, until Draco starts sitting to her right every Friday. She has no answers until help comes in the form of an unlikely source: Ron Weasley.

🌻The Heart of Healing by niffizzle || @niffizzle, 5.1k (T)

Spending her Saturday volunteering at St. Mungo's was Hermione Granger’s favourite part of the week. Nothing would ruin that, not even Draco Malfoy showing up to complete his community service hours.

🌻The Importance of Being Honest by floorcoaster || @floorcoaster, 9k (T)

In the pursuit of the truth, sometimes nature lends a hand.

Draco Malfoy/Neville Longbottom

ART

🌻A Tattoo to Match by Pinkelephant42 || @pinkelephant42, Digital Art (G)

Tattoo Artist Draco Malfoy and Florist Neville Longbottom work next to each other, flirt a lot, and get matching tattoos.

Dudley Dursley/Gregory Goyle FIC

🌻Stranger in the bakery by toutcequonveut || @cequonveut, 3.6k (M)

The people of the town are confused. Dudley is confused, but then he isn't. Greg is confused, but he's in love and that's more important. Harry is very confused, but just goes with it.

Or: a glimpse into the morning after Dudley and Greg's first time, featuring bakery buns and other buns

Gen

FIC

🌻it seems to come down to us by porcelainsalt (bluedreaming) || @porcelainsalt, 1.1k (G)

Minerva takes matters into her own hands.

Ginny Weasley/Luna Lovegood

FIC

🌻Bluebells and Asters by goldenzingy46 || @goldenzingy46, 826 (G)

Luna braids Ginny's hair. Ginny complains about boys. Softness (and a little kissing) ensues.

🌻Morning Eggs by PhenomenalAsterisk || @phenomenalasterisk, 842 words (G)

Luna began her mornings with tea. Ginny began her mornings with Luna. With the first stirrings of consciousness, Ginny found herself snuggling into her beloved — Luna’s neck, her hair, her belly, wherever Ginny could reach, really, was free game for the morning ritual. Ginny would cling like a barnacle to Luna until she was lucid enough to function on her own.

🌻Sleepy Smiles by PhenomenalAsterisk || @phenomenalasterisk, 554 (G)

Luna’s eyes are still shut, though the corners of her thin lips are just barely quirked into a smile. “You missed the movie, love.” Ginny says quietly, pressing her lips against her hair in a brief kiss.

Luna tucks her head further into Ginny’s neck and murmurs back, “I woke up for the best part.” Ginny smiles. It’s not unusual for Luna to enjoy her wife’s strength, in the bedroom and otherwise, though she has never asked for something as indulgent as being carried to bed.

OR Ginny carries Luna to bed. Soft, sweet, and short bit of domestic fluff.

Ginny Weasley/Pansy Parkinson

FIC

🌻get off on whiplash by cjmasim || @lesbianlilyevans, 6k (T)

THE QUIBBLER'S 5TH ANNUAL HOLIDAY DRAWING

TWO LUCKY ENTRANTS WILL WIN AN ALL-EXPENSES-PAID WEEK-LONG TRIP TO PORTOFINO, ITALY

TO ENTER, RETURN THE FORM BELOW VIA OWL NO LATER THAN APRIL 17, 2004

Ginny manages to convince herself that entering the drawing was nothing other than a way to help a friend out by getting the numbers for The Quibbler's entries higher.

Naturally, she wins the drawing.

Harry Potter/Severus Snape

FIC

🌻How to See Without a Camera by RoonilWazlibMalfoy || @evenmyzefronposter, 11.7k (E)

Having returned to Hogwarts after his training to take over for Madam Pomfrey, Harry was just happy to be back home. He didn't even mind it when he realized he'd have to work closely with Severus Snape. One Kiss Cam incident at a Quidditch Match, however, left him wondering just how close he could get to the man.

🌻Quite The Perfect Sunday by HogwartsToAlexandria || @dwell-on-dreams, 751 words (E)

Spending all day in bed, every Sunday they could, had been on of Harry and Severus's traditions almost from the start. It was a moment just for them, which they cherished and made the most of every time.

Hermione Granger/Luna Lovegood

ART

🌻Picking Daisies by dragontamerdrarry || @dragontamerdame, Digital Art (G)

Luna Lovegood has a terrace garden filled with Xenophilius Lovegood approved yellow flowers. Today, Luna’s picked some yellow daisies and is enjoying spending some quality time with her girlfriend (who has her nose buried in the hottest new Magizoology text in town!)

Hermione Granger/Narcissa Malfoy

FIC 🌻Life Is Good by Houseofmalfoy || @malfoylestrange, 1.2k (G)

Narcissa surprises herself with the number of times she thinks that little sentence, surprises herself with how genuinely happy she is with the way her life turned out, even if she’s no longer surprised at all by the person who gave it to her.

She’s happy.

Hermione Granger/Pansy Parkinson

FIC

🌻A Million Worlds Apart by SiriuslyThatBitch || @siriuslythatbitch, 13.6k (E)

After spending the bulk of her childhood fighting a dark wizard, Hermione was looking forward to a relaxing year. Too bad fate always has something else planned, including ancient spells, sarcastic roommates, and a suffocating amount of sexual tension.

🌻Exodus by cdav || @cdav, 6.6k (T)

After the war, Hermione finds herself drawn to Pansy Parkinson for reasons she can't quite explain. Parkinson is adamant that they won't work out. Hermione's determined to prove otherwise.

Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley

FIC

🌻The Perfect Moment by DameinToyland || @dameintoyland, 1.8k (G)

Hermione gets home late from work and witnesses story time with Ron and the kids. Ron is nostalgic, Hugo is excited, and Rose isn’t having any of it.

James Sirius Potter/Teddy Lupin

FIC

🌻The Waiting (Is The Hardest Part) by Ladderofyears || @clemandben, 1.1k (E)

Teddy is waiting to give Jamie a performance.

Remus Lupin/Sirius Black

FIC

🌻A Purrfect Match by captainegg || @im-captain-egg, 1.7k (G)

When Remus walked into the shelter that day, he expected to leave with a new furry companion and not meet the love of his life.

🌻Here comes the sun by PollyDarton || @polly-darton, 5.5k (M)

Honestly, screw the sun. For all I care the world revolves around you.

🌻Moonlit Reflections by MoonCat457 || @mooncat457writing, 6.4k (T)

Sirius has been pining for Remus for far too long and James is sick of it. So, when it’s James’ turn to go on a late-night scouting mission with Remus on the grounds to work on the Marauder’s Map, he sends Sirius instead with instructions to finally just admit his feelings.

#hp fests #hp fluff fest #masterlist #hp fanart #hp fanfic

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hypnoticwinter · 4 years

Text

Down the Rabbit Hole part 16 (nsfw elements)

“Take a break!” comes the barked command through the squad radio link, and it takes all of my willpower not to collapse onto the fleshy ground then and there. I take the camera slung around my neck and turn it off, telescope the lens back into itself, and then find a nice soft bit of wall to sink into before I pop the helmet and give Elena a weary gaze. She grins at me cheekily.

“How you doing, cutie?”

I barely have enough energy to grin, but somehow I manage it. “God,” I tell her. “I had no idea there was going to be this much hiking.”

I had never thought of myself as much of a slouch as far as physical activity went. I liked keeping myself fit, liked the rush I got after a workout. I did a lot of cardio, a lot of jogging, that kind of thing. Occasionally I’d lift some weights but it didn’t appeal to me as much as just the inchoate joy of moving quickly and feeling air push in and out of my lungs. I had a fair amount of endurance as well; I wasn’t running marathons or anything but frequently I’d end up jogging for upwards of an hour, just for something to do, just to unwind after work or take my mind off something. I’d looked at the several miles we’d have to travel today, down there in the stinking guts of the Pit, and thought something along the lines of ‘no sweat, I’m active, I take care of myself, it’ll be a workout but nothing more.’

Christ.

What neither Peter or Makado had mentioned to me is that if you aren’t travelling in a Made Place down here, in a place that’s been specifically sanitized and reinforced and structured for something the size of a human, something that moves like a human instead of crawling or writhing or wriggling, it is capital-letter Tough Going. Everything down here, down to just the texture of the gigantic veins we pushed through, our suits sopping with nameless excretions and juices, seemed designed to only sullenly give way to us, and that after a great deal on our part to convince it to do so.

Example number one – the tightness of some of the veins is so great that we had to use something called a venterial jack, a pneumatic, hydraulic device that Slate carried slung over his back, in order to force them open so we could pass through. Everyone kept saying that once we hit the organ trail it’d be more open and we wouldn’t have to use it, but in the meantime in some of these conduits Slate would have to get three or four of us to help him pull back the weird, spongy tissue of the sides back far enough for him to plant it there in the middle, and then we’d all back away, and with a thundering sound like a pile-driver it would expand and splay open, pushing the tissue back with such force that at times it would leave a gigantic bruise coloring the Pit’s peach-hued flesh afterwards, and then we’d be able to crawl past it in the newly expanded space perhaps twenty feet or so before we’d have to hit the small trigger on its hull to collapse it, and then lug the thing back up to the front and repeat the process.

Example two – these vents aren’t perfectly straight, flat areas to walk in. They dip and bend and curve; sometimes they roll upwards, great creased crinkles of flesh stretching upwards into a ninety-degree angle. Then there’s nothing to do but get over it somehow, either by pulling yourself up if it’s small enough, or by breaking out the damn rope and pitons and climbing up, and then helping everyone else up after you. Then imagine doing all of this in pitch darkness, the only light coming from everyone’s headlamps. Then imagine that the floor is damp and sticky and squishy and generally revolting. Slippery with fluid at times. Imagine that it groans and writhes and wriggles around you if you manage to unstick your cleats at the wrong time and it bucks and pitches you to the ground. And then imagine that if you do fall to the ground, in the space of time it takes for someone to come and help you up you become covered with all forms of parasites, tiny things ranging between the size of a knuckle and the size of a fist, all urgently eager and hungry. Tiny worms like nematodes, crablike mites, stranger, less defined things that scuttle or slither or undulate off at the first sign of motion but are altogether too eager to swarm over you and excrete digestive juices or sensory pheromones or urine or shit or what the hell ever else.

I ask Elena about them and she explains that the duct that we’re moving through is part of the Pit’s digestive system and that all of these little creatures snag scraps of food whenever it passes through, or sometimes they prey on each other. They evolve quickly, down here in the dark, generations zipping by in the course of a day.

I can see my helmeted reflection in the glossy visor of Elena’s helmet and I shudder. My camera is already splattered with grime, no matter how careful I’ve been to keep it clean. Nothing that interferes with its operation, thankfully; I don’t relish the idea of grappling with the clunky, low-resolution camcorder secreted somewhere in its case in my pack. At least the operation of my DSLR is second-nature to me; at least I don’t have to think about it.

Peter stomps over and sits down next to us. In here, in these wider basins, the little scummy creatures crawling all over don’t seem to venture into the middle, leaving a broad round circle of bare flesh where we can sit without being molested. I’ve already popped my helmet and I keep my eyes on Elena as she takes hers off, shakes her head doggedly, smooths her hair out. She catches my eye and grins, and then flicks her eyes over to Peter.

“Peter, right?”

“Yes,” he says. He holds his fist out and they touch knuckles. A less complicated gesture than trying to shake hands with the suit gloves on. “Sorry I haven’t been around much, I’ve been –“

“Too busy with Veret?” Elena interjects smoothly, and I nearly choke on the mouthful of water I’d taken from my canteen. Peter claps me on the back and grimaces.

“I hoped people wouldn’t have talked much,” Peter says, and Elena laughs.

“Please,” she says. “People are going to do nothing but talk if you’re fucking the boss. I’m Elena, by the way.”

Peter’s blushing. I nudge him. “So you and Makado, huh?”

He snorts. “Slate walked in on me and her, um. Well, you know. In one of the supply closets the other day.”

“And of course,” Elena adds, “considering that Slate is a 12-year-old girl, he ran and tattled to everyone.”

“That’s Slate,” Peter agrees. “When did you join?”

“Three years ago.”

“Huh. That’s back when I was here.”

“Yeah, I was attached to a research team for a while. They were doing some gastric stuff and they needed a diver. Probably why we never met.”

“Makes sense,” Peter nods. Elena’s eyes flick over to me and she reaches out a hand.

“Want me to open that for you?” she asks, and I shake my head. I’ve almost gotten the granola bar open now, but these damn gloves –

“I’ve got it,” I tell her. “I almost –“

“You sure you’ve got it?”

“Shut up, Pete.”

“Here, let me –“

“Fine,” I say, tossing the granola bar to Elena. She strips the wrapper off it with one deft motion and I shake my head. “How the hell –“

“Lots of practice,” Peter says. “So Elena, when you joined, did you…”

As I sit there munching and letting the quiet rustle of conversation blur into the background, letting some of the strength come back into my weary legs, I think for a moment about the fleshy, veined interior of the basin I’m sitting in. There are places in my body just like this, I think to myself. This is just the same as me, writ large. And I’m sure I have parasites just like those squirming things, all the mites and leeches and worms and other tiny things, just even tinier, single-celled or at the very least simple organisms, living inside of me, just like these are.

I put my hand on the floor hesitantly and I swear I feel, just for a moment, the throb of a titan heartbeat somewhere resounding in it like the echo of a vast drum.

“Alright people! Let’s get moving!”

I push myself up, nearly bang heads with Elena. Our helmets are off still so it’s dark, the lights are strobing all around as everyone puts theirs on. “Sorry,” I say to her, but before I can get the word out fully she’s seized me by the shoulders and kissed me hard and deep on the lips, her tongue skating over my teeth lightly before we part, her gleaming grin the only part of her I can really see, and I’m left breathless. For the next fifteen minutes of hiking I can’t seem to wipe the smile from my face.

* * *

The first difficulty arises only about an hour after we left the rest site. The vent we were passing through widened out, a sign Elena explained meant that we were beginning to enter the old Organ Trail, sort of a central hiking path through some of the more interesting areas of the Pit. It meant easier going, which I was thankful for; the area had been cleared and levelled a long time ago, back before 2007, and even though some of the built areas had been wrecked by those titan convulsions, now years past, there was still a great deal of flat ground and even in some parts metal platforms and walkways for us to use, which certainly gave my aching arms and legs a little solace.

It happened just at the end of one of those walkways, a short, narrow tunnel through a conic gape of flesh that truncated down from the ceiling like an abraded sphincter. The walkway through it still had age-old hydraulic jacks keeping the fleshy ceiling from collapsing inward on it, and though the Sergeant and Fumi, up at front, showed a little trepidation at the notion of passing through with only those jacks to secure it, there was no other real option; the portable jack Slate had wasn’t strong enough to provide any sort of security, even if we set it up in the middle of the passage at full load strength. Plus, Crookshank had loudly and crudely reasoned, if the fucking thing hadn’t caved in in the last four fucking years, what are the fucking odds it’ll fuck us in the ass right as we walk under it?

Hard to argue with that logic. And, to Crookshank’s credit, the fucking thing didn’t fuck us in the ass, although I couldn’t stop myself from staring up at the bloated, swollen flesh of the ceiling as I passed under it, a tiny ice-cold trickle of fear welling in my gut as I considered the sheer weight that was likely behind that glossy, straining surface. Suit or no suit, that’d kill me.

We hardly make it thirty yards from the ending of the tunnel before Joker tears through the flesh of the trail and plunges down into darkness. Euler actually yelps and we all whip around and see the outline of the pit the robot had fallen through, an irregular craggy chasm of flesh. We make our way cautiously to its edge and peer down and I almost laughed, for there just fifteen feet or so below us is Joker, his head inclined upwards, the running lights on the side blinking anxiously, looking for all the world like a forlorn and anxious dog waiting for its master to come rescue it.

Then all manner of cursing and expletives. It was for all the world like watching the groups of construction workers you’d see sometimes on the side of the highway, about six of us standing around mutely with our arms folded or akimbo, watching, while two others ran about frantically trying to accomplish something. The Sergeant and Euler had another shouting match which ended with the Sergeant throwing up his hands in disgust when Euler explained that the damn thing weighed around five hundred pounds and that nobody had told him to look out for crevices like that. Crookshank was in favor of jumping down and tying a rope around Joker’s waist and then the rest of us hoisting him out that way, but Klaus stops him and tosses a tiny white tab down into the murky liquid pooling around Joker’s feet.

“Acid test strip,” Elena murmurs to me when I shot her a questioning glance.

Nearly a dozen headlamps focus in on the tiny floating strip. Crookshank spits a disgusted curse when it turns a violent shade of pink.

“Good thing Klaus threw that in,” Elena calls, a tiny smirk coloring her words, and Crookshank rolls his eyes at her.

“What’s going on – oops. Sorry.”

Makado’s voice had flourished in my ears, sounding as rich and full in the helmet as though she’d been standing right next to me. Then the transmission clicked off. A couple of chuckles from the rest of the squad and then I realized – she must have dialed to the wrong frequency, spoken to all of us instead of just the Sergeant. He inclines his great slab of a head, one hand pressed to his helmeted ear, nodding occasionally, and then motions to Euler. “Euler,” he says. “Can you make it dig in and climb out?”

Euler stares at him blankly. “You mean into the - ?”

“Yes, goddam it, into the side of the wall.”

Poor Euler. It’s obvious he doesn’t want to. His hands are shaking lightly on the remote and all of us staring at him waiting for him to do it probably isn’t helping. He presses a complex series of buttons, manipulates the joystick carefully, and down in the pit Joker reaches up and plunges his hands into the fleshy wall, using about as much effort, it looks like, as it’d take to push into sand. Joker lifts himself off the ground and then hesitantly pulls one hand out, dripping with gore, and reaches upwards.

“Today, Euler.”

I almost, almost snap something at the Sergeant, but I bite my tongue. Whatever sort of peace we brokered the other night, it seemed like a tentative one, and I’d rather he was yelling at Euler, not me.

Sorry, Euler.

“Hey, Roan?”

I reach down to the radio and click it on. “Makado, what’s up?”

“Hi,” she says. “I just wanted to let you know that earlier today I got a call from our mutual friend Erica.”

I can feel my eyebrows raising of their own accord. “Really?” I ask. “Was she able to get in touch with - ?”

“With her guy down there? No, she wasn’t. She was calling to let me know that she was sorry,” Makado laughs, “and to tell you the same, that she’s sorry.”

“Christ,” I mutter. “Wasn’t expecting that.”

“I’ve already spoken to the Sergeant about it and we’ve decided that on the way back up you’ll make some detours, check some spots that he might be holed up, but since we can’t make contact with him…”

“Right.”

“How are you doing down there?”

“Um. I’m alright. This is a bit of a new experience for me.”

“That’s one way to put it. Getting good footage?”

Me and my camera watch as Joker pokes his head up over the lip of the crevasse. Next to me Elena gives a little whooping cheer. “Yeah,” I say, turning so that Elena’s in the shot. She looks over at me, looks down, the lens reflecting in her helmet, flashes index and middle finger in a v at me. “You could say that.”

“Good. Well, that’s all, just wanted to check in with you.”

“Heard about you and Peter,” I blurt before I can stop myself. Makado grunts questioningly, and I roll my eyes at placing my foot directly in my own mouth as usual. “You know,” I clarify, “in the supply closet.”

There’s a moment of frozen silence and then Makado bursts out laughing. “Goddam it,” she sputters. “Slate told everyone, didn’t he?”

“More or less.”

“That fucker. Well, yeah. We, ah, got a little carried away.”

“I’m happy for you,” I tell her, and I find myself mildly surprised that it’s actually true. “He’s right here if you want to talk to –“

“No, no, it’s okay, I’ve actually been talking to him all day, more or less. Cause, you know, the equipment up here, I can put a direct line in to whichever one of you I like.”

“Right, of course.”

“Well,” Makado says, and I smile softly to myself beneath the helmet.

“See you, Mak.”

“See you.”

The radio line clicks off and then I’m alone inside my own head again.

Joker is dripping with blood now and I make sure I take plenty of video of him; a couple of stills as well, just because it looks metal. Like something straight out of a movie. Then once Euler has checked him over and wiped off the worst of it we go back to trudging down the vent like nothing has happened. Euler takes more care to keep Joker walking in step behind us and though Elena points out a couple of the fissures to me, skin crawling as I examine the thin membranous layer separating them from the air, nobody falls into any more.

Another couple of hours of walking and then another break. I have to go back three menus to check the time on my camera; some of the others’ helmets, I’m told, have heads-up displays on the interior that show details like that; mine either doesn’t have this functionality or it’s switched off so as to not overwhelm me with extraneous visual noise. It’s six in the evening; Elena tells me that the plan is to make it to our stopping point for the day by nine or ten. We’re over the worst of it, she says grinning, and then because we’re towards the back with only Joker behind us to see, she reaches down and squeezes my ass lightly and I respond in the only way I know how, by upping the ante, and reaching for her and groping her taut breasts clumsily through the suit before she spins away from me laughing. I still cast a nervous glance behind and meet Joker’s faceless metal gaze. I peer at him again for a little before I turn back around. I haven’t told Euler yet of what happened in the gondola on the way down but the more I think about it and turn it over in my head the more I’m convinced it must have been nothing. Just a little software glitch of some kind.

It amazes me how easily the fantastic surroundings I’m in become mundane. Just scant hours ago I was nearly getting sick breathing the air but now I’m grateful for it when I pop my helmet and gulp down great lungfuls of it, cloying and organic and thick but not recycled, not passed through a dozen filters before reaching my lungs.

We’re in the Organ Trail proper now, great wide cavities and veins and vesicles and all these other little fiddly medical names that pass between everybody like old friends but which leave me halting. What’s the difference between a vein and a vent? A vesicle and a ventricle? What about an organ and a cavity? I don’t know, and if I asked I’d only expose my ignorance, I’d only be patronized. I did ask Elena a few innocuous questions in that nature but every time she answered me she did so with a smug little smile and it made me feel small so eventually I stopped asking, even though I know she probably didn’t mean to do it.

Break. Another granola bar, another bottle of water. Have to stay hydrated. Sergeant comes around to all of us, makes sure we’re drinking enough. He doesn’t bark at me, he’s – not kind, but not awful. I hold hands with Elena surreptitiously there in the dark and though I can barely feel her through the thick suit, knowing she’s there is a comfort.

I think about Erica’s boy, whoever he was to her. There wasn’t enough of a resemblance for me to think that they were family but obviously she cares about him. I think about him alone down here for almost four days now. I think about how scared I’d be in the same position.

I have to fucking piss.

I get up and Elena eyes me. “Where’re you going?”

“To take a leak. What’s the protocol down here, just squat down and go wherever?”

She makes a face. “Unfortunately. If you’re male you have the luxury of using an empty water bottle but if not…”

“Right,” I say. I’ve gone camping before so the concept isn’t entirely foreign to me but it still isn’t particularly tasteful either. I make my way towards a discrete corner, a little fold of flesh that drapes down from the ceiling like a curtain.

“Don’t go far!” Elena calls from behind me, and I throw her a thumbs-up without turning. It’ll just take a moment anyway. Behind the curtain is actually another corridor – a vent, I guess, is the term everyone else seems to use most commonly. I eye it a little warily before I step forward. It’s dark in there, and I feel a little more exposed than I thought I would as I unzip the bottom portion of the suit and squat down, choosing a dingy little corner, a little wrinkled knot of flesh like the accordion-like joint between the thumb and the rest of the hand.

I do my business quickly and then seal the suit, taking time to check all of the joints like I was shown in the brief training the engineer fitting me had given. I –

Something moves in the vent ahead of me and I freeze. I can’t see it properly, it’s far too dark, but it seems large, larger than I am. I take a hesitant step back, eyes locked on its wavering silhouette, and then I reach down with my thumb along the side of the helmet, carried loosely at my side, and press the button for the headlamp, and it casts a beam of light over the thing, and it is so large, larger than me, towering at least eight feet tall there in the vent, all whipping tentacles and soft spongy tissue. It has wide, strange eyes that peer at me blearily in the sudden light, its long, snakelike, curiously vulnerable-looking body surrounded by a halo of pale venous fronds or tendrils, light pink and throbbing. It reaches out for me and I start to scream but the sound catches in my throat, and then I take a panicked, scrambling step backwards and the cleats dig in the wrong way and I pitch to the ground. I hit hard, knock the air from my lungs, and then I really can’t scream even though my brain has finally caught up with what’s happening and I’m trying to force my abused lungs to work, all I can manage is a little croaking noise.

The thing scuttles closer to me. The tendrils are starting to wrap around my leg and I kick at it and scoot backwards, but they tighten around my ankle and hold me still. I can feel terror inside of me like I’m a cocoon, like it’s clawing at my skin and if it makes a hole in me I’ll disappear, evaporate, vanish, I’ll scream and scream and -

“Roan?” Elena calls. It sounds as though she’s coming towards the coil of flesh I’d hidden behind. “We’re getting ready to go.”

“Help,” I manage to croak, and then Elena bolts around the corner, her pistol already clearing the holster. I feel the tendrils around my leg loosen and then slip away as she marches towards the thing completely fearlessly. She isn’t even pointing the gun at it. She stands up on her tiptoes as best she can in the bulky cleats and stares at it, stares it down, the thing retreating on its millions of whiplike tentacles, before finally it turns tail and flees down the vent, making a noise like pudding being poured into a bag full of live eels.

“Jesus Christ,” I mutter as Elena helps me up. “What the fuck was that?”

“Venous shamble,” she tells me. “Big one, too. Would have stuck a proboscis in you and sucked you dry if you let it. Why didn’t you shoot it or something? They’re pussies, even if you missed it would have run away.”

“I didn’t think of it,” I say quietly, looking at her. I can feel myself trembling with the comedown of the adrenaline and I feel defensive. “I didn’t - I don’t know, I froze up and -“

Elena’s face falls, and then she is crouching next to me and undoing my helmet gently, cradling me in her arms. “It’s okay,” she tells me. “It’s okay, nobody could expect you to do any different.”

I blow a big breath out. “Okay,” I say. “Okay, I’m good.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yes. Here, come here.”

“What is it?”

“Kiss me,” I tell her, and I see Elena grin.

“We are moving, ladies!” the Sergeant calls from back in the main chamber, and both of us jump. Elena hauls me to my feet and I slot the helmet back onto the neck of the suit.

“Thanks for saving me,” I tell her, and though she rolls her eyes she still smiles at me.

“Why do I feel like I’m going to hear that a lot from you?” she asks, and I shrug and then we hold hands for the next two hours, there at the back with Joker trudging along behind us with squishy pneumatic footfalls, and after long enough of that I finally, finally feel my insides loosen up and the terror that had been lurking inside of me gradually vanish.

The rest of the night passes without incident. We make it to the broad flat exposed bone plate that we’d planned to camp on and Fumi sets up a portable stove and passes around MREs. I get one that’s a vegetable omelet and though Elena offers to trade with me because apparently it is the foulest piece of food science that the US Military has ever seen fit to inflict on its soldiers and I, being a mere civilian, am unprepared to face its manifold horrors, I actually kind of like it, especially once I mix in the little hot sauce packet.

Afterwards, Elena helps me set up the weird hexagon-panelled tent, which I am hopelessly confused by, inside one of the many vents leading to the basin, which she explains is necessary because the tent has to brace against the vent walls in order to keep its shape. Eventually she laughs at me, though not unkindly, and tells me not to worry about it, she’ll set it up. The tents are two-person, and there seem to be a series of accustomed pairs, Fumi and Ellis, Klaus and Slate, Crookshank and the Sergeant. Elena, when I ask her, tells me that she got a tent to herself normally. That leaves Peter and Euler to bunk up together, but they seem to be getting along alright, so that all works out, I suppose. We’ve left Joker there on the bone plate by himself. Euler hasn’t shut him down but put him into some sort of guard mode so he’ll wake us if anything gets into the basin, but Elena assures me that up this high in the Pit nothing noteworthy is going to bother us. The biggest things up here, she says, are the shambles, and they only bother to attack isolated stragglers, things they know they can kill. They’re very fragile, apparently, and know it.

Elena goes to relieve herself and I clamber into the tent, lay out the mats and sleeping bags. I double-check the map on my suit computer, make sure I know which vent leads to the ballast bulb Makado had mentioned to me. Just thinking about it gives me shivers but I resolve not to worry about it until later. Then I strip my suit off and then shrug out of my underclothes as well. My hair is a little lank from being in a helmet all day and although I’ve applied antiperspirant liberally I can’t escape the suspicion that I don’t smell anywhere close to roses.

No matter. I drape myself across the sleeping bags in what I hope is a sexy manner and play with myself lightly until finally Elena unzips the tent.

“Sorry I took so long,” she says, clambering inwards. She hasn’t seen me yet, she’s making sure her pack makes it inside. “Fumi is fucking with the stove and –“

She sees me then and her mouth drops open. I keep my voice low and sultry.

“How should I reward my savior?” I ask her, and she puts the bag down slowly, a grin spreading across her face.

“I could think of a few ways,” she says, her voice low and husky, and then she is crawling over to me. Her lips meet mine and become entangled and she is slipping her suit down around her shoulders with my one-handed help, and then her hands are roaming over my breasts and my stomach and my thighs and the place where my thighs meet, and then what she does to me next makes me stop thinking.

* * *

“Mm.”

“That was nice.”

“Here, hold me. Tighter.”

“If I hold you any tighter you’ll break something.”

“Do you ever feel,” I ask, shifting myself slowly around in her arms so that I could face her, “as if you simply can’t get close enough to someone once you’ve just made love? Like, you’ve got your arms around them and you’ve put your leg up over their hip –“

“Like this?”

“Yes, just like that. And you’ve got your face pressed just here into their collarbone and you can feel them breathing against you, but it just isn’t close enough?”

“I know what you mean.”

“That’s how I feel.”

“That tickles, don’t kiss me there.”

“But you have such a nice collarbone,” I tell her. “How can I not kiss it?”

“God,” Elena laughs. “That’s so cute. You are so damn cute, has anyone told you that?”

“Once or twice, but I don’t mind hearing it again.”

“This really is your first time with a girl?”

“Yes, if we don’t count last night.”

“You’re very good.”

“Mm. Call me a good girl.”

“You’re a good girl.”

“Your good girl?”

“If you’d like to be.”

“I think I’d like that.”

Elena reaches up and puts her hand in my hair, holds me closer to her. I feel such a giddy upswelling of joy in my heart and stomach that I nearly start laughing. Elena feels it, some little shake or shudder in me, and looks down at me with sudden concern. “Are you okay?” she asks, and I nod.

“Yes, I’m just – happy.”

We are silent for a long while. I can feel Elena’s nimble fingers counting the vertebrae in my naked back, and her soft tapping touches make me shiver and clutch closer to her.

“Tell me about yourself,” she tells me, and I feel a little irrational stab of fear clench in my gut. “I don’t know hardly anything about you, just that we get on well.”

“Alright,” I say after a moment. “I grew up in Corpus Christi. No siblings, only child. I – “

“Me too.”

“Only child?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s nice, isn’t it?”

“God, no,” Elena laughs. “I was so lonely as a kid. My family, we lived way out in the boonies in Wisconsin, nobody around hardly. Just me and my folks.”

“It sounds nice.”

“You are not very much of a people person, are you?” she asks. She inclines her head downwards and kisses me on the forehead, and then I manage to scoot myself up enough that she can find my lips.

“What gave it away?”

“Tell me more. You grew up in Corpus Christi.”

“Went to school in Oklahoma. Got a degree in Literature, bounced around for a while doing journalist things. Worked at a television station for a while, ended up here.”

“How the hell did you end up here?”

“Same way you did, probably,” I grin. “Dumb luck.”

“No, really, I’m curious.”

Goddam it, Elena. I cup her breast in my hand. When I pull back from her to do so I can still feel her breathing against my chest, the ocean-swell rise and fall of hers fitting into mine. I run my thumb over her nipple and see her bite her lip, and I smile to myself, trying not to look too self-satisfied. Elena doesn’t let me enjoy it, though; she shakes her head at me and slips her hand over her breast, covers it from me. “Don’t avoid the question,” she says.

Goddam it, Elena.

I shrug, pretend embarrassment. “I knew someone in management who pulled the strings for me. Came in as an intern then got offered a full position and I accepted cause the pay was fantastic. I do clerical stuff, mostly, you know, data entry, office stuff. I was afraid to tell you, cause…”

“Cause why?”

I decide, for once, to tell her the truth. “Because you intimidate me,” I say. I look her in the eyes for as long as I can muster before I shut mine and bury my face in her collarbone again. I lasted about five seconds. Her eyes are ferociously grey. “Because I feel like you’re going to realize that I’m not –“ I start, and then I realize what I’m saying and cut myself off.

“I don’t want to know how that sentence ends,” she says firmly, taking my head gently in her hands and bringing it up to hers. “You lock that down,” she tells me, pressing her forehead to mine, staring at me. I force myself to look at her, even offer her a tiny smile, or at least I try to, but it feels like the same great hand that’s wrenching at my heart is tugging at my lips as well.

“I just don’t – Elena, there’s –“

Where the hell am I going with that? What am I going to say? There’s nothing I can say.

“Shh. Don’t.”

“Goddam it,” I mutter helplessly. She doesn’t understand, I can tell from the way she’s looking at me. Mute sympathy writ large in those wide, pretty eyes. Fuck.

“Look,” she says. “If you’re having doubts it’s, it’s okay. If it’s just sex maybe that’s one thing, but I don’t know if you want to think of anything more, I don’t know how you feel, but if I make you feel bad or wrong or guilty or -“

“Don’t let’s talk about it,” I tell her. “I’m sorry.”

“What are you sorry for?”

I let out a little laugh, barely a breath’s worth. “I have a lot of things I’m sorry for.”

“Has it been a while for you?”

“How do you mean?”

“Being with anyone, I mean.”

I feel like I’m going to cry. This isn’t going how I wanted it to. I don’t know how I wanted it to go. This isn’t it.

I feel a huge, stupid paroxysm of guilt welling up inside of me. I turn around so I don’t have to look at Elena, so she doesn’t have to look at me. She puts her arms around me, one arm draped across my chest, tucking me close to her, the other slipping down around my hip and pulling me closer in to her. I can feel the tapered v that her hips and her thighs make resting softly against my ass. She’s so warm.

“Roan,” she says. I can feel her lips moving against the back of my neck. “I don’t know what’s happened to you in the past, I don’t know what kind of shit you’ve had to go through. But I promise that nothing you can tell me is going to change –“

She thinks it’s about her. I almost laugh out loud at the simplicity of it. She thinks I’m having regrets, she thinks – she thinks whatever kind of pathetic moral compass I have spinning in circles inside of me is disagreeing with my monkey hormones’ efforts to make me cum. Goddam it.

“I’m gonna hurt you,” I tell her, knowing as I say it that it’s true. “I’m not going to mean to but I’m going to anyway, I’m going to hurt you, I’m going to fuck this up, and I don’t want to –“

“Roan –“

“- and I’m fucking dreading it because the last relationship I was in was not good, and I don’t want to believe that I’ve been changed by it, but –“

Alright Roan, you can stop now.

“- and I’m just scared because I don’t want to hurt you, I don’t want you to hate me, and -“

“Roan!”

I stop. I put my face in my hands. I feel a tiny drop of moisture on my back and I realize that Elena must be crying, and I roll over. “Oh no,” I tell her. “No, no, goddam it, don’t cry, I didn’t mean to –“

“You didn’t make me cry,” she tells me. “I’m crying because whatever happened to you, you didn’t deserve it, and hearing you like this makes me so sad –“

“Elena –“

She hushes me again and for a long, long while we lay there entangled, her lips pressed to my collarbone now, her sweet-smelling hair in my face, and she holds me so tightly that I finally begin to calm down. I think for a long, long while about what I should say, about what I should tell her that might excuse the – the mess I made of what should have been a relatively pleasant evening, but then as her breaths ripsaw upwards into tiny wheezing snores, I realize that it doesn’t really matter.

It takes me about ten minutes to slowly extricate myself from her grasp, to grab my suit and snake my way out of the tent with it in tow. I turn back around to zip the tent back up and I see Elena’s eyes cracked open, watching me, and though I almost jump I give her a soft little smile.

“Where are you going?” she groans, reaching out for me, and I lean back in and take her hand, bring it to my mouth and kiss her on the knuckles.

“I have to take a piss,” I tell her. “I’ll be back soon, go back to sleep.”

She looks as though she wants to protest but she’s too sleepy to do so. She gives me a little smile and then falls back onto her pillow, and I zip the tent up and shrug into my suit quickly. It feels strange and coarse on me, not having bothered to put on any underclothes beforehand, but it’ll do.

Then I turn and make my way as silently as I can towards the dark branching offshoot of tunnel that I marked as the path to the ballast bulb.

Continue with Part 17

Back to Table of Contents

#mystery flesh pit #alt lit #writing #writeblr #thriller #Michael Crichton #horror #caving #disaster #acid

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dresupi · 3 years

Note

For the WIP game: run & love :)

Okay here we go:

Run:

Ch 1:

They have to run around like real mice.

“Crookshanks was, but he tossed it against the wall and it stopped running around, so he lost interest..."

Ch 2:

But then again, he had to go into the shop at noon today, so one could have surmised that his twin was perhaps up early to run errands. But, neither of them had the wherewithal to ever think that far ahead, so that wasn’t it.

He gulped down his coffee and summoned some clean clothes, dressing quickly so as not to run into Ginny in the Floo.

“Well, you’re fairly decent at running a business, so I have faith you’re a fine boss, Fred.”

“Well, no offence, but your mum wouldn’t know how to run a successful business if one came up and bit off her ear.”

Ch 3:

None yet

Love:

Ch 1:

“What brings you here for a visit, love?” Blaise asked, smiling broadly. A bit too broadly not to know the answer to his own question.

"You know I love you, Min. I hope you’re taking care of yourself when you’re caring for everyone else.”

And manoeuvring her own love life, which was really more of a love disaster than anything.

Ch 2:

“That damn bird is a menace,” George said. “And I love him so much.”

Charlie was the same as Harry, and no one ever bothered him about his love life, neither was he bothered. Because he didn’t have one. He had dragons.

"You sound like an old man,” she teased. “But you’re not. You could toss a pebble outside and hit a witch who’d love to go with you.”

“I fully expect you to fall in love with me by the end of the week.”

“You’ll have to get used to it, love.”

Ch. 3:

“You’re fine, Hermione, it’s your night, love.”

“Thanks, um, don’t you two have somewhere else to be? Homes? With loved ones? Not here?”

Actually quite a few! Huh, look at that! <3

#thank you for sending this #I got to look through the whole thing again and remember where I was headed in chapter 3 #wip game

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dhr-ao3 · 1 year

Text

Snowed Inn

Snowed Inn https://ift.tt/KIUqfF6 by extremewritersblock Draco Malfoy hates Christmas. So when his boss asked him to head a project over the holidays, he was more than happy to oblige. Hermione Granger loves Christmas. But she really needs that promotion, so when her boss asks her to tag along, she accepts the job. Coworkers with a questionable history snowed in at an Inn over Christmas. Will he fall in love with Christmas? Will she fall in love with him? Part 2 coming tomorrow. Happy Holidays! Words: 5544, Chapters: 1/2, Language: English Fandoms: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Dramione - Fandom Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: F/M Characters: Draco Malfoy, Hermione Granger, Nora the Innkeeper Relationships: Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy Additional Tags: Friends to Lovers, Snowed In, Christmas Smut, Soft Draco Malfoy, Draco Malfoy in the Muggle World, My First Smut, Happy Ending, Post-Hogwarts, Christmas Decorations, I'm Bad At Tagging, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Fluff and Humor, Crookshanks is a Little Shit (Harry Potter), Cat Slippers and DVD Players, Idiots in Love, Porn with Feelings, Forced Proximity, OK Im Done With Tagging via AO3 works tagged 'Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy' https://ift.tt/TlN6BbC December 20, 2022 at 06:08PM

#IFTTT #Dramione #Draco x Hermione

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halothenthehorns · 3 years

Text

ABOARD THE HOGWARTS EXPRESS

Before she got started, Lily first turned to Remus and said, "I am sorry for making you uncomfortable dear, I thought you'd be an easy way to get through to Sirius."

"He just gets sensitive," Remus smirked, watching Sirius narrow his eyes at the pair of them, and ignoring the fact that he didn't act much better. "I wasn't offended, I knew you didn't mean anything by it."

Lily smiled warmly at him before turning to her chapter.

The morning they were returned to school did not start off with a good omen, it was raining. They all tromped down the stairs, but were beaten to the bottom by Arthur who was being shouted at by his wife he had a message. Harry entered the kitchen last and found Mr. Weasley kneeling in front of the fireplace speaking to...he closed his eyes hard then opened them again to make sure he was seeing things properly.

"Why?" Sirius asked at once, a happy smirk in place as he always enjoyed watching common things amaze Harry.

Amos Diggory's head was sitting amongst the flames, talking to Arthur.

"Ah," James joined Sirius in smirking now. As common as Floo travel was to Harry now, he guessed it hadn't occurred to him you didn't always have to go all the way.

He was saying how someone had caused a real mess with the Muggle policemen, and they needed Arthur's help to handle this. Saying they didn't need Rita Skeeter getting a hold of anything else. Arthur asked what was Mad-Eye's side of the story?

Remus let out a surprised snort of laughter as he realized Lily, and by extension Arthur, meant that as a name.

"Who on earth goes by the name of Mad-Eye?" Sirius demanded with a wicked grin, clearly indicating he'd like to meet him, and at once silencing Harry who had hopefully been about to ask if they knew that name, as he was sure he did.

"I've no idea," Lily had a faint smile of her own, "but judging by the way Harry's hearing about him, I'm going to take a wild guess he's an interesting one."

Mr. Diggory rolled his eyes as he explained Mad-Eye had said he'd heard intruders, and tried to set dustbins on them. Arthur asked what the dustbins had done, and Diggory replied they'd made a racket and mostly disturbed some neighbors, they were still moving around when the police showed up.

Causing all five of them to keep snickering at this scene that was caused. They felt bad for this Mad-Eye who had been attacked, but the idea of dustbins attacking anyone was hilarious.

Mr. Weasley groaned as he asked about the intruder, and Diggory snorted in disbelief, reminding Arthur that Mad-Eye was known to go off at stray cats wandering around.

Causing at least the other four to burst into full on laughter, but Harry was starting to get a slight frown. He definitely knew this name now, something about a paranoid old man, being attacked?

Then he added on that the Improper Use of Magic had their hands full with him, and with his record, well Diggory was hoping that Arthur could possibly get him off on a minor charge, asking what dustbins were worth?

"Arthur's job just gets more interesting the more I hear about it," Sirius smirked, not at all joking though. He really did find this plenty interesting to hear about, more than he would have expected considering his usual bore on the topic of any Ministry job. Might be worth it to look into at least, he may as well do something with that O he got in his Muggle Studies class.

Mr. Weasley said hopefully he could get away with a caution, asking if Mad-Eye had used his wand? Diggory said most likely Mad-Eye had leapt out of bed and blasted anything outside his window, but since there were no casualties that couldn't really be proven. Arthur agreed he was on his way now and sprinted back up the stairs. Diggory turned his attention to Molly then, apologizing for this, but saying that Arthur was the only one who could do this. Mad-Eye had picked some bad timing, since he was due to start a new job today.

A buzzing went off in the back of Harry's skull at that, there was that connection he was so sure he'd felt. Why would he know anything about this though? He was about to go off to Hogwarts, what could he care about some random strangers new job?

Molly shrugged if off and offered the head if he'd like some toast, which he agreed to. Mrs. Weasley grabbed a buttered one from the stack, grasped it in a pair of tongs, and helpfully put it into Mr. Diggory's mouth.

Which instantly distracted Harry from his pondering and led him to chuckle, asking, "so how does that work?"

"It's pretty simple," Lily shrugged, "you just put your head in instead of your whole body to transport yourself, most useful when you don't want to drop in unannounced."

"It's not too comfortable," James shrugged, "but it's quicker than sending an owl if you just have something to say and be gone."

He gave a last thanks before he vanished, just as the last three Weasley's arrived along with Mr. Weasley who was dressed and ready to go. He apologized he couldn't take the kids to King's Cross with her, and she waved him off saying to take care of Mad-Eye. Arthur left then, and Bill asked what Mad-Eye had been up to? Mrs. Weasley explained the situation, and George gave a smile as he declared Mad-Eye Moody

"Moody?" The four from this time repeated in shock.

"Err, yeah, that's what he said," Harry nodded, eagerness growing when he realized this meant something to them. "Why, you know him?"

"Alastor Moody is head of the Auror department," James explained with a ruffled brow. "It may not be the same man though, as I've no idea why he'd go by the name of Mad-Eye."

"Plus, new job," Lily recalled. "I can't imagine what that would relate to him for, either he's still on the job or retired, but I can't imagine him doing anything but hauling in Death Eaters."

Harry sagged in disappointment as he nodded his understanding. He had a good feeling everything they'd just told him shouldn't come as a surprise, that they may even be wrong and they were thinking of the same person, but then what on earth was going on?

was that nutter- but Mrs. Weasley cut him off reprovingly, saying he was a good friend of their fathers. Fred said under his breath 'birds of a feather.'

Giving Sirius the chance to give another snort of laughter. He liked Arthur plenty, and didn't find his collection the least bit odd.

Bill agreed Moody was a great wizard, and Charlie agreed he was an old friend of Dumbledore's.

"This is getting harder and harder to shake though," Remus' frown deepened. "How many friends of Dumbledore can be named Moody?"

"I guess something really big must happen to him then," James' huffed, casting his mind around in confusion for what the odd nickname could refer to. Hopefully he hadn't gone blind or something, he respected the man to much to want to feel sorrow if he'd gone out like that.

Fred agreed, but reminded Dumbledore wasn't known for being all there either. A genius sure, but-

"Well Fred's got a point there," Sirius nodded in agreement.

Harry interrupted to ask who Mad-Eye is, and Charlie told that he used to work at the Ministry as an Auror

"Well there you go, can't be anyone else," Lily sighed.

"Hope they tell you what happened to him," James said with deep interest. He was hoping to join the Auror's himself, and he liked to think if he could warn his, hopefully soon, boss of some impending danger it would help his credibility he was serious about joining.

and had been the best Dark Wizard catcher of his time. Half the cells in Azkaban were filled because of him.

Sirius couldn't help a deep shudder, never having wanted to think which Auror would have hauled him in off the streets, wondering for the first time if it was even someone he knew now.

Then he continued that he was on in years now, and seemed to be getting more paranoid with age, thinking all those Dark Wizards were coming back to get him.

Conversation changed then as Bill and Charlie decided they wanted to come to King's Cross to see them off, but Percy said he was too busy to come.

"Good riddance," Sirius scoffed, knowing the others had noticed, and quickly looking for something else. He quickly latched onto the fact that, "I'll probably enjoy this year a lot more just for the fact I won't have to hear mention of Percy nearly as often."

Lily sighed but no one was going to argue the point with him.

Explaining that he couldn't be taking time off now, Mr. Crouch was really starting to rely on him. George agreed with a serious nod

"I wouldn't be surprised if he did nod just like me," Sirius nodded solemnly, ignoring the groan of protest from everyone but Harry.

that Crouch may even know Percy's name soon.

None of them bothered to smother their laughter at Percy's expense, he deserved that one.

Mrs. Weasley had braved the telephone in the village post office

"A fearful task, I can believe that," James nodded, having once studied one of those telephones, and all of those buttons gave his head a spin.

and ordered them Muggle taxis. She apologized to her kids that Arthur couldn't get the Ministry to spare them cars again. The Muggles didn't seem particularly pleased with their passengers, as they weren't used to carrying around two owls and a cat, and it didn't help that one of Fred's Filibuster's Fabulous No-Heat, Wet-Start Fireworks went off inside his trunk.

"Bet that was a hoot to explain," Sirius smirked.

Crookshanks had panicked at the noise and tried to scale one of the men's legs.

Lily was shaking her head sadly as she read that, unable to wipe the smile off her own face at this poor scene.

They were all squished into the backs, and Crookshanks refused to settle down for the whole of the journey, leaving Harry, Ron, and Hermione with plenty of scratch marks when they arrived.

Remus gave a soft laugh, thinking of a time where Sirius would have loved to make a crack about how they should get rid of Crookshanks for that, but after what he'd done last year Sirius actually had an indulgent smile on his face.

It was a relief to reach the train station, even while having to practically swim inside it was already raining so hard. They quickly found the barrier between platforms nine and ten, and Harry was used to getting into platform nine and three-quarters by now.

"Well two out of three isn't bad," James snorted, causing Lily to send him an irritated look, she'd rather forget that year if she could help it.

"Let's hope we can make it three out of four, or better, six out of seven," she muttered as she turned back to the book.

They simply walked in between the barriers and found themselves in front of the scarlet steam engine. They went to pack away their things and then come back outside for a last chat with Molly, Bill, and Charlie. Charlie was giving Ginny a hug good-bye as he told her that he may be seeing them sooner than they were expecting.

"Why's that?" Remus asked in surprise.

"Why am I getting the feeling I don't want to know," Sirius asked, spotting the look on Harry's face meaning that he believed Charlie was right. Sirius' mind flickered at once to the fact that Charlie was a dragon keeper, and how he'd like to keep his pup a continent away from those beasts at all times. He was being stupid of course, they wouldn't bring dragons to Hogwarts.

"Oh stop it," Lily chided, trying her hardest to bury her own paranoid fear at this innocent little sentence. "He may be coming up to school for one reason or another, maybe to give a presentation to the seventh year Care of Magical Creatures class."

When Fred asked why, Charlie just waved it off, mockingly quoting Percy in saying it was classified.

"Oh bloody hell," James frowned, "does that sound like some innocent talk now?" He wished Charlie was just joking and trying to make it more than it was, but he wasn't sure of it either.

Lily sighed, eying the book like it was Norbert all over again. She liked Charlie enough she supposed, but she was getting a bad feeling about this supposed event that was coming up at Hogwarts.

Bill was looking almost wistfully at the train as he said he did wish he could go back to Hogwarts this year, but when George asked him why, he just said they were going to have an interesting year, adding on he'd probably come up to watch some of it.

"A bit of what," all four boys demanded just as Lily continued reading.

Ron asked a bit of what?

"This is just getting cruel," Sirius groused. "Why can't Harry just go back to school and nothing weird happen for one year? Just one!"

Harry was rubbing his temple in agitation and wasn't paying them any attention, his eyes cross as he tried to stave off whatever he needed to remember, so Lily sighed and regretfully turned back to the book.

Then the train whistle blew a warning, and they all had to board, with Mrs. Weasley calling to Harry and Hermione that she'd invite them over for Christmas, but she had a feeling they'd want to stay this year.

"This is cruel and unusual punishment," Remus agreed with Sirius, blowing a raspberry in the baby's face and at least making him feel a little better.

Ron demanded of his family what they knew, and Molly just said that they'd find out tonight, but she was personally grateful they'd changed the rules.

James threw his hands up in the air in agitation, saying, "alright, that's it. Give me the book Lily, I'm skipping ahead and checking."

"No you are not," she shot back at once, curling the book into her chest protectively. "I want to know just as bad as you lot, but we are not going to start skipping around."

"But Lily," Sirius whined, trying to make his eyes as wide as they could go. "I don't do secrets-"

"-Trust him on that-" Remus snorted.

"-And it's not fair that they're not sharing," he finished.

Lily just rolled her eyes at them but kept going loudly.

All four boys demanded to know what rules, but then the train was pulling away, and they were simply waving goodbye.

"That mother really knows how to keep her boys in suspense," Lily muttered under her breath, just as anxious as her boys to find out what was going on.

Harry and his two friends went back to their compartment, where Pigwidgeon was hooting louder than ever. Ron decided to put his new dress robes to use by throwing them over his owl's cage.

"Well that wasn't a bright idea," James grumbled, his sour mood at Harry, and by extension them, being kept in the dark like this making his tone a lot worse then was called for. "Anyone can pop their head in and see them now, and Ron's clearly too embarrassed by them to just laugh it off."

"Wonder if he'll get Hermione to try and transfigure them for him," Remus offered.*

"Hermione refused," Harry shrugged "said that Ron should be thankful for what his mum gave him and such. She had this weird smile on her face the whole time to, said any decent girl wouldn't care he was wearing that anyways."

Lily raised a very surprised brow at that, curiously wondering on Hermione's face and tone at the time, was that implying what she thought? Harry clearly didn't notice anything, as he was watching her expectantly so she decided to keep going for now.

Then Ron pointed out to Harry that Bagman had been wanting to tell them something about Hogwarts,

"That's right," Sirius snapped his fingers, "I'd almost forgotten about that! Cruel that some practical stranger wanted to tell what Ron's own mother wouldn't!"

"He would have to if Percy hadn't stepped in," James sighed with disappointment.

but Hermione cut them off by pointing at the door where a familiar voice was coming through where it had been left open.

"Familiar good or bad?" James sighed, thinking Hermione probably wouldn't shush them for the first.

"Malfoy," Harry grumbled, which was all the explanation they needed.

"Why is he sitting so close to you," Lily grumbled.

"I am positive he didn't do it on purpose," Remus sniffed.

A voice saying how his father had wanted to send him to Durmstrang instead of Hogwarts this year,

"I bleeding wish," Sirius huffed.

that he and the headmaster were good friends, and he was much better than that mudblood lover Dumbledore.

Well that wasn't encouraging, seeing as any friends of Malfoy's, their first thought would be it was a Death Eater! Of course that was paranoia talking, Malfoy was friends with the Minister and they really liked to believe he wasn't one.

Durmstrang taught you the real importance of the Dark Art's, unlike the useless class they had here. His mother hadn't allowed it though, she hadn't wanted him so far away.

"Rats," James said out of pure habit, giving his fingers a snap, then wincing so hard he looked like he'd just dodged a deadly curse. He felt his stomach churning at once, with rage, disgust, or pain he wasn't sure. Lily gave him the deepest of frowns, sharing all of those feelings and more, but quickly pressed pass the moment.

Going on to say his father always talks about how Durmstrang was better at teaching the Dark Arts,

Harry cocked his head to the side, knowing he had some feelings about this, though they were oddly mixed. Like he both wanted to defend the students of the school weren't that bad, but couldn't deny this claim either. This was odd though, had he ever even met a Durmstrang student well enough to know any of this?

that they learned the material instead of the useless Defense they got. Hermione got up then, closing the door quietly but saying in a normal tone that she wished he had gone, at least then they wouldn't have to put up with him.

"Amen," Remus grumbled.

Harry confirmed that Durmstrang was another wizard school?

"One of the worst," Sirius scoffed at once.

"Sirius," Lily said at once with a sigh, trying to curb him before he could start on a stereotype.

"What, they are," Sirius defended his statement. "If my parents approve of it, it couldn't be a good place. They tried to send me there when they found out I hadn't wound up in Slytherin. My Mum sent me a Howler and everything. I sent her one back of course, telling her I'd make her life hell if she tried, and to leave me alone." He looked so proud of himself, James and Remus started laughing all over again, having been present when he'd sent said angry letter and he'd used much more colorful words then.

Lily just sighed, she wasn't going to argue the point with him.

Hermione agreed it was, and the reference books she'd found it in all said it was one of the darkest schools. Ron agreed he may have heard of it, asking what country it was in, and Hermine said that no one knew that. Harry asked why not, and Hermione said that it was tradition no magic school knew where the others were, so that they couldn't steal each other's secrets.

"All schools in every country do that, not just the ones in Europe," Remus shrugged.

Ron scoffed there was no way you could actually hide Durmstrang, it had to be as big as Hogwarts. Hermione looked surprised now as she pointed out that Hogwarts was hidden, everyone who read Hogwarts, A History knew that. Ron agreed it as just her then.

"About right," James snickered, watching Lily roll her eyes.

Hermione ignored the jab and explained that if anyone other than a member of Hogwarts looked at the school, they'd just see an abandoned building with a warning sign to keep out.

"With repelling charms, so no one's stupid enough to still try," Lily added on when she realized Hermione was done.

Durmstrang would be the same, it would also be Unplottable. Harry asked what that was, and Hermione explained it was to enchant a building so that it couldn't be mapped.

"When do you learn about making things unplottable?" Sirius asked, since he'd known that bit of information his whole life, he'd no idea when a teacher would have mentioned that.

"Not until sixth year, or later," Lily shrugged. "They don't teach you spells on how to hide yourself like that until a bit later."

Hermione did add on that she suspected Durmstrang was somewhere up north, as one book had a copy of some of their school supplies, and it involved thick furs. Ron got a dreamy look on his face as he imagined the possibility of pushing Malfoy off a glacier and everyone would just think it was an accident.

"The possibilities are endless," Remus agreed with a saint like nod of his head, which quickly morphed into a grin as Lily popped him upside the head for that one.

Adding on it was a shame his mother actually liked him.

"Well she's always had bad taste," Sirius snickered.

Not to much later, Neville, Seamus, and Dean made an appearance, and the four boys quickly got into a rousing conversation of the Cup all over again. Hermione quickly grew bored with the topic and dug out her copy of The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 4,

"As if she hasn't memorized that already," James scoffed.

"How do you think she stays on top so much?" Lily smirked back, "she goes over what she already knows. It's got to take endless studying for her to be the way she is."

and started trying to learn a Summoning Charm.

Harry felt his stomach lurch a bit, feeling something was quite significant there. Something about Hermione and the Summoning Charm, he really should know something about that shouldn't he?

Neville listened to the Quidditch talk with rapt attention, and bemoaned he hadn't gone, his Gran wouldn't buy tickets.

"That poor child," Sirius cried in outrage. No matter the end results, he still testified, "that's practically criminal negligence not to take a boy to a Cup!"

"I'll make sure to submit that to the law books," Lily snorted.

Ron agreed it had been fantastic, then went digging through his trunk to show Neville something,

"Oh Ron's clearly all kinds of help," Remus snorted.

his miniature Viktor Krum. Then he went on to brag slightly they'd been up in the Top Box,

"Showing off just a tad," James chuckled.

"He couldn't help it," Sirius still couldn't wipe the smile off his face at the thought of that game.

but was cut off by Malfoy appearing and saying it would be his last time up there. He was accompanied as always by Crabbe and Goyle. Harry shot back he hadn't been invited to join them, but Malfoy wasn't listening as he'd caught sight of the maroon dress robes dangling down from above.

"Oh bloody hell," Remus groaned.

"Now's the time when you come up with a quick lie," Sirius scowled, his mind working fast as he supplied, "like it's an old owl cover."

Harry just sighed, hoping this didn't turn out to bad.

Ron made to push it out of sight,

"And that just made it worse," James grumbled.

but Malfoy lunged and pulled it down to show off, demanding to know if Ron was really going to wear this?

"No, he was going to stuff your arse into them," Lily snapped.

He did slightly agree they'd been in style back in the 1800's, but Ron told Malfoy to eat dung.

"A rather appropriate response," Sirius nodded, "now let's hear about him forcing the act on the twat."

Malfoy just laughed as Ron snatched them back, then recovered himself enough to ask if Ron was going to enter.

"Enter what?" Lily demanded, clearly of nothing as the boys were still too miffed about Malfoy to pay attention to this bit.

Asking if he would play for the money, his family could do with that.

"Wait, won what?" Remus asked, that had got his attention.

"Is this what all the secrets been about?" Sirius asked with a raised brow. "Going to be some sort of event going on?"

"With an age restriction," James added on.

"At Hogwarts," Lily's lower lip pouted down at the book, her confusion managing to grow the more this carried on.

Ron snapped that Malfoy need to clarify himself, but Malfoy ignored him and turned his attention on Harry, saying it wouldn't surprise anyone if he entered, he never missed an opportunity to show off.

"When have I ever showed off, in front of anybody?" Harry demanded of nothing.

"I think Malfoy found some old photos of you in your glory days Prongs, and got a mismatch," Sirius snickered, while James gave a happy shrug that he couldn't deny that.

Hermione snapped that Malfoy either needed to explain himself or leave, and Malfoy looked delighted around at all of them that they clearly didn't know. Ron had a father and brother in the Ministry and he'd still been left out! His father had told him ages ago!

"Merlin I wish he was lying," Remus groaned, rubbing in agitation at his temple, why couldn't this kid just go away?

"Does everyone know about this but me," Harry agreed with a deep sigh, sick of feeling left out of the wizarding world when he seemed to be their main attraction.

Then Malfoy amended himself that the Minister probably wouldn't speak of anything so important around a Weasley.

"Oh please," Lily scoffed, "I'm still blasted your bleeding father wasn't put in Azkaban for trying to get Dumbledore sacked the way he did."

She felt bad at the threat she wished had come true, because at the mere mention of that prison had Sirius flinching and still lost a few shades of color. None of them disagreed with her, but it wasn't a topic she was going to linger on either.

Agreeing with himself that it was far too important for him to know about,

"More like it didn't have anything to do with troll bogies so Arthur shouldn't be bothered with it," Sirius said loudly, agitated at his little spaz. It hadn't happened yet, no need to go acting like a baby every time it was mentioned.

Still laughing at their expense, Malfoy and his two friends left the compartment, and Ron got up behind them to slam the door so hard he broke the pane of glass.

"Ah, now that brings back memories," Remus gave an uneasy laugh, remembering the time James had set a Fizzing Whizbee on fire and it had blown all the glass in their compartment, causing the trolley lady to appear and give them a good telling off. The only reason he hesitated in sharing that with Harry was because none of them wanted the reminder that Peter had been in the compartment with them of course, but James forced himself to brush past it and tell his son anyways, at least causing him to laugh.

It was worth the moment of agitation the memory stirred for all of them to see him smiling at their sharing a tidbit of their past lives, and Remus came to realize that this may well be a good way to help them get over this. If sharing those kinds of stories with Harry helped them to ease Peter out of them, all the better.

Hermione was shocked at his display of aggression, using the 'Reparo' charm to fix the damage, but Ron wasn't listening as he growled that his Dad's work was plenty important, he could have gotten a raise whenever he wanted, he just liked where he worked!

"I one hundred percent believe that," Lily nodded, thinking Arthur had more dignity then the whole Malfoy line by choosing to stay with his job that he loved rather than trying to push up the ranks like so many others.

Hermione gently agreed with him, warning Ron not to let Malfoy get to him. Ron tried to brush this off, picking up a Cauldron Cake, but then squishing it in his palm as he snapped no one was getting to him!

"Oh yes, he's clearly calm as a cucumber, I'm sure he always does that to his sweets," James snorted.

Ron stayed in a foul mood through the rest of the journey even as the Hogwarts Express began to slow down.

"Poor Ron's not had a very good start to this year," Lily sighed.

"Can you blame him?" Sirius was frowning in sympathy for Harry's best mate. "First his own family, then Malfoy, I'm betting he feels pretty ignored and left out."

The train to a complete stop in Hogsmeade station where they all stumbled out into the freezing rain and sprinted towards the carriages. The rain was coming down so hard it felt as though someone were pouring buckets of ice over their heads.

"Oh this just sounds lovely," Remus shivered at the thought.

"Thank Merlin Harry's first year wasn't like that," James sighed, "it's much more memorable and pleasant when you're not having to swim there your first time."

They only stopped for the shortest time to chat with Hagrid, who said he'd see them up at the school if they didn't drown first.

"Well that's encouraging," Lily snorted, knowing he was kidding, but what James had said was true enough. It made it seem sad for the poor dears.

The first years always went to school for the first time through boats on the lake with Hagrid. Hermione agreed as they climbed inside their carriage, pulled by invisible horses, that it would not be a fun journey in this weather. The boys agreed as they made their way to the castle.

"Well that was, fun," Lily tried for a cheerful tone. At least nothing bad had happened, but she was starting to get a little more nervous every time whatever was happening at Hogwarts this year was mentioned. She didn't like the fact that Harry got a little frown on his face every time, and it wasn't boding well for this peaceful year they were all hoping for.

#Harry Potter #fanfiction #Marauders #GoF #Remus Lupin #Sirius Black #Lily Potter #James Potter #Jilly

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