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#and remus' dad is trying to put him in JAIL
otrtbs · 2 years
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is there a way for me to ask for you to explain ALL of your wips? anything that is a brain child of yours will always be brilliant <3
but texasbartylus please! (i love the way you write them and will forever want more <33)
finn!! adore you forever and ever !
okay so , this is a small town texas murder fic where barty shows up at regulus' doorstep covered in blood and freaking out. they haven't spoken in a long time even though they live next door to each other because regulus broke off their secret relationship to begin his engagement to pandora (walburga and orion who are texas oil business moguls basically forced him into this marriage arrangement) <- but pandora leaves regulus at the altar (no hard feelings though they planned it) and she moved to the east coast where she chopped off all her hair and started a new life under a new name but she still writes letters to regulus
(wip game!)
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ijustwantogethigh · 2 months
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Interview With the Cannibal
Interview with the Cannibal.IWTC.
chapter one: Survive to live and love to kill.
my eyes hurt so bad
i cannot hide my cannibalism
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this took me fucking 3 days and i wouldn't say i'am proud but work it's work! and yeah, maybe has a chapter 2..or more idk i hope you like it bc i fucking love it,, sunseeker btw, i love them
cannibalism, reg is the cannibal, walburga being a boy mom, therapist!remus and james, kind of neglective black family¿, sirius has a traumaa, well, we knew that duh. uh ah..peter is a straight guy yayy!
A crime was committed, someone was eaten and a hungry was saciaded, the black family,all conservative and very closed minded had a variety of persons, homosexuals, heterosexuals, feminists, misogyny man, racist and classist and indeed were like that, but never a killer never a psycho, never a cannibal.
 The day of the murder was a fight in a room, a very, desolate room, ‘’Why would I want you?!, I didn’t WANT to, you make me!’’ a woman shouted, at the top of her lungs, when a men, was manhandling her by her wrists ‘’Camila, you cannot be doing this! you were the one who wanted this!Now I am the one who needs to be saying why I would want you?!, understand he is my brother! he wouldn’t love you back knowing you betray him!’’ the man,hopelessly cried, handing her hips, making her look at him in the eyes, she began to cry when he told her ‘’if you aren’t mine… you wouldn’t be for anyone then’’ and he throw her on the floor of the room, and go out, but lock it, she desperately try to find a open window, after 12 minutes he comes back, but with a dagger, he made her fall, when she was on the floor he cutted her throat,, but with a missmovement he cutted part of his palm, but it didn’t matter.
 All the floor was described as a beautifully carmin path, he cutted her head, and putted aside, like it was nothing, he nuded the woman's body and start cutting it, ‘’ oh,, haha, mon cherie, do not look at me like that’’ he muttered under his husky breath ’’you didn’t want to be shut’’ he say to the now, unlived blonde head. ‘’I must say, that happens with the cheaters, '’  says in the air.
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Sirius was worried, it’s been at least a week since he doesn’t sees his Girlfriend, Camila Riverwood such a smart and pretty girl, she has been disappeared a week, her parents thought he stole from her home, but when he say ‘’no, she isn’t here with us, i’ve been trying to call her but she doesn't answers!’’ The police were a lot late to search for her in the very weird places she assisted the past week. Even if Sirius was the first suspect, how hypocritical you need to be to kill her and cry for her…?
He couldn't keep depressed, so his mom made him visit a therapist, Remus Lupin, in mom words, ‘’you gonna be okay sweetie, just go, if you are okay, we are more than okay, what a liar.
and when the case as going to be achieved, surprisingly, in the same week, a trash bag, with burned human parts was founded far away from the town they were living, along with semi burned clothes and hair, they made a DNA test, from the some decomposed rest of the body, it was Camila Riverwood, but they funded extra DNA material under her poorly cutted hand with 3 fingers, one what, had a promise ring, and it was Regulus Black DNA. 
Everything proceeded too slowly to Sirius, his girlfriend was dead, his brother was going to jail, his mother now was angry and sad, and his Dad was just disappointed, but not about Regulus, about him ‘’why wouldn’t you just forgive him!?, you are selfish!’’ and he sobbed one more time ‘’mom, he killed my fiance!, HE LITERALLY ATE MY GIRL, MOM WHY I WOULD DO SUCH A THING,THINK GOD DAMN’’ his voice sounded like a sick old dog barking, he yelled so grossed out,his brother was a cannibal, such abnormal thing, he shouldn’t be alive he thinked.
after that night, he moved out with Remus,a very tall guy with curl hair, they connected more like friend than patient and therapist, and taking therapy at home, but he break when he heard regulus sentence ‘’he’s having fucking seven years of jail, what the…no no no…’’ Remus faster as possible make him feel safe, just like when dog hear *cohetes* well, it’s not like he didn’t get over about the fact that her dead girlfriend was murdered, no, it as because the **negligence and now, the little sentence for that sick fucker.
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Three years had pass, since that incident,and people like Remus and now James, his Boyfriend friend, now his best friend, tall and tanned and a very energetic guy, with a very, very happy but fearful contagious Aura, and yeah peter, his half brother a chubby little guy obsessed with disney movies.
until now.
Regulus Arcturus Black was out, for good behave in jail, that make sirius not sad, but make him go feral, ‘’you don't understand he a killer, a literal sick minded bitch and they ugh!’’he pulled his hair making it messy, james was more than confused, even scared how sirius was reacting, over something he didn’t now ‘’sorry padfoot, what are you talking about?’’, that name, was too familiar to him, he has heard that exact same pronunciation in somewhere else, he turned around and then to Remus again and then to James again ‘’my brother is a cannibal James, he killed my ex girlfriend and ate her’’ he say it, in such a calm way that make James had goosebumps ‘’I didn’t expect that amount of information…’’ he only let a sigh out and sit ‘’take this, it’s good for the nerves’’ Remus say, giving him a piece of chocolate.
At noon, Remus was on the market and, sirius and james were alone, and James talked first ‘’so, i didn’t want to go further because i know how moony get when he sees you sad but, what your brother name?’’ he said out loud,he looked like he knew that name from another part. so sirius who was on his phone could hear him ‘’Regulus Arcturus Black, i knew he was out of his mind when he say he hated dogs’’ James laughed of the joke and with his always nervousness ‘’do you mind if i make him a literal episode on my true crime podcast?’’ the long-haired man looked at him ‘’you have a podcast?, that’s cool, why you didn’t told m-’’ ‘’sirius please, i need a yes or a no, and you can be there to explain way further if you want to’’ he tried to, but sirius sometimes was to childish ‘’you know something? me and reg use to be very very stick together until that happend, he was 17, and i was 18…do it, i want that fucker fell ashamed about he did’’ and James smiled, and runned to hug him and he new, James will be forever more brother than regulus could have been all his life.
It was a late, fresh summer night when James started investigating the case,it’s been a month since the conversation had happened and James needed to start now. and well in his words, there wasn’t a lot of information about him, or what he did , and that drove him crazy, so he needed sirius for that part, and he called him ‘’hey siri, how are you? yeah i'm calling, what exactly..happened that night?’’the other man greeted the same way, until he heard the question ‘’are you being serious about this?, i thought you didn’t care…’’ ‘’well I always care, but there's no information about your brother, and what happens,or everything is in french, and they do not show pictures of him’’ he say scrolling with his mouse ‘’James, remember he was a minor when he did what he did, i’ll pass you one, i think i have a selfie with him…i..i didn’t erase the photos with him i didn’t have the energy to look at him ‘’ about 2 hours passed, while both were on the phone making the script that james would base to reveal the case. until they hang the phone, james look at his messages to took the photo and look at them, sirius and regulus were hugging each other smiling to the camera, sirius hair was straight and regulus wasn’t, both looked happy, and he looked at the text ‘’this was a month before the incident he say if anything happens to you, i would kill for you, brother , i guess he did..’’ that make james feel nauseous and he stopped his screen time to make his eyes rest.
The weekend as arrived to james place and that was the day he should be filming the podcast, when he first gave a spoiler in his blogg everyone was utterly conffused who was Regulus Acturus Black and why IT WAS HE so important?, he did it, now everyone was talking about him the video go international, and some sick fuckers did what they like to do better, romantizice him, and now he was on Sirius and Remus departament, watching it ‘’i haven’t see him since that, i bet he looks like utterly shit’’ sirius say looking at his brother photo. ‘’he was 17 what when he did that, around 2 and 4 am, camila riverwood was killed and mutiladed by him, he grab everyting in a carpet and transladed it on his mother car, to his house in france, he called his friends, Pandora lovegood and Barty crouch jr, to help him cook, yeah, cook the body, obviously, both of them are now under contidional liberty, and regulus proceeded to eat him among 5 or 6 days until, someone noticed that someone was missing’’ in the television was heard, obviously sirius had a grosssed out expression for the details of her death, ‘’what does the comments says jamie?’’ ‘’uh.. they say: he is so handsome, being a cannibal does even better, oh other one says maybe they give him that sentence because he was too young and his ethereal beauty, what the heck are they thinking?’’ Sirius bit his lip, making a disappointed expression ‘’at least they find him cute, the next jefrey damher’’ and the day ended, eating apple pie and watching the news ‘’and in some other news, who could believe it! the passed week a young man called james fleamont potter published this video, relating a murder case about regulus black, the young cannibal, now the episode had more than 3 million views and has been go international,in here some pictures of the criminal, a very strange case, well, no one remember this guy, even if the case was relevant on the year  in another topic, his sentence! 7 years but he is now free for good behave, in jail, going with lisa telling us the weather!’’ everyone was shocked, more James than everyone but a notification make sirius scream in horror ‘’hey siri, it’s me,cousin Narcissa, can we talk?’’ ‘’Hell no’’ he said, turning off his phone.
‘’What you mean ‘’hell no’’ answer, narcissa is such a good woman, she hadn’t nothing to do with reg and your mother ‘’ remus tried to make him talk to narcissa, his cousin, that when she got married she move out and ended any type of connection with the black family. ‘’well she- give me that-’’ he grabbed his phone from his partner's hands and turned his phone on ‘’what should i tell her?, it’s been literal decades…’’ ‘’well, tell her what she wants to talk about, i think it’s very obviou-’’ ‘’shus, don’t make me look dumb james’’ remus just could look about it ‘’okay…umm what if hello cissa, how do you been? what do you want to talk about..?’’ ‘’yeah, very convincing!’’ james cheered him up, and that's what he send her, they texted along 2 or 3 hours, about everything and how they would love to see, or at least with very selected family members, and he sigh when she stopped answering ‘’what did she told you’’ ‘’she, she wanted to get dinner but i denied, my mother was going to be there and…she a homophobe, i don't want her to disrespect you’’ ‘’ahh, good i don't like to fight nannies’’ both laughed of the comment, those days were the best without people they didn’t like.
But for regulus wasn’t the same, after he get out of jail, he was refunded in a psychological clinic for people of his…type were his mother always visit him to yell at him and in sometimes, talk decently with him, in his visits as always sitted, on a very uncomfortable chair,in a tiny cabin, with a slightly light coming from the hal, with a force shirt, tied to the chair, and with a clear mask with little holes in the mouth zone to talk, and that time was one of those times but it was certainly, different ‘’hello mom’’ ‘’how you been reggie?’’ He said it with his lowest tone, almost intendeble like a direct message to his mother that he was tired of seeing pure white, but she spoke like she was seeing pure gold, even if his son, his own blood was practically dying there ‘’why are you so happy? did you divorced?’’ ‘’oh no, why would i do that?, and you are practically out now! you are gonna live with us baby!’’ she let out like it as nothing, the eyes of the boy open significantly ‘’what…I.. I mean yeah! i’am so excited mom!’’ now, he was incredibly happy, he laughed so hard like he didn’t since he was free ‘’since when? i mean, i am very excited, i really mean it’’ ‘’since tomorrow love, so, yeah, pack your things, or whatever you have’ she say , getting up from her seat’, walking to the exit door ‘see you soon’’ she say, walking out the room, letting him alone while the nurses help him to get up, and feeling excited, he pretended wanting to bite one of the nurses, he laughed when she flicked and get nervous..
The day begin’ with a really happy regulus, he ate properly, he took a long bath and make himself look decent for his mother, now she was driving to the black house ‘’wow, everything looks so colorful, it’s making my eyes hurt’’ walburga laughed of it ‘’put these on, haven’t you go out in your sun hours?’’ ‘’no, the bitch of umbridge denied me all my sun hours, that’s why i look so pale’’ he put the sunglasses on, looking like a drug dealer ‘’i would make you go out, and take vitamins, sun is very important, it makes everyone being happy, a life without the sun is so depressing ‘’ ‘’and..umm what kind of food they gave you..?’’ he needed to be prepared if he was going to have more friends to answer all those uncomfortable questions ‘’bread, umm salad and sometimes fruit’’ ‘’so, no meat? because umm, i should have ask you if you have a diet ‘’ ‘’why? mom let put something clear that i ate a human doesn’t make me a litteral cannibal’’ he was getting defensive‘’no no no, i understant but i ask because i don’t know what to do with all that whores i make fucking steak’’ she says, stopping in front of their house ‘’what? you…’’ ‘’I'm sorry Reggie, I guess that will be Nagini's food, I need you to tell me what you want to eat so I'll tell kreacher what food to give you for dinner’’ she will always be down for her son. 
Regulus was in shock, so his mother killed people to feed him, he yelled in the glory ‘’no mom, i…i want to eat right now, tell kreacher to put potatoes and Red Wine on in to marinate it and some carrots mm! w-with butter!’’ he feeled non culpable of what he was saying, he folded like a starved dog seeing ribs, or smelling fresh bunny blood, it was literal heaven ‘’oh i let him know’’ she say with a smile, he remembered when he kill camila, he feleed so hungry from nowhere, but he didn’t want caviar, he didn’t want ordinary meat, he wanted to eat her heart, and that in fact, his mother pay to every nottery to not make the case public, so that how he lived 6 months free, until sirius snitch, he missed sirius, but camila was way more delicious than him. he was in his room, seeing that everything was like before, his books, his bed, even the painted mirror with some constellations painted on it, almost magical.
Sirius wake up having a nightmare, he was in his house in france, remus and james where there, sitten in those fucking elegant chairs that his mom use to put in the garden to her tea parties, and yeah they were having a tea party until he saw him, he was like him, even to say he looked younger but his red-violet eyeshadow, with his pale skin,but the horror was he was blood stained, he have it on his clothes, mouth and face‘’siri, i missed you so much, where you been, i needed you!’’ and now he was awake, he reach his phone to see the hour, but there was a message from cissa ‘’hey siri, i just wanted to let you know that, you and your friends are invited to my Birthday party! but if you don't want to it great, but i would love to meet remus’’ he didn’t know what to answer, the messages was upload at 10 pm, he didn’t see it, it was 3 am, he was going ro denied when he remember, she hadn’t connection with the other black’s so, should be good, and it was time now ‘’yeah, thank you and we are more than happy to assist’’ he texted back.
The week passed as river water, an the black family was invited to one of her cousin and niece party ‘’oh, Lucius, thanks for the invitation’’ Walburga says, Lucious Malfoy, indimidating yet a gentleman, that married one of her nieces, Narcissa black, a very sweet lady. ‘’it’s always a pleasure having you as a guest madame black , and are you inviting lord black?’’ he speaked trough his deep voice, wanting to know if the rumors were real ‘’oh no, my husband is in a businnes trip in Ireland, i’am bringing regulus, my second son, you remember him?’’ her smile in her face mas horririficly beautifull, she really expressed her exitement trough her smile ‘’oh, regg! how could i forget about him, he was so little when i see him last time, is he home?’’ ‘’oh yes! you want to come in and see him?, he must be in the living room reading’’ ‘’it be a plasure madame’’ she walked aside to let the blonde man to come in, she guide him trough the living room but he wasn’t there, and in the kitchen dinner room, no sing of him, until they find him reading and drinking tea in the garden ‘’wow, it’s been a long time, he has grown faster like fire and gasoline!’’ he say, like he wasn’t see a boy of regulus age before, he was 20 and the blonde man must been in his 28 or 29 ‘’regg, i present you lucius malfoy, cissa’s husband’’ she say, making regulus stand up ‘’ she marry? she must be getting crazy then..’’ he murmured in french so him wouldn’t understant ‘’what did he say?’’ ‘’that he is happy of you, that she needs a man to handle her attitude'’ the word get out, almost immediately of his mother mouth ‘’thank you regg, well i need to go know, there's more invitations to needs to be personally delivered’’
‘’see you soon mr, malfoy’’ he wave bye with his hand, and ruining his lilis, he crossed the garden to reach his car ‘’he stepped on my lavender!’’ ‘’and i save you from getting his family hate, he invited us to Narcissa’s birthday party, so we are going, behave’’ ‘’i think you are missing something, i'm not a dog to ‘’behave’’  ‘’yeah you are right you are a Animal, an you bite. ‘’ and with those words, she start making calls so, she can gets a really good dress.
He feeled uncomfortable wearing a smoking at that time, he could feel the shirt touching his neck, back and chest, his jacket made him feel sophocaded and those pant, ugh those fucking pants made him think he looked like a damn pencil ‘’ i feel stupid…i dont want to go’’ ‘’well, you are going, i need yo to meet tonks, she is you niece and, yeah andromeda and cissa haven’t see you in a long time, i need everyone to see you’’ ‘’i think everyone hated dromeda’’ ‘’well, we do but it’s Narcissa decition if she invites that kind of people’’ ‘’we hate or you hate’’ he spitted alarging to o to sound more defensive‘’if you do not shut up i’am fucking letting cerberus and thanatos eat you’’ cerberus and thanatos, two beautifull dobermans that his mom adopted because she nedeed to feel ‘’secured’’ ‘’they’re like you, they eat people’’ ‘’mom’’ ‘’regulus’’ she smiled when she stoped brushing regulus hair to make him look decent, the tematic was elegant, from the 40’s, and his mom was brings 2 fucking letal dogs to a birthday party were theres anoying kids, and they think he is the dangers because he eats womans, what a joke.
Sirius, James and Remus were in his way to the party. At her cousin's husband's house,Peter didn’t want to go, he prefered to stay at home with his girlfriend watching Disney movies. The party must be important, because they were remembering the family tree. ‘’so she is your cousin, along andromeda and bellatrix’’ yeah, they’re sisters’’ ‘’but they hate andromeda’’ ‘’yeah because she married a older and poor man’’ ‘’hypothetical situation, you have a extra sister, i marry her, i’am a bad o a good guy?’’ james say at the back seat, sirius moved himself so he car look james and start hitting him and throwing his hands to him ‘’first, i wouldn’t let you not even talk to her!’’ ‘’i say, hypothetical situation, she doesn’t even exists!’’ he say,moving so sirius wouldn’t ruin his hair ‘’you now he always gets mad with the hypothetical questioning!’’ ‘’it as a joke!’’ sirius get back on hi seat, he fixed is hair on the mirror and say ‘’you are that bad that, even dromeda husband would fucking hate you’’ ‘love, that’s mean’’ remus say, trying to get his attitude down ‘’sorry mon amour, but it’s true’’ 
They were in, the house was big and the attention was marvelous, he feeled so spoiled again, there was no sign og sirius and his friends. Walburga was happy about it, and just in time when he was going to drink from a glass of wine ‘hey! what you think you are doing,’’ ‘’mom i’am 20, i can drink’’ ‘’you live with me, i say if you drink or no, go sit in the couch, talk to someone’’ and like that he was sitting seeing another young kids running on dresses and smokings, playing and some adults dancing and drinking while he was drinking apple juice, he talked to narcissa, she almost cry when he saw him, and andromeda too, he played with tonks and again to the couch, he as naive until he hears narcissa introducing someone to his husband ‘’lucius, darling he is sirius, regulus brother and walburgas first son’’ sirius had a uncomfortable expression being introduced like that, then remus his actual boyfriend and..james potter..? he get stiff a little until he remembered that familiar face, yeah! he was Dr.potter son, he saw him a lot during his **practiques, roaming the apartment or seccion where he was, bingo.
but he didn’t expect the having eye contact with sirius, it was proonged, mostly 15 seconds until he grabe the tall dude arms and make him a sign. he obviously cutted the contact, sirius was getting a panic attack, he feel like fainting ‘’we are so sorry narcissa, but i need sirius to calm down,’’ ‘’fuck, it’s okay want me to bring some water i-’’ ‘’no it’s completly okay’’ ‘’i’am going with you guys,’’ ‘’no, i need im to be alone, we are coming for you at’’ he saw his wrist clock ‘’in a hour, talk to a girl, i don’t know!’’ and remus, helping sirius to breath they start walking, they see a park, not to far from here,  they were going there, must be, but why he got so..damn, and jmes saw him, he was comfortable sitting in a carmin velvet couch, with a little juice box seeing everyone, and he straingtly walk towards him, he sitted by his side ‘’hey, you must be sirius brother a plasure, james potter’’ he stend his hand, making him salut him, and he did, ‘’yeah, i saw you with him recently, regulus black’’ and now, both were having the most uncomfortable trade of words that never have seen before ‘’you know he is terrifiend of you right’’ ‘’it’s not something that i enjoy young potter’’ ‘’how old are you? i’am 24, just call me by my name, james’’ he let his lips closed and he beggined again ‘’i know what you are’’ ‘’he doens’t like me but it’s not mutual’’ ‘’do you enjoy it?’’ ‘’excuse me? who you are to being this disrespecfull’’ he say in defensive, he didn’t like this guy like the other. ‘’i’am a doctor, and i study the psicological state of a cannibal, and i wanted to make you a interview’’ he didn’t feel like trusting this man, he looked all messy and clumsy, like he was a scamer or something ‘’what i won from this?’’ ‘’money, thats simple’’ ‘’lets talk about the details in the garden’’ well, for this not being his house he feeled like knowing it it like his palm, he standded up, and started walking, wainting for the Deer guy to folllow him.
Now, both were in the garden, talking about where and when they would meet to make the interview, sitting on the board of a big that looks like Eros statue ‘’can i have your number? in case something happens and yeah,’’ ‘’of course’’ before exchanging numbers they were still talking about other stuff.
Sirius was now calmed, and yeah he repeated himself that now tha regulus is out, he would see him sometimes, he needed to get over it, he called james but he didn’t answer, he was getting anxious again ‘’hey cissa, we are now going, i'm so sorry’’ ‘’no no, it's completely okay, i understant’’ she say with a big smile ‘’but next time tell your hubby to no be a metiche’’ ‘’a what?’’ ‘’a metiche, is like gossip, james teach me that’’ ‘’is he spanish?’’ ‘’no he is mexican, and talking about him i haven’t seen him’’ she couldn’t tell him that he and his brother were nowhere to be found in the party, ‘’umm, haven’t you called him? call him againg’’ and he did it, but this time he answered ‘’where the fuck are you at?!’’ ‘’u-umm what? are you here now?’’ The music was too loud to hear something ‘’we are leaving, now, where are you, whe are coming to get you’’ ‘’no no, i’ll go, stay there i'm coming’’ he sounded nervous, like he always sounded when he did a bad thing.
‘’I need to go now regg, you brother is waiting for me’’ ‘’it’s okay, go i’ll see you again right?’’ ‘’Of course’’ and both said bye with his hands, and on the way to the exit he heard his phone ring. It wasn’t a call from Sirius, it was a deer emoji, and he responded back with a bat one.
‘’where were you? kissing one o my cousins? what a whore’’ he wanted to say, ´´ not much better, being friends with your mentally ill brother´ ' '’i did not! I was talking all the time talking with one of your cousins, or i don't know’’ Sirius just huffed and they made their way home.
late in the night, he was staying with remus and sirius, he agended regulus name with the bat emoji and text him ‘’so, how was the party’’ to be answered with a ‘’very bored, i'm not drunk and..you weren’t there so, very bored’’ ‘’good night reggie, it's now 12:00 but i know vampires like you do not sleep’’ ‘’you wish deer ‘’.and with that, he only hoped that they would see again.
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decent0distraction · 8 months
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Hi! You may know me as the person who does all of those Our Flag Means Death AUs, theories, and posts that either ruin your day, make you laugh, or both. Mostly both.
But I have something else for you.
My take on family!Sanders Sides - based off of the whole family roles the Sides gave themselves in the Five Years video.
To refresh your memory, Patton labeled himself as the dad, Logan as the mom, Roman as the son (the hotshot), Virgil as the (gay, emo) cousin, Janus as the (sassy) aunt (who talks shit about everyone), and Remus as the (fresh out of jail) uncle.
BUT
This AU of mine is… messed up.
Ok ok ok SO
We begin with Janus Duke, who has just moved back to the town of Sanders Bay, a lovely seaside community.
Janus has spent the last 10 years raising their son (Janus uses they/them pronouns bc I said so), moving from place to place for reasons that Virgil doesn’t know about yet that we’ll get into later. Stay with me.
Virgil is 16 and on his first day at Sanders Bay Secondary Academy (what a name, huh?), his dad, Remus, is getting out of jail.
When Virgil was about 6, Janus and Remus had decided to walk from their house into town to pick up their son from the babysitter. They were about halfway there when someone attacked Janus, cutting his face (resulting in scars on one side of his mouth, eye, and cheek, resembling a snake like face). Remus reacted violently towards the person who just hurt his spouse, the cops are called, and it’s made out to look like Remus had hurt Janus, who was unconscious.
When Janus finally came to, they were in a hospital, being told that their husband had been arrested and arranged.
Cut to present day, Virgil’s first day is met with a slight complication when an idiot threatre-jock hybrid accidentally knocks into him, causing him to hit his head.
Roman Hart insists that Virgil allow him to escort him to the nurse, who just so happens to be his dad, Patton Hart.
Roman’s other dad is their home room and history teacher, Logan Hart.
By the end of the school day, Roman and Virgil are sort of friends. But when Roman asks Virgil if they’d want to hang out or something, Virgil explains that he has to get home because his dad is finally home.
Roman just assumes that Virgil’s dad is in the military. He doesn’t even actually get to ask, because Virgil is too busy running out to Janus’s car.
Everything is going fine for a little while. Virgil studies with Roman after school, or they go to the mall, eventually going to Roman’s house.
The Harts are the nicest people in town, and Patton simply adores having Virgil around.
Janus, one day, is waiting with Remus in the school pick up lane for Virgil. The two of them are having a nice, causal conversation that is interrupted by Janus seeing their son talking to them.
“Oh, my God!” Janus slammed his foot on the break and put the car in park. “It’s them! It’s them!”
Remus looked to see their son standing with another boy, while the boy’s parents talked to Virgil.
They were Patton and Logan Hart, two people the Duke parents were happy to never see again.
When Patton put his hand on Virgil’s shoulder, Janus struggled to rush out of the car. Remus followed.
“Virgil!”
The anxious teen turned to watch his mom run to him and pull him away from the Harts.
“Are you okay? Did they hurt you?”
Virgil was beyond confused. “What? No! I’m fine. What are you-“ He stopped when Remus started to approach.
“Dad? Dad, I don’t know what’s happening, but nothing happened. Dad!”
But the man ignored his son in favor of getting in Logan’s face. “You’d do right by you and your family to stay the fuck away from mine.”
Logan didn’t even flinch. “And it would be correct for you to avoid threatening my family.”
Virgil was ready to try to defuse the situation before Janus began to have a panic attack. “Mom?”
Remus is then distracted by his spouse needing his help. He gets his little family in the car and they get home, where the parents sit down and finally tell Virgil the truth.
The truth is, Patton Hart and Janus Duke were friends. When they were 20, and Janus had a child and Patton didn’t, he got upset. And when he saw baby Virgil, he decided that he needed that child.
He acted like everything was fine. He offered to babysit Virgil so the new parents could have some time to themselves. He paid for Janus to be attacked, for Remus to be framed.
But when Janus woke up, he called Patton, screaming, begging. He knew Patton had the baby.
And Patton knew that if he kept Virgil, everything could be traced back to him eventually.
So he returned Virgil, acting like he was just watching the child for his friend.
But Janus moved away, moving from place to place so that they couldn’t be found.
Janus was so desperate to have their husband and their son’s father back that they believed Patton and Logan had moved on.
But to see that man anywhere their baby, Janus couldn’t handle it.
Virgil knows the truth now. How can anything be the same?
Before they can try to figure it out, the doorbell rings.
Janus flinches and Virgil is still busy hugging his Mom to bother with the door.
“I got it,” Remus tells them, answering the door to a man in all black and sunglasses.
“Look, whatever you’re selling, we’re not interested. Try the neighbors across the street. A lot of packages. Maybe they like sunglasses, or whatever you’re situation is-“
“-I’m not selling anything, sir. I’m looking for Remus Duke.”
Turns out, this guy isn’t a salesman. He’s Detective Remy Dormir (idk, I got the name from a human!AU fanart), hired by Roman Hart to find his birth family. (He arranged for this a year before the Dukes moved back to Sanders Bay)
This eventually leads to the discovery that Remus Duke’s father, Romulus King, got a woman pregnant before his passing. By this time, his son Remus had moved far away and changed his name, never successful at pleasing the man.
So yeah, Roman and Remus are half brothers. Which means Virgil’s only friend in Sanders Bay is his half uncle, since Virgil is the biological son of Janus and Remus Duke.
Yeah, there’s no romance between Roman and Virgil. Sorry to disappoint you Roman/Virgil shippers. There’s nothing wrong with that ship, it just doesn’t work for this AU.
That’s all I have so far. If I find that I missed something, I’ll add it later.
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rotating-pebbles · 3 years
Text
okAY can we talk about this special
cw newest sanders sides spoilers
just some things i noticed
-Roman was SO SAD in this video
>"and i'll be the son!" "whose only dream is to...Be a star.." Roman said that last line so depressingly (grammar). Does he not just want to be seen as the side who only wants Thomas to be the star? Is he becoming more aware of how egotistical he can be? Although he did start off normally (i loved that sm)
>"patton" grimace. "and logan" less of a grimace "and,,,virgil!" big happy, geniune not-just-for-show smile. So, he's still holding a grudge against Patton which is understandable. Logan though? Is he angry at him for siding with Janus too? I feel like it's going to end up with everyone else trying to reason with virgil and roman or something
-Roman was so ICONIC in this video
>pissy
>The freaking opening of his bit was GOLD
>He loves Nico so much omggg
>The energy is stunning we love to see it go off queen
>"Who broke this vase???" this remains my favourite sanders sides bit ever so far
>Stock images=iconic
>please dont kill remus he'll probably love it
>the beef with janus 👀
"oh i regret not throwing paper at logan first"
-Logan was such a sassy bitch and we love to see it
>Should we be concerned about the amount of wine he consumed in those few minutes? He was literally holding a salad bowl before straight up holding the bottle with ✨class✨
>Logan you can't deny your mom title
>"not our most feminist moment" YHRCYUBTEC
>*long ramble* "my point is i dont think we deserve an anniversary"
>Logan calling Thomas out for the listening yes please
>validating virgil=you have feelings dude
-Patton was the softest little puffball we got but also angsty??
>proud papa x100
>please dont cry
>PUPPY
>overprotective dad? inner resentment? scared of change? listening to janus?,,, "Nico,,,,seems like a nice guy" You seem very hesitant there sweetie is there something you'd like to tell us
>still glossing over mistakes by changing topic to ice cream? relatable and would love to see a boys night but you gotta stop padre
>we applaud the energy levels
-Janus being Janus but +100 confidence levels
>Janus shared stuff and t e c h n i c a l l y part of the group=even MORE self confident i can feel it oozing off him through the screen
>the s a s s oh g o d the s a s s just can o even pick a quote? just the whole time
>Logan wins the wine drinking this time sorry
>The fandom already dubbed you the wine aunt you just accepted it and now everyone's going crazy
>Ah yes e v i l p l a n s yes ofc
>Let us see the hamster
>*casually sprays remus with soap* *Remus accepted it and drinking it*
>those character evaluations *chefs kiss* nothing more but excited to see some crazy deep theories of t h o s e
>DIGUISED AS PATTON????? AGAIN??? YOU'VE GROWN?? WE LOVE IT BUT YOUR SCARING THOMAS HUN
>snazzy dance moves my guy
-Remus,,,need i say more?
>REMUS SAID HONEY REMUS SAID HONEY REMUS SAID HONEY spending too much time around Janus perhaps??
>I love that he's now officialy the cool jail uncle
> "see i'm roman! get my better side~" icon
>fan-artists take notes now we know where his embylum is
>ah what lovely brotherly bonding
>Remus stop trying to k!ll yourself in this video wtf put the soap d o w n
>no spoilers >:(
>calling thomas out abt mindpalace (i'd love to see what remus has done with the place)
>very true is there a correct way to sit? the gays would agree
>snazzy dance moves my guy
-Virgil was unusually energetic yet still edgy
>emo cousin? i can agree with that but would that make remus his dad and patton your uncle, or patton your dad and remus your uncle we need answers people
>thats sure one long list you got there,,,
>WHY DID HE HAVE SO MUCH ENERGY TODAY JESUS CHRIST MAN FROM THE OPENING TO THE QUESTIONS
>he got so mad about the makeup comment please also what a great use of swear words
> you got it spot on now i require someone to marry me in space with gandalf and dumbledore
>oh yeah he d i d egg on the falsehood thing a true hero
>everyone:hands him affection him:ew what am i supposed to do with it
>so he likes being a puppet i can respect that
>WHEN HE MENTIONED 'LIES' AND JANUS HAD A TANTRUM IT KILLED ME I LOVE JANUS/VIRGIL INTERACTIONS
-Orage side revealed 😱
>he's patton's snack 😳
-c!thomas (and thomas) getting us all to doubt everything about the entire series for a split second /lh
>he's a great interviewer and definately doesnt almost fall off chairs
>oOOOOOooOoOoOo you liiiiiiike him you're blushinnnng seriously he were so flustered when roman beought up nico and i can understand that for him
>he's so terrified/annoyed at janus and remus that its funny
>dont mention the word... callback >:o
>"no not a literal hand"
>we love and and are proud of you
-The new series trailer
>HOLY FUCK HOLY COW OH GOD THAT'S KINDA GAY THE ANIMATION THE CHARACTERS THEY ALL LOOK SO PRETTY OH GOD OH JEEZ I'M SO PAN I'M SO EXCITED
>d&d style thing? roleplaying? i love it
and thats all i got, please add on!
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maraudersbutmuggle · 3 years
Text
"The Prank"
Content Warning: Gender Dysphoria, Transphobia, Violence, PTSD. Depression, Mentions of Sexual Abuse. ANGST, ANGST, ANGST.
It was the week before exams. Everyone was crazy, especially the fifth years. These exams would define their possible careers in the future.
Remus was twice stressed. He was sick of people asking him questions and asking him to tutor them and sharing his notes with them.
After he had yelled to two poor third years, and slammed his book shot, making Peter jump, he went to the loo. Just to wash his face and take a bloody break.
He didn't know it would be one of the worst days of his life.
As he washed his face, he heard someone coming in. But Remus ignored it. Perhaps it was another boy.
"Hello, Rosie"
"Rosie, my sweet Rosie" "No!" "C'me here, Rosie..." "DADDY!!"
Remus began shaking. He looked that the voice came from Snape. He was staring at Remus like a strange animal in the zoo.
"Snivellus" Remus tried to sound confident, but his voice sounded high pitched.
"Rosalind Meredith Lupin. That's your name, isn't it?"
"C'me here, Rosie..." "Daddy!! Help!!"
"I don't know what you're talking about"
Remus was trying so hard not to break down. How did Snape find out?
Snape ignored him.
"I can't believe you fooled everyone. Even myself" Snape let out a little laugh. He stared at Remus with disgust "And all this time, you'd been a girl?"
Remus shook his head. Now he was shaking.
"I'm not a girl" but he didn't sound convincing.
"What I don't understand is who else knows? How could Dumbledore let you in, if you're sick. You are a freak"
"Shut up" more shaking "How did you find out?"
There was no point in denying it now. Remus was being so obvious.
Snape grinned. He took a piece of paper from his pocket.
"Thanks to the little love note between you and Black" Snape said "Maybe he needs to be careful where he leaves the love letters you send him"
Now he remembered. The note he had exchanged with Sirius. About his binder. About him being trans. He had begged Sirius not to show it to anyone.
"And then, I searched for you on the Internet. You were in the local news, Rosie. One of the victims of Fenrir Greyback. They found he had been raping girls thanks to your dad, the hero" Snape rolled his eyes "You were his last victim before he went to jail"
"Please don't tell anyone" Remus begged.
Nobody knew about that, not even his friends.
Snape shrugged "Why wouldn't I? Lupin? This is golden. One of The Marauders is actually a girl..."
"No..." Remus cried
"I can't belive your friends hid you like a fucking experiment. What do they do to you, Rosie?"
"I'm tryin' to be nice, Rosie..." "Please no!!" "Shut up!! I said shut up!!"
All Remus could do was cry and tremble. He didn't even dare to look at Snape anymore. He despised him and he couldn't believe Lily actually liked him. But Remus hated himself more.
"I thought I smelled grease from outside"
Remus was even more embarrassed to see his friends enter the bathroom. James in the front. Like a good leader. Him and Snape were mortal enemies.
"Potter" Snape clenched his teeth.
They noticed Remus.
"Moony?"
Sirius noticed Remus with eyes of concern. It was his fault. It was his fault Snape knew.
"What did you say to him, asshole?"
"I didn't touch your little bitch, Black" Snape scoffed.
"You and your greasy ass are always around upsetting us" James said "So go away"
Snape ignored him "You fucking perverts"
"Excuse me?"
"You hide a girl in your dorm, probably spy on her while she changes. God knows what else..."
Sirius rolled his eyes "What the fuck are you talking about? What girl?"
Snape pointed at Remus "Rosalind"
"Get away from Rosalind, you fucking wanker!!" "Daddy..." "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!! NOBODY TOUCHES MY DAUGHTER!!"
The Marauders turned to look at Remus. They didn't know his birth name. Remus felt so embarrassed. He clenched his nails on his arm, harder and harder. He wanted it to hurt.
"What is it, Marauders?" Snape continued, voice full of hate "Do you take turns to fuck her?"
PUM!!
James knocked Snape to the ground before anyone can stop it.
"SHUT UP YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!!"
Snape touched his nose. And then he laughed. Like a maniac.
Greyback touched his nose. And then he laughed. Like a maniac. "Come on, Lyall! Hit me more!"
James wasn't satisfied. He kneeled down and kept punching and punching Snape yelling swear words and insults.
Remus was in shock. He stood there, glued to the ground. Like a statue.
Sirius crossed eyes with him. He looked so broken, and angry too. His eyes lowered. And Sirius turned to help James with the beating.
Peter seemed in shock as well. He had managed to put an arm around Remus and whispered things like: "It's okay, Moony. I'm sorry. It's okay"
This is it. Remus thought. Snape is going to die. James and Sirius are going to kill him. And Remus would be an accomplice. A stupid witness that didn't do shit. Just silently cried and shook.
Finally a younger boy came in and gasped looking at the scene.
"GET HELP" Peter yelled "PLEASE!"
The boy ran away. And minutes later, someone came in with him.
"STOP IT!!" It was Lily. She was pale as a ghost. Not in the normal way, but nearly transparent "I TOLD YOU TO FUCKING STOP!! YOU ARE GOING TO KILL HIM!!"
"PLEASE LYALL STOP! YOU'RE GOING TO KILL HIM!!" "He hurt her!!" Lyall cried, still hitting Greyback "He hurt my little girl"
Remus was surprised to see Lily's strength as she pushed James away. Peter ran to do the same with Sirius.
James was panting. He blinked like finally reacting. He looked at Lily, who was crying. And then at his hands. Covered in blood.
"Go and find McGonagall, Owen" Lily sobbed, talking to the little boy still there "Please"
Owen obeyed immediately.
"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU" Lily screamed mostly at James. He looked pale. Nearly in tears.
"Sorry..." he said "Sorry Lily.."
It was the first time that James Potter felt so small and quiet around Lily Evans.
But Lily was already on her knees, checking on Snape.
"Sev..." she cried "Sev... please wake up"
James' eyes were focused on them. He looked embarrassed. Sirius on the other hand approached Remus.
"Remus, are you okay?"
"Rosie, are you okay?" Hope asked, tears in her eyes. "MUMMY!!" the child cried. "Oh honey, it's okay" Hope hugged her child, crying herself "Mummy is here, is okay"
Remus flinched. Mostly because he was surprised that someone had addressed him. He had witnessed everything as if he wasn't there. And he felt the pain in his palms. Bleeding because of his nails.
He didn't want to talk to Sirius. He didn't want to talk to anyone or to see anyone. He just felt pain pain pain. Guilt Guilt Guilt. Anger anger anger.
This is your fault, Sirius. He knows because of you. He almost died because of you.
"FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!!" McGonagall gasped, covering her mouth "What the hell happened?"
Nobody answered. They could only hear Lily's sobbing.
"Miss Evans, who did this to Mr. Snape?"
"It was me" James whispered. James never whispered. He was always loud.
"What was that, Mr. Potter?"
"It was me" he repeated
"And me"
Sirius, the loyal companion. Loyal with James, not with Remus.
"Miss Evans, please take Mr. Snape to The Hospital Wing right now! Mr. Pettigrew, help her"
"Yes, professor"
Remus didn't understand how Peter was so calm, how could he even react?
"Potter, Black. To my office"
James didn't even protest. He gave a last glance at Lily, who was stroking Snape's hair. And James walked outside. Sirius immediately followed, his eyes on Remus as he walked. Concerned blue eyes.
I hate you. I hate all of you..... Not quite.
McGonagall walked carefully towards Remus. He noticed he was still trembling and panting. McGonagall didn't scold him. She just smiled.
"Mr. Lupin" she said kindly "Why don't you step into my office, and we'll take some calming tea. Alright? You can explain what happened?"
Remus just nodded. Because he couldn't speak. McGonagall touched his arm, and they walked outside. Remus find in her body a support not to fall.
---------------
The boys were not expelled but severely punished after they explained their motives. Snape was forbidden to speak to anyone about Remus. Remus remained angry at Sirius and James for months after this. But they make up.
This is my muggle version of The Prank. But this time it makes sense.
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lumosinlove · 4 years
Text
PREVIOUSLY ON RELIC KEEL:
We get our first glimpse of Finn, who is still in Saint Clair orphanage. Finn has worked out that Crucio is being given to the orphans because it allows them to see their families again and makes them want to stay at Saint Clair so they can keep receiving it—even if it means reliving memories every day that are not their own. Finn doesn’t want that at all, and he’s been in solitary for the last week because he refuses to eat, realizing that the drug is mixed in with the food.
Luke is struggling with his mother, who seems to be delighted that Luke’s father is gone. She has completely transformed into a woman Luke doesn’t recognize, offering him alcohol, and wanting to get rid of Luke’s father’s things. Luke escapes her words, retreating to his father’s study where he can take Crucio and re-arrange the events in his own mind, making it so his father never got taken away.
Remus and Sirius, at James’ house for a movie night, have an awkward exchange in the kitchen. Remus wants to ask Sirius if he wants to go sailing with him, quickly realizing the unexplainable but seemingly unavoidable crush he’s developed on Sirius, but they get interrupted by Saint.
Saint asks Remus to help him sneak into The Hogwarts History Museum, where Remus is working for the summer, but when Remus refuses, guesses he has to take matters into his own hands.
Saint finds Luke on the grasses with the others, watching a movie. Luke wants his father’s watch, which Saint stole, back, but Saint refuses. Luke can’t believe Saint has never seen many movies, but rudely puts it up to Saint’s “fucked childhood.” They argue, and it just makes Saint quietly angrier. Saint thinks more deeply about it than he lets on, though, reflecting on people’s need to control things—a need that Crucio plays on. Saint leaves, but not after stealing the keys to Luke’s car, deciding he can control things a different way—with ancient gold from an ancient pirate ship, perhaps.
Sirius follows Saint out of the house. He can tell that he’s more on edge than usual, that he has been ever since Logan arrived. Saint won’t tell him what he wants from the museum, though—a treasure map to the Voldemort. Sirius is hurt. He’s angry at himself for liking Remus. Both Sirius and Saint, it seems, have a hard time distinguishing pity and friendship.
Leo and Logan are waiting for Saint so that they can all go to the museum together. Leo asks about Finn and finds out that Logan and Finn are in love, that they’re everything to each other. It stings Leo’s slowly developing feelings for Logan.
Remus and Sirius go to the history museum to try and thwart Saint and find out he’s working with Logan and Leo, and that they’re all after The Voldemort. Saint confesses he’s trying to help Sirius, to Sirius’ surprise. Leo wants to finish his father’s work. Logan wants Finn—but no one seems willing to help him bust Finn out. When they find the drawer where the map should be kept in the museum’s archive room, however, it’s gone, having been taken out on loan by Luke’s father, Victor Deveaux. Victor and Luke loved the tale of the treasure, too. Perhaps it has something to do with Victor being sent to jail.
They go to Luke’s house where Saint climbs through Luke’s bedroom window. Saint studies a sleeping Luke, a strange, unexpected constant—a brooding, rude, beautiful one, that is. And oh, how Saint hates letting things surprise him. Saint wakes Luke, who has taken Crucio, and plans to use his father’s watch as leverage to get Luke to help them find the map.
~
*****cw: mentions of drugs, mentions of use of drugs, mentions of past deaths, mentions of past abuse, mentions of blood*****
~
part vii
Luke’s father was standing over Remus’ shoulder, flickering as the Felix wore off, and it was really fucking with Luke’s head.
“Some fellow treasure hunters,” his father said with one of his soft smiles. “Sounds fun.”
“Sober up,” Remus’ voice filtered in. “What makes you sober up?”
“I’m not drunk.”
Luke watched Remus just shake his head at him. His father’s flickering frame was looking closely at Saint, who was picking up everything in sight.
“We both know what you are,” Remus replied. “Now, come on. Coffee? Anything I can do without waking your mom up.”
“She’s not going to wake up,” Luke rubbed his eyes. “She takes these—sleeping things, I don’t know.”
“Well—“ Remus hesitated. Behind him, Luke’s father flickered out.
“I’m fine,” Luke said. “What’s going on?”
“We’re bargaining, remember?” Saint held up Luke’s father’s watch again. “Tell me about your father, Deveaux.”
Luke blinked. “What?”
“Well, Lupin’s already told us a little. You, him, and your treasure hunting days.”
Luke looked at Remus, who looked half-guilty and half-curious. “You mean—like when we were kids?”
Luke didn’t want to tell them about the time he had spent with his father in here, just the two of them, fantasizing about gold and pirates.
“We were at the museum just now,” Remus began slowly. “Your dad loaned out a map…it’s of the Cradle. Of a, what was it, a trading post?”
The tall, blond boy standing in a corner nodded.
Remus looked back to Luke. “Have you seen it? Here?”
“A map?” Luke scrubbed his hand over his face again. “What fucking time is it?”
“Oh, he’s swearing,” Saint said as he opened another drawer. “He’s back.”
“Fuck—” Luke clamped his mouth shut. He turned away from Saint and fully towards Remus. Sirius and another dark haired boy were standing near the blond one. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Treasure?”
Remus winced. “Like the Voldemort.”
“The—what? He was never serious about that stuff,” Luke replied. “It was just for fun.”
“And yet he takes it upon himself to acquire an ancient document,” Saint piped up from behind him.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Luke said again over his shoulder.
“Um—“
Luke looked towards the blond boy, who had taken a hesitant step forward.
“I know what it looks like. My dad had a copy.”
“A true father’s affair,” Saint mumbled.
“What?” Luke asked for what felt like the one hundredth time.
“If we could just look around—” the blond began.
“You come here at ass o’clock in the morning to look around may dad’s study? For a treasure map that your dad has?”
“Used to have,” the blond’s eyes went colder. “His version was lost with him and his boat.”
Luke swallowed, eyes drifting away from the other boy’s blue ones. He looked back to Remus. They used to spend hours playing pirate when they were younger. Remus looked like he was remembering those hours, too.
Luke only had to blink for that golden-edged memory to mingle with the hours Remus had held Luke close in Luke’s bed, letting Luke soak his t-shirt through when they’d taken his dad away.
“Why do you think my dad has it?” Luke said now. “What do you mean loaned?”
“We went looking for it at the museum just now,” Remus explained. “Well—not not we. Saint stole your car—”
Luke looked back at Saint. “I’m aware.”
Saint flashed a smile.
“—and went with Logan,” Remus pointed to the somber looking brunette, “and Leo,” the cold-eyed blond, “to more or less, God, break into the museum archives. If they’re going to find the treasure—which, in my opinion, they’re not—they need—”
“A map,” Luke said, then scoffed out a laugh. “You guys are fucking crazy.”
Remus ran a hand through his hair. “Look, none of this was my idea, but your dad’s name was on the loan card. If it’s here, it's here, and then they’ll take the picture they need and we can all leave. I mean, shit, I have work at seven tomorrow morning, guys.”
Luke let out a long breath. He was tired, from being woken up and from the Felix, and he frankly wanted Saint to stop messing with his father’s things.
He nodded at Remus. “You can look around. And I will. The rest of you, don’t fucking—” he snatched one of his father’s fountain pens out of Saint’s hands. “touch anything.”
Saint just tiled his head defiantly. Luke couldn’t help but hold his gaze for a moment, remembering waking up to those syrupy eyes and feeling—he didn’t know what. Like he was standing on the edge of the Howler cliffs, above a storm-warmed, rough ocean. Saint’s hand had been in his hair, and it had been ever so gentle, unlike the rest of him. His words were tough, and, from what Luke could tell by his own jabs at Saint, so was his skin. He guessed a kid didn’t grow up the way Saint had without at least a little armor—Saint was practically drowning in his own.
As if Luke could talk. Luke looked away and gestured towards Remus. “Let’s get this over with.”
Luke opened drawers and cabinets. He looked through stacks of paper and under dressers. He checked the den, even, just in case, but there was nothing. Everything was orderly—and even more, the police had taken so much. Any paper they could get their hands on. His mom wouldn’t tell him what they were looking for, and neither would the lawyers that occasionally came to the house.
But there was no map.
Luke began to double check, if only at Remus’ insistence, but he was at a loss. There were only so many places—
“What’s your birthday, tweedle?” Saint said suddenly.
“What does that have to do—” Luke began as he turned, but his words died in his throat when he saw Saint.
Luke’s father had had the old map of Hogwarts framed and hanging in his study ever since Luke could remember. He knew its markings as well as he knew the island as it was today. Saint had it tilted to the side, revealing a sliver of sleek steel. A safe.
“I told you not to touch anything,” Luke said breathlessly. He hadn’t known about that safe. He’d stared at that map a thousand times and he hadn’t known. Did his mother know? The lawyers?
“I bet you one of Leo here’s best breakfast sandwiches that the map’s in here,” Saint replied, nodding to the frame. “Little bit of an X marks the spot, don’t you think? Now,” Saint reached for the painting and unhooked it smoothly, setting it on the ground to reveal the neat square metal sunken into the wall with a dial in the center. “Tell me your birthday.”
“Why do you think the combination is my birthday?”
Saint rolled his eyes. “Because you’re his son. Fathers do that. Don’t they?”
Saint asked the last part like he was trying to be sure, but wasn’t.
“January first,” Luke replied.
Saint hummed as he leaned in. “New year, new you, huh?”
Luke just swallowed dryly as he listened to the dial tick. It felt so loud in the room that was now holding its breath. It felt like it lasted forever, but, finally, the safe opened with a gentle click.
“Damn, Saint,” Sirius said softly.
“I know, I’m so good,” Saint said, and made to push the door open when Luke pushed forward and grabbed his hand. Saint’s fingers were warm in his own. Saint raised an eyebrow.
“Like you said,” Luke still felt breathless. “I’m his son. I’m doing this.”
Saint raised his free hand in surrender until Luke let go, and he backed away. Luke faced the safe. He felt the Felix in him all over again, though it was long gone. He felt his father, smelled his cigars. Luke reached for the door, too aware of the four pairs of eyes on him, and pulled it open.
It was relatively empty. There were papers that looked like they had once bound money, but lay ripped and lifeless now. There was a case of expensive cigars.
And there was an envelope with Luke’s name on it.
“There’s a letter,” Luke said faintly, picking it up. “For me.”
He looked up at Remus, and Remus nodded.
“Like the clues he would leave us?” Remus said quietly.
Luke went for the seal—only to have it snatch out of his hands.
He looked up, eyes wide, and found the unfamiliar brunette—Logan, Remus had said—staring back at him, at all of them, with wild green eyes.
“Logan,” Leo said, voice filled with surprise. “What the hell are you—”
But Logan just backed up towards the door. There was a familiar click, and the flame of a lighter appeared in his other hand.
“Hey—” Luke stepped forward, panicked, but Saint’s palm pushed against his chest.
“Don’t,” Saint said softly, for Luke’s ears only.
“That’s mine,” Luke snarled, shoving Saint away.
“Yeah, well I have something I want, too,” Logan snapped, and then looked at Saint. He held the flame closer to the envelope. “You want to know what this says? Then—”
“So do you, Logan,” Saint said. “You need that money. You know you do. The Carrows know it, too.”
“You owe me something first. I want Finn.”
“I don’t owe you,” Saint replied evenly. “I don’t owe anyone. That’s kind of my general idea in life, in case you hadn’t noticed.”
Logan faltered, and the flame slipped close enough to the envelope to make smoke trail, but when Luke stepped forward, Logan took another step back. He looked small, framed by the grand desk and leather chairs. Small and scared.
“You left us in there,” he finally whispered, and Luke thought he heard Saint’s breathing stop and hold, like a punch to the gut.
“He was seven years old,” Sirius growled, and Luke didn’t know what they were talking about, was done waiting.
“Do you know the last time I talked to my dad?” Luke said, voice raising. He glanced upstairs, careful of his mother despite her pills, and dropped it to a deadly whisper again. “He’s not allowed calls. Not until the investigation’s over. This could—” Luke hesitated at putting his wildest, most desperate hope into words. “This could prove he’s—”
“Do you think I give a shit about the last time you talked to your daddy?” Logan snarled just as harshly. “When’s the last time I talked to mine? Oh. Right.”
“Please,” Luke heard the word rip out of his throat before he could help it, but Logan wasn’t even looking at him. Logan’s eyes were on Saint.
“Help me get Finn out. The windows are barred now. There are alarms, I’ve seen them.”
“I didn’t use a window,” Saint replied.
“Then show me how you did it.”
“You won’t be able to get in the way I got out.”
“Then do it for me.”
If Luke was begging, so was Logan.
“Fuck, I’ll help you,” Luke shouted. “Just don’t. Please. My father—”
“You don’t know shit about Saint Clair,” Logan snapped, then looked back at Saint. “We both know where he is. Why I haven’t seen him. Saint—”
“All right,” Saint said, voice calm. His brown eyes reminded Luke of stormy seas, ruddy with stirred up sand. “All right, Logan. Just don’t burn the letter.”
“Promise,” Logan said.
Saint laughed, cold and clear. “What has a promise ever meant to either of us? I said I would. Take it or leave it.”
There was a terrifying moment in which Luke worried that the letter would go up in flames anyway. That he would never know what his father had wanted him to have, wanted him to know. He didn’t know Logan, didn’t trust him.
The lighter clicked off and Logan held out the envelope. Luke took it and gave Logan a shove towards the door for good measure.
“Get out,” he said. “Get out of my house.”
“What does the letter say?” Logan replied firmly. “It could be about the map.”
Luke laughed, and it rang a close twin to Saint’s in his own ears. “You should have thought about that before you held it hostage for your orphan friend.”
Logan took a step forward, mouth opening to protest, but Luke was bigger than him, stronger and taller. He met him chest to chest.
“I said get out.”
“Logan,” Saint sighed. “Listen to him.”
Leo stepped forward then, a gentle hand on Logan’s fiery frame. Logan simmered for another moment, but let Leo lead him from the room, lighter still clutched in his fist. Remus followed them with a whispered, I’m sorry that Luke barely heard.
He faintly heard Saint say something to Sirius, who followed Remus.
Saint, the only one left in the room now, looked at Luke steadily. Luke expected some sort of joke, or a snarky remark about the desperation Luke had shown—something he tried to never let slip through. He didn’t care what it was. He just wanted to be alone, to have this room feel like his father’s again. Instead of a crime scene. Instead of a lead, or a pin-point on a map. Just his father’s familiar room.
Instead Saint tossed him something that shone—his keys.
“Let us know, if you want,” Saint said simply, and held the gold watch out. Luke took it with shaking fingers, watching him go.
Then, he looked down at the letter, at his name in his father’s familiar scrawl. He peeled back the seal with a lump forming in his throat.
~
Remus’ steps slowed to a stop when he saw who was waiting for him at the end of his dock in the five-AM light.
Sirius had his flip-flops beside him, his feet dangling over the edge into the water, the Wolfsbane rocking gently in the early morning waves to his left.
“Sirius?” Remus called, more so that the first thing Sirius felt wasn’t the shaking of his footsteps than anything else.
Sirius jerked around, startled either way, and scrambled to stand.
“Hi,” he said. “Or, morning.”
“Morning,” Remus laughed a little, glancing at the boat. “I…is this you taking me up on my offer?”
Sirius ran a hand through his thick black hair. “Ah, well, I’m here to say sorry about last night. Dragging you into it and all. That wasn’t fair of Saint, but he’s…I don’t know what he is right now. I usually do but…not this time, I guess.”
Remus nodded, trying to buy himself time to figure out what to say. He stepped onto his boat and took a rope in hand, just for something to do. To hold onto. Sirius had spoken the words plainly enough. There was nothing about Saint and himself being together, but Remus still sensed some sort of intimacy that wasn’t quite friendship, just as he had at the museum.
“It’s okay,” Remus said. “All’s well that ends well, right?”
Sirius’ smile was a small, relieved one. “I guess so. Still. He was on some sort of mission. He still hasn’t told me anything, so.”
Remus leaned back from stowing his phone and keys securely in a hatch. “He doesn’t seem like the type of person you can really get things out of.”
“That’s true,” Sirius laughed, and it was easier this time. “Anyway, I’ll let you…I just wanted to say.”
Remus wanted to ask again, if Sirius would come with him, but Sirius was already backing away and so Remus just nodded.
“Thanks.”
He turned after he said it, breathing in the ocean air and trying to still himself, to let the familiarity of his boat and sails wash over him. He would find someone. Maybe they weren’t Sirius Black. Maybe they just weren’t here. Maybe he’d fall in love on the water, or in a classroom, or—
“Can I?” Remus heard Sirius say, and turned to look. Sirius had stopped half way down the dock.
Remus raised an eyebrow.
“Take you up on your offer?”
Remus smiled, even if his hope at Sirius’ words paired with the thought of Saint made his heart a little tender.
“Of course you can,” Remus said.
Sirius jogged towards him with a grin of his own, but he paused before he stepped onto the Wolfsbane, looking down. Remus wondered for a moment if it was the gap over the water, but Sirius had said he sailed, too, he’d said—
Remus understood. He unmoored the nose. “Get that rope back there if you finally want to do something other than watch.”
Sirius jumped to unknot the rope with ease, and then stepped onto the waves beside Remus, using one of his feet to push them away from the dock. Remus let them drift a moment, feeling for the wind. It was quiet for now, but he could see rougher waves out past the point.
“Is it just yours?” Sirius asked as he watched Remus with the tiller.
“Yep, birthday present,” Remus patted the side. “My baby.”
Sirius smiled. “It’s a beautiful boat.”
The wind began to pick up as they got farther from the land, pushing towards the open water. Remus’ heart seemed to pick up with it and, glancing at Sirius, who looked contemplative and—well, beautiful—Remus didn’t think it was merely the sea’s doing.
Remus had never thought too much about Sirius Black. Sirius had been there one day, gone the next, and in the run-ins at James’ house once Sirius had started working there, he had been a suddenly handsome face. Grown into himself and strong from his outdoor work. In turn, Remus always became suddenly awkward around the boy who obviously didn’t like Gods. He and James poked fun at each other, he and Luke were downright hostile, and Remus didn’t know where he fit in.
He hoped the water and the Wolfsbane would do some talking for him, and maybe some listening, too.
They didn’t speak as they began to fly. The pontoons skimmed the waves and the wind would have snatched their voices away, but Remus swore he heard Sirius laugh.
Sirius knew how to sail, too. He breathed it all in, just as Remus did, and they worked together, balancing and pulling and leaning out to trace their fingers along the water’s surface. It felt as warm as a bath against the cool air.
Remus didn’t let them go too far out, he had to be back, but he would have. He would have sailed right to the horizon with Sirius without looking back.
As the wind died down, as they turned around, Remus felt something different. Like a wind change between the two of them. They grinned at each other, flushed with it, and as the wind cut down more, as they past the point, Sirius’ turned self-conscious but it didn’t disappear like before.
The boat settled into a glide towards the shore. Remus let his feet dangle in the water.
“So, the treasure,” Remus asked, because Sirius looked hesitant to talk, sitting there soundly on the other side of the boat. “Do you think it’s real?”
“Fuck if I know,” Sirius replied, and Remus laughed. “But if Saint thinks it’s worth it…I’ll try to go along with it.”
Remus nodded, taking that in. Saint. The mention of him slowed his heart back to a glide along with the boat. Remus cleared his throat and Sirius looked back at him from the horizon questioningly.
“What was that thing with—Logan? I mean, you don’t have to tell me but…”
Sirius took a long breath. “Logan has someone, Finn, inside Saint Clair. Finn helped him escape. And I don’t know if it’s guilt that’s making him help to get Finn out, or something more, but…Saint's the one who can help.”
“Because he escaped.”
Sirius nodded. “Right.”
“Is it complicated?” Remus asked. “Like, is he worried he won’t be able to do it twice?”
Sirius shook his head. “It’s not complicated.”
He was silent for a moment, and Remus didn't want to push him. He waited, seeing if Sirius would continue.
“Saint walked right out the front door,” Sirius finally finished, and looked at Remus. “I think he’s worried because it wasn’t a grand escape, even if he tells it that way. Even if he makes it seem like he climbed walls or something. He’s worried because…because it was a fluke. Sometimes there are doors you can’t walk back through.”
Sirius said the last sentence heavily, as if he had a door of his own. Remus guessed that maybe everyone did.
“So, what’s he going to do for Finn and Logan?”
Sirius just shook his head again. “I have no idea. But I’ll help him in any way that I can.” Half a smile raised Sirius’ mouth. “If he lets me.”
~
“No.”
“Tell me,” Sirius demanded. Saint just rolled his eyes and popped a sweet potato fry into his mouth.
“Tell us,” Dorcas cut in from her place beside Marlene.
“Right,” Sirius said. “Sorry.”
“Saint,” Marlene sighed. “If you’re not going to tell us, it’ll make us think you have no plan at all.”
“Who invited the God?” Saint said airily.
“My girlfriend,” Dorcas scuffed the back of his head.
“Not for long she’s not,” Saint replied, and at Dorcas and Marlene’s expressions, waved a hand. “Come on. She’s going to college, Dor, you’re not…don’t tell me you haven’t talked about it.”
“We—” Dorcas began, but flushed and closed her mouth. Sirius glanced at Marlene, whose eyes were firmly down towards her burger.
“Stop trying to change the subject,” Sirius sighed.
“I’m not, I’m just telling everyone what to expect.”
“Saint,” Sirius leaned forward. “How are you going to get Finn out of Saint Clair? You said last time—”
Saint cut in quickly, “I say a lot of things to you that are just for you, Black.”
“Well, I don’t know what to do with what you said,” Sirius replied. “Come on. Please. Is it because you don’t know? Is that why you won’t say anything?”
Saint stayed quiet, looking down at his food. “I know. We’ll just have to see if it works.”
“Saint,” Dorcas leaned forward and Saint turned his palm up for her hand. He knew they were trying to help. “Babe, we just want to make sure you’re okay.”
“You mean you want to make sure it’s not too insane.”
Sirius nodded. “That, too.”
“Can’t you just rest assured that I’m doing this for myself, too?” Saint said. “I’ll get Finn out, Logan will calm the fuck down, and maybe Luke will let us know about the treasure.”
“Who gives a fuck about this treasure?” Dorcas said harshly.
“It probably doesn’t even exist,” Sirius added.
“You want off this island, like you said? Then you give a fuck.”
Sirius began to shake his head. “It’s not—” he said, but Saint pushed on, voice raising.
“We’ll get Finn out, we’ll get Luke’s help, we’ll get the map, we’ll find my mom—”
Saint stopped talking, frozen by the words that had ripped out of him of their own accord.
Sirius, Dorcas, and Marlene’s eyes were wide. Pity. The word seemed to hang in the air.
“The treasure, I meant,” Saint managed. “We’ll find the treasure and…”
“Saint…” Dorcas said, and when he looked at her…Pity. “Do you know where she is?”
Saint was furious with himself for the slip. He was looking for Sirius. He wanted the treasure for Sirius, he didn’t need it for himself. He didn’t need anything, especially not people who left. Not his mom, not Sirius.
“I don’t need help with Saint Clair,” Saint said and pushed his chair back, leaving them staring at each other across the table.
~
Saint hadn’t let any of them come. He didn’t want anyone here to see him tremble and shake at doing the one thing he had always promised himself he would never do. The one thing he didn’t think he could do.
But, thinking about it, the trick wasn’t getting out. Anyone could walk out the door. The nuns needed it that way, for business. For the appearance of normalcy. The real trick was getting inside without being let in. The way to keep secrets, after all, wasn’t keeping everyone out. Walls begged to be breached. The secret was to filter the truth. Let people see half, a quarter, or different parts at different times. The trick was getting in to see the whole picture.
Maybe Saint was half of Saint Clair, keeping his cards close to his chest.
The offices. He needed to get the the offices, and then he needed to get to Finn. In and out—just not through the door this time.
“What’s the plan?” said a voice just behind him, and Saint closed his eyes.
Sirius.
“I told you not to come,” Saint said.
“And I told me yes,” Sirius parroted. They rolled their eyes at each other even as Sirius rested a gentle hand over Saint’s where it was clenched over his own knee. They crouched beside each other, staring at Saint Clair in the darkness. It was two in the morning, maybe a little past it now, and Saint wanted everyone to be asleep.
He looked towards the chimney. It was wide and old fashioned. It would be too hot for them to be using it tonight.
“Jesus Christ,” Sirius sighed, following his gaze.
“The windows are barred. The doors are alarmed. I’ve cleaned that thing, I know it’s big.”
“Yeah, everything looks big to a seven year old,” Sirius countered.
“Guess we’ll find out.”
“And getting out?” Sirius asked.
“Alarms don’t go off if you open the door from the inside. There’s a kitchen door around the back. We’ll use it. We just have to get in.”
Sirius nodded slowly, and then asked, “Your mom?”
Saint pressed his lips together. He needed to get to the office, and then to Finn, and then out.
He started forward towards the drain pipe, just like on Luke’s house, and didn’t look to see if Sirius was following him.
~
Marlene didn’t like seeing that contemplating look at Dorcas’ face. Dorcas was chewing on her lip, eyes staring at the movie playing on Marlene’s laptop, but she was somewhere else entirely. Marlene put her pencil down at wiggled her toes, which were in Dorcas’ lap. Dorcas blinked and looked at her.
“Don’t listen to Saint,” Marlene said. “He doesn’t know what he’s saying.”
But even saying that ate at her. Marlene thought of the acceptance email, of California and Berkeley, buried in her inbox right now. Tell her, said everything inside, but Dorcas already had that look on her face. The worrying, I-want-everything-that’s-good-for-you-regardless-of-what-it-means-for-me-or-us look.
Marlene didn’t want to see that look. She’d seen it the first time her father had banned her from seeing a Salazar girl. They had been fifteen and Dorcas had offered to stop, and Marlene had kissed the idea right out of her mouth, right out of existence.
This was different. She couldn’t kiss college away. She didn’t want to. But she also wanted Dorcas, and California felt far, far away.
Dorcas chewed on her lip some more, then rubbed a soothing thumb over Marlene’s ankle. “We haven’t really talked about it, though.”
“I know,” Marlene said softly. She pushed herself up and set her sketchbook aside before reaching over to close the laptop, cutting the actor off in mid-sentence. “I guess I’m sort of…avoiding it.”
“We are, you mean,” Dorcas offered her a small smile. “I…I know we said we wanted to just have our summer, and I do want that. But I think I would feel better knowing what you think. About, you know…about when you do start hearing back.”
Marlene looked down as she whispered, “I got into Berkeley.”
A short sucked-out sound of silence filtered in between them for a moment. Marlene looked up.
“I should have said,” Marlene sighed. “I know I should have. I just…”
“Sweetheart,” Dorcas sighed, and then Marlene was pressed back onto the bed, Dorcas’ hard kisses bringing a hot blush to her cheeks. “That’s amazing.”
Marlene hummed against Dorcas’ mouth, a sad-happy sound, and wound her fingers into her hair as Dorcas kissed along her jaw. “It can be as amazing as it wants, but it’s really far away. And you like it here, and—”
“I like you,” Dorcas said, and pushed herself onto her forearms so she could look down at Marlene. “Marls, the question about us was never a debate about you following your dreams and going to college, just like you want. The question lies with me. I don’t know how to pull off following you yet, but I’m working on it.”
Marlene looked up at her and felt tears join the heat within, felt her voice wobble. “I’ll miss you. I want you to be safe, and I want you to be with me.”
Dorcas’ kiss was softer this time. “Me too.”
Marlene enjoyed it for a moment, relief bubbling in her chest, until Dorcas began laughing into her mouth.
“Maybe the boys will find that treasure and give me a piece of it.”
Marlene laughed, too. “God, if that’s our best option…”
They wound tighter together, snuggling down into Marlene’s quilt. Dorcas pressed her forehead against Marlene’s.
“Whatever I can do, I’ll do it,” Dorcas said. “I want you, wherever we are.”
Marlene just kissed her again.
~
Sirius was noisier on the climb than Saint would have liked, but they made it to the slanted roof without trouble, standing on its apex to stare down into the soot-dark.
“Is this really going to work?” Sirius whispered.
“It could.”
“Why not climb the fence? Maybe that door is open.”
“Too loud.”
“Why didn’t you let Logan come with us?”
Saint huffed out an annoyed breath. “Because if this goes wrong, what Finn did was for nothing. If this goes really wrong, at least there would still be one of us on the outside who knows what it looks like inside,” Saint stared out at the trees and bit of coast they could see by moonlight from here. “One of us who doesn’t return every night, that is.”
Saint went down the chimney first, one step at a time. The stones and rusted iron rungs provided easy enough footholds, they just had to hope no one was having a midnight cup of tea when they reached the bottom. He looked up once, blinking through the fine grit of ash that seemed to hang in the air, at Sirius’ face, the silver moonlight like a halo around his dark hair.
And Saint kept climbing down. He went slowly, listening hard. If someone was down there, they’d hear him, and then he’d hear them, and he could scramble back up the chimney and out of sight. Once he was down, however, who knew what they would do to keep him that way. He could practically taste the heavy sleep of Crucio, and his stomach rolled against the images it brought back. The many different families—fathers, siblings, and mothers. So many mothers that he didn’t even know which had been his own anymore.
He hated them for it. He hated them for thinking he wanted that.
Saint’s trembling foot slipped on the last hold and he tumbled out, only barely withholding a cry as the log holders scraped heavily across his side.
“Saint,” came Sirius’ harsh whisper from above him, and Saint waved a hand beneath the flue to show he was okay, then pushed himself up from the now ashy floor, gripping his side.
He knew this room too well. He knew it through the over-active eyes of a five year old. He knew it through the only slightly more alert gaze of his seven year old self.
It was smaller than he remembered. Shabbier than it had seemed then, with its hard couches and children’s books, its desk by the window that still held a letter opener that he had eyed a few times, wondering if he could fight his way out like heroes did in the books he read. Now, he willed all to stay quiet as he walked over and picked up the dull knife. He hated the sight of it.
Sirius came after him, more smartly, landing feet first.
“You could have fucking impaled yourself,” Sirius whispered.
“I didn’t, though,” Saint said, and looked at his ribs. The cuts stung, but the bleeding didn’t look too bad, just enough to dot uneven lines across his t-shirt.
Sirius lifted his shirt to see, and passed a careful thumb near the worst of them, his other a familiar weight on the side of Saint’s neck.
“Let’s go,” Saint whispered.
“Wait,” Sirius said, and turned Saint’s gaze gently to meet his own.
“We don’t have all the time in the world,” Saint began, but Sirius just shook his head, silencing him.
“Listen to me,” Sirius whispered. “All right? Just this once. Just listen to me.”
Saint closed his eyes briefly. “We don’t have time to talk.”
That only succeeded in bringing Sirius’ other hand to his cheek. “If something goes wrong, you just run.” Sirius reached down and took the knife, setting it back on the desk. “Don’t think about me. They can’t keep me.”
“They’ll give you to your parents,” Saint warned.
“I don’t care,” Sirius said. “They can’t keep me. They could try to keep you and I won’t let that happen.”
Saint looked up at Sirius. The only person he could ever remember caring. Saint didn’t like that a side effect of being cared about was caring back, didn’t like that risk…but he liked Sirius.
“You’re leaving anyway,” Saint said. “It doesn’t matter where I am.”
“I never said that and you’re wrong.”
“But you will say it.”
Saint turned away, keeping a hand laced with Sirius’ to pull him towards the dorms. He knew the words sounded accusing and regretful, but he only half meant them that way. Sirius deserved to go.
Sirius didn’t respond. It wasn’t the moment, and they needed to listen for other things.
The dorms came up on their left. Boys to one side of the hall, girls to the other. Saint paused, looking in.
You’ll sleep here with the rest of the boys, Sebastian. Be a good boy and make your bed every morning and you’ll get a treat with breakfast. Chocolate milk, how does that sound?
“Was this you?” Sirius whispered, and Saint shrugged.
“I slept all over this place,” Saint breathed to Sirius. “I’d sneak into the other dorms, the attic, the reading room. I was just…” Saint turned away, unable to stand the softly rising and falling chests of the boys within. “I was just trying to find a place where I felt like myself. Maybe it wasn’t the place, though.”
Maybe it was the dreams. Maybe the drug.
“Maybe it’s just me,” Saint said.
Grimmauld was the closest he had ever gotten, the most settled he’d ever felt. He loved the ocean, and his gold draped vanity, and Sirius always beside him. But there was still—something. A misplaced, tweaked something inside of him that was feeling around in the dark for a comfortable position. Saint didn’t even know what he was looking for, but he did know that it was too dark to find it right now. Sirius had been the first gleam of bright, a pin-prick of a star, a friend, a lover, and a safe place. But stars weren’t a moon or a sun. He needed light to see.
“Let’s go,” Saint said. “This way.”
They walked the halls carefully, listening after nearly every step. Saint knew that the nuns slept at the other end of the house, but that they woke to check in on the children. He couldn’t remember when, though. With the Crucio, his young age, and the late hour, the nights had felt the same and endless. He’d shuffled around like a small ghost, trying to escape the unfamiliar dream-faces. They’d only caught him a few times. A slap on the wrist. Solitary.
That’s why he nearly jumped when they heard the first footsteps. He was seven again, haunting this place and being haunted in return. Saint froze, eyes on the bend in the hallway.
“Here,” Sirius whispered, and together they ducked into a room—the offices, Saint realized—and behind the open wooden door. They huddled together, barely daring to breathe as the footsteps got closer.
“Sirius,” Saint breathed, and didn’t realize he was trembling again until Sirius’ arms wrapped around his shoulders.
“Shh,” Sirius hushed him.
The footsteps passed right by them, towards the kitchen, Saint realized, and Sirius pressed Saint against him more tightly, no doubt feeling the dry pants that his breathing had turned into. They would be caught. They would be seen. Saint hid his face in Sirius’ neck.
Don’t be a waste of space, boy. Line up, after number six, come on.
He took up too much space here.
Try that again, Sebastian, and you know what happens.
Saint hated that name. He couldn’t remember who had given him that name. His mother? The nuns? What was a name if it was just a number, too? A way to keep track of him. A way to tell him what he was. Orphan boy. Five. Six. Seven. Abandoned. Good. Bad. Asleep. Awake.
Go to sleep now, there’s a good boy.
The hall was silent again and Saint felt Sirius’ embrace ease, felt his hand running soothingly along his spine.
“I’ve got you,” Sirius said the words so quietly they were barely words at all. “Let’s just go. Let’s get out of here.”
“Finn,” Saint rasped.
Saint looked up and saw the protest in Sirius’ eyes. It was wrong of Logan to make you come here.
“I told him to stay away,” Saint said softly. “I needed to come. I needed to come and get out again.”
Saint needed to get rid of some of this damned dark.
Saint pulled away from Sirius carefully and peaked around the door with a dry swallow before walking over to the cabinets. Records. They weren’t in alphabetical order, though. They were numbered.
Saint fingered his cross, looking towards 1-20.
7.
He traced a finger over a key hole dejectedly, and tried the handle anyway. Locked.
“Saint,” Sirius breathed. “Your mom?”
Saint shook his head, clutching his necklace. “It doesn’t matter.”
“I didn’t know you wanted…”
“I don’t,” Saint snapped. “Let’s get Finn.”
The door to solitary was one that Saint knew well. It was a normal door, and the room beyond was a normal room. It was the memories that made it unbearable to see. Almost every kid Saint had known knew what it meant to be in that room. Alone, the wallpaper flowers withered, the bed turned cold, and the ever-changing family members flickered through your mind without anything to counter it. No reality. There was a glass window with the shade pulled. Saint hesitated for a long moment before lifting it up.
“Finn,” he breathed.
Finn’s red hair was fiery against the white bed spread. He was asleep, and Saint swore he could see Finn’s eyelids flicker from here.
Saint wrapped his fingers carefully around the door. The trick was getting in to see the whole picture.
Everything in Saint Clair felt locked from within. Everything in Saint did, too. It had taken years of wandering around at night for Saint to discover that he could open more doors than he had thought. He was still trying doors eight years alter.
The hinges didn’t so much as squeak, and Saint felt like a ghost again.
“Don’t let this close on me,” Saint whispered to Sirius. His voice shook and just one of his feet just barely breaching the threshold.
Sirius held the frame fast and shook his head, leaning forward to press a steady kiss to Saint’s forehead.
Saint crossed the small room in two slow steps and knelt beside the bed, the motion making the punctures on his torso ache. He pressed a hand to Finn’s cheek and stroked a gentle thumb across the freckles on his skin until Finn stirred.
“Bash,” Finn murmured, eyes barely open.
“Hi, Finn,” Saint said softly and gathered Finn into a sloppy sitting position. “Let’s get you out of here, huh? See if you’re worth all of this fucking trouble.”
“Crucio,” was Finn’s only half-spoken reply. “They make it.”
And then Finn went limp again in Saint’s arms.
~
All Logan could taste was sour guilt, despite the heaven Leo had placed on a plate in front of him not too long ago.
For Saint. For Leo. For the letter and even Luke. For the map. The treasure. The Carrows.
Finn.
His heart ached with the thought of seeing him. Of holding him.
“Why weren’t we allowed to go with him?” Logan asked Leo for what he knew was the tenth time, but he couldn’t help it. “I asked him to help me, not go for me.”
“It’s easier to get one person in and out than two?” Leo said. He was puttering around the small kitchen, had been for the last hour, and the entire house smelled like sugar and cinnamon now, replacing the herbs, lemon, and chicken. He didn’t look at Logan when he said it.
He hadn’t looked at Logan much at all since the night at the museum.
Logan watched him taste a bit of what looked like frosting and wet his lips.
“Are you mad at me?” Logan whispered.
Leo’s restless hands paused. Logan watched his chest rise and fall once.
“I’m not mad,” Leo said finally. The heat of the oven had fluffed out his hair. “I mean, I’m not sure if we reached a dead-end or not…and you could have told me you were going to do that. I said I would help you, didn’t I?”
“I needed Ba—Saint,” Logan replied. “But I also…I should have told you. And I shouldn’t have made Saint go. I just want…he’s my family. Finn is my…”
“I understand why you did it,” Leo cut in softly. “I probably would have done worse if I thought that there was something that could save my dad.”
That just made Logan feel even smaller, sitting at the table. Leo glanced at him, gave him a tight smile, then went to the sink and began scrubbing dishes.
“Hey,” Logan said, then rose and strode over to Leo. “Hey, let me clean up.”
“I just need something to do,” Leo said shortly.
“Me, too.”
They stood, their shoulders pressed together. Logan washed. Leo dried. He slipped cinnamon rolls into the oven and then returned. They kept close to each other at the sink and it felt…so normal. Like a home. Leo felt like a home.
“I never really thanked you properly,” Logan said into the now more comfortable silence. “For letting me stay with you. And—I just want to say, and now with Finn…I understand if you want us to leave. I mean, three’s a crowd.”
“You’re welcome here,” Leo said quickly. Logan watched his throat bob. He was looking away again. “You should do what feels best for you, but you’re both welcome here. Just—”
Leo paused, and Logan found himself suddenly desperate to hear what he had to say. He knew he hadn’t been friendly all the time. He knew he’d been selfish. Leo had been nothing but kind. He was funny and warm, teaching Logan how to weld two pieces of metal, talking about the latest book he was reading while he whisked batter and handed Logan different new recipes he was trying out.
Finn would like Leo, Logan thought, and glanced towards the door. Maybe he was about to find out.
“Never mind,” Leo said, and flashed a smile.
Logan went to protest, but then his phone began buzzing madly on the table and he all but lunged for it.
~
Luke stared down at his father’s handwriting.
Luke, it began. And then there was a name.
Pascal Dumais.
There was no mention of himself. There was nothing. Luke had thought this would make him feel better, make it easier. Only, now, he was frustrated to the point of tears. He couldn’t seem to ease the lump that was lodged in his throat. He clutched the paper in his fingers hard enough to tear, willing something else to appear on it. He thought of Felix.
“Well?” said a voice from his window.
“Oh—” Luke flinched, surprised, then cursed at Saint, who was stretched out on his window sill. “Come on. Are you kidding me?”
Saint’s mouth twitched up in a smile, but it was strained. He was sitting awkwardly, tense rather than his usual languid posture.
“What’s wrong with you?” Luke asked hesitantly, trying to discreetly wipe at his face.
“What isn’t?”
Luke spotted the blood between Saint’s fingers and rose. “You’re hurt.”
“I fell down a chimney.”
“Is that a joke?”
“No.”
Luke blinked. “That’s how you got into Saint Clair? And you climbed to my window?”
Saint pulled himself all the way through the window with a soft groan and Luke walked forward, hands hovering near Saint’s shoulders, unsure if he should help.
“The orphan?” he asked instead, then at Saint’s sharp look, “Finn?”
“Sirius is bringing him to Grimmauld.”
“What’s Grimmauld?”
Saint sat down heavily in Luke’s desk chair, hand still pressed to his side. He had what looked like soot on his hands and face. “A place.” He picked up a book. Jane Eyre. “Didn’t take you for a romantic.”
“You’re bleeding all over my room.”
“Lucky you.”
Luke tucked the note into the pocket of his shorts. “Fuck—come here. Jesus.”
He walked into his bathroom and jammed the light switch up, looking back when Saint didn’t follow him. “Come here.”
Saint rose, still holding the book. “I am coming!” Saint quoted, head tilted in a way that made his neck look long. “Wait for me! Oh, I will come!”
“Very funny,” Luke sighed, but the corner of his mouth twitched. “I wouldn’t have taken you for a reader.”
“Why?” Saint said as he stepped out of the darkness of the bedroom and into the yellow-lighted bathroom. His brown eyes took on the soft yellow, too, and he leaned forward as he pushed himself up onto the counter carefully. “Because I don’t buy my books and,” Saint looked down at the book, flipping through it. “Write all over them like you do?”
“Because you didn’t go to school,” Luke said with a raised eyebrow as he ducked for the first aid kit beneath his sink. It was good to have one near during the lacrosse season—or it used to be.
Saint rolled his eyes. “You Gods and your single paths in life. You’re all stupid.”
“Then why are you here?” Luke asked as he unlatched the kit.
“Because this is the last place anyone would look for me,” Saint replied. “And you’re mean.”
“Mean? Are we in seventh grade?” Luke scoffed as he wet a towel in the sink. “I don’t know if it’s healthy to want to be around people who you think are mean to you."
“I just don’t want to talk about it,” Saint said. “And that’s all Sirius will want to do. And I don’t want to. And we don’t have this shit at Grimmauld.”
“Is that where you live?”
Saint just set the book down and reached behind himself to tug his shirt over his head. Luke tried not to stare at Saint’s smooth, light brown skin. He swallowed, busying himself with the bandages and the wet towel again.
“For all the breaking into places you do, maybe you should invest in some band-aids,” Luke said, and glanced down at the finely woven muscle on Saint’s ribs, at the red edges of the slashes. “If you flinch too much, you’re doing this yourself.”
Saint smiled. “Mean.”
“Fuck off,” Luke said, out of reflex, and then pressed his lips together. Saint laughed and then hissed as Luke pressed the towel to the cut.
They were close like this, Luke leaned in to dab the blood away, and then dot it with disinfectant, all while Saint’s muscles jumped beneath the palm he had steadied low on his belly. He could feel Saint watching him, and remembered waking up to those eyes. Saint’s hand in his hair.
“How did you do it?” Luke said into the small space between them. “Get in and out.”
“The chimney.”
So, he was serious.
“What did the letter say?” Saint asked.
Luke glanced up at him warily, but wiped a hand on his shorts before fishing the letter out of his pocket and handing it over. “Do you know who that is?”
Saint read it quietly, and then met Luke’s eyes. Luke was stuck there, pinned like a tack in a map, marking the place to be.
“Yes,” Saint said, and smiled brightly. “I know exactly who this is.”
183 notes · View notes
reverse-moon · 2 years
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Welcome to "It's 2:44 am in the god damn morning and I can't sleep because itchy and then a bop came on and now I need to fucking make an AU based on like two or three episodes of Sofia the First and a movie special for Elena of Avalor, someone please send help." 😀
Roman - Elena (no, not because race or anything like that, because Elena was out of the amulet for 5 goddamn minutes and she fucking burst into song about how she's gonna be a hero then promptly fell on her face because revenge plot had holes.)
Sofia - Patton (you can't tell me Patton wouldn't fucking melt at understanding animals.)
Mateo - Virgil (was gonna be Logan, but tbh Mateo has anxiety about messing spells up and from what I've seen of Elena of Avalor, has a crush on Elena after a while, and who doesn't like a good chaotic Prinxiety mess? Don't answer that-)
Logan - ... King Roland (tbh I don't really know how I'm gonna justify this one other than Roland's allergic to cats and so are all the sides due to Thomas being allergic so....? Work with me here, it's not easy.)
Janus - Shuriki (not because I like Evil Janus, but because I'm running out of spots he'd fit. And because if I put him as Alakazar or Zuzo, it would be way weird??? Like bruh, why you a book? Or like bruh, why you a talking wolf-lookin ass spirit guide?)
Remus - Esteban (for the longest time, Esteban kinda just has his own agenda and then eventually he realizes Elena 100% loves him like a brother and it's just heartwarming to see him go from evil to nice and supportive so-){{I also may be misremembering, but shush, at least in the Secret of Avalor specials, he goes from evil to good}}
Zuzo - Orange (because he's not technically canon yet, and therefore is a blank slate >:3)
Alakazar - Thomas (because he's a magical bitch.)
Emile - James (because he's too nice to be a stuck up prick like Amber.)
Remy - Amber (see above reason for Emile but swap "too nice to be" to "literally just a".)
Nico - Miranda (because I can't fucking figure out why Logan in any AU would fall for and marry one of Thomas' friends.)
Valerie - Isabel (look I just wanted to shoehorn in someone who could fit and I just really like Val okay?!)
So what changes are there?
Well, Janus' wand isn't blue and his special made throne is made of citrine not diamonds. Patton's not a fucking 10 year old doing this and his step siblings are Remy and Emile. Orange is Zuzo. Thomas is Alakazar. Logan is still Logan, but he's also really open to Patton's Dad (there's honestly no good match up and I feel soo weird making it one of Thomas' friends, so he's gonna just be Nico) and his kids about his emotions. Roman's little sister is Valerie and her colour is shifted to more of a pink then blue. The Jaquines are still chaos but good.
No major changes tbh, besides ages of Sofia, Amber, and James counterparts. The Isabel counterpart is a little older, but not by much. A year, maybe.
We don't really get Shuriki's backstory in Secret of Avalor, but Janus' reason for going evil is the hate he got for his snake side and so he wanted to punish and torture Avalor for his pain. Naturally, Roman and Remus are p furious at him because "you fucking hurt our family" but Patton and Valerie convince them to just jail Janus and try and offer a normal life instead of a heated one and surprisingly Avalor is like "we're willing to give him a second chance if he doesn't try hurting us" so the twins cave and put Janus in prison for a few months as they repair Avalor and then reintroduce him to the country and start the healing.
Meanwhile, Patton is like "I saved a kingdom and I saved a prince and the Secret Library is now gonna officially let me go on bigger Storykeeper quests!" Logan's just a Proud Papa™. Nico's an Ultra Proud Papa™©.
I started this post at 2:44 am and now it's 3:18 am. You're Welcome.
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whydoyouwantmyname · 4 years
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Imagine being Sirus’s daughter
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-You were born in the year 1978, your mother was a muggle who Sirius met at a punk rock concert, and they had dated for a few months before deciding they were better off parting way as soon as he revealed he was a wizard.
-When she gave birth to you, Sirius hadn’t even known she was pregnant, and she didn’t tell him until you were 6 months old, when she went to his flat and frantically knocked on the door.
“Olivia, it’s six o’clock in the fucking morning, why are you...” and then he noticed the baby carrier
“She is one of you Sirius, she made...” her voice loud with frustration as she hushed it, “she made all of her toy fly at me when I told her it was nap time, she once cried and all the lights blew. Sirius I can not have this thing live in my house.”
“Clearly not if you are calling her a thing.” He snapped before snatching the carrier out of her hand, “I suggest you sell all her baby things, I don’t want her having a single reminder of you in her life.”
-He slammed the door in her face, and quickly placed you on the sofa, and just stared at you, for an hour. Internationally he was freaking out, he was 18, Fresh out of Hogwarts, and had zero idea how to parent a child. So he did the only thing that made rational sense, and picked up the phone.
“Hey mom, I have to tell ya something....yes I know it is early, but I just couldn’t wait to tell you....No, no I am not in jail again, however you might wanna sit down for this one..... you’re a grandma.”
-The phone was silent, and next thing he knew his fireplace lit up green, and out stepped Euphemia Potter, who was still dressed in her night gown, her eyes wide as she looked at her son’s best friend, and then noticed the small child asleep in her carrier. “She’s beautiful.”
“Mom I have zero idea how to even...”
“Trust me Padfoot,” the name slipped so comfortably out of her mouth as he looked at her with panic, “None of us do. We just do it, and pray that we don’t accidentally hex them.”
-That morning Euphemia spent teaching Sirius all about how to care for a baby, but quickly learned his new delima, “Do you have anything for her?”
“No, her mother just dropped her off this morning, I didn’t even know...”
“Did she tell you her name at least?”
“No.”
“Well, how about [Y/N]? That’s what I would have named James if he was a girl.”
“[Y/N] Euphemia Black, I like it.” He smiled, looking over at a surprised Euphemia, “What? I always hear that it was a muggle tradition to give your daughter’s your mother’s middle name.”
-After that she took you and Sirius out to a muggle baby store, and the grocery store, and bought you everything you could ever need. The whole time you were with the two, you never cried, you just stared at them with your [Y/C/E]’s and played with the small rattle Euphemia bought you. Once you returned to the flat, she flicked her wand and you watched in wonder in her arms as all the furniture started to assemble itself, while your father put all the baby food and bottles away. Soon he was putting the clothes she had bought you on the hangers, while Euphemia rocked you to sleep, your eyelids heavy as she looked down at your smooth face. Her trance was broken though by Sirius’s soft voice, “How do I know I wouldn’t turn out like her?”
“Because you would never allow yourself to. I know your mother was a vile woman, who had no regard for her children, but you Sirius Black, are the greatest thing she ever created. Besides you are an amazing friend to James, and I can only imagine you will treat this little girl as well as you do my son.” She stated before slowly raising and removing the maroon and gold sweater from his fingers, and hung it up for him. “Now, I am sure Lily is already at the house frantically worrying about this wedding that’s in a few days, so I will give this precious angel to her daddy, and call you tomorrow?”
“Of course, give them all my love.” Sirius smiled as she gently placed you into his arms, before looking to him, “You will do amazing things [Y/N], I just know it.”
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-For the next week Sirius didn’t allow anyone into his flat, he just wanted to spend that time admiring your features, and learning how to be the fun dad. However after 7 days there was a pounding on his door, and behind it stood a tall, lean man, with shaggy brown hair, and glasses. In his arms were neatly wrapped boxes, and a stag plushie sat on the top.
“Really, you couldn’t have bought her a dog one after her father?” Sirius joked as James smiled, his voice filled with joy as he replied, “Never.”
-The moment you saw James, you immediately smiled, and crawled over to his feet as quickly as you could, your hands grasping at his pants as he sat the boxes down on the kitchen counter. “So you must be [Y/N]?” All he got as a reply was a giggle, and soon you were up in his arms.
-That afternoon you spent attached to James, and while him and Sirius talked, he would slowly dance around the flat with you, or throw you in the air, which also caused you to release a loud giggle. Sirius’s stress would rise quickly when he did, but once you were safely back in his hand, James would look at his friend and smile, “Don’t worry Pads, I won’t hurt our little princess.”
-Soon there was more knocking at the door, and behind it was Remus, and Peter. The man of the house quickly enveloped his friends into a hug, and opened the door wider to reveal James holding you upside down, as giggles filled the air. Quickly he lifted back to the vertical position and spun you around quickly, until you leaned into his shoulder. When he stopped Remus looked to Sirius, “Clearly we know who her favorite uncle is going to be.”
“Bullshit Mooney, she is going to love you all the same.” Sirius reassured as James stroked your back, “[Y/N], ready to meet your other uncles?”
-You immediately leaned out of James arms and right into Remus’s chest, your hands going to his face as you patted it quickly. However soon your fingers were tracing the light scars on the man’s face, your touches were delicate as you lightly brushed his warm skin. Remus tensed slightly under your touch, almost scared that you would cry within seconds, however you quickly placed your head onto his shoulder, and cuddled into him, causing Sirius to smile, “Told ya.”
-Peter was terrified to touch you, he preferred to just watch you interact with the others, and when you tried to climb up onto his lap, he stiffened. You immediately started to tear up, causing James to quickly scoop you up.
-That afternoon you napped on Remus’s shoulder.
-James and Remus both volunteered to change you, Peter was too timid to even try.
-Later that evening there was one last knock, James jumped up immediately and reached out to Sirius for you, a smile on his face as he said to you, “Alright [Y/N], now you are going to meet one of the most important woman in my life, but don’t worry, it doesn’t mean I love you any less.”
-When Lily saw you, her hands went to her face, as she silently freaked out, “Merlin, she is beautiful Padfoot.”
“Not as beautiful as her Auntie Lily.” James replied as you leaned forward and allowed Lily to hold you. She quickly cuddled you into her chest and smiled.
-As soon as Lily arrived you refused to leave her, not even James, who you were previously attached to could take you away from her, if they tried your eyes immediately watered.
-James pouted a bit about that, but Lily just chuckled and stated, “Don’t worry Love, I am sure she still loves you.”
-That night you fell asleep in Lily’s arms, and soon she was softly walking towards your nursery to put you to sleep. She smiled though at the sight of the stag plushie, and made a mental note to pick up one to represent the other boys.
-When she returned to the parlor, she smiled at the sight of the four young men, who were currently gushing over the small infant who was sleeping.
-That night when it was just James, Lily, and Sirius, he asked them if they would be your godparents. They agreed.
-The next day Lily arrived to the flat and handed Sirius a wolf, a rat, and a black dog plushie for you, and then she sat on his couch with a cup of tea, as they discussed life, your small body seated upon Sirius’s lap as you chug to your black dog plush.
-Whenever Lily saw a cute child’s outfit she would pick it up for you.
-Remus was famous for buying you books
-Peter often bought you random trinkets
-James always bought you toys.
-On full moons, Lily would babysit you, which you enjoyed, especially once you were older. She normally would play disney movies, and read to you 100 stories. She was always ready to play dress up, or paint with you.
-On nights where the order would met Euphemia and Fleamont would watch you, at their own estate. You enjoyed going to the Potter’s, and would crawl or toddle to each different room on the bottom floor. You also had a habit of falling asleep in the parlor with the pair, Fleamont normally was reading to you out of one of his many book, while Euphemia held you, her fingers tracing through your hair.
-Once they were done either meeting or fighting, Sirius, James, and Lily would drag themselves into the manor, and head to the parlor, where they would smile almost immediately at the sight of the small girl asleep on the couch.
-Sometimes when you would cry, Sirius would transform into the dog form, to which you would stop crying immediately and cuddle into the raven color, soft, fur.
-Your first word was Dadda, quickly followed by “Pong” which you would yell often at James.
-You knew all of your uncles by their Nick names, and sometimes they would find themselves calling each other the names you had assigned. James was Pong, Remus was Ooney, and Peter was Ermtail. You called Lily, Elily
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-You were the flower girl in James and Lily’s wedding, they had you sit in a wagon, which was bewitched to move down the aisle, and once it stopped at the end, Sirius went to scoop you up, and held you beside James and Remus.
-When James turned to Sirius to get Lily’s wedding band, you were the one holding it out to him, with a smile he plucked the small golden band from your little hand and whispered, “Thank you darling.”
-At the reception each of the marauders danced with you, even Peter, however he only danced half the song with you, before passing you off to Lily. Remus walked up beside the timid man and clapped his shoulder, “Don’t worry Wormtail, you won’t break her.”
-Albus and Minerva were obsessed with you, each one taking time to hold you and shower you in attention. Minerva looked at Sirius at one point and whispered, “I can already tell this girl is going to be a handful, just like her father.”
“I hope so Professor.” He joked as she carefully handed you back.
-Lily and James both danced with you together, and some of your favorite pictures were taken that night, as James and Lily spun you around, or swayed together with you on your uncle’s hip.
-Your father and you were the last ones on the dance floor, his breath smelled slightly of fire whiskey, and your eyes were heavy, but that didn’t stop your father from holding you close to his chest, your head resting on his shoulder, as he softly swayed you.
-That night when you arrived back to the flat, he carefully placed you down onto the changing table and quietly changed you out of the dress you had surprisingly worn the whole day, and into a pair of Jammies that Euphemia had gotten you. As he placed you into the crib, he couldn’t help but notice how much you had changed in such a short time. He spent the rest of the night sitting in your room, watching you sleep as he pondered the thoughts of his current life.
-For your first birthday, they had a small gathering at Jame’s and Lily’s flat, Lily had spent the whole day before decorating and cooking, while James attempted to help. However as your Uncle Remus would later tell you once you were older, all your Uncle James did was eat the cupcakes Lily had been making, which resulted in her sending James to Sirius’s flat, where he sat with the Marauders, joking and drinking while you were left in Lily’s care. (Who had picked you up when she dropped of James)
-When you arrived your attention was stolen by all the decorations, which were all natural colored, but had a bit of sparkle to them. Your father however was taken by the food spread that Lily had made, “Goodness Lily, are you feeding an army?”
“Have you seen the way you four eat Pads? You basically are an army.” She sassed as she extended her arms towards you, “Besides, I will spare no expense for this little bundle of joy.”
-When Remus arrived you were on the floor with your father and James. However at the sight of Remus, you pushed yourself up from the floor, and wandered towards your uncle, however after three steps your balance caused you to fall, and look up towards Remus with tears in your eyes at the fact that you had failed. Sirius staring at you in wonder as Remus scooped you up.
-Those were your first steps.
-Lily had made you your own little, jam filled, smash cake, it was completely covered in green frosting and on the top of it sat a tree, which she had purchased completely made of chocolate. In different tones blue frosting she had made a small pond, and within the smears of blue she wrote upon it Happy Birthday Darling in red frosting. Meanwhile all the adults got to eat the cupcakes, which she had filled with raspberry jam. Sirius couldn’t help but chuckle as he looked towards James, “Your future children are going to be so spoiled.”
-Later that night when it was just James, Sirius and Lily, they told him Lily was pregnant, and that they were going to tell his parents the next day. They also revealed that they wanted to name Sirius The Godfather. “We figured we would return the favor.” James joked as he looked down towards your small frame, the brand new teddy bear tucked your your face as you sucked your thumb in your sleep.
-That night you and Sirius had a sleepover with the Potters, and when you awoke that morning James and Lily were already gone. This left Sirius to gather all of your presents and hurry home with them, after feeding you some eggs, and apple juice.
-That night while you sat on your father’s lap, there was a knock upon the door. Cautiously Sirius put you down in your crib and advanced towards the door, wand drawn. When he looked into the peephole he saw the back of his best friend, upon opening the door, he saw the red rimming of his eyes, clear evidence of his sorrow. Without saying a word to Sirius he just walked past him, and straight into the nursery, where you giggled with excitement to see your Uncle. His lips forced themselves into a smile as he leaned in and picked you up, his feet dragging as he flopped into the rocking chair and held you. Normally you would have been squirming, wanting nothing more than to play with him, but you knew he just needed your stillness.
-It took Lily an hour to call Sirius’s, “Is he there?”
“Yes, he has just been sitting with [Y/N], not saying a word...”
“He hasn’t told you?” Lily cut him off
“Told me what? Did something happen to the...”
“No, no baby Potter is fine. But Sirius... I am so sorry. Euphemia and Fleamont caught Dragon Pox’s. When we went to the house they weren’t there, the neighbors had said they saw an ambulance, so we rushed to Saint Mungo’s. By the time we arrived....” her voice slightly broke but that was all Sirius needed, “Mum’s dead, isn’t she?”
“Sirius, I am so sorry. Dad’s not doing well either, they estimate he has maybe a week.”
-With that the phone dropped, and his feet took him to his friend, fresh tears covered both their faces as he gently wrapped James in a hug. None of you moved for what felt like forever.
“Can I stay here tonight?” James finally whispered, his voice hoarse, as Sirius muttered, “Of course, as long as you like.”
-Fleamont passed away two days later.
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-When James and Lily introduced you to Harry, you were obsessed. You wanted nothing more than to always be near the small bundle.
-The Marauders loved having two babies to spoil now. However Peter was still extremely timid around you both.
- There was only once where you were jealous of Harry, but that was just because James was holding him, and not paying attention to you lightly tapping his leg. You just sat down at his feet, and silently started tearing up, which Lily immediately noticed. This caused her to quickly advance towards James and removed Harry from his arms, James had a look of confusion, until he heard your small sniffle. Quickly he scooped you up, and apologized.
-You loved trying to help Lily with Harry. However sometimes you were too helpful, but Lily never scolded you, just corrected the behavior.
-There was one night where she was left to watch you and Harry while the order handled some affairs. You hadnt spent a night there since they had moved to Godric Hollow. She awoke to hear muffled whimpers from her son’s room, and quickly rose to collect her house coat and check on him. Upon passing your room she hadn’t noticed that your door was open, so when she opened Harry’s she was surprised to see that you had climbed into Harry’s crib, and were softly singing a nursery rhyme Euphemia had taught you to him. His eyes growing heavy as you looked towards Lily, “He was sad, now he’s better.”
“I’m sorry Love, did his crying wake you?” She whispered as she carefully lifted you out of the crib with the sleeping boy, as you gently nodded your head, “I’m sorry.”
“Oh there is nothing to be sorry about, I just wish I had the camera out to record that precious moment. How about next time though, you come get me?”
“Deal.” You smiled as she placed you back into the bed, and tucked you in.
-The next morning she told the others what you had done, and joked with Sirius, “You know she’s going to make a fine older sister someday.”
“My darling Lily, that would require me setting down, and that is not happening any time soon.” He teased back as you lifted your arms with pride, a clear plate infront of you as you giggled, “Done!”
“Splendid, now thank Auntie Lily for the pancakes, and say goodbye to everyone.” Sirius smiled as you did as instructed, and gave everyone, except Peter, a syrupy kiss on the cheek.
- the day after Sirius did missions for the order he normally wanted nothing more then to spend the day with you, in the flat. Normally you would both do arts and crafts, or he would watch what muggles called VHS tapes. You guys also spent the day eating snack foods, your favorite being Orange Maids, your father’s was chocolate.
-When Harry turned 1, you were excitingly running around the house, Harry crawling after you as the three adults sat on the couch, whispering amongst themselves. You had no idea how the conversation they were having would change your life forever.
-You once asked why Uncle Ooney never came to the flat anymore, to which your dad just told you Moony was sick. You had no idea that they ever suspected him of being a spy.
-The first time you saw Peter in the house at Godric Hollow you felt like something was off, and avoided him more than normal.
-It was two months later, you hadn’t known yet that this would be the last day you saw Auntie Lily, and Uncle Prong. Your father was extremely cautious to make sure you weren’t followed, and carefully snuck into the house. When you were placed onto the ground you took off running through the house, wanting so badly to show off your costume. The whole house was decorated, candles were lit everywhere, and streamers dangled from the living room ceiling. When you entered the kitchen however the counter was lined with food, and Harry sat in a high chair at the table, a tired James sitting beside him, as Lily stood at the stove.
“Uncle Prong, look at my costume!” You instructed, as he looked away from the Cheerios that littered the tray, and smiled at your outfit.
“Wow, we’re identical.” He gasped as you raced over and gave him a hug, Sirius stood in the doorway as Lily looked at the two of you, turning her head slightly she whispered, “Was this her idea, or yours?”
“She told me she wanted to go as Uncle Prong, figured it won’t be too hard to pull off.”
-That night you all stayed in, Lily was playing a muggle show on the tele, while you all sat on the couch eating candy. As your eyes grew heavy, Sirius looked down toward you, and whispered to his friends, “We best be on our way.”
“Oh come now, you only just arrived 5 hours ago, why don’t you two spend the night and in the morning...”
“I would love too, but I unfortunately have to get this little one home, would hate to have her dressed like your ugly mug two days in a row.” Sirius joked as James pretended to be offended.
-You sleepily gave both James and Lily a hug, unfortunately Harry was already asleep in his room so you were unable to say goodbye to the small baby that had been dressed up as a Lion that year.
“I love you.” You softly whispered to them during both of their hugs, they tightened their grip in response and replied back.
James: I love you to the moon and back my dear.
Lily: I love you too my little Prong.
-As soon as you got home, you fell asleep in your costume, Sirius didn’t have the heart to wake you up to change so he just closed your door and let you be
-when you awoke, it was to your father’s screams, and the slamming of the door. When you crawled out of bed, you saw the man your father called Albus, standing in your living room. He lowered his head, and sank to the floor, his eyes watery with tears as his soft weeps overtook him. They only paused however when he felt your soft touch. It was then Dumbledore looked to you, and whispered, “Do you want to go see your Uncle Remus?”
-When Dumbledore arrived to the cottage in the woods Remus had, he softly knocked. Your small frame in his arms, as Remus opened the door. “Remus.” His voice was soft, “The worst has happened.”
-When Dumbledore left, Remus was sitting on the couch, his eyes glassy as he looked towards you, the child of a man he had been convinced to be a traitor. But he knew Sirius, he knew Sirius would never betray his friends, yet.... here you were, no one had any idea where your father was, or how Voldemort died. But he did know one thing, he needed to take care of you while Sirius was away.
-Two days later you saw your father again.... on the front of the Daily Prophet, you would learn later in life he had went away for murdering Peter Pettigrew, the man who really betrayed his friends. But no one would ever know.
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Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Part Five
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princeanxious · 4 years
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Why would you hide the Villain remus and Janus thing in the tags, I'd read the hell outta Hero Virgil turned Villain
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you mean this??? shdbic aaa Yeah I want to write it, but i also want to write a lot of things. xD but this is def one of those things i’d love to write a short-ish one-shot about just so I can write it.
can you imagine? Virgil, young and anxious, manifesting powers of the light and dark variety, able to manipulate shadows and summon electricity with such fine precision because he’s spent so long fretting over accidentally hurting someone with it that he refused to even dare try and step into the hero scene until he was 150% certain that he’d trained his powers to disconnect from his emotions so that he’d never have an outburst that could even harmlessly shock or scare someone. He’s so in control over his powers that its to an insane degree just because he wants to make sure he cant hurt anybody on accident.
(complete ramble continued under the cut bc boy howdy this got so long it might as well be its own short one-shot)
And, he’s worked so in depth with his powers because of course he can’t just suppress them!(Suppressing electricity based powers doesn’t get rid of that energy, it just makes that constantly generating energy stay put and build, which makes it even more dangerous when it’s finally released, so suppression is a no go) So of course not only does he work extensively with learning how to control his powers, but also how to healthily use them and expend his energy safely, effectively, and skillfully as he grows into them. Might as well push your limits of learning just how much your power can do if you have to learn how to exist safely around others by controlling it, right?
So, by default, by the time Virgil is both old enough and confident enough in his powers to consentingly apply for registry to the worlds heroes association, he’s both insanely skilled with his powers, and also insanely talented(the equivalent to a child prodigy, not that many people in charge of the worlds hero association believe that, though.). The people who had been interviewing him believed the same, thinking him to be just another super teenager boasting about his skills when they couldn’t even sense his power, thinking that what little power Virgil did have was not even worth bothering to report anything substantial about the interview. That he’d oughta go try the villain’s headquarters, because at least they take in wandering powerless for henchmen all the time.
Virgil, feeling pissed but not quite enraged yet, because what teenager wouldn’t hate it to be so invalidated and demeaned at being out right dismissed as a threat, let alone considered more of an invalid for not having powers, starts to display his power. 
First it’s the main interviewer’s phone that they’d been glancing boredly at, drained suddenly of all power. Then it’s the landline of that specific room, then it’s the lamp, the computer suddenly shuts off with zero warning and nothing of it turns on. The lamp in the corner of the room goes dark, bulb by bulb, and the printer in the room dies. Virgil’s eyes are glowing violet but he hasn’t moved any more than the annoyed twitch of an eyelid. the light’s overhead turn off, leaving the lights in the hallway still on, leaving the remaining light in the room coming from the single window in the room and the open doorway. 
He reaches up a hand, and snaps once, and shadows swallow up the light over the hallway and the window, acting as a wall from the inside and out. 
Now the only light in the room is his glowing eyes.
The second interviewer is struggling to summon fire from her hands to light the room, but it doesn’t work. The energy she’s using to summon the fire is immediately sapped by Virgil’s force, there isn’t even a spark. The first interviewer can feel Virgil’s power now, it’s bright and burning. It’s like he has a core in the middle of his being like a sun’s core because its storing so much power, and the only reason they can see it now is because Virgil’s using his power. He has so much control that even on a nonphysical level it’s nearly tangible, the way that they can see his shadow powers conceal even the existence of his power, now that they know what their looking at.
In mere seconds, this kid has tipped the world on their head and put the fear of god into them, an undetected yet undeniable threat in the making. 
They watch his eyes tilt with his head, and the distinct sound of the entire building powering down is unmistakable, shouts of surprise and confusion due to the failure of the buildings many fail-safes failing to trigger. And then, with another snap, all power is restored to normal in the blink of the eye, all machines and lights are functioning perfectly, not an irregular shadow in sight, and all at once Virgil reads as a normal human teenager, not a whiff of power to be sensed. He looks pretty peeved, though.
“Maybe I will try my luck at the Dark Side then, at least they care about the people that look to be taken in. Let me know if you changed your mind, I’d love to have a do-over. With a different set of interviewers, mind you.” before he walks out of the interview room, off to blow off some steam legally and safely.
Imagine his outrage when a week later he’s served a summons to court, deeming him a “Threat to Society” and “better left in jail until the court can be convinced of his good nature” because he’s an “out of control juvenile gifted with an unprecedented amount of power that he couldn’t possibly control without strict legal supervision and interference and cannot be trusted to continue to exist as a normal citizen until the W.H.A deems it safe.”
Faced with possible lifelong inprisonment and zero control over the rest of his life because an association of supers think that they know better and that he’s some stupid teenager that was set loose on the world with means to only cause catastrophe and devastation, or freedom at the hands of some ambiguously grey moral decisions every once in a while and being treated as a normal human being even if he has to be a henchman to another super for a while? 
The decision isn’t a hard one to make.
So imagine his surprise when he’s not only accepted into the Dark Side after being respectfully asked to demonstrate the full extent of his power and his control over it, but instead of becoming a villain’s henchmen, he instead gains the full title of Villain(with another Villain(Janus) stepping in to mentor him and show him the ropes of the rules and everything), and even further: Gets his own henchmen assigned to him. 
A pair, Patton and Logan. 
Patton has a partial shapeshifting ability, but it only really lets him turn into a big frog man, making him perfect for doing any of the main heavy lifting for the team, and also perfect for protecting Logan when under attack. He’s built like a himbo and is absolutely 100% a himbo, heart of gold, super strong, buff dad bod, the whole sha-bang.
Logan has a power that is one part linked with memory, one part linked with technology. His brain can retain information like a computer databank, and he can get any misfunctioning technology to work if he can get his hands on it or a connection to it. He avoids all the quirks that interfere or damage real databanks and technology(like magnets, water, and short-circuiting) and can semi-directly connect with devices he is familiar with, without having to hold/touch/look at one.
All together, they have the beginnings of a well rounded team: the brawns, the brains, and the leader with plans and the power to make it happen. Even before finding out their reasons for coming to the dark side, Virgil becomes ride or die for them. (And honestly, they’re also pretty ride or die for him too, not even starting with the fact that they’re both like 26-27 and Virgil is an 18 year old anxious mess that had to make the decision over being the bad guy or losing any and all autonomy for the foreseeable future, which is gonna fuck up any kid and young adult’s brain. So, lowkey adopt him as a younger sibling even though he’s the boss of them and just barely taller than them.(Virgil is a tol lanky boi, and while Logan, standing at 5′9″, is but an inch shorter than Virgil at the start, Virgil still has growing room and peaks at about 6′4″ by the time hes 22. Patton at his normal height is like 5′6″, but frog man height is like 8′3″)
Oh, and they definitely make the Worlds Hero Association regret not taking Virgil’s existence kindly, Big Time.
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sanders-sides-dnd · 3 years
Text
Family Reunion Chapter 1
Here it is! The beginning of our adventures. I’m sorry this took so long. This was the first session of the first game we played together, everything the characters do was the choice of their players. This includes the romance, I later worked their pairings into their backstories to add some clarity. If you have any questions for us or the characters our askbox is open. Wordcount: 5048 TWs: Kidnapping, swearing, violence, implied child death, implied child abuse, ghosts, hunting, dog Pairings: Logince, Moceit Taglist (ask to be added): @crazydemigod666 @newtnotfound @star-crossed-shipper @3amthebitchinghour @s4moose 
The group woke up and felt a tight rope tying them all together. They looked around the darkness and most were able to identify they were in a cell, they also saw Prince Roman sitting outside the cell. He softly stroked Kai, the paladin Patton the Moral’s hound. Roman didn’t notice his friends had woken. Logan, a human wizard and partner of Prince Roman, recognised the cell. They were in the castle of Creativiton which explained why Roman was not locked up. His parents wouldn’t lock up their heir. But why were they locked up? Logan was the first to try and get Roman’s attention.
“Why are we here?” Logan asked. Roman’s black eyes lit up when his partner spoke. “What happened?” The group all looked at Roman. Kai stuck his head through the bars to try and get to his owner. Roman felt guilty, this was all his fault. He remembered what had happened. They were happily walking through the forest, unaware how close they strayed to Roman’s kingdom. They were ambushed by familiar guards, his mothers personal battalion, they knocked out his friends before they could even fight. They were all tied up and brought back to the castle. He was separated from his friends and brought to his less than pleased parents who promptly banished him to his room to wait, however he clearly didn’t stay there long. “Are you all okay?” Roman asked full of concern. “We were ambushed on our journey.” The half-orc answered as he slid a cup of water through the bars towards his friends. Patton, being only a few feet tall, easily slid out of the ropes and inspected the water. “My parents are… displeased we left. They wished to speak to all of us, I was waiting for you all to wake up.” Patton brought the water to Logan to inspect, he was much smarter after all. Logan nodded and took a sip, Patton followed hesitantly. Janus the deceiver, Patton’s partner, a wicked tiefling warlock, smirked and took a drink not worried if it was poisoned or not. Virgil drank too and Patton returned the cup. “Why are we in a cell?” Patton asked as he handed the cup over. “Couldn’t they have spoken to us over dinner or something not… this?” Virgil, the rogue elf, piped up. Roman looked away guiltily. Patton moved to pet his hound. “I think they’re just angry we left the castle. Although I agree, locking you up is a bit drastic.” Roman sympathised. Janus scoffed. “And tying us up is just for safety.” Janus remarked, snarky as always. “Right, totally believable.” Janus never trusted royals, the only reason he could get along with Roman is because they met away from the castle. Roman paused for a moment. “We’ve been here a few hours and I haven’t seen Remus yet.” Roman said solemnly. Prince Remus or, as he preferred, Duke Remus was not the kind to be quiet. Especially after his brother who has been gone for so long came back. Virgil knew this was weird too, he was a close friend to Remus. Well, until he abandoned him that is. Roman shook his head and got back to business. “I could break you out of here and we can leave. Or we could stay and talk to my parents… although I am starting to think fleeing might be our best move. What do you think we should do?” Roman nervously eyed a nearby guard, trying his best to stay out of sight.  Virgil asked what everyone was thinking. “Did you know your parents were going to do this?” Virgil pressed. “Of course not, I have no idea why they would lock you up!” Roman defended. “You know your parents best. Do you think talking to them would work?” Virgil asked. He already knew from what he’d heard from the twins that the Queen definitely wasn’t the talking it out type but perhaps the king was? Logan spoke up after a bit of contemplation, working at the castle meant he had a good array of knowledge to help make a decision.  “If Duke Remus is missing then something suspicious is going on. I vote we flee while we have the chance.” Logan concluded. “I’m sure they have a reason to want to talk! Even if they weren’t the best to their guests...” Patton opposed. He always saw the best in people, it’s what he was taught in the temple he grew up in, even when it got him in trouble. "I say we get out now and then we'll see." Janus said. He was Patton’s grounding force, bringing him back from his dream lands and reminding him of the harsh reality. “They were in a foul mood when I spoke to them earlier, I vote we get out of here.” Roman informed. "If we escape do you think your parents will send people after us?" Virgil questioned. Roman thought for a moment before replying. "Most likely, but what other choices do we have?" Roman finally replied.  "What if they just kidnap us again?" "Then we'll get out again." Janus announced. Virgil knew how to do that, he’d been in these jails many times. Logan grew agitated, they needed to make a decision quickly. "We do not have time to worry about that, we must be focused on getting out for the time being!" Logan reminded them all. "The best we can do now is to get as far away as possible, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it." Roman added. With a nod Virgil and Patton finally gave in. Virgil quickly got to work. With his hands behind his back he quickly found the knot keeping the men together, the knot was tough but Virgil was an expert. In mere seconds the rope slacked and the men were free. Virgil knew the key to a successful escape was speed so he wasted no time beginning to pick the lock. Roman looked at the guard, he was still unaware. The bars opened with a quiet squeak. “Where to now?” Virgil whispered as they all exited the cell. They had no gear, no weapons, they weren’t in the best position. Roman remembered all the times Remus and he had snuck around the castle, trying to think of an exit. "I can lead us out of here, but we'd have to go through the main halls. There's a high chance we could be spotted." Roman whispered. "Damn, no secret passageways?" Virgil retorted with a smirk. In all his years here he had never found any but then again he wasn’t a royal. "None that I can think of right now, and none that won't be monitored by my father's men." Roman informed as the group started sneaking. “They wouldn't expect us to go through the main halls, out in the open. It's our best chance of escape." Roman looked around the corner, it seemed clear. The men kept low and ran quietly, Roman took care looking around every corner to watch for guards. Eventually they made it to sight of the door, but as Roman looked around the corner he saw the shins of a familiar human. He looked up to see the black armour his mothers battalion wore, the same colour as the man’s hair and stubble. His helmet was off so Roman could clearly see his grey eyes looking down at him. “Ah Roman, how predictable.” Remy teased as Roman rose in shame. "Remy, " Roman said grimly. "Let us pass, my friends and I have done no wrong." Without a word, guards seized the group and brought them to the throne room. Roman was set at the front of the group with the others slightly behind. They stayed silent as two royals stepped out. A tall and stocky orc woman with brown dreaded hair and a lean human warrior in a golden crown on his silver hair. The king and queen stood on a dais with one throne, looking down at their son and his party.
“Ah Roman I see your companions are awake.” The king sung. The king was a professional man, even Roman had never heard his name. He had always called him Dad or Your Majesty. This didn’t mean he was a stick in the mud, he was a happy man just a stickler for titles. “Welcome to Creativiton!” Queen Bhom Head-Crusher greeted, knowing well some of the group had been here before. The Queen was a true blood orc, married into human society. Steel and war ran through her veins. She was caring but violent and bull-headed. “Salutations.” Logan said with a controlled glare. “Pleasure.” Janus followed with a scoff. Patton tried to bow and Virgil tried not to barf. “It’s been a while since I had you in chains, Virgil.” Remy chuckled. "Can't get enough of me in chains?" Virgil shot back. “What is the meaning of this?” Roman cried, outraged at the treatment of him and his friends. They had been knocked and locked and now, just as they had a taste of freedom, chained. Queen Bhom looked across the group then let her eyes land on Roman. “When you left your brother was quite upset that you didn’t ask him to join you. He felt as if you didn’t care about him anymore. He was sad for a while but then it turned into anger.” She explained. Roman felt guilt begin to scratch at his stomach. “He wanted to find you and make you explain yourself. So he left, without telling us.” The Queen’s black eyes grew sad, but her face did not waver from it’s strong expression. "Is that all?” Janus announced. All eyes turned to him. “Hardly seems a reason to put us in chains and a cell." Janus didn’t let royals hold power over him, he had once and it ended with blood on his face and a demon in his mind. “Well, street rat, we can’t have both of our heirs just off running around in forests. We need at least one of you here or our reputation will be destroyed.” The King reasoned. He looked directly at Roman. “So we're grounding you until your brother comes back and we can sort this out together. Your friends must stand trial for treason and kidnapping but if they leave without causing trouble then I won’t stop them.” Roman blinks, momentarily thrown off guard. "He's never shown interest in fighting with us before, I didn't think this time was any different, so I didn't ask." Roman mumbled. This wasn’t like his brother. Yes he was wild and unpredictable, and he hated the castle, okay maybe it was like him. "Not to be rude, your majesty, but how is it our fault if Duke Remus felt a certain way and did certain actions? Those were of his own volition." Logan asked. “And it’s not kidnapping if Roman came with us willingly.” Virgil added. Patton raised his hand. “Your highnesses?” He addressed incorrectly. “Some of us are not even from here. How can it be treason if we aren’t citizens?” Roman put out a hand to silence his friends. He took a deep breath and stepped forward. He could stand up to his parents one on one, but both of them together is a challenge.  "Mother, Father, surely you see that this is unreasonable?” Roman began. “I went with my friends of my own volition, it was in no way a kidnapping. Let them go peacefully, and I swear to stay and do whatever it takes to locate my brother. He couldn't have gone far. Let me take responsibility for him, but let my friends leave." Roman’s plan to sacrifice himself did not sit well with his friends. However, his mother looked down proudly. “Well how about a trial by combat, an orc tradition.” Queen Bhom announced proudly. The king tapped her arm gently but she gave him a reassuring glance. “If you can find your brother and bring him back then it would be quicker and we won’t have to send more guards. It’ll also prove to us that you can go out and adventure with your companions without getting yourself killed.” The queen waited for a response. Roman looked back at his friends, they all gave him enthusiastic nods. Roman pulled himself to his full height. “I accept.” With a wave of her hand the guards escorted the group to the armoury where all their gear was laying on the ground. While everyone gathered their gear Virgil turned to Remy. “Don’t miss me too much.” Virgil flirted with a wink. Remy looked away, the faint blush on his face mostly covered by his stubble. The others kept a close eye on Virgil while they gathered their stuff. Roman thought it was a good idea to have the head guard on their side. Logan and Roman looked around at the other guards protectively. “Hurry up and get your stuff before I lock you up.” Remy said in a stressed tone. Virgil began collecting his stuff while looking back at Remy. “I’m sure you’ll be looking forward to that.” Virgil shot another wink. Remy looked away awkwardly. Virgil did too as he remembered the last time before this he was locked up, it wasn’t his most graceful encounter. Janus made a gagging noise and rolled his eyes.
When everyone had their stuff Remy escorted them out of the castle and slammed the large door behind them. The streets were narrow and the group walked in sets of two. Logan looked at Roman. “You know Remus the best, where is he likely to go?” Logan asked. “Tavern.” Virgil and Roman answered in unison. Roman continued. “He’s a fan of wandering around. He’s usually at the tavern but I’ve seen him around the inn, the blacksmith, and that old burned farm.” “There’s also a hunting store he likes to visit.” Virgil added. "Maybe we should try the tavern first," Roman mused. "He's probably passed out drunk under the counter." "With so many places, perhaps it would be wise to split up?" Logan suggested. They all agreed. Roman split from the group to go to the tavern, he didn’t find Remus but the bartender did tell him they hadn’t seen the duke in a week. Logan and Janus went to the inn, they hadn’t seen him at all. Patton brought his hound and found the blacksmith, he informed him that Remus had stopped by a month ago to get some weapons sharpened. Virgil took the hunting store where he found out Remus had bought a large sum of dried meat about a month ago.
The group met up again at the gates to share their findings as they headed out to the last place on their list. The burned down farm. The sky was a dim orange as the sun disappeared. "This is worrying, to say the least," Murmured Roman. He started to look visibly concerned about his brother. "Sharpening weapons, hoarding dry rations, sounds like he was planning to go away for a while." Logan put a hand on his partner's shoulder in an attempt to comfort him. He knew Remus and Roman were close, this had to be affecting him a lot. "Well we were gone for a while ourselves. It's a good thing he at least has anything with him at all.” Janus reasoned, but it only made Roman’s guilt grow.  “Now what is the deal with this farm?” Roman and Virgil smirked at each other before leaping into a dramatic stance. “We don’t know a lot about the farm…” Roman began suspiciously. Logan knew this song and dance. “I heard a child who was just learning to control magic lived here with her family. One day she lost control and burned down the whole farm.” Virgil explained and Roman made an explosion sound behind him. Janus and Logan rolled their eyes but Patton was entranced. "The flames didn't touch anything on the other side of the fence, and they didn't touch her younger brother's things. The girl and her parents perished, her brother was never found." Roman finished with a flourish. Patton clapped. Roman turned around and saw a charred fence. They were here. 
By this time it was dark, and the darkness only enhanced how creepy the house was. Under the full moon’s glow they inspected the burned walls. The house was a husk, not even the roof remained. However a small hay bed and some kids toys were alone, only touched by a thick layer of dust. They felt a cold presence around them. Janus lit a torch to help them see. “I feel like something doesn’t want us here...” Roman said as he lit up another torch. Logan inspected the toys without touching them, they had no ash on them. Just dirt and dust. They looked like they hadn’t been touched in years. Patton closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Using his divine powers bestowed upon him after a lifetime of prayer, he could sense the presence of good and evil. He breathed deeply through his nose. He could smell the foul scent of an evil and greedy presence. It was so strong it nearly startled him. Virgil saw a flick of white in the corner of his eye but when he turned there was nothing here. "I don't like the vibes of this place. How about we just confirm that Remus isn't here and get the fuck out?" Virgil fretted. He did care about Remus, but this place seemed off. Janus saw what Patton was doing and put a hand on his shoulder. Patton nodded in response. “There’s something here.” Janus shouted to the group who was spread around the house. They all looked over. “What kind of something?” Logan asked. Janus enjoyed being vague but it annoyed Logan. Maybe that was part of why he enjoyed it. “Only one way to find out.” Janus smirked. He gave his torch to Patton and sat down. He began chanting in a language no one else could understand. “Venite Tenebrae Animae et Ostende te.” Three ghostly figures faded into view in front of him. One child and two adults. The child appeared in the corner, she looked to be hiding. The adults, a man and a woman, quickly turned on the party with a hiss. The group readied their weapons. Patton was first to attack as he grabbed his battle-axe in one hand and raised his shield with the other. He pulled back and swung his axe at the female ghost. It passed right through her. “Crap…” Patton let out before the ghost retaliated. She scratched his face with her long nails. It didn’t do much but it was enough that it pushed him back. Roman took out his great-sword and raised it above his head. The heavy steel blade and golden hilt caught the torch light. Roman was about to take a risk. But it didn’t seem like he could do much else. If Patton’s silver axes didn’t work then surely his sword wouldn’t do much more.  "Don't come any closer!" He yelled with his booming orcish voice. "I am Prince Roman of Creativiton, and I command you to stay back!" When they were alive they clearly lived in Creativiton, perhaps not during Roman’s life but at some point. Perhaps they still had some loyalty. Roman’s risk paid off as the ghosts cowered, leaving them vulnerable. Janus took the opportunity. He took out his staff and held it horizontally in front of him. The staff was curved and made of light coloured apple wood. A python is etched into the wood circling to the top, the side of the staff where the head was. “Illusio.” He whispered to himself. He pointed the end of his staff towards the attacking ghosts and a wall of flames shot towards them. They were shocked and backed themselves against the wall, much more scared than Patton’s attack. The male ghost looked to his right to see the scared child. He grabbed her and held her out like a shield. “Janus, what can we do?” Virgil asked as he pulled out his daggers. Janus was their creature expert, there is nothing he hadn’t fought. “Healing items and magic.” Janus shouted back. Virgil put away his daggers. Those weren’t going to do squat. “Healing?” Virgil asked again. Janus rolled their eyes although it was hard to tell since they were pure gold. “They lose connection to the physical realm because of the healing properties.” Janus explained as the male ghost shook the child at them. Logan was the only other who knew spells. He pulled out his silver staff, the blue gems attached to the top already glowing. He pointed the staff at the female ghost, streaks of blue shot out. The ghost disappeared as it was hit by the rays of frost, only leaving behind a thin layer of ice on the wall behind it. Roman shot a proud smile at his partner. He loved watching him fight, the way his face was lit by the magical spells he trained so hard to learn was his favourite sight. “One down.” Logan said proudly. Patton took advantage of his close range and called upon his divine powers again. His hands glowed with a healing light. Janus took the opportunity to reach to the shelf behind him and pick up a few small pieces of rubble discarded there. Patton lunged at the remaining ghost, attempting to avoid the child he shielded himself with. The ghost quickly turned on him, holding out the child. Patton retracted, not wanting to harm her. Across the room Janus put away his staff and pulled out a sling. He closed his hand around the rocks and whispered into it. “Incanto lapis.” When Janus opened his hand, the pebbles had a hint of a pink glow around them. He loaded the three small rocks into the sling and took aim. “Are you aiming at the child?!” Patton yelled from across the room. He knew his partner too well at this point. The rest of the group also looked over at him “Yeah.” Janus responded. The party looked between the two, not even paying attention to the ghost. “The child is a child!” Patton scolded. “Fine.” Janus groaned. He let go of the elastic and the rocks flew towards the ghosts. The little girl put up her hands to block her face but the pebbles went around her, bouncing off the wall and hitting her attacker. The other ghost faded after the rocks hit his head, the small girl fell to the floor. She stood and looked around. She smiled brighter than the white glow around her as the party put away their weapons. “Thank you! Thank you for helping me!” She said gratefully. She looked around at them all before her eyes fell on Kai. “Oh, can I pet your dog?” She asked happily. Patton offered the girl a comforting smile. “Of course you can.” He answered. The girl floated forward and began playing with the dog. They all looked at each other. Roman kneeled down next to the girl. “Hello there.” He said gently, trying to get her attention without startling her. She looked over with a smile. “Hi!” She replied. She looked at Roman quizzically for a second. “You look my friend.” Roman looked interested. For anyone else this’d be just a confused or funny kid moment, but he had a twin brother who hung around this house. “Your friend?” He asked, trying to pull more information from the child. She turned away from Roman to continue playing with Kai. “My friend Duke. He always scares away my parents when they try to hurt me but he wasn’t here this time.” She explained happily. Roman looked up at his friends. “He came by a month ago and told me that he was leaving. I miss him. He was silly and made me laugh. He promised he’d come back though!” The story seemed to fit what Roman’s parents had told them. Remus was a prince but preferred the title of duke in non-formal settings. He always said What’s the point of being called a prince if I won’t get the crown? “He’s my brother.” Roman was excited to finally have some information but tried to keep his voice quiet and reassuring. "We haven't seen him in a while either, do you have any idea where he went? Also what’s your name?" He questioned. He felt guilty for interrogating a small dead child. “I don't remember my name, but I do know where Dukey went. He said he was going to find you. He went to the witches in the north forest to see if they knew where you was.” She stopped playing with Kai and turned to Roman who had now shifted to a sitting position. “I’m looking for my brother too! Have you seen him? His name is Elliott.” Roman looked up at Logan who shrugged. He looked at the others who also didn’t know. "I'm really sorry, we haven't seen your brother,” Roman said. "Or my brother," he added after a pause. The small girl reached out and touched his hand. She smiled at him, he couldn’t help but smile back. “Okay. If you see him tell him he’s late and Mama and Pa are going to be mad.” The child said as she started to fade. Roman gave her one last nod as she disappeared. Roman stayed sitting for a couple seconds. He felt bad for the young girl. Logan put a hand on his partner’s shoulder. “We should find somewhere to set up camp.” Janus prompted. Roman nodded and stood slowly. They all left the burnt out house and set up camp on the edge of the northern forest, lighting a small fire and dropping some of their gear. “Our supplies are low.” Logan said, rummaging through his bag. “We’ll need to find some food.” Virgil nodded. He and Logan went into the forest. “I’ll go too, we’ll have a better chance.” Janus said as he stood. “Take Kai.” Patton told him. Kai trod up next to Janus. They headed into the forest together. After a while Logan and Virgil returned. "I saw some berries.” Logan said upon returning. Virgil settled empty handed by the fire. “I thought they were blackberries. I tried to get them. I was unable to, and was damaged by the thorns." Logan put out his arms to show a number of scratches. Behind him Janus came out of the treeline. "Well it turns out having the dog with us was very beneficial." Janus said and dropped a dead fox in front of Logan. "Look what he caught." Logan flushed red as Janus nudged him jokingly. "Never speak a word of this again." Logan huffed and went over to sit in Roman’s lap, Janus picked up the fox again. "Of course not Logan, I wouldn't want to blackmail you with any of this." Janus teased as he handed the fox to Patton. After the fox was skinned and cooked they all sat around the fire eating together. Janus and Patton sat facing each other, both with food in their lap. “You know I think I left something in the forest.” Janus said as they ate. “Help me come look for it?” Patton rolled his eyes. Janus and him had been dating for near a year now. He knew his tricks. “Janus! Everyone can hear you.” Patton didn’t really mind that much. “Yeah they look very interested.” Janus laughed and nodded towards Logan and Roman. They had abandoned their dinner and started kissing instead. Virgil was playing with Kai nearby. “Even so. I would prefer something a little more romantic then just follow me into the forest.” Patton responded. Again, Patton didn’t really mind. He loved Janus no matter whether he was able to come up with fancy words or not. He just enjoyed teasing him. Janus tried to come up with something quickly but his flustered mind couldn’t find anything. “So…” Janus began. “Papaya?” Janus drew out the last sound of that word. Patton giggled, it was cute putting Janus on the spot. He was usually so sharp tongued but when it came to Patton he would lose his nerve. Patton decided to throw him a bone. He put down his plate and put his arms around Janus’ neck. “Well I don’t know anything about papaya…” He began. He got close to Janus’ pointed ear, his breath warmed it better than the fire did. “But I do know about peaches.” Without warning Janus stood, holding Patton. He ran off into the forest with his partner. Virgil enjoyed the company of Kai. Virgil didn’t talk much and Kai didn’t mind, mostly because Kai was a dog and also couldn’t talk. Virgil also enjoyed being an elf. It meant he could stay up later than his friends. He looked across at his sleeping friends, he hated just sitting around. It meant he had to think. There were lots of things he didn’t want to think about right now. He went into the forest and climbed into the trees. He jumped from one branch to another. He did this as a kid, except instead of trees it was buildings. It helped him clear his head, focusing only on where to jump next. As he jumped he heard a scamper below him. He looked around and saw a fat rabbit. “You shouldn’t be out this late.” Virgil whispered as he grabbed his shortbow. He also took out an arrow, the purple feathers were stiff against his hand as he pulled the arrow back against the string. “Goodnight little bunny.” Virgil hummed as he let go of the string. He gathered the rabbit and took it back to the camp. There were just enough embers left in the fire to cook it. He stored it in his bag and found a place to sit against a tree. The other four were huddled together, sleeping in one big pile. Even Kai was with them. He felt a little left out, but he needed to be alone to meditate. Virgil closed his eyes, signalling the end to another day of adventure.  
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Note
I am IMMENSELY interested in this new au. Got any other info to share?
Yes I do actually! So here is more information on all of them. Sorry this is long but I actually have a lot of ideas for this AU.
TW: Mention of eating disorders, mention of abuse, mention of drugs, suggested neglect, mention of mental disorders, mention of suicide attempt, mention of alcohol, mention of death, mention of cheating, mention of bullying. Please tell me if I missed any
For the twins
Roman is biromantic. They don't have a label for their gender but they go by they/them, fey/fem, and xe/xem.
Remus is pansexual. He is cis but very gnc.
Their older brother is actually dead thanks to their dad who is currently in jail.
Their mom was actually the one who put them in the therapy house since she feels bad for staying with their dad for as long as she did.
Roman struggles with anorexia and purging disorder.
Remus struggles with Pica eating disorder.
They both also struggle with depression, PTSD, and Imsomnia.
They have a very rocky relationship with one another. They are very protective of each other and they will do anything to make the other happy. However, at the same time they're relatively distant with each other and also fight a lot. Sometimes their fights even turn physical.
Remus's hair is green with a strand of gray
Roman also used to have their hair dyed but their too lazy to do it again. It used to be red
Janus
Genderfluid. Uses she/her, he/him, zie/hir.
Has a port wine stain birthmark on his face.
Is a kleptomaniac and also has a history of vandalism.
Since his parents aren't exactly the wealthiest or most responsible, he has been "homeschooled" his whole life. So Remy basically taught him almost everything he knows.
He likes to mostly stay in the background and only speaks when he has to.
Very manipulative and cunning.
Doesn't like his step-mom, aka Remy's mom, because his dad cheated on his mom with her.
His relationship with his step-mom gets worse after she put both him and Remy into the therapy house.
Wants to be closer to Remy but doesn't know how to do so.
Doesn't trust any of the others in the beginning and is very hostile to them.
Suspected to have ADHD but refuses to get diagnosed.
Has a snake tattoo on his left arm.
Remy
Gay and Cisgender.
Struggles with Narcolepsy and Bigorexia.
Drinks way too much caffeine to try and self treat his Narcolepsy. His teeth are actually stained from how much caffeine he has drank.
Doesn't like Janus that much but still takes care of him.
Very passive aggressive and condescending.
Has an older sister however he doesn't see her often since she's in another country.
Very smart which makes him very opinionated.
Doesn't like being told what to do and is relatively stubborn.
Has long hair which is currently dyed gray.
Logan
Has Narcissistic personality disorder and anger issues.
Also struggles with Orthorexia
Has a long history of fighting and lying.
Very smart which sometimes makes him slack off since he doesn't think certain things are worth his time.
Knows multiple languages.
Got his NPD from his mom.
Was raised by his single mother. Doesn't know who his dad is.
Since his mom is often working, he and Emile were often home alone. When she found out about their behavioral problems, she put them in the therapy house.
Emile
Gender? Yes. Goes by all pronouns. Demiromantic
Was put in an adoption center when she was 6 after her parents got arrested for possessing drugs and fraud charges.
He was bullied at school after it was rumored that he was gay and an orphan.
Also got bullied a lot in the adoption center and the staff was very harsh.
Met Logan in middle school and was later adopted by Logan's mom.
Struggles with dependent personality disorder so they tend to be very clingy. Clings to Logan a lot.
Has a lot of fears, most of which are animals.
Really wants to dye his hair pink but Logan won't let him.
Virgil
Cis and aroace.
Has Schizoid personality disorder and generalized anxiety disorder.
Has claustrophobia, emetophobia and hemophobia
A very picky eater and separates most of their food.
Was put in the therapy house by one of his siblings, apparently having been too high maintenance for them.
Hates his family especially his siblings but won't clarify why.
Flinches a lot which has led many of the others to think he was abused.
Dyed the tips of his hair purple.
Patton
Trans, MTF. Goes by she/her.
Has ADHD and Psychosis. Her psychosis is due to her sleep deprivation caused by ADHD.
Has a habit of refusing to take her meds. Often pretending to take them and then spitting them out.
She is often the first person awake and tends to wake up everyone else.
If not reminded, she will forget to do things like shower, eat, drink water, etc.
Very protective of all the others but is also very critical of them.
Both of her parents are alcoholics. They have even forced her to drink multiple times.
Was put in the therapy house after both of her parents decided that they didn't want to deal with her anymore.
Thomas
Cis and gay
Owner of the therapy house.
Tries to take care of all the others as much as he can
Constantly comes close to having a heart attack thanks to the others
Has had to break up many fights.
Doesn't allow any sharp stuff in the house. Anything like knives are locked away, hidden in his room.
Also has the other's medications locked in his room after the twins once tried to OD on them.
Took down the mirror in the restroom for both safety and mental health reasons.
Tired and not paid enough™️
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shinymooncolor · 4 years
Text
Hi lovelies.
Hockey is back. ❤️
And so here is another sweater weather chat. It’s split in two. So stay tuned 😘
All the love in the world for @lumosinlove and each and everyone of you! This fandom is truly a remarkable place 💖
Sweater weather chat #12 part 1
Dumo loses a bet. Sunny has a lot of stories. Sergei once had blue hair. He also fought a German suit. Snuck a few of my nhl heroes in here. See if you can spot them. Nado is dying from anticipation. Blizzard wants pictures. Olli is trying to stay on topic. Alice has questions. Sirius has no comments. We jinx the cup a tiny bit. I took some liberties with rosters and timelines for international hockey. No people were harmed in the making of this chat. Danes really are pesky meatball thieves. I love germans (just needed a bad guy).
Friday 7.22 pm
Prongstar: hey dumo. Not backing down from the bet?
Dumodad: no. I honor my word. You guys won. What do you want? Suicides, my car, my wife’s cooking?
Talkiewalkie: damn dumo. Pimping out Celeste
Dumodad: like the lot of you aren’t half in love with her or Anya. You’re not subtle
Krisvolley: I’d marry both with no hesitation. Between Anya’s piroggi and Celeste’s brownies, I’d be set for life.
Nadotheman:fuck you’d have to fight me and Kuny both for that krissy.
Russiangod: I already son of Anya. I take sergei’s place
Sergei_81: am not even 40 yet. Also you all boys. Can’t handle women. They need men.
Logantremblayzzz: it’s weird guys. Don’t crush on your team mates wives 😳 also Sergei you are 40....
Sergei_81: 🤬
Blizzard: don’t make sexy eyes at your goalie when he’s stretching. 🤪
Timmyforrealz: burnnnnnn hahahahahaha
Prongstar: potential adultery, sergei’s age and Logan’s inappropriate staring aside. Dumo lost our bet. And I’ve made a decision. Drumroll please 🙈🙈🙈🙈
Kuny: drdrdrdrdrrrrrrrrrrrr
Prongstar: thanks Kuny babe 😘
Prongstar: dumo! I want the truth about Prague. In this chat. In writing. You have 1 hr.
Dumodad: no.
Sergei_81: no
Sunnysideup: YES
Sunnysideup: I’ll tell them if you don’t 😜
Dumodad: it’s all your fault. Stupid Swede.
Sunnysideup: no one made you bet me. We won, fair and square!
Sunnysideup: the year was 2006. Turin, Italy. Winter Olympics. A brash Russian and a confident Canadian decided to make a bet with a lovely, young and innocent Swede.
Bradygunzz: innocent? 😂😂😂😂
Walkietalkie: wait weren’t you in Sweden then? Or am I missing something? How’d you even know these guys?
Kaneyoudigit: I thought this story was about Prague?
DumoDad: it is. It just started 9 years earlier.
Sunnysideup: some of my national teammates played with Sergei in the khl during the nhl ‘05 lockout. Dumo was signed to do some press stuff with us at olympics. Something about cross team friendships.
Logantremblayzzz: Wow you guys are ancient
DumoDAD: we were top 3 seeded teams and they picked the Russian with good English, a Swede who’s not scary and me. It was fun. And it turned into a bit of drinking after Sergei and sunny started arguing about the quality of vodka.
Krisvolley: you shouldn’t drink at the Olympics 😂
Sunnysideup: anyways. We bet and of course all three were convinced our respective teams would win. Of course, we all know who emerged victorious 😜
Sergei_81: you had Swedish murder twins not fair. Baby sedin slash me on purpose
DumoDad: he didn’t. That was a legit hit you big baby. Also we did better than the US.
Sergei_81: was not clean.
Sunnysideup: we’re not having this discussion again. You both lost. It was a clean hit. Also, the fun part was the bet itself.
Nadotheman: just fucking tell us. The suspense is killing me.😳
Siriusly: whAt did you do??????? Dumo!!!!
Sunnysideup: well. they got kitted out in lovely blue and yellow team colors. Hank’s idea - some fans gave him loads of body paint. Hahahaha also Sergei was sporting a very impressive buzz cut then. It was a thing. So we’ve got these two idiots painted in blue and yellow including sergei’s head. Unfortunately the dye wasn’t meant for hair. So he had blue hair for two weeks after. Anya is still mad at me about that one 😜
Nadotheman: so you just painted them blue and yellow? That’s like so anti climactic.
Logantremblayzzz: oh he’s not done 😂
CarbO’Hara: Logan tell usssss
Siriusly: how come you told him and not me? I feel betrayed.
DumoDad: I didn’t. Celeste did. Traitor.
Logantremblayzzz: I was sad and homesick and she wanted to cheer me up. 😍
Ollibear: I feel like we’re getting off topic
Logantremblayzzz: wait didn’t you then make them steal the Olympic flags from the hotel you were celebrating at and exchange them with Swedish ones?
Sunnysideup: indeed, Logan, and that went smoothly. So it turned into a thing that every time we compete all three in an international thing. We make the losers swap flags. It’s cute.
Prongstar: what about Prague then? That wasn’t until 2015? Was it?
DumoDad: and we all remember who won.
RussianGod: is also where butt slap come from then? Pre game one?
Sergei_81: not our fault. U had Crosby make heart eyes at zhenya. And no Kuny, not from there...
DumoDad: you’re never letting that one go? Hahaha poor Sergei.
Dumodad: also. the butt slap is an Old tradition. We had a playoff round ages back and I slapped him. We won. We’ve done it since. Works doesn’t it?
Sergei_81: you said “let’s go get them”. Still do. It works. All magic slap. I thought you say “ let’s go eat them” Still works hehe
Ollibear: again, we’re veering off topic, dumo.
Sunnysideup: well. Prague. I know Canada won. Golden boy got golden goal. Blah blah blah. But for some reason we had another bet 😜. Dumo cooked up a revenge for me and Sergei. But it was before the final. We were just heading into the second round and somehow ended up in another vodka related discussion (we all know Swedish vodka is superior).
RussianGod: Swedish vodka is water. Russia best.
Sergei_81: was stupid idea. But vodka make us brave.
DumoDad: I never told you to start climbing that flag pole. You decided that on your own. I just told you to get me the flag.
Sunnysideup: he did climb that pole like a fireman though.
Timmyforrealz: hold up a sec. you’re telling me sergei “i never smile and my looks can literally make opponents wet themselves” Ivanov climbed a flag pole while drunk and it looked good?
Sunnysideup: he was wearing a “I love Canada” onesie and crocs. Which was about 6 sizes too little. We both were.
Newt-leo: we’re going to need pics of this.
Sunnysideup: well. The onesies were one thing. Still not sure how we got corralled into it. But anyways as I remember Sergei did successfully steal the flag from the hotel and started on the cars outside. We just didn’t know it was some group of fancy politicians also in town to watch hockey.
Dumodad: you Europeans and your weird politicians. Apparently the little politic guy didn’t like Russians. So his body guard tackled Sergei down. Sergei fought back. And somehow I ended up in the tangle of suits and Canada onesies.
Sergei_81: he blame Russia for stupid shit I might get mad. Police came and put us in little jail in hotel. Sunny no where
Sunnysideup: I went to get help. I didn’t know you were going to fight the bodyguards of the German minister of trade now did I?
Dumodad: was it German? I thought it was Spain. The flag was yellow and red.
Krisvolley: wait so. In the middle of an Olympic tournament, the three of you (all dads and husbands by 2015) gets shitfaced on vodka, go on a flag stealing rampage through Prague and get tackled by German secret services? 😫
Sergei_81: not Prague just one hotel. And car park. And house opposite.
Siriusly: how did you get out?
Sunnysideup: I bailed them out. Or. I managed to explain that they’re big hockey stars and got backstrom and oveckin to come and support me.. Ovi just giggled. Backy just stared until they agreed. He’s scary. Sergei was cursing a lot. Dumo was crying at one point... hehehehe he . I think dumo was nearly benched no after?
DumoDad: somehow the team found out and little mr captain was not happy?. Also at this point sergei was mostly naked as the onesie gave up halfway through wrestling Germans. We got a big fine, had to formally issue an apology to the German delegates and the hotel. And Sergei had to pay another fine for embarrassing Russia 😂
Sergei_81: they happy I hit German but I couldn’t say hehe. Also lost a croc never found it. Walk home in one shoe 👟
Siriusly: I can’t believe you almost caused an international incident because you were arguing about vodka.
Sunnysideup: you should see us scandies when it comes to the origins of meatballs. Pesky Danes trying to steal credit. 🤬
Blizzard: and you’re all still talking about me and the fountain. Also. We were on the lions team then? How come you’ve managed to keep this quiet? Also. Where are the pictures of this? I have so many questions.
DumoDad: Sunny has pictures. And so does the Czech police. And maybe the hotel. And it stays that way.
Blizzard: sunny. I want pictures.
Sunnysideup: lord Stanley will decide ❤️ also pretty sure both ovi and backy has some. For revenge purposes.
Siriusly: DONT jinx.
Prongstar: you broke cap.
—-
Tuesday 2.54 pm
Alice: Sirius.
Alice: Sirius pick up your phone.
Alice: Sirius Orion Black. Please tell me that a picture of you and Remus in a closet in Ikea’s kids department is fake.
Sirius: I was in hiding. Re helped me. We didn’t do anything
Alice: your shirt is on backwards.
Sirius: it’s a fashion statement.
Alice: and the shark?
Sirius: no comment
——
Part two is coming up.
——
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whatsup-200 · 3 years
Text
The Marauders and the Slytherin Chapter 8
Remus lupin x reader
TW: mentions of suicide/death
Chapter 8: The Letter
STORY MASTER LIST
(Yn pov)
 
I know what to do. I know the only one I would be leaving behind, the only one that actually liked me is Lily. But I am making it easier for everyone. James will finally be with Lily. Remus will move on and find love. Sirius and Peter will be pleased. So it’s the only way. I will have to leave Hogwarts forever. I will write a letter to Lily explaining where I am. So then she can visit me. I mean it is me last year anyway.
Then my door opened.
*At dinner time*
(Lily pov)
I have not seen y/n once today which is really weird. I asked Severus if he knew but he said the last time he has seen her was at breakfast. I guess I could talk to a few others even though I don’t think they would really care.
I walked up to the Gryffindor table where all James, Remus, Sirius and Peter was.
Lily – Hey guys! Do you have a minute?
James – Whats up Lily? Still hanging around that pathetic excuse of a person.
Lily – She is not pathetic and no. I was wanting to ask you if you knew where she was.
Sirius – Why would we know. We don’t follow her around like a loss puppy.
Lily – Listen I am really concerned with the missing student list so please just help me out.
James – fine bit you owe us. Ok?
Lily- Fine just come.
Sirius – alright let’s go!
It’s been two hours and we have been searching the castle non stop. Not that the others have been searching. The last place we have to go is the forbidden forest and that is were we will be.
As we’re in the forbidden forest. Sirius and James kept telling me to go back to the Castle.
James – Come on Lily! She is clearly not out here.
Sirius – Yeah let’s go back inside!
Lily – NO! I will not rest till I find her.
Do we kept looking.
Remus – Wait what is that?
Remus was pointing toward something. We step closer to see.
Lily – that’s not something Remus that’s y/n. Y/N! Are you okay?
I try to shake her awake to find out that she is not breaking.
Lily – she is dead.
I hear the others gasping behind me.
Lily – come on we need to tell Dumbledore.
We raced to go tell Dumbledore and he looked at the body.
Dumbledore – we are sorry to tell you that y/n has committed, we found in her pocket that she has left a letter for each of you and a memory vile. Please take these to a private room when reading and watching her memories. With that I was crying non stop and we all went up to my dorm.
 
(Dumbledore’s pov)
*In his office*
Minnie- Why didn’t you tell the truth!
Dumbledore- it is easier to say she committed then having the school on lockdown for her murder.
Minnie – but we have a killer on the loose.
Dumbledore- And we will find them and get justice for y/n death but until then we must remain patient.
Minnie – I think her murder was planned!
Dumbledore- I think it was as well. The person who killed her also wanted it to seem like she committed so they can get away with it. My biggest fear is that it may be someone in Hogwarts right now. Maybe even a student. But only time will tell. Remember she may be gone but never forgotten. Y/n was a true Slytherin, she showed Leadership,  Cleverness, determination, Resourceful, and more that made her just right for her house. And today she has proven to the other students that being in Slytherin dies not make you the bad guy.
 
(Lily pov)
We are in my dorm getting ready to read the letter she wrote. We are all going to take turn reading the out loud then we are going to watch her memories.
Lily – So who will start?
They all stayed quiet.
Lily – Nobody? Fine then I will go.
“Dear Lily,
I wish to tell you that I am sorry. I am sorry for not trying to live in a world that has done nothing but hate me. You Lily were my only friend, my only family. I will miss you dearly. I know that you may not like James right now but he is a good man. I can’t blame him for not trusting me based on my house. I will miss you so much and don’t worry this is not the end. I will see you soon.
Love Y/n.”
Lily- That’s mine whose next.
Sirius – I guess I can go.
“Dear Sirius,
I understand your past with your family and how difficult it is I never had a great childhood either with will be explained in my memory. I want you to know that I always saw you as a brother even though you hated me and torched me for years. I still care for you.. I wish you the best in life. Remember Life is only seen on how you choose to live it!
Love, Y/n.”
Sirius – that’s the end of mine.
I noticed that Sirius looked like he was going to tear up.
Remus – I will go,
“Dear Remus,
I want you to know that I will always love you. Even after you have yelled at me or hurt me. I was the one who took you to that cabin. It was my family’s get away cabin when I was young which will also be included in my memories. I have the key and the step by step direction for the chocolate you always liked. I want you to know that the cabin is yours to go to after full moons. And one last thing you should never be afraid of people judging you for being a werewolf. You are perfect as you are.
Love, Y/n”
Remus – It also has the key and directions. I need to go I will be back.
He ran out of my dorm with his head down.
Lily – Whose next?
 
(Remus pov)
I can’t believe it. Y/n is gone and it’s ally fault.
Tears are spilling from my eyes as I can’t control my anger.
I miss her and I don’t know what to do. I said awful things to her when she has done nothing but help me.
After a good 15 minutes I go back in Lily’s room.
Remus – Has everyone gone there turn?
Lily- yeah! And while you were out there a few boys confessed anything you should tell Remus before we watch y/n memories? Boys?
I was so confused what did she mean?
Peter – Y/n was never mean to us!
Sirius – We bullied her and made her feel worthless.
James – I am the one who told her that it would be better if she died.
Remus – YOU WHAT! ALL THIS TIME I HAVE BEEN ANGRY WITH HER AND BELIEVING YOU WHEN SHE WAS THE REAL VICTIM. WHY IN THE HELL WOULD YPU DO THAT. YOU GUYS KNEW THAT I WAS INLOVE WITH HET BUT YOU HURT HER. AND THEN BLAMED HET BECAUSE YOU GUYS DID NOT LOKE HER?
I was furious to know that they did this.
Sirius – we are so sor-
Remus – Sorry is not going to bring her back. Let’s jus watch her memories.
I said as I snapped at them. We followed the directions to be able to see her memories.
It started when she was little and she met me. Told me I was monster to when she got home she was abused by her father. She was only eight . Then to when she met the others. As we watched her memories we noticed she always looked happy but was really not. We did not know her father hurt her constantly. Not only did he abuse her but her mom was il. At the age of thirteenth her and her mom found the cabin. The same cabin she brought me to. Later her dad was thrown on jail . And one day when she got home to the cabin she saw her mom die in front of her. Her mother’s last words was “Goodbye is not forever" then it showed all the Pain James and Sirius and Peter caused her they bullied her. Then it showed the moment that the others made me believe them and I snapped at her. Then all the times Lily has cheered her up. Lily was there when no one else was!
Now the memories has ended. It was awful we all were crying at this point. We miss her. And her death was my fault.
I miss her!
 
 
(Unknown pov)
And that is why you should never bully someone. They may just take their life from it. Me and your mother got together two years later to fulfill her wish. And there is not a day when we all don’t think about her. Remus couldn’t move on from her, and it hurts to seem h in pain. When you see this letter you will be old enough to understand. Don’t judge someone based on their house before you are put into their shoes for a day.
We love you Harry!
Love Dad!
(Harry pov)
Hermione- wow that is something for you
Harry- yeah we should ask Sirius and professor Lupin about this. Maybe they can tell us more about Y/n.
So we head down to the meeting.
 
Authors Note: This is not the end of us don’t worry keep reading to find out more!
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reggiedarlin · 3 years
Text
The Boy in The Band.
*disclaimer the face claim for Remus in this is Matt Hitt and for Sirius it is Damiano David or Conan Gray*
Sirius was obsessed. Well obsessed was an understatement, Sirius lived and breathed Remus Lupin. He had posters all over his bedroom, to his father’s dismay, and had his music on repeat 24/7. Who is Remus Lupin you may ask? Remus Lupin is the lead singer of the famous band Drowners, aka Sirius Black’s all time favourite band. So, as you can imagine, when he had the chance to get free tickets and a chance to meet Remus Lupin himself he was ecstatic.
“Oh my god Lily! I need to enter this competition like if I don’t I will die.” Sirius told lily over the phone that night. “Yeah I know you would you dramatic bitch. You’ve been obsessed with Remus since we were like 15!” answered Lily laughing at her best friends antics.
Lily and Sirius had been best friends since they were born. Lily had been there for Sirius when he had come out. His mother had been accepting, his father not so much. It was so bad Sirius’ dad ended up beating him so much he had ended up in hospital where the hospital then rang the police and reported his dad. He was in jail, but Lily had stuck by him for his whole life and he loved her for it.
“Anyway what do you even have to do for this competition?” Lily asked stopping her laughter for a minute. “You have to post a picture on Instagram proving you’re their biggest fan. After the deadline they will go through them all and pick who’s is the best and you get free pit concert tickets and get to meet the band.” explained Sirius. “Well I’m pretty sure you have that in the bag just post a picture of your bedroom and you’d probably win.” suggested Lily jokingly but her friend thought this was a great idea. “Oh my god, Lily Evans you are a genius I love you.” “Wait? Why am I a genius?” questioned the redhead unsure of what she had said was so genius. “I could get you to take a picture of me in my Drowners sweatshirt in my room posing with my cardboard cut out and I could post that!” explained the boy his voice getting higher and higher with excitement. “Well then Sirius Black go get your shit together so tomorrow we can take that picture!”
****
“Sirius! I HOPE YOU GOT YOUR SHIT TOGETHER BECAUSE WE’RE TAKING THIS PHOTO!” Shouted Lily unlocking the door and walking into Sirius’ flat with her key. “I’M UP HERE LILS!” shouted back the 20 year old from his room getting ready for the photo his 5 year long celebrity crush had a chance of seeing. “Ooo! Make sure you put the glittery eyeliner on!” said his redhead friend walking into his room. “Yes, also I love how completely unfazed you are about the fact I could be naked every time you just walk into my bedroom.” laughed the boy sitting at his desk putting on the eyeliner Lily suggested. “Oh please I’ve seen you naked that many times nothing would surprise me anymore.” spoke Lily nonchalantly. “Right, so I was thinking, we could have you like knelt on your bed with your cardboard Remus and I’ll stand in the corner so I can get the whole room in the pic and you can like do a few different poses so you can post multiple pictures and like caption it whatever you want. How does that sound?” suggested the 19 year old to her best friend. “That sounds great! Let’s do that! exclaimed Sirius. 
After two hours of trying to get the perfect pictures they had finally got one. The picture was of Sirius on his bed in his Drowners sweatshirt and baggy jeans hugging the cardboard Remus Lupin for dear life. He had captioned the picture “I would sell my soul to recreate this picture with the real Remus Lupin”, tagged @Drownersband and @Remus.Lupin and posted the photo. Now all he had to do was wait.
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pastthevaulteddoors · 4 years
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What if, in book 3, instead of running off after Pettigrew and Sirius on the map, Remus had the forethought to rush to Snape for the wolfsbane potion. I mean, it was nearly sunset, he would know he couldn’t confront his past friends if he turned werewolf. Snape follows Remus in secret when he rushes out of his office once Remus drank the potion.
Therefore, Remus would never have went batshit crazy when the moon hit his eye (like a big pizza pie).
More under cut because this went far longer than I meant it to.
In the chaos of the transformation, Pettigrew tried to transform into a rat but a mindful werewolf-Remus put the rat in his mouth and held him there like a jail cell. When Snape comes out of the stump, he freaks out at first, but then remembers the wolfsbane potion Remus rushed him to finish. Not trusting either man, Snape demanded that Harry and co. get to the castle for help (partly to keep them away from harm aka werewolf and Sirius).
Remus almost decides to crush rat Pettigrew in his mouth but overcomes that murderous desire so Pettigrew is alive when help arrives. After a few minutes of a Mexican standoff of Snape, a werewolf, a fugitive, dementors, and auroras, Pettigrew is forced to reveal himself. Now with evidence, the Ministry doesn’t send Sirius to the dementors when they take him into custody, but hold him for questioning.
In the end, Sirius is cleared of all charges. Remus still resigns once Snape gets petty and reveals his condition, but when Harry goes to check on his favorite teacher, Sirius is there with him as he’s packing up. Sirius explains how he is going to immediately try to reclaim his family’s home and start knocking down walls and bad memories. When he has approval and proper enchantments done on the house, he’s going to take Harry in.
Remus says he’ll be staying with Sirius, to help with the house and, well, the two have thirteen years of pain and trust issues to overcome.
That’s the first time Harry realizes that these two were perhaps closer than friends.
It only takes a month into the holidays before Harry is invited to Grimmauld Place. Although not blood related, being godfather does include its own veil of protective magics. (Although Remus and Sirius are very British about showing affections to each other, it doesn’t take Harry long to realize that not only are the two on a road to emotional recovery, but the affection between them is definitely romantic love. Not to mention that they share a room and no one says anything about it.)
Anyway, Harry has a great summer with his new family. Sirius goes out a lot for interviews and aims to reclaim his name in society. He also gains an emotional support dog that looks suspiciously like a grim (it’s not a magical beast, it’s legit just a dog trained to assist Sirius after 13 years of Azkaban induced PTSD).
Remus obviously wants to work but is shunned loudly by the public, so he remains at home most days. Harry can tell he’s upset about not being able to find a job and ‘be useful’ he once heard him say, so Harry asks him for defensive lessons. It sparks joy in Remus to teach again, and when Ron and Hermione visit, they let him give them a lesson or two. (To be fair, he’s a kick ass teacher so who wouldn’t want to be tutored by him?)
Otherwise, Remus spends his days fixing up the house and talks of some day creating a house for wayward werewolves. With Sirius’ backing and inheritance, it would be possible.
Year four is as it should be, only Sirius is there to support Harry, and, since he’s a public figure, defends his godson in the daily profit when Rita Skeeter writes her columns. Remus never shows up, as he is not family and he does not want to stir up trouble with everyone knowing his ‘condition.’
Year five, Harry never goes to the Dursley’s and goes directly to Grimmauld place, which has had a huge face-lift since last summer. Remus put a lot of work into creating a home for them. It does become the Order of the Phoenix’s headquarters but still they don’t let Harry in on what’s going on.
Around his birthday, Mrs. Weasley asks the trio to pop over to the store to get eggs since she and Ginny need them to make Harry’s birthday cake. Harry suspects they’ll come back to a surprise party, but does’t probe and lets himself get shoved out the door. Down an alleyway is when they’re attacked by dementors.
Of course, he is not expelled because Dumbledore interferes.
Towards the end of the year, within the Department of Mysteries, Sirius has long since learned to trust more and his wits are about him. He doesn’t get distracted by Harry’s James-like dexterity and therefore is able to get out of the way of Bellatrix’s avada kedavra spell. However, he does become gravely injured to where Harry thinks he’s dead.
He lives though. Because.
Year six is basically the same, but the Order still meets at Grimmauld Place and sometimes the trio is allowed, if only for their own safety. Life is not unbearably dark and grim.
During Christmas, Remus has to finally get firm with Tonk’s flirting that accidentally outs him and Sirius. Only a few didn’t catch onto their relationship so it’s not really too big of a surprise.
I almost want to say some Drarry happens in year six, what with Harry with a new outlook on life, and mentors that wish the best for him. Harry reaches out to Draco until the boy crumbles. When Draco doesn’t kill Dumbledore and Snape does, Harry takes Draco to the Order with him for protection. Shortly after, Mrs. Malfoy deflects as well and goes into hiding at Grimmauld Place. Mr. Malfoy remains a coward at Voldermort’s side.
Year seven, the trio set out on their journey to find and destroy the horcruxes but with the support of his family. Harry is able to use the broken mirror as intended and thus ends up in less deaths. No dead Dobby, or Hedwig, or Mad-Eye, or Tonks, or Remus, or Fred because they were able to communicate and prepare better for the attack. (and damnit I love happy endings!)
When the dust settles and the world starts to right itself, Remus and Sirius finally marry properly. Remus opens his House for Wayward Werewolves. Harry accompanies Draco back to the manor where he is now the head of house (since Mr. Malfoy died... because he was trash) and helps him rebuild.
A few years later, Harry and Ron quickly become dissatisfied with being aurors. Harry decides to become the next DADA teacher. Ron goes to assist his brothers at turning the joke shop into a cash cow as he does in canon, except, ya know, Fred is still alive. Because of course he is.
With Hermione rising in the ranks at the Ministry, she’s able to overturn a lot of backwards thinking and laws on non-Wizards. Therefore, Remus returns to Hogwarts. Maybe as the librarian or transfiguration teacher.
Sirius is a dandy and never gets a real job. Surprisingly, Sirius and Draco become close as in-laws and are fearsome elites amid the magical community. Not fearsome like Draco’s dad was, but in a ‘yes, we’re elites and we’re going to use our power to help those in need. House elves you say? You bet we’re in for the cause!’
...
I... dunno what just happened.
It’s a Harry Potter time of year.
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halothenthehorns · 3 years
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TLTNL- THE HOGWARTS HIGH INQUISITOR
"Padfoot mate, you don't really think you think," he cut himself off and went cross eyed before trying again, "I mean that Harry is-" then he stopped again for the ludicrous statement couldn't even manage to pass his lips.
Sirius watched with some distant form of amusement as James struggled to find words, a concept in itself, as he ran his fingers hard through his hair and tried to find a way to answer. "What if I do? All those stories we've heard about what happens to those in Azkaban, what makes you think that didn't happen to me after twelve years? Turning into a dog could only have saved me so much-"
"Don't," James snapped, his eyes darkening by the second. "I can't stand thinking of you like that, it's never going to happen."
"It's already happening Prongs," Sirius whispered back. "What if we can't stop this, it's all supposed to happen in less than a year! People will start going missing, and then Dumbledore's going to come around and get you and Lily to go into hiding, and I'll do it again, I swear I will, I'll hunt down that rat bastard and-"
"Think what you're saying," James snapped, fighting hard not to knock him upside the head while he did. "Future tense mate, we'll find a way to stop this happening well before then, so stop acting like it's inevitable already. You're not going to turn into that, I refuse."
Sirius still couldn't seem to take his words to heart, gazing at a picture Lily had hung up on the wall of a forest that had branches swaying in the wind, an occasional critter flipping in and out of sight. It reminded him of the Forbidden Forest, where he'd had so many happy memories, and it scared him how tainted those already were, and kept reminding him it was only going to get worse. "It's my worst nightmare come to life, I don't know how but the universe did that to me. Made me go as mad as my folks, in a different way I'll grant but all the same, and then jailing me right back there."
  "It's not going to happen," James repeated, and would keep doing so until it sunk through his thick head.
They met eyes, Sirius almost absently saying, "you have always been around to remind me of that," and then quickly flipped subjects before even the notion of this no longer existing could linger, "honestly though, I thought you were going to bring me up here to rib me for talking to Harry like that."
James snorted and rolled his eyes, forcing himself to relax as he seemed to think he'd accomplished something. "I'd be remiss if you didn't tell Harry he wasn't having enough fun in his life. I still think you should show up at Hogsmeade and show those three what we used to get up to, Harry needs more fun in his life and he's clearly not getting it from his friends."
Sirius bit at his lip as he realized Harry wasn't getting that from him either, he'd been far too consumed with his own pity party, but at James' words, he was now at least holding out hope it would come true soon.
James watched as Sirius was already starting to fall back into wallowing, and he couldn't let that stand. Sirius was usually his inspiration to start all the madness they got up to, seeing him so low now truly was doing something to him he could hardly put into words, and he desperately hoped that the next time Sirius' name came up it would be in some form of his release back into a normal life already, he'd suffered long enough for it. For now he grasped his shoulder with a tight squeeze before actually managing his old laugh back and saying, "come on now, let's see what kind of mass destruction the school causes in rebellion against whatever that stupid comment of Percy's was. Dumbledore not in charge, pfft, Fudge couldn't do any such thing."
Sirius did at least smile as he followed him back for that, any talk of setting Umbridge in the area with the twins was bound to cause a laugh, which he was hoping to hear from soon. The methods she used on Harry weren't going to hold long.
Lily and Remus were still very concerned by whatever that reaction had been, but also knew James was the best, if not the only person Sirius would get help from with it and so were plenty satisfied to see him not visibly lingering on it when they came back.
Harry most of all wanted to persist on the subject, as he felt like he'd let Sirius down in some way, but when his godfather flopped down beside him with a normal smile in place Harry just couldn't bring himself to mess it all up again when his dad had clearly seemed to comfort him about it. So as James picked up the book and began, they were all feeling almost slightly hopeful again this was all going to somehow work out.
They'd expected to have to comb the paper to find this mysterious article, but instead it was right on the front page, with a very large shot of Umbridge accompanying it.
"Urgh, as if you don't get enough of that around the castle, now you've got closeups," James crinkled his nose in disgust.
The title read the woman's new position as High Inquisitor.
"Why do I already have a bad feeling about whatever the hell that made up title is?" Remus sighed.
"You've got good instincts," Harry's eyes were already narrowed with dislike.
Harry asked what that could mean, as Hermione began reading the article about the Ministry passing new legislation giving itself new levels of control inside Hogwarts.
James struggled to understand even the first sentence! What did that mean, the Ministry had control over their school?
Lily had her lips very tightly pursed as her mind flew through the ramifications of that. Hogwarts had always been of its own body and under the guide of the current Headmaster. This had allowed for a lot of free will inside the school outside of Ministry influence which many considered a good thing, as it left the children to grow up and form their own opinions of what they thought were right and wrong. Now their own government was more than actively stepping in as more than just a substitute teacher role? Just what the hell was Umbridge going to have these students doing? Aside from torturing them!
James looked to his friends like he was hoping for some kind of clarification from them, but both seemed just as confounded by the idea.
The Minister had been growing uneasy about the goings-on of the school for a while, says Junior Minister Percy Weasley.
"Did they have to post his title? I find that entirely unnecessary as of course his Junior would agree with him," Sirius scoffed.
"I just wish they hadn't said his last name, marks a bad light on all the Weasleys," Remus rolled his eyes for poor Arthur and his reaction to further seeing his son agreeing with all this.
Minister Fudge is now responding to the concerns from anxious parents who were concerned of the direction the school was moving in.
"Then they should talk to the Headmaster, and deal with this in house as it's always been," Lily stated absently, still trying to wrap her head around how this abrupt change had just sprung up overnight and it was entirely allowed.
This was not the first time Fudge had been seen influencing the school of late, as of the end of August he'd also enacted Educational Decree Number Twenty-two, giving the Ministry power to elect a teacher at the school should the Headmaster or mistress not find a candidate.
"Oh that's even better, they've been at this since the summer," James said in exasperation, already a spiel of comments he could imagine his parents saying if they'd heard about this.
Weasley continued speaking about how this was how Umbridge had begun her time there, and she was an immediate success-
"Let's put Percy in detention with her and see how long he holds that," Harry said grimly as he rubbed absently at the back of his hand.
"He'd have to be set up to be put in there, and even then I'll bet he could kiss her arse out of it," Sirius growled, perhaps even more darkly than he should have just for having to watch Harry do that.
Harry cut in there to protest the absurdity of that statement, but Hermione shushed him and kept reading about Percy saying she was revolutionizing the teaching of Defence Against the Dark Arts.
"By not teaching them! Yeah, I'd say that's revolutionary!" Remus balked at the absurdity.
The success of this function lead into current Educational Decree Number twenty-three, the creation of the High Inquisitor. A position that allowed the Ministry to evaluate the teachers on premises and make sure they were up to scratch to be teaching future youths. Professor Umbridge had delightfully accepted this role along with her teacher's position.
Lily had to swallow a bitter taint as she almost realized what a good idea that could have been coming from anyone else. Abysmal teachers like Lockhart and Snape wouldn't have been a problem then...but that's not what this job was really doing, and she knew it full well, so didn't bother speaking it.
These new transitions had received much support from parents who had children attending school.
"I do not believe that," James scoffed. "If my folks had heard the Ministry was weaseling around inside Hogwarts they'd have thrown a fit. They never have before and they're just suddenly doing it now after they've spent the summer campaigning what a mentally unstable person Dumbledore was? That doesn't seem the least bit suspicious it's all happening at the same time?"
Lucius Malfoy being quoted as saying his mind was much more at ease knowing Dumbledore was being put under evaluation.
"Ah, well at least that support suddenly made sense," Remus scowled.
The paper continues in saying this was something that should have long since been done considering the controversial appointments over the last few years, including half-giant Rubeus Hagrid, a delusional ex-Auror known as Alastor, Mady-Eye, Moody, and the werewolf Remus Lupin.
Remus suddenly felt such a sharp twist of fear in him he retched on the spot and felt lucky he didn't vomit. He'd never been afraid of attention before, unavoidable when you made friends with James and Sirius, but the fact that his name was actually being thrown out like that honestly made him question how he was even still alive. After all, the last werewolf that had ended up in the papers had a hole hunt formed around him-
Sirius gently cut off this train of thought by smacking Remus upside the head and saying, "knock it off Moony, if they haven't done anything to you before now they're not going to suddenly start just because the Ministry is pushing in. You're long gone, clearly not making a bid to come back, and Dumbledore's got you doing that shitty arse underground work that leaves you so far off the radar anyways it's a miracle if you'll even be reading this."
Remus almost found the comfort somewhere in there, at least his body stopped trying to throw up.
Harry was honestly curious enough to interrupt what this mysterious underground work was. He'd long since gathered it had something to do with Remus staying in contact with other werewolves, but he still longed for details he decided against asking even now because it was such a touchy subject for the poor guy.
Others were not as enthusiastic about these changes, two of the Wizengamot had quit in protest of this.
"While I applaud them," Lily nodded sadly, "but it's almost a backfire on them as well, for the same reason Tonks and Arthur haven't quit their post yet. They do more good holding their tongue and staying on the inside."
"That method ceases being useful when it's all you end up doing," James scowled, though at Harry for holding his tongue far too often.
One being quoted as saying that was a school, not the next outpost for Fudge, this was only further attempts to discredit Dumbledore.
Sirius gave a merry little applause for that bit at least, thankful that this had been put into the paper at all the way it was running lately.
The article ended then with the ominous comment how one of those who had quit had details of goblin subservice groups on a separate page. Hermione said at least now they had their reason of Umbridge being here, and now she could go and inspect all of their teachers? This was outrageous!
Harry agreed with his fist tightly clenched, the words etched into his hand already a dull white instead of having vanished.
James saw red as he realized four days had already been enough to put that mark into his skin. Years later and it was still there. None of them had the delusion this wasn't going to happen to Harry again, and he doubted he could read through it without screaming some more no matter how little good it would do.
But a grin was unfurling on Ron's face.
"I immediately like where his thoughts went," Sirius piped up at once as the same grin appeared, thinking of that foul toad trying to inspect someone like McGonagall and blissfully aware who was going to come up on top.
They asked what he found to smile about, and he said he couldn't wait for Umbridge to inspect McGonagall, the toad wouldn't know what hit her.
The others caught on as well, and now they were all grinning in anticipation of watching McGonagall have a thing or two to say to that pitiful excuse for a teacher.
Hermione stopped the conversation then by getting to her feet and reminding they had History of Magic. Harry was surprised when he didn't find Umbridge in there to inspect the lesson.
"What are the odds she won't be inspecting any of the ones Harry's in?" Remus said without a trace of hope.
"Non existent," James said without looking up.
Nor was she in potions, where Harry was given back his essay with a D for a grade.
"I find it an actual miracle he didn't just flat give you a T," Sirius rolled his eyes.
Once all the assignments had been handed back, Snape gave a speech at the front saying he'd graded these as if they had been OWL finals, and hoped to see better improvement over all, or he would start handing out detentions to the dunces that got d's.
Lily almost felt a twitch appear on her lips again at his alliterations, he'd always gotten a giggle out of her when he did this, but she forced herself not to react.
Malfoy snickered loudly that someone had gotten so low a grade.
"I'm guessing he gave you an O after you cheated off of someone else's," James rolled his eyes.
"Or paid another student to do it," Sirius agreed.
Harry saw Hermione looking sideways at his and he quickly stuffed it out of sight before she could see.
"Why bother?" Remus asked curiously.
"I can already hear the lecture she'd give about how I should have tried harder or some nonsense," Harry sighed.
Lily frowned at him for that, wishing he would try harder in this class even if he did hate the teacher, but at least holding herself back.
Determined not to give Snape a reason to ruin this attempt, Harry carefully studied every line of instructions today before brewing his potion. It was still a bit more runny and not quite the right shade of turquoise like Hermione's, but he handed it in with the satisfaction Snape couldn't say anything about it with mingled defiance and relief.
"I commend you, considering at some point I'd have just chucked the cauldron in his face," James snorted.
Hermione began babbling at once about OWL grades as they left for lunch, saying while she hadn't expected the top grade,
"I don't actually believe that," Remus snorted, "I can already imagine her near the end of this crying every five seconds if she doesn't get all O's."
even a pass at this stage was encouraging.
Neither boy responded, so she kept going on about how they now had time to improve, these grades were the baseline for their future-
"Is she going to keep going with this?" James groaned as he eyed the pages with misery. He'd been starting this thinking of more Umbridge carnage, but instead he'd been suffering through some OWL memories he'd have rather forgotten.
Ron finally cut her off if she wanted to know their grades, she should just ask them.
Hermione feigned surprise at the question, but finally did ask.
Ron said he'd got a P, while Fred popped up then to say there was nothing wrong with a good healthy P.
"Err, doesn't P mean-"
"Poor, yeah," Sirius said with chipper, "only one letter off from acceptable, so really they're not wrong."
Hermione was surprised at this statement, as P stood for Poor?
Lee agreed, then said at least it was better than D for Dreadful.
"I always thought it stood for Dunderhead," James grinned.
"Stop naming things after yourself James," Remus quipped.
Harry did not enter the conversation, but Hermione was still in full swing.
"This is most likely going to be an ongoing topic until next year, when she'll move onto complaining about her NEWT grades two years too early," Sirius groaned.
Hermione kept going saying the passing grades were O for outstanding, then A-
Though Fred corrected her E came next,
James gasped wildly, and then frantically prodded the page with his wand as if insisting to find a flaw.
"What do you mean Hermione doesn't know all these by heart?" Sirius agreed mildly. "The way she was obsessing over them, even having done some pre exams last year, you'd really think she'd know that."
"I'm actually quite sure she only took note of what the top grade was and didn't care about the others," Remus rolled his eyes.
for Exceeds Expectations. Personally he thought he and his twin should have gotten E's on everything, considering they exceeded expectations just by showing up.
Causing all five of them to giggle.
They all laughed except Hermione,
"Why is that a recurring thing, it always makes me sad," Lily sighed.
"Someone needs to tell her she's getting a T for her sense of humor, see if she lightens up any then," James agreed.
who ignored him and agreed then it was A for acceptable, and that was the last passing grade.
Ron mock celebrated then you could get a P, then D, while George finished with T, for troll.
Harry laughed unexpectedly, then looked around and realized that while they were smiling, he realized it was at his reaction, and he blinked in shock.
Harry laughed again, though he was not sure whether or not George was joking.
"Nope," Sirius grinned, "though I don't understand why they'd want to give you a letter grade that would make someone think, well that's better than B for Blast-Ended Skrewt."
"You're an idiot," Remus rolled his eyes.
He imagined end of year and getting T's on all his grades, and immediately resolved to do better on his work.
"Whatever gets you through it love," Lily grinned as the thought had never crossed her mind Harry would do any such thing. Even while being at his breaking point he'd still been putting effort into his homework, there was just no way he'd do so poorly on all his exams if he just tried a little harder.
Fred asked if they'd had an inspected lesson yet, because they just had in Charms.
George agreed she'd just sat in the back of the class making notes the whole time, and Flitwick was perfectly polite to her of course. Then near the end she went around asking them some questions on the subject.
Fred asked who they had for their afternoon classes and when Harry started with Trelawney, Fred agreed a T if ever there was one.
Causing them all to snort with laughter as they suddenly imagined the wonderful idea of if the twins had taken her class and the mayhem that could have been.
Then Umbridge herself.
George warned Harry about minding his manners then, because Angelina would do him in if he missed any more Quidditch practice.
"Because that's the important part," James said grimly as his eyes flashed protectively to his son again, wondering if it was possible Umbridge's detentions could somehow get worse if she realized Harry wasn't going to take her message.
Harry didn't have to wait for his last class to see Umbridge again though. As they were taking their seats inside Divination, a sudden hush went over the room as Umbridge entered, causing Trelawney to look around as Umbridge greeted her.
Lily felt an interesting struggle taking place in her mind. She'd disliked Trelawney from the instant she'd been introduced because of insisting her son was to die, which would set any mother on edge. Yet she hated Umbridge quantifiably worse for actually hurting her baby. She wasn't really sure what she wanted to see happen here, but she wouldn't deny she was listening just as curiously as the others.
She began by asking if she'd received the note Umbridge had sent about the date and time of this inspection?
Trelawney went stiff, nodded without response, and then spoke to the class as if she wasn't there that they would continue looking through their dreams.
"Can't deny I'm already intrigued," Remus said grudgingly. "Trelawney shouldn't have had much to do with her before now considering how rarely she leaves her own tower, which means her ire with this woman must come from something we haven't seen yet."
"Maybe just from students like Parvati and Lavender who might have talked about her," Sirius offered without much thought, but immediately corrected himself when he realized, "but they haven't exactly gone out of their way disliking Umbridge themselves yet either."
"I'm sure it's just the insult of her class being inspected," James snorted.
They divided into pairs and Trelawney went to take her seat, realized Umbridge was standing right behind it, and instead began circling the class.
Harry quickly made up a dream on the spot about how he'd drowned Snape in his cauldron.
"They say dreams are where you live out your fantasies," Sirius snickered.
Ron snickered as he went to work on this, saying you were supposed to add age to the date of the dream, plus the number of letters in the subject, before asking if that was drowning, cauldron, or Snape?
"Drowning, isn't it? The other two are nouns," Remus said absently.
"Nouns can be the subject," Lily shrugged, "it depends on verb usage and-"*
"Please, this is why I was grateful Hogwarts never subjected us to Muggle classes, don't start on things I don't care about," Sirius groaned.
Harry couldn't care less about the answer as Ron went to work while Harry eavesdropped on Umbridge catching up to Trelawney and beginning to ask her some questions, such as how long she'd been in this position?
Trelawney regarded her for a moment before deeming the question worthy of the answer sixteen years.
Harry felt a sudden whack at the base of his skull for some unknown reason, absently reaching up and brushing at the back of his head as if to make sure it was still attached but ultimately ignoring the sensation.
Then Umbridge asked that Dumbledore had appointed her himself?
Though it was getting harder by the moment as Umbridge's questions really were starting to dig something out of the base of his skull that was beginning to build up quite a bit of pressure...
Trelawney kept up her curt replies as Umbridge then asked that she was the great-great-granddaughter of the renowned Seer Cassandra Trelawney?
Remus felt an odd smile flicker across his face as some old Greek myth came to mind about the Seer Cassandra who nobody believed truly was one, but he didn't point this out to the others for once as he was more invested hearing about this.
But she was the first in her family line to have inherited the gift of Second Sight?
Trelawney had to hesitate for a moment before saying these things tended to skip, err, three generations.
"Was the pause because she had to think about it and count that on the spot?" James mocked.
Umbridge was clearly not impressed as she made a few notes of this, and then looked on and asked for a prediction to be made.
Trelawney was outraged at once, saying the Inner Eye did not See upon command!
James was almost amused by this, as normally Trelawney spat out so many predictions in a lesson you couldn't shut the woman up. Now Umbridge was asking for one, and that was offensive?
Umbridge shrugged with indifference as she went to make a note of this, but then Trelawney wildly switched to grasping at the pink cardigan, apparently overcome with the fear of what she was seeing, a dark peril looming...
"I think she made herself worse by doing that," Sirius sighed. "Should have just stuck with the first thing she said, then later and a lot more randomly spouted something at least generally more threatening than that generic mess."
Dolores Umbridge was in grave danger!
Umbridge raised an unimpressed brow and ticked off something before saying that would be all.
Lily actually had to catch herself to stop from laughing. Even knowing Trelawney was a true Seer still didn't make this waffle intimidating in the least, but she despised Umbridge too much to agree with her on any level so she held it in.
She turned away and began asking some students questions, while Trelawney stalked over to Harry and snatched his dream diary away, proclaiming in a carrying voice for all to hear that even his most mundane dreams were filled with fortunes of his death.
"Yeah, there it is," James said tartly, least she could always fall back on that one, though how she managed to make that less believable every time was an actual achievement on some level.
Harry was having a hard time feeling sympathy for her during this, and when they were finally released and entered Umbridge's own class, the woman was humming.
"Urgh, having to listening to croaking all lesson, I'd rather live with a cicada," Sirius rubbed at his ears in thought.
They took their seats in the back and pulled out their books, while the teacher instructed those hopeful few who'd left their wands out not to do this very thing.
"I'm not sure if that's ignorance or delusions," Remus sighed.
They were to begin chapter two now.
Still smiling to herself, she set about some papers on her desk. Harry began flipping mindlessly through until the thought occurred to him if there were enough chapters to keep this going all year, and he was just flipping to check on that when he noticed Hermione's hand raised again.
"So were there?" Lily asked.
"Don't know, never checked," Harry shrugged.
"Even if there weren't, I'm honestly wondering if she'd have just made you reread it from the start or something," Remus rolled his eyes.
Umbridge took a different approach this time and approached her instead, bending down on her level as Hermione told she'd already read chapter two.
When Umbridge told her to go on to the next one then, Hermione stated she'd read the whole book.
"Man I wish I was more surprised, actually I'm just sad for the wasted time," James sighed.
Umbridge looked mildly surprised as she then asked Hermione what the author had said about counter-jinxes in chapter fifteen then?
Hermione gave the accurate answer at once, and Harry saw Umbridge was impressed against her will.
"People get that a lot around her it seems," Sirius mused, he didn't always like Hermione either, but she never failed to impress him with her knowledge at least.
Hermione kept going though, that she did not agree with Mr. Slinkhards interpretation of counter-jinxes and his statement they were only used as another form of jinx-
Umbridge cut her off this wasn't up for discussion.
"That was already established," Lily cocked her head to the side as she tried to understand, "what was the goal of her doing this?"
James shushed her and read quickly to find out, if anyone could find a way to push Umbridge's buttons and make something interesting happen in that class, he'd bet on Hermione.
Hermione tried to say something else, but Umbridge cut her off by taking five points from their house, while Harry demanded what for? Ignoring Hermione's warning for him not to get involved.
"She is sitting right next to you when she started this," Remus rolled his eyes, "don't tell me she really thinks you'd stay out of it."
Umbridge gave the answer for disrupting class pointlessly.
"She simply asked a question of what she was supposed to do now she's done with the work," Sirius tried for an innocent tone, ineffective as he wasn't likely to receive an answer for that anymore than Hermione.
She was going to teach them a Ministry-approved method that did not include inviting students to give opinions on things they didn't understand.
"Every bit of that was the most ludicrous thing I've yet heard her say," Remus said faintly.
"I particularly like the part they're not supposed to have opinions on what's being 'taught'," Sirius sneered.
"She read the whole book, how can she still try to make that claim!" Lily demanded.
"I'm beginning to wonder if there's something conceded about her," James said deadpan.
Their previous teachers, with the exception of Quirrell, would never have passed an inspection-
Harry cut off Quirrell had been great, except the fact that he'd had Voldemort's head sticking out of the back of his own.
"I'm actually wondering how many of the students knew that at the end of the year anyways," Remus suddenly blinked in surprise.
"Not the point," Harry grumbled.
Umbridge hardly acknowledge what he'd said except to give him another week of detentions.
Lily made a guttural, maddening noise of frustration for Harry suffering through that all over again, and she vented on the only person available. "Harry James, stop antagonizing her! It's clearly done you no good, after multiple people have warned you to stop, and you are suffering more consequences than doing any good!"
Harry flushed with anger for a moment, considered snapping back he was doing more good than anyone else was even bothering to try, but then considered the fact that snapping at her would achieve nothing. His mother was simply angry with the situation and he did not want to start yelling at them like he had been his friends in the past, so he simply held his tongue and nodded absently, also failing to mention whatever he did he couldn't go back and stop himself from doing it here now could he.
The first consequences of this came up at dinner that night, where Fred's prediction came true at once and Angelina caused such a racket with her yelling at him over having to miss another practice that McGonagall swopped in and interceded, taking points away at once for all the noise in the middle of the Great Hall. Several Ravenclaws at the table behind were still watching the show.**
Angelina wasn't deterred, saying he deserved it for another detention ruining her regime.
McGonagall turned sharp eyes on Potter, demanding who this detention was from, and very clearly displeased at the answer as she took another five points away.
"Who takes away house points after you find out someone has detention?" James demanded in outrage. "What's McGonagall playing at, he's already suffering enough for this!"
"I guess she did warn him not to continue messing with her," Remus sighed, "this is her way of punishing him for disobeying her as well."
"That did not make this feel better," Sirius scowled.
Harry tried to protest he was already being punished enough, but McGonagall wouldn't hear it, claiming detentions didn't seem to work on him so maybe this would.
"The worst part is she doesn't even know what's going on in those detentions," Lily groaned miserably, just begging for the sharp eyed woman to spot Harry's hand and raise hell for it any day now.
She warned them both to confine the shouting to the pitch before departing.
"I do love how she says confine shouting at Harry, not stop it," Sirius muttered.
Harry slammed into his seat beside Ron in a fuming mess as he demanded how it was fair he was getting his hand sliced open and losing points?!
"Maybe she wouldn't if she knew that part," James seethed.
Ron was sympathetic for him, saying she was out of order with that one.
"Are we really the only ones insisting on how dumb it is you haven't mentioned this," Lily demanded. "What about Hermione?"
"Still haven't told her yet either," Harry muttered as he shifted uneasily in his seat, still wishing this would stop being mentioned all together.
Hermione, however, merely rustled the pages of her Daily Prophet and said nothing.
"So she does know?" Remus yelped at this glossed over development.
"I guess Ron did tell her at some point," Harry blinked in surprise, he'd been too angry to realize what he was saying to whom at the time. "Honestly I'm just happy she didn't give me another go to Dumbledore speech, so I'm grateful I wasn't around when she did find out."
Nobody agreed with him, though clearly repetition wasn't doing any good regardless.
Harry snapped at her that he thought their head of house was in the right then?
Hermione answered cooly that she wished Harry wouldn't get points taken away, but she also wished he'd stop losing his temper around Umbridge.
"Hermione was the one who started the last two fights!" Sirius couldn't help but defend. "Harry more than likely would have sat in the back of the class and not said a word if it wasn't for her."
"You can't blame Harry's action on what Hermione decides to do," Lily scolded.
"Doesn't help one of his mates isn't trying to fix this problem either," Remus shrugged.
Harry did not speak to Hermione all through their next class, but all memory of the fight evaporated when he walked into Transfiguration and first spotted Umbridge instead of McGonagall.
James actually began wriggling in place in sudden excitement. If he'd put money on anyone giving that toad a run for her galleons it would be McGonagall, there was no way she could push her around like she just had to Trelawney.
The three watched almost eagerly as class began, McGonagall acting as if the extra woman wasn't even there as she instructed Dean to pass out homework, and Lavender to start handing out mice, and warning that vertebrate animals were much harder to-
Harry was distracted as he got his work back and saw he'd made an A.
"And that was with the minimal effort," James applauded, while Lily rolled her eyes at him even if she did agree.
Dean took his seat and mouse and was at once scolded for doing something to it that would wind him up in detention-
"What'd he do?" James demanded on the same breath as he'd finished.
"He was trying to place it on Parvati's shoulder," Harry shrugged.
"Less inventive than I was hoping," Remus sighed.
While Umbridge used the same, hem, hem, cough to try and get attention.
McGonagall turned cold eyes on her as Umbridge began that McGonagall had received the date and time of her inspec-
McGonagall coolly cut across of course she had, otherwise she'd be wondering why the woman was here.
James made a little squee noise when he was done with that response while Sirius was already full blown laughing, he knew McGonagall was his favorite teacher for a reason!
Harry and Remus shared a triumphant smile while Lily said impatiently, "James if you don't keep going, I will," though her eyes were sparkling with their own amusement for their old head of house.
James clutched the book to him protectively as he kept going with glee.
Then she kept going as if nothing had happened, even though Umbridge did the same act again not moments later.
McGonagall didn't even face her this time as she said sharply how Umbridge expected to get an idea of her teaching methods if she kept being interrupted, as she did not permit others to talk while she was.
James couldn't do it though, he immediately burst out laughing again, and this time Lily couldn't deny joining in. This was hardly the fiery pit they wanted to toss Umbridge into for what she'd done to Harry, but even seeing someone hold their own against her in this way was the most satisfying thing that had happened so far!
Umbridge looked as if she'd been slapped, before hastily turning to a fresh page and scribbling furiously.
"I would pay anything to get my hands on those notes," Sirius' grin was slipping past amusement right into evil. "See just what her version of, I need a burn healing charm looks like."
Looking supremely unconcerned, Professor McGonagall addressed the class once more.
Harry wasn't paying much attention to her warnings of the complexity of the larger the animal the harder it was to vanish, he was to busy whispering to his friends how she could get onto him about losing his temper when she wasn't acting much better. There was no anger though, as he grinned at McGonagall, all anger forgotten.
"Technically McGonagall hasn't gained a detention yet, so she's still doing better than you," Sirius smirked even as he was leaning forward eagerly to hear more of this.
At the end of the lesson, Ron was putting away only a wriggling tail,
"It is indeed a good mark he's already got the larger portion of the body by the end of the first day," James agreed absently, his eyes still eagerly hoping for more between Umbridge and McGonagall.
as they began to file out, but hung back when they realized Umbridge was going up to talk to McGonagall. She asked only one question, of how long she'd been at this post?
McGonagall said thirty-nine years in December.
Umbridge jotted this down before saying she'd receive her results in ten days.
McGonagall gave the curt reply of how she couldn't wait as she swept away.
"She really shouldn't act so thrilled, sets a bad impression," Remus snorted.
She barked at the three lingering at the door to get a move on, but Harry swore she smiled as she passed.
"Favorite teacher," James repeated warmly, hoping that would leave some kind of impact on Harry in Umbridge's next class. He wasn't the only one defying Umbridge.
Harry sadly turned up at his next class only to find Umbridge there again, already talking to Grubbly-Plank. She was being asked that this was not her standard position, to which the sub agreed she was only standing in for Professor Hagrid.
"I don't think anyone's yet called him that," Sirius' face crinkled as that registered.
"Does sound kind of weird, even if it is appropriate," Remus agreed.
Harry's spirits sunk as he watched Malfoy approaching as well, knowing he'd love nothing more than to gossip about Hagrid strait to the Ministry.
"He's already been doing that, surely he can't do even worse damage," Lily said with unease even she didn't believe.
Umbridge then asked if Grubbly-Plank knew anything of Hagrid's absence, but the woman was bare on the subject, saying she'd simply been asked to fill in for an unspecified time, she'd agreed, and here they were.
Umbridge waved for her to start the class then, and they continued their work on bowtruckles as Umbridge went around the class and began asking students about magical creatures, to which no one gave a flawed answer. Harry at least felt hopeful none of them were letting Hagrid down.
Remus couldn't help but wince for that, thinking that was far more likely luck depending on the questions she was asking.
Then Umbridge circled back to Grubbly-Plank, asking how a new staff member felt here? Supported, or more ostracized from the everyday crowd.
Grubbly-Plank gave the simple answer she'd always felt welcomed here, never had a problem.
Umbridge looked politely incredulous,
"That she's the only one being treated like scum? Can't imagine why that would be," Sirius snorted.
"I'm sure that's a look," James snorted, his liking for Grubbly-Plank going up somewhat. Sure she was having to stand in for Hagrid, but at least she wasn't going behind his back and trying to rub up to Umbridge, he could respect that.
She then switched to asking of reports she had from injuries in this class, but Malfoy enthusiastically stepped in then, saying that was done to him, he was attacked by a hippogriff.
"At his own stupidity," James emphasized. "Everyone seems to skip that bit!"
Umbridge began almost happily jotting this down, while Harry shouted over at them it was because Malfoy was being too stupid to listen to Hagrid before it happened.
"Oh, thank you Harry," James groaned, that hadn't been what he meant at all.
Harry shrugged without remorse.
Umbridge turned a pleased smile on him as she gave him another week of detentions.
"What was that one even for?" Lily all but screeched. "Doesn't she still have to give a reason!"
Baby Harry began squirming in unease underneath his toy so she forced herself not to keep going while James pushed on, mostly because the answer was no, that woman didn't have to give a reason to anyone about anything she did. It was becoming quite clear that was the scariest part of all to look forward to.
That evening, despite the late hour, Harry did not return to the common room empty this time, but found Ron and Hermione waiting up for him. Hermione seemed anxious at his visage as she pushed a yellow bowl towards him, telling him it was essence of murtlap and it would help.
Harry wasn't quite sure what that was, but when he put his hand, that was bleeding freely, into it it soothed the pain at once.
Ron still tried to push Harry should tell someone about this, McGonagall would do something, but Harry still wouldn't hear it, pointing out next thing they knew there'd be a decree that the person who questioned Umbridge would get fired.
"That would still cause enough of a stir in the community for it to be relevant and absolutely worth it," James tried to keep his voice even as he explained to Harry. "McGonagall's tough as they come, even if she did have to leave for a time she'd be right back the next day because Dumbledore would never let that stand, and he'd have support from those realizing how ludicrous this all is getting."
"Please tell me you've been seeing reports in the Daily Prophet about more people saying what a problem this is," Lily agreed.
Harry just shrugged though, Hermione only passed along very certain things, and she hadn't said anything about this. If the wider wizarding world did care about what was going on, he wasn't hearing about it.
Ron tried to think of some way to argue, but then closed his mouth back.
Hermione hissed what an awful woman she was, they really should do something about her.
"Tie her to the Whomping Willow?" Sirius suggested at once.
"Transfigure her into a cat and introduce her to Fang?" James smirked.
"Introduce her to the mermaids of the Black Lake," Remus said just a touch bitterly.
"See how long she could survive in the Forbidden Forest," Harry envisioned the fun.
"Poison?" Lily couldn't seem to stop herself tacking in much to all the boys amusement.
Ron had suggested poison,
"Ha!" Lily pumped a fist in triumph, "two against you lot!"
"That's fair," Sirius miraculously gave in.
"Can it at least be a slow acting one?" James contended.
"I can work that," Lily agreed.
but Hermione said she'd meant something more practical about her horrid teaching habits, how they weren't learning any Defence this year.
"Well I mean, she's not wrong," Remus snorted.
"Yet I don't really see how that's so different from your first two years either," Sirius sighed.
Ron couldn't see a way around this, she had the job and that clearly wasn't changing any time soon.
"At least until the end of the year," Lily still looked for that bright spot.
Hermione shot Harry a nervous look before beginning to tell what she was thinking today,
"Should I be worried that's how this is starting?" James looked bemused as he kept going.
that they should just learn DADA themselves.
"That's really not that far fetched an idea," Remus shrugged, "we had to do it a few years as well. Our teachers never got to the level of trying to kill us mind you, but they weren't all stellar either."
"I don't know, remember Novak? Considering how many spells he used backfired on himself, I think at some point that counts as attempted murder when he still encouraged us to trust him," Lily shrugged.
Ron scoffed at the idea of doing more extra homework, they were already behind as is.
Hermione said this was more important than homework.
"Hang on," Sirius mimed cleaning out his ears, "alright read that bit again."
James ignored him.
The boys goggled at her saying such blasphemy, Ron insisting she'd always said homework was the most important thing in the universe!
Hermione brushed them off for being silly,
"She had yet to say otherwise," Harry rubbed at his ear at all her remembered lectures.
stating this was about learning to defend themselves from what was out there.
Harry looked honestly bemused Hermione had taken his words to heart like that, no matter how much he still vouched for them being true.
Ron still wasn't on the idea, saying sure they could look up jinxes and practice them, but-
"Just like you did at the end of last year," James agreed, "that seemed to help you out loads, even with a competent if murderous teacher."
but Hermione said it would be all the better if they had a teacher, someone who already knew a boat load of spells and could correct them if they were doing it wrong.
Harry began if she was talking about Lupin,
"Naw, you're the first teacher he thought of Moony," Sirius chuckled.
"Shut up Padfoot," Remus said around a smile.
but Hermione at once said that wouldn't work, he couldn't come around often enough to be of help.
"Not with that Umbridge woman about anyways," Lily said grimly, as it had honestly been a good idea for a moment for Dumbledore to summon him to the castle at his random choosing, and just incidentally running into Harry and his friends, for a few hours, no one in the school would really question that too much if it had worked out that way. That pink frosted lump of dragon dung though would put a wrench into anything like that.
Harry couldn't imagine who else she was talking about, but then she said him of course.
Harry looked at his dad in bewilderment, before looking at the other three who all looked just as surprised at the answer as him to his relief.
"Honestly, for a moment there I thought she was leading up to herself," James snorted.
"I mean, I suppose she's not got the wrong idea," Lily pulled gently on a strand of hair as she thought about it, "but no offense love, I haven't really seen you with the patience yet to be teaching anyone much."
"Ron was better at teaching you chess than you were explaining how a phone worked," Sirius snorted in agreement.
"Oh stop picking on him," Remus scolded, though Harry hardly looked offended, he still had a politely puzzled expression on his face like he was still nursing the idea and had hardly heard them. "I don't find it a bad idea at all, Harry was the only thirteen year old I've ever seen to manage a Patronus, even you two hadn't managed that until fifth year to find out what you were going to turn into only a few months later. If Harry could master that, I'm sure passing that knowledge along wouldn't be much of a challenge."
"There's a difference between being a good student and being as good a teacher," Sirius shrugged, but he backed down altogether as Harry was starting to look a little hurt they were still giggling more than anything at the idea.
James kept himself going in hopes Hermione would come to some conclusion this should be more a group effort between the three than Harry starting secret lessons to teach these two anything.
Harry was stunned at the idea, turning to Ron for some backup, but he seemed just as keen on this as Hermione now she'd pointed it out.
Harry began laughing it off, saying what good would he do, while Hermione said in exasperation to think of all he'd done.
"Really Harry, you apparently spent all summer complaining about this bit, but you need this part explained," James rolled his eyes.
When Harry still didn't get their meaning, Ron started to laugh he didn't want someone this stupid teaching him, before beginning loudly of all his accomplishments, like second year killing the Basilisk and Riddle.
Harry tried to interrupt that had been Fawkes and-
"I really am loving the reverse of this conversation," Sirius gave a forced smile. "How are you the one saying you shouldn't get credit for doing this now, when it was you shouting at them you did all this single handedly to them at that house?"
Harry was scarlet by now, both from remembered shock of his friends throwing this at him, and how true that comment was that put on the spot he still didn't want to admit all the things he'd done no matter how angry he'd been he'd felt ignored.
"Can't have it both ways," Lily told him gently as she seemed to read his mind.
Ron completely ignored him and was still going on, coming up with fourth year and everything he'd done there as well, he and Hermione were smirking by the end as Harry felt his temper rising, he wasn't even sure where the anger was coming from.
"Actually neither am I," James frowned lightly from the book to Harry now. "At most they're still pulling your leg, what's the anger for?"
Harry brushed at his scar without comment, a deep look in his eyes that shot a thrill of fear through James instantly promising him he actually didn't want to know the answer, so he quickly moved on.
He began telling them how he'd blundered through all that, not because he was any good at Defence, he'd always had help and- stop laughing at him!
Remus let out a low whistle of surprise as he told Harry, "when you get angry, you really ramp yourself right to the top at once."
"Harry doesn't do anything halfway," Sirius said halfheartedly, Harry leaning back into the couch looking miserable he'd been caught shouting at them again, and they hadn't done anything even remotely close to deserving it this time.
He lunged to his feet so fast he knocked the essence of murtlap away, now practically shouting at them they didn't understand, none of that had been skill when he'd fought Voldemort, that Cedric had been just as good as him and he'd died so if they were insinuating he'd messed up and Harry had somehow done something better-
James had winced at every blow Harry dealt his friends, of all the pain and fear his son had suffered without anyone there to help, how even hearing it first hand hadn't quite left them with the reality Harry had lived through. To them it was all in a distant future, something they hoped never had to happen to him and so without underplaying the events happening they kept pushing past these terrible moments because it would ultimately help him to remember them just to find a way he'd never have to live through them. Most of all, James wanted more than anything for Harry never to have to witness what had happened in that graveyard, to Cedric.
Ron looked aghast Harry had come to the conclusion they were having a go at Cedric.
Harry was aware, and very grateful no one had snapped at him for this in here. He distantly saw himself doing these things, pushed into this uncontrollable anger from something he didn't understand, but one truth stood out his friends would never insinuate any such thing, so he was grateful for the silence ringing in here.
Hermione was near tears now as she insisted this was exactly the reason they needed to learn, he was the only one who had ever faced V-Voldemort.
"Well there's a distraction if ever there was one," Sirius blinked slowly to refocus off of Harry's anger, how everything he'd said had been all too real.
It was the first time Hermione had ever said Voldemort's name, and for some reason this calmed Harry. He sat back in his seat, his hand now throbbing worse than ever and gazed at the broken glass and essence of Murtlap now seeping into the carpet.
Hermione got her feet as if to go to bed, quietly asking him to just think about it.
Lily opened her mouth, wanting to say something in comfort as well as push for a change of subject, but Harry was still looking miserable and rubbing hard at his scar again, so she was afraid to push him while he was too vulnerable.
Harry nodded silent agreement now as she went off to bed, Ron following suit. Harry repaired the bowl with a quick spell, but could do nothing for more medicine for his hand.
"Wonder how she got hold of that," Sirius happily shot off, as always just looking for something to say in the awkward silence.
"She's too proud asking the house-elves for a batch," Remus played along, "I more imagine she might have asked Madam Pomfrey for some, given a vague reason as to why she wanted it."
"I'll buy that," Sirius said, looking hopefully at Harry like he was hoping for confirmation, but even if he had ever bothered to ask Harry spoke nothing for or against the idea.
He was more exhausted now than when he'd stepped in, but still he forced himself to climb up the stairs rather than sleeping in the common room, and had another restless night of dreams full of locked corridors, and waking to his scar prickling again.
Harry twitched harder than ever in his seat, his eyes swimming with pain as he yearned to understand how it all fit together, and terrified of learning the answer.
HPHPHPHPHP
I probably came off pretty anti-government in this chapter, and I swear I'm not actually trying to whip up a rebellion and start an anarchy, I just always found it really extreme that clearly since it's conception Hogwarts seemed to have stood as it's own body, but suddenly the government was stepping in and causing a ton of reforms, and the public seems generally okay with this? Of course the Daily Prophet likely didn't post more outrage than a couple people quitting, I don't even know how it would have been put into the narrative, I'd just have liked to see more people be confused and angry about this sudden regime change going on inside the most popular wizarding school in Britain.
*I was actually never very good at English, I have no clue what the actual answer was, thank you for nothing four years of high school.
**I pointed this out in the last book, but this is now a blatant mismatch of the house tables. Last time it was the Hufflepuffs on their other side as Harry had to walk past them, this time it's Ravenclaws? Someone must have been right in saying it does switch up on a regular basis.
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